this is it of the news line from berlin more carnage in kabul another terrorist attack rocks the afghan capital the latest in a wave of attacks at least eleven soldiers are killed after suicide bombers and gunman struck a military academy in kabul the so-called islamic state claims responsibility also coming out a shocking report reveals that german automaker's funded diesel emissions tests exposing people and monkeys to gas found in diesel fumes here raises more disturbing questions about the country's car industry. but. the. loads. and prizes and politics at this year's grammy awards in new york is female musicians confront sexual harassment in the recording industry on the awards front the night belonged to bruno mars he took home six grammys. one rock thanks for your company everyone well we begin our broadcast in afghanistan where people in the capital kabul are still reeling from a string of attacks well this morning at least eleven soldiers were killed after a suicide bombers and gunmen attacked a military academy reports say there was a gun battle between insurgents and soldiers

this is good over news live from berlin more carnage in kabul another terrorist attack rocks the afghan capital the latest in a wave of attacks at least eleven soldiers are killed after suicide bombers and gunman strike a military academy in kabul the so-called islamic state claimed responsibility also coming up. a shocking report reveals that german automakers funded diesel emissions tests exposing people and monkeys to gas found in diesel fumes here raises more disturbing questions about the country's car industry but. the. poor guy is theirs and politics at this year's grammy awards in new york city as female musicians confront sexual harassment in the recording industry but the night along to bruno mars you took over six grammys. plus playing among plastic the children with the world's garbage dumped on their doorstep is just one reason why china has banned the import of any more waste from abroad. with. her doc thanks very much for your company everyone. we start off in afghanistan where people in the capital kabul are still reeling from a string of attacks the latest incident and.

this is the second major taliban attack in kabul in the past eighty. that's despite reassurances from the government and its u.s. allies that their joint offensive against the taliban was succeeding earlier i spoke with journalist to hear kaderi in kabul i started by asking him how people there are coping with the situation. well people in afghanistan are shocked horrified and everyone is actually possible because it is not that great attack which happened in kabul over the last few days actually it is one of the facts which happened here to the people we talked to on photo media ground everyone is really proud of criticizing but if you follow court you know i think the government or for you from a fifteen year after an operational security opticals and speaking of the the officials on calls for firing how are the authorities in kabul dealing with the aftermath of this. well you hear nothing actually except some very. serious remarks understatement from both the president and so what they are doing is only condemning the attacks which if people believe

this is the second major taliban attack in kabul in the past eighty s. that's despite reassurances from the government and its u.s. allies that their joint offensive against the taliban was succeeding or spoke earlier to the kabul bank strong us talk here contrary we asked him how people in afghanistan are coping. people in afghanistan are shocked horrified and everyone is actually puzzled because it is not the first attack which happened in kabul over the last few days actually it is said that is one of the serious attacks which happened here full of people we talked to on foetal media as well everyone is really sad and criticizing a lot of people of course you know asking the government to fire some of the senior afghan officials the security officer afghans when you speak on the street they believe that the afghan government is so much busy with the politics and accusing the neighboring countries that they forget to ensure the security of afghans this isn't especially in the capital kabul for example any in a few days i could say that probably is unde

that we have been actually witnessing at least two attacks in kabul. and that was journalist talk here could jerry speaking to us earlier from kabul please the german city of cologne of broken up a demonstration by kurds who are protesting turkey's offensive on kurdish fighters in syria authorities decided to shut it down after protesters refused to stop waving flags shelled band symbols security was tight at the protest with fears that the violence could break out between kurds and turks who support the military operation turkish president roger type early on has criticized german authorities for allowing for protest on not committing turkish pro-government i watched the rallies. of a kurdish demonstrators and hope their protests will draw attention to the human cost of turkey's military operation in northern syria many of them have friends and family there and say they fear for their laws. they came from across germany united against the turkish military offensive in the kurdish held and play for a free this is cool has done her family are from the a

this is you know we news live from berlin the more carnage in kabul another terrorist attack rocked the afghan capital the latest in a wave of attacks at least eleven soldiers are killed after suicide bombers and gunmen struck a military academy in kabul the so-called islamic state claims responsibility also coming up. a shocking report reveals that german automaker's funded diesel emissions tests exposing people and monkeys to gas found in diesel fumes or raises more disturbing questions about the country's car industry. good. morning users and politics at this year's grammy awards in new york as female musicians confront sexual harassment in the recording industry but the night along to bruno mars he took home six grammys. also on the show handball gets new european champions at the final in zagreb spacy off sweden to lift their first ever title in the competition it was in the fifth time looking forward to spaniards. thank you very much for your company we begin in afghanistan where people in the capital kabul are reeling from a string of attacks the latest incident a bloody week kil

