Inside Story

"We got the best deal possible. Everyone would have liked to get a little more,' the words of the Colombian government negotiator as the deal was signed with FARC rebels (the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia) to end 52 years of civil war. For the government of President Juan Manuel Santos, the goals were simple; end the war without giving away too much. A demobilisation process is underway for FARC fighters to hand over their weapons. The armed group is also beginning its transformation into a political party. But what are the hurdles to a permanent peace? And what does it all mean for Colombia? Presenter: Adrian Finighan Guests: Kristian Herbolzheimer - Director of the Philippines and Colombia Programmes at Conciliation Resources. Annette Idler - Director of Studies at the Changing Character of War Programme, University of Oxford. Bernardo Perez-Salazar - Researcher of Armed Conflict and Peace Process at the Catholic University of Colombia. - Subscribe to our channel: http://aje.io/AJSubscribe - Follow us on Twitter: https://twitter.com/AJEnglish - Find us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/aljazeera - Check our website: http://www.aljazeera.com/

The killing of hundreds of French people in ISIL attacks within the past two years is leading to much debate about the future of Islam in France. The attacks are also causing a backlash for five million French Muslims. They say Islamophobia is evident in the burkini ban for Muslim women wearing their swimwear on French beaches. Other Muslims say they've been refused service in French restaurants and coffee shops. The issue is high on the agenda in the run-up to the French presidential election next year. Interior Minister Bernard Cazeneuve has met Muslim leaders, civil groups and MPs to discuss 'French Islam' - a version of the religion meant to reconcile Muslim and French values. But is that possible? And how are politics contributing to the debate over the future of Islam in France? Presenter: Adrian Finighan Guests: Renaud Girard, Chief Foreign Correspondent, The Figaro newspaper. Samia Hathroubi, French Muslim human rights activist. Francois Gemenne, Research Fellow at the Institute for Sustainable Development and International Relations. - Subscribe to our channel: http://aje.io/AJSubscribe - Follow us on Twitter: https://twitter.com/AJEnglish - Find us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/aljazeera - Check our website: http://www.aljazeera.com/

Iraq's Prime Minister says government forces and their allies will retake control of Mosul by the end of the year. It's been an effective summer for Iraqi forces battling ISIL. Now, they're fighting to retake Iraq's second biggest city - Mosul - which has been under ISIL control for more than two years. The Iraqi army, Kurdish forces, Shia militias and the US air force are all converging on the city from different directions. Iraqi soldiers re-took Qayara on Saturday. It's an oil-producing town that's about 70 kilometres south of Mosul, and near a major air base. The Iraqi army had been fighting for control of Qayara for several weeks. Now, Prime Minister Haider al Abadi says Mosul will be captured by the end of the year. So, how ready are government forces? and what does the offensive mean for a united Iraq? and ISIL? Presenter: Sami Zeidan Guests: Ghassan Al Attiyah - Head of the Iraqi National Initiative, a secular movement that aims to bridge sectarian divides in Iraq. Wladimir van Wilgenburg - Journalist and Political Analyst focusing on Kurdish Politics. Zaid Al Ali - Author of the book 'The Struggle for Iraq's future' and former Adviser to the United Nations. - Subscribe to our channel: http://aje.io/AJSubscribe - Follow us on Twitter: https://twitter.com/AJEnglish - Find us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/aljazeera - Check our website: http://www.aljazeera.com/

Two and a half million Afghan refugees living in Pakistan could be sent back, despite not being born there and never having lived there. Citing security concerns, Pakistan says the refugees must return to Afghanistan by the end of the year. It is a decision rights groups are calling "one of the largest forcible returns of refugees in modern history". Afghan refugees have been living in Pakistan since the early 1980s, when they fled from Soviet invasion. Pakistan has hosted more than three million Afghan refugees over the past several decades. The government has repeatedly set and extended deadlines for the refugees to leave. But it says this year is final, calling it a matter of national security. But why is the government doing this now? and are politics at play? Presenter: Sami Zeidan Guests: Naveed Ahmad - Investigative Journalist and Political Analyst. Hasan Khan - Specialist on Afghan-Pakistani issues. Habib Wardak - Good Governance and Anti-corruption activist, who was a refugee in Pakistan. - Subscribe to our channel: http://aje.io/AJSubscribe - Follow us on Twitter: https://twitter.com/AJEnglish - Find us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/aljazeera - Check our website: http://www.aljazeera.com/

