not in moscow in the headlines the antithesis of justice rights experts condemned saudi arabia's handling of the investigation into the murder of journalist. newspapers forced to correct an article from 28 misleadingly claimed that russia had been plotting to smuggle julius ceasar the door an embassy in london. and concerns over security climate change and political correctness put a damper on christmas cheer and some.

clothes and welcome to the program as mentioned just to midnight here in moscow this early 25th of december so if you're celebrating christmas happy christmas for me kevin owen of the rest of the on g.t.t. in russia this morning to our top story not in the international the u.n. officials and rights groups have denounced saudi arabia's punishment of those involved in the murder of journalist saying it makes a mockery of justice 5 people have been sentenced to death and 3 others to jail time over the killing but a u.n. appointed rights investigator believes that the people actually behind the journalist's cruel murder have been left on touched while the spokesperson for the u.n. secretary general has also stressed the importance of a further probe the secretary general continues to stress the need for an independent and impartial investigation into the murder torture for examination of any accountability for human rights violations committed in the case. so what you showed he was last seen entering the saudi consulate in istanbul in turkey in october 28th when he was a u.n.

report said his death was almost certainly a state planned execution but the saudis insist it was the result of a rogue operation killer mix this morning looks at how the death of the journalist who lived and worked in the u.s. affected washington's relations with riyadh the assassination of jamal khashoggi shocked the world and drew massive condemnation a saudi court recently sentenced 5 people to death and 3 more to jail over that killing however if you thought that this ruling would draw a line under the case think again this is what the washington post workers showed you work had to say the complete lack of transparency on the saudi government's refusal to cooperate with the independent investigate says suggests that this was merely a sham trial now immediately after the killing last october many pointed a finger directly at the saudi monarchy among them are u.s. senators austria the netherlands denmark and finland immediately banned the sales

of weapons to the saudi monarchy however donald trump immediately ruled out any such ban in the united states and he made no secret about his reasons but as to whether or not we should stop $110000000000.00 from being spent in this country knowing they have 4 or 5 alternatives 2 very good alternatives that would not be acceptable to break for the past 2 years democrats and republicans have called for the u.s. flow of arms to saudi arabia to stop those same arms have been used to lay waste to yemen sense 2015.

but now it seems the battle to stop those arms exports is over on friday donald trump was presented with a congressional defense spending bill by the us congress and that bill contained no anti saudi measures some democrats are furious votes this would be a pool tonight that instead of seizing the opportunity to and illegal u.s. participation in the horrific saudi led bombings of yemen congress will continue to fund trump's unconstitutional will the blame game is now in full swing with congressman denying that they capitulated by letting the bill pass i wasn't caving i was fighting to the last conceivable minute the u.s. can talk all it wants about human rights and condemn the pointless slaughter of

civilians abroad however when it comes to the u.s. relationship with saudi arabia the deep financial and military interests are just too important to sidestep and it's almost musing that the saudi regime thinks that it would be a good public relations move to send inspired low level participants to death in a secretive process that just continues to make them look like a very backwards state where justice is not served in the house and senate have now repeatedly voted in multiple votes in amendments to end in bipartisan fashion to end the u.s. involvement in this horrific horrific war in yemen democrats could have very easily negotiate. arthur and said if this provision was not in that they would have voted it down and they chose not to do that i think trump's covering for the saudi regime is starting to look very peculiar i think even to you number of his supporters some of his more very far right wing republican supporters in congress and have armed

together with progressive democrats on this issue. to god he needs papers been forced to amend an article it published last year about russia's role in the ledge plot to extract judas songs from the ecuadorian embassy in london but if an ocean has got more on it. the crime and the punishment the guardian newspaper gave a misleading pression to readers and was forced to clarify that its article was well something that you might be tempted to call fake news the piece in question published in september last year claimed that russia had a secret christmas plot to smuggle julian assange out of the ecuadorian embassy in london to moscow a tentative plan was devised that would have seen that we call expounder taken out of ecuador as london embassy in a diplomatic vehicle and transported to another country one ultimate destination multiple sources have said was russian the involvement of russian officials in

