officials raise the alarm over a corruption underworld sucking one hundred twenty billion euros a year from the european economy roughly the size of the total budget and what's worse the report warns this could just be the tip of the iceberg. as the u.s. reportedly plans to back up syrian diplomacy with more weapons to the rebels an r t crew travels to a damascus school where the children refuse to be victims of the conflict. with the winter olympics days away and the gay propaganda boycott battle still in the minds of many we talk with members of the city's community to find out if the law really has affected their life in sochi.

ten pm in moscow i met her as a very good to have you with us our top story this hour say they have uncovered a corruption pandemic sweeping member states with one hundred twenty billion euros lost to shady deals each year the figure published by the e.u.'s home affairs commissioner who warned that the scale of the problem could be even broader and getting worse peter all over highlighted the most worrying details. over half of those who were surveyed said they think the corruption within the union was growing seventy six percent of those who were asked thought the corruption was widespread within the european union twenty six percent said that they'd been directly affected by corruption government effectiveness at tackling corruption though only twenty three percent thought that they were capable of doing that and seventy three percent a huge number three quarters almost saying that they thought that the best way to

get public services was through bribery just into who's put forward this report the e.u. commission or an unelected body they have made the headlines themselves a few times when it comes to some of the more leftfield laws that have been imposed upon the e.u. citizens now their report didn't look into e.u. institutions and that's certainly raised a few eyebrows people wondering just how much more than one hundred twenty billion a year in backhanders of being going on if the e.u. it looked into themselves philip plays an m.e.p. for the flemish nationalist of wires belong party focused on what the report didn't say and promise to follow it up. problems in some member states are huge and widespread and the problem within the european union is that all the member states are in danger of being contaminated by this problem because when you are in the euro zone for instance and when one of these member states in the eurozone has

a big corruption problem well this problem will be felt by the other member states within the eurozone that's a problem with greece for instance so the problems in one country are becoming more and more the problems of the other member states would i find surprising them with i found interesting at the same time is that the european commission has made this report on corruption in the european union but didn't make a survey of corruption within its own institutions and didn't have any specific information about corruption with e.u. funded projects carl doe an e.u. office director of transparency international described to my colleague marina joshie what kinds of corruption the report touched on and why brussels has so far refused to look at its own graft problem. in many of the newer member states of the e.u. there is still a lot of petty corruption that citizens paying small drives for access to basic

services like health care. but in other countries the the the main corruption which so to do with political corruption that's the kind of conflicts of interests that are in the dealings that politicians have with business but how can they be effective here i mean on the one hand the commission to investigate corruption but then on the other the high the corruption down really exist within the european institutions well the commission says that. the self assessment would not be credible. we don't think that's the case we think any government should have the capacity to assess corruption risks in its own institutions luckily transparency international is conducting its own assessment of integrity problems integrity risks in the e.u. institutions and we'll be publishing that shortly you wrote a report pulling no punches over britain's bedroom tax saying the levy on spare

rooms is pushing all of the country's most vulnerable citizens further into financial uncertainty and it is serious housing shortage. before we get to that u.s. secretary of state john kerry reportedly admitted washington suffering a diplomatic defeat in syria according to two senators who met him privately as his power in the region is spreading u.s. is looking at a new strategy that could include sending more military hardware to the rebels or to his marine important i reports. perry's comments reportedly came during an off the record closed door meeting on the sidelines of the main executed conference now according to the two senators in attendance john mccain and lindsey graham they said that the u.s. secretary of state admitted to them that he no longer believes the obama administration's approach to the crisis in syria is working and they say he talked about supporting a plan to arm the moderate opposition in syria according to the two senators they

say that that plan would be aimed at blocking al qaeda affiliates in syria from carrying out terrorist attacks on america now kerry spokesperson denies that he raised the issue of supplying weapons to the syrian opposition no according to the two senators that are mentioned mr kerry also said during the meeting that he believes bashar al assad's government is failing to uphold its promise to give up chemical weapons according to the schedule that's been outlined however russia's deputy foreign minister recently said that syria is proceeding according to plan and even this month the assad government plans on removing a large shipment of chemical substances and that process is said to be complete by march first while there have been some delays moscow says western officials are overblowing the situation russia says the reality is that when a stockpile of chemical weapons are being transported it's not always easy to immediately get proper security for the entire operation now in the past few weeks

