greatness and claim it because right. >> it is a riveting and inspiring memoir. thank you so much for talking to al jazeera. >> we will take you to one of the deadliest outposts in afghanistan and hear from a veteran who survives his experiences.

>> so a full scale rebellion in iraq. shia fighters from the south signing up to help a depleted iraqi army defend baghdad. prime minister nouri al-maliki calling for help to protect the city's holy shrines. the isil is leading an offensive that is 80 miles away now, 80 miles from the capitol, almost immediately after isil took mosul tuesday and handed it over to sunni tribes. here is our report. >> reporter: a call for arms.

the ayatollah. >> we call on people in the defense of their people, their country and holy shrines and call on people to join forces to achieve this goal. young men flock to the recrui recruitment center. >> we have volunteered to defeat the isil fighters. we'll go to mosul and god willing we will fight them. >> reporter: in mosul, the city those have left are finding it difficult. they haven't found shelter in the kurdish region of iraq where half a million people have gone

and need help. >> we're afraid they will target us. that's why we left our home. >> reporter: the army has been besieged by isil flighters, who has given them a deadline to leave the city. when the shrine was attacked in 2006 it set off events. >> they take the towns, and making the crisis in iraq worse.

>> well, president obama has ruled out sending american troops to iraq. he said the crisis in iraq could effect american security if left unchecked. how much pressure is president obama to respond to this situation in iraq? >> reporter: well, tony, president obama's critics are pressuring him, but he seemed to be taking his time being deliberate in saying there would not be any kind of open-ended long-term military efforts. president obama telling reporters that military action alone would not solve iraq's problems. >> reporter: president obama ignoring critics to move quickly in iraq said it will be days before he makes the decision that there be no boots on the ground, and whatever america does has to be combined with the new attitude by iraq's leaders.

>> american troops have made extraordinary sacrifice to give iraqis

>> and additionally congress itself right now is in the middle of a 30-day review of another $1 billion order of arms for iraq of humvee vehicles like these and other forms of fighting equipment. of course it will take more than equipment to oust isil. they'll also be require need enforcement, they'll require that, but it is their position that it might be tough to defend over time once everybody gets their act together. >> and you could have all the military equipment you want, this situation needs a political solution. >> that's right. a lot of equipment that they have is stolen from the iraqis. we gave that to the iraqis in the first place. a very bitter pill to swallow in every way. >> thank you. sgt. bowe bergdahl is continuing his recovery in a military hospital.

he returns after five years in afghanistan. army officials held a news conference in san antonio, texas. lisa stark has more on what they had to say. >> officials at brooke army medical center said sgt. bowe bergdahl is in stable position, and he'll work daily with medical health officials to get his mind and body back in shape. he arrived in the wee hours of friday morning. he was in uniform, and major general di salvo was there to greet bergdahl. >> he looked good. he saluted. >> they said over all he was pleased with bergdahl's overall physical condition that he walked into the hospital on his own. the situation will involve

bergdahl for the physical and emotional support and stability that he needs to return to somewhat of a normal life. army psychologist said bergdahl particularly has to learn to make choices again, how to take control of his life. >> it will be making choices. every one of us decide what to put on, what to have for breakfast, where we're going for lunch. those decision-making processes were fundamentally taken from him in. they said he is communicating clearly in english, and that he apparently didn't have much opportunity to do while he was held captive. >> we'll give him a chance to

make decisions that are in his control. >> because all of this is so individualized doctors could not say how long this process might take. they did say that there would be no real conversation yet and the circumstances of his capture, that will come in due time. >> lisa stark reporting. the state department stated that russias have sent rocket launchers to eastern ukraine. the interier ministry said troops were able to dislodge the insurgents from occupied buildings. we have more on today's news. >> reporter: in a war that people say is not their own. this is the ukrainian troops and pro russian separatists. the fighters have been holed up

in this city until the ukrainian troops moved in. >> they started shooting the guns. after that i don't know how many rounds were fired. after one and a half hours, the real battle gun and the sound was so deafening that the wind was shattered. >> reporter: the battle continued most of the day as men called terrorists scattered from their headquarters. >> we're still hearing sporadic gunfire every few minutes, but locals have gone about life as normal. >> reporter: as the shots range louder scared residents took cowe cover. the country's interior ministers said some soldiers from wounded and several separatists were detained. mr. were pockets of pro-russian fighters but managed to take full control. residents have been divided over who they support.

