is ation with belief systems ology are removed, it was very impactful. when someone finally came along with no fear, no judgement, you heard my story. nothing too challenging. with these trenches are maybe about a kilometer away from lazar were intense fighting continues as we speak. russian military forces engaged in heavy fighting for the city of ogle, adar in the don. yes, region are corresponded as their reporting from the frontline, the use foreign policy. that meant a trip to south africa that the continent natural resources are a major interest for europe. despite western nations pushing africa to focus on renewable energy. and r t begin special coverage of the legacy left by the

disastrous border rock as 20 years since the u. s invasion and occupation of the country has left an estimated 180000 civilians dead and paved the way for the rise of the dies terrorist group with good afternoon for martinez, national studios in moscow to wherever you may be watching and welcome to the hours most vital stories i'm fiorella is about we start with the ukraine conflict. russian forces have been pressing for control of the strategically important city of google adar in the don yeske region. this on verified drone footage appears to show the aftermath of heavy fighting between ukrainian ad russian troops as moscow's forces make their advance into the city r t as roman coke or if centers this report from the front line. we are on the outskirts of the city of ogle the door. we are with the forces of the next republic,

sir. interior and business free will try and get as close to the door as possible. fighting there continues, as russian forces have already gain control over the nearby town next to glitter the city of lazar is right behind me and you can probably see it's a heavy fighting continues right now as we speak at the moment. sir. there are 2 formations here. one is of the internal ministry, often as republic and the other are the marines of russia's pacific fleet. now, the forces at the moment are in the suburbs of lazar. there's no street fighting, taking place right now. la plan is according to my sources, is to execute a so called pincer movement, where the korean army will be encircled. meanwhile,

russian defense ministry have also reported that the roads leading out of oak lazar towards ukraine are now also completely blocked. she thought the situation is stable. we are a storm in the city trying to clear the enemy from a gladder. people are waiting for us there and are constantly calling this year. we have learned to identify all nate or techniques. so they no longer work like the command has already changed tactics. a little drawing conclusions from previous battles. and i repeat once again that we know all the native techniques so off to resist in a little they will start to surrender and mass commander of the 3rd platoon is showing me the trenches that they have just taken over from ukrainian military. have to take a look. this is a looks like one of the flags of a ukrainian regiments. 30341

o 2. now i'm not sure what this means, but so there's lot of ammunition here as well. there is a growing clothing that ukrainian military left and these trenches, or maybe about a kilometer hallway from oak lazar intense fighting continues here on the outskirts of lazar. now we just are raised to a drone in order to film a little bit closer to the city, to find out what's going on within the city limits. however, we lost our drone according to the military, here it was intercepted by ukraine. so right now, we are leaving this area according to the soldiers that i spoke with. they're hoping that the battle for lazar will and successfully for them very soon from

on cosser of hearty dentist republic the african development bank group has pledged $10000000000.00 over the next 5 years for ending food and security on the continent . it invasions africa becoming a net exporter of food supplies for world markets. the bank president says africa needs to raise its ambitions for economic development. we must raise the bar. we must trace our ambition. we must arise and say to ourselves, it's time to feed africa. the timing is right and the moment is now, feet africa, we must. the u. s. has estimated that more than 35000000 people, including over 6000000 children, are unable to meet their basic nutritional needs in western and central africa. 48000000 people, including 9000000 children, are expected to be at risk of hunger in that region in the near future. elsewhere in eastern africa across ethiopia, kenya, and somalia,

24000000 people are now facing dyer water shortages. we heard from economist charles, bogey and new gun that said that while the international reaction to africa's hunger prices could be more proactive, it's up to the continent to solve issues on its own. i think they did, i should reduction in my few quiets look for me in such an areas and i'm saying that because most of the time is small, reactionary, non proactive. if i may see. and that's why i again, would like to maintain that he has to be sold by africa, the others con communists friends to support and hope where they come. but if what you know, needs to be really pushed 5 by african countries themselves. leaders already that for that matter, they use foreign policy. chief, joseph burrell, has arrived in south africa on a working visit. and it's beachy,

emphasize europe's interests in the regions, natural resources. as strategic partners, there are areas were work together and could do more together. oh, could work in a more strategic way at multilateral and continental levels. in some areas, there is a clear interest to move forward. for example, the partnership unsustainable raw materials value chains and cooperation and renewable hydrogen. european powers have been buying oil and gas from africa as they distance themselves from russian supplies and made the ukraine conflict. but while europe imports fossil fuels, the e u is still pushing for africa to switch to a greener agenda with a focus on sustainable resources and renewable energy. in the meantime, many african countries are struggling with an energy crisis as a tried to cope with the shortages of electricity. economists, charles bogey in uganda again says that while the e u. bies fossil fuels, it should have been trying to push africa to make the jump to renewable energy.

