you have a ran backing bashar al-assad -- i ran backing bush are al-assad. -- bashar al-assad. the situation on the ground has been so different. people are not represented at the negotiating table. you have people trying to find solutions from outside of the country who cannot influence the fighting on the ground. >> you mention the different groups fighting for control in syria. how much control does president assad have over the country at this moment? >> this is a problem because he does not control the people who fight for him anymore. the syrian arab army does not exist in the form anymore because it is mainly controlled and commended by iranian officers inside the country who have militias on their side. the national defense forces have grown so powerful they don't listen to orders anymore from damascus. you have the lebanese fighting at their side. the problem is bashar al-assad is not the person who can stabilize the country. he lost a lot of control militarily. >> you have so many factions fighting. in the most powerful seems to be the islamic state. >> we just saw th

bashar al-assad - asked to stop killing his people by international community. 2013 we saw them coming out and the islamic state. it is complicated. bashar al-assad left the area for a long time where there is a lot of criticism from within their own ranks. there isn't really a political effort. and where is the european policy when it comes to political process. why is it openly against moscow. we heard washington and washington's focus exclusively. if we don't have this i'm afraid kobane may be a victory of sorts, but we don't - we have trouble going across border. worth noting, but don't expect surprises. thank you. >> yes. >> appreciate it. >> thanks very much. >> european leaders are threatening sanctions. fighting intensifies in eastern ukraine. charles stratford our correspondent travelled from the government-held city of mariupol to donetsk. >> reporter: troops are moving from about 40km away. the ukranian government declared a state of emergency in those areas. as we headed to donetsk the roads were increasingly deserted. the ukranian military were moving heavy weaponry into p

and bashar al-assad. if that is the focus of western efforts, it bay be possible to develop that. >> good talking to you >>> u.n. secretary-general ban ki-moon said the threat imposed will top talks. he'll ask leader to try to find solution to end violence in nigeria. the group, boko haram, increased attacks ahead of the election. 10,000 people have died at the hands of boko haram in the past five years, the nigeria government defended its military after an amnesty international annual report said troops didn't help hundreds attacked by boko haram. thousands of people fled the nearby town after boko haram killed hundreds of people there and accuses the military of failing to respond to requests to send reinforcements and advanced warnings of a boko haram attack. the armed group took control of that town on sunday. let's go live to our correspondent live in abuja. i should imagine the nigeria government has not been too happy hearing these allegations. what are they saying about it? >> that's right. they s

it says that moscow is not an honest broker, as it's an important backer of president bashar al assad. russia trying to broker these talks between various dispratt disparate groups. what russia is starting needs to be vastly improved and this is where i believe the europeans the u.s. need to come in and make that clear and also of course for us to involve the right to a group of syrians including most importantly the groups fighting on the ground. >> you were saying that the russian prime minister lavrov is expected to speak. >> what i'm hearing from the inside even the opposition group, there's not been a clear agreement on the way forward. many would want to discuss how you transition from assad how you change the system. that's been a red line for the regime from the start. >> let's shift to breaking news we've had here this morning this violence on the israeli-lebanese border. is this going to be left as another prickly border fracile or will it escalate? >> this is a very, very serious situation. what we are hearing is that benjamin netanyahu days away from an election, promising

they controlled the area. >> translation: we dismiss the media reports that bashar al-assad has been into this area. that is the parliament square and the hospital. >> reporter: near a lebanese boarder, another armed group, al nusra front, has attacked hezbollah positions. bashar al-assad's forces have the backing of the military wing of hezbollah, a lebanese shia organization. the rule is if the a simply opposition versus government. there are many groups and allegiances. whatever side syrians are on the fighting and chaos show no sign of ending. >>> the death of muammar gaddafi in 2011 created a power vacuum in libya that has not been filled. coming up next we examine the deteriorating situations in that country. stay with us. >> separating art & politics >> if you have an agenda with people... you sometimes don't see the truth >> and the lifelong influence of his mother >> she was worried i was gonna be a spoiled brat and not see how complicated the world was >> every monday, join us for exclusive... revealing... and surprising talks with the most interesting people of our time...

