>> this is al jazeera america. i'm tony harris with a look at today's top stories. we're expecting the president of the united states to speak live from the africa summit shortly. we will also take questions. we'll bring that to you in full when it happens. negotiations under way as israel agrees to extend a three-day cease-fire, but are the demands on each side too far apart. the death toll of ebola rose and it shows no signs of slowing down. and the rosetta spacecraft is

the very first to a rendezvous with a comet. >> israel agreed to extend a 72-hour cease-fire. that cease-fire is more than halfway over. that truce is still holding. no length of time has been made public for any new cease-fire. this comes as palestinian negotiators gather in cairo for indirect talks. the talks seem to be gaining momentum however the two sides have not reach and agreement. jane ferguson is live for news jerusalem. jane, do we have any more details about the possible extension of the cease-fire? >> reporter: well, tony, the possible extension is that, a possible extension. as you have said israel has said they would be willing to go

ahead with an ex-pension of this cease-fire which expires on friday morning. hamas so far have said that it's premature to start talking about a cease-fire at this point because of course both sides still have conditions that neither side have really come together to any middle ground yet on it. hamas themselves want a black said of gaza, a blockade that has been in place since 2007. they want this limited. israel wants gaza, essentially hamas to be disarmed essentially. hamas, they no longer an armed group, and of course both sides are nowhere near ready to agree on both sides. >> jane, we heard from adam and prime minister benjamin netanyahu once again defending

rale's actions in gaza. tell us more about that. >> yes, netanyahu gave a press conference and they were very clear in the face of strong criticism about gazaen civilian casualties. let's take a look at what he said today. >> the goal of this operation was to protect our people from the threat of terror tunnels built to send death squads into israel to commit terrorist atrocities against israel's civilians, to kidnap and to kill. israel deeply regrets every civilian casualty. every single one. >> reporter: and so that's really netanyahu responding to intense criticism that has continued as a gazan death toll tops over 1800 people. most of those civilians according to the united nations

today we heard from u.n. secretary general ban ki-moon, and he basically said that these attacks, those attacks by israel on specifically referring to those on u.n. authorities were outrageous, unacceptable, and unjustifiable. what we're seeing here isville prime minister netanyahu trying to respond. and in a press conference with the international press really put forward israel's position on this. now what he did in that press conference while he had international news outlets and newspapers gathered, he played video that had been filmed by some international news outlet that filmed hamas firing rocket from gaza. they really want to push that video, and he encouraged journalist toss cover that side of the story. so very much of the p.r. campaign. the israelis pushing back against the criticism that is being leveled at them. the footage that was released

was not just by journalists. there were some by the israeli military themselves that they had filmed people on the roofs of buildings being used as human shields. so that really added to the debate, and it was something to really push back against the heavy heavy criticism the israelis have taken. >> jane ferguson in jerusalem. thank you. the lull in fighting has allowed humanitarian supplies to flow into gaza. charles stratford is in gaza for us. the calm continues for another day. what are you seeing there? >> reporter: that's right, tony. yes, it has been a calm day today. far more people on the streets of gaza trying to get on with their lives a lot more people in the markets buying produce, people again going back to the recommend nance of their homes in some of these terribly badly

hit areas. we hear that another ten bodies were pulled from the rubble in some of these areas. and we hear there are tens of other people who are still missing. believed dead, stuck underneath that republic. we also saw as you reported aid trucks coming through from that southern border, and trade trucks as well, produce coming into gaza and a lot more traffic on the roads. yes, it was by far the busiest day in gaza. as the cease-fire continues. >> charles, as you know there are discussions under way right now. israel has agreed to an extension of the cease-fire. the efforts continue in cairo, egypt. what are you hearing about those talks? >> reporter: we're here that israel is preparing to extend

the 72-hour cease-fire. but we're hearing from hamas that that was never on the table in the first place. they never went to cairo in the first place with this idea the there. negotiations are very tough, indeed. hamas steadfast saying that their demands stay the same. they want the lifting of the seven-year blockade. they want the prisoners released and greater fishing rights. they want the port rebuilt. we also hear a line from hamas saying again an indication of how tenuous this cease-fire is. they say their fingers are on the triggers and they have not pulled back from their position. yes, tough negotiations ongoing in cairo. a lot more to be done, but as i

say, hamas and fatah saying that offer by israel for an extension of the 72 hours was never on the wards in the first place. so it won't be accepted. fatah interestingly enough saying we still have a bit of time left before we can see an end of this cease-fire. >> thank you. united nations secretary general ban ki-moon demanded an end to the senseless cycle in gaza. he's urging the international community to rebuild the area. we have more now from the u.n. >> reporter: this meeting was a chance for amen u.n. member states to hear the latest in d gaza and to express their views. all recognized israel's security concerns in the region, but tended to focus on the suffering of palestinians as a result of this conflict.

