gaining ground in iraq - iraqi troops say they are closer to retaking tikrit from i.s.i.l. is military help from iran threatening the u.s. role in the region. death of an argentine prosecutor. knew allegations of a cover up after an independent autopsy points to murder a frightening landing. >> the plane came down and slid. >> a jet slides off a run way at

one of new york's major air parts. why conditions at laguardia could have been a cause. >> a case against exxonmobile is settled for a small i am not. accusations nigh i'm antonio mora, in is al jazeera. it's day four in a large offensive against i.s.i.l. tens of thousands of troops working in tikrit. the advance is hindered by suicide bombers, booby traps and fire. the rebels set fire to oil wells to shield themselves from attacks of helicopters. the rule of the militias have some worrying that iran is funding the fighters.

there's fear tehran may use the offensive to solidify its foothold in iraq. >> yes ceded most of the governance of iraq to iranians. . >> reporter: no sooner had ashton carter finished his statement did the chairman launch into a grilling of a newspaper head line touting iran's prominent role in the tikrit offensive. >> they have trained equipment motivated thousands of people. there's a strong lily hood on tikrit and mosul, that you can have a disintegration of the country. >> absolutely i share your concern about the role of iran in iraq and the wider region. >> the pentagon has been forced to admit there's not much it can do as the invitation of the

iraqi government provides air power, weapons and military advice to thousands, to take back sunni areas north of baghdad. >> the day before john mccain was outraged by the lead roll played by the iranians. >> the majority effort is undertaken by the shia militia. the same militia that we fought against, the same militia that according to estimates are manufactured the i.e.d.s resulting in the deaths of 1,000 americans. are you concerned at that - that iran is taking over the fight? >> reporter: while the u.s. wants i.s.i.l. out of tikrit. they are woreried that the shia

could fuel the tensions. >> sectarianism brought us to the point where we are. i look at it with concern. watching it very closely. >> reporter: watching is about all the u.s. can do because the iraqi government haider al-abadi has not invited the u.s. to help in tikrit. in a separate hearing. the top people battling i.s.i.l. denied the pentagon was out of the loop. >> we have good overhead imagery and those types of things. so the activity in tikrit was no surprise. i saw it coming. >> pentagon officials say iran has some advantages over the u.s. when it offers military assistance. the sir strikes are not as constrained by strict rules and

has no self-imposed limit on boots on the ground. will the offensive be successful. if it is, will control of the area behis honoured to the sunni minority. some are bristling at the perception of why the u.s. is slowly and methodically trying to get the brigade ready the iranians are moving name bli. -- moving name bli. >> i.s.i.l. fighters have bulldozed one of the world's oldest sites. the ministry of tourism and antiquities says i.s.i.l. destroyed the site south

of mosul. last week it destroyed artefacts at the museum. the fighters say the statue promotes idol worship. >> questions in argentina over the death of a prosecutor. alberta nisman was investigating the president when he died. the family says an independent autopsy proves he did not kill him. they are calling his death an assassination. >> reporter: results from an independent forensic team confirmed what everyone suspected. the prosecutor had not died from his own hand. >> i want to let you know that alberta nisman did not have an accident. alberta nisman did not commit suicide. alberta nisman was killed. in it deserves answers. >> alberta nisman was found dead in his apartment from a gunshot wound to the head. no gunpowder was found on his hands. alberta nisman die the the night before he was to deliver a report to congress, alleging cristina fernandez de kirchner and her foreign minister conspired to cover up iran's involved in the "94 bombing of a jewish cultural center.

alberta nisman's former wife said the results indicated that he did not die quickly and may have suffered. doubts are cast on the president. who denies involvement. or that he was murdered by members of intelligence service who wanted to implicate her. >> conspiracy theories abound. there's little doubt that alberta nisman did not commit used. there's no hard evidence pointing the finger at who may have pulled the trigger. >> in ferguson, missouri, the family of slain teenager michael brown announced plans to sue the city. the wrongful death included a policeman that shot and killed the 18-year-old. yesterday the justice department announced there would be no federal charges against officer darren wilson. the investigation found the ferguson police were guilty of

wholesale discriminations against blacks. >> with all the things in the department of justice report it's a wholesale systematic problem. obviously that situation has not changed quickly. sooner than later, for the safety of the citizens of this community. >> the brown family's lawyers say it's important to hold the police department accountable to the shooting, no response to the shooting harrison ford is recovering after a small plane he was piloting crashed. the vintage aircaffed landed on a -- aircraft landed on a gulf course. it appeared to have a mechanical problem. here is the change with the control tower:

line ford suffered cuts, but was conscious when he went to hospital. he was the only one on the plane an ordeal for passengers coming within feet from the water at laguardia, when their plane slid off the runway. this is not the first accident like this at laguardia, john terrett. >> that's right. pictures may be dramatics, but the consequence is unthinkable had that plane not come to a halt in the nick of time. >> reporter: in the middle of a snow tomorrow delta flight 1086 from atlanta skidded off the runway, the nose resting on an embankment. >> we landed. it slid. it hit the wheel, it went 400 yards. it came to a halt.

