new head aches for users of the federal health care website. another technical glitch brings it town. >> reports that president obama knew the nsa was spying on angela merkel. and leaders head to washington to discuss the spying. >> syria plans to destroy chemical weapons with a watchdog overlooking. rock'n'roll fans remembering influential punk pioneer lou

reed. [ ♪ theme ] welcome to al jazeera america. ever since the federal health care website went on line this month it's been plagued by problems. now there's a new glitch. the data hub is down - halting online enrolment. that hub, going down sunday, verifies applicants' yoists and incomes. it's key. the problem was caused by a connectivity issue at a center operated by ver eyeson. they quote in a statement: >> well, the latest gaff is yet another head ache for health --

health and human services secretary kathleen sebelius, who is set to appear before a committee to testify. the glitches are blamed for low enrol. sam say kathleen sebelius should step down if she can't fix the problems with healthcare.gov. >> the president has been poorly served with the implementation of his own signatory regulation. if someone doesn't leave, and there isn't a restructuring, not just a 60 day, someone come in and fix it, he's mixing the point of management 101 dash that is that these people are to serve him well. and they haven't. >> misses refused to join the affordable care act, and is providing their own coverage. it's one of the sickest and poorest states in the country where one out of seven people do not have insurance. only a few dozen people signed up for the state's plan. boss stephanie boswell went to

find out why. >> milwaukee is a chef at the it italian pizzeria. he says they haven't been able to afford insurance. >> all it takes is an accident and you could be $20,000 no debt or more than that. >> miller and his wife are searching for health care. they couldn't get on the federal exchange website. in jackson, barr ber shop owner chris paige and customer terry harper have insurance, but will check out their options. >> i got the minimum level coverage so i can have something that will cover me if something were to happen. >> neither page more harper have gone on way to compare rates.

>> they say there was something wrong with why you couldn't sign up. >> mississippi is the only state that applied to run its own health care exchange and was related. it was turned down because of concerns that the shat wouldn't -- state wouldn't provide enough support. that leafs those here using the federal change. as of 21 october only 35 people had signed up. health care advocates are playing catch-up. >> a lot of the esso case groups and provider groups did a lot of work preparing for a mississippi exchange. we have been behind other states? trying to get the -- states in trying to get the word out. >> jarvis is training to be a federally funded navigator, a person who helps to deal with the marketplace. >> our focus is on enrolling so people can get health insurance and tax credits.

>> it may be easier said than done. many residents don't have internet or computers. >> mississippi is the unhealthiest estate in the nation. it has the highest premiums. mississippi only received $1 million in federal aid to publicise the plan. arkansas received 24 million. the university of mississippi got most of the money - $800,000. navigators helped almost 4,000 patient. some are magging out a state -- mapping out a state-wide effort to bring computers for the people. >> there's more funding needed. we are a state where you have to knock on doors to walk people through the process. >> chris miller may look at the health care exchanges, but will wait until the federal website is more reliable.

>> all 35 people signed up with insurance provider magnolia - a spokesperson for humanisis says that company is in a quiet period until third-quarter earnings are released next month. >> spain may be targeted by the nsa. one paper says nsa monstered many thousands of calls. it's based on information from edward snowden, following allegations that president obama approved spying on german chancellor angela merkel. the white house denies that. congressman peter king and former vice president dick chaney said the u.s. should stop apologising for the nsa surveillancism. >> overall intelligence is important and need to be preserved. >> the reality is the nsa saved thousands of lives, not just in the united states, but france

and germany and throughout europe. the french are ones to talk - the fact is they've carried out spying against the united states - both government and industry. >> jeanne shaheen of new hampshire takes a different stance, calling on the nsa to come clean about surveillance programs. >> i think the revelations from edward snowden and the secrets that have been revealed are doing significant damage to our bilateral relationships with germany, with mexico, with the other countries where the suggestion is that we've listened in. we have repair twork do. we have hard questions we need to ask of the nsa about what is happening in the program. >> meanwhile - former secretary of state all saints anglican church is weighing in on the -- mad lean albright is weighing in on the spy scandal. she says france was listening to

her calls in the late 1990s. she was at the u.n. when a french ambassador asked her about something she said during a private call with someone else. she said, "this is not a surprise, countries spy on each other." >> 60 are dead after a wave of bombings across iraq, striking shi item areas, and sold years in mosul. there were more than 10 blasts. the attacks were the latest in a surge of blasts, more than 5,000 this year. >> syria met a deadline as it works to remove chemical weapons arsenal, in line with an agreement to eliminate all weapons by mid-2014. kilmeny duchardt has more. >> syria is reportedly meeting an ambitious deadline set by the organisation for the prohibition of chemical weapons, otherwise

known as opcw, to destroy lethal stockpiles by next year. syria handed over details of poison gas and nerve agent programs on thursday, ahead of the october 27th deadline. opcw is not releasing the report, but the syrian government disclosed 23 chemical weapons' sites. the head. opcw un team said the country has been cooperative. >> we had good meetings with the syrian government at the senior levels. there's continued communication with the secretary-general and the opcw. we build on this, because we have a shared gol, which is elimination of the program, of benefit to all, particularly the syrian people. >> not all are convinced as evidences on abc's "this week." in syria the weapons are being catalogued and in there to put a stop to the program.

