. ♪ >>> within the last hour the palestinian ambassador to the united nations says that palestine hased to join the international criminal court. they said the move will pave the way for palestine to pursue israel for alleged war crimes in the court. kristin kristin kristin joins us now. how long before the palestinians can actually file cases with the courts? >> reporter: the standard procedure is 60 days between the filing of the application and being able to take action with the court. we just received a statement from the spokesperson for the secretary general. it acknowledges the documents have been received and are being reviewed with a view to determining the appropriate next steps, which speaks to the fact that this is a bit of unchartered territory. we have a state that many countries don't recognize yet as a state, trying to join the international criminal court. that being palestine, it is recognized as an observer state here at the united nations, not a full member. joining the court has been opposed by the united states as well as israel. so what happens next is not 100%

office of legal affairs here the at the united nations.handed over the appear indication for the palestinians to join the international criminal court. it's official. the u.n. has the application in its hands. what typically happens is there's a 60-day waiting period from now until when they enjoy the full rights and membership privileges of a member state. as i was saying earlier, this is a bit of unchartered territory. the palestinians are not a fully recognized member of the united nations community, although they are considered an observer state here at the u.n. this is a controversial move. we don't know how it will go forward, but we expect ban ki-moon will hand the application over. within 60 days they have some rights as a member of the international criminal court. >> a controversial move and a very significant one for the palestinians. the anticipation is it pafs the way for the pursuit of alleged war crimes charges against israel. >>> absolutely. but, again, this is a bit of unchartered territory. there are a lot of questions ab

that position is not shared by many here at the united nations.the court has suggested they will accept palestinian membership. one of the things we heard from the ambassador is that the palestinians want the court's jurisdiction to be retroactive to the formation of the court, which would mean any incidents that happened even before the palestinians became members of the rome statute signed the treaty, joining the court, those incidents could also be considered by the court. in that is very much open to legal debate as to whether or not that will be appropriate. he also said he specifically wanted the court to consider the issue of settlement building in the palestinian territories. israeli settlement building as a war crime or crime against humanity for the israelis. he also wants the court to consider the last incursion of israeli forces into gaza which happened over the summer killing about 2,000 civilians. these are the issues that the palestinians would like the court to take up but the court has to decide whether or not it wants to take up

let's start with the significance of these developments at the united nations. begin with the un security council vote that ultimately did not support the israeli withdrawal from the palestine territories. >> good morning, amy. like many people, i was very relieved that the resolution failed. that might surprise some of your viewers, but the devil is in the detail which is a very bad resolution written by the palestinian authority without any support from any other palestinian faction. it has been condemned by palestinian political figures and legal experts because in an attempt to avoid the american veto, it undercut and undermined and watered down very fundamental palestinian rights. if this resolution had passed, it would have superseded existing resolutions which are far stronger. i will give you just one example. in your headlines, you said this resolution calls for an end to the israeli occupation. that is the headline. in the small print, it does no such thing. it calls for a withdrawal of israeli security forces that a replacement with a third-party pres

they're waiting to get help from the united nations. and they're waiting for their father to return. and until he does they'll stay here. >> the kids are staying in my home. what should i do, leave them in the streets. >> the body could not be buried for four days. the grouped was frozen hard. she has been laid to rest in the valley. her children say for that reason they will now never return to syria. they will stay here in lebanon close to their mother's grave. >> across lebanon syrian rafaels are able to move freely and look for work. it's a different situation here in arsal. this town has been put under a security lockdown. the syrian refugees here are not allowed to move in and out. now the lebanese army has done this because in august of last year fighters from isil and the al nusra front moved in to the town of arsal, took control of it had a battle with the lebanese army and they moved to the outskirts of town. the situation here is still precarious. people say it's a frustrating situation. they want to try to get work, but they

it's the case of his life - they're trying to sue the united nations. >> the united nations have a lot of money, we don't have. and they have a lot of -- a hundred thousand lawyers. we have only 12! the balance is for them. if they need to comply with the law, the balance is for us! >> the lawsuit - filed in november 2011 - claims that un failures to screen its soldiers for cholera and follow international rules on waste disposal constitute gross negligence. it's based on the un's own investigation which concluded that the nepalese base leaking sewage into the river was a likely source of the outbreak. and it's composed of thousands of stories of personal loss, each one documented by mario and his team. the next meeting is in mirebalais... the town that's home to the un base where the disease is known to have started. henrietta paul's husband was one of the very first to die. she doesn't know exactly where he's buried - back then the death toll was so high that bodies were being dumped in mass graves. today, she and her daughter lisette are filing a new claim. henrietta's only son, die

