expensive these sentences turned out to be. i'm ray suarez and that's the "inside story." this is "al jazeera america" live from new york city. i am david shuster. just ahead, the struggle over sirry -- syria. >> it is nothing less than to chart a course out of hell. >> alleys and opponents are meeting to try to find a solution to the civil war. u.s. special forces are now answering syrian -- entering syrian territory. in the aegean sea, the surge of refugee says growing.

the death toll is rising. thousands of non-violent drug fell options are getting an early release from prison. the number of american children playing team sports is dropping. experts say it's a reaction to pushy parents. >> we begin this hour with a shift in the u.s. mission against isil. the obama administration announced today the u.s. will deploy about 50 special operations troops in northern syria to work with local forces. this is the first time that american troops will be openly on the ground in syria. currently, the special forces are based in northern iraq and were involved in a raid last week against an isil-run prison. national security correspondent jamie mcintire is in the pentagon. the expansion of the u.s. forces

into syria geographically doesn't seem like such a big deal. how significant is the actual policy change? >> well, david, on numerous occasions, president obama has said over the past few years that the u.s. would not put boots on the ground in syria but today, the white house announced that some combat troops will indeed be planting their boots on syrian soil, just not in a combat mission, at least not for now. >> unlike last week's joint u.s. kurdish raid on an isil prison in iraq, the pentagon says the small number of u.s. special operations troops being sent to northern syria will not be going along with local forces on raids or engaging in offensive combat. a senior defense department official briefing reporters at the pentagon on background said flatly, those forces will be doing a strictly advise and assist mission, not going out and doing joint operations. the white house called it any

intensefication of the kurd strategy. >> the fact is, our strategy in syria hasn't changed. the core of our military strategy inside of syria is to build up the capacity of local forces to take the fight to isil on the ground in their own country. >> the pentagon says it's a straight up, no kidding advise and assist role limited to helping moderate civil rebel forces with planning, tactics and logistics. and it says u.s. forces won't do joint raids, calling airstrikes or even establish their own headquarters, at least not initially. the pentagon says the force of fewer than 50 american command owes will showk deploy from the united states over the next few weeks to an area of northern syria near raqqa where a loose aluces of about a dozen groups the u.s. maz dubbed the syrian/arab coalition has had some success against isil. it's far from the western part of syria where russia has been conducting airstrikes. the pentagon says while it

hasn't communicated or coordinated with moscow, it expects the russians to stay safe and responsible distance away. the u.s. is also doubling the number svenning aircraft at turkey's air base adding a dozen f-15s to the dozen a-10 ground attack planes that just rotated in last month. that's to make good on a promise to step up the pace of the air campaign which slowed in october for a lack of targets. >> the u.s. says the special operations forces will have no combat duties in syria. it has not ruled out an expanded role in the future. one senior defense official put it: the u.s. is not as comfortable with the syrian fighters as it was with the kurdish peshmerga fighter troops it has worked with for years. the official said, quote, this is just a start to see what's possible, which could indicate an expanded roll down the road. david? >> jamey, the pentagon says

there will be no joint raids in syria right now, but how does what's happening in syria and the mish there change the tempo if at all for special forces and the joint efforts they are making with the xurdish peshmerga you mentioned aed in iraq? >> well, the pentagon is staying is still will conduct joint operations with the kurds in northern iraq as it did in that rescue mission because it says it's beg working side-by-side with those troops for quite some time. again, the panel would be for the u.s. troops to hang back and let the kurdish troops do the fighting. but as we saw, often the u.s. troops could also be drawn into combat. by the way, the u.s. also says it will conduct raids in syria just not with any of the local fighters. if they have an opportunities, u.s. special forces will, as they have done in the past, go in and conduct a unilateral raid with the u.s. troops only if there is some objective or high value target that they can go after. so they are not rolling that out they are just saying for now, these special forces are really just going to train and equip.

they are not going to go out with the syrian fighters until they get a better handle on what they are capable of doing and where their loyaltiesly. >> al jazeera's zamy mcintire. thank you. on the ground in syria, this was a very bloody day. syrian government forces shelled a popular market in duma, a suburb of damascus killing more than 60 people. also today, syrian government airstrikes in aleppo took the lives of more than 50 people. at least 7 people are said to have died in russian airstrikes east of aleppo. those attacks came as top diplomats met again in vienn ha aust treat i can't to discuss potential diplomatic for syria. john kerry and his counterparts emerged with a clear disagreement about whether syrian president bashar assad should remain in power. mohammed jamjoon has more from ve any. >> reporter: they were two very long extremely arduous days.

