>> the day of the dead festivities have been taking place across mexico. it stems from th the aztec's belief that the dead return to the earth one day a year to help their loved ones. more on that and everything else right here on www.aljazeera.com. >> mechanical failure or intentional act. investigators try to figure out what brought down the russian jet over egypt. plus, seattle voters deciding on an unique way to fund their campaign but some advocates are crying foul over the proposal.

>> this is al jazeera america live in new york city, i'm del walters. u.s. officials weighing in on the crash of the passenger plane over the skies of egypt. speaking this morning in washington at a defense conference james clapper saying there is nothing yet to show it was intentionally brought down although they're not ruling it out. >> well, we don't have any direct evidence of any terrorist involvement yet, but rewell don't know, and i think once the black box has been analyzed and recovered and perhaps we'll know more. >> the comments came by clapper through the airline. officials with the company ruling out technical issues and pilot error including reports that the pilot himself worried about the plane's condition. >> i can tell you with absolute

confidence those repairs from a few years ago have nothing to do with what happened to this plane. >> all 224 passengers and crew on board died, including children and newlyweds. peter sharp is in st. petersburg with more. >> russian investigators at the scene have been recovering bodies following the crash on saturday, and overnight, an aircraft from cairo brought back 144 of the victims. now they'll be taken from the airport here to a mortuary in the north of the city with where they'll be matched with dna samples taken from their families. and that should result in positive identification of the bodies. meanwhile, the investigation into the crash goes on. but it's going to be some time possibly months before they come up with anything definitive. what we do know is that this

aircraft broke up at high altitude possibly 30,000 feet from some catastrophic effect and the whole debris stretches over 20 square kilometers and they're still searching now at the moment. >> that's six square miles. germany's lufthansa and air france halts flights over sinai until there is more information about what caused the crash. it is difficult to know at this stage just what happened. >> the investigates are early. the black boxes as i understand it have been obtained by the investigators and are on their way to moscow for read out. it does appear that this was a result of some sort of internal event. center fuel tank explosion or still the possibility of some

sort of bomb or device that had been played on the aircraft. but certainly a sad event, and i feel great remorse for our friends in russia. >> from what you're saying and what you're seeing so far it is possible in your opinion that there might have been a bomb or some type of explosive device introduced inside the plane that a terrorist group would take responsibility for? >> well, that, can't be ruled out at this point. the plane had some mechanical problems with the previous owner. both of these investigations, both the criminal investigation as well as the civil investigation has got to proceed. but with the black box information if the russian government permits the investigators to be forthcoming we ought to know the cause of this accident--this event, this tragic event very soon.

>> hall said that the first results including an early analysis of the black box should be within 72 hours. off the coast of bahamas they want to investigate the wreckage they expect to be from the ship with 43 on board. they're trying to block any legal action by the families of the crews who are already suing that company. the developing story coming out of the vatican. two members of the vatican commission including a priest have now been arrested. the vatican saying that they leaked confidential information to the media. the development coming as pope francis is preparing another trip to the americas. the vatican said that he will visit mexico in february. 80% of the population there is catholic. the republican presidential candidates are making new demands before their next deba debate. representatives meeting sunday night. they want mandatory opening and

closing statements and control over on screen graphics. some are upset over their candidates were treated in last week's debate. as michael shure tell us, the candidates want to shut out the rnc. >> just outside of washington, d.c. an old town alexandria, virginia, the candidates of the g.o.p. have met to discuss the debate format, the types of questions and some of the networks that carry the debate. a lot of these meetings were called because of the candidates themselves. the campaigns of trump and carson, the candidates of paul and huckabee and rubio and cruz were all involved, so, too, santorum, graham, and bobby jindal. three candidates who have been at the smaller table what some people call the kiddie table. the reason why they want these meetings is to get on the main stage. they're suggesting two debates on each date with seven candidates per debate randomly

chosen gives them a chance to be part of the big pick. they think that's only fair. the big question is whether or not nbc. because of the way mcnbc landelled the debate we will not be having a debate with you. it was a suspension, not saying that it's off the table. but that debate involved telemundo, and right now they're without a debate. donald trump's said that they will not come back in but others say it would be wise to include them. the meetings were to discuss how to make these changes, the g.o.p. and the rnc were kept out of these meetings bringing in their coo and chief legal council to run the debate hoping that makes for better conversation between the party and the candidates. that remains to be seen. >> that is al jazeera's

political correspondent michael shure in los angeles. the rnc, by the way, have not yet responded to those demands. congress begins debate on major spending bills, one would shell out billions to fix the country's aging infrastructure, but the new speaker of the house already made it clear that more spending is not on the table. >> the speaker elect, of the state of wisconsin. >> following his election as house speaker unhorse on on thursday paul ryan said its time for republicans to go on offense. >> we have to be a bold alternative party. we don't like the direction the country is headed, so we owe it to this nation of how we would do things different. >> i. >> ryan vows said he'll focus on reducing federal spending and cutting the debt. but one thing he will not be working on is immigration reform until president obama has left

the white house. >> this president tried to go around congress to unilaterally allow immigration law. why would we want to pass legislation on a very divisive issue with a president we can't trust on this issue. >> despite spending time with his family will remain a top priority, ryan said he would not support a law guaranteeing paid family leave. >> i don't think people asked me to be speaker to take more money from hard working tax payers to create new federal entitlement. >> they said it was a tough sell to get ryan to run for the job. then he had to resort to religion. >> i had to lay catholic guilt. >> what does that look like? >> this is not what you want to do. this is what god wants you to do. >> you pulled the god card. >> i pulled it all.