hatching what was described as a basic plan raises new questions about a san just ties to the kremlin but they investigate which was led by a high profile panel of academics and journalists and last 13 months found that the authors got carried away with some of their claims the plan in relation to mr sanders ability to be able to leave they could door an embassy was not devised instigated by russia there was nothing illicit about the plan as described in the article the investigation was triggered by a formal complaint from the former consul of ecuador 3 they'll not a virus described several of the papers assertions as falls and defamatory r.t. talked to him they talk about secret talks of russian diplomats in london and they have trained me us this past contact with. the kremlin in order to execute some kind of plot that's why i

feel 'd that their article needed to be challenge. and i myself need to have an apology from the guardian apology there happen but their review panel has. decide. and has ruled that the article was indeed misleading breach in the heart of conduct of the press in the united kingdom but i'm not completely satisfied with the correction the other thing is that they have not being. amended but the article still says that russian diplomats. secret talks in london in order to. flee the embassy that's not true and finally enough one of the journalists who penned the piece luke harding was behind another controversial article published by their guarding that

piece also published last year claimed that the old transcom pain manager paul mann of ford had held secret talks with a son to an ecuadorian embassy somehow one of the most surveyed places on earth didn't manage to capture any evidence of that alleged high profile visit the guardian didn't retract the story but deep change the headline shift in the responsibility to its sources mr nigh rise has called the latest corrections he story journalistic fiasco for the guardian for again publishing false information that's not the only article does apart and by the same mouth those are the same out there there's a pattern they have accused of buying into the embassy they have. several articles which i mentioning in my complaint a us as a pattern from the same journalese which have disgraced the newspaper and his

complaint mr not a virus accuses journalists of hiding behind confidential sources the article indeed cited various sources and it seems by sources they probably meant their imagination. tis the season to be jolly but from 1st of markets with armed guards to claims of sanitizing santa to avoid of friends it seems that for some in western countries christmas just isn't quite the same these days as art is peter all of it's been falling out. christmas in europe what a wonderful time of the year christmas markets in full swing perfect for those last minute gifts the smell of sweet treats teasing you know nostrils and on an evening walking in a movie in the list streets perhaps not built with a special someone to keep you from the wind to chill not a care in the world but goodwill to all thought in recent times that's also come with increased security travel warnings and with some traditions now deemed woke

what could be called the whole whole whole marginalization of the christmas period the terrorists are very likely to try to carry out attacks in germany you should be vigilant and follow the advice of local authorities security is of course power amounts at all major of the send christmas markets on different terror a time next to the market in strands last year and here in berlin and 2016 are still fresh in the memory. you can run them opus festively as you like but these below the bar is there to try and stop christmas markets becoming a target again. this

also beat a number of questions raised over the inclusive or to have some christmas traditions with one person being publicly shamed to say father christmas instead of sunset. i've just been shamed on a facebook group for using the name father christmas and told that santa is now seen as gender neutral it's a common trope in the press to say christmas is being done away with and this year it does seem quite difficult to do christmas without upsetting someone a good chunk of people polled say they boxed agenda neutral santa christianity is pretty central to the christmas celebration christ after all is in the name but one school in the u.k. decided to change the words to the carol away in a manger from little lord jesus to baby boy jesus prompting a pro from parents and national newspapers alike saying this was inclusive it's

gone too far in france there's a ban on the tiffany scenes under their religious imagery laws the mayor of bessie is rebels and faced backlash once the go to seasonal salutation only really in north america happy holidays is the right way to wish people well we're told with merry christmas deemed inappropriate by some even if you avoid the causing offense minefield you can still fall down on the environmental impact of christmas 57 percent of those polled here in germany said they would i the limit they use solve all abundant entirely christmas lights over environmental concerns if you prefer a real christmas tree good luck finding one in some parts of the usa where over the last 5 years christmas tree shortages have been reporters with changes in temperature and rainfall cited among the reasons there's even been advice published

over how to correctly argue with your climate change denying relatives over the christmas period what do people in europe those think of christmas 29 teens. do and don'ts. the family getting i want a table and eating each other so often just a spirit of christmas the question is whether tradition is not the same as tradition be you inclusive she writes i think santa should just be what he's always been and that's a big man with a big. think that would be wonderful just to have a female presence as a father christmas i'm big on tradition so i think there's always been santa i don't think there's any real issue with it for some population merry christmas means something religious will. continue with a merry christmas for me i think happy holidays is fine i think everybody should celebrate his own hold of it but he read it to accept friends relatives some form

