tv News Al Jazeera May 19, 2015 10:30am-11:01am EDT
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members are combat members of the wars in iraq and afghanistan. some gangs allegedly recruit members to get combat expertise and training. there's more on our website, aljazeera.com. ♪ reinforce the role into ramadi, and iraq fights to take back control from isil. the u.s. says it will support the army and shia militias at least for now. authorities in texas are on high alert after a deadly biker drawl. and texas has stepped in to
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let the gas flow again. ♪ this is al jazeera america. good morning, live from new york city. i'm randall pinkston. reports from iraq that isil fighters are going door-to-door looking for police officers and pro-government fighters to kill. the gov nour calls it a scene of car naj. anbar's capitol fell into isil hands this weekend despite a series of u.s. air strikes there. the pentagon says it is backing some 3,000 shia militia fighters who are preparing to take back the see. the takeover means isil is inches closer to baghdad. the city is significant for many american families. one in three u.s. casualties occurred in anbar province during the second iraq war.
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today it is a ghost town abandoned by the iraqi army. they fought for just two days leaving behind american equipment. retaking ramadi will be difficult. >> reporter: they are preparing for a war that could deepen the divide in iraq. they plan to push deep into the sunni heartland to recapture territory from the islamic state of iraq and the levant. >> translator: the popular mobilization forces are getting ready to take back anbar. people asked for our help about month ago, but politicians were reluctant. >> reporter: the anbar province shall council did ask for assistance. but many don't want shia forces on their land and would have preferred arms to wage the battle alone.
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officials in baghdad are insisting that these fighters backed by iran are no longer militias and operate under the government. they are trying to calm sunni fears. even the u.s. has expressed concern about deploying them in the sunni province, but now it says it backs the government's decision. some say the paramilitary troops are stronger than the state, but for the time being they are the only force capable of fighting isil. regular forces are still weak and they weren't able to hold ground in the face of isil's offensive in anbar. the u.s. which leads the coalition against isil is stepping up air strikes and has promised to help the iraqi government recapture lost ground, but isil is still on the offensive. people are on the move. the armed group targeted security forces in the town east of ramadi. the fighting over recent days has already displaced thousands. makeshift camps are being set up
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in pockets of territory still under control of the government and its local allies but not all sunny tribes support the government and decent is growing. >> translator: we are here to help our people who have been abandoned by officials. the provincial kril members aren't doing anything. >> reporter: reaching out to the people is needed to win this war, but the government has done little. >> translator: what have our children done to deserve this? we haven't eaten for two days. >> reporter: the battle has still not begun in earnest. sunni leaders have long demaceded that they secure their province. defeating isil is just the first challenge. if shia forces fill the security vacuum it could mean another war. the obama administration is insisting that it's strategy will eventually succeed in fighting isil. >> we have always known that the fight would be long and
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difficult, especially in anbar province, and so there's no denying that this is a setback, but there's also no denying that the united states will help the iraqis take back ramadi. the u.s. is backing a plan to send shia militias to retake the city even though it's mainly a sunni area. a suicide bombing downtown kabul has killed four people. the taliban has claimed responsibility. the explosion went off at the peak of rush hour. smoke could be seen for several miles. it follows a handful of similar explosions in the past two weeks. 11 police officers have been sentenced to jail for failing to stop the beating of a woman. her murder was captured on camera. four men were sentenced to death, another eight given long prison sentences. jennifer glasse has more.
