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tv   News  Al Jazeera  July 27, 2014 4:00pm-5:01pm EDT

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thank you for being with us. i'm ray suarez. shajaiya this is al jazeera america, live from new york city. i'm richelle carey. here are the top stories. there has been a lot of talk, but on the ground in gaza - no end in sight to the violence. ukranian troops push towards the separatist stronghold of donetsk. investigators say it's too dangerous to approach the malaysia airlines crash site. american leaders talk about how to deal with the border crisis, while police and border patrol deal with the life.
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is nuclear power plants. the beginning of eid has not brought about the end of fighting in gaza. today israel rejected a 24 hour ceasefire offered by hamas, and within minutes the battle was back on. the israeli military and hamas traded sporadic fire, and neither side is talking about a truce. uncertainty reins in gaza. we are joined with a report on what is happening now with what clearly seems to change by the minute. >> you're absolutely right. really unpredictable scope in gaza. as -- scene in gaza. earlier on sunday israeli jets, tanks, were pounding various parts of the gaza strip.
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it was extremely intense. in fact, i was a kilometre away from gaza, and the bombardment was just thump after thump after thump. it was really quite something but what we understand is that at around 11, what we know is 11 gmt hamas called a ceasefire and an hour later we didn't hear much from the israeli army, they scaled down the offensive. the israeli prime minister binyamin netanyahu has been very dismissive of the hamas ceasefire, it would appear that largely it is adhering to it. we have heard of shelling near an area here in gaza city, and an air strike as well. it is largely quiet in the gaza strip. that could change very fast. one thing that is certain, while there's so much uncertainty, one thing that is certain is the humanitarian
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crisis gets worse every day. what is the latest on that? >> you're absolutely right. we have to keep in mind that since fighting started in the gaza strip 20 days ago. over 1,000 people have been killed. over 6,000 people have been injured. many very seriously. and nearly 200,000 people are internally displaced. that means they have nowhere to live. many are taking shelter in u.n.-sponsored schools, where all they really have is the shirts on their backs. the israeli military admitted to shelling one of those u.n. schools or shelters, but said there was no one inside. that contradict coming out of the school, after the strike, showing scenes and pools of
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blood. again, anunpredictable situation, but a serious human tierian situation as well. >> a red cross office in gaza game under attack by a group of palestinians. they came from a village which was shelled by israel last week. they had come to find workers to retrieve bodies. >> translation: we knocked on the door. no one answered. they waited for someone to help them retrieve dead children from under the rubble. and remove the dead, under the rubble for four or five days. the ambulances wouldn't come. no one came to help. here they are, they sent a message to the red cross. the group lit a fire to the entrance to the building, smashed windows and damaged office equipment. and the response has been
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raised. >> reporter: when this man arrived at ramallah hospital, doctors didn't think he'd survive. he was shot in the heart at a protest at a checkpoint. he said he'd do it again >> translation: if we don't go, who will. >> reporter: this man was shot in the same ward. he was shot in the luping by is yale -- lung by israeli troops, after being hit by a tear can cannister by palestinian forces. >> translation: in the end, he's a human being like me, we are like each other. how is he any different? >> reporter: both men believe the protest at cal andia marks the beginning of the end of the occupation. without a push from the palestinian authority, few agree the demonstrations will turp
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into an uprising -- turn into an uprising. the pa is coming under criticism. some believe it should be doing more to present a united front and mobilize people to protest. this is a farmer pa minister. he thinks pa troops are part of the reason why the authority is losing support. >> security forces need to reframe from stopping people from protesting, which is what they've been doing recently. >> the pa says it's doing everything it can. >> it is a united front with all sectors of the palestinian people. the pa is not in the business of showing or trying to prove to anyone what it's doing for the sake of its people. on the streets of ramallah where life for the most part continues as normal, support for hams is growing. hamas won elections in 2006, before the violent divide which saw hamas take control of gaza.
