hello and welcome to al jazerra america, i am jonathan betz live in new york. >> reinforcements take position in south sudan to help end the fighting as prem promises to try again to press rescue trapped americans. the political split in ukraine now spilling over to religion as the heaved the orthodox church there takes sides with the president and his tie to his russia. mourners gather in the u.s. and scotland to remember the victims of the pan am bombing 25 year old ago today. ♪ ♪

the president says the u.s. will try again to rescue americans in south sudan. gunfire stopped an earlier mission today. the three u.s. aircraft were about to land in the site of some of the country's worst violence in the past week. four american soldiers were shot. they are now in stable position but just yesterday gunfire downed a u.n. helicopter in the same area. and just two years ago, south sudan became its own country, but it's now ravages by political and he had tick ethnis between tribes. the president says the unrest was started by the former vice president who belongs to a rival tribe. so far hundreds have been killed and there is fear of a civil war in the worlds' newest country. with more, a report from south

sudan's capital. >> reporter: a memorial service for the united nations peacekeepers killed in south sudan. they died trying carry out their mandate to protect civilians, but in the end were unable to protection themselves. for their colleagues, it's an emotional farewell. they were with around 90 other people inside a small u.n. base when they were hopefully out numbed by 2,000 armed youth. several civilians were also killed in the attack. >> we need to review where our bases are really vulnerable and we can face this overwhelming numbers in terms it have attackers, we are in need of considering how to protect better ourselves as well as our civilians. >> regional foreign minters have met with the president the whereabouts of his former deputy are not known. he's the man accused of planning a coupe. >> we are trying to reach out and we have a deadline now to

make that connection within one week and, you know, proceed with the dialogue. and the way out is political solution. and dialogue with them. >> reporter: some say this latest wave of violence is a fight for power. >> unless it is contained now, as a political struggle, the danger of it moving in to a tribal and sectarian struggle is very high. and all political leaders in the sudan have stream responsibility to make sure it doesn't degenerate in to tribal or sectarian conflict f it does, nobody yet mast ore how to resolve such conflict. >> reporter: an army commander has joined the rebellion to overthrow the government. there is still fighting in states. government officials are telling people that they have the situation under control. this part of town is usually very busy but shops are closed and some people have left the area. people say they generally are quite nervous because they

haven't sure what and going to happen next. until both sides agree to peace talks many fear the situation could very quickly spiral out of control. al jazerra. president obama is now on holiday vacation with his family in hawaii but the white house says he is closely watching the violence in south sudan in a statement earlier today, saying the country's leaders have a responsibility to help protect americans. despite today's attack, the white house how sad to continue to evacuate americans. >> peter is one of 4,000 sudanese lost americans who came to the united states in 2001. at the time they were fleeing another bloody conflict. he's now part of a think tank and joins us live from england. party, thanks for being with us today. you were just there, and i think within the past week, talk about what you saw, what were you the vac situation efforts like?

>> i was there until yesterday, i just arrived in cambridge this morning. the evacuation has started he since the airport started operations on wednesday. started with the americans lifting out their people and all of the other e embassies followd suit. just as i was leaving the world bank and imf were taking out their staff and pretty much everyone else is taking out their people, uganda has sent in armed force to his help evacuate ugandans there too. and [inaudible] is also falling suit. >> i know you have a lot of connections there, spent a lot of time in south sudan. talk about what people are saying, what is the feeling, how concerned and how scared are people at this moment? >> people are extremely scared because the memories of the last civil war are still fresh in people's minds. and as much as we talk about the last civil war as being between the north and south. there was a deep element of

ethnic fighting especially between the dinka, when they left for the first time in 1991, so those fears are there, a lot of rumors are flying around that people are being killed ethnically based killing in one part of the country that is also causing reactions in other parts of the country. all these resumers and allegations and panic is all over the country. and people -- >> and why do you think we are seeing this panic and these resumers and this violence do you feel like this was, frankly, inevitable? >> i think it was bound to happen. it was bounds to happen for a number of reasons. first of all if you look historically since the war started the splm was really never developed much. it was the spla. the military unit that they focused on because the war was a military war and the structures were never developed that well. coming on to 2005 when we had of death of the john graham, so he was in there for the first time and he had to exert himself in

power and through that process, the structure is falling behind. the same thing come to 2008, when the convention of the splm happened. that was the first time actually the splm net met and they didn't meet until last year. so the structures were never there. the structures of the spl were never really developed. resources fueled the whole issue and the democratic space within the splm also didn't happen. and the army was triballized as during the last six years, it was integration of militias after militias, so all of these made the situation more tense and the lack of democratic space also kind of made this inevitable. >> and flamed a lot of tension this is without question. i also want to talk about your time as a lost boy, peter. do you see a lot of the similarities now from what you saw back then? do you feel like the h ethnic violence is very similar? >> well, we are hoping that it will not reach that level yet, because the level that we experience in the 1990s, was