but at last, some common ground on syria was forged. >> at the conclusion of this latest round of talks, u.s. secretary of state john kerry was happy to list the points of mutual understanding reached in vienna. syria's unity, index, territory y'all integrity and secular character are fundamental. we agree that syria's state institutions will remain intact. we agreed that the rights of all syrians regardless oftha ethnicity or religious denomination must be protected. >> diplomats had hoped the presents of iran might finally, lead to a breakthrough. while the sense of guarded optimism may have bolstered these efforts at diplomacy, it yielded no results to ends the blood shed on the battlefield. >> on friday, in syria, dozens more with killed in a missile attack on a crowded marketplace in duma. >> in aleppo province, 25

locations were hit bite russian and syrian regime airstrikes claiming at least eighty more lives. >> just 1 more reason the opposition activists who gathered outside of the site of the negotiations were so angry. chanting against syrian bashad assad while expressing how distrustful they were of these efforts to end the war in their hold land. >> we object because we know they will not vote for it. they have a chance for five years. can you imagine. five long years with all of this. so how will we expect any good of this? >> for its part, russia, of herly criticized for its involvement in syria, went to great pains to suggest it was heati heeding the concerns of the international community. >> russia is committed today fighting terrorism on the basis of its national laws whether we are talking about military internalventions from the air or on the ground, both need to be

conducted with the agreement of the government or the u.n. security council. >> with this renewed sense of urgency over syria, everyone now wonders what will come next. with diplomatic talks scheduled to continue in two weeks time here in vienna, it's still unclear if members of the syrian opposition or members of the syrian regime will be invited to join in. while numerous points of mutual understanding were indeed reached here in vienna, the only thing that's for certain is that no matter whoparticipates, the talks will be difficult. mohammed jamjoom. vienna. >> the civil war in syria conflicts across the middle east create a flood of refugees. in the aegean sea, dozens have drowned trying to sail from turkey to greece and on land at several crowded border posts, tensions are flooding. >> at the slough ennian border, fights break out.

7,000 refugees there have been trying to get past austrian police. austria's government is accusing slougheen i can't of putting refuge edes on a train and dumping them at this border. thousands more are en route to the same location. on the coast of the greek islan islands, there was a grim reminder again today of the cost to refugee children when boats capsized. this was the scene as the bodies were brought to shore. in the past two days, three ship wrecks have killed 31 people, most of them children. the traggee is unfolding off of the greek islands. al jazeera's john tsoropolous has the story. >> reporter: they barely made it with the vessel leaning, chronically overloaded with he have refugees, this pleasure boat was lucky to reach the island of lesbos. many swam the final few meters to the rocky shore. out of the aegean people are dying every day.

a surge in arrivals has overwhelmed authorities on land and sea. on lsesbos they have averaged 7 to 8,000 a day. authorities say it's partly due to pressure from turkish simultaneouslers to maximize business before winter. >> when you enter into this type of criminal business, there is no, i think, respect for human lifes, and i think for the smugglers, this is like dealing with cargo shipments probably. >> the surge means more loss of life at sea, but, also, pressure on camps as people await registration. still waiting for his travel documents is afghan faisa faisal alisadr. he paid the price for working as an interpreter by being hunted down by the resurgent taliban. >> they shoot bullets put letter on my door. when my dad got the letter, my dad told me, calling on your

life and your family life. take the money and get out of afghanistan. go wherever you want to go. don't come back in my home. >> faisal has waited for two years for an american visa. he can wait no more and is asking for protection in europe. this camp built for 1500 is overrun by more than twice that many. they now spill over barbed wire fences into the surrounding olive groves. there is no running water, nothing to eat, and no where to sit down. only children manage to escape briefly from these daily realities. this is greece's first eu hot spot where new arrivals are screened. >> there is room for about 10,000 people in camps like these across the country. but grease has now been forced to raise that capacity to 50,000. most of it in government-built temporary shelters. the remainder in private housing. >> grease says that europe needs to do more.

