a fragile truce takes effect in the disputed region region. but reports of shelling come from both sides our correspondent is in the heart of the conflict zone reporting on the devastation and how locals view the standoff. i can see it has been razed to the ground but it has been battered by so many so many calibers sizes and types. coronavirus cases rise sharply in northern england with hospitals preparing for even worse while government guidelines so confusion. and the french president's plan to clamp down on radical islam threatens to teach him a lesson after outrage erupts over his idea to teach arabic lessons in school. for

broadcasting live from our studios in moscow this is our international i'm sean thomas glad to have you with us as we recap the week's top stories with our weekly program right now 1st let's start off with the latest in the standoff between armenia and azerbaijan in the disputed territory of now go to the 2 countries say they are abiding by a cease fire that came into force on saturday but both have accused the other of violating the truce with russia serving as an intermediary the 2 sides managed to seal an agreement including an exchange of prisoners and war dead in the contested region the deal paves the way for further talks to be mediated by russia the u.s. and france here's some of what we saw from the key players on saturday.

a ceasefire is announced from 12 pm 110th of october for humanitarian purposes. we are committed to a peaceful settlement of the current conflict and the ready to resume the peace process but it but if the armenian side is committed to the truce regime the phase for a political settlement will come and the phase for pressured negotiations will end our goal remains the same to restore the integrity of azerbaijan. the fighting erupted in. in late september with armenia and azerbaijan laying the blame on each other as i john claims 9 people died and more than 30 were injured during the shelling of the city of god in the early hours of sunday a rocket reportedly hit a residential building and a rescue operation is underway armenia denies any involvement in what in that attack but locals think otherwise. it was 2 in the morning we were sleeping i heard a huge sound and i saw everything falling on me glass wood the won't everything my

son ran and a teacher it and picked me up i saw rock fall on my face i opened my eyes and another rocket hit i said to myself what is this i opened my eyes and couldn't see anything but dost cease fire we know these armenians very well we know how they behave they are 2 faced they completely lock on or you can't even call them seaman's. they are barbarians they are not human if you have a war it's with soldiers but we are civilians we were sleeping at night just hours after the truce took effect on saturday air raid sirens went off in qatar buck and the locals ran for cover our correspondent has done of his in the local capital and heard several explosions the city has borne the brunt of the shell fire over the past 2 weeks there are multiple civilian casualties although the numbers are unclear at this stage you go to brought us this report from the area as the fragile truce initially came into effect. the city of step on the kurds is

a sorry sight i can see it has been razed to the ground but it has been battered by so many bombs of so many calibers sizes and types this street got the full wrath over the cluster munition all the hallmarks i hear burned down because shattered glass and if you look closely at the walls and windows here along this whole street they have pierced with tiny tiny holes this is the deadly power. of a cluster bomb and other aspects of using one is that when a rocket shoots dozens of little bombs of little grenades many of them don't explode so we were being told not to go down that street because that's where locals gathered those grenades that didn't explode and there detonating them on purpose they're doing so because each unexploded grenade like this poses a grave threat to especially to children because they look harmlessly look innocent so a kid picks up such a such

a bomb starts playing with it and it explodes in their hands now it's been just hours into this tentative cease fire between armenia and azerbaijan but everyone who i've been talking to and counting on it coarsely. since monday no truce has been observed the war continues there is absolutely no change. in emphasis far as temporary for 2 or 3 years it will be calm and then it will start again like this time every day we are in danger we wake up and thank god that we are alive i don't know what is going to happen to us as. we have moved trust in what they say and particularly in the current developments the scenes while looks worse is. the director of britain's a crisis research institute told us he thinks neither side will be able to make real progress without broad public support. shaky partly because you're all about mineral city on both sides not just the treatment so dysfunctional that some it's public opinion and for instance we must be afraid that was

a risk that already had but who are some dissenting voices saying that why are we stopping the war when we as a result we winning so there's a danger that governments who made the improvement could be prest lot of opinion to new that will particularly only as interest not the other problem is that the agreement is essentially a very short point says that it's to enable the new to be recovered and also for christians to exchange and those felt the top story she found a way of mechanism for bringing about a longer term ceasefire and even peace i think russia is the key player because it enjoys a considerable degree of trust and a little contact with those of our german omonia and its next door. and so it has its own interests in a peaceful solution and it's the pro his props all the players further away. interests that they don't have any risks rushnell the state stands to lose if there's a conflict and it's actually. nations across europe are tightening their coronavirus