of a different scale. now there is a lot of worry, a lot of worries that this thing could return in a similar direction and could even possibly be worse because it's us now fighting ourselves. but we are hoping that the situation can be resolved sooner. the president is willing to sit down and have dialogue with the group. and we are hoping that they will also show the same willingness to talk so that this situation is end so that we do not have another round of lost boys. >> and, peter real quickly since we are running out of times. i want to get your thought on how this country moves forward since you spent so much time studying the country and regis. what is is it that the president needs to do now and what do you think it's likely that he will do? >> i am hoping the president will sit down with his rivals and discuss all way forward. in the my opinion this was a political issue and needs to be addressed politically through peace negotiations. i don't think a quick military victory is possible in either

case. he can't possibly capture them and overthrow them. it shouldn't be allowed to do that. and the same things they cannot do it sooner, that would be a drug on the civil war that would take longer and longer and cause more lives, so sitting down and resolving the issues, releasing political prisoners are things that they need to. >> on fears of yet another civil what are in sudan. party a former sudanese lost boy now in cambridge, england, thank you for your time today. >> thank you. moving to the ukraine, the political split is dividing the country's main faith. while the church's pat recipients action supported aligning with europe. others are joining pro russia rails. jennifer glass has more on the connections from kiev. >> reporter: from the east and south supporters came to the capital to pray for solidarity with russia.

>> western culture is not orthodox, so-called euro standards are not acceptable for us. >> nobody will win against us because god is with us. we are a united people blessed by god. >> reporter: they say the orthodox which are is on churchn and should stay that way these marchers represent the divide in the ukraine. that turning towards the west is not part of the ukrainian culture. >> they marched peacefully to where government supporters had gathered for days, many were bused in to the city. al jazerra has seen some of them being paid to be here. police remain out in full force. but keeping their distance from both demonstrations. they promise to tear down barricades at the end of independence square came to nothing. in the square itself the demands remain the same. that the government embrace european values.

>> you see how they live in russia and you see how they live in europe. the difference is obvious. >> reporter: the protest camp continues to grow. the latest addition a photo exhibit on newly-built barriers. organizers are calling for a mass gathering here sunday which will show how much support they still have one month after the demonstrations began. jennifer glass, al jazerra, kiev. the. one of russia's most famous prisoners is keeping a very low profile after getting an unexpected presidential pardon. mikhail arrived in germany yesterday, he had been behind bars for a decade charged with tax evasion and embezzlement. he met with his ailing mother and son but has not made any public comments about his release. he always insisted his impress. was politically motivated. the business tycoon is expected to speak publicly tomorrow. >> as you can imagine by father is going through a lot right now. and he cannot possibly be with all of you today, but he really

appreciates all of the support that he has received through these years. and all of the people that have cared for him and cared for his story over the past 10 years. >> he is now 50 years old. he was once an oil tycoon and viewed by many as putin's biggest political rival. caregivers who take care of the elderly are often under paid, but now one group in san francisco is fighting back. lisa bernard has more that. >> does that feel okay? >> it's okay. >> reporter: 88-year-old jenny anderson gets through her day with the help of a caregiver. >> i look forward to somebody coming. saying 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. >> the workers united will never be defeated.

>> reporter: but this week in san francisco a rally was held to publicize that some caregivers were being grossly under paid by their employers, and 25 of them are part of a substantial settlement recovering lost wages, totaling around $800,000. >> if you are unfamiliar with your rights -- >> reporter: the san francisco city attorney went after seven residential care facilities for wage theft. amy louise explains that she was expected to work long hours without extra pay. >> 16, sometimes 17, there are days and nights that i really don't have sleep. >> reporter: lynn is a labor standards compliance officer, she investigated reports of abuse at the residence shop homes when the 25 caregivers all filipino alerted her office to the injustice. >> you know, the care homeworkers it takes a lot of bravery for them to come forward and file a claim. because these are not only their place of employment, but it's

also where they are living. >> reporter: with baby the boomers aging, there will soon be a great der members tha demar caregivers, new laws aim to insure that they will be paid fairly. this fall the labor department announced rule changes that extend minimum wage and overtime protections to domestic workers. california passed a bill that offers similar protection in the state. and this week, the labor department sent representatives to san francisco to discuss way to his revoke a license, if a facility is not complying with fair labor standards. >> it's kind of amazing feeling. >> reporter: shawn charles who owns beacon home care, which places caregivers with clients, is following the rules. he points out that overworked and under paid caregivers are dangerous. >> because that's what the families entrust us with is the safe protection of their loved one as we want to make sure that

