at least six people are killed after a bus stop is shelled in donetsk. international monitors say more than 5,000 people have now died in fighting in ukraine. >>> senior diplomats from more than 20 countries meet in london to coordinate efforts to combat so-called islamic state. >>> a one trillion cash injection for the eurozone a massive stimulus package announced. >>> and with elections just days away we test the mood in greece, where the main anti-austerity party leads the polls. >>> our thanks for joining us. we start in eastern ukraine, where the violence just goes on. the fight renew call comes with a cease-fire which came from peace talks on wednesday. at least six people were killed in the latest incident after shelling hit a bus stop right in the center of the rebel-held city donetsk. the organization for security and cooperation in europe the osce, whose monitors were at the scene of this attack, says the nine-month conflict has now cost more than 5,000 lives and forced a million people from their homes. ukraine's military also says that its fo

the fighting is escalating not just in donetsk, but also in other towns around the donetsk region as well as region,, so it will take a great deal to dial back the tensions. >> and is it clear where the numbers are in the military buildup? >> it's not clear. the ukrainians have announced a mobilization, more a call-up. they're bringing in tens of thousands more but this is just starting. they also have people that are obviously going to the east on a regular basis. at the same time, though we are seeing a large number of fighters among the russian-backed separatist. we are hearing a lot about heavy equipment that they had. so it's not exactly, the call-up doesn't have an effect yet, but there does seem to be more people entering into the conflict in the east. >> and david, what about that figure we were just sharing with people, that 1 million people have had to leave their homes. what is life like for them? >> well they've been going to a number of places. in ukraine and also in russia. the internally displaced people there are some in kiev. they are finding homes with friends or ac

apparently a trolley bus stop which is south in the section south of donetsk, in a southern area of donetskway from where we have seen the escalation in fighting around the airport. no one has claimed responsibility. the rebels are obviously blaming the ukrainian forces for this attack. and it's not clear as yet as to whether there were artillery used, what kind of shell was used in this attack. but obviously as you say it's interesting and comes worryingly only hours of this statement in berlin by the russian and ukrainian foreign ministers the german foreign minister pushing for another ceasefire to try to withdraw forces back 15-kilometers out of donetsk bring back the heavy weaponry. it seems that fighting is ongoing in that area. there are mixed reports also as to how intense that fighting is in and around the airport, we have seen days of fighting there. it's certainly a worrying development only hours after those diplomatic efforts and that statement coming out from berlin. >> certainly is charles stratford we'll leave it right there for now. thanks very much indeed. as charles said

the ukrainian armed forces are using firepower at donetsk air force -- airport hitting as hard as theyan. >> the battle was stepped up monday after ukraine's military launched a new ongoing operation to retake control of donetsk airport. >> artillery fire is being exchanged, but the airport is still controlled by ukrainian servicemen and no one is giving it up. the situation is difficult there . yesterday, part of the new terminal building was destroyed and ukrainian soldiers were injured. >> this escalation comes as kiev claims two battalions of russian forces have entered ukraine, an allegation russia denied. foreign ministers of ukraine russia, germany, and france will meet in berlin wednesday, hoping to find a way to end the conflict. >> i'm joined now by a guest from amnesty international. good evening to you. what can you tell us about the humanitarian situation currently in eastern ukraine? >> good evening. as you can imagine things have gotten progressively worse. they were bad at the beginning when a number of things happened. cold weather arrived. most importantly the ukraini

we were in a village 30 kilometers north of donetsk yesterday. that out post had been taken by the rebels as well they had denied attacks. >> several people chanting down with the houthies taking part at the demonstration at the capitol. the demonstrations took place in a different part of the city as well. the editor in chief of the "yes "yemen post," to be clear about this the houthies have been in control for months now. why are people taking to the streets now? >> right now the houthis are trying to take the whole of the government. they have the ability to seize the president and prime minister minister and people felt there was no other option but this to protest. there are negotiations taking place right now among top officials, the ex-president ali abdul saleh with the houthi leaders and tried to reach a solution they need to take control, that they should be ready for any violence. >> thank you very much, indeed. let me just summarize a little bit of that. it was very interesting. bringing us to date with what is happening in yemen sayin

we pushed out about 30 kilometers from donetsk to a new front line. we headed north out of donetsk. rebels of this check point said we could go no further. ukrainian military has retreated only hours before we arrived. the rebels were in control here now. this is about 30 kilometers north of donetsk, and up until yesterday it was onning pied by the ukrainian army. the pro-russian rebels have taken over in the last 24 hours, and all that remains is the bunkers and the dead. ukrainian military equipment, a few personal longings are squattered around the trenches. >> it's my motherland. i fight for it. >>> this shows us a video, he says he shot of ukrainian soldiers they had taken as prisoners of war. >> translator: i want to put this on the internet so their families know they are still live. >> reporter: he takes us to a house and shows us graffiti that reads, russian alcoholics get out. most are reluctant to talk. >> translator: i don't support either side. i just want peace. >> reporter: rebels tell us that the military retreated to 3 kilometers down this road as we prepared to lea

