journey can be. >> we make them take a trip of death >> it is heartbreaking when you see the families on top of the rail car borderland continues only on al jazeera america this is al jazerra america i am richelle kerry in new york and here are today's top stories. >> this is the best evidence for the aggression and for the presence of russian troops. >> the ukrainian president shows off russian passports taken from fighters as the crisis in ukraine dominates the munich security conference. in nigeria elections are postponed until next month because of security concerns as thousands of more troops are ready to combat the growing threat of boko haram. bombs killed dozens in bag dads hours before a deck laid-long nightly curfew is lifted in the

city. bridging the divide. friends sharp pork on the u.s.-mexico border where family members torn apart by immigration can be face-to-face. ♪ ♪ we begin with breaking news out of an atlanta suburb. police say at least five people have been killed in a shooting in douglasville, that is just west of atlanta. reports say several of the victims are children. in all, seven people have been shot. the alleged gunman was also injured. he is in the hospital. the motive for the shooting is not clear right now. but we'll continue to get updates for you throughout the newscast and bring you that information, so do keep it here. also tonight, vice president biden and german chancellor angela merkel both blasted vladimir putin taye. merkel saying he shows disrespect to the peace process. edbiden, it's last time for paout en to an or a ceasefire.

the comments were made this morning. this crisis in ukraine has been the topic at this year's summit. angela merkel telling the top diplomats security in europe is at stake. she also says there could be more economic sanctions imposed against russia. >> translator: russia's actions first in crimea and then eastern ukraine have violated our very existence. violating the integrity of ukraine and business respect for the sovereignty of the ukrainian state. international law has been violated. after the horrible wars in the balance kins of '90s we have to witness again what it means when peace and stability in europe cannot be taken for granted. >> the german chancellor also stressed she thinks sending articles to ukraine is not the answer. merkel says military action has so proven ineffective. more now from the summit in munich. >> reporter: in the heart of bavaria are trying to find a way

to end the diplomatic dead over over ukraine. the conflict is a mere three-hour flight from here in europe feels threaten. ukraine's president took center stage with this dramatic display. thethe. >> the passport and military i.d. russian soldiers and officers. this is the best example of aggression from the russian tops which lost his way hundred kilometers from the border. with full tanks of ammunition. killing my soldiers and killing ukrainian civilians. >> reporter: german chancellor angela merkel arrived here at the back of her visit along with french prison francois hollande to moscow. they presented vladimir putin with a new pro toesal calling for great en autonomy in the east and a larger demilitarized zone. >> reporter: as much as it's difficult to find a long-term solution it's also difficult to find common ground among western

allies. some talk of an emerging rift between the u.s. and europe over the way forward. this comes at a time when the u.s. is mulling over the ideas of increasing military support to ukraine. the obama administration mass so far provided nonlethal aid. they are now considering providing kiev with weapons such as anti--tank missiles. a position which the german chancellor is firmly against. >> i am of the firm conviction this will not be solved military this is why we are focusing on a diplomatic solution. at the time, with our u.s. partners we have decided to aid sanctions. in other words to hit russia with what is our strength and that's our economic divide. >> reporter: the ukrainian conflict can only be solved through direct negotiations with the separatist in the east from the russian point of view. >> we are against combat and we want to see a withdrawal of heavy weapons. we would like to see direct negotiations between kiev and

donetsk within the framework of territorial integrity. >> reporter: petro poroshenko says there is still a hope if ideal. many here warn it can be the last chance. al jazerra. munich. the backdrop of the munich conference more pro-russian success in eastern ukraine separatists have taken control of ski strategic locations leading in to don he can. charles stratford is with the separatist in eastern ukraine and has this report. >> reporter: the ukrainian army used to be in control here. these fighters with the self-proclaimed army of the donetsk people's republic. say even if a truce is declared they will never retreat. >> translator: we need to keep this position because there is a large contingent of enemy forces in nearby city, there were many ukrainian soldiers here but we defeated them. >> reporter: the fighters say they are preparing to push forward a kilometer to where ukrainian soldiers are dug in.

