this is why you should care only on the dot com. syria's opposition coalition says yes to attending next week's peace talks in switzerland but can't confirm which delegates will be there this and made further doubt over a chemical attack near damascus last year. these rockets could have never been fired from government controlled territory experts from mit calling into question the u.s. claims that assad forces were behind the assault. moscow officials visit the get mowed detention center to meet a russian man incarcerated there without charge for nearly twelve years. president obama says his much anticipated plans to reform the n.s.a. are a step in the right direction but some critics dismiss proposals as a p.r. stunt that leaves too many unanswered questions and much of the agency operations untouched.

it's five am in moscow i am at present very good to have you with us our top story this hour after weeks of dispute and indecision the opposition syrian national coalition finally decided to attend next week's peace talks in geneva but still unclear exactly which members of the fractured group will take part which are aimed at ending syria's bloody civil war artie's marina porton i reports from new york. amid mounting international pressure syria's opposition has decided to take part in next week's geneva two peace talks the group which faces its own internal divisions announced its decision saturday following a meeting in is stamboul now hearts of the syrian opposition were previously critical of taking part in peace negotiations that could help syrian president bashar al assad they say stay in power this syrian national council a main opposition bloc even threatened to pull out of the coalition if the general

assembly voted in favor of attending the geneva two it seems though however that mounting pressure from the u.s. and western countries caused concessions to be made the conference will be held under the auspices of the un and its co-sponsored by russia and the u.s. it's scheduled to begin on tuesday january twenty second it is aimed at finding a way to install a transitional government that will subsequently pave the way for to ending the nearly three year old civil war which has reportedly claimed the lives of some one hundred thirty thousand people with one opposition group ready to join the talks still not clear if any others will follow its example or reason british defense study has found that there is more than one hundred thousand rebels in the country split into and as many as a thousand different groups it says that more than half of those fighting against the assad government are either jihad is or hardline islam is they include foreign

militants fighting for al qaeda linked factions middle east expert sharmeen are one and says even if the talks are successful the problem of how to deal with jihadi fighters remains. but there's many different factions of the opposition you have the domestic peaceful opposition the n.c.c. that i think is the most likely to be able to strike any kind of deal with the syrian government they have rejected these talks because of the kinds other kinds of oppositions that that might participate and then you have this externally backed opposition you know backed by foreign governments the syrian national coalition these are the ones who have accepted the talks or at least some of this body has access to talk that they're not in any position to negotiate a solution on behalf of the syrian people there are some dangers in these talks even if you had a legitimate opposition sitting across the syrian government and negotiating it doesn't account for the many militias on the ground who are not controlled by any

foreign government or any domestic constituency we're going to have to put a stop to those kind of military activities. the u.s. conclusion that a chemical attack near damascus in august was carried out by the government's been challenged by a team of experts washington blame president assad for the attack but a new report from the massachusetts institute of technology found the rockets couldn't have been fired from government controlled areas. we went through two to three months worth of study to determine the types of rockets. the weight the size of the propellant and we determine that the range is on the order of two kilometers i like to make a note that the u.n. also had come up with a range of approximately two kilometers so this is very confusing to us in our studies and we're trying to understand exactly what the white house map means because right now as it stands these rockets could have never been fired from

government controlled territory they would be fired more from a rebel type of territory or a border of a contested territory so it sees something in the official u.s. conclusions didn't add up parties lex haris takes a closer look at the mit study. reproduced the very same map which the which the washington officials presented when they voiced their concerns that the attack could have been carried out by the government troops look if you look here this is the part of damascus controlled by the government at the time which was of course the twenty first of august twenty third scene and this is the part of damascus controlled by the opposition troops so if we see we can see those blinking yellow sports those are the areas where the missiles carrying the sarin gas hit the ground causing some deadly damage and reportedly hundreds of casualties and this red line here is basically to signify how far could these rockets go if they were fired

from the parts of damascus controlled by the government as we can see the closest the westernmost point of attack of the sarin missiles is some way off from the maximum range of missiles this particular type of missile which was used in this attack the maximum range of these missiles is about two kilometers well this point here is at least four kilometers from the eastern more support of the government controlled areas of damascus at that time and if we talk about the heart of this area controlled by the government which was mentioned by the u.s. state secretary john kerry that's at least eight to nine kilometers from the eastern most point this report basically does not lay blame on any side and does not say whether there were those were the rebels who perform these attacks using chemicals but what it does though it seriously puts under doubt that the quality of intelligence and as to why the u.s.

