shannon: todd: 1 did not back bashar al-assad. >> we strongly said that bashar al-assad is an illegitimate and syria would be better off without him but they need to resolve that to replace the current dictatorship with a more constitutional government. heather: at the same time that is the red line president obama allowed to be crossed. >> president obama did a lot of things to empower iran in its pushed across iraq, building a militia that is now causing trouble in the iranian militia in syria, the same people they built strong militias with an allegiance to tehran that was usually disadvantageous to the united states. >> let's talk a little more about that double standard and begin with nancy pelosi announcing the war powers resolution against donald trump, she says as members of congress our first responsibility is to keep the american people safe. for this reason we are concerned the administration took this without the respect for congress's war powers granted to us by the constitutions so the same attitude when it came to president obama? >> he did not. she fundamentally misundersta

talks with his syrian counterpart bashar al assad in damascus rising tensions in the middle east. as we enter 2020 the hangover of political correctness still hold over the new gangster film gentleman. divides. the. racist language this was in movie. guess what gangsters don't speak in politically correct. good evening and welcome. in a rapid escalation of what's already a volatile situation the iranian parliament has designated the u.s. armed forces a terror organization came in response to the killing of the country's most powerful general in a us rated baghdad airport in iraq on friday tensions across the middle east have soared as a rainy and demand retribution. i . i. feel those who did this is well as the perpetrators of this crime the killing of general kassim son the money with the pentagon and the military i counted as terrorists. the body of the iranian general has been taken back to his hometown for burial huge crowds of mourners have been gathering for the funeral reportedly dozens of people have died and hundreds more have been injured after being crushed in the crowd

just last month and the russian president vladimir putin holds talks with his syrian counterpart bashar al assad in damascus amid rising tensions in the middle age. and also to come as we enter the new year the hangover of political correctness continues notably over the new gangster film the gentleman who put the issue up at the back. to. discuss the racist language this was a movie about gangsters and hey guess what bully gangsters don't speak in politically correct and balanced way is. a good evening you're watching r t international in a rapid escalation of what is already a volatile situation the iranian parliament has designated the us armed forces as a terror organization it came in response the killing of the country's most powerful general in a u.s. air raid at baghdad airport in iraq on friday tensions across the middle east of soldiers the rains demand retaliation. well those who did this as well as the perpetrators of this crime the killing of general kassim son the money with the pentagon and the military i counted as terrorists the body of the iranian general has been taken back to

the russian president vladimir putin holds talks with his syrian counterpart bashar al assad in damascus amid rising tension in the middle east. and classifies the us armed forces as a terror organization in response to the pentagon's killing of tehran's top commander that huge crowds of mourners have gathered for the funeral. and u.s. house speaker nancy pelosi announces a resolution to curb donald trump's ability to attack iran but a similar restriction was stripped from the defense bill passed by congress just last month. as we enter 2020 the hangover of political correctness is still haunting this notably over the new gangster film the gentleman who put the issue of . racist language this was a movie of gangsters and hey guess what gangsters don't speak in politically correct ways. thanks for joining us this is r.t. international. and the rapid escalation of what's already a volatile situation the iranian parliament has designated the u.s. armed forces a terror organization came in response to the killing of the country's most powerful general in the usa raided baghdad airport in ira

victims of children dead bodies i want the world to feed these children look at the crimes of bashar al assad. this russia and turkey agree to deescalation province but attacks continue to. many here believe this ceasefire will last either victoria gate and be out there. whether is next but still ahead we follow india's prime minister modi on his trip to calcutta the fast visit since passing a controversial citizenship known. broken homes and broken promises. of haiti's earthquake who say life hasn't improved a decade after being displaced. from . hell or the violent weather has been moving through texas oklahoma mississippi and the appalachians you just see it here and this source it's starting to ease now so for the daylight hours on sunday it will be a more case of rain disappearing off the east coast and snow is tucked in behind lying on the ground but look at the temps is you know i think when the day cold of it 21 degrees in washington is extreme it should be more like 2 cities in kansas city this is more like normal weather that's pretty cold so in minneapolis and when you pick on the