the separatists are separatists took control a few days ago they tell us now they are busy consolidating their position here and removing bodies of ukrainian soldiers and civilians. fighters lead to us a house they say ukrainian soldiers used during the battle. they stay they will take this dead ukrainian soldier away, later in the day. the separatists and the ukrainian military exchange their dead and prisoners increasingly regularly now. on the walls of this room hang pictures which children drew in support of the ukrainian army. artillery shells are stacked outside among the destruction. >> translator: we didn't capture this land or cease seize it, we liberated it. this is our land. >> reporter: there are very few people living here now. it's not exactly known how many civilians were killed in the fighting. as is frequently the case in this war, it is the old who are

often the most reluctant to leave. >> translator: i prefer to stay here because i don't want to be a burden for anyone. i want to live and die here. >> reporter: there are very few buildings unscathed by the conflict. burned out shells of heavy weaponry stray dogs roam the streets. the occasion family have return today try to salvage their belongings. it's estimated the separatist fighters have captured hundreds of square kilometers of land since the failed september peace deal. no matter what the next attempt at a truce may offer, there is no sign they will withdraw, charles stratford, al jazerra eastern ukraine. it's been six months since malaysia flight 17 was shout down over war-torn eastern ukraine killing out 298 people aboard. today more human remains from the crash were flown not nether

netherlands, forensic experts have identified all but three of the passengers killed. they are still waiting to determine what caused the crash. suspecting a surface-to-air missle. germany is playing a significant role in shaping policy when it comes to ukraine coming up in our next hour, angela merkel visits the white house and we'll look at her rise to power a deeper look, germany's power coming up next hour here on al jazerra america. and more now on the breaking news out of the suburbs of atlanta. police say at least five people have been killed in a shooting in douglasville west of atlanta. robber ray joins us now from atlanta. i realize this is very early on, but what all do you know. >> reporter: good evening richelle. here is what we know. as you said suburbs of atlanta. this is a town about 30 miles northeast of the city of atlanta. what we know from dug as douglas county

investigators is that five people are currently dead. seven people shot. those ages ranging from unfortunately, a toddler up to an adult. the -- one of the police officers on the scene has said that he's never seen anything like this in his entire career. he's been a police officer for 38 years. so this is a developing situation. an unfortunate situation. but we do know that right now five people are dead. seven people have been shot. this occurred in the street apparently in this neighborhood. and -- >> in the street? >> reporter: we'll wait to see what develops. correct. >> do we know the possible relationship between any of the people that were killed? are they family members? do we know anything like that yet? >> reporter: well, what we know from reports is that one of the people that was shot was the sister of the shooter. i don't know at this point

whether that is a male or female the shooter. we don't have any sort of confirmation on that right now. but this is a scenario that is unfolding tonight here in the suburbs of atlanta clearly not a good one. and a situation that is very, very bad when you look at georgia as a state that has a very open gun law that was just passed in the past year here, we'll see what develops here tonight. >> and robert, abc news is reporting that the shooter shot himself, but we still do not know yet if the shooter survived. do you have anything to add to that? dodo you know? >> reporter: i do not know. all i know that "america tonight" that what we have been told by the authorities that shooter is at the hospital. whether or not that person is dead or alive unclear at this point, richelle. >> okay, robert ray reporting from atlanta gathering more information on this shooting of seven people in douglasville right outside of atlanta, five

people at least we know of have died. we'll check back in robert, thank you. in nigeria officials decided today postpone elections scheduled for next week base of security concerns. civil rights groups were in the capital today to protest the post point. officials decided to put off the vote for six weeks to allow time for an international military force to secure areas where boko haram has claimed territory. many fear cents attacks by the group will keep voters away. boko haram is fight for on an islamic state. now here is more. >> reporter: nigeria's lex boss explained that the decision to postpone the election was taken on the advance of nigeria's various security chief who his said they couldn't guarantee the safety and security of voters and of hundreds of election staff who were going to be deployed across the country troy make sure that the vote took place. he said that the lex was ready

from a logistical point of view. but given the fact that safety and security was fundamental to the image of the elect to a credit poll, for a fair poll, to a transparent poll he could only take the decision to postpone by another six weeks. so far there is also another issue that has also been brewing which is the fact that 10s of millions it's reported voter cards are yet to be distributed. somewhere in the region of 20 million are yet to be distributed. the election boss said that this delay would give the commission the opportunity to get all of those voter cards out. this decision also may have may of course increase the possibility of of people to vote. the family of an american hostage held by isil says they are holding out hope she's still alive. yesterday they said that kayla millmueller was killed in a

