online. ♪ today's top stories res. >> a humanitarian cease-fire extended for 24 hours despite renewed rocket fire from gaza. >> we will return the moment the security situation permits us to do so. >> escalating violence forces the u.s. to evacuate its embassy in the libyan capitol and requires all americans to leave that country. >> she was for peace. she is for peace. she will be forever for peace. >> families grief at the crash

site of malaysian airlines flight 17. >> to mexico where it is a dangerous and sometimes fatal journey for migrants through the corridor of death. >> we begin with a conflict in gaza. israel has agreed to extend a humanitarian cease-fire until sunday night. palestinian factions have not yet responded to that announcement. hours ago, dozens of rockets and mortars are once again fired into israel from gaza following the end of a previous cease-fire. during the short window when fighting had stopped today, many residents of gaza returned to their homes to look for survivors and to bury the dead. more than 100 bodies were discovered. meanwhile secretary of state john kerry and his counterpart from france, the u.k. and other current trees are meeting in paris. they are trying to convince both

sides to agree to a longer truce. the total of palestinians killed is at 1,048. most are civilians, 40 israeli soldiers and three israel civilians have been killed. live from gaza, israel has agreed to a 24-hour extension of the cease-fire. what does that mean for the people of gaza? >> reporter: that means they can stay in their homes. earlier today, we saw thousands and thousands of people go back to their homes. these are neighborhoods that israel has pummelled over the last week or so, specifically one neighborhood in the east shuzuea. and bethahyun. the reason they have targeted those neighborhoods is because a lot of the rockets we see being fired from gaza into israel have come from there, also, tunnels, tunnels that gaza fighters have dug from those neighborhoods into israel. so that's why those neighborhoods are being targeted for the first time in more than

a week. residents streamed back into them today. many left this evening, thinking the cease-fire was going to end. this means they can stay in their homes. they c they can relax for one more day. you talk to people here there is no faith that they will be able to be safe in those neighborhoods. israel continues to do two things. one, vow to continue its mission which is to remove those rockets and eliminate those tunnels and, two, at the same time, it says that it's going to hold fire for the next 24 hours or so. it is actually saying that it will continue the tunnel mission, which is right along the gaza/israel border. sometimes inside of israel. there is still very much activity by the israelis on the boarders. it's just not air strikes in sie of gaza. >> thinick, the people there ar skeptical that this is actually going to end any time soon. is there anything happening in paris, the talk there, that should give them hope?

>> reporter: u.s. officials say they are still having a hard time doing two things: one, reassuring hamas that the next cease-fire make a difference for them and the people of gaza. hamas has been pushing for the last couple of years actually for the lifting of the israeli siege as well as the opening of the boarders. >> that's not something that israel has publisaid its willing to do and hamas doesn't trust when the u.s. says that, yes, we will figure this out this time. we will actually lift the siege and get materials across the border. hamas doesn't trust when the u.s. says that because the last time the u.s. said that a year and a half ago during the cease-fire, it never actually came through. also, on the other side, u.s. officials tell me they are having a hard time convincing israeli officials to stop with their tunnel operation to actually stop the violence. manyisitioni officials, senior levels of government in the military and also around the prime primary, according to the u.s. officials, who do want to keep fighting, who do believe

that if they stop now, all of those rockets and those tunnels, themselves, will actually remain and they may have to come back in, in the next year or year and a half, they are thinking. so they do want to continue this fight and u.s. officials are trying to get them to stop. >> nick, what do we know about what progress the israeli military has made as far as these tunnels are concerned? obviously they aren't going to tell us everything, but what do we know? >> reporter: yeah, they do admit that they have gotten about 55 or 60% of these tunnels or so. they think there is about somewhere between 50 and 70 tunnels. call it 60. they have gotten through about 35 of them. but they have taken about eight days to do that. so when pressed, say, hey, do you need six or seven more days to eliminate the tunnels? they say we are getting faster at it. they say it's difficult. it's very hard to find them. it's a small area we are talking about, but very -- these

tunnels, the exits, themselves, from gaza into israel are very well hidden. israeli officials say they don't have the technology or some of the intel to actually know where every single 1 of these tunnels are. these tunnels are not just places that people can crawl through. these are actually concrete reinforced tunnels with lots of arms coming through. so they do need more time and a lot of israeli officials, especially the military are pushing for that more time while the u.s. is trying to get a cease-fire. >> nick schifrin, very thorough report, live from gaza. thank you so much. palestinians used the cease-fire looking for bodies of their loved ones. stefanie dekker takes us to an emotional scene in northern gaza. >> a 12-hour cease-fire that is negotiated means little. it means nothing to those that have lost everything. we are in beit hanoun in the north. there are pulling a body out of the rubble.