together with the iranian forces that have helped to keep syrian dictator bashar al assad and his regime in power it's estimated that in the process hezbollah lost more than 1500 combatants. as well as power center is located in south beirut the die here as the suburbs are 9 has a mainly shiite population here the self-styled party of god has established what it calls a marsh a cemetery. this is the last resting place of men who lost their lives in the wars against israel or in syria they include the son of hezbollah leader hassan nasrallah. many relatives pay regular visits to the cemetery which lies close to downtown beirut. having a fallen soldier a so-called mata in the family is seen as a distinction. and i am the head that yes i have family here 2 brothers and an uncle 3 martyrs he the market every mother even if she doesn't have any marjorie's must give her children encouragement and educate them to this and that is why as you know because we are fighting for our land and our honor and god willing we will set ourselves free because we refuse to live without dignity and it is a mat

according to the syrian observatory for human rights and it comes as forces loyal to president bashar al assad resumed their heavy bombardment of the country's lawless rebel held area several towns and it lit province have been hit by a strikes carried out by russian and syrian government acro thousands of civilians have been forced to flee the area of the pos months. a lawyer for the foreman isn't boss collins gun says he feels betrayed by the japanese justice system then fled japan this week claiming he was avoiding political persecution and allegations of financial misconduct more details are emerging about guns dramatic escape and next year prime reports this house in beirut. is believed to be holed up now arguably one of the world's most famous fugitives sort by police in japan and take the subject of an interpol red notice and a global bady a frenzy. his escape has embarrassed authorities in japan had lived under house arrest and strict conditions including a ban on overseas travel. media reports say the surveillance cameras show him simply walking out of his tokyo home on sunday he didn

seen kind of a flurry of diplomatic activity from putin as well he met with the syrian president bashar al assad in syria this week and he's also been talking about libya a lot he spoke to turkey's leader this week in person and he's been making calls yesterday and today he spoke to. 3 leaders about libya and has been calling for peace there so i think he's really taking care to present himself as a key player that merkel can look to and especially as a player that is more reliable than the u.s. russia has also taken care to kind of present the u.s. and donald trump in particular as reckless when it comes to the iran nuclear deal when it comes to the recent killing of the iranian general silliman which russia also called reckless and today they will be hoping to kind of bring in germany that important partner as thomas said on the side so speaking of the iran nuclear deal will go back to utah most germany russia wants to salvage this but iran has said in light of what's been happening with the u.s. it's scrapping its nuclear enrichment limits dictated by the agreement what can russia and germany

last remaining rebel stronghold russia's military support has helped prop up syria's president bashar al assad and guaranteed moscow an important geopolitical foothold in the middle east as the u.s. pulls its troops out of syria russia has remained. forces and our military equipment have demonstrated the growing power of the russian army and navy and the high combat capability of its forces. russia also condemned the us assassination of the reigning in general. this week as reckless and has repeatedly back to iran and its ongoing confrontation with the us . putin consistently criticizes american policy in the middle east and has tried to present russia as a more reliable partner after u.s. president trump decided to pull out of the iran nuclear deal in 2018 the russian leader has repeatedly said his country would continue to support the agreement ballgames truly believe that the only sensible decision is for all the participants in the iran nuclear deal to honor the commitments and that is exactly what russia intends to do meet in the. this week put in calls for a cease fire in libya as well f

paid a surprise visit to damascus russia has been propping up the regime of syrian president bashar al assadin the country's civil war. well spain's socialist party leader peddles on jazz will remain prime minister of the country after surviving a confidence vote in parliament by a tiny to vote margin now he will try to assemble a minority coalition government with a left wing bold they will party the vote ends a long political stalemate that included 2 inconclusive elections last year. i can do that though don't bet on sanctions but it just a fine chance of victory socialist paper sanchez one and narrow vote and the spanish prominent was reelected by a 2 got. together with the left wing alliance put down most sanchez can now form spain's 1st coalition government since the end of the franco dictatorship this is only possible because the catalan separatist e.c. party abstained sanchez justifying the cooperation. is that the only option is either this progressive coalition or the continued political bloc a in spain. right wing demonstrators protesting outside parliament they accuse sanchez of

mentioned at least 20 civilians have been killed due to aerial bombardment from the regime of bashar al assad then also some unconfirmed reports even by russian aircraft we are understood in one attack alone on the markets of the town of been in the province 5 children were among stalls who were killed so it seems that between the initial russian announcement of a cease fire a few days ago or now this turkish announcement there was a hurried attempt by the more powerful side in this conflict namely the government of bashar al assad and its allies to essentially inflict as much damage as possible on that last remaining rebel held area. right and it's not the 1st time that efforts have been made to deescalate the situation and then we see that these agreements turn out to be quite shaky and fragile and they break apart is this an agreement that will hold. well if we base it on what we've seen before the chances are it won't if we look at it in the context of the ongoing civil war in syria the chances also are that it won't because in reality what. comes down to is the fact that you have. in dam