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>> reporter: in this latest round of sentencing 11 policemen sentenced to a year in prison for failing to do their duty and failing to render assistance as she was beaten to death in brood daylight in kabul in march. eight other policemen were set free for lack of evidence. this is the second set of verdicts we have received. earlier this month, four men were sentenced to death. this trial has been remarking in its openness. it has been televised live. it has gone over several days. afghan lawyers say really a larger more detailed trial than many they have seen. critics say it really hasn't followed procedure. the defendants did not have defense lawyers. the family is saying they weren't happy that not everybody were brought to trial. 49 men were brought to face charges. 19 policemen among them. they say some of the most
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egregious murdered never made it into court. the judge says the investigation has been thorough, all of the defendants can appeal but many were watching this. when she was murdered it sparks demonstrations here in afghanistan and across the country afghans were watching to see if they could get justice. i think many would be unhappy with these verdict. but they are a landmark ruling the first time that police here have been sentenced for failing to do their duty. a new law in texas could have wider implications for efforts around the country to ban frac-ing. the governor has signed the law which overturns a referendum that did ban the practice. >> there are too many of us in our 30s a too many of our an nals are young getting cancer right as the time of these
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wells. >> we have been using hydraulic fracturing for more than 60 years, and there is no evidence of rising morbidity or higher mortality rates around frac sites than anywhere else. >> in denton three wells exist for every mile of land. more than 40 0 cities and towns across the u.s. are also trying to ban frac-ing. also in texas police on high alert where there are warnings there could be more violence after sunday's biker gang shootout in waco. nine people died many others were hurt during the shooting between rival gangs at a restaurant. police say they are ready today to handle whatever happens next. >> we won't talk about what we're doing. we'll just say that we are prepared and able to handle any threat that comes towards us. >> the twin peaks restaurant
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where it happened has been shut down. the shootout is just the latest chapter in a long history of skrie lens involving motorcycle gangs in the u.s. richelle carey has more. >> reporter: revved up and ready for the ride motorcycle clubs convey an era of rebellion, most of them harmless with thousands finding camaraderie on the road. but there is a small slice of the culture that the federal government considers as ruthless as mobsters. they have identified 300 of what it calls outlaw motorcycle games. they use the clubs as quote, conduits for criminal enterprises. the government says five pose a serious national domestic threat. they are:
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the bandidos which were involved in the deadly shooting in texas have according to the justice department between 2,000 and 2500 members operating in the u.s. and 13 other countries. the group is accused of being involved in drug smuggling, and in the production and distribution of methamphetamine. it's motto embraces the culture of menace. the hell's angels have approximately 2500 members, and operate in 27 countries. the government says they are involved in much more than drugs with charges ranging from extortion and money laundering to assault and murder. in about half an hour seattles teachers some of them will go on strike. the teachers are trying to pressure state officials to spend more money on education for pay raises and smaller class
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sizes. the parks and recreation department is opening 21 centers to house children while their parents work. shell oil is being threatened with fines for doing work on a oil rig in the sort of seattle. hundreds of protesters blocked the port on monday. alan schauffler has more. >> reporter: protesters start the workweek early, chants ringing. they walked to the port of seattle's terminal 5. that's where shell oil's huge drilling rig, the polar pioneer is moored being prepped for oil exploration off of the coast of alaska. >> we need to stop it for the generations to come. if we do not stop this today, we -- we will be extinct like so many species already are.
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>> reporter: plenty of music and dancing keep the mood light here but the pushback against shell is happening in other less cheerful arenas as well. >> these are complicated vessels, and we don't have a high level of confidence that they know what they are doing. >> reporter: the watchdog group has challenged the contract process in court, saying more environmental review is required. >> they have to conduct an environment review any time they change a use of a shoreline, and they skipped that process, and just went ahead and negotiated the lease, essentially in secret. >> reporter: the rig drew a huge crowd of kayaks over the weekend. and has drawn criticism from the government and the planning defendant has ruled they don't have the right permits and have to reapply. shell and fos believe their contract is valid, have appealed
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the ruling and are pushing forward. but the political squabble has other customers questioning their own deals? >> is the next thing going to be to stop automobile exportings and imports or shop garments or shoes from being imported here? >> reporter: while the legal and regulatory battles play out, protests like this are likely to continue. >> and we're going to put a message out that we need to take care of ourselves. >> reporter: how long are you prepared to stay? >> as long as i have to. i have two depends on. we're going to do it. >> reporter: a spokesman for fos says work has not been interrupted and shell continues to stock the rig with supplies. a new report gives a shocking look at sexual assault
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in the military. human rights watch talked to 150 survivors and found many faced threats, harassment, and poor work assignments after coming forward. earlier i spoke with the executive director of the women's rights division at human rights watch. >> reporter: the report documents a wide range of actions. survivors suddenly found themselves accumulates lots of disciplinary incidents, and underage drinking and we found a small number who experienced other forms of physical and sexual violence. so really quite widespread. we could find not one single survivor who had any form of redress through the act. the act is supposed to mean if you report rape and experience retaliation there is a process
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that you can activate that should offer protection, but as i said in all of the survivors we interviewed, and we didn't only base this report on survivor interviews we got a huge amount of documentation from the department of defense that we scrutinized, we couldn't find a single survivor who had help. >> what was the most shocking finding for you? >> the most shocking finding, for me the department of defense's own statistic that 62% of people who report sexual violence experience some form of retaliation. >> so if you could just point to one thing that needs to be done right away by the department of defense what would it be. >> can i point to two things? >> certainly. >> the first is that whistleblowers have the same protection as they would in civilian life. the question is a second of
