something made me suspicious and i checked out the cargo we found narcotics heroin in some drugs but what for him claims he didn't expect to find a driver who told authorities he was involved in drug smuggling. by himself is guarded by another policeman if. he's been taking drugs since he was twelve and went for treatment only recently after the prison warden found out he's in good company according to a recent us congress report. afghan police are doing drugs well. when i graduated as a policeman i was doing i kept quiet about for about two years although the other policeman here knew about it quite a few police my drug addicts are not telling anyone they're just saying i'm smoking something. political afghanistan's biggest jail many of the five thousand prisoners here are doing time for drug smuggling and all drug use but the locks are not

a sure safe way of keeping the drugs out. there are a number. these are the different kinds of drugs we collected over the past years. this is a mix of all your contacts. but then all of this is opium and. this is the kind of tricks drugs inside a calm family members coming to visit bring these with them we found drugs in shoes over the years prison guards have been charged with mending a hand. that they were here it's true when i joined a few years ago lots of guards were involved in smuggling drugs into the jail they are not very good educated and they don't have enough and there are a lot joining the police two thousand people join the police to the south and south but the ministry of canton. insists its now got

a hold on the problem but questions remain what if some of those fines enough dunstan's drug will actually foot soldiers the signed and with the many challenges the country faces doesn't really have the resources to tackle the corruption within its ranks inside these full walls is a snapshot of the problems facing afghan society telhami drug test because and petty criminals and the prisons of a college. team. was in kabul u.n. experts warned a higher opium prices could persuade afghan farmers to grow even more especially as we the main alternative crop for farmers has fallen in price but zolli a spokesman for the counter-narcotics ministry insists that growing drugs is against the beliefs of the afghan people. but the news is positive the poppy production has been slashed for forty eight percent as compared to the previous year but i don't agony with this some of the u.n.

. claimed that it was a because of the bad weather that or so it could have been the case in some provinces to go it was very much successful to the public awareness campaign and we sent a positive message and the people of afghanistan know that the poppy cultivation is bad figured on them and it's something that they are kind of the congregation about are we afghans this is not a culture this is against all the cards here this is against the basic principles of. our religion so something that is against religion something which is a dangerous in the world phenomenon something that is supporting terrorism and we get as an afghan affected by that we never support some kind of cutie and we made a pretty much hard commitment on that to get rid of this problem. and nato as war effort in afghanistan is facing another obstacle pakistan has closed an

important supply route for the coalition one hundred fuel tankers and trucks haven't been allowed into afghanistan it's seen as a retaliation to a nato helicopter raid into the territory of pakistan in which three local soldiers were killed and three more wounded the alliance says the incident is now under investigation and promised pakistan sovereignty would be respected recently the number of missile strikes in helicopter raids against suspected militants hiding in pakistan's tribal zone has been on the rise pakistani officials say the attacks are violating international law and should be stopped. for more on this now i'm joined live from washington by ivan eland defense analyst from the independent institute a u.s. think tank thanks for joining me so pakistan is a top u.s. ally in the region it but it's been vocal against these strikes on this territory but if they are a strong ally then why not have some kind of cooperation in terms of these raids in terms of allowing nato troops to follow suspects across the border is incomplete

these missions or at least cooperate with them what's your take. well i think there is a secret agreement between pakistan and the united states to allow u.s. forces to pursue. taliban militants ten kilometers inside pakistan territory but the pakistanis for their own public consumption because the pakistani people are really anti-u.s. they have. feigned surprise and. anger over these attacks and in this particular case we don't know whether it was on purpose that these troops were killed whether they were helping the taliban as pakistani armed forces sometimes do or whether this was an accident but in any case pakistan has to pretend that it's angry about the attacks. so that its own population won't be riled up about the violation of its sovereignty but there's clearly an agreement where the u.s.

pursue taliban fighters across the pakistani border as long as they don't go too far into pakistan so if that agreement is in effect there then do you think it's more of a p.r. move that this closure more of a some symbolic thing of this closure of the road or do you think that this is an actual step taken by pakistan to say no no don't do this anymore what's your take on that. well i think a wall last very long and i think it's probably going to amount to symbolism and that's probably what it is just to say well you know we've got we've got a control over you too so don't get too too rambunctious i think they did they would that these strikes they want to allow the u.s. to do it but also they have to as i say they have this domestic problem and so i think when they make a symbolic closure of this the says hey we're a sovereign nation and you better be careful about these things because our people aren't too thrilled with them and we're the government of pakistan is walking