specifically, if you thought about it when the collision between the you and africa. ok from where i see it. i believe it's more literature. but you will have as the peer to peer relationship, it's more beneficial benefits, relationship which in my view is not really the best way to deal with an economy relationship. i think we need to some level this should be fanning in, in that regard. but if the you still buys for so many, shouldn't actually push african countries, you know, to jump into this space of renewables at this moment because i didn't know, did i to crush us? we haven't built the muscle, you know, to make that report. so what i can say that it has to be fantasy. you know, both sides are t begin special coverage of 20 years since the us occupation of iraq, which has less than estimated 180000 civilians dead throughout the coming months.

our t will examine the devastation that the war has had on the one for oil rich country and the destabilization a cause throughout the middle east. at this hour, american and coalition forces are in the early stages of military operations to disarm iraq, to free its people, and to defend the world from great ha room with food and sleep. with

back in january of 2003, then you as president george w bush outlined the basis for the subsequent invasion of iraq in his state of the union address. the speech entirely focused on iraq with bush calling the iraqi leader, saddam hussein, a quote, brutal dictator with ties to terrorism, posing a direct threat to the united states. he pledge to disarm hussein and bring freedom to the iraqi people. something the u. s. was supposedly already doing in afghanistan. it, kane of iraq is not disarming. to the contrary. he is deceiving from intelligence sources. we know, for instance, that thousands of iraqi security personnel are in work hiding documents and materials from the un inspectors. sanitizing special sites and monitoring the inspectors himself. if saddam shane does not fully disarm for the safety of our people and for the peace of the world, we will lead

a coalition to disarm him. later it turned out that hussein had not ramped up his nuclear weapons program and what triggered the american invasion and subsequent occupation of iraq appear to have been a quote pack of lies, the sea ice top weapons inspector in iraq. close the investigation, finding nothing in 2005, 2 years after the invasion, the u. s. warner rack began on the 19th of march 2003. when the u. s. joined by its allies launched operation iraqi freedom. the coalition started a bombing campaign directed against the iraqi government and military installations . despite months of massive anti war protests, world wide. u. s. forces invaded or rock from co way in the south within days and 3 weeks into the invasion. baghdad fell the years of invasion and the subsequent rise of the conflict which i ash have taken a grim, tall on

a rock and its people. there were at least 180000 documented civilian deaths in the country, while a number of household surveys estimate the actual figure to be closer to 1000000. most iraqis died from aerial bombings, shelling and suicide attacks. over 9000000 people either fled the country or were left internally displaced. the us led coalition last almost 5000 of its own soldiers. the war also last many iraqis of different generations struggling to live with memories of loss and suffering. some of them shared their stories with us moving out of the show where the streets were packed with barriers and tunnels. i remember it well. baghdad became a battle field tanks and security forces of all kinds of been deployed there. oh

wow. i up now. yeah, they are live, became a living. hell. because as a child you're supposed to see beautiful things, but we so bullets tanks and kenneth tara for humanity, children and society as a whole. there was nothing but war. ah, ford or host of the families lost members, and i lost one of my brothers because of the bomb banks. the americans were killing everything in front of them. i know that and it, one of my sons wanted to celebrate his success with his studies. so my wife gave him money to buy some junk food and eat out with his friends, and they sat to eat. they were an american base. he was shot in the head by the americans. he died on the spot of all my friends were killed by the explosion. at that time. my neighbor was killed by the americans where he was going to buy a kenneth could can guess. they thought he was a suicide bomber and kill him or love, hear the crab quesada. these are very difficult memories for me. a mortars shall

fell at the door of our house and killed one of my playmates. ah, nothing about the police to live in bagdad. our dreams was shattered. we wished to complete our studies that we could not because of the war and the killings in the streets. we had to leave our homes and go to not a place. ah my, oh well, i know that, but at the time we were in baghdad, we stayed at home and closed the windows, covered them with blankets. we were afraid of a chemical bombardment. we saw america come to us. they told us that a rock would become a paradise. they published news about how they were distributing food, but those were all false dreams. 8th, and only after i turned 14 years old was i able to leave the house with my friends