some of the recurring things we've heard is the need for accountability for the attacks in gaza, some schools were bombed resulting in civilian casualties, and we heard ban ki-moon and others call this a violation of international law and again calling for accountability. we heard from officials talking about the blockade from gaza and address the issues of palestinian rights which they say are fueling this cycle of violence. member states express these two points. the general assembly is not taking action on this situation in gaza. action has been relegated to the security council. the security council is toying with the idea of a resolution, but reminds divided on the way forward. some members on the security council would rather wait and see how the talks in egypt play out and then respond to those

talks. since the council is divided no action will be taken. >> a senior member of hamas, israeli government spokesman made the claim in an interview with cnn. he said the man was trying to cross into jordan when he was arrested last month. he did not elaborate on the role the man allegedly had in the kidnapping and killing of the teens. today marks 30 days since fighting began. we've witnessed plenty of death destruction and diplomacy. tonight al jazeera will take a look back at the past few weeks and an and a special called "30 days of war." nick schifrin joins me now. "30 days of war." we can review what we have seen over the past 30 days but can we get to the news of the moment of the day. there is an offer of the extension of the cease-fire from

prime minister benjamin netanyahu. what is your sense whether the cease-fire will be accepted and the work that is going on in egypt right now to get beyond these temporary cease-fires and finding is close for a lasting truce. >> reporter: the goal is to find a lasting truce. the u.s. has been in the middle east of that, but the u.s. is not talking to hamas. it needs intermediaries. hamas does not trust intermediaries. hamas does not trust cairo. >> right, they don't trust where they are. that's one of the questions i had for you. the intermediaries. who is bringing hamas to the table on this? is it th egyptians? qatar? who is serving as role of intermediary for. >> reporter: it is qatar and turkey. they're talking to the qatars,

to the turks and bringing hamas on board. but not only is there a lack of trust between hamas and egypt and even its intermediaries, but also there is no sense that the u.s. can guarantee the changes hamas is asking for can be made. opening the borders for goods, and so long as hamas and other groups underneath it do not trust that there can be international guarantee that unlike in the past we're really going to do this. we're going to open the border. we're going to get the-- >> the agreement of 2012 and the agreement made there. and until hamas can say yes, we trust this, they're going to be very skeptical. >> that would mean a greater u.s. role and right now the u.s. is on the sidelines. in order for this to move forward at some point secretary

kerry has to be in the middle of this. >> you need the palestinian authority in there. you have to strengthen him. there needs to be someone to speak to. someone who can say the palestinians will do this, right? that's hamas and gazaish. >> is he potential broker here? i've heard it floated over the last few days that mahmood abbas needs to be strengthened. is israel willing to look at this new gospel with a limited role for hamas in any unity government? is israel willing to look at that. >> reporter: there are some ministers in the israeli cabinet who would say that's the moderate or center left who would say this is only going to work with a regional peace with

the notion that we have toe demilitarize gaza once and for all and to do that you have to incentivize, for lack of a better word, to give them enough money where they could not say no. but others would say no, is a terror group. you need to crush them. netanyahu did not do that. you need to neutralize abbas because he cannot be trusted and he will not lead this unity government. >> you can see more of nick's reporting tonight "30 days of war" right here on al jazeera america. nick, thank you. the presiden president of the united states speaking now from the state department. >> obama: that includes 50 motorcades. i'll begin by thanking the people of washington, d.c. for helping us host this historic event and further patience with the traffic. as i said this summit reflects

the reality that even as africa continues to face great challenges we're also seeing the emergence of a new, more prosp prosperous africa. africa's progress is being led by africans including leaders here today. i want to take this opportunity again to thank my fellow leaders to be here rather than a lot of prepared speeches our sessions today were genuine discussions. a chance to truly listen and come around pragmatic steps to come together. that's what we've done this week. first we made important progress in expanding our trade. the $33 billion in new trade and investments that i announced yesterday will help spur african development and support tens of thousands of american jobs. with major new initiatives we tripled our goal and aim to bring electricity to 60 million african homes and businesses. today i reiterated that we'll

