president obama will not be going to the sochi games and instead named two gay sports figures to represent the u.s. at opening and closing ceremonies. >> the fact that we've got folks like billie jean king or brian boyntano who everyone acknowledges their excellence and character who also happen to be members of the lgbt community, they should take that for what it's worth. >> and putin touched upon relations with the u.s. by absolutely addressing the nsa surveillance program. russia has been harboring leaker edward snowden for months, although putin said he never met him. >> i envoy president barack obama. i envy him because he's able to do this. there is not much to rejoice about all this, though, but on the other hand there is no big reason to be unhappy about it either. >> this is not the first time the russian president has tried to clean up his public persona, formerly head of the kgb, putin frequently broadcasts himself as an all around tough guy. publishing photos of himself hunting, fishing, riding horses without a shirt. shirtless or not, his gestures will have outcomes on the am

the sochi olympics are a major prestige project for president vladimir putin. no one has claimed responsibility for it a of these attacks but earlier, chechin leader, claimed responsibility. organizers have promised to make the games, "the safes olympics in history." peter sharpe al jazeera in volgograd. >>> kimberly martin is a proaferred aprofessor at barnar. >>> what can we expect? >> there's no question that it's connected to the upcoming olympic games and it is a message to putin that things are not as secure has he would like. >> the ioc issued a statement: "we offer our sincere condolences to those affected by the bombings and that we are always concerned about the safety of our delegation, the sochi games are no different in that regard. we will continue to work closely with the local organizing committee. what are we to make of that statement? >>> well, of course it isn't the first time that the olympics have been threatened by a security concern. we had terrible circumstances at the munich olympics so it makes sense for the ioc and the united states th

volgograd is the prime target just 400 miles from the olympic venue in sochi and near the north caucus us, a haven for them. putin turned sochi into a fortress, a 1500-square-mile security zone with some 40,000 security forces patrolling what is called a ring of steel. >> basically you won't be able to move in sochi without somebody knowing you are moving and knowing where you are going. >> reporter: that leaves targets like volgograd vulnerable. to islamist insurgents who hate putin. >> it is my fear this is the beginning of a concerted series of terrorist attacks that are going to take place essentially to bring russia to a much higher state of terror. >> reporter: today the head of the international olympic committee said he is, quote, fully confident russia will deliver a safe and secure olympic games. many others aren't so sure. and also today, the u.s. government concerned that islamist militants may strike during the games extended an olive branch to russia offering closer cooperation between the two rivals on matters of security. lester? >> jim maceda tonight, thanks. >>> for m

and i'm with al jazeera. >> reporter: the winter olympics in sochi begin february 7th. ross russia's border protests and neighboring ukraine got personal for the president and marched to the president's home on sunday. they called for his resignation and carried a coffin to symbolize what they hope is the end of his political career and they blocked the road to the president's house and the demonstration was peaceful and thousands gathered in the independent square outraged of the beating of a reporter who had a lavish lifestyle. a presidential election might take place before voting for parliament. a transitional plan unveiled in july called for parliamentary elections to be held first and critics suggest changing the ore der of elections would give the new president more control over who gets elected in parliament. egypt has seen attacks over the past week after they said the muslim brotherhood was a terrorist organization and a bomb exploded north of cairo on sunday. they arrested al jazeera reporting team in cairo and peter, producers and the cameraman were all picke

but just over two months to go before the sochi olympics athletes are putting everything they've got into training for a chance at gold that thirst for victory is just as strong among the paralympic contenders are demanding a question of a follows the story of one athlete who found the loss of his legs was no match for sporting ambition. this is my second family thirty six year old by d.m.c. lukin is the captain of the twenty fourteen russia sledge hockey paralympic team and this training base as his home which is here almost every day at this training base morning till night training and while the games are just around the corner the athletes are training even harder than africa well most of your every day is the say we get up we have breakfast and we train on the days that we have a game to play we arrive at the stadium an alibi for we spend some time to get ready and then we go and fight. but things haven't always been so crystal clear for him but team lost both his lacks while serving in the military and changed man. i remember everything like it was yesterday i was completely los

preview. >> what was the message you were trying to send with not only your decision not to attend the sochi games, but also with the people you named to the delegation to represent the united states at those games? >> first of all, i haven't attended olympics in the past, nd i suspect that, you know, me attending an olympics, particularly the time when you've got all the other stuff that people is talking about, will be tough, although i would love to do t. i'll be going to a lot of olympic games post-presidency. i think the delegation speaks for itself. you got outstanding americans, outstanding athletes, people who will represent us xtraordinarily well. you know, the fact that we've got folks like billie jean king or brian boitano, who themselves have been world-class athletes that everybody acknowledges for their excellence, but also for their character, who also happen to be members of the lgbt community, you should take that for what it's worth, that when it comes to the olympics and athletic performance, we don't make distinctions on the basis of sexual orientation. we judge people on

