i'm martine dennis in doha. these are the top stories - the taliban releases a u.s. soldier in return for five of its leaders in a deal brokered by qatar. >>> back behind the cage - the trial of three al jazeera journalists resumes in cairo. >>> china hits back - slamming the u.s. and japan for their stance on the south china sea. and... >> i'm rory challands in russia, where half the population smokes. come this weekend a smoking ban will be in place so in bars and restaurants like this, people are told to stub it out. >>> now, first this morning a u.s. soldier released by the taliban is on his way to a hospital in germany. currently there is a conference being given by the qatari foreign ministry. there you see him. he is standing along the german foreign minister. we'll look at that more closely later on. first of all, let's find out about developments. what has been happening? the taliban leaders, who were released by the united states, are kornally on their way -- currently op their way to qatar. qatar brokered the prisoner swap, and the foreign minister has bee

. >> i heard john kerry this morning say don't worry about them in doha. you can't help but worry about them in doha. >> meanwhile, the commander in chief of the vfw has written a letter of the president demanding he shows more urgency to secure the release of andrew tahmooressi. >> look what our government did to secure the release of bowe bergdahl. all we're asking for president obama is make a simple phone call to the mexican government. >> incoming white house press secretary josh earnest was pressed for questions. >> it's certainly the president is concerned about, in terms of what specific efforts are under way, i refer you to the department of defense. >> at this hour, the entire house is being briefed about the bergdahl swap in a classified setting. this meeting should have happened before the swap. he's vowing to raise tough questions behind closed doors. >> there are concerns tonight that the release of the taliban five could soon be followed by a mass exodus from a guantanamo bay facility that obama has promised to close from his first day in of

they are expected to arrive in doha. we are joined in doha. they are on the way to qatar. what is going to happen to them once they arrive here? >> we are expecting a presser by the ministry of foreign affairs to shed light on the circumstances of the prisoner swap, and particularly the guarantees that the qatari government gave the united states of america in terms of the national security of america. will they stay for more than one year. beyond that what kind of restrictions that the qatari government puts on the detainees. these are issues that many people are looking forward to hear from the qatari government. >> qatar, of course, helped to broker the deal, central to the deal in itself. what is their interest in this case. why did they get involved? >> if you go back a few years ago when the united states of america was willing to talk to the taliban about a way out. reconciliation happens when the internet or foreign troops pull out of afghanistan. the taliban was given few addresses. would you like to go to turkey, saudi arabia, qatar. they said they'd like to move

the royal family in doha is all powerful.lped secure the deal with the taliban personally. i spoke to the royal family for the first time about the taliban deal when i was in doha when i met the amir's sister. there has been a lot of focus on your family. is that strange for you or pressure for you? >> i mean, qatar is a small nation, has been always in the spotlight because we decide to be independent in our policies and we do things with conviction there is no pressure. take wit a pinch of salt as they say. s they not going to deter our conviction or our determination to move forward. >> you obviously went to school at duke. so you spent a lot of time in the united states. you're very familiar with it. so when you look at this situation that is getting so much attention, do you understand why for a lot of americans they're very upset about the deal, about your brother the amir doing the deal with the taliban? >> i don't know the details, to be able to give you a frank description of how americans feel or the reasoning in ou

has is here in doha.rter: it's so huge defense secretary chuck hagel signed a ten-year agreement to keep u.s. forces here. qatar also was a key part of the negotiations with the taliban to free bowe bergdahl. >> earlier this week i was able to personally thank the emir of qatar for his leadership in helping us get t done. >> reporter: the five prisoners from guantanamo bay were welcomed in doha with open arms. a local qatari told me he has no problem with them. this isn't a surprise. qatar prides itself on its clout with the u.s. and extremists. this youtube video is one of several showing those thanking qatar for funds. this campaign contributes to humanitarian relief in syria, but this tweet last august if an al qaeda-linked militia is one of several from al qaeda supporters directing followers to donate to the campaign. the former deputy national security adviser for combating terrorism -- >> what you have is the resurrection of charitable networks that had been suppressed post 9/11 but are being rebor

