President has on rouhani is calling for calm kim jong un issues a new years threat to the u. S. As he signals a desire for better relations with south korea president Joseph Kabila faces calls to step down amid rising violence between protesters and Security Forces accurately and welcoming in the new year spectacular fireworks around the world as people celebrate the arrival of two thousand and eighteen. And ensembles with all the sporting through doing its a happy new year for liverpool fans in the English Premier League as the a last gasp three three. Welcome to the program our top story Iranian State media reporting that fourteen people have now been killed and four hundred erected in four days of antigovernment protests it says Security Forces repelled what its calling on to protest as it tried to take over police stations and military bases there reports have not been independently verified and tash are going to name has more. A social media blackout didnt stop protesters from gathering on irans streets for a fourth day and posting these videos by the iranian government says people have the right to express their discontent but violence is unacceptable the Iranian State media says some social media sites and messaging apps such as telegram have been blocked to keep the peace. On saturday there were also progovernment rallies our own who take it we cannot predict the time when the protests will come to an end but the protests will shake the people in power who must give priority to peoples demands and needs. To know what im going to find the state of the economy and rising prices sparked the initial protests austerity measures after years of sanctions have led to a twelve percent Unemployment Rate but anger has also shifted to Foreign Policy protesters are critical of the governments support for the Syrian Regime of Bashar Al Assad has bought a lot in lebanon and hamas in the occupied palestinian territory. The iranian government says foreign entities are fomenting violent and deadly clashes among the dead two people one a boy hit by a fire truck in whats been described as an accident Authorities Say it was stolen and abandoned and. Through investigations we came to know there is a clear rule played by the foreign intelligence agencies and the government open session and these killings the police never opened fire on the protesters now did cloven a great role in the in washington d. C. Outside the white house people called for the removal of president has been rouhani President Donald Trump tweeted that people are quote getting wise to how their money and wealth is being stolen and squandered on terrorism rouhani fired back. All you can do is doubt on this man who today in america wants to simplify as a people has the gall to but a few months ago he called the nation of iran terrorists. These are the largest protests in almost a decade although sundays protests were smaller than the previous night there are calls for people to continue with the demonstrations natasha going to aim aljazeera. Well joining me now in the studio is iranian political analyst and scholar Mohammad Ali Shabani thanks very much for coming in to speak to us how would you describe the situation in iran right now with these protests is there still momentum behind the demonstrations or definitely from what ive seen geographically to quite widespread many smaller town mainly provincial centers or Major Urban Centers like tehran breeze its logic quiet you have places like the u. S. Or tehran in the streets around its running its. Small skirmishes small groups of protesters theres nothing major nothing along the lines of what we saw in two thousand and nine hundred thousands of people on the streets the economic grievances have long been there people feeling angry or disappointed with inflation rising unemployment the rising cost of living why is this frustration now spilling out into the streets at this point in time i think in terms of Economic Indicators like inflation has actually been quite a large cut compared to four years ago was a wrong he has been well quite successful in terms of containing it however at the same time trials of unemployment weve seen that wising cost of living keeps rising as well brant and things like that issue i think is elevated expectations i think thats where the danger comes and people have been expecting better lives apart as a result of on his promises in connection with the nuclear deal so i think its not a matter of absolute poverty driving people into the streets its mostly about people thinking that we should we need more than this we actually were promised more than this whats happening why do we not have the jobs that we were anticipating that kind of dynamic and so you have these expectations continuing to rise when the government of president has and romney is unable to deliver and so then what about the chance in the slogans because that you know they weve been talking about the fact that this is unprecedented something weve never seen in the history of these lamb it republic to be calling for the end of the. The Supreme Leader and so forth so how is something that is very much about you know an economic grievances then moving into the political sphere well i would disagree with the president the nature of those slogans we heard exact same slogan in two thousand and nine among the more radical protesters i think even now the one key issues to understand is a we dont know who precisely is behind the protests they do not have the same kind of leadership as in two thousand like i