From moscow headquarters youre watching the weekly here on r. T. International im whereas on a lockwood welcome to the program and we start was some breaking news this hour british Tour Operator thomas cook has collapsed leaving at least 150000 holidaymakers stranded the company employed around 1000 people in the u. K. And 22000 worldwide and it was thought to be the worlds oldest travel operator functioning since 841 thomas cook cease trading off the failed talks in the Financial Rescue package and the British Government has pledged to ensure that all citizens stranded abroad will be brought home in what is being described as the countrys largest ever peacetime repatriation effort we will keep across the state details and keep you updated. The president of iran has Foreign Forces to stay away from the persian gulf saying they only bring misery and disaster itself to the u. S. Announced extra troop deployments to the region accusing iran of bombing saudi refineries a week ago a claim that to ron flatly denies. The president has approved the deployment of u. S. Forces which will be defensive in nature and primarily focused on air and Missile Defense we will also work to accelerate the delivery of military equipment to the kingdom of saudi arabia and the u. A. E. To enhance their ability to defend themselves it is clear that even the saudis themselves dont believe the fiction of iranian involvement. Well the route flared up on the 19th of september when drones set 5 saudi arabias biggest oil site the raid was claimed by the sheer rebels in yemen which have been the target of a Saudi Bombing Campaign for the past 4 and a half years however saudi arabia insists could not have carried out the drone strikes and that it must have been iran although in an apparent contradiction the saudis retaliated on friday by striking the navy in many port city of her data so in the goal was to prevent future drone strikes arties merde guess d. Of takes a closer look at why washington and riyadh have been so quick to blame iran. That is being decided that iran did it and that started opinion finding with the result of an investigation its a decision guilty secretary do you gather any new evidence that shows who was behind the attacks and do you think it is a slam dunk case to bring to the u. N. Next week. I think its abundantly clear and there is an enormous consensus in the region that we know precisely who conducted these attacks was iran i didnt hear anybody in the region who doubted that for a single mom. Is doing what trump does best signing pieces of paper bringing to bear a slew of new sanctions against iran but these are the higher sanctions ever imposed on a country weve never done it to this level. And its too bad whats happening with iran its going to hell the americans who werent attacked of already decided what happened then who is guilty the saudis who were attacked and have all the day breathe in bits and pieces of the missiles are still working on technicalities like evidence and proof let that sink in. The attack did not originate from yemen the attack was launched from the move and was unquestionably sponsor. By iran its not in the range of yemens capabilities if it was them who conducted the attack this is one of the missiles we have recovered and we have information that leads us to the source that these kind of components were made in iran. So what they found is the weapons were allegedly made with iranian components they were fired from the north the direction of iran and its neighbors so cutting to the chase it was iran thats what youre going to say right not once during the presentation did the saudis specifically say that iran did it 1 may ask what on earth saudi defenses were doing at the time theyve got the 3rd biggest military budgets on earth but of americas best clients the countries lifted with patriot and other anti Missile Systems 80000000000. 00 a year should protect you from a score of drones and missiles no the only thing that might be iranian related is that maybe some of the equipment some of the technology that the who these have might have been incorporated into the attack but why why or why is anyone complaining especially the saudis since the u. S. Has been providing the bombs and the aircraft to the saudis to bomb yemen for 4 years so the who with these are just responding back then again to those saying its iran because there are alleged iranian components in the day bri does that mean that the u. S. Is responsible for her refit massacres in yemen i mean sure saudi arabia dropped the bombs but those say made in the United States more likely than not raby has been clearing the shelves of american arms manufacturers recently by this logic is new need to investigate to collect evidence its american bombs it has got to be america. And. And. An entire country reduced to misery and paid untold thousands dead more to die but you know what its the oil refinery in saudi arabia the book was vengeance. Activists in hong kong have staged another protest the chinese territories in the grip of a 16th consecutive weekend of demonstrations and the rest protesters have been waving American Flags and destroying chinese once on saturday police in the city used to take ass and rubber bullets while bottas threw molotov cocktails and started fires on the streets. Meanwhile on choose day a leading name in the Hong Kong Protest Movement appealed to u. S. Lawmakers in Congress Joshua one wants them possibile that would see greater u. S. Support for hong kong. Hong kongs special status under american law that bans on the city being treated as a separate customs area beijing should not have it both ways reading all the economy benefit of hong kong standing in the world while erosion of our freedom that is the most important reason why the hong kong human rights and democracy act and just the thought sup rose of Hong Kong Civil Society one is a prominent Student Activist who organizes protests against the Chinese Government in support of hong kongs independence