a report from doha. >> the taliban leaders are now in doha. they will release -- they were released in a prison swap mediated by qatar. foreign minister bin hamman said it was humanitarian but stopped short of elaborating on what role played. >> i with respect to the detail, excuse me for not disclosing any, however, when qatar takes the role of intermediatiary, it plays this role on a humanitarian basis. >> the release of the taliban leaders who spent 12 years in guantanamo was in exchange for a u.s. sold, bowe bergdahl who spent five years in activity in afghanistan. u.s. president barack obama said national security would be safe guarded. >> we have worked for several years to achieve this goal. earlier this week, i was able to personally think the emir of qatar for his leadership in helping us get it done. as part of this effort, the united states is transferring five detainees from the prison in guantanamo bay to qatar. the qatari government has given us assurance that it will put in place measures to protect our national security. >> but

in doha with the top stories here here on al jazeera. the taliban hail a prison swap as a big victory. 5 taliban officials have now arrived in doha. the trial of three al jazeera journalists in egypt is adjourned. we will bring you the latest on the media crackdown. a frenchman allegedly confesses to shooting three people dead outside a jewish museum in brussels. >> in russia, half. population still smokes. this weekend, a smoking ban is coming in which means in bars and restaurants people are being told to stub it out. >> all of the day's sports including qatar's world cup organizers deny alleges of clippings. five taliban officials freed in exchange for an american soldier have arrived in doha. the deal was brokered with the help of qatar, which says its given washington assurance that u.s. national security won't be threatened by the releases. the men have now been medically examined after more than a decade in guantanamo prison. negotiations took place in the qatari capital after two years. th the two sides never spoke face to face.

a report from doha. >> reporter: the taliban leaders are now in doha.hey were released in a prison swap mediated by qatar. foreign minister mohammed aldabi said it was humanitarian but stopped short of elaborating on what role qatar played. >> i thank the negotiating delegation who adopted the best practices and with respect to the details, excuse me for not disclosing any, however, when qatar takes the role of intermediate ary, it plays this role on a humanitarian basis. >> the release of the taliban leaders who spent 12 years in guantanamo was in exchange for a u.s. soldier, bowe bergdahl who spent five years in captivity in afghanistan. u.s. president barack obama said national security would be safe guarded. >> we have worked for several years to achieve this goal. earlier this week, i wasabilitipenally think the emir of qatar for his leadership in helping us get it done. the united states is transferring five detainees from the prison in gaurnt guantbay in qatar. the qatari government has assured us it will put in plays measures for our security. >

you can't help but worry about them in doha. and we have no information on how the united states is actually going to see that they remain in doha, that they make no comments or do no agitation. >> clearly a lot of questions and we may get answers tomorrow when officials brief house members. so it's been now eight days since the dramatic release of bowe bergdahl and the firestorm surrounding his release continues to pick up steam. i'm joined by washington correspondent for the new yorker magazine, ryan lizza and erin mcpike, both in washington. ryan, let me go to you. we have backlash from both parties. a celebration canceled for bowe bergdahl because of security concerns. the white house expected some criticism. that is on the record. but now chuck hagel will be answering questions on capitol hill and some are answering questions as to whether the president broke the law. how and why has it reached this point? >> well, the first thing to say is whenever you have a combination of obama making a decision and partisan politics, ob

as promised, we can go live now at the foreign ministry in doha. and hasham, we were hearing from shihabs that it's thought that the five, once they arrive here, will live under a certain number of travel restrictions for a period of about a year. do we know anything more about the conditions under which they will be living here? >> today, the qatari foreign minister declined to give us further information about the conditions of the stay of the five taliban leaders. now, there are in force restrictions. the u.s. spoke about assurance from the qatari government that the stay of the taliban leaders won't compromise the u.s.'s national security. we don't know whether this is going to be a detention facility or some sort of restrictions. the qataris are very tight-lipped about this inc. this is a sensitive issue for them. they are pretty much happy about the success of the operation. they say it was purely a humanitarian mediation but for the time being, they wouldn't provide us with any details about exactly the kind of arrangements that they have pr