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they gained leverage that the pa failed to achieve, as they watched the conflict. palestinian refugees in lebanon took their anger to the united nations sound. a group of demonstrators gathered outside u.n. compound in beirut, waving palestinian flags and burning israeli and american flags. they are protesting what they believe is silence from the international community offer the crisis. israeli prime minister binyamin netanyahu made the round on u.s. television to make a case against a temporary truce. >> we have to imagine the united states having 80% of its population under rocket fewer, and 80% of your people having to go to a bomb shelter within 60 or 90 seconds. that's unsustainable. we imagine the united states having terror tunnels dug under the border to come in and explode your kindergartens and
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murder or kidnap your citizens. >> john kerry is back in the u.s. after he and other leaders failed to negotiate a longer truce. it's unclear when talks about resume. james bays has the latest. >> reporter: over the last week we is seen unprecedented diplomatic activity. it's rare you see shuttle diplomacy di the u.s. secretary of state and u.n. secretary-general - working the region, going to capitals, numerous meetings and phone calls, a big meeting in cairo and paris. and all we have to show now that ban ki-moon and john kerry returned to the united states was a 12-hour ceasefire that took place on saturday. no one has been able to agree a proper extension of that ceasefire. now from afar, ban ki-moon and john kerry will condition their efforts. robert serie, the u.n.
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coordinator is speaking to both sides. the view at the moment is that for now israel will continue its military option. all along they have said they are going to destroy the rockets, find hamas's tunnels. they'll do that by diplomatic means to disarm hamas, but if it's not possible they'll take the military option, and that looks the most likely scenario. >> mike is a spokesman, and my colleague asked about a demand tore israel to lift the blockade on gaza. >> why are there restrictions around the gaza strip. because they are hostile. hamas took over and started to shoot rockets. the only reason the restrictions are in plate... >> you can't deny the fact that hamas in the last seven years or so moved towards engaging more plilticily that militarily. why not lift that blockade and
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allow gazans to cross the border so they don't have to build tunnels, ferret out food, medical and building supplies. >> the tunnels that we talk about is not to bring footed across. the cross -- food across. the cross ngs are open for food. the tunnels we need to destroy are attack tup else, terrorist tunnels. as we have seen in the years gone buy palestinians go through checkpoints find it difficult. they cannot get work. why not lift the blockade. it would make israel a safer country. >> i beg to disagree. with hamas as mill tapt and extreme, if we -- militant and extreme as we did. if we allowed the borders to be open, terrorists would cross into the country and kill our peep.
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the only reason we have restrictions is hamas is hostage. is it fair for his rail to have open borders with gaza when they are shooting rockets into israel. we were willing to have open borders, trade, tourism and cooperation, but what do you expect us to do when they shoot rockets at us? >> a spokesman for the palestinian foreign ministry, and our reporter asked what the palestinian leadership is doing to broker a ceasefire. >> the president travelled to neighbouring countries trying to impose a ceasefire, dealing with the core elements and root cause, the inhumane 7-year siege against our people in gaza. >> can i ask you about that because the gaza blockade has been in place for eight years. why hasn't more been done by the palestinian authority to get the
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siege lifted which could have avoided hostilities today. >> there is nothing possible to be done that the plainian authority -- palestinian authority hasn't done. we have knocked on each and every door at the international community. the core prob of this, going -- problem of this, going for 47 years now, is the international community has been treating israelis this a way that is above international law, and is allowed to do things that civilized nations are not allowed to do. this is the core problem, not that the palestinian leadership is not doing enough. we are doing everything. international mechanisms in the united nation, and the scores of resolutions which we adopt on yearly and monthly basis, regarding gaza, that israel has to abide with, including the
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security council called on israeli in 2009. this is the testament to the international community, and the whole international community is facing. when it comes to israeli there's a serious problem to implementing the normalities -- norms and legal obligations. >> now we are getting word that president barack obama spoke about binyamin netanyahu. he called for an unconditional ceasefire, and lasting solutions to the israeli-palestinian conflict must include disarmament of military groups in gaza. stay with us throughout the evening for coverage of the conflict, and we'll have the latest development as they happen. fighting in eastern ukraine - government forces on the offensive trying to take back towns and secure the crash site of malaysia airlines mh17.