the blast 457ing six weeks before the winter games in sochi. peter sharp has the details >> reporter: the chaotic aftermath of the attack on a railway stale in volgegrad. a body lies on the ground as the emergency services scramble to street survivors. officials say a woman set off ex place near metal detectors at the entrance to the main strain station. the blast captured on camera. the station was packed with thousands of people leaving on the christmas holidays. >> everything was covered in smoke after 10 minutes, i was able to see again and there were bodies everywhere. inside the train station, itse f itself, everything is destroyed. >> the attack killed and injured dozens of people. >> according to preliminary information, the power of this explosion was the equivalent of 10 kilograms of tnt. there would have been more victims if it weren't for the so-called guarding system of the train station. it prevented the suicide bomber from getting through the medal detector into the waiting haul where, at the time, there were lots of people becaus

some are suggesting that time related to the upcoming winter games in sochi investigates the security situation that while the international olympic committee says it has no concerns about safety. it will train all she international life from moscow and with start with the breaking news this hour. and for the second time in just three days the russian city of volgograd has been targeted by terrorists today fourteen people have been killed after a suicide bomber blew up on a trolley bus and twenty four hours earlier a similar assault on the city's railway station claimed at least sixteen lives also has moderate howell is following developments in volgograd for us i am here in the marketplace where that troll a bus exploded this morning at eight thirty in the morning causing a massive death bodies everywhere a lot of information that is still coming out about the stroller the attack that happened this morning it has been confirmed that there was a suicide bomber on that troll the bus that claimed these lives we have an eyewitness account of this event. i was in my way from work to the u

their has unveiled [indiscernible] for the sochi games. to the games has been overshadowed after russia passed anti-gay legislation. the sochig for olympics is on february 7. news,me to today's web where we take a look at some of the stories making online headlines. washington's latest campaign promoting obamacare. an interactive map around the world. ad was released on barack obama's twitter account to get people talking about the changes in health care during the holidays. it features a young man in a onesy cradling hot chocolate. it encourages young people to sign up for obama care. most american users are criticizing the obama administration saying the advertising campaign is condescending, treating an entire generation like children. he is now known as pajama boy. it has been subject to countless parodies. it has provided the perfect opportunity for right wing americans to take a swipe at health care reform. millions of americans have been informed their insurance packages would be canceled because they do not comply with the obamacare

the university games the world of critics championships formula one the sochi olympics and the world cup the first time since the soviet era russia has regaining its state is a sporting epicenter and to encourage a new generation of champions over four hundred limbic and paralympic stars past and present have given their support to a new sports fund which is due to get underway in two thousand and fourteen among them was four time olympic gymnastics champion alexey nam of who's also a member of the lara sports academy which encourages children ramberg load to get involved in sports and i have a thirty seven year old wants to kick sand a similar scheme closer to home. with me just as our task will be to visit schools until the kids how we managed to become a little bit champions and how they can do that as well we want them to be proud of doing sport and to do it because they want to not just because they are lots of money from it i want to use my own experiences to help kids understand why they should get involved in sport. sporting charities are nothing new in russia with many big n

and competing is nice but winning trumps it all say athletes as they ready themselves for the sochi winter olympics stay with us as we report on the one paralympic contender is using that gold fever to turn tragedy into purpose. ninety and in the russian capital you're watching r t was memory to joshua welcome to the program iranian lawmakers have proposed a bill on boosting uranium enrichment to sixty percent of new sanctions are imposed on the country the motion is apparently aimed at countering u.s. legislation authorizing tougher prizes if iran breaches a historic deal reached in geneva last a month that agreement raised hopes of a rapprochement between tehran and foreign powers and marked a significant milestone of the year two thousand and thirteen. now let's have a look at what the deal was about iran agreed to reduce raymond richmond from twenty percent seen as too close to bomb making capability to five percent and for the next six months and also to deactivate its advanced centrifuges inspectors would monitor this on a daily basis and sanctions would begin to ease more what led t

the sochi winter olympics is a prestige project for president vladimir putin. no one claimed either attack. earlier this year chechen leader called for maximum force to prevent the olympics from being held. the chechens want to sort of an islamic state out of russia much tens of thousands of police have been deployed to protect the olympics. organizers promised to make the games the safest olympics in history. >> well, let's speak to fred weir a journalist with the christian science monitor, joining us from moscow, via skype. little doubt that the people behind the bombers are the islamist fighters in the north caucasus region. explain why volgograd is being targeted. not only the attacks today and yesterday, but in october, on a bus. >> yes, this is the third attack in volgograd. it certainly demonstrated or demonstrates a concerted ability by this terrorist organization to hit repeatedly in a single place. it should be a well-protected city, as these things go. it's clear that volgograd has been chosen for some reason. whether or not it's because the main targ