plus we go to doha off. you in a moment. ♪ need to bethink we too concerned about a hard landing. i think the government will manage its way through current issues. landing meanhard something little different. that was chief executive tony tyler addressing concerns about china. ceos are allne gathered. elliott gotkine will be bringing the latest from that meeting. the talk of the town is what is happening with the foot all football world cup. we will talk about that. ubs is being investigated by belgian authorities over allegations of money laundering. they say ubs employees approached wealthy taxpayers and encourage them to open accounts in switzerland. tiger air fell the most in four months after they said they are considering a plan. they're grounding planes, canceling orders, and reviewing an investment in indonesia. in southeast asia has pushed fares down recently. they are paying attention a great deal. samsung has unveiled the tizenry's first smartphone. .t comes with a super hd screen it is an operat

you are watching al jazeera live from the headquarters in doha. on the program: the south korea ian army hunts down the fousold who killed five comrades, plus praying for the preservation. the history we will show you an ancients kingdom which could be next on the world's next hair tain site. and and the taste of russia with bell gem. >> welcome to the program in iraq. sunny fighters seize more territory as they advance toward baghdad. speaking in cairo, secretary of state john kerr veshingd the united states is not responsibility for what is happening. he branded isil fighters as a threat. the government has launched airstrikes against targets in mosul, which it was driven out of two weeks ago. hundreds of thousands of people have fled the violence since the crisis began. sunni rebels have taken two towns on the road to baghdad. this follows the capture of the syrian border on saturday. opening up a major highway for those fighters to cross into isil strongholds in syria. a convoy of at least 50 iraqi army tanks has been sentence to reinforce had

you can't help but worry about them in doha." "we should do everything we can in our power to win the release of any american being held, but not at the expense of the lives and well-being of their fellow servicemen and women." bergdahl is currently recovering at a u-s military hospital in germany. when he's stable enough to travel, bergdahl will be transported to the san antonio military medical center. since his release may 31-st, critics have alleged bergdahl deserted his unit. the f-b-i is now investigating threats against his parents, though the nature of the threats is unknown. kerry says despite the circumstances of his capture, the u-s could not leave bergdahl in the hands of the taliban. "it would have been offensive and incomprehensible to consciously leave an american behind, no matter what." i'm scott thompson reporting. more world news. three months to the day a malaysian jetliner vanished, relatives of those aboard are set to launch an effort today to raise 5-million-dollars for investigations and a reward. malaysia

al jazeera, doha. >> live in washington, d.c. for us, there is a lot of jubilation over bergdahl's release. but there are those who are unhappy with the way the negotiations were conducted with the release of five taliban prisoners. >> right. senior republican officials here in washington are raising questions about that. the obama administration broke the law in releasing detainees from guantbay without alerting congress first, without giving it 30 days' notice. the white house argues these were exceptional circumstances and another issue is that old chestnut of negotiating with terrorists, whether as a result of this, the united states en knees will be emboldened to kidnap more americans to further their political ends. the u.s. government and the obama administration rejects that saying, quote and this is from chuck hagel, this was a prisoner of war exchange end quote. interesting terminology given that the u.s. has long maintained its detainees, all of its conduct in its wars on terror have nothing to do with international le

. ♪ ♪ >>> hello there, welcome to al jazerra live from doha. i am laura kyle.o coming up on the program two months after nigerian school girls are kidnapped. new reports of 90 abductions by suspected boko haram fighters. a former aid in the british prime minister is convicted of phone hacking while working as editor of a tabloid newspaper. and how listening to the bugs on your mobile phone could help at that track disease. ♪ ♪ >>> egyptian president abdul fatah el sisi says he will not interfere in the judicial system following an international outcry over the sentenc sentencf three al jazerra journal sifts. peter agrees at this sentenced to seven years in jail. mohamed a 10-year sentence. they are falsely accused of helping the outlawed muslim brotherhood. under-y egypt constitution the president has a right to issue a pardon or reduce the sentences. well, journalists around the world have been holding a silent protest to mark the convictions. the global demonstration was held exactly 24 hours after the sentences were handed down. barnaby phillips reports from