jordanian air strike, she has has been a hostage since of summer of 2013 according to her family jordan is calling it criminal propaganda. the united arab emirates are sending a squat rant of fighters to assist jordanian forces in the fight against isil. jordan recently increased its air strikes against the group after isil released a video showing a jordanian hostage being burned to death. meanwhile in iraq, hundreds of fighters are preparing an assault to take back the city from isil. it's strategic because of its proximity to mosul dam which controls most of iraq's water and power as zeina khodr reports, there is question over who will take control once isil is force the out. >> reporter: they hide their faces because their families live under the rule of isil. these men are being trained owe few kilometers outside the city

they want to recapture. they call themselves the sons of mosul. some of them have never been in battle. christians yazidis kurds arab sunnis, they say they have come together to fight an enemy that has destroyed their city's history and the lives of its people. >> translator: mosul say microcosm of iraq, all of its communities live there. already the people inside are waiting for us to liberate them. and we are going it fight together. >> reporter: this general served in sadam hussein's army when it was dissolved in 2003, many iraqi sunnis like him found themselves without a job and without a place in the new iraq. commanders and fighters here are bitter about the way they were treated after the fall of saddam. those grievances were exploited by isil. but these men say the armed group doesn't represent them, but neither does the shia militias who are leading the fight against isil on behalf of the iraqi government.

the fight to push out isil from the city of mosul may be a while away. it's not just a question of being ready militarily, the battle for iraq's second largest city will require a political decision. these men may represent many communities, but iraq's shia are not among them. there is still little reconciliation. sunnis want the authorities to speed up plans to create the national guard. u.s.-backed plan involves establishing an armed force in each province made up of people from the area. >> translator: commanders want a national guard to be created. the sons of the city know who are good and who are terrorists. they won't treat everyone badly like the way the army used to treat us in mosul. we were all terrorists or at least suspects. >> reporter: commanders here say the national guard is important in sunni areas where the mainly shia army may not be trusted. defeating isil in the strategic and highly-symbolic city of mosul may be the beginning of

the end for the armed group. but military progress, without unity, could be the start of yet another conflict in iraq. zeina khodr, al jazerra northern iraq. today iraq's capital ended its long-time curfew put in place to protect residents from attacks. just hours before multiple bombings in baghdad killed more than three dozen people. officials are still investigating who was behind the bombings, jane arraf has more from baghdad. >> reporter: this is baghdad's square and it is did he have in thedefinitely acelebration. soldiers politicians coeds a biker gang riding harley davidsons are all here. even children up way past their bedtime. this is really the first time in more than a decade that people have been able to celebrate a small return to normal life. no longer will they have to rush home to get home before midnight midnight. the end of this curfew declared by iraqi government.

it was imposeed in 2003 by the u.s. military to prevent looting. it continued for more than a decade because of the bombings. the bombings certainly haven't gone a way. in the past 24 hours there have been at least two suicide bombers killing more than 35 people. but here in baghdad and downtown earlier the streets have been packed. when you talk to people, they tell you that, yes they know that there is a risk of violence, this there is a risk of attacks, but they feel that it's time to try to get back to normal. now, part of this, of course, is just a few months ago baghdad itself was under threat from isil. security forces have pushed that threat further back and the fighting is far from here. this is very much still a country at war. but on this evening certainly a city that is celebrating. >> jane arraf reporting from baghdad. the world's plummeting oil prices could force libya in to bankruptcy. that is a warning from the state department today. the u.s. issued a statement along with five european allies,

voicing alarm at the country's worsening security situation and recent collapse in oil production they said this: u.n. sponsored peace talks between libya's warring factions are said to resume tuesday. coming up 1 billion rise. take two after last month's fiery crash the space-x. company is about to make another attempt at a very trick ellanding we'll preview that mission. plus tomorrow night on the week ahead we pick up our special series on race in america. breaking down the demographics of several cities including one state is still using buses to integrate students, join us sunday. sunday.

welcome back. let's return to the breaking news we are following out of an atlanta suburb. we have some updated information. police say at least five people have been killed in a shooting in douglasville, that is west of

atlanta. several of the victims are children. investigators say that this shooting happened in the streets as well as inside at least one house. witnesses apparently watched as the gunman opened fire, he was also injured. we don't know if that's a self-inflicted wound the shooter was taken to a local hospital the victims range in age, seven victims in all range in age from toddlers to a adults. we'll continues to update that story for you. the first nationwide oil refinery strike in 35 years is spreading tonight. united steel workers first walked out at plants in california kentucky, and eight other locations a week ago. tonight employees atb.p. planned in ohio and indiana are expected to join the walk out at midnight. the key issues are fatigue worker stiff and wages. the company spokesperson says they are negotiateing in good faith and no production shortage is expected. getting ready to launch the space x falcon nine that could