and the self-reclaimed russian leader of donetsk. >> we proposed a cease-fire around the airport to take affect this afternoon. if it lasts we will try to drive to the airport ourselves. >> but the truth is short-lived. reports of new clashes forced the osce observers to turn back despite the rebels's assurances. >> if it were that easy, the conflict would have ended a long time ago. >> the fighting looks set to continue, despite the osce's presence. >> to sports. there is a ground breaking ruling by a german court. five-time olympian -- a five-time olympian speedskater says she can proceed with a multimillion dollar lawsuit against the sport's governing body. >> she failed a drugs test and was banned from skiing -- skating in 2009 over a regular blood results. but the munich court decided rulings in the previous casework invalid, including from the court of arbitration for sport. the decision could open the door for other athletes to settle disputes through civil courts. >> the high point in the film world's approaching with the announcement of this year's academy award nominees. toppin

charles stratford reports from donetsk. >> reporter: the wreckage of a car. the dead have been covered. the aftermath of more combat in eastern ukraine. i can barrel walk, i'm going to faint, says this woman. a second attack hit a trolley bus nearby. people started jumping out and hid behind the wall. i drove closer and some people started to run towards me, said this man. he ducks as yet another explosion rings out. there's been an escalation in violence in this region in the last weeks. since nearly 13 people were killed since what was believed to be a mortar hit another bus in donetsk. separatists seem to have taken control of donetsk airport on january the 20th. the fighters, who refer to themselves soldiers in the army of the people's republic of donetsk, say they are not interested in truce talks. the u.n. says more than 5,000 people have been killed in this conflict so far and attempt to restart peace talks in the belarus town of minsk have failed. they highlight just how difficult it is to try and restart these peace talks. charles stratford, al jazee

mariupol donetsk and so on. can we talk about a full-blown war, a truce being in place. >> it's difficult to define it's not a full-on war. not at this stage. certainly we are seeing a build-up an escalation over the last few days. we saw ukranian forces trawling the airport, and we had not only the rebel leader but the ukranian side the president saying on his twitter yesterday that the rebels were not interested in honouring the ceasefires. it's certainly close to this morning. there was more than firing out into the airport. as i say, there was a push out by five fronts trying to gain more ground from the areas of this region. >> al jazeera's charles stratford on the line there in eastern ukraine. the ongoing conflict in eastern ukraine has split the country. it has split families many forced to make a decision of leaving loved ones behind. paul brennan met with such families in donetsk. >> elana left her home. she thought it might be for a couple of weeks. nine months on she and some of her family are in pol

here's this report now. >> life stops dead again in donetsk. this time, a bus hit by a shell or mortar. some passengers died in their seats, others were thrown into the road. windows and lives shattered. >> they called me and told me my wife was killed. i haven't seen what happened. i just came. i saw them putting her into a car. >> his wife's body was then dumped into a van. this brings the total killed to over 4,800. ukraine's prime minister ironically marking unity day in kiev had this to say. >> russian terrorists today have committed a horrible act against humanity and responsibility lace on the russian federation. >> so much blood has been shed in donetsk since the start of the conflict, particularly here at the region's airport once the pride of the city, now obliterated. ukrainian forces have battled for months to keep this from falling into the hands of pro-russian rebels, but they've lost too many men. they are pulling back. >> a decision was taken to withdraw from the territory of the airport terminal to new positions. fierce fightin

attack happened as people cued to receive food handouts at a culture culture center at a city of donetskecond hit a trolley bus nearby. >> translator: people jumped out and i got closer and people started to run to me said the man. >> reporter: he ducks as yet another explosion rings out. there has been a dramatic escalation in the violence in this region in resent weeks, the attacks come just over a week since at least 13 people were killed when what was believes to be a martyr hit another trolley bus in donetsk. the separatists seem to have grown in confidence since they have claimed to have taken control of donetsk airport on january the 20th. the fighters who refer to themselves as soldiers in the army of the donetsk people's republic have promised to widen their offensive. they have said they are not interested in truce talks. the u.n. says that more than 5,000 people have been killed in this conflict so far. and attempts to restart truce negotiations in the capitol minsk on friday failed with the ukrainian government and separatists blaming each other for escalation in fighting and

