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tv   News  Al Jazeera  June 22, 2014 7:00am-9:01am EDT

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>> i'm joie chen, i'm the host of america tonight, we're revolutionary because we're going back to doing best of storytelling. we have an ouportunity to really reach out and really talk to voices that we haven't heard before... i think al jazeera america is a watershed moment for american journalism an a secretary of state john kerry arrives in the middle east meeting with egyptian officials and addressing the violence in iraq. >> no new war in iraq. [ chanting ] plus, thousands of americans take to the streets protesting u.s. military involvement. [ chanting ] and the other protest taking place in new mexico - the fight
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against police brutality. plus, feeling the fever - the u.s. takes on portugal in the world cup. . >> good morning to you. welcome to al jazeera america. live to new york city. secretary of state john kerry is in egypt. to create a unified front to tack the tension in the middle east. he is meeting the foreign minister and the country's newest president. also a trip to jordan, belgium and france. there are reports that he'll make a trip to iraq. now, the rebel group called the islamic state of iraq and levant took over three more towns. this happened overnight as well as a strategic crossing with
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syria, this as the first group of u.s. military advisors arrived in the country, there's a fluid situation happening now in iraq's biggest oil refinery in baiji. the military says it's in control. i.s.i.l. refutes the claim saying that refinery and the city is in the hands of a renel group. john kerry is expected to urge iraq's prime minister to embrace politics for a fractured country. >> when he starts to take his meetings including the prime minister, the message he will have is free fold. they'll want the political process sped up. they understand that there are politicians and tribal sheikhs who are critical of prime minister nouri al-maliki, and said they will not help unless he steps down he has that to deal with. there are talks on intelligence
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sharing. the americans have drone aircraft. intelligence gathering. it's likely that the iraqis will know what they have seen. oil is a concern with the baiji oil refinery in the hand of rebels or the government. the secretary of state has a tough job on his hands to build consensus and give as much advice as he con. particularly a government that feels it's embattled and under pressure. >> that was al jazeera's imran calm reporting. back here in the united states, demonstrators took to the streets in more than a dozen cities call on president obama to avoid military intervention. many are worried that america could be taken back into combat. >> anti-war protests outside the
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white house. the president sending forces back to iraq. these people fear boots on the ground. the real danger mission creep. >> we are mere in front of the white house to say people don't want another war in iraq. we elected him to get out, not to go back. >> you are trumping the will of the iraqi people who don't want the u.s. there. the troops should stay in the united states, shouldn't be deployed to iraq, and the best way that the u.s. can treat iraq is to allowle people of iraq and the middle east to decide their own destiny. special operations forces on behalf of the government. it's continuing the decision of people who see nouri al-maliki as a dictator, and it seems he has the powerful country, which deepens and drives people apart further. >> scenes like these drive protesters, polls suggest most americans are not paying attention to what is happening
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in iraq. >> 12% of americans would support sending, but 46% support air strikes. the survey showed 24% of men's are not following events in iraq closely, odd in a way, because 41% an i.s.i.l. victory would matter to the u.s. a great deal. so they found 52% thing it was a mistake to get involved with iraq in the first place, and that is the sentiment outside the white house. keep the number of americans sent back to iraq as low as possible and don't get dragged back into a full-scale conflict. >> coming up later in the show, our correspondent jane will join us life on the ground from baghdad. a day of violence in golan heights in the west bank after an israeli teen was killed na blast near the syrian border. israeli forces are intensifying a search for missing teens in
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the occupied west bank. a 17-year-old palestine -- 27-year-old palestinian man was shot and killed in a refugee camp on saturday night. the search is the biggest military search in the west bank for the last 10 years. we are joined by jane ferguson in jerusalem. good morning. >> good morning. that was very big breaking news here in israel this morning. from the occupied golan heights first off - the explosion was reported to have hit a vehicle there. our sources at the israeli military told al jazeera that there was a 15-year-old boy killed in the vehicle. others inside were civilian contractors, working for the israeli military of defense because they are working on a fence, on reinforcing a fence close to demarcation lines with syria. that is meant to go up to prevent incidents like this.
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of course over the past two years it's not uncommon for ordnance asks rockets to land inside the golan heights from syria by accident. those sources at the israeli military are telling al jazeera that it would seem at least now it would appear that this is a targeted deliberate attack. now, as you have said there's also the israeli military operation going on in the west bank , going on for nine days. since the three israeli teenagers went missing in the outlined west bank, there has been nightly raids across the area. last fight saw a fourth death. palestinians have been confronting the army. one in nablus, and one in ramallah near a refugee camp. both as the palestinians faced off with the israeli military. they have already arrested over
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420 palestinianians across the occupied west bank since the operation began. most hamas members. israel maintained that hamas kidnapped the three missing israeli teenagers. hamas neither confirmed or denied that. thank you so much for that update. russian president vladimir putin is calling on both sides to stop fighting in ukraine. he is also warning that peace can only come with negotiation. at the same time n.a.t.o. says russia is beefing up its military presence along the border with ukraine, and putting forces on combat alert. rebels in the eastern city of donetsk are refusing to put down their weapons, holding a rally where separatists are wearing in new soldiers. that's where we find paul brennan. he joins us life. are we likely to see russian and ukranian leaders sitting with
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the rebels? >> i think it's extremely unlikely at the moment. president por are r the new -- petro porashenko, the newry elected ukranian leader will not negotiate directly with the separatist leaders who he regarded so far as terrorist. he said there's room for compromise and he wants a peace deal. as for direct talks with the people that occupied the civic buildings in the east, i don't think that's on the cards soon. >> what influence does putin have on the pro-russian separatists? >> there's a huge amount of defines to be honest. we spoke about people signing up. we have seen another ceremony, winding up. it was supposed to be a ceremony. to mark the anniversary. things are used by modern purposes. and so it proved and what we saw was 100, 200 fighters signing up
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with a willingness to join the front lines to fight against the army. there's five days left. the army - from the separatist militias, they feel that there is no compromise that they feel they can make it. if they feel there's no compromise, what is the chance that the ceasefire can lead to negotiations and progress in the days ahead. >> well, it's looking very, very tough to be honest. the president petro porashenko, he has surrounded. he said the separatists militia, he contained it into small packets of area. if they don't give up in five days, when the ceasefire ends. they will be eliminated. russia is concerned. they believe that that is an ultimatum, but you can see that the desire to act tough and be
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seen to act tough is holding sway over the possibility with normal sit-down convivial associations. paul, appreciate you being with us this morning. hundreds of demonstrators took to the streets to protest against the police department for allowing what they say is on excessive amount of violence. the protesters are now calling for reform. >> it's been called the albuquerque spring. this the latest mobilization against a city leadership accused of allowing the police to kill with impunity. the u.s. department of justice said a majority of shootings by the police department in 2009 and 2012. offices were taught that violence was normal and desirable. >> boom.
