that was due to drop by half. but with the taliban resurgence, the president said today he will leave behind a force of 8,400. like the u.s., britain has done a lot of soulsearching over its role in iraq war to. day a british government report placed a lot of blame on tony blar blair, the former prime minister. here is mark phillips. >> reporter: it has been seven years since the bodies stopped coming home to britain from iraq. since that time an inquiry has been trying to determine whether

the war was necessary and the cost in lives justified. the answer delivered bite inquiry's chairman, sir john chilcot, it wasn't. >> there was no imminent threat from saddam hussein. >> reporter: at the center of the inquiry, the relationship, the bromance it was called between then president george bush and the british prime minister at the time, tony bl r blair. both men were convinced saddam had stock piles of chemical and weapons of mass destruction and needed to be disarmed. the bush policy was regime change. war. blair's public position was to push the u.s. to seek a u.n. mandate before attacking. but a note from blair to bush, sent before the war and revealed bite inquiry seems to promise unconditional support. i will be with you whatever. it says. and he was. when u.n. weapons inspectors went into iraq looking for wmd and couldn't find any --

the u.s. attacked anyway. and the british, true to blair's private promise, did too. blair has been villified since and was again today. he was also defiant. >> what i cannot do and will not do is say i believe we took the wrong decision. i believe, i believe, i made the right decision and that the world is better and safer as a result of it. >> reporter: not in baghdad, it isn't. as last week's devastating bombing again showed. and, not for the families of british soldiers who died in iraq. as reg key's son did. >> my son didn't die in vain. >> reporter: george bush and tony blair are long gone from public life. for the families the grief and anger endures. and iraq, maurice, which under saddam was not a base for terror, now is. >> mark phillips in london tonight. thank you.

in south africa today, a judge sentenced former olympian, oscar pistorius, to six years in prison for murdering his girlfriend. debra pata is in johannesburg. >> reporter: from olympian to man in jail for murder, it played out in a three year courtroom drama that transfixed the country. >> i did not fire at reeva. >> reporter: pistorius star sobbed and wretched his way through his testimony mainta maintaining he shot girlfriend reeva steenkamp by mistake believing her to be a burglar. barry steenkamp wept as he told the court he suffered a stroke after the murder. >> oscar has to pay for what he di. he has to pay for it. >> reporter: in a recent interview, pistorius invoked reeva's spirit saying he believed she wouldn't want him to spend the rest of his life in jail. and his lawyers were at pains to portray pistorius as a frightened man, vulnerable

without his prosthetic legs. ahead of his sentencing. pistorius hobbled awkwardly around the courtroom on his stumps to pruft poi s ts to pro. >> it seemed to convince the judge who cut the 15 year jail term done to six. >> reporter: the defense had been hoping pistorius would get house arrest. but six years is still a very light sentence and one that could end up being no more than three years if pistorius' released on early parole. >> deborah patta in south africa tonight. thank you. >> coming up next, after dozens of toilet germs don't just stay in the toilet. disinfect with lysol bathroom trigger... ... and lysol power foamer. they kill 99.9% of germs. to clean and disinfect your bathroom... ...lysol that. thanks for tnorfolk!around

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the hot gift last christmas had a nasty habit of getting too hot and catching fire. today more than 500,000 hoverboards made by 10 companies were recalled. kris van cleave has the details.

>> reporter: it happened in an instant to delvon simmons. >> the wheels locked up. next thing i was airborne. next thing i know i seen sparks flying. >> reporter: his hoverboard's battery failed sparking a fire and he is not alone. consumer product safety commission received at least 99 reports of the lithium ion battery packs that power hoverboards overheating, sparking, smoking, catching fire or exploding. resulting in injuries and estimated 2 million in property damage. this hour fire in nashville among more than 60 fires in 20 states linked to hoverboards. >> if you own a hoverboard, please stop using it immediately. >> reporter: elliott kaye announced the sweeping recall of 500,000 hoverboards made between june, 2015 and may of this year. that do not meet standards set by underwriters laboratories. >> all of the models that are recalled were made with

fundamental design flaws that put people at real risk. >> hoverboards have been banned by some airlines, universities, and even the new york city subway. jen olsen's company bought 50 hoverboards as gifts for employees last christmas. olsen is just learning of the recall. >> i hope it changes wait they're manufactured. and it becomes safer for everybody to use. you know, because they're a lot of fun to have. >> reporter: manufacturers swagway tells cbs news, safety is number one prior teecht it will replace the battery pack. the cpsc estimates 7,200 hoverboard related injuries, ended in emergency rooms, half fractures due to falling. >> kris van cleave in washington. and we'll be right back.