u.s. statements regarding syria including the ones that i just spoke about have indicated that america is still beating somewhat of a war drama last week we heard america's director of national intelligence james clapper warned that damascus may be producing biological weapons he also said that syria's influx of extremists have turned the war in a war torn country into a terrorist training hog and subsequently that's a threat to u.s. . national security so here we have three years after the civil war in syria started it appears as though the u.s. is back to square one with no coherent progress being made on the crisis in syria and still some experts were say looking for excuses for a potential military strike or to arm the opposition. parties are very few notion of visited a school in damascus and found out that inside the country many believe more guns are the answer. lesson of arabic and history an elementary school

these boys and girls may look like ordinary kids but they've already faced a lifetime of adult experiences they must look up there were ten bullets called a day and crossed the road i saw sarah and then a missile fell somewhere nearby me and my cousins run for cover the next day when i went to school our teacher told us that sarah died god bless her. sara sister was also killed that day is now afraid to go to school a tree spawns with bravery that many grown ups would be proud of. what. i hear from my parents teachers and friends that there is a lot of people dying but i will not surrender i will continue to started to rebuild my country. amid the violence of a protracted war the kids grow up very fast so. i feel afraid because of this

and i feel so because it's not ok to see kids killed like this it's not good this year and kids die like this. is eleven years old the syrian conflict has claimed for his relatives he was eight when it started and his had no real childhood scenes how long i ask myself these girls why did. they have nothing to do with this conflict so why did. this story is not unique in almost every syrian school direct casualties like these. last november the entrance of the school in damascus is old town was hit by three mortars four children and the bus driver died at the scene i haven't been able to accept these deaths until now they were my kids i can clearly see their smiles and hear their voices i still see them in my dreams nothing can justify this no religion no moment of thinking

makes it acceptable. but life the principle of the school tells us must go on at the holy religion that he is immense the children and the administration have been deeply affected but it's also encouraged us to continue are teaching and are learning the mission of education is to bring in a new engineers a new doctors new teachers to build up this country we have to resist this violence . and this will be anything but an easy mission after a short break kids at this school in damascus are back to their classes but thousands of other syrian children all across the country still can't make it as their schools are destroyed and families displaced there were around twenty thousand schools in syria before the crisis today at least if easy for them a gun and even if the reason school nearby parents are simply too afraid to let their kids out of this site once a thriving nation with a strong education system syria today faces not just

a crisis of the present because of the future to. see from syria. log on to r.t. dot com to get more from the front line in syria as well as latest reports on the flimsiest shelter that's been provided for those who fled the war. winter sports stars from all over the world are beginning to descend on sochi where the same stage is set for the olympic games in the host city now bringing us the latest on the build up to the games. president putin arrived earlier today ahead of the olympics starting on friday in the wonderful stadium but he's completely behind this we actually have around her so taking place at the moment but it was the president putin's first stop where he met the official delegates of the i.o.c. one hundred twenty six committee that opened the session today his first stop was to the salt chief national park what was that were the same facts the whole group of of leopards person leopards as they're known through rehabilitation center was

a put a few years ago impudence of actually went inside one of the cages to pet the cubs of course the wildlife is an important subject for the presidency important to the people of saatchi so much so that they actually chose a leopard to become one of the mascots of the winter olympics here in the sochi regarding the actual delegates they had a great feast and banquet in a piece for the soviets architectural building they enjoyed live music from russian traditional musicians and also listen to some western music in the form of we have the champions of course the famous hit by queen regarding the people who are here six thousand athletes that are making their way to sochi over the next week and a. message with the melville and big mountain village last night long as you know but he spoke about the security issues and how people including businesses i just feel about the atmosphere here in sochi take

a look at that you did not just among the spots in the many of the athletes have been seeing the backroom liesl very negative media coverage of all the sochi olympics some are even afraid to come here but when they arrived they started wondering what all the bad press was about and a very impressed by what's going on here they see there's much less hassle and discomfort is pressure when it comes to security checks compared to previous games and even picks as well as i said that opens on friday people are still fighting for a ticket for the opening ceremony. various celebrities arrived here in sochi there are helicopters around us as we speak princess diana arrived earlier today and also r.t. spoke to the famous tennis star maria sharapova about the excitement surrounding the winter olympics twenty forty. i'm very impressed by what i've seen here in sochi i haven't been here for a year and when i arrived yesterday i was amazed when i finally saw all the stadiums and then use i really hope that everyone will enjoy the olympic games here

in sochi had friends some of them are volunteers they are from canada they were fortunate enough to see over her repetition as they call it in russian on sunday including some fireworks tonight at eleven o'clock the stadium that seats forty thousand people that will also be in full swing the rehearsals on friday the olympic ceremony is set to bring three billion spectators from around the world but the subject on many people's lips is that of gay rights and earlier on in the week i went to such he's only gay to speak to the owner and some of the party revelers regarding how gay life really is in russia and how the new anti gave already affects them take a look. thousands of athletes visit his are expected to arrive this week and three billion people are also estimated to watch the winter olympics this month for some however the games aren't about sporting progress they're about gay rights and the controversy surrounding last year's legislation that restricts children being given information about nontraditional relationships a similar law to the u.k.