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>> here my son scream. maybe two minutes there were he was dead. >> mike's second as shot by a police officer here in 2011. the officer was cleared. alan was unarmed. the badge is not a licence to kill. i loved my son. he didn't deserve to tie. >> albuquerque police were judged to have killed civilians. it was the shooting dead of a schizophrenic homeless man here. on the outskirts of town, it cata lied months of protests. despite the fear that he will be shot. he vendors, an officer fires a stun cen aid. boyd reaches for a knife. he was pronounced dead. thomas has this. a culture exists at the department. it came as no surprise. they served on the force for eight years. >> he had a hyper militarization
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in the form of conduct and armour mment na is not consistent. the city and government is in a long engines on reform. the mayor's office and police department declined to be interviewed. there's skepticism, damning reports and pledges of change have come and gone the rate of killing increased and police officials hired to oversee reform have been accused of excessive force and change. the protesters say they'll ensure that opportunity is not missed and they'll march until there is justice. well, it is time for a check of the national forecast and for that we turn to meteorologist eboni deon. what can we expect. more heat and storms. unfortunately the same areas that were soaked yesterday are dealing with more storms today.
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already this morning, i sound like a broken record but it has been across the upper midwest now that the jet stream shifted to the north. it allows the storm to flow from west to east. that's what we are dealing with again. the day is wet into parts of south dakota and nebraska. and watching for the threat of thunder storms up in the indiana. a lot of this will be late in the afternoon and into the early evening hours. keep it in mind. more heavy downpours can be expected. yes have seen some places picking up over 7 inches into nebraska. with more rain coming in to saturated grounds, flooding will exist. we have a flash flood watch. it extends into parts of wisconsin. much of iowa dealing with the flood warnings, watching it
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through up. >> thank you so much. soccer star hope so'oialo is expected to appear in court after being arrested for domestic violence. so'oialo is accused of assaulting her sister and nephew in her home. police say she appeared drunk and upset. she is being held without bail on two kounds of domestic violence assault. she is a 2-time olympic gold medallist. [ ♪ theme ] all right. speaking of soccer, fans can catch team u.s.a. in action against portugal. if team u.s.a. wins, they'll advance out of the group na many pun dits call the group of death. u.s. fans are cautiously optimistic. >> i think port gal has been overrated for a long time. if they can beat united states, they'll do well. >> my heart says welwyn 1-0, but
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my head 1-1 draw. >> the u.s. beat ghana 2-1 on monday, and portugal was defeated 4-0 by germany. meanwhile as the excitement builds ahead of this afternoon's game against portugal world cup fever is spreading across the u.s. young fans in chicago are dreaming big. >> the kid in the hot green soccer shoes that he got this week is cyrus. a boy with an illness brought on by world cup. >> my mum says i love football so much that i have football fever. >> reporter: and mum is happy to indulge him. >> not just that i want my kid to play in the u.s., it's played in every place in the world. it's a sport that you don't need much, you need one ball. you don't even need shoes. >> reporter: fans are interested sacer parents at this -- soccer parent at this playing complex.
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the kids and the cops are dreaming about playing for the u.s. team one day. for now, they can't wait for sunday's game. television ratings for world cup are at a high, upwards of 12 million u.s. viewers watching the match. the city of chicago is adding soccer fields. the question remains, why doesn't soccer, known as football outside the u.s., catch fire in the u.s. the way it does in other countries. >> we have an american dream. that's the mexican dream, if you will. the dream is to grow up, play soccer, get out of poverty, support the parties. >> the kids can't wait for sunday's game against port call. here is the biggest seller. they have to hire tripple the amount of workers, and since monday's game against ghana, they have done tripple the amount of business. >> we have people trying to get
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everything. "i want the jersey, name and number. can i get hats and squashes?" i'm looking at the merchandise. this is my last meal and if the u.s.a. doesn't make it to the files, this is the team i want to win. >> reporter: while the kids may not become stars, the excitement of the world cup is giving them something to chase. we know that little cyrus will watch team u.s.a.'s match. there two other games that promise to be exciting. belgium plays russia in rio, and south korea plays algeria. and, of course, the big game, portugal against the united states. that's at 6:00 pm eastern. drug deception - pharmaceutical companies in a fight to counteract the counterfeit industry that's impacting the market. keeping kids fed.
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an ambitious programme in one state to make sure no child goes hungry. >> i'm rod in a national park with a report on a threat to these ancient trees.
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good morning to you, welcome back to al jazeera america. live from new york city, i'm morgan radford. pharmaceutical companies in a big battle to keep illegal drugs off the streets. first rgs let's look at what temperatures we can expect across the country. >> we are a little cooler into some areas across the mid west. it will be a hot and humid day dealing with a southerly flow warming things up across the middle of the country. it's cooler around denver. temperatures will heat up. here across the south-east where we deal with the core of the heat. high temperatures. tripple digit can be expected. high in atlanta. cool for now, feeling hot later in the day. >> thank you so much. the world health organisation estimates that 10% of drugs sold
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across the world are fake. the counterfeit drug business is worth $75 billion. it's often dangerous. it killed more than 100,000 each and every year. tom ackerman visited and it will help law enforcement take the drugs off the street. >> the human growth hormone keeps him alive. a prescription that he had refilled could have killed him. >> i asked the pharmacist saying i had the stinging and there seems to be an issue with the water in the packaging. and he said "you should go home. you should check and see if you got some of the fake stuff.". >> roberts is a victim of counterfeit drugs, sold over the internet, but in some says finding their way into reputable
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form assies. in this lab, more than 1,000 suspect sams are tested each year, seized by law enforcement agencies or bought by undercover agents. >> they will pose as patient who are consumers, and go out and make purchases from individuals on the internet. >> it's a different colour blue. they are close. >> to an experienced eye the bogus packaging can look identical to the genuine product. we see in some of the dosage forms, they don't put the active depreent in. sometimes -- ingredient in. times they put it in, at the wrong level. >> under a new law every drug sold will include a marker to trace the origin and track it through the supply chain. around the globe it's a case of
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buyer be aware. >> you have to stay within a system na is safe because of regulations. if you go outside, then you go outside the safety net that is there for you. there's no reliable safety net in africa, where a third tested had been found fake or ineffective. drug companies and u.s. drug agencies had been donating handhold devices that can perform analysis in the field. just a kick programming note. a special series "the system" examines two cases involving children convicted of murder - should they be sentenced to life in prison without parole. >> how we treat those in prison is a reapplication of how we are
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as a society. >> what does it say that we are willing to let people die in a prison cell. >> is it possible that there is a child so damaged that they'll never be able to come out. >> no one can predict. we shall have a concept of redemption, and structure a system that tries to get them there as soon as possible. >> you were involved in something that resulted in a death, the group thought about it in advance, it was not an accident. wouldn't you think it would be an property sentence. >> i didn't kill. no, i didn't do the crime. i deserved it. a couple of years, but not the punishment i got. i was young. i just - i messed up.
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i feel i deserve another chance to go out there. >> i think the system works. i think the system worked in this case. i think mr whictware is sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole. where things need to be fixed is before we get to a situation where whickware has a gun in his hand. educating people not to have children if they are not in a position to raids them appropriately. they are societal issues. that's where the system is broken. criminal justice system works just fine. >> you can catch the full episode here at 9:00 pm eastern, 6 pacific. >> an egyptian court issues a controversial ruling. with nearly 200 members of the muslim brotherhood could be put
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to death. a manhunt under way in south korea, looking for a policeman who wept on a killing spree. >> it's known as emergency cinema. i'm kristen saloomey coming up. more on the role of arts in war.