charles stratford, al jazeera donetsk, eastern ukraine. >> coming up. a measles outbreak has sparked a backlash against an antidefamation organization. and is drilling causing earthquakes? earthquakes? talk to al jazeera only on al jazeera america >> president obama today announced a new initiative aimed rat using dna to develop personalized treelts. treatment. it's called precision medicine, something the medical field has been working on for years. president obama said this could build a massive database through of genetic information. how mutations happen, they can figure out how to shut them off. >> foo we startif we start today and seize this moment and the focus and the energy and the research it demands, there is no telling how many lives we could change. and every single one of those lives matter. >> the president also says the new initiative will create jobs while saving lives. he's asking congress for $215 million in funding. >>> a medical controversy is growing in california. an alarming people in that state and across the west are contractin

the battle donetsk airport.inian and pro-russian forces claim they have control. >>> protests against "charlie hebdo." >>> the haves and the have-mores. a new study says the world's richest 1% will soon have more wealth than everyone else put together. >>> and the trial begins of the korean air executive accused of violating aviation safety laws over macadamia nuts. >>> hello. a warm welcome to you. as the fighting continues in ukraine, the question now is who controls donetsk airport in the east of the country? on sunday ukrainian officials said they had taken it after days of intense fighting. but now, pro-russian rebels are claiming that they have seized it. well, this is what the airport looked like in the summer. before the conflict it had to handle some 5 million passengers every year. and this is what it looks like now. these pictures were taken by a drone, and they show just how severely damaged the airport is after weeks of intense fighting. the fighting there has continued, despite the cease-fire agree

we try to get to donetsk.lso heard shelling. and all of the while, the rebels are still vowing to push forward and take more territory. the rebels stopped us from filming their check points but close by we saw a number of destroyed ukrainian tanks. on arriving in donetsk, rebel tanks carried fighters through the streets. >>> holocaust survivors are remembering the dead of the 70 anniversary of the liberation auschwitz. more than a million jews, home sexuals, priests, and the disabled were murder there during the second world war. >>> cuba's former president has given his first public reaction since agreement was reached with the united states to restore diplomatic relations. [ applause ] >> a letter from fidel castro was read out at havana university. while he didn't fully trust the u.s. he did think the two nations should work together. >>> very few organizations can say they have averted 7 million deaths in the last 15 years, but the global health partnership, known as the gavi alliance says it has done just

we met one such family in donetsk. >> reporter: when elena left her home in donetsk she thought it might be only for a couple of weeks. but nine months on she and her family are now living in poland living as refugees. >> the shooting started. we thought it was for celebration. but when we heard more machine gunfire, we understood it was not a salute. we began to pick up quickly and just left. we took the kids and mom and off we went. >> by contrast her husband enlisted as a fighter in one of the pro russian militia. neither elena nor the children have heard from him in six months. even if he is still alive elena does not expect a reunion. since the conflict began, more than 1 million people have fled their homes. in excess of 633,000 are now classed as internally displaced people. and nearly 600,000 have fled to neighboring countries. while the rest of the family chose a knew life in a new life in poland elena's father has chose ton stay in donetsk. he's staunchly pro russian but it does not make the family rift easier to bear. >> no one expected it. >> everyone fled. i'm the only one f

ls. >> at least 13 have been killed by a strike in donetsk. the city in eastern ukraine is a strong separatist stronghold. yemens president has accepted demands from houthi reties to end a growing political crisis. the agreement comes as he appears to show his predecessor has been plotting with the rebels to undermine the government. >> the so that is of former president mubarak are to be released pending case. >> the european central bank is expected to boost the economy in hopes to restore confidence in the euro. we explain more. >> quantitative easing, one of those awful financial jargon terms, which can sometimes get over simplified into so called money printing. we start at a given central bank which creates money. just a few keystrokes on the computer and billions of dollars are there. that is then used to buy assets, mostly government bonds from banks and financial institutions. in turn, those banks start lending to the businesses, consumers and so the cycle begins. that is how the money is injected how spending increases and in theory,

no donetsk people's republic without this part. this has not been attacked by the rebels for a number of months but is of importance because it is a direct it link between here and the crimea. it is a port used for cargo and not military and comes at a significant time. a day after the rebel leader here said that he was not interested in truce talks, and promised a multi-pronged attack and offensive described at retaking areas of the donetsk region towards the outer borders, including mariupol. it comes after a time of gains by the rebels. we saw withdrawal of ukranian forces from the airport in the last couple of days we were in a village 30km north of donetsk. that outpost was taken by the rebels as well as significant ukranian military there. it seems as if the rebels are gaining confidence. as i say. they had denied responsibility for the attacks in mariupol. >> and there are clashes not just in the port city which is significant as you point out. are we seeing an immensification of fighting -- intendification of fighting. you