that we have been actually witnessing that these two attacks in kabul. and that was journalist to hear jerry speaking to us a little earlier from kabul police in the german city of cologne or broken up a demonstration by kurds protesting turkey's offensive on kurdish fighters in syria authorities decided to shut it down after protesters refused to stop waving flags showing band symbols security was tight at the protests with fears that violence could break out between kurds and turks who support the military operation the demonstration comes a week after turkish troops launched a ground an air assault against a coldest region in syria trollish president regift have everyone has criticized german authorities for allowing these kurdish protests will not meeting turkish pro-government election rallies. there's a look now at some of the other stories that are making news around the world saudi arabia and billionaire prince our well we've been tall has been released from detention this comes more than two months after he was confined to a luxury hotel during

in kabul thanks for being with us this morning on short notice why is kabul facing so many attacks right now two reasons one is because the united states government for president trying to get as an announced a new policy for afghanistan which means more pressure on caucus on the taleban and they are seriously trying to resist second is that we are just went to your season meaning that there is less fighting and more pressure in big cities like call home and this is. certainly not a new trend but this year we see more bloodshed and the one today. i live near a bomb and the one to two days ago which killed more than hundred people in central kabul ok that was a very serious attack you know what our security service is doing right now how are they responding to. all attacks indicate major security is shortcomings the national unity has. to provide security in the strategic locations like egypt to the town like downtown kabul where. it's very crowded during the day and the fact that the taliban. can even trying to get into a very fortified military installation like the one today suggest th

gunmen attack a major hotel in the afghan capital kabul reports of at least fifteen people killed or wounded. hello there i'm julie went on this is al jazeera live from london also coming up turkey says it's launched an air and ground offensive on kurdish situations in syria's three region. u.s. politicians skip back to work trying to break the deadlock that shop time government on the first anniversary of donald trump's presidency. when i walk in the day by rallying again in a drive to get more female candidates running for office. and the sanctuary in northern kenya that's helping the community as well as phone ripple elephants. hello there a very warm welcome to the program a major hotel in the afghan capital kabul is under attack by gunmen that's according to the interior ministry local media are reporting at least fifteen people killed or wounded a government spokesman says special forces are on the scene of the intercom plan continental hotel buckling the attack as now the hotel which is on top of a hill overlooking kabul is usually heavily guarded because of its popularity wit

this is d w news from berlin more carnage in kabul another terrorist attack hits the afghan capital at least eleven soldiers were killed as suicide bombers and gunman strike a military academy in kabul so-called islamic state has claimed responsibility also coming up the german all the industries white washing of dirty diesel a shocking report reveals that car makers funded emissions test exposing people and monkeys to dangerous fumes with the goal of telling the public that diesel is clean and. prices and politics at this year's grammy awards in new york as female musicians confront sexual harassment in the recording industry but the nine belong to bruno mars who took home six grand. i'm going to have you with us tonight afghanistan is reeling from yet another terrorist attack suicide bombers and gunmen targeted a military academy in the capital kabul killing at least eleven soldiers so-called islamic state has claimed responsibility it's the third terror incident in this city in just one week and it's part of a wave of deadly violence which also when the. there's no escaping the mili

a day of mourning in kabul. more than 100 people are now known to have died in saturday's suicide bombing. russia's opposition leader, alexei navalny, is released after he and dozens more are arrested at a protest rally in moscow. and the grammys are under way in new york. attendees wear white roses in solidarity with victims of sexual harassment. aid groups say new fighting in southern yemen has made an already bad humanitarian situation worse. at least ten people were killed and dozens of others injured in the port city of aden on sunday, during fighting between former allies in the civil war. bill hayton reports. this is a war within a war. the southern city of aden battlefield between factions who once fought together against the houthi rebel movement. the former allies are now divided over the future of the country. these men are waving the flag of the warmer south yemen, a country that ceased to exist nearly 30 years ago when it merged with north yemen. now, some want it to split again. translation: we wan