the 22 year old is also a leader of the prodemocracy party demo system hes already reserved several jail times for his activities he goes down off explains why was planned the u. S. Supervision over hong kong may backfire. They are many theyve won the fight with the authorities by early submission but they are anything but done the American Flag waving taskforce among the hong kong protesters are sending their poster boy to convince us legislators to do Something Big on autonomy. Well for those of you having difficulty making out the absence of this boilerplate script its the human rights and democracy act and its meant to show beijing that the u. S. Is serious about fighting for hong kongs rights the United States must make clear to china that its interference in hong kongs affairs will have consequences this month we must pass a by cameron bipartisan on Consumer Rights and democracy act the bill was devised in response to what the u. S. Has been calling a chinese infringement on the regions autonomy and requires for america to review own homes special status annually and if that status is ever revoked the regions autonomy would not so much been friendly to but rather new to dust since the early ninetys hong kong has been enjoying huge advantages for wearing washingtons special status badge. And some believe that a small yet vocal group of protesters is laying an explosive tripwire for the whole region which will not enjoy the konami Chain Reaction if its ever triggered in a way this is the villages. Signal of the biggest economy in the world. There will always just ordered. Well it was going to hold a great deal but its not just the whole poorly there are thousands of United States d dont believe in d all of it would likewise be affected of course its a political war because well because only or percent of charlus economy he was the. Head of the deal years ago in the apparel 2 or more as far as equality is also. But low is also sent on the other hand of course we law i would wish the one country to see so as to help trial or with the internationalization that really with. All american legislators say the bill is designed to punish Mainland China specifically as protesters would not but while the end goal may very well be punishing beijing in pursuit of a geo political supremacy washington my just overlook the collateral damage. Israeli arab lawmakers have thrown their support behind former army chief benny gantz to become Prime Minister of israel after an inconclusive election is the 1st time arab parties have back to jewish content in 27 years and they say the only goal is to force Benjamin Netanyahu from power. We usually did not indorse israeli p. M. s so without doubt there is an historical side to what were doing now we want to put an end to the era of Binyamin Netanyahu therefore will endorse benny gantz to form the next government we want to live in a Peaceful Place based on ending the occupation the establishment of a palestinian state alongside the state of israel true equality of the civil and National Level social justice and democracy for. This is the citizens of israel this happen just as we warned the arab joint list recommended by any chance for Prime Minister there are 2 possibilities now either a minority government will be formed that relies on those who reject israel as a jewish and Democratic State glorified terrorists that murder all soldiers and citizens or a Broad National government before i know what the answer is and so do you and therefore i will do whatever i can do for more Broad National unity government there is no other solution the block of arab parties known as joint list came 3rd this week gaining 5 more seats than in the previous election and this thought that was spurred in part by netanyahu is inflammatory remarks about arab districts and their potential for voter fraud and that led to a spike in arab voter turnout which hit around 59 percent the leader of the Arab Joint List Alliance said the outcome of the election was the price of incitement oh israel faces the prospect of a 3rd round of elections in less than a year if an agreement between the blocks is not reached benny gantz a center left blue and White Alliance won 33 seats while Netanyahu Center right party was just behind israels destiny could now be determined by the leader of the years rail bit a new party which came 5th political commentator near last or us explains why. Very important because what he is saying is it will probably mean that the president will turn to benny gantz to try and form a government having said that we know that the president of israel is very keen to form a National JointNational Government of likud and blue and white the fact that the israeli arab vote came out much more if it was about 10 percent higher than it did last time and the voices weve heard today is actually showing that israeli democracy is much stronger than the cause of hatred against certain members or parts of the population today the israeli arab voted in strength to try and bring down the government of netanyahu and work as a democratic country for a better hope both parties both in that in yahoo and. Gantz dont have enough to make a majority even even when has the backing of the arab list the person who is the king or banker is lieberman and he holds the balance of power and lieberman has been saying that he wasnt going to recommend anyone to the president to be the preferred to form the coalition what we do know he has a personal dislike for netanyahu and actually was responsible for bringing down the government and cause and 2nd elections or the momentum that led to it at least so we really are in a stalemate i think we should be looking less at how these really arab vote is but which way lieberman is going to actually be voting. Facebook has changed the way it describes itself from a platform to a publisher and that could have a major impact on the way the social media giant works in a recent legal case of facebook claimed it was a publisher