>> i want to say that as a european leader, i feel shame, shame both for the inability to of europe to deeffectively with this resume crisis but for the quality of the debate. >> greece now has to build its new capacity as the processing expect dawns that rivals may not pause to let the winter pass. john psoropoulos in the eastern aegean. >> in romania, there are reports of a nightclub explosion and fire and some reports that at least 25 people have been killed. it happened in the capitol of buck rest. the deputy prime minister reported the deaths and another official said the death totalled could climb. at least 88 people were admitted to hospitals. one-survivor said there was a stampede to get out of the club. up next on al jazeera america, thousands of con fixed are receiving early releases. we will explain who got picked and why. plus debate, politics and

fallout. the republican national that will cnbc just cancelled the date. we will bring you an update on the latest dangerous flooding in rain-drenched texas.

more rain is in the forecast for flood-soaked texas on top of the 16 inches of rain some areas got today. raging rivers between the cyprus creek are forcing road closures, tornados and gusty winds ripped apart buildings near san antonio. in austin, at the city's airport, the flooding was so bad in the air traffic control tower, the airport had to close for a few hours. across the united states, the largest ever release of federal prisoners is now underway. about 6,000 convicts serving sentences for non-violent drug offenses are being set 3. jennifer london is following

this story in los angeles. jennifer? >> david, the bureau of prison typically releases about 70,000 inmates a year, but this release is different because this is a one-time mass release. as you said, the majority of those being set free have been serving lengthy sentences for non-violent drug crimes. >> it's not exactly a get out of jail free card but the largest one-time release of federal prisoners does meet thousands will get out early. it's part of an effort by the sentencing commission to reduce overcrowding and shorteden sentence did for low-level drug offenders. about a year ago, the commission reduced prinlz time for a number of drug crimes and decided to make that change retro active for convicts already serving time. >> it's a matter of obvious fairness that people that are in prison serving time for crimes that people coming in now would serve shorter sentences for will now benefit from the reform.

these people that are being released, they have served on average nine years already for a drug offense. in other countries, it's almost unheard of for someone to go to prison for that much time for a drug offense. >> for the past year, the justice department has been working to ensure there are enough probation officers to oversee those getting out early. of the 6,000 prisoners who will be released some 1700 will be handed overhead to i am grieings to deportation. 4300 will be handed overhead to pronation officers around the country. texas will see the largest number with 597 followed by florida with 310. illinois will receive 260. california, 250. and north carolina, 227. the average number going to any one state is 80. the majority of prisoners being released have been serving long sentences for drug crimes. >> this is not a slap on the wrist that they have experienced. the sentencing commission in the past and the federal government in the past has had instances

where it's shortened prisoner sentences and found when prisoners have gotten out earlier, they haven't had higher rates of revidvism than people who had served longer sentences. >> since the 1980s, the federal inmate populations han increased by nearly 800 percents putting alarming pressure on the nation's prison system for years, the obama administration has been pushing for criminal justice reform. over the summer, the president went on unprecedented tour of a federal prison in oklahoma. >> we have to recondition whether 20 year, 30 year life sentences for nine non-violent crimes is the best way for us to solve these problems. >> mr. chairman -- >> in a rarely seen display of bi-partisan con senses, it was agreed mass incarceration has failed. a reform bill was introduced that would lower the three strikes mandatory life sentence.

>> i have never had a deep regard for mandatory minimum sentences. >> our current system has produced some specific instances of severe and excessive sentences. >> we need to really realize that we have been excessive in our incarceration and will be better served if we don't put people in prison for such a long amount of time and invest some of that money to crime prevention, drug treatment programs. this is the position we should be going in. >> a year from now, a second wave of 8500 prisoners will also be let out early. >> federal judges were responsible for deciding which prisoners would be given an early release and david, it's worth noting, according to the sentencing commission, about 26% of prisoners who petitioned for an early release were ultimately denied. >> jennifer london reporting from los angeles. jennifer, thank you. stanley richards joins us now, a

senior senior vice president helping ex prisoners reintig great into society. welcome. >> thank you. >> thousands of people being released. what is the biggest challenge that any one of them will face? >> well, we have been advocating and talking about the challenges we face as a country in terms of incarceration, mass incarceration and re-entry. we are going to see 9,000 or 6,000 people coming home, 43,000 next year we are going to see men and women coming home who will be in need of house, in need of substance abuse and mental health and the resources necessary for them to rebuild their life. >> in general across the country, do those resources exist? >> very little resources exist in that way. we see 570 omen and women each year coming to go back to school, get a job, find housing, engage in substance abuse treatment, mental health. that's a drop in the bucket.