that is the sound of absolute grief as they are pulling people out of the houses here we are being told just before this cease-fire took place, israeli warplanes hit this area in beit hanoun, extremely hard. there are areas of complete devastation as you can see. there are still looking for more bodies. people will tell you we met one lady, 70 years old sitting on the side of the road and she said this has happened throughout my lifetime. israel has come in, has killed us, and has devastated our lives. when will it stop? >> stefanie dekker reporting there. earlier today, i talked to the deputy director, a program for the from the u.n., scott anderson as part of a team trying to provide food and shelter for palestinian refugees. i asked about the cycle of violence and the effect it's having on the civilian population? >> i have been in gaza since february of 2008.

i was here at the end of 2008, 2009, i was here during 2012, and the hardest thing, i guess, to accept is as you make friends with people both here in gaza and in israel is that it's just normal people that are the most impacted. they have to find a way to rebuild their lives over and over again. i am very hopeful when the diplomats talk not only about a truce but also a way to address the underlying conditions that lead to these eveninglations. >> currently within our shelters, we have 165,000 people that have had to flee their homes from across mostly eastern gaza and northern gaza to try to escape the fighting that's gone on between israel and the people here in gaza. 165,000 people we have to feed and water, provide hygiene for every day. we are shipping with world food program about 200 metric tons of food today out to people, and it's a real challenge to keep water moving when roughly 42% of the gaza strip is basically a

no-go zone. >> scott, i couldn't let you go without talking about what happened earlier this week when rockets actually hit one of your schools, many casualties, many injuries. there is no place that's safe in a war zone. does it feel even more so this time? >> inc. that for me, it feels very much the same. for the civilian populous and the people i talk to in our shelters, they are very scared. they feel that they have no where to turn to, nowhere to flee. it's just about impossible for a palestinian that doesn't hold a passport from a foreign country to actually travel outside of gaza. so, you know, when people relocate, they are relocating only a few kilometers away from the front line. and it's very dang dangerous for them. most people don't feel safe. for the average six or seven-year-old child this is the third major escalation they have had to live through in their very short life. >> anderson says the u.n. was hoping for a longer cease-fire, what's really needed is a long-term solution. fighting in libya has led the

u.s. to evacuate tripoli. offered might american diplomats and staff were driven to neighboring tune ease i can't. fighting has intensified. secretary of state john kerry says the u.s. is not closing the embassy but is suspended its activity. >> a lot of the violence is around our embassy but not on the embassy. but nevertheless, it presents a very real risk to our personnel. >> rosalind jordan has more from washington, d.c. >> the u.s. government is suspending operationsing in tripoli and all embassy staff including military guards have been evacuated to tunisia. they took a 5-hour drive overnight to get all u.s. personnel out of libya. the reason for the evacuation is very simple: the u.s. says the security situation has deteriorated so much that fighting between various partisan groups has come

essentially to the embassy's doorstep. in light of the killing of the u.s. ambassador christopher stevens and three other americans on september 11th, 2012, the obama administration made the decision to evacuate the personnel rather than have them put in harm's way. along with this decision to suspend operations at the embassy, which, of course, will have an impact on any libyans who want to obtain a visa or do other business with the u.s. government, u.s. citizens who are inside libya right now are being told to depart. there is no evacuation plan for them. they are simply being told, call the airline. call the airport, and leave immediately. >> jill walsh research associate with mit securities program told me earlier conditions on the ground in libya are extremely dangerous. >> there is always been violence since the fall of gadaffi. we have seen it escalate in the lastco couple of months and in particular this last month. i think what drags this will decision, three things: the airport has come under fire. so they have shut down the

airport. >> sort of closes off an exit after if they had to move people out quickly. plus you have the violence that's getting closer to the embassy and increasing in intensity, the number of casualties per day. >> that's what left the u.s. no choice. the u.n. had already evacuated. turkey had evacuated. >> all of the things obviously are goodruns. >> yes. >> to get out. but is it also the u.s. extremely cautious because of what happened at the consulate? >> you don't know unless you are listening in on those phone calls our getting the traffic back and forth, the memos in the embassy. of course you would have to think that. but again, i would say the u.s. is not the first one out here. right? there are others who have already moved out. and they are often reluctant to leave places but i mean i wouldn't blame them. certainly you would want to have an abundance of caution here. >> let's talk more about what is actually happening in libya. secretary of state john kerry said this earlier today, that the violence is coming from the hands of free-wheeling malitias. this is what's taking place in