meanwhile the countdown to the sochi twenty fourteen paralympics reach one hundred days on wednesday people gathered at the black sea resort to celebrate the milestone as well as catch a closeup glimpse of some of the two hundred sixteen paralympic medals girls live that. it's great not only one hundred days to go until the paralympic games as well but from celebrating we also decided to interview a park full of sculptures made by schoolkids with the help of professional sculptors it's not a little something we hope will make the olympic and paralympic winter games even more memorable. and those memories will start to be made in just over two months time as the first of so she's two olympic tournament gets underway on february the seventh mark trenchard's party. and that's all the sport i find. what is the fate of the house of saud its list of complaints against washington is long and getting longer the saudis are furious over western dealings with iran disappointed that obama didn't bomb syria and one of its only real friends in the region is israel given all this can the house of sa

official suspects have been named but chechen separatists have promised violence at the time of the sochi winter games. >>> there is separating in gaza. while palestinians were celebrating there was anger in israel among victims' families. >> helicopters will now evacuate 73 passengers who have been stranded off the coast of antarctica. they were hoping that an australian ice breaker could rescue them on monday but can couldn't plow through the ice. >> michael schumacher remains in a medically induced coma. he was injured in a skiing accident in the alps. those are the headlines. fear and anger across the world as two deadly explosions rock russia. "consider this" with less than two months until the world safe? >> a highly detailed new investigation claims there is no indication al qaeda was involved in the 2012 attack on the u.s. consulate in benghazi. >> hope of an assess fire is fading in south sudan. we'll break down the conflict and get an assessment on the ground. n.a.s.a.'s superrobot may look like child's play but could lead to more in space consideration. >> we begin with two bom

it raises security concerns for the sochi olympics. if we don't see an e an attempt on the olympics i would be surprised. >>> 2:00 after a night club let out near a sun dance theater, shots were fired. a modesto resident was killed. the search is on for a gunman. >>> a fire truck and mercedes collided. a firefighter was injured. several streets near 5th and howard were shut down. the hook and ladder truck leaking oil had to be towed away. >> it was traveling against a red light. the operator did have the emergency lights on and siren. it is all under investigation. the civilian driver may have failed to field. if is under investigation. injuries were mild to moderate. >> we had nice weather this weekend, record highs in oakland at 73. more warm weather is on the way. warm weather during the day. at night it is down right cold. below freezing in livermore. 40s by the bay. look for lots of sunshine warming us up into the 60s. then for new years it looks like a gorgeous night. low 50s at 10:00. look for readings around 50. i will tell you

today's blast happening six weeks before the winter games in sochi. arp has the details. >> reporter: the chaotic aftermath of the attack on a railway station. a body lies on the ground as the emergency services scramble to treat survivors. regional officials say a women set off explosives near metal detectors near an entrance to the main train station. the blast captured on camera. the station was packed with thousands of people leaving on their chris mat holidays. inevitably the attack killed and injured dozens of people. inning. >> according to preliminary investigation the power of this explosion was the he whiff lent 10 rounds of tnt. there would have been many more victims if it weren't for the so-called guarding at the train take, preventing the suicide bombing from getting in where at the time there were lots of people because three trains were late. >> reporter: in the same southern city in october 7 people died in a suicide bomb on the ground a bus, the woman behind that attack was a muslim convert from kazakhstan, the latest killings raise s

now the sochi olympics are five weeks away, 400 miles away. >> it's pretty bad. >> reporter: a right wing u.s. fanatic bombed the atlantic olympics in 1996. >> a successful terrorist attack on sochi itself during the games, that's the holy grail. >> reporter: russian officials say they are ready. vladimir putin rose to power fighting islamic terrorists. he sees sochi has his crowning achievement. >> this could wipe that out. >> this could wipe that out. >> reporter: putin is ordering tighter security all across russia. nbc bay area news. >>> our coverage of the terrorist attacks in russia continues on "nightly news" at 5:30. >>> the faa chose six sites to test commercial drones. california wasn't one of them. folks in alaska, texas, virginia, and north dakota will soon see unmanned drones in the ski. the faa chose these locations based on geography, climate, use of air space, and safety. we could see commercial drones in the sky by 2015. they can be used from everything to filming moves to helping farmers monitoring fields for disease. >>> still to come, is it the work of aliens or pr