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we have the development. >> reporter: guided rockets hit the town. grads are inaccurate. under humanitarian law they shouldn't be used in populated areas. this is why. these people are running from the fighting. medical workers say it's too dangerous to get to the dead and injured. ukrainians and the separatists both deny responsibility. there is fear in villages and towns. people gather to find out how close the fighting is. >> translation: we don't know what will happen to us. i'm an 80-year-old grandmother. i'm scared for the entire family. ukranian forces are determined to retake the region and are advancing in big numbers. an aim is to cut off supply
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routes from russia. the ukranian convoy is trying to take control of the crash site area. it's been under territory of the pro-russian separatists in the past few months, and the separatists are accused of bringing down the malaysian airliner mh17. investigators cannes confirm this until they have full access to the wreckage. australian and dutch police are in the country. they can't reach the site because of fighting. separatists have retreated. the pro-russian checkpoint is empty. they control much of the boarder with russia and key cities in the region. this is a civil war splitting families, dividing a nation and claiming many innocent lives. in the netherlands, family members of the victims of flight
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17 are mourning their loss. david chater went to a special hindu memorial service in the hague. >> this is a tragedy that reached into every home in the netherlands. here a ceremony of condolence in a hindu temple in the hague. the mourners came to remember all the dead on board flight mh17. but they also loft a bride and groom from their answer community here. natasha married four days before they boarded the doomed aircraft for a long-planned honeymoon in kuala lumpur. they spent a night toot in their new -- together in their new marital home. outside a service attended by their friends and members of their families. the parents stayed away, too weak with grief to show their faces in public. the man that conducted the
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ceremony told us what it might achieve. >> translation: i hope it will bring peace for the soles of the diseased and support for these that knew them. across the neth and across the -- neth r, and -- netherlands and the world are suffering the same. the first of the victims have been identified and the family informed. funeral arrangements have been made. many for remains of the victims still lie scattered over the battlefield of eastern ukraine, where mh17 was shot by a missile. 298 candles were lit, one for each of the dead. it's a hindu tradition - from mortality to immortality, from darkness to light, from untruth to truth. dramatic video has been
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released showing ribbal libyan mill -- rival libyan military fighting over the capital's airport. look at this. a plane was destroyed on the tarmac in tripoli, leaving nothing but destruction and black smoke. the fighting closed gas stations, government offices and suspended activity at the united states embassy. 38 were killed in the clashes. there have been more boko haram attacks. this time in cameroon. three were killed, and the wife of the vice prime minister was kidnapped. the attacks happened in a northern town. boko haram has been going into cameroon in the last few weeks since they deployed troops to stop them. the town's major, a religious leader, was also kidnapped. the end of ramadan is upon
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us. for muslims, it means many things. >> translation: we need peace so we cab live -- can live again. the violence must not continue. we are one people coming up preparations for the eid. later - coping with the refugee crisis along the american border. you're watching al jazeera america.
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muslims around the world are celebrating eid on july 28th, marking the end of fatting for ramadan -- fasting for ramadan. some celebrated today depending on the sighting of the new moon. more than 3 million muslims live in north america. 317 million in the middle east, 985 million in asia and pacific nation. it involves charitable giving and prayers followed by a feast.
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muslims in iraq spent the day shopping. the iraqi government declared a 5-day holiday. in some places the government is battling the rebel group for territory. women in pakistan packed markets. they are getting helpa tattoos. some say they have cut back on spending because of rising prices. muslims in nigeria have been observing eid. five were killed in a church bombing. five injured when a female bomber blew herself up. in addition, police foiled another attack. we have a report from the northern city of kaino. >> reporter: in africa's largest muslim community they gathered in their thousands to mark eid, the holiday at the end of ramadan, coming at a tush u
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leapt time here -- turbulent some time. violence blamed on boko haram left dozens dead. it did not stop the faithful showing up. this man came with his six children and he says it's more important now than ever. >> many people are here, due to insecurity. people are crying. they don't have money at home, at hand. all business, that's why we come for the prayer. we pray to bring changes security was stepped up across the country. 50,000 troops, including counterterrorism units were deployed to control prayer areas. president goodluck jonathan urged nigerians to remain resolute and united in the face of those described as pervezers of anarchy.