>> what am i feeling? of course, fear. we werwe didn't know who was right. >> many are convinced saying only luck kept them alive. >> coming up on al jazeera america a new name joins the name to replace house majority leader erik don'ter. and president obama visits reservations in south dakota. you're watching al jazeera america. . vé

>> there is now a race to replace eric cantor as house majority leader. idaho congressman announced he'll run for the post. he will face kevin mccarthy currently house majority whip in thursday's election. david shuster joins us with more

on this. wait a minute. mccarthy only in his fourth term and he's rock star now. >> he's a rock star and he may have this vote locked up. he already has all the votes that he needs. >> mccarthy used to be a deli owner, he's considered one of the most likable guys at the capitol. no one is more engaging and liked than this guy. that is his style. he's not known as someone who dives in issues. and your job as whip, you have to make sure that your call the votes. he woul votes.

>> let's change topics here. hillary clinton has an interesting review. she ends up in this disagreement, this spat on npr with terry, the host of the program. it's a smart program. terry is asking about evolving position on same-sex marriage. we have a clip. let's talk about it. >> you are spinning my words and playing with-- >> i'm just trying to clarify. >> no, i don't think you're trying to clarify. you are saying i used to be opposed, and now i changed for political reasons. that's what you're imply. i have a strong record. i have a great commitment to this issue, and i'm proud of what i've done and the progress we're making. >> and repudiate it. tough language. it plays into kind of a

critique. >> yes, that she's too defensive, and the issue here is not a difficult one, and this conversation about hillary clinton's opposition to gay marriage in the 90's and her support of it now, this went on for seven minutes. all hillary clinton had to say was look, i evolved, but she got caught up in a defensive posture, wouldn't answer the question and then became snarky and that's not a great place for someone who may run for president. she'll have a lot more moments moments--many conservatives would say this is friendly media. >> yes. >> and then added to her woes, and you have this contentious interview. you have her misstating abraham

lincoln saying that he was a senator. today, they broke down in philadelphia. they could not get the back wheels hoisted up, and it just sat there. and it caps off and symbolizes what has a tough week for her. >> you're on the evening show. >> yes. >> president obama is making his first fifth as president to indian country. the president and first lady are at the standing rock reservation in north dakota. you're looking at live pictures. >> 13-year-old marti martinez is used to being turned down. he tries to sell candy to raise

money. he is not the only one here asking. this is the pine ridge indian reservation in south dakota, the poorest place in the united states. this is the home of the lakota sioux indians where there is 80% unemployment and half the people live below the poverty line. but these are people with more than $8 billion in the bank. money they refuse to take. >> it's very difficult. the people understand that. that's why it's hard. we know its hard. it's going to be hard. we'll stick to our values. >> reporter: they say this is their real home, the black hills, a two-hour drive from their reservation. the u.s. supreme court greed three decades ago saying in 1887 the government stole this sacred

land, ordering that they be paid $100 million. that money has been sitting in the bank ever since earning interest, but the sioux say to take it would give up their claim to the land. >> that's the land of our ancestors, and it was taken from them. >> reporter: that seems possible in 2008 with then candidate presiden barack obama who promised to give back some of this land. but that request has been met with silence from the white house, and administration officials won't say what, if anything, they've done on the issue. >> if he had the heart he would have the right to give our land back. >> reporter: ellen said she no longer believes the land will be returned in her lifetime, but she hopes it might be in her

son's. >> our ancestors fought for t and i think we'll still keeping for it until we get it back. >> reporter: a fight of 104 years. a small glimmer of hope fading, but they'll tell you that is nothing new. they are a people that have become used to disappointment. al jazeera, pine ridge, south dakota. >> today is the final day of a summit bringing together politicians and superstars to tackle the issue of how to protect women who are sexual assaulted in war zones. >> reporter: at times it felt like a hollywood event than a conference dealing with human rights issues. but as angelina jolie and her husband brad pitt brought star power. >> the injustice, the lack of prosecutions for those who have committed the crimes.