meanwhile, syrian president bashar al assad remains in power, aided by iran's revolutionary guard and russia. fighting has been spilling over into lebanon. al-nusra took responsibility for twin bombs in targeting allies of president bashar al assad that killed nine people in tripoli. the scale of the crisis is overwhelming. half of the population's 7.6 million syrians are internally displaced and more than 3 million have become refugees after fleeing the country, threatening the stability of other countries. over a million refugees have flooded lebanon which only has a population of 4.5 million spread among a very fragile balance of christian muslim and jewish groups. since syria's conflict began in 2011 israel has launched airstrikes often targeting weapons systems believed bound for hezbollah. after israeli airstrikes killed several hezbollah fighters last week the leader claimed the group has rocket that is can hit any part of israel. meanwhile in nearby jordan, according to the u.s., there are 640,000 syrian refugees. the jordanian government says the total is double that. even th

bashar al-assad visited this neighborhood recently. the rebels say that's untrue because they control the area. >> we dismissed the false reports perpetrated that bashar al-assad has been to this area. as you can see that's the parliament square. >> near the lebanese border, the al nusra front has attacked the area. assad forces has the backing of hezbollah. syria's war is not a simple one. it's opposition verse government. there are many groups and many allegiances. the fighting and the chaos shows no sign of ending. >> from monday syrians will require visas to enter lebanon. the new law effects to control the fleeing of the civil war. syrians will have to apply for a tourist student visa and prove that they have hotel reservations and at least $1,000 in cash. >>> iraqi government forces have retaken part of anbar province from the islamic state in iraq and the levant. 100 isil fighters have reportedly been killed. >> lawyers for jailed al jazeera journalists mohamed fahmy, bader mohammed, and peter greste. they have been in prison for

the iranians want to see president bashar al-assad continue in power. the u.s. believes na ousting bashar al-assad is ultimately the way to deprive the islamic state of support in syria. remains to be seen. with the new congress could we see tougher new sanctions? >> it's possible. it's interesting that sanctions are - they are an interesting instrument of diplomacy. sanctions are a mixed record. they have a mixed record in the way that the united states implemented them. they are an instrument that you tend to employ. it's an intermediate solution between reverting to military force and doing nothing. sanctions have a dubious track record, it makes policy makers feel like they are doing something. i think the track record of sanctions shows that we can target officials, certain institutions. whether the sanctions will make a deal more likely with the iranians it's unlikely. it's a stalling mechanism, a way to continue to impose incremental pressure but it is not clear based on track records, the iranians that a new round of actions will necessarily cause change

syrian state tv says president bashar al-assad visited this area recently. rebels say this is untrue because they control the area. >> we dismiss the false reports perpetrated by the regime's lying media machine that bashar al-assad has been into this area. as you can see that is the parliament square and mawada hospital. >> another armed group syria's armed group has attacked. forces of the military wing of hezbollah, syria's war is not a simple one of opposition groups. whatever sides syrians are on the fighting and chaos show no sign of ending. victoria gatenby, al jazeera. >> the leader of the houthis last year's agreement would have divided the country into six states but the houthis have taken over part of yemen since then including the capital sanaa. his group is planning to move into the oil rich mareb province. it is he says to stop it from falling into the hands of al qaeda. >> there have been more fighting between demonstrators and police between bahrain's capital manama. increased since the arrest of opposition leader ali salman last week. much of

and you have this papers saying remember bashar al-assad.nd saying remember we failed to stop the radical event and are paying the price for it. this paper is saying that what we have now is a situation in which you put yourself in bashar al-assad position, he is laughing because he knows ultimately western governments will come around to his line of thinking and believe that he was right all along in how to deal with the radical islamists. that sent shivers down my spine when i read that article. there is a really strong material out there in the press. very gloomy material, indeed. correct thank you for that. -- >> thank you for that

syrian tv say president bashar al-assad visited this neighborhood recently. the rebels say that's untrue because they control the area. >> we dismissed the false report perpetrated by the regime lying media regime that bashar al-assad has been in this area. that's the parliament square and the hospital. >> near the lebanese border al nusra front has attacked the area. they have the backing of hezbollah, a lebanese shia organization. syria's war is not a simple one of opposition versus government. there are many groups and many allegiances. what is clear that whatever side syrians are on the fighting and the chaos show no sign of ending. al jazeera. >> still ahead for you this half hour. >> dealing with an incredibly dangerous fire. >> areas at risk in australia where bush fires are out of control. >> and what a journey the russian railway line that nearly went extinct are a few years ago finds that life really does begin at 40. >> it's a chilling and draconian sentence... it simply cannot stand. >> its disgraceful... the only crime they really committed is jou