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the instability put a dampener on what would have been lavish facilities here called sala. >> it's resolved that the sala should be low key and not much demonstration, all to do with the security situation. the emir called off a festival, but the traditional ruler led the prayers himself, addressing those here, instead of a gathering at his palace. with violence gripping the world, the message is pray for peace not just here, but the whole muslim nations. central african republic religious tensions are easing in time for a celebration. warring christians in muslims agreed to a truce. we have more from the capital,
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bangui. >> reporter: people here are angry, nervous, tense. the group is getting out of bangui. a city where sectarian violence divided muslims and christians. the roads are not safe. that's why african union troops are escorting the convoy. they leave behind muslim simmica. a -- seleka. a traumatised population. things appear to be getting back to normal. >> translation: we need peace so we can start living again. violence cannot continue. we are one people. the fighting left communities wary of china. it's 10:00 pm. muslims say they are too scared to leave mappingy. some -- bangui. some tried to be attacked and killed. across town 40,000 christians live in a camp.
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two best froned, one christ -- friends, one christian and one muslim - they meet, trying to find common ground. >> when i first came here people didn't like what i was doing. i feel safe. i go to his house and we talk about ways to bring about peace. guy is hoping to change attitudes, and is one of a few christians left in a muslim area. >> i know the community. they grew up in front of me. i'm not afraid of me. we have to talk to brothers and sisters that don't understand. criminal elements have infiltrated us. >> reporter: the road ahead is uncertain, but many hope religion may one day unit, rather than divide this country. in indonesia, with 88% of the people are muslim, the price of meat went up 20%. it did not deter shoppers getting ingredients for the grand feast. the price of train
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tickets spoked as millions travel home to celebrate with family and friends. in afghanistan demonstrators marched through kabul protesting recent virus and attended the anti-taliban protest. taliban gunmen shot and killed 14 people west of kabul. the government is partly to blame for the lack of security. >> they are responsible for all that happens in afghanistan. this is a huge victory for the government. they should not arriving for things. the government put the people at risk and do not take care of them. >> for more anti-violence protests were held in other provinces. the debate on the border crisis tips as questions remain. we introduce you to two young girls in los angeles, braving a journey to be reunited with her
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mother. how long will the reunion last. sank sri lankans were hoping to find a new life in new zealand, but their journey did not have a hopingnding. you're -- happy ending. you're watching al jazeera america.
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welcome back to al jazeera america. here is the top stories - fighting back on in gaza after israel rejected a 24 hour peace proposal. president obama spoke by phone with binyamin netanyahu, reiterating u.s. support, but urging him to seek an accuracy fire. ukrainian troops are moving towards the crash site of malaysia airlines flight mh17, trying to secure that area. the situation is too dangerous for investigators to get to the plane wreckage. more fears fighting in libya. video shows a group of fighters in an attack. the french foreign ministry told french nationals to leave libya because of the violence.
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u.s. embassies are closed. immigration is front and center on talk shows. president obama set a deadline for the end of summer for possession options for immigration reform. representative paul ryan weighed and on the issue. >> i believe we need to amend the law, which never intended for this to happen, so you can treat people in noncontiguous countries, like mexicans and canadians, so we can stop the crisis. >> we are at the epicentre, we worked with men and women at the border control, who deal with it on a day by day basis. we need the resources. >> the reality of the rice sis is a daily -- crisis is a daily experience. migrants arrive day in, day out. heidi zhou-castro is in brooks country, texas. >> a land rover...