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leadership. this is not going to change -- all of the best protections in the world will not make a difference unless there's genuine leadership from the top down. >> at least 200,000 women are in the military. that's about 14.5%. suicide rates have traditionally always been higher among whites than blacks but a stew study finds that the trend has reversed in a specific age group, children. since the 1990s the rate for white kids fell to less than one child per million. it's not clear what is behind the trend. yemen's exiled government calls for more strikes against the houthi rebels. why the humanitarian toll may
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welcome back to al jazeera america. it is 10:49 eastern. taking a look at today's top stories. the state department will not release hillary clinton's emails until january 2016 that according to vice news which requested copies of the messages under the freedom of information act. the fbi says there is no evidence a gunshot hit the wind shield of the amtrak train that derailed last week but investigators are not ruling out the possibility that the train was struck by another object. and indonesia's ambassador to pakistan has died after he
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was in a helicopter crash. pakistan's government says the crash was caused by engine failure. yemen's exiled president is asking for more help to fight houthi rebels. political and tribal leaders discussed a diplomatic end to the conflict. but the houthi rebels did not participate in the talks. they resumed air strikes this week after a five-day ceasefire expired. it backed a joint arab force. and they want to implement a u.n. security council resolution which calls for the houthis to withdraw from all areas they have seized. hashem ahelbarra has more there riyadh. >> reporter: this is a significant boost for president
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hadi. remember when he was forced out of power, placed under house arrest humiliated and then he fled to aden and then saudi arabia. that has significantly changed here riyadh. you have leaders from different parts of the country, forming a new front that supports hadi and that is opposed to the houthis. hadi hopes to convince the international community to use force on the ground, but the problem is that the houthis-backed by forces loyal to the past president saleh, are the ones that control most of the country, and this is not the biggest challenge. how to help hatdy defeat the houthis and move to lead once again yemen. a trial is underway today for the former prime minister of
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thailand. she faces up to ten years in prison over her alleged role in a controversial rice subsidy program. she told a crowd that she would prove her innocence. and thailand's new government says it will be hold a referendum on a new constitution. the prime minister says it will likely take at least three months. that could delay the military plan to hold elections until early 2016. well in danger or not? that is the question faces scientists who study humpback whales. the answer may hinge on oil.
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♪ a new survey shows drivers on the road are finding more digital distractions than ever. at&t found many drivers are clicking on apps even snapping selfies behind the wheel. the most popular choice was facebook. 17% of drivers say they take pictures another 14% they are tweeting followed by 10% using
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instagram and snap chat. the humpback whale was nearly extinct 40 years ago, but its population has rebounded. now some u.s. officials are pushing for the mammal to be taken off the endangered species list. some wonder if that is because their home is also a potential oil exploration site. >> reporter: there is something about humpback whales that humans can't get enough of. their song their acrobatics their sheer size. captain black grew up near san francisco. after a career as a marine biologist, she opened her own whale-watching outfit 20 years ago. >> when i started there was thought to be only 400. and now there's close to 3,000,
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so big noticeable difference. >> reporter: hunted almost to the point of extinction in the 1960s, they wound up on the endangered species list, and now they are back in a big way. >> they were definitely on the road to extinct shun due to the one factor that was commercial whaling. and once that factor was removed we started to immediately see recoveries of the population. and since the mid-1960s, the populations have doubled almost every decade. and there has been four decades since then. so that's a lot of increase. >> there are now an estimated 91,320 humpbacks in the world. now the united states is considering subdividing the global population into 14 subgroups. only those in the arabian sea and northwest africa would remain endangered. humpbacks would be downgraded to
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threatened. california's whales and nine other subgroups would become just another mammal in the eyes of the law. the population number of these animals seems to suggest that they are doing pretty well the trouble is when they come off of then dangered species act they will have less protection, and already they regularly swim through the crab traps here. this is a humpback caught in a commercial fishing net. if they are delisted as endangered species they will still be perfected by the marine mammal protection act. >> marine mammal protection act offers a lot of protections why do we need extra protection. >> the esa will offer protection
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against current and future projects such as oil and gas exploration. if they weren't endangered then they can apply for permits to harm or harass a number of whales. >> reporter: if they were taken a off of the list it would ease industry conditions. >> our goal was to get it off of the list. >> reporter: so is this about the science or protecting economic interest. in alaska delisting the humpback would make things easier on oil and maritime industries. so it may be a bit of both. >> it's supposed to be a strictly biological opinion or biological analysis not consider considering the economics. and -- but there are economic concerns that bring the humpback
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population into focus. >> reporter: for captain black the endangered species act has given her a nearly lifelong relationship with individual whales. >> some of them we know you know by name because we recognize them and i have seen them over 20 years, the same animal. i hope to keep doing it for a lot longer and i hope to help with the research and conservation and make sure they stay a healthy population here. >> reporter: the endangered species act as by all accounts saved humpback whales now we'll see whether it has done enough to let them survive on their own. the world's most valuable private coin collection is going on the auction black. it features 650 coins dating bake to the beginning of the united states. it is expected to bring more than $200 million. thanks for watching.
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i'm randall pinkston. the news continues next live from doha. keep up on aljazeera.com. >> announcer: this is al jazeera. welcome to the news hour. i'm in doha. here is what is coming up in the next 60 minutes. more violence on the streets of burundi's capitol as protesters demand the president does not run for a third term. after taking ramadi isil sets its sites on capturing more territory in iraq's anbar province, but shia militias are getting ready for a counter
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