pope francis met privately with the parents of a college student from wisconsin murdered in rome. beau solomon's body was found in the tiber river days after he arrived for summer classes. >> in a first in this country surgeons in arizona today implanted a new type of stent to open clogged arteries made of a plastic-like material that gradually dissolves. the developer believes it can prevent blood clots which are linked to metal stents. in boston, somebody left a bag full of cash in buzzy mccausland's cab, $188,000. the driver turned into the money to the police who traced tight a homeless man who had just inherited it. the man thought the cabbie deserved a reward. >> he pulled one little $100 bill out, of course, one little one, he gave it to me. >> it pays to be honest.

but in this case, not very much. the way we figure it about,,,,,,

our final story is from the book of genesis. the story of noah, turned into a $102 million theme park opening tomorrow in central kentucky. mark strassmann is there. >> reporter: inside the ark encounter the greatest story ever told comes to life on four floors. throngs of pilgrims, some arriving two by two, bear witness to noah, his family, and all those animals. rachel cross brought her five children. to you this represents the truth, absolute truth, god's word is the bible, absolute truth. i totally believe that. >> reporter: this ark is

rectangular and enormous. seven stories tall, almost two football fields long. its dimensions straight from the pages of genesis. >> it is meant to make a statement that christians can build a major attraction. >> reporter: ken hamm built it so they would come, the 64-year-old founder of a ministry called answers in genesis. hamm is a young earth creationist, a christian who believes the world is 6,000 years old. dinosaurs lived alongside people. and evolution is junk science. >> i think what this place will do for christians is to embolden many of them. >> reporter: is this a christian's disney, or more than that? >> no, much more than that. >> reporter: but some critics see the ark as a celebration of ignorance. others complain employees have to be christian and sign a statement of faith. and believe the ark's $1 million in state tax incentives trampled the line between church and state. but a federal court allowed it. critic jim helton leads the

tristate free thinkers. >> noah's ark is a church, a religious point of view that says science is fault. >> reporter: hamm hopes for 2 million visitors in the first year. scoffers and critics be damned. >> they can scoff all they want. they can be critical all they want. you know what? i invite them all to come here. >> reporter: noah hunkered down for 40 days, 40 nights. visit itting this ark will run you $40. mark strassmann, cbs news, williamstown, kentucky. that they the "overnight news" for this thursday. for some of you the news continues. for others do check back with us a little later for the morning news and "cbs this morning." from the broadcast center in new york city, i'm maurice dubois. ♪ ♪

>> announcer: this is the "cbs overnight news." welcome to the "overnight news" i'm michelle miller. outraged republicans will grill the fbi director today after he said hillary clinton should not be charged for mishandling classified information on her private e-mail servers. james comey will testify in front of the house oversight committee. comey is no stranger to facing controversial matters, and in the past he has taken on issues like wire tapping, encryption, and the use of police force. here's paula reid. >> reporter: while not many were surprised by comey's decision tuesday. what did catch a lot of people off-guard was the detailed explanation during that announcement. >> i am going to include more detail about our process than i ordinarily would. >> reporter: standing alen at

his podium, fbi director james comey explained why he is not recommending charges against hillary clinton. >> our judgment is that no reasonable prosecutor would bring such a case. >> reporter: it was very unusual and unique that he also outlined the investigative findings that the fbi team made. >> i, james comey. >> reporter: comey served in the bush administration as deputy attorney general. president obama tapped him to runt fbi in 2013. >> i will support and defend the constitution of the united states. >> reporter: despite his bipartisan resume, comey is taking heat from republicans for tuesday's announcement including from the presumptive nominee. >> it turned out that we are not going to press charges it is really amazing. >> reporter: comey collected battle scars from both side of the aisle. he clashed with the obama administration on police use of force. >> remember our political leadership has no tolerance for any of you being involved in the next viral video.