of was their own and wishing you all a very happy holidays in the hope that gender neutral sun brings you a sense of security peace for all of the early thank you peter one another little flurry of festive fuss meantime the climate change debate big serious thing it's been in the headlines for a lot of this year it seems christmas is not off the hook over it either activists know it alls with a favorite seasonal pastime ice skating or more specifically those ice rinks which pop up at this time of year a shell or do bensky explain. with the festive season in full swing what could be more typical of a winter wonderland than an ice skating rink across the world to thousands of temporary ones are directed every year and for many skittering across the ice is a magical experience but it seems not everyone is in all and the future of rinks could be on thin ice as the traditional ice rink has become the latest battleground

for climate change french city wren has canceled its one citing concerns over the carbon footprint needed to maintain it in a few years it is not certain that there will still be snow at christmas but it is certain that there will no longer be an open air ice rink this is good news for the planet's meanwhile in bordeaux rising costs financially and environmentally mean the outdoor skating rink was cancelled for the 3rd year running the outdoor skating rink is absolutely not in sheen with the times keeping an outdoor ice rink cold consumes a lot of electricity open for a little over a month the city hall skating rink cost $70000.00 euros france's 1st indoor ice skating rink opened in paris an 8 $176.00 it was an immediate hit and the idea has remained popular ever since but now with concerns about climate change is it time for us to rethink some of our traditions we asked people here in paris has this

popular activity weighs up against the cost to the environment since i discern that it's a tradition to have an open air skating ring like this it's magical it brings christmas spirit and there's not much snow it's good to have the rain at the national depends when it's cold enough and. it's possible. but when it's not cold enough it doesn't have to be. you know we've seen many changes in the climate so i think it's very good very good of some parts a citizen of france to do that but i agree the tie strings are not good for global warming but this is only for winter it's not true that is bad. not they isn't often said that could keep everyone happy and it's in the most unlikely of places mexico in a bid to keep a winter feel to the holidays an eco friendly artificial ice rink has been

installed that and with options like that it seems that there is no longer a reason to skate around the issue charlotte even ski. paris and all the news this morning on the pretty new year approaching has outlined the plan for bolstering russia's military might in plenty plenty but what's the range think reality what's it going to rain you find out after the play.

so what we've got to do is identify the threats that we have it's crazy confrontation let it be an arms race in. spearing dramatic development that only. exists i don't see how that strategy will be successful very critical. to sit down and. russia's president gave an address to the minister of defense on choose a outlining the key challenges faced by the country's military as it heads into a brand new year in particular vladimir putin stressed the importance of

strengthening the armed forces given the precarious state of the global arms control system right now is repeated. well addressing the defense ministry the president said that russia is getting on to a new level of international military cooperation he added that 2019 saw a lot of a factor of changes and particularly the sheer morton weapons and russia's nuclear triad has increased to 82 percent in 2019 and holds that despite some traumatic challenges and the world including the volatile situation in the middle east and also the u.s. decision to pull out of the i asked treaty which is the intermediate range nuclear forces treaty now that treaty banned a land based ballistic missiles with ranges of up to 5500 kilometers and now the russian president believes that it is necessary to monny tour possible

deployments of the american missile also of this particular class in various parts of the world including europe and asia pacific. was a worry because seriously concerned about the degradation of the control system i'm not talking about the united states use of the fabricated pretext to cuba agreement to medium and long range missiles in november washington also great uncertainty over the open skies treaty it's also unclear what the prospects for the strategic offensive production straight to this comes as the potential the united states missile defense systems grow given all of this we should continue making the stronger when the president also said that it's time to technically improve the industry he's sad that it's not a game of chance and a more where we can all be simply a satisfied by calling it a draw it's a military organization of the state and it should be brought to the highest

standard now apart from speaking about the challenges facing the russian military the president also. touched upon the international perception of the union and its role in the 2nd world war. in some countries in europe and across the ocean they often try to pervert history and how the world was before the beginning of the 2nd world war and this is a logical continuation of that process recently the european parliament adopted a resolution which basically draws an equivalence between hitler's germany and the soviet union tacitly suggesting directly saying that the soviet union was responsible for the beginning of the war that's of course complete nonsense so where the architecture of the global arms control crumbling this was the russian president stating the challenges for the russian military and the year to come.

