ud. ♪ . >> live from new york city, i'm tony harris with a look at today's top stories. vladimir putin plans to annihilate terrorists as new years celebrations in an attempt to end widespread bloodshed, and bringing in the new year,s that world semibroughts 2014. celebrates. ♪ the new year and an hour old in russia.

president vladimir putin had a stern warning for those responsible for the attacks. >> dear friends, we bow our heads before the victims of cruel terrorist acts. i am certain that we will fiercely and consistently continue the fight against terrorists, until they are complete annihilation. >> authorities have stepped up security in the wake of the blast as the city tries to deal with what happened. a rupture tin can surrounded by bodies. but survivors are holding on. less than ten minutes away. he was one of more than 20 badly injured brought here. >> it felt like a huge electric shock, i didn't see anyone with a bomb, i was looking out the window, and i can't remember anything after that. >> for the second time in less than 24 hours the

wards of hospital number 25 were filled with the victims of another bombing. some with terrible burns. >> there alexandar said his team was carrying out ten operations at the same time, but thankfully he said the trolley bomb wasn't as powerful, as sunday's blast at the train station. outside they posted casualty lis of those brought in by ambulance, and where they were being treated. the relatives of the injured scarcely able to believe this was happening all over again. trauma specialists part of a disaster emergency team had been flown in, to help family and friends cope with the shock and their loss. for many, quite simply, it was the difference between life and death. taken to specialists burns unit, two hours away. this shattered buildings a reminder of a pivotal battle here in the second

world war, the defeat of the german army, changed the whole course of the conflict. today, the people here have a different fight on their hands, with a far more illusive enemy. >> and at the scene of the bombing a sense of fear, frustration, and anger among the people of the city. a feeling they had been left down by those that should have protected them. >> people afraid. people afraid to use public transportation. i am frightened. afraid for my family. for my friends. >> they are stepping up security across five weeks more than 30,000 troops will be deployed across the region, in the build up to the winter olympics. al jazeera, soling grad. >> ulga is with us to discuss the attacks and the rush governments response as she researches russian security senior national policy analyst.

good to talk to you, thank you for your time. >> you know -- >> it is a pleasure. in peter sharp's report, we heard someone say people are afraid to use public transportation. and now you get the cancellation of new years celebrations in st. peters burg. how concerns in your mind should russians and those traveling to sochi be? >> president putin has given some credit for reducing terrorism. so what is the message of is this attack.

can't cover everything? >> i'm not sure that vladimir putin should get credit for reducing terrorism. there has been some fairly spectacular attacks during his time in office. this said, i wouldn't say that it's appropriate to say that's entirely his fault. these are very challenging things to defend against, and to develop appropriate policies. so -- but i think have much the point of these attacks is to demonstrate as some of the folks we just heard say, that the government can't protect people and that they are not safe on the streets on trains aircraft. >> do you believe that this is the start of what could be a sustained series of attacks on russia. >> i think there will be an effort to carry out more.

so now they will be turning that you are attention far more to other parts of russia, now, sochi will be very well defended so it is plausible that those who seek to carry out attacks will be go elsewhere for that reason. it is too hard to carry out an attack. it is possible to carry one out here. so -- make sure that everything is well reported. >> let's get to the 30,000 level on this, if the idea was the polish up the image of russia, on some level, and show it off as shiny and new. hasn't the controversial over gay rights and now these terror attacks hundreds of miles from sochi, taken the luster off of these games. >> i think people were aware what it was hosting the games. it was definitely a

gamble to put them forward, close as it is to the north caucuses. i think part of the point was to demonstrate that he had stabilized the region that everything was fine. it's a little different from saying that's the luster on the games as a whole. >> okay, appreciate it. researches russian security as a senior national policy analyst. appreciate your time. thank you. >> thank you. >> and thousands of south sudan troops are heading to the key city of bore, hoping to recapture control of the city, the government has been in command, and rebels took over earlier today. bore is the center of fierce fighting in the oil rich state. and the violence comes as both sides discuss a cease fire. both have a greater delegations. to talk about how to

bring the current conflict to an end. it took a bit of pleading with the president by a u.n. officials and diplomates for him to agree to send delegation from his end because this is not what he had wanted. he wanted a cease fire before he had talks with his former vice president. that is what happened, and proper negotiations have been done between the two parties. two government also confirmed that it is ready to receive these delegations, who will begin talks immediately. now, if this happens on a day that the rebels ally to former vice president took a strategic and key town. they cut out a don't attack, which had been