pro-russian separatists control donetsk. erratic shelling continued in the city center, including a mortar strike on the distribution center. diplomats once again are appealing for an end to the bloodshed. germany's foreign minister is calling for all parties to it here to the cease-fire agreements made last september in minsk. >> we hope there is enough sanity left on both sides to create a path to a cease-fire, hopefully, a permanent cease-fire. >> but neither side appears willing to seek compromise at the negotiating table. a meeting of the negotiations -- negotiating contact group was canceled with warring parties blaming each other. moscow now says it will boost its military presence in strategic parts of russia. a response to what it calls the changing political and military situation at its borders. >> this is why we need new strategic nuclear weapons and more soldiers for the army and navy. we also have to make more resources available for development of air and space weapons. >> kiev is also digging in. president pe

we've also seen quite a new development here in donetsk. the mobile security units of the man behind the rebels checking vehicles. certainly the day's events, in terms of the violence, in terms of people killed on the trolley bus, the sporadic attacks in and around the airport, a and now the new regulation being enforced, a big indication of how great an impact this is having on the civilians in this region. >> thank you for that update live from donetsk. >>> three people were killed by a suicide-bomb attack in the somali attack in mogadishu where a delegation of turkish officials are staying. the attack comes a day before president erdogan arrives for an official visit. the dead were somali police and security guards and none of the turkish party were hurt. the attack has the hallmarks of the al-shabab. turkey has significant business investments in somalia. >>> the democratic republic of congo is delaying a hotly contended election 24 hours. many are unhappy with the bill that will extend the rule of joseph kabila. malcolm web has the lat

days after the military withdrew from donetsk airport after months of fighting. the separatists took control of this military post 30 kilometers outside of donetsk on thursday and they have continued to launch attacks from the northern areas of the city. there had been no warning. said he had had enough of putting some sort of truce and threatening what he described as a multipronged attack outside donetsk that would take in that area including mariupul city. we hear from national journalists attending the ceremonial in commemoration for those killed in a bus attack earlier that week, zakashenko says the battle for mariupul has begun. charles stratton, al jazeera donetsk. >>> 2011 revolution when former president hosne mubarak was toppled from power. plowrngmourning period for saudi arabia's king abdullah. >> translator: in order to fulfill the demands of the revolution freedom and social justice there must be a revolution inside us that shall push us forward in all fields. >> al jazeera continues to demand the release of our colleagues in jail in egypt for 393 d

donetsk is behind us and we've been stopped on a number of roads as we try to get to donetsk. we also hear shelling all the while rebels are vowing to push forward to take territory. close by we saw a number of detroit ukrainian tanks. on arriving in donetsk rebel tanks carried fighters through the streets. charles trait stratford al jazeera donetsk. >> eight years after a spy is poisoned in london, he he accused vladimir putin of personally ordering his murder. >> who killed alexander. he had been a russian agent. fought the chechens in the 1990s. he became so disillusioned with his motherland he turned dissident. when asked to kill his friends he had made his grievances public and even had taken them up with a certain vladimir putin who had just become his new boss at the russian security service. you wonder if there was any connection with his death. >> if it was revenge and the men asked to execute it the inquiry heard that they traveled several times to london several weeks and left a radioactive trail behind them at this hotel in central london. radiation was found all o

let's start with the airport in donetsk.ognition. what is the significance of the airport? why is it so important to both sides? >> so far the airport's been used by the ukrainian military over the past year to launch bombardments of donetsk and its surrounding areas. and that's why the rebels have been trying so hard to retake it. and it sound like they almost succeeded. and now the ukrainian army sounds like it's launched the counterattack. and it's reporting that it's retaken the airportment so the -- the battle lines are back to where they were for the past several months. >> they may be back to where they were but the ukrainian president on sunday said ukrainian forces would retake separatist regions in the east. why now? what's the calculation? is it because russia is hurting economically, the price of oil's down -- >> it sounds like it although it's ultimately difficult to see how the ukrainian army is actually going to achieve this goal. they failed miserably over the past year. and it's unlikely that things will tur

the separatists took control of this ukrainian military post around 30-kilometers outside donetsk ony and they have continued to launch attacks from northern areas of the city. there had been a warning. these attacks should perhaps come as no surprise the rebel leader here in donetsk saying that he had had enough ofers of calling and putting in to place some sort of truce and threatening what he described as a multi-pronged attack out of donetsk taking in that area including mariupol city. we now hear from local and international journalists attending a ceremony in commemoration of people killed in a bus earlier this week that the rebel leader said the battle for mariupol has begun charles stratford, al jazerra donetsk. >>> ukraine's president petro poroshenko says he's going to meet his military teams to talk about how to respond to the unrest in the east. economy decemberred what had happened. >> translator: the entire world was shocked today by the awful tragedy when happened in mariupol. the terrorist attack which took 10s of ukrainian lives and wounded more than 100 innocent vic

