watching r t tonight nazi like atrocities of being reported in war torn syria residents of a small town outside damascus describe to r.t.o. antigovernment islam is have been burning civilians in other words and using others as human shields. and russia once again draws the un's attention to evidence that the syrian rebels have used chemical weapons to set up the government and points deep flaws in the work of investigators. other headlines uncertainty hangs over ukraine still tonight as the e.u. says it's frozen trade talks while keeping up pressure on the president and blaming moscow for meddling. also to amnesty international condemns the torture of detainees including children in bahrain well rights workers there say the scale of the abuse is even worse than the latest report suggests. and

a british energy company finds a massive wind turbine sprawled across the entrance to his drilling site a gift apparently from anti fracking activists caught up in the christmas. just past eleven pm no you're moscow my name's kevin zero in this is r.t. international and our top story a disturbing story to start this hour as mentioned terrified residents of the syrian town say they've seen entire families being murdered by rebels and civilians kidnapped and used as human shields. is just outside damascus was stormed by al qaeda linked to how these two launched a massive assault on residents reportedly killing more than eighty clothing children are spoke to some of the survivors. a man came to search our

houses and demanded to see our documents he told us to step outside but he spoke in a foreign dialect they killed everyone at our drew miley a police station and also to local hospital where my sister works she still lives on that because she didn't show up for work that day there are still about two hundred civilians at the police station the militants are hiding among them using them as human shields to prevent the army from showing the building while i witness is even compared the killings to death camps. you'll tins from chabad a looser and the army of islam seize control of all the streets and cross roads very quickly this iteration became terrible there were killings outrage and fear the worst thing in their crime was when the shah people in the baker's old and the cuban people and many will be killed. i still can't recover from the shock i went through on black wednesday but praise be to allah i managed to grab my kids and my wife at the very last moment and flee under

a hail of bullets that was terrifying or just recently i spoke with a friend whose name i won't disclose he is still hiding in the basement of his house here my other friends told me about the atrocities committed by the rebels what they have done to civilians is simply horrific if tortured innocent unarmed people inflicted a lot of bloodshed the army's in the town right now battling hardline radicals who want assad government to fall my colleague mr know spoke to a british journalist earlier john white who believes the rise of extremism in syria is a dire mistake of western foreign policy. i didn't wait to this particular atrocity is the announcement just recently made by the british and us governments that the have ceased the describers known lethal lead to defeat the syrian army this is a clear acknowledgement that what we are seeing is not of revolution in any meaningful sense this is an invasion by islamists and sunni fundamentalists

sponsored and funded by saudi arabia. and these latest reports were not really picked up by other media outlets they're focusing on the lead's government assault in aleppo where seventy people including children were killed are these rebel atrocities being deliberately ignored here yes because it would be biased both the british and american governments and their liberal supporters in the west you try to support the rebels as much as he can even if he so of the undeniable evidence that these rebels as i say are part of an attempt to turn not only the country but the entire interview for minorities. on the way to turning the clock back to the seventh century i really do think there needs to be a public inquiry into how we came so close to effectively acting as al-qaeda in syria as if force along with our u.s. counterparts russia's foreign minister who's part was condemned the massacre

outside damascus the latest in a string of sectarian killings across the country says for cilla's got the details about. foreign minister sergey lavrov had gay given a general statement on what's happening in the region where russia is concerned as well as its international partners he said that in cases of trying to work together to deal with the situation there he does feel that there need to be equal footing and fair consideration of where the different parties stand he gave syria as an example where russia's voice he felt was heard by the international community in coming up with that syrian resolution but another thing on syria that he had a comment on is the recent killing he had talked about how the different factions as russia had always pointed out in the past have become more and more extreme and this is what he had to say. the massacre that was barbaric for christians jews and will slow of the even sunni muslims i believe who rejected the hardline islamist rules that these people preached but i see again this isn't the

first time this is happened not long ago human rights watch established the other groups with no less brutal groups that now make up the so-called islamic front we know that at this inception even job was considered a potential member of the only reason it was excluded was to keep these fronts reputation clean as. is considered a terrorist organization there are even reports that our american colleagues with the islamic front representatives trying to get them to join the free syrian army. says e.u. partners want russia to be helping out in the situation of libya but he says that russia wants to have a say in the way the operations are going and that's the kind of equal footing that they want the russian you start to prove ukraine is not a major issue i guess that came up. before a lover of even came here there were a lot of warnings from the other foreign ministers that he's going to get an earful from the e.u.

