Devastating blast confirmed covered 1000 cases in the u. S. Reach 5000000 with numbers still rising in almost 20 states. Paving the way for peace talks in afghanistan the president agrees to set free 400 taliban prisoners. Protests have erupted in cities across but the russos president Alexander Lukashenko claims another win to extend his quarter century in power but testers have set up barricades in the capital minsk while riot police have responded with stun grenades a police van drove a crowd of demonstrators and ambulances have been called in for the injured protesters fastens in mens shes been joining us by phone because of an internet blackout and shes got more on the protesters whove been battling with police into the early morning. When they try to right there police was already blocking the road detaining people so the people were sort of trying to get together but they were all separated by police then there was a clash of police was firing a stun grenades into the crowd one police truck ran into protesters and took one protester with them so ambulances were taking away the injured people around the city the police have been blocking off roads trying to stop people from gathering and at the moment people are still driving around in their cars honking their horns showing their protest signs raising their their fists so thats still happening in a deep in the night here in minsk and also what were hearing in other cities around that are rude these scenes have not been witnessed before in since there were protests against election fraudulent elections of 2010 but those protests were much smaller there also faced a crackdown by police but the future were the same and injured but the masses have grown since then these batches of of thousands of people on the streets angry have never been seen before in men so the protection is not going to go away. Well despite the oppositions allegations of fraud the Electoral Commission says results so far show looker sankoh winning with 81 percent of the vote step was with the main opposition candidate as she cast her ballot. Cheers for start line up the kind of guy who went into hiding on the eve of the election because she feared arrest that was after 8 members of her Team Including her Campaign Manager were reportedly detained at 1st a reluctant president ial candidate she has grown into the biggest hope many belorussians have for change then are you worried about your safety. Everybody. Would be kind of guy at election rallies attracted the largest crowds valorous i seen in decades with 2 other women on her site the wife and complain manager of 2 other jailed opposition figures she can paint across the country on the eve of the election one of them fled abroad and the other one aria kolesnikov i was briefly detained shes undeterred but i have a great hopes that all dreams are. Today tomorrow or day after tomorrow is the beginning of the end its a beginning of a new life she came out of hiding to cast her vote the main opposition candidates but. Its whats going to rest on election day an election that has been dominated by accusations of fraud and the rest. After casting his vote president Alexander Lukashenko called the opposition we just. Brought you in the us if youre going to go against our country or even in the smallest way try to plunge the country into chaos and stabilize it you will receive an Immediate Response from me. For decades hes enjoyed solid support in the former soviet country lately hes faced criticism for downplaying the cold with 1000 crisis and worsening economy hes attracted voters by accusing the opposition of planning to create chaos. North of us to i want to vote for peace and the well being of belarus and every family here and have no crazy crowds in the city. As rallies have been prohibited in the past week supporters of the kind of scalia found creative ways to protest against us rule but even that led to more arrests more than 800 people have been detained during this Heated Campaign stop fastened aljazeera minsk. First when as a senior fellow at the Atlantic Council support is slipping some police may even refuse to crackdown on protesters. Its very difficult to get really a finger on the pulse of what the population bellerose thinks because you know Public Opinion polling has been banned in the country for some time however some of the most credible reports suggest that looks like a support in the country may be well below 10 percent so i think there is a real shock that some some Security Officials they will not be willing to fire on protesters if thats something that luke shank that orders them to do and we all have to really hope and pray that he doesnt but even some potentially even go over to the side of the protesters you know i think whats really important though rob is what what is the response out of the e. U. And russia going to be because you know there are obviously frightening echoes that we see of the 2014 protests in them i don that led to russian intervention so i think you know there are a lot of different different factors at play here and its a real tenuous live situation to keep track of i think its going to cause real problems of as it should and i think you know the west needs to have a unified response to this and i think the ideal response that we should all hope for from both the u. N. The United States is one that couples carrots and sticks and i think there clearly this election was rigged and there is no possible way that has a bit beyond 80 percent of the vote so i think the outcome we want to see now is you know some sort of deal in which a level of aid because you know Economic Situation valeries right now is quite dire is tied to a new free and Fair Election to