continue to work with congress to achieve a seamless and long-term renewal of african growth and opportunity act. we agree that africa's growth depends first and foremost in africa by africans. the leaders here will step up leaders to attract investment, reduce barriers between african countries and promote regional integration. and as i announced yesterday the united states will you help support capacity to trade with itself and the world. ultimately africa's prosperity depends on africa's greatest resource, it's people. i've been very encouraged by t by the young african-american leaders initiative. there is an increasing recognition if countries are going to reach their full economic potential then they have to investment in women.

their education, their skills and protect them from gender-based violence. that was the topic of discussion this afternoon. your initiative to lift africans from poverty and our fight against a.i.d.s. will help countries double the number of their children on anti anti-retroviral drugs, even as the united states is deploying some of our medical first responders to west africa to help control the ebola outbreak we're going to strengthen public health systems including joining with the a union to pursue an africa center for disease control. the african people are renewing their commitment to africa. today the leading alliance of american ngos has announced its members will invest

$4 billion to children's help and delivery of vaccines and drugs. it is not just a government effort but an effort spurred on by the private sector. combined with the investments we announced yesterday and the commitments made today at the symposium hos hosted, this will mobilize some $37 billion for africa's progress on top of substantial efforts that have been made in the past. second, we address governments. some african nations are making impressive progress but we see troubling restrictions on universal rights. today was an opportunity to highlight the importance of rule of law, open an accountable institution, strong civil societies and potential of human rights for all citizens and all communities.

i made a point during our discussion that nations that uphold these rights and principles will ultimately will be more prosperous and more economically successful. in particular we agreed to step up our collective efforts that cost tens of billions of dollars every year, money that ought to be invested in the people of africa. several leaders discuss a partnership and there was widespread agreement. we will convene our experts and promote the transparency that is essential to economic growth. third, we're deepening our security corporation to meet common threats from terrorism to menu trafficking. we're launching a new security governance initiative to help african countries to build strong security forces. we're starting with kenya,

niger, and mali. they want to increase their can capacity. and increase their ability to share information about emerg ing crisis. we also agreed to make significant new investments in african peacekeeping. the united states will provide additional equipment to african peace keep necessary somalia, and the central africa republic. we will support the africa union's efforts to strengthen as peacekeeping institutions, and most importantly we're launching a new african peacekeeping rapid response with a goal of deploying africa peace keepers in support of u.n. and a.u. missions. there has been demonstrated a record of peace keepers. we're going to invite countries

beyond africa because the entire world has a take in the success of peace keeping in africa. in closing i want to say that this has been an extraordinary event and extraordinary summit given the success we've had this week. we believe that summits can be a critical part of our work going forward. enforcing decisions and action. we agreed that the u.s. african summit will be a recurring event to hold ourselves accountable, commitments and sustain the momentum. i will encourage my proceed assessors to continue with this work. with that we'll take a couple of questions. we'll start with julie pace of associated press. >> thank you, mr. president. there has been discussion in this admit about the ebola outbreak in africa. there is an untested unapproved drug that seems to be helping the americans what are infected.

is your administration considering at all sending supplies of this drug if it becomes available to west africa, and could you discuss the ethic of either providing an untested drug to a foreign country or providing it only to americans or countries that are harder hit if it could possibly save lives? >> i think we've got to let the science guide us. i don't think all the information is in whether this drug is helpful. what we do know is that the ebola virus currently and in the past is controllable. if you have a strong infrastructure in place. they are the first to admit is what has happened is that the public health systems have been overwhelmed. they were not able to identify and then isolate cases quickly enough.

you did not have a strong trust relationship between some of the communities that were affected and public health workers as a consequence it spread more rapidly than kip tall with outbreaks that have occurred previously. but despite obviously the extraordinary pain and hardship of the families and persons who have been infected, and despite the fact that we have to take this very seriously, it is important to remind ourselves this is not an airborne disease. this is one that can be controlled, and contained very effectively if we use the right protocols. we need to make sure that we've reached out to our european partners and partners from other countries world with the who and let's get all the workers we need on the ground.