secunder kermani, bbc news, kabul.ds of people have demonstrated in cities across russia in support of calls by the opposition leader, alexei navalny, for a boycott of the presidential election in march. police in moscow detained mr navalny as he took part in a rally in the city centre. he's now been released without charge. the bbc‘s steve rosenberg was at the protests and witnessed mr navalny‘s arrest. it isn't easy taking on the kremlin. alexei navalny has been jailed three times in the last year. he has been barred from the upcoming presidential election. so today, mr navalny called his supporters onto the streets. alexei navalny is russia's most prominent opposition figure, and president putin's most vocal critic. he has been barred from running in the presidential election. he is now being arrested by police. this was no "softly, softly." we saw mr navalny surrounded by police. seconds later, he was thrown onto the ground. then, the politician vladimir putin cannot bring himself to mention by name was dragged int

explosion that killed at least forty people and wounded one hundred forty others in the afghan capital kabul that's according to reports citing health ministry officials well let's now cross live to local journalist belongs to warre and he joins us now with the latest double our thank you for joining us what do we know so far about the situation. mickey unfortunately the numbers of gone we are being told by police and intelligence sources that at least fifty six people are now confirmed killed in at least one hundred seventy people were wounded this was an attack according to counterterrorism officials in the heart of the city in a very very crowded part of kabul close for close to the hospital close to the counter-terrorism direct trade close to intelligence facilities and not very far from the office of the police chief of kabul so obviously this unfortunately would mean that all of those people waiting in the area were ordinary afghans we see this constant security and intelligence failures in kabul a sense two thousand and seventeen and unfortunately kabul in other major cities are now p

both the taliban and isis successfully carried out these attacks in kabul, or near kabul. and i wanted to ask what afghan authorities are saying about this. you mentioned security. are they promising anything as far as security goes in the capital going forward? >> well, this morning when i was coming to work, i saw visible signs of security. i saw armored humvees, extra police. we are now being told that investigators will be questioning the individual who was detained in the area. he has been described to us by the minister defense spokesperson as one of the five attackers. we'll have to see what evidence the government provides to back that claim up. i think one of the major challenges for the afghan government is to really find out about the sleeper cells, to find out about the support network of these military networks. i mean after all, these attacks have been happening for the last two or three years. so the question everyone is asking, why so many attacks? why so many they aye tac-- atta in one area in this city. you to remember in the past two, three years both th

zia shahreyar, bbc news, kabul.s we heard, this is just the latest terror attack that has hit afg ha nista n recently. javid ahmad, a fellow at the atlantic council, says it's the afghan intelligence services who should be held accountable. u nfortu nately, unfortunately, since president trump announced the strategy last august, taking a much more harsh stance against pakistan supporting terrorist groups, they shifted to targeting cities. they want to ring fear and violence and undermined orality, create more tension. —— bring fear and violence and undermine morality. now, the attack in kabuland the undermine morality. now, the attack in kabul and the attack last week on the state—run continental hotel, like the ones in mumbai, and the save the children hospital attacks, they are not new. they will continue to happen. a few months ago, multiple areas of security checkpoints were cleared. the taliban killed 130 afghan soldiers. a1.5ton taliban killed 130 afghan soldiers. a 1.5 ton truck bomb was exploded in central k

a major hotel in the afghan capital kabul is under attack by gunmen local media are reporting that at least fifteen people have been killed or wounded government spokesman says special forces are at the intercontinental hotel back the attack as the hotel which is on top of a hill overlooking kabul is usually heavily guarded because it's popularity with foreigners and then the calls let's go live now to jennifer classes in kabul jennifer do we have many more details right now. we don't really the siege has gone on for more than five hours now you know just in the last couple of hours that afghan officials and security forces cut off power to the hotel four gunmen we're told by the interior ministry were attacked the hotel at least two of those gunmen are now dead security forces in the hotel trying to track down the last two gunmen reports really terrible reports people inside the hotel calling outside for help calling for security forces to come in and rescue them reports of the gunmen were going room to room in that hotel it was a busy saturday night about nine pm here on a saturday

fatalities did take place during that weekend attack in kabul. it was the intercontinental hotel, one of the nicer more prestigious hotels in kabul. it's been attacked before. it just serves as a reminder of just how dangerous kabul is, how dangerous the entire country of afghanistan is. now, what we know about the attack is that u.s. forces were involved in a train, advise and assist. they were involved with afghan commanders that were trying to clear the insurgents, the terrorists, from doing and continuing more damage. it lasted around 14 hours. stephanie, there's some confusion on just how many dead there were. the afghan interior ministry puts the number at 14 foreigners who were killed. local news reports says the overall number of dead is around 43. we're trying to harmonize those numbers and figure out just how many americans died what they were doing there. were they contractors, were they involved in the government?

