translation: we will assess what we can do in idlib.inst terrorism. our leaders that recently against terrorism. our leaders that rece ntly o n against terrorism. our leaders that recently on the sidelines of a summit in johannesburg, they figure they speak on the phone. our military and intelligence officials as well as other concerning institutions continue to work on this issue. we hope that we can find a solution to the problem in idlib within this cooperation. all very polite. but perhaps pointedly mr chav—uush—aw—loo also emphasized the importance of distinguishing between "terrorists", rebel fighters and civilians. he added "it would be a massacre to bomb idlib, but russia backs the syrian government wholeheartedly — and here's what its foreign minister had to say. translation: the syrian army is on its soil and fighting for independence against terrorists with full accordance with you in relation to number 2254. we provide assistance to the searing army in that. sebastian usher is the bbc middle east editor. i asked him what the

firstly i wwuld like to ask you, let's focus on idlib.. well, of course, this is the last rebel stronnhold, ,o to speak.. it does haveve symbolism on that level. to muuh of the covoverage on ths is that sommwhwhere along the line, we forget that what began in march 2011 was not a military battle. peacefulin its essence prooest, expressing real grievances the syrran people have. so when we cast this a as a victory y that will somemeeow ad this the question is, what will it end, when it was not a military battle to begin with? important a as it is, thehese victctories, whehether in the sh not tackle the real issue, which is theefact that syrian people are yyt to beeaddressed. in aps this will not endd3 c1 military battle. or it wiwill take a ifferent form. analyst: absolutely, yes. began inmovement that march 2011 is ongoing. whether or not the regime takes idlib, welived -- over haveeseeeen the r regime is cape but is having a loloofftroublele governing g the ars s it takes over. her example, it will enter possibly idlib, but to stay y ad g

the president has said that he has idlib in sightand president has said that he has idlib in sight andoups are not than to give up that easily, will not go down without a fight, so we will see a big push back from them which is why i believe there will be a huge humanitarian crisis. what you said is absolutely terrifying from the perspective of the civilians and that province? the humanitarian presence will be bigger than anything we have seen. the un has actually warned of a bloodbath that is going to happen and they are urging everyone to engage in talks rather than the big fight that eve ryo ne rather than the big fight that everyone is expecting. also that calls from different sides that there will be eight big number of displaced people, more than we have seenin displaced people, more than we have seen in other fights displaced people, more than we have seen in otherfights in the displaced people, more than we have seen in other fights in the last few months, because a lot of them have actually moved from these provinces and cities to idlib where they will probably go now to turke

there are 3 million people in idlib. the last years and that is because the syrian government have been cutting deals with rebels. they leave areas close to damascus and the south of the country and move to idlib. in effect, it has become a dumping ground for the rebels. there are 70,000 fighters, according to one estimate, and the big fear is that if there is a big syrian goverment offensive, pushing into what is the last major opposition stronghold the country, people will simply have nowhere to go. the rebels will fight, because they will not accept any other amnesty deal, and a un is warning that this could potentially turn into a bloodbath. so they are estimating that perhaps tens of thousands or hundreds of thousands of people may cross into turkey. and i think turkey is a key player in all of this. they have warned against any syrian goverment offensive because it doesn't want to see hundreds of thousands of syrians pouring into the country, and it doesn't want to see instability in that part of north—western syri

idlib's population has doubled as more syrians arrived. as other areas of the country fell back into government control the regime relocated residents and rebel fighters. for those here normal and home have been irreversibly redefined. "we can't go back, ever," mustapha al haddadi says. he doesn't trust the assad regime. and with nowhere left to go many feel take just waiting for their death sentence to be carried out. arwa damon, cnn, idlib province. >>> well, crews are now trying to help the last people stranded in the worst floods southwest india has seen in nearly a century. >>> and with historic devastation comes a challenge of recovery. plus this. >> i believe there is a disease in the united states and that is the addiction to sanctions. >> cnn's exclusive interview with iran's foreign minister. why he says sanctions won't get the u.s. what it wants. around the world and in the u.s. you're watching "newsroom." this is not a bed. it's a revolution in sleep. the new sleep number 360 smart bed is on sale now, from $899, during sleep nu