russian-backed rebels are in control of donetsk airport after the deadliest clashes in ukraine since september. those are the top stories we are following. also this hour in business -- in business, stephen carroll will have an update from. us as we wait to hear from french president francois hollande as he addresses the world economic forum. saudi arabia's king abdullah has died. the 90-year-old monarch had been admitted to hospital with pneumonia at the end of december. one of the most powerful and richest men in the world, king abdullah was considered a moderate reformer and -- in a highly conservative country. president barack obama called him a steadfast ally while the israeli president has praised his grounded, considered, and responsible leadership. however, amnesty international says the human rights conditions under king abdullah were far from commendable. >> the saudi arabian regime seems insensitive to human rights and dignity. unfortunately, they are also protected by many western countries because they have oil and are seen as allies in the fight against terrorism. in fa

the heads of the self proclaimed donetsk are now busy taking defensive measures against the shelling. they are fully occupied dealing with this. >> the talks were aimed at stopping fierce battles like these 60 kilometers northeast of donetsk between government forces and separatists that have claimed scores of lives in recent days. the ukrainian defense minister said are you sure shaves sending in more troops, despite denials from moscow. >> we have a number of russian prisoners of war. i want to say that the russian federation with an aggravated cynicism while sending in troops every day while getting military hardware into ukrainian territory is saying there is no presence of russian federation there. this is cynicism of the highest degree. >> as the talks broke down, the suffering of the civilian population is increasing. residents in parts of the rebel held city of donetsk say they have been without running water or electricity for two weeks resort to go scooping water from puddles. getting the talks back on track will now be a huge challenge. more than 5,000 people have died sinc

in recent days, clashes have intensified and i next -- in donetsk.cing troops to withdraw from the hotly contested airport. >> the cofounder of the german anti-muslim to get a movement resigned after images of him posing as image. lutz bachmann says the pictures were taken as a joke. there were also reports that he was calling the refugees "comeback," prompting investigators -- calling the refugees "scum bags," prompting an investigation. does his resignation signal the end of the movement? >> well, it is hard to berdych how this will affect the forget a movement. mr. bachmann was the heart of the movement, and thanks to him so many people came down to the streets. -- support for him is not very clear. a spokeswoman for the movement has been present on tv in the past week, but she has called a timeout for mr. bachmann, and it will be harder to convince people that she is not connected to the far right scene and the entire movement, to the far right scene. -- more or less signaled by these photographs, so we're waiting to see how many people show up f

and as you rightly say one of two attacks in donetsk today. the other one hitting a trolly bus.e claiming responsibility. five people reportedly killed here and many many injured. gruesome scenes behind me around that car you can see some of the area that was hit. as we have been reporting, this just the latest in what seems to be a big escalation in fighting here in eastern ukraine. we have just returned from north of donetsk, where we met rebels and they told us just how determined they were to continue fighting. no interest whatsoever in any truce talks there. and of course this comes on a day where there have been or certainly initiated efforts at trying to get those peace talks going again in minsk, and the rebels pulling out of them. so a graphic demonstration of just how difficult it is to stop the fighting. >>> south africa's government has granted parole to a death squad leader. he was notorious for the kidnap torture and murder of a number of anti-apartheid activists in the 1980s. tanya paige has an update. >> reporter: reaction to the news greeted with mixed feelings

al jazeera donetsk. >> for more on the situation in ukraine, i welcome timothy fry. good to have you with us. >> my pleasure. >> after four months of a shaky ceasefire, here we are with fighting again. what caused this to eignite? >> a cease fair has gone on largely in fiction there's been low level conflict throughout the last four months. the last few weeks nato has been reporting increased russian transfer of technology, weapons in many cases servicemen to help with the rebels in their ability to inflict pain on the ukrainian army. it's been a big shift in russian policy over the last few months. >> as we mentioned the donetsk airport fell to rebels. how significant that was? >> well, not really materially, because the april had been completely destroyed but symbolically it was important. this was an item that president poroshenko put a lot of political capitol on defending. >> what does this mean about the geo graphical scope. >> it means the scope is expanding. it's a reach for the rebels to say that they will be able to project their power all the way to mariup

this comes just a week after 13 people were killed when mortar hit another trolly bus in donetsk.eparatists seem to have gained confidence since they claim to have taken control of the airport on january 25th. the soldiers have promised to widen their offensive. they have said they are not interested in truce talks. the u.n. says that more than 5,000 people have been killed in this conflict so far, and an another tempt to restart truce negotiations in minsk failed with both sides blaming each other for the escalation in fighting. no one claiming responsibility for those attacks here today, but one thing is for sure they highlight just how very difficult it is to try to restart these peace talks. charles a stratford, al jazeera, donetsk, eastern ukraine. >>> egypt has intensified its military operation in the sinai peninsula. at least 45 people were killed on thursday. including an army general. and the attacks prompted egypt's president to cut short an official trip to ethiopia. more details now from imran khan. >> reporter: the force of the explosion can be seen from far away. on