group is no there, saying that moscow is not an honest broker as it's a back are of president bashar al-assad. a middle east policy advisor joins us in the studio. there's a lot of different stories and lots to talk about. let's talk about russia brokering talk between the dispirit opposition groups. is russia an honest broker? >> no it's not. it is good that russia is talking about a political solution and good that we get asaad and those around him to talk politics. that's one thing they don't want to do. the majority will not change. the initiative that the russians started needs to be vastly improved. i hope they learn the lessons from what will be a pretty failed effort but we have some members of the opposition there, but a lot of those have been chosen by the bashar al-assad regime itself. at the same time russia is giving credence but there is a lot to lose. a disintegrating state is not of interest. of course syria again has - or the impact of a syrian war surfaced in a border squirmish between israelis and haez on the southern border with lebanon, armed groups saying it's in respons

this syria also but in a lesser extent they are doing it through forces of bashar al-assad, whereas in iran is in some cases taking on i.s.i.l. directly. >> and just going back of course to the attack, it also killed six members of hezbollah. considering how invested hezbollah is in syria what shape do you think its retaliation will be if any what actually can they do right now? >> well, one scenario is if they fire are forces, hezbollah has an estimate of 60,000 to 70,000 rockets. they could fire that into israel. in israel that is not seen as being likely, to deter israel against a possible military strike against iran's possible nuclear installations. not many people believe it will happen. what we are probably going to witness an attack against an israeli sholding holding abroad. this is the form of hezbollah retaliation that we are likely to witness. >> thank you sir for having joined us. >>> the turkey president represent erdogan has chaired his first-ever cabinet meeting. it's something that hasn't been done by a turkish head of state in more than adecade. the opposition session

didn't take force against syria and bashar al assad. something to be discussed between the president and new king? >> i think they have to have a clear understanding about what the strategy is. >> we have two little wars against isis syria and no strategy. there has to be a larger agreement about what it is we're trying to do. i agree with the previous comments and it appears defact on that we're leaving assad in power, but that's obviously not what the saudis want and we need to have a serious, very private set of conversations about what the overall strategy must be. >> gentlemen, thank you. don't go anywhere. we'll take a quick break. on the other side we'll talk about iran and could iran emerge sort of the winner in all of this? that's next. when the flu hits, it's a really big deal. the aches. the chills. the fever. an even bigger deal? everything you miss out on... family pizza night. the big game. or date night. why lose out to the flu any longer than you have to? prescription tamiflu can help you get better 1.3 days faster. that

syrian state tv said president bashar al-assad visited. the rebels say it's untrue because they control the area. >> translation: we dismissed the false reports, perpetrated by the regime's lying media machine, that bashar al-assad has been into that area. as you can see, that is the parliament square and the hospital. >> near the lebanese border another group, al qaeda, the al nusra front attacked hezbollah positions around the town. assad's forces have the backing of the military wing of hezbollah, a military shia organization. syria's wore is not a six one of opposition versus the government. there are many groups and allegiances allegiances. whatever side the fighting is on, the chaos shows no signs of ending >>> the death of muammar gaddafi created a vacuum of power in libya ha hasn't been filled. coming up next - we xim the chaotic situation in that country. >> separating art & politics >> if you have an agenda with people... you sometimes don't see the truth >> and the lifelong influence of his mother >> she was worried i was gonna b

well, after repeatedly calling for the ouster of syrian president bashar al assad, is president obama changing his policy? the administration sources are leaking that the president now thinks assad and his regime may be part of the solution. as the priorities shifts to defeating islamic state. this as moderate syrian rebels claim that u.s. money and supplies have all but dried up over the past several months. even as the president touted american support for the opposition, in his state of the union address. has the administration quietly changed its syria policy and what does it mean for the fight against isis and our allies in the middle east? let's ask wall street columnist dan henninger and foreign affairs columnist, bret stephens. lots of leaks behind the scenes. is he changing the policy and why would he do it? >> well, i would argue that this administration always had a bias in favor of assad. you have to remember that when it came -- >> despite all the public comments? >> when it came to power in 2009, the administration was keen to treat him as a reformer, as a potential part

