leagues are those that are allowed to play here. there are plans to create more public pace spaces for sport. something most agree is needed a reminder, you can keep up to date with the news on the website, aljazeera.com. u. u.n. describes the continues in yemen as a perfect storm for famine. >> violent protests in st. louis one year after the death of michael brown. the tensions in the area after yet another police involved shooting. >> three firefighters killed battling flames at wildfires spread through the west. more evacuated. >> new controversy over the iran nuclear deal, word of a secret agreement behind the scenes.

>> this is aljazeera america. good morning, live from new york city, i'm randall ping stop. tensions high in st. louis after another deadly police shooting and a night of demonstrations. angry protestors confronted officers shortly after police killed a man who pulled a gun on them. demonstrators had been out in force to mark the one year anniversary of another fatal shooting. police are still looking for another suspect in that confrontation? >> that's right, randall. that suspect was with the dead 18-year-old when police confronted them. police want to talk with that suspect about what happened. the protestors were already in the streets when word of this latest shooting raced through the crowd. st. louis police released this dramatic video of an angry crowd, over 100 strong confronting them in the streets. protests and looting erupted in

st. louis after police shot and killed an 18-year-old they say pointed a gun at them as he ran after they tried to serve a warrant at a home in the city's north side. they say there were drugs and stolen guns at that home. a crowd estimated as around 150 soon gathered at the scene. many of them reportedly had already been in the area protesting the one year anniversary of the police shooting death of a 25-year-old mentally disturbed man wielding a knife. soon the crowd was wielding rocks and bricks. >> we are receiving numerous calls for businesses being burglarized and officers responding back to the neighborhood. >> tensions have been high in the area as protestors have been marking the one year anniversary of the police shooting of michael brown in ferguson. last week, police shot and wounded 18-year-old tyrone harris after five straight days

of michael brown protest. videos afterwards seem to show he was armed. police insist they handle that had incident understand this one the right way. >> in an area plagued by gun violence, those officers were doing the job we all ask them to do, keep our community safe. protestors came together and started to do violence towards the officers and neighborhood. >> police deployed additional officers and used tear gas to clear the streets. >> when an individual stops traffic on i-70, it was for police officers to make arrests. they are not standing on the sidewalk, they're marching through kings highway, which is a major thorough fair. they're impacting people's living. i think there's a line that gets crossed. >> according to the washington post, this is the 621 fatal police shooting in the country this year. f.b.i. records show that the average for a given year is more around the neighborhood of about 400 fatal police shootings.

>> thanks, john henry smith. >> the governor of washington state is asking for a federal emergency declaration as fires in his state claim their first lives. three firefighters killed battling flames in the town of twist. four ours were injured. >> the bottom line, it was blowing in everyone damn direction and we lost three. >> 35,000 acres of burned along the mountains. other major fires are threatening homes and putting thousands of respondents in harm's way. we have more. >> it's a tough time around here. people in town, including the firefighters at this fire station in washington learning about the firefighting deaths and injury about an hour north of here in the twist and winthrop areas. it's been quite gusty, winds have been picking up. there's a red flag warning in place until friday evening. they're really concerned about

these winds gusting, how it makes firefighting unpredictable. they have evacuated the towns of twist and winthrup, about 4,000 people in all. here, about a thousand people remain out of their homes. they've been evacuated, not allowed to go back yet. firefighters worry about that forecast and the gusty conditions, so the 400 to 500 homes here still in harm's way. >> reporting from washington state. >> south korea on high alert after an exchange of artillery fire with the north. officials in seoul say the north fired at a a south korea border turn to. the south responded to the single round by firing dozens of shells. no one was hurt, as harry fossett explains, tensions have been on the rise in recent weeks along their border. >> this follows a message just a couple of days ago from the south korean military chief, telling his forces on the border that they should not hesitate

and respond resolutely and powerfully to any north korean provocation. the background to all of this is what happenedding august 4, when a land mine blast on the southern side of the demar occasion line, in the middle of the demilitarized zone, the border between these two countries, went off, severely injuring, maiming to south korean soldiers. one lost both his legs, one lost one leg. they started the north korean anti broadcasts. the north koreans broadcasting south side they would targeted a try to blow up the south korea laud speaker system. this appears to have been an attempt to do just that. >> reporting from seoul. >> thailand is asking interpol for help tracking down the person responsible for monday's deadly bombing.

he is seen in closed circuit video, leaving a backpack at the scene. police want to speak to two other men dressed in red and white who were near the main suspect. authorities think as many as 10 people may have been involved in that bombing that killed 20 and injured more than 100, but they say they do not believe there is any link to any international group, such as al-qaeda. >> there is no controversy this morning over iran's nuclear program. the associated press uncovered a secret agreement between tehran and the international atomic energize agency that would allow iran to use its own experts to inspect a nuclear site. the iaea said it is legally bound to keep it's agreement with iran confidential. >> how the debate over citizenship is defining the gop race.

>> welcome to al jazeera america. it is 7:40 eastern time. taking a look at today's top stories, a first for the mormon church. it appointed three women to high level councils previously filled by men. scholars say the move marks a small but noteworthy step in the push to increase the role of women in the mormon church. >> more antibiotic resistant

super bugs, this time it is near los angeles at a hospital. the scopes suspected have been quarantined. the f.d.a. i should warning letters to several scope manufacturers over how their scopes should be cleaned. >> patriots quarterback tom brady's suspension could be a thing of the past. a federal judge told the nfl he wants the league to reach a deal with the players union but if they cannot before the opener, the judge might throw out the penalty altogether. >> tension are high on the presidential campaign trail. jeb bush and donald trump facing off at dueling town hall events took shots at each other at events just a few miles apart. trump reiterated his stance to all undocumented migrants should be sent back home to their countries. >> we have to straighten out the