well, since it threw its weight behind bashar al assad in syria alongside the iranians, russia has been building its influence in the middle east. and with that, the kremlin believes it is camping out sort of a mediation, while it has more leverage than it has had for years in this region. so, how do they see, what's reaction to what we've seen in iraq, and the death of iran's top military leader? what happens next? how might russia get involved. our bureau chief matthew chance standing by in moscow for you. what's your perspective, matthew? >> reporter: well, look, i mean, the russians are probably the best friend the iranians have on this national stage. they provide, you know, a lot of diplomatic cover for iran. and the united nations security counsel, they often veto resolutions that are critical of the islamic republic. they've got an economic relationship which is relatively good and, of course, they supply weapons to iran as well, as well as fighting shoulder to shoulder with iranian, and iranian-backed forces in syria as they support their joint ally bashar al assad in the syria

the syrian defense force claims troops loyal to president bashar al assad have continued their offensive on rebel held areas despite a cease fire agreement and observer group has released video of government helicopters dropping a barrel bomb on a village earlier this week. at least 7 people have been killed in a fierce winter storm that has batted space for several days has caused major flooding and extreme temperatures the eastern province of catalonia anybody erik islands have been hit. well the world health organization says that a new strain of the corona virus that has emerged in china is not yet a global health a much n.c. the disease has claimed 18 life so far including one hundreds of kilometers away from the virus epicenter chinese authorities have locked down several cities in a bid to contain the disease 1st and foremost is the city of rouhani much hopeless at the heart of the outbreak. a city of 11000000 people with almost no one on the streets transportation is severely restricted trains planes buses cars almost nothing leaves or enters the city hospital wards have had to d

vladimir putin has paid a surprise visit to syria's capital damascus for talks with president bashar al assad russia has been propping up assad's regime in the country's civil war. new satellite images show the smoke from massive bushfires in australia has now made it all the way to argentina that's more than 11000 kilometers away the fires have killed at least 25 people and millions of animals in australia who live whether it's bringing some relief but another he played is due later this week. in this way the opposition leader one why door has been sworn in for another term as parliamentary speaker that followed a tense standoff with security forces who tried to stop him from entering the building i don't need the opposition to president nicolas maduro who attempted to seize control of the national assembly on sunday. in spain a socialist party leader pedro sanchez will remain prime minister after surviving a confidence vote in parliament by a tiny to vote margin he will try now to assemble a minority coalition government with the left wing daimones party the vote ends a long political stale

ukraine he has denied any wrongdoing the syrian defense force claims troops loyal to president bashar al assad have continued their offensive on rebel held areas despite a cease fire agreement and observer group has released this video of government helicopters dropping a barrel bomb on a village earlier this week the international court of justice has ordered me to take all measures in its power to prevent genocide against or hinge of people and to preserve evidence of alleged atrocities the verdict comes after me in mars' de facto leader aung san suu kyi she defended her country against accusations of genocide. tonight the world health organization says a new strain of the corona virus which emerged in china is not yet a global health emergency now the virus has claimed 18 lives or so var including one hundreds of miles from the virus epicenter chinese authorities have locked down several cities in a bid to contain the virus 1st and foremost is the city of new han the metropolis at the heart of this outbreak. a city of 11000000 people with almost no one on the streets transportation on lockd

the syrian defense force claims troops loyal to president bashar al assad have continued their offensive on rebel held areas despite a cease fire agreement and observer group has released a video of government helicopters dropping a barrel bomb on a village earlier this week. the international court of justice has ordered me in march to take all the measures necessary in his power to prevent genocide against rooms of people and preserve evidence of alleged atrocities well the verdict comes after lynn mars de facto leader aung san suu kyi defended her country against accusations of genocide to put the. on next to china where a deadly virus is spreading and fueling fears of a global pandemic chinese health officials have just confirmed the 1st deaths from a new strain of corona virus outside the city and that's the epicenter of the outbreak the victim is an 80 year old man in the province. authorities have been racing to quarantine rouhani and other chinese cities in a bit to contain the disease. this is where it all began authorities have traced the outbreak of the corona virus to a seafo