taken control of by government forces, just last week after fierce battles there, and they managed to get it around midday. u.n. officials in the town confirmed that there's been displacement of some of those who had either remains in town during the last round of fighting, or had returned after the government forces. so it sudan isn't the only place facing major challenges as the me year gets underway. 2014 will likely be a monumental year for the people of afghanistan. and one of the four most issues will be the economy and unemployment. al jazeera's jane ferguson has more now. >> uncertainty on their minds thousands of men leave hungry families at home to stand on the street looking for daily work. hoping someone will drive by.

>> if these people cannot find jobs, they will become thieves. orr join the taliban and al quaida. >> afghans living in taliban controlled areas say they have to join either side of the fighting to be guaranteed a reliable paycheck. as the country bases for foreign troops, the economy is already shrinking. >> it is people like this who most at risk for any downturn. they are just trying to find any daily work to support their families here. some have lost jobs that they previously had with the international community here. others are simply frying to survive, what could be one of their toughest years yet. >> many have come from rural areas joining this desperate crowd. he took us from his home

where his wife and two small children wait for him every day, hoping he returns with food. >> sometimesky make $2, sometimes $4. >> for those like has rat, the phrase 2014 has become a frightening event everyone talks about, but few understand. >> at the place where we stand around for work, everybody talking about 20/10/14. but i don't know when this 2014 is. is it in a month? ten days time. i don't have a clue. the businessmen hide their money, the investors stopped investing. the shopkeeper aren't checking their money. all because of this. >> while the international community is promised to continue aiding afghanistan's economy, fear that they won't is causing it to falter. >> these men are typical of millions across the

country. with little control, but the most to lose. >> jane ferguson, al jazeera, kabul afghanistan. >> and we have some breaking news from utah where the state has just asked the u.s. supreme court to suspend a ruling allowing same-sex marriages in the state. earlier this month, a federal judge ruled the state's voter approved ban on same-sex marriages violated the u.s. constitution, the state has already lost several attempts to get a court to stop the ruling. 2013 is entering into it's final hours here in the united states. but the new year is well underway in some parts of the world, for example. that's all behind my head there. okay, in sidney australia, a spectacular fireworks display lit up the harbor bridge. on going antigovernment protests. say what may be the

word's largest fireworks show. at the center of it all the world's tallest building, our john is in part of new york city. where people are already getting ready to gather in there, and the ball drops. and john what is it like out there. >> well, i tell you, before i answer that question, have a little surprise for you, don't go anywhere. >> all right. >> there -- >> well done. >> what about that? happy new year tony harris. >> yeah. >> big news program, this is -- i was a bit worried earlier, i thought i was very worried because when i first came here it was snowing and the last time you sent me out was for the massey's thanksgiving day parade. balloon -- you know, blowing up thing, and the rain was coming like that, and just now the snow was coming down, but fortunately, the forecast is great. let's get frank our cameraman to zoom in, and you can have a look at the crowds. it is going to be very very cold here. at the moment it is

31 degrees. busy rehearsing tonight. and i think what you are looking at now is part of the party just outside the marriott hotel. as i step back, i can tell you he have about 1 million people here tonight. the record about 150 million, watching on television around the country, and then about maybe 1 billion people watching including on play back right around the world. >> hey, john, is this true, for the first time in a decade, a new york city mayor will not be leading the count down tonight? >> yes, good question. what happened here in new york, is that the mayors are changing over tonight, the long term mayor mike bloomberg, he ends so he is going to be at home just seeing out his term, meanwhile, bill debels owe who is a democrat who won with a landslide, he is not going to be here. he is going to be taking

part in the swearing in ceremony which will be televised for new yorkers to see. the trigger for the ball tonight is a new york native. she is soni sotomayor. she was raided in very difficult circumstance as r have uncle mom ink singl. but she went to princeton, and now she is arguably one of the most important and powerful women in the united states. if not the world. so she is the special guest tonight, who gets the ball dropping just before midnight. you can hear the rehearsal starting behind me. >> so john, if you would, butt the glasses on one last time. >> oh, my pleasure. >> they are throwing everything at me here. >> all right, john. all we are missing now is a little benny and the jets. time square for us, john, appreciate it.