in new york city along, we see 40 to 50,000 men and women being released from reicher's island. new york state releases 25,000 people every single year. we don't have enough resources to meet the needs of those men and women buzz we work hard every single day to try to give people an opportunity to build a new life. >> for the large population of prisoners who will not get help like your organization or other help, is there any predicting factor as to what kind of person, what kind of prisoner will have a chance of making it versus those who will commit another crime and end back in jail? >> well, here is what i think happens as a formerly incarcerated person. i came out of prison. i went in and out of prison many times. what kept me going back and forth to prison was my hopelessness. when people have a sense of hope, they fight hard to hold on to it. >> means when their back is up against the wall, they don't have a job, when they don't have a place to live, they fight to stay out here.

they fight to try to get access to those resources. >> what was -- what gave you a sense of hope? that you could be a success story? >> it was education in prison. i went to prison. i dropped out of high school. i got my ged. i went to college. i graduated from college. whether i graduated, at that moment, i knew that i was a different person. i knew that i didn't have to be subjected to what in my community, what happens to the police officers. i knew that the decisions i make could keetch me out of prison and give me a better life. >> was that something that came from inside of you, or was it instilled or reinforced by others who were dealing with it? >> it was discovered through the education process. i realized i had heard messages in my life that i wasn't worth anything, that i wasn't smart, that i would either end up in prison or dead. i believed that type of in fact, that's what i ended up doing, going back and forth to prison but when i went to school, started saying wait a minute. i am not that dumb kid.

i am not this person that's dest i need to be in jail and principles. from that moment on, i created life for myself and my community. i still live in the bronx. i go to work every single day. you hold my head up really high. i am formerly incarcerated, but i am not a prisoner. >> stanley richards with the fortunate society. stanley, thanks for coming in tonight. we appreciate it. >> thank you for having me. >> in the u.s., presidential campaign, the fallout continues over the controversial republican debate this week hosted by cnbc. today, following a core us of criticism aimed at the moderatos, the kranl national committee announced it is pulling out of the next debate the move may not satisfy the campains infuriated about the event two nights ago. >> is this a comic book version after presidential campaign. >> it was a debate that generated controversy from the start and after two days of intention criticism t the head of the republican national committee wrote to andy lack:

we are suspending the partnership with nbc news for the republican primary debate at the university of houston on february 26th, 2016. he went on to say: cnbc's moderators engaged in a series of gotcha questions, petty and mean-spirited and designed to embarrass candidates. what took place wednesday night was not an attempt to give the american people a greater understanding of our candidates' policies and ideas. it sounds a lot like what texas senator ted cruz said from the stage just twenty minutes in. >> the questions that have been asked so far in this debate illustrate why the american people don't trust the media. (applause.) this is not a cage match. if you look at the questions, donald trump, are you a comic bookvilleit? john kaysic, jeb bush, why have your numbers fallen?

how about talking about the substantive issues people care about? >> but a few minutes later, moderator becky quick made an accusation about donald trump and could not back it up. >> where did i come up with this? >> probably -- i don't know. you people write this stuff. i don't know [applause.] >> cnbc's john harwood generated particularly scorn with his interruptions? >> government -- no, john. >> you want knme to answer or d you want to answer? (applause.) i got to tell you the truth. in nrnlingsz what you are doing is called rude. >> towards the end, harwood got caught telling a whopper about the debate, ititself. a it was reported donald trump pressured officials to shorter than en the event from three hours to two. >> in about two minutes, i renegotiated it down two hours

so we can get the hell out of here. not bad. >> just for the record -- just for the record, the debate was always going to be two hours. >> that's not right. >> that's absolutely not right. you know that that is not right. >> trump, in fact, was correct. it all prompted headlines like this: lame stream debate fail. some blame the chairman, himself, they say prebus should never have agreed to certain debate formats. on friday, several campaigns applauded the action. as for nbc news, a spokesman responded to the february debate withdrawal notice saying, this is a disappointing development. we will work in good faith to resolve this matter with the republican party. >> michael shure, what do you make of it advance that the candidates having this this and talk about debates?