there are a lot of -- the -- saw that the government of bashar al assad was weak, needed help, formedlationship in syria, a very powerful relationship, in iraq where the majority of people are shiite naturally found an ally and set up very, very deep roots. there are shiite in parts of afghanistan. where iran is powerful is where it had natural allies, and the concern is now those natural allies are going to use this moment to fight back, to defend their former patron in this much larger region. when people are looking out now and they're saying what just happened? what did we do? the danger is i don't think so much that there is going to be a massive attack in the united states against civilians. there could be attacks against u.s. military, against u.s. diplomatic facilities. but much more likely those attacks would take place in the region, destabilizing attacks to try and drive american forces out of this region, because that really is what this is all about. iran does not want to have a big american presence in iraq which after all at the end of the day is right on iran's border.

qassem soleimani saw that the government of bashar al assad was weak, needed help, reached out, formeds relationship in syria, a very powerful relationship. in iraq where the majority of people are shia. the government there qassem soleimani naturally found an ally and setup very, very deep roots. there are shia in parts of afghanistan. iran is powerful there. so where iran is powerful is where it had natural allies. and the concern is now those natural allies are going to use this moment to fight back, to defend their former patron in this much larger region. so when people are looking back -- looking out now and saying what just happened, what do we do the danger is i don't think so much authorize going to be a massive attack in the united states against civilians. there could be attacks against u.s. military, against u.s. diplomatic facilities. i think iran would see that as fair game. but much more likely those attacks would take place in the region, destabilizing attacks to try and drive american forces out of this region. because that really is what this is all about. iran does n

so it's almost like, you know, bashar al assad has become a side trap of syria of russia in syria, so that reflects on how iran is perceived in the country. bashar al assad has always tried to use the iranians against the russians but also use the russians against the iranians. tries to balance both of them, but today, soleimani's assassination has probably given russia some sort of a way of influence, of increasing its influence in syria at the expense of the iranian influence in syria. yet, at the same time, iran was in syria, engaged over the last seven, eight years, was really engaged in local politics. it was in street politics, iran has always been better than the russians in dealing with syrian domestic politics. they were better than the russians in dealing in syria, but yet, at the same time, iran today really lacks the influence that it had when soleimani was alive. yes, soleimani will be inherited, somebody will be replacing him, and iran will have some sort of assistance in syria, but i do not think that they are influence in syria is going to remain the way it is, especia

death of christ in chile money in opposition held parts whereas we've heard from the president of bashar al assad of syria saying that his services for the syrian army will not be forgotten ok some avenge of aids live in baghdad thank you. now the reaction in the u.s. to the assassination of the iranian general can be split star in parts isn't lines republicans appraise president trump's actions but democrats have expressed concern about iran's reaction mike hanna is in washington d.c. with more. u.s. troops reinforcements continue to arrive in the middle east and the state department has issued a travel advisory urging all american civilians to immediately be iraq this phase deployment of some 750 soldiers from the 82nd airborne rapid reaction division was initially treated after the demonstrations at the u.s. embassy in baghdad but pentagon officials indicate this number is likely to increase in coming days. president trump remains on for cation in florida but in the early morning tweeted this comment iran never won a war but never lost a negotiation the secretary of state insisted the action w

the syrian president bashar al-assad has vowed to take back every inch of idlib.nian protesters have defied a heavy police protest -- presence in tehran for a third day. they are angry about the killing of civilians on board a plane. the u.s.-led coalition fighting isil in iraq has opened up the military are based international media. the iranian revolutionary guard says strikes were meant to damage the american military machine. four iraqi soldiers have been injured after rockets were fired at an airbase sunday night. the affiliate also -- the facility also hosts american forces which the iraqi parliament wants out of the country. there are fears in the kurdish region withdrawal could read to a resurgence of isil. >> these mountains have become a hotbed for isil sleeper cells. 250 fighters are estimated to be hiding here, including some foreign fighters who crossed back from syria. >> after what happened in syria, too many fighters are just taken back to the iraqi fight. mountains neare the town of mark boal, once under control of isil. and natural protective bou