let's help to bolster the systems that they have in place. let's nip as early as possible any additional outbreaks of the disease. then i think its entirely appropriate for us to see if there are additional drugs or medical treatments that can improve the survivability of what is a very deadly and obviously brutal disease. we're focusing on the public health approach because we know how to do that, but i will continue to seek information about what we're learning with respect to these drugs going forward. >> would you approve fast tracking if it meets approval in the united states? >> i don't have enough data right now to offer an opinion on that.

john carl, "abc news." >> thank you, mr. president. you said quote the biggest problems we're facing right now has to do with george bush bringing more and more power in the executive branch and not going through congress at all, and that's what i intend to reverse. has congress' inability to do anything significant give you a green light to push the limits of executive power even a duty to do soar or put another way does it bother you more to be accused of an imperial president pushing those limits or be accused of being a do-nothing president not able to get anything done because you faced an dysfunctional congress? >> well, i think that i never have a green light. i'm bound by the constitution, and i'm bound by separation of powers. there are some things i cannot do. i would love to fund a large

infrastructure proposal that would put people to work and booth our gdp. we know we've got roads and bridges and airports and electrical grids that need to be rebuilt. but without cooperation of congress i can speed, um, permitting process, for example. i can make sure that we're working with the private sector to see if we can channel investment into much. needed projects. i need congress to authority spending so i don't have a green light. what i'll do whatever i have the legal authorities to make progress on behalf of middle class americans and folks working again in the middle class. whether it's by making sure the federal contractors are paying a fair rage to their workers,

making sure that women have the opportunity to be paid the same as men, where i have the capacity to expand some of the student loan programs that we've already put in place so repayments are a little more affordable for college graduates, i'm going to seize those opportunities, and that's what i think the american people expect me to do. my preferences is to work with congress because not only can congress do more but it's going to be longer lasting. when you look at, for example, congress in action, and in particular the inaction of house republicans when it comes to immigration reform. here's an area where i said before not only the american

people want to see action, not only is there an 80% overlap between what the republicans say they want we passed a bill that was bipartisan. and in those circumstances what the american people expect is that despite the differences between the parties we should be able to pass on things we agree on. we're not seeing that. if the face of that kind of dysfunction what i can do is scour our authorities, and every time we try to make one of these steps that we're working within the confines of my executive power, but i promise you the american people don't want me just to stand around and twiddling my thumbs and waiting for congress to get something

done. even as we take these executive actions i'm going to continue to reach out to democrats and republicans, to the speaker and leadership on both sides and in both chambers to try to come up with formulas where we can make progress even if it's incremental. >> i believe you have the power to grant work permits for those who are here illegally as supporters have suggested? >> what i certainly recognize with respect to immigration reform and i said this in the past is that we have a grown system, and we have to make choices in terms of how we allocate personnel and resources. if i'm going to send more immigration judges down to the border to process some of these uncompanied children that have arrived at the border, then that's coming from some place

else and we have to prioritize, and that's well within our discretion. the preference would be a comprehensive immigration law. we already have bipartisan law that would solve a whole bunch of these problems. until that happens i'm going to have to make choices. that's what i was elected to do. >> thank you, mr. president. along the lines of executive authority, secretary jack lew said that they don't have the authority to slow or stop practical conversions you but now he's reviewing options to do so, and this is an issue that a lot of businesses probably those who were paying interest to the summit are interested in. what actions are now under consideration will you consider an executive order that would

limit or ban such companies from getting federal accounts, and how soon would you like to see treasury react given congress schedule. >> just to review why we're concerned here. you have accountants going to big options, multi national corporations but that are clearly u.s. based and have the bulk of their operations in the united states, and these accountants are saying we found a great loophole. if you flip your citizenship to another country even though it's just a paper transaction, we think we can get you out of paying a whole lot of taxes. well, that's not fair. it's not right. the lost revenue to treasury means it needs to be made up somewhere where, and that's typically going to be a bunch of hard working americans who

either pay through higher taxes themselves or through reduced services. in the meantime the company is still using all the services and all the benefits of effectively being an u.s. corporation, at the just decided that they would just go through this paper exercise. there is legislation working its way through congress that would eliminate some of these tax loopholes entirely, and it's true what treasury secretary lew previously said, that we can't solve the entire problem administratively. but what we are doing is examining are there elements to how existing statutes are interpreted by regulation, tradition or practice that can at least discourage some of the folks who may be trying to take