tripoli right now. who are these malitias? what are they trying to accomplish? >> the central government doesn't have a standing army, a strong force. >> so what you have instead in that vacuum are two major alliances of different malitias. one is based in zitan in the mountainous northwest and then in the port city of mizrasa. there is another set of malitias, morris lammic based, more politic indicated. there is geography, a lot of stuff. basically you have two big groups with guns battling each other. >> were these people that were once all on the same side? >> absolutely. absolutely. of course, this is classically a problem. it's a lot easier to oust a dictator than to rebuild a civil society and create a stable and coherent government. >> does that mean some of what we are seeing is unfortunately to be expected after a revolution? >> i think so. now, it depends on, you know, in part, it depends upon what a dictator leaves you behind. >> sure. >> what you do with that. some current trees are going to be more stable, having civil

institutions an judiciaries and the things making a society hold together. >> wasn't libya and it wasn't libya under gadaffi. >> wasn't a well-developed state. it was a state that was very thin and when that went away, there wasn't a lot left behind. >> this is a loaded question. but what do see the future of libya being? >> the government there has called for a cease-fire. it's called for truce talks between the malitias. you know, the center of gravity tends to be with the folks who hold the guns, and that, those conflicts seem to be increasing in number and intensity. i think in the near term, it doesn't look very good. >> mit's jim walsh, the international community is pushing for proper access in crain. fighting is preventing investigators from assessing the site. the dutch government has sent 40 unarmed military police as well as forensic specialists to ukraine but they had yet to actually get to the site. the plane was carrying 298 passengers and crew, mostly

dutch when it was shot down last week. everyone on board was killed. the u.s. said russia has fired into ukraine targeting the military position. the state department announcing thursday they had evidence that russia is planning to deliver more fire power to separatist forces in ukraine. meanwhile, the european union imposed its first set of sanctions including travel bands and freezing assets of some top russian officials. russia says the sarns will hamper cooperation. there are reports of heavy fighting in donetsk, separatist stronghold purportedly heavy art illery fire trying to retake the city. >> fighting has forced hundreds of thousands of people to flee their homes. barnaby phillips has that story. >> the people of donetsk are aband oning their city. they fear the war that has now reached its outskirts. boarding the train for kiev, some like tanya say they don't want to live under separatist control. >> came to our town just to

occupy the territory, just to take our business and spoil our life, and i want to continue my business in different city. i want to leave to have future. >> outside donetsk, they are also on the move. only these people are fleeing the government army. what they say is its indiscriminant shelling. this is a tower on the edge of the city. shells have landed in its car park. almost everyone who lived here has gone. victor is still here. >> you have been here for some four years, i think. >> maybe five. >> he sent his wife and children away weeks ago. he is trying to decide whether he should go, too. >> my feelings are so complicated. on the one hand, i want to leave. on the other hand, this is my native city. i just want to see the end of the situation. >> in central donetsk, empty malls, abandoned restaurants. >> donetsk is a dying city.

the majority of shops and businesses and factories and cinemas here in the city center have all closed. people have left because they fear the worst. some are going west to government controlled areas. some are going east to russia. >> these people are going to the russian city of rostov. they say they will come back when things are better. over in kiev, an abandoned cement factory is now a shelter for 200 people who just fled from the war zone including sasha, who felt he had to move for the sake of his daughter, anna. >> translator: there is a real war there. lots of shelling. my daughter is disabled and she is much more relaxed now that we are out of it. >> back at dondon station, more goodbyes. nobody knows when they will see friends and family again. nobody imagined ukraine's crisis would come to this. barnaby phillips, al jazeera,

dondon. >> coming up on "al jazeera america," more than a dozen people have been shot in chicago since yesterday. what police are doing to keep kids from becoming a statistic. for many immigrants, the last part of the journey into the united states, that is the most dangerous. more on the corridor of death next.

another weekend of gun violence in chicago. police say at least 15 people have been shot since yesterday afternoon, and among them, a 3-year-old boy who was left in critical condition. on the other side of town, a 13-year-old boy was killed when a gunman opened fire in a vines store. the teen's family is understandably devastated. >> senseless act of violence that occurred today that he did not deserve to die at a young age of 13 which he was going to celebrate his 14th birthday next month. chicago was struggling with ongoing gang violence last weekend, 47 people were shot. in chicago's toughest neighborhoods, teens get caught in the crossfire. some drawn into gang life and

one cop is trying to keep kids safe and on the right side of the law. >> the inglewood neighborhood, gun violence has claimed 21 lives and wounded more than 100 others this year. >> when you hage in the corner and you are standing out there on that corner, do you not make yourself a target? >> chicago cop dal i can't pruitt is trying to keep these kids from becoming part of statistics? >> he wasn't doing nothing but standing out there talking. >> why run? >> cory pruitt has the 5-week violence program for kids warning them through role play about what can happen if they hage out with gangs. >> what you doing this to me for? my gun. >> or drug dealers. >> going in my pocket. hold it right quick. i am over here because i don't see the police. right? and i don't give her my dope. i am talking to my friend. this is what they do. look. look. look. look. don't say nothing.