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good morning to you. welcome back to al jazeera. i'm morgan radford and these are the top stories. secretary of state john kerry is in egypt meeting with the country's newly elected president. on his agenda a trip to iraq where a sunni rebel offensive is expanding. the islamic state of iraq and levant is advancing, taking over strategic towns. military advisors arrived in iraq hoping to start out a fan.
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they monitor the situation from the force. good morning to you. the rebel forces are inching closer to baghdad taking over city after city. does nouri al-maliki have a lan yet. is he relying op u.s. for that plan. >> well, their lan is to try to beat back the fighters. the problem is he'll remember when the u.s. military was fighting al qaeda with the help of iraqi forces they trained. they are the fighters, the same names we are hearing now. the difference is a decade later this is a new kind of al qaeda, it's an al qaeda offshoot, which is better trained, more battle experience including in syria, is better funded and has better weapons, including some captured by iraqi forces and is proving
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very difficult. part of the plan relied on. special operations force, working and helping to lead iraqi forces as well as participation u.s. air strikes. no one is in any illusion. underany illusion that this will be seouled by air strikes. >> i want to focus on what you said about battling a slickly trained al-qaeda are. the u.s. - we have seen sectarian moves in recent months. does the u.s. believe that nouri al-maliki can effectively lead this country? >>. >> well, i think given a choice they prefer to have someone who wasn't quite so device i, who didn't provoke strong rehabilitations among the political leaders someone to
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cooperate with. the problem is after playing a leading role in bringing together a coalition government headed by nouri al-maliki for two terms, eight years now. the u.s. is struggling with alternatives. >> there's a limited amount of influence, this is no longer a country under u.s. occupation and no longer a country run by u.s. administrators. it is a sovereign country. that is what the united states said it wanted, and that is what it got. these are the difficulties you had. so everyone is scrambling to see if four can pull it together and be the leader. if not, there are clearly alternatives that everyone is looking at. >> given the influence, what does kerry hope to accomplish in the days when he arrives?
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>> well, what he hopes to do is try to exert what influence the united states has that diplomatic pressure, and the pressure that comes of being a leading supplier of weapons here, as well as the promise that they supply more intelligence, air strikes, capability. pinpointing of targetting. it could knock out command and control. we see it effectively by the i.s.i.l. when he is here, he'll meet with prime minister nouri al-maliki, getting across the u.s. message that he has to work to reach out, but the problem is everyone else is divided. this is not the iraq that existed. it's much more politically complicated. they'll be divided among themselves. what he's going to do is bring the factions toot and see if
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they can work together to find out the way forward. >> jane in baghdad. thank you for being with us this morning. >> the u.s. and the e.u. are condemning a death penalty decision by an egyptian court. the court sentenced 180 supporters of the muslim brotherhood to death. human rights groups say the ruling is a travesty of justice, and we report on what is a large egypt mass death sentences. >> reporter: another chapter in the violent history of the egypt muslim brotherhood. this is 100% unjust. members of the group were put on trial in april. among them the spiritual guide. he has been put on death row for the second time. >> this is expected when sentencing is politicized. the court convicted baher mohamed for the murder and attempted murder of police men on an attack in the province last year. he has been convicted of
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belonging to a terrorist group. they killed hundreds of muslim brotherhood supporters, and the violence didn't stop there. three people were killed by security forces in cairo on friday. they were protesting against the overthrow in july of president mohamed mursi. events a year ago put egypt on the course. a former member of the muslim brotherhood built to a critical level. hours after celebrating the first year in power, the military backed by many egyptians overthrew him. mohamed mursi is in prison, facing criminal charges and a possible death sentence. he was the group's great hope after decades in exile. the year in power marked a return of the muslim brotherhood. according to egyptians policies led to a spectacular fall. it gave the state an excuse to ban the organization and justify
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arrests and death sentences. much like those handed down on saturday. staying this egypt. a verdict in the trial of three al jazeera journalists is scheduled to be announced on monday. peter greste, mohamed fadel fahmy and baher mohamed have all been detained since december. they are accused of collaborating with the outlawed muslim brotherhood. al jazeera rejects all charges and demands their release. in the heat of the syrian war there is a group of self-taught film-makers trying to capture the data of syrian film-makers, not wanting the world to see them as victims. >> reporter: families eating, children being children, young men talking - abu calls their work emergency cinema. >> emergency cinema is like
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emergency medicine. you have to intervene quickly to save the image of your society. we wanted to show people with dignity. we wanted to show people without reducing them to be victims the contrast of ordinary people living in extraordinary circumstances provides moments of insight that are hard to find in news coverage like the siblings playing in a september that has become their home. or the unseen cameraman trying to cross a war-ravaged street guided by snipers. a selection of abu's films was part of the human rights watch fest ral in new york, a chance to bring the realities of daily life to an american audience far
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removed. organizers hope it will raise awareness of the humanitarian crisis. does america have an apathy towards syria? >> i would say it's true. i feel the unique stories and images and music and story telling that abu is using can break through that. >> members remain anonymous inside syria, to work in a society with heavy censorship. they insist their work is not political. the award winning short of gone and dogs reteels the agony of a rebel fighter that believes he has culled an innocent man. >> we need that people say "wow, it's a good film." when it comes to conveying the human cost. it may be enough. >> the film-maker's release a
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new video every friday. south korean security forces exchanging gun fire with a sergeant accused of killing fellow soldiers. the man old fire at a military outpost on saturday. harry fawcett has more. >> well this entire incident began on saturday with a shooting at an outmost in the far north-east of south korea. this man was known to have been on guard duty. the shooting began at 8:00 pm local time. five of his colleagues shot dead, seven injured, and they required emergency surgery. they are out of danger. he was on the run for 18 hours, a massive manhunt. 3,000 to 4,000. it seemed he came down to the mountains, and to this village where there was an elementary school. it was near the check point, according to the defense
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military, he engaged soldiers, a platoon leader injured. he is surrounded by troops, trying to persuade him to surrender. according to the rules offen gaugement at play, the fact that he shot first means that if necessary they can shoot to kill. we don't know much about the man, beyond the background of his mental state in that he was under special assessment after having not adopted well to military life. there are reports that he cas categorised in a high risk category. that was downdefrauded to a lower risk level meaning he was entitled to be deployed to a front line zone and have access to gun and ammunition. >> that was harry fawcett reporting from seoul. >> the search for a missing woman has been sfnded. a body was found near a trail where she went missing on
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wednesday. medical experts have not identified the body of karen sykes, a popular outside rider. six claimers were killed trying to climb the mountain's 14,000 foot summit. california's red wood trees are in danger. thieves are sneaking into the national parks to cut off and steal part of the tree. >> park rangers jeff and laura deppy are approaching a crime scene. the victim, a long-term resident was attacked in the dead of night. his assailants mutilated the victim with a chain shaw, this is the victim, a towering redwood industry. >> what we have depend us is an old tree, a tree that is probably 700 or 1,000 years old. the chain-saw wielding thieves were after these, redwood
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beryls, lumps that grow on the side of the trees. this is a type of wood that is valued. each piece can fetch up to 1,000 problems. bandits face dozens of trees. more are undiscovered. >> every time we discover one of the sites it's shocking. >> the road to redwood park is lined with shops selling carr viption, bols and slabs. the shop owner says he never buys illegally cut wood. my opinion is they need to knock it off. two bandits have been arrested so far. >> we were able to match burls cut from a site. to a gift shop. >> one man has been convicted of felony theft and vandalism and
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faces gaol time. >> the attitude of rev rens towards the trees. first settlers came to the area in the 19th century. they saw the redwood not as irreplaceable wonderers of nature. >> down they come. >> this 1940s educational films celebrated the logging. by the 1960s 95% of all old growth redwoods were gone. in light of that sad history, the burl bandits hurt more than trees. when you come into a place like this, described as cathedral like and you see this desecration, it hurts the sole. this tree, rangers say will likely survive. they are counting on public awareness to foil future burl
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burglars. >> coming up on al jazeera. >> at some point you have to say enough is enough. this is where we draw the line. >> the common core conundrum as another state opts out. why is it so controversial. >> overcast skies in the nation's capital. >> what can we expect across the country. >> more storms. i'll show you where it's wet this morning.