>> reporter: as deputy attorney general under bush, comey took on the republican white house in a 2004 showdown over a package of top secret warrantless surveillance targeting foreign terrorists. he talked about the encounter during a 2014 interview on "60 minutes." >> wasn't it your responsibility to support the president? >> no. my responsibility, i took an oath to support and defend the constitution of the united states. >> reporter: comey is not expected to be impacted by the political turmoil around the clinton e-mail investigation. >> the degree of transparency that he offered will serve to insulate him or the fbi from criticism. >> reporter: attorney general loretta lynch has already said she will accept director comey's recommendation. sources within the department of justice say they expect her to make good on the promise. >> the fbi's findings contradict hillary clinton's own statements about the e-mail controversy. clinton said he made a mistake by using a private server during

her time as secretary of state. but for more than a year, she insisted there was nothing wrong with it. here is jan crawford. >> so the clinton campaign is saying that e-mail case, that is closed. but the fbi director is flat out rejecting many of the arguments she made as she tried to reap assure voters she did nothing wrong. >> there is no classified material. there was no transmission of any classified information. >> reporter: from the beginning hillary clinton has been adamant about what was not on her private server. >> the facts are pretty clear. i did not send nor receive anything that was classified at the time. >> reporter: but what is now clear is that according to the fbi, those actually weren't the facts. >> 110 e-mails. >> fbi director james comey said yesterday that more than 100 of clinton's e-mails contained classified information. >> i never sent or received any classified material. they are retroactively classifying it.

>> reporter: despite clinton's claim to the contrary. >> seven e-mail chains concerned matters classified at top secret, special access program at the time they were sent and received. >> reporter: comey said clinton from the outset should have known better. >> none of the e-mails should have on any unclassified system. >> reporter: that's because despite clinton's repeat add sure anss the private server was secure. >> it was on property, guarded by the secret service and there were no security breaches. >> reporter: comey setd server in her home in new york state was actually less secure than gmail. >> it is possible that hostile actors gained access to secretary clinton's personal e-mail account. >> reporter: then there was this often repeated clinton claim. >> i turned over everything that i could imagine. >> when in fact, comey missed quite a few. >> the fbi also discovered several thousand work related e-mails that were not among the group of 30,000 e-mails returned

by secretary clinton. >> reporter: clinton has the staunchly defended her use of the private, unsecure e-mail server. on face the nation earlier this year she insisted it was absolutely permitted. it turned out to be a mistake. on the campaign trail, presumptive republican donald trump bashed clinton's judgment also took aimt president obama. here's major garrett. >> reporter: donald trump said the system is rigged to his mind the events of the last few days proved it in big bold letters from former president clinton's tarmac meeting with the attorney general to the lack of criminal charges against hillary clinton for mishandling classified information. while this entire e-mail saga for cli for trump is anti-clinton catnip. >> stupidity is not a reason you are innocent. >> reporter: donald trump warned clinton that dodging a felony indictment will not end the debate over national security and her judgment. >> and this is where they said that she was extremely careless

and frankly, i say, grossly incompa tent. >> reporter: trump mocked the version of bill clinton's tarmac meeting with attorney general loretta lynch where the two chatted for 30 minutes about grandchildren and golf. >> isn't she beautiful. isn't he beautiful. i would say that would take anywhere from 30 second to a minute. so give the grandchildren two minutes. give the golf three and a half minutes. what else are we going to talk about? let's talk about hillary. >> president obama's campaign trip hours after clinton was cleared, confirmed, trump said the fix was in. >> hillary! hillary! >> reporter: they take a pass. they announce they're not going to press charges. lo and behold, a few hours later, let's have a press conference. let's do a spaeeech together. he should be home working on isis. >> reporter: trump strayed from the riff on clinton to hammer president obama on terrorism and to offer sideways praise to saddam hussein.

>> saddam hussein was a bad guy, right? he was a bad guy. really bad guy. but you know what he did well, he killed terrorists. he did that so good. >> hussein's regime, also killed 300,000 iraqis. trump's comments made saddam, executed 20 years ago, a trending topic on triter. trump pratz praised the iraqi dr but an unwelcome distraction. the "cbs overnight news" will be right back. olay regenerist renews from within.

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♪ ♪ the summer olympics in rio are less than a month away. the leadup to the games has been overshadowed by problems. from brazil's troubled economy and political turmoil to water pollution and the threat of the zika virus. now, a spike in crime is a major concern. the brazilian government is deploying its military to guard olympic sites. rio expects more than 10,000 athletes and half a million tourists. assuring their safety is already

proving difficult. ben tracy is there. >> this doesn't feel unsafe here. >> 99% of safe here. >> reporter: we went on patrol with rio's police in one of the poor neighborhoods, flavellas, the upp have tried to reclaim dozens of violent areas controlled by drug traffickers. [ gunfire ] where daily gun battles are common. tourists hear there is a lot of crime here and crime is rising. do you think the people coming here for the olympics have anything to worry about? >> this upp commander says there will be more police on the street during the olympics, but more tourists means more opportunity for crime. these online videos from last december show just how brazen street theft is in rio. children ripping jewelry off people's necks in broad day light. and now the police are angry