>> the new poll shows ben carson in a tie nationwide with donald trump, jeb bush is a distant third and after getting low marks after last week's debate his campaign launched a new slogan, jeb can fix it. sunday he knows he's having trouble but that he can turn things around. >> i have enough self awareness to know this is the bumpy time of the campaign. >> but he admitted that during his years as florida governor he was conflicted about the death penalty. >> it's hard for me as a human being to sign the death warrant. >> it comes ahead of campaigning in florida, south carolina, and new hampshire. meanwhile on the democratic side bernie sanders presidential campaign released it's first television ad on sunday. >> the son of a polish immigrant-- >> the new ad is heavy on sanders' personal history and comes as hillary clinton extends her lead over sanders in the polls. paul beben, al jazeera, new york. >> tackle the issue of racial

bias in the courtroom. now at the center of a legal battle and set to take center stage with the supreme court. it is election-eve for a large part of the company. we look at a measure in seattle that could restrict big money in local politics.

>> there are reports coming out of syria that they're using their prisoners of war as human shields. >> they're high ranking officers who are placed in cages around town so they can be targeted by russian airstrikes as are our women and children. >> this was posted online

showing women and men in iron cages. they were used as human shields against government air raids. the report said that most of the prisoners are syrian military officers and their families captured by the rebels. in the u.s. the supreme court is taking up a place that will take up hundreds of convictions and racial bias in the courtroom and how a jury is selected in the outcome. >> according to prosecutors, timothy foster broke into the home of a 79-year-old white woman. they say he broke her jaw, sexually assaulted her, coated her with tall come powder and then choked her to death. >> timothy is an african-american young man with select actual disabilities. unfortunately he was tried by an all-white jury for the woman of an elderly white woman. >> he was convicted of capital murder and has been on georgia's

death row ever since. now the nation's highest court will decide if they intentionally kept blacks off the jury. now foster's attorney used an open record request. in you hav 2006 to find out what they have under jury selection notes. >> the trial prosecutor wrote the letter "b" next to the names of prospective black jurors. the list was made of people that they did not want on the jury. all of those people were black. >> they did not highlight anyone but the black jurists. they did not mark w next the white prospectssive jurists. >> rejecting a certain number of jurors is legal. foster's case is unique. >> have you everrered of a prosecutor in marker a b

forward-looking black? >> i personally never heard of that among the prosecutors that i've worked with, and the prosecutors i've interviewed. i've never seen or heard that have practice. >> have you lettered of or seen racial bias in your time of practicing? >> yes. >> the state of gentleman said that the jury selection was not racially motivated or biased. the naacp said that is not true. >> so for example, the prosecutor said that a black perspective juror they excused because that perspective juror's age was too close to the age of the defendant in this case. but they seated white prospective jurors who were closer to the defendant's age. >> if you look at the jury, and it's all white people, and there an hispanic or black or asian who is defendant, how can someone not say okay, we've got a problem here? >> well, agreed. that's always the opposing party

always says look we have an all white jury or all white jury in a population that is diversed. >> can the judge say let's reduce this? >> of course. in this three-state process we have the objection, the race neutral explanation and the judge who is supposed to weigh the credibility of that race-neutral explanation. >> but in reality it does not always work that way. judges vary in how seriously they take their responsibility, and many are afraid of challenging a well-known prosecutor. >> this will look at who are their perfect jurors and who are the jurors that are perfect for the other side. there are those who said we should just get rid of the whole system because the challenges for cause are about people who have scheduling conflicts or

health--know english well enough. not the color of their skin or gender because gender has been decided to be a prohibitive category. >> rarely does the supreme court take on a case that needs to be decided. timothy foster needs five to rule there was race discrimination in his trial. >> visiting a halfway house to help prisoners reenter society. part of the effort will include federal education grants to train and place inmates into tech jobs. a finance report that could lead to a voucher system giving voters the chance to support their favorite candidate with cash. adam schauffler said that it has brought a lot of interest around the country. >> as i 121 backers canvass and knock on doors, it's clear that