idlib's population has doubled as more syrians arrived. as other areas of the country fell back into government control the regime relocated residents and rebel fighters. for those here normal and home have been irreversibly redefined. "we can't go back, ever," mustapha al haddadi says. he doesn't trust the assad regime. and with nowhere left to go many feel they're just waiting for their death sentence to be carried out. >> you know, george, in the past when we'd go to syria we'd really feel a lot of rage. and while people are still incensed by what's happening, by what they perceive as being international inaction or a lack of a will to actually try to stop the violence, now you really get the sense that they're just resigned to their fate, that they know that no one is going to come to save them or even try to stop the bloodshed. >> arwa, i think you covered it all. not much more to ask here. thank you for the report. >>> the u.s. has refused to forgive billions of dollars in fines to secure the release of a u.s. pastor in turkey. that

why is idlib so important?> well, as you said, idlib is the last of thebastions partly with the opposition and partly with terrorists group. idlib is the only major remaining place where there are several tens of thousands of opposition fighters. some are terrorist groups as well as turkish-backed troops, syrianrmy rebel groups. right now the city and the province of idlib, which holdsre anywrom 2.5 to 3.5 million civilians is the last remaining sort of location the assad regime and the russians and the iranians want to resol that last hold-out i idlib one way or the oth soo because that would basically conclude much of the syrian war. the risk is that the fighting,to were icome down to a military fight, would be even move horrific than we'een so far and might push hundreds of thousands of refugees back on the march either through turkey or through otr places. >> schifrin: gayle tzemachta lemmone us to the kurdish area in the northeast where you've seen a lot of plem. >> absolutely. che closer you get to raqqa,

idlib's population has doubled in recent years as more syrians arrived.lso where, as other parts of the country fall back into government control the regime relocated residents and rebel fighters. for those here, normal and gnome have been irreversibly redefined. we can't go become, ever, he says. he doesn't trust the assad regime. and with nowhere left to go, many feel like they are just waiting for their death sentence to be carried out. arwa damon, cnn, idlib province. >> awful situation. that's it for me. i will be back at 5:00 p.m. in the situation room. in the meantime the news continue right now. >>> all right, wolf thank you so much. hi, everyone. i'm brooke baldwin. you are watching cnn. the president is intensifying his attacks against special counsel robert mueller. today he called mueller's team of prosecutors, quote, thugs. al

gathering around, and due to the dilemma, which is a true dilemma, on how to defeat terrorists in idlibe time avoid, affecting a huge number of civilians. also making news today: french prosecutors are investigating allegations that the actor, gerard depardieu, raped and sexually assaulted a young woman. media reports say a complaint was lodged on monday by a 22—year—old actress. she says the 69—year—old assaulted her on two occasions this month at his paris home. mr depardieu's lawyer says he absolutely denies the allegations. the delegations of canada and the us have resumed talks to agree new trade terms before a friday deadline. canada's foreign minister says there is good will on both sides, but a lot of work still needs to be done. president trump threatened to pull out of the north american free trade agreement — or nafta — last year, but agreed to a renegotiation instead. russia's best—known singer, iosif kobzon — sometimes known as the soviet frank sinatra — has died of cancer. kobzon was born in ukraine, he sang for stalin at the age of nine, and grew up to become a superstar

the un voice, talking today about how he himself would go to idlib to establish corridors to get peopleviolent treatment of some opposition figures. bobi wine has been central to the story — he's a former pop star who's now an mp. two weeks ago he was detained — and this is how he was when he was next seen. arriving in court on monday on crutches. his lawyer said he'd been "brutalised". well he was granted bail and went to the hospital. today, he went to the airport, trying to leave the country. in the last couple of hours tweet @pulseliveuganda "just in: tortured bobi wine "violently" abducted from the airport by security operatives" i was about to record i've been speaking to robert amsterdam, a lawyer who's representing bobi wine. he told me the latest he's heard. even though the judge let him have his passport because he needed to leave the country for medical reasons. after this horrific torture that he and 33 other opposition members sustained a week ago, he was violently thrown into a police ambulance, the lawyers have no idea where he's being taken. and we're all really in shock

