right >> i'm trying to go to school and get a nice job >> you're only 22, you can turn this around... >> and some just don't >> he actually told people in the halfway house, that he was amazed that they had given him parole >> the system with joe burlinger only on al jazeera america this is al jazeera america live from new york city. i am thomas drayden. let's get you caught up on the top stories at this hour t fierce gun battles as iraqi forces fight to slow the rebellion. a deadly strike in ukraine. rebels shoot down a government plane killing dozens. the challenges facing the man who will emerge president after today's afghan election. in brazil, the festive atmosphere of the world cup is damp ended literally by the extreme humidity.

>> good to have you with ustiously the rebellion in iraq appears to have stalled outside baghd baghdad. residents spent another day watching and waiting for an assault that as of yet has not come. sunni muslim fighters continue to hold several cities and towns across northwestern iraq including kurdist separatelyists and the isil. this week's assault brought them within 55 miles of baghdad, a city they have vowed to capture. iraq's shiia population has answered the call to arms saying they must defend their country. imran khan has the latest from baghd baghdad. >> in the last 24 hours, the prime minister has gone on the offensive. in friday he was in samara, one of the holiest sites where he delivered a message to all iraqis.

>> i seriously and firmly say by the name of god, even if our heads were turned into bombs or our bodies for vehicles to move on, they will not hide them. let them not be deluded. >> the prime ministers through a statement on his website declared the cabinet granted him unlimited powers to deal with the reb elion. some consider unconstitutional. his allies are sewing public support for his policies. the iranian president says iran is willing to help if asked. >> if the iraqi government seeks assistance from us, we will review it. though there has been no request for help so far, we are ready to provide them with the help with an international law and upon the formal request of the iraqi nation and the government. >> but not all are in support of prime minister nouri al maliki's policies. the association of muslim scholars released a statement. no statement, they say that the sunni rebels have the right to

march on baghdad and seek region change. however, they say that they must respect, the sunni rebels must respect the holy sidelines a and -- shrines and not attack them. >> on the border with iran, sunni rebels have captured the town of al adabin, they mounted that offensive from here. they have launched more air strikes where it said it has hit rebel convoys in hideouts. the army says it has killed hundreds of fighters. however, there is no way to independently verify the claims. imran khan, al jazeera, baghdad. >> once again, the fighting has yet to reach baghdad but the city is bracing for the worst. a report. >> reporter: he is 63 years old and retired. he has eight grandchildren. he says the security crisis in iraq caused by the sunni rebellion makes him nervous.

>> our psychological conditions are very bad. we watch the news all the time and we hear a lot of rumors. we hear fighters process and retreat. i don't know what to do. we feel trapped. we worry about the arbitrary arrests, displacements. we don't know what our fate will be. >> a quick look around on the streets and not all shops were open. a sign, perhaps, of people's anxiety. but there were no immediate signs of increased security and the government is assuring people the capitol is safe. in many parts of baghdad, life appears to be normal the there is fear. many people are worried that this crisis could renew sectarian violence. >> this marketplace is the district shoppers getting on with daily lives. violence in the rest of the country has increased the prices of food. some items more than doubled.

many people hearsay they are not scared by the threats made by members of the radical group, the islamic state of iraq and the lavant while others worry about the performance of government forces. . >> this is not the first time that our province has fallen under the hands of isil. the new problem is there is a betrayal among the forces and officers. betrayals could lead to the collapse of the state. >> reporter: others disagree. >> translator: i don't think isil will come to baghdad. it's impossible. they don't have the ability or power. and their forces are small. >> hopes and fears aside, iraq is facing its biggest crisis since u.s. troops withdrew in 2011. it could lead to civil war. the uss george h.w. bush aircraft-carrier is headed to the arabian gulf.