>> we'll see, i'm a sceptic, like a lot of other people. i know friends in the region are worried. >> syria is believed to pz 1,000 mettic tonnes of weapons, including mustard gas and sarin, which they denied for years. they deny involvement in the august 21st weapons attack that killed 1,400 people there. under threat of u.s. military action russia, an ally of the assad government brokered a deal with the united states for syria to destroy its chemical stockpiles. this process is complicated and it's not decided how or where syria's chemical weapons will be dismannedled. the next step is november 1st, when production and mixing facilities are due to be dismantled. >> the u.n. arab league envoy to syria will be in damascus to gather support for proposed peace talks.

>> we are starting out with areas of wind, snow and cold temperatures. low pressure on the satellite dropping from canada to the north-west of the wind gusts of 30 to 40 miles per hour. the winds are moving into california, where we have high-wind warnings, but you could see all the winter warnings from this storm, stretching across all the way to the dakotas, wyoming and nevada. winter storm actions to the east. warnings and advisories in the north-west. we'll watch for a lot of snow coming down around parts of western montana. it's know plus wind, meaning reduced visibility. you will not be able to see too well in the mountain passes of montana. it will be the case in nevada and the north-east.

there's high wind warnings coming down the sierra nevadas. we have a storm bringing rain to texas yesterday. it's tracking off to the east. speaking of east, let's go to europe where an area of low pressure is bringing in winds to the coastline - especially the coastline of spain, france, germany and switzerland. we'll see the potential of wind gusts in these areas up to 70 miles per hour. we are bracing - an area of low pressure, again, the cull prit and air is rushing in to fill in the area of low pressure, causing the wind. germany - earlier this month heavy, heavy snow. you want to see snow on the pumpkin - well, not all of us do. it will be a cool start to halloween, with warming coming in to the north-north-east. we'll get to 65 for dc and new

york. after a chilly start it will be a chilly end for parts of montana. >> new video surfacing showing the deadly bombing attack on egypt's interior ministry who the military says was depend the violence. >> deaths from refugees is not deterring others - they continue to put their lives on the line.

new video has surfaced showing last month's attempted assassination of egypt's interior minister. the video was posted seat showing a white suv driving up to the interior minister's home and exploding. officials confirmed a former army officer was behind the bombing. the interior minister survived. one person was killed and more than 20 injured. >> russian president vladimir putin is apparently planning a

visit to egypt in hopes of rekindling military ties and gaining access to its ports. russia is trying to take advantage of the rift between washington and cairo. the u.s. suspended military and financial aid to egypt this month. >> hundreds of migrants have been killed in shipp wrecks in the mediterranean. in many cases they were seeking refuge. the tragedy has not stopped people trying to reach those shores. >> it's voted the most beautiful beach in europe. how hard is it to forget the drama playing off a few miles offshore from lampedusa. the italian navy sent one of its biggest ships to help with the crisis. we were allowed on board and found a pathetic cargo in the hold. 318 people picked up at sea the

previous night. most of the africans are young men, men eritraens, paying smugglers thousands to flee their country. >> i come here from sudan. it is very danger. so many young persons die >> and then there are the syrians. of all ages. none of them know what will happen next. some are too young to understand where they are. they are registered straight away. the navy will take them to sicily because lampedusa is struggling with the migrants it already has. this is not just an italian problem. >> definitely not. also because the biggest part of these immigrants wish to go to germany, norway and other parts of europe where there's a more flourishing economy. this is an historical situation in which people are leaving their homeland because of the

change of the climate, because of re-examine wars. it's a massive activity. >> this is the center which the italian authorities built to house migrants on lampedusa. it's built for 250, maximum 300 people. but there's always a lot more than that here these days. at the moment there are over 700 inside. we were not given permission to enter. through the fence we speak to mohammed from damascus. how was his sea journey? >> so dangerous and crowded. the waves and the sea - it's too dangerous. >> what do you want now. what is your dream for the future? >> to complete my studies. to have respect. lampedusa was a sleepy place, known for fishermen and sun sets. but now it has a fame it never

desired, as the island which people risk everything to reach. more than 13,000 refugees have already sought asylum on lampedusa this year. that's double the population of the island. al jazeera america is looking into the increasing number of people around the world willing to risk everything for a better livment the united states is enticing to those desperate to leave the poor caribbean countries like the dommin can republic and haiti. >> one of the fastest growing communities in porto reika are people in san juan. 40% of dommin cans here don't have documents. there's an increasing amount of haitians making a crossing from

the dominical republic to peur. >> the dominican republic's northern coast has a reputation - not just for its beauty. >> here it's easy to hire a boat and captain to cross the mona passage to peur. this man has taken several boatloads of illegal migrants across the waters. >> translation: the more they drown, the more they attempt to cross. they are not afraid. a lot of people died. a lot made it. we risk ourselves because of the condition. >> the dangers of making the crossing are too real. this woman only has this faded picture of her late husband ped borrow who drowned -- pedro who drowned two years ago. his body was never found.