said president bashar al-assad visited this area recently. bels say that's untrue because they control the area. >> we dismiss the false reports person trade by the regime's lying media machine that bashar al-assad has been in this area. as you can see that is the parliament skwa and the wada hospital. >> neither leb -- near the lebanese border the al-qaeda branings the nusra front has attacked hezbollah positions. they have the backing of the military wing of hezbollah, a lebanon legal leb an easy group. there are many groups and many aleak answers. what is clear is whatever side syrians are on, the fighting and the chaos show no sign of ending. victoria gatinbia, al jazeera. >> for many syrians fleeing the civil war, getting out of the country doesn't always mean they are safe. hundreds of thousands of land mines planted decades ago by the turkish government are in place along the turkey/syria border. a report from san laruf amount of the devastating effect they have had on one family. >> at 13 years old, mustafa should be out playing with t

the fight against syria's government and the forces of the syrian government bashar al assad. walsh was in the city as the fight reached an important point. >> reporter: in the abandoned mansions of syrian's elite, a fight for the battle of the biggest city is reaching peak. this is just outside aleppo. it's key to the last remaining supply line for rebels into the city. if the regime takes this tens of thousands of civilians in rebel areas will be besieged. they show our cameraman the regime positions. now they begin with a surprise attack. across open ground these men are young, breathless but in this war's carnage that amounts to experience. so many do not last long. >> translator: these are the farms that the army took the commander says and they took it because arab countries let us down by not giving us weapons. iran is supporting bashar's army. >> reporter: this is a mad dash towards a better equipped regime and then positions by a dirt wall. shoot now, guys, he says. it looks like the 23 millimeter machine guns won't shoot at us now, they laugh. and then pull back. rem

that bashar al-assad has been in this area. as you can see that is the hospital. >> near the lebanese bother another armed group syria's armed group the al nusra group assad's forces have the back of the al asha. syria's position is not one clear, but whatever is clear whatever side yrnz are syrian are on, are are victoria gatenby, al jazeera. >> fighter jet crashed near raqqa in northern syria. air strikes in september. for most syrians fleeing from i.s.i.l. and other dangers of the civil war crossing the border doesn't always mean safety. many have escaped to turkey have been killed or maimed by land mines. and rights activists have criticized the administration for failing to remove those mines. reporting from the turkish syrian border. interat 13, he should be out playing with the other children but he can't. running for their lives from i.s.i.l.'s advance through syria, barol's family immediated for border, straight into a mine field, turkish mine field. >> someone told us to run under the wire. as we did a mine exploded un

syrian state tea said that they bashar al-assad visited this area recently. but they say that's untrue because they control the area. >> we dismiss the false report perpetrated by the lying media machine that bashar al-assad has been to this area. an as you can see that is the parliament square and the hospital. >> near the lebanese border al nusra front has attacked hezbollah positions around the town. assad forces have the backing of the military wing of hezbollah a lebanese shia organization. there are many groups and many allegiances. but what is clear that whoever side syrians are on, the fighting and the chaos show no sign of ending. al jazeera. >> the father of a jordanian pilot captured by the islamic state in iraq and the levant have again appealed to them to release their son. he was captured after his fighter jet crashed in northern syria. he is the first to be held captive by the group since the u.s.-led coalition began their airstrikes in september. most syrians fleeing from isil and other dangers of the civil war crossing the border does not alwa

they talked about the bashar al-assad regime a sore point between saudi arabia and the united states.he saudis want to see a forceful military posture by the americans against the bashar al-assad regime. the obama administration is reluctant to do so. they spoke about iraqi military and sectarian divisions, and the situation in yemen, to the south, the situation in iran and the nuclear talks. the saudis are anxious about how they may turn out. on the question of civil and human rights within saudi arabia, the president brought it up with the king but not a specific case we are told by white house officials, and did not mention that saudi arabia blogger who had been flogged publicly and sentenced to 10 years iften. the president spoke for a need for the balance on these issues and security. here is the president in an interview before arriving in saudi arabia. >> what i found effective is apply steady pressure as we are getting business done this needs to get done. and oftentimes that makes some of our allies uncomfortable. it makes them frustrated. sometimes we have to balance our nee

many say this has benefited president bashar al-assad. he gave an interview in november. he was very defiant. he was critical of airstrikes on the islamic state group saying, there hasn't been any tangible results. >> we have seen in the past few months protest breakout over police brutality. >> the death of an unarmed black teenager, michael brown in ferguson, missouri. a grand jury decided not to indict the white police officer that shot him dead. this is from "the new yorker" back in december, which i found telling of the debate in the united states. the cover was illustrated by bob staacke. you can see the gateway arch divided between black and white. the hopes the events will provide a bridge and opportunity for the city and country to come together. right after the events in ferguson another grand jury decided not to indict a white police officer, eric garner in staten island. the media has been focusing on this call for a national debate on criminal justice police brutality. what we are witnessing is the first of a new civil rights movement. >> we turn our attentio