authorities used what seems to be incomplete or even flawed intelligence data to voice their concerns and if we remember what u.s. state secretary john kerry said back then the claims were quite solid high confidence this is common sense this is evidence. these are facts also this report speculates at one point that it could have this wrong data could have been used in a similar fashion as the attack on iraq when wrong information was used as a pretext to launch a military operation official washington hasn't yet responded to this latest report by the mit research is as violence rages on in syria the country is turning into a major drug producer with both rebels and army soldiers reportedly taking amphetamines to keep their energy and stay going during battles a report on that just ahead. but first after ten years of attempts officials from moscow finally got access to the only russian national remaining at guantanamo

a delegation headed by the foreign ministry human rights envoy met with a detainee who is being held at the prison despite having never been charged efforts to secure his release were the priority of the visit along with ensuring his human rights were respected consultations were held with the pentagon as well as get more officials and the group was also given a limited tore of the facility my colleague kevin no one spoke with the head of russia's delegation constantine go go. go go if you met the russian national held in guantanamo what did he have to say about his ordeal it was the first. meeting with him we have been trying to organize your meeting for quite some time for several years he told us that equate the number of very serious incidents which happened with some other detainees people whom he personally knows did he give you any details but he himself witnessed the aftermath

of the use of methods which compatible with the international norms and regulations if you feel you could talk freely to you. well it's difficult to say this man has been under duress for almost twelve years so it's difficult to expect that suddenly he started speaking completely freely the most important probably. element of his that was to convey that message the limited go that is we americans say that we insist that he has rights and legitimate interests. and they quickly taken care of these is. a principled position of the russian government. each and every russians who does and abroad in a statement after the visit told of said that kuantan m o doesn't meet international standards those sentiments echoed by human rights researchers who say that now thirty three detainees are on hunger strike and that number doubling in

the last month the cap's military authorities refusing to release new figures on the matter authorities say the release of information on hunger strikers detracts from important issues like the welfare of detainees and the safety of troops clive stafford smith is an attorney for a several of the detainees and he says he's witnessed some of the tactics used there. this prisoner from camp six which is the least bad camp goes on hunger strike they automatically get transferred not just count five but you can't fight back which really has been the most abusive place in all the content of day prisoners are held in all steel cell and denied the most basic human rights just as a punishment for going on strike but force feeding techniques are very much an action unfortunately against the very abusive force feeding techniques i mean casting aside the question of whether it's that the culture coarsely to tourne the world medical association says it's not you know unfortunately the techniques they

using grant gratuitous take hold so for example and i've witnessed some of this that they used to leave but shoots up the prisoners noses to hurt so much they're still pulling those tubes out every single time tries to forcing them back up each time they're still forcing fastly much too quickly into the prison american prisons if you're sick they just carry on doing it it really is horrendous what's not. still to come leaving a lot via the baltic nation walking is thousands of its skilled professionals head for the door to escape the euro zone a look at what's driving them after the short break. of the plane. the olympic spirit travels with the flame from its place in

greece. james brown in the mental and a big germany russia and beyond. where i was because. there's a media leave though so we leave the people. of the scene motions to the other you're part of the physical. issues that no one is there with to get that you deserve answers from. politics.

thirteen minutes past the hour washington will dismantle its global spying network you know it's meant of a major overhaul of the n.s.a. outlined by president obama failed to provide details on when collection of data will be stopped or if it'll be stopped at all critics say a plan for reform is a facelift as artie's sam sachs reports. after nearly seven months of n.s.a. disclosures president obama finally came forward with reforms to the spy agency acknowledging that the current capabilities of the n.s.a. do leave open the possibility of abuse given the unique power of the state it is not enough for leaders to say trust us we want to be use the data we collect for history has too many examples when that trust has been breached. our such a system of government is built on the premise that our liberty cannot depend on the good intentions of those in power the president address the n.s.a.'s most controversial program section two fifteen bulk telephone metadata collection basically the president no longer wants the government to be in control of these

massive metadata databases but that doesn't mean the president wants to get rid of bulk collection in fact the bulk collection of virtually every american is metadata will continue indefinitely and the new restrictions announced by the president requiring the n.s.a. to obtain pfizer court approval before searching all that metadata doesn't satisfy privacy advocates who argue the pfizer court has acted and will continue to act as a rubber stamp nothing in obama's speech put any rain rain dan this collected all approach there was a big revelation of god called dish fire program that just fire program was collecting all tax costs literally hundreds of thousands of text calls every day are going into the n.s.a.'s mcnamee gigantic hoover regarding spying on foreign leaders the president said he's put an end to surveillance on friends and allies but did not say the n.s.a. will stop spying on diplomats nothing about the n.s.a.