problem with illegal immigration. it starts with getting the bad ones, the gangs, you saw it, the gangs in baltimore, you know that, right? did you see the people? you have illegal immigrants in many cases. in chicago, illegal immigrants, the bad ones are getting out fast, day one, if i win, day one of my presidency, they're getting out. we're getting them out and we're getting them out fast. >> trump also said he wondered whether the fourteenth amendment really granted citizenship to those born in the u.s. jeb bush spent his part criticizing what he called trumps vitriolic language, but appearing on a radio show said he supports cracking down on potential exploitation of the immigration system. >> just like citizenship, this is protected, this is the fourteenth amendment. i just don't think it's legitimate to say that we're

going to change our constitution and that's going to solve our problem. i don't think that that's the proper thing to do. there's abuse, if people are bringing pregnant women are coming in to have babies, simply because they can do it, then there ought to be greater enforcement. >> bush argued that donald trump is not a real republican, since he donated more money to democrats in recent years. >> birth right citizenship is also an issue in texas where state officials are refusing to issue birth certificates to the american-born children of undocumented migrants. heidi zhou castro reports. >> an american flag flies outside the texas hospital where this baby was born almost two years ago to an undocumented mother. the mother, juana, asked us not to use the family's last name or show their faces. she was a warrior from birth, juana said of her now 1-year-old.

she spent 20 days in intensive care, fought for her life then and i'm fighting for her now, it fighting for a birth certificate to show proof the would child is a u.s. citizen. after brought to the o, juana had two older children who had no problem getting birth certificates. at the time, hospital records and juana's i.d. card from the consulate were good enough. when she returned to the vital statistic office this year to get a birth certificate for her youngest daughter, the same documents didn't work. >> they told her it was no longer valid. the state of texas is now making it impossible for most undocumented parents to get a birth certificate by requiring documents they can't get. documents like a driver's license, which the state refuses to issue to undocumented immigrants, or a foreign passport with a valid u.s. visa. it wasn't always like this, but a slow shift in state policy

began in 2008, when the texas department of state health services announced it would no longer accept the document due to security concerns. the policy wasn't strictly enforced until last year, when an unprecedented number of undocumented immigrants crossed into the accident and the state launched a lawsuit against the president's executive actions on immigration. >> the timing is interesting, points to the influx of immigrants through texas last summer, the families, mothers and children that came in. >> it was then that dozens of undocumented parents seeking birth certificates for their u.s. born children began complaining of being turned away. >> what are these kids going to do? they have no birth certificates. that's outrageous to me and it's discriminatory. >> this attorney represents 32 texas children and parents in a lawsuit filed against the state of texas this summer.

>> just like everyone else who has children born in the u.s., they have a right to have a birth certificate for that child so they can get medical services for them, enroll them in day care and in school so that they can baptize them and do all sorts of things that every other parent gets to do, but not these parents, only because of their immigration status. >> i asked juana what's wrong if the state's policy dissuades those from coming to girl birth her. she says she understands the controversy, but her daughter shouldn't pay. the child was almost turned away by a doctor. >> what's going to happen if she's in an emergency? will they say they can't treat her because she doesn't have a birth certificate? >> the vital statistics office where she was denied a birth certificate did not respond to al jazeera's response for

comment. we went in search of answers in person. >> i wanted to ask why this office is denying birth certificates to some u.s. born children. >> well this is a state office, we follow the state rules. whatever the state rules are, we have to follow. we don't make our own rules. >> the u.s. constitution says-- >> the secretary did eventually take our question. >> are you aware that most of the people who are trying to use the document are undocumented immigrants who have had children born here and are u.s. citizens and they're the ones now denied the service? >> no. i am not aware of that. basically, when an applicant comes, we request the information required by the state. >> texas has asked a federal judge to dismiss the lawsuit, arguing a state can't be sued without it's own consent. a spokesperson for the department of state health services declined to speak on

camera, but wrote: the lawsuit asked the state to offer another way for undocumented parents to prove identity, like accepting a passport without a u.s. visa. >> the most internationally accepted form of i.d., whether you have a series on the passport or not is completely irrelevant for the identification purposes of the passport. >> the court is considering whether to accept the case or allow it to move forward. >> she should have the same rights as a child born to american parents, juana says and since she's too young to fight for herself, i will fight for her. meanwhile as the first day of school approaches, wapa's daughter may be denied enrollment in preschool and the

mother's desperation will grow. >> heidi zhou castro in texas. >> new controversy over e cigarettes, are they a gateway to the real thing or a key to helping smokers quit?

>> al jazeera america primetime. get the real news you've been looking for. at 7:00, a thorough wrap-up of the day's events. then at 8:00, john seigenthaler digs deeper into the stories of the day. and at 9:00, get a global perspective. weeknights, on al jazeera america. >> he cigarettes, their growing popularity, now a new study out of england said they may be the key to helping smokers quit, but here some researchers say the use of cigarettes especially among teens could be the gateway to using the real thing. we have more. >> what we're encouraging cigarette smokers to do is if

they've tried other things and haven't succeeded, try e-cigarettes. >> a british government agency recommends e cigarettes, as an aid to help people quit smoking for the short and medium term. the study found all of the duties in the u.k. thought to be current users were i believe to stick to e-cigarettes or quit smoking completely. >> the estimates done by a variety of experts suggest that e-cigarettes are about 95% less harmful than smoking. >> they convert nicotine into an inhalable vapor, a healthier option to smoking tobacco. >> there doesn't seem to be appetite for using them