syria their government forces have recaptured a key battleground of the it led province until now the village of as had been held by jihadi groups to massacres has been led to a large scale offensive against them over the last week as our senior correspondent juan castillo it's been a while since asaad made headline news it's been everyone but him america selling artists allies and pilfering syrian oil 3rd bullying kurds claims of bias at the u.p.c. w. but no last until now. thousands of syrians forced to abandon their homes and flee for their lives as hundreds of ground and air strikes hit the region of it live overnight something as a part of a new ground offensive by syrian government forces. russian backed government forces up intensified the bombing campaign while of all out i will go to the camps near the turkish border to escape from and rockets the syrian military has been a bit of a role capturing

a slew of villages and towns and media days of course whenever that happens the media and his opponents exploded out of rage same thing every time we want a peaceful resolution we want talks we want. we want we want we want with do with al qaida. it is ruled by a high at the sharm an offshoot of al qaida h.g.'s feeds on war and drinks violence it turned deadly into a cesspool of zealots and fanatics mercenaries and foreign jihad ists on a world tour i mean the fact that it was where they found the founder of isis it's

the safest place you could find kind of gives it away and h.t.s. refuses any negotiation with the syrian government are you seeing the issue here how do you get a peaceful resolution when one of the biliteral it's is a homicidal maniac that just wants to cut your head off in the name of god or interest lies in killing the terrorist in order to protect the civilians not leaving those civilians you know. under the supervision of the terrorist and being killed by a bit of the issue here is refugees for now civilians have fled from the immediate war zone but they have to do somewhere in the safest place for now is north. look 50000 people are once again coming from egypt to our lands we already have 4000000 people and now another 50000 are coming and this main crease even further russian

and turkish diplomats are in overdrive trying to manage what's happening and prepare for what's to come it is absolutely clear that the status quo is over america selling out its allies and camping out in oil fields turkey diluting kurdish territories with arab refugees and now the last islamist stronghold if it falls it will mean the end of the syrian civil war it will mean asaad wins it is their right to clear and to extend the. suffering the fear of state in danger. is what they're doing at present sooner or later i believe that the syrian army will expose these people from from being flippant from bent out of the syrian territory and i don't think that it is this sort of pull from mali it may be difficult it may take some time but sooner

or later they are going to be expelled from from the syrian territory understandably those who spent billions fled in syria with weapons and ammo with fighters and propaganda they don't want that to happen so certainly logical for them to insist on impossible talks so long as he's wasting his time waiting for the other side to pick up the phone the turks can continue calling eyes in northern syria the americans can continue pumping out its oil we're now at the last domino and it's already full. so without final thought for this bulleted let's say so father so so much more lined up for you after the break you know part of the world but for now here in moscow for me kevin though in the rest. thanks for watching happy christmas if you're celebrating it from russia and enjoying those programs.

join me every thursday on the alex simon sure and i'll be speaking to us from the world of politics sports business i'm show business i'll see you then. today there are good terrorists and bad edits the bad news in the end then the united states deems to be a threat to the good of those who work in syria the cia and the u.s. military were engaged in covert actions really throughout the world. where they were assassinating populist leaders they were backing up right wing military juntas funding an army and that's why it's there is no end because there's always a small for a really good. profit. is

your media a reflection of reality. in the world transformed. what will make you feel safe. isolation community. are you going the right way or are you being that. direct. what is true what's his face. in the world corrupted you need to descend. to join us in the depths. or inmate in the shallows.

god definitely once the innocent to be set free now the question is what happens when that doesn't occur like in the case of this gentleman where he was wrongly convicted. the man was falsely convicted the last 20 years of his life who knows how he was abused in prison maybe and so that is a great evil you know this is one of the more challenging questions that we as human beings you know have to deal with it's almost an existential question that you know if there is a god and certainly i believe that then how can we allow evil to occur.