happen 3 to 6 months down the road with international you know inspectors actually ensuring that that election takes place. Tensions are boiling over for a 2nd day in lebanon after the massive explosion that tore through the capital beirut there were more clashes Near Parliament after protesters gathered demanding an end to rampant corruption riot police fired tear gas while demonstrators hold rocks and shot far looks into their 158 people died in tuesdays blast and 21 a still missing the army says theres little hope of finding any more survivors. Protesters say they want a complete overhaul of the political system to govern the ministers have responded to the widespread anger by resigning environment minister Damiano Scott has confirmed he is out following the information minister. That this is the point of no return people are starving the economy has deteriorated the economic crisis is heightening our families children friends have just been left behind fear and disappointments lives within them in this fateful moments we cannot just sit behind we have to stand in dignity together as a nation i feel that i need to send an apology to the lebanese people because we failed to achieve their ambitions due to the difficulties but. Also on sunday french president emmanuel macro led a Video Conference of International Donors to get aid to lebanon as quickly as possible world Power Supplies to help the recovery but theyre demanding transparency over how the money is used Bernard Smith reports here there are the skills the talent and the enthusiasm this is this this is the nasa. That has been issued yesterday but these people will not be able to rebuild beirut on their own we have an Engineering Team and not being seen working in sync together we sense scouts leaders from theories and their job is to basically go and examine a building and say hey this structure is no longer safe to enter theyre doing all this because the government isnt. Food is given out to people who never have to ask for handouts in their life. Volunteers are given a safety briefing before heading out with a cleanup team there are hundreds of these camps across beirut hastily set up in the shadows of the buildings ripped open by choose days explosion of 2700 tons of Ammonium Nitrate stored in the pool. For International Donors one of the hardest questions is how do they get aid to people who wont skim off the top when they have to deal with a political elite thats been doing exactly that for decades. The lebanese authorities now have to put in place the political and Economic Reforms which are being called for by the lebanese people its the only thing which will allow the International Community to act efficiently side by side with lebanon in its reconstruction. It could cost up to 15000000000. 00 to rebuild beirut says the citys governor its residents want to make sure that money goes where it should the government of lebanon is a criminal government this is a criminal state these are warlords these are people who were. Responsible for the deaths of hundreds of thousands of people in the lebanese civil war and were expecting that a few extra bodies is going to make the thing thats not going to happen on monday lebanons Prime Minister will ask his cabinet to agree to early elections theyd be held within 2 months and lebanons electoral system candidates must stand courting to their religious sect it makes it very difficult for nonaffiliated individuals or groups to emerge and that is what these people will tell you is constantly frustrating that calls for radical political change. Aljazeera beirut. The official number of corona virus infections across the u. S. Is now past 5000000 but theres concern the actual figures could be much Higher Health officials are urging the use of face masks and social distancing but this was the scene in south dakota this weekend around 400000 people gathering for the 10 day motorcycle rally in the city of sturgis as of this week 40 percent of us infections are in 5 states florida california texas new york and georgia mike hanna has more from washington d. C. Well at the moment its mainly in the midwest of the United States at least 14 states are showing increasing rates of infection california is particularly hard hit and compounding the problem in california is the fact that the system of testing has basically broken down the data flow to Central Agencies to be able to track the pace of the infection of the corona virus has actually not working at the moment so this is a major issue because of the infection rates are continuing to rise in california but Health Officials are just unable to actually track the path of the virus because of this delay one bright spot is new york state which has now recorded the lowest rate of infection in a single day since the beginning of the pandemic its down well below one percent now but generally across the United States there is still an uptick in the rates of infection in many areas now some are arguing that because the spiking really takes place mainly in the outdoors then chances of infection drop a little however officials also point out that the real danger is the day when people gather in bars or around campfires that there could well be a spread of the infection but this is what has been happening in a number of states and it accounts for the fact that the rates of infection are increasing in number of states opened up too early and number of states do not imports of mask mandate a number of states have dropped mitigating measures completely and as a result youre seeing this up tick in in the rates of infection and strain is 2nd most populated states victoria has reported 19 deaths related to corona virus a record daily death toll