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>> this, is what we do. >> al jazeera america. welcome back to al jazeera america i'm morgan radford. the controversy over the common court and why state officials are deciding whether or not to
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opt out. first we'll look at where the rain may fall across the country. >> back into nebraska, that is where we see heavy downpours this morning. they are shifting to the east. it's a wet start to the day. we'll see more of the rain running into minneapolis, further no nebraska. it's wet around dallas, take a look at the cloud in place. hot and sticky. into the south-east a few scattered showers. certainly not a total wash out. >> thank you so much. schools across the country will be getting a technology boostment the f.c.c. is putting aside 2 million, getting access to wi-fi, connecting 10 million students. so far three out of five schools
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do not have access to wi-fi. staying in education. the common core test began as a state-lead. the bar needed for grade k through 12. since it was developed. six states in the nation opted not to adopt the common core. with more than a dozen others deciding to delay the implementation, the latest state to opt out was louisiana. jonathan martin has more on why the government is doing on about-face. with simmering controversy surrounding common core, the maths and reading standards is testing. bobby announced his state is pulling out. at some point you have to say enough is enough. jinnedle supported common core
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and louisiana implemented standards. the standard were great to by dozens of states. and the national governor's association. now there's too much overreach. the federal government is likely to assert control. and rush implementation of a one size fits all. a set of standards raising a lot of concerns. we are alarmed about choice and local control. instead of focussing on high standards and giving states policies, common core is a one size fits all programme that does not make sense. >> math and reading standard outlines what student are expected to learn at each grade level as a way to better prepare them for colleges. if others want to allow the government to dictate to them, they have every right to make
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the choice. >> reporter: common core is a bitterly divicist issue. several states are backing out of common core. republican governors, in indiana, south carolina signed legislation it withdraw from common core. in alabama, it's expected to be the key issue in the november election. >> it dictates what children will learn in classrooms. the obama administration and progressives have found away to take away coyses from parents and -- choices from parents. >> jinnedal is a potential g.o.p. candidate in 2016. critics say his move is political, a way to appeal to conservative voters. parents worry the change can hurt children. >> the schools have started implementing. it's like he wanted to turn pack and start over. >> the governor said reversal puts him at odds with many in
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the state's legislature and top leads, and they question whether jinnedal has the legal authority to drop common core. the state's legislation vowed to continue to implement the standards. hear to give us a parent's perspective on the common core is jen ate dudarm ark n, the parent of two schoolkids and found are of opt out, an organization against high-stake testing. why is it such a hot-button issue? >> you know a lot of times it comes down to it's our kids and they are messing with our kids and that's becoming something that parents - you let a lot of stuff go when it comes to the kids and you see something negatively affecting them, and that is causing an uproar. >> why do you say they are
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messing with your kids? >> we feel it's an experiment that has gone bad, and, you know, when we hear bill gates saying "we'll know in 10 years if this works." it's not good enough for parents who are seeing side effect at home. and we are seeing the kids losing their love of learning and becoming disinterested in being in school, and showing stress, the testing that is going on. the testing going on is out of control. and parents feel like, you know, enough is enough, and we have been - the teachers have not been part of the conversation. the parents are not part of the conversation. policy makers are being in charge of what is happening inside of the classroom and we don't feel assist appropriate. you mentioned negative side effects. physically what are the side effects. >> kids are becoming frustrated with the material. way we see in the standard is a lot of time standard were in some of the older grades are now
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pushed down lower and lower. and, you know, i personally don't know why that is appropriate. why do i want my second grader to do third grade and fourth grade work. what is the fall out from that. what is tape away from a -- taken away from a second grade classroom to do third and fourth grade work. we so a reduction in prent work, hands on, science and social studies are almost non-existent until the tests are offer. this is it what parents see happening. we don't like what is going on, and we don't like seeing our children set up to fail, feeling like failures and again losing that, you know, wanting to be in school and the desire to learn. it makes all the other arguments completely moot when their desire to learn is not there any more. >> you say giving a second grader third or fourth grade
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work has detrimental works. what if others argue that it helps kid. i skipped the second grade, i did fourth grade work, i felt i tailored to my interests and capabilities, what about kids where it advances their learning. >> common core is not differented learning, it's a one sides fits all. everywhere is doing the same, expected to reach the same level at the same time. if a child is falling behind or struggling to keep up. now, in the past, it was okay, let focus on that more, and individual classrooms with teachers would say that they are not getting this, let's spend more time. now there's a looming test. everything has to be done in the same way, in the same order. >> what is the solution in a situation like this. >> we need to look at child
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centered learning. you teach at the pace of the child. that's what we need to look at. >> thank you. we appreciated you being with us this morning. >> 3 is million kids rely on free breakfasts and lunches. when summer comes, many kids lose the stable food source. we report on programs trying to ensure that kids do not go hungry. >> summer can be the hungriest time of year. though not for kids at this camp on miami beach. here they eat free lumps and snacks. >> what are your favourite meals. >> steak and mash potato. >> what do you do when you eat lunch. >> run and jump everything. it gives me energy. >> there is a free summer food
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service programme. at schools, community centers. and churches across the country. a sizeable numbers of the kids rely on meals. they are not getting fed once summer ashes. we estimate that we are meeting 10-14%. we are qualifying. during the academic here. that drop is contributed to a number of factors. lack of awareness. kid getting to sites where they can get fed. josh, sharing our strength says the summer food service programme need to adopt. we need to modernize the programme by changing policies to allow summer meal sites to reach hard to reach areas, and to feed kids in those rural and suburban areas, food they need
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to grow and drive. they are signs that they need to outreach. >> last year the number of kids in the u.s. eating summer meals grew more than it has in a (aid. more than 3 million were fed. >> in florida the number of relying is still growing. from 2006 to 2012, the number jumped 10%. a reminder that as the economy rebounds, millions of families are struggling. and at the end of the first hour, here is what we follow. secretary of state john kerry is in cairo, and he's meeting with the new president abdul fatah al-sisi much on the gapda is a trip to jordan to talk about the turmoil. a manhunt is underway for an army sergeant accused of killing five fellow soldiers. feeling the fever world cup is
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building as the united states is prepared to take on portugal. i'm morgan radford, and ol be back with you in two minutes when al jazeera america continues. don't go anywhere.