nic robertson for us in doha. va is set to release more results of a nationwide audit of scheduling practices today. the va has been under the microscope since cnn revealed secret waiting lists, cover-ups and long treatment delays at the va medical center in phoenix. dozens of veterans there died waiting for care. the house veterans affairs committee is expecting updates on the investigation at a hearing tonight. >>> relief may be on the way for some 5 million americans with student loans. we are awaiting a major announcement today from the white house. the president expected to expand an alternative repayment program that would cap monthly payments for certain federal student loans at 10% of the borrower's discretionary income. the president also expected to back a democratic proposal that would allow borrowers to refinance student loans. >> income-based repayment. if you can keep your student loan bill at 10% of what you bring in every month, then you have the oxygen in your budget to do other things, and that's

we go to peter thompson at the doha center for media freedom and as news of this verdict sinks in and let me just remind our viewers peter greste seven years and fahmy and seven and three for possession and a few other colleagues are tried in abstention and all get ten years and as this starts to sink in what is your reaction and thought process here? >> i think the reaction you can see from everyone who is speaking about this case so far is total shock. the australian government's reaction talking about the best way to go about trying to remedy the situation, i think that is what people are going to be looking into now. there are three journalists here who all have sentences in cairo who need to be talked about. it's really a shocking result and one i don't think anyone was expecting especially considering for instance the australian prime minister the statement he released and it seemed like everyone was hopeful to see a positive outcome. >> we spoke to someone from amnesty international and said they will continue the campaign but the heart of the issue is this is not that unusual

you can't help but worry about them in doha.o be comfortable when you really haven't been briefed on the intrick a instrument int >> the question is at what cost? whether it would put the lives of other american men and women who are serving in had danger and in my view clearly this would. >> i'm not telling you they don't have some ability at some point to go back and get involved. they also have an opportunity to get killed doing that. i don't think anybody should doubt the capacity of the united states of america to protect americans. nobody. >> joining me now sheef pentagon correspondent jim mick mick. i want to go to the last comment because i've had officials behind the scenes tell me this a lot. what kerry just said. the ability to get killed essentially what i have been told is, hey, don't think there aren't drones ready to go if these guys get back into the fight. is that what you are hearing behind the scenes? >> well, we're talking about a year from now if, in fact, they stay in doha forever. they're not going to laun

let's bring in the academic, director of policy analysis at the doha instilt tut joins me in doha. isil seem to be getting what they want. they wanted an islamic state. they have broken through the borders which givesthems fr-- tm free for all in syria and iraq. >> they have been talking about something much bigger than the isil. as your reporter from iraq has mentioned. it's more like a sunnis union actually and isil is taking advantage of that even the shiite community is increasingly recognizing that there is something must be done in order to salvage the whole situation? iraq. for example, the most senior shii shiite cleric in iraq is for a unity government. he has called for the establishment of a unity government in iraq. i think he was not feeling he was abandoning al-malaki because non-can accept the al-malaki government. >> seems everyone is aband oning al-malaki? >> i think so. >> some are speaking to isil saying back off. we know the kurds sent oil to israel. it seems as if they have already moved on. >> i think now, everybody came to the point where they think something

you can't help but worry about them in doha. and we have no information on how the united states is actually going to see if they remain in doha that they make no comments, do no agitation. another room i one taliban has apparently sewed that he would return -- said that he would return to the battlefield. so, it's a mixed bag at best. let me just say this. should we see that our g.i.s who are taken hostage are returned, absolutely. and one of the things that vice chairman of the joint chiefs made very clear was that the army will look at this very carefully. they will make judgments, they will evaluate it. if he needs to be tried in a military court he will be. i think that's the way it should be. what's unfortunate is that i see no sign of the taliban relenting. i have deep concern now that they have tried to kill almost new elected president of afghanistan, dr. abdullah abdullah who i happen to know. yet to me is a sign when karzai appointed peace commission and rhamni headed it. extraordinarily difficult. some of us worry ve

