kept calls and gere's us at the tone for cia hopeful john brennan's confirmation hearing with obama's i'm thinking men singing these bed top of questions over drones a torture and targeted executions. tens of thousands marched on spain streets amid calls for the government to go after a fresh round of budget cuts and sees a spike in university fees and the end of free prescription drugs for pensioners. tunisia could be stretched to the limits as a country gears up for more protests and even strikes on the day of the funeral of the opposition leader whose murder unleashed the new anti government sentiment.

and a draft bill in the u.k. and she opened up private online communication to the authorities for their concerns a stake in national security a step too far from. its midday here in the moscow you're live with us on our g it's good to have your company with us. it wasn't quite to the grilling that many had predicted as president obama's pick to head the cia face the senate in his confirmation hearing the session began with thompson gere's before the audience with cleared out lawmakers then poked and prodded john brennan on the themes from torture to drones but appeared to back off when push came to shove are his damages you can now report

on the questions that weren't asked. what most people expected to hear was how does the u.s. government make decisions as to who should be on their kill list and mr brennan would certainly be the most appropriate person to ask because he is known to have been in charge of the kill list and he's known as the architect of the administration's targeted assassinations program so the question of who the drones are targeting was critical and one of the senators asked john brennan whether there should be at least some judicial oversight over those executions by drones and here's what he said none of those actions or to determine past guilt for those actions that he took the decisions that are made or to take action so that we prevent future action to protect american lives so the rationale that john brennan gave for not going to court is that the administration is not in the business of punishing individuals but it's in the business of preventing attacks he basically says the u.s. government could execute people who are what they haven't done yet and you would

expect a follow up questions from lawmakers as to how the administration determines the level of threat as these people constitute let's imagine an angry yemeni man who writes in his blog bag he hates america as you can see is wife died in a drone strike and he wants to take revenge is that enough to justify him being killed by a drone there are so many questions about how the administration decides to put someone on their kill list and yet there was not sneer another grilling on the part of the senators to gets received fifty answers prior to the hearing a memo was released which the justice department handed over to congress and according to the memo the government can kill people overseas even without evidence that they are actively plotting against the u.s. the paper states that the u.s. would be able to kill a u.s. citizen or non-citizen overseas when asked what unquote an informed high level of social of the u.s. government determines the target is an imminent threat to them here for also suggest that such decisions would not be subject to judicial review and outlines

a broad definition of what constitutes imminent threat. at the very beginning of the hearing as john brennan was delivering his remarks he was interrupted five times or so by protesters who stood up and express these shouted out rather their opposition to those executions senators had to take a recess for for the protesters to be removed from the hearing and these protests are steered by numerous reports that drone strikes kill innocent people as well not just suspected terrorists everybody expected tough questions on drones but that did not happen john brennan got away with very broad answers like the program is saving lives and that you should take the administration's word for it. a private hearing now awaits john brennan in order to iron out technicalities but given his performance at his senate activists and author david swanson a surprise he was nominated in the first place. because someone who was deemed

unacceptable four years free vs speak closing his involvement in torture and rendition is now acceptable because he engages in a program of murder and the goodness of murder outweighs the bad list of the torture recent polls found that well only twenty four percent of americans support killing americans with drones eighty three percent support killing nine americans with drones there is a clear bias you can do the math and see what percentage of americans are bigots or i dragged before us court charged with mass murder i could not see it your honor i have a memo was drafted explaining why this is ok the president should not be able to do that either but that seems to be where the debate is going in. the last week has seen in three major confirmation hearings with the senator ranging from pampering to outright hostility on a website and we've got more on how the three candidates might change america's foreign policy. tens of thousands of students and teachers have

taken to the streets of spain on the largest day of protests so far amid calls for the government to step aside spain's public sector is facing fresh cuts what they head to education expected to be nearly five billion euros polish major producer at artie's a ruptly video agency but to some of the demonstrators. hundreds of people are gathered here in madrid complaining about cuts in education they are mostly students parents of students and teachers but the education is not their only concern they're also demanding the resignation of the government the government of money i know who has been accused of receiving bribes from private companies and opening bank accounts in switzerland look at other people you can see burton's saying calling spain the last vegas of the european union and also complaining about the lack of democracy that people are protesting and there is no solution to their complaints to some. larry if a teacher. if i have to pay

a mortgage and everything i can to send two kids to university i will have the money and how is privatization in the educational sector hourman education in spain well they see everything us business no matter what you do it ok sure should be an occasion for people to make money out of food to they don't see it as a public service or not you know the whole service is the same they save you get to leave you have a problem you are a customer and you are you're going they're going to make money out of you it's just a rupture and they did the money and they rescinded budgets we have. no protection for the public system this has become a trademark of spawn these demonstrations after every march those sweeping trucks come rapidly and sweep all the streets leaving no evidence that there was a demonstration against the government. a budget battle in brussels as a fresh e.u. summit kicks off to all the clubs traditional economic powerhouses are nothing i'd