one of the women i met who is very young was from syria, she was iraqi refugee fleeing that war. >> they're told their stories and now they must go home. if there is any success over sexual violence it will take a long time. many thousands of women have been raped and taken as sex slaves by the various militias that have brought such misery to this land. we met such woman in london. >> i'm afraid to go back home now, but now i have no choice. >> they say there have been real

achievements and agreement signed by 120 countries for tighter laws to help survivors of sexual violence. many people say they have been inspired and encouraged. now they must take that spirit back home with them. barnaby phillips, al jazeera, london. >> just ahead are we witnessing the fall of iraq? if so, what can the united states do about it? more importantly what should the u.s. do about it. we'll talk to the former bush administration official about the dire situation. also it is said that one man's trash is another man's treasure. we'll show you proof of that coming up on al jazeera america.

>> iraq's most senior shia cleric called on answer iraqis to help defend the country from

insurgents. fighters led by the islamist group isil, and the rebels advancing on the capitol leaving iraq's government desperate for help. president obama said no american troops will be deployed. >> now iraq needs additional support to break the momentum of extremist groups and bolster the capabilities of iraqi security forces. we will not be sending u.s. troops into combat into iraq, but i have asked my national security team to prepare a range of other options that could help support iraq security forces, and i'll be reviewing those options in the day ahead. >> prime minister nouri al-maliki.

>> i'm certainly not surprised that iraq is flaring up again. in fact, people who have been watching iraq closely over the last two years, but really within the last six months or eight months has seen a progressive movement by isil. this sunni militant group through the west and up into mosul and north. for example, if you look at the iraq-turkey pipeline that goes through this area that they are now in control of, that had been blown up repeatedly. it has not been functioning since early march because of repeated attacks. there has been warning on the military side. >> and the more sectarian--would

you agree with this, the more sectarianal maliki has behaved, the more stronger isil has begun? >> there is a concentration of things happening here. you have prime minister maliki who has consolidated power among shia inner circle which is not encompassing all shia, only shia close and loyal to him. this was all unfolding at the same time that the syrian civil war was expanding. these two things reinforce one another. i think that's really--you have to see both sides of this coin. it's impossible to look at iraq and try to evaluate iraq only in terms of what is happening inside iraq's borders. this is, you know a regional crisis of immense proportion. >> isil can't take baghdad, can it?

>> i strongly believe it is not in position to take baghdad. but that does not mean that it cannot create threats to baghdad. it doesn't mean that it can't instigate wide-spread fighting and potentially inside of baghdad. but to look at what happened in mosul and think that baghdad is going to fall with similar ease would not be realistic. baghdad is a city of 6 million people. it has a shia majority. you'll have the forces that are much more loyal to prime minister maliki guarding it. and we've seen eye eye i can't tollly sistani calling on people to come and volunteer and fight. that will mobilize a lot of people who will be very, very invested in protecting baghdad. it does not mean that it will end where it is today.