. >>> the united nations is bringing together rival factions from libya to try to broker a peace dealree years after the fallout of moammar gadhafi, two separate governments have emerged. and armed groups that fought to topple gadhafi have now disbanded and/or are fighting each other. we heard from the u.n. envoy to libya, zana who said he laid out the objections but said this was going to be very challenging. why is it going to be so complicated to find a peace deal for libya? >> reporter: well yes, he said long difficult and complicated process, but the united nations is attaching a lot of importance saying that this could be the last chance for peace, or libya could desend into further chaos, the united nations saying several rival factions are here but important players are not. the general national congress based in tripoli and not recognized by the international community, they expressed reservations about the conference. but it was clear from -- from the press conference the u.n. envoy had quite harsh words for those who are not attending, saying this dialogue is about talking,

>> in 2013 the united nations released a groundbreaking report on human rights abuses in north korea concluding their abuses - including forced labor deliberate starvation, torture, and the complete denial of the right to freedom of thought quote "have no parallel in the contemporary world" when he was only 9 years old kang chol kwan said he was imprisoned at the yoduk political prison camp with his family. when he was released 10 years later, he escaped to the south >> so there are entire families kept in these places? >> 80 to 120,000 people are reported to be held in these camps on life sentences. the north korean government denies that political prisons exist. >> we wanted to raise the issue of human rights while on our visit to north korea >> you're all welcome to korea to see the reality of korea. which will be different for you from what you've heard. by the way have you found people that have horns, and red face? >> (laughs) no we haven't. we were given one chance to sit down and ask questions with party members. our guides insisted it wasn't an interview, just a conversation

but let me go back a little bit about when people talk about the united nations. they say it's a giant monster. >> a huge bureaucracy that spends a lot of money. >> yes but they don't know. this organization, it's a member state, it's driven organization. when there is no consensus they can't do anything. but when there is collective efforts, consensus, that's why the council in syria count do anything. >> that's the problem because we don't seem to be ever reach consensus. when you bring up the security council in syria but you could talk about the security council in ukraine and how even a condemnation some of the violence ended up being vetoed by russia. you have the five permanent members who can veto things that are against their interests. if you can't get those five to agree, how do you get a broader consensus across the u.n. to achieve goals. >> that's a very good question, i think time has come for a reform. a reform of security council. today the world has changed. different powers around the world. different economy different wealth different contributi

. >>> the united nations is bridging together rival factions from libya in geneva to try to broke earce deal. three years after the fall of gadhafi, two separate governments have emerged. and armed groups who joined together to topple gaudify have now disbanded and are fighting each other. >> i think it has to be very clear after some time making a huge effort to bring many people from different realms to the table, their time is finished and the international community, and i am in touch with the most important international regional actors. i'm in touch, of course with the representatives of the security council, and the international community. for those who want war, we'll have no more patience. >> zana hoda has more. >> reporter: the united nations is calling this a long difficult, and complicated process, but it is saying there is no other choice time is running out, and this could be the last chance for peace in libya, but how meaningful are these talks when not all of libya's rival factions are here. the general national congress the parliament in tripoli, they are not here. t

it is something that failed at the united nations. we heard from the palestinian president yesterday mahmood abbas, that they will go back to the united nations, but it is proving very difficult to do that. we spoke with a senior palestinian official yesterday who said we've tried the political track time again we're tried negotiating time and time again and that's failed. we're internationalizing the palestinian cause. we went to the u.n. the u.n. failed us, and now we go to the icc taking the legal track. this goes along with the message that many believe that palestinians should have their own state. >> isdoes this have anything around the al aqsa mosque, those who can visit and those who cannot. >> al aqsa mosque is a holy site for jews, it's the holy mount. they would come out and said al aqsa was a red line. this was a site for all muslims and calls like this from the israeli right would an red line. we've seen them gain access to the area. we haven't seen any action on the ground. it can be seen as a political move. and when it