breaking encryption standards and ports that the n.s.a. has been breaking into the data links on google and yahoo servers while some specific reforms were introduced how exactly they will be implemented moving forward remains to be seen especially since the same government agencies that have overseen the massive growth of the surveillance state are now the ones tasked with reining it in in washington d.c. same sex are to. obama's speech on the n.s.a. was met with criticism in some of the countries spied upon germany's justice minister said a written agreement is necessary to stop it he was supported by a brazilian lawmaker who thinks the u.s. is the respect for international partners one year o.m. he thinks washington is paying lip service to make everybody feel better and blogger david swanson told us why he is among those left on satisfied by the president's address it wouldn't call it a reform i would call it the ongoing normalization of the outrageous policy of violating the fourth amendment on an enormous scale we're learning more as every

week goes by about what they're collecting in terms of text messages and e-mails and mehta data and it's it's voluminous and the president is is not can admit in that anything has been done wrong is not proposing to stop doing it is not suggesting we restore the fourth amendment to the constitution he's suggesting that this will continue and it will be reformed perhaps in part someday but he claims it's been a great step forward i don't see it. police in texas left red faced after two officers were a little too quick on the draw after one houston resident was after giving a homeless man some change why'd the cops put him in cops find out on our t. dot com plus. in a bid to get the south american drug cartels the honduran air force given the green light to shoot down planes that could be carrying narcotics would have the desired

effect or could innocent lives be put in jeopardy find out on our website. i think you. should have you with us here on t.v. today i'm recession. fighters on both sides of syria's civil war are turning to drugs both as a source of profit and for staying power or for staying power in battle according to a recent media investigation the soaring exports of illegal and fed a means to turn syria into a major drug very often ocean reports. with syria about to enter in its fourth

devastating year of war the lack of law and structure has allowed one dark industry to flourish the country has become the number one producer of a drug known as caps and gone since synthetic stimulants were first manufactured in the one nine hundred sixty s. and it was at that time used as a medicine to treat hyperactivity and depression but it's too addictive and this is why it was banned in most countries so here in the middle east it's still very popular it's cheap and it's easier to get but today syria not only produces more than any other country in the region but it's also kept a goes main consumers believe that five terrorists are taking the pills to maintain vigorous energy levels your elevenses battles because it helps you keep awaken for hours and hours but there are also reports that ordinary citizens those who've been

living in depression and in this war and chaos for almost three years now are also holding to the drug for these capers two for rare aid gives them and it's lucrative it's between fifteen and twenty doors a pill and the right hundreds of millions of them been taking all trafficked and there is evidence that the revenue raised is buying weapons from both sides of the syrian conflict the un office on drugs and crime. has been reporting that syria which is located at the crossroads here in the region has for a long time been a transit point for the drug going from europe to turkey and lebanon but since the war began captagon trades guns are mastic and factories are appearing these days all across syria and production has increased and sales and booming here elaborate on the authorities seized around two hundred million dollars worth of tab

. lost here mostly hidden in the tracks going through the syrian lebanese border from syria than at any from where then she its final destination included the gulf countries some of the most ardent supporters of the syrian opposition and saudi arabia where around a billion dollars worth of the drug was seized just last week authorities say this is nothing but just ten percent of the real turnover of the drug and became him. russia's national counterterror committee says seven militants were killed in the southern republic of dagestan security forces had been trying to negotiate but the group who are holed up in a house opened fire it's thought that among the dead were those responsible for friday's grenade attack on a restaurant that was followed by a car bomb that injured at least sixteen another was a leader of a local gang and a third a friend of a female suicide bomber who carried out a terror attack on a bus in volgograd last october the woman also said to be preparing for

a suicide bombing and wanted by russian forces. me now to some other global headlines riot police fired water cannons and scuffled with protesters in istanbul demonstrators flooding the streets to express discontent at a draft bill that would restrict internet access the government wants to keep records of online activity and banned sites for alleged violations of privacy without the need for a court order if passed internet service providers will be required to join an internet union under central control. of iraqi blood that's left up to thirty dead in militant violence seventeen died more than seventy wounded as multiple bombings rocked baghdad in the west of the city a jail was seized by gunmen leading to the escape of dozens of prisoners this after six were killed in a suicide blast and shelling in a restive anbar province outside the capital. a new phrase capitol here clashes erupted between pro and anti-government activists violence broke out when government supporters tried to push back protesters blocking one of the main