advantage of this loophole. we're reviewing all of our options as usual. and relate it to the answer i gave jonathan about executive actions. my preference would always be for us to go ahead and get something done in congress, and keep in mind that it's still a small number of companies that are resorting to this because i think most american companies are proud to be american, recognize the benefits being american, and are responsible in going to pay their fair share of

taxes to support all the benefits that they receive from being here. but we don't want to see this trend grow. we don't want companies who have up until now been playing by the rules suddenly looking over their shoulder and saying say seeing what some of their competitors are gaining in the system, and we need to do it too. that type of mentality is something that we want to avoid, so we need to move as quickly as possible. >> the federal contractors. >> i'm not going to announce specifics. we've done a thorough evaluation and when we understand where our authorities are, we'll let you know. chris jansen, nbc news.

>> russia said today it's going to ban food and agriculture imports. at the same time defense secretary chuck hagel said amazin amassing of troops along the border will increase the chance of invasion. are sanctions not working? >> well, we don't know if sanctions are working. sanctions are working as intended to putting enormous pressure and strain on the russian economy. that's not my estimation. if you look at the markets and you loc look at estimates in capitocapital flight. you look at projections in russian growth you see that the economy has ground to a halt somewhere between 100 to $200 billion capital flights taking place. you're not seeing a lot of investors coming in new to start

businesses inside of russia. and it has presented the choice to president putin as to whether he is going to try to resolve the issues in eastern ukraine through diplomacy and peaceful means, recognizing the ukraine is a sovereign country, and that it is ultimately up to the ukrainian people to make decisions about their own lives, or alternatively continue on the course that he's on in which case he's going to be hurting his economy and his own people over the long term. and in that sense we are doing exactly what we should be doing. we're very pleased that our europeanallys and partners joined us in this process as well as a number of country

around the world. having said all that, the issues are not resolved yet. you still have fighting in eastern ukraine. civilians are still dying. we've already seen some of the consequences of this conflict in the loss of the malaysian airlines or jetliner, and the sooner that we can get back on a track in which there are serious discussions taking place to assure that all ukrainians are heard, that they can work through the political process, that they're represented, that the reforms that have already been offered by the government in kiev are implemented to protect russian speakers, to assure decentralization of power, the sooner we move on those and the sooner that president putin recognizes that

ukraine is an independent country, you know, it's only at that point that we can say that the problem has troublely been solved. in the meantime the sanctions are working the way they are supposed to. >> the troops that are amassing on the border are more highly trained and seem to have more sophisticated weaponry according to intelligence. does that make you reconsider as a few democrats have considered to provide lethal aid to the ukraine. >> the russian army is a lot bigger than the ukrainian army. so the issue here is not whether the ukrainian army has some additional weaponry. at least up until this point, they've been fighting a group of separatists who have engaged in terrible violence, but who can't match the ukrainian army. now if you start seeing an invasion by russia that's

another set of questions. we're not there yet. you we will continue to work with them to evaluate on a day by day, week by week basis what exactly they need in order to be able to defend their country and to deal with the separatist elements that currently are being armed by russia. but the best thing we can do for ukraine is to try to get back on a political track. david ohito, the standard. >> thank you, mr. president. you've been hosting african kings and presidents for the last three days, the economy has

become increasingly difficult. in egypt dozens of journalists are in prison. in kenya they've targeted the media. what can the international community do to insure that we have a strong media in africa, and more importantly to secure the release of the journalist who is are behind bars? two, so many countries in africa live in threats of terror. what can the international community do to neutralize terror threats? a. >> what was the last part of the question? >> could the terrorists be the reason you kept kenya from your visits. >> oh, no, no, no. first of all, respect to

journalists in the media. the last session we had on god governance emphasized that good governance means that everyone has a voice. that government is transparent. therefore accountable. even though leaders don't always like it, the media always play a crucial role in assuring people that they have the proper information to evaluate the policies that their leaders are pursuing. so we have been very consistent in pushing governments not just in africa, but around the world to respect the right of journalists to practice their trade as a critical part of civil society, and a critical part of any democratic norm. yoyou know, the specific

situation of the al jazeera journalists, we've been discussing with them publicly and privately that they should be released. we've been troubled by some of the laws that have been passed around the world that seem to restrict the ability of journalists to pursue stories or write stories. we've been disturbed by efforts to control the intermediary. part of what has happened over the last decade or two is that new media, new technology allow people to get information that would not be accessible, or allowed to only a few specialists. now they're able to punch that up in their own lives an their own communities. we'll continue to puc push back