almost west of kabul.ckers have taken hostage of the people staying in the hotel. there are also reports of possible casualties, eyewitnesses are talking to afg ha n casualties, eyewitnesses are talking to afghan local tv saying that they have seen dead bodies. some people who have fled the hotel have said that they have seen injured people, but we cannot at all confirm that because afghan officials and the interior ministry officials, no one has confirmed any casualties yet. because the hotel is obviously full of people who are staying there, we could expect that there are possibly casualties. it has been going on for the last one hour and a half, or two hours, almost. the afghan special forces have been deployed to the area. they are trying to clear the hotel, but apparently it is not going to be an easy task. you mentioned the hotel is being very secure, regarded as a very secure hotel. just described the security around the intercontinental.m hotel. just described the security around the intercontinent

listening by for us now in kabul is tight here for more on this story can you tell us the latest. yes there actually as you stated here has been a really tragic day here in afghanistan in kabul actually it is a serious and the following of a series of attacks over the last couple of weeks here at least forty people have been confirmed but don't forget that the afghan government normally downplay the number of the casualties the number is far higher than what they are claiming to be more more than one hundred fifty people or one most of them civilians the attack happened in a very crowded place in the heart of the capital where there lies all these government offices and it was closed while. young couple of other you were in office and also other embassies there it happened at the really thought time because normally afghans of this time of the day they go outside to have a lunch. how are the people in afghanistan coping right now with the situation. will president of afghanistan couple of days ago in an interview say that afghanistan is under siege call is under siege so it really

our top stories: afghan security forces are still fighting to secure this hotel in kabul after gunmen burst in about 13 hours ago, killing at least five people. turkey launches air strikes in northern syria against more than 100 targets belonging to kurdish militants. us republicans schedule a new senate vote on spending to try to end the government shutdown by monday morning. and, dubbed the ‘pope of gastronomy‘, french chef paul bocuse has died at the age of 91. hello. afghan security forces have been fighting through the night to gain control of the intercontinental hotel in kabul that was stormed by militants about 13 hours ago. these are the latest pictures from the scene. the siege is ongoing. a government spokesman says five people have been killed and six people have been injured. over 100 guests, including 16 foreigners, and staff have been rescued so far. two attackers have been killed. the latest information we have is five floors of the hotel have been cleared, but the not the sixth floor. andrew plant has more. the intercontinental hotel in kabul, at dawn on sunday mornin

for more, we go to kabul where we are joined by democracy now! video stream by lotfullah najafizada, the news director of tolo news, a 24-hour news channel based in kabul. welcome back to democracy now! can you talk about what has taken place the last few days, this massive ambulance suicide attack on saturday that killed more than 100 people in the today in the midst of this day of mourning, another attack, this claimed by isis, killing 11 people? >> the country is going through a lot in the past week, as you said in your reporting. this indicates two things. one, there is resistance from the taliban and those who support the taliban, pakistan included, to resist the policy of the u.s. government, president trump in particular. and second is in the winter season when there is less fighting in the battlefieldsds, you see e more high profile attacks in cities like kabul and jalalabad, where the office of save the children was attacked last week. a lot of our friends are heard. today i woke up to this gas fire on the military academy, which is in t

been evacuated let's go to our correspondent jennifer glass now she's joining us on the phone from kabul we had heard from afghan authorities that the sea was over but. what do you hearing. that's right a little bit i'm just outside the intercontinental hotel mini road i can see the hotel parts of it are charred black from fires that during the evening in the last hour at least half a dozen large explosion quite a lot of small and heavy arms fire and just five minutes just know we saw afghan security reinforcements getting to that hotel into trucks because large machine. and on the back of them so this siege by no means is over yet still hearing a lot of shooting and explosion at the hotel there are a number of ambulances lined up here on the road waiting for anybody who might come out of that hotel as he said elizabeth more than one hundred fifty three people had been rescued from the hotel and the death toll right now stands at five to tell us more about the hotel the area and how attack is could have entered it was these weapons with the ammunition well that is going to be the very bi