to eye with which in leading calls will cuts to the budget as france accuses the u.k. of hypocrisy on this just ahead. tunisia is bracing itself for a third straight day of street battles friday sees the funeral of a key opposition figure who's a fascination became a catalyst for the late latest wave of anti-government protest the country's trade unions have also called a general strike to protest against the creep believed murder was pinned on the slum is leadership in the latest showdown police are used tear gas on a mob boss rolling stones angry protesters chanting anti-government slogans trying to approach the country's interior ministry in the capital tunis archie's crew was also caught up in the end rest as artie's maria from national now reports. temperatures are still very high and tensions are still at the very day. the very risky level the level that is threatening and challenging the security and

stability in this country trojans have been continuing strong thursday we've seen many many people on the streets they've been many clashes between police and opposition supporters and again police has been using tear gas against protesters my crew and me we've been attacked by a group of youngsters we've just because we've filmed them and that tells a lot of all the situation on the ground we've been hearing about similar violence and similar disturbances throughout the country especially in the southern part of tunisia where the headquarters of the ruling party has been vandalised the protests may go even more violent intentions may go even further but there has been attempts to ease the tensions in the country from prime minister if the idea was to form a government that will not be affiliated to any political party no politics and government but the islamist party dominated tunisia's governing coalition and rejected its own front ministers decision ok i understand the reason an internal

political crisis it's definitely to be very hard for this country to overcome this crisis. georgia's parliament is edging the president out of power of following a crackdown on dissent and revelations of human rights abuses now that he has been prevented from making his an annual address even though he's still president all the details coming up. panda fireworks and a spectacular gala show a day of celebration in russia's black sea resort of sochi marking one yeah until the most expensive winter olympics ever to show way. the british government is trying to get its hands on private a web information is drawn up a documentary for achieved by some as the snoopers charter which looks to give authority its war rights to spy on the citizens online is one concerns over an invasion of privacy artists or for the looks at whether such measures could enhance

the national security. the main area of concern surrounds this the draft communications data bill and proposals in it that critics say could see the public left wide open to having their facebook accounts or twitter e-mails read anything that they visit online the websites that they gayety logs by the government now understandably those plans to prevent hugely controversial with critics labeling it the snoop is charter now perhaps more concerning is the latest report by the intelligence and security committee and they'd like to see a nationwide surveillance regime implemented now the government say that they need to do this to catch criminals and stop terrorism but there's lots of the members of the public saying where are safeguards when it comes to what we do online will seek more about this i'm now joined by professor and sneakily to the director studies security and intelligence studies at the university of akron thank you very much

for joining us you're in support of the draft communications data below i heard you describe yourself at a recent talk the skunk at the picnic if these fees and these proposals are so unpopular why are the government pushing them through all the time when the government is pushing them through because the government realizes that they're needed some thirty million people use the internet to communicate with each other each day in the united kingdom people in this country fully accept that more than one hundred years. their telephone conversations are likely to be mine if they're seen as a national security risk so it's completely absurd to think that there should be this new form of communications that should somehow be exempt from these sorts of measures. to bugger thorough need to warrant with these proposals the idea that

perhaps my information is fine members. public underling nothing well why should my emails be localized to my twitter account the eighth and to investigate well it's important to realize that this is not a charter to mine everyone it's a charter to mine anyone against to there is intelligence of being a serious risk to our national security a mom or another and even a chance and then this is the public would still be kept we're talking well what the government is asking the internet service providers to do is to retain data that at the moment they're just getting rid of so if there is a suspicion that a particular person is engaged in serious organized crime sex trafficking or terrorism the government can then institute a probe as a member of the public what if i do my emails for a well if you don't want your e-mails pro. your norm

engaged in any kind of illegal activity your e-mails won't be pro if you want if you want complete privacy don't write any letters to your friends don't speak to them on the telephone and don't send them photographs of yourself in jockeying that can very much for joining us a furtherance of islam has that is the solution maybe it's the time for a big log of things hey someone is actually watching their first london. image is everything and even amid the continuing economic crisis e.u. leaders plan to spend millions on an online propaganda blitz aimed at enhancing the block's reputation via the use of social media i'll have more on that story as well as others when we come back. well. it's technology innovation all the developments

around russia we've got this huge earth covered. you know how sometimes you see a story and it seems so for lengthly you think you understand it and then you glimpse something else you hear or see some other part of it and realized everything you thought you knew you don't know what i'm charging welcome to the big picture. if you.

