clock's hand one against. >> you can find much more on our website, as usually the address to click on to is aljazeera.com. aljazeera.com. ♪ china's markets stumbles again as u.s. pollty makers meet to talk about interest rates. >> you have to have somebody who is a proven, proven fighter. the battle for iowa, democrats sparring before next week's caucuses. it can help you, like, calm down. when you get angry.

>> young kids turning to yoga to clear their minds of the violence in their lives. ♪ this is al jazeera america live from new york city. i'm del walters. the federal reserve is meeting today. it will be their first time in 2016, and they are meeting amid the market turmoil that kicked off the year. china's markets plunging more than 6%. other asian markets also turning down. we want to turn to patricia sabga. and patty, what are the expectations? >> reporter: nobody is expecting the federal reserve to raise interest rates, but they will be scrutinizing the policy statement that they come out with tomorrow afternoon for what language they use, how they acknowledge this turmoil that we have seen in the global markets,

and also weak oil prices, but as also expect the fed to be very, very measured. they will also be looking for any clues as to how the fed is thinking about the future of interest rates. because back in december when they voted to raise interest rates for the first time in nearly a decade, they also signalled that rates could be raised four times this year, but that of course was before all of the carnage that we saw at the open of the market this year. >> the fed decision to raise interest rates, does anybody believe that is behind the volatility we're seeing so far. >> reporter: some believe it is contributing to the volatility, because when the fed made that move, they have been held near zero since 2008, so even though it was a slight tick up, that slight tick up and then the signal that more rates were to follow, even though they were going to be slow and steady, even though the fed said they

were going to continue to gauge conditions before making a move, really what they did is they kicked the other crutch out from the market. a market that was really chasing yield, driving equity prices higher simply because yields were low on products tied to interest rates. so some people believe that lead to some of the volatility we have seen. the markets are really rising and falling so far this year on whatever is going on with the oil market. we saw oil prices lift higher after opec representatives signalled that they are willing to work with non-opec producers to cut production, but as i always caution, del, don't get caught up in the day-to-day guy jie -- gyrations of the market. you have acute market supply,

you have serious slowing demand, and china's economy is slowing down. now the only other way you are going to get prices up is if opec and non-opec producers agree to cut production. but iran and saudi arabia are bitter enemies. these two have to come to the table, and they have to agree to cut production, and then you have to get countries like russia to do the same. >> patty thank you very much. the u.s. is easing travel and export restrictions in cuba. the obama administration announcing effective tomorrow key parts of the decade's long sanctions regime will be removed, allowing airlines to share flight information, and the change also makes it easier to export u.s. goods. and president obama plans to announce changes to employer sponsored retirement funds next

month. giving tax cuts to businesses that automatically enroll their employees in 401k plans. the white house saying the move would help 30 million americans who would not have access to their retirement savings if not for these changes. this morning two of the activists behind those undercover videos of planned parenthood are themselves facing charges. it was the unexpected result of an investigation into planned parenthood. john henry smith has the story. >> reporter: these undercover videos launched a nationwide debate over planned parenthood and abboesh shun opponents said they were the smoking gun they needed to prove the group was profiting from abortions. >> it's hard to close your eyes and ignore that this is a child that is being dismembered. >> reporter: the people that made and released the videos said it was investigative journalism, but a grand jury

said two of the people involved in making those videos committed a crime. >> you are trying to get planned parenthood to commit a crime, and at the same time you are committing a crime yourself. >> reporter: both people face felony charges they tampered with a government record. there are reports those charges are connected to the use of fake identification cards. and this man is also charged with violating the state's prohibition on the purchase and sale of human organs. >> they will have to go to court and defend these charges. >> reporter: the grand jury had been convened at the request of state lawmakers who wanted charges against planned parenthood. jurors found no evidence that planned parenthood ever tried to illegally profit from abortions. planned parenthood released a statement saying:

david released his own statement saying planned parenthood has long insisted it does not sell tissue from aborted fetuses. it says any money talked about in those videos was merely money intended to cover costs. john henry smith, al jazeera. we are less than one week away now from the iowa caucuses and the democrats who want to be president are pulling out all of the stops. hillary clinton and bernie sanders squaring off in des moines at a time when the polls say they are at a dead heat. in des moines at brake university, the three remaining democratic candidates got their chance at final arguments, a chance to make their case to the voters of iowa and beyond.