restrictions after a spike in case numbers germany france and britain have all seen dramatic increases in recent weeks the british prime minister is expected to announce a partial lockdown for the north of england on monday it could include the closure of all pubs and restaurants but local mayors are resisting the plans and threatening to launch a parliamentary challenge a nationwide public trust in the government is at an low ebb as are 2 shaadi edwards daschle explains. when considering the u.k. government's response ok but 19 pretty and probably wouldn't be the words on the tips of most people's tongues over the course of the year the u.k. has seen thousands of people dying in care homes tests and tracing deadlines set and missed the u.k. topping the death toll across europe plus of course britain being on the verge of a round 2 and while most people think the government's response needs to be completely written off it seems as though not everyone agrees it's been. i think it

will be like the lympics that's when it's all over and we look back and reflect we would actually be extremely proud of ourselves some people might think a wooden spoon is more appropriate than a shiny metal especially considering the latest news that 16000 positive tests for private 19 have been lost meaning the super spreaders a blindly unaware this still spreading thousands of people blissfully unaware they've been exposed to covert potentially spreading this deadly virus a time when hospital admissions are increasing in the 2nd wave blunder after blunder critics say the government's not learning from its mistakes but as the country hurtles towards a 2nd wave of the virus confusion is still lingering in the guess with mixed messages coming from. the hospitality but as i understand it not successful apologies i misspoke today in the northeast new rules mean you cannot meet people from different households in social settings indoors including

in pubs restaurants and your home you should also avoid socialising with other households outside go to work but stay at home eat out to help out but don't socialize kick start the economy but stay in your bubble it's no wonder the country is confused especially considering the man telling the u.k. what to do is accused of being a tad confused one of the major problems is widespread confusion about the local restrictions people feel very let down a very frustrated very forgotten can we pin all the primal boris johnson. off to rule these all around precedented times far to go back to all that no prime minister has ever fought before a lot of months of economic paralysis boris johnson began to i'm not the look down even though parts of the u.k. was still plagued with the virus and so the north south divide found its latest partition the timing of the lifting of national lockdown was london centric please remember this the next time you see politicians pointing fingers at our people on

the eve of a 2nd wave many might think the government would know what it was doing by now especially considering it's how to round 6 months to prepare but when carrot has been replaced with confusion can the government really expect people to for the rules when it doesn't seem to know them itself shut to address the artsy. the french president's plan to fight extremism by teaching arabic in schools was met with staunch resistance earlier this week as artie's. reports from paris. under plans announced by president korn france is fighting back against separatism and deviation away from the secular nature of the republic but the law which has yet to be fully drafted and released has been seen as an attack against islam not going speech did they kill to alleviate those concerns. the problem is islam ist separatism this conscious theorize political religious project which

materializes in repeated deviations from the values of the republic which often results in the constitution of a counter society and whose manifestations of the dropout of children the development of community based sports and cultural practices which are the pretext for teaching principles which do not comply with the laws of the republic french authorities fear that children and students learning arabic in mosques all being taught by religious associations could fall prey to indoctrination by ism midsts and in a bid to have more control the government plans to expand its availability in schools but not everyone is convinced that it's a good idea according to a new poll some 69 percent of respondents were not in favor so what do people here in paris make of the idea yes for me it is a good idea today people from around the world have

a right to speak their language and arabic in our schools is a good idea because we have a lot of young people from north west africa and europe. personally and completely against this idea because here in france there are too many generals asians we point to say no this is march and mostly when there are more serious matters but who i don't really have an opinion on that but it has to be controlled it might be a good idea if there are other languages might be a good idea to learn arabic here. talian spanish english all these languages and there are things that's a really good idea i think people do with these want to do if they're interested it's critics have also rounded on it the note saying it is being counter productive it's ridiculous it's the best way to boost the proliferation of quranic schools or denominational schools if we want to islam ice france this is the best way to get there the language of the republic is french institutionalizing learning of the

arabic language in schools is cowardice and a mistake but even if arabic classes or more widely there is no indication there would be a prolific appetite for them it's currently the 8th most popular foreign language chosen by 11 to 15 year olds and figures show that only about 0.2 percent actually study it what's not clear yet and this is perhaps where the concern comes from is whether or not under the new plans arabic will become part of mandatory lessons here in france if that was the case it is likely to feel the fire of those who believe teaching arabic in schools only fosters communitarianism and blues the feeling of patriotism the exact opposite of what mr. there's nothing wrong with teaching in school what purpose i think is a political message and i think that's where all the french are. going if we don't