regularly among non-smokers. >> some became regular cigarette smokers according to this study. a new study according to the american journal association contradicts that. >> the teens who use these are more than four times more likely to start smoking than the teens who hadn't used these cigarettes. >> more than 2500 los angeles high school students participated in a study that has moan health professionals alarmed. >> this uptick in adolescent he cigarette use could potentially down the road lead to a new generation of tobacco smokers. >> threatening to derail two decades of progress in reducing teen smoking, according to the centers for disease control, cigarette use among teens has dropped significantly from about 36% of high schoolers in 1997 to less than 16% in 2013, but from 2013 to 2014, egret use among middle school and high school

students tripled. al jazeera. >> al jazeera spoke with michael erickson, the dean of the school of public health at georgia state university. he said e-cigarettes are too newton their dangers. >> i think the 95% estimate is based on opinion of experts. it's not an empirical finding from the result of studies, because e-cigarettes are just too newton what the harm or health effects of it would be, but the principle is accurate, is that there's no question that e-cigarettes are safer than traditional cigarettes, but that needs to be viewed as the traditional cigarettes are the most deadly product on the planet. the new product just burns the nicotine. it doesn't have the type of risk, but that doesn't mean their safe. >> more american e cigarette

users also continue their habit of smoking traditional cigarettes. >> a tiny island in the indian ocean called rue union was thrust into the spotlight when a resident found plane debris there possibly from away missing malaysian airlines jet. it is also a unesco world heritage site. that special status has not helped solve some big problems on the island. >> the area's beauty is recognized as a world heritage site, but five years after becoming a unesco park, its problems haven't been solved. >> we live in the park. there's some pollution from hunting and rubbish. we're helpless to solve it. we thought the park would change

that problem, but nothing happened and now there are more rules. >> they are farming outside the rules. they are suspicious about why they haven't been certified by the park's managers. >> >> the risk i guess that the park once said to be a lodge in a place with farmers. >> more imagines may be needed to cater for the predicted rise in the number of tourists attracted by the park status. there's plenty to see on the island, from soaring peaks and waterfalls to beaches approximate there needs to be a balance between preserving nature's beauty and satisfying the people who live in it. >> the park has a living heart, hundreds of people live inside it, which is rare for a world heritage site. it was the people's choice to be like that. in every life there are rules. living with unesco means respect between people and nature. >> the farmer is supposed to keep his animals behind tensions

now, not roaming free fought forest. this family has farmed here for 100 years, so it's all they know. if they can't exist in what is now a unesco world heritage site, they will have to change. that change when his father retires. without certification, they will have to close the farm, but hope to open a tourism venture instead, so unesco world heritage site status means the family does have a future in the park. it just isn't the one they'd hoped for. >> thank you for joining us. stephanie sy is back in two minutes with more aljazeera america morning news. you can keep up on aljazeera.com. >> we're here to fully get into the nuances of everything that's going on, not just in this country,

but around the world. getting the news from the people who are affected. >> people need to demand reform... >> ali velshi on target weeknights 10:30p et

>> protests in st. louis after police shoot and kill an armed 18-year-old. tensions reignited after the one year anniversary of the death of michael brown. >> south korea and north korea exchange fire, now on high alert. >> flames over take the car of firefighters and three are killed.

>> this is aljazeera america, live from new york city. i'm stephanie sy. tensions are high this morning in st. louis after another deadly police shooting and a night of demonstration. protestors confronted officers after police killed a man who pulled a gun on them. demonstrators were marking the one year anniversary of another fatal shooting. john henry smith is here with more. police are searching for a second suspect. >> that's right. he was with the now dead 18-year-old when police confronted them both. police want to talk with him about what happened. as for the protestors, they were already in the streets when word of this latest shooting raced through the crowd. st. louis police released this dramatic video of an angry crowd, over 100 strong confronting them in the streets. protests and looting erupted in st. louis wednesday after police shot and killed an 18-year-old

they say pointed a gun at him as he ran after they tried to serve a warrant in the city's north side. they say there were drugs and stolen guns at that home. a crowd estimated at 150 gathered at the scene. many of them reportedly had already been in the area protesting the one year anniversary of the police shooting death of a 25-year-old mentally disturbed man wielding a knife. soon the crowd was hurling glass bottles, rocks and bricks. >> a car was set on fire and we are receiving numerous calls now for businesses that are being burglarized and officers responding back to the neighborhood. >> tensions have been high in the st. louis area, as protestors have been marking the one year anniversary of the police shooting of michael brown in ferguson. just last week, police in ferguson shot and wounded the 18-year-old after five straight days of michael brown protests. video afterwards seem to show he was armed. officials insist they handled that incident and this one the

right way. >> an area plagued by violence, plagued by gun violence, police officers were there doing a job we all asked them to do to keep the community safe. protestors came together to do violence directed not only towards law enforcement, but the neighborhood. >> police used tear gas to clear the streets. >> an individual stopped on interstate 70 and blocked traffic, it was ok for police officers to make arrests. traffic is stopped. they're marching through kings highway, a major thoroughfare in this area's trauma center, impacting people's lives. i think there's a line that gets crowd. >> this is the 621st fatal police shooting in the country this year according to the washington post. f.b.i. records show the average is about 400. >> south korea is on high alert after an exchange of heavy

artillery fire. officials say the north fired at a border town. the south responded by fire dozens of shells. this is the first exchange of fire in some years. harry fossett is live in seoul this morning. what the north commented since the reported artillery exchange? >> it certainly has, and it isn't backing down by any stretch. it has ratcheted up the tension by saying that unless saw the korea stops propaganda broadcasts being made from loud speakers from its side of the shared border, within 48 hours from 8g.m.t. on thursday, that will run out on saturday afternoon local time, then it will initiate military action. that's something backed up in the last few minutes by a very senior north korean official, the south korean military said that it will continue its propaganda broadcasts no matter what, all of this very different

