the explosion may occur in bor, and bentiu, but we need an immediate military standout. and the man who can affect that is riek machar, and he has given no sign that he will accept either the unconditional offer for peace agreements or negotiations with salva kiir. nor will he accept either ceasefire or negotiations without condition, and we can't wait for the conditions to be met. >> we have a few seconds left, and i want to go back to you in juba. we have heard the prediction that things may get worse quick quickly, how unstable is the situation now, and what concerns may you have in the next few days. >> the situation in juba has been quite calm, but the separation in boral is untable. is volatile and we can classify it as dangerous. we do not have access to the information. what we are get something that there is combat in bor. the situation in malabbingar was dangerous with significant fighting. the situation in bentiu is stable, volatile and so overall, why one says there has been some improvement in juba, across the country the situation is grave and dangerous, es

. >> and bentiu. >> there has been heavy fighting in recent days. we are scaling up our emergency response capacity, including flying an emergency response team to bentiu for surgical capacity. part of the team is our surgeon operating in syria, and they'll treat more at the hospital there. >> and bor? >> in bor the situation remains volatile and flew it. we understand there's needs there, and we have not been able to access that area. >> what kind of injuries have you had with the patients. >> gunshot understand. >> in a situation like this, how does it make it difficult for the organizations to do what they are doing. what challenges are you facing. >> in addition to normal activities. we stablilize our normal activities for existing patients, but we are trying to expand the emergency capacity in the country. what we are concerned about is humanitarian access. in bor, where there's needs, we are eager to know what the situation is, and safely access the populations in need. >> thank you very much. >> as i mentioned earlier, the kenyan president an

compound in bentiu. >> our resources are stretched very tightly, but we are continuing to stand by the people of the state. the mission has a collective resolve to remain in south sudan and will not be intimidated. it is rushingys more peacekeeping forces to the country. international voices urged the country to stop fighting. >> in the central african republic, african union troops fired on demonstrators protesting against the president. one person is reported to have been killed. those 80 troops fired on several hundred christian demonstrators in the capital, bangui. the president became the first muslim leader of the mainly christian nation in march. muslim backers of the celica -- group are protesting french troops in the country. they say they are only there to protect christians. activists say 65 people, many children, were killed by government forces in the city of aleppo. the regime has stepped up its air strikes on the city, killing up to 200 in a bombardment that has gone on for over a week now. >> panic in the neighborhood in aleppo after regime helicopters unleashed bombs f

in juba, bentiu and elsewhere. >> al jazeera's correspondent joins me from kenya and nairobi, where east african heads of state are meeting. hello to you. what do the leaders hope to accomplish in the meeting today? >> well, there has been an understanding that this has been primarily political conflict and therefore they need to address the political grievances or outstanding issues between the two sides in order to prevent the situation from escalating further. what we have in nairobi is the leaders of eight african countries, including the president of south sudan. the idea is to primarily find a way to stop the fighting on the ground and move to the second more complicated stage, which is to try to find a political settlement or negotiated settlement to the conflict. open dialogue between the two sides. why we have the south sudanese president attending. the other party was being accused of the government of staging the rebellion. he is not attending. at some stage the leaders will invite him for mediation talks, but not today. given, of course, the protocol reasons. this, after all

bentiu and two in juba. our correspondent in washington says despite the vote to send in more troops, it will take more time for the u.n. peacekeepers to arrive on the ground. >> the united states was one of on thiswriters resolution and after the emergency meeting yesterday, held where the secretary-general requested these additional troops, the security council today unanimously supported that. these troops will take time to get on the ground in south sudan. the u.n. secretary-general bank e-mail and said it would not happen overnight. but with the reports of ethnically targeted killings increasing and mass killings and extrajudicial killings, the fear is increasing in the u.n. that the instability will continue. secretary-general told councilmembers today that even with this edition no support, helicopters -- even with this additional support, helicopters, the u.n. will not be able to protect every civilian. is no easy resolution. this is a political crisis that requires a peaceful, political solution. we

the rebels claim to be in control of bentiu. we are joined from juba with the latest on the situation. >> i'm in a u.n. compound in juba where thousands have fled and are hiding here for safety. i'm talking to a u.n. coordinator. you just came from bor, what was the situation like there? >> in bor the situation was intense. i have come off the phone to my office there. the tension continues. there are squirmishes that are ongoing, and i think that not only the parties who were having this political struggle for power here, but it's armed youth who are increasingly taking matters into their hands in different parts of the jonglei state. it's worrying and we will do everything we can in the united nations to make sure the people that sought refuge, that they will be safe. >> here at the base in juba, how many people do you have and what challenges do you face looking after them? >> there's two bases here. and as you can see from the throngs behind me, we are over 10,000 people now and over at the other site it's the same number. w

further north, in the town of bentiu, oil workers have taken shelter there and the u.n. were supporting the people have gone to compounds in three other towns. president blamed the clashes on the former vice president, who he said was behind the two attempt, something he denies. it is not clear what the connection is to train the different outbreaks of fighting across the country but the result is the same, people displaced. in some areas the army has split and in others rebel groups may be taking advantage of the uncertain security situation. whatever the cause, diplomats are trying to find a solution. damien zayne, bbc news. watchingite house is the situation very closely. just a short time ago i spoke to gail smith -- gayle smith. the civil war a possibility? >> i am afraid it is. we and others are doing everything we can to ensure it does not become a reality. theas it a mistake for administration to back independence in south sudan given how divided it is? waso be clear, our position in support of the comprehensive peace agreement, which articulated the option for t