what do people here think about the united nations? >> translator: the u.n. here only causes problems. we see a lot of soldiers every day. and we don't know what they are here for. they brought cholera to our country, and they rape our women. >> translator: they have been in our country for 11 years and nothing has improved. >> reporter: one prominent activist says the u.n. is now hated in the country. >> wherever you have soldiers stepping in a foreign land you are going to have abuses. this is kind of part of it. but the real trouble people have with the u.n. has been this cholera outbreak. i mean you know, it killed more people than all the so-called insecurity in haiti has done. >> reporter: the u.n. mission costs more than $30 million a month, but if the ambassadors of the security council speak to ordinary haitians while they are here they may well discover most would prefer they packed up right now, and went home. james bayes. >>> plunging oil prices are taking their toll on communities around the world. in north dakota native american populations cont

the death was immediately confirmed by the united nations and new york. we also got a confirmation from a senior israeli force saying that this peace keeper was killed from an israeli mortar shell that was fired into lebanon. he said that they were in an immediate contact with the united nations. they regret the incident and it was never their intention to harm united nations peace keepers stationed along the board. now israel's prime minister benjamin netanyahu has spent most of his day in a meet in tel aviv with top security officials discussing the developments and the escalation of the northern border, and he held the israeli government and the--the lebanese government and the syrian government fully responsible for attacks emanating from their territory and said that those behind the attack will pay the full price. that said, there is a lot of speculation about how this could develop in the coming hours or days. >> nisreen el-shamayleh with the latest from west jerusalem. thanks. >>> let's go to the united nations and speak to our diplomatic editor j

security council reaffirm the need to combat by all means in accordance with the chapter of the united nationsthreats to the national peace security caused by terrorist acts and that any act of terrorist, criminal, and unjustifiable regardless of their motivation wherever, whenever, and by whom so ever expressed it. >> we're hearing about combating terrorism. that's something that will already be on the radar on the agenda there at the united nations, but could we expect it to become that much more important, that much more of a spotlight on the wake of this attack? >> it certainly is an issue that comes up a great deal at at the united nations. there is a structure for that, and it is something that comes up regularly on the agenda of the security council. i'm sure we'll hear more about this attack in the coming hours. ban ki-moon is giving the beginning of the year address on thursday setting out his priorities of the year. i'm sure they're likely to refer to the attack in the speech he makes. a comment from the high commissioner of human rights, he echoed ban ki-moon's earlier words saying

but the nation soon united again in the battle against al qaeda. last year, they also agreed to fight side by side against islamic state. on the domestic front, abdullah introduced cautious reforms intended to modernize his kingdom, introducing local government elections and opening the way for women to serve on the council, but saudi arabia continues to be extremely conservative, and strict sharia law remains in place. salman bin abdulaziz al saud has taken over. he is seen as a conservative and has promised to continue the policies of his predecessors. >> we will continue with god's grace and strength committed to the rightful approach followed by the state since its inception at the hands of the founder. >> king salman has a lengthy political career behind him. he served as defense minister and deputy prime minister. he will have to call on that experience as he faces numerous domestic and foreign policy challenges. >> one of the biggest challenges facing the saudi kingdom is the rise of radical jihadists, even within its own borders. let's brin

the united nations is calling on israel to unlock $127 million in taxes owed tthe palestinian authority that were withheld after it decided to join the international criminal court. a senior u.n. official, jens anders toyberg frandzen, told the security council that the freeze was in violation of the oslo agreements between israel and the palestinians. >> we call on israel to immediately resume the transfer of tax revenue. the israeli-palestinian conflict is entering uncharted territory, which seems to have dashed any image it hoped of returning to peace talks. >> riyad mansour, palestinian ambassador to the united nations, said his government was undeterred by israel's actions. >> the focused must be on ending this belligerent colonial israeli occupation in all its manifestations and realizing international consensus for a peaceful solution. we will continue to reject all of the irrational arguments against are peaceful, nonviolent, political, diplomatic, and legal endeavors and will continue on this path for justice and peace. >> in news from iran, the jailed american journalist jason

james base, al jazeera, the united united nations. >> we're going to the court in. not the publicity. we're going to the court the most important international court on criminal matters. it is an impartial court. it is based on the charter that israel refused to sign and commitment. israel thinks that the international court is like it's own courts, kangaroo courts that have been sending thousands of palestinians to jail without any due process. no we're going to the international legality and to that court come what may. >> in yemen houthi fighters say they've kidnapped the president's chief of staff. he was taken from his office in the capitol on saturday morning. >>> the united nations said its increasingly worried about the refugee trapped. they have not been able to distribute aid for six weeks because of ongoing fighting. the camp south of the capitol of damascus is cut off from the outside world. erica wood has more on the living conditions there. >> reporter: the palestinians refugee who is once sought shelter here because of trouble back home are now desper

