♪ ♪ >> welcome to al jazeera america i'm rochelle carey. >> a first step in the agreement with iran. not everyone is happy. >> this gree group has agreemene the world a much safer place. >> and headed to the polls to elect a new president one of south america's most dangerous countries. zplrchghts ♪ ♪

>> secretary thsecretary of stay has made a agreement with iran. president obama hailed the deal as a victory for diplomacy. >> today that diplomacy opened up a new path toward a world that is more secure. a future in which we can verify that iran's nuclear program is peaceful and it cannot build a nuclear weapon. let's bring in white house corse upocorrespondent mike viqueira. so, mike, this is a six month deal. what are the leaders hoping to get out of this. >> to prevent iran from investigate developing a nuclea. and during the six months during the negotiations that are going to follow towards this goal. the permanent five members of the united nations plus germany

have struck this deal with iran to sharply curtail their nuclear capability. in the meantime as they try to negotiate this deal. this is the compromise. what the deal will do is halt the iranian enrichment. they have pledged to halt their enrichment above a 5% threshold. above that you have weapons-grade your rai uranium t can be quickly converted into new colounuclear wemtion. weapons there will be no additional sentr sens centrifug. many say it's not deal unless the sent feujs ar centrifuges a. >> there is a place called iraq which is using heavy water that could be conceivably converted

into plutonium. another nuclear weapon deal. john kerry and all down the line call this is a first step. the inspectors will be in the country on a daily basis on invieinstrusive inspections rche here is john kerry today. >> we do this with our eyes wide open. you don't do this on somebody's states tstatestatements you t t. we have kept the base sick basic architecture of sachk sanctionsn place. and over the next couple of months we'll be able to put to test what ey rans iran's sancti.

>> they are bringing iran to the table to begin with. the concern with the critics is at the end of the six months the international coalition that did take a bite out of iran's economy by imposing these sanctions is not going to want to go back and reinforce them and iran is going to get way with something. >> and the most vocal critic is benjamin netanyahu. he says it's bad deal. we'll take a listen to that report and pick it up on the other side. >> there was no celebration in israel's corridors of power. a grim faced prime minister addressing his cabinet and condemning the deal in the strongest of the terms. >> what was reached last night in geneva is not a historic agreement, it's a historic mistake. >> today the world became a much more dangerous place because the

most dangerous regeall i regimee broarlword made a significant s. the deal was reached in the early hours of the morning. negoitators insisted it offered the promise of peace not threat. >> it will make our partners in the region safer. >> iit will make our ally israel safer. >> it is important that we all of us see the opportunity to end an unnecessary crisis and open new horizons based on respect for the rights of the iranian people, and removal of any doubts about the exclusively peaceful nature of iran's nuclear program. >> all parties in geneva insist this deal is just a first step in a process intended to build

trust. it's a phase that will last for singsix months. after then the question of sanctions will once again be reviewed. but the mood in israel, that is six months too long. mike hanna al jazeera west jeruselem. >> all right, mike, when you listen to this, it's clear, i guess you could say, that the united states would say that it does have the same goal as it's ally israel. it doesn't seem that way and clearly they do not agree on the way to get there. how significant is the divide, the gap between the two and what does it mean? >> well know one needs to be reminded that the political cross currents 234 the middle ie east are comel complicated a treacherous. and when yo what the united stas led here and bringing the parties to the table in again into havgeneva.israel is one ths

of the united states. there will be tremendous pressure i here in america. and in opposition t to this deal there is no question about it. you are right, the administration in the immediate hours now in the face of this criticism which is not really all that new. prime minister netanyahu has been outspoken as this deal has taken shape over the course of the last month. many administration sources from the priz president on down are g that there is no difference or no daylight between us. what we are trying to accomplish in the end is to rid iran of the capability of pre producing a nuclear weapon, rochell. >> this has been going on for weeks behind the scenes. this is how these things often happen. what more do you know about that. >> it's an interesting story. the problem here is nobody

trusts iran neither at capitol hill or in the middle east. the associated press had a great piece of reporting over the last 24 hours, outlined secret negotiations that were underway between the american administration at the direction of president obama beginning last march to reach out to the eye rairanians through the counf oman and the capital muscat. and particularly accelerating over the last three months as the new iranian president made overtures toward the united states. we talk about the opposition on capitol hill and bob corker is the top republican on the senate foreign relations knee. knee -- committee. here is his response this morning. >> i think we'll agree. we'll see a bipartisan effort to

make sure that this is no not te final agreement. people know that this administration is strong on announcements and long on announcements and short on follow through. >> the president has to focus on rear guard action and try to keep these new sanctions both republicans and democrats are talking about imposing on iran. mike viqueira from the white house thank you very much. >> some iranians had hoped for greater sanction relief. >> the reaction from iran is probably a little bit different to what many people expected. most iranians are unhappy about this deal in terms of the contents of the sanctions. it's just the first proposed step. the united states and the powers involved in the negotiations will offer according to the

agreement somewhere around $7 billion in frozen iranian assets. if you consider that iran has 100 bhe100 billion dollars and t this is a small change according to iranians. but the president is happy and the iranian government seems quite pleased and even the supreme leader has given his approval not only to the negotiations but to the final deal. the final word is what the supreme leader says and that may go a long way appeasing hard-liners that are negotiating with the 5 plus 1 powers. it's the first step of the deal and we'll see what will finally it will become. >> joining me is jim walsh who is an expert on international security. always good to talk to you especially at times like this.