>>> at least 13 people have been killed after shelling hit a bus in the eastern ukrainian city of donetskime minister blamed pro-russian separatists, but the separatists deny being behind the attack. >>> the japanese government says it is in a race against time to try to save two hostages held by isil. a video appears to show fighters threatening to kill the men if they don't receive a $200 million ransom. the deadline for the payment is believed to expire early on friday. harry fawcett reports from tokyo. >> reporter: less than a day remains before the deadline given bow isil to save these lives of these two men. the price for their safe return according to their captors, $200 million. japan's government says it will not give in to terror but is trying to open lines of communication with the hostage takers. >> translator: the japanese government is prepared to consider all possible ways to save the hostages. >> reporter: one is a freelance journalists who says he was asked by isil to be a witness at a trial last september, but he returned from syria without even being able to see the cap

the prolonged battle for donetsk airport appears to be reaching a climbclimax. the terminal buildings have been apparently completely destroyed. the president will press his eu colleagues for financial and personnel report. >> coming from russia from this part of the border. the border is key to any kind of stable and sustainable solution. >> reporter: the osce now has more than 360 staff trying omonitor the conflict zone but their limit movement is limited and risky. there is grave concern. >> in the meantime we have to take care of operational needs. >> reporter: away from the localized combat zones there is a semblance of normality in the separatistist controlled east. >> translator: despite the fact you may hear explosions outside all the infrastructure of the city works. you have been out on the street. no has been blown police are on duty. >> 1.4 million people are described as haily vulnerable. there is a shortage of medicines and vaccines, raising the risk from polio measles and tb. the death from the conflict stood at 4808 with 888 wounded. >> there is

donetsk in ukraine at least -- in eastern ukraine at least 20 people were killed. charles stratford has more. >> the wreckage of a car the dead has been covered the aftermath of more killing in eastern ukraine. i can barely walk i'm going to faint says this woman. witnesses say the attack happened as people queued to receive food handouts at a cultural sister in the city of donetsk. the second attack hit a trolley bus close by. people started jumping about and hid behind the wall, i drove closer and some people started to run towards me says this man. he tux as yet another explosion rings -- he deduction as yet another explosion rings out. lisa 13 people were killed in what's believed to be a mortar hit another trolley bus also in donetsk. the separatists seem to have grown in confidence since they claim to have taken control of donetsk airport on january the 20th. the fighters who refer to themselves as soldiers in the army of the donetsk people's republic have promised to widen their offensive. they've said they're not interested in truce-talks. the u.n. says tha

ukraine, where prorur sha rebels say at least seven people have been killed in the eastern city of donetskspokesman says the attack at a cultural center also wounded 23 people. charles stratford reports from eastern ukraine. >> reporter: the wreckage of a car. the dead have been covered. the aftermath of more killing in eastern ukraine. >> translator: i can barely walk. i'm going to faint says this woman. witnesses say the attack happened as people queued to receive food handouts at a cultural center in the city of donetsk. a second attack hit a trolly bus close by. people started jumping out and hit behind the wall. i drove closer and some people started to run towards me says this man. he ducks as yet another explosion rings out. there has been a dramatic escalation in the violence in this region in recent weeks. the separatists seem to have grown in confidence since they claim to have taken control of donetsk airport on january 20th. the fighters who refer to themselves as soldiers in the army of the donetsk people's republic have promised to widen their offensive. they have said they a

in control of donetsk airport.we're now on our top of story and the clashes as we have been telling you about in yemen. hashem ahelbarra. >> what is it the houthis want? >> well, the official narrative of the houthis is that they want to have bigger representation, they want to have bigger say in running the government. a minority that was religiously persecuted for decades. they are the ones who represent the shias in yemen. we want to have a bigger say. how to translate that into reality, they want to be the ones to dictate most of the terms in the near future. they say now that there's a sunni majority. >> is there a scenario where we will see more action from the international community? >> the houthis know very well that by entrenching themselves in politics they will have to pay for the running costs they will pay for services, they don't have money. iran which is a main sponsor is having financial problems on its own. the only country that can step in is saudi arabia. it has been dispensing billions of dolla

rebel leader here in donetsk said he had had enough in efforts of putting together some sort of truce and describing a multipronged attack out of donetsk that would take in that area including mariupul city. we now hear from journalists attending a ceremony here, that rebel leader alexander zakashenko says the battle for mariupul has begun. >> how to respond to the unrest in the east, he claimed what had happened. >> translator: the entire world was shocked today by the awful tragedy which happened in mariupul. the terrorist attack which took tens of ukrainian lives and wounded more than 100 innocent victims needs immediate reaction. today i can declare the whole word is with ukraine the evil must be 100% punished pched we will initiate negotiations in the g7 format with geneva formt. >> petro poroshenko there. s. >>> a gambler four years ago opened an unusual museum. andrew thomas went to ho bart to experience the wonderful exhibition for hymnself. >> it has a fat car acknowledge egyptian antiquities and machine that eats food and hours later defecates. the story is more incredible t