think secondly did different grievances you can hear things like initially they were opposed to high prices some now say you know death to harmony some say death to rouhani so theyre targeting different political figures Different Power Centers that different demands what do you want in leaders have been saying is we have two types of protesters ardent and in the streets we have some with genuine economic grievances and they have a right to protest and there are others who are out after a different thing which we do not accept referring to people who call for the death of common experience so i think that dynamic is quite interesting you have very demands and also you have varied responses from you want eaters so youve got a lot of disparate groups coming together with with different demands are not all necessarily calling for the same thing does that make it easier for the authorities to potentially put an end to these protests or to try and pacify the protesters in some way or does it make it far more complicated because there isnt one single organizational public face or leader to negotiate with thats precisely i think were on the key questions that nobody really has a good answer to i think right now one of the great things about having a visible opponent is of course you can detain him you can accuse him of things you can do all of those and he can do that with that when theres no face at the same time when there is no face its much more difficult to resolve because there is no link between say the people in the streets and those in disturbed went right now for instance not a single reformist leader has backed the violence whatsoever and at the same time in the streets you dont hear any of the chants in two thousand one hundred there is no more calls for the release of we are saying mousavi. Uncaught i mean of course for his reports its a completely absent and this is quite intriguing to me because theres a disconnect there the can as you say either be more easier to contain for the authorities because its not an organized challenge its not like three Million People out in the streets with alternative vision for the government a visible opposition that can replace you now its mostly. Dispersed chaos homes in some areas well thank you very much for that nuanced analysis. And im going to our top story this hour north koreas leader warning the United States that is Nuclear Forces are reality not just a threat in his new years address kim jong un also said he had a Nuclear Button on his desk but he struck a much more conciliatory tone with south korea saying he was open to dialogue and wishing them success for the Winter Olympics arent slowly reports from seoul. This is how north korea welcomed the new year with a fireworks display much like the rest of the world but it is leader kim jong uns new years day address that is drawing all the attention if two thousand and seventeen was marked by fiery rhetoric and rising tensions because of north Koreas Nuclear ambitions two thousand and eighteen may bring more of the same. Colors from the to the u. S. Mainland is within the range of our Nuclear Strike and the Nuclear Button is put on the desk in my office at all times they should clearly understand that this is never a trash what a reality kim has called for the mass production and deployment of more Nuclear Warheads and missiles but weapons experts agree that north korea may not yet have the technology to miniaturize a Nuclear Warhead and mounted a missile that could be entering the atmosphere while kim speech made no mention of the new kid atmosphere test he reiterated the claim that north korea is now a nuclear power. In stark contrast to the hostile remarks to the United States is the conciliatory overture from kim jong un to south korea has even suggested dialogue between the two sides something south korean president proposed several months ago and which north korea ignored means needle jiang and i dont we should actively create an atmosphere to move forward with the National Reconciliation and reunification improving ties between the north and the south is an urgent issue that not only the north and south want but everyone else wants he suggested north korea is prepared to send its athletes to participate in the upcoming Winter Olympics and paralympics in next month south korea has responded to these proposals positively saying it hopes communication which has been severed between the two sides for nearly two years can be restored to modernism on south koreas president ial office wall comes north Korean Leader kim jong ils new years speech today which expressed willingness to send a delegation to the counter olympics and proposed talks as the egg knowledges dont need for improvement into korean pies but analysts say the olive branch may be a ploy to gain some political ground north korea was to drive away as written seoul in washington at the same time tried to dilute the impact of economic sanctions north korea is facing its toughest sanctions yet including a cap on petrol imports as punishment for its nuclear and missile tests last year kim jong un speech while it seems to lay open a path to dialogue with south korea is proof that north Koreas Nuclear ambitions are here to stay Florence Li Al Jazeera seoul. I mean is a Research Fellow and cliff ration in the u. K. Policy at the think tank we see joins me in the studio now so many ways a very interesting message from north Korean Leader kim jong un on the one hand reminding the u. S. That they have the ability to strike the mainland so