ultimately make space travel more affordable. here is jacob ward. >> reporter: this launch could be a very big deal. and here is why. travel to space is extremely expensive. space-x says it costs $56.9 million to get a rock net to low earth orbit. it makes it the cheapest to get up there but only the richest countries can afford reach space. the rocket has that doubly taken a one-way ride and falls back to next a million useless pieces and that's it. a multi million dollars object that's disposable essentially. but what space-x is trying to do is bring the first stage of the rocket back to earth up right and set it down gently on a big barge in the on or about earn, they'll try to do that this weekend. if they pull that off they'll have created a reusable rocket, it's basically the space travel equivalent of a jet engine that you can bring up and down as you need. if they pull it off the company that says it can bring the price

of a launch down by honored of magnitude. making it as low as perhaps five to $7 million. the thing is it's incredibly hard do this. imagine trying to balance a pencil on the end of your finger in 100 miles an hour winds and trying to set that pencil down still balance odd a ship that's bob in this on or ocean. that's the task here as a source inside spacex explained to me. there is no price for doing it right. it the landing harassed to be perfect. if it comes in too lard, you'll have to repair the damage and that does way with the whole thing. in order to have a shot at reuse the rocket it has to land pretty much perfectly that's what they are hoping for in in launch and with 17 potential rocket launches scheduled this year they will keep trying until get this right. >> jacob ward reporting there. using dance and heart to bring awareness to ending violence against women. ♪ ♪ >> dancing because our rights are being violated.

that's from our families as a source of income. it's time to say no. >> 1 billion rising say global movement empowering women of all ages. according to the united nations one in three women worldwide will suffer abuse in her lifetime. that chilling statistic inspired the people at 1 billion rising which now has chapters all over the world. joining us now is mindy wilson, she is the global director for the 1 billion rising campaign also the coordinator in the campaign in southeast asia we appreciate you coming and talking about this. the crisis of violence against women seems to be increasingly more a part of the international and national dialogue. is that your observation? >> yes. definitely. and i think it's now belonging in centrally in the discourse of everything. and also within the interception issues as well as what effects and causes the violence towards well, which is primarily ecological issues are affecting women so definitely it's in the front and center.

>> what do you attribute the change to? that necessary a change too. >> i think people are now waking up to a lot of the scenarios and situations in the world and also feeling much more empowered to speak up about it. and i think that's what campaigns like ours can do, like 1 billion rising it gives you the energy to speak up, break the silence around it and come together in community to be able to demand changes and also to be able to be in community with each other in terms of the healing as well from the violence. and also demanding what that future would look like when there is no more violence. >> how important is it for this to be a campaign and voices not only of women but men as well. >> definitely what we saw with 1 billion riseing from three years ago when we first began the campaign in 2013 is that we had a lot of men and boys engage in the campaign because even they recognized that they are also part of the problem because they are also being forced to actually be other people. they are being forced to be

other people and that's why a lot of the violence is sort of socially structured and they are pressurized to do certain things. but also that each man and boy has a mother and a sister that he loves. so i think what was so phenomenal about the first few years of the campaign up to this year when we are calling for revolution now, is that we have a huge men rising sector who have really joined us in a lot of youth sector also joining us. so it isn't just a women's issue as, you know, along time ago people just thought the women have to advocate for their december. as it turns out it's everyone's issue. it's all of our issue to end violence against women and girls. >> you say revolution, kneel about the revolution. >> the first year of 1 billion rising in 2013 really began as a call because of the staggering statistic, you know, that we are all phasing from the united nations that says one in every three women in her lifetime will be raped or beaten. and if you calculate that, that's a billion women. so that is too ansah standing stat i can to ignore.

207 countries joined. they came together and made demand we just can't no keep calling for justice unless there is a huge shift in mine set and consciousness and that's why all the global coordinators thought we need a revolution. it's changing deeply entrenched mine sets about the acceptance of violence in our societies and also looking at our individual and collective responses to the violence and what can we do that william live radicalize and escalate our actions towards our demands to end the violence. >> this is an ambitious a jenna. >> all derrek us and arrive us. >> absolutely. >> and in a way also collective. that's what 1 billion rising has given all of us activists around the world we know that we are not standing alone in our struggle. even us in the philippines we are not stand ago loan because we know we are part of a huge global movement giving us

support and solidarity and making our issues arm the globalling visual to each. >> there is strength in numbers for sure. >> ab lieabsolutely. >> mo 19 will sol thank for your time and keep us posted. >> thank you so much. brian williams is taking himself off the era of questions of his credibility n a memo he said he is too much a part of the news. he admitted falsely claim that go he was in a helicopter hit by a grenade in iraq in two 2003. earlier this week he apologized on the air. nbc says it is conducting an investigation in to williams' statements. still ahead on al jazerra america, several botched executions lasts year made headlines, and drew major criticism in several states. up next lawmakers are push to go make information on future executions confidential. earlier this week the pope said it was okay for parents to spank their children, his comments are sparking outrage details ahead.