i winter gales in 2014 are awarded to the city of sochi. in the last two days, suspicion is falling. sochi is 400 miles from the volgograd blasts, the olympic site near the border with russian is that's troubled region and within that, the so-called chechnyaen conflict. the hallmark of the struggle so far has been two wars with moscow in the 1990s and numerous separatist attacks on people in buildings. one of the most notorious, the school hostage taking carried out, but airports have been bombed too. the leader has called for attacks to increase including on the sochi games. the latest bombings are a looming p.r. disaster for president putin who has a huge stake in making the games a display of just how far russia has come since the fall of the soviet empire. >> they have a huge concentration of security forces in sochi. people have to go through inconvenient metal detectors. they are only going to allow people into the area who have official government passes and are prehe approved. it will be impossible for anybody who is not on that list

olympic team be safe after the torch is lit along with all those who descend on sochi to watch them? i want to bring in amy knight, author of several books on russia. she has been watching the ramp-up to the winter games closely. and peter brooks, former cia officer and deputy assistant secretary of defense who works with the heritage foundation. amy, i will start with you. after these two attacks, should we believe putin when he says the sochi games will be safe and secure? >> well, i think probably yes. the attack of course took place quite far from sochi and in volgograd, and i think that the russians have made it very clear, the russian government, that they are going to have extra -- they are going to really cordon off the sochi area, a large chunk of territory. they are making it very difficult to get passage. you have to show passports and your identity. i think sochi itself will probably be safe. just remember, this happened quite a ways away. >> peter, in july, the leader of the chechen group, we don't know that they're responsible, but they vowed to use maximum force to disr

with the olympic games in sochi less than six weeks away. want to focus on what is behind the violence as some of the world's top athletes are now preparing to travel to russia. doma till la is a war time studies professors at kings college london. the very latest, 14 people killed in today's attack. this is on a packed trolley. have you another 17 killed yesterday at a train station. nobody's claiming responsibility. when you take a look at these twos twin attacks, are there hallmarks? do you suspect is behind this and what do you think they want? >> well, i mean it, usually the prime suspects are the fighters that are leading sort of an islamic inspired insurgency in the north caucasus. not necessarily chechens. there are other nationalities involved like dagestannys. so there is a high possibility they might be behind figures belonging to this resistance movement might want to bring attention to their fight, raise their profile at a time when a lot of the eyes of the world are on russia because of the olympics. so in a way it's a very, ver

is the funding coming from as has been said and this is this city is under its of miles away from the sochi olympics that's too much can be made of that connection. a bigger connection might be that of course volgograd its previous name was stalin granted it's a very important city for the whole of the west is configured in any kind of islamist. hobby imagination and so what are the exact reasons and. will the condolences be met by actions in the west in terms of really trying to stop islam is terror so you're saying that you think doku umarov and his cohorts who are fomenting. could be fomenting unrest in the north caucasus are getting money from the saudi royal family there's no doubt that the saudis are intricately involved in these islamist movements it was only fourteen days ago that we've heard from the u.s. congress that they suddenly realized that the nine eleven attacks. the government the u.s. government deliberately hid saudi involvement in nine eleven saudi government involvement in nine eleven it's a kind of conspiracy ideas that are actually now being raised in congress so man

. >>> and still to come at 5:00, weather concerns for the winter games in sochi. the backup plan if there's not enough snow. and an amazing selfie snapped in the middle of a christmas eve space walk. >>> we're calling this an out of this world selfie that's now going viral. nasa astronaut mike hopkins snapped this photo of himself in the middle of a space walk on christmas eve, then he tweeted the photo with the caption "wish i could find the words to describe the experience. truly amazing." the 45-year-old astronaut helped fix a pump on the space station which has been in orbit since 1998. did he really take that picture himself and then you got to kind of hold on to the camera because you don't want to lose the camera while you're out there? >>> we'll check in with meteorologist. >> things that make you go hmm. and gravity, that all comes into play. we do have a red flag fire warning in effect for tomorrow, diane. this is going to run through tomorrow morning. it will expire at 10:00. but here's the thing with this being one of the driest years on calendar. we're

course i've already dreamt about winning the gold medal in sochi it was a it was difficult for me to win in vancouver over that was my first victory and it's easier to win the first time and the second time and to defend your title which is why i'll just give my all and see what happens there glad to get the most just. to go for went on to become the two time world champion this february literally while he devotes almost all his time to training in family knowing that this is the only recipe for success is naturally he wants to become an national hero at his home games in sochi. themselves while preparations for the olympics of change are there to love it as the track in such he is very demanding we aim to use my full strength with maximum speed so we slightly altered our training methods and i live with that a lot of groups go we give up unexpectedly twenty years ago with his first being his second tour school team. and they stayed together going all the way to the national team in moscow regionally has kept his passion for skiing going throughout the years and this is one of the sec

