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tv   News  Al Jazeera  June 1, 2014 5:00am-5:31am EDT

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dollar industry. >> >> after nearly five years in captivity their son bowe is coming home. >> prisoner swap - a u.s. soldier held hostage in afghanistan is freed in exchange for five taliban leaders. this is the world news from al jazeera. also ahead - the anger behind the smiles. china hits back at the u.s. over its stance on the south china sea. >> a sudanese government official says the woman sentenced to death for abandoning islam could soon be
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free. and a warping that sri lanka's elephants are under -- warning that sri lanka's elephants are under threat from illegal poaching. well, there has been celebrations in the united states and afghanistan after a landmark prisoner swap. an american soldier held by the taliban for nearly five years has been freed in exchange for five of its leaders hold at guantanamo. they are on their way to qatar, which helped to broker the deal. more on that in a moment. first this report. >> reporter: this is the deal the taliban have long been pushing for. after almost five years in captivity, sergeant bowe bergdahl was reportedly handed to a farce of special operations soldiers in eastern afghanistan. in exchange five taliban proper
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at guantanamo bay will be sent to qatar, subject to security restrbdss, including -- restrictions, including a ban on travel. they are senior officials of the taliban government, that held power before the u.s. invasion. >> i want to go home. the afghanistan mn in our prisons, they want to go home too. >> during his captivity, bowe bergdahl could be seep in video tapes. the prison swap has been discussed since 2011. the white house officials said that several weeks ago a new opportunitia rose. in the white house roz garden, parents by her side, they said that u.s. safety would not becompromised. >> this week i thanked the emir of qatar for its leadership. as part of the efforts the united states is transferring five detainees from the prison in guantanamo bay to qatar. the qatari government assures us
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it will put in measures to protect our national security. snow some in congress -- >> some in congress say that president obama has between the law by not notifying them 30 days before the release of guantanamo bay prisoners. >> the white house expressed hopes it may help with negotiating efforts. >> these engines negotiations and their success shows that the taliban is turning more towards politics with the anticipation that the americans are leaving and they want to play a political role in afghanistan, not just the role of terrorists. bowe bergdahl was promoted twice, from sergeant to captain, he is in good condition and will travel to a u.s. hospital. before returning home. >> whether or not are the five taliban detainees. they had been held in guantanamo bay since 2002, squ were part of
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the -- they were part of the afghan leadership. mohammad fazl was the deputy minister of defense, and a senior commander of the taliban army. khairullah khairkhwa was the minister of interior, directly associated with osama bin laden. abdul haq wasiq, the gooutry minister of intelligence was central in forming alliances between the taliban and others. mullah norullah noori as a senior military commander during coalition forces and mohammed nabi served in multiple leadership rolls, suspected of having strong leption to al qaeda. >> there are two that we'll monitor in the capital of doha. the arrival of five detainees, and the minister of forebb affai
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affairs. the roll that the qatari government played in the swap and details about restrictions. they are going to stay here in doha or fly back to afghanistan and what political role they could play in the future. >> this is one aspect. this is another. it is most likely to play a significant role. on one hand you have the afghan reconciliation, and on the other foreign troops pulling out of afghanistan as we speak. the taliban say we are doing this ipp directly, leaving us to assume that the qataris are playing a significant role. these are questions we are likely going to get more light and answers in the coming horse. in sergeant bowe bergdahl's home town in idaho, people are preparing to welcome him. allen schauffler has this
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update. >> this up to of 8 thouds, just a -- 8,000, just abuzz this weekend with the spreading news that bowe bergdahl is coming home. coming home as a sergeant, promoted twice whilst in captivity. up and down main street there are yellow ribbons on every sign osts and fen poets and light posts, people acknowledging he has been held. they've had the ribbons up for five years, new ones put in place, all to keep the memory of bowe bergdahl fresh in peep's minds. -- people's minds. this cough yes shop is an -- coffee shop is all part of the effort. we talked to the owner, who was bowe's boss for a couple of years, some time back, and we asked her what she thought bowe would be facing when he comes to america to restart an old life. sue martin can't wait to see
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bowe, and expects to gi him a nice, long hug. a sentiment shared by many in the wood river valley a sudanese government official said the woman sentenced to death for abandoning islam could be released. her case caused an outcry. she was sentenced to 100 lashes for marrying a christian. she gave birth this book. let's get more on the case from a sudanese government official. it said that the woman sentenced to death could be released. let's talk to the guest. it's el-sharif ali mohammed joining us from khartoum, and he is miriam's lawyer. thank you for being was. we appreciate you being with us. this is not an official statement, though, from the government, but a comment coming from one government official. how much weight can we give the
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comments? >> actually, to be frank, this is a statement - it's a political statement. even is not pending on the judiciary of sudan. the judiciary of sudan is the body that has to detail miriam's situation. miriam was convicted according to the apostasy and other things. that describes her crime, and it should be determined by the judge. no one can do it for her. what we are looking for we have fighting to release mir ym. she did not -- miriam. she has not committed any crime. she has not committed a crime. she is christian, and did not - apostasy is a crime. as far as we know, miriam is in
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the prison, and they have been in the prison today and we went to the court of admip to see whether -- admin to see whether there's a decision made, and found that our record - they still the court record is for other people. >> this is a case that made global headlines. are there many apostasy cases in sudan that we don't know of? >> if the look at the history of sudan in 1985, there was execution of that, in the court there is another case of apostasy. the issue should be clear by the government. they should make a decision that
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this is apostasy is not in line with international agreement. it's not in line with the constitution of sudan. there is cases before the court, but this case, because miriam was so strong and determined in her believing. so she stayed in the courts. she is christians, and she did not commit a crime of adultery or apostasy. >> we know that miriam gave birth earlier this week, and you are, of course, in touch with her on a daily basis. tell us how she and her baby is doing in gaol? >> actually, she is inside the prison clinic now. she is happy, looking forward to
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beginning her life. she believes that she did not commit a crime. and she has a right. she - her prison is not a proper place to anybody. can you imagine that a woman with her two children, with hindsight, is taking care of the children, and she's inside the prip. she's marsh situation, and difficult for her to stay there. and you know that there is a lot of pressure within and outside of sudan. all she want is to live a normal life. i do remember when i talk to her is that she told me - she did not - she was not looked - she want to lead a normal life. >> right.
