>> welcome to al jazeera america. i'm richelle carey. here are the stories we're following for you. several u.s. soldiers are wounded in south sudan as they attempt to rescue americans. delicate operation in space as astronauts try to make critical repairs on the international space station. and cumber memorial of those killed in an act of terrorism 25 years ago. >> the violence in south sudan continues to escalate. two u.n. peace keep percent killed yesterday, and today four

u.s. service members were shot while trying t to evacuate evacn mission. all four are in stable condition. we have more from the capitol city of juba. >> reporter: people say this is why the u.s. plane was shot at. bor is controlled by the rebels. they say when they saw the aircraft coming they didn't know they were coming to evacuate people. thinking it was the enemy they started shooting at it. the plane had to turn around and go back to uganda. there was panne pandemonium on e ground. the problem is those who were meant to be evacuated haven't been evacuated and they're worried about what is going to happen to them.

foreign ministers have met and said give them one week to meet. no one knows where machar is, but he said the only way he's going to talk is for the president so resign. the president has refused to do this. people are worried about the situation on the ground. and the general of the army has joined the rebellion and will work to overthrow the government. people are concerned about what is going to happen next. in south sudan. >> secretary of state john kerry has sent an envoy to join the talks to avert a full blown civil war in south sudan. the united nations are leading the effort to resolve the crisis peacefully.

>> it's a policy crisis. but as i said, you have the policy crisis and then the powder keg which is the technique question. so it could lead to a political civil war if we don't solve very quickly the political crisis through dialogue. >> a peacekeeping soldier was among those killed. tens of thousands are disdisplaced as fighting conditions through christian and muslim rebels. 1,000 people have been killed this month. president obama is home for the holidays. he and the first family have touched down in hawai'i. today in his weekly address the president said he's looking

forward to 2014. and a spirit of bipartisanship before leaving washington mr. obama held a conference about its sessions and failures all through 2013. mike viqueira gives us a recap. >> reporter: with calls of reform coming from courts and some of his own advisers president obama defended the nsa collection of millions of phone records but today he left the program open to changes. >> it may be outweighed by the concerns that people have on its potential abuse. if that's the case there may be another way of skinning the cat. >> reporter: it asked directly if a plea deal could be struck with erik snowden, mr. obama chose his words careful. >> i its important to keep in mind that this has done unnecessary damage to u.s. intelligence capabilities and

u.s. diplomacy. >> reporter: on iran, the president came out against the push for new sanctions leading democrats deified the white house joining some congressional republicans in a call to tighten the screws. mr. obama insists on giving his deal with iran a chance. >> in light of all that, i have said there is no need for new sanction legislation. not yet. >> reporter: the session with reporters was an effort to end 2013 on a positive note. by some measures it's been a rough year for the president. his approval rating sinking to a low of 30% before rebounding slightly. to blame the nsa controversy, and the botched healthcare roll out which mr. obama admitted blame. >> since i'm in charge, we screwed it up. >> reporter: his hope for agenda and chided reporters who were writing him off. >> i think this room recorded at

least 15 near-death experiences. >> reporter: at the top, immigration reform. after g.o.p. leaders ignored their tea party wing on the newly passed budget the president sees hope on the new deal in the coming year. >> hopefully folks have learned their lesson were brinksmanship. >> this was probably the president's last appearance this year. therfor the first time there aro fights to keep him in washington, and he boarded the plane for hawai'i. >> the president remains optimistic about the year ahead. the economy is doing better than it has in years. today marks a somber anniversary. >> the imagement lockerbie

bombing stands out in modern terror attacks still 25 years later. for families what lingers is the pain. dr. jim swire lost his daughter at lockerbie just a day before her 23rd birthday. >> from then on and remained so for 25 years since then. there is no undoing what already happened. nothing can undo that terrible evil. >> reporter: but for some questions over who committed that terrible evil remain. the own man convicted served eight years in the scottish prison before his controversial 2009 release on compassionate grounds after being diagnosed with terminal cancer. he died in 2012. the american government blamed the libyan leader muammar

qaddafi. lack of real punitive action. >> i think many are crashing one's head and thinking, creeky, did this plane really get taken out and demand very little response by the british and american government? >> reporter: it wasn't unti until 2011, and many criticized the detants with muammar qaddafi in last years. since the fall of qaddafi hopes were that more would come out. and scottish authorities do intend to reopen the case. those who feel that justice went unserved is contentious.