welcome back to al jazerra america, here a look at your top

stories. let's update the breaking story we are following out of the atlanta area, police say at least five people have been killed in a shooting in douglasville just west of atlanta. reports say several of these victims are children. in ale, seven people have been -- in all seven people have been shot. some gunned down in the streets. with witnesses seeing all of this. the alleged gunman was also injured and has been hospitalized. the motive for the shooting right now is not clear. we'll continue to follow that. german chancellor angela merkel blasted have vladimir putin today. saying russia shows total disrespect for any ukrainian peace process and the safety of europe is at stake and more economic sanctions could be impose oddimposed on russia. official putting off the vote in nigeria until march 28 allowing time for international security force to his secure areas where boko haram has taken territory. many fear attacks will fright an way voters. the family of an american hostage held by isil hope she is

still alive. isil says kayla mueller was killed during a george cane vinnie air strike in syria this week. the u.s. says there is no evidence that statement is true. executions in the u.s. and how they are carried out is all under scrutiny. this week the supreme court issue ahead i stay of execution for a death row inmate in texas the ruling coming afternoon several states have been criticized for botched executions. now some states are once again coming under fire. this time for trying to keep details of future executions secret. courtney deal kao*el i keel i reports. >> reporter: the lethal injection of dennis mcguire lasted near a half an hour, it was ohio's fourth botched execution in cents years. father lawrence hummer witnessed the execution. >> he, after two machines, began to gag audibly and literally gag. and you could see his stomach begin to bloat. this was simply monstrous. >> reporter: in oklahoma, clayton lockett's execution also

went terribly wrong. >> the a 6:39 he's still lifting his shoulders and head off the gurney. grimacing. and appeared to be in distress. >> reporter: he showed signs of distress after being sedated and declared unconscious he's produced dead 43 minutes after his execution began. last july in arizona it took death row inmate rudolph wood nearly two hours to die. death by lethal injection should take at the longest fine minutes. because of a shortage of traditional drugs states are using at attorney tiff drug cocktails in some cases they have not work at planned. the new drugs have not been properly tested and that's raising suspicions about quality and regulation. >> this gets to a basic philosophical question about what is happening. we are in an era and last year was part of it, where they are trying drugs that have never been used before in executions

or combinations or dosages. and they are doing that on human beings. >> reporter: the type of drugs used is not the only problem. after lockett's botched he can cushion in oklahoma, a state investigation uncovered poor training improper equipment lack of planning. the execution teams failed to properly insert the need. they failed to properly monitor the i.v. drip and had no contingency plan if things went wrong. several states have passed privacy laws classifying details such as the kind of drugs used and where they came from, staff present, and how long the executions last. ohio's law would even bar courts from knowing what happens insight the execution chamber. >> we think when you are talking about something that is certainly the ultimate punishment it's deserving of the most transparency. not the least. >> reporter: but politicians and law enforcement say these laws are necessary to get the drugs and medical staff needed to end the lives of the most dangerous criminals. father hummer says he knows why

politicians have been owe illusive. >> they are trying to make it easy to execute people in the state of ohio. by hiding the information from necessary parties. they are afraid somebody might know what they are doing that ridiculous to his me of sort of a secret society that i don't want to be part of. >> reporter: capital punishment still enjoy broad support this the u.s. a gap you would poll put the figure at 63 pearce. whatever happens with the latest legal challenges, there is no sign that executions themselves will end any time soon. courtney keel kealy, al jazerra. >> joining us is counsel with the uc berkeley clinic. why this push now for more secrecy over executions? what do you think is behind that? >> well, it's difficult to speak for the states. we certainly see the increased