what do you make of him trying to get ahead of this by taking aim at all of nbc? >> well, you know, i think when he is doing that, it's not just go aheading ahead. he is behind now. so, he needs to get ahead. et cetera dealing with candidates right now that do not fit the old rnc mold. the leaders in the polling right now, donald trump, ben carson action they are not puppets of the republican national committee and not that the other candidates are. but as soon as you see another wing taking control, these campaigns going to washington on sunday to meet by themselves without the rnc, they need to prove now to the campaign that they are serious about having their backs. >> separately divisions owned by comcast. splanl the political value for republicans in lumping the entire organization together. you know, that's a very interesting question, david. there is political value in show eg -- listen, you saw the applause lines going after the media, going after the

moderators, going aver the question ironically ted cruz in one of his finest debate moments we played just now in your piece, he did that after being asked about the debt ceiling. he knows the currency of going after the media and links cnc, msnbc together and you have this sort of namestream medial in a nutshell, cable, busy and you have the mothership of nbc but the other thing they have done and nbc reacted this way by reminding everyone this is going to be a debates co sponsored by telemundo, the latin, spanish language news network. nbc was able to do remind everyone the republican party is cancelling a debate that had telemundo. >> we see some intriguing negotiations before the next

one. yeah, you know. listen. the resolution is between the campains and rnc. it's between the networks and campaigns. they had to kick the rnc the campains out of the room, out of the screening room the other night at the debate in bolder because they were trying to get questions the rnc and the bush campaign, trying to get them to ask more questions of jeb bush. they want their establishment candidate. they are not going to back down in this fit. however, they also need to get them on the air. >> al jazeera's michael schure, have a great weekend. >> in the united kingdom, a reunion is underway. we will tell you about the british citizen released from the guatemala bay. low gas prices mean tough times for oil companies. how some of them are reacting to the lower profits.

the obama administration announced today dozens of u.s.

special operations groups will be in syria to assist local forces in syria in fighting isil. josh earnest explained the ratione behind themoo move. >> the core of our military strategy inside of syria is to build up the capacity of global forces to take the fight to isil on the ground in their own couldn'ts tree. there are a variety of ways the u.s. and coalition partners can offer support to those local forces the police department did make a decision to intensify that support by offering a small number of u.s. special operations military personnel to offer some advice and assist answer on the ground as they take the fight to isil. >> a retired u.s. army colonel ol civil society and conflict at the university of south florida, he joins us from washington, d.c. this evening. mr. harvey, is it fair to say this is as much about public relations as it is about policy

because my understanding is this has been in the works for some time. it was essentially put out on the day when you are having these big talks in vienna, austs tree i can't, with all of the world powers and serve the u.s. is a player in a region where russia has been dominating the headlines lights for its involvement for the last few months. >> david, i think that's right. i think it's clearly the case that the administration and those that are fighting the fight on the ground have been advocating for kurdish and some sunni air forces to move on raqqa. the resupply efforts over the last few weeks in that part of syria are part of that. russia has taken the lead in the public it'sty. there is a lot of doubt about the sgluvents, doubt and criticism in the u.s. government and edit oral pages in the united states that highlight the lack of relevance of the u.s. and the ineffectivenets of it.

i think this is public relations from shaping the dialogue for the talks that just began or just concluded today in vienna. >> as far as the next is concerned, these are forces that have been based in northern iraq. what sort of mission do you envision them doing in syria. >> they are going to be doing some advise and assistance. ug you might begin to see some operations that are similar to what we saw in 2001 in afghanistan where these special operations forces partnering with kurds and sunni airabs will be calling in fires on us ill positions and supporting them with that type of fire power and as asim et tri came ability the united states brings. >> as you mentioned aed in 2001, you essentially had special forces with laser guiding airstrikes to particular target did. there had been pressure from congress to that have system in plates in syria and that sounds like what they are going to do. >> it does sounds like it. in point of fact, i think there is going to be many more than

the 50 that are alluded to in the presence. it will take a larger force to support those 30 to 50 special operators. they are going to need a quick reaction for them to get out of trouble if they get in trouble. medical report, logistics. there is a lot of things that go with a package like this. derrick harvey, thank you for being with us. we appreciate it. >> thank you, david. >> a u.s. government has released two inmates from the u.s. prison in guatemala bay. both were held for 13 years. both men were never charged. byrne is back in moritania has been reunited with his family in england. he was the last british prisoner held at guatemala bay. emma hayward reports. >> after more than 5,000 days inside guantanamo bay, he was finally, back on british soil.