issuing a threat there but on the other hand calling for direct talks with south korea how do you explain this well its part of a larger effort to make sure that south korea and the United States are not coordinated we have to remember that for kim jong un the biggest threat is the United States being right on his borders and he wants to get rid of the United States and the only way to do that is to make sure that south korea and the United States have different priorities and different negotiation outcomes that they see different negotiation outcomes and so then how is south korea likely to respond to an of a chair like this it would be difficult for south korea to ignore Something Like this and they have been ignored in the past when north korea has approached about family reunions or joint Industrial Projects those are things that have been going on in the past and theyve negotiated on a bilateral level so south korea will be very difficult i know theyve they passed the deadline will be very difficult for south korea to turn away north korea when it when it is a a friendly just at least on paper so what is likely to happen now will it materialize into any form of negotiation on just something more tangible well that may speak but its clear that north korea is has a strategy here because they also threaten the United States in the same new years message and thats also part of bringing the threat to the u. S. Homeland and thats another part of splitting the United States from south korea so by threatening seattle north koreas hoping that the u. S. Will be more occupied with defending seattle and not focusing as much on its ally thus causing a split in the Korean Peninsula but its a transparent strategy in many ways is it likely to walk. That remains to be seen we have a new president in the white house he has still we have still to see a comprehensive north korea policy from him and it will be interesting to see how he responds we also have to remember its only over the last year that north korea has gained the ability to directly threaten the United States mainland and that changes the situation it made it means a different situation from the one that president obama was dealing with and it is a very different situation and also we have a very different leader in place of course president trump. Very much contrasting with braco bamma in personality in temperament and also in approach. You study into north korea and the regime in pyongyang very closely how do you think it he is generally received or perceived by kim jong un how do these two mix thats difficult to say i think on the u. S. Side the United States absolutely know that if they attack north korea there will be a military spillover that will cause a great effect on the Korean Peninsula and its south korean ally they also know that that threat has been there for a while it may have changed recently because north korea has Nuclear Weapons they can deliver how that calculates and how trump is things and how kim jong un things thats the great mystery and thats also why its such a fragile situation and while the goetia is might be a good thing in this case many more questions than answers thank you very much and well dial thank you. And watching the news hour live from london much more to tell you about the protesters rallying for their democratic rights and freedoms in hong kong also losing their faith in south korea churches and temples try new ways to bring people back to religion. And then later on in sports a golf cart reaches its climax as the formating teams get ready to battle for a place in the final. U. N. Secretary general is president Joseph Kabila to step down from power in the democratic republic of congo in accordance with a deal signed a year ago after Security Forces killed at least seven protesters on sunday during rallies against his rule reports. In the democratic republic of Congo Catholic worshippers pray this sunday they pray with a political purpose they want president Joseph Kabila goal tending was last week was a very good thing these guys think it was time for. Their prayers were heard by Security Forces in kinshasa twenty seventeen ended as it began kabila second term as president ended in december twenty sixth saying he refused to step down and the un says kong Security Forces killed forty people who protested the decision four hundred sixty were arrested. One year on they marched off to mass twelve a lot of boys and priests were among the dozens arrested tear gas was fired into churches. The hospitals filled with protesters once more so it goes on the mind that i was if your term is over give opportunities to others to run your son of the country you belong in the senate give the others the opportunity to lead maybe theyll do it better than you did. Catholic bishops brokered peace talks between the opposition and government with the agreement that could be low would leave office at the end of twenty seven tame but hes still in power and now the catholics and the opposition are united shall you see me coming in shooting one because it is not it is simply because we have upcoming we have come here in order to the way to pray for all we mission. Opposition voices can be heard by ending the fractured country from all corners even in the troubled east a thriving battleground between rebels Security Forces say they use of force is justified one Police Officer was killed and this police. The station was torched by protest is only got there so we are in need of peace i assure all of our government authorities that our