streets this just days after president yannick hope which signed into law a bill banning similar rallies demonstrations have a grip here for nearly two months after the rejection of a trade agreement with the e.u. . latvia may be europe's fastest growing economy but it's also that use youngest and poorest member the sharp bends on the road to prosperity have proved too much for thousands of professionals who are leaving the country artie's paul scott reports so today is one of thousands of workers who will leave libya this year but his destination is perhaps surprising to be leaving this state to work in azerbaijan and that is that. life is always hard but in this country it's harder as the government is much more concerned by politics not economics and the life of the common man so that he isn't the only one the world bank says not because population is shrinking by almost sixty thousand people per year. i feel i'm not alone the

governments are squeezing everybody wants and more and more from us for less money between two thousand and nine and two thousand and twelve not be as population fell by around ten percent in a country of only two million people this decline is sharply felt especially since those leaving a mostly of working age each. the major work force males from twenty to forty go in find jobs abroad and then move their families over this leave just older people this demographic shift poses significant economic challenges which the government says it's keen to try and tackle yes there is a government program to return people to latvia but it doesn't work they pay for people to return but there's still no work for them the only way out is to create new jobs and a suitable atmosphere for investment but it isn't happening and over the next twenty years the population will decrease another third so as leaders desperately try to arrest the worrying trend the message from at least one of those with bags

packed for a better life elsewhere is simple. the government has to stop its aggressive social policies and lower taxes so that people can live and not simply survive. got ulti lucky or. still to come the highlights of the olympic torch is journey to sochi on r t international stay with us. the majority of congress are now millionaires for the first time in history according to the center for responsive politics which sounds pretty insulting when the average americans not doing so well financially this seems bad like a bunch of rich guys rule the country which they kind of do but one could argue that congress isn't rich enough first off due to inflation a billion dollars is not as much as it used to be especially the cost of a campaign to get in the congress costs around one million six hundred thousand

dollars so yeah a million dollars of net worth may sound pretty rich to you or me but the expensive game of us politics these guys can't even afford the costs related to getting the work electoral campaigns are a big money affair so it is no surprise that people like you or me can't get into the law making business without selling at least a little piece of our souls to someone who has very deep pockets so again the problem isn't that congressmen are wealthy it is that many of them have to get constant financing in order to maintain their positions and as you average folks know once you're in debt they've got you by the throat well that's just my opinion . it was supposed to be just another news or of course although admittedly for a special occasion it was one hundred twenty three days before the start of the winter olympic games in sochi and i was in greece for the lighting of the olympic

flame the ruins of the limpia one of the most famous monuments of ancient greece the site of the very first olympic games where stones like this would have been part of the temple. the temple. stand close. to keep. the.

plane. well that was a rather surreal. definitely the way to stream i've had for a while. there was a memorable ceremony. who i'm pretty sure the high priestess never spoke to me. that she'd sent follow the flame or something. and there's. a lot more of course base. on which the top story this morning than the sochi twenty pulteney limbic

flame of the bride in moscow seven days after it was in the ancient greek city of elim carried by russia's deputy prime minister dimitri cool with ak the flame traveled in a small amount into red square where president vladimir putin spoke of its meaning for the russian people. the olympic torch the symbol of the world's primary sports competition of peace and of friendship. but you must come to russia. there are many marks the start of the longest tools relay in a limb take a story the flame but it's great there's so many people have turned out to the start of the russian really it looks like a lot of fun out there. in a minute. but it was. the stone i picked up in and it was on my mantel piece and if that isn't a sign i don't know what it is. i knew i had to get down to red square and

experienced atmosphere for myself fortunately they were having a two day event. so from sunny greece to rather soggy moscow just at the very start of the torch is journey around the whole of russia i'm excited. the days first run there was paralympic star alessio bloody who picks up two gold medals in the beijing and london games. we do curling because you are still a big gold medalist is still something special for you i guess of course it's a unique feeling because i had never carried the torch before i had first i ran with a quite easily then i felt i was becoming heavier and heavier but i was determined to carry it properly and show it to everyone so that they could all appreciate the moment.