a tight rope what do you think the nato forces and the alliance could do to make better inroads with the people of pakistan and not just its leadership well i think they need to cut back the straits not increase them because they're there apparently this these latest round of strikes is to prevent terrorists from attacking europe and last i knew the united states was not in europe i mean we're supposed to be safeguarding our own security and i think whaling away in pakistan just makes more enemies so i think for the pakistani people sake and for the united states sake and also i think for the effectiveness against al qaeda these drone strikes should be restricted to. not even the pakistani taliban and i think that would help a lot and it would avoid killing innocent pat pakistani civilians how do you how successful or at least cutting down on no sure how successful do you think the nato fight against the taliban would be without pakistani support. well

pakistan is a sanctuary and of course pakistan is playing the double game there are a stencil ally at the same time they're intelligent services are helping the the taliban and actively. you know encouraging them in certain cases and so and then they're not going to quit because they know the united states is going to leave afghanistan and that is really their only. strong player that's allied with pakistan in afghanistan although. not so much aligned with the pakistanis so i think they regard the taliban in afghanistan as their as their chip for after the u.s. leaves so they're not going to quit supporting the taliban and there's this charade that they're making an alliance with the u.s. and they do do some things to catch al-qaeda and that sort of thing but they never really go after the taliban and the sanctuaries are very important for the for the

taliban in the war in afghanistan and so i think that's probably going to continue the strikes from there the sanctuary in pakistan and so i think the u.s. is going to have a hard time winning this war and i think many people even in the obama administration are thinking that. all right a lot of food for thought there but a lot to leave it there for now thanks much ivan even defense analyst from the independent institute a us think tank. still to come here on r t speakers at the u.n. general assembly talk to themselves find out why the media walked away and left hundreds of nations staring at empty seats is coming your way in a few minutes plus. this feels very very strange the saudis very cold and also happy doing all right at the moment but i think it's going to get a lot more scary very new one foot under we explore how buried alive feels and what's in it for those involved. turning first though to some other stories making

headlines across the globe the president of ecuador says he. been attacked by protesters and riot in a dense and benefit cuts this comes as hundreds of soldiers and police seize the capital's main airport angry demonstrators have also taken over parts of the city the president is not seriously hurt he's now trying to resolve the situation and is negotiating with protesters but he says the government will go ahead with reforms. to policemen and a bystander have been killed after an armed gang tried to rob a bank in baghdad the attackers used bombs to storm the building before being filed by officers in a gunfight six people including three policemen were wounded during the raid two suspected robbers had been captured in the neighborhood has been sealed off police searched for other attackers officials say it's unclear whether the gang has links to insurgent groups. there's controversy in india over a court decision to split control over a holy site in the northern ancient town of iota the main disputed section of where

a mosque was torn down back in one thousand nine hundred two has been allocated to hindus while muslims will be in charge of other parts security is being tightened across the region as authorities fear on unrest in a town that seen two thousand killed in clashes over the last two decades the muslim community already says it will appeal the verdict. plans to ban the muslim veil in the netherlands had been announced by politicians in the country's proposed new coalition government it also pledged to tighten laws on immigration the alliance is a minority made up of the christian democrats in the liberal party the policies are thought to be aimed at gaining the support of geert wilders a leader of the controversial party known for its anti islamic stance. north korea has published a photo thought to be of the country's heir apparent for the first time it's the only picture released of kim jong un which is thought to be up to date he was appointed to to keep party positions earlier this week it's being viewed as a gradual transfer of power due to the ailing health of his father kim jong il. the

high level united nations. paddle have started hearings on sexual violence cases in the democratic republic of congo victims began sharing their experiences of as part of efforts to improve treatment and support this comes after the release of a preliminary un report into the rape of hundreds of civilians including children in the north kivu province two months ago the panel will visit the troubled regions throughout the country to conduct more than one hundred hearings over the next ten days. turning back to russia now two explosive devices the equivalent of at least ninety kilos of t.n.t. have been diffused in the stabber polar region about three thousand people were evacuated from nearby buildings as well as a school for safety reasons the first bomb in a car was supposed to have been set off by the vehicles alarm system the second bomb was nearby and believed to have been targeted at officers and first responders who were spotted to the first explosion authorities also discovered the body of a man in the car who's been identified as