insisting it has the right to ban who wants but that would also make it liable for what goes out on its platform responsibility has previously tried to dodge or has not. So what have we got here. Thats better plaintive ultra right web activist laura luma who was taken off pretty much all major Online Platforms defendant facebook one of the giants which kicked her out we carefully flicked through these court papers which the defendant filed to line bury the lawsuit and heres what really caught the eye. To the extent miss lewis claimed targets facebooks decision to deactivate her accounts it is also deficient on the well established law need to facebook nor any of the publish it can be liable for failing to publish someone elses message 1st amendment provides absolute protection for such decisions what was it again neither facebook nor any other publisher protection by the 1st amendment so in this particular case the lawyers of sucking co are happy to legally refer to their social network as up publisher digging a bit deeper will reveal facebook has done that in the past as well when last year an app startup was crossing swords with facebook in court this is what came from the network spent the thought discretion is a 3 speechwriter respective what technological means is used so is it just me or somethings wrong with how the platform we use every day identifies itself because when facebook bosses take questions in other places it seems they always try to distance themselves from the notion publisher which are you are you a tech company or are you the Worlds Largest publisher because i think that goes to a really important question on what form of regulation or Government Action if any we would take. Senator this is. A really big question i view us as a tech company because the primary thing that we do is build technology and products as your sponsor for your content which made exactly the kind of a publisher. Well i agree that were responsible for the content but we dont produce the content and thats been the message for quite a while. We are a tech company not a Media Company i do think we have to be the publisher and we definitely dont want to be the arbiter of the truth now just imagine what kind of legal trouble the tech giant may put itself in if it becomes universally recognized the company Mr Zuckerberg is running is a publisher not just a tech platform are they really ready to be responsible for anything disturbing or outright criminal that gets posted under the blue logo the examples have been out there in abundance. The way. Or what if simply someone decides to lawyer and bully me with all kinds of offensive stuff right on facebook should i then also follow defamation suit against the network because they as a publisher alloted its well known you cant have a cake and eat it at the same time will probably unless your last name is sucker berg. Well we have all space but to respond to this story and say far they have not commented. Millions around the world of taken part in a climate strike this week calling for urgent action to reduce Greenhouse Gases more than 5000 events were held globally from sydney to new delhi new york has been host of the un Climate Action summit over this weekend and demonstrators urged World Leaders to take immediate action to prevent a global catastrophe one of the topics being discussed is the fires in the amazon something e. U. Politicians have weighed in on as arties charlotte to bed ski explains. Its an environmentalist Worst Nightmare wildfires raging in the amazon destroying the worlds most biodiverse tropical rain forest. Our house is burning literally the amazon rainforest the lungs which produce 20 percent of our planets oxygen is on fire as an International Crisis i couldnt agree more manual macro we need to act for the amazon and for our planet talk kids and grandkids are counting on us the lungs of the entire earth our frac to and thats why we need to find Common Solutions here leaders of the globes most advanced countries pledged to do more at the g. 7 the heat may have died down but the blame game certainly hasnt with some looking closely at where the amazon wus may. Europes Financial Institutions the companies and the financier is housed in those countries are contributing to the forestation many of these companies are known to have unsuitable practices in their supply chain to be clearing areas for the expansion of agriculture especially pursuing cattle so yeah and cattle ranching account for 80 percent of families all deforestation Major Companies such as a. T. M. Call gail j. B. S. Are being financed by some of us biggest banks including b m p paragraphs dont spank and block walk they not only bankroll the debt theyre also major shareholders with a voice in how these companies are run so those areas of the amazon are sometimes. To provide all earned for cows to graze or to grow crops to feed lifes stock these european banks are directly linked the forestation do it your bank and he black rock in vanguard collectively more than a 1000000000 dollars in debt in just the 3 largest away in the 3 largest cattle Companies Operating in brazil are these even banks often vocal about their sustainability policies. Are also being accused of hypocrisy Environmental Campaign group amazon watch contacted them about their work in the amazon was fine as well for each bank and black orchid didnt respond the m. P. E. Paragraphs had to say been people rebar has been strengthening insecta policies related to deforestation for several years and is prompting its clients to protect natural ecosystems and preserve biodiversity to the best of their abilities that experts say is just simply not good enough while we have applied you know fruits of things like the history of the seed gardens in their portfolios our Research Demonstrates that another another process is playing out on the ground they are claiming to protect forests and poorest peoples in their official policies wow fuelling the destruction of the amazon their