partners about russia meddling in the affairs of ukraine a lover of the did say pointed out to the behavior of the european partners in this . what he had to say the scriptures to that. too often in the last few days we've been hearing statements saying how good things would be a few new russia would stop meddling in the ukraine's affairs we see our western partners coming to clear than going straight to my done to hand out cookies and call on the ukrainian people to make what they call a free choice and choose europe. and he also said that europe the e.u. tends to want all and all the while and he said it's only natural that the countries would consider their national national interests in the process he see urged transparency where ukraine is concerned coming from the us and e.u. partners in dealing with the russian he says that ukraine is a very important partner for russia and therefore that he would he would advise that all parties involved in peace talks would be considered as russia would also

want to see the best deal for ukraine where the e.u. was concerned. to make signals over ukraine's possible trade deal with the e.u. tonight which has been the source of massive protests for the past month a senior year official stated that all talks and i want to hold while you crazy authorities say they're progressing that in this hesitant and confused atmosphere the u.s. seems eager to assume the role of decision maker to. report. trauma care. bremer oh there are few americans with you right john mccain's media conference in kiev was rich in loud statements simply veiled warnings to moscow we need to make it clear. to the russian government but i'm here putin that interference in the affairs of ukraine is not acceptable to the united states of america or to any other free country in the world followed by explicit

threats to kiev if the movement membership in the e.u. is not achieved that is going to have very serious effects here in ukraine and in u.s. craned the relations he accused russia of interfering but many question twice he was there in the first place it's not the first time john mccain has been seen playing a visit to the united states is currently lending its support to he had a photo op with some syrian rebel kidnappers now it's a world boxing champion turned politician and mccain is not the only american politician in ukraine his appearance that gets independence square was preceded by u.s. assistant secretary of state victoria nuland handing out cakes to the protesters the reason they are there is bluntly because i think these people want to detach the ukraine from russia as they see it and they think that by supporting the protesters in kiev they might actually achieve that the problem with that strategy is that it's simply not working the balance between the ukraine and russia

economically and culturally ethnically and simply too strong and i think for american politicians and indeed european politicians to go to the ukraine and to try to do that is actually very unwise and very dangerous and he simply exacerbating making we'll see the differences the divisions in the ukraine which are already very great but as u.s. officials seem keen on pushing the u.s.o.c. deal through. to brussels all but shut the door and signing it through or tweets from the man in charge of e.u. expansion it's unclear whether it's a matter of the e.u. or not budging on ukraine's pleas for more financial help upon signing the agreement the previous offer of six hundred million euro was branded as humiliating by unocal which or brussels rumored willingness to seize any talks with this government this latest statement by the european always also puts huge brazilian a coverage because he has been saying all along he was

a during the press corps is that we european officials and the opposition that ukraine would not. your integration. he was all expecting to sign your association deal in what year is the future and with the news that this prospect is as remote as ever the protesters resolve is now also being hardened by a rallying cry from the newest arrivals from america let's see resets the art scene reporting from kiev in ukraine courses for a sense of mccain's concern it's not the first protest aimed at regime change where he's popped up peace been embracing ukraine's orange revolution previously it was almost a decade ago here is there also a frequent flyer to georgia to the former soviet republic of course that sort of color revolutions well mccain's no friends indeed with you know former president mikhail saakashvili who instantly after coming to power move swiftly to crack down of course on the protests against his own administration and the arab spring didn't escape either john mccain supported protests you may recall in egypt's tahrir square also in libya too and push for more active u.s.

involvement civil war and syria as well mccain was among the most vocal advocates for america to start bombing the regime and arming its rebels let's get more thoughts about what america's doing in from mcadams is executive director at the wrong paul institute for peace and prosperity joining us on the line now love given a whole list there where senator. mccain's been involved of course it's not just him we saw victoria nuland as well and having her say look like a government official say didn't it why is america so interested in what's going on in ukraine right now that. what i what i can't understand is how on earth ukrainian government would allow foreign officials to come in and actively support those who are trying to overthrow the ukrainian government you know can you imagine that happening in the united states can you imagine if president putin came to the us during the occupy wall street rallies and encourage people to overthrow the government and how long would that be put up with not at all so i was i often

wonder what's wrong with you on a covert charges why does he let these people into his country almost certainly go to not nearly as he thinks it's free free speech everyone's got a right to have their say. but even in the u.s. if you're calling for the violent overthrow of your government you can you can be certain you'll find yourself on the wrong end of a police baton you know what's interesting about someone like mccain is he goes over to ukraine and he is siding with these people who are often very violent calling for the overthrow of their government but you know it's funny in his own senatorial office here on capitol hill many times in the past he's called police on peaceful protesters and had them arrested he did it a few years ago with anti-war protesters with immigration reform protesters so he's not so keen on a peaceful protest when it comes to his own offices on capitol hill and we haven't seen the same support as well have been plenty of protest in europe of course over the past couple of months of the past couple of years the sterett except rick

cetera we haven't seen them come piling there for the protesters what's the difference. now why is he not in venice right now but look you know not long ago in egypt there was a protest where a thousand people were killed supporting a democratically elected government mccain said little or nothing and no one has been killed in ukraine there's a political dispute over the orientation of the country that's been going on for some time what business is it over here is and why does it say why does he say nothing when there is violence it's not just him it's higher up as well the u.s. state department is now threatening sanctions against ukraine if there is more violence or if the police crackdown on violence at any more of these demonstrations . come may do that they can do it but what do you think about the fact that they're doing that well sanctions are absurd they have no history of being successful at all there are a weapon that the u.s.