thank you. >> it won't -- out with the old and in with the new for many americans. according the the joint committee for taxation, more than 50 tax breaks that put money among others will disappear at midnight, and as stacy tisdale reports that could cause a big ripple impact on many parts of the economy. >> tax breaks are going to effect a number of americans from small business owners to educators. >> teachers spent $1.3 billion out of pocket. that's right. $1.3 billion every year. >> more than 3 1/2 million teachers in the u.s. spend money out of their own pockets to make sure students have the supplies and resources they need. since 2003, they have been able to deduct up to $250 for out of pocket

expenses that december duction disappears at the end of the year. >> i hope that the counselors and teachers and aids continue to spend those funds we have for the chin. but it is going to cost them more. in 2014. >> it may cost parents with children and college more to send their kids to school. the tuition and fees allowed families earning less than $150,000 a year, and single families to exclude as much as $4,000 from their income, giving them a lower tax bill. >> we are hoping that congress does something to make some of these incentives more permanent provide some certainty. when you are trying to decide whether you can afford to go to school, you need to know that after tax experience. >> struggling homeowners are going to face what many experts are calling a financial disaster with

the ex-her ration of the mort forgiveness relief. consider than more than $640,000 received relief from the national mortgage settlement reached in 2012, effective linders reduced the size of disstressed mortgages by an average of $180,000 so monthly payments were affordable. if congress doesn't act, mortgage reductions will be taxed as income. >> it is going to hit these people who were the vs. most vulnerable, people who are already struggling with their payments. people who have been hurt by a declining home price market, and that just hurts the housing market, it hurts the economy. small businesses in the united states create more than 60% of private sector jobs. and then the economists say their ability to grow will be hurt by the expiration of a deduction with many kinds of new or used equipment, in 24

teen, it drops to $25,000. >> just because these are set to expire, does not mean that the taxpayers won't get relief. it is always possible that congress can reinstate provisions and even make them retroactive, but that doesn't mean they will come back in the same size. for now it is a waiting game. millions of taxpayers and businesses need to brace themselves for a higher bill from uncle sam. stacy tisdale, al jazeera, new york. still ahead, it is a laundry list of very new laws set for 2014, including one state licensing. a peddling pub? what is that. >> and another holiday black eye for target, this time involving it ease gift cards. and the card dealers are setting records by moving billions of dollars worth of vehicles off their losts we are back in a moment.

advertise the season for

driving new cars off the lot. every year, december has been the top selling month for auto sales. consumers are on pace to spendage estimated $34 billion boy, that's a lot of money. al jazeera explains. >> you can see the ads and the bright sales signs. but that's at the end of. every year, there's something different this year, another million and a half new cars and trucks sold nationwide this december. >> we're looking at perhaps as 5% maybe 6% increase over last year. which maybe doesn't sound like all that much, but last desks was a fantastic month in one of the biggest months in 2012. >> how may i help you? >> the sales manager at this dealership says his business is not booming it is exploding. >> 300 plus new cars, from the day after christmas through the close of the year which

is incredible. that's more voling qualm than most dealerships can imagine doing in a single month. >> the price on this one is -- >> so what is it about this december that's got so many of us in a mood? first, many people need new cars after hanging on to older models longer than normal. >> part of what has contributed to that is consumer confident, everybody is getting more relaxed about spending money. >> ashley web came here looking to buy her first car. >> we talked about it over thanksgiving he is just wait until the end of the year, we can get better deals so that's what we decided to do. >> is it too late to get an incredible deal. experts say no. dealers are looking to clear their 2013 inventories to make room for new models for consumers that means discounts. while supplies last.

as you get into that period into january and february, it's really a fantastic time to be shopping to really get in the drivers seat if you will to use the phrase. >> quality sun real today compared to what it was. >> lee chapman is the president of the dallas fort worth new car dealers association. he says recent models including 2013s are safer. more fuel official,. >> just better than they were. which helps sell cars as much as any discount. we are up about 11%, which is tremendous. we continue to have that double digit increase year after year, so we are extremely pleased with that. >> experts say mid sized sudans full side pickups and come fact crossovers are the billest sellers right now. mark snyder, al jazeera, dallas. >> ♪ sorry about that, on

wall street, investors wrapping an amazing year with another record setting performance. look at th the s&p 500 also finishes at a record -- my goodness, what a year, the dow is up more than 26-points. k this continue? 26%. that is the biggest one year personal gain since 1995. two s&p 500 is higher than 29%. and the nasdaq although still not at the levels of the.com boom, a p whoing -- look at this, 38%. gold had a bad year, enough said about that. let's bring in matthew. you are with buzz feed, and he is the business correspondent. happy new year to you. >> you too. >> can those numbers continue? 26%, 30 -- whatever%?