borders with lebanon threatening attacks near the hometown of hezbollah. >> syrian president bashar al assad remains in power aided by iran's revolutionary guard hezbollah fighters and political support from russia. al-qaeda's syria branch he will nusra targeted hezbollah fighters within syria. factional fighting has spilled into lebanon. the scale of the cries is overwhelming. half of the population, 7.6 million syrians are now internally displaced and more than 3 million ever fled the country, becoming refugees and threatening the stability of neighboring countries barely able to cope with the humanitarian needs of so many people. refugees have flooded lebanon who have a population of 4.5 million with a fragile balance of christian muslim and jewish groups. >> israel has launched airstrikes often targeting weapon system believe to be bound for hezbollah. after israeli airstrikes last week the group claimed it has rocket that is can hit any part of israel. in nearby jordan, there are 640,000 syrian refugees. the government says the totally is actually double that. even the smaller number wo

quickly, aaron, where does the syrian regime of president bashar al assad fit into all of this? they're getting support obviously from iran, from hezbollah. what do they want? >> i think assad has reached the conclusion that there's going to be no western intervention. the israelis have intervenes half a dozen time through air strikes destroying probably missiles from hezbollah to israel. assad frankly has created a manageable status quo for himself, which is one of the reasons i suspect neither iran nor hezbollah wants to open up this second front. remember the iranians spent a lot of money helping hezbollah repair lebanon in the wake of the '06 war. price of oil going down stretched in syria, iran is simply not flush. and i don't think wants it this time around. >> aaron miller, thanks very much. elise, we'll get back to you later, elise labott on the border between israel and lebanon. >>> coming up a potential deal in the works to swap a jordanian prisoner a jordanian air force pilot for two isis hostages. we have new details coming in. >>> and a string of bomb threats targeti

or society had intervened early and went isis show that there was a real chance to overthrow bashar al-assad probably by using excel politicians by the vice president and a dissident syrian general that could have formed a decent coalition that held the country together. can i promise you that this would've had a good outcome? of course not. but that became something that called the free syrian army that comparatively speaking was a group that we could have worked with swiftly and effectively to overthrow the bashar al-assad regime and all of a sudden she hottest groups started forming as we went from stage one to three to this stage four cancer that we have right now and the islamic state on the other end in a way some of the others have no involvement whatsoever can say that it's one group of bad guys against another group of bad guys and a plague on all of their houses, but that does not justify the policy inaction that brought us to this terrible past where right now it is not just a crisis in syria but the entire world for the united states. and i think the most important thing that we

. >> syria's president bashar al-assad made a second public appearance in a week. he was seen attending prayers in damascus, to celebrate the birthday of prophet mohammed. accompanied by the prime minister he prayed and shook hands with the muslim scholars. bashar al-assad has rarely been seen in public since the war broke out in 2011 >>> anti-government protesters and supporters of detained opposition leader fought with riot police in bahrain. he faces four charges including inciting law breaking and others to break the law. the charges are said to be politically motivated. sala was rested after leading a protest rally against the elections >>> al jazeera demands the immediate release of our three journalists imprisoned in egypt for more than a year. peter greste, mohamed fadel fahmy and baher mohamed were wrongly convicted of broadcasting false news and helping the muslim brotherhood which they and al jazeera deny. an appeals court in cairo ordered a retrial. lawyers for peter greste and mohamed fadel fahmy filed requests for them to be deported from egypt. >> th

busy with the war in syria sending thousands of its fighters to assist the syrian government and bashar al assad government in trying to crush the rebels, so they have their priorities, as well which are syria right now really trying to strengthen the syrian government there so that it remains in control of territory. we think and a lot of nationals points to the fact that maybe israel responsibility to today's incident but in a way that contains and ends this and just puts an end to this latest round of cross border violence once an for all. >> all right. thank you. a u.n. peace keeper was killed in that fighting along the israel-lebanon border. let's speak to james bays as he joins us from u.n. headquarters in new york. james, any official response, any reaction from the u.n. to this news? >> we have the official confirmation of the death of one peace keeper, but at this stage there is no other information coming from the united nations they are not yet confirming to us although there are some reports floating around. i don't want to give out the details of the nationality that is there becaus