yesterday, president obama insisted he would not send in u.s. troops on the ground. randall pingston is joining us from washington. with respect to u.s. military options in iraq, what does it mean that this carrier is being deployed? >> reporter: first of all, thomas, we must stress that the president has not made any decisions with respect. advisors are working around the clock to come up with plans. the deployment of a nuclear aircraft-carrier along with two other navy ships will give the administration enhanced options should any kind of decision for military action be ordered. the uss george w. bush with a crew of 6,000 is a floating military command center. it can launch jets and surveillance aircraft and rescue helicopters for missions over m iraq and of special interest in this crisis, "the bush" has been part of a demonstration for the u.s. of carrier-based drones. last year, t"the bush" was the

first at sea to launch and land a drone. these were test flights. we were unable to reach the navy to find out if they have put drones into operation at sea. now, the other two ships deployed to the arabian gulf are the guided missile cruiser philippine c and the guided missile destroyer truckston. the philippine c and truckston are e. longration missiles capable of hitting stationary or moving targets on land. even without any formal military orders, the mere presence of these naval as well ass could serve as a sort of strategic reassurance for iraq, but to repeat, the official reason for the deployment of these three navy ships is to protect american lives and interests in iraq. there have been no announcement of any military strikes being directed against isil. >> important to point out. you have to wonder, though, how is the legacy of the iraq war

which president obama promised to end affecting how he responds this time around? >> reporter: well, no one is expecting the president to do a 180 in order and order u.s. troops back into combat in iraq. as a matter of fact, he said that very thing yesterday before leaving the white house, and even his critics are saying they do not want american boots on the ground, that members ofmercial's military have already made extraordinary sacrifices, almost 4500 lives lost, $1 trillion spent, all of that to try to give iraqis a chance to claim their future. president obama does say he wants to help iraqi security forces to break the momentum of extremist groups. he is laying down conditions for iraqi prime minister nouri al maliki and other leaders. >> unfortunately iraqi's leaders have been unable to overcome, too often, the mistrust and sectarian differences that have long been simmering there. so, any action that we may take to provide assistance to iraqi

security forces has to be joined by a serious and sincere effort by iraq's leaders to set aside sectarian differences, to promote stability and account for the legitimate interests of all of iraq's communities. >> in other words, the majority shiia are being told to include the sunnis and the kurds in the governorance of the country. thomas. >> move forward. randall pinkston? washington. thank you. former u.s. ambassador to syria, robert ford is warning of the that isil phrases. he spoke to ray suarez on this week's "talk to al jazeera"? >> i hope people watching the program understand the threat that the islamic state poses, not just to people in mosul or people in baghdad, but, especially with the vacuum that has opened up in eastern syria, we now have a large space of territory. historically, in arab history,

it was sort of one desert entity called al jazeera, but that is now controlled largely by this extremist islamic estate group and places like sammali and yemen and mali and afghanistan is a warning that they can use that open space to bring in people to train, to prepare for operations outside of al jazeera, outside of syria and iraq, whether it be against targets in western europe or north america, in the middle east. it's really a danger to everyone. >> you can see the entire interview coming up at 5:00 p.m. eastern on "talk to al jazeera." joining us now is jamie terebet, an al jazeera digital reporter and a former npr baghdad correspond he want. thank you for being with us. how powerful are these insurgents? >> extremely powerful. one of the -- this is such a great propaganda recruiting tool for them, how swiftly they took mossul. they have been operatingul.

they have been operating in anbar province since january with seemingly little ability by the iraqi forces to be able to take that territory back. then operating as the ambassador saying in eastern syria as well. they are well-funded, for over a year, they have actually been running a protection racket in mosul, itself. >> by whom? >> local businesses. they have been taxing trucking companies and local businesses for protection. >> so they are independently if you wanted by themselves. most of them are iraqi, the ones who are based in iraq, itself. so when anyone comes in over the border from syria -- because they are not fighting a lot of fight in syria, they come very easily over the border from syria. they are finding a lot of places to come and work in iraq. and, you know, they actually have to sort of agree to the will of the iraqi-based groups and fighters and launch suicide attacks and all sorts of things. so they do have a lot of influence. they have a lot of money, and

they are gaining membership all the time. >> this is a rebellion against the prime primary. what's the end goal? >> it's a rebellion against maliki and assad. these guys, when you look at the territory that they have taken, they have very, you know, very systematic and strategic where it is that they are focused. but they also, when you look at the people who are involved, when you look at someone like, you know, eastbouibraham salvad was on the run and never captured by american troops, these are the guys that, you know, secretary donald rumsfeld said are the dead-enders, the last remnants of this regime. they are coming back and they have their eye on maliki. everyone who has been making it difficult to be a sunni in iraq today. >> this doesn't bode well for the prime minister in his handling of the situation, especially when we see military forces take off their uniform and flee.