it was a townhall style conversation anchored by chris cuomo. they all showed up and were on stage separately, answering questions and talking with the moderator. the differences that do exist are most amplified in the area of foreign policy where bernie sanders tried to answer those who may think his experience does not match that of hillary clinton. sanders says you can look at just one part of his foreign policy experience, that's the vote against the iraq war to know where he stands. >> i voted against the war in iraq, and if you go to my website, listen to the speech that i gave in 2002, saying, yeah, it's easy to get rid of a dictator like saddam hussein but there will be a political vacuum, and it gives me no pleasure to tell you that much of what i feared in fact happened. hillary clinton voted for the war in iraq. >> reporter: hillary clinton

showed the difference between being a senator and how she would be a president. saying that war is not her first option. the first place she would like to go is diplomacy. >> i think it's imperative you do your very best to avoid military action. it should be the last resort, not the first choice. to use diplomacy, even if it's slow, boring, hard, to continue to persist and be patient to get results, and that you also should use the enormous capabilities that we have to project our values arrange the world, our cultural values, our freedoms, our human rights and respect for the dignity of all people. >> reporter: martin o'malley was cited in a edder to who said he

was better for a cabinet position. >> i'm not a divider. if i were i would not be been able to accomplish what i accomplished. and that's what i believe the people of iowa are looking for. >> reporter: these three candidates do get along, and they made sure to take the time to compliment one another. even complimenting each other's ads. however, it is a presidential race, and they are facing off against each other. hillary clinton feeling the proximity of bernie sanders in the poll numbers in iowa, and this was a chance that they all had to make that closing statement to the people of iowa. >> that is our michael shure. the "boston globe" is endorsing john kasich for president. he will be in that state to hold

a townhall meeting there. florida senator marco rubio also getting an endorsement. governor pa tack you says he is the right person for the job. and new jersey's governor, chris christie facing criticism from new hampshire residents who asked why he was back on the campaign trail just days after his state was hit with that record-setting blizzard. also catching the eyre of new jersey officials. meanwhile the damage from that blizzard clearly visible right now in new jersey. at times overwhelming some of the communities along the shore. miles of protective dunes saved a lot of the coastal towns. and in washington a lot of

government workers are staying home today. their offices still closed. the storm could cost the region anywhere between $500,000,003,000,000,000. that includes lost businesses. a similar storm back in 1996 cost nearly $5 billion in economic losses. iran's president is at the vatican today, meeting with pope francis. francis urging rouhani to combat terrorism in the region and to help fight arms trafficking. rouhani is next headed to paris on wednesday. it's the first state visit by an iranian leader in almost two decades. the supreme court gives inmates the chance to challenge their sentence to life in prison without parole. and trying to block the press at a protest heading out to court.

obama administration is banning juvenile confinement in the adult prison system. he cites research that says it can lead to devastating psychological consequences. and the supreme court deciding that hundreds of inmates who were sentenced to life without parole as juveniles can now challenge their punishment, voting to retroactively apply a 2012 ruling. >> all of these men and women, some of whom have been in prison for many, many decades now get an opportunity to make their

case to a judge or to a parole board, for why it is that it's safe to send them home. justice anthony kennedy sharing his opinion, saying quote: a $50,000 reward is being offered as authorities try to find those three fugitives who escaped a southern california prison. the manhunt continues for the men this morning. they broke out of the orange county jail on friday. authorities are now asking for help. >> we absolutely need the public's help. we need the public's assistance, to look at these pictures. we know that somebody out there knows something. >> the case leading the sheriff's department to reassess jailhouse security. finally a bit of good news

for the residents of flint, michigan. wal-mart, pepsi, and other companies saying that will provide the schools are with water through the end of the year. al jazeera's bisi onile-ere has the details. >> the tragedy of flint is a tragedy of immense proportion. >> reporter: things went terribly wrong. those were the words of michigan attorney general on flint's water crisis. >> as i have stated many times, i would certainly not bathe a newborn child or a young infant in this bad water. and if you can't drink the bad water, you shouldn't pay for it. >> reporter: one week aft after -- launching an investigation, the state attorney general announced two

high-profile at appointments to lead the probe. >> reputations are earned and todd and andy have excellent representations. >> reporter: a former wayne county prosecutor will serve as special counsel. and retired detroit fbi chief will also help determine what if any laws were broken. the attorney general calls the team a firewall as his office also defends the state and lawsuits brought by flint residents. >> this is an investigation i can assure you we are going to open up every door, we're going to ask the tough questions. >> the facts will lead us to the truth, we go in with no precon exceptions. >> reporter: the city cut ties with the detroit water system and began pulling water from the flint river. chemicals added to the water were corrosive.