the intercontinental hotel in kabul is popular with foreign guests. a few miles outside the city, it has been the target of an attack before, in 2011, when 21 people died, including nine attackers. initial reports said two gunmen had been shot dead, with more hiding in the upper floors. now officials say there were three attackers, all were killed when security forces stormed the hotel. the attack comes days after the us embassy in kabul issued a warning about hotels in the city, saying extremist groups could be planning an attack, saying hotels, as well as public gatherings, could be potential targets. andrew plant, bbc news. since the siege has ended, the taliban has claimed responsibility for the attack in kabul where the bbc‘s zia shahreyar is keeping across the story. as was mentioned, the confrontation is over after more than 12 hours of clashes between afghan security forces and the assailants. only half an hourago forces and the assailants. only half an hour ago the taliban released a statement claiming responsibility for the attacks, saying t

has killed at least ninety five people and injured more than one hundred sixty in the afghan capital kabul local journalist bill are so ari reports. we understand at this stage that the attacker was in an ambulance he had said he had a patient and that he was stopped at the second checkpoint by the police force the attack took place right in the heart of kabul this is not very far from the swedish embassy from the european union from the in the nation embassy and from the high peace council which is down the road the attack shows this constant issue of security and intelligence breaches the area where the attack took place is less than one hundred meters from the office of the police chief of kabul less than twenty meters away from the afghan intelligence facilities once the area is cleared in once the dust settles unfortunately we will be hearing that a lot of those killed ordinary people who are simply the only breadwinners for their families and the people of afghanistan continue to suffer the continue to

for decisive action against the taliban after ninety five people are killed in a suicide attack in kabul supposed secure district. from fighters to politicians colombia's form of talk rebels begin a new chapter for the public is skeptical plus. it's not only the financial markets that have booming i'm rod mcbride at the biggest market in traditional chinese medicine that's going through the roof. so we begin in ethiopia where leaders from fifty five african union nations are meeting for the blocks annual summit corruption conflict and funding for the group some of the issues which are high on the agenda palestinian authority president mahmoud abbas is also attending and is expected to seek the a use support of the palestinian issues disco lived out at his abba sirus muhammad out o. is there some what is on the agenda at this summit. well levy and a lot is all the agenda promises to be quite an event hope on dramatic or the uptick in median wealth of all that would be discussing option one of the biggest problems afflicting almost and continent but key in the discussions that will happen

the local journalist and joins me live from kabul with the latest now. we seem to be getting conflicting reports about the numbers on identities of the victims what details do you have in terms of those details and more accurate information. afterwards i was able to speak to a police officer a couple of eyewitnesses in seventeen on the outskirts of kabul city more towards the. just stop the vehicle outside of street or an alleyway and they killed one individual who was inside the vehicle in their talk with them at least three people a woman and her child and possibly the driver of the vehicle they left the vehicle behind it's not clear who the kidnappers wore why the people inside the u.n. vehicle what targeted but we have heard more criminalization in kabul on groups criminal gangs of kidnapped foreign and afghan nationals for ransom we've also had cases where they were for example or they were able to kidnap two professors from the american university of afghanistan and now they are somewhere between afghanistan and pakistan in some remote areas so thi

attack at least eleven soldiers are killed as jihad a strike near a military academy in the capital kabul the so-called islamic state claimed responsibility also coming out of the early. risers and politics at this year's grammys in new york as female musicians confront sexual harassment in the record straight on the awards from the ceremony belonged to bruno mars he took home six grams. also coming up as ninety thousand filipinos flee a volcano that could be about to erupt conditions of relief camps are stressed close to breaking point. and handball gets a new european champion at the final in zagreb fane at sea off sweden to lift their first ever title in the euro competition. i'm sumi so much content good to have you with us at least eleven soldiers have been killed in afghanistan after gunmen attacked a military academy in the capital kabul reports say there was a gun battle between insurgents and soldiers at the base after one of the attackers blew him self up some fifteen soldiers were wounded authorities say the jihadists did not manage to enter the military academy the so-called i