>> absolutely. the idea that the prime minister of a country has to ask for his citizens to volunteer to take up arms because his own forces, billions of dollars we want into, to train and equip, they refuse to fight. they walked away. i mean what does it say about a government? what does it say about his leadership, that he has to rely on his ordinary citizens to fight because his army refuses to. >> this is a military trained by u.s. forces. looking at this from western eyes, though, why should you sit up and take notice? >> it's extremely disturbing. on the financial side, obviously, this will affect oil prices. everyone is watching to see what's going to happen with the oil supply in terms of mosul and the refinery in beji taken by the militants and taken back by the iraqi army. this is a regional war. and this is something that we

have been watching in saudi arabia, have been watching and you have got these two sort of opposing sides over this region. they have been using places like lebanon and syria and iraq for the greater play for dominance, and it is something that affects us all. the more refugees we see every sing day, the bigger problem it is for everyone else. there are less places in the world for refugees to live in today. >> in our final moments, i want to tackle quickly full two issues, one, what's next for baghdad and what do you make of iran offering help? >> well, i think iran as we -- baghdad as we saw is on stand by. >> uh-huh. >> i think the militias that are equipping and ree quicking, anyone who witnessed -- reequipping the war. the scores of bodies that would lien up at the morgue every single day, this is extremely disturbing.

i am very concerned watching this happening. in terms of iran, we have already seen reports that the iranians have sent their own revolutionary guard in to stop protecting the shrines as well. mal. >> we will see how the situation plays out. it is a disturbing situation. jamie terebet, al jazeera reporter reporter. >> thank you. >> we invite you to stay with al jazeera america for continuing coverage of the crisis in iraq. tonight, we will take a deeper look at the various faxes and forces involved in iraq. >> that's tonight at 8:00 p.m. eastern on al jazeera america. turning to ukraine, the army is launching airstrikes against separatists in the east. >> after rebel fighters shot down a military transfer plane early today in luhansk, killing all 49 on board. al jazeera's kim vinnell is there. >> reporter: probe russian separatists claimed responsibility for an attack on a ukraineian transport yet.

all 49 people on board were killed. a defense ministry spokesman claims information was leaked about the time and location of the plane's attempted landing will be investigated. ukrainian authorities making career where they believe the weapons used to shoot down the plane came from. >> >> translator: we are talking about russian weaponry. there are lots of reports indicating weapons used by rebels on john boehnerian territory haveh russian roots. pictures that they are using weapons on the that you are tory. >> porono says those symbol will be brought to justice and sunday will be a national day of mourning. separatists meanwhile are also suffering losses. on the road to luhansk, three bodies of those trying to avoid a military advance, ukraine engineer soldiers retook the area launching one airstrike on a check point before ground troops moved in.

the ukrainian military are in control of the check point now but they say there was a battle here last night. they say they are also in control of another check point, which is on the other side of these bearricades on the other side of a river. separatist fighters had been in control of both of these checkpoints. the ukrainian military said they expect fighters to regroup and launch another attack at any time. >> soldiers here are clearly on edge tellingly this driver to pass would be suicide. those living nearby are afraid of what may come next. >> they were shooting. i know. i heard. it was very scary. >> a column of tapings has passed. it's true. we are tired of this. >> it appears government soldiers are advancing on the most fiercely guided pro-russian stronghold in the east. separatists in luhansk took over two border guard basis and a military warehouse. they are warning ukrainian troops will have a fight on their hands should they enter

the city. >> kim vinnell reporting from luhansk in ukraine. >> 10 people have been killed in attacks across afghanistan on election day. it was the run-off presidential election election officials, women and children are among the victims. the election marks the first democraticstetricians to power in the country's history. this report. >> reporter: most of these people did not take part in the election, there is a lot at attack. they wi they want to see a strong leadership e merge because over three decades there have been refugees in our other kicht trees. pack stan at the moment is hosting about 1.7 million who are registered. however, it is estimated another million may be unregistered. they would want to see a strong central government in afghanistan. they want to see suture and they want help from the new leadership to enable them to go

back to their country. >> camel hider. we will look at the two candidates hoping to become the next president. >> sexual violence against women on the streets of qui row. after they have served their time, what happens to convicts who are returning to society? a program to make that transition easier. you are watching al jazeera america.

the performance review. that corporate trial by fire when every slacker gets his due. and yet, there's someone around the office who hasn't had a performance review in a while. someone whose poor performance is slowing down the entire organization. i'm looking at you phone company dsl. check your speed. see how fast your internet can be.