flown back to an airport on the edge of london. a moment his family and campaigners had longed for. >> he will have a mixed euphoria because he was never sure this was going to happen. at the same time, crashing back down to earth where he is got to figure out all of the things that were wrong with him physically. he is going to then have to start rebuilding his relationship with a family where he hasn't seen his wife for 14 years, hasn't seen his kids since they were very small and one child never met at all. imagine going through that as a parents. >> during his incarceration, he was never charged with anything. he was detained in afghanistan in 2001 while working for a charity. in 2002, he was transferred to ga guatemala bay. by 2007, the bush administration had cleared him for release. still in custody in 2009 when the obama add administration

also cleared him for release. 0 went on hunger strike several times. one of the many prisoners to protest in this way. campaigners say he was held in appalling conditions, sometimes in solitaire confinement and allege he was beaten. his release comes after years of reloeptless campaigning by his family and his supporters. he now has to try to rebuild his life. >> it's expected he will be reunited with his family including one child born during the initial stage of his incarceration: his release comes after more than 13 years inside the world's most notorious prison. many will be asking how and why it took so long to free him. emma hayward, al jazeera. >> earlier today, an attorney tcossen spoke "al jazeera america." he spoke about the moment his clients's release was imminent?

>> it washed over him. he sat there staring blankly and started to tell me about his prison shoes handh had them since 2010, he took off some duct tape holding them together. the shoes fell apart. that's not unusual normally i would take notes and file complaints to get shoes but i realized the news hadn't registered. i said, i need you to listen very carefully, and i repeated the news a second time. only thing then did he ask me: are you being serious right now? when i said yes, he had this huge smile and he started to -- he started to finally, see there was light at the end of the tunnel. >> here more about at a time interview coming up at 9:00 p.m. eastern with randall pinkston. in the united states, a string of mass shootings in the past few years have reignited add debate over gun laws and that debate is taken on not just nationally but in local government. adam may reports. >> it held .5 rounds.

>> hayes has traded and sold guns almost his entire life. the history buff has 1 the missoula a montana gun show for decades. now, he says he and his hobby are under attack. the city of mizzuola is considering a new order nanz which would require background checks for nearly all private gun sales including those add gun shows. this is an ordinance f firearm sales requiring criminal xwing czechs. >> in montana, the state has some of the most perm issive gun laws in american and background checks at gun shows are kufrnth not required by the state. in montana, missoula a is the obvious place to push for regulations at the city level. president big sky state skews conservative and republican,

this college town skews liberal and democrat. >> i am a mom. i am a lawyer, and i am a state legislator. >> elie hill represents mizzoula in mon tanna statehouse. she supports stronger gun control laws. >> whether you do a background check, you know whether or not somebody has been adjudicated mentally ill-which seems like a common sense approach. >> that's not happening in montan a >> it's not. >> lawmaker hill, a gun owner, herself, and enjoys hoot with her -- shooting with her husband and kids is furious at the national rival association. >> the n.f.l.n.r.a. has changed from a sportsman organization to a political organization. tats political organization that funds money in to candidates that only support their extreme legislation. >> northwests gun control. >> at the missoula a city counsel meet, a smokesman for the national rival association was given .5 minutes to testify.