want to be around the bush trying to integration if we want to help communities that are trying to go live together. and wish is one of the best instruments which can be used to get people around here. of course we teach the other languages even the president is in favor of teaching the arabic language i think we shouldn't mix the subjects and say as i've also heard people saying online that teaching arabic is an act of separatism you know. that arabic has existed here for a long time and it never brought me that radicalism or terrorism they resist specific branch of muslims who naturally make the headlines but this is a branch that's not all muslims don't generalise. let us now take a swing around the globe to look at some stories that are making headlines this weekend and the public anger is boiling over in israel over the new nationwide coronavirus lockdown tens of thousands rallied in cities across the country on

saturday calling on prime minister benyamin netanyahu to step down clashes that broke out in tel aviv than several people were injured as well. a security guard has been arrested in the u.s. city of denver over a fatal shooting a protester was killed during rival rallies between left and right wing groups on saturday local reports say the suspect had been hired by a local t.v. channel in the meantime over in belarus. police used a stun grenades and water cannons against an opposition rally in the capital minsk dozens of people were reportedly detained including a russian journalist covering the unrest it is the latest in a series of protests since august disputed election which the opposition claims was rick. still to come this hour and the weekly the spanish government moved to all but seal off madrid to tackle

a spike is struck down by the capital's highest court we will tell you all about that when the weekly returns this is march international. join me every thursday on the alex simon show and i'll be speaking to guest of the world of politics or business i'm showbusiness i'll see you then. the world is driven by dreamers shaped by one person with those great.

dares thinks. we dare to ask. for. welcome back to the weekly right here on r t international now on thursday madrid's highest court rejected new lockdown measures imposed by the central government ruling they violate people's freedoms a lockdown order was issued after a surgeon covered cases in the spanish capital but opponents say the decision was taken too quickly without consent and ignored the fundamental rights of millions of

locals if you do not have it was the having one of the superior courts of justice of madrid has refused to ratify the measures aimed at restricting people's mobility which were imposed by a recent central government order the community of madrid saw those measures as hasty nonconsensual and affecting the fundamental rights of millions of citizens and the courts have unanimously seen eye to eye with us on this and madrid residents told us how they feel about the government's lockdown plan for the capital. i mean. it seems that the measures are only intended to annoy madrid because there are many provinces in spain which are going through the same thing as us and they don't have to do the same so i'm not at all in favor of what the government is doing. as me thus i think the measures that we're taking were good but it is true that economically it will be very bad for us that. we have to move on we have to continue with our knives and i think that we can have a normal life if we are careful spanish political analyst says the focus has

shifted away from fighting the virus. out of this that. instead of thinking about a real fix for the problem and a common effort to fight the virus from which everyone would benefit the central government and the regional authorities are constantly criticizing each other and looking for some new strategies all this leads to chaos from which we the ordinary citizens suffer. donald trump's physician says the president isn't no longer contagious after recovering from cover 19 and can resume campaigning across the country that said the 2nd presidential debate will not be going ahead it was canceled after trump refused to take part remotely the vice presidential candidate did manage a t.v. face off this week but there was an unexpected star who stole the spotlight for all of about 2 minutes.

the v.p. debate was in stark contrast to the earlier trump biden showdown both carmelite harris and mike pence mostly refrained from interruptions and predictably the pandemic took center stage. the very 1st day president donald trump has put the health of america 1st whatever the vice president is claiming the administration has done and clearly it hasn't worked if the trump administration approves a vaccine before or after the election should americans take it and would you take it and donald trump tells us i said to him that we've taken i'm not taking the fact that you continue to undermine public confidence in a vaccine if the vaccine emerges during the trumpet ministration i think is is

unconscionable there's a lot missing here in terms of substance i think there was a lot that was was lacking in this debate look at the political issue that is the centerpiece of the debates coronavirus the coronavirus is an important issue but it's not a legitimate political issue because not 2 sides to it there's not a pro coronavirus thought in an anti krone virus side but there are legitimate political issues pro-choice pro-life views on gun control drug legalization should america be the world's police anymore these are legitimate political issues that are not being discussed because again we're letting the media as well and the debates in a way that's just designed to be the most sensational and the most you know quote topical rather than the most politically relevant is part of the problem of the format of the debate are they trying to cover too many issues would it be but it would be bad be better served to have one or 2 things that they talk about the whole night and really go at those issues and quite candidly why do we even have