fighting in support of president bashar al-assad. this isn't the first time israel has attacked targets in syria since the civil war started. israel's repeated air strikes and attacks on syria. his forces have been stockpiling weapons which could include long range missiles. >> now this huge attack against hezbollah, his credibility online basrala would like to retain contacts with israel that's why i don't think hezbollah would be passive. it's a matter not if, but when. >> this attack is a serious blow to hezbollah. the group says it will retaliate at a place and time of its choosing. victoria gaitenby al jazeera. >>> let's get a report from nicole johnston. nicole are we expecting a big show of support particularly in the hezbollah stronghold of southern baiz ruth beirut? >> we would expect thousands of hezbollah supporters to be out on the street for the funeral ever jihadofjihad magnia, the son of a late hezbollah commander who was also killed by israel in 2008. more funerals we will expect on tuesday as well in some of the sout

. >> thousands of men are in hezbollah are in syria fighting on the same side as president bashar al-assad. this has divided lebanon. there are those who support the group and the syrian president and those who back the other side who say syrians have move out. >> today hezbollah is no more an arab hero, he's ton opposite, seen as backing a dictator who is killing an arab population. >> hasan nesrella says hezbollah has a sophisticated arsenal and can strike israel anywhere, any time. this certainly increases the tension, nicole johnston, al jazeera, beirut. >>> protesters are demanding answers when a prosecutor who claimed to have information of a coverup was found dead. >> in the capital they gathered in at least three locations and there were protests in the provinces as well. there was a small standoff with police outside the presidential palace. crowds started gathering shortly after officials announced the preliminary results of an autopsy on prosecutor alberto nisman's body. they say there was no indication that anybody else was involved in his death. it was less than 24 hours befor

. >> hezbollah is fighting in syria alongside bashar al-assad's regime. leaders are gearing up for a general election in march. >> the government has unveiled an anti-jihad website as part of a new strategy. the site posts videos debunking the claims of groups like al qaeda and islamic state. >> eking their language using videos -- and their language using videos and began to -- and propaganda. anxious to counter the recruitment of extremists online, the government uses images from familiar jihadist websites but introduces darker images showing a different side to the conflict overlaying them with a message "you will discover hell on earth and you will die far from home." the french government has battled for months against what it calls terrorist agenda -- propaganda on the internet. >> you have to inform young people. this is a way to protect them. >> the goal of the site is convinced to buy terrorist -- to deis to demystify terrorist propaganda. >> it is counterproductive. the messages are basic. it is more of an elaborate discourse. >> it is a questio

said they were foot dragging because turkey wanted the end game to be the removal of bashar al-assad fact turkey has been a supporter of the free syrian army for that reason and accused the western powers u.s. and european countries of not doing enough to support fsa which helped the rise of i.s.i.l. but no suggestion now the end game will be removal of bashar al-assad and the president of the national coalition said earlier on this month that these fighters will be used to fight i.s.i.l. >> bernard smith in istanbul thank you. italian aid workers held by a group in syria arrived in rome and greta and her friend touched down in rome and greeted by the foreign minister and released on july and believed to be taken by al-qaeda al-nusra front and will not say if ran some was paid. we demand the release of journalist in prison in egypt for more than a year and they were wrongly accused of broadcasting false news and helping the muslim brotherhood and have a retrial and in jail 384 days and they are asking to be deported from egypt. the sri lanka government promised investigation into cor

moment hezbollah is deeply mired in the war in syria fighting on the side of syria's president bashar al-assad. >> at least two civilians have been killed and a number of others injured in shelling in ukraine's embattled city of donetsk. one person died when shells fell on a market in the early hours of the morning. another person was killed when a park was hit. fighting has increased in donetsk. more than 4,700 people have been killed in ukraine's east since april. >>> meanwhile the ukrainian president petro perishing co-said that he's waiting to hold a cease-fire deal. to make a schedule to implementation the minsk agreement. >> in russia's chechnya region hundreds of thousands rallied against the depictions of islam islam's prophet mohammed in france's publication charlie hebdo. peter sharp has the latest from moscow. >> this was without doubt one of the biggest demonstrations ever seen in the chechnya capitol of gross any. hundreds of thousands of men and men women heeding the call against caricatures of the prophet mohammed. it called for a million people to go out on the streets in peace

