Erstellt am: 17. 12. 2014 - 15:06 Uhr

Pakistan's spiral of deadly violence

Reality Check: Peshawar school attack, Greece presidential election, Jeb Bush to run for president, crash of the rouble, Sony hackers' threat

For the last two days, our focus has been on the Sydney cafe attack. It was shocking, it was terrible, but it pales almost into insignificance against the Pakistan Taliban's deadliest ever attack which took place yesterday in Peshawar.

EPA/REHAN KHAN

Schoolchildren protest on the streets as Pakistan mourns after the Taliban's worst ever attack

132 children and 9 teachers were killed in the attack on a school for the children of military personnel. Even the Afghan Taliban were appalled - and it takes a lot to shock them.

There are few people who know more about the different Taliban groups than Professor Shaun Gregory. He is a consultant to NATO, the United Nations, the EU and numerous governments and NGOs on matters of security in Pakistan and the region - so he is a good person to ask about the motives behind such an attack and the long term impact it might have.

Sadly, he says that as with so many brutal attack before, people will talk about this being a game changer, or a turning point, but despite all the outrage, nothing is likely to change for the better in the long run.

Greek gamble?

Talking of change, Greece seems to be preparing for another political drama as the parliament starts the process to choose a new president today.

There's only one candidate, but for some peculiarly Greek reason, it's not certain that he will win. If he doesn't get the support of two thirds of the parliament by December 29th, snap elections will be called.

EPA/PANTELIS SAITAS

Samaras thinks his chances now are as good as they will get

This is where the gamble comes in. While the government of Antonis Samaras has been battling to deal with the economic crisis under crippling austerity measures, the radical left wing party, Syriza, has been gaining strength. It's now estimated to have the support of around 40% of voters, and elections early in 2015 could be make or break for the party.

Samaras will be hoping to hold on through a new election to give him more time for the economy to recover. If Syriza were to win, they are promising to re-negotiate the EU bailout. That could be make or break for the country.

Analyst, Emmanuel Sigalas, however believes that Syriza is making election promises that would probably not amount to any substantial change, even if they win.

Also in the programme:

A third Bush for president of the USA?

Jeb Bush, son of George H.W. and brother of George W. is exploring a bid for the presidency in 2016. Our Washington DC correspondent, Priscilla Huff, looks at reactions to the announcement.

The fall and fall of the Russian rouble

Despite a massive interest rate hike, the rouble continues to fall, leading to fears that the Russian economy could collapse completely.

Sony hackers threaten US cinemas

The hackers who stole massive amounts of data and e-mails from Sony Pictures, are now threatening terror attacks on cinemas scheduled to show Sony's latest release, "The Interview" - a comedy about the assassination of the president of North Korea. Riem Higazi reports.

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