until recently, he was the country's lead climate negotiator at the united nations climate conferences where he drew links between climate change and the deadly typhoons the philippines has faced. this is a clip of his address in 2013 at the u.n. climate change conference in poland where he spoke about typhoon haiyan, one of the strongest storms ever recorded. >> typhoons such as haiyan represent the suffering from the international community that we cannot afford to delay climate action. warsaw must deliver innovation and must muster the political will to address climate change and build a important bridge toward peru and paris. it might be said it must be poetic justice that typhoon haiyan was so big its diameter spanned the distance between warsaw and paris. mr. president in doha, we ask if not us, then who? if not now, then when? if not here, then where? but here in warsaw, we may very well ask the same four detroit questions. what my country is going through as a result of this extreme, event is madness. the climate crisis is madness. mr. president, we can stop this madness right

kristin saloomey has more now from the united nations. >> it's official.he united nations now has palestine's application to join the international criminal court. but where it goes from here is far from clear. >> now, this is a very significant step in which we will be going through it, to seek justice through a legal option. it is a peaceful option. it is a civilized option. it is an option that anyone who uphold the law should not be afraid of. >> if the palestine palestinian leadership has its way the court will investigate israel's 2014 invasion of gaza which resulted in the death of some 2,000 civilians and also the ongoing construction of israeli settlements on land the u.n. says belongs to the palestinians. but how far back and to what incidence the court's authority will ultimately apply is open to debate. palestinians could also be charged for war crimes including firing rockets into israel and while most countries recognize palestine as a state israel doesn't. >> the government is very upset because of this loorl unilateral state. israel expect

we need to understand what the united nations is. it is not a government. it is not an independent organization, per se. it is made of all these governments. if the united states' mission, french mission, uk others, the majority in the security council push in the same direction, nothing could stop actions by the united nations. it's really the players. i remember having worked with the security council members ten years ago on getting siree out of lebanon. a coalition between france and the united states accepted by russia made it possible. and the syrian army left lebanon. so, you need to have a unity there. that unity can only be possible of the national governments in washington, in france, in other places, are coming together so they could send instructions to representatives at the united nations. >> and we have two political panelists here who would have a voice. we're going to restart at the top of the hour. i'll ask you briefly for your comments, senator. obviously, both of you have had direct relationships with how the u.n. works. do you think it's

as a judge ruled the united nations cannot be sued. shutting down a national icon for safety reasons, why the golden gate bridge will be closed for the longest period in its history >>> and talking trash in the big apple. >> unexpected. you don't know what you are walking into. >> why you stand a better chance of getting into harvard than picking up trash in new york city. we tell you why, just after the break. >> devastating climates... >> if we don't get rain we'll be in dire straits... >> scientists fighting back... >> we've created groundhog day here... >> hi-tech led farming... >> we always get perfect plants everyday... >> feeding the world... >> this opens up whole new possibilities... >> tech know's team of experts show you how the miracles of science... >> this is my selfie what can you tell me about my future? >> can effect and surprise us... >> don't try this at home... >> tech know where technology meets humanity only on al jazeera america >>> a live look from san francisco, where the fog rolled in. golden gate bridge close

the united nations has been forced to cut food rations for refugees. >> our situation is very bad. have to keep the kids locked up all day buried in this tent. we cannot afford many things we need like medicine. the children all have the flu. >> near the border, a frantic -- to save a six-year-old syrian boy. it is too late. he dies lost in the blizzard. his father had to stumble through the snow with the body. they've been walking over the mountains into lebanon. they were found just 200 meters from the lebanese army checkpoint. there will be other such tragedies. at another camp, refugees wait patiently for a. lebanon has the highest concentration of refugees in the world. no one thinks this harsh winter will be their last here. >> the conditions are truly miserable, but those refugees still keep coming. a quick look at our main story again -- france, a nation in mourning over the deaths of 12 people who were killed when a magazine came under attack in paris yesterday. a moment of silence was held at notre dame cathedral, and the lights were turned out at the eiffel tower in pari

middle east we are pleading a broad coalition including united nations to ultimately destroy the group. we are assisting people every where to stand up to the bankrupt ideology of violent extremism. >> this is coming two weeks after the terror attacks in paris where al qaeda claimed