the caregivers are at their a-game. >> reporter: and jenny anderson feels she's in good hands. >> so we are going tike a walk. >> reporter: with i a well-rested caregiver who is fairly paid. lisa bernard, al jazerra, san ramon, california. still to come on al jazerra america, it's been 25 years, but for the families of the victims. the pain is still fresh. remembering the pan am locker by bombing when we return. refugees are staggering as the fighter is ca the ca slates. >> remember a mat. >> meteorologist: a tornado warning. severe weather bringing us not only tornadoes but ice and snow as well. to your money real. real money with ali velshi next on al jazeera america

the stream is uniquely interactive television. in fact, we depend on you, your ideas, your concerns. >> all these folks are making a whole lot of money. >> you are one of the voices of 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. a somber anniversary, 25 years ago today pan am flight 103 blew up over scotland.

around the globe mourners have been remembering the 270 victims. at a memorial in arlington national cemetery the attorney general spoke of their legacy. >> more than anything as we assemble in this place of remember's year after year, we recall the moments the iron at this and of love that have arisen from the grief that we share. we remember the occasion that his have brought this community together not only in mourning but in search of healing and in search of hope. and in celebration of the extraordinary lives that bind us together. we keep calling for change, and fighting for justice. on behalf of those no longer with us. >> and for those who lost loved ones in lockerbie the search for answers to exactly what happened that day in 1988, has not ended. here is more. ♪ ♪

>> reporter: it's been 25 years, but for many here in lockerbie remembering the small town's darkest day, the wounds are still fresh. pan am flight 103 was just a half an hour in to a journal friday london to new york when it exploded all 259 pima board were killed along with 11 others who died when the mangled wreckage fell from the ground. >> from that time on, it has become a different place and remained so for 25 years since then. no ungoing what had happened. and nothing can undo that terrible evil. >> reporter: that terrible evil took jim's daughter floor, a a day will have her 23rd birthday. he spent years campaigning for answers about what actually happened that day. accusing the british government of a cover up. >> when people are stripped of their children it's the most unnatural and horrific situation to be put in to.

and it doesn't help to know that you must also carry a burden of lives. >> reporter: only one man, a libyan ill 10 generals officer was convicted over the bombing, he served eight years in jail before his controversial release on companionate grounds arriving at home it hey hero's welcome. he maintained his innocence until his death last year from cancer his family now want to appeal the an vision. there are those that see he was a scapegoat point to go holes in the original investigation and the lack of real punitive action by the british and american governments. >> one is left scratching their head in thinking did this plane really get taken out, did this people really die and generate so little a respons response bye british and u.s. government. >> reporter: a new investigation in to the bombing, maybe one day jim square's questions will be

answered. there is renewed violence in the central african republic, at least 30 people were killed in the capitol overnight including a peace-keeping soldier as fighting continues between with muslim and christian levels. human rights group say a thousand people have been killed this month. the president warned rebel fighters they will face justice for crimes committed on saville civilians. >> reporter: national reconciliation and also made a peel for humanitarian aid from the international community. then for the first time, he assured the c.a.r. that there would be justice for both sides and that includes former rebels he fought alongside in march. >> whether it is those that helped in our fight or those that spread chaos. all are warned as i have already shown, justice will be done.

and taking with all of us, rightly or wrongly, so that all of us without exception disarm. not only that, we also need to disarm our hearts. >> reporter: now this assurance of justice is undoubtedly in response to major pressure world leaders to come out and spell clearly that both sides will be treated equally in the courts. but whether this is too late, and whether it will, in fact, be delivered is an open questions. not only that, there are so many divisions in the government, so much instability, but he did assure c.a.r. that he will deliver free and fair elections. another big winter storm could put a kink in people's holiday travel plans. the system is prompting warnings all the way from the east coast to the plain states. in oklahoma, ice is proving to be the major problem. freezing rain has coated trees and brought down branches in tulsa. and transport officials in the state of warning drivers to be careful on the roads.