you can't help but worry about them in doha. and we have no information on how the united states is actually going to see that they remain in doha, they make no comments, they do no agitation. >> reporter: the running theme here is that lawmakers are skeptical about what the administration has done, they're demanding more information and they think that the administration has been a little too cavalier about dealing with congress and acting in a democratic fashion. >> you know, it's also interesting, she also went on to voice her frustration that we have heard from lawmakers on both sides about not being notified with that 30-day notice as law requires and going to happen, this prisoner swap. but also, erin, republican senator chambliss with a shot at the obama administration with the handling of the deal. what is he upset about and the sticking point there for him? >> reporter: it's much the same as what dianne feinstein was upset about because he's the ranking member, the republican who leads the intelligence committee. and he

i heard john kerry say, don't worry about them in doha, you can't help but worry about them in doha.nd we have no information on how the united states is actually going to see that they remain in doha, that they make no comments, that they do noa noagetati noagetation. >> also upset, senator chambliss. listen. >> this administration has acted very strangely about this, bob, and it's puzzling as to why they did not let us know in advance that this was going to happen. now they come back and because he is in decent health, considering where he's been, they've changed their story. they said, well, you know, we suspected his life may be in danger. >> well, chambliss is retiring soon but a republican who is not retiring any time soon, as we know of who mei lan. a bid for the white house, senator rand paul, has even more stinging criticism for the obama administration, tweeting, quote, mr. president, let's set up a new trait instead of five taliban, let's trade five democrats! we know that bowe bergdahl spend nearly five years as a hostage of the taliban. our senior international correspon

. >>> hello, welcome to al jazeera, live from doha. i'm rob matheson. also on the programme - five taliban prisoners released from guantanamo bay start their new life in qatari. >>> a frenchman arrested for shooting three people outside a jewish museum in brussels. >>> and a state is born - indians celebrate the creation of the taligarna - but it's not okay for everyone. >>> thanks for joining us. there's heavy fighting in the libyan city of benghazi, twine the armed group and the forces of general khalifa haftar. gunfire can be heard across the city. it is consenn traited at an army -- concentrated at an army base. we are joined on the phone by a resident in the area. what can you see? >> i can see the fighting, and the explosions as i talk to you. unfortunately we have sad news that two civilians, two younger, were killed due to the explosions. and i can describe that the families, they are not able to get out of the area because of the fighting. so describe to us the area surrounding the camp, where the attacks are happening? >> it's the area in beng

and in london, lua visiting fellow at the brookings doha center. in general, when a country goes off line, as libya did, what happens first? first you see prices go up. you may not notice actual disruptions in the supply. but the spare capacity in the oil market is very very small. so taking off the supplies of an entire country, off line, like we with have seen, will actually cause instability, and insecurity which obviously drives prices up. >> why don't other countries simply open their tap as little wider, making the supply roughly level. >> well, this is an market in a way, meaning that you can't just make up for the missing production. overnight. they are reaching that capacity of how much they can produce in a year, and they are willing to be the garn tour of that flexibility, but they also have limitations in terms of physical infrastructure, and production rates that they have to abide by. >> we mentioned this was mostly oil that was being used domestically, that this was not a dagger at the heart of the iraqi oil industry. but if problems

you can't help but worry about them in doha. it is hard to be comfortable when you have really not been briefed on the intricacies of carrying out this agreement. >> you have the obligation to do whatever we can to bring any of our captured servicemen and women back, but the e question is, at what cost? whether it would put the lives of other american men and women who are serving in danger and in my view, clearly, this would. >> and joining me live now, nbc news law enforcement analyst and retired atf specialist and hostage negotiator the jim cavenaugh and carlotta gal who covers afghanistan is joining us live by skype in afghanistan, and i want to thank you both for joining us, but i want to start with you, jim, let's talk about bergdahl telling medical officials that he was locked in a metal cage and in darkness for weeks at a a time as punishment for trying to escape. our jim miklaszewski says he was subjected to harsh treatment, and what do you make of that and what does it mean about how long the reintegration process migh