uses it's decreasingly effective internationally it just isolates the u.s. it doesn't isolate the countries that are victims of these sanctions it does hurt the common people it hurts the local economy it doesn't hurt governments look at look at cuba has been under sanctions for what for five decades that does nothing but it ok that is a little ironic that one of the what does it tell us what we're talking about everything we've just said was it tell us about the american position re ukraine and why are they so interested in it. well obviously ukraine is the prize it's next to russia it's the big country it's not little impoverished georgia it's not it's not a beige on it's not moldova it's a huge extremely important strategically important country in the u.s. and the e.u. or those who have it and it's not all people here that's the politics are certainly has a lot to do with it and it's also the desire to increase the american empire. the

arm of american interventionism we have to control the rest of the world we have to be the new soviet union and it will fail it cannot succeed we can talk to you for a lot more done when time or time i'm afraid from. washington i see things begin to take. thank you coming up for you the crushed hopes of those who are coming of age in egypt is disillusionment among the country's younger generation how the arab spring. to get out and live abroad reporting a much shortly. protest is meet some heavy handed tactics matal riot police cameras and they have got the story right all right. well with. science technology innovation all the leaves developments from

around russia. the future covered. wealthy british style. markets. find out what's really happening to the global economy. financial headline news to report. we can with. the consent you. choose to. choose the stories that impact your life choose. to.

hello again torture in bahrain is once again being revealed by human rights groups amnesty international claims the children as young as thirteen have been subjected to brutal treatment while in detention dealt another joe from the bar and rehabilitation and antiviolence organization claims actually the reality is even worse as a person who's chairing going in geo that deals with torture victims and survivors as documented myself cases of children who were abused and tortured and as young as eleven years old these children are not only tortured beaten electrics beaten with hoses and they were threatened with rape to the extent that children are certain that a member of their family a mother or a sister will be a date in order for them to get false confessions or to give names to death or it is and is some shocking case is that they wanted these children to work as an

in-form is to the security forces back to syria for a few moments now to the controversial of the use of chemical weapons in the country's civil war showing no signs of dying russia's now reiterated it stands on the issue the president is highly unlikely to have resorted to such tactics and all the evidence points to the rebels russia's u.n. envoy was speaking after a team of inspectors found that illegal toxins were repeatedly used multiple sites against both civilian and military targets but important for that speech. when investigators have concluded that chemical weapons were used in five different attacks in syria now the report said that in several instances victims included soldiers and civilians however u.n. investigators say it wasn't always possible deter to determine direct links between the attacks the victims and the alleged slight sites of the incidents now the purpose of the u.n. fact finding mission was to determine whether chemical weapons were used in syria not to use them now both the syrian government and the opposition have accused each

other of using chemical weapons and both have denied all allegations that while the u.s. and its european allies have repeatedly blamed damascus for the use of chemical weapons and nearly started a war over it russia maintains that the findings of the un report does not give enough ground to definitively prove the position taken by the west while addressing the media russian ambassador to the un vitaly churkin also reminded reporters that following the march nineteenth attack in aleppo the syrian government immediately called for an international investigation but it was significantly delayed by western countries following the august attack in damascus ambassador churkin said that the syrian government allowed the un investigators to enter the areas in question without delay so he's asking if the syrian government had used weapons of mass destruction why would it ever pete earley and immediately called for international investigations and why would it have killed its own soldiers which the un report clearly shows that soldiers were among the victims of the chemical

attacks now a serious toxic agents continue to be moved out of the country russia has announced that it will be providing its own navy ships to us. that are carrying the chemical weapons the weapons will eventually be transferred to the ships the united states is outfitting where the bulk of the work will be done to destroy the chemical substances. a correspondent in new york one important i am in true christmas spirit is the time of the year given a british shale gas drilling company especially for unusual presents this seventeen meter one of the half term wind turbine proposed if you try to work what is well one half of it anyway complete with a nice bit of red ribbon wrapping on those placed it rather inconveniently for the company what across the entrance to the fracking site now the local company leader from friends of the earth hopes the site's owners will take note sure they will and that the government war importantly will finally listen we've only had