the let's go now rebecca with more on the storm. it's really bringing a little bit of everything, snow, ice, severe, weather wind. >> meteorologist: yes, all those components that can be deadly when you put them altogether with drivers or just people that report aware of the severe weather outside. this is a big storm that's going on. and right now we do have some tornadoes indicated by doppler radar around mississippi, and louisiana lou in that very same area, stretching from the louisiana all the way up in to western kentucky, we have tornado watches continuing. but if you head to the north of this storm this, is where we have the ice and the ice has already caused a number of accidents on the road. it's easy to spin out you just can't control a car once you hit ice and also the winter weather advisory is bringing in plenty of snow. and flood warnings, anywhere up to five to six-inches of rainfall causing flash flooding, aerial flooding many large areas of the rivers rising quickly and

impacting lancer areas from oklahoma, louisiana, mississippi, missouri and in to indianapolis. this stretches all the way across the central portion of the united states. so now looking at the warnings for our winter storm, you can see how that is spok focusing py of snow in the midwest, mainly hitting indiana and even up in to michigan where we have some ice concerns. the ice accumulations are going to be anywhere from a 10 account of an inch to a quarter of an inch, some areas higher. when it comes to ice accumulation, a lot of times it varies according to where you are. so you could be right in the middle of the city and get higher ice accumulations than someone farther out. something to keep an eye on about how things are changing outside and stay too for instance to the noa weather radio that's always a good thing to have by your bed side side soar television in fact. here is some storm damage.

the reports of flood be are stretching up in to indiana and you can see we have the wind reports south of that. so powerful winds, anywhere from 60 to 70 miles an hour. coming there this storm are still possible. not necessarily a tornado, it's just straight line winds coming from the cooling air. our rainfall totals have been impressive. mae con texas almost five-inches of rain, it's having so quickly across such a large area. things why we have to stay tune today what's coming on. this is a stretch of line, we are see the storms intensify, one to two-inches usually in december, we have a lot less than that and that's what is contribute to this intense rainfall. so a very big mix of weather out there, jonathan and we'll be tracking it for you tonight and telling you how things will morph and change through the day tomorrow. >> a little bit of everything. okay, thanks, rebecca. chase bank is trying to further

protect debit card users who may be at risk from target's data breach. starting to the they are temporarily limiting atm withdraws to just $100 a day. and limiting total card purchases to $300 a day. as a measure of extra security it, chase recommends customers go in to the bank branch for additional cash. target is also trying to win back customers after the credit card information of 40 million shoppers was exposed this weekend the company is giving all customers a 10% discount on purchases, will also provide free credit monitoring services for anyone who shopped in a target store from november 27th to december 15th when the security breach occurred. san francisco transit officials have struck a ben tiff tentative deal with the two largest unions ending eight months of negotiations and occasional strikes, they say they finalized a contract. the workers will now get more

paid financially medical lean one of the main sticking points. a widow gets her husband's remains 64 years after he died. joseph died in the korean war back in 1951, bub his remains were only recently identified. they have been apart for more than 60 years. but clara still considers joseph her husband. and she plans to be bared next tburied nextto him eventually wm come back on al jazerra. a surprising report, disabled workers and a well-known charity being paid far less than the minimum age. in sports, something you may not expect to see at a women's hockey game. ♪ ♪ >> stories that have impact... that make a difference... that open your world... >> this is what we do... >> america tonight weeknights 9et / 6pt only on al jazeera america tñ

>> welcome back to al jazerra america i an jonathan betz with the top stories to the president obama says the u.s. will try again to help americans trapped in south sudan. an earlier rescue mission had be called off after four soldiers were shot trying to evacuate

americans. three aircraft came under fire while attempting to land in the town of bor. the scene of ongoing violence between the government, military and rebel troops. pro europe pro defters in the ukraine are not backing down. the unrest has also galvanized those who support closer ties with moscow. 25 years after the lockerbie bombing people on the both sides of the atlantic are remembering the victims 270 people were killed when pan am flight 103 exploded over scotland back in 1988. it's one of america's biggest charities, but goodwill is facing criticism for paying disabled workers sometimes just pennies an hour. 10s of thousands have signed a petition demanding they pay its workers the minimum wage. al jazerra's kalin ford has more. >> reporter: for six months last year, mary went to work at her local goodwill store. partially blind with cerebral

palsy, mary lives on her own. she looked forward to the independence of a job. but the reality at goodwill was very different. >> they had me downstairs in their store, trying to hang clothes up on hangers. and to make a dollar i had to hang 100 pieces if i was lucky i made a penny per item of clothing. i felt worthless. >> reporter: she showed us some of her pay stubs. >> the biggest check was 18.18. the smallest check was 3.27. >> reporter: mary asked us to conceal her identity. she fears she could lose her subsidized apartment for speaking out. >> i could not live on a goodwill check. >> bee nuts made me feel bad, because i could not work fast enough. >> reporter: but the sudden minimum wages mary was paid are legal under a 1938 labor law. >> the deem of labor's special minimum wage certificate allows

more than 3,300 employers nationwide to payment people with disabilities less than federal minimum wage. goodwill estimates that less than 7% of its workforce, some 7,500 employs are paid this way nationwide. disabilities rights advocates delivered a petition with 170,000 signatures, asking goodwill to pay all of its employyememployees the federal m wage. the organizers say goodwill did not meet with them. but they did speak to us. >> we believe that work is an important part of the human experience. and the human spirit and the expert allows us the opportunity to incorporate individuals in to our workforce in a way that we wouldn't necessarily be able to without the certificate. >> reporter: goodwill of greater new york, where mary worked reported assets of $30 million. tax returns show its ceo earned