i am going to kill you. >> the program is part of chicago alternative policing strategies or caps. the idea is to keep teens with nothing to do in the summer off of the streets and out of trouble. some, like 18-year-old shequan brown are getting paid through a grant to attend. he is on probation for theft and trying to avoid another brush with the law. >> you don't have to be doing anything in particular to find trouble. trouble finds you. >> in this neighborhood? >> in the world. >> gory pruitt said in neighborhoods like this, police are often seen more as adversaries than advocates. the caps program is trying to change that. >> have you made friends with these kids? >> yes. we have. we've actually broken a barrier where a lot of them didn't talk. now, they are talking. we can't get them to be quiet. >> gory pruitt is helping teens learn about opportunities outside their neighborhood. on this day, they tour a public radio station. >> hi.

this is wbez. >> and get the chance to escape the pressures they face almost daily. this is the last week of the program. gory pruitt hopes she has made an impression that will last. >> do you worry about them? >> yeah. even while they are in the program. en when they leave, you know, they are still going back into their neighborhood. they are still going back into the elements for some of them. so, yeah, i do worry about them. >> the veteran cop hopes the odds are in her favor. she says all of the kids in her program last year have stayed out of trouble so far. diane estabrook, chicago. >> tough love from president obama to leaders of three central american countries. obama met yesterday with the presidents of guatemala, honduras and el salvador placing responsibility for most of the tens of thousands of minors crossing the american border on them. obama expressed compassion for the children but told the leaders, only few of the minors would qualify for refugee status. the others will be sent back

home. friday, we brought you the story of one honduran trying to cross the border alone. the final part of the journcan be the most deadly. heidi jo castro has more from reyonosa, mexico on the so-called corridor of death. >> 15 year-old brian solar left his migrant shelter on the mexican banks of the rio grandee friday morning. he had been waiting for a chance to cross, but despite all warning. >> and if you died? >> oh, well, he had answered. and at this moment, he may already be on u.s. soil. we are waiting to hear. at worst, ryan's journey could take him here, the dessert of brooks county texas. it's 950 square miles of cactus, mountain lions and sun where the sheriff office picks up an avenue of two bodies a week. >> how likely do you think if he

comes you might find him and put him in a body bag? >> i hope that doesn't happen. i hope i don't have to pick him up. >> the chief deputy shows me a st staggering number. 403 bodies since 2009. >> you know, looking at this number, this is like a boeing jet come down. >> uh-huh. >> in your brush every three years. >> that's how many people are dying. >> yeah. >> is that number real to you? >> yeah. it's real. uh-huh. >> a ride-along with the deputy shows us why. smugglers pull over six miles before a boarder patrol checkpoint. this is where the smuggler leaves the journey on foot. >> if they twist their ankle, if they fall down, when they are resting, if they rest and they fall asleep and they don't wake up in time to go with the group, they leave them behind. >> underneath the cover of the brush, water bottles, coats shed in the heat, en deoderant,

things that keep people alive and remind them they still have dignity. >> you are trying to stay a little bit sane and everything, not just being pushed like almost like livestock. >> out here, a few hours in the 100 degree heat drains you. after getting these shots, our photographer feels nauseous and dizzy, signs of heat exhaustion. when the temperature goes up, so, too, does the body count. >> do you ever want to just scream to these people, don't come because you are going to die? >> well, what i am hoping is that the government becomes more pro-active and tells the respective countries to make sure they keep their people where they should stay. >> but it's difficult to deliver that message to those who need to hear it most. since october, more than 57,000 children have crossed alone. and this boy has now joined the

wave. heidi zhou-castro, al jazeera, the texas/mexican border. >> coming up, pro-palestinian protests are being held in major cities around the world, and we will take you there.

welcome back to "al jazeera america." i am richelle carey. here is a look at the top stories. israel approved a 24 hour extension of a cease fire in gaza. the army says it will continue destroying tunnels along the border. palestinian groups in gaza have not yet responded to the announcement. more rockets and mortars were fired into israel from gaza following the ends of a previous cease-fire. the sedate department evacuated am bats doors to tripoli. it has grown more violate which officials say poses a risk to american security.