idlib is the last major rebel—held area, and is expected to be the next target for syrian armed forces—least—trusted consumer industry in the uk, according to new research. surveys by the passengers' watchdog transport focus and the consumer group which show a decline in satisfaction. the government says it is investing in the biggest rail modernisation programme since victorian times. our business correspondent joe lynam has the story. new timetables, thousands of council services, angry commuters, strike action and rising costs — it has not been a happy time for many rail users, and it is evident in a detailed satisfaction survey over the past decade. a study of transport focus data found that overall satisfaction with rail punctuality and reliability has fallen from 79% a decade ago to 73% today, but regular commuter satisfaction fell even further to 62% in that time. on top of that, rail fares could be set to rise by 3.5% next year. that is because train fare increases are tied to the higher measure of inflation, known as rpi. it could add £150 to an average long—distance commuter.

been killed in an explosion that brought down a building in the mainly rebel—held syrian province of idlibhe blast, but the building is reported to have contained a store of munitions belonging to an arms trafficker. most of the people in the building are believed to have been syrians displaced from other areas of the country. let's take a look at some of the other stories making the news... for the third night in a row tens of thousands of romanians are protesting in the capital bucharest, accusing the government of corruption and abuse of power. many of the demonstrators, work in other eu countries but are currently back in romania on holiday. they are particularly angry at the government's decision to sack an anti—corru ption prosecutor. northern ireland's top police officer has vowed to do all he can, to bring those responsible for the 0magh bombing tojustice. chief constanble george hamilton's remarks came at a memorial service to mark 20 years since 29 people were killed in the single worst atrocity of the northern ireland conflict. a 12—year—old boy has been confirmed as the only su

in my iffe, and i think john would say the same. >> reporter: and as civilians brace for attack in idlib province, it could be the thing that saves many of their lives. holly william, cbs news, in turkey. >> dickerson: coming up next on the "cbs evening news," the nstice department backs a lawsuit that claims harvard discriminates against asians. mi stimulant laxatives forcefully stimulate the nerves in your colon. miralax is different. it works with the water in your body unblocking your system naturally. miralax . that's why capital one iss feel the building something completely different. capital one cafés. welcoming places with people here to help you, not sell you. with savings and checking accounts with no fees or minimums. that are easy to open from right here or anywhere in 5 minutes. no smoke. no mirrors. this is banking reimagined. what's in your wallet? seyou may have gum diseaseu brush or floss? and could be on a journey to much worse. try parodontax toothpaste. it's three times more effective at removing plaque, the main cause of bleeding gums. leave bleeding gums behind wit

secretary of state mike pompeo has been -- it is —— it is thought president assad is ready to attack idlibetary of state mike pompeo has been discussing with saudi arabia's crown prince mohammed bin salman the worsening security situation in the syrian province of idlib. a european charity that runs a rescue ship in the mediterranean has again called on eu governments to let it dock. it wants to allow mi migrants aboard to disembark. italy and malta have blocked their ports to the aquarius since it rescued the migrants off libya on friday. mali's opposition is set to reject the results of sunday's presidential run—off because of alegations of fraud during the poll. president ibrahim boubacar keita, who won more than 40% in the first round, is widely expected to win the election. hundreds of polling stations failed to open. romania has opened an inquiry into alleged police violence at a mass anti—corruption protest that left hundreds injured on friday. police used water cannon, tear gas, pepper spray and batons to disperse the crowd. the demonstrators, many of them romanian expats from acro

there are 3 million people in idlib.hat is because the syrian government have been cutting deals with rebels. they leave areas close to damascus and the south of the country and moved to idlib. in effect, it has become a dumping ground for the rebels. there are 70,000 fighters, according to one estimate, and the big fear is that if there is a big syrian goverment offensive, pushing into what is the last major opposition stronghold in the country, people will simply have nowhere to go. the rebels will fight, because they will not accept any other amnesty deal, and a un is warning that this could potentially turn into a bloodbath. so they are estimating that perhaps tens of thousands or hundreds of thousands of people may cross into turkey. and i think turkey is a key player in all of this. they have warned against any syrian goverment offensive because it doesn't want to see hundreds of thousands of syrians pouring into the country, and it doesn't want to see instability in that part of north—western syria. so, some are s