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we wish you all the best. thank you for speaking with us. >> meriam ibrahim's lawyer there. now, south sudan's rebel leader is committed to a ceasefire agreement. riek machar made the comments in nairobi, where he's been talking to kenya's president. he admitted that he is not completely in charge of his forces. he said this in an interview with the afp agency. he is committed to the roadmap for peace. a frenchman has been arrested with a shooting at a jewish museum in brussels, three died, another injured when a loan gunman opened fire. french investigators questioned a 29-year-old man after resting him in marr say. china september a response to the u.s. defense secretary who accused of it destabilizing the
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south china sea reason. chuck hagel was told his criticisms were groundless and he denounced japanese president shinzo abe. he had called on other countries to respect the rule of law. >> translation: we will never accept provocations by others under the pretext of positive passivism that stirring up tension for their -- passivism. the speeches made by mr abba and mr hagel gave me the impression they coordinated with each other and staged provocative actions against china. >> richard is a writer and senior fellow at the school of international studies and said south-east asian nations are willing to put strong trade ties on the line in support of a droppinger military -- stronger military presence in the region. >> they are trying to do a
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delicate act of having good relations with china, they kind of have to. they are trying to hemming their bets by -- hemming their bets by -- hedge their bets by keeping the united states involved as a counterweight to problems. it's a tough balancing act. i don't think they are having too many problems from the u.s. side of things. what is going to depend's how china is going to hackt in the next couple of years, and whether they'll be more ipp trance get and insist that south-east asian nations accept what counts as sovereignty or enforcement capabilities. >> the trial for three of al jazeera's staff detained in egypt resumes on sunday. still ahead - we take a look at problems faced by media outlet in the country. >> plus why graduates in bank
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are less likely to find jobs than people with top qualifications.
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and add voice and tv for $34.90. comcast business built for business. welcome back. the top stories on al jazeera. the taliban has told al jazeera the release of five of its leaders from guantanamo bay is a great achievement. the men have been freed in exchange for sergeant bowe bergdahl. a u.s. soldier held in afghanistan for five years. the deal was brokered by qatar. the lawyer of a sudanese woman sentenced o death has told
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the programme that he has heard nothing about a possible release. on saturday a sudanese government official said meriam ibrahim could be freed soon. china described the u.s. secretary's remarks, accusing it of destabilizing the see region as groundless. six egyptian border guards have been killed. the soldiers were targeted in the western desert area. it follows the raft of smugglers and the confiscation of weapons, ammunition, cars and drugs. weapons flows increased along the borders of sudan and libya, since the uprising that toppled muammar gaddafi in 2011. three al jazeera staff held in egypt are back in court, on trial, accused of aiding the banned group muslim brotherhood. peter greste, mohamed fadel fahmy and baher mohamed have been in gaol now for 155 days.