switch now and add voice and tv for $34.90. comcast business built for business. journalling activists in cairo are rallying against section annual violence to protest several recent sexual assaults against women. youtube has refused to remove violence footage, it shows a 19-year-old knackad woman with injuries being dragged through cairo cairo's tahrir scare after being assaulted. >> video caused outrage and helped prompt today's protest. joining me via skype from canada is raza, it's good to have you with us. this is disturbing, considering egypt just pass add law criminalizing sexual harassment

punishable by up to 5 years in prison. yet there were at least five mob sexual attacks in tahrir square following the elections. do these laws mean nothing? >> in a country where almost 9 out of 10 women have at some time been sexually assaulted, laws are not good enough unless they are i am mreemenmplemented they need to be harsher punishments to set an example november those people who were perpetrators of these yams. this has been continued because they have been getting away with these assaults. it's a very good step to have a law. there has to be justice shown in a way that makes sense and there has to be a larger plan, long-term plan of education of changing the ideology, who women are second class citizens. women are considered easy prey. so education in schools, education of boys, girls, mothers bringing up their daughters, this is a long-term

problem and certainly, we would like to see some of these changes being implemented right away. >> it's a good step, but it's disturbing, a 2013 u.n. report found 99.3 egyptian women have experienced some form of sexual harassment. why is this so high? >> there is some teaching and ideology that let's them think that they are justified in treating women like slaves and chattel and getting away with it. this is why i said that it's not just a law. it has to be a many-pronged approach. there has to be laws but education at a grass-roots level. obviously, the government has not done anything so far with the situation to become as bad as it is. it's terrible to think that these women who go out to protest or women walking on the street can be assaulted and, therefore, unless harsh punishments are shown and unless these laws are implemented in a way that people can see that

there is going to be a disks, no woman will be safe on the streets again. >> how do you get the government, al-sisi, proscurityors to protect women. >> put women's rights on the front end of the burner, not on the back burner. these issues have never been mainly discussed in government and in parliament or wherever the decision makers are. women need to come on board. they need to be -- there needs to be some special organizations, institutions that are set up to address this and institutionally, the change must come. there has to be education. from a grassroots level to the top, down, the change will come only when the citizens are feeling empowered enough to implement the changes. >> a wake-up call more needs to be done. rahil raza for muslims facing tomorrow. great to have you with us. >> thank you. there are more than two million beam behind bars. women are the fastest growing prison population. once time is concerned, the pos

expect of life on the outside can be scary for these women. one new program that's designed on help out. >> brandy rudder nearing the end of a five-year sentence, the barbed wire and endless fencing, just part of the scenery now. the prospect of freedom, a little frightening? >> who wouldn't be nervous? this is what i know right now. she has an e-mail pen pal on the outside, chris anderson, part of a program linking crinesers with volunteer mentorsprisoners with volunteer mentors anderson and others commit to two years of contact, starting a year before the inmate's scheduled release. >> she is young enough to be able to turn the page and start all over and old enough to know what she wants to do. >> the mentoring is part of a broader program, the "if project" by kim boguki, including health seminars, creative writing sessions and more. the most recent federal

statistics date to the 1990s. of the women would walk out of prison, more than a third will be back within a year. by three years, the rate is nearly 50%. >> i think we spend millions of dollars keeping people locked up and we don't always go after some sustainable solutions. i think the solutions lie in the people that are locked up. >> everything everybody always tells you, you are not felon. you are never going to amount to nothing. >> this relationship is the opposite. they have traded e-mails all monitored by corrections officers almost daily for eight months, writing about dealing with the system, looking for work, education. >> and anderson visits the prison once a week, helping rudder plan her future. >> missed you? >> missed you, too. >> the outsider and the i hopema hopema hopemate, i hope who played a similar role and helped thou way? >> nobody.

i can honestly say nobody. ? >> i have learned a lot about what happens to people in that system. and it's helped mae to feel more compassion and more impact e for people in all kinds of different situations. >> temporarily. >> while brandy rudder may be nervous about life outside, she also has new confidence in herself. >> and i have no doubt whatsoever i want to go to school. i want to have a clean and sober life. i want to live on my own. there is so much i want to do, and i don't think i would have had that without this. >> 25 inmates here are connected with mentors now with plans for another 25 next year. alan shochofler at the washingt corrections center for women. >> catch axis's original series,