catastrophe if the syrian regime doesn't halt its plans to retake the last major rebel stronghold of idlibeople live there — many of them are rebel fighters and opposition members who were brought to idlib after the army regained control of other opposition areas across the country. the ugandan rapper—turned—mp bobi wine has been released from hospital and is now heading for the airport. he is hoping to fly out of the country for medical treatment in the united states. he was kept in a locked room in a kampala hospital despite his demands for access to independent ugandan medical staff. he faces charges of treason. the ugandan army denies claims its soldiers tortured him while he was in their custody. the us is to end all funding for the un agency that supports palestinian refugees. washington had already drastically cut its support for the agency, which helps more than five million palestinians in gaza and the west bank, and in other countries neighbouring israel. the state department described the un relief and work agency as irredeemably flawed, and said washington will hold talks with

turkey does not want to see idlib go.ar this is a red line for them. >> not to mention, there's talk that 700,000 refugees could pour across the borders, syrian borders -- >> i've seen estimates of 2 million. >> that should be, for americans at home watching, that's a national security issue here at home. >> absolutely. >> why is that? >> well, it's going to further destabilize the region. turkey is already hosting 3.3 million, the most of any other nation, hosting 3.3 million syrian refugees. you throw another 700,000 to 2 million, that's going to destabilize turkey, going to make that alliance much more tenuous than it already is. so, i think -- yeah, and then, of course, you have the syrians that are moving, the refugees moving into europe. one of the worst refugee crisis we've seen since world war ii. so, obviously, this has major consequences. >> yeah. it's hard to convey with all of the news going on just how serious this is. lastly, you know, half a million people have died in this conflict, as you know. now our ai

school where they have discussed launching an all out offensive to take the last rebel held province of idlib the province is home to some three million people. argentina's central bank has hiked interest rates to sixty percent and a bit to stop the currency from falling any further paso's down more than fifty percent this year. and at least two people are missing and more than sixteen thousand are displaced in man mark after widespread flooding from a dam collapse. thursday is an international day dedicated to remembering the victims of forced disappearances it's a tactic long used to spread terror and crackdown on dissent around the world and nowhere is this truer than those in the philippines where people have been going missing since the one nine hundred seventy s. when martial law was imposed although things have improved since then as general allen doggone reports war still needs to be done. or they disappeared to her plea in manila that emerged to remind young filipinos of the horrors of the recent past. the scenes here hope to recreate the atmosphere of fear and brutality to the time

moscow where they've discussed launching an all out offensive to take the last rebel held province of idlib province as him some three million people. argentina central bankers hiked interest rates to sixty percent in a bid to stop the currency from falling any further the bass is down more than fifty percent this year. and protesters have started gathering for another far right anti immigration rally in the eastern german city of kemet thousands of people have taken part in two days of protest against asylum seekers and minorities in the city. now the farai dutch politician geert builders has received death threats up to announce a competition to draw cartoons of the prophet muhammad the stunt led to protests in pakistan as the public politicians and even a former cricketer voice their anger lawrence he reports. the netherlands self-styled european capital of tolerance but populism and its full clown with is long resurfacing again. kid billed as leader of the far right wing freedom policy seen here before last year's elections as announced a competition to help him plaster the walls of his

war monitors reported bridges in idlib province were destroyed after rebels spotted government troops moving. avanwhile, russia's foreign minister, sergeiv, said moscow backs syria's right to attack an al qaeda-linked grp that controls much of idlib. >> ( translated ): they have the full right to protect their sovereignty and to drive out, ti idate the terrorist threat on their territory. this is the main problem about idlib, is that there must be separation between armed opposition that is ready to holl ue with the government, on the one hand, and the terrorists, on the other. >> woodruff: meanwhile, russian naval forces are also building up in the mediterranean to support a syrian offensive. but lavrov said negotiations are under way to let civilians leave first..s in response,secretary of state mike pompeo warned against what he called an "escalation of an already dangerous conflict." iran is said to be sending llistic missiles to shiite allies in iraq, and looking to expand missile production there reutports that the weapons have the range to strike key cities in tehran's two majo