vice president to have this debate in the 1st place they don't create policy we're all very interested in policy and the technical details you know but a lot of people that's not the way that they make their decisions about voting and most people are trying to vote on. what they you know with their friends and family like they're making decisions about ideas that they've heard about but they don't really know the details i mean we can't expect regular americans to be knowledgeable about all these different vast policy areas even the politicians themselves don't really know all of the details of these different policy areas i don't think it's true that the american people are unable to. understand the issues i think that the issues are intentionally obfuscated in a way to make sure that the average american cannot weigh in on them perhaps the different format where you have maybe 3 or 4 broad categories that allow for the debaters to get into into the into those those categories might be important was there a winner who won this debate in pinning one. well i don't know if there was

a winner or not i tend to agree that you know a lot of these questions are really not areas of steps and if discussion i think we really can't expect them to get into the details of any kind of particular policies and that they're really not trying to do neither one of the candidates really inspired a lot of confidence if we had to choose a winner i would have to say that had to be may be. only because of. his way to do the debate certain points i don't think that either debate changed any single voters' opinion whatsoever i think that the voters had already made up their mind before the debate i think tonight's debate did absolutely nothing and the reason for that again is that the poll opinions were kept out this was a rigged debate. a state of emergency has been declared in sudan after some of the worst flooding there in years for many it seems life is proving even more of a challenge and what was already one of the world's poorest nations.

or rather i got nothing out of the water has destroyed all of our house furniture and belongings they were a little lost in the flood we were being evacuated from our homes to safer places several houses were in time it's truly we managed to save some furniture because the rest was taken with the water. some people are living now under a tree we don't have anything left and children live on the trees there's no place to shelter us and the village is still submerged in water we're building a hoss out of wood and plastic she said to shelter ourselves and our families until things get better.

that does it for me and for that matter there does it for the weekly as well my colleague neil harvey will be here in about 2535 minutes with a full and fresh look at your news this is art international glad to have you with us. welcome to maximize your financial survival guide. looking forward to that's without. yanks this is what happens defenses in britain delegates after driv watch has a report. still

i just know that the feeling is i'll just. keep one look at what why did why do you know. all of the. please give me hope movie but there are also friends that the us are still so that the soul feel hoping to do something to see. which. they value about them not only with the simple dollar the cell phone and i was with someone of that you know but that happen.

is you'll media a reflection of reality. in a world transformed. what will make you feel safe. isolation full community. are you going the right way or are you being led so. direct. what is true what's his face. in the world corrupted you need to descend. to join us in the depths. or remain in the shallowness.

hello and welcome to cross talk or all things are considered on peter lavelle diplomacy and work and update on the cease fire negotiations in moscow on the issue of the bottle caught up and is the war on cope and also a war on populism on the left and right. to discuss this and more i'm joined by my guest george some yelling and budapest he's an author and a you tuber at the gaggle and here in moscow we have dmitri bobbitt she is

a political analyst and an editor at interest me internet media project right gentlemen cross-talk rosen effect that means you can jump in anytime you want and i was appreciated ok i was going to put it past that george we have a supplier we've heard that there are some violations but at this point as we're speaking right now it is still holding and i've been looking at a lot of the reporting this is only a tiny baby step i mean this issue is not going to be resolved that hasn't been resolved for 30 years and i'll be really honest with you i don't see a resolution coming into play what is most important and with these negotiations in moscow with the leadership of armenia and azerbaijan is this at least the 1st step of stop the killing where do we stand george go ahead. i agree that that's a very important 1st step violations of cease fire in the media hours after. the announcement of a cease fire that's to be expected on this in any conflict the real question is

whether the potus have an interest in to a single cease fire and i think that applies very much to the by john and to it's a chief sponsor turkey because for others by john a ceasefire and the status quo ante isn't really in its interests. turkey has made clear that it will not accept anything short of a complete armenian withdrawal from the areas that it's been occupying since 94 so i did just think that this the ceasefire may not last i mean there's just simply . there's this there's too many vested interests against it and therefore. this this conflict is likely to escalate you name it is there is the risk of losing based on azerbaijan because this offensive against the crowd of about a buck and then gone anywhere i mean if you will of villages been engaged if you know if you've been.