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. >> reporter: a dispatch call on a remote stretch of highway, 70 miles north of the border. this is a typical night in brooks country texas, a corridor of human smuggling where, according to the sheriff's office, 300 migrants pass through daily. >> our gouty pulled -- deputy pulled over a suspected smuggler. south of the checkpoint, the car in front of us dropped off a group of migrants. they don't often stop smug alreadies -- smugglers, the people known as coyotes. especially here with four goouties -- deputies patrol an area nearly the size of rhode island. george is among the reserve deputies, commissioned officers working for no pay. catching coyotes is his
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favourite part of the job. >> i'm telling you i know what you're doing. >> this suspected coyote will get away. he tells police he took out the back sheet to halt a washing machine, and the footprints - they could be anybodies. >> he's done it before, you can tell. he's cool about it. he knows that i don't have - unless i get - unless we find someone and they put him as the driver, that's the only thing. >> you have to let him go. >> yes. >> must be frustrating. >> a little bit. >> reporter: a common call is to pick up the bodies of migrants dying under the texas son. on this day the temperature is 100. 403 deaths since 2009 are not accidents. they blame the smug alreadies. >> they'll promise you the world, that they'll get to your
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loved ones. they don't. if you are not fast enough, if you fall sleep, they'll leave you behind. they don't care. >> the deployment leaves hope. to the chief deputy. that brings hope. >> most of the people coming though your county, do they have criminal elements. >> i am sure they do. but the ones with criminal elements are not the ones wr finding. we are founding those that don't. >> the criminals get away, and the weak ones day. >> absolutely. we need to consep trait on those -- concentrate on those people, instead of doing what we are doing, taking our time. gathering the aftermath. seen her the product of a broken border
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more than 150,000 crossed the border. we caught up with two children reunited with their mother. the future is far from certain. >> that woman left her two daughters behind when she left honduras to find workers in los angeles. conditions in honduras became so bad she was forced to make a ter giing. >> i had all the fear in the world. i couldn't sleep or eat. i thought about what could happen. there's just as much danger in honduras with the. >> murderous gangs turned the neighbourhood into a killing zone. one time i was playing, they killed a girl where we were
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playing. >> you saw that. >> yes. >> reporter: a coyote was paid $60,000. they turned themselves in to u.s. authorities it was the first time she had seep her girls in seven years. >> when i saw them, it was as if i was rebomp there was nothing more i -- reborn. there was nothing more i could do 9-year-old deena sups up what she -- sums up what she feels to be back with her girls. >> reporter: their troubles are not over, they have to appear in immigration court. caroline is undocumented. >> what will you do if your girls were sent back? >> i will go with them. now that we are together i can't bear to be separated from them. >> reporter: for now the family is safe and is adjusting to life
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in the u.s., as they wait for others to decide their fate. asylum seekers who tried to enter australia by boat are back in sri lanka. the case stirring controversy after authorities held the boat at sea for weeks. the deportees are back to square one. >> glad to be alive. 30-year-old tara is back in sri lanka after a failed attempt to make it to new zealand by boat. >> translation: we ran out of fuel, and drifted for four or three days before ending in australian waters. we were caught in storms and were crying. we had no one to turn to. the group was picked up by australian authorities, who held them at sea and handed them back to the sri lankan navy. al jazeera filmed their arrival at court on 8 july. the youngest on board was two
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months old. the organizers promised an easy way abroad. >> translation: the people who took us told us that if we make it to new zealand territory and call, someone would come and get us. that because the country needs labour, we would be allowed to stay, unlike in australia. 10 people from this rural village from on the boat, setting sale from the eastern course. >> thousands of sri lankans braved boats like these, rough seas, and dangerous conditions to chase a dream of a better life. like the recent group sent back, many are finding things worse than before. this couple heaped for groaner -- hoped for greener pastures, but ended up with nothing. a plastic id tag all that is left from the journey.
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>> translation: i know how to pay double - the debts i had and what i took for the trip. this man appears in boat people cases, saying some crews failed australia 14 times without application. another passenger has been arrested on three different boats. cases are very slow and seldom involve the kingpins behind the racket. >> the situation in sri lanka, most of the organizers are not arrested. normally they are returning. >> reporter: he must wait a year before his case is called. with no jobs, moumenting debts dash -- mounting debts, he's growing fruit and vegetables to okay out a living. in the mediterranean the
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italian coast guard rescued 50 migrants from a small boat. the u.n. estimates more than 500 died in the mediterranean in the past six months. the final journey of the "costa concordia" is over. salvage crews towed the scuttled cruise ship to the italian port of geppoa -- jennoa. it took four days. italy's program praised the true, remembering the 32 people that lost their lives when it capsized. >> translation: we know that what happened took place due to an error that someone made, and it was truly a tragic ech and we are not -- event and we are not here to celebrate. over the next several months crews will move furniture and heavy items. the ship will be scrapped. 500 homes have been evacuated in northern california as a sand fire spraeds.