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secretary of state john kerry touching down in the middle east this morning discussing the you'll rising in iraq. >> and a manhunt under way in south korea for an army sergeant accused of killing five of his fellow soldiers. the plus looking to win big. how russians are using the world cup to boost their country's profile ahead of their own hosting duties in 2018. and pope francis excommunicates the italian
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mafia, giving them the boot from the catholic church. good morning to you. welcome back to al jazeera america. live from new york city, i'm morgan radford. secretary of state john kerry is in egypt this morning. his first stop in the increasingly fraj eye middle east. iraq, syria, israel and the palestinianian territories caught in battles for control, each threatening though plunging the region into destability, and he will get the new president abdul fatah al-sisi. john kerry is expected to urge abdul fatah al-sisi to be more inclusive in his politics and will carry that message to iraq. that country is on the brink of a sectarian law. islamic state of iraq and levant is making advances and is in control of three more cities, a border crossing with syria and the largest province.
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imran khan has more. >> when he takes his meetings with senior politicians, including nouri al-maliki. the message he'll likely have is three fold - firstly they'll want the political process sped up. they will understand that there are many sunni politicians and tribal sheikhs who have been critical of prime minister nouri al-maliki, and will not help unless he steps down. he has that to deal with. there'll be talks on intelligence sharing, the americans have drone aircraft intelligence gathering over the skies. it's like lick the iraqis will want to know what they have seen. oil is a concern, particularly with the beijing oil refinery either in the hands of the rebels or the government, depending on whose claims you believe. the secretary of state john kerry has a tough job on his hands to build consensus within the government and try to give as much advice as he can on
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security issues to the iraqi government, particularly a deposit that feels it's embattled and under pressure. the largest oil refinery in iraq is caught in a tug of war between iraqi forces and i.s.i.l. rebels. it is causing fuel shortages. people have been lining up for hours to buy gas. >> reporter: early morning. angry people block the road. they have been waiting for hours at the petrol station in vain. tempers were so high that warning shots fired by security forces could not dislodge them. >> translation: the governor said he would solve the problem and provide fuel. selling to odd and even licence plates on different days. i parked here last night. until now i have not been able to get fuel, and they tell me
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there isn't any. >> reporter: for the past few days there has been long queues. we measured one, it stretched for 10km. those that made it to the pump only got 30 litres. many petrol stations are shut down. it started after the baiji refinery came under attacks by the sunni rebels. it provide oil for 11 provinces and accounts for a quarter of the country's oil. it has had an impact on the consumption. wherever you drive you see fuel tankers bringing oil to the refineries, people are angry because they say everything is for export. hundreds of truck drivers transport crude oil to the refineries. >> it is not because we have not enough fuel in kurdistan.
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i think personally some of people here, some businessman. they are misusing the situation. we have the pipeline. it will be no problem for kurdistan to have enough gasoline. many blame local corruption for the current crisis. >> we are sure to have a lot of oil. the stations will not give any to the people. they give it to special cars or people. and these people go to mosul and sell it there. >> the regional government says the shortage is due to a high influx. whatever the cause, iraqis have two choices. either wait for hours, or pay up to five times the price per litre on the black market. well, let's go to baghdad where we find al jazeera's jane. first, let's go to jane.
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are you there? great. wonderful. how is the iraqi leadership there responding to reports of john kerry visiting the country? >> well, they keep in close contact so phone calls these days, stronger daily phone calls. this, of course, is a chance for the secretary to sit down not just with a prime minister, but a wide variety of leaders something that the u.s. has been able to do. it's one of a few tools left at its disposal. it has the ability to get the leaders who don't talk to each other in the same room to hammer out an agreement. this agreement will try to come up with a new government. elections were held more than a month ago. there should be a government in place. the fact that there's a huge security crisis and a danger to
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baghdad is made worse by the fact that there's a political crisis it will be a large focus of the efforts. his visit in essence is welcomed by the prime minister and other leaders who want their views heard. >> what about the advisors. the first group are in iraq. what can you tell us about their visit? >> well, they are going to be very low profile. now, the perception is among some here that the americans are back, which means you are going to see soldiers in the streets. that is not the cas. that's not going to be the casement that ship sailed and sailed when iraq refused to allow immunity for a large number of troops. the u.s., though, has as much to lose in this as iraq does, and they are desperate to help in the same way that the iraqi government is desperate for military expertise.
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they are doing things like targeted exploration, that could lead to air strikes. that's an attempt to disrupt their command and control that allowed them to take wide swats of territory. >> jane reporting from baghdad. thank you for being with us this morning. >> here in the united states demonstrators took to the streets calling on the president to avoid military intervention in iraq. many say that americans could head into combat. the simple fact is what they have seen is a result of u.s. intervention. >> i don't want another war to start. i'm sick of bombings. there's bombing in yemen. killing women and children, men who have nothing to do with war.
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>> despite the latest moves, there'll be no u.s. boots on the ground. >> violence in the golan heights after an israeli teen was killed in a blast. israeli forces are intensifying their search. a 27-year-old palestinianian man was shot and killed in a refugee camp and a massive surge was the biggest military occupation in the west bank in the last 10 years. hundreds are demonstrating claiming election fraud. they are question results. the front running candidate is calling the election into question. >> after your investigations are done, if anyone was questions, we will solve them and separate the fraudulent votes from the
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results because some will be invalid. >> the first results are expected july 2nd. president hamid karzai is asking united nations to intervene. south korean authorities cornered an army sergeant they believe opened fire. seven more were injured. the standoff has been going on for hours. they fired mult shots at the army. authorities are trying to convince a soldier to surrender. the incident began. at an ot pest at the demilt tarized soap. this man was known to have been on duty. the barracks, five of his colleagues shot dead. seven injured. two requiring surgery.
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they are out of danger. he was on the run for 18 hours. 3,000-4,000 troops looking for him. it seems he came down from the mountains, to the coastline to the village where there was app elementary school near the checkpoint. at the checkpoint, according to the defence ministry, he engaged soldiers, a platoon leader, shot through the arm. now the defense military says he's surrounded by troops, and they are trying to persuade him to vender, come quietly, according to the rules of engagement, the fact that he shot first means if necessary they can shoot to kill. we don't know much about the man beyond the background of his mental state in that he was under special assessment after having not adapted well to military life. there are reports as well that he was categorised in the high risk category at one point during his service. that was downgraded to a lower
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risk level, meaning he was entitled to be deployed and have access to guns and live ammunition. family members of three people killed in a murderous rampage are calling out investigators for how they handled the case. there has been few details released on the may 23rd attack. officials say they are looking into whether the student from drugged before being stabbed in their apartment. three other were killed, and 13 shot that day. the search for a missing 70-year-old woman on mt rem ear was inspected after officials found a body. medical experts have not identified the body or a cause of death. karen sykes, a popular outdoors rider disappeared wednesday.