paul brennan has this report. >> reporter: when elama left her home in donetsk, she thought it mightnly be for a couple of weeks. nine months on, she and some of her family are now non poland living as refugees. >> this shouldn't have started. would he thought it was a salute but when we heard more of shells exploding and machinegun fire we understood it wasn't a salute salute. we left. we took the kids and mom and off we went. >> by contrast her husband enlisted as a fighter in one of the pro-russian militia. neither elana or the children have heard from him for over six months. if he is still alive, she doesn't expect a reunion. since the conflict began, according to official figures, more than 1 million people have fled their homes. in excess of 633,000 are now classed as internally displaced people. nearly 600,000 have fled to neighboring countries. while the rest of the family chose a new life in poland elana's elderly father chose to stay, all alone in donetsk. he is staunchly pro-russian. but that doesn't make the family rift any easier to bear. >> translator: no one expected

separatists claim 12 people were killed friday in donetsk. one woman who found her husband dead wants to fight saying i don't have any reason to live. our cnn international correspondent nick paton walsh has more. first i have to warn you the images you're about to see may be disturbing. >> reporter: in the mist the shells are edging nearer the city center. one hit here meters away from dozens waiting for a food handout. four under sheets. families destroyed in the blink of an eye. one man simply at the wheel of his car. arena has seen her husband. >> translator: sergei's my husband's name she says. please give me a telephone number to enlist. i'll call. i'll go. i'll fight. i don't have any reason to live. i don't want to live. i want vengeance for my own. sergei used to joke if something awful happened to him here he wanted to be blown apart. and i used to say that if something happened to him, i'd go and fight for him. >> it's shocking scenes of random civilian death like this which many local residents will surely blame upon the ukrainian

this heavy fighting around donetsk airport. hastily convened talks in berlin brought together ukrainians with a delegation from france and germany. it's automatic progress. >> they have timely been in agreement that the demarcation line mashed in the minsk agreement will be the line marking heavy weaponry it has to be withdrawn. >> but on the ground the rebels reportedly extended the area of control. the u.s. secretary of state accused them of violating a ceasefire plan. >> it's been about a 500 square mile extension of the so-called line. and trying to broaden the amount of charity held from the time that they signed an agreement and agreed to keep the line of control. so this is a very blatant. >> ukraine's president said its soldiers are fighting alongside the rebels. russia denies the allegations. >> concerning the flow of troops and weapons, we heard of it many times. show us the facts. no one is able to provide us with the facts or does not want to provide them. brokering peace in eastern ukraine has not resulted >>> 20 m

charles stratford travelled from mariupol to the separatist stronghold of donetsk. and sent us this report. >> troops are moving to rebel-held territory. it's about 40km away. the ukranian government declared a state of emergency in the areas, or a state of alert, right the way across ukraine. the roads became empty the closer we got to the front line. the ukranian military were move tanks. rebel held territory is 5km up the road behind me. ukraine and people here tell us they are upped fire every day. villagers say they can hear the fighting and many left the area concerned for safety. >> they were freed. there is nothing to look forward to. it means it is difficult for us to work for our children. ment scared. they don't know what will happen this time or the other. peace offering. >> it's obvious that over the last couple of days there has been a worsening much security we are not far from the front line donetsk is behind us we have been stopped by the military. all the while, rebels still are vowing to push forward and take more territory. the rebels stopped to

particularly the airport at donetsk.represents the symbol of industrial output in eastern ukraine. it is strategically important because it has an airstrips and both sides want it. they are fighting to the death to control it. >> you get the sense both sides think the situation is spiraling out of control. matthew chance in moscow. thank you. >>> a few minutes before the hour. the number of deaths died to the faulty gm ignition switches is rising as the deadline to file claims is looming. alison kosik is bringing us an early start on our money next. (coughing) coughing disrupts everyone's life. that's why so many people are turning to delsym for longer lasting cough relief. delsym has an advanced time release formula that helps silence coughs for a full 12 hours. up to twice as long as other cough liquids. all night... or all day. >>> what we all need right now, an early start on our money. alison kosik joins us for that. >> john the federal reserve will stay the course. reportedly it is set to keep short-term interest r