against these efforts. as is true on a whole range of issues. i've said this in the past. many times we'll work with countries even though they're not perfect on every issue. we find that in some cases engaging a country that certainly is a good partner but is not performing optimally when it comes to all the various categories of human rights that we can be effective by working with them on certain areas and criticizing them and trying to elicit improvements in other areas. even countries that generally have strong human rights records there are areas there are problems. that's true of the united states, by the way. and so the good news, and we

heard this in the summit, is that more and more countries are recognizing that in the objects of good governance, in absence of accountability and transparency that's not only going to have an effect domestically on the legitimacy of a government. it's going to have an affect on economic development and growth. because ultimately in information age open societies have the capacity to innovate and educate and move faster and be part of the global marketplace more than closeds societies do over the long term. i believe that. now with respect to terrorism i think there is uniform concern of terrorist infiltration in

many countries throughout africa. obviously there is a concern that we have globally. a lot of initiatives that we put forward were designed to partner so that countries first and foremost can deal with these problems within their own boar boards, or regionally. and the united states does not have a desire to expand and create a big footprint inside of africa. what we want to make sure that we can do is partner with the africa union, with individual countries to build up their capacity. what i've been encouraging in the sessions is fighting terrorism also require security forces that are professional, disciplined, they themselves are not engaging in human rights violations, that part of the lesson that we've all learned about terrorism is that it is

possible in reaction to terrorism to exce accelerate the disease. if the response is one that aliens populations or particular ethnic groups or particular religions. the cork that we're doing including the security initiatives that i announced today i think could make a big difference in that direction. it's not just a matter of us providing better equipment or better training. that's a part of it, but part of it is also making sure that these security forces and the intelligence operations are coordinated, and professional and are not alienating populations. the more we do that, the more effective we can be. the last point i'll make on good governance, against terrorist infiltration is a society in which they feel they have a stake in the existing order, and

they feel their grievances can be solved threw political means rather than through violence. that's one more reason why good governance has to be part of the recipe that we use for a strong, stable, prosperous africa. last question, jerome. >> thank you, president. earlier today israeli prime minister discuss operations that was justified and proportionate, do you agree with these two words? and israel and hamas seem to be discussing a cease-fire. do you think a true cease-fire can be achieved? and what role is the u.s. playing in the talks there? >> i have said from the beginning no country would tolerate rockets being launched into their cities. and as a consequence i have

consistently supported israel's right to defend itself, and that includes doing what it needs to do to prevent projects from landing on population centers and more recently as we learned preventing tunnels from being dug under their territory that can be used to launch terrorist attacks. i think it should be remembered that hamas acts irresponsebly when it's launching rockets from population centers putting populations at risk because of that particular military strategy. now, having said all that, i've also expressed my distress at what has happened to inspect civilians, including women and children, during the course of this process, and i'm glad that

we have at least temporarily achieved a cease-fire. the question now how do we build on this temporary cessation of violence and move forward in a sustainable way? we intend to support the process that is taking place in egypt. i think the short-term goal has to be to make sure that rocket launchers do not resume. that the work that the israeli government did in closing off these tunnels has been completed. and that we are now in the process of helping to rebuild a gaza that's been really badly damaged as a consequence of this conflict. long tm there has to be a recognition that gaza cannot

sustain itself permanently closed off from the world, and incapable of providing some opportunity, jobs, economic growth for the population that lives there, particularly given how dense that population is, how young that population is, we're going to have to see a shift in opportunity for the people of gaza. i have no sympathy for hamas. i have great sympathy for ordinary people who are struggling within gaza. the question then becomes can we find a formula in which israel has greater assurance that gaza will not be a launching pad for further attacks, perhaps more dangerous attacks as technology develops, into their country? at the same time ordinary palestinians have some prospects

for an opening of gaza so they do not feel walled off and incapable of pursuing basic prosperity. i think there are formulas that are available, but they'll require risks on the part of political leaders. it will require a slow rebuilding of trust, which is obviously very difficult in the aftermath of the kind of violence that we've seen. i don't think we get there right away, but the u.s. goal right now would be to make sure that the cease-fire holds. that gaza can begin the process of rebuilding, and that some measures are taken so that the people of gaza feel some sense