he told me, "i'm going peur for two or three years to buy a house for the children to give them a better future." i didn't want him to go, he tell me he had to. >> the boats never made the crossing to peur. they were confiscated and sit here, symbols of desperation. 20 people pack into a boat like this, spending thousands in the hope of a better life. for those who manage to make it safely here to peur, their journeys have begun. >> at the church here, the father offers arrivals shelter and advice. he's helped hundreds of haitians settle in miami and new york. without money or family contacts many will remain in limbo. >> translation: it's like the lottery, a chance. they look for a better life and like the lottery you play to win. you can lose.

they play with their lives. >> but despite the massive risk, people say they have nothing to lose. >> what we left behind was a dangerous world, which is why i am happy now. we are in a better world. i like that. that's why we struggle to get here from a place with no joy. we were always scared of failure. >> these men and women risk all, driven by desperation and hope. while they may not know what lies ahead, they take a gamble that it's better than what they left behind. >> for that group of hatians, they are in limbo. they spent everything to make the crossing from the dominican republic to peur. despite the dangers, they keep coming. in 2009 the u.s. coast guard

stopped 500, now it's approaching 2,000. >> a major election taking place in argentina. how the results could provide a shake-up in that country. and the death of a rock'n'roll legend, the legacy of lou reed and his impact on music.

. argentinian president cristina fernangez de kirchner and her allies have taken a beating in midterm elections. voters went to the polls sunday shrinking her party's hold on congress. party vafrts are losing -- favourites are losing ground. many see the race as a barometer to the 2015 presidential election. we have more from buenos aires. >> it looks clear now that there's no chance at all that president cristina fernangez de kirchner can reform the constitution and try to make it possible to run for a third

term. that is absolutely out. now the power struggle begins. the inner team within the coalition, the different coalitions within the dominant parties, and that is what we are seeing. at this moment the president party, the victory front is on the streets celebrate youing. the vice president a few minutes ago congratulated those that had done well and those who hadn't done so well. the ruling party is the single largest party and has not lost control of the lower house or the senate. it will be difficult for president cristina fernangez de kirchner to govern. it looks like her former chief of staff, who is her rival, who did well in the provin of the buenos aires, the size of italy and controls a lot of votes in the country, may be a presidential hopeful two years from now. that is what people are saying.

>> that was lucia newman reporting from buenos aires. >> fans around the world are mourning the death of lou reed, new york rock legend. he decide at the age of 71ment starting with the velvet underground, his gritty lyrics and hard-edged sound helped to change the sound of rock'n'roll. we have more on the life of lou reed. [ ♪ music ] >> for lou reed life was expressed through music. his band the velvet underground set the tone for rock and the punk movement in the late "60, and early '70s. for a lot of people punk music is an underground music. lou was as important as the beatles. lou reed, and other iconic musical figures called this place home. they used what they saw on the hallways of this hotel as musical inspiration. fans dropped off flowers in frost the chelsea to pay tribute

to reed, remembering what his music meant to them. >> the underground was ahead of his time. lou reed sort of was the godfather of punk rock. >> when i was in high school, i lisped to that -- listened to that music, and it was different to the country western. >> reed and the velvet underground mixed music with ard, collaborating with andy warhol. as influential as it was, their first album sold few copies. >> the classic quote is only 30,000 brought the velvet underground, but every one of those people started a rock band. so much of what lou did with the velvet underground prestaged punk and everything that became alinterpretive rock in the '80s, and "90s ♪ hey, babe... >> reed had sukas as a sol --

success as a solo artist. >> he never stopped making music or changing. he had commercial success with "transformer" with the one big solo hit, "walk on the wild side." >> reed made no secrets of his problems with drugs and alcohol. velvet underground was ipp doubted into the rock and recall hall of faim. lou reed collaborated with mettalica and toured with mettal machine trio, his new band and considered vocals to metric's 2003 album "synthetica." it will be his time with velvet underground that most fans will remember when they think of lou reed. . that will do it for that edition of al jazeera news.

"street food london" is next. thanks for watching. british town. the imperial architecture. the iconic black taxis and red phone boxes. but behind these picture-postcard images, london is the one of the most multicultural capitals in the world. vo: more than a third of londoners belong to a