from what happened just under a year ago with anti aircraft fire when north korea tried to shoot down propaganda balloons. tensions calmed down rapidly. this team, they've been rash head the up. >> what do they broadcast exactly? >> in the most recent iteration, they've been in place 11 days. they were set up after a land mine blast on the southern side of the military demar occasion line in which a couple of south korean soldiers were severely injured, losing limbs, but they've been around in the past. they haven't been used before this, since 2004. this is part of the south korean retaliation for what they say was a north korean land mine attack, resulting in their soldiers' injuries. as for the contents. we understand that they are relatively mild in terms of the language that they're careful not to be too inflammatory, but

nonetheless, the whole idea of south korean troops broadcasting messages to their north korean counterparts and civilians in the surrounding areas broadcasting any kind of alternative narrative to the one they're given from pyongyang, they are calling that a declaration of war and that they will respond in this military way been 48 hours. >> the context is of course tensions have been rising in recent weeks. what have been some which the other major points of tension recently? >> i think the main issue at stake here has been that land mine blast, which we can after it took place, south korea did say it was a north korean attack. north korea denied that and called on south korea for proof. there was cctv video broadcast by the south korean government afterwards. more broadly, this year had been seen as potentially a chance for these two nations to make some

entreaties towards each other. it's the 70th anniversary of liberation day, the end of japanese colonial rule. there was some hope for that, but obviously it's not happening. >> thai investigators today are trying to find a man they say was responsible for monday's deadly bombing. they don't think there's a link to al-qaeda or isil, but police believe the attack that killed 20 was planned by a network of at least 10 people. we have more from bangkok. >> an official with thailand's national police confirming that they have reached out to interpol for assistance in tracking down this key suspect in the deadly bombing on monday evening. they say that they have given them information about the suspect and they haven't heard back yet, but they are looking for their assistance in tracking down with one individual. we know that there are also two people that they are looking for to question. they were revealed in the close

the circuit tall vision camera footage from the blast site on monday evening. they haven't said they are suspects, but they are interested in speaking with them. we also know coming out of the last several hours on thursday, but also on wednesday, that the administration here in thailand, as well as the police don't believe that this attack that any direct connection to an international terrorist organization. they say that there's no evidence to prove that, but we are at early stages of this investigation. it's going to be going on for weeks and possibly months. they say at this stage, there's no question between what happened here in thailand and international terror groups, but they believe there was a network that was behind that attack and they are seeking out other individuals, this main key suspect, but other individuals who might be involved. >> scott heidler reporting from bangkok. >> a major explosion rocking cairo today, near a national security believe, a car bomb exploded.

six police officers were wounded. we have this report. >> the blast came in the middle of the night in the small suburb of cairo, an explosion so powerful, witnesses fear it was heard and felt far beyond the small district where it was planted. >> we were waiting in the traffic light. it came from all direction, the explosion happened from that direction. all i saw was the flame from the noise. i had people in the car, but thank god, no one happened to anyone and this is the car, as you can see. >> a group going by the name of sinai pro since, aligned with isil, islamic state of iraq and the levant is claiming probable. it said it was behind a car bomb attack in july, targeting the italian consulate in downtown cairo, which killed a passer by. a week ago, it said it beheaded

a croatian. a number of groups have claimed attacks on security believed and personnel in egypt. all protesting egypt said army and the crackdown on dissent, following the removal of president mohamed morsi more than two years ago. >> egypt said revolution began with protests against police brutality. this latest bomb attack comes days after president al sisi ratified a law further expanding police powers. al jazeera. >> washington state today is asking for help from the federal government after three firefighters were killed and another four injured battling a fire. several wildfires have quickly grown in size and intensity, triggering evacuation orders and threatening more homes. >> washington state is asking for help from the federal government, after three firefighters were killed and another four injured battling a

wildfire. the flames overtook a vehicle in central washington. the county sheriff describes horrific conditions. >> this was he will in here, as obvious. it was blowing in every damn direction and we lost three. 290,000-acres burned. firefighters are on the ground along with the national guard, trying to help contain the flames and protect homes. >> the past 10 hours, we're up here, it's hot. i got new boots yesterday. we're breaking them in, getting blisters on my heels. >> nearly 100 fires are burning across the west from california to oregon, forcing thousands to evacuate. >> obviously we're going to have to find a place to live for probably a couple of years, because just getting anything done up here and then we're going to start working on this, cleaning up, and take it one day at a time at this point.

>> winds are expected to calm over the next two days, helping fire crews gain more control of the names. >> on the presidential campaign trail, jeb bush and donald trumped faced off at dueling town hall events. they took shots at each other wednesday. jeb bush pointed out donald trump has a non-republican record, trump called others boring. >> the only thing constant is trump. the other things change, going up and down like yoyos. >> govern walker? who? who? they're going to spend a huge amount of money on fighting trump, and i say i think that's ok. haven't you sort of heard everything already? it's sort of getting boring. >> trump doesn't have a proven conservative record. he was a democratic longer in the last decade than he was a

republican. he's given more money to democrats than he's given to republicans. it is not a conservative record. even on immigration, where it's, you know, look, it's the language is pretty vitriolic for sure, but hundreds of billions of dollars of cost to implement his plans is not a conservative plan. >> on immigration, trump reiterated his position that birth right citizenship should no longer be given. jeb bush said while he supports granting birth right citizenship to the children of immigrants, the policy needs greater enforcement. >> presidential candidate hillary clinton is now the subject of a potential criminal investigation over her use of a personal email server. her lawyer admitted to a senate committee, the server had been wind clean before turned over to the f.b.i. david shuster has more. >> did you wipe the server? >> well like with a clot or something? i don't know. >> while hillary clinton is using jokes to brush aside her email controversy, law enforcement sources tell al