and those continue. >> well, one thing we have to look at is the stock markets that been going up, since the dependents of the recession, and what happened this year, is this is really the year when individual investors retail investors really started allocating more of their savings, more of their mutual funds towards stocks. more that are within hundred $60 billion. >> so those with jobs set aside more of their income for savings. >> for stocks. >> less bonds more stocks. >> so bejust saw the piece about car sales. >> yeah. >> now much of the rise this year, we have heard analysis that this was not really being beneficial to main street, you just indicated that there is a segment of that that is not absolutely true. that there are some people on main street who are doing okay. >> yeah, but the best time to have bout into the stock market would have been in 2010, a lot of the gains that we will see through this cycle already happened. so as often is the case,

the retail investors get in when the gains start going up. and probably towards the end. it is unlikely we will see another 29% gain. >> so can s&p just a moment ago, we are talking about -- 34 billion with a b? in sales in december? and that's -- that's a lot of economic activity. >> yes. >> and it's easier for folks to get an auto loan than a housing loan? >> yes. since the housing boom, the the crash, it is much harder to get credit to buy a loan. a lot of new mexico, big down payment, auto loans it is much easier. give me one thing you are keeping an eye on. >> it is important the stock gains are as broadly based as they

were, some of the dow although one company rose over the year. a lot had double digit gains. 2014, it's even more diversity, some performing better, some companies even seeing their price fall, which happened to very very few. >> that's terrific. matt is with us, he is with buzz feed, and business reporter for buzz feed. good to have you here. >> you too. >> a retailer target is dealing with more holiday shopping trouble, the company confirms some of the customers are having problems using their gift cards. oh my goodness, joins us with more on this. maria? >> tony, target won't say exactly how many gift carts have been impacted just that it isless than .1% of total cards sold. target says that doesn't have anything to do with the data breech from

several weeks ago, where some 40 million customers credit and debit carts were with compromised. the company says they will honor the gift cards, you can either to the customer service, and target has been overwhelmed with phone calls we with called that number this morning and automated service said we are sorry but extremely busy, if this is urgent stay on theline, otherwise call back later, they have posted on their twitter this, they say we continue to listen and are working hard to address feedback, call centers are open 24/7 this week, including new year's day. >> all right. appreciate it, thank you. >> and thousands of new state laws go into effect. in 2014, ahead the new pet lemon law, and licensing your own pedal tavern. residents of brazil's community, look to shed it's negative image.

security concerns are growing ahead of the winter olympics. after the back to back bombings. officials have canceled the new years fireworks display. and russian president vladimir putin spoke out for the first time today vowing to quote annihilate the terrorists. despite talks the fighting is getting worst, the u.n. says rebels now fully control the key city. thousands of troops are being sent to recapture bore, and the united nations is going to miss

the days deadline for removing chemical weapons from syria, the u.n. and the group removing those are blaming security conditions and poor weather. the young girl has been declared brain dead. the hospital says lit not allow the family to convince a court otherwise. the family says it is their right to trial. melissa chen is at the hospital in oakland california. >> according to the hospital, she was dead weeks ago, when she went into cardiac arrest shortly after her operation. but her family disagreed and has taken to battle to court. >> i have to do what is right for me, and for jahi. >> a judge has grant add one week extension of life support. >> our attorneys are currently simultaneously filing a new complaint in federal court requesting a temporary restraining order and an injunction

preventing pulling the plug, we have also requested that extend the temporary restraining odderrer and our attorneys are filing an appeal with with the california aplate courts. by statute she mentions she meets all the criteria for brain death. >> medically brain death is different than a coma, a patient in a coma still has neuroactivity. but with brain death, there are no neurological signals. the mcmath family has said they have seen movement, signs of life, the hospital maintains its position. >> in similar cases, where there are patients who are deceased, the brain dead, there's such an effect known as the lazarus reflex, or the lazarus effect, and it is quite common for their muscling to move. that is not something that is either unusual nor shocking nor is it a