americans are being told not to travel to libya. the dutch government has identified the first victim of the malaysian airlines flight 17 disaster. no information about the dutch national who has been released but the government says family members have been identified. 200 are working to identify human remains from the wreckage. the plane was downed over ukraine killing 298 aboard. back to our top story, the ongoing conflict betwehamas and isra israel. a deputy spokesperson, the destruction in gaza revealed during the humanitarian truce. >> i think that what the humanitarian pause has revealed is the extent of the disaster that has been brought down on both sides by hamas. we didn't want to be in this conflict. >> the mortar shells that were fired from the side of gaza into israel is nothing in comparison to 100 one-ton bombs killing

innocent men, women and children? >> well, first of all, i think that the comparison is irrelevant and i am thankful that there aren't -- >> the relevance -- >> hamas. >> very relevant if you are living in gaza. >> well, if i may, i mean your own sister program, al jazeera arabic just in the last hour has been broughting a program praising the hesitancy and the care that the israeli military has taken in gaza. we don't know all of the details details of what's gone on there, who was killed by israelifier and who was killed by hamas fire. we do know there was some very serious combat going on in the last few days above the ground and in some cases below the ground between ourselves and between hamas and other terror organizations there in a determined effort by us to end the threat to israel.

in the course of this combat, the people of gaza have been put in the crossfire by hamas. >> we are sighing pictures on our screens right now. >> humor shields? >> of the neighborhood of shujayea in gaza. this is devastation that has been wreaked by the israeli forces, not damage done by hamas. this is israeli military? >> yes. >> that has been causing this destruction? >> much of it by the israeli forces. much of it by the israeli forces. we know of at least 150 cases where hamas missiles have fallen short and landed in gaza. as i say, we know that from the combat scenario, a lot of people have been killed by both israeli and hamas fire and don't forget that some 200 missiles were fired out of the shujayea neighborhood on to israel. numerous of these terror tunnels are located in shujayea. this is an area that's well

known for a long time, precisely the reason why three or four days prior to our going in, we almost begged the population of shujayea to move out. we told them which neighborhoods they could go to that would be safe. most of them did go. >> most went, we are hearing. where would you like these people to go? they have been bombed out of their homes. they have been bombed out of their neighborhoods. they are seeking refuge in these shelters which you have now also attacked. where would you like them to go? will you lift the border crossings to allow these people to get out? >> two questions that you bring up there, and i will address both of them. where should they go? very specific messages have been passed and in most cases, the civilian population has paid attention as to which neighborhoods and when are going to be targeted and which they should move to and find refuge. so that's the first half. the second half of it that you are talking about lifting the

siege, let's be honest. okay? with the exception of the naval blockade which was ruled legitimate and legal by the united nations, there has been no siege on gaza. zero limitation on export. they have invested over $12,000,000,000 in building materials in the building of the terror tunnels. it's absolutely not true to say there has been a restriction on the import of building materials. what there has been is a diversion of the use of the building materials from the background -- above ground to blow ground from civilian usage to tear units. that's a question to hamas, nottisits. hamas has abused the population of gaza in a shameful way, will be judged poorly by history for their behavior, both in the last three weeks and in the last few years. >> in southern gaza, 20 members from the from the same family were buried. charles stratford from the town of kanyun.

>> he is a person who brings me food. who is going to provide for me now? >> it only took the push of a button, a split second for theisitsi military to wipe out almost 20 members of fatima's family. remnants of their lives lay ripped apart in this hole in the ground. the blast ripped the skin off of mohammed's face. he and his brother, hussein, were the only people in the house to survive. >> we sell chickens and we go home. we have nothing to do with the resistance. we are civilians just like everyone else. >> we moved to the nearby village of el quzar. the israis military targets whay say are tunnels. >> i am near the border. theisi israelii military say during this cease-fire, no one can go in because they look for what

they say are hamas-built tunnels. there are a lot of people waiting, haven't seen their friends and relatives for a couple of days now. it was about half an hour ago there were warning shots fired from that area over the crowd here and a few minutes okay, we saw a tank moving from left to right. we cannot get any closer than this. >> eight people were in this house when the israeli shell hit. m miraculous miraculously, they all survived. we moved as close as we safely could. you could see the tanks kicking dust into the air. people here told us these israeli military had confiscated their relatives'mobile phones. >> the international red cross said they were going to come, but they haven't. there are dead people in their houses. >> we demand ban ki-moon come to see what's happening on the ground. it's burning. there are bodies decomposing on the streets. >> translator: where is the cease-fire? we have a right to see our

relatives. give us mercy. >> the israeli military fired more warning shots. we were treated back down the road. in a nearby cemetery, men struggle to lay the 19 members of the el najar familiar to rest. they frantically pulled earth into the tomb. . >> netanyahu is the criminal who commits crimes every day against our children and our old people, too. >> theitsisis are calling this a humanitarian cease-fire as the people of gaza bury their dead. charles stratford, al jazeera, with gaza. >> malstenian demonstrations were held in major cities around europe. nearly 10,000 people demonstrated outside the israeli embassy in london. protesters in bowstrings defied