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last month 6 climbers were killed trying to climb the summit. >> hundreds of undocumented immigrants in temaze will be -- texas will be transferred to california. they'll be flown to san diego and elsend roe for processing. it's hoped it willees pressure on border -- will ease pressure on border patrol agents. they have arrested 170,000 people all trying to enter the country. thunderstorms in chicago dampening the first official day of summer. what a summer bummer. storms moving through illinois saturday, prompting tornado and flood warnings across the state. power was cut to 17,000 homes and businesses, including o'hare and midway. almost an inch of rain fell on o'hare in 20 minutes. chicago and the rest of the midwest will continue to face the risk of thunder storms today and in some cases severe
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weather. for that let's bring in meteorologist eboni deon. >> it will be a stormy day. chicago dry this afternoon. as clean up gets under way we should be in decent shape. that's when conditions will go downhill. though the day, down to oklahoma city, these are the areas where we are concerned strong to seize storms will develop. damaging winds and hail will be the threat. here is a look at the rain fall. many of the same areas are soaked, will see another round of heavy down pours, and we can end up with one to three inches of rain fall. here is the storm system pushing to the east. tonight into monday we'll see a frontal boundary approaching. that front triggering thunderstorm activity. a lot of cloud cover.
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we are seeing one big branch of rain. it's another soggy start to the day for you, and flood warnings persisting. we have flood warnings, and with the downpours we see roads covered with water. not a good day to be out and about. heading into monday, tomorrowy, scattered showers and storms. russian president vladimir putin is calling on both sides to stop fighting in ukraine. but he is is warning that peace can only come with negotiation. at the same time nato says russia is beefing up military presence along the border with ukraine, and putting forces in central russia on combat alert. rebels in donetsk are refusing
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to lay down their weapons. they held a rally where separatists swore in moussual. we go live to donetsk. are rebel forces growing. are they likely to listen to the ceasefire. >> we are seeing them grow for two days, yesterday and sunday. we have seen concontingents of upward of 100 fighters signing up in public ways for the benefit of the crowd. it looked like a publicity front. you can see that the publicity pump, and that is to show that the separatists do not trust the kiev government's office. they believe that they will fight to the death. it's a very, very difficult situation. the army believes that the separatist, with five days left appear in no rush to give up.
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>> paul, what influence does vout jip have on pro-russian separatists though? >> good question. vladimir putin of russia seems to keep the the separatists at arm's length. it was instructive to keep the leaders at arm's length. there was a news conference a couple of days ago. you can question why is m mr pushalin popping up to give a news conference. many of the separatist militia leaders are not ukrainian. there's a link between russia and the separatist movements, exactly how strong the strings are, that's open to speculation. >> gin all the unanswered questions and markets.
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what's the chance that the accuracy fire can lead to a real comromize? >> given the strength of foolings that the separatist militia are stating, i think there's little chaps. i think the prospect is that the ceasefire will lapse when the president's offer expires, and there'll be a vicious ukranian army onslaught and in the president's word they'll eliminate the fighters. that can be very, very bloody. >> paul brennan joining us from don everybody. >> russia is looking to score on and off the field. the goodwill the fans are trying to spread ahead of 2018 games. >> the republican party tapping congressman kevin mccarthy as the next majority leader. we'll have a deeper look at the politics of the issue in our
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weekend politics segment. a budget battle between the west and the third world. what that could mean to the united nations peacekeeping mission in war torn countries.
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. >> good morning to you. welcome back to al jazeera. i'm morgan radford. high hopes that russia has. first, a verdict for in the trial of three al jazeera is to be announced. peter greste, mohamed fadel fahmy and baher mohamed have been detained since december. they are accused of collaborating with muslim brotherhood. al jazeera rejects all charms and demands their release. soccer star hope solo is expected to appear in court after week arrested for domestic violence. he is accused of assaulting her sister and 17-year-old nephew. she appeared drunk in upset when they questioned her. she is being held without bail on two counts of dockistic violence.
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she is a 2-time gold medallist. [ ♪ theme ] well soccer fans can catch team u.s.a. in action against portugal. if team u.s.a. wins, they'll advance out of the youp. pun dids are calling it the group of death. u.s. fans are cautiously optimistic. >> i think portugal has been overraid for a long time. if italy and the united states are beaten. i am sure. >> my heart says welwyn 1-0. >> ghana won and portugal was defeatedly germany, 4-0. even though the games are getting started russia is setting its sites on 2018. it is hosting the n world cup and is celebrating making it
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into the games for the first time in three tournaments. we have more. >> the russians are coming to brazil, to project a hospitable image before hosting the 2018 world cup. at the ip august rags of the -- ipp august ration of the first russian house the vodka was flowing and the visitors glowing with admiration at every world cup football. up to 30,000 russian fans may be coming to cheer their team on. . >> we cheer for russia. never mind that russia's performance has been anything but memorable. >> might was measured by his ability to excel in sports. it's something very committed. when it comes to football russia
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is taking a big leap of faith. >> we qualify for the first time in 12 years. they have to be astonishing. they have no other choice. >> at the russia house passion for football converges with diplomacy and russia's economic interest far frn traditional as far as of influence. >> the russian investments in brazilian economy are growing. and we also, as you mentioned, we have some projects especially related with gas and petroleum. >> like a good diplomat. >> we are dreaming to have the final between russia and brazil. >> more proof that russia is a nation with strong ambitions. russia will take on belgium today at noon in rio.
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american military advisors arriving in iraq as i.s.i.l. fighters gain control. how the surging is playing out in washington. that and more in weekend politics. plus the pope sets his sites on the mafia. and preserving sites and artefacts with deep historical ties, a look at one of those locations vying for application advocates say is needed for their survival.
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- good morning to you. welcome back to al jazeera america. live from new york city, i'm morgan radford. ahead in the next hour the pope visiting a mafia strong hold firing his own shot as a mob over in response to a death of a 3-year-old child killed in a gunfight involving mob strs. how a funding cries assist involving u.n. peacekeepers may put lives at rick. the sunni rebel group i.s.i.l. is making major advances and is in control of three more cities, the a border crossing with syria and the anbar province, a large province. there's a fluid situation in the oil refinery in baiji. the iraq army says it's in
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control but the rebel group disputes that. imran khan is on the ground live in baghdad. goorping to you. why -- good morning to you. why has it been difficult to get accurate information on what is happening at the oil refinery? >> quite simply there's a media war going on. also, the i.s.i.l. and the sunni rebels are sending out mixed messages. it's impossible to confirm, they are not consistent in themselves and the iraqi government is restricting journalists going up there to check out events. there's a war on the internet in baghdad. it has been severely restricted. getting accurate pictures and information from the baiji oil refinery is difficult. they restricted google. facebook. what's up, viper, all the modern
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ways of getting information have been restricted. that's the reason we can't get accurate information. we are told that the rebels say that they are firmly in control, but the government refutes that. >> as diplomatic and military moves get upped way, the iraq -- under way, the iraqi civilians are dealing with the move. do they trust that the prime minister can deliver on his promises of security? >> well, take a look at what they are doing in baghdad and across iraq. there's panic buying going on - in food stocks, dry food, water. up in habil they are panic buying petrol. that gives you indications of how much confidence they have in the government. the rebels are nearer to baghdad. they are safe and secure. people here are afraid to speak out. no one wants to criticise the prime minister. it gives you an agency of how
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scared people are. >> imran khan, live in baghdad. >> as we have been reporting secretary of state john kerry is expected to arrive in iraq shortly. meanwhile right here in the state, demonstrators took to the streets in more than a dozen cities, calling on president obama to avoid military action in iraq. many fear america could be heading back to contact much. >> what we see in iraq is purely a result of u.s. intervention. >> i'm here, i don't want another war. i don't want bombings, they do no good. we are bombing in yemen, all over the place, killing women and children and men who have nothing to do with war. >> despite the latest moves, president obama insists there'll be no u.s. boots on the ground. the politics of the iraq war is first up in "the week ahead". tom doherty, former advisor to
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mr pataki. let's jump into the politics of the war. president obama took a lot of heat on the former policy stan. according to the wournal and the newspoll 57% disapprove and 73% approve. let's start with you? >> the president was in trouble in terms of we were seeing no coat-tails for a democrat from the president. that's why he has not been campaigning around the country. the iraq war is a difficult situation for the president. he inherited the war. his poll numbers are badly reflected by it. >> what do you think? >> they don't help. he cannot, in many ways, be blamed for the iraq situation.