directing troops and commanders in support of bashar al-assad murders campaign against the syrian people. support for the popular mobilizeation committee, affiliated shia groups in iraq. cyberattacks on u.s. officials, the downing of a u.s. unmanned aerial vehicle in june of 2019. u.a.v. strikes against saudi oil facilities in september 2019. persistent interference of commercial shipping in the straits of hormuz. and stoking popular unrest against the u.s. and iraq that encouraged the assault on the u.s. embassy in baghdad last week. i've given you these examples for a reason, and you can see the reason. there has been an escalation that began with the u.s. decision to destroy a diplomatic deal, and it's been one nation acting and the other responding and the other acting and the other responding, and now we're on the brink of war. the escalation has been so significant between the u.s. and iran that now each country has been responsible for actively inflicting injuries and deaths on the other, and we're at the brink of war. thousands of american service members enjoying holidays with t

in the middle east and russia's growing infl made a surprise visit to visit syrian president bashar al-assad, a brutal dictato that irania have helped keep in power. it sometimes feels as though donald trump is pursuing a modern-day fiction of the modern-day version of what richard nixon called the amendment. america's adversaries that he would be ready to take a must extreme military casting aside the notion of proportionality for the has also repeatedly stated he does not want to embroil his country and another released war,nd objective eight much harder -- in another middle east war, and objective made much harder by his decise n to assassinneral soleimani. seamerica's iing more b-52 bombers to the indian ocean, planes that have for decades symbolized military ght. will the perception that donald trump lacks restraint check the response fm ira nickryant, bbc news, washington. jane: for more on all of this i spoke a short time ago with robin wright, staff writer at r."the new yor mark esper said that the u.s. is to diplomacy. can that happen? robin: i think the world wants to see some kind

artillery andnd russian jets, in an all out assault by bashar al-assad's forces in northwest syria. the text flattened building south of aleppo, where rescuers pulled a small girl from the rubble, covered in dust, and alive. despite denials from russia, human rights groups report that russian and syrian f fces resumed bombing civilian areas, destroying hospitals and schools, even though a cease-fire was supposed to go into effect on jajaary 12. villages are in ruins, and children and rescue workers are among the dead. says 350,000tions syrians have fled their homes since december to escape the violence. >> we are now leaving because of the bombardments. know where we w will go. russisian-backed offensive is moving closer to more heavily populated areas of idlib, syria's last opposition-held province, home to 3 million people. the u.n. says hundreds of thousands of syrians seeking refuge at the turkish border are at the middle of a growing humanitarian crisis, with families in makeshift camps running short of food and water. annette: to washington now. for just the third time in amer

middle east for not amid hootin has paid an unexpected visit to syria for talks with president bashar al assad with more on this his roman cost of. this is let me have putin's 1st visit to syria since the year it's wednesday 17 and his arrival is there it comes amid tensions in the middle east following the killing off a top iranian military official in iraq after arrival according to vladimir putin's spokesperson he visited the russian command center in damascus where he held a meeting with president bashar assad and also received a state of affairs reports from the military about what's going on in the rest of the country now in a meeting with bashar assad lot of mir putin. that's a long way and significant steps have been made to establishing the country's territorial integrity as well as statehood meanwhile president of syria bashar. thanked the russian military for establishing in his country and of course for their fight against terrorism. now the latest movie by the british director guy ritchie has been getting some less than stellar reviews with critics branding the picture as racist a

us president vladimir putin has arrived in syria on an unannounced visit to meet president bashar al assad according to the kremlin both leaders are discussing military strategy within the country but as when an opposition leader one guy do as been sworn in as national assembly speak up after being blocked briefly by security forces this isn't deputy luis posada who claimed the title on sunday fled the building after gained access a british woman convicted of lying about being raped by a group of israeli teenagers in cyprus has received a suspended prison sentence she plans to appeal against the 4 months to a sentencing of both protests by women activists outside the court the case led to calls in the u.k. the tourists to boycott the island those are the headlines the news continues here on al-jazeera inside story next. the civil war in libya is a blow that up that many countries are involved on both sides as the battle for tripoli intensifies turkey is the latest to deploy troops making neighboring countries increasingly anxious so how are outside forces shaping libya's future this is ins

vladimir putin has paid a surprise visit to syria's capital damascus for talks with president bashar al assad it's his 2nd visit to the country since the since syria's civil war began russian forces have been fighting alongside syrian government forces since 2015. satellite images show the smoke from massive bushfires in australia has now reached argentina more than 11000 kilometers away fires have killed at least 26 people now scientists estimate 1000000000 animals have been killed or injured as well cooler weather is bringing some relief but another heat wave is due later this week. spain's socialist party leader pedro sanchez will remain prime minister after surviving a confidence vote in parliament by a tiny to vote margin he will try to assemble a minority coalition government with the left wing put they most party the most ends along political stalemate that included 2 inconclusive elections last year. i can do that though don't bet on sanchez bet it just a fine chance of victory socialist paper sanchez one and narrow vote and the spanish parliament was reelected by a 2 got. together wi