the latest that we know in kabul, the latest casualty figures, 40 kabul, the latest casualty figures,ed in this blast. it happened in a very crowded pa rt blast. it happened in a very crowded part of kabul city, near the old interior ministry building. we know there are a number of embassies and a number of public hospitals, private and public clinics also, and the afghan peace council is operating from the same area. the area is closed to the public because only ambulances and permitted government vehicles are allowed to government vehicles are allowed to go through. according to the interior ministry, one source says the attackers used an ambulance for this blast, which was very huge, and a lot of damage caused to the public hospital. you said 40 that we know about killed. this is an appalling attack in every way. the atmosphere in kabul must be incredibly nervous? in the past few weeks, we have witnessed a wave of attacks by the taliban. sometimes it has been claimed by the is, which we call daesh, and sometimes nobody takes responsibility, for example the save the children buildin

that killed at least fifty six people and wounded one hundred seventy others in the afghan capital kabul as according to reports citing health ministry officials local journalists belong to the wire reports speaking to multiple sources within the police an intelligence and health ministry there saying at least fifty six people are confirmed killed among them mostly civilians but also police officers member the police force in ordinary people who are just there outside of the hospital the attack took place right in the heart of kabul this is not very far from the swedish embassy from the european union from the in the nation embassy and from the high peace council which is down the road the area where the attack took place is less than one hundred meters from the office of the police chief of kabul less than twenty meters away from the afghan intelligence facilities and obviously less than thirty meters from the counterterrorism directorate of the ministry of interior this area has been attacked over the years this used to be the old interior ministry now that it has moved from here to an

head of tolo news in kabul thanks very much for that. thank you all islamic state is facing major setbacks on the ground in syria and iraq some say that it could be close to defeat in syria now this means many of the fighters who flocked to join our ass are now returning to their home countries and many of them come from europe so how are nations here in europe dealing with them how much of a threat do they pose or brussels correspond hershel's fall their tracks to belgium where that country's i-s. is managing to find new recruits in europe. this park in antwerp was a hotspot for islamist recruiters and were a known belgians to battlefields in syria and iraq now some of them are headed back making many communities nervous earlier return is trying to reintegrate in society are reluctant to be identified and her city councilor he owns there knew some of them personally and asked them to share their stories with me nobody was willing to speak to many of them came back read a huge feeling of shame. and they don't want to to show that to show

let's take you live to kabul and speak to the bbc‘s zia shahreyar.est you are hearing? as you mention, the confrontation is over after more than 12 hours of clashes between afghan security forces and the assailants. only half an hourago forces and the assailants. only half an hour ago the taliban released a statement claiming responsibility saying they have targeted american citizens and other, as they call it, invading countries‘ citizens who we re invading countries‘ citizens who were staying in the hotel. the afg ha n were staying in the hotel. the afghan government previously announced the attack was done by that part that. part of. caliban network that was part of the caliban smug network that was part of the caliban grog it lasted for 12 hours and group. it lasted for 12 hours and the confrontation was going on all through the night. we saw pictures of people trying to jump down from the different floors of this 6—storey hotel. there were six people killed including one foreign citizen, we do not know the nationality of the foreign citizens. th

apple blossoms and the musicians and the conductor actually do blossom as they perform in the capital kabul eighteen year old nagin feels far removed from all the current problems mentioned swings are back . when i conducted student i really it's feel like crying that i'm conducting here and it's easy if i do it if i work hard johnny. nagin has a competition nature which was vital in asserting yourself against the reservations of the clan the north eastern afghanistan a region where the taliban still have considerable influence. after the orchestral rehearsal negin practices various percussion instruments. she had wanted to become a pianist but an injury forced her to consider other options it's a minor challenge after everything she's been through. they say if you are going to music school or you are conducting or you are so doing some interviews so you will kill you like this they told me but didi can't they just tour like this so they scare me and yet my life is in danger more than two hundred students are enlisted at the national institute of music a quarter of them women they have acce

let's take you live to kabul and speak to the bbc‘s auliya atrafi.er and the security forces have regained control, is that right? that's right but after 12 hours of clashes, six people have been killed, one of them is a foreign national, the identity of that foreign national is not confirmed yet and the taliban have claimed responsibility. yes, one of the biggest achievements here, it is claimed by the government, is that 160 people have been rescued but there is a lot of criticism on social media about the fact that although the security forces new that an attack was imminent, that it was to be a hotel or a place of gathering, that is how the insurgents still managed to penetrate into commie you know, the most popular landmark, that should have been the most secure place in the capital of kabul. it is a very prestigious hotel. i stayed there myself, actually. is the fact it was attacked just a sign of the continuing instability, the danger and the violence in kabul and afghanistan in general. that is right. it is also the taliban changing tactics.