It has been a year since the warring sides in South Sudan signed a peace agreement. At the time, many had hoped the agreement would bring peace to the world's youngest nation. But fighting resumed in July just as the country was marking its five-year anniversary. South Sudan has now been in conflict for much of its existence. Thousands of people have been killed and millions more displaced from their homes. What does the future hold for South Sudan five years after its creation? Presenter: Martine Dennis Guests: Andre Heller Perache - head of programmes for Doctors Without Borders UK Casie Copeland - South Sudan analyst at the International Crisis Group Joseph Ochieno - contributor for The New African Magazine - Subscribe to our channel: http://aje.io/AJSubscribe - Follow us on Twitter: https://twitter.com/AJEnglish - Find us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/aljazeera - Check our website: http://www.aljazeera.com/

The Indian government says it wants to stop the exploitation of poor women. There has been controversy over the government's decision to propose legislation restricting commercial surrogacy. It says it considers it a "rent-a-womb" industry that exploits impoverished young women. But critics say the proposed bill will severely limit options for childless couples and women who carry other people's babies as a way out of poverty. The bill seeks to bar foreign, single and same sex couples from surrogacy services in India and says that only close relatives can act as surrogates. So, is this designed to stop exploitation of poor women or are there other factors at play? Presenter: Hazem Sika Guests: Archana Dhawan Bajaj - Fertility and IVF Expert at the Nurture Clinic. Nandita Rao - Lawyer and Civil Rights Activist. Karuna Nundy - Advocate at the Supreme Court of India and International Lawyer. - Subscribe to our channel: http://aje.io/AJSubscribe - Follow us on Twitter: https://twitter.com/AJEnglish - Find us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/aljazeera - Check our website: http://www.aljazeera.com/

The US Vice Presidentt flies to Ankara to try and mend strained relations following the failed coup. Presenter: Martine Dennis Guests: Galip Dalay - Research Director at the Al Sharq Forum Ege Seckin - Turkey specialist at IHS Country Risk Aaron Stein - Senior Resident Fellow at the Atlantic Council’s Rafik Hariri Center for the Middle East - Subscribe to our channel: http://aje.io/AJSubscribe - Follow us on Twitter: https://twitter.com/AJEnglish - Find us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/aljazeera - Check our website: http://www.aljazeera.com/

Turkey is stepping up its military involvement in Syria, striking both ISIL and Kurdish fighters. The war in Syria is becoming increasingly complicated. Several factions and international alliances are fighting it out, both on the ground and in the air. Now, Kurdish areas in the north are being heavily targeted. The U.S is warning it won't hesitate to open fire on the Syrian army, if it continues to attack fighters from the U.S-backed Kurdish Syrian National Democratic Council in Hasaka. To the west of the city in Manbij, Turkish forces are attacking Kurdish YPG positions. The Turkish government accuses the YPG of being an extension of the Kurdistan Workers Party or PKK. Turkey's armed forces has been at war with the PKK separatists for more than 20 years. But is intervention the answer to Turkish security concerns? And how can Turkey's changing policy affect the long running civil war? Presenter: Dareen Abughaida Guests: Bilal Sambur, Professor of Social Sciences, Yildirim Beyazit University. Renad Mansour, Carnegie Middle East Center scholar. Dlawer Ala'aldeen, President, Middle East Research Institute. - Subscribe to our channel: http://aje.io/AJSubscribe - Follow us on Twitter: https://twitter.com/AJEnglish - Find us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/aljazeera - Check our website: http://www.aljazeera.com/

The Turkish government has been hosting Iran's top diplomat, in a move seen as a shift in foreign policy after last month's failed coup. Turkey has been unhappy with the West’s muted response to the coup and frustrated with continued criticism of its human rights record. The Iranian foreign Minister's visit comes just days after Turkey's President historic trip to Russia, during which he very publicly made up with Vladimir Putin after the shooting down of a Russian fighter plane on the Turkish-Syria border last year. So many are asking whether these moves mark a shift in Turkey's global alliances AND what impact will they have on the war in neighbouring Syria? Presenter: Folly Bah Thibault Guests: Yusuf Kanli - Journalist and former editor of Hurriyet Daily News in Ankara Bassma Kodmani - Former spokesperson for the SNC Syrian oppostion group in Paris Henri Barkey - Director of the Middle East Program at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars in Washington DC. - Subscribe to our channel: http://aje.io/AJSubscribe - Follow us on Twitter: https://twitter.com/AJEnglish - Find us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/aljazeera - Check our website: http://www.aljazeera.com/