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that dialogue is going on now. the american people are recognising that this started long before him. however, when you have a president with approval ratings, overall in the low 40s, this is more fuel on the fire. is this a president that can handle the job. that's the last poll we saw, was is he up for the last 2.5 years. most americans said no. this is a problem he had to deal with. back in the day, like circa 2008. he said this is something i'm distancing myself from. it seems like now he's committed to this, a war that he's embracing as part of his job to finish. >> he's the president. the vice president made comments, taking a victory dance on iraq, et cetera. things were going well there. that's where they get caught a little bit. there'll be no troops there.
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even the most dye hard conservative republicans don't want it. >> if things continue to get worse in baghdad? >> we have gone through the country, through a painful battle specially. we lost are 4500 americans. we said we have had enough. >> do you agree with some, we had enough? >> the polling indicates that the american people don't want to see a return to iraq. the ex-factor is what happens if, god forbid an american soldier is kidnapped or killed, adding to the 4500 that lost their lives, as you poipd out, this -- pointed out, this president ran on a platform being against the war in iraq. things are going so badly he's almost entering lame duck status 2.5 years into his term.
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>> i want to move to the senate. we have an important mississippi race. given what happened on tuesday, could we see the end of an era for cochrane. >> i think more than likely you will. the x factor is you have cross over votes in the primary. democrats can vote. how that plays out. the race is meaningless. you will elect a republican one way or the other come november. >> how can you call it meaningless? what does it say about the tone of the country when you have a tea party candidate - that's why we are in the situation in the miss place. what about -- first place. what about mcd-daniemc-daniel. >> you have right wing, and you have the ability in places like mississippi to elect the father to the right. it will not effect the problem going forward. cochrane has been a conservative
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voice. he is 76, a little toned down. it makes no difference come november. this is meaningless. >> i cannot disagree - i couldn't disagree with you more. it's important. it sets the tone of the country irk in mississippi. >> i'm coming back to you. i'm going to let domenic take it first. >> tom is an expert at this. i was in mississippi nine months agoment we are looking on tuesday night in the run-off election four decades of surface for senator cochrane coming to an end. here is why it is important. look at the dynamics of what is going on. cochrane expands the base. the conservative republican is court aring african american voters at the 11th hour. if he losses the run off to the state senator, it will empower the tea party. the tea party is going to say
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hey, look, we are relevant. our funeral was premature. we are as relevant as ever. >> that is so localized. >> how can you say that, it's a beacon of the south. >> we elected a majority leader who is a moderate republican any the caucus of national republicans. >> no, you don't think this is bigger. this is what the south will do in the midterms. >> look, what it moons is in places like miss sippy and other primaries, you can elect tea party candidates. it has no bearing. the race for a majority leader had a bigger bearing on the future of the country. >> we have been to the senate and the white house, let's go to the house, house. senator mccarthy has a tough time as the whip.
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can he file those shoes. >> the one thing about mccarthy is he's smart. he got to know every member as they came in. he got to spend time. late nights at the house. this is a guy who sleeps in his office. he knew family members and situations when he was out campaigning and running for congress, he said shave the goatee, you lose five points. he said "i see now you are serious", he got to the details of understanding individual members. he's a moderate. 33% of district. he's pro-immigration reform. he is going to do a good job for the country. >> you mentioned how little time he has left. can he really impact change. >> it will be tough for him. as tom acknowledges he's a moderate.
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it doesn't play well for republican leadership. he has to move his members. the good thing about the new majority leader is he has personal relationships with a lot of members. his district is a large agriculture district. the latino numbers are accurate, but he's in leadership now. leadership says the rarty moves to the -- republican party moves to the right. he is going to remember over the back of his shoulder is what happened to cantor. he's going to be moving to the right whether he wants to or not for survival. >> that is not true. >> why? >> if you look at this, this is really what happened, is it has shown with his election has empowered the establishment and the more moderate forces within the party that gave john boehner larger sway. >> you think john boehner can hold on to a third term. >> john boehner will be speaker
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next january, there's no question about that. the tea party's influence. look, you have certain members, no question. a small faction of right wing. they want to win elections, pick up the house seats, the united states senators, and that says the establishment wins in november. >> do you agree, a third term? >> john boehner will be speaker. the establishment will be good. the death of the tea party was premature and they are alive. republicans don't want to talk about that. >> you don't think they are well and alive. >> the shame of the republican party. >> you haven't, in the democratic party, you have the far left. you don't call them anything, and we have the far right. it's a small part of our party, depending on where you are. you'll find a tea party person. if you are at a congressional district in new york, you'll
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find many. that's the way the party runs. >> it's been a pleasure. tom doherty, and domenic carter, thank you both for being with us. u.n. peacekeepers around the world are trying to help countries in cop flilent create -- conflict create stability. the peacekeepers could disappear from gianties that need them now more than ever. james bays reports on the problem - he says it's money. >> reporter: the u.n. has peacekeepers in 16 missions around the world, authorised strength reaching a record high - over 100,000 troops and police. now there's a major funding crisis. diplomats can't agree on a new budget and if there's not a deal by the end of the month when the budget runs out. peacekeepers in all of the missions will have no money and will not be able to operate.
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most of the troops come from the developing world. these from rwanda. the main funding is provided by we were nations. this is it a row pitching the richest countries against some of the poorst on earth. this is the ambassador of bangladesh, a country with 8,000 prnal serving with the u.n. >> he's obligated to help u.n. we respond positively. when the troops get a min bum - what should i say, facilities, it's demoralizing. fully liquid and energised to perform the job effectively and efirmly. >> reporter: the dispute comes at a time when the u.n. must find troops for missions and mali and south sudan, and set up a peacekeeping operation in the
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central african republic. there hasn't been a major increase in the money that the u.n. pays to countries for years. counterly the u.n. pays $1,200 appear peace keeper per month. some want it increased to $1,700 per peace keeper per month. the total stands at about 7.3 billion, but next year it could rise to more than 9 billion. cunch negotiations will continue in the coming days. in a supreme irony talks have gone on past their allotted time. there's no budget left they wept be meeting in these corridors. they'll have informal meetings outside the building. the largest peacekeeping mission is in the democratic republic of congo and there are more than 21,000 military and
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civilian troops there. let's get a look at the temperatures across the country with meteorologist eboni deon. look like it's a hot day. >> it is. >> right along the south-west coastline we'll keep it comfortable. down towards l.a. once you get to the interior south-west, that is where temperatures run a few degrees above average aring including around los angeles. as we get into the middle and latter part of the work week are expecting a cool down. temperatures will drop below average. the rest of the up are midwest we'll see mid and upper 80s. warmer today in the north-east as we round out the weekend. the heat is on in the south-east. 90s today, feeling like 100 degrees or better. >> pope francis going after the mob.