been killed in an explosion that brought down a building in the mainly rebel—held syrian province of idlibe victims are believed to have been syrians displaced from other areas. polls have closed in mali in a presidential election run—off, which is widely expected to be won by the current president, at 10pm, mishal husain will be here with a full round—up of the day's news. first, it's time for our world: iraq's war on meth, with yalda hakim. a hunt is under way. basra police, on the back of a tipoff, think they've found their target. a suspect they believe has been dealing in the highly addictive and illegal drug, crystal meth. kidnapping, extortion, organised crime are already part of daily life here in basra, iraq's second city. now there's a new threat, crystal meth. i've been invited tojoin the police frontline. this is the elite force that goes out every night on raids to try and crack down on organised crime in this city. they think the suspect is inside. major mithak is leading the raid. with him, officers from the counter—narcotics unit and swat team. in just two years, police hav

the frontline of the last stronghold of rebel terror groups in the country the northern province of idlib these are pictures from the grounds of tamed by a ruptly video news agency soldiers can be seen riding on top of lorries carrying tanks artillery and other military equipment offices say their troops are ready for the final battle against militants say far they're waiting for the order. syria has also been the focus of the latest u.n. security council meeting that comes off to the backers of warring parties that have recently been accusing each other of plans escalating the situation. has more on how the involvement of the international community in the syrian war has made the potential escalation of an extremely risky scenario. it is shaping up to be the end a lost showdown between jihad ists and the syrian army it is the last remaining stronghold of islamist and rebels tens of thousands of them the most powerful faction and it being h.t.s. or al qaeda in syria and they're defiant cranking out and the sprog ganda. bear in mind many of them not even syrians islamists on jihad from chi

idlib's population has doubled in recent years as more syrians arrived. it's also where, as other parts of the country fall back into government control the regime relocated residents and rebel fighters. for those here, normal and gnome have been irreversibly redefined. we can't go become, ever, he says. he doesn't trust the assad regime. and with nowhere left to go, many feel like they are just waiting for their death sentence to be carried out. arwa damon, cnn, idlib province. >> awful situation. that's it for me. i will be back at 5:00 p.m. in the situation room. in the meantime the news continue right now. >>> all right, wolf thank you so much. hi, everyone. i'm brooke baldwin. you are watching cnn. the president is intensifying his attacks against special counsel robert mueller. today he called mueller's team of prosecutors, quote, thugs. also claiming the man leading the russia investigation in disgraced and discredited. the president's tweet coming after the "new york times" revealed over the weekend that white house counsel don mcgahn is cooperati

the united nations envoy for serena is proposing civilians evacuate the rebel held region of idlib intos. speaking to reporters today in nearly they warned that 3 million people in the region could face what he describes as a perfect storm and a chilling military escalation ahead. >> once again prepared once more personally and physically to get involved myself with government cooperation this time because they are in charge outside of idlib to ensure a temporary court or would be feasible and guilty for the people so they own return to their places untouched once this is over. idlib is the lacerating refuge for the syrian opposition since president bashar al-assad's forces began recapturing territory from rebels in 2015. the vatican's secretary of state says pope francis is serene despite accusations that he covered up for an american ex cardinal accused of sexual misconduct.the official says the accusations created again "great pain within the vatican." the archbishop has accused a long list of u.s. and vatican opescials, including p benefit the 16th and francis for covering it up. gl

idlib is the last major rebel—held area, and is expected to be the next target for syrian armed forceseasures to try to stabilise the country's plunging currency. the lira has been at record lows, amid a trade spat with the united states. lebo disekko reports. turkey's president stood defiant on sunday, telling supporters the fall of his country's currency was a political plot against turkey. as the event continued, he repeated a less than thinly veiled threat to a nato ally — the united states. translation: our response to those who wager trade war against the whole world and include our country in that would be heading towards new markets and new alliances. despite the tough talk, the lira has continued to weaken. it's fallen 40% so far this year, against the us dollar. and as us president donald trump doubles steel and aluminium tarrifs last week, the lira drops almost 20% in a day. relations have been strained since the attempt to overthrow mr erdogan in 2016. and this is the man at the centre of the latest spat between the two countries. turkey's holding the american pastor andrew