$467,000 in compensation. >> as a national organization we have attempted to meet with goodwill on multiple occasions and they have always been met with extreme resistence. when you hear some minimum wage, you think of, well, that only happens in, you know, kind 5678. >> reporter: after a year in congress the disabilities act has made little progress. that won't stop disabled rights activists for continuing to push for equal pay. kalin ford, al jazerra, new york. there was a growing movement to eliminate some minimum wages for the disabled. we discussed it earlier with the president of the autistic self advocate network. >> even as be at this at thises like goodwill and others are resisting equal rights for people with disabilities in in washington and through lobbying. many states are taking action to crack down on these practices. recently massachusetts allowed they would phase out subminimum

wages. >> can they do that considering this is a federal law we are talking about? >> most entities paying subminimum wage like goodwill are medicaid providers and what massachusetts and other states are doing is saying they will no longer allow entities receiving medicaid funds to pay subminimum wage. so it's still possible for private employers to pay subminimum wage, but generally speaking, we haven't been seeing them make use of the section 14c loophole. >> what about working directly with these charities like goodwill. how receptive have they been to try to raise the pay? >> it's very regrettable. goodwill has steadfastly refused to engage on why people with disabilities don't need to be paid less than minimum wage. it's worth noting that many of goodwill's affiliates have done the right thing and do pay minimum wage to their employees, it makes it all the more puzzling that they continues to hold onto this practice in and affiliates like new york, ohio and others that are stuck in the

past. >> goodwill has said repeatedly that they are offering opportunities and jobs to people with disabilities who might not otherwise get work, and that the pay they are paying them is fair. how are they wrong? i would point to states like vermont which eliminated the use of subminimum wage in 20003 and today has almost double the national average of up moment integrated employment for workers with intellectual and developmental disabilities. the reality is is that we do have the tools, resources and expertise to insure people even with very significant levels of disability, can work and integrate settings at or above minimum wages, eights a matter of political will. >> the fear is that if they raise minimum wage or the pay of these workers they may not higher as many people with disabilities. >> i would point to the fact that we have states doing the right thing. we do have providers doing the right thing, and we are seeing more, not less, people with disabilities being hired.

let me add one more thing here. this is about being paid less than minimal wage, but it's also about segregation and isolation. in the sheltered workshops that goodwill industries and other sheltered workshop providers are running, people with disabilities do not have the opportunity to be integrateed in to their community to his gain the valuable social inning pollution opportunities that typically come with employment. the models that we are argue that go states should shift, to supported employment and integrated settings at or about minimum wage, don't just address the subminimum wage issue, although they do that. but they also speak to the broader need to integrate people with interim lex tul intellectud developmental disabilities if in to our society. >> arari, thank you. wilbefore leaving washington for vacation the president faced a string of tough questions about the nsa surveillance program. the same day there were new revelations about the targets of u.s. eavesdropping. documents from the national

security agencies list more than a thousand of its spying targets between 2008 and 2011. a morning them an israeli prime minister, united nations directors and other foreign leaders. that information came from the trove of documents leaked by ex-nsa contractor edward snowden. all right, mark is here with sports, so i assumed, by the way, a hockey player fights, whether it's a man or woman, they fight. you are saying, not always the case. >> sometimes assumptions, jonathan is not always a good thing. i think we have all heard that and in this case it may not be. we all know fighting is a traditional in the national hockey league. it's considered an important part of the game allowing players to release their frustration and depending on the moment make a point. this was the scene in the final moments of the usa canada preolympic exhibition game friday night. women's hockey, nine seconds left. fights breakout everyone on the u.s. end of the ice, two teams fought in the game back in october and also during a game in 2010 so there is a history of