secrecy happening at the same time as states are experimenting with new drugs and new drug formulas. and so you know, when they work in tandem, it certainly raises questions about the states trying to hide exactly what it is they are doing and hide the important details about their execution procedures. >> why the -- what is the significance, the importance of more transparency as your group sees it? >> sure, well, i think there is two things. there is what the new laws are doing. and what they are in effect what they are doing is increasing the breadth of secrecy. so increasing the types of information that's kept secret and at the same time, making it more secret and so, instead of just making limited information confidential, they are putting more and more types of information about executions including details about the drugs and their provenance,

information about the qualifications of team members and i think as mentioned already in your report, information about what happens in an execution that's already passed. so if there is a botched execution it closes the door on information to uncover what actually happened. and so what that all does is if hides the very information that's needed by the the courts, by condemned prisoners and by the public to analyze execution procedures and decide if they are human if they are constitutional. >> while it seems at courtney stated in her report that there is still a majority of of americans that support death penalty, having said that, how do you think the average american actually processes this particular debate and the importance of transparency when americans largely do support the detective penalty? >> you know, again it's hard for me to say what an average american thinks -- >> i guess i am asking why should they care, let me put it to you that way?

>> sure. i think there are broadwaysed we they've that transparency is good government. and so here where the government is carrying out its most he can stream criminal sanction, that holds true. transparency still is good government. i think it's as simple as that. they restrict information and limit speech about a controversial and sometimes unpopular topic. and so it's a restriction speech in addition to issues related to how executions themselves are actually carried out. >> do you see a time when the opinions about the death penalty will -- there will be a shift the tide will turn in some way? do you ever anticipate something

like that? >> you know, i think that it's constantly shifting. ii mean, you know, now it seems to depends, when i look at the polls the answers that americans give tend on how the question is asked and what question is asked. when life without parole is offered as the alternative then support for death penalty drops below 50%. i think it's something that is always changing and will continue, you know, will continue to change. >> and in fact, there have been fewer and fewer he can cushions over the last few years. megan, thank you so much. >> thank you. in yemen protests across the country. the country's capital thousands took part in a protest march after houthi rebels seized control of the government. houthis took over the city last month forcing the democratically leader and his cabinet to

resign. the houthis mainly northern shias are expected to meet stiff resistence from the south sending the country in to further chaos here is more. >> reporter: the houthis' leader who is the de facto ruler of the country since the group executed the coup on friday gave the first speech. since then he tried to reach out to not only different parties and different sects and players domestically in yemen but also regionally and internationally. he said that this was not a coup, this was a revolution and this revolution was for all of yemen, specsly heespecially he pointed out in the south where a lot of resent the has been demonstrated towards sanaa the capital. this revolution he put it not a coup was done to put an end to the advancement of al qaeda fighters saying it was needed to insure the threat of what he called terrorism was not going to increase. as it stands now though, he is

a lonely man on the political field. he only has as allies the members of the former regime which was out of thed by the 2011 up rising, that of the president then on his side. aside from that all the different political parties have think do out rejecting the coup saying they do not recognize it atat at all. jamal reporting there. to indonesia where drivers have recovered seven more bodies from the december air asia plane crash. one body was found in the cockpit. the plane crashed in to the java sea six weeks ago. all 162 people on board were killed. one bodies have now been recovered. investigators are still trying to determine the cause of that crash. in taiwan stade trans asia airlines canceled flights. to give pilots time to take proficiency tests. preliminary investigations indicate the pie lost doomed flight may have mistakenly shut off one of its engines.

at least 36 people killed. seven others remain missing. 15 people did survive. pope francis is getting a lot of negative attention to his remarks on spanking children. this week the pontiff said it's okay for parents to spank their kids. members of the pope's commission are criticizing his comments. >> there are millions of children around the world who are physically beaten on a daily basis. and you know, it may -- might start off as a light tap but actually the whole idea of hitting children is about inflicting pain. that's what it's about. and there is no place in this day and age for having physical punishment. >> the commission says it plans to make recommendations to the pope about corporal punishment. coming up on al jazerra america, hackers are stealing more and more personal information from corporations, so what happen to his your personal info? we are going to take i look at the online black market. plus rebecca with the weather.