"the system" with joe berlinger. at 9:00 p.m. eastern right here on al jazeera america. when we come right back, humanitarian crisis of the making in iraq, hundreds of thousands fleeing the fighting face uncertain futures. next, the enormous challenges facing afghanistan's next president.

welcome back to al jazeera america. the iraqi government has an open rebellion on its hands. sunni fighters and kurditch separatists have advanced within 100 miles of baghdad and are vowing to take the city. president obama isn't sending any troops in but the pentagon today ordered an aircraft-carrier to the reamon. in ukraine, the army is launching air strikes against separatists in the east after rebel fighters shot down a military transport plane early today in luhansk. all 49 on board died.

today's voting is over in afghanistan's presidential run-off election abdullah abdullah and rhouni are vying. in fact more than seven million afghans participated in today's voting. final results won't be in until july 22nd. both candidates say they are confid he want of victory. aj has profiles of both men. >> in the air and on the campaign trail with abdullah abdullah, the presidential hopefully hopeful has led a busy campaign across the country often traveling to several provinces in a single day. wherever he goes, he is greeted by large crowds. at this rally, he told supporters he is confident he will win. >> most of the afghan people voted for my team in the first round and they will vote for us in the second.

we will be in your service. we know your demands. we promise to help you whether it's electricity or security. we will help. >> last week, a suicide bomber attacked the convoy he was traveling in, killing six people. but that hasn't deterred abdullah. he's largely kept to his schedule in the run-up to the poll. this isn't his first attempt at the presidency. in 2009, he challenged hamid karzai as an independent candidate after he resigned as his foreign min stlooer years earlier. he came second in that poll and since then has been an out spoken critic of his former boss. in an interview with al jazeera, abdullah said this time around, his bid for afghanistan's top job is going better than expected. >> as far as campaign is concerned, apart from the suicide attack on our convoy, the rest of it is going quite well. it's unbelievably more than

everybody -- everybody's anticipation throughout the country. and the momentum that our campaign has picked up has surprised allotted of people. so as far as campaign is concerned, we are not complaining. >> but his win is far from certain, seen as an ethnic dogic, it's unclear whether the largest ethnic group, the pashtoons will back him in saturday's run-off. >> young and old tasraf beganni is looking for broad sport. the cial hopeful urged voters to cast their ballot for him as afghanistan's next president a head of state is not a

slavemaster. his role is to serve the people. the title i am looking for is the serve apt of the nails. a serve apt of the nation means i answer to all of the people. if you vote for me, you can question me. the former world bank economist is widely seen as a technoaccurate following the u.s. led invasion of 2001, begani served as an add viewsor. his credentials are impeccable. so much so that at the end of 2006, he was tipped as a possible successor to cofi anan as genersecretary general. but the presidency has always been his goal. until 2009, he gave up u.s. citizenship to run in the poll but received only three % of the vote. this year, he fared better by shrining himself with war lords and with a message of economic growth securing nearly a third of the vote.

>> he has some support here but with the momentum building behind his on its behalf, abdullah abdullah, his chances of winning aren't promising. >> not only did abdullah receive a much higher proportion of the vote in the first round, he has been far more visible in the buildup to the run-off and has received several high-profile endorsements. but gani told al jazeera that he is certain he will win. >> are you hopeful for soug saturday's election. >> yes. >> tell me about what are you hopeful for? >> we have built wapitiastic momentum. and we are serving our people. >> any victory will be decided by voters and that outcome is far from assured. >> joining from me washington, d.c. is mark jacobson, senior advisor to the truman security project and former advisor to general mccrystal. good to have you with us.

>> thank you, thomas. >> i think it's safe to say whoever wins the election will have little time to savor victory. >> i think that's right. you have had two successful elections the first round and it looked like the second round has gone well despite violence but i think that from the outset, you are going to have the new president who is going to have to prosecute the war. he is going to have to deal with the economic situation and,home, i didn't the taliban to the peace table. >> how will was nick divisions affect the president. ? you have pashtoons. gani is pashtoon? >> both would have to gain the support of the southern and eat earn pashtoons in order to get a consensus to bring peace to afghanistan. i think that while ethnicity of the candidate could be important for this, i think it will also be volume real politique

agreements between the center in kabul and the areas in the south and the east. either candidate will have to create that base after they are inall rated. >> president obama announced the u.s. troop presence will end no matter what by 2016. what will this mean for the next president? does this force the country to reform its security sector? >> both candidates have said that they would sign the bilateral security agreement, which is really the last step in securing these 9800 u.s. troops and probably several thousand you troops in afghanistan to train and advise the ansf. what i think will be the challenge is creating a susta sustainable security force, not just one that's effective on the battlefield but one that can be supported financially from the afghan government. >> target, that goal is probably still at least a decade out. >> do you think a shift in power can bring any real change in the security sector?