section twenty eight that was impost for two decades from the late eighty's we had to the city's only beach front gate venue my ak or lighthouse english it's been in the city for more than thirty years it seems that and it's being subculture is far more liberal than people think traditionally one of the more tolerant russian cities when during the soviet era russians from all over the country could holiday here. club owner andrei and his partner a man have been a couple for over. thirteen years and say they don't agree with the law they remain mostly unaffected by it and well business is booming they describe the west's response as heavy handed and an overreaction. i think it's really bad it negatively affects gay russian people because society blames them for spoiling the olympics for. opinions are still divided on sexuality in russia and this club does give something of an insight into the reality of gay life here the

one time in the club and meeting people. need like any other gay bar that i've ever been to any of the backstage the performers are getting ready for tonight's performance in preparation for the club's new foreign audience english songs have been added to the show. the performance here can't believe the media attention bush's gay scene has generated in the west activists abroad have spoken loudly in great numbers but the reality is that the issue is more complicated than it seems while so many allergy to communities brought him on here bringing a new wave of violence. you way you have to be changing and they gave. us a good. even somewhat. well people do not roam the streets handed hand in sochi

behind closed doors at such clubs people can be openly affectionate and one thing is for sure whether you have conservative or liberal views this month is going to be a celebration of sport to remember. he. and our team is at the heart of the winter games will be broadcasting daily from sochi throughout the olympics and our line at two thousand and fourteen our team dot com .

seems the german government's not getting away with lax snooping controls coming up n.s.a. leaks forcing the country's main hacker group to file a criminal complaint against the government over its part in the spy scandal. plus in the war on drugs it seems that it's the authorities who are on the back foot with more people and countries turning into hubs for illicit trade now israel could be one of them stay with us for more. on your arm and a lot of these policies i consider my. pleasure

to have you with us here on t.v. today i'm recession. wealthy british style it's time to. markets. find out what's really happening to the global economy with mike's cancer a no holds barred look at the global financial headlines tune into kinds a report. minutes past the hour a new report has slammed the british government the so-called bedroom tax saying it's leaving the u.k.'s most vulnerable citizens in tremendous despair but

ministers dismiss the un's findings out of head as artie's tests are silly reports from london. the united nations special repertory and housing released a report on the u.k. social housing conditions and call for the suspension of the so-called bedroom tax saying that it negatively impacts one's right to adequate housing as well as a general wellbeing of the most vulnerable individuals and households now since the introduction of this bedroom tax those who are of working age and receiving house it benefits may have found this money reduced if they are found to be living in flats with spare bedrooms at the u.s. report also says that britain is facing a crisis of availability and affordability with tenants finding themselves with quote a few rights and a little security but the u.k. is the house has this this this report as partisan and he says it's disappointing that the united nations has chosen to associate itself with a quote misleading marxist diatribe rages i mean to accuse this u.n.

report of being marxist diatribe is to be like accusing. being a marxist organization these are basic human rights we're dealing with here this nasty party has to crusade against the poor in this country what they've done quite apart from already forcing the poorest families in this country to choose between heating and eating now they've got them worrying about shelter these are the basic tenants of civilization this awful awful government is stripped from the poorest people in this country it's driven them to depression and even suicide this isn't the first time that the u.k. and the un have exchanged words on the matter but the u.k. government stands by its decision saying that this will allow the freeing up of bigger flats for families that need it more and it also talks about tax savings of about four hundred eighty million pounds in the first year however this is likely to continue as campaigners say they will continue to fight it on human rights grout in fact a liverpool council is reporting david cameron to the united nations saying that his government may be violating international rules on keeping people out of

poverty reporting from london i'm tess or celia. the astronomical ambitions of the high tech world now on our website found out about a crowd on a device that lets you know when international space station is right overhead plus . city mayors in the pot friendly netherlands vying for even more liberal rules on marijuana seeking the legalization of homegrown weed all the details are. a breach of citizen's privacy in germany apparently too much for even the country's leading hacker group the chaos computer club suing chancellor merkel and the government for a failing they say to prevent the u.s. and britain from spying on germans linus newman one of the activists behind the legal action explain if you look at what happened in germany off to the snowden revelations or in the course of the revelations the answer is nothing the german government has deny that there are any and the breaches of german law that there is