we went forward. >> airport managers say everything appeared to be within operating limits before the crash. >> shortly before the incident two planes landed and reported good action on the runways. begging the question should flight 1086 be in the air, never find trying to land on a run way. >> in spite of the weather rules and regulations that are in place for the aircraft and port are strict as to whether planes can operate. >> the mcdonald douglas landed on run way 3, it's 7,000 run way, it has an ea m.s. arrester bed designed to stop aircraft overshooting the runway. that safety feature never came into play. it was the same in 1994 when continental flight to denver

aborted take off and slid into a ditch. two years later 405 went into flushing bay, killing 27 people. that crash blamed on icy wings. bernard l [a]gat is a congested airport and is considered tough to land at because of close proximity to two others. if bernard l [a]gat was being built -- if laguardia were built today, you'd think twice about putting it there. . >> laguardia is an older airport and the runway would not pass muster with current regulations. there has to be a certain amount of room to the end and either side of the run way. >> reporter: airlines make up for that by using smaller airlines and are familiar with the terrain. investigators are under way and will center on air worthiness.

navigation equipment on the ground severity of the weather and the role played by the pilots. >> always worry about the short run ways at laguardia. thank you the weather called a 20 mile backup on i 65 in kentucky, many drives spending a night stranded in cars. nicole mitchell is watching the storm. a lot of people affected. >> yes. you talked about the plane, about six inches of snow. in kentucky, some said they were stranded for 12-14 hours. some parts got up to 2 feet of snow in kentucky. okay. you see the early frames and the broader area. most of this has moved offshore, rain on the coastline.

as this clears out. drier skies, and a break behind this, which i know a lot of people are excited about. the sthoij behind this, this is part of what caused this to be a snow storm or turn from a rain storm into a snow storm. the cold air came in. switching to snow in many places, and eventually that occurs. as we put this into motion the trough of cold air subsides. we have a warm up by the time we get from tomorrow into the day after. it will be nice for us. most of the day tomorrow will be well below average. a lot of the eastern half of the country, 10-20 degrees below where we should be. >> it's cold out there. >> for the second time in three weeks, a freight train carrying crude oil derailed exploding into a fireball.

it happened near the ohio border. eight of 103 cars derailed. it's not known what called the accident. it happened in a rural area, there's no reports of injuries. >> new jersey was suing exxonmobile for $9 billion, but settled the environmental dispute for less. why some suggest chris christie's presidential aspirations played a role. hillary clinton taking more hits about her email. that is coming

several top democrats are starting to distance themselves from hillary clinton. her use of a personal email account a sparking questions about her time as secretary of state. david shuster has the story. >> president obama's white house lawyers said on thursday they were not aware that hillary

clinton relied on a personal email account as secretary of state and says the practice contradicted the guidance the white house guidance office gave cabinet members. the spokesman amly replified the team -- amplified the theme. >> every official was clear to make sure every employee was acting in compliance with the federal messages act. amid claims that hillary clinton was acting on her own, the secretary of state late wednesday took a sustain writing on twitter: a republican-led congressional committee that exposed clinton's reliance on email was not impressed saying:

two months ago after a state department request. clinton and advisors provided the agency with emails. that was selected by clinton's team, not the state department. the house lawmakers investigating the benghazi attacked issued subpoenas for more information about clinton's email accounts and reprimands are showing up in influential editorial cases. clinton's strongest supporters insist that this is about nothing and the media

focus will burn out. her response so far, a 26 word tweet is adding more fuel to the fire new jersey governor chris christie is fighting allegations his office pushed a multibillion lawsuit against exxon in favourable terms. it was called disingenuous, false. new jersey settled for $225 million, but were fighting for $9 billion. cyst's chief council was the lead negotiator new jersey sued them in 2004 for polluting wetland and waterways. jeff tiedle. the director of the new jersey sierra club joins us via skype. good to have you with us.