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75 people fled the wildfire. 3800 acres burned since friday. investigators say a vehicle that drove over dry vegetation started the fire. no injuries have been reported. let check in with meteorologist rebecca stevenson for the latest on the weather. they could affect the fire. >> there are gusty winds, and the wildfires have a way of creating their own gusty weather. it creates wind gusts that get stronger and stronger and helps spread the fire further, embers and burning pieces, floating with the wuned. we have -- winds. we have more thunder storms through central southern california. they are producing more lightening, so we have the risk of lightening caused wildfires. we are watching as the moisture moves in. it raises the humidity.
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temperatures are hot, above normal for the west. they are localized winds, they increase as the afternoon goes on. the other part of the wind we are watching are around a cluster of thunder storms in the upper mid-atlantic, towards the great lakes. you see awe gusty -- see how gusty it is around chicago. cooking in the 80s, and 90s. what a difference it will be. it may be hot in the midatlantic. look at -- midatlantedic. look how cool it is. 76 for minneapolis. cooler air is pushing in, spawning the thunder storms. the entire area, especially west vigeia. it is a target for sceefr storms tonight, the with potential of tornados. monday the cool air is pushing
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in. the storms being crowated by a -- created by a massive cool down. temperatures 15-20 degrees. cooler than normal across minnesota, michigan, illinois, and ohio. the cool air pushing down, creating thunder storms tomorrow to the south-east. we'll feel that cool down all across the east coast. it will take to tuesday and wednesday to get that far over. >> folks in japan want to cool down now. listen to this - the heat is on across japan. heatwaves are creating uncomfortable conditions in major cities. experts call it the heat island effect making metropolitan areas hotter than the actual temperature. rebecca knows this. more than 200 people have been tape to the hospital with heat exhaustion. the government is offering subsidies for green buildings and water-retentative tarmac. tonight on "the week ahead", it's been more than a year since
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edward snowden's dramatic and some believe treasonist leaks exploded. na is on "the week ahead" at 8:30 eastern and 5:30 pacific. next - two solutions for providing energy. work is underway on the first nuclear reactor in the united states for 40 years. and... >> i'm in costa rica, one of the most energy efficient nations in the world. they are taking things further. we show you how they tap the power beneath my feet.
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at the vatican pope francis made an emotional plea to stop warfare around the world. >> translation: never more war.
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never more war. i think especially about those children who had the hope of a fewer, dignified life, but had it taken away. dead children. wounded children. children who play with toys made out of the remains of weapons. children who cannot smile any more. stop, please, i beg you with my heart, it is time to stop. stop, please. the pope used the 100th year anniversary of the outbreak of world war i to call for peace in ukraine and the middle east. in the wake. fukushima disaster in 2011 there has been concerns about the long-term safety of nuclear power plants. if all goes according to schedule, the first nuclear power plant operating in 2015. robert ray shows a number of changes that they hope will prevent disasters like
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fukushima. you may not have heard of the watts bar nuclear power plant. >> this is the part that makes electricity. >> reporter: this 1700 acre site in tennessee is 90% complete. >> nuclear power - you can't hear it, see it or smell it. >> reporter: yet it creates heat and electricity for nearly 20% of the population in the u.s. >> this is a turban tank on the left. >> this is scheduled to go online in december next year. after a year of delays for safety changes. >> two cooling towers have been renovated. >> it had to be. after the nuclear disaster in phuoc schema japan brought the industry to the knees. a lot of safety precautions in place because of fukushima cost you millions. >> yes, sir. >> reporter: were they all necessary? >> the orders and measures taken were based on probability of
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occurrence of an event similar to that of fukushima. in a case where our job is to implement the action or the orders. >> reporter: plants are required to install for improve venting system to protect damaging of the nuclear core in the event of a disaster. it is the life line of a facility, and the most dangerous area, our cameras were allowed in before the nuclear fuel was loaded. most people that work at nuclear facilities nef see the inside of a reactor head in the final stages before it goes live. it's nearly 100 degrees. in the final stages before it goes active. the reactor head goes on top of the reactor vessel and the plant will create energy for over 1 million people. as the plant gears up, others are shutting down. the cost to comply with the new standards are too much for some
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energy companies and have to deal with radioactive waste and the price tag of managing and securing it. >> we can take the fuel and put it in a cannister designed to withstand floods, winds, earthquakes, cyst mick events. >> reporter: they will be stored under ground, maintained bit the company at an annual cost of $10 million. with the waste radioactive for centuries, the nuclear industry and the government are trying to figure out who picks up the tab in the future. the united states is the largest supplier of nuclear power in the world. there are 100 commercial nuclear power plants operating here, supplying a fifth of the nation's electricity. construction on all the plants began before 1974. a huge blast brought down three cooling towers at a closed
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coal power plant in southern england. look at that. after standing offer the town for 40 years, they were demolished. hundreds gathered to watch. there were instructions to stay at home. costa rica has been ahead of the curve and using green are power. andy gallagher reports on its unique approach. >> reporter: north-western costa rica can look like the land time forgot. beneath the rugged surface are megawatts of power. costa rica sits on the pacific ring of fire. there's over 100 active volcanos. this is gohho thermal heavy -- geothermal heaven. this is where all that energy is harvested. enough to provide electricity to half a million homs, and the draw backs - there are none.