i think anticipating the fall of baghdad. >> what is--what are western allies, the united states to do about the situation? >> reporter: well, we just had a statement from president obama sort of an impromptu press conference just a few hours eagerlyier today. he made some important points. first he acknowledged the scope of the crisis, and, in fact, proposed potential threats to u.s. and regional interests. he mentioned he's still considering military options short of, he said combat forces in iraq. i think that's important. we've been talking about no boots on the ground. but one of the things that iraq really probably needs is some very immediate military assistance. and there's a wide range of things that the united states could do quickly and with great

affect. the most obvious would be airstrikes, also partnering with iraqi military forces. that's one of the things that was lost when the american forces withdrew in 2011, and that clearly has had a negative impact. >> are you among the critics faulting the president for not getting the extension with iraq? >> if it's a yes or no question, then the answer would be yes, i am among the critics, although i do acknowledge that the blame falls on the obama administration and the iraqi who is tried to play too clever of a game. at the end of the day it was difficult agreement to get. i think if we had forces in iraq, a small number, not in a combat role but playing advisory role that a mall force could have been in play this could

have been prevented in terms of the military situation, but it is important to keep in mind that that this is not just a military situation. this is a political crisis, a regional crisis, and a military crisis. and no amount of american troops on the ground could have prevented the entirety of that crisis that we're seeing today. >> and megan went on to say that any solution in iraq needs to include diplomatic talks. california is home to more veterans than any other state in the nation. also has the most homeless veterans. the state is now taking major steps to get vets off the street. >> it's frustrating. i'm angry. i'm just constantly trying to figure things out. >> reporter: anthony ford is struggling with homelessness for the first time in his life. since january the 56-year-old vietnam vet said he has been unable to find steady work. >> i slept in my vehicle.

i got tired of sleeping and curling up in the backseat of my vehicle i would get on the bus. i would ride around the city of l.a. >> reporter: ford is among 19,000 veterans in california with no permanent home. but last week california voters approved a measure reallocating funds. u.s. vets are seeking a portion of the money to develop developments like this one. >> because they've been live an unstable life they will have to be providing case management to stabilize their lives. >> reporter: part of that stability includes this facility in inglewood outside of los angeles. currently 500 veterans call this place home. in addition to be provided food and shelter they are provided the discipline they were taught in the service with the ultimate goal of getting them back out on their own. >> i was doing cocaine, crack

cocaine. >> reporter: harvey came homeless and addicted to drugs. now the former marine considers himself a success story. >> they teach you that you are still a man. there are no throw aways. you can put in the work and you can become exactly what you were before this thing took hold of you. >> reporter: this will help people like harvey to carve a path to sufficient sufficien self-sufficienty. anthony ford obtained temporary housing, but bureaucracy has slowed his progress in finding a job and finding a permanent home. >> i'm signing in, registering, doing the paperwork but i'm not getting the results. the paperwork is going into someone else's case files and there is no follow up in. while not a specia perfect system, it is a step in the right directio direction.

>> while remaining in the environment with case management, it's a very supportive environment. >> that support offer as safety net for vets who never thought they would be fighting for their futures in a new battleground here at home. >> in thailand the military junta has lifted a nationwide curfew stating there is no sign of violence. stating that political tensions would lead to fighting even though the curfew was lifted, the new government won't be elected for more than a year. in malaysia money has been given to families of those on flight the flight that went missing in march. the cost to finding the plane is expected to run in the 10s of millions of dollars. in kenya women from a

coastal village is hoping to keep waste from floating out into the ocean. every day shoes and other items wash up on kenya's beaches. we have reports on how villagers are turning their trash into treasures. >> it's not ordinary job for these women at the coastal island. every morning when water recede the women from the tiny village walk to the shoreline to collect garbage the ocean left behind. when they lead the group whose daily struggle is to get a meal on the table for their families. >> we decided to do this because our ocean and our beaches are very dirty. we thought, what can we do to make this better? we decided to collect the flip flops and make ornaments to se sell. >> garbage ends up on many patches along the coast line. when the tide is high the water

comes all the way here and then leaves behind piles of garbage from countries who share the indian ocean. we've seen bottles from tanzania and then all these flip flops, lots and lots of flip flops. >> these are the second largest pollutants. in the evening their day is complete with just a fraction of what is left here. they clean the flip flops from countries and make crane coats out of them. some of the flip flops end up here. the capitol of nairobi where the women transform them into art. the products are sold in the u.s. to zoos. >> it's really about using