>> >> i think it's moving along the direction we would like it to see. i think both candidates are willing to work with the international community. i also think both candidates will be seen by the afghan people as having afghanistan's interests at heart. >> that's wondesh in terms of them getting things done inside the country. we have to remember it means while other abdullah or ghani may seem to be an easier partner than karzi, afghan interests will not always cohincidcoincid >> you talked about working with the u.s. comerty. will they be a better partner? >> i think they will but i don't think we should take that to mean that they are always going to agree with the united states. in fact, if he wins the bid, he will be a tough adverse satisfactory across the table. he will have afghanistan's interest at havert which is really going to be the most important thing for the next

president. >> what is the greatest threat right now in afghanistan? >> i think they are intertwined. the key security pieces, of course, the taliban. but i think what's going to be essential to bring a stable and lasting peace to afghanistan will be the ability for the afghan -- for the afghan people to have jobs. unemployment, as it is anywhere else in the world, can drive instability. i think both candidates realize that the drawdown of isil forces and the drawdown of the international community that's creating this contraction that's been quite problematic already as we can see from the economic figures. >> we will find out the outcome, mark jacobson, former nato advisor in afghanistan thank you for being with us. colombians, in a run-off election, the current president wants to continue negotiations

with the rebel farq group while the right ring candidate is against that. columbia has been at war with farq rebels over 50 years. >> the political despite, the sun sunni-led assault and to catch many iraqis by surprise. thousands fled as isil fighters and kurdish separatists approached from the north and west. it's estimated as many as half a million people were forced from their homes. the u.n. believes hundreds of them were killed as they thighed to escape. to talk more about the dire situation of now close to a million displaced iraqis we are joined by sarah case. it's good to have you with us. what is the biggest yes or no for refugees fleeing the recent violence? >> well, as you said, 500,000 have been displaced and the scale of that displacement is enormous. the majority are residing in hosting communicateties in the cuffedstan region of iraqi,

trying to find shelter that thing. what we are hearing on the ground is that people are worried about the future. they don't know what's ahead. it's untain. they are waiting for their next month. >> is this adding to the strain of syrian refugees already displaced in the region? >>. >> well over 200,000 syrian reffege ease have been displaced and where these recently displaced iraqis are living is in the same host communities. they are indeed strained in terms of providing medical attention, shelter, displaced people are struggle something to access employment. it is creating a tough situation for those living in these communities. >> talking about those injured, are theyability access the northern city's four main

hospitals? >> what we are hearing is that medical services will be coming -- will be becoming an issue. the main issues we are hearing about are regarding shelter. i think in the coming days, we will see critical needs rules. what i can say is these people have fled with the shirts on their back and as resources dominguez over time, we are expecting to see needs increase and the humanitarian crisis unfold. >> talking about needs, are they getting the basics, food, water, medical supplies? >> what we are hearing is that the border, they were provided with water. again, a few camps have bet set up where the international community and the government are looking to provide them with the needs to meet their needs rather. however, you know, in iraq, there is still a significant funding gap. the appeal for idps is only 14% funded. aversions like the international

rescue committee are struggling to meet the needs of these iraqis given the funding shortages. >> you raised my next question. how are organizations like yours dealing with this new wave of displaced iraqis? >> well, the international rescue schmidt has responded rapidly. we have a team displayed and we have experts on the ground that are monitoring the nature of displacement and are also looking to make sure that the most vulnerable individuals have their needs met. in the coming days, we will be commencing programming in order to provide access to key services such as medical services and cash assistance for those, as i said, that are lacking essential resources. >> a tough challenge ahead. once again, sarah case in i aman with the international rescue committee. that you for joining us. the democratic congo is fighting off armed rebels. they say they have cut off the