including the host city of sochi. there has been 15 attacks since 1995, many involving check nian fighters, leaving 1300 dead, including hundreds of children. >> al jazeera's correspondent takes a look at check nian violence. >> violence is no stranger to vladimir putin's russia, stemming from decades of conflict. in 1999 the russian army invaded chechnya under orders that vladimir putin described as an anti-terrorism operation. the conflict lasted nine years. 50,000 civilians died and 5,000 russians. in 2001 a pro-moscow regime was installed, the conflict declared over. separatist groups spread through the northern caucasus, still the center of an islamist insurgency. >> before large events, and the sochi winter olympics is the biggest, but prior to federal elections and large events there has been these sorts of attacks. i think what they want to do, first and foremost is remind the kremlin that they are here and are a force to be reckoned with. >> doku umarov called on people to strike russia. >> there is a questio

but the russian government insists there won't be any security problems in sochi. its promise they will be the safest olympics in history. >> jeff: holly williams joins us from our london bureau. the safest olympics in history, holly, given what happened today, how realistic is that promise? >> well, jeff, the olympics are being held close to a region where the russian government has been fighting islamic rebels now on and off for 20 years so that is clearly a problem. but these olympics are really important for russia's image. so the authorities have brought in some of the tightest measures ever seen at a sporting event. a 60 mile security zone, over 50,000 security personnel. and all spectators will have to go through an identity check. >> holly williams, thank you. >> today much of the midwest is in a dangerous deep freeze. temperatures well below zero in spots. an arctic air blowing in from the west is adding to the misery. in international falls it was 25 below zero. holly wagner is with our minneapolis station wcco. >> reporter: the deep freeze brought winter

thae they're concerned if there's any disruption of the sochi olympics, they will be blamed for it. they're trying to figure out, you know, as they say, positive ways to protest this anti-gay propaganda law that the russians have instituted. wolf? >> on the issue of edward snowden, president putin's remarks were pretty, some would say, cavalier, not helping snowden, not working with snowden, sort of envies he said -- i don't know if he was sarcastic or what -- president obama's massive surveillance programs, what do you make on comments like there is? >> well, first of all, spoken like a true former kgb agent. secondly, or chief, and secondly, he has always said that they're not helping, he says they're not debrief, they're not downloading edward snowden, they're just giving him shelter. he said, from the beginning, made it very clear actually, they didn't necessarily approve of what snowden had done but he's not going to throw him out. he always says it's up to snowden to figure out where to go next. there are issues between the u.s. and russia where they're trying to keep some kin

it's hundreds of miles away so i say that there's a particular relevance of the sochi olympics of course journalists will be very keen to draw. draw comparisons and relations between these two things it's notable that with some western leaders aren't coming to the winter olympics the western leaders don't tend to go into winter olympics it has to be said so the connection with sochi may be over reg's what's crucial here is that international law enforcement authorities get to the bottom of this what we need is much closer collaboration. thirty's rather than the n.s.a. spying on every country resident not knowing people actually finding out about what's going on. and on you right now we're providing in-depth coverage of events involving ground for you. compound live updates images and analysis of that. motion section of our website a graphic video showing the aftermath of the blast from the to agents around me. and others just one day before the wait a minute let me start it again there's just one day before the deadline to rid syria of most of its chemical weapons the international effor

, 400 miles from the sochi olympics. they start in six weeks. while christina will be dropping the ball in times square, she color of the numbers from her smartphone. good morning everyone who disses "bloomberg surveillance." i'm tom keene. is cristina alesci and scarlet fu. been and it is like i can see it. >> it is going to be very cold. and bourbon, don't forget the bourbon. time for the morning briefs, because it is time for that. >> i missed this so much. it is like a three-week vacation. tochina's local debt rose ,.95 chilean dollars underscoring financial risks in the world's second-biggest economy among the other risks that we are seeing in china. in the u k, home prices rose in december. they will lead gains in 2014 according to the track. here in the u.s., economic data at 10 a.m. ending home sales at 10: 30. france, thenote in constitutional council there gave the go-ahead yesterday on the government's millionaire tax. bad news for millionaires there. last for 2013 and 2014 and taxes salaries above one million euros at 75%. ouch. >> is