is moving towards bentiu and recaptured bor, and half of makala. they have a large presence. if there are 25,000 of these guys, there may be a knock-down drag-out battle. >> thanks to steve mcdonald with the wilson center. >> fighting in cairo between student protesters and police had a fever pitch. 2,000 were killed. demonstrations are taking place at the university. >> we have been speaking about protests around the universities here in cairo and there was another incident at a university in alex molnar -- in alexandria after an explosive device was found. there was a bomb found on board a bus there was diffused. the passengers found the device hidden under a seat. the grenade went off. it caused damage to some cars. now, the protests are all in response to the government's decision to designate the muslim brotherhood as a terrorist organization. since then 400 preem have been rounded up accused of having links to the organization. anyone in the group can be gaoled for up to five years. the punishment is death. a lot of people are getting worried. there's a few people recon

we are over 50,000 civilians in various compounds in juba, bor, bentiu, malaka and elsewhere. >> the fighting started in the capital but moved. haru mutasa reports from joouba where people are afraid to go home. >> righters patrol the areas. when fighting broke out two weeks ago, people here were caught in the middle of the violence. many families are sleeping at the u.n. base. officials are trying to convince people that it's safe to go back. >> to minimise the looting that occurs, we have to deploy forces - police, security. the army in different locations to maintain law and order. we are trying to disarm those with the guns. we are trying to disarm those who are not allowed to have guns, and so that people go back to their home. >> this is where many people were killed. >> people have not come back to this part of town. it's eerily quiet. most have been looted. it used to be a supermarket. there's nothing left. parts of the capital are busy. people are trying to move on. >> this family wants to go to bor in jonglei state. he was a brigadier general in the army, killed on december

is moving towards bentiu and has recaptured bor and mccala or maybe half. they have a large presence up there. if there's 25,000 of these guys, there may be a real knock-down, drag-out battle. >> that was steve mcdonald with the wilson center. >> a former u.s. diplomat is at the center of an effort to bring the northern island political parties together. richard haass is there to resolve disagreements. >> catholic fought protest ants, but now the arguments are on smaller but sensitive matters. >> they are calling it a final effort to reach an agreement between northern island's political parties. as richard haass and his team convene talks, he admitted it was difficult. >> by noon on monday we'll have had 12 hours of plenary sessions. it will be very hard at that point, given everything that will have come before it to argue that rt missing ingredient is more time. >> the issue that is toughest to crack is flags. in late 2012 they voted to only fly the british flags from city hall and other buildings. it sparked street protests in which 100 police officers

there were also reports that the bodies of dozens of government soldiers were found in a mass grave in bentiu. in all, u.n. officials report more than 1,000 people have been killed in south sudan-- and more than 100,000 turned into refugees since fighting broke out only a week ago. many are seeking shelter at u.n. bases in the capital of juba and elsewhere. >> ( translated ): the two factions should be reconciled by the international community so that the problem is solved once and for all, so that everyone can go back where they came from. we can't live like this. >> ifill: the conflict erupted after president kiir, an ethnic dinka, accused former vice president, riek machar, an ethnic nuer, of plotting a coup. heavy fighting in bor over the weekend prompted the u.n. to evacuate non-essential staff and wounded civilians from its mission there. >> there was a lot of looting. a lot of gunshots. a lot of dead bodies and very, very out of control youth. heavily armed and that needs to be brought under control. >> ifill: rebels in bor also fired on three u.s. osprey aircraft saturday, wounding fo

see that the fighting will continue up north, around the town of malaka and around the oil fields in bentiu and other locations. we are not sure if that suggestion of a ceasefire will last. the government of south sudan appeared to have committed themselves to this. but dr riyadh had not. he is setting up conditions that had to be met before he can commit himself to the ceasefire. >> behind the cease fire the conflict took a toll in a couple of weeks. more than 1,000 people have been killed in the last two weeks. over-120,000 have been displaced. given everything that is happening, what do the south sudan need most right now? >> the south sudanese need security. the people in juba and in other towns and villages across south sudan are moving. and they are displaced. a number of people reported, between 150 to 200,000 have been displaced. we need to cater for those people. they need safe corridors where they can be treated because of the wounds of war. and they need emergencies that should reach them immediately. >> you mentioned safe corridors. you fled sudan because of political views. do

we provided medical supplies and also medical staff at the moment, performing surgeries in juba, bentiu, and two other areas that have been affected by violence. so sh - and continuing to send specialists such as medical specialists and water specialists and supplies on the way. >> cynthia lee with the committee of the red cross. thanks for joining us, we appreciate it. >> israeli air strikes on gaza left one dead. the victim was a 3-year-old girl who lived in a refugee camp. it came after an israeli civilian were shot dead. no one claimed responsibility for killing the man, the first to die in the gaza frontier in more than a year. weapons, manufacturing facility and a rocket launcher were among the targets of tuesday's air stricts. the rations released its latest numbers from refugees in syria. 2.2 million syrians left of the country. 553,000 left in turkey. 559,000 fled to jordan, and 894,000 across the border into lebanon. some syrian children are getting a chance to act like kids. i explained the reasons behind this unlikely christmas celebration. >> these children from syria are r