investments. Because lucas isnt see here that needs to be socially right home to these companies so that they better understand their role and also they can themselves be part of the solution rather than part of the problem without the traceability and the accountability of all actors involved including here in europe the fear is that our house will continue to burn. Off powers or we have asked the interbank to comment on its links to the deforestation of the amazon and we will bring you any response they give us. A long term crackdown on terrorists in nigeria has seen thousands of children being detained thats according to Human Rights Watch and we spoke to one of those behind the report. Since 2013 nigeria has detained about 3600 children and in june a Human Rights Watch went to the northeast of nigeria where boko haram is most active and we interviewed more than 30 children who had been detained the vast majority of these children were never charged with a crime in fact they were never taken to court they never had the opportunity to see a judge the children were denied contact with their families and held in orrible conditions they described so little space that they couldnt turn over at night they were you know piled one next to the other they described it like being razor blades in a pack many of them something began losing hope that they would ever be released some thought that they would die in detention children as young as 5 were reportedly held in overcrowded facilities spending months or even years there and there were frequent reports of sexual physical and mental abuse the children have been accused of involvement with the boko her on terror group the radical Islamist Organization is based in northeastern nigeria but it carries out attacks throughout west africa and 2015 it pledged allegiance to Islamic State many of the imprisoned children were rounded up during military operations against the group. They are smee if i was a member of booker and beat me up when i said no they tied my hands and legs and hung me to a tree and continued to flow camy they flogged me and left me tied to the tree from morning to evening one person from my village was killed during the interrogation if you make a noise if you drink water without asking them if you go toward the door to get fresh air they beat you. The soldiers had girlfriends one of the girls from our village was a girl friend of a soldier she would usually take her out of the compound some ladies got pregnant in the cell and delivered while i was there. More than 2000 children have been released from detention since 2013 but joe back again believes more effort should be made to free those still being held without charge nobody knows the current number of children who may still be in military custody nigerian authorities do not allow the or independent organizations like Human Rights Watch to access the military Detention Centers but what Human Rights Watch is calling for is that nigerian authorities release any remaining children in military detention and transfer them to civilian protection authorities so that they can receive rehabilitation help or unifying with their families and reintegrating into their community. Or the Nigerian Military denies the allegations made in the report saying the children kept in secure areas and are adequately cared for we have asked the Nigerian Ministry of justice for comment but havent received any reply yet. And now a reminder of our breaking news british Tour Operator thomas cook has collapsed leaving up to 600000 holidaymakers stranded the company employed around 22000 people worldwide and it was thought to be when the worlds oldest travel operators thomas cook cease trading after talks on securing a 200000000 pound rescue package failed the British Government has pledged to assure that all citizens stranded abroad will be brought home in whats been described as the countrys largest ever peacetime repatriation effort. Thats the weekly will be back with more of the biggest stories from the past 7 days in about 30 minutes time see them. So what weve got to do is identify the threats that we have its crazy going from day shouldnt let it be an arms race and of his off and spearing Dramatic Development only personally im going to resist i dont see how that strategy will be successful very critical time to sit down and talk. Hello and welcome to worlds apart the tensions between damascus and the classes have existed ever since modern states came into existence often serving as a driver of political change with the russian Civil Society growing larger and loud there against the excesses of the governing elites how does a bode for the system as a whole to discuss that im now joined by Constantine Gaza the resident scholar at the Carnegie Moscow Center conception is good to talk to you thank you very much for coming into the studio for the invitation now as we are recording this program moscow as i still take getting governments buildings in moscow in support of populists in the us and the actor who was detained during the election protests. Tests and sentenced to 3 and a half years in prison for a legit violence against Law Enforcement a charge that is contradicted by Video Evidence was deport refused to consider now the conviction buys of the russian word system is nothing new but i think the bill is ation off Russian Society provoke is what strike to you the most about it i think the reaction though from the cold Public Opinion on the picture on from police and troops almost stripped like half of nation just proved in the same moment it was oh a huge focus on state control to be the protests isnt organic it its cosponsored from the west and so on and so on but still half of the population said that they just dont like the picture of troops in the capital and i think theres a horse forced disproportional it was known that the quote and that of course hes sort of a. Its part of social fabric in russia we well were at the chosen for how far we adequate for how far the sea