had been accused of allowing fighters crossing into syria because they wanted the down fall of bashar al-assad. >> turkey's ministry say it has banned 8,000 subjected fighters from entering the country but it's impossible to police every meter of the more than 900 kilometer board border with syria. >> reporter: a report says that more than 50,000 people from 80 countries have traveled to iraq and syria in recent years to become fighters. many will have crossed into turkey. anyone determined enough to join isil will still try to cross the border. with money and the right corrections there is a chance they'll make it. eventually. bernard smith al jazeera, on the turkey syria border. >> iraq's prime minister says that the international community has been slow in responding to the threat posed by isil. meanwhile, isil fighters killed at least 24 members of the kurdish security forces in the attack in northern iraq. we have reports from the iraqi city of erbil. >> reporter: heavy fighting. peshmerga fighters are in pursuit of the isil fighters who are in the town. they have tried to escape soon the

saudi arabia is very much - they are disappointed with president obama from backing israel after bashar al-assad had deployed chemical weapons killing innocent civilians. nothing came to it. the chemical weapons programme was destroyed under the auspices of russia. the deal was struck with russia. the relationship has been repaired. the white house wants to cope it going. the word used was continuity. >> looking at the passage of time talks with iran continues. they continue. the fight against i.s.i.l. is still to be determined. but in syria - where are the two countries far apart? >> well, i think the israeli palestinian conflict is a sore point. this is the fundamental issue in the middle east and in the bit lateral relationship with the united states and saudi. on the economic side white house officials say after the meeting they did not speak to the two leaders about oil prices, but spoke about oil stability within the energy sector. they didn't talk about the price of the pump. the move by saudi arabia to keep up production to keep the price of a barrel of oil at record low et cetera given

it wants to push bashar al assad out of office. wants to crack down on isis.isis as a very big threat for them because isis itself has said itness to take control of islam's two holiest sites, mecca and medina. king salmon is in charge of those sites. saw feels threatened by what's happening north of the border. >> the u.s./saudi relationship has had its ups and downs over the years. there are a number of tensions that could possibly be ironed out by a approximatelial visit. how likely is -- a presidential visit. how likely is it that a trip like this could solve tensions between the countries? i'm thinking of syria and egypt particularly. >> reporter: there have been tensions as certainly saudi arabia of hugely disappointed in 2011. the arab spring to how the united states, they felt dropped for president hosni mubarak. the saudis supported him. the saudis now support the new president. saudi upon to be more forward leaning and aggressive. would like to see a force of 50,000 soldiers including international elements inside syria to tackle bashar al assad. tha

more than 3 million have left syria since bashar al-assad began there, and with no clear end to the war in site syria's neighbors are looking for different ways to cope with the influx of refugees crossing their border. >> lebanon sets new standards for processing and hosting syrian refugees this time on "inside story." and later in the program a wider look at the worldwide plight of refugees. joining us to begin the conversation, lina director of the carnegie middle east center, and lee, director for lebanon with the norwegian organization. what has changed? if you show up with your compact automobile stuffed to the gills with your family and everything that you couldn't sell, when you're greeted at the lebanese border what is new? >> i think, ray, what we're seeing today is a codification of a decision that was taken last year. so since october of last year lebanon has decided not to take more refugees, and so they indicated that people are arriving at the border after coming to lebanon with a specific purpose, whether that be to gain medical treatment or to travel on wards to noir co

king abdullah also supported the rebellion in syria against bashar al assad. he also encouraged improvements to women's social status. he appointed 30 women to the nation's top advisory council. the state-run television said in an announcement that he has been succeeded by his brother king solomon. analysts say that he will continue king abdullah's policy concerning crude oil and diplomacy. the u.s. president has issued a statement saying that abdomen took bold steps in advancing the arab peace initiative, an endeavor that will outlive him as an endearing contribution to the search for peace in the region. the statement also says as a leader king abdullah was always candid and had the courage of his convictions. time for a check on business news. president of the european central bank has decided to give the region's economy a jump-start. we are joined now from the business desk with those details. >> central bankers in europe have been having trouble getting prices to rise and getting the economy back on a growth track. and then oil prices they plummeted. eur

disappointment from president obama from backing away from the red line that he himself drew after bashar al-assad the president of syria, had deployed those chemical weapons and killing innocent civilians the president backing away, deferring to congress. nothing came of it, the weapons were destroyed and that deal was struck with russia. the saudis were very upset. the relationship has been amend to a certain degree, and the word that is used is looking for continuity in the relationship. >> the talks with iran continue. >> right. >> fitfully at times but they continue. the fight against isil is still to be determined, but america seems all in in syria. where are the two countries still really far apart? >> well, i think obviously the israeli-palestinian conflict remains a sore point. with everything going on, this is still the fundamental issue in the middle east, and probably in the bilateral relationship with the united states and saudi. interestingly on the economic side officials say after this meeting today they did not speak to the two leaders specifically about oil prices but they did sp