the united nations secretary-general is on board with the idea. >> terrorism knows no boundaries . >> the african union is hoping that the united nations will provide the money for its military offensive against boko haram. >> at lst 49 people have died after an attack on a shiite mosque in southern pakistan. >> officials say the attackers set off an explosive device during friday prayers. dozens were wounded. the explosion also caused part of the building to collapse, varying survivors. the sunni militant group has claimed responsibility. pakistan's shiite minority is often the target of extremist attacks. human rights watch estimates at least 800 shiites have been killed in the past three years. >> iraqi kurdish forces have repelled a nashville -- massive attack by islamic state fighters in northern iraq. >> militants began a three-pronged assault on areas near cure cook -- cure cook -- kirkuk aimed at critical oil and gas facilities but the oil stations were successfully defended by the kurdish fighters with support from u.s.-led airstrikes. >> we are going to head to south africa

the united nations pointed out that it's the responsibility of the iraqi government to maintain control of all the forces under his command. he stood before parliament saying it was too son to tell what happened. he promised that there would be changes at the interior ministry. other villages say that they have received warning letters are saying that the same thing could happen to them and more people sunni families from the villages are on the move looking for safety. >> the conflict in syria and iraq are some of the top challenges according to human rights watch. human rights violation by governments aggravate many of the crisis. it says sectarian policies by syria and iraq's government are partially to blame for the rise of i.s.i.l. and points to international indifference. human rights watch highlights abuses in syria, accusing bashar al-assad's forces of deliberately attacking civilians in opposition-held areas. it says that the nigerian army responded to the threat of boko haram. by rounding up hundreds of men and boys suspected of supporting the group detaining, abusing and kill

a judge rules the united nations can't be sued >>> 4. 3... 1. 0. and lift off. and the next generation of reusable rockets heads for the international space station >>> the french president francis hollande and key members of his government are meeting to discuss security and what has been described as intelligence failings in the right of the attacks which shocked the nation and, indeed the world. two sieges were brought to a violent end with four hostages and three gunmen killed on friday. two days earlier 12 people were shot dead in an attack on a satirical magazine. we get the latest from paris with laurence lee in a moment. first this report from tim friend. >> reporter: these are the images that will stay locked in the french public's mind for decades to come. one of the most violent days in recent history. first, the end of the seem north-east of the capital. two hostage takers dead. then a few minutes later mayhem at a jewish supermarket in the city itself as police storm the building to release hostages. four of them were killed. probably before the pol

according to the united nations, the aim will be to create a national unity government that would be starting point in the hope that it would reduce tensions. and this national unity government will take libya through the transition process and come up with coons coons -- constitution. they were saying representatives from municipalities are here. representatives from the third largest city and it holds a lot of influence in libya, because it makes up much of the libyan dawn forces. if they can bring them on board, that would be a positive sign. but the international community is trying to find an end to this crisis and left it up to the united nations. we have heard particularly european officials say time and time again that libya is at our doorsteps and we are under threat. so the international community pushing this process forward it will not -- it will definitely not be easy especially since there is a regional dimension to this whole conflict. >> okay. we'll leave you to go back into the press conference. thank you. >>> still ahead on al jazeera, the pope visits northern sri l

when you look at the things coming out of the united nations, human rights commission and some other places are just recently the parents of michael brown from ferguson, missouri travel overseas to europe to go make a complaint before the united nations commission on terrorism. now i've got a big problem with the united nations tried to come in and supplant our rule of law and the standards by which we've established this great united states of america. you think about u.n. resolution 16/18 and how that is classified certain speech against certain religions to be seditious and you could be open to criminal punishment. those are the types of things we have to be concerned about. the united states of america is a sovereign state. when you have people who don't even believe we have a border that should be protected that should cause you a lot of concern. that does not say we as americans are not benevolent. we are the most benevolent people in the world. the founding fathers wrote in three different parts of the constitution where they call up repelling invasions. article i section eigh

we know that the united nations has been very concerned about the deteriorating situation in yemen, both the security council and the secretary general ban ki-moon met on tuesday and issued statements on tuesday expressing that concern calling for an end to violence and resumption of peace talks. the international community though left it to benemar to work out the final details their statements expressing support for him his office and his continued efforts. it seems that hadi's resignation has caught many off guard. we're expecting the secretary general to comment villa written statement early i'm told that they're currently reviewing the situation, and trying to establish exactly what is happening on the ground. we know that there is a lot of concern here among many member states many in the international community certainly on the security council for troops to flourish. president hadi is the only leader there that was recognized by the international community and now he's gone. >> okay, kristen saloomey thank you for that update from the u.n. >>> yemen's second city has reopened it'