elevated lead levels can lead to behavioral problems and stunted mental development in children. >> it has been very hard. we worry constantly about the kids' health. is >> reporter: who do you hold accountable? >> i think it starts with the city first. they are the ones that switched over. they knew the pipes were bad. >> reporter: pipes that flint leaders say would cost the cash strapped city more than $1 billion to replace. the michigan national guard has been handing out bottles of water and filters with no end in sight. the founder of hot yoga has been sued. the suit was brought by an employ who says he sexually

harassed here. and six other women suing, alleging that he sexually assaulted or harassed them as well. a university of missouri assistant professor who drew nationwide attention is due in court today facing misdemeanor charges. ines ferre has our story. >> you need to get out. you need to get out. >> no, i don't. >> reporter: assistant professor melissa click was recorded in november in this confrontation with this student journalist. she now faces a misdemeanor assault charge. the student journalist was trying to conduct interviews about racially charged incidents on campus. the chancellor rebuffed demands to fire click. >> for those of you who are calling for hasty action, i say this. we have good strong processes in

place, and will follow them to their completion and logical outcome. >> reporter: while republican state lawmakers have called for her to be fired, dozens of members of the faculty wrote a letter supporting her. in a statement the videographer who filmed the incident wrote: a university task force is reviewing what happened at the protests, including click's interaction with the student journalist. ines ferre, al jazeera. and when we come back, using yoga to help kids. the effect of the ancient practice with kids dealing with violence in chicago. plus -- i want to see you come over here and disperse me. >> chris christie getting an interesting offer. the only way to get better is to challenge yourself,

and that's what we're doing at xfinity. we are challenging ourselves to improve every aspect of your experience. and this includes our commitment to being on time. every time. that's why if we're ever late for an appointment, we'll credit your account $20. it's our promise to you.

we're doing everything we can to give you the best experience possible. because we should fit into your life. not the other way around. two former walt disney workers are suing the company. claiming that disney and the two

consulting firms that brought in the immigrants knew they would be displaced. and ford is recalling nearly 400,000 ranger pickup trucks over faulty air bags, covering modeling from 2004 to 2006 in the u.s. and canada. it comes days after the announcement that a man was killed by an exploding inflater back in december. world health organization officials are saying the rising numbers of obese and overweight children is quote, an exploding nightmare. at least 41 million children under five fitting into that category worldwide. that is an increase of 10 million since 1990. the world health organization saying the numbers are rising fastest in developing countries, blaming the marketing of unhealthy foods and drinks as a major factor. some children in chicago are

learning the healing power of yoga. as diane eastabrook reports the program is trying to change the city for future generations. >> reporter: in the suffocating violence on chicago's south side -- >> inhale -- >> reporter: -- it helps to breathe >> -- hold it, exhale. >> reporter: once a week students at this school practice yoga. >> lowly. >> reporter: to help clear their minds of the gangs, guns and police that infiltrate their lives. >> hey, get off of the drive! >> how do we get into the warrior pose. >> it can help you, like calm down. so when you get angry. >> it helps cool you down, and, like, same thing it help cool your mind down. >> bend down when you look at me. you have your hand and -- >> reporter: sean and quinton are from the non-profit, i grow

chicago. they grew up in engelwood and started teaching at the school last fall. >> it helps me not focus on the negativity, because once you are into yoga, we also say, hey, be mindful of your choices. you know, be mindful of your surroundings. >> reporter: this exercise is about self-control. >> we cheer loud. we say happy birthday loud. we clap loud. so i teach them, though, as adults we know how to bring it back down. >> reporter: kids here face constant challenges. in fact on this day this school, and a school next to it were on lockdown all morning because of a shooting just a couple of blocks away. >> reporter: research show that children exposed to constant violence can show symptoms of constant stress, similar to

those of combat veterans. this director says that makes it hard for them to develop coping skills. >> you have children who are exposed to the constant level of violence and fear, and it's as many their fight or flight mechanism is always kicked in. >> reporter: this teacher thinks yoga is making a big difference at the school. she is even using it in her classroom. >> before the test today, we, you know, implement breathing, had them visualize what they would do if they have a difficult time with a problem, and -- and how they can stop and calm themselves down. >> i am happy, i am good. >> reporter: for these kids a half hour of yoga is a welcome respite from the stress in their lives, a chance to just be kids. diane eastabrook, al jazeera, chicago. one of the protesters in that ongoing oregon wildlife refuge occupation now throwing

down the gauntlet to chris christie. he says he wants christie to join him in a sumo wrestling match. >> you got out in front of the cameras and talked about how you would like to see the strong arm of the law disperse these good folks in oregon. you know what i want to see in i want to see you come over here and disperse me. >> reporter: he is challenging christie to ten sumo matches, and said the occupiers would leave in the new jersey governor wins the battle. we are following breaks news coming out of the naval medical center in san diego. they tweeted a warning that an active shooter has entered the building. all non-emergency personnel are being asked to stay away. we'll more on this story as it develops. that is it for us. the news continues next live from london, and you can follow

all of our stories 24 hours a day by going to our website, aljazeera.com. the news there never stops. ♪ syria's government makes further gains from the opposition as the u.n. formally invites the opposing sides to talks in geneva. hello there, i'm fe fell -- felicity barr. as refugees continue to arrive in europe, denmark says those who reach its borders could have their valuables seized to pay for their stay. and in asia where temperatures plummet to record levels.