because they haven't been paid on time. rio is brock dke due to recessi. police stations are taking public donations including toilet paper because the government can't afford anything from printer paper to fuel for their squad cars. rio's mayor lashed out at state government saying it is completely failing at its work of policing and taking care of people. >> now we have sort of security crisis right before the olympics. >> reporter: robert muga, is a security expert based in rio. he is concerned about new figures that show a 27% jump in the number of muggings and nearly 14% increase in homicides compared to the same time last year. >> this does seem to be bad timing for a crime spike in rio? >> more than $550 million was shaved off public security budget in 2016. at precisely the moment when we need to really amp up security. >> reporter: human body parts recently washed up on the beach next to the olympic beach

volleyball arena. gunmen stormed a hospital to free a suspected drug trafficker and ended up killing a patient. and some olympic athletes have been mugged on the street. but during the games the brazilian government says 47,000 police officers and 38,000 soldiers will be on patrol in rio. that's twice the size of the security force at the 2012 london olympics. rio state security secretary says the apparatus and command centers such as this one was successful during the 2014 world cup held in rio and the pope's visit in 2013. >> there have been significant budget cuts lately have those impacted your ability to provide the kind of security you would look to provide? he says there is enough money to secure the games, but the security of the city before and after the olympics will be worse. that's true in some of the poorest flavellas where the

police are not always quite this friendly. the police brought us to this area because they want to show a success story. in many of the 1,000 other favellas in rio, the police have become the enemy. in the past year there has been a stunning 135% increase in the number of people killed by rio's police officers. >> really we have some of the most ruthless police on the planet. >> reporter: robert muga thinks tourstists will be safe during the games because resources are taken from poor neighborhood to protect them. for those people living in rio, i think the situation is going to get worse. >> reporter: an un welcome part of rio's olympic legacy. ben tracy, rio. the "cbs overnight news" will be right back. olay regenerist renews from within.

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>> reporter: it should come as no surprise that mario batali makes a mean sandwich, after all, a celeb rity chef and owne of a dozen restaurants. his latest is a stall at a food hall called the pennsy. >> you may go to the mall and get an orange julius, it was frivolous. >> you mention orange julius. that's what people thing of when they think of food hall, a food court. then they come to this and they're blown away. >> we hope so. the idea here ties make something delicious, authentic, and hand made. this is not machine made food. there are cooks in the stations. >> reporter: stations manned by famous chefs and those just getting started. all clamoring to be part of the food hall movement which is exploding in cities throughout the country. ♪ all you can eat

♪ all you can eat ♪ can eat >> local beef. that is marinated in korean marinade. >> reporter: hannah chung cooks up korean delicacies at simply seoul at the food city market. >> such a big deal for me. i am a little business. i am very newen my ! in my care. my big break. >> are we on the verge of a food hall explosion in the country? >> not on the verge in the middle. >> reporter: bonn an teet deputy editor says food halls reflect newt way americans eat. >> if a celebrity chef is not exploring food markets or doing food on a much casual level you will not know who they are in 20 years. >> reporter: that big a movement? >> a huge deal. you have to figure a we to get your product in the hand of people who want it. a lot of people don't want to go to fancy restaurants or spend a lot. this is the way to get the same great taste from the same great chef at 100th of the price.

>> reporter: food halls leading the way in a trend, reclaiming underused urban space. >> this is formerly condemned building. once a hulking sears warehouse and store before taken over by the city in 1991. how important is this aspect of the way food halls seem to be growing. taking old buildings. underutilized areas and reclaiming them? >> right, i think in atlanta in particular there is a resurgence of culture and renaissance that is in art, music and food. i think it actually brings more depth and meaning and authenticity to the movement. >> for us this is a different step. away from the real bricks and mortar, an opportunity to play in a different field. >> reporter: what's in it for the customer? food halls are expanding? >> the customer no longer has to go to the greasy pizza shop along the way. >> reporter: the point of food

halls -- shared overhead for restaurant owners and a smorgasbord of choice for hungry customers. >> when you go in the places you think you are looking for one thing. you discover a whole new thing. maybe we finally have solved the age old question, where do you want to eat tonight? this is the 100th anniversary of the birth of roald dahl, a famed author of children's classic books. one of the most popular tales, "the bfg" is a steven spielberg movie that opened this past weekend. charlie d'agata spoke with lucy dahl who remembers the big friendly giant when it was just one of her father's bedtime stories. >> reporter: roald dahl's fantastical stories have captivated the imaginations of children across the globe for decades. >> oh, my. >> reporter: this latest big-screen re-imagining brings to life one of dahl's most