jazeera the f.b.i. team examining her email server is treating the case as a potential criminal investigation. clinton insists she did not break any laws. >> i did not send classified material and i did not receive any material that was marked or designated classified, which is the way you know whether something is. >> u.s. criminal code title 18 section 1924 makes it a misdemeanor punishable by up to a year in prison to keep documents or materials containing classified information at an unauthorized location, and aviation of the statute does not depend on the document or materials he being starched or marked as classified. an intelligence community inspector general has already reported to congress that at least two of the clinton emails hills office reviewed out of 40 contained material considered top secret, the highest classification. f.b.i. sources note that agency

director james comey has aggressively investigated public officials on these issues in the past. three years ago, the f.b.i. found evidence that david petraeus, the former army general and c.i.a. director turned over classified information to biographer he was having an affair with. he eventually pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor and was find and sentenced to probation. clinton defenders considering the petraeus comparison is unfair, because his approach to classified material was intentional. in contrast, clinton said that her personal email system was linked to the mishandle of government information, it was inadvertent. >> in retrospect, this wasn't convenient at all and i regret this has become such a cause celebre. >> emails were turned over to

the state department not in digital form with the metadata attached, but in 55,000 printed pages, then they deleted emails they considered personal and tried to erase the home server. >> in order to be as cooperative as possible, we have turned over the server. they can do whatever they want to with the server to figure out what's there and what's not there. that's for the, you know, people investigating it to try to figure out. >> law enforcement officials say the f.b.i. will be able to recreate at least some of the deleted information on the server, and in addition to tracing the handling of classified material, officials say investigators will try to determine if mrs. clinton failed to turn over or tried to eliminate emails that might have been of interest to congressional investigators. such conduct could qualify as obstruction of justice, a felony under statute jump dated in 2002 and that mrs. clinton as senator voted for.

law enforcement sources say dozens of analysts and investigators are now working on the email examination. >> nobody talked to me about it. >> even as the clinton campaign tries to dismiss it. david shuster, al jazeera. >> on the agenda today, former president jimmy carter will speak in a few hours about his cancer diagnosis. it will be carter's first comments on his health since he made the disclosure last week p.m. soccers governing body meets with commercial partners today, focusing on reforming the organization, which has been plagued by corruption. >> a slo slow vain i can'ten rok band will perform, the first in the country. >> we'll talk about how much of cult u. is affect by fifa.

>> remembers an archeologist killed by isil. he had worked for decades in palmyra, a world heritage site. we have this report. >> for half a century, he was a guardian of the ancient roman ruins. it's here where the 82-year-old is believed to have been beheaded by islamic state of iraq and the levant. before the syrian conflict, the ancient buildings and theater drew tourists from around the world. he oversaw years of research and restoration at the word heritage site, gaining international recognition. >> he was so much involved in part of the city and part of the culture and archaeology of that place, that he would live there and die there if need be and that he did pay the ultimate price. >> assad showed foreign dig

tears around the side, including the former french president. then the war came to palmyra. fighting between syria rebels and government forces peppered the buildings with bullet holes. after capturing the site from government forces, isil arrived. he stayed to help evacuate the museum's valuable contents, but was taken hostage and reportedly interrogated. isil has destroyed hundreds of heritage sites across syria and iraq. sledge hammers and power drills have been used to ruin priceless artifacts. some fragments of human history have been successfully smuggled out of the conflict zone. it is not known how much damage they caused in palmyra. it is believed isil may have sold some artifacts to help finance their campaign. the human cost is clear. this video shows 25 men in a packed am theater before their

apparent execution. now the beheading of a renowned archeologist ho devideo his life to the ancient city at cross rods of civilization now at mercy of isil. >> the author of my house in damascus and expert in syrian cultural heritage joins us from london this morning. dianna, thank you for your time. what is your reaction to this archeologist's murder? >> it's a huge loss. this man devoted his life to palmyra. he was an expert in the dialects, one of the very few people who could read it. he really did pain the ultimate price. to betray the whereabouts of any treasure for him would have been the ultimate betrayal, but it is

a huge loss. >> as you say, it's reported that he wouldn't give isil information on where some of the artifacts had been hidden. what does that tell you about isil's true intentions in palmyra. >> well of course, they see it as a treasure trove, this is a huge archeological site. it extends over about 10 square kilometers. there is so much which is unexcavated and there are many things to be found beneath the ground, and it would take, you know, decades, probably to excavate it properly, so of course, isil's only interest is exploit those treasures that lie hidden, and to sell them to if i am its own coffers. >> it's unclear how many treasures remain, because the syrian government has said that most of them were brought to damascus for safe-keeping. >> well, that's right. of course, everything that could be moved was moved, but by its

very nature, i mean a lot of the statuary there and tombs are far to huge to move. i think what isil have been trying to get at from him was the location of some of the buried places, the huge me crop listen of too manies. none will be known about except by a handful of experts. they were trying to make an example of him showing if you don't tell us where these treasures are, this is what we'll do to you, so no doubt, they'll be interrogating quite a few more, i expect in the future. >> we have been focusing on it as a heritage site, but what is the side we are not hearing much about? >> palmyra, to people in the

west, of course it was always the highlight of any trip to syria, the huge massive draw, visually one of the most evocative sights. we've seen the sights now overlooking the ruins, massively huge area, on the edge of an oasis, the silk routes, the car vans taking the trade between the mediterranean and the euphrates, but for syrians, it is synonymous with the local prison. it always had this kind of double edged identity for most local people in the know. of course isis has blown up that, one of the first things they did on taking palmyra was to blow up that prison in a very symbolic act as sort of to blow up assad's prison, if you like. >> the point being that palmyra

is not just a cultural site, a strategic site for isil, as well as symbolic of the assad regime. thank you so much for your expertise this morning. >> new bailout money arrived just in time for greece to make a new debt payment. it will be used to pay off suppliers and the european central bank. greece needs to pay that bank $3 billion today. >> a tom addition on a prep school campus detailed in court. we'll analyze a new hampshire rape case where prosecutors say high school seniors preyed on underage students. >> after hurricane katrina, some neighborhoods have bounced back, others are still in desperate need of help.