he declined our request for an interview but haze apoloc shares on you view. >> enforce the lauds they've got in america between the federal government and states. there are 20,000 gun laws on the books. >> mizzoula's proposed law may be a cag of changing times .80% and this at a state where almost 60% of residentsina gun. more guns versus less guns with the argument virtually going nowhere at the national level. it's finding momentum in city halls in some of the most unlikely places. >> adam may joins us now from washington. adam, what's the status of the orderednance now? >> it has gone through a couple of herings now, been kicks back to committee and they have made an amendment to this ordinance

now which will exclude those who already have a concealed carry permit. >> has helped gain some support from gun rights owners there in montana and it is expected to pass in the very near future. >> supporters of the measures say they are motivated by mass shootings. do they think that this will help? >> that's a good we. they are hoping this will send a message. it sends a message what one person told me it was swing the pendlum when it comes to talking about some of these red states like montana. >> they recognize by passing background checks they are not going to be able to stop every mass shooting. as we were reporting, montana has a very high rate of gun violence in that state. what they are hoping is little by little they can keep some of these guns out of the hands of people who who shouldn't own them. >> adam, thank you. see more of his reporting on "america tonight" .10 p.m. eastern, 7:00 p.m. pacific. in st. louis, missouri, a

man has been charged in connection with several church ars offense. david jackson stands accused of sdrooekd arson and two of the fires between october 8th and 22nd. seven churches were set on fire. five had predominantly black congregations but investigators say they do not believe the artsons were hate a crimes oil prices understand $50 a barely. that's great for drivers filling up gas tanks but means pain for oil companies. today, we learned how one company is going to pass it all on to its workers. ali velshi is here. >> i could be telling you this about every sing day but once in a while, i get tired so i bring up the oil barrel so i can lean on it. $46 and $0.59 a barely is what owl settled at. 56% lower than its peek at 2014 at $107 a barrel. oil has been more expensive in the past. the most recent was in 2014.

now, we are seeing as you just mentioned the harsh effect of that plunge in oil prices. chevron said it plans to cut between six and 7,000 jobs, roughly 10 percent of the company's workforce. chevron's profits fell big time in the three months ending september, $2,000,000,000 is what they were versus $56,000,000,000 a year earlier. another sign chevron is preparing for continued oil prices is that the company is cutting its budget for capital investment by 25% which means they are not even expecting this to get better any time soon, david. >> that's chevron. what's the story you heard from ex exxonmobil. >> profits cut in half. 4.2 billion versus 8.1 billion a year earlier and like chevron, the companies were finding business benefitting from lower oil prices but exxon's declining profits, they saw $2,000,000,000 in the quarter. that's the benefit of being a huge, diversified oil company as opposed to just an oil producer.

it's one reason the stocks of both companies were actually up. the stocks are oftened by many mutual funds. investors typically hold exxon or chevron stocks in their, you know, retirement accounts. xonl stock, over all, is down about 11% in the last year and chevron is down about 22% in the last year. so, this is nor investors particular elwhat else is on th show? >> we are talking about the immigration issue. we are looking specifically at the calls by tech companies to let in more workers who are highly skilled. i will debate an academic who says it is a myths. >> looking forward to it. thank you. watch ali velshi 7:30 pacific right here on al jazeera america. up next, a fragile ecosystem on the edge of the world. we will show you why the international effort to protect

ant artica is foundering. >> sitting out, the number of american kids in orth sports is on the decline. experts say it stems from a new generation of parents.

the polish court is now rejected the u.s. report to the

deport him after unlawful sex with a minor. he did not appear in court for a ruling. the judge said that turning the film maker over would be a depr i have a tion of liberty. prosecutors in los angeles say they may appeal the ruling. in california, beverly hills is being fined for not curbing its water usage. the state fined the enclave $61,000. three other cities were fined but they are located in the desert. california ordered all cities to cut water usage by 25 percent in the midst of the worst drut in state history. for the 5 you think straight ye, the international community has rejected a plan to protect ocean life near antarctica. >> reporter: the least touched continent on earth. millions of square kilometers of sea, ice and life polar bears

live only in the arctic but penguins and fish live nowhere else. the eco systems are valuable in themselves. they are essential laboratories for measuring the effects of climate change. >> it's important we are actually able to distinguish what's happened through climat change and fishing, whether it's tourism, so control here is to see that they are protected. for the past five years, the annual meetings hereat delegates have been negotiate to go establish marine-protected areas. agreement needs consensus. in previous years, russia and china beat proposals. they want to reserve the right to fish freely and said they weren't fully persuaded of the science behind the proposals.