trade, a trade solution to the problem. global pollution. and in the ocean. and this is really an african solution to this global problem. >> reporter: so here in this workshop they do their bit. they protect the beaches and reduce poverty. >> the search intensifies in the fatal shooting of a priest. >> reporter: yes, police released a description of the suspect and they're looking for a white male between the ages of 40 and 49. they're offering a $1,000 award for his arrest. the shooting happened at a catholic church this week. in oklahoma new details on that botched execution, an autopsy report showed that clayton locket had healthy veins but his body had punctures with

multiple attempt to find them. it's unclear how much of the drugs locket received. industry food groups want to block genetically modified labeling in vermont. the group asked the judge to overturn the labeling. it claims that food made with gmos is safe. and the law states people should know if their food has been modified. the owners decided to burn a house. it overlooked a lake on 575-fo 75-foot cliff. part of the cliff was crumbling into the water. something that you don't think a group of bachelors to find. the remains of an ancient elephant. in experts say it looks like a

13-thousand pound pre-historic elephant that roamed the area millions and millions years ago. >> bachelor party weekend, and you're coming up with that. maria ines ferre, thank you. more stories next on al jazeera.

america mobile app, available for your apple and android mobile device. download it now >> afghans will head to the polls to elect their next leader. they both have been threatened and attacked in the lead up to the vote. the security is tight as you would expect after the taliban vowed to disrupt the event.

both candidates said they would sign an agreement to keep u.s. troops. sebastian younger and tim heathering ton filmed there from 2007 to 2008, now offering the inside look at the fear and exhilaration of war. roxana saberi sat down with a veteran who was featured prominently in that film. >> he described the adrenaline high of combat and the low that hit him once he left afghanistan. >> all right, we're getting engaged again. >> reporter: in afghanistan's deadliest valley fighting the taliban was just the start of a long conflict for brendan. >> for a while there i started

thinking that god hates me because i did sin. >> reporter: brendan spent 14 months in afghanistan with nearly 40 other men, he defended base camp that was named for the company's medic and seen with his close friend juan killed in action. brendan left afghanistan and the army in 2008. he was 25 and lucky. over a five years in korengal valley, 50 soldiers died. >> there was one time i thought in my entire time of afghanistan what are we doing here? those are young boys trying to kill me, and i'm a young boy trying to kill them. that's a dangerous thought. you start thinking like that, "u" start to humanize the enemy, and then you start having hesitations, and you start to

realize that maybe this is all pointless. the moral dilemma is in the thoughts comes afterwards. >> reporter: his first five years at home he thought about that dilemma and drank. he moved in with his dad in pennsylvania, but he felt alone and lost. >> i was leading men in combat six months before, and i couldn't get a job at walmart cleaning floors in the middle of the night. >> reporter: slowly he started dealing with his memories of war. >> you have to sort of be excited about it. or you would freeze up and die and get killed. that moment of hesitation could get you killed, or worse off, get your friends killed. >> reporter: what do you think about afghanistan as a country you left behind? >> i'm going to answer this truthfully, as i have answered everything. i don't care about afghanistan. i hope they do well.

i really do. i'm more concerned about my country. we're falling apart civilian society needs to change. it's not the soldiers coming home. they've got it figured occupy. they have the deep connections of what humanity is about. those deep bonds, we don't have that in society. we are a country of ice. what combat taught me the best feelings you can ever feel in your entire life is in a group of we. >> and earlier i spoke to the director of korengal, sebastian younger, i asked him what he thought about what branden's thought about society. >> soldiers come back traumatized, and what they mess is what they had out there, they're sleeping shoulder to shoulder in small outposts,

defending each other. and they come back to this society, and it's an alienating, fragmented society. we have school shootings every week, we have high levels of nude this society. they come back from being with brothers and coming back to this isolated society. i think what brendan was saying is that what needs to heal is not the vets so much but we as as a nation. >> what helps people coming back from war. >> if soldiers come back and if they feel that the citizenry is owning the war morally, politically, that helps enormously. but what they get are these conversation where they can tell the person is talking to at home as if it was the vet's war, and the soldier's war, and it's really not. >> if you spoke with the soldiers, would they say that