the frontline of the last stronghold of rebel terror groups in the country the northern province of idlib these are pictures from the grounds of tamed by a video news agency soldiers can be seen rising on top of lorries carrying tanks artillery and other military equipment offices say that troops are ready for the final battle against militants say fall they're waiting for the order. syria has also been the focus of the latest un security council meeting it comes off to the backers of warring parties that have recently been accusing each other of pounds for escalating the situation artie's more and gusty of house more and how the involvement of the international community in the syrian war has made the potential escalation an extremely risky scenario. it is shaping up to be the end a lost showdown between jihad ists and the syrian army it is the last remaining stronghold of islam istead rebels tens of thousands of them the most powerful faction and it being h.t.s. or al-qaeda in syria and they're defiant cranking out and this propaganda. bear in mind many of them not even syrians islamist

catastrophe if the syrian regime does not halt its plans to rlace the last major rebel stronghold of idlib million people live there, many of them rebel fighters. l the army gain cont other opposition areas across the country. looks like it may take little longer to reach a deal to replace the north american free trade agreement. talks have broken uphe week without striking a compromise with canada, despite the announcement earlier i week that the u.s. had worked out a framework with mexico. canada's foreign minister gave this assessment a short time ago. ms. freela: we are not there yet. this is a very complex agreement, and we are going to continue working at . as we have said from the outset, our objective in these talks is to update and modernize naftin a way that is good for canadians, good for americans,go an for mexicans. jane:the bbc's chris buckler earlier to discuss th negotiations. where does this leave negotiations? chris: they keep on talking is the simple thing, but part of the problem is it i not one issuis a range of different problems. when you take a look, they're talking

opponents have been driven into smaller areas many are now considered traitors in the northern province of idlib recent statements from the government and the russia have hinted that a push to retake this last major rebel held area may begin soon we began with this report from stephanie decker who's just across the border from it live in the turkish city of antakya. all eyes now on the rebel held province of the syrian government has always said it was going to take it back and it seems an offensive is now imminent what form will this offensive take that remains the question will it be limited will it be an all out war while there's intensive negotiations going on behind the scenes between turkey between the russians and also rebel groups on the ground particular group called hired to handle shadow this group formerly associated with al qaeda known as the mr front that is the main issue this is what russia and syria say are terrorists and why they're going to be undertaking this offensive while the u.n. special envoy to syria staffan de mistura put their number at around ten thousand fighters bu

been killed in an explosion that brought down a building in the mainly rebel—held syrian province of idlibcaused the blast, but the building is reported to have contained a store of munitions. most of the people in the building are believed to have been syrians displaced from other areas of the country. turkey's finance minister says his country has drafted an action plan to deal with the sharp fall in the national currency, the lira. in a newspaper interview, berat albayrak, who is the son—in—law of president recep tayyip erdogan, said the plan would ease the currency‘s volatility. the lira's value sank to a record low on sunday. around 15,000 people have held a demonstration in the romanian capital, bucharest, protesting against official corruption. for the third night running, the crowd gathered outside official buildings, demanding the resignation of the left—wing government. they've been angered by the recent dismissal of the country's chief anti—corru ption prosecutor and the decriminalisation of several fraud offences. a remembrance service has been held to mark the 20th anniversary

the last stronghold of rebel and terror groups in syria the northern province of idlib are surrounded by government forces with a decisive battle looming the russian foreign minister sergei lavrov has warned that the u.s. seems to prefer a regime change to ridding the area of terrorists. but specially in your story we have the impression that u.s. threats against damascus aimed at preventing terrorist from being expelled there is not the first time the us no matter which administration has prioritised the task of changing dissident regimes above the common goals of eradicating terrorism and extremism we believe these egotistical unilateral political games are counterproductive we believe all the conflicts should be solved multilaterally with open contacts between countries including regional countries. as tensions mount in the russian center for syrian reconciliation says it's received intelligence on the delivery of toxic substances in the province it claims the materials been brought in with the help of the white helmet rescue group for use in a false flag attack russia's previously