>> welcome back to aljazeera america. it is 8:29 eastern. taking a look at today's top stories. thailand is asking interpol for help tracking down the man who left a backpack at the scene of the deadly bombing. they want to speak to two men dressed in red and white who were there. authorities think as many as 10 planned the attack. >> washington state is asking for more federal help after three firefighters died battling wildfires. four others were injured after new fires flared up wednesday. 3600 homes are threatened and several towns are under evacuation orders. >> tensions renewed in st. louis after an armed man was shot and killed by police last night. about 150 people gathered at the scene, throwing bottles and bricks. officers were serving a warrant when the man pointed a gun at them, said officers, and they

then opened fire. this is the latest violence in the area as the region marks one year after violent protests surrounding the death of michael brown. some people who tack part in the protests last year are now finding they will have to answer for them. >> one year after the massive police response to the unrest following the death of michael brown, st. louis county had just now begun sending summonses to many of the people swept up during the unrest. the police response was widely criticized, as heavy-handed and unconstitutional, as militarized police cracked down on even peaceful protests, tactics the justice department said helped incite riots rather than diffuse them. >> washington post reporter and reporter for the huffington post were arrested while covering the story in a ferguson mcdonald's. they got their summonses just a

few days ago. >> to have these charges pop up a year later was shocking to me. it wasn't something i was expecting to come, especially since they rebuffed every attempt by us to receive any paper or document al jazeera about these charges. >> the american civil liberties union and a dozen other organizations called issuing summons now a blatant violation of constitutional rights and an appalling ms. us of our overburdened court system. the group asked to help do the right thing by dismissing the cases. st. louis county's municipal justice system is already under intense scrutiny for racial bias and issuing tickets to generate revenue. the justice department has called ferguson's court a mechanism for making money on the backs of the poor. the aclu set up a web page to help people who received summons find legal representation. last week, a protest marking the

one year anniversary of brown's death, hundreds nowhere were arrested. >> a teenager who has accused an elite new england prep school graduate of rape will be back on the witness stand. he was a senior at the school when prosecutors say he raped the 15-year-old girl last year. they say it was part of a ritual called senior salute where upper class man court younger students for sex p.m. he took her to a remote clothing, removed her clothing, bit her and raped her. >> i didn't want any of this. i was so confused. i didn't know what else i could do. i had already said no, and i had already moved his face physically. i didn't know what else he could understand from that. >> st. paul school has a long list of prominent alumni, including secretary of state john kerry. officials there say the allegations do not represent the

culture or values of the school. >> lynn phillips joins us from the university of massachusetts this morning, she's a social and developmental psychologist who focuses on the issue of violence against women. i want to focus on the roots of what we're talking about here. what did this case highlight about hour culture? >> >> i think that's exactly the question to ask, while this case is so disturbing and people want to focus on the individual perpetrator and individual school, this is really about our culture. it's about the toxic messages that we send to boys and girls about masculinity and femininity, how to be popular, about the media, the messages kids take in that when boys are told being a guy is about getting everything you can and girls are told being a successful woman is about being the desired one.

you put that together in a context of privilege, in a context where kids haven't been invited or given the opportunity to rule unpack those messages and outcomes like this are not surprising. >> some have called it rape culture. do you see this as being more pervasive in society today than ever before? >> i think it's been around for probably forever, but because of the media messages, kids seeing porn in very early years often filled with contempt for women, there are many more mechanisms to communicate cultural messages and kids are taking them in earlier and earlier. when kids confront those messages right in the moment in early adolescence, puberty, awakening to their own sexual desires, those ideas get locked into how they're supposed to be, so we see rituals, whether the

senior salute or frat parties on campus that are pimps and hoes scenes, we see it everywhere. >> in culture, does that reflect how young men will behave later with women? >> unfortunately, you know, it can. certainly most men are not rapists, most are not taking it to the level that the person involved in this case is accused of doing. but i hear more often, men who put up with this, who witness this among their friends, and who don't say anything, because he wouldn't be a real game if he did that, he would be seen as lame and not cool. it's something we all collude in. it's something that boys and men push way beyond women's boundaries and it is rape, but it is something that is a deeper cultural phenomenon. >> when you look at this school,

privileged prep school, is there anything about that environment that makes these campus rootuals for pref sent? >> i've bun interviews in high schools, colleges be elite settings and public settings. we do see it everywhere. there is something about the mix of elitest culture and male privilege is celebrated. when those two come together, we see disastrous consequences like we saw in this case. >> thank you this morning. appreciate your time. >> the federal government is opening an investigation into a toxic mine spill in colorado. the interior department will lead the review after elected officials from bolt parties questioned by the e.p.a. handled the spill. workers accidentally spilled 3 million-gallons of sludge as they were inspecting an abandoned mine. the e.p.a. is conducting its own

review, as well. >> the former president of a west virginia company responsible for a toxic spill last year could spend time in jail. he pleaded guilty wednesday. we were there as he entered the courthouse. >> mr. southern, rob ray, aljazeera america. have you talked to the many resident that is your company put out? >> sir, we are not going to be commenting to the media at this point. >> moments later in federal court, former freedom industry's president gary southern pled guilty to three federal pollution charges related to a chemical spill that poisoned the water for 300,000 people. >> i believe that it is to send the message that if you engage in this sort of conduct, you're exposed to jail time. executives are used to writing checks for things. they are not used to checking their three piece suit for a

jailhouse. >> i feel anger and frustration. i hope that we -- there's some kind of restitution paid to the citizens, and whether that's in the form of a chemical safety program, i'm really keenly interested in the water company and what they did or didn't do. >> mccoy said she still suffers symptoms. >> i started getting very sick at my stomach and light headed. >> two months after the spill, in january of 2014, mccoy had a difficult time functioning at home and work, yet she says doctors told mer the symptoms would go away over time. >> nobody's monitoring our symptoms. no one has contacted me, no one has asked me, you know, do you still have health issues. >> mccoy said she has repeatedly contacted the water company. the e.p.a. and south medical help since the spill. still, she is looking for answers from the government, and those responsible. >> i was going to confront them.