bad blood. let's stay on the ice for a movement you saw that scrum develop around the u.s. net and our jessica taft takes a look at three women identifying for the starting slot between the teams. >> reporter: she has been cam go ahead out with the rest of the u.s. national team just outside ooutsidethe boston prepping to e upcoming olympics in sochi russia. and each brings something different between the table between the pipes. >> brie, what is is it that makes jesse a good goal any. >> she does a great job of sometimes she gets scored on and you can see her giggling through her mask. for me sometimes you can get frustrated in the net and practice if you are having a rough day or something and she's just always giggling and it kind of immediately can bring anybody out of a funk. >> these players on my team are good. half the time you are like, good shot, glad you are on my team. >> i think brie has the widest

butterfly we have ever seen. so if you are going to try to score, i would not go low ever. if you go down, it's just like a wall. she can be more serious she's like pay attention. >> being a goalie, i always used word forgetful. because you are going to get bounces against you, they are going to sore, the biggest thing is just for forget it and continue making plays and keep playing. >> reporter: of all the positions that you could possibly play in hockey the three of you chose the one that has an 80 miles per hour puck coming at your face. why? >> i think it goes back to the siblings and brothers. a lot of us -- i always say i was forced in to the position as a young kid because my brothers didn't like shooting on an open net. you want to play, yeah, those pads i am sure they are protective and we weren't. i had bruises all over my body. >> i think it shamed who we are whether it was hockey as the only girl in our baseball league as a while w you just get used to it. you work hard to prove that you belong with the boys and i think it neighbors you better.

>> reporter: you would think having three goalie on his the same team fight for this starting position in the upcoming olympics would create tension amongst the teammates, but instead, for jesse, marley and be, they say it's actually brought them closer. >> we are always together because just kinds of like, put the goalies over there or something. we have always been close, but we went on a team vacation and it always seemed through like the three of us kind of were always together on the beach or something like that. i don't know whether it was because no one else wanted to hang out with us or that's kind of when we started being friends. >> reporter: and it's that chemistry that carries over to the ice and will play a vital role at the olympics in february. >> usually the goalies report this close, you are compete for this same spot. but we have been fortunate enough that we have been together for five years now, and on the ice, off the ice, you get along really well, have fun together. and genuinely like hanging out with each other. >> reporter: there is little doubt the road to gold in sochi will go through canada. since the debut of olympic

women's hock any 1998 only the american says and canadiens have won gold making the international rivalry between the two more intense. >> those are the funnest games for play in, you are training to be the best in the world and to be the best you have to beat the best. we look forward to the opportunity and it's always a dogfight. and obviously, you know, those are the games that you want to win. >> reporter: and the last time out, the american says had to settle for silver, meaning that avenging the loss has been years in the making. >> it's hard, i think winning silver because you lose that ultimate game. whereas bronze, you kind of end on a high note. you win. so there is obviously a lot of disappointment and for me personally it took a couple of days, we understanded up flying back to the states and and when we got back there was people waiting at the gate congratulating us, so excited. it wasn't the first time, but it really hit home. what we had done and what an accomplishment winning a silver medal was. >> reporter: what what would it mean to win gold? >> it would just mean all of our hard work has paid off. we have obviously different goals and different success says

that we can have throughout the process but that would definitely be something special to walk away with the gold medal. >> reporter: in bed force, mass marks jessica taft, al jazerra. >> all right, jessica thanks so much. as you all know, jonathan the closer we get to the olympics a lot of more interest in sports like this, figure skating all those things come in to play, don't forget the luge. >> it's all coming. i can't wait. thanks, mark. >> sure. still ahead on al jazerra america, astronauts repairing the space station and space walk mission was over sooner than expected. plus it's an ace mag show of technology, robots are being put to the test in miami. we'll have more on that when we come back. >> i think that there is evidence that if you have interactions with pharmaceutical companies, it does impact -- and

there's actually pretty good studies based -- that have looked at physician prescribing patterns and interactions with big pharma. i think one of the luxuries i have is i'm in academic medicine, and we have a policy that we don't interact with pharmaceutical companies. so i hope that gives me a better perspective. and i think a lot of these doctors aren't having these conversations with their patients because i have countless patients who come to me and said they have never heard of iud's. so i think there is some impact of that. we know there's an impact of that. and it makes it challenging, you know, to -- to have a completely unbiased view even though we as doctors like to think we have an

unbiased view, there has been evidence that shows that they do impact us in some ways. so i think it's important for us to go out and educate our providers too. there is no one size fits all birth control, and there are a lot of options that work for women. >> we want to take a closer look, are there unique challenges facing women in minority communities when

a successful day in space. nasa astronauts completed the first phase of emergency repairs on the international space station. here is more. >> okay, stand by and let me check it out, mission complete but not over. nasa says who astronauts successfully completed repairs to the. one of two ammonia pumps failed over a week ago, forcing the crew to shutdown and dozens of science experiments. the first task, remove the bad pump. it's a 780-pound piece of equipment. the size of a refrigerator. >> got a good on it. i see it. >> reporter: nasa scheduled six and a half hours for the work, but astronauts rick and mike hopkins got the job done with an hour to spare. >> good inning ventura good luck