sign of any life in the body of jahi. >> the attorney says this isn't simply about whether she is dead or alive, it is about basic civil liberties. >> this is about choices. no matter how they try to characterize it, it is about open apartment, choices and the rights of people. >> the fundamental conflicts centers around different motions of death by the medical definition, she is dead, after three rounds of medical examinations by doctors both in and out of the hospital. but the court fights continues. the family now has one last chance to make their case. melissa chen, al jazeera, oakland california. >> boy, this is a tough one, let's take a closer look at the legal issues in this case. joins us from los angeles, good do see you again, look. want to try to get at this from different angles here. a new york hospital offering to take her, but the family claims the

oakland hospital said no, what is the reasoning behind that? >> the oakland hospital is say we will release her, but there has to be a doctor over from the oakland hospital that is willing to do two surgery to incerta breathing tube, and a feeding tube, there has to be reliable transportation, and the coroner in the county has to release the body because the hospital maintains that jahi is dead, so the hospital is saying we will comply, but these conditions have to be met. the hospital says it will not allow the family to convince a court otherwise. that the young girl is not brain dead. at some point when co the rights of the family expire? >> i am not so sure the

hospital has the right say, what the judge did in extended the temporary restraining order is to say if the family goes in and files an appeal of the trial court's decision, he would then allow the restraining order to last until january 7th and the family did just that. so this is no longer at the trial court level. it is about the california aplate court level. >> right. >> and the family also filed a federal complaint claiming that she has the right to live and to be sustained. so this is going to be played out in two different courts. some very interesting issues that this is a civil liberty issue. >> okay, right. civil liberties. you heard the attorney say this is about choices and the rights of people. when the california aplate court begins to take a look at this, what is it going to be reviewing? what is it going to be reading? what informing will

inform its desession? >> tony, it is going to be looking at the california state statute, which defines what it means to be legally dead. woe know that's the issue here. and that jahi is legally dead, but i believe the california court also has to look at this motion, is there a constitutional right to life. that's being violated and if there is this hospital in new york that says hey, we will take her, we will make all of the afternoonments necessary, i don't think that the court can ignore that. >> that's interesting, so presumably there is going to be a malpractice suit to come at some point on this in is there anything the hospital can do now to defend itself from that kind of a lawsuit? >> you know, one thing we are hearing, tony, we are hearing the family that she went in for a routine tonsil surgery, but we are hearing from the hospital spokes person that this surgery was far from routine, and that it

was complex. so we haven't heard a lot about what went wrong where the surgery, why this teenager girl ended up brain dead, and going into cardiac arrest, but you can believe that there's going to be a very very expensive lawsuit filed by this family, claiming that there was negligence on the part of the hospital, and the doctors and asking for a substantial monetary damages. and at that point, we will start to learn more about what went wrong from a medical standpoint. because a young girl, 13, should not go into the hospital for this kind of surgery and have this result. will that happen in california, or will she be allowed to travel to new york. from los angeles, good to talk to you, thank you. >> thank you, tony. >> and sales of drugs to treat adhd are on the rise. it is becoming

increasingly popular with high school and college students. al jazeera take as look at their growing use, as study aids. i find it very difficult to study solo. >> social media, makes it rough. >> welt, there's a pill for that. in fact several. add al, ritalin. all amphetamine based prescribed for people diagnosed with adhd. when i don't take it my brain is really cluttered with thoughts. it is hard for me to focus. >> but many undiagnosed students use them illegally without a prescription. >> finals time everyone is asking for some. it is everywhere. >> u.s. sales jump 40% over the last four years

that have been reported by the government. while much of that demand stems from wider diagnosis of the disorder especially among adults the drug has won a reputation for improving the academic performance of students. a reputation that may be a myth. no, we don't think it give as boost. >> head of the adhd add have castky groups points to study show that they produce no significant effect on the classroom results of people who don't have adhd. it is a stimulant so you may be able to stay awake longer. but when we look at academic performance, that those that take it they don't do any better. >> a market has seen a upsurge in fake stimulants. off sold online. as with all prescription drugs, abuse is always a risk, but the newest versions are rarely addictive, and according