. >>> you're watching al jazeera live from doha. also ahead, four ukranian soldiers killed hours after the government extends a fragile ceasefire agreement with rebels. one of mexico's top vigilantes is under arrest - what it moons for the civilian offensive against the cartel. >>> and how the love of football is costing the brazilian economy billions of dollars. >>> the iraqi army has begun a major ground offensive to retake tikrit. it follows an announcement by the yauts that armed drones are flying over baghdad to protect recently arrived military advisors. u.s. air strikes still have not been authorised by the president. >> it would be irsocial -- irresponsible for us not be making preparations. some of the aircraft is for force application air forces, flying over iran. >> let's look at the position on the ground. in the north peshmerga forces are reasserting command. rebels are increasing their presence on the border with syria, mosul is undergoing government air strikes. it's been held by rebels since 10 june. the government s

elliott gotkine joining us from doha. with less than two weeks ago until the world cup, you can use bloomberg's 2014 tournament predictions. it allows users to create their own bracket divisions. you can find that on our website, bloomberg.com. >> it is the german investor and incubator credited with putting berlin's tech scene on the map. now, rocket may be nearing and ipo that could value it at $4 billion. here with more is hans nichols. more on the brothers behind the dot clone companies. >> good morning. 4 billion euros is a lot of money. but put this in a context of what some of the san francisco startups are facing. whatsapp for $17 billion. it is the difference in what this company is. this company is an accelerator. it finds good ideas in the states or elsewhere and helps incubate them here in germany and latin america and asia. that is no small task. and say,challenge them you are just a clone, they always have the answer. yes, but. the but part of it is, it is very difficult translating consumer models to differ

. >> the life of doha... >> this is the international news hour... >> an informed look on the night'snts, a smarter start to your day. mornings on al jazeera america >>> hey, welcome back to "techknow." shini, you are showing us technology where cars are communicating with cars and infrastructure like stop light to make our driving experience safer, and now they let you behind the wheel. >> yes, i got to test drive a car with a v2v system, and the challenge was to drive as badly as possible. >> how did that go? >> i'll let you decide. let's take a look. >> reporter: so this is quite a blind spot, isn't it, because... >> you can't see past the tall bush there. it's hard to tell when traffic is coming by. >> reporter: tricky to paul out. a dreary day at general motors in warren, michigan gave me a dose of reality to test drive the v2v. >> as a drive, when you can't see the road you edge forward. i'll do what i would naturally do - edging forward. [ beeping ] coming. >> that's an advantage of v2 v. it works if you driver can't see approaching vehicles. >> reporter: general motors is one

. >> there are two that we'll monitor in the capital of doha. the arrival of five detainees, and the minister of forebb affai affairs. the roll that the qatari government played in the swap and details about restrictions. they are going to stay here in doha or fly back to afghanistan and what political role they could play in the future. >> this is one aspect. this is another. it is most likely to play a significant role. on one hand you have the afghan reconciliation, and on the other foreign troops pulling out of afghanistan as we speak. the taliban say we are doing this ipp directly, leaving us to assume that the qataris are playing a significant role. these are questions we are likely going to get more light and answers in the coming horse. >>> in sergeant bowe bergdahl's home town in idaho, people are preparing to welcome him. allen schauffler has this update. >> this up to of 8 thouds, just a -- 8,000, just abuzz this weekend with the spreading news that bowe bergdahl is coming home. coming home as a sergeant, promoted twice whilst in capt

. >> the life of doha... >> this is the international news hour... >> an informed look on the night'svents, a smarter start to your day. mornings on al jazeera america [ ♪ music ] >>> hey, guys, welcome back to techknow. kyle, you have the next story for us. >> we have seen wide scale destructions that earthquakes cap to to a country like japan, and they have an early warning system. researches at caltech are trying to give us seconds before a similar disaster hits the u.s. let's take a look. >> reporter: there are scenes of incredible power and force. this is what a magnitude 9 earthquake can do. this is what it looks like. fear captured in real-time, by home video cameras, rolling when the earth shook japan, and shared on youtube for the world to see. march 11th, 2011, 9.0, japan. april 18th, 2014, 7.2, mexico. august 23rd, 2011, 5.8 virginia and the district of columbia. october 17th, francisco. >> what happened? >> there's a hell of an earthquake. everything. >> earthquakes are still a big mystery. try and understand exactly what is happening on the phones while these things are s