it coincided with the Police Crackdown on protesters trying to hold an anti mosque rally in the regional capital melbourne victoria is at the center of the 2nd wave of infections type restrictions and in a 10 curfew have been imposed in the southeastern states which accounts for most of us through those 21000 cases. Still ahead in aljazeera a Senior Member of u. S. President Donald Trumps administration lands in taiwan but the visit is not being welcomed by china. More vulnerable than ever the u. N. Warns of why the pandemic is a grave Health Threat to the worlds Indigenous Peoples. Had a Tropical Storm jang me is with us its just formed in the Philippine Sea is moving fairly rapidly north its not a big sing is moving very quickly so as it will be felt in the Korean Peninsula it will drift through fairly quickly the winds day more than gale force the rain and up to 300. 00 millimeters over already went aground probably largely inland from the coast and then disappears through the sea as a japan towards her and its gone by the time we finish tuesday leaving behind it i should say rather quieter weather by which time its china sees a bigger development in the 4 thunderstorms over the yellow river valley maybe the yangtze end of it for the south as well as an indication of significant action somewhere in Southern China now youd think that this curl of cloud here might be named but its not been its just a slow circulations under storms hitting lose all and going slowly northwards taking much of the energy with it but allowing now the formation the reformulation of thunderstorms those soloway seaborne your west papua and still not much over java or maybe peninsula malaysia but for thailand and increasingly for next 2 days we have significant rain. For. A story of financial scandal with billions lost in the United Arab Emirates ive never seen a story like this where 2 Companies Similar tiniest plea involving the same group of people have failed at the same time but where the money goes is the 1000000. 00 question aljazeera world investigates the dramatic story of the rise and fall of an indian tycoon to be our shetty and the missing millions on aljazeera. We want to go on as a reminder of our top stories this hour protests have erupted in cities across bellicose as president alexander who sanka except to claim yet another election victory Electoral Commission says hes so far gained 81 percent of the vote the main opposition candidates atlanta to color sky is on just 8 percent. Protestors in lebanon have gathered near the countrys parliament for a 2nd night his anger grows over tuesdays port explosion tear gas was fired to disperse the demonstrators have been hurling rocks they say government corruption is to blame and theyre demanding a political overhaul. The number of corona virus infections in the u. S. Has now passed 5000000 Health Officials are urging the use of face masks and social distancing but in south dakota this weekend around 400000 people gathered for a 10 day motorcycle rally. Afghanistans president has agreed to release 400. 00 taliban prisoners are soft money made the decision on the recommendation of the loya jirga a Traditional Assembly of tribal elders that lease was a precondition from the taliban to agree to hold peace talks with the government or some other nj of it has more. For centuries of understands traditional grand assemblies known as legitimate is and solve problems by consultation within 3000. 00 elders and Community Leaders joint politicians to decide on the final stumbling block for the negotiations with the taliban with some reluctance president gunny has honored the agreement between the Us Government and the armed group he decided 5000 prisoners must be released before into. Of one dialogue can begin most inmates have been released the do go was called to decide about the final 400 prisoners the open government says these 400 are wanted for major crimes and some even face the Death Penalty they want to ensure that these men do not produce into the battlefield the ben. Graham today i will sign the decree that i did not have the authority to sign before now i will sign the decree to authorize the release of the 400 taliban prisoners based on the request of the loya jirga and they will be released. In a complex power sharing structure of the law is the chairman of the loya jirga as he leads the high council for national reconciliation. Hi sally at our army the declaration of the loya jirga has removed all the obstacles to start the interim afghan talks and we are on the cusp of starting the negotiation we do have respect for all your decisions and the Afghan Government will be committed to implementing all of them. Despite temporary cease fire is one in 3 and a half 1000 Afghan Security personnel have been killed since february when the deal was signed between. And the Us Government us troops are supposed to leave of want to stand by april 2021 and remain divided over the u. S. But draw. It would be better that the us does stay here that will also help our security and reconstruction of our country. The withdrawal of foreign troops is good for us as they were against our culture and. It will definitely have a positive impact. For almost all of the security remains there foremost concern. Regarding the release of prisoners we need peace in afghanistan and we will need to pay a price for that therefore we are obliged to release the taliban prisoners of them and say their rights and safety is nonnegotiable regardless of who wields power there did it. I continued my University Studies despite losing many of my classmates to suicide attacks we still have faith stands government will need to bring security in all the places where we do not have