this vote has brought nationwide attention. this campaign leader calls that exciting. >> ultimately people are looking at seattle because we're doing something different and adding a new tool in the toolbox to fight big money in politics. >> seattle's campaign and election laws are well dan and strict already. administering the new proposed system could be too expensive. >> i don't want seattle to be the guinea pig for someone on the east coast to make a point. >> every january at the beginning of two-year election cycle, each person is mailed a voucher. and those vouchers would be assigned fo. they would have to agree to new campaign fundraising and spending limits. for candidates participates would be voluntary. >> the vouchers would provide $6 million in potential funding

every two years. the system would favor incumbents and established political groups and could hurt candidates who get into a race late. >> what is likely to happen on january 2nd is that people who are well organized, incumbent, special interests will scoop those vouchers up when the money is available. >> on the no-side less than $50,000 total has been reported. nearly all of it raised from corporate donors. the money raised from the yes side has come from a few big donations from those outside of seattle making this a big money campaign for an anti-big money concept. >> in this race our opponents are exclusively corporations. those are the only people who are supporting the opposition campaign. >> by my math you're outspending

them 30-1. >> the fact of the matter is we have thousands of endorsers. >> it's funded by 501 donations. they have ten donors who have funded $1.2 million to this campaign. unprecedented inflation of out of state and dark money. >> but for these volunteers it's a chance to try something new citywide and supporters say they've heard from groups across the country who want to do the same thing. >> what this does is it sets a floor for political, so everyone has an opportunity to be a $100 downer. >> the voucher system will be funded by a hike in property taxes. >> most of america enjoyed an extra hour of sleep this weekend but there is a study out that shows not changing our clocks could actually help the fight against crime. they say they're breaking the rules but for a good cause. why nfl players are punished for changing the way they look on

the field.

>> gaining that extra hour of sleep this weekend could come with a cost. there is new research out that shows less daylight leads to more crime--maybe. here is the argument to keep the

clocks just where they are. >> the clock roll back this weekend most americans gained an hour of sleep. according to researchers criminals gained more time to carry out crimes. the study from the cornell university found when daylight savings begins in the spring, robbery rates go down by 7% for the entire day and 27% during the evening hours, which is when moths crimes tend to occur. daylight savings was set up to conserve energy and give farmers an extra hour of daylight. congress extended daylight savings time by three weeks in the spring and one in the fall. that move alone saved in social costs by reducing the number of evening robberies. the longer daylight doesn't impact crime only, it warns of increased dangerous on the roadway when the clocks fall back. >> one hour on the road is the difference between this and this.

[ crash ] >> it can have a negative health impact on the body especially when the hour jumps ahead in the spring. there is one argument in favor of changing the clocks in the fall often made by parents. they argue it's safer for children to have more daylight in the morning as they wait for the school bus. al jazeera. >> and the royals are baseball's kings today. kansas city proving it has the be team in the league meeting the mets in five games to win the world series. they came from behind in the ninth inning. they won it all in the 12th. the final score was 7-2. in kansas city thousands of fans celebrate that championship overnight. they've been waiting to do so for decades. their last world series title came back in 1985. the party conditions tomorrow with a parade through town. the nfl is being criticized

for its latest crackdown. the league has been telling players to stop violating uniform rules to promote their social causes. john henry smith has their sto story. >> as he has for five seasons, d'angelo wore eye black with the words find the cure printed on them during hits pittsburgh october 25th game against kansas city. in the same game teammate william guy wore these purple to commemorate domestic violence month. in both cases the nfl cried foul and the league find each employer $5,787 for breaking the nfl's uniform rules. >> pink is not a color or culture to me. >> he had lost his mother to breast cancer. he's credited as the driving force behind the nfl's cancer awareness month that raises money for research by wearing

game-worn pink gear. >> when i was eight my mom died from domestic violence. >> both gay and williams have been feature for their causes. the fine comes in the wake of domestic violence controversies that have led many to request whether or not the league cares about women. but when it comes to nfl uniforms the league says its rule book clearly states: >> the league has shown it will allow players to support causes during games but only in ways that it approves of. early in october the nfl fined another steeler, cameron hayward, $17,000 for wearing eye black on two different occasions with the words "iron" and "head," homage to his late

father who died of cancer in 2006. however the league substantially reduced that fine after hayward agreed to promote cancer awareness by wearing league-approved eye black instead. the nfl allowed him to wear pink all season. the league has said no. gay said he won't appeal his fine and hopes that the money goes to a domestic violence cause however all fines go to foundations to help retired nfl players. >> it would be safe to say you've never seen the sun like this before, filled with light and energy. nasa releasing these images of the sun taken by eye-res cameras. these are eight times sharper than hd. it took ten minutes to create one minute of images that you see right here showing the grandest force in our universe. thanks for joining us. i'm del walters. the news continues live from london next.

>> turkey's prime minister erdogan triumphant at the polls. >> hello, i'm maryam nemazee in london. you're watching al jazeera. also coming up, technical failure wasn't to blame, says the airline, so why then did a russian airbus break up midair over sinai? reinforcements arrive in yemeni city of taiz.