ultimately, you know, there is concerns being expressed at the united nations right now. and from nick's reporting there are text messages going back and forth here. there is concern that this current state of affairs might lead--lead us back to 2006. what are your thoughts? does it hold the potential? >> it does hold the potential. it does hold the potential in the fact that in 2006--contained military victories over hezbollah. but hezbollah's military power has been replenished thanks to the syrians and to the irans. and as i said before in a slightly different context there are miscalculations and unintended escalations here. i doubt that this would happen. because as i said, and i remain fateful to that assessment, both sides do not have, and you mentioned that in your discussions, israel is 50 days away from elections. there is nothing to gain from a flare-up right now how it's changed since 2006. there was no isis to talk about in 2006. >> great to see you. thanks for the time. coming up at 8:00 p.m. eastern time tonight. we'll hear from a spokesman for the israeli

a united nations resolution helped end that conflict, but it remains vulnerable to violence. u.n. peace keepers patrol the area as do lebanese troops and it's closely watched by the israeli military. >> we will hear from the occupied golan height, but first the blue line between israel and lebanon. >> from this position, we're a couple of hundred meters away from the sheba farms area. it's just beyond the fence there in the distance. the attack happened just below an israeli army post. the information that we have is that hezbollah fighters continue to fired at that point for half an hour until their men got out of the way. here it's calm, but somewhat tense. there's been israel drones in the sky, united nations investigators as well as the lebanese army have arrived to hold a meeting and investigate the death of a peace keeper who was killed in cross border fire. also politically in lebanon here local politicians and in beirut have been strongly emphasizing that this attack took place in israel occupied sheba farms emphasizing it wasn't in contra convenience to the resolution mar

james bays our diplomatic editor reporting from united nations.es saying the meeting go on at the u.n. security council has now broken. >> just showing you the live pictures in sanaa the houthi leader there he is, he has been speaking for about 35 minutes or so giving his take on the situation in yemen. what he believes has led up to this point. so we are monitoring what he's saying and we will keep updating you on any lines that he brings us as well as you here at al jazerra. crossing over to sanaa and speaking a visiting scholar at carnegie middle east center, that's where his research focuses on yemeni and gulf politics. so one of the sings that he was just saying, he was referring to the national dialogue that happened in 2013. and he believes, that it could have been used to build a new yemen, yet upon conclusion, estates, authorities have their own interests in mind and this is what has also let to the situation that sanaa find itself in today. do you agree with that? [ inaudible ] hopefully that the government has. [ inaudible ] political p

kristen saloomey joins us live from the united nations where the palestinians formally handed in theirlication to the international criminal court. the request for membership has been made kristin as we were expecting. what happens next? >>> well typically there is a 60-day waiting period before a state can enjoy all of the privileges of membership but this case is anything but typical. a spokesperson for the secretary general released a statement saying that the u.n. is now considering the documents and the appropriate next steps. the palestinians have argued that the application be retroactive, that is any alleged crimes going back to the start of the court could go back to that period. the palestinians specifically would like to consider settlement activity as well as the most cent israeli incursion in gaza over the summer which resulted in about 2,000 civilians being killed. you have israel and the united states opposing this move. they are saying this is going to be counterproductive for negotiations that will still need to take place in order for two states to live side by side.

he was defending north korea and the united nations? cuba. cuba.uba was the leader and rallying folks in the united nations against american. should the president be concerned? shouldn't the pres. and the administration be concerned about what is happening as far as cuba and syria cuba and iran? cuba is not simply a little island in the caribbean. we are not really about cuba. we're talking about the castro family insistent on doing everything that they can against the united states and the american people. that should be part of the debate. the other thing is simply very simple. now the president is talking about lifting the us embargo. what about suggesting to the general president -- remember, is the brother of fidel no other reason than that. what about suggesting to him that he ought to lift the embargo that the cuban government has had on the cuban people the internal embargo that cuba cannot trade, cannot buy a car and engage in trade. cuba cannot set up a factory and you are talking -- i think you're saying, well, now that the policies the