the war is worth it? >> soldiers don't evaluate the warlike that. they're 19. they're not really investigating national policy. neither was i when i was 19 and in college. >> what do you take away from korengal. >> i asked things like what is courage--what does the word courage mean to you? why do you miss the war? i interviewed them right after deployment. why do you miss the war. what i hope soldiers get to it is greater insight to their reactions to the very confusing combat. soldiers reject the entire concept. one guy said, if you're a soldier and your buddy is in danger. running through gunfire to pull him to safety is not courage.

it's friendship, brotherhood. to not do that is simply not being a soldier. in their minds soldier is cowa cowards. so in some ways courage and to be a soldier is redundant. >> do you think there is a controversy with sgt. bowe bergdahl and some of his fellow soldiers have accused him of being a desserter. do you understand where these accusations are coming from? >> i do understand it. i don't know why bergdahl did blah di what he did, obviously. but as soldiers i understand their hurt feelings and outrage. but the only thing that makes combat psychologically bearable at all is that you have 30 and 40 blood brothers in the platoon willing to do almost anything for you, and vice versa. when you leave an outpost on

your own and step out in the wider afghan society and leave behind your brothers, whatever his motivations were, it was incredibly hurtful and alarming to the guys he was serving with. >> i think that lesson of courage and unity that the soldiers talk about in korengal is valuable. thank you sebastian, good luck with your documentary. >> thank you very much. >> it will be opening tonight and throughout the rest of the summer. >> terrific. i heard that from a couple of people. >> and congratulations to sebastian and nick who are both part of a filmmaking team. >> reporter: nick is the producer and helped sebastian with the documentary. >> coming up, day two of the world cup and already there are complaints and plenty of them about the officials. we will have that story and then there is "real money with ali velshi."

>> coming up on "real money" it is the big if in the crisis of iraq. i'm looking at that and how it might affect the price you pay at the gas pump. and a book that is more than a good read. it can filter your water. we have all that and more on real money real money

>> let's talk day two of the world cup. all righalready the winner of last world cup spain kicked around by the netherlands. the score was 5-1. mexico defeated cameroon, and chile leads australia, 2-1. but none of those games was played in rio, and fans are getting anty. we have more on the anxious wait. >> reporter: brazilians are

ecstatic about their victory in the opening world cup but that does not mean that they're not highly critical of the expense and in view of many the corruption and waste involved in putting on this show which is why security will be extremely tight on supplied. when argentina plays bosnia herzegovina. they are still testing lights, you may see them behind me now. the air force will have anti-aircraft weapons all around the radius just in case. there will be soldiers, police, all that is necessary according to authorities to prevent any protesters from disrupting that match here in rio de janeiro where there has been trouble as you know over the last year. people complaining about the cos cost of putting on the world cup in this country. still lots of people very, very anxious. very excited about that match.

we've seen argentines walking around trying to buy tickets. they're buying them in some cases from black market sellers at six times the official price. >> colombia's head coach said refereeing must become more official. the referee ruled that a croatian player found a brazil striker even though it looked like he went down without being seriously challenged. that's called flopping. the croatian player said today that the referee in question should not be refereeing the games. and captaiand a fictional

cartoon strip player launched in 1981. fans of the comic series including argentina's messi and torres. that's all the news we hav the time we have, we got to go. "real money with ali velshi" is next. . >> fighting in iraq and fear that the crisis could choke off a good part of the oil supply. also no gas, no problem for a growing number of americans who are buying and driving electric cars. i'll take to you one city where that trend is accelerating. plus golf gone mad. i'll show you creative ideas that country clubs have come up with to attract a new generation to the game and maybe to save the sport. i'm ali velshi, and this is real money.