want to welcome back you're with r.t. e.u. leaders have sought a tough negotiations over the blogs next budget that a full seven years from two thousand and fourteen the financial wrestling comes with u.k. prime minister david cameron in one corner getting called for major spending cuts and prices hit countries only of them are just as a silly explains what else makes the talks us so complex. we've seen some of the leaders who had arrived here already making strong statements first of all david cameron continuously saying that if the budget is not brought down to a level that he is happy with there will be no deal we've heard from countries who are saying that they maybe use their veto if they are not happy such as the czech republic to simplify the vickery going on right now it would be between a northern and southern countries you could say the wealthier nations versus those that actually depend more on the e.u.

funding on the one hand you have countries like the u.k. germany the netherlands denmark these countries are supporting harsher cuts to the e.u. budget david cameron being the most radical and controversial taking this step now he has been demanding since november last year in two thousand and twelve that was the first try today is the second try and since that until now he's been demanding for cuts in brussels bureaucracy for instance but on the other side you have those countries who are dependent on these forums and one of the loudest voices on this is france wal-mart france also the u.k. is coming into this summit this is the first time since david cameron announced that in or out referendum that he said that he would pose the question of whether he should remain in the e.u. twenty seventeen if he's reelected in twenty fifteen of course this is a possibility of a creating even more tension in the u.k. with the cost benefit of actually being a member of the e.u. interpreted by the other members not being

a team player in this regard and also as this talk is happening talking about budget cuts of the e.u. level we see the budget cuts on a more local ground level we've seen the protests continuing even until today people very angry at the cuts imposed on them on their livelihoods on their pensions are on their potential jobs while the e.u. cannot agree upon a budget of their own. and the image is everything in politics them in these times of austerity the e.u. is eager to do whatever it takes to maintain a good reputation even if it means spending big two million euros have apparently been earmarked to spend on p.r. war with online euro skeptics nigel farage from the u.k. independence party thinks such action is a show the block is no more than a banana republic they decided that they got to train in house staff in the run up to the european elections of twenty fourteen train those people to go online to

look at facebook twitter and other social media sites and to correct that's their word not mine to correct any misapprehensions that may exist about the european union and i have to say the fact that it's a parliament that is doing this that is using taxpayers' money to do this says a lot about the institutions that are open about parliaments is the person is it's in the chair of parliament he's the speaker in westminster he's the chairman of the parliaments around the world but he has all the rest of the staff are supposed to be neutral they're not supposed to take any political position at all and the fact of the parliament decided he's going to spend money time and resources doing this shows you that frankly they're no better than a banana republic and this is all the mcgarvie would do or someone like that so i think many people outside would be shocked by it having worked there myself for thirteen years i'm not surprised at all they are really really scared they're

scared that from north to south to east to west all over the european union citizens are saying we've never voted for this thing to become the united states of europe we've never asked to have the majority of our laws made somewhere else and we want to do something about it so they're scared and they're fighting back. right on a website a key documents in russia's recent history disappear as you call to declare in the soviet union's break up vanishes in bellary use blocking predictions of the fever might make a fortune. also while you have the alien life will fall but scientists claim that our galaxy contains billions of the century habitable planets read more on that and archie dot com. the georgian parliament has postponed presence a gushy these annual andrus has pantano minority refused to agree to the

constitutional amendments removing his right to fire the government the president party lost its grip on power in a recent parliamentary vote following a crackdown on protests and claims of human rights abuses against political prisoners archies let's hear a chef ski has been hearing for his hand accounts. georgia has performed miracles we moved from being a failed state will be one of the top business destinations in the world while it would be high to graphic comic freedom according to the world bank i'll be number one fighter with corruption it worldwide immensely people started to believe in the stations people started to believe the mockers it was because it is giorgio the beacon of democracy and freedom not from your viewpoint when he's universities rectory refused to build a prayer room he helped organize a ten thousand strong peaceful student rally but it ended with his arrest and sentence before the law yes i want to see you know what guards could just walk into our cell and start beating us for no reason the even put twenty year old students

in wheelchairs in prison one of the inmates went insane because they showed him footage of how his wife was being raped. georgie thought he'd be spending his time with murderers and drug barons and stan he found himself among academics architects and righteous all jailed for having a different opinion to the country's leadership. works as an advisor to the minister of the penitentiary system and used to be classmates with saakashvili she believes the astonishing number of prisoners in georgia during his reign was to a large extent personally driven. wanted as what he had often been joked at in school and he directed his revenge against his former classmates when he became president most of them were either stripped of their businesses are put to prison in his presidency we've had twenty five thousand people in jail. weeks before last year's parliamentary vote a news of a successful counterterrorism operation in eastern georgia made headlines eleven

