officials raise the alarm over a corruption underworld sucking one hundred twenty billion euros a year from the european economy that's roughly the size of the u.s total budget and what could be worse the report warns it may just be the tip of the iceberg. the u.s. reportedly plans to back up its syria diplomacy with more weapons shipments for the rebels and our team crew visits a damascus school where children say they refuse to be victims of the conflict. and with the winter olympics days away and the gay propaganda boycott battle still fresh in the minds of many we talk with members of the city's community see if law has really affected their lives.

midnight in moscow i met president very good to have you with us our top story this hour e.u. officials say they uncovered a corruption pandemic sweeping member states with one hundred twenty billion euros lost to shady deals last year the figure published in a report by the e.u.'s home affairs commissioner who warned the scale of the problem could be even broader and getting worse artie's peter all over reports. over half of those who were surveyed have 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. plays an m.e.p. for the flemish nationalists of alarms belong party focused on what the report didn't say and pledge 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 with i find the surprising and with i found interesting at the same time is that the european commission has made this report on corruption in the european union but it 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 karl dolan e.u. office director of transparency international described to my colleague marina joshie what types of corruption the report touched on and why brussels so far refuses 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 if on the one hand the our commission to investigate corruption but then on the other the high the corruption don't really exist within the european institutions well the commission says that it is a 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 will be publishing that shortly and un report pulling no punches

over britain's bedroom tax saying the levy on spare rooms is pushing the country's most vulnerable citizens into further financial uncertainty knee uncertainty and made a serious housing shortage. but before we get to that u.s. secretary of state kerry's reportedly admitted washington suffering a diplomatic setback in syria according to two senators who he met with privately as a power in the region spreads the u.s. is looking at a new strategy that may include sending more military hardware to the rebels or he's marine important i reports. kerry's comments reportedly came during an off the record closed door meeting on the sidelines of the munich security 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 now 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 set 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 hob 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 wary of an ocean of visited a school in damascus to find out that inside the country may think more guns won't

help lesson of arabic in a syrian 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 their bluffs called a day and cross the road i saw sarah and then a missile fell somewhere nearby me and my cousins ran for cover the next day when i went to school on teacher told us that sarah died god bless her was. sarah's sister was also killed that day is now afraid to go to school a tree spawns with a bravery that many grown ups would be proud of it was good to me that 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 various

and i feel so because it's not ok to see kids killed like this it's not good the syrian 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 asked myself girls why did they do they have nothing to do with this conflict so why did they. publish. this story's not unique in almost every syrian schooled iraq 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. the pain is immense both 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 the 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 a feel 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 but of the future too. from syria. like i darted out a card from our front line experience from syria as well as reports on the flimsy shelter provided for those who fled the war. workers four stars from all over the world starting to descend on sochi where the stage is set for the olympics martin anders is in the host city with the latest on the build up to the games. president putin arrived today ahead of the winter olympic opening ceremonies will take place on friday in fact if you look behind us in a spectacular vista that you see here you can see the fish stadium it sits forty thousand people and tonight in fact they had a gigantic fireworks display was delighted many residents here in the hotel as a rehearsal staging rehearsals in fact they had a previous one on sunday so although fortunately all the people i've spoken to

being tight lipped over what. will actually be will have to look forward to that on friday in the meantime president putin arrived today his first stop wasn't to meet the delegates of the i.o.c. it was actually to the national park were put himself actually went into the cages to see one of the persian leopards and actually strobes the creature of course putin himself is a is a fan of wildlife i saw many people in this area trying to breed the animals and so much so that actually made the leopard one of the mascots the official mascot of the. on friday as i said before he then met the delegates of the i.o.c. including thomas brock who is the president of the of the committee and also regarding the people who were here they'll be six thousand athletes are making their way to sochi before friday's opening and of course security is the main thing on everybody's lips obviously there's a great police presence patrol vehicles we've seen our ships in the waters behind

us a total of one hundred thousand patrol members police army horses sniffer dogs you name it will be making tsotsi probably one of the most safest locations in in the world also earlier today r.t. spoke to the mayor of the olympic village mountainside regarding the farm businesses of what they can expect from the atmosphere that they're experiencing at the moment we spoke to spent large as universe take a look at what she had to say. was that you did not just among the spokesman of many of their plants have been saying that back home they saw a very negative media coverage of 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 reverting pranced by what's going on here if they see this much less hassle and discomfort especially when it comes to security checks compared to previous games but hand as president putin is enjoying a huge banquet with the i.o.c. committee there's live music from traditional musicians playing the ball like it

too well western music of course including such songs as we are the champions of course the famous song by queen and of course we've got to speak about the main guests that are coming up about forty heads of state a world leaders are coming to the opening ceremony for friday people have arrived already such as. from the u.k. she was also in moscow earlier at the at the higher school of economics and also maria sharp was struck of a she is in town as well looking forward to the month of sporting activities that are to mess up with her and how excited she is to see the winter olympics here in sochi. in as i'm very impressed by what i've seen in searching i hadn't been here for a year and the when i arrived yesterday i was amazed when i finally saw all the stadiums and venues i really hope that everyone will enjoy their limpid games here in such him. i think the main thing on everybody's lips regarding the community is

a broad of the the anti-gay propaganda law that was brought in last year i went to my at the only gay club in sochi to speak to the owner and it was interesting how they said that actually all the information all the protests all this media exposure is actually in some are giving a negative reflection to the gay community here i met up with them as i said i was there on saturday night it was a great show and let's see what they had to say take a look. thousands of athletes visitors 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 in the late eighty's we had to the city's only beach front gate venue my ak or lighthouse english club that's been