Moscow and Kiev are putting their militaries on high alert after Russia says Ukrainian forces launched raids into Crimea. Presenter: Folly Bah Thibault Guests: Nataliya Gumenyuk - head of the Ukrainian news channel Hromadske TV Sergey Strokan - political commentator at the Russian daily newspaper Kommersant Domitilla Sagramoso - lecturer in the department of war studies at King's College London - Subscribe to our channel: http://aje.io/AJSubscribe - Follow us on Twitter: https://twitter.com/AJEnglish - Find us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/aljazeera - Check our website: http://www.aljazeera.com/

The Olympic games under way in Rio with athletes from around the world competing in the biggest sports competition. Presenter: Richelle Carey Guests: Andrew Zimbalist - author of 'Circus Maximus: The Economic Gamble Behind Hosting the Olympics and the World Cup' Bryan Clift - lecturer in the Department of Health at the University of Bath Jeff Ruffolo - director of Ruffolo Communications and author of the book 'Inside the Beijing Olympics' - Subscribe to our channel: http://aje.io/AJSubscribe - Follow us on Twitter: https://twitter.com/AJEnglish - Find us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/aljazeera - Check our website: http://www.aljazeera.com/

Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdogan has arrived in Russia. His visit is widely seen as an attempt to improve relations between the two countries after months of tensions. Erdogan's government is still dealing with the aftermath of last month's failed coup. But it says relations with Russia are important - particularly in the continuing efforts to bring a solution to the war in Syria. The visit comes at a time when Turkey's ties with the European Union and the U.S. appear to be cooling off. Erdogan has been criticised over his huge crackdown on thousands of alleged coup plotters. Turkey says it's not turning its back on the West. But how will the West react to Turkish and Russian rapprochement? Presenter: Richelle Carey Guests: Mark Sleboda, International Relations and Security Analyst. Margaret Coker, Turkey bureau chief for the Wall Street Journal. Ahmet Han, associate professor of international relations at Kadir Has University. - Subscribe to our channel: http://aje.io/AJSubscribe - Follow us on Twitter: https://twitter.com/AJEnglish - Find us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/aljazeera - Check our website: http://www.aljazeera.com/

Presenter: Richelle Carey Guests: Mouyad Al Windawi - Fellow at the Iraqi Centre for Strategic Studies. Hardin Lang - Senior Fellow at the Center for American Progress. Matthew Glanville - Former British Army solider and Adviser to the Iraqi, Afghan and US governments. - Subscribe to our channel: http://aje.io/AJSubscribe - Follow us on Twitter: https://twitter.com/AJEnglish - Find us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/aljazeera - Check our website: http://www.aljazeera.com/

Thailand's political history has been littered with periods of turmoil and uncertainty since the 1930s. Now, military leaders say a new constitution - the country's 20th - will pave the way for peace and stability. And on Sunday, Thai voters overwhelmingly approved the draft constitution. But critics argue the document will just solidify the military's hold on the government. So, is this about grabing more power? or returning to democracy? Presenter: Richelle Carey Guests: Kim McQuay - Thailand country Representative for the Asia Foundation. Verapat Pariyawong - Thai Legal adviser and Visiting Scholar at SOAS University of London. Supong Limtanakool - Chairman of the Centre for Strategic Studies at Bangkok University. - Subscribe to our channel: http://aje.io/AJSubscribe - Follow us on Twitter: https://twitter.com/AJEnglish - Find us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/aljazeera - Check our website: http://www.aljazeera.com/

It is not often that local elections can shake up a country's political landscape. But South Africans used this week's vote to show that they are ready for change. The ruling African National Congress suffered its worst electoral setback since the party came to power in 1994. It lost Nelson Mandela Bay, named after the revered former president, as well as the capital Pretoria. It also failed to keep its majority in Johannesburg. These local elections were seen as a referendum on President Jacob Zuma, who has been mired in several corruption scandals over the past decade. Is he to blame for this setback? And what should the party do with him now? Presenter: Jane Dutton Guests: Bongani Mbindwane - Columnist and independent analyst Richard Calland - Associate professor of public law with the University of Cape Town - Subscribe to our channel: http://aje.io/AJSubscribe - Follow us on Twitter: https://twitter.com/AJEnglish - Find us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/aljazeera - Check our website: http://www.aljazeera.com/