a handful of exploratory drilling sites across the u.k. but already we've seen huge local opposition whether it's been in the southeast of aliens or the northwest where we're seeing it now and i think with the government's new licensing round which is going to open up another two thirds of the country to potentially to fracking we're going to see even more opposition and i think the government is going to have to put a moratorium in place like it had done previously and actually listen to the concerns of communities because there's a very loud and clear message that people do not want this in their local community and they don't want to anywhere else we've seen a lot of support from the energy in a recent survey seven times as many people wanted a wind turbine in their community than a shell gas well so we think about actually as more and more community opposition in arises across the u.k. we will see the government having to listen. fresh clashes erupted in cairo where police have used tear gas to prevent student protesters from breaching the defense ministry the anti-government movement seen a surge in recent months with youngsters staging regular demonstrations this comes

an awkward time too for the military led authorities they've been trying to drum up support for a new draft constitution but the campaign to divide as we go into smoothly in fact the official banner promotes the document as representing all egyptians but if you look closely the image actually shows stock pictures of people most likely not even for foreigners not local they could be found anyway elsewhere on the web well true reports on how the nation's hopes for a better future after the revolution have been fading. almost meet a young egyptian design student sits in his favorite downtown cairo cafe talking about a better life abroad three years on from participating in two thousand and eleven revolution omar is frustrated with the state of the country he says once he finishes his studies he'll have to leave you i have been. here your story for four years then you don't find a job at the end of it there are better chances are that side egypt there i can find the freedom to work with the skills that i have that is one of the most

important reasons forcing people to leave egypt there are eight million egyptians already abroad and others are looking to join them as the economy flatlines in their political instability even if the economy of the country will grow in the future the double digits there will never be able to accommodate every new job seekers there is going to be always a percentage of the population that would seek job elsewhere job outside of the country youth unemployment rates are at a staggering seventy seven percent and that may well rise after years of turmoil for young men like almost seeking work abroad is often the only option but it's not just the economy driving egyptians to leave some fleeing amid a growing crackdown on political freedoms a growing numbers of activists are now facing jail sentences after the minutes. installed government enforced the law banning protests without official permission daily battles between student protesters and security forces broke egypt's campuses

police and the army continue to patrol the streets here where we need democracy freedom better health care and social justice to fulfill the main demands of our revolution the police need to change the whole regime needs to have a better ideological way of dealing with egypt or more people will grow the government hopes and new constitution and upcoming elections will help stabilize egypt's but until egyptians can find work and enjoy basic freedoms more will be forced to leave. for i t. my top news stories in brief your natural gas pipelines exploded here in mexico injuring at least eight people to the full extent of the damage still isn't yet known that blast happened just outside the capital and according to authorities was called for fever siphoning off gas the country's currently in the grip of an anti government set of protests which have intensified since the authorities proposed auctioning off state oil assets to foreign companies police are searching and cleared two four buildings at harvard

university after reports of bombs on campus that the ivy league institution located just outside boston was forced to evacuate the facilities student exams had been underway at that university at the time a professor steven pinker who heads the psychology department at harvard says threats of violence against education institutions often come from former students . it may be that so many people especially young people have actually attended an educational institution that if they have some kind of grievance or if there are people who have insulted them that's where they will find them and most violence is committed by young people and young people are fresh out of school. indeed as you can see they can watch that full interview worlds apart exam the boy current. plenty of psychological perspective there on some key global issues. funny for this half hour in italy riot police clashed with students who were angry at spending cuts in education offices charge the protesters to try and break them up

activists then threw red dye into the public fountain in regional government offices to symbolize public schools being bled of their funding the head of the libertarian think tank based in milan alberta maine gandhi says the students only see part of the political picture though i think the problem is here and would probably give you a share in the city as well as in europe when they protest is that they seem one part of the problem one part of the problem is that scary week at enbridge is the number of resources that are getting into the public education system eastley being . minutest so they see part of the problem. but they do not see what could be a civil issue in the solution for most of asia would be competition and fortunately want this to get passed in the face of a government is just more government. thanks for being with us more news just over

half an hour next though people are values gas balance surveillance again security and discussed the actual purpose america's national security agency. what defines a country's success. faceless figures of economic growth. for a factual standard of living. why is the price of gold so high. demand global demand do you think oldest money.

know the value of the only place we have to live of the water that we need to survive it's not compared to i mean gold we're not going to eat gold we're not going to be told. we're not going to drink up what clearly what amal is and is in a desperate economic situation absolutely right what we're wrong to do is say therefore any kind of economic development from the outside is going to be a benefit their only purpose is to extract as much money as possible to feed into the global financial system. with me or a part of the geo political economic system that's extremely exploitive. first of all is a question whether mining should even be carried out altogether can it be done in.

the way which doesn't destroy people's lives resources environment well you know those are pretty serious questions mining is not a what a moment problem it's happening in asia in africa and south america in central america in mexico and it's even happening in canada and the united states. you know that leaves only one. hello and welcome to cross talk all things considered i'm peter lavelle the scandal that keeps on giving the steady stream of snowden related leaks no longer surprises but the all encompassing scope of spying still does even online gamers.