of hope. and the people of israel feel confident that they're not going to have a repeat of the kind of rocket launches that we've seen over the last several weeks. secretary kerry has been in consistent contact with all the parties involved. we'll continue to be trying to work as diligently as we can to move the process forward. it is also--he'll need to involve the palestinian leadership in the west bank. i have no sympathy for hamas. i have great sympathy for some of the work that has been done in corporation wit cooperation with israel and the international community. they're prepared to move forward to arrive at a two-state

solution. i think there is sincerity in the desire for peace, but they have also been weakened, i think, during this process. the populations in the west bank may have also lost confidence or loss of sense of hope in terms of how to move forward. we have to rebuild that as well. they are--the delegation that is leading the palestinian negotiators, and my hope is that we'll be engaging with them to try to move what has been a very tragic situation over the last several weeks into a more constructive path. thank you very much, everybody. and thank you all. >> we'll wrap this up. president obama, the u.s. africa leadership summit, the first of

its find. 50 african leaders in washington at the same time and spending the last week and ten days in capitol talking about their goals and plans for their countries. we have david shuster and with me is david lincoln, research scholar at columbia university david, let me start with you. the clock said we have four minutes or so. your take aways from the president's comments today. >> yes, four take aways. first, the african summit, it sounds like based on the partnerships that the obama administration has an easier time dealing with 50 african heads of state in three days than the hous house of congress. in terms of politics he's getting a lot of criticism for using thinks executive authority beyond what he's allowed to. the president said looks i don't have a green light to do that. we'll make sure that we have

legal authority but he said will you use your executive throat though grant works permits. he didn't answer that. he didn't answer the question about whether the administration would rewrite the tax code, and to do this by executive authority he punted. and as far as russia he almost took a punt there. when asked about troops amassing on the border, he said we're not there yet. the other bit of news is that the president for the first time he was not prompted, the president spoke about the al jazeera journalists and said that the administration has shown condemnation both publicly and privately. that is a first. while there have been statements by secretary kerry, for the president to mention al jazeera and these journalists is a big deal. >> we were both signed of surprised and glad to hear it, frankly. lincoln, your thoughts as we span the global a little bit. the president talked about ukraine, the middle east crisis and a couple of hot spots as well. >> the first that struck me was

the first about russia. he addressed the second half. >> he was taken off the hook. >> they're going to work slowly. the most serious part of that question was the middle part. >> and what to do. >> with the amassing troops on the ukrainian border. does this mean there is going to be an invasion. >> what does it mean for n.a.t.o. or the united states. >> we've been asking that for four or five months now. the troops come in and go out and we hear that an invasion is likely. my sense for russia, the fear of an invasion is very good and actual invasion to ukraine is a real problem. that's a guerrilla war they don't want. the president obam president of the united states could have addressed that more concretely. noting his comments about the conflict in the middle east. what we heard from president obama is what every president going back to truman would have said about israel. he's saying what he has said all

along. that's the american position, that's fine. but what we're hearing about the tension of the relationship, given what we hear netanyahu saying never second guess me on hamas, we don't see a lot of changes. we got to get through this conflict, rebuild gaza. >> what new thinking is available? the president at this moment when there were so many hotspots around the globe is taking three days to focus on africa instead of drilling down even more and coming up with new answers or offering new statements. >> there are two pieces that strike my. in the middle east it's not a question of new thinking but what conflicts might have changed. one thing is the isolation of hamas not just from israel that hates it, and the united states that hates it, but the countries around the world that did not come to its assistance. this is a president that is--he

can't say it out loud but he's committed to moving the united states past a spot where we're going to try to solve every problem around the world. >> thank you for your time. thank you. that's all of our time for this news hour. i'm tony harris. "real money with ali velshi" is next on al jazeera america. the world. @

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where science meets humanity. >> this is some of the best driving i've every done, even though i can't see. >> tech know. >> we're here in the vortex. only on al jazeera america. >> news tonight that eye popping $17 billion settlement between bank of america and the government overbad mortgages is close at hasn't. we'll look at how much money banks are forking over, where it's going and if any of it is actually helping homeowners. rising anxiety over russia as troops amass on the ukraine border. we'll look at how vladimir putin is escalating the sanctions war an what it means for the united states. and texas has always been big on energy but one big city is close to banning fracking. we'll tell