synagogue in the city of hama the syrian defense force claims that troops loyal to president bashar al assad have continued their offensive on rebel held areas despite a cease fire agreement and observer group has released video of government helicopters dropping a barrel bomb on a village earlier this week as you see right there the international court of justice has ordered me in march to take all measures in its power to prevent genocide against the hinge of people and to preserve evidence of alleged atrocities a verdict comes after me in mars' de facto leader aung sun suu kyi defended her country against accusations of genocide but 3 american firefighters assisting with the bushfire crisis in australia have been killed in a plane crash south of the capital canberra the premier of new south wales state said the hercules aerial water tanker like this one you see here from file footage outfitted to battle bushfires crashed in the mountains of the snowy minera region. for the night the world health organization says that a new strain of the corona virus that has emerged in china is not yet a

group said tuesday that regime forces had taken the city, marking a key victory for president bashar al-assad's drive to recapture the province. already devastated by months of bombing, the town is of strategic importance. it sits on the highway linking damascus to aleppo, one of more than a dozen towns taken byy governmentnt forces since frida. in the meantime, civilians continue to flee north, toward the turkish border. according to the syrian observatory for human rights, some 120,000 havave left the countryside around idlib and aleppo over the last 12 days. >> we have had enough. honest to god, we don't know where to go anymore. i left in the morning and left my belongings, and i came here. we are tired. we have had enough. what are we waiting for? we really need calm. my children are in one place and my parents are in another. colin: while many residents have abandoned the city, opposition forces say they are ready to fight to the end. >> we are revolutionary since the start of the revolution. we are now burying the murders and saying our goodbyes. god willing we will have the same fate as

miss a public holiday in russia in syria who did meant syrian president bashar al assad and russian troops it's only the 2nd time that putin has traveled to syria since moscow's military intervention in the country's civil war officially began back in 20154 young children have been shot dead by al shabaab militants in eastern kenya the attack took place in that county near the border with somalia it comes just 2 days after the somali islamist group targeted a military base used by u.s. and kenyan forces the socialist leader of petals on says has been confirmed spanish prime minister after a narrow parliamentary vote his victory was secured when a small regional party agreed to abstain sanchez will now head up a minority left wing government spain's 1st coalition since it made the transition to democracy back in the mid 1970 s. . well it's 5 years to the days since islamist terrorists went on a rampage against journalists at the french city recall magazine charlie hebdo 12 people died in the attack for which al qaida claimed responsibility it was the 1st in a series of deadly incidents over

with ukraine he denies any wrongdoing the syrian defense force claims troops loyal to president bashar al assad have continued their offensive on rebel held areas despite a cease fire agreement and observer group has released video which you see here of government helicopters dropping a barrel bomb on a village earlier this week. the international court of justice has ordered me in march of take all measures in its power to prevent genocide against the were huge of people and to preserve evidence of alleged atrocities the verdict comes after be in mars de facto leader aung sang suu kyi defended her country against accusations of genocide. it. was a night the world health organization says a new strain of the corona virus which emerged in china is not yet a global health emergency comes after chinese authorities decided to walk down 3 major cities and to cancel the chinese new year's celebrations in beijing all in an effort to contain the new strain of the virus. this is where it all began authorities have traced the outbreak of the corona virus to a seafood market in ruhani since then the city

has spent orthodox christmas a public holiday in russia in syria and putin met syrian president bashar al assad and russian troops and this is the only the 2nd time that putin's travels syria since last fails the what terry intervention in the country's civil war officially began back in 2015 puerto rico's governor has declared a state of emergency after a series of earthquakes in the u.s. territory the most powerful tremor with a magnitude 6.4 hit early on tuesday at least one person has been confirmed dead 8 others injured. the even as whalen opposition leader one has been sworn in for another term as parliamentary speaker it followed a tense standoff with security forces today who tried to stop him from entering the building. leads the opposition to president nicolas maduro who attempted to seize control of the national assembly on sunday. spain socialist leader pedals on chavez has been confirmed as the country's prime minister after a narrow parliamentary vote sanchez will now head a minority left wing government spain's 1st coalition government since it made the transition to democracy in

the russian president vladimir putin holds talks with his syrian counterpart bashar al assad in damascus rising tensions in the middle east. as we enter 2020 the hangover of political correctness still hold over the new gangster film the gentleman.