>> meteorologist: this last storm system brought the coastal mountains of the west rainfall amounts that totaled up to 10-inches in some places more. a lot of flooding here. and we have two more storms moving through. we'll time them out for you and show you where we'll have the biggest problems in the days ahead coming u up up

at least four lawsuits filed against the nation's largest health insurance provider just days after the company was hacks. suits accuse anthem of not protecting customer gate data putting 80 million people at risk. anthem says hackers may have stolen birth dates and social security numbers. however it says credit card numbers and health records were not taken how does your private information mean money for attackers. they sell it on the online black

market. somesomething most of us have never seen. >> reporter: the dark net a place whereunder ground marketplaces sell anything that you can possibly imagine. transactions are anonymous and nothing regulated. so the likelihood that the personal information belong to go millions of an they are customers winds up in this sinister? >> is quite high. >> reporter: analyst gordon of the website vocativ took us in to the dark net in a matter of minutes leading us through several black marketplaces that work just like ams so. >> in the evolution marketplace it's a number of dark marketplace where his you can buy everything from guns to personal identity details. looking at listings rights now for bank account details routing numbers, social security numbers, driver's licenses all for sale. >> reporter: most transactions are hate with the online courtesy bitcoin you may think something like a social security number would go for a lot of money on the black market, but we found one on sale for $8. so this is an offer for a thousand social security

numbers, driver's as longs numbers, accounts. >> basically people's entire lives. reported to be a thousand. >> reporter: a thousand people for under $300. >> under $300. yeah. >> reporter: so who are the these people that want this information. >> people of all walks of life. >> reporter: counterfeit catch. forgeries. he says the majority of the buyers are actually based in the u.s. there are a million at their finger tips? off the top of your head. dark net and marketplace that his you know, how many? >> 14, 15. they are ma as it at that size to go some extend. that's partly to do from the pressure being put on them from the authorities like the u.s. government and the fbi. who are actively attempting to shut these down, and so so the whole exercise is a bit like whack a mole and you can shut one down like silk road and it's only a matter of time before another marketplace reemerges and appears.

>> reporter: erica pit is a, al jazerra. >> the explosive growth of these marketplaces have the white house pushing forward on a $14 billion proposal. it would ramp up cyber security efforts to help protect federal and private networks from hackers. now to detroit where car insurance rates are through the roof and a crumbling transit system add up to a nightmare. this man's challenge struck a cord with many. james robertson walks 21 miles to and from work. every day. a crowd funding effort that raised more than $300,000, but still leaves thousands of detroit residents struggling with a bring transit system and few options. >> reporter: gail jones relies on the public transit every day. it's a broken system that can only take her so far. that has to be a huge inconvenience for you. >> it is. you have -- like i say, you have to adjust your life to where you can and can't go. it's a limitation that affects

where you shop and where you live. >> reporter: it also cost her a job. jones worked at anism it. specialist in a suburb located over 20 miles away. living in detroit she says that it took her more than six hours to travel to and from work. and a lot of her time was spent walking. >> and i would actually get home in time to take a hot bath, meditate, i dare not fall asleep and then go back. and i did that for like, let me see, three months, six months, something like that, and i lived off coffee to each key going. >> reporter: but she eventually ran out of gas. that has to take a toll. >> it did. it did. it's almost like you have another job just getting to and from your job. so putting in a double shift whether you want to or not. >> reporter: in a city known as the automotive capital of the world, detroit's public transit system is dysfunctional at best. from the city to the suburbs the region's transportation

options are limited. under funded and under reliable. detroit's transit system has struggled for decades. the city has an on time rate of about 65% the national average is 85%. and in the suburbs a number of communities have opted out of the transit system altogether. detroit is predominantly black jones feels that race is a factor. >> it tells me that michigan is one of the most racist states in the union. that's what it tells tells me. >> reporter: michael ford is ceo of the regional transit short of southeast michigan,'s organization formed a few years ago to help bridge the gap between the identity and the suburbs. so far there have been no major reforms. who is account basketball accountable for making sure these lines run better? >> i think it's all of our accountability. but we are here to make some you are it happens and working with our transit providers to make

sure that we are all working together it's our responsibility to make that happen. >> reporter: ford says improving a broken bus system will require funding, education and extending a reach to the suburbs. >> i think we have to meet with them. we have to talk to them. we have to understand what their irks and concerns are, we have to talk about how transportation can be helpful to the community. >> i don't know if it needs that need to be cooperative or merge million dollars to one. i don't know. but i know that but i know the quality of services need to be improved 67 in january detroit's mayor rolled out a fleet of new buses promises more changes are on the way. but as the cityishes to rebound. but there is a rough road ahead. >> there had good news for the walking man from detroit. he will be driving to work from now o. the money raised was more than enough to pay for a new car

and take care of his insurance needs. a powerful storm is making its way down the west coast. heavy rains causing major flooding in washington. in seattle the rising water engulfed cars and destroyed about about a half dozen homes in california whipping wind knocked down industries and left thousands of people without power. nearly a foot of rage is expected by the end of the weekend, rebecca stephenson is here with the details. that's a part of the country you are form. >> meteorologist: yes we are used to rainfall, but this much this fast, not so much used to that. getting storm after storm it's usually good we have breaks between them. but these breaks have been getting shorter and the intensity of the storms is getting even higher. the amount of rain coming in now, storm two rolling through. northwest oregon as it rolls in. rain totals the last 24 hours have already hit town two-inches but higher amounts once move to the fool hills and mountains.