security at the moment. The Us Government has acknowledged the release of prisoners is unpopular but president dannys government to hold direct talks to facilitate a Peace Agreement the release of prisoners is a 1st step for all of the factions to sit across the table but they remain multiple challenges and wide ranging differences to overcome for peace can be achieved. There. Is an afghan journalist based in kabul he says the assembly gave voice to people suffering from the ongoing war. Every day you hear about is strikes night raids suicide attacks indiscriminate mortar attacks killing entire families of roadside bombs the country really needs responded from violence and then you are talking about a process where a future government will be discussed amendments in the constitution is something that we expect will be brought up so no one actually thinks that this is a Peace Process is that will be done in an overnight youre looking at a number of sticking points from now on for example what happens to the housing thousands of taliban fighters did he become part of the Afghan NationalSecurity Forces where does afghanistan go from here does it become a republic what happens to the right so women to the several society to media because afghanistan today is a changed country from the one that the taliban were ruling 3 days of heavy monsoon rain has killed at least 50 people across pakistan flash flooding has damaged hundreds of homes across a number of provinces the military has been deployed to rescue people caught in rising waters heavy rains expected to continue through next week and the death toll from a landslide triggered by heavy monsoon rains in Southern India on friday has risen to 43 at tea plantation in the state of catalogue was swept away in the deluge bodies have been recovered from under the soil in the debris bad weather is hampering efforts to find those still missing. At least 30 people are dead and 12 are missing after heavy flooding in south korea the flooding is expected to get worse after typhoon jungly makes landfall later on monday almost 4000 people have been evacuated from their homes since friday mostly in the sun through the country. The u. S. Health secretary arrived in taipei for a visit that angered china its the highest level u. S. Delegation to visit taiwan in 4 decades beijing has one President Donald Trump that the visit threatens peace and stability in the region set a clock reports. Its a much anticipated visit Us Health Secretary alex as i was leading a delegation to taiwan to learn from the island success in fighting the coronavirus the United States has recorded 5000000 cases taiwan has fewer than 500 but analysts say the trip is not just about the pandemic its definitely more the the optics and the message being sent to the taiwan government and the people of taiwan as well as to the government in china as far as what what level the u. S. Wants the relationship with taiwan to be obviously the health secretarys doctor learned much during a 3 day visit china claims sovereignty over taiwan and the island is a main irritant in the troubled relationship between the worlds 2 largest economies was due to made taiwanese president clinton during his 3 day visit thats angered chinas latest who object to all official contact between taiwan and the u. S. Chinese government misses a warning the United States delegation to stick to the one china principle. I want to stress that the one trying to principle is universally recognized by the International Community any attempt to ignore deny or challenge the one trying to principle end up in failure the trip is expected to further fry ties between beijing and washington both are at loggerheads over trade Technology Human rights and territorial disputes especially in the South China Sea its possible that the mainland would look at the economic consequences reminding taiwan that if they dont want to play with the mainland that there are you know theres going to be a very very cold harsh harsh world out there chinas government says taiwan is the most important and sensitive issue inside the u. S. Relations this where high level visit comes as those relations have already sunk to the lowest point in decades sarah pac al jazeera. 8 people have been killed by a gunman in southern asia that happened while the group was on a tour in the west african giraffe preserve east of the town of quote a major defense minister says men on motorcycles shot at the group 6 of those killed were french aid workers frances president Emanuel Mccoll has denounced the attack as cowardly its not yet known who was behind it in Canada Police and private security guards are reported to be giving increased protection to a former saudi intelligence agent said i was up late filed a u. S. Lawsuit accusing Saudi Crown Prince mohammed bin solomon of sending a hit squad to kill him 2 years ago made a media say Security Services of learned of a new saudi threat and his life fled to toronto in 2017 the Worlds Biggest Oil exporter has reported a 73 percent drop in 2nd quarter profits saudi aramco says despite a partial recovery demand remains significantly down because of the coronavirus pandemic b. P. Cut its dividend for the 1st time on in a decade earlier this month while dutch shell did the same in april for the 1st time since the 2nd world war the operators of a japanese ship leaking tons of oil off the coast of militias have apologized and vowed to help clean up this spill nourishes has declared an environmental state of emergency the Prime Minister says cracks in the hull of the vessel have grown and theres a risk the boat could break in half the water she always carrying 4000. 