a police ban clashing with security forces. lawrence lee has the latest. >> reporter: the authorities in paris have decided not to allow a demonstration in support of gaza. their decision predictbly led to a number of people ignoring it. a few rocks and tear gas followed shifting the focus away from the palestinian cause. with hamas flags and accusations of israel behaving like a terrorist state. israel has heard all of this before. in london, the mood against israel was just as angry but better organized. >> for the second saturday in a row, they came by the thousands to the israeli embassy, hidden behind security innun with of the wealthiest parts of london. some said they had never been on a demonstration before. giovan many argued they not only had enormous sympathy with gaza but with the rights of shooting

rockets at israel. >> if someone took my house, if no one would defend me and the police said never mind. you just have to take it, then what can you do? >> in your view, the hamas rockets are legitimate to a degree? >> i think. >> israel would claim many of these people are anti-semitic though some of those signs take tr try to take that on directly. the proceedtest against settlement expansion would not have brought out as many people. this has been an uneven struggle between the israeli army and hamas in gaza. >> the crucial point people many that they are turn on its head the key israeli government assertion that israel is defending itself against aggression from gaza. they would say that gaza and hamas have the right to defendthems against israel. >> the protest ended at article

article to accusations of the government being biased toward israel that this sort of thing won't change british foreign policy. the protesters say support for the palestinian cause is growing by the week. lawrence lee, al jazeera, london. >> iraq's prime minister nouri al-malaki has paid a visit to the sunni leader of parliament. he met with house speaker halim al jour, seeking a third term as prime minister in spite of mounting criticism he alienated mine or at this. he told the new speaker article parlorpal should work he quickly to pass a bucket and other laws related to security. next on "al jazeera america," video that shows ball's dragging his fiance t not as much as the length of his suspicious. tomorrow is the induction s ceremony for the baseball hall of fame. a new rule for future

candidates. .

real understanding... >> where you scared when you hear the bombs?

>> al jazeera america real... news... the baseball hall of fame made some changes today that are going to make it harder from players from the steroids era to get in like barry bonds, seven-time cy young and pitcher mark mcguire will have less time to remain eligible. the board cut the time you can be on the ballot from 15 years to 10. >> means mcguire only has two more years to get in. also today, boston red sox got rid of cy young pitcher peavy who was traded to the giants. he won one game this season while losing name. basketball, the nba is considering a longer all-stair star break. right now, four days. it can be stretched to seven. good grief. lebron james and others have complained they get a rest and

all sterols have been making these appearances while other players get to rest. now to football, earlier this year, a video surfed of ray rice pulling his fee answer say out of an elevator. the league handed down punishment. jessica taff is here with the n.f.l.'s response that has send puntedits, domestic advocates and writers into a tailspin. >> he isn't the first to be talking being domestic violence nor unfortunately is he the last at all to be talking about that. nobody expects these athletes to be perfect but we expect the governing bodies that preside over them to hold them accountable when they aren't. in this case, the feeling is that the national football league has completely dropped the ball. >> the video is shocking. baltimore ravens running back ray rice dragging his then fi fiancee out of the hair by the

casino elevator. what's more shocking is the n.f.l.'s response, a mere two-game suspension essentially a slap on a wrist by a commissioner known for no nonsense. for many, the math just doesn't add up. >> in 2006, albert haynesworth was hit with a 5-game suspension for stomping on a intelligent's head goodell called it inexcusable. robert mathis was suspended four games for testing positive for a known fertility drug. the line backer said he used it to conceive his daughter. however, the substance happens to be on the n.f.l.'s banned list. then there was the 2011 punishment of a player that wasn't even in the league yet. quarterback terrell prior suspended five games for receiving improper benefits such as a free tattoo while playing at ohio state. he hadn't even been drafted. >> critics say the league's weak response to the rice incident is more proof it does not take

domestic violence seriously. this week, rice's coach, john harbaugh defended him saying it's not a big deal. he went on to state that ray's a heck of a guy and done everything right since. meanwhile, a report by slate.com found 21 of 32 n.f.l. teams in 2012 had employed a player with a domestic violence or assault charge on his record. as for rice, the n.f.l. star married his fiance one day after being indicted, meaning she was no longer compelled to testify against him. the charges were then settled pre-trial. >> since the suspension rice said he learned from the experience and will continue to do so as part of his counsel ling. as for the number growing football fans, the n.f.l. is sending a message they seem to care more about players smoking pot or having free tattoos as domestic abuse. >> we are about to dissect. thank you for setting up this