this is the newshour, live from our headquarters in doha. coming up, sunni rebels and the iraqi army battle over the oil refineries. the leaders debate air combat. >>> felipe sworn in as spain's new copying. >>> many flee in northern pakistan >>> and farmers trying to save bananas from a devastating disease. >>> but first, to the turmoil in iraq, and leaders in the region are reacting to baghdad's request for an air strike against sunni fighters. turkey's prime minister recep tayyip erdogan warns that it could cause a high number of civilian casualties. no decision op air strikes has been made. >>> on the ground in iraq, one of the major battles is waged for control of a large oil refinery. there was a truce in order to allow hundreds of workers to get out. hundreds of volunteers are signing up to fight. on the rebel side the barth party issued a statement calling the iraqi prime minister treacherous, promising that it would protect the rights of iraqis. that follows a chorus echoing that nouri al-maliki should resign. >> the government in s

we are here in doha, with the world's top stories. joined by volunteer fighters, iraqi soldiers defeat sunni rebels and retake two towns north of baghdad. the israeli army arrests 80 palestinians as the search continues for three teenagers missing in the occupied west bank. >>> pakistan targets foreign fighters inside its borders. >> and all the world cup news including mario balotelli making headlines as italy beats england at the world cup. >>> iraqi soldiers appear to be holding back in advance of sunni muslim fighters north of the capital baghdad. according to media reports, government troops re took two downs. fighters control the key cities of tikrit and mosul. the army has been joined by a flood of volunteers after a call to arms from a top cleric. rebel fighters have taken a number of towns. a sunni fighter continues offensives in iraq. the video shows them celebrating the capture of mosul. it's a second-largest city, taken on tuesday. the reuters newsagency shows courthouse and police station set fire to after prisoners relea

i'm martine dennis in doha. these are the top stories - the taliban releases a u.s. soldier in return for five of its leaders in a deal brokered by qatar. >>> back behind the cage - the trial of three al jazeera journalists resumes in cairo. >>> china hits back - slamming the u.s.

. ♪ ♪ >>> hello, you are with al jazerra, we are live in doha.o to come, homes are hit by artillery shells in eastern ukraine as government forces battle pro-russia separatists. kenya's president blames local politicians and not al-shabab for two nights of attacks in which dozens of people were killed. >>> 220 twin twisters devastatea small town in the united states. i state of medical has been declared in the state of nebraska. ♪ ♪ >>> now iraq's rebel up rising is moving closer to the capital. sunni fighters are now battling government forces, just 60-kilometers outside of baghdad. they are fighting for the city of baquoba, where overnight rebels attacked and occupied several neighborhoods. now since the up rising started a week arc sunni rebels have so far ceased tikrit, mo sus in the north. and pushed out government troops to siege a large part of northern iraq and its western border in to syria. live now to omar in baghdad to get the very latest on today. and omar, it seems as though the rebels are moving closer to the capital. and they have

i'm steven cole in doha coming up in the next 60 minutes. thousands of groups rally around the country in a show of force. >>> a u.n. report shows half of the syria's population is in need of aid. >>> maurey tainians head to the poll >>> pope francis takes on calabria - a stronghold. >>> first, to the turmoil in iraq, where sunni fighters have taken more territory, said to have seized the baiji oil refinery. the most power of the groups are promising or are promising to fight back. one held a show of power against its enemies. supporters of the muqtada al-sadr rallied across the country. others are involved too. the biggest event was in sadder city in northern baghdad. men turned out, including the northern town of kirkuk, under kurdish control. they are getting ready for a long battle. >> we urge you to be ready to sacrifice yourselves and befriend the beloved country. >> imran khan is in baghdad for us. tell us what happened in sadder city. >> well, there was what you call a show of force. i was down there and saw thousands of volunteers r