at the moment hezbollah is deep deeply mired in the war in syria, aligned with president bashar al-assad. >> israeli foreign ministry welcomed the decision to keep hamas on the terrorist list and their assets will remain frozen. they have been contexting the fighting the group being on the terror list. >> boko haram has kidnapped mostly children. they say the army managed to save some hostages but could not pursue them once they crossed the border back into nigeria. >> they could not go into nigeria in order to free the hostages. our responsibility is at the end of our common border. we haven't received permission to cross. >> mali has been declared free of the ebola outbreak. but as we report, a number of new infections across affected countries is falling. >> a year after the ebola outbreak took hold in west africa there are still people dying every day and there are still doctors risking their lives to help them. but now some good news has come out of mali, an indication that perhaps all their hard work is starting to pay off. >> after 42 days of monitoring with no confirmed ebola vir

were with tens of thousands of citizens of the vanguard of the protest against their president, bashar al assad. enthusiastic and determined, but that was nearly four years ago. >> first we only had one goal, to topple the syrian regime, but now, we don't know who to fight. we are stuck between isil and the government, now it's not just a struggle against assad but against a million similar regimes. >> he was a fighter with the free syrian army, muhammed an activist who uploaded videos of the protest he spent years in jail for joining an anti assad protest. >> we are frustrated and depressed, but i think that's the case for any uprising in the world. algeria sacrificed millions of people in its war with france. >> in the turkish border towns tens of thousands of syrians used to wait and plan the life in a free democratic syria. now they are putting down roots. these men and hundreds of thousands like them are becoming part of syria's lost generation, stuck in turkey jobless feeling humiliated because they struggle to feed their families. >> i think the international community doesn't care. duri

the figures make last year the most deadly since the uprising against president bashar al assad in 2011. he visited his frontline troops thursday. >>> jeb bush begins the year clear of any business interest that may have interfered with a white house run. the former florida governor stepped down from his board memberships wednesday. jan crawford looks at how he's clearing the decks for a presidential campaign. >> reporter: it came two weeks after jeb bush announced he's actively announcing a run for president. bush is also signaling he would run a more centrist campaign. he cently he recently declined an invitation to iowa. he has made comments contrasted to bush's own. >> reporter: robert costa is a national political reporter for the "washington post." >> bush wants to be at the center of this race on his own terms. that's why he's moving early. he doesn't want to bow to the right in his party. he doesn't want to be pressed by the press about his business interests. >> reporter: some suggest his business dealings could be used against him in the campaign. in an interview bush said rom

the rehabilitation of bashar al assad, the strengthening of putin, the loss of the credibility of the word of the president of the united states and of the american power rose: on the red line? >> yeah. that is a huge price to pay for getting rid of chemical weapons which is clearly a good thing but it came at an unacceptable price. rose: they were all coming together in saudi arabia after the death of abdullah. do saudis worry more about iran than anything else? >> they do. they worry a lot about iran reportsrose the sunni-shiia thing in part? >> you know like everyone who is depressed about the prospects of a two-state peace but he was saying every arab nation, egypt, saudis, all of the gulf states they have iran much more on their mind in a way than israel. and i think that's true. you know the saudis talk a good line about lots of things. i think in the end the saudis depend heavily on their alliance with the united states. they are trying to maneuver as best they can to not -- what they are worried about is if there were a breakthrough with iran that -- and with the changing poli

were with tens of thousands of syrians at the vanguard of the protests against their president, bashar al-assadsiastic and determined. but that was nearly four years ago. >> translator: at first we only had one goal to topple the syrian regime but now we don't know who to fight. we are stuck between isil and the government. now it's not just a struggle against assad, but against a million similar regimes. >> reporter: hues sam was a fighter, mohammed a activist. hamsa sent a year in yale and was tortured. >> translator: we are frustrated and depressed. but i think that's the case with any uprising. >> reporter: all live in a turkish border town where tens of thousands of syrians used to wait and plan for life in a free democratic syria. now all of these syrians are putting down roots. these men and hundreds of thousands like them are becoming part of syria's lost generation. stuck in turkey job less feeling humiliated they say, because they struggled to feed their families. >> translator: sure i think the international community doesn't care. during the past two years nothing has changed and we