but for dr. swire who believe that washington and london know more than they're telling. >> my search for the truth over my daughter's murder may have made life less easy than it could otherwise have been for those who believe that they already know that truth. we have to be kindly to the community of those who suffer still as a result of the monstrosity. >> reporter: with many in america and britain looking at the years following the attack and reflecting the victims of the atrocity mourn today. and how it brought the world to where it is today 25 years later. phil ittner, al jazeera, london. >> good afternoon. well, it's the first official day of winter, and we have a

severe weather outbreak imminent throughout portions of texas, all the way through tennessee and west virginia. you're looking at the amount of moisture in the atmosphere right now. there is a ton of moisture pushing into texas. and all also to have to deal with the chance for damaging winds and isolated tornadoes during the day. an ice storm pushing through oklahoma, tulsa, i-44. very cold air in place. very warm air in place. look at the temperatures difference from dallas to use on it. we have a lot of instability in the atmosphere and the temperatures differences is what will fuel the tornado outbreak throughout eastern portions of texas, louisiana and arkansas tonight. now tonight we do have a tornado watch extending through

louisiana. when you see cells like this popping up, that's when we have a chance to see tornadoes pushing through the area. we'll continue to monitor the radar as we track on later throughout the day. we'll see a severe outbreak into louisiana, portions of mississippi this afternoon and this evening. tornado watch in effect across eastern portions of louisiana right now and that goes until 6:00 tonight. we'll see threats of damaging winds little rock, memphis and all the way through portions of west virginia. as i said there is a ton of moisture in the atmosphere and these storms will continue to push to the east this afternoon and this evening. back to you, richelle. >> we'll keep you posted. u.n. general secretary ban

ki-moon visited the philippines and promised to raise $800 million for their recovery. that storm killed 6,000 people and 2,000 people are still missing. no. san francisco there is word that bay area rapid transit officials bart and labor unions have reach a deal after eight months of discussion. they wanted to add an additional paid medical leave for employees. employees will now have paid leave flexibility in the event of a family death. a big job is underway for nasa astronauts right now. they're conducting a spacewalk trying to repair a damaged coolant pump. this is a tricky mission but i know you can explain it. >> reporter: this incident happened shortly after the space station experienced a cooling

system failure this past wednesday. the spacewalk started at 7:00 a.m. eastern and is expected to last for six and a half hours. you're looking at live video feed. this is live pictures which is why the picture is breaking you up of the repair, the spacewalk and we'll cut in to the mission control as well. two nasa astronauts with three spacewalks, this being the first. they're trying to fix a giant pump with a faulty valve. the broken cooling pump is about the size of a refrigerator. let's listen in on the spacewalk from earlier this morning. >> the sharp edge of the circular hand rail. >> i see the wire tie. i see it, okay, copy. >> reporter: you're hearing the voices of nasa restaurants

astronauts. they're trying to find the cause of the failure whether it's a hardware or software issue. this may be the reason, the valve malfunction happened last week and cut the station's cooling capability in half resulting in a complete shutdo shutdown. nasa has said this would not pose a danger to the crew but it is critical to get it fixed. the nasa astronauts are fitted four the first time with snorkels in their helmets to keep them from drowning. the three part repair will continue monday and wednesday of next week. >> all right, the snorkels, that is an interesting tidbit. coming up on al jazeera america, a victory for elderly caregivers who are routinely not paid very well. we'll tell you why it could mean better care for aging relatives.

>> target ceo is trying to win back customers after a security breach compromised the debit and credit card of shoppers. this weekend they're giving a 10% discount on purchases and will provide free credit monitoring services for anyone who shopped in the store from november 27th to december 15th when the breach occurred. diplomat at the center of a diplomatic dispute between u.s. and india. protesters gathered outside of the indian consulate in new york with signs reading justice for over worked. and san francisco caregivers who help elderly patients are

fighting back. they make little for very long hours. >> is that still okay? >> 88-year-old jenny anderson gets through her day with the help of a caregiver. >> i look forward to somebody coming to say good morning and how are you. >> reporter: she makes sure that anderson takes her medicine, gets a cup of coffee and has someone to pass the time with. she earns above minimum wage for her work here. but this week in san francisco, a rally was held because some workers are grossly underpaid by their works and some are part of a substantial settlement recovering lost wages. the san francisco is city

attorney went after companies for wage theft. some were forced to work long hours without pay. >> 60, 70 hours. there are days and nights that i literally had no sleep. >> reporter: a standards officer substantiating reports of abuse. >> the home workers, it takes a lot of bravery for them to come forward and file a claim. these are not only their place of employment, but it's also where they're living. >> reporter: with baby boomers aging there will soon be a greater demand than ever before for caregivers, and new state and national laws aimed to insure they will be paid fairly. >> this fall the labor department announced rule changes that extend minimum wage and overtime protections to domestic workers.