segment we are about to have, jessica. via skype from courtland new york is cortland mcmannis covering the n.f.l. for two decades and she wrote a powerful commentary about this, jane. let's dig in and pick up on what jessica was reporting. je jessica said roger goodell has a reputation for being tougher, no nonsense but when you dig into that, it seems to be more when it comes to issues of performance enhancing drugs and things of that nature. when other things have come up with domestic violence as you mentioned, greg hardy, daryl washington, people like that, the n.f.l. does not have a record of really being tough on those types of things, do they? >> well, you have a situation where the cba between the players association and the nfl settles what the discipline is for a lot of those things. so, for example, marijuana, violating the, you know, recreational drug use policy. all aof those are settled and a 4-game suspension usually. you find that in general, when players, you know, get into

trouble, they are caught with something, they get the four-game suspension, it's kind of a baseline in the n.f.l. for off-the-field issues. you can find roger goodell in the past has issued penalties that are a little bit stronger, for example, than roth list burgher was given a 6-game suspension initially although it was dialed back to four games later because of some of the allegations of rape against him at the time. so, i think there is some wiggle room. but again, this decision to me seems like it's a fundamental misunderstanding of what domestic violence is and the way the dynamic works. >> let's talk more about that. let's go back to that press conference. you talk about domestic violence and what the dynamic is in a press conference that jessica referenced when the baltimore ravens had ray rice and his now wife, then fiance, having this press conference together, which almost implies that they are both responsible for what happened. so, it seems that from the very beginning, the league starting with the baltimore ravens and the league

larger than that, it doesn't have a fundamental understanding what's at play here? >> right. well, i mean first of all, the general manager when he saw the video, he said, you know, he spoke to the press, he said a couple of differently things. among them was maybe another side of the story is going to come out. and again, so i think you kind of have this tacit victim blaming going on. general apalmer or general arice now being able to get up and she apologized for her role in the incident. notably during that press conference, ray rice didn't apologize to her. he apologized to his general manager. he apologized to at that coach, the fanjets. i think the optics of that are terrible. i have spoken to domestic violence, somebody who served as a prosecutor of domestic violence cases in new york city, judy includinge and she now runs sanctuary of families, an anti-domestic violence research group, resource group. and, you know, she said that in many cases, victims, you know,

they feel bad about their role in the incident. they want to stay with the person who injured them. they, you know, are very sorry about it. they feel responsible and that this is part of a dynamic and i think if the nfl had looked into it a little bit more, had looked into the way that this has played out, you know, this is pretty well researched stuff. this is not hidden. and, you know, roger goodell said that -- reports have come out saying roger goodell, the reason he gave a lesser suspension, he spoke to janae rice and she advocated on behalf of her husband, as you would expect her to do. if he would have known about this larger dynamic and how it plays out, that's not necessarily a reason not to -- he knocked her out in an elevator. i mean this isn't, you know, a first time offense for shoplifting, a first time offense for pot smoke something one thing but committing an act of violence that renders someone unconscious is different. >> jane, to that point, the ravens' team basically said -- tried to say this was a one-time

thing. it's a big one-time thing. let's talk more about this. is it that ball matters more than anything because i am going to ask you, if ray rice weren't ray rice. in he were a lesser player, do you think he would have been cut? >> i don't think so. because first of all, he didn't have a great year last year. second of all, i think more what kind of was in his favor was some of the community service stuff he has done. he has been pretty involved in anti-bullying things. >> weighed in goodell's decision as well. but again, i think, you know, i think more than anything, it's that, you know, why does the n.f.l. have to concern itself with domestic violence? there have been so many off-the-field incidents recently. you could point to two years ago with bellcher who killed cassandra perkins, the mother of his child before taking his own life, a tragic situation but at the heart of it was domestic violence. the ultimate act of domestic violence. there have been a number of players this year, greg hardy is another one, who has been

charged in these kind offents. sexual violence, darren sharper, charged with rape now. i think chad johnson hitting evelyn lazato when he was a miami player. this happens and it doesn't -- it's not every player. i don't want to paint a broad brush here. >> it's not every player. >> they are not going to do this. >> i absolutely agree. obviously domestic violence is a cultural issue beyond the n.f.l.? >> exactly. >> that's why these high-profile incidents, the n.f.l. can take such a lead on it. it can be a voice in this. it could really put a fine point on how unacceptable it is. they have chosen not to do that. >> i want to quote something you said because a punishment from the n.f.l. is supposed to be a mention to fans and to the players. and you reference both of those in what you wrote. you said if the nfl want to show women it cares, growing is fine or domestic violence sends a louder message than pink cleats in october for breast cancer awareness month. you said if the n.f.l. was

trying to tell players it won't tolerate domestic violence, how much of that message is getting through to the rank and file of the n.f.l.? what can the league do, jane? >> it's a great question, but i think first thing you can do is become educated on the dynamics behind domestic violence. it's certainly something that would, you know, serve them going forward unfortunately. and that's just the first start. i think it could come out and it could make it a charity like it makes breast cancer. breast cancer awareness. not a lot of money goes to breast cancer ultimately but it could send a loud message. it could identify battered women's shelters, identify groups to work with. it could educate the rookies. these are just a few of the steps they could take. >> and former player scott fujita and crabtree have spoken out. it would be great if more current players would speak out as well. jane, thank you so much? >> i appreciate it. >> absolutely coming up on "al jazeera america," sinkholes like this right there, random, cause

thousands of dollars in damage. scientists are working on a way to predict them. a massive wall of dust cancelled flights out west. details when we come back.