i wanted to get in their face and say do you know how much health problems you've caused, and that's for me, a 40 something-year-old healthy woman. what about the children? do you understand that those dallas that you made have destroyed, has seriously injured lives? you know, are you -- is it computing in your brain? >> many in charleston think the local government is just sweeping this all under the rug. >> they thought people weren't paying attention so passed a pretty comprehensive especially for them, a comprehensive piece of environmental legislation and then they when people looked away kind of stripped it. i don't think much has changed there. >> for those that live there in what is known as chemical valley, it does not come as a surprise. >> people need to take responsibility for their

properties. 'm need to inspect, especially if they could affect a water supply that serves 300,000 people. >> with the federal prosecution of freedom industries finished, one big question remains for people in charleston, is the water safe. >> you know, i don't think the water system is safe. we don't have -- no changes have been made. we still don't have a second intake. we don't have a source water protection plan. we don't have probably enough stored water, and so we are as vulnerable as we were on january 8. >> a year and a half after the freedom industry spill left 300,000 people unable to bathe or drink the water for weeks on end. robert ray, al jazeera, charleston, west virginia. >> a 17-foot wide sinkhole in florida is said to be refilled

today. it's in the same spot where a man died two years ago. he was asleep when the floor collapsed beneath him in 2013. his body was never recovered. the property has been fenced off, the house demolished and hole filled in. the sinkhole reopened because of heavy rain and severe dry spots that caused the ground to weak june a decade after hurricane katrina tore through new orleans, the government claims widespread success in rebuilding the city. residents say many of them have been left behind. >> even 10 years later, abandoned homes and overgrown lots are easy to spot across new orleans joanne incredible amount of change. >> the mayor said the city's all out war on blight is working, cleaning the most visible scars from the storm. >> we've taken blight down faster in this city than anywhere else in america. we created a public forum for citizens to come to. >> following cat arena, city

leaders estimated there were more than 45,000 blighted properties in new orleans. in five years, they say that's been reduced by more than 10,000. some were torn down by that the city, but much of the change came from neighbors and non-profits renovating and rebuild. that was the case in the city neighborhood where floodwater reached the roofs and most homes were lost. >> this neighborhood required you to do something. we have a neighborhood association and they're not going to let you stand by and not do anything. >> a couple miles away, some neighbors never came back. >> it's like a jungle. >> yeah. >> her neighbor has been fighting to get this home next to his torn down. >> i went to city hall last year five times in a row. >> the city website that the tracks the status of properties show the long history of violations against the home. the property is now in the abatement phase, meaning it could soon be demolished.

>> it's in their eyes, in their face. >> councilwoman company sponsored ordinances aimed at making things easier for people like carl, including one that allows the city to cut grass on private property and tack the cost on to the owner's property tax bill. the city started to expedite the inspection and hearing process. still, cantrell said new orleans lacks and overall strategy. >> focus on blight that's around these investments and you start to then drill down on those properties and you create a tip and you move from there on out. >> even now, it's not fully clear how many blighted properties there are. the city largely bases progress on a study by the university of new orleans tracking blighted property since 2006. >> it's understanding that some people look at the statistics and don't feel it applies to their neighborhood.

some are much worse than the overall statistic. >> some argue say it's unfair we've reduced blight by x number of homes when there's no accurate complete list of those homes. >> well, i don't -- people can say whatever they want. i don't think there's any doubt that we have moved the ball in the right direction. >> for carl, it's not moving fast enough. jonathan martin, al jazeera, new orleans. >> we're expecting to see and hear from the two women making history, the first to graduate from the army's ranger school. it comes as the navy seals are opening the doors to women who can get through their grueling training program. we have more. obviously it is a big step forward. >> it could have a profound impact on the role of women in the military. the pentagon now is considering whether to open combat positions to women, including integratele them into front line infantry and command units.

the result could help settle the debate. >> two women make history, becoming the first females to graduate from the army ranger school, 61 days of grueling training with a drop out rate of 60%. one of the 26 women who tried out, she only made it through eight days of the rigorous process. >> in the end, it's that you are gender ends up not mattering. it matters what you bring to the table and what you're capable of doing. all those labels fall away. that's just my personal experiences, but it's about who you are, not what you are. >> as the pentagon considers whether any combat job should be closed to women, the idea that if you can meet the same standards as men, you should be able to do the same job is gaining support. >> if they can meet the standard, they should be able to go. i think that's how we want to operate as we move forward. >> this week, the navy plans to open its elite seal team to women who can pass the grueling

training regiment, as well. the admiral tells the navy times why shouldn't anybody who can meet these standards be accepted? the answer is there is no reason. regardless of any policy shift, those who advocate for women in the front lines say the work will be far from over. marine captain is one of the people who sued the defense department three years ago to revise its policy to include women in combat. >> there's going to be a first woman riding on a tank. there's going to be that first woman in artillery, and every one of those women is going to be held to a higher standard, face stricter scrutiny. she's going to be belittled and mocked and assume that she can't do the job. none of that's going to be fair but if she doesn't go through that, the next women who come behind her will have it just a little easier. >> not everyone agrees opening combat opportunities for women is the answer. montana senator, a former navy seal spoke about it in a radio interview after the government announced plans to integrate

women in previously closed combat jobs two years ago. >> it isn't about that females can't contribute. they can, but unilaterally across the board, there's an unintended consequence. it provides a distraction and weakens the force. >> the army is expected to run another army training course. >> a lot of debate on this. thank you. >> the new warning this morning over your work and your health. a new study says anyone working more than 40 hours a week may have serious medical problems. >> if you are part of the ice bucket challenge, your health is paying off. the new information found, thanks to all that money raised.