flooding near putin has paid a surprise visit to syria's capital damascus for talks with president bashar al assad it's the 2nd visit by by putin to the country since the country's civil war began russian forces have been fighting alongside syrian government forces since 2015. satellite images show the smoke from massive bushfires in australia has now reached argentina more than 11000 kilometers away the fires have killed at least 26 people scientists estimate 1000000000 animals have been killed or injured cooler weather is bringing some relief but another heat wave is due later this week. and venezuelan opposition leader one has been sworn in for another term as parliamentary speaker it followed a tense standoff with security forces who tried to stop him from entering the building. leads the opposition to president nicolas maduro who attempted to seize control of the national assembly on sunday. spain's socialist party leader pedro sanchez will remain prime minister after surviving a confidence vote in parliament by a tiny to vote margin he will try to assemble a minority go in government with th

the presidentt bashar al assad in fact in the since defeated osta9e all t those thing now main that syria the sorry that iriran has the right to be in serious seeking to o put militay bases veryy c close to israel. that was also the hand of custom so the money so all these things togogether. a are a long relationship a troubled relationship- and i have heard by the way that israel it was also considedering an s. assassinating. custom so the money itself. at one stage but decided was too risky. israel is no stranger to external threats- but i'm wondering areas are are people there do they seem scared. that's a good question they're very aware the story has led every bullish on- but today every news bulletin it's being discussed everywhere it are. all on the news but also in cafes people are very aware and you know that these primime minister benjamin netanyahu has made the relationship with the around the kino is on h his foreign policy position of his long prime ministeter sheikh so they are aware. and i donon't know if they are actually fresh and as you would be if you're waiting f

russia's growing influence, as vladimir putin made a surprise visit to meet the syrian president bashar al—assadanians have helped to keep in power. it sometimes feels as if donald trump is pursuing a modern day version of what richard nixon called the madman theory. creating a sense among america's adversaries that he would be prepared to take the most extreme military options, casting aside the notion of proportionality. but he's also repeatedly stated he doesn't want to embroil his country in another middle east war, an objective made much harder by his decision to assassinate general soleimani. america are sending more b—52 bombers to its base in the indian ocean, planes for decades that have symbolised its military might. will the perception that donald trump lacks restraint check the response from iran? nick bryant, bbc news, washington. and of course we are monitoring that situation on the strikes and will bring any more details to you. now lets get some of the day's other news and an update on australia's devastating bushfires. smoke from the blazes across australia has now reached south

middle east by the mayor putin has paid an unexpected visit to syria for talks with president bashar al assad they discussed the volatile situation now unfolding in the region parties remind kosar of reports. this is a lot of putin's 1st visit says syria since the year it's wednesday 17 and his arrival is there it comes amid tensions in the middle east following the killing off a top iranian military official in iraq after arrival according to vladimir putin's spokesperson he visited the russian command center in damascus where he held a meeting with president bashar assad and also received a state of affairs reports from the military about what's going on in the rest of the country now in a meeting with bashar assad lot of mir putin. that's a long way and significant steps have been made to establishing the country's territorial integrity as well as statehood meanwhile president of syria bashar. thanked the russian military for establishing peace in his country and of course for their fight against terrorism well later on wednesday vladimir putin will be holding another top level meeting but

from the aftermath of the attack turned out to be fabricated to be used as leverage against bashar al assad's government. we spoke to journalist eva bartlett who believes western media outlets are losing credibility when it comes to syria. i think that more people are coming to suggest it with western media given how transparently a bold faced lie they have they have been over the course of the war in syria but the thing is like if they want to promote on this you can't be dictating to journalists but they can or cannot report it's russian russian media russian journalists russians spokespeople who have been telling the truth on syria and why and this is based on actually in syria and see what they've been saying for some spokesperson army of what they say are reporting i can corroborate that with what i've been hearing and serious well and let's remind people that after the allegations about alleged chemical attack and mount it was here in russia the 1st request of the obvious is that you come to syria and investigate and it was the u.s. u.k. and france which for that investigation could act