this comes a month after this was called staggering. you say this doesn't begin to compensate for the damage. >> no, in new jersey, the wetlands and marshes belong to the people not chris christie, when it happens because of a chemical spill, the government must be compensated. what the government did was set out the taxpayers to tailor to the big i will companies. >> i know new jersey members said they'd hold a hearing. you are convinced they gaved for public reasons. >> and other reasons. the government has raised a lot of money from the rj from a lot of big oil and gas companies, he called out of the gas

commission. he pulled out of agenda. giving away new jersey's treasure to exxon is part of it. chris christie's spokesman respond, saying the notion that this settlement presents something less than what is fair for nersians is: when cases are settled, it's usually for less than the amount by the plaintiff. is this newer. >> yes, because a lot less may be more. he did it a few months ago where it was let off with a $3 billion settlement. by the way, he'll take the money, it's not going to where where it's supposed to to help the people. >> you are concerned that the low amount that the state is getting will not r.e.m. did i the acknowledges. >> not at all. they'll use it to plug a hole in

the budget. that's what he's going, theiss taking the side of big oil. >> he only has to use $50 million. >> he put social language in the government to allow holes in the budget. and give tax breaks to corporations. he is selling out new jersey. brig gateways about retribution. this is about giving away billions of dollars of taxpayer money and keeping environment and communities toxic. >> given the settlement for pennies on the dollar, how concerned are you for the example that this sets. >> this is a second one, if you are a polluters in new jersey if you pollute and get caught, you'll get a tap on the wrist. >> jeff tiedle. director of the new jersey sierra club.

good to have you with us. >> thank you. >> one of the country's leading catholic leaders died. the 82-year-old was archbishop of new york for a decade in the retight in 1982. he presided over many funerals of those in the september 11th attacks. >> a man declared innocent after 30 years on death row. >> there's no retribution or payment. >> why louisiana is refusing to compensate him for three lost decades. after years of crit sting from -- criticism from animal rights activists the circus is retiring its elephants.

he's out there. there's a guy out there whose making a name for himself in a sport where your name and maybe a number are what define you.

somewhere in that pack is a driver that can intimidate the intimidator. a guy that can take the king 7 and make it 8. heck. maybe even 9. make no mistake about it. they're out there. i guarantee it. welcome to the nascar xfinity series. disturbing testimony in a boston courtroom about the aftermath of the boston marathon. witnesses described gruesome scenes after two bombs exploded, testifying in the trial of dzhokhar tsarnaev. his lawyer admitted his guilt in

the matter the wrigley brother's circus is retiring their elephants. animal rights activists accused them of mistreating the elephants and pressured the circus to stop using them. they that service local laws that caused the decision. a man on death row is waging a fight for just of the he wants to be compensated for the years he pent behind bars. >> the fight is taking on urge sill. >> i was there, i was praying, hopeless sometimes. >> after 30 years, wrongly xcted of murder. glen fights the state of louisiana. >> one more fight. one more thing i have to do. >> he's been exonerated.

but the state says ford should not be exonerated because he can't prove he's blameless. >> i see an innocent man, when the public is saying in court records that he is innocent. i was stunned to hear that the state was going to oppose. >> in 1984 an all-white jury convicted ford in the shooting death of a jury store owner. there was no evidence he pulled the trigger or had been at the crime scene. he was linked to the crime after pawning its. >> you sit on death row thinking that soon someone will see that this is not right. >> right. my trial was somewhat lengthy, and there was not one thing proven against me. >> it took three decades. in 2013, a confidential informant identified someone else as the triggerman.

they stated he had not participated. >> locked up 30 years for something i did not do. the state ordered his release and left him. >> i had a chicken pox donut and a cold drink. that was it. he was certain he would be $330,000, the maximum awarded for wrongful conscious. the state attorney-general's office opposed payments saying ford was not fact umly enjoyment, taking its he had reason to believe were stolen and sold them at the important shop and kept some of the proceeds. why should you be allowed to the money if it was for people innocent of the crimes. >> the state said i wasn't involved in the death.

>> reporter: but you pawned its. >> yes i did. >> they are alleging new crimes saying that because he pawned its that may have been stolen from the store, not proven at trial, that he's not entitled for compensation for 30 years on death row after being convicted of a murder he didn't convict. >> glen was diagnosed with stage 4 lung cancer. doctors gave him 4-8 months to live. that's why there's a greater urgency for justice. if the judge agrees to compensation, he plans to set money aside. >> no amount of money will account for the three years he lost. you can't pay for that. jonathan mountain al jazeera

i'm antonio mora thank you for joining us. for the latest news head to aljazeera.com. "inside story" is next. have a good night. hello i'm ray suarez. federal agents raided buildings in three southern californian counties looking for pregnant women arriving from other countries with a goal to giving birth to an american citizen. if you make it to the united states a newborn gets you a passport and social security number. it's a squirmish