california offered bills that give sim protection. and they will discuss ways to revoke a license if a facility is not complying with fair labor standard. this company is following the rules. he points out that overworked, underpaid caregivers is dangerous. >> that's what the families entrust us with, safe protection of their loved one, and we want our caregivers with their a-ga a-game. >> reporter: and a well-rested care give who are is fairly paid. >> since the recession the u.s. has been struggling with high unemployment. south korea is helping entries

grow. >> what type of water would you like with your meal. in a south korean restaurant i t may be common to see staff with a job. >> selecting the appropriate water that will enhance the taste of the dishes. >> under a government plan to increase employment figures, some jobs that work instead of part time like a water severer will be legitimatized with jobs. >> reporter: this plan looks to increase the number of people in legitimate numbers overnight simply to make the numbers look healthier. the government hopes by widening the scope of jobs available it will encourage industries to grow. >> by adding 100 jobs to the list each year they hope to

increase the unemployment rate from 64% to 70%. there will be new facilities such as one to teach nail art as known in south korea. >> at the moment there isn't a national license as nail artist here in korea, but now the government will recognize it as a proper job, and which also heard there will be a national license for nail artists. >> it's hoped that the new jobs plan will diversify the potential markets. >> we have to experiment that kind of new market creating, and new potential creating jobs and industry in other areas. >> if they do, those who special in pouring water in a restaurant may be given the respect they they'll they always deserved.

>> just ahead the robots are here. >> reporter: i'm jacob ward live in miami. i'll be showing the you future of robotics that could save your life some day. we'll have that in a moment. the stream is uniquely interactive television. we depend on you, >> you are one of the voices of this show. >> so join the conversation and make it your own. >> the stream. next on al jazeera america and join the conversation online @ajamstream. tñ

>> welcome back to al jazeera america. i'm richelle carey. let's take a look at today's headlines. south sudan appears to be on the verge of a full blown civil war. today four u.s. service members were shot down during a mission to evacuate american citizens from the region. the pentagon said the four are in stable condition. president obama is now in hawai'i where he'll spend the next 17 days. today in his weekly address the president said he's looking forward to 2014 and a spirit of bipartisanship.

nasa astronauts are working on a damaged coolant pump. this is day one of the effort that will take three days to finish. thanks to screen fiction movies we're used to seeing robots doing truly amazing, unrealistic things. but these robots are not digital models from the transformer movie, but some day they may save your life. robot challenge, jacob ward is there from miami speedway to tell us how the competition is going. you say so far there is one robot that is clearly ahead of everybody else. tell us about that. >> reporter: that's right, richelle, the name to know is shaft. the shaft robot company is a recent google acquisition that came out of the university of tokyo. what sets it apart is it's

ability to do so many tasks. the nature of this challenge is that there are eight different tasks one has to accomplish, climbing ladders, cutting one's way through a wall, even driving a trunk, and whereas other robots that have been falling over and falling apart doing one or two of those tasks, the japanese creation from shaft has been doing amazing. >> google is involved in this as well. tell bus that. >> that's right, that's right, basically the defense department puts up the money that jump starts this competition. they invest as many as $3 million into each of the top eight teams coming into this, and then those eight teams try to hang on to that with a bunch of challengers, hanging on with $1 million in additional funding. the defense department is here

to jump start robotics as they jump started the self-driving car. which led to google's self-driving car. google acquired eight different robotics companies, and one of them is shaft, the leader here. they acquired boston dynamics that is up credibly well-known and forms the basis of the competition here. i think it has to do with coming had of an injury that is just starting. some people believe that robotics could be the next internet and google is trying to get a foot hold right now. >> i'm not the only person who has shaft music going through their head. everything that you're seeing there how far away are we from this technology being able to actually help them to save lives

and from national disasters. >> reporter: just how useful a robot could be for a spacewalk like the one taking part today. we're a long way away. this is like toddlers. it takes them as long as a half hour to walk up and turning a valve or mount a ladder. some of these guys are not even able to do it in a half hour. that said, a year from now when these trials continue it will be a much shorter time limit. in five minutes which means they're doing it in realtime, almost. they'll have the availability to have elder care, manufacturing, a whole wide range of uses. >> changing people's lives, quite frankly an shaft is the robot to watch, a fantastic

repotter, and we look forward to more reporting. thank you for watching al jazeera. richelle carey.