we appreciate it. whether or not it's a great deal tedepends on who you ask. there are critics that say this does not go far enough to gair guarantee without certainty that iran can never develop nuclear weapons. is that a realistic goal to have and is that accurate. >> as long as iran's enrichment program is restricted to 3 to 5%. you can't make uranium with 3 to 5%. and the alternative which is to insist on 0 enrichment is everyone recognizes is a poison pill. there is no way that iran is going to dismantle after 10 10 years the 18 or 19,000 sens 19 0 centrifuges it's built. they agreed not to make anymore and take care of what they

produced. and they agreed to unprecedented levels of inspection. ththe international atomic ageny is going to be able to visit those sites everyday. >> i don't know any place in the world that operates under that level of invie instrusiveness. and there is no way iran is going to give everything up and meanwhile the p 5 plus one hold onto the sanctions, right. >> each side has to do something reciprocally building trust. >> so there has to be another set of talks down the road. >> absolutely. it's the first phase and it's really important. it's the first phase to bide them sometime. >> jim, what does this mean possibly for other relationships in the region. i think it is going to help. >> i know the racun party in israel is unhappy right now.

the middle east is in turmoil. in egypt and syria and elsewhere and in some ways having some positive relationships with iran could help with these problems. take the syrian civil war. syria backs is a sa assad and wk the u.s. and iran want to see a stable ey iraq and they want toe a stable afghanistan as they are withdrawing. on a number of topics we don't agree on everything. we have common interests and now we are talking we can produce a stable out come in that very, very troubled region. >> if this proves to be successful this could be a key building block to something else. >> yes. >> jim walsh thank you for yourr insight we pribat british great. british -- appreciate it.

the government well comed th wee news. rebels have seized one of syria's large over the oil field. control of the field means control of syria's usable reserves. >> karzai says he will not sign a security deal allowing the u.s. troops to stay in the country after 2014. this comes after days of debate in afghanistan. the tribal elders announced they are backing the deal. jane ferguson has more. scandal and argument continue to surround afghanistan's decision makers. >> a gathering of representatives in the capital is expected to decide on sunday if it will approve a security agreement with the u.s. of president hamid ca karzai is sticking to his position. he won't sign the agreement until after presidential elections next year.

>> karzai doesn't have the right to say these words. i'm saying this is a big mistake owe iowe owee he is making whatd they want we have accepted. he still wants to delay the agreement. this is in the detriment of afghanistan. >> in the busy market people are concerned about what will happen if the agreement is not signed. >> pakistani is our enemy and now we make america our enemy too. how do we make our living here. we need a stable future. some believe karzai needs to leave a legacy. he doesn't want to be remembered as a person that was inti intimd by foreigners. but some say the country should come first. karzai should do a hi historic

thing for his country. where afghanistan's borders are stronger. he should sign it. we are ready to sacrifice. he too should sacrifice himself. owe should thinhe should think e country university students beat an effigy of president barack obama and sent a clear message to their own president. >> we don't want the presence of any american forcers or their automaticallallies on our land. we recognize whoever signs this agreement is a national traitor. >> the coming days will surely bring more news of diplomatic argument and debate to these people. they must wait to hear what decisions are being made on their m behalf. decisions that could change the future of their country jane

ferguson, al jazeera, kabul, afghanistan. >> still ahead on al jazeera america. in violence ravaged hon durr ho. >> and a storm drops rain and snow across the mid west. we track the system as ha it mos east. this show. >> i think you've offended everyone with that kathy. >> hold on, there's some room to offend people, i'm here. >> we have a right to know what's in our food and monsanto do not have the right to hide it from us. >> so join the conversation and make it your own. >> watch the stream. >> and join the conversation online @ajamstream.