turkey's foreign minister is warning that a military solution in the syrian province of idlib would be a disaster he made the comment after meeting the russian foreign minister in moscow meanwhile syrian government forces are sending reinforcements to surround the last remaining rebel held province the military has been on the move the neighboring hama and aleppo the government is also dropping leaflets urging people not to resist meanwhile the goshi asians with the rebel groups are said to be ongoing. the u.n. is calling on latin american countries to ease entry for thousands of people fleeing venezuela's deepening economic crisis the call came after neighboring ecuador and pervert announced new entry requirements for venezuelans and elina passports whereas before they only needed their national i.d.'s a latin america editor lucien newman has more from the venezuelan capital caracas. this is santa angeles's last day at her home in her working class could act as neighborhood she sold everything possible and packed the rest she enters sister her two daughters and their four small childr

a crucial battle is looming in the last rebel stronghold in the syrian province of idlib the u.n. special envoy for syria says there are around ten thousand the illness or terrorists there and that the group is capable of producing chemical weapons meanwhile russia's foreign minister has warned that a terrorist false flag attack is being prepared to sabotage the liberation of. they should in the middle of another false flag attack is being prepared to try and hinder the empty terror operation in a loop with the facts on the table through the ministry of foreign affairs and the ministry of defense we gave a clear and tough warning to our western partners not to play with fire but russian foreign minister sergei lavrov says the preparations for a staged chemical attack are aimed at keeping al nasra a force in the region to be used as a counterbalance against the assad government but the u.s. is ignoring these warnings the state department says they just don't buy into it the russians are claiming now and this one another group stockpiling chemical weapons and planning an attack so y

have been killed in an explosion which brought down a building in the mainly rebel—held province of idlibo have contained a store of munitions belonging to an arms trafficker. dozens more people are still missing. fighting has been continuing today in the afghan city of ghazni, where the taliban have attacked police headquarters and government buildings. 17 years on from the us—led invasion of afghanistan, british troops, who are part of an increased uk military presence, have been arriving in the capital kabul. the hope is to support afghan troops and diplomatic efforts to end the conflict. 0ur defence correspondentjonathan beale reports from afghanistan. back to the dust and heat of helmand. this, the place where hundreds of british troops were killed, and which nearly fell to the taliban when they departed. four years ago the british left for good, but the americans soon returned — albeit in smaller numbers. now they're on their own, patrolling what was the sprawling british base of camp bastian. it was necessary for us to come back in here a couple of years ago. if that had not happen

most of all we have to avoid a humanitarian catastrophe in and around idlib.t doesn't mean we've achieved peace. bearing flowers and controversy. the russian president's had a busy day. earlier, the wedding of the austrian foreign minister. her critics say the invitation undermined eu policy towards russia. he seemed keen to remind them that the eu needs him. translation: last year we marked the 50th anniversary of gas deliveries from the soviet union to western europe. in all these years, our country has reliably provided an uninterrupted energy supply. it's made and is making a significant contribution to the energy security of the entire european continent. even angela merkel admits she doesn't expect much from the talks, but insists it's vital to keep talking to russia. angela merkel and vladimir putin don't agree on much, but these are times of shifting alliances. in the age of donald trump, they may discover common ground. jenny hill, bbc news, berlin. stay with us on bbc news. still to come — why are these nurses in arziona all smiles? they've found out

big story brewing a crucial battle is looming in the last rebel stronghold of the syrian province of idlib the u.n. special envoy for syria says that there are around ten thousand terrorists there and that the group is capable now of producing chemical weapons meantime parallel to this russia's foreign minister has warned indeed that another terrorist false flag attack is being prepared to sabotage the liberation of it. they should in there that they put a look at another false flag attack is being prepared to try and hinder the anti terror operation in egypt with the facts on the table through the ministry of foreign affairs and the ministry of defense we gave a clear and tough warning to our western partners not to play with fire but it could have huge ramifications this let's get the latest go to a correspondent double quarter why all this gearing up now the. while the russian foreign minister sergei lavrov he says that the preparations for a staged chemical attack are going to be an attempt to maintain al nusra as a force in the region to be used as a counterbalance against the assad g