to new clinical trial results it does show success in treating another form of abuse. binge eating. al jazeera, washington. >> the u.n.'s chemical weapons watchdog says it won't need today's deadline to remove the most toxic chemicals. the group says it is stimon track to meet a june 30th deadline to eliminate syria's chemical weapons stock piles. and we have a update on our al jazeera colleague whose have been detained in egypt producer, has been moved to a prison outside cairo, a prosecute her question him tomorrow. he is also at that same prison, but he won't be questioned until saturday, and correspondent will be questioned tomorrow he is still being held at a cairo police station. brazil, has six months before millions of soccer fans arrive for the 2014 world cup. the country as premier

destination, crime has been a major concern. a lot of blame has been placed on the city's poorer districts. but those who live there say they don't deserve the bad reputation. rachel reports now. growing up in one of the hundred shanty towns means he is used to fighting stereotypes both in and outside the ring. they assume we with are all thieves. >> it's an image repeated constantly, making the world synonymous with violence and chaos. >> when people go looking for a job and they say they are from this community, that is

already associated with gun violence, with drugs, it lowers the self-esteem of these young people, and makes them question if they can achieve something coming from a bad place. >> but this 20-year-old blogger and community reporter believes that the image projecting by mass media is inaccurate. >> in a community like this one, of 200,000, there's no way step pest of the people here are trafficking can you imagine? we would see traffickers on every corner, that is not the reality. i believe it is more like 1%. the amount of people that live here and are hard working is a lot more. community, that's how people describe these neighborhoods. when who enjoy a saturday block party with friends after a long week working in his flower shop, he raised all ten of his children here, even when traffickers controlled the streets.

>> my son lives in boston, they want me to move there, but i never want to leave my community. >> back at the gym, sound of shoot outs is becoming more common. but it doesn't stop these kids from coming to learn the brazilian martial art. or slow roberto down, he is determined to make the national team when his city hosts the 2016 olympics. proud to represent his country and his community. going to tell you, the government did not allow police to enter 2,008 since the so called raids began. we are going to show the pictures it is dramatic

stuff, back with more on that story, and other news making headlines today, dramatic pictures. >> yeah, very much so. the evacuation order has been lifted near the site of a train collision. 400 of them have been warned of toxic smoke after a train loaded with crude oil collided with another that had already derailed. the governor of slovakia has taken four more members from guantanamo. a u.s. judge ordered their release in 2008, it brings the population to 155. an airlift will have to wait until the waver clears after wednesday, they prepares a landing pad for the chopper by stomping down the snow

next to the ship. lastly, starbuck's had been trending today, a small bar in missouri received a cease or desist let fresh the coffee giant this month. they asked that frappuccino beer be taken off the menu. in which he said had it not been for being poor spellers they would have named it the same. and telling star bucks that he would from now on call it the f word beer. the owner sent star buck as $6 check, money made off the three people that ordered that type of beer. >> can we be any more latigoes in this country? because of a misspelling. and someone from starbuck's went in and discovered it -- i don't know. >> you know, beer. >> use the name.

oh, he is making a lot off that beer now. >> preparing to enact some 40,000 new lars. grudge owners lined up to register magazines that can hold more than ten rounds. >> basically what is law is, you have to declare the detachable magazine. >> these are getting a lot of attention in the new year, here in new york city, there's a new ban on smoking ecigarettes in public and work places where

cigarette smoking is no longer allowed. the big apple joins four other states in imposing this type of law. and several others are debating the same. >> the new pet lemon law in illinois may interest you. >> illinois is al cracking down on driver whose pass stop school buss. districts can install cameras now to catch them. students can choose a bathroom or sports team based on the gender they identify with, not the one they were born with. it is clear, 2014 will bring more changes, than just the calendar year itself.

al jazeera, new york. >> ahead on al jazeera america, mascot for climate change is gaining presidential attention in hawaii. and the statute honoring the treatment of thousands of women during world war ii sparks protests. "america tonight" investigative series >> we traveled here to japan to find out what's really happening at fukushima daiich >> three years after the nucular disaster, the hidden truth about the ongoing cleanup efforts and how the fallout could effect the safety of americans >> are dangerous amounts of radioactive water, leaking into the pacific eververyday? >> join america tonight's michael okwu for an exclusive four part series, as we return to fukushima only on al jazeera america

statute honors womennze forced into prostitution, but as brian rooney explains the presence isn't lucked by all. >> it is a simple statute of a teenager girl sitting in a chair. next to her is an empty chair although it's never really empty. the statute is always covered with flowers, testament to the continuing emotion this memorial evokes. on a recent day a korean family came to see it. >> i learned about it in the history class when i was back in korea. and recently, i became more aware about it. >> during world war ii, japanese army concurred korea and other countries they pressed as many as