separatists already have the upper hand in donetsk. two days ago shells hit a bus in the eastern city, 13 people were killed there. now take a look at the devastation caused by fighting at donetsk airport utter destruction. the bodies of ukrainian soldiers litter the area. they were forced from the area earlier this week, and this is what the airport looked likely before a huge contrast. let's go to charles stratford who is live in donetsk. what more are you hearing about this? >> we just got breaking news for you here. we've heard from a group of local and foreign journalists--excuse me, it's very cold here, who have been attending a candle lit vigil commemoration of those who were killed in that trolley bus attack. it was attended to by rebel leader alexander he said the battle for mariupol has begun. up until this point the rebels were denying any responsibility for these attacks that hit the port city, but certainly a very significant development in terms of what the rebels here are saying in this conflict. >> i was going to ask yo

retreats from the strongholds at the airport in donetsk. rebels captured 16 wounded ukrainian soldiers in the battle for the airport. several killed after shelled into transit stops. ukraine's president claiming that more than 9,000 russian troops have crossed into ukraine bringing with them hundreds of tanks and armored personnel carriers. a claim that russia flatly denies. senior international correspondent matthew chance is live in moscow. matthew, give us an update on the violence here and the gains for the rebels around the airport and the claims that the russians are moving men and arms into the country. we have been going on for months now with the russians denying that. is it true? >> reporter: the russians are still denying it. i think that people on the ground have been observing these movements and the security situation deteriorate. particularly international monitors suspecting of 9,000 troops may be an exaggeration. the amount of military amount used by the rebels it is unlikely the military equipment is gained locally. the re

charles stratford in donetsk >>> more ahead. we'll report from northern india on a bleak midwinter for people driven from their homes by violence. we look at the future shape of the saudi arabia monarchy. - >>> welcome back you're watching al jazeera. top stories - kurdish leader told the iraqi army that kurdish peshmerga cannot win without foreign boots on the ground. they are struggling to push back i.s.i.l. fighters in the north >>> ochl fax says fighting in yemen has brought the country at risk of a humanitarian party. 15 million will require aid. 8 million don't have enough to eat >>> >>> attacks in donetsk mariupol >>> a day after being appointed. king salman is expected to meet more heads of state. david cameron, and french president francis hollande are among those due to visit >>> the dignitaries came to pay their respects to a leader who died, and a half brother who took his place. in keeping with tradition, there was no formal swearing in ceremony. it was during the funeral of king abdullah that regional heads of stat

. >> the violence has centered in and around the eastern city of donetsk which sought a bloody attack on a bus yesterday that left over a dozen civilians dead . >> it almost looks like business as usual in this relatively quiet part of donetsk, but a cease-fire is a distant reality with fresh clashes still being reported on the edges of the city. the situation is threatening to get worse. the pro-russian separatists have rejected truce talks and announced a major new offensive. >> we decided not to wait until the ukrainian army starts and offensive and moves battle formations and let them hurt us. instead, we will push the front line back to the border of the donetsk republic. >> the announcement comes just a day after the shelling of a trolley bus internet, which both sides have blamed on each other. the attack was the latest incident in a number of heavy clashes in recent days. kiev claims that pro-russian separatists were responsible for the incident and ukraine president petro poroshenko has vowed to take action. but russian president vladimir putin says kia -- kiev was to blame.

first, this report. >> destruction on the outskirts of donetsk following the most intense fighting ineeks. just a few kilometers away life the airport, or what is left of it. ukrainian authorities say that pro-russian separatists began firing on the airport from this neighborhood and they had little choice but to return fire. local residents are caught in the middle. >> after the first explosion, we all fell to the floor. after a minute or two, with there was another explosion and we heard people screaming. when we went outside, we heard crying and sobbing at one of our neighbors was injured. my neighbors has been was dead. we called an ambulance. -- my neighbors husband was dead. we called an ambulance. >> units are battling for control of the airport. the ukrainian government [no audio] >> our guys have advanced pretty far forward, to three kilometers from the airport toward the city. we are pushing the separatists out. >> the separatists appear to be readjusting their strategy. >> schelling has intensified along the entire line of contact. the enemy is starting to amass a large amo

you were just in donetsk for about ten days.ut the conditions there. >> well donetsk, of course is the rebel capital, was the city of a million people, many of those have left. over last summer, it was kind of a ghost town, but what i discovered on this last visit a lot of people returned when we had the cease fire in september. they thought they would be able to go back to some kind of normal life. so we're talking about hundreds of thousands of people in donetsk now and, of course, the conflict has started up again. every night from the center of donetsk, you can hear outgoing artillery. today we had incoming rockets which killed nine people. just another nine in the 5,000 that have died in this conflict and is very much looking like the war is ramping up again. the cease fire which was never really fully in place is totally in tatters. we have the rebels talking about a newo fencive, trying to take over new terrorist. we have the ukrainians fighting back. ovary time civilians die, both sides blame the other. the end is the de