Erstellt am: 20. 9. 2013 - 13:59 Uhr

"Stalemate" in Syria

Reality Check: neither side can win in Syria, German elections, Russia seizes Greenpeace ship, Gaddafi's son on trial, the tyranny of choice

Syria's deputy prime minister says neither side has the power to win the civil war, and says the government would back a ceasefire. His words come ahead of planned peace talks in Geneva. Analyst Shashank Joshi discusses the reliability of his statement, and the chances that the opposition would be willing to sign up to a ceasefire deal.

German elections

Germany goes to the polls on Sunday in a vote that looks likely to return Angela Merkel's CDU to the driving seat, although almost certainly needing a coalition to make a government. Our Berlin correspondent, Peter Fritz, reports on the mood in the country ahead of the general election.

Russia seizes Greenpeace ship

Will Rose / Greenpeace

Russian security officers have stormed the Greenpeace ship, Arctic Sunrise, in the Barents Sea after Greenpeace activists tried to board a Russian oil platform to prevent it from drilling. Chris Cummins talks to a member of Greenpeace who was on the phone to the ship at the time.

Gaddafi's son on trial

Saif al-Islam was due to appear in court in Tripoli yesterday, but the tribe holding him in the town of Zintan did not release him. Instead he appeared in a Zintan court on separate charges. Magda Mughrabi of Amnesty International explains the concerns that he will not face a proper trial in Libya and should be tried in the International Criminal Court.

The tyranny of choice

Why the huge number of choices we face in everyday life may not be a good thing. Philosopher, sociologist and legal theorist Renata Salecl was in Vienna to talk about last night as part of a series of lectures entitled Democracy Reloaded at Vienna's Kreisky Forum. She spoke to Riem Higazi about the her theory of how choice affects our lives.

FM4 Reality Check

Monday to Friday from 12.00 to 14.00, and after the show via Podcast or fm4.orf.at/realitycheck.