more than 20s % of the u.s. is susceptible to sinkholes because much porous rock under ground. the earth could swallow homes, cars and people. well, now scientists are working on a way to predict sinkhole activity. sinkholes have had a deadly impact. >> sinkholes fascinate. eight classic sports cars, people above ground, the number of visit to the national corvette museum has soared. sinkholes can also devastate. 37-year-old jeffrey bush was swallowed as he slept in his home in fluff florida last year. his boy was never found. >> i thank the lord for not taking my daughter and the rest of my family.

>> florida is one of the states where sinkholes create the most damage. they happen when heavy rain washes through the soil and dissolves soft rock underneath. geologist have been mapping to find out where they have happened there is no database showing where they might open up. >> sink holes are troublesome because they are hard to predict and give very little signature on the surface. >> researchers at the university of central florida say this mini sinkhole stimulator may lead to an answer. at first glance, it looks like something thrown together in a garage experiment. half of a 55 gallon drum with soil, pvc pipes and sensors connected to a computer. >> it's a cheap budget device, but it still give a very good accurate result. >> that's the beautiful of it. >> researchers say after two years and hundreds of tests, the sinkholes emerging in this simulator show the changes in water levels underground are the

key signs. they are hoping to develop software that will help identify real sink holes long before they swallow up property or people. >> with our model in the future, they will be a better, more confident way of looking at certain areas and saying that, well, it looks like not only is there a sink hole in the history of this area, but, also, a likelihood that something is happening right now. >> the researchers hope that one day, people won't wake up to these scenes of sinkhole destruction. natasha goneim, florida. >> wildfire forcing people from their homes in california near plymouth outside of sacrament oh. these flames are close to several homes in the area. the fire has charred acres. dry conditions are making it a tough one to fight. from our weather in arizona this weekend involving blinding dust clouds. storms yesterday near phoenix

kicked heavy clouds and grounded incoming flights at sky horbor airport. the area has high temperatures and pop-up storms all summer. for more, our merologist, rebecca steps. the video is dramatic if you don't live in that area, it will grab you. >> we hear people talking being dust storms in arizona but when they hit, you can't see, you can't drive, you get pretty much everything comes to a halt. similar to the way thunderstorms can slow things down, too. we are getting thunderstorms in the southwest. it's the time of year that the wind shifts, and it brings up a lot of moisture from the pacific and this time, we are seeing this moisture track up from the south. it is sending these thunderstorms in to parts of nevada and then into utah and arizona. phoenix looks like you could get a thunderstorm, but we don't expect near the intensity we had yesterday. most of these storms will be up into the higher elevation. these storms, that cold air, thunderstorm cycles, very hot air up in the atmosphere and

then it drops colder down. it's a nice little cycle for energy to cool things down. what happens is that air starts to slam down to the ground and push up those dust storms call habubs. look at wind gusts. up to 20 miles an hour in several places. in fact, we are just talking about the sand fire that's near sacramento or outside of sacramento. >> that's a place where we've got a gusty winds and dry conditions. it is one country, too, you are in drat for the state of california. it's extreme drought where that wildfire is. other parts in the darker red of the state of california are an exceptional drought, a far worse condition. r reservoirs are running low. arizona has a number of different kinds of drought but spots here, extreme drought for you. the due peabody as you can see extremely dry for the west but boy is there a lot of humidity meeting up with a lot of energy into parts of the south, parts of the midwest.

>> that's where the thunderstorms are blossoming up. richelle? >> rebecca, thank you so much. thank you for watching al jazeera america. i am richelle carey. fault lines features battle for the arctic is next. for updates throughout the day, check out our website, aljazeera.com. ♪ >> are you guys ready? in the event of any emergency, let us know through coms. >> high above the artic circle, >> stand by.... >> in some of the world's coldest waters, canadian military divers are preparing for a search and rescue training mission. >> the bottom is about 40 meters, 120 feet down, the water is about 2 degrees below zero celsius. they can stay down there 40 minutes to an hour without really getting too cold. >> yw