00 tons of fuel when it ran aground last month 2 and a half 1000 tonnes remain on board experts say the slick will cause catastrophic damage to coral reefs. We will do Everything Possible to contain the damages Going Forward and minimize the impact we will sincerely take any and all measures possible to deal with this situation. d or greenpeace says buyers and sellers of the fuel on board the grounded ship should compensate those impacted by the oil spill. We need to be read that for the Community Like of the community being injured its been affected so those who are is part of the transaction to ship this oil need to compensate the communication and deal with the biodiversity damage and that really means that youre changing the rules of transporting and. Of using the fossil fuel for the conviction whatever it was between the cargo ship company between the people who are the sellers and the buyers need to come into the forefront he held accountable for the fact that their tradition has led to this kind of thing. The coronavirus ponder it poses a grave Health Threat to the worlds Indigenous Peoples according to the United Nations and brazil cover 19 has killed hundreds of people in its vulnerable indigenous communities reports. Indigenous peoples have suffered from devastating viruses since their 1st contact with outsiders covered 19 is simply the latest and the sitting particularly hard when so many communities already struggling against environmental damage and economic hardship. In the amazon territories have been ravaged by mining illegal deforestation forest fires unlawful occupation of Indigenous Lands in this settlement in brazil with the alleged collusion of the authorities. Were meeting here and we will prepare a document to take Brazils Congress from there ask president both sonora why he speaks so badly about native people. Indigenous people live in 90 countries around the walled often in remote locations without Adequate Health facilities clean water and sanitation. The u. N. Says the communal way of life can also increase the threat of contagion in the americas more than 1000 indigenous deaths and covered 19 have been recorded and more than 70000 people have been infected there already i mean just think its very worrying we dont have the infrastructure to protect ourselves against the bias we dont have what we need to protect ourselves the u. N. Says the pandemic emphasizes the importance of Indigenous Peoples being allowed to exercise their right to selfdetermination for their particular needs to be recognised this hospital in brazil for instance has a separate ward for indigenous patients so much but would you tell us yeah the sea man yes we are different even if the system doesnt recognize that we speak a traditional language we have our own Medicinal Plants so we want respect to do that kurt said. The u. N. War that indigenous lives must be saved to protect the precious web of culture languages and traditional knowledge the connect all of us to the deep roots of humanity. That aljazeera the coronavirus pandemic has silenced many performers around the world but not one british opera company. Opera house has launched an open air mini concerts after being forced to cancel its usual performances and in keeping with the times both the audience and the cost are socially distancing. This is all just here these are the top stories protests have erupted in cities across. President Alexander Lukashenko looks set to win yet another election victory their Electoral Commission says hes so far gained 81 percent of the vote the main opposition candidates. Skya is on just 8 percent. 7 has more from minsk on the protesters who are still battling with police when they try to ride the a police force already blocking the road detaining people so the people were sort of trying to get together but they were all separated by police then there was a clash police were firing as stun grenades into the crowd a police truck right protestors and one protester whipped them so im given this were taking away the injured people and around the city the police have been blocking off roads try to stop people from gather rate. Hong kong media tycoon jimmy line has been detained in what is the most high profile arrest yet under the beijing imposed National Security law an executive in lies next Media Company says hes been arrested on suspicion of colluding with Foreign Forces law is the owner of apple daily or the most widely read newspapers in hong kong lie had been arrested in february on suspicion of participating in an Unlawful Assembly in 2019 and was granted police bail protesters in lebanon have gathered near the countrys parliament for a 2nd night his anger grows over tuesdays port explosion they say government corruption is to blame and theyre demanding a political overhaul. The number of corona virus infections in the u. S. Has now passed 5000000 Health Officials are urging the use of face masks and social distancing but in science of course of this weekend around 400000 people gathered for a motorcycle rally afghanistans president has agreed to release 400 taliban prisoners the release was a precondition from the taliban to agree to hold peace talks with the government and those are the headlines the news continues here on aljazeera after inside story go blind. Well the beirut explosions cause a humanitarian disaster the devastation leaves hundreds of thousands of lebanese homeless hungry and fending for themselves with no help from the government can aid organizations cope with the immense challenge this is inside story. Hello and welcome to the program. Lebanon was in a dire state even before the enormous explosions which shattered beirut on tuesday many couldnt make ends meet as a 3rd of almost 7000000 lebanese dont have a job the