in the city for more than thirty years it seems that it's being subculture is far more liberal than people think traditionally one of the more tolerant russian cities when during the soviet era questions 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 although 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. of course i think it's really bad it negatively affects gay russian people because society blames them for spoiling the olympics for a new port opening 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 i'm meeting people. meeting like any other gay bar that i've ever been to. 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 comp a leave the media attention which is gacy has generated in the west to be sobre would have spoken loudly in great numbers but the reality is that the issue is more complicated than it seems while so many algae to. bring in a new wave of violence in the situation has changed and they gave me the tickets to. see what. well people do not run 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 saw. our

team is at the heart of the winter olympics broadcasting daily from sochi throughout the games and line a twenty fourteen. it . seems the german government isn't getting away with lax snooping controls coming up and they say leaks are forcing one of the country's main hacker groups to file a say a criminal complaint against the government over its part in this scandal stay with

us for that. london. the whole world is on the goal. of the original one a further one down the end there are further to hang up the coins that believe at the end of the street another one a more transparent society gets the money or the plot the tears become we see military and state and police forces mobilized against people who blend into the city the city the more people trust electronic devices the more defenseless the. fear that it is a thousand. twenty

minutes past the hour a new report has slammed the british government so-called bedroom tax saying it's leaving the u.k.'s most vulnerable citizens in tremendous despair but ministers have dismissed the un's findings out of hand as. reports from london. the united nations special rapporteur 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 general wellbeing of the most vulnerable individuals and households now since the introduction of the bedroom tax and those who are of working age and receiving

house in 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 cygnus star 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 the outrageous 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 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 to strip 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 to 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 are cilia. missions of the high tech world now on our website and out about a crowdfunding device that lets you know we international space station is right about us. city mayors in the friendly netherlands vie for even more liberal rules on marijuana seeking legalization of the homegrown homegrown weed all the details

and. if you don't think much of the king of bahrain you best keep it to yourself in the country or face seven years in prison in fact to some new laws defending the monarchy there previously the punishment was a few days behind bars but now when you twitter post facebook comment or casual disparaging remark could lead to a hefty term rodney shakespeare chair of the committee against torture in bahrain thinks it's an act of desperation they're endeavoring to create that the british monarchy had and that. it had prior to the french revolution they think that by making these condign penalties sending a twix which the king reads and then coding that virtual high treason they think that is some way that will increase it won't it will only make them and the more ridiculous so i mean. from the point of view of the khalifa this is something in the last stages of that before they get out of a throwed in particular. by members of their own side. a breach of citizen's

privacy in germany apparently too much for even the country's leading hacker organization the chaos computer club suing chancellor merkel and the government they say for failing to prevent the u.s. and britain from spying on germans linus newman one of the activists behind the legal action explained. if you look at what happened in germany off to the wooden revelations or in the course of this in the revelations the answer is nothing the german government has denied 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. criminal activity 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 reports paula every day this is why we have been laws against this this is why we have

constitutions against such to vittie and this is why we need to defend these rights because we know where history will lead us if we allow governments to become more and more in transparent and citizens to become more and more transparent. to some other stories making international headlines in yemen shia muslim rebels and sunni tribesmen ever agreed on a ceasefire in the north of the country while in the capital side two soldiers were killed and about a dozen wounded in a bomb attack on a military bus monday thousands of shia protesters marched in the sun i q's in the sunni led government of mass corruption and abuse of power. a huge blast outside a hotel in the north pakistan city of peshawar has killed at least eight dozens also wounded in the attack this is peace talks between the pakistani government and the taliban have been dealt a setback the sides were due to meet to start talks but the government says they can't go ahead until the taliban confirms the members of its team. or international

news coming your way in about a half hour's time up next a report on how urban surveillance systems operate in big cities stay with us after this short break. welcome to the year of the horse sense of the b.b.c. news subtitles as we enter the chinese new year which is of course is called the year of the horse alas i believe the b.b.c. is forty and sub reveals a lot more about the true state of the british or global economies that which is not allowed to be said publicly by the likes of the beloved b. if you think about it the elites in government think tank and business are going to forcing public assets and their populations to turn tricks per bankers using the pips lack of depth into the finances plug those national assets one too many loads of debt and then abandon the trickle state of a nation screaming for more good credit all the way of the blue factory up.

to the plane flew. the olympic spirit travels with the flame from its birthplace to greece. join james brown for an elemental and a big journey around russia and beyond. where are supposed to go. all. the united states has significant technological over the rest of the wild and it is now using that supply on the rest

of the wall then there was the deal between the u.s. and england where us spy agencies couldn't spy on people in the u.s. but brit. spy agencies could spy on people in the us so it's a government said all right each of us will spy on the other citizens and then we'll trade and that way will be surveilling our own people so this is what i think of as the scandal. pushes the perpetrator has a role to learn is driven by the hatred of the government. as a religious fanatics. kind of society protect itself against the uncomfortable how should it react to attacks with retaliation. or like the citizens of norway and

spain who opted for freedom openness and. london two thousand and five. on july the seventh four bombs exploded three in underground trains one in a double decker bus the result fifty six deaths and seven hundred injuries the attack is not from the outside nor from the air. the four young assassins a muslims three of them born in the u.k. . a traumatic experience for the metropolis in the blink of an eye the entire city fell out of step it's about her ability visible tool. these things live on in the collective memory they become sources of mourning and

more and they have formal memorials and solemn but this is nothing actually new you know london has a two thousand year history of disaster of plague of wall of strife so there is a pragmatic culture to this city as with many other cities that you know you grief you move on you go through trauma and shock and then life goes on and what is the alternative to have one just stay at home. and bunker themselves off from the future of the world and their life in the city it's not an option. the police quickly identify the perpetrators and their accomplices naturally with the help of surveillance cameras. in a second series of attacks fourteen days later an innocent man was shot. he had dog skin and was reportedly where.