back for hopper. >> reporter: nasa is still trying to identify the cause of the fay our and whether or not it's a software or hardware issue. nasa took to twitter to up doubt the mission. saying today's space walked ended after a five hour 28 minutes excursion, the crew second scheduled to go back out monday and install a new ammonia pump. it was the first space walk since july when an italian astro now the nearly drowned after a leak in his suit filled his helmet with water this. time they rigged snorkels in their suits so they could breathe if it happened again and it didn't. nasa says they are on track for the next phase of the repair. >> this is the first space walk in months, earlier i spoke with sarah a professor of science at the nasa institute of technology and i asked her just about the prepare process. >> i want people know it's not a real emergency, like it has been reported in some places in the news. it's more like an urgent

situation. >> tell me more about the snorkels frank life. as i mentioned this is the first space walk since that italian astronaut had water filling up his helmet. what did nasa do to try to get around that and make sure it would not happen again? >> it's like a plan "b," you know they can tried to make sure that the masks, the astronaut suits wouldn't fill with water again, the snorkel part was an ad hoc kind of fixture so if necessary, and it did start filling up with water the astronauts would be able to breathe air out of another area. >> what does this mean, then fox, humans in space, having these kind of space walks conducted bik like this. especially since it seems like they are not as frequent tpr*ebgt as theas theyused to b. >> they are becoming routine and no one is panicking and that's awesome. when you think how long the space station has been up the first components in the late 1990s and how much it costs to run the space station it gives us cause to think about how complicated it will be for humans to go to mars where you can't bring every last spare

part up with you. >> update us on the status. space station, it was occupied no 2,000, going on more than 10 years old. are we seeing a lot of maintenance issues with it. is it kind of reaching, i don't want to say end of its life span but maybe its middle age? >> i think it's fair to say it's in some kind of middle age stage, but there is no reason for it not to keep performing well for years or even decades to come. >> what is the long-term plan do you think for the space station in. >> there is the kind of contentious debate within the community of space scientists and engineers, of what should really happen to the space station. people question -- people like to -- you know, we like astronauts in space, we like to be troubleshooting in space because we believe that we have a great future travel to go mars and mining asteroids. about the future of the space station we wonder how much it will continue to be useful for learning and doing science. >> since you brought that up, let me ask you real quickly about the mars mission. that is getting so much focus, we all earlier how china is on

the moon for the first time. as we move further along in our space travels and try to explore more of these planets, the moon, mars, what is the space station's role going to be in those kinds of explorations? >> that's a good question. we are not entirely sure i would have to say what the role is. the space station is still a good place for testing things out but it would be nice to put some of our resources in to going i don't understand earth orbit. >> our thanks to sarah seager there from m.i.t.. some of the brightest minds in science are competing in florida this weekend to see who can make the best machine. it's not just a quest for glory. it's about building a robot that can help in disaster zones some day. our science and technology correspondent jacob ward introduces to us some of the people and the machines who have take own this challenge. >> jonathan this competition is hosted bite defense advanced research projects agency. they have held similar competitions in the past for driverless vehicles which gave rise to the google self-driving car. they make big bets on weird

potentially valuable areas of innovation and robots are considered to be the next. aim here with seth who leased million dollarm.i.t. team. you are in secretary place, that's amazing. it's incredible. tell me about your robot? >> sure, made by boston dynamics and we qualified to use this robot in june when we partyed in the vrc. virtual robotics competition in software. >> right. >> in august we got the hardware which is the machine you see here, had it about three and a half months, the last couple of months we had to learn all about robots. it's freedom. the different limbs. and, of course, it's sensing, it has a stereo head here, he has a spinning laser range finder, cameras that can look left, and right in the chest. a system or an southern down nits a pelvis. >> that keeps it from tipping

over falling in theory. >> on a good day. >> reporter: right. let me ask you, the essence of this competition is the variety of tasks, what would you is i is the hardest task that you have had to do? they are all hard, but what's the hardest one. i think everything was hard and part of the reason each task is hard because of the task it seven. part of the reason is the environment conditions. for example when we tried to walk across cros the rough terrain we got hit with tough blasts of winds and it knocked the ray bod over, future generations of these machines will be more robust. we have amazing team that thinks a lot about walking as part of the team. they are game to tack that would in the coming years. >> reporter: that's awesome. talk about your competition. shaft, have you looked at at all? >> we have not looked too much at what they are doing because we are been focusing on our own. we would like to spend time this afternoon going to check out the other teams but kudo to his them they are doing a fantastic job.

just showing up and being parts of the group of 16 competing is a makes. >> the field has been narrowed since early 2012. >> it's. >> reporter: it's amazing. jonathan, as you can see the amazing complexity of these robots and they are just in their infancy and getting started and hopefully we'll see m.i. at this time back a year from now. >> it is incredible technology. our thanks to jacob ward there. coming up on al jazerra america. making waves. using surf lessons to lead children away from crime on the streets of rio.