>> in a nation consumed by

violence voters are spending at thatheday in polling stations as honduras. al jazeera adam is in the honduran capital city. he joins us right now. >> adam, honduras has seen a dramatic rise in humanitarian rights violations and organized crime as well. the honduran people are ready to elect someone that has a quite a bit to deal with the moment they take office. do they have faith in this process? there is so much on the line. >> well the process is taking place in a way that it's very typical of a democracy around the world and in the united states and europe and asia. we have voters lined up in polll pollinninginpolling stations li.

we havit's taking place againste back drop of a country that is dealing with a lot of problems. we are dealing with a country with the highest murder rate in the world. and we are dealing with a country where impunity is much more common than justice. more than 50% of the people live in poverty and extreme poverty. it's a country that people are fleeing enmass. we have people trying to get from honduras to mexico and to the u.s. since the down w coup we have sa number of people applying. we have seen the number increase ten fold since the coup. >> this is a country with a lot of problems. >> the process is a typical depp democratic vote and it's taking place in a cub wher country whey have a very little faith and a institution to make their lives better. >> adam having said all of that,

what is the turn out and the atmosphere and mood like at the polls stations today? >> well so far we have seen a pretty healthy turn out here. some estimate it may be a record turn out across the country. we have been at political rallies th in the past week or o where there is energy and people are excited about the vote. we are talking about sometimes people are paid to go to the rallies. it's tough to know if this is a popular movement or this party is orchestraing these moments for the cameras. >> there ithis is the most contd election since the coup. a lot of people sat out. and there is a lot of skepticism in the process. people have come out and they have the hope that some day they'll have better function and democracy.

they already have concerns that the people that count this vote may not do it in a transparent way. sufneit's not known when the res will be made public. >> adam, thank you so much. >> thousands of ukrainians took to the street on sunday to protest the government decision to scrap a trade treaty with the european union. kiev unexpectedly pulled back from the deal last week. some say ukraine buckled under pressure from moscow. they want the ukraine to join a custom led union. and threatened them if they went ahead with the deal. >> and in thailand thousands rallied at the capital calling for the prime minister to be removed from office. 100,000 people are expected in a day long protest the prime minister's government is being controlled by her older brother who was ousted in 2006. >> just in time for the busy over the travel week of the

year. a storm is tracking across the country. it's been blamed for eight deaths and dropping snow and rain on the southwest. ♪ >> well this is a look at oklahoma city right now. visibility has been diminished to less than two miles. there is i 40. hard to make out what you are seeing here. this is the roadway and cars are trying to get around i-40. a treacherous day for travel. i would like to express if you don't need to be out on the roadways please stay home. why is this occurring? we have a system that produced rain through phoenix and into portions of new mexico and it turned into freezing rain yesterday. and folks traveling around i-40 are and around the oklahoma city area will be dealing with it all day. we have a winter storm warning

in effect through texas and the amarillo area. if you are traveling the temperatures are below freezing. that is the story from oklahoma city and to lubbock and into ald black ice and freezing rain across much of the road. please use pr precaution there. it's quiet in the mid west and in the east we have lake effect snow showers on i-90 and if you are traveling around buffalo, you want to use precautions around there and the snow is tapering off. the cooler dryer air makes it's way in it' it's chilly out ther. cleveland at 21 and philadelphia is 27.

28 miles-per-hour winds in new york city to accompany the cold and that explains why all of us are really trying to stay warm across the studio and across new york here today. richelle back to you. >> up next on al jazeera america. a neighborhood not only saving bun money but working to save te planet. that open your world... >> this is what we do... >> america tonight weeknights 9et / 6pt only on al jazeera america

>> an important first step, that is what president obama is calling the deal to limit iran's nuclear capabilities. the deal was reach the late last night in geneva. >> afghanistan president ca kari says he will not sign the agreement until after the election next year. >> how many times have you seen a barrage of electric cars? for one neighborhood in texas it's not that uncommon. we'll tell you more about one of the most efficient energy grids

in the world. >> this does not look like a revolutionary neighborhood. but the pecan street project is going to change the way we live. they are the changes that denis is acutely aware of. >> half of our energy costs have been covered by the solar panels. >> like i tell people it's not about saving money it's about saving the planet. we like the fact that we are less of a burden on the infrastructure of the world than we used to be. >> but pecan street is about more than cheaper utility bills. >> it's a living laboratory where information from each and everyone of these homes is gathered in minute detail. it has the potential to change the way we use energy. they call it big data and here terra bytes are processed to see how residents use and abuse energy.

it makes it a smart grid but without willing ti participants it's a little more than an exercise. >> if you are going to have a revolution i might want to invite the people. if we are going to change the way that energy is used and viewed in this country we'll have to make it enjoyable for the people. >> pecan street has found plenty of volunteers and it's expanding. but for some the change can't come soon enough. >> sometimes you are accused of being the tree hugger. and you are like, well it's nice to have a tree to hug. go ahead and join us. but it's frustrating that you have to buck the system to do the right thing. >> for now pecan street is a experiment a large scaled is on how things could look like in years to come. but those involved in the project if i recalll if i firmle

looking at the future. >> thank you for watching al jazeera america. "the stream" is next. you can get the news at al jazeera.com. american dream. >> from mcmansion to tiny houses is a growing movement here in the u.s. where people are trading in big to live small. one, the tiny house movement has hundreds of members, and one community said it's a very charmer cot