>> i think we're into something that's

>> welcome to al jazeera america. it is 8:50 eastern.

at least seven people are dead after a midair plane collision in slovakia. the planes were carrying dozens of parachutists. some jumped out to survive. forty people were onboard the two planes. they were training for an air show this weekend. >> california's drought emergency is having severe effects on the state's ground water supply. officials released a list of 21 ground water basins that have been deep pleaded by pumping. some areas are sinking half an inch per month because of all the pumping. >> a california woman is suing costco for selling shrimp that may have been caught and packaged using slave labor. the complaint is over shrimp imported from thailand. the lawsuit aims to stop them from selling it. costco is working with officials a to guarantee the shrimp is fairly caught. >> the affordable care act has gone into effect two years ago,

but 22% of those still uninsured live in the accident. a cancer patient fell into the coverage gap. we checked with her to see how she's doing now. >> i try not to think in the far future. >> when we first met paula, she was making less than $10,000 a year and hoping her cancer would stay in remission. without health insurance, she wouldn't have been able to afford treatment. >> if it was to return, or filled develop another type of cancer, i would just have to let it take me out. >> two years later, she remains cancer-free, but her income is below the federal poverty line. that means she still does not qualify for government subsidize the health insurance. 1 million texans are in the same situation. they remain in what's called the health care gap created when the u.s. supreme court ruled in 2012 that states could ignore an

affordable care act mandate to expand medicaid programs to cover everyone under the poverty line. texas chose not to expand its mid cade prom, which only covers the poorest of the moor and obamacare is only available to people above the poverty line. >> it doesn't seem fair to me. >> people who fall in the gap like paula are still without health insurance today. >> politicians cannot come down out of their ivory towers and get down in the real trenches. >> al jazeera, texas. >> the nation's largest movie theater chain is adding new security measures. regal group is starting random inspections of bags, backpacks and purses at its theaters. the decision comes after two separate movie theater attacks this summer. on the facebook page, moviegoers will boycott the chain, one user writing your policy of searching bags is a recipe for disaster. >> another asked, a lot of

concealed carriers actually carry on their person. are you going to do body searches? it is said the move is to ensure the safety of our guests and employees. the chain operates 7300 screens across the country. >> working long hours could have a serious impact on your health. new research links overtime to the risk of stroke. there's been a lot of studies that link graveyard shift hours with health, but this is a big one. >> yeah, involving more than 6,000 people. we've heard people say my boss is working me to death. now it's possible. there may be some scientific backing for that, that too much work can be hazardous to your health. people who work more than 55 hours a week have a higher risk of stroke and heart attacks than people who work the standard 40 hours. the study found that working

excessive hours increased stroke risk by 33%. there was a lesser risk of heart disease. researchers reviewed more than 40,000 to do studies of 600,000 men and women doing the analysis. they point a factors, too much alcohol, people who tend to work longer hours seem to be also prone to drink more alcohol. that can be a health risk. also lack of exercise. people who work long hours often find themselves sitting for hours, then being too tired to exercise. then there's stress, a well known health risk. >> a lot of us could have written this study. thank you. >> the ice bucket challenge raised millions for research into a.l.s. and scientists are seeing the fruits of those

donations. we have this report. >> it's the fundraising campaign that inundated social media, suddenly everyone's facebook feed was raising money for a.l.s. we saw the rich and famous join in, bill gates, open practice, jimmy fallon. >> i guess they want to see whether or not it's my real hair. >> president obama was mom nailed, but refused ocean it wasn't very presidential. bush 43 tried the same tactic. >> i'm simply going to write you a first check. >> bullet first lady had other ideas. even i elbowed everyone out of the way for the best backdrop in new york. what a silent for soar eyes, not the empire state building, but me in shorts. raising cash this way is not new, but the charity pulled in $115 million last year, compared to $2.8 million in 2013.

all these liquid assets have been put to good use. researchers credit the challenge with helping unravel the mystery behind a protein which in more than 90% of a.l.s. cases is dysfunctional. >> i think we finally figured it out. the best part is, it can be fixed. with any luck, this could lead to a cure or at least slowing down the disease. >> the researchers joined in the fun, however say the work is ongoing, but they do hope this is the first of many discoveries funded by future ice bucket challenges. al jazeera, new york. >> that's it for us here in new york. thanks for watching and be sure to join us at 10:00 a.m. eastern for live coverage of former president jimmy carter's news conference on his cancer diagnosis.

>> the lifeline of the american west. >> what does this river mean to you? >> the river, to me, means homeland. >> in danger of running dry. >> there'll come a time when we fight over every last drop of water in the river. >> where's the water going? >> i worry about the future generations - what are they going to have? >> faultlines investigates the shrinking colorado river. >> no group of people can have their american dream... we have to pay that price.

>> katrina was really a wake-up call. >> one of the worst catastrophes in u.s. history. >> most of south louisiana is all sediment, plant growth and decay... there's always a risk of flooding. >> now, new cutting edge technology that could help prevent future disasters... >> the system has really evolved. >> and what it means for new orleans. >> our big take away is new orleans is on a good track, but the job is not done here. >> techknow investigates 10 years after katrina.

>> hello, welcome to the al jazeera news hour from doha. coming up: >> tensions rise at one of the world's most heavily militarized borders, north and south korea exchange fire. >> in yemen, a bomb kills four people in the southern city of aden. >> u.k. and french officials join forces to work on the refugee crisis in calais.