even any reason to act the german general prosecutor has denied that there is even the faintest hint at criminal activity that would give him a reason to investigate what's going on it is a danger to any democracy that a government reaches this kind of power over its people and we see abuse of power every day this is why we have laws against this this is why we have constitutions against such timothy's and this is why we need to defend these rights because we know where his free will lead us if we allow governments to become more and more in transparent and citizens to become more and more transparent trillions spent thousands of dead but the global war on drugs is turning even to a steeper uphill battle the un saying almost three hundred million people around the world now addicted to illegal substances and the global trafficking network is growing still policy reports on how israel was expected becoming a major drug

a major hub for the drug trade. like most major cities there is a dark side to the tel aviv night scene armed with a hidden camera we visit one of the popular downtown nightclubs everything's on offer short of doing drugs in the middle of the room. but you know. stuff and they're sixteen years ago. failed to behave because this was terrible one is a former user he spent many nights in prison and paid the ultimate price we were living on the street do you know if we were doing you know you just you know you want to use this you're getting a. have to get it again so. the soup can come out from a lot of people coming over from the circuit my wife she died from the drugs she

couldn't stop with for borders drug smugglers are entering the country from all sides although in this instance security forces manage to make an arrest they cannot stop them all israel has a starve role in the most recent wooldridge drug report issued by the united nations office on drugs and crime alongside brazil it's listed as a country that is a major manufacturer an importer exporter and a user of narcotic drugs i can confirm that more than fifty percent of all the drugs that enter israel a seized but this is obviously long term counter police operations that will take place and continue working with the into porn is twenty five representatives that are here in israel and therefore information is transferred on a day to day basis but maybe that is not enough based on figures that the israeli police know about and based on the suspects that we've arrested there has been an increase in attempts that's correct all sides agree this is

a dangerous situation and that israel has to do more so people like one e. of hope once again i think that's true the. even the government even the govt. people understand that it's it's a disease this situation is known it's not substantially different from that in europe when the united states came simpy and arrived in the country fashionably late put us here on television. stay with us still to come on r t r t's martin tells us about the alleged soundtrack to guantanamo stay with us after this short break.

the first recreational marijuana shops are now open in colorado finally the question of what effect legal marijuana will have on the american public can be answered with real world experience you know there are a lot of people out there with strong arguments as to why we should legalize this controversial play it firstly there are plenty of things just as bad for us as marijuana or worse like beer cigarettes antidepressants and mystery fast food meats which are totally legal secondly young men are often thrown in jail for the absolutely victimless crime of smoking marijuana i could see punishing someone for drugs like crystal meth which can and do turn people into maniacs but have any of you out there ever heard of someone breaking into people's houses on a we've rampage no no you haven't the downside to all of this is that across america and all the world people are looking for change and they want to message store rise but when the masses are stoned out of their minds it makes things in life that we shouldn't tolerate become very tolerable we now call allow us to make it through another day of our miserable lives so that we can live without going

through all that effort of trying to make things better or challenge the system legalizing weed will just pay. fire the masses even more but that is just my opinion. of the playing. field the big spirit travels with the flame from its place to greece. joining james brown for an elemental and epic journey around russia and beyond. where i think to go.

play. with up the all i'm abby martin and this is breaking the set so in case you weren't aware one of the torture mechanisms used on prisoners at gitmo was having ear piercing music playing ourselves continuously the melodies chosen for these weapons of war range from heavy metal songs to sesame street songs that i play for hours or even days on and now when this came out the pentagon downplayed the news by saying that the music was not torture despite a.p. report detailing how the music drove prisoners literally mad and even suicidal bands in question kindly asked the administration to stop weaponize in their art but one canadian band is taking it one step further industrial music group skinny puppy just found out that their music has been used on at least four occasions and

the thought of the u.s. government using the band's dark melodies to inflict mental and physical anguish was deeply troubling to the group. lead singer seven keys said quote we never supported those types of scenarios because we make unsettling music we can see it being used in a weird way but it doesn't sit right with us so what are the band do all they dedicated and presented their new album as an inner voice to the us government it's called weapons in the album itself is a literal bill for use in the band's service as torture methods so crude owes to an awesome band for using its platform to call attention to the human rights abuses that are still going on today now let's break this up. for the day. it was a. very hard to take a. look. at her had sex with her right there though.