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another al jazeera correspondent abdullah al-shami has been held in a cairo prison without charge for more than nine months. as nicole johnston reports, the crackdown in the media has been widespread. >> this has become an all-too familiar scene in egypt. al jazeera journalists in court. they are not the only one. shutting down media station, detaining more than 65 journalists to the accounts in july, and in addition they persecuted a lot of the activists, defenders. this is the funeral of reporter, shot in the back of the head while covering a protest in march. egypt's minister of interior agreed to provide 100 bulletproof vests for journalists, covering violent
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demonstrations. gaoled media workers included freelance photographer. he has been in prison since august last year, and has not been charged. secular activists have been charged. one of the well-known ones is the leader of the april 6th movement. one of the original groups behind the 2011 revolution. former head of the military, abdul fatah al-sisi, has won the presidential election. abdul fatah al-sisi is going to have a lot of difficulty with international community giving aid, investment and having legitimacy to say that he is running the country towards democratic governments. unless he releases all the journalists who are behind bars, and prosecute those responsible on journalists. last year a video came out
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where abdul fatah al-sisi spoke about the media with military generals. an officer said... . >> translation: showing a red card to media analysts make them stop at a line or limit. abdul fatah al-sisi responded with... . >> translation: building a state-wide alliance takes a long time and effort. it takes a long time after getting a share over the media. now that he's president abdul fatah al-sisi will have the power to deal with the media any way he wants. syrian fighters released video of a group of women and children held hostage in syria. they are from the allah wait sect, the same as president bashar al-assad. one of the women says that 40 of them were released under a homs agreement. that's when forces agreed to let
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rebels leave. the islamic front claimed responsibility for blowing up a tunnel. another under a hotel used by regime forces was blown up. the navy rescued more than 3,500 migrants from the mediterranean sea 24 hours. the majority were men from syria and north africa, there were hundreds of children. they have been tape to ports on the italian islands of cecilia and lampedusa. the number of rivals is equal to the number last year. >> doctors without borders doctors have been treating and working with the migrants. this doctor says many have serious health problems. >> mainly skin diseases, clearly
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due to poor id. and traumas and respiratory tract in fction. mainly we see this disease. in the last several landings, we see more and more young children, many non-accompanied, and many women. this clearly change a lot the type of people that we see. so it's not a case of today, but in the last month we saw a lot of children coming. they are all coming from really hard conditions, so i don't think there is something to stop them to come. maybe if the situation in their country changes, but nothing this weekend. ass says it has -- australia says it has accepted more than 500 afghan refugees. those resettled jeopardised their own safety by helping the
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australian military during the war in afghanistan. most worked as interpreters. australia ended operations in afghanistan. a heatwave sweeping across japan claimed two lives. more than 300 people have been admitted to hospital. the meteorological agency in japan issued extreme weather warnings. a researcher says people with university degrees in bangladesh are likely to be out of a job than those without qualifications. unemployment is a problem facing a generation of young people around the world. the latest in the jobless serious reports on a graduate's search for work. >> two years after earning the masters degree that man tried everything to find a job. when we last spoke he enrolled in a training cores. this, he hoped, would help him
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land a post in a bank or public sector. six months on, he's had no luck. he's here to take a test to become a call center ate. at this point he'll take any job. now you see that for 2-3 open positions, four or five students. the competition is intense. you send the resume. it has to compete with. these men and women are in the thag stage of recruit in the. half of those with a bachelor's degree are unemployed. the country's booming industry provides jobs for the working class. options are limited. >> call centers are one of a few places where young graduates can
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find a job. many don't see it as a long-stopping solution because of investment in their education. they worked at the call center. she loved her job and the work environment. others consider themselves too good for this work. >> translation: what i noticed was that she applied for jobs in several places but didn't get a single one, she became frustrated and depressed. i put her in touch with people here, she worked here and decided this was not for her. >> reporter: things can om get better. >> translation: if god is willing, i'll find a job. if i don't, i don't know what will happen to me. the future is uncertain. hope keeps me alive. >> with white collar jobs at a premium he digs deep into terms of optimism. >> for now, eued kate people have to settle.
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>> environmentalists in sri lanka say poachers threaten the country's elephant population. cracking down is difficult. a powerful criminal network is depend it. we have this worp. >> a getle giant. a familiar site in this village. the owners have a permit and a licence, a must for keeping an elephant in sri lanka. the elephants play an important role. with the numbers in captivity dwindling, some owners want a way to replace them. >> translation: there's a severe shortages of domesticated elephants. those that have had animals for generations are without them. we ask the minister to come up with a programme to protect the trading. this group of openers marched to
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the wildlife department with their request. >> elephants have been part of the culture for centuries. replacing animals like this, is difficult and they want authorities to give them a solution. environmentalists warn taming child elements is a mistake. they say allowing it would encourage racquet ears to capture elephants at will. activists showed me copies, they say they were formed. this mobile phone footage shows them in the jungle, abandoned when villages heard its cries and raised the alarm. >> this mother had gunshot injuries and died a few days. the calf could not be found. environmentalists stay it is worrying.
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40" are believed to be distracting. good mothers. to many years to come. >> these majestic elephants are used in a number of of areas, parades, advertising, other ventures. money is the reason. >> it's a pure profit. if have you three elephants, you are like - better than three c.e.o.s. >> in many cases the captured elephants are mistreated. the minister says the government is determined to address the problem. >> it is not easy to stop this. it's a powerful network behind it. elephants are kept. we are termed to find a solution. how quickly it's found will
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determine the health and survival of the population. if you would like to find out more about the plight of sri lanka's elephants, and our top news stories, analysis and features, go to the website at aljazeera.com. >> the president told west point's graduating class that america must continue to lead the world. spelling out the obama foreign policy, it is the inside story. >> hello, i'm ray suarez. sometimes it's hard to remember