a local cab driver the prosecutor's office believe he was shot dead but not linked to the attempted attack. global media outlets covering this year's un assembly in new york have been criticized for disregarding the smaller countries most of the press left after the main species ended leaving the views of more than one hundred nations unheard artie's marina porton i reports on why so many delegates speeches fell on deaf ears. an international circus of political power. public stress for new yorkers. reporters secret service and barricades the signs of world leaders are crammed inside one building for the annual united nations general assembly debate. this diplomatic gathering provides more than one hundred ninety countries an opportunity to promote their foreign policy agenda but generally it's always the same voices now is the time to build the trust is dominating the states in identifying those responsible in the september eleventh

attacks journalists flew in from all over the world to cover this seven day event with people who have endured too much but once the richest and strongest finished pledging their promises. to press prematurely concluded their coverage here it's kind of i think you know what you see what. you know the. mainstream media pulled the plug on this international story friday evening with more than one hundred and twenty nations yet to speak abandoned by live trucks and most police presence nations like congo and mongolia were left a dressing half empty are torrijos by monday when cuba spoke of suffering under us and forgoes camera outside the un along to a tourist between two thousand and twenty five hundred journalists were accredited at the un for the general assembly debates and when u.s. president barack obama was here the room i'm standing in was packed when he laughed

he took all the media attention with him now only a handful of journalists are left to report about all the other countries that are addressing the international body the poorest leaders took to the podium campaigning for climate change and the scene inside the un media center spoke volumes less than ten reporters and girl. but you can school overflowing with recycled rubbish. that you see today also reflects that the u.n. certainly doesn't draw as much attention. as you know global governance seems to have so many challenges to address. to some sense a lot of difficulties addressing those challenges but first maybe garnering respect from its host country nearly seventy percent of americans think the u.n. does a lousy job in solving global problems maybe they should move it somewhere else maybe going as ireland where nobody would be affected by you know. convenience for

everyone however most of the world criticizes americans for neglecting to understand the problems we only know what we're we don't know exactly what's going . on and that's good or bad i mean. we should know we should we should be you know say for everyone if not the united nations may remain a place where everyone continues to talk and neglects to listen up or niam party new york. people are always searching for new ways to relieve the stress and strain of everyday life in russia therapist has come up with an extreme method to overcome your problems by burying people alive they claim that just twenty minutes of it can change your outlook on life despite grave doubts or to give it a try. above ground there are a few signs of life below the surface a man trapped with his greatest fear is pavel has just been buried alive for twenty

minutes not torture but extreme therapy. that's the first thing you experience is panic once your face is covered with earth so you start tasting as i'm thinking what the hell am i doing down here or you want to come down to simply no other place like this these are the grave digging therapists modeling the burials on ancient form of self in lights and practice by. shaman's they wanted to make the right's more accessible believing everyone can benefit. because the most effective and powerful method of overcome an internal problems person can neither see nor hear anything nor even move underground they have no other option but to delve deep inside their minds. a burial costs you around one hundred sixty dollars attracting both men and women from students to fifty something professionals all aiming to suffocate their worries the maximum burial is forty minutes beyond that the mind struggles to cope with the lack of physical function that they're thirty

centimeters any deeper and the pressure would be too great to stand once under that volunteers breathe through this chewed the organizers a ten year veteran of living burials and says this shouldn't be tried at home. but are we have to be able to get the personal very fast and also contact them earth for us to be distributed in a certain way across the body so that the key joints or pressurized you can practice burials without knowing about these things. until now i didn't think i suffered from any cost a phobia and that could soon change because i'm going to try this for myself now i mean given this debris through which i'm told that we monitoring at all times so i want to stop and all i have to do is make a noise so here we go. well they started to fill in my grave and say well yeah this feels very very strange the

soil is very cold and also heavy i'm doing all right at the moment but i think it's going to get a lot more scary and i was right five minutes after being buried alive i was very ready to see the light of day again. thank. one of the weirdest experiences of my life i felt completely trapped and i'm definitely never doing that again harder than it r.t. moscow. if you like that you can find a whole lot more on our website r.t. dot com video blogs and more here's a look at what's online right now. check this amazing footage out capturing a st petersburg pedestrian narrow there it is narrow getting avoiding getting crushed to death thanks to the quick thinking and even faster feet. and find out why moscow's gay community has been allowed to hold protests on the city's streets for the first time in the group's history. and if you feel like exploring the

russian countryside check out the eco friendly hotel farms set up by a friend all this and more one click away. stephanie monday joins us after a short break hungry for the full story we've got. the biggest issues get a human voice face to face with the news makers.