>> and now a techknow minute...

welcome box. rio is famous for its serving but for kids living in some of its poorest neighborhoods a day at the beach riding the waves seems like a distant dream. rachel introduce ts us to a surr pepping kids get out of their neighborhood and onto a surfboard 67 this is where anderson feels most at home. riding the waves at the iconic beaches in rio de janeiro.

he's been serving since he was four and already a champion. but some days get in this quarter is tough. >> there would be shoot shootous between the communities i knew i wasn't be able to make it that day and the bag would be searched by police and you would have to stay up on the hill. >> reporter: peek a chew has always lived with violence, his father was a drug dealer who was killed by a grenade during a police raid. it was his uncle who taught him out to tackle the waves. when he started serving the sport was mainly for rich kids. >> when i started it was tough to get in to surfing. the boards were very expensive and those who lived here couldn't afford them. to learn i would wait for the water to rise and into someone's strap to snap so i could grab the board. >> reporter: he started a surf club as a way to help skids cope with the chaos in their neighborhoods. this is the beach that one of the most expensive places to live in all of south america. and even though it's only 15 minutes away from where these kids live. it's another world.

peek a chew and his friends live in this poor community. used to be controlled by games. surfing. in the future. with their own style. >> pretty cool there. before smart phones and social media there was another way to cross the time. the crossword puzzle.

today its 100th birthday. we find out why after all these years crosswords are not about to fadeaway. >> reporter: languages may differ but these little black and white boxes, you know what they mean,. >> so what is that? >> it's a crossword. >> keeping us from work. confusing us over coffee. the crossword has been causing headaches for exactly 100 years. this was the first ever one. it was published in the u.s. but it's author didn't copy wright it. which for him was a 15 across or major file in today's language. >> you need to just about be able to solve it. >> phil does his with a cup of tea every day. less problem solving being more problem creating. he's a crossword editor and when it comes to tough clues, he wrote the book. >> this one, in fact. >> the aimfu aim of the compilie about the penny drop moment. the absolute goal of any cryptic crossword clue, the moment when

you actually get it. and you have said yes, that's brilliant here is one clue that's had many a fan flummoxed over the years, 58 letter, see how you fair. giggling troll follows clancy, larry, bill and i peggy who howell. wrongly disturbing a place in wales. the answer is coming just a moment. here say him it's a place and speaking of places, this place has its own unique relationship with the crossword, this is an hour north of london and during world war ii behind those windows and doors, some of britain's biggest brains were working on the ultimate puzzle. cracking german codes. but finding people suitable for the job was a task in itself. candidates were given a copy of the daily telegraph newspaper and it's notoriously difficult crossword. the goal was to complete it in under 12 minutes. >> crossword puzzle people were quite goods as filling in the gaps. recognizing that five of these

letters form part of a word and two of the letters in the next five letter group form the rest of the word. >> mark would probably have been snapped up, times crossword champion six years on the run he can get through not one, not two, but three crosswords in half an hour. so a tip from the pro, it's all about technique. >> you can look at a crossword clue, if you are familiar with the devices that are used with the key words that may come in to the clue, you can play with the word in the clue and figure it out. >> and speaking of figuring things out, here is the answer to the earlier tough one. guessing it is one thing, pronouncing it quite another. then again, not that it matters, after all, it's just for fun. and it has been for 100 years. phil, al jazerra, with a massive headache. >> fun, but very difficult. well, thanks, phil, that's our show, thanks so much for watching al jazerra, i am jonathan betz, i'll be back in an hour with more news, headlines and real money are next.

... . welcome to al jazeera america. i am jonathan betz with tonight's headlines. mompom says the u.s. will try again to help americans trapped in south sudan. an earlier rescue mission had to be called off after four soldiers were shot trying to evacuate americans. three aircraft came under fire while trying to land. proceed europe protesters in ukraine say they are not backing down. they are angry over the president's decision to back away from a deal with the european union. it has galvanized those who support closer ties with moscow. there is renewed violence in the central african republic. 30 people were killed in the capital overnight including a peacekeeping soldier as fighting there continues between