. >> i heard secretary of state john kerry say don't worry about them in doha. you can't worry about them in doha and we have no information that the united states is going to see that they remain in doha. >> candy crowley spoke with mccain and you reminded him of a conversation about a trade to get bergdahl home. what was his explanation as to what has changed? >> look, he has responded as saying -- and he did say in the interview, it would depend on the details. the problem a lot of people see, those that do fact checks, is that the details have been out there for quite some time and, in fact, some of it was detailed in a piece that ran the day before mccain talked to anderson. he said, listen, i would have never, ever have said that these five guys, who he considers to be the worst of the worst, set free essentially in qatar. i did take advantage of his time. 5 1/2 years as a p.o.w., bergdahl for five years. i asked him about all that we have heard about bergdahl this week, that he was a defector, that he perhaps became a convert to islam while he was in capt

i'm stephen cole in doha. coming up in the next 60 minute sunni fighters make advances towards baghdad >>> a manhunt for a south korean soldier ends in a shoot-out with the army. >> help us, please. >>> the girls that avoided being kidnapped make a plea for the return of their missing classmates. >>> adding new names to unesco's list of world her dij sides. >>> first, breaking news from israel. an israeli citizen has been killed in an explosion in goelan heights. israel responded by attacking a border post with mortar shells. >>> four palestinians have been killed in a search for three missing israeli teenagers. the israeli forces arrested 464 palestinians in a search operation. they raised triggered flashes in ramallah. three teenagers went missing on june the 12th near a west bank settlement. >>> i'm joined by mark regev, a chief spokesman for the israeli prime minister. tell us, first, what happened on the golan heights. >> well, the original report that there was hostile from the syrian side of the goelan

you can't help but worry about them in doha." >>"we should do everything we can in our power to win the release of any american being held, but not at the expense of the lives and well-being of their fellow servicemen and women." >>bergdahl is currently recovering at a u-s military hospital in germany. when he's stable enough to travel, bergdahl will be transported to the san antonio military medical center. since his release may 31-st, critics have alleged bergdahl deserted his unit. the f-b-i is now investigating threats against his parents, though the nature of the threats is unknown. kerry says despite the circumstances of his capture, the u-s could not leave bergdahl in the hands of the taliban. >>"it would have been offensive and incomprehensible to consciously leave an american behind, no matter what." >>i'm scott thompson reporting. here in the bay area. a pair of livermore buisness partners have turned their hobby into a business. not a business just to make money. but to help other's just like them. they are military ve

from al jazerra headquarters in doha to nairobi to seoul think.oment of unity and protest of the verdict that sentenced these three journalists to prison for up to 10 years. the reaction after an egyptian court on monday was far from silent. especially the family of the accused. >> oh, me i god. >> reporter: peter greste's parents were stunned and angry. >> our son, peter, is an award-winning journalist. he is not a criminal. >> reporter: the court convicted the journal assists on charges they supported the muslim brotherhood which has been declared a terrorist organization. but the fight to free the journalists is not over. interim ceo of al jazerra america. >> we are determined to make sure that our journal assists will be freed. and the whole world is standing behind us. >> reporter: that includes the united states. >> it's a chilling and draconian sentence. and, you know, it's deeply disturbing to see in the midst of egypt's transition. >> reporter: britain. >> egypt has taken a major step in the wrong direction with this decision. >> reporter

now, they landed in doha on sunday. i think you've seen those pictures tweeted by the taliban and political office, as it's known here. we're told by sources here that this deal had been in the works now for some time. when the taliban opened this office here in 2013, they made it absolutely clear that this prisoner swap was an absolute priority. that's more than a year ago now. where those prisoners are at present is unclear. we went down to that office earlier on today. there was no activity. interesting, it is very innocuous for the situation and locations, very close to u.s. embassy staff quarters, very close to the foreign ministry here in qatar and also to the financial district, but no activity at all. there's no name plate any longer on the office. there is no flag being flown from them. we spoke to a security guard who said there have been no activity there over the past 24-48 hours. now, there is talk that their families have been flown in from afghanistan to