the last stronghold of rebel on terror groups in syria the northern province of idlib is surrounded by army forces with a decisive battle looming the russian foreign minister sergei lavrov has warned that the u.s. seemingly prefers regime change rather than ridding the area of terrorists. it would suggest that it counts now when the us is steering the situation around it glib we want to know how can damascus have chemical weapons if the us france and great britain destroy them last year. or more we have the impression that us threats against damascus are aimed at preventing terrorists from being expelled they're. not getting those it's going to learn the chemical weapons provocation which is being prepared is aimed at keeping al nusra that wish them to kill you. we believe these egotistical unilateral political games are counterproductive we believe all the conflict should be solved multilaterally with open contacts between the countries including regional countries. as tensions mount in the russian center for syrian reconciliation so it's received intelligence on the livery of toxic s

the last stronghold of rebel and terror groups in syria the northern province of idlib is surrounded by army forces be decisive battle looming the russian foreign minister sergey lavrov has warned that the u.s. seemingly prefers regime change rather than ridding the area of terrorists. it will teach us to the medical answer which now when the us is staring the situation around adlib we want to know how can damascus have chemical weapons if the us france and great britain destroyed them last year specially when you're still able to see a more we have the impression that us threats against damascus are aimed at preventing terrorists from being expelled best.

front line of the last stronghold of rebel and terror groups in the country the northern province of idlib these are pictures from the ground obtained by ruptly of video news agency soldiers can be seen riding on top of lorries carrying tanks artillery and other equipment as well officers say their troops are ready for the final battle against militants so far though they're waiting for final orders. are syria has become the focus of the latest u.n. security council meeting this comes after the backers of warring parties there have been recently accusing each other of planning escalating the situation but i guess the it has more on how the involvement of the international community in the war has made the potential escalation a risky scenario. it is shaping up to be the end a lost showdown between jihad ists and the syrian army it is the last remaining stronghold of islamist and rebels tens of thousands of them the most powerful faction and it being h.t.s. or al-qaeda in syria and they're defiant cranking out and the spotlight ganda. bear in mind many of them not even syrians islamists on

been killed in an explosion that brought down a building in the mainly rebel—held syrian province of idlibhat caused the blast, but the building is reported to have contained a store of munitions. most of the people in the building are believed to have been syrians displaced from other areas of the country. also making news today: a 12—year—old boy has been found alive in the wreckage of a plane crash that killed eight people in indonesia. the light aircraft was found on a mountainside near the border with papua new guinea on sunday. it lost contact with air traffic control on saturday afternoon, shortly before it was due to land at 0ksibil airport. the presidents of russia, iran and the three other ex—soviet countries that border the caspian sea have signed a deal in kazakhstan, governing the sea's legal status. the deal is expected to open up further exploitation of the caspian‘s rich oil and gas reserves, and pave the way for more pipeline projects. turkey's finance minister says his country has drafted an action plan to deal with the sharp fall in the national currency, the lira. in a

the last stronghold of rebel on terror groups in syria the northern province of idlib is surrounded by army forces with a decisive battle the russian foreign minister sergei lavrov has warned that the us . regime change rather than ridding the area of terrorists. it would suggest. now when the us is stirring the situation around it lib we want to know how can damascus have chemical weapons if the west fronts and great britain destroy them last year. we have the impression that us threats against damascus are aimed at preventing terrorists from being expelled that. the chemical weapons provocation which is being prepared is aimed at keeping al nusra that. we believe these egotistical unilateral political games counterproductive we believe. all the conflicts should be solved multilaterally with open contacts between the countries including regional countries. as tensions mount in the russian the center for syrian reconciliation says it's received intelligence on the delivery of toxic substances to the province it claims the materials been brought in with the help of the white helmet resc