>> every year these mps are not established, it's open for fishing, open for other activities that could degrade the eco system. it's really important that these are put in place as soon as possible to protect them. >> disappointing then but d delegates in hobar again failed to reach consensus. >> there is, of course, fruststration here, most delegates are leaving more optimistic than they have been in previous years. they may not have quite reached an agreement but they say substantial progress has been made. n importantly for the first time, china says it now supports one of the two proposed protected areas. russia, though, remains opposed. >> they have indicated they are not quite ready to proceed with this protected area yet, but they have indicated that they are willing to talk with us and we will take them up on that offer and hopefully we will be able to convince them. >> so there is growing hope it's

coming, but for now, antarctica still lacks the protection it needs. hobart. >> a look at what's coming up at the top of the hour, john seigenthaler is here. john. >> the pentagon appoints special forces in syria, the first u.s. boots on the ground there. the tactics, the logistics, and whether this is an example of mission creep. also, hunger strike at a migrant detension center in texas. 30 women who say they are living in substandard conditions and demanding to be set free. plus courts across the country throwing people in jail for unpaid fees and fines. >> a two-tiered system where the poor are punished more harshly because they don't have the money to pay fines and fees on the day they are sentenced. >> the aclu is accusing cities of running illegal debtors' prisons. my conversation with best selling author patricia cornwell on the inspiration for her crime

novels and her popular character. >> i created a friend. i was a lonely little kid. i made up imaginary friends. i have done it again. >> more of that and the rest of the days news coming up in about seven minutes. stay with us. >> john, thank you. in america, more studies are showing that fewer kids are playing team sports. experts say there are several factors. one of them is pushy parents. >> al jazeera's roxana barry has more. >> reporter: soccer practice for 3rd graders in new york city. it's a crowded field. for now. but many of these kids will end up dropping out of team sports before they become teen aimingers a recent survey suggests since 2009, kids playing team sports has dropped by 4%. total supports played has declined by 10 percent. not a good sign, according to experts who say playing team sports is good for a child's development. those kids are not benefitting

from all of the important lifelessons that are attainable for kids who are in sports. those are things like: per certain veerance and being active as a kid. >> mark heimann is a perform orsor ofspots management at george washington university. he says parents are too focused on the future. they want their kids to specialize in only one sport hoping it will land them big scholarships at top schools. it's not the most important thing to be the best 9-year-olds pitcher. the real job of the parent is to protect a child and help them reach their potential as an athlete. >> j aim en says people who don't make it on advanced leagues get the wrong message and drop out. matt snyder's sons play baseball. max is 10 years old and says soccer taught him more than how to score goals. >> i have learned how to try your hardest because it gets harder ever year re wide to

learn how to lose. >> sometimes parents are the ones pushing kids toward sports. if they are not interested, you can only push them for so long mary parents don't follow that approach. don't coach your kid. don't be banging on the glass, pointing, telling them to do this. the kids are worried more about the parents than me. >> mariano says the rink where he coaches focuses on developing basic skills before advancing kids to the next level. >> i am about positive reinforcement. i think that's a lot of what or motto is at the armory. that's why we are so successful. >> good news for mariano because hockey is experiencing one of the biggest declines in child enrollment. u.s.a. hockey, the governing body forearm tours, responded by

introducing new rules like reducing travel and raising the age kids can start body checking. >> these guys are having fun. now they hit a little bit, get banged around. >> the new guidelines have been so successful, other sports are following the same model. >> like a kid -- let the kid make decisions. let them tell you what they want to do. >> the strategy that can prove to be a game changer. roxannena silberry, new york. >> experts say some of the other reasons kids are signing up include the costs. many parents say they can't afford the expensive equipment. others fear their kids will get hurt. in major league baseball, the pressure is building on the new york mets city field tonight for game 3 mets lost the first two games and the kansas city royals, only item teams have ever come back from a two-games to none deficit to win the world series. one of them was the mets who did it the last time they won.

the title in 1986. i will david shuster. thanks for watching. john seigenthaler will be back with the international hour with antonio mora. thank you for watching.

o. >> hi everyone this is al jazeera america. i'm john siegenthaler. special ops in syria. more u.s. troops on the ground. more questions about the mission. off air. the gop boycott for nbc, calling this week's debate biased and off the message, is the media to blame, freedom for federal inmates, a closer l