fighters from the main supply route between the two current trees. the alliance of democratic forces or adf is being pushed back by drc forces and united nations troops. are you familiar 800 people have been kidnapped by rebels in the last five years. few of them have returned. still ahead on al jazeera america, world cupping a let's are facing off against an unexpected is opponent: the humidity. >> i am kaelyn forde in hill borne new york after decades of contamnails by the ford motor company], a tribe is cleansing the earth. vé

parole >> the system with joe burlinger only on al jazeera america sglafrnlingsz welcome back. today is a big day in brazil with four gauges scheduled s

coasta reek a is facing off against urugay right now. one week before the official start of winter in south america. that is very little comfort to players facing the brutal heat and humidity of the amazon rain forest. joining us in brazil. good to see you, gabriel. can you set the scene at the ven s you, itself? >>. >> reporter: the doors just opened up at the arena. thousands of fans are starting to poor in for the england/italy game. there is about 10,000 fans from italy that are here, about a thousand or so that we know of from italy. i'm sorry. about 10,000 from england. it's a 41,000 seat arena. it was specifically built for this world cup here in manous, a city of 4 million people on the banks of one of the main trib tributaries of the amazon. when the brazilian government announced to host cities, they

took a poll and said what's the host city you want to see the most? and this city came in number 2 om behind rio de janiero, the jumping off point to the rape forest was one of the most for theic cities of brazil and all of the world. it's now the first world cup match being held in the amazon, about to kick off in about 90 minutes. >> i have been there. it's a beautiful place but the heat is no joke. how will the heat possibly affect the game? >> the local newspaper on the front page, it had the high temperature today expected 93 degrees. it is hot but it's combined with humidity. so, it's a combination of the heat you would get in phoenix, for example, and the humidity you might get in, for example, new orleans. those two combined. it's dangerous, actually, for professional football players. there has been a lot of talk about that.

actually, fifa is allowing the officials here to take water breaks for the players if they feel their health is in any sort of danger. certainly the heat is going to be punishing on the professional athletes, professional ballers and something medical officials will watch closely as the game moves along. >> they will need breaks. what about the fancy? we have international fans who aren't used to this heat. will it affect the turnout in the stands no. it's going to be sold out in terms of the fans. i tell you, we are going around the city today and saw england fans and italians here and they were aghast walking around town. they were sweating. some were sun-burned. you could tell that they were really feeling the heat. officials here are warning people, saying drink lots of water. go easy on the alcohol. >> that's something maybe a lot of english and italian fans

aren't going to do but local officials are saying go easy on the alcohol, a lot of water because it can be dangerous. don't get dehydrated. >> that's a key message here to the fans. but that hasn't turned anyone away. everyone is out here having a good time. it's going to be a sold-out house. >> drink in moderation. it may be hot. you can tell there by the scene that people are out in force. thank you. let's talk about the weather now. rebecca stevenson joining us. it is down right hot. >> yes. you can't cool off in that kind of humidity. you get moisture in the air. it e vap rates off of the skin and that's what the body uses to cool off with. with that much humidithumidity, moisture on the skin is for the going anywhere. so you jut can't cool off. as you look at the satellite of south america, i wanted to show you specifically where in the amazon forest it is. dewpoint right now of 72 degrees here that means it feels like 92

degrees so, yeah, hot all right. let's compare that to the united states. quirt we have dew points sitting anywhere from a very dry 6 for phoenix. let's go over to the southeast where miami, seven three. think of it as dew points when they get around that 60 degree mark, that's when it starts to feel really uncomfortable and sticky. you have to acclimate to this kind of weather. it feels like, for instance, in phoenix, the dry heat, it feels like 101. but in miami, it feels like 91 degrees and here is part of an interesting story, the northeast. you have a moderate air mass over you right now. so much less humidity from boston to new york, even in d.c. so the temperatures, while 99 in phoenix, keep in mind it feels like 101. but in miami, it's 85 degrees right now. it's 72 in new york. so, having some great weather. if you are in the northeast, but if you get to the south, boy,

does it feel sticky and gross. well, gross. i would say that. perhaps you love that kind of weather? >> if you love severe weather, the place to go is the northern plains in through the daccot as, tracking in toward iowa and kansas. >> that's what we will watch closely. pone thunderstorms with damaging winds. >> that's going to be tacking through. now, in the last 24 hours, minneapolis has had almost a half an inch of rape. we will have the bulk of our rainfall farther off to the west as we get into the night. here, tracking the systems coming in see the intensity by the dark reds and oranges here on the doppler radar. showing you cloud overcoming in. wind gusts, biggest concern. toranados not so much of a risk tonight as straight-line winds are. those are the winds that slm down. >> not good for kids in bouncey houses. rebecca stevenon, thank you.

on al jazeera america, a party fit for a queen, the queen of england, to be exact.

real reporting that brings you the world. >> this is a pretty dangerous trip. >> security in beirut is tight. >> more reporters. >> they don't have the resources to take the fight to al shabaab. >> more bureaus, more stories. >> this is where the typhoon came ashore. giving you a real global perspective like no other can. >> al jazeera, nairobi.