. >> reporter: the sochi olympics are one of vladimir putin's highest priorities right now. ssia's chance to shine on the international stage, but a high stakes gamble, if you can't keep the games in russia secure. and protecting russia may be difficult challenge. mr. putin is promising the sochi olympics will be safe, and the security forces have moved to basically lockdown that site. but protecting the rest of russia, all of its nine time zones is an overwhelming job. >> it sure is. and he certainly has staked his reputation, the legacy of russia, everything on this. obviously, we're all hoping that it is safe. >>> and let's get to some other top stories coming up in the situation room. supreme court justice sonya sotomayor has responded to papers regarding same-sex marriage in utah. a district court judge struck down the ban on unions on december 20, allowing gay couples to wed legally for the first time in the state. >>> and more news now from the nation's high court. a group of catholic organizations is asking for an emergency delay to a part of obamacare that requires r

just 38 days before the winter olympics there in sochi, a second terror attack in two days. this raises questions about security as the world's best athletes converge to that region. this morning a suicide bombing ripped apart a trolley bus during morning rush hour killing at least 14. at a nearby train station yesterday, a similar attack killed 17. and on friday, a car bomb exploded in a town just 170 miles from sochi. nbc's jim maceda is in moscow following all of these developments for us. jim, good evening to you there. how is russia handling the aftermath on the ground and for that matter those who are watching from abroad? >> reporter: hi, richard. well, russian officials, first of all, they declared a state of emergency today in volgograd while investigators there have issued a statement saying that this morning's bus bomb was from their perspective definitely carried out by a male suicide bomber. people were going to work or the market this morning when that bomber struck and now a whole city of one million is terrified. reports that residents are staying put, they're

meanwhile the countdown to the sochi twenty fourteen paralympics reach one hundred days on wednesday people gathered at the black sea resort to celebrate the milestone as well as catch a closeup glimpse of some of the two hundred sixteen paralympic medals girls live that. it's great not only one hundred they still go into a paralympic games as well but from celebrating we also decided to interview a pocket full of sculptures made by school kids with the help of professional sculptors it's not a little something we hope will make the olympic and paralympic winter games even more memorable. and those memories will start to be made in just over two months time as the first of so she's two olympic tournament gets underway on february the seventh month trying to auntie. and that's all i found. dramas that can't be ignored. stories others use in the. faces changing the world right now. to picture. from around the globe. look. war is probably the most complex and difficult human activity. of all. locked up. in the phenomenon of friendly fire probably extends back to the invention of gunpowde

"consider this" with less than two months until the world descends on sochi - is russia safe? >> a highly detailed new investigation claims there is no indication al qaeda was involved in the 2012 attack on the u.s. consulate in benghazi. >> hope of an assess fire is fading in south sudan. we'll break down the conflict and get an assessment on the ground. n.a.s.a.'s superrobot may look like child's play but could lead to more in space consideration. >> we begin with two bombing attacks within 24 hours in russia that raised questions about security at february's sochi olympics , and following a "new york times" report on 2012 attacks in benghazi raising questions again about what happened that night. we'll start with the attacks in volgograd. 15 were killed, dozens injured when a male suicide bomber detonated shrapnel-laced explosives on a bus, following a blast at volgograd's main train station, where 17 died and dozens hurt by two suicide bombers. what do the attacks mean for the winter olympics scheduled to start february 7th. i'm joined by dr jim walsh, from watertown, an in

. >>> chechen separatistless may be launching attacks before the sochi olympics. >>> palestinians released from israeli jails, part of proposed peace talks between the israelis and palestinians. america tonight is up next and remember you can always find us online at aljazeera.com. >> on america tonight, it strikes mills each year, often with deadly consequences. >> when you find out you're like you think you're going to die. >> a battle against a vicious disease, battle against hepatitis c. >>> terrorists rattle alarms. for the sochi olympics. >> we profile veteran singles who are still looking for love. >> sam. >> oh my god he's gorgeous. sms. >> well, good evening everyone and thanks for joining us, i'm adam may. joie chen is on assignment. we begin what many call is a silent killer and a break through drug that is giving home to more than 3 million americans suffering. "america tonight"'s lori jane gliha shows us how one drug can wipe out this virus for good. >> reporter: when clyde beard opens the dur to his beloved backyard tool shed, the room twinkles with the light. >> i love worki

. >>> less than six weeks of the start of the winter olympics in sochi and there are serious concerns for the safety of tourists and theresa. one u.s. snowboarder already declaring he may skip the opening ceremonies at the games if he makes the team. i want to show you this video. it's just in to cnn but let me warn you first. it is upsetting to watch. this captures a deadly explosion at a train station in the southern russian city of volgograd and one of two suicide bombings within that city that killed 24 people. diane magnay is joining us now with more details. >> reporter: the video is disturbing showing you the moment of detonation in that railway station that killed 18 and on a trolley bus yesterday morning, another 16 were killed in another suicide bombing. there is a huge antiterror operation going on right now in the city of volgograd. 224 offices brought with normal forces there and searching people's documents and they detained 87 people so far. normally, most of them apparently for possession of weapons without the right documents, not necessarily related to the attack, bu