cherished tales. but imagine what it must have been like growing up in that world. >> there are good dreams and there are bad dreams. >> reporter: a world of make believe. here we are in -- >> matilda's library. >> reporter: lucy dahl doesn't have to as daughter to the famous author she had a front row seat. >> now the peach. >> reporter: we spoke to lucy at a dahl tour for children in london celebrating 100 years since his birth. you were the original audience for the bfg? >> the bfg was one of us. lived under the orchard that was beyond our garden. and he lived there, he slept there. he concocted this dreams. >> reporter: she grew up in an idyllic college in a little village outside the capital where nearby woodland was home to the fantastic mr. fox, james and the giant peach, and other friends. >> this is the twit's corridor.

>> reporter: every night, her father would tell her and sister ophilia, bedtime stories, rough draft that one day would make it into print. >> he told us later on if we would say at end of a 20 minute story. all right, thanks, night. it wasn't a very good idea. if we would say, no, no, no, please, go on, go on, go on. tell us more tomorrow. then he would think, uh-huh, i am on to something. that's what happened with the bfg. >> reporter: like everything else in little loosy's little world, the big friendly giant was not wholly fictional. >> that bears a striking resemblance to -- to our main character. >> to the big friendly giant. >> didn't you think? >> it is. this is wally sanders. and he was our great family friend. when quinton blake was drawing the bfg, my dad said, quinton, it's not quite right. hold on one second. and he went outside and he

called to wally. wally came in. dad said, quinton, look at this man. look at his fantastic features. look at his ears. look at his nose. >> reporter: dahl's subject matter was definitely not all sweetness and light. there is a hint of darkness in your father's stories? >> without question, yes. >> reporter: because there has to be? >> children like to be scared, a little bit, not much. not much for nightmares. they don't like everything to be lovely all of the time. so there is a very fine imaginary line to the dark side and not the dark side. you go as dark gray as you possibly can and then you stop. >> reporter: which is why in roald dahl's world, even giants lurking in the shadows be friendly. for "cbs this morning" charlie d'agata, london. >> we'll be right back.

florida governor rick scott says his state could spend millions to fight toxic algae that is fouling rivers and beaches. the smelly mess is affecting an area known as florida's treasure coast. here is omar villafranca. >> reporter: the goopy blue-green algae blooms turned many southeast florida waterways into a thick poisonous soup. irene gomes, owner of driftwood motel in jenson beach says the blooms are the worst she has ever seen and scaring away her customers. how much business have you lost in a few days? >> from one group of relatives coming in together $1,000. >> reporter: florida governor rick scott declared state of emergency in palm beach, lee, martin and saint lucy. he believes water released from the largest freshwater lake in the state.

the lake has high levels of phosphorous and nitrogen from fertilizer, animal feed and human waste. nutrients that algae thrive on. the lake also has a deadly history of flooding and is kempt in check by an aging earthen dike. to reduce pressure, the army corps of engineer must drain lake water into the saint lucy estuary, one of the areas now inundated by algae. >> cutting back the flows might allow some salt water come in and flush things out just a little bit. >> some experts say the outbreak can also be traced to septic tanks and rain water run-off along the florida coast. also known as bacteria, the algae occurs naturally. but in huge concentrations, the tiny organisms are deadly to fish and wildlife. this manatee was choking on the bloom. >> that's pathetic. really is to sit there and see an animal being poisoned to death basically. >> reporter: signs warn swimmers to stay away.

bah the algae can cause stomach problems and skin irritation to humans. >> gomes says she is worried about her granddaughter. >> reporter: you don't let her near the water? >> i can't. >> reporter: how come? >> i can't take that risk. can't have any of my grandchildren out there. it is not happening. not taking them. >> reporter: usually at this time, people are starting to show up to the beach and stake their claim with the beach towel. as you can see behind me, no one is here, because the algae is in the water people aren't sure how long the algae will be in the water could be days or even ape few weeks. that's the "cbs overnight news" for this thursday. for some of you the news will continue. for others, check back wit with us later for the morning news and of course, cbs this morning. from the broadcast center here in new york city, i'm michelle miller.

captioning funded by cbs it's thursday, july 7th, 2016. this is the "cbs morning news." please, sister, don't tell me you just did this to him. >> breaking overnight. for the second straight day, another deadly shooting at the hands of police. the woman who witnessed her boyfriend's killing live streamed the aftermath for the world to see. >> oh, my god. please don't tell me he's dead. please don't tell me my boyfriend just went like that. and hundreds of miles bat