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why he's giving them the boot from the catholic church. al j.
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>> only on al jazeera america. >> oh my!
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good morning to you. welcome back to al jazeera america. ahead protecting history for the future. first pope francis travels to mafia country to announce the excommunication of the mob. he was in the rural area and after visiting a child killed in a shoot-out he condemned organised crime. >> reporter: under a scorching calabrian son the pope arrived to deliver a strong attack on the mafia in the heart of their territory much it was a mass and he delivered a speech saying the mafia clap that thrives was the
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adoration of evil. the church had to do more for common good to reveal. will the pope's words make a difference. some believe the mafia are too powerful to be challenged and have on occasions infiltrated the church itself. earlier the pope visited criminals at a gaol. in a private meeting he comforted the imprisoned father of a 3-year-old boy killed after being caught in a local shoot-out. it was that tragedy that prompted the pope's visit. he had this message for the prisoners who he urged to repent. >> i want to express to you my personal closeness and that of the church to all of the men and women in prison in every part of the world. they've been preparing for this visit for weeks. many here suffered first hand
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the violence of the mafia, and hoped for change. >> the church is the only agency that can win against the mafia. >> the pope can change people's conscience, if it changes the mafia, and will not be able to end the generation, that's what we are fighting for. >> as the pope returns for now, the mafia is undiminished, power and influence growing. joining us now with more on the pope's excommunication of the mafia is patrick hornbeck, chair of the theology department at fordham university. it's a pleasure to have you here. >> thank you so much. >> thank you for coming. this seems to be the first time the pope has talked about excommunication. so how important is that type of language. ism .
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>> pack in 1993 pope john paul condemned the mafia. the particular world excommunication carries so much weight meaning someone couldn't go to communion, get buried in sacred grounds by the priest. technically the pope didn't excommunicate a particular person. you have to do that individually. but he gives priests the mandate to go after those in their congression. >> individuals can mandate. >> no catholic bishop or police excommunicated a mobster. >> interesting. >> the pope created a crimate where it might -- climate where it might happen. >> will it shake up the mafia.
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>> this particularly one do 250 million euros a year. someone speculated it's 3-4% of the economy. can the pope take the group down? i don't think it will happen in the short run. so much of these organizations depend on the legitimacy of not being prosecuted. >> you mentioned the condemnation in "93. when the catholic church condemned crime in "93, the mafia responded by bombing several churches. is the pope putting his life at risk? >> what is a great question. one of the things we saw with this pope is he's pretty fearless. his security detail has to be frustrated with him, going back to march 2013, in brazil he stays in this car, he's in a small car, there's thousands of
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people. he goes to the holy land and walks up to the wall between the israeli and palestinian territories. he's fearless, he said that... >> it's groundbreaking. >> he's in his late 70, and he said god will call him home when god will. the amount of faith that takes is terrific. >> he talked out about a trend to legalize marijuana. is this a personnel issue or as the -- personal issue or or the church's duty. >> uruguay is a recent country to legalize cannabis. it may be something he's thinking about in connection with where he's from, or what is going on in europe. it's a place where the pope is unpredictable. we can't fit him into the traditional american categories. on the drug trade tore abortion we may think of him as
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conservative. on immigration or economic reform we may think of him as liberal. he's a pope of surprises much the catholic faith in germ doesn't fit the boxes. during the break i asked you about the eighty for the men public to sign our political understandings to the open. would you say the pope swings to the right or left. >> in drug control, he opposes recreational drug use, it puts him on the right. contraspeption, it's the right. we don't know in relation to gay marriage, but generally on the right. he's been a strong voice for critiquing a capitalist system. he doesn't fit. >> he's like a rock star. >> that's right. and has an 87% approval rating. maybe our politicians have something to learn. >> patrick horn beck.
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chair of the theology department. the united nation assist voting this month on places it may add to the world heritage list. the sites that make it are some of the beautiful cultural and natural treasures. vatican city, or yellowstone national park. we have a story of a city in myanmar hoping to get on the list. [ ♪ music ]. >> reporter: it's a world away from where the decision makers are. it does not stop the people asking for dive in intervention, from a town near one of the three ancient cities in central myanmar and regard a u.n.e.s.c.o. lifting as an honour. >> translation: there are many cultural relics and buildings in this old city. >> the three ancient cities are part of the pew kingdom which existed for about 1,000 years. its people traded with india
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around the fifth century, leading to the spread of budism throughout south-east asia. >> not much is known about the pew. we know they lived in big cities, enclosed by high walls. ing about a sophisticated system of they spoke a language extinct but related to the myanmar language. >> arkiologists working at the biggest of the cities believe they have uncovered 20% of it. the importants of the spite is they are rare and unique of urbanization of society from that era. experts want the area protect, something a unesco world heritage status would offer. >> the area is fragile. we are submitted to greater pressure. in very kick time, we can have a disaster because only you can
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disappear very quickly. >> reporter: it has staunch protectors. people that live in the town nearest to the site set up a heritage trust in the 1950s. funded and staffed by volunteers, it runs a museum, helping to ensure the art effects remain in myanmar. >> translation: this is the history of our forefathers, and it may be the little interest to some people, but we want to resolve it. >> reporter: a world heritage listing would bring in funds and know how for the conservation. it would give a sense of pride to the people, telling them history is worth preserving. the dell dates are
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considering 40 sites and will vote on wednesday. o let's get a look at where the wet weather will be across the country on the second day of summer. what is in store for us. >> summer like thunder storms is what we'll deal with. we'll deal with a few storms firing across parts of the south-east. it's right here in our nation's mid section where we are dealing with strong to severe storms. it is mainly rain. we are seeing plenty of moisture. pacific - stretching across mexico through texas with an upper level disturbance. spreading rain. this will wind down, but you can expect an isolated chance of storm late this evening. dallas wet this evening. rain through nebraska, into western areas of iowa. that is where we have the heavy rains. keep that in mind.
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into the north-east, a quiet start. we have a few clouds mixing if with the sun shine. temperatures worming up. an isolated storm or two possible around d c. otherwise a decent end to the weekend. across the south-east we'll have a lot of moisture around. as we go through the afternoon, it will be hot, humid and we'll see storms. most activity is scattered and we are watching rain. >> thank you for joining us this morning on al jazeera america. i'm morgan radford. ahead in 2 minutes, the latest on john kerry's visit to the middle east and the turmoil that continues in iraq. i'll be back with you at 11:00am eastern. until then, have a great day.
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arizona. ... welcome to the news hour. the top stories, sunni fighters make major advances in iraq as they push their way to baghdad. israel fires at syria after a 15-year-old is killed in the golan heights. >> a south korea ian solid dispute ends with a shoot-out with the army. >> adding new names to the