the southern city of volgograd, russia. they're raising concerns for a new wave of attacks. volgograd is 400 miles northeast of sochi, the site for the olympic games which begin in just six weeks. peter sharp is in volgograd. >> reporter: the twisted gutted remains of a trolley in volgograd. russian investigators say a male suicide-bomber is responsible for the attack. it's the second in the last 24 hours. on sunday 17 people were killed by a suicide-bomber in volgograd's main railway stati station. security controls at the end of the station prevented even more deaths. >> the explosive device was the equivalent of four kilograms of tnt like the bomb at the train station, it was full of shrapnel and this confirms that the two terrorist acts were connected. >> reporter: president putin has dispatched the head of the intelligence service, formerly the kgb, to coordinate the hunt for those responsible for those attacks. the people here worried that this could be just the start of a concerted bombing campaign leading up to the start of the winter olympics in february. the sochi olympics are a major prestige project for

and almost everyone wants the games to be a success for sochi and russia. t they still hope visiting athletes won't forget them. >> >> this man says he's like athletes to stand up for the gay community with a colorful protest against the propaganda law. >> valiri is excited. he hope athletes will support them publicly and come to this club. no doubt olympians would be welcome here. because everyone is. phil black, cnn, sochi. >> and in what seems to be a metaphor for the troubled journey of the winter games, even the olympic torch is having problems. it's gone out several times. on one occasion officials had to use some sort of portable lighter just to get it going again. they sent it up to space, but without oxygen once again there was no flame. and one torch bearer even caught on fire. we will see what happens when the games actually begin. we'll all be watching february 7th. >>> you have to be pretty smart to get into harvard, right? well, 20-year-old sophomore eldo kim just might be the exception. the fbi says this young man here is responsible for makin

olympics, and an incredible array of protection with the village for sochi, sealed off from the rest of the world, will these things in combination, do you think, keep the games themselves safe? >> i think so. having experienced these event in the past, as you look from a consent ring ring of security concept. as you get closer and closer to the olympic venues or village, security will be extraordinarily tight. credentialing will be checked and double-checked. there'll be a tremendous amount of protection agents and uniform police coverage and your usual kind of security apparatus in place. as jim noted, and this was the same concern in atlanta, you can only secure so much based on your resource, and when we had the bombing in centennial park in atlanta, it was outside of our protection umbrella. and the russians will have the same problem. it's resource intense, as you look at trance pore tags nodes in and out, it's a real challenge. them. >> we saw with the boston marathon bombing three killed, 264 victims injured or maimed. security was tight epd. we saw extraordinary security at

says they have offered their full support to the russian government and security preparations for the sochi games. in the statement, the u.s. said it would welcome further cooperation for the safety of the athletes, spectators, and other participants. >>> members of the olympic committee are concerned by what they are seeing, but president thomas bach says he's sure russian authorities will do all they can to ensure the games in sochi are safe. he called the attacks an innocent attack on people and the entire olympic movement joins him in condemning what he called a cowardly act. he said he was certain everything will be done to secure the security of athletes and all other participants. ♪ >> this song is about a girl that died as a result of the atomic bombing of hiroshima. the day the paper cranes fly is not as popular outside of japan, but recently, people in australia started singing it, and credit goes to a man who spent much of world war ii in a japanese army prison camp. nhk world has the story. ♪ >> reporter: brisbane, northeastern australia. recently, local children sang the day th

delegation to the sochi winter olympic games. t is the message, the message he's clearly sending to the russian president putin? >> well, it's quite brilliant really. there is no more high profile athlete than billie jean king known all around the world, not just for her massive grand slam and history-making tournament wins but also for her work on equality, equality for women and equality for all regardless of sexual orientation. so this is a big deal to have somebody like that who's going to be walking in the opening ceremonies and being an official u.s. delegate. she's also had the presidential medal of freedom. clearly she is an important u.s. figure. she hasn't said much since. she said she was proud to have been made a del, but it really does -- we still don't know what exactly will happen during the olympics because the olympic committee has said that they're going to put a little area where people can protest for and against anything. we're not sure whether this russian law, this anti-gay prop gan dan law means that gay at

she believes the amnesty is aimed at improving russia's image ahead of the sochi olympics but this was the gop's in question is what will happen not to be limping games with the idea that nothing has really improved. this is just temporary humanize nation is the legal system. it has nothing to do with being humane. this no apologies to those imprisoned without good reason and justice demand all three women about trimming adversaries of the kremlin and refused to be intimidated by possible repercussions. still this is all a publicity stunt ahead of the winter olympics in sochi we ask marcus where our correspondent in moscow. what it would. many russians to think it's working d to move this amnesty comes a bit late that is for him and then hire a coach he was due to a free man in sometime next year already. i did that anaconda combine mighty idea now. and a prison sentence that would hand it in march next year already. so this comes a bit late and that this the coincidences with their wings in the game's many and belief in russia obviously the crime and tries to do it. punish rushes in t