before that i couldn't even think about it. i was afraid something would happen outside. and even now i don't want to leave without telling my family where i'm going. mm mm. let go. what do you want? what do you remember my thursday at the kindergarten? the thursday i tell a mattress cold, the textbooks shall picture the summer for my regime. but they took them away and gave us new different books. i'll never forget the coal sop of a bullet. the sound of an explosion. images of smoke, an american soldier, a life full of blood. i know many showing jo, avoid. the americans arrested my father. he did not belong to any party. he was working at the market. he was kept in prison until 2018. i didn't have a chance to know my father. after he was released, his health deteriorated, but took him to germany for treatment. but up to 4 surgeries, he died. ah,

a little you may say to me your childhood was stolen and i didn't have a child food. i spend in a month war and terrorist organizations such as anti that among slaughter. americans bombing up kinda and kinda bowman, americans. when we went to school, i used to walk along the wall, so it's not be shot and killed. ah, forgot that elias ross. i lost my father, my cousin, my brother in law. unfortunately, the americans did not fulfill the promise you whoa to rock because of the all lost my loved ones. he has a lot. i don't want to have the united states. you destroyed iraq. you, we can national sovereignty. and over 20 years, you fail to manage

a rock. i wouldn't. coffee said he'll stop destroying self control the national resources. let the rocky people live in peace. ah, and all that suffering might have been avoided if washington had not rejected the negotiable conditions offered by saddam hussein's government. back in january, 2003. yet the masterminds behind the iraq war apparently didn't see that as part of the plan r t. c, sweetie. explains what was behind the events that followed. 20 years ago, us president george w bush tried to convince the world the iraqi leader, saddam hussein was hiding weapons of mass destruction. and that he had the evidence to prove it. the phrase w. m. d entered the lexical with politicians, repeating it over and over again, despite in fact, knowing that they didn't actually exist in iraq as their own intelligence services told them. while un weapons inspectors also said that they found no evidence of

w. m days. none of the doors turned up with into mess, distraction, and you've been surprised and said, you were surprised that that was the case. do you believe the information that gave you was good information? we got, i got a good many. a tip says 2 sites to go to and we went to many of them but and only in 3 of those cases the find anything and, and none of these cases was wet, this last destruction. so that shook maybe 5 minutes. and while beating the drums of war, washington ignored loft hfs by iraq to negotiate for peace. the effort began in january of 2003 in which they contacted us. and through my intermediary friend, he was asked by the syrians to go to baghdad. get, i'm conditional terms from saddam hussein and the intelligence and the iraqi intelligence at the time. and he brought them out and sent

them to me as conditions that saddam hussein would agree to if the united states did not attack out to this. there were 6 conditions, 2 of which we could have implemented immediately to test ah, ah, the, the, the seriousness of their, of their proposals. one was we would be allowed to take the allow $5000.00 you us troops to go in to iraq and look for weapons of mass destruction. there was talk at high levels, almost terms because i turned them, turned them over to the secretaries office and, and was it basically the intermediary? well, they decided to launch the attack on and in march of 2003. so who were the architects of the invasion? well, it's a long list. first to politicians, and no, no only president george w bush,

the day before the 2003 states of the union address, u. s. secretary of state colin powell said the old options were on the table including military intervention. one rack is in material breach to this is their last chance there have to be serious consequences. and those serious consequences met the use of force. and you've heard me say that repeatedly, repeatedly. i've also said that if the international community to the un when the time comes, does not wish to use force the united states reserves, it's right as a sovereign nation to make a judgment within this. this clear record of violation to use force alongside like minded nations. who might wish to be part of such a coalition. back in 2002 us vice president dick cheney had his eyes on regime change in iraq. with our health a liberated iraq can be a great nation once again. a rack is rich, a natural resources and human talent, and has unlimited potential for a peaceful,

prosperous future. our goal would be in iraq that as territorial integrity, a government that has a demo craddick and pluralistic a nation where the human race of every ethnic and religious group are recognized and protected in that troubled land. all who seek justice and dignity. and the chance to live their own life can know they have a friend and ally in the united states of america. then of course came the media, which was crucial during efforts to build public support for war. pushing the narrative on saddam and wm days. in september 2002, the york times america's newspaper of record went big on a sensational story, claiming a rack was trying to get its hands on nuclear weapons. more than a decade after saddam hussein agreed to give up weapons of mass destruction. iraq has stepped up its quest for nuclear weapons and has embarked on a worldwide hunt for materials to make an atomic bomb,