suspected militants from russia's north caucasus were killed but some said the whole thing was a hoax to discredit russia and in fact the slain men were georgians about them. first of all their weapons were american made second not. one of them fired off a single shot but it's not all the uniforms of the so-called fighters were brand new lease was saakashvili is planned he has sent his guys across the border into russia and then have them shot by the georgian police this was a set up just to frame russia shortly after that event a shocking video of prisoner abuse in georgia jails went viral and effectively diminished the president's party support by more than a half which lost both the election and control over the country it's not yet known where the second street will face prosecution of the prison torture allegations for two hundred political prisoners a change of power a man with a chance to walk free because like us really well for many remain as georgia's president until october but he's powers have already been transferred to the prime

minister we do want to see has already declared a national wide amnesty of political prisoners but experts say there is socialization may take several more years it's really still try to block the amnesty with furious comments. i will not sign papers which will allow paedophiles on racists to walk free. let the parliament claim responsibility for that but. r.t. reporting from belief in georgia. now let's have a look at some other international news in brave to back to back its patients have been through a busy shine to area of baghdad reporters a killing at least twenty nine people one of the bombs was hidden in a box at a market and the other one was in a parked car targeting business city areas on fridays which is the start of the muslim weekend has become a widespread terror tactic within. a

ferry carrying around one hundred passengers has gone down in a river in central bangladesh reports suggest that more than forty people have been rescued or want to show schools are still remain missing there have been no immediate reports of casualties. ferry accidents are common in bangladesh due to faulty vessels and lex regulations. right after a day of picture perfect celebrations the work in the rush of the winter olympics host city of sochi is in full swing once again the festive spirit spread not only across russia but dreams as far as the u.n. headquarters in new york as it marked a one year until the games are g.'s and reform revs up the momentous day in live and he's joining me live from sochi andrew we've seen some of the pictures fireworks of the works but i know you were there tell us a little bit about what happened yesterday. after six

years of relentless construction i think sorties entering the final home straight in terms of getting prepared for these games last night to mark the one year to go can down there was a lavish ceremony here at the limpy part of a fireworks and also a spectacular skating show that took place in the bolshoi ice time which is that big sort of christmas pudding of a building you can see behind me that was all very impressive countdown clocks rule so switched on across russia and as you mentioned there i think a touch of the limp experience even reach the u.n. building in new york now if you're a fan tickets have gone on sale now the cheapest ones you can pick up or something like fifteen dollars and if you're rich or the national you fancy scratching a bit of cash you can pick up a tickets watch the opening ceremony for something like fifteen hundred dollars i have been here for the last few days and have been very impressed with what i've seen most of the sporting venues in our police running and that is staggering considering most of them had to be built. scratch there was one area of concern and

that was the big story the ski jumping center up in the mountains which you can see also in the distance that. they are slightly behind and also over budget and that story of president putin actually sack a senior member of the russian olympic committee yesterday but overall the message is very positive this isn't the deal it's setting i mean i'm just makes is from the black sea here people swimming in there just minutes ago it's fifteen degrees these will be the first olympics that will be held in the subtropical climate and if you're coming here to watch the sport i think you will thoroughly enjoy it simply because it's so easy to get around the olympic park is extremely compact which means you can walk around all the venues there within about twenty minutes which basically means you could watch something like the ice hockey the killing and all the skating events and then if you wanted to see on the same day you could get on a train and within thirty minutes you'd be up in the mountains to watch the alpine events so it's been extremely well laid out these games will be one of the most compact and the message from the russian officials but also more importantly the

i.o.c. the international olympic committee is that russia will be ready yes this still work going on as you can see that really relates to the infrastructure the still building a lot of roads here and laying down road and rail links the athletes' village is still under construction that's on my right hand side but overall the message the message is sort she will be ready in twenty fourteen and i hope in one year's time everything here will be pristine and ready to go. and do we hope so too i am a little bit jealous because it seems like you have a bit of sand a bit freezing here out here in moscow obviously you have the best of both worlds winter wonderland and a little bit of sun and in forty giving us an update on that momentous occasion marking the one year after the start of the winter is on the banks coming. right there for all i have for you this hour next hour stay with us for our latest special report here on our team.

saudi arabia has ordered its retailers to construct one point six meter tall barriers in the middle of their stores a rather unusual demand is that something related to everyone's favorite buzzword terrorism no it is to keep male and female coworkers separate saudi arabia is pretty infamous in the west for its laws regarding the sexes and their segregation activists always want to go to other countries to convince them to adopt western attitudes that deep down in their hearts they secretly want but often they miss things like the fact that it was saudi women who ask for the segregation feeling uncomfortable while buying products from men according to a.f.p. you know some people in countries like saudi arabia or north korea my.