found while the olympic hopefuls are finding their form the rosa khutor alpine resort in sochi held a ceremony to mark the opening of the new season skiers and snowboarders were on the slopes in the morning and relaxed with an entertainment program in the evening the resort is over seven. kilometers of skiing tracks with stunning views of the banksy corpuses mansions but enjoy these now as the venue will be closed on january the sixth. and finally there are just over eleven weeks to go until russia's first winter paralympics and champions past present and hopeful gathered in moscow last week for the launch of a new smartphone app which aims to help disabled people find sporting facilities and easy access countrywide one of the graph janko reports living in russia has always been a challenge for people with disabilities not just because of the extreme weather conditions but also because many older buildings simply want built with them in mind however attitudes are changing and new facilities both practical and sporting are improving across russia and six time paralympic skiing champion

explain what goes into security around something like that the sochi games? >> yes, the bilateral discussions regarding the games began a year ago. they have been to venues and talked to russian officials. there is a standard list of things you offer them in terms of assistance if they want it. you can't force it on them. it is a sovereign country, but you offer them things, it is an intelligence operation. but in athens we passed information back and forth and helped the greeks resolve threats. after these sort of attacks you would go back and say we have this capability. are you sure we can't help you? well heres the problem, a lot of these bilateral discussions goes on behind the scenes. much of them they wouldn't accept. bob knows as much as anybody, the intelligence relationship here where you really would like there to be sharing of information has been scratchy during the best of times. >> well, bob, if the idea of terrorism is to make a political statement or to make a dramatic statement, obviously targeting something like that the sochi games would ha

says they have offered their full support to the russian government and security preparations for the sochi games in the statement the us said it would welcome the opportunity for closer cooperation for safety of the athletes spectators and other participants. members of the international and the committee are concerned by what they are seeing. but president thomas bach says he's sure russian authorities will do all they can to ensure the games in sochi are safe. mike issued a statement on the bombings. he called them a despicable attack on innocent people. and he said the entirely big move and joins him in condemning what he called it a cowardly act cox said he and britain to coat in the city was certain everything would be done to ensure the security of athletes in all other participants. i i i the fashion designer working in japan is making waves with the peril that combines cutting edge style with traditional dyeing techniques is sarah on id says she has a passion to preserve a time honored craft and bring it to a global audience. his collection was one of the main attractions at this y

the blast occurred in volegrad about 600 south of moscow and 400 miles from sochi. the u.s. condemned the bombing and says it stands with russia against trierrorism. peter sharp has the latest. >> reporter: the chaotic aftermath. a body lies on the ground as the emergency services scramble to treat services. officials say a woman set off explosives near metal detectors. the blast captured on camera. the station was packed with thousands of people leaving on the christmas holidays. >> translator: everything was covered in smoke. after ten minutes, i was able to see again, and there were bodies everywhere. inside the train station, everything is destroyed. >> reporter: the attack killed and injured dozens of people. >> translator: according to preliminary information, the power of this explosion was the equivalent of 10 kilograms of tnt. there would have been many more victims if it weren't for the so-called guarding system at the train station. it prevented the suicide bomber from getting through the metal detector into the waiting hall where there were lots of people because

at least 30 are dead after two days inbombings in two the same province as sochi. there are new concerns over security at the gains. let's bring in our panel of experts to discuss that issue. rick nelson is senior associate at the center for strategic and international studies. is here, andin fred burton is vice president of intelligence at stratford. he helped arrest a man behind the trade center bombing back in 1993. thank you all for joining us. let's turn to you, fred. look at this situation, there has been a lot of talk about security, not just at the games but elsewhere in russia, surrounding the games. someone who has had experience securing an olympic games, what do you think russia can do our needs to do in this situation? >> it's going to be extraordinarily difficult to secure the transportation hub leading in and out of the olympic venue. having protected olympic athletes at these kinds of events before, the focus will gear down toward the olympic village to make sure that the athletes are safe. it really is a daunting challenge to try to just secure the

so businesses ahead of the sochi winter and intakes which to be held in a nearby cars the door to victory in the very next year what kind of results is that these people have how long could they keep up a campaign like this. could we call this a campaign. well they've been undertaking a very regular attacks across the north caucasus republics such as dogs on a decent year in chechnya. i'm full well what of a decade now. alongside doubt that have been and is taking them but it's a beast rise in attacks in other parts of russia but we seem to be seen now is the step up in this campaign to try and create a great sense of security ahead of the sochi winter than its service in threat from these groups to undertake attacks across southern russia on even in some major cities it is most good. you say the ultimate target is the winter then picks and saatchi is there any way president putin can control this. well as weeks but we've seen of the russian government has put in place a very strict security regime around the socially driven didn't use much it costs much a possibility with the surrounding