hello and welcome to the business bulletin investors are once again focusing on the poor state of european banks the government of violent has announced it will be taking a majority stake in the country's second largest bank as part of a fresh spate out it's also revealed the price tag for bailing out all of its banks will be more than fifty billion dollars this will raise it stephanie. it to thirty two percent of g.d.p. in two thousand and ten meanwhile moody's has the know it spain's top credit rating up by one notch this puts additional pressure on the country's government as it prepares to pass the most austere budget in three decades it comes as the belt tightening measures imposed by the european governments provoked a massive protests across europe. concerns over public financing also feeding into the currency markets this week the brazilian finance minister said there was

a covert currency war taking place as countries sought to devalue their way out of debt earlier i spoke to chris we first chief strategist at oral said who explained what the governments might be trying to achieve to deliberate action by governments to weaken their currencies in order to increase to compare this of their own industry in direct sports in order to try and boost the revival of their economies some governments are doing to it we saw for example the japanese government taking action to weaken the yen because they feared words hurt competitiveness and the chinese government of course is resolutely refusing to appreciate the want so effectively keeping at a low level in order to sustain growth in their economy and in other countries particularly of course the focus on the u.s. were u.s. dollars being quite weak and the the accusation is that it's been done very deliberately in order to help boost the economic recovery in the u.s. at the expense of other countries such as brazil and perhaps such as europe so do

you think governments will actually find a solution that could work you know cross borders or is this going to escalate i think it's inevitably going to escalate we may actually see some of that as the next g. twenty summit which is due to take place in korea in november i think currency and currency wars if you like to use the brazilian term i think certainly will be on the agenda i think that governments really don't have any other option and they don't have any other strategies that they are increasingly resorting to try and use their currency to get out of this. so we're going to hear an awful lot more about currency battles in two thousand and eleven now if we turn to the ruble it's down against the euro it's down against the dollar it's not performing very well why is that well investors are effectively sidelined russia since the mid summer i think since the drought the smog and the concerns to that's raised about rising inflation and we've already had a number of growth forecasts reductions from government so investors really don't see russia as having a strong domestic story right now they're much prefer to focus on parts of the

economy merging market world that do have strong domestic stories such as brazil india china and turkey in particular and in eastern europe russia has been ignored you can see it in the equity market it's no starting to weigh on the downside from the global emerging markets of the same of the currency markets so i believe it's a temporary move. now is is very cheap even relative to the weak fundamentals we have. so i think once we get turned a corner a big upside we probably need to see more confidence in global markets before we see that upside and i believe it will come strong before the end of the. russian equity markets finished higher on thursday poit by gains in global markets later in the session thanks that the my six hired d.t.b. finished more than three percent in the black well put on two and a half percent energy majors also outperformed you call and left finish one and a half percent higher. talks on russia's session to the world trade organization

are expected to be completed in the next few weeks that's according to top officials in moscow but prime minister putin has acknowledged that membership may still be some way off he warns that in the meantime russia is not prepared to accept further economic restrictions. required can only be applied. to the organization not a single restriction related to the. must be apply. before the exception is complete because this process may last for ever and we will be accepting restrictions without getting the benefits of full membership. fitch ratings agency has placed the bank of moscow russia's fifth largest bank on negative watch it follows this week's dismissal of moscow's mag yuri luzhkov by president medvedev the agency says the appointment of a new mac could cause a deterioration in the relationship between the bank and the city bank of moscow

had close ties to the outgoing administration. i'm not so the business news for now but of course you can always find more stories if you log on to our website that's r t dot com slash it's.

just. every month we give you the future you understand how to get there and. the best in science and technology from across

russia and around the world. ten thirty pm in moscow good to have you with us here on our t.v. headlines afghanistan's opium harvest falls by around but the value soars with drugs ending up in the hands of prisoners and even police officers a u.n. report says the decline in supplies due to a disease affecting the country's poppy crops. pakistan hits back at nato and shuts down a major supply route in what's being seen as retaliation for the killing of its soldiers by u.s. helicopters on cross border raids the alliance denies the claims and has begun an investigation. and lots of talk but no one listening smaller nations addressing the close of the u.n. general assembly in new york are met by media indifference had an empty auditorium

majority of journalists left along with those consider the most important speakers fueling criticism of the media's role in helping developing countries. for many russians the summer of two thousand and ten will be remembered for the scorching heat wave massive wildfires and suffocating smog. interviews the country's emergencies minister sergey sure you on the lessons learned. but thing is the rest of his question hello mr shaggy thank you for your time this summer russia faced great forest fires and some are still raging why do you think it all happened on such a scale for the world cup when washed up so.