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it's clean, renewable and potentially an endless source of power. the process involves extracting water. something that the costa ricans have been doing for years. it is an ideal region to take advantage of a power source that is constant. engineers say it has global potential. >> we have been working on the progements for over -- projects for over 25 years, and are open to helping other countries. we are convinced other nations will be able to gain a great deal from what we have done here. the process released greenhouse gases, less than the extraction of fossil fuels. many of the plants are built in national parks. the authorities say environmental concerns are high on the agenda. >> translation: these projects have a low environmental impact, an international label and are considered a green energy source. noise and land use are the side
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effects. both are minimum and with new technology, we are able to reduce the impact with each new project. >> the local community is benefitting from increased geothermal activity. as the programme expands they prosper. more workers means more business. >> we fill in the morning when they go to work and come to lunch. it is important. we need them. geothermal energy provides 15" of costa rica's electricity, that very attracted international attention as many are keen to learn what can be achieved in a land born of vol capos. -- vol anos. the work of farmers in ghana got easier with the help of a cellphone act. it's called green farm.
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it can tell farmers where to get seeds and fertiliser and connect them with a network of participation crop buyers. >> it improved the yields. our income has rich. we get a lot of - get foods for our homes and the family. we get money and income from what we - what we are going to dispose much. we use that disposable food to buy, pay our children's school fees and take care of medical and other needs of the families. farmers can get text messages with this app, alerting them to which crops will do well and how much they sell for. farmers in ghana, kenya and nigeria and 14 other countries are using this programme. ahead. art and commerce collide in brooklyn. that story coming up on al jazeera.
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sometimes chance brings people together to create something unique. that is happening where an artist and a businessman committed a deal. they explain it to us in this first person report. >> i'm david ellis, i'm at rows corner store. we are finishing a mural, art installation, revamp of the store that's been here for 40 years. >> we are about to open. we look forward to seeing everybody back in the store. i used to live on the block, 12 years ago. i'd come here to buy the newspapers. ralph opened it up. >> i see a big article about him. i said "this is dave, the guy that rides the bikes, the crazy
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guy." he called me saying "let me paint", i said "we'll see, i'll think about it." he says "let's do a trade." my deal is $20-25 a day or juice or coffee or whatever might be, newspapers for the rest of my life. so in a way that's the most expensive painting i veldt. basically it threw a stone in the water. or lava flows out of a volcano down. and ralph gave me the canvas. that is ralph, and it's the roots that go down to brooklyn. the people moved on, and then there's the front, which is him, and his father. and the leaves are this community that they have helped enrich for 40 years. china, you -- trying to conjure that energy for ralph, because
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he's a living, breathing relic. his father is too. i believe in this place, like it has sacred ground. if i can bless it, i'm there. >> nice there. it's a big day in cooper's town, new york, home of the national baseball home of fame. the hall of fame welcomes six members. tens of thousands of people are expected, and there was a special event held in denver. the rockies had a treat. it didn't go as planned. >> you can see it. it's spelt wrong, it's spelt and there's a, "t" missing. >> spelling counts if you honour our best player. the colorado rockies held out 15,000 t-shirts, but left out the "t" in their last name.
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they are ordering new shirts and will exchange them for free along with a ticket to another game. i'm richelle carey. "real money" is next. be sure to check out our website aljazeera.com for news around the world.