200,000 young women into service as sex slaves. some of them just girls and most of them korean. they were called the comfort women. >> a lot of them died, a lot of them were left at the front line when the japanese withdrew. >> the statute represents the girls, the empty chair the women who are gone. the bid on her shoulder a symbolic connection between the living and dead. the statute is here because los angeles and some of the surrounding towns have the largest korean population in the world, outside of korea itself. phyllis kim was involved in the private effort to get the memorial installed last august. >> what happened has happened it is the truth. and we want to remember the victims of suffering in order to prevent the same thing happening again. >> they are japanese american activists who say the statute is important.

they met the members of parliament that want it removed. >> they say it was like a slap in the face that this monument was bringing shame upon the country. two japanese console says the position of his government is that it is sorry about the installation of the statue. >> we are not happy about the installation of the monument. we are very sorry for the installation of the statute. >> bub phil, a fourth generation american who was in a camp for japanese americans during world war ii, said these events in history should be remembered. >> we need to have memorials for things that happen like hiroshima, as in auschwitz, the concentration camps in germany that give the world an opportunity to realize that these things happen.

and we don't want them to happen again. >> it's sister city has threatened to sever their relationships. now even glendale's mayor says he reglets allowing the statute to be installed. but the more the controversial, the more supporters of the statute say the comfort woman should stay where she is. looking everyone in the eye. al jazeera, glendale, california. >> president obama continues his holiday vacation in hawaii with his family, but as they have enjoyed the sand and surf, they have also received some unexpected company. someone dressed in a polar bear suit has been crashing the president's trip, the mission to raise awareness about climate change. jennifer london is in owahu for us, and jennifer, who is this guy, please? >> tony, frost paw is a seven-foot tall polar bear who has been followed the president all over the country. from boston, to san

francisco, from washington, d.c., right here he is a walking and yes talking mascot for the center for biological diversity, which is leading the campaign to stop the proposed expansion of the keystone pipeline. it was first proposed in 2008. it is called the keystone pipeline xl. it would stretch more than 1700 miles all the way to the gulf of mexico, carrying hundreds of thousands of gallons of crude oil. now proponents say it is a critical step towards america becoming energy independent, it will create jobs, but opponents say it is game over for the environment. i had the chance to meet up with frost because right here on the beach. and he puts it this way. >> two keystone pile line is a huge oil pine line going from alberta canada down to the gulf of mexico, carrying the dirtiest crude oil on the planet.

it is an environmental disaster. my home is already melting. and we can't afford any more instigators of climate change like the keystone pipeline. >> and you are here in hawaii to urge the president to do what. >> he alone has the executive power to completely reject this project from moving forward. now, the president has the seoul discretion to decide whether to approve this, so far he has not indicated how he will decide. i did ask him, he thinks the cuteness will undermine the message, he says absolutely not. in fact, that is the point. >> and he hasn't gotten anywhere near the president on this trip, correct? >> he had one with siting interaction when he was golfing. frost paw was close by, and the president looked up he waved and he said

hey, polar bear, but that's as close as he has gotten so far. >> okay. jennifer, london for us. jennifer, appreciate it, thank you. the arctic blast has reached the north east, that's ex in.

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next only on al jazeera america you are heading out this evening bitter cold air. but it quickly warms up. very mild in denver. memphis at 48. that contrast storms are tracking along that, we have this area of snow moving through the region now, just some light snow, but this is the set up. certainly here much about this thursday and friday. this quigg moving storm gives snow to the great lakes. and moves up the coast, can easily see a foot of snow across new england thursday and friday.

>> this is al jazeera america live from new york city. i'm tony harris with a look at today's tough stories from ukraine. we have tough picture for you. opponents are trying to spread their message and celebrate the new year statement. at the same time. pro union protesters and anti-government protesters are holding a concert hoping to set a record of those singing the national anthem at the at the same time time. in the south sudan rebels now control the key city of bor. now troops are hoping to recapture