but counter to all good journalistic practice. the only source was an anonymous one . the whole story could be made up. and guess what? there was drums beating there and, and there were, we had the agency over there. ca saying there's debbie m d. i personally believe to this day basically set up george bush for failure. knowing that there was no w m d, they knew it, they knew it, and they had one source that proved later to be unreliable. we presented all the information that we had, all the and, and, and, and with the hope that we could prevent a war. again, not knowing at that time, that there were all terrier motives. so it was just a matter of time before the u. s. unleashed it's shocking or bombing campaign. while across the pond, british prime minister, tony blair, also sold

a case for war on a lie, the now infamous dodgy dossier, which claim saddam's nonexistent. w. m. d's could attack the country in 45 minutes . the intelligence picture they paint is one accumulated over the last 4 years. it is extensive, detailed, and authoritative. it concludes that iraq has chemical and biological weapons. that sedan has continued to produce them. that he has existing and active military plans for the use of chemical and biological weapons which could be activated within 45 minutes, including against his own shia population. so who's to to benefit from it all the most? well, before the 2003 invasion, iraq's domestic oil industry was fully nationalized and close to western companies . to decades later, it is largely privatized and dominated by foreign firms, which have right to in billions,

to understand the dynamics that are going on in the middle east. and of course, it's about oil. it's very much about oil and we can't, we can't really deny that. i'm saddened that it's politically inconvenient to acknowledge what every one knows. the iraq war is largely about oil. people say we're not fighting for oil. of course, we are hardly surprising since oil company spent big box getting former oil, mom bush and former halliburton, c o dick shady into office in the 1st place. private military contractors also saw their profit, saw a war, proved to be a boom for the armed industry with lockheed martin saying a 47 percent increase in profits during the build up to the invasion, which continued throughout the occupation. 2 decades on an iraq remains in tatters with sectarian all militia running a mock and deep political instability. with the war blank for the rise of islamic state and other global g had his groups and calls for george

w bush and tony blair to be tried as war criminals still unanswered. as they enjoy the patronage of the elite said, they how profit from the war launched on a lie? these are just on the stories from the decades on conflict. we will be bringing you more throughout the next 2 months in our special coverage of the build up of one of america's longest wars. and it's devastating legacy. ah ah ah.

with oh, this is for more a conflict overpower and status involving to united states and russia. it's a good question of all russia assert, deep a sphere of influence in the former soviet space parties, holston, europe,

rolled and ukraine, easy sunshine. in order to do this, did all these things doesn't want to allow us to happen. and mrs. watson, what is going wrong? ah, i'm ashen retention and welcome back to going underground, broadcasting all around the world from dubai in the united i roberts, as no m chomsky predicted on last week's episode. the doomsday clock on tuesday moved closer to midnight than ever before, indicating how close the human species is to extinction. the atomic scientists who compile the supporting evidence for that cited the war in europe and amidst reports of imminent deployment of german tanks to fight russia for the 1st time since world

war 2 were joined today by u. s. marine corps colonel who fought for nato nation troops in iraq, afghanistan, and somalia. before the deputy commander of u. s. special operations command central. now seo of military formation. the mozart group retired connell, andrew milburn joins me now from the ukrainian capital. thank you so much. a diagonal for coming on just before we start on the mozart group or the, i know that britain a while it was morning before the announcement about american tanks arriving in theater. so they say at chris perry and andrew bag, jewel kilda, while law helping evacuations from solider. so we're told i don't know whether you knew them. um, is that the kind of work in fact that the mozart group do these evacuations from the theater? yeah, it absolutely is. and by the way, good evening. good afternoon. good morning. a great place to be on your show and thank you for inviting me. yes,

that's exactly the sort of work that we do. and i have a 2 christian entry for and my condolences to the families for, for, for the loss. and, you know, why i feel a loss of course, because the mission is all important and it is extremely dangerous. these guys were traveling as we all are. and asking vehicles under russian on to refund as for and now of course, with increasing in the last month and our threats from infiltrating groups we're way behind ukrainian lines such as the group. and so you know, we don't carry weapons. there's a reason for that. are there is purely humanitarian and it makes this very vulnerable. there is no doubt in my mind. the russians are targeting evacuation

groups. we have a and a and you know this again, this new misidentifying, a group of 30 of the a civilian vehicles. and i one issue so yes, a tragedy. but obviously 2 very brave young men. do you have a contract with the ukranian government at the moment? i know that you were hoping for one? no, not at all. we're almost a year end of the wall. and we're doing this purely on a on don't a fund. so yes, of the mozart group, obviously famous in even nato nation media, partly because it's ironic reference to the russian wagner group which you just reference that what, what exactly is it, i mean, was it wise to call it after your.