in the afghan capital kabul has ended. on saturday night and had been battling afghan security forces until a short time ago the taliban has claimed responsibility for the attack which has left at least six people dead. and u.s. vice president mike pence has been holding talks with. part of his middle east tour early on he met president. in egypt he's defending the u.s. decision to recognize jerusalem as israel's capital. the anniversary of u.s. president trumps inauguration has been marked by a government shutdown after the senate failed to agree on a spending bill that will try again on monday to vote for a deal with immigration the main sticking point to republicans and democrats are blaming each other for the deadlock mike hanna reports house democratic minority leader nancy pelosi was the monger thousands of people protesting near the white house their presence at the moment no longer needed on capitol hill when negotiations between senate democrats and republicans on the new wording of a stopgap funding bill fell apa

mine agency and this is normally a very very busy part of kabul it's the second attack in the capital in a week taliban fighters battled security forces for more than fifteen hours at the city's intercontinental hotel in a siege that killed twenty five people last saturday security has been stepped up around the city but it wasn't enough. police on the army of afghanistan is. really young it's just seventeen or eighteen years old they need more training they need more practice they need more experience but the taliban on the other hand they are very devoted fighters cobbles emergency hospital was flooded with patients it's a scene that's been repeated many times the president says the uptick in attacks is because of increased military pressure on armed groups and political pressure on pakistan maybe the case but it's the people here who continue to suffer the most jennifer glass al jazeera kabul well saturday's attack is just the latest in a renewed wave of violence in afghanistan on the summer twenty eight an eyesore suicide bomber targeted a shia cultural center in kabul killing at

refugees, people desperate for work, and terrorists have flooded kabul. nicholson showed us how vulnerable the city has become. >> nicholson: a suicide bomber is going to go in here, he's going to kill himself. he doesn't care about his future. vastly easier than what the afghan security forces have to do. >> logan: because he doesn't have to have an exit strategy. >> nicholson: exactly. >> logan: how easy is it to infiltrate the city, especially one this big? >> nicholson: yeah, right now it's easier than we would like. >> logan: general nicholson took command in 2016 shortly after the u.s. cut troop levels to fewer than 10,000. the enemy filled the vacuum. suicide bombers have terrorized kabul ever since, shattering police stations, mosques, and foreign embassies. this truck bomb in may killed 150 people. it was the deadliest attack in the capital since the start of the war. >> ashraf ghani: the level of brutality, the level of heartlessness is unbelievable, and we have to muster all of our resources to be able to deal with this. >> logan: afghan presid

one kabul has been placed on a state of high security alert. today is a public holiday in kabul. so the streets are empty. people have stayed at home. and we have seen some visible signs of an increase in security this morning when i was driving to work, i saw armored humvees. and a few places on the streets in kabul. for the time being, every intelligence and security breach continues to cost the people of afghanistan with their lives. the military forces. and in the long run, these attacks will also actually have a very negative impact on afghan trade. afghan investors will not be really willing to invest in kabul at a time when unemployment is a very serious issue. at the center of this, you also have the issue of corruption and incompetence. so you hear these days more and more people in kabul telling you that when they leave their home in the morning, they say goodbye to their family members, they're really not certain that they may come back home alive. and this is 18 years after billions of dollars. this is 18 years after bloody treasure had been invested in afghanistan. s

time and again joining us live from kabul in afghanistan last hour thank you. moving into stories from today a british student has been making headlines after she appeared on a radio show and confessed their support for communism twenty four year old fiona laurie told a b.b.c. programme she felt communism was never given a chance to develop in the soviet union and therefore didn't actually fail the story whipped up a storm of debate over how universities alluring students to the left with one professor repeatedly quoted saying that she's downplaying the crimes of stalin we spoke to ourselves about the storm i think it's completely hypocritical and very typical of academics like him to kind of passionately you know talk about the death under the save even by i think this is you know very much selective outrage the media in general obviously don't paint marxism or socialism or really any kind of left wing politics in a in a positive light and that's because obviously in you know the media is owned by same group of people in the media is owned by a billionaire cla