the main ranges in the last 24 hours have reported up to eight-inches of rainfall stretch down in to northern california where we are concerned built rain coming in tomorrow. as we can seat warnings for floods in bright green. right now southwest oregon and northern california, rivers running high and this next storm system. is going to bring wind and rain. this green area and inning expense orange and red will be the hardest hit rainfall and first hit. before the storm spreads garagely to western oregon where it dumps a lot of rain on the central coast including newport and seaside and western washington you get another round of rain as well as that storm moves in. when we look at our wide satellite. here we can time out the storms, the one that hit us yesterday already making its way through montana and bringing wind. the second one hitting us now and here is the third one developing out in the ocean.

swinging down, picking up all the moisture from the subtropics and will hit hard tomorrow. already wind gusts have started to diminish somewhat here in the inland areas the coasts are still whipping up to 30 miles per hour in places, but they are going to be powerful winds up to 50 miles an hour as we get in to tomorrow. for north california to while it's rain sewing heavily. five-inches definitely with the storm. >> all right, a lot going on rebecca. thank you very much. coming up, america's most mart breaking park. they are separated by immigration laws but there is one place they can meet, we'll take to you friendship park ahead.

there is a place along the u.s.-mexico border where families divided by immigration can meet face-to-face. it's called friendship park and it's in southern california. a metal fence separates the park from tijuana mexico and every

weekend families come from miles around to see their loved ones. jennifer london has the story. >> reporter: behind these steel gates unlocked for a few short hours each we can end you'll find the only place along the 2,000-mile worlder fence where families torn apart by immigration can do this. see, talk, and evening touch each other. it's called friendship park. to get there we traveled to the southern most tip of california. bordered by identity juan, a mexico on the other side. but the only road in to the park is sometime closed for six months out of the year because of possible flooding which means the only other way in the to park is to hike a mile and a half down this dirt road. when the rain does come it cast a dark gray shadow over the art work on the mexican side but does nothing to tam pen the spirits of those that have traveled so far to get as close as they can.

this tiny finger reaching through the fence on the u.s. side is searching for the hand of her father. bernardo was departed from san diego, leaving behind his wife and two daughters all u.s. citizens. they haven't seen each other in more than a year. >> translator: i am so happy i was able to see them. the little one has grown a lot and now she's walking and i am happy. very happy to be able to see them. >> reporter: bernardo's wife alice didn't want her face shown but talked to me through the fence. her daughter a wet and moody from the rain. the ability for the girls to reach through and stick their fingers through this fence and actually kind of connect with their dad, in a way that they haven't been able to what does that mean for you? >> it's nice. you know, it's here so they can see each a. so they can touch and talk. they talk over the phone but it's not the same as seeing him. we are going to come back next week and see him again. and at least for a month so

that, you know, they are happy they know who he is. and they don't forget him. that's the main point they don't forget him. >> reporter: a few hours later we met germana cruz she and her daughters traveled some 1500 miles from outside mexico city. through the fence she blows blows kisses to her grandson dylan she's meeting him for the first time. >> translator: i don't have words to explain what i felt. just that all the emotion of seeing my family, my children, well, 10 years is -- for me it sound easy, but for me it's a long long, long time. >> reporter: do you know when you will see your son and your daughter-in-law and your grandson again? >> translator: i have no idea. the truth is i can't imagine it.

>> reporter: so for now the few hours spent at friendship park will have to carry the family through the next few months or even years. both germana cruz and bernardo say they hope immigration reform can happen this year so moments like this won't have to be shared through a rusty metal fence, jennifer, friendship parka long the us-mexico border. >> i am richelle carey from new york. the news continues. >> good evening everyone i'm thomas drayton, this is al jazeera america let's get you caught up with the top stories. a shooting in atlanta leaves five dead, among the victims are children. >> it is absolutely unacceptable. every single day dozens of civilians lost that are lives. >> president of ukraine meets