>> on the turkey-syria border. >> venezuela. >> beijing. >> kabul. >> hong kong. >> ukraine. >> the artic. real reporting from around the world. this is what we do. al jazeera america. on aljazeera america start with talk to al jazeera at 5 captivating conversation >> i think the president needs to have absolute freedom... interesting and iconic... >> the artist should say what's on peoples minds... at 5:30, stay connected >> ..lisa fletcher, and you're in the stream... >> we've got so many great stories that have come in from social media today... >> at 6, get the latest news from across the world. >> this is al jazeera america and we'll look at todays top stories... only on al jazeera america welcome back. president obama is only the third president in eight decades to visit native american lands. he traveled friday to standing rock sioux reservation. he promised to focus on tribunal education and economic measures in order to affords poverty

facing native americans. in new york state, a native american tribe is celebrating a small victory. ford motor company] dumped toxic pacht sludge. part of the land has been reclaimed. >> in the ramapor mountains, a healing of the earth. the tribe has called these mountains home for thousands of years they have been fighting for decades to have thousands of pounds of sludge cleaned up. 40 motor company built more than 6 million cars at its plant in in general, but with large-scale production came large-scale pollution. in the 1960s and '70s, ford dumped millions of gallons of toxic paint sludge according to the environmental protection agency. >> we pushed ford motor company very hard to come to the table with us.

and after many years of working back and forth, they did finally, agree to come in and to remediate this site. >> ford motor company] paid more than $15 million to move 42,000 tons of toxic soil from this site alone. now, the tribe wants ford to use this as a model for how it removes the rest of the toxic paint sludge. . >> ford has agreed in word only at this point. we know about their words. we've got to make those words come real. they have agreed to a medicine garden at every site that gets completely remediated. >> ford tells al jazeera it has no plans to build other medicine gardens but that it has been working cooperatively with the federal epa to develop a final remediation plan. the clean-up he at ford's largest dump site is not yet under waifrmths. the tribe fears time is running out. many of its >> members have cancer and other health problems they attribute to the toxic sludge.

>> in ringwood, in general, i would say we have easily lost 30% of our elders. the corporations, namely ford has robbed us of our elders, which is robbing us of our culture. >> the tribe is pushing for a comprehensive health stud. >> i don't think new york state department of health has been stepping up to the table to deal with this. but we really, i think, can categorize the effect on the population, even generations sense the initial deposits of really toxic material here with this paint sludge. >> they say healing can't begin until ford takes responsibility for the health problems. >> ford can never, ever make enough money to give us back what it has cost us. we have lost a lot, you know. we have lost a lot of family members and so that's they're priceless. >> decades later, the tribe says it continues to pay a heavy price for ford's pollution.

♪ you know who you are. ♪ you will tell the star. ♪. >> kaelyn forde, al jazeera. >> britain's official birthday sell braybration for the queen. the trooping of colors ceremony dates back to preparations for battle. more than 1,000 soldiers took part today. the royal family looked on with thousands of spectators as red aeroplanes flew over buckingham palace. her actual birthday was in april when she turned yaw 8. a great belated celebration. >> will do it for this hour. we leave you with live images from brazil. i am thomas drayden. ta "talk toays" is next. italy set to play eng lapped despite the heat and humidity. fans are out in force. in fact, four games are scheduled for today. thanks for joining us. don't forget for news updates from around the world, head to

aljazeera.com. thanks for watching. . >> the best solution for us, for the americans, is to deal with the terrorism threat that is an immediate problem. >> for the last four years, he's been america's man in syria. >> that's until ambassador robert ford resigned because he found it too difficult to justify u.s. policy. >> i don't say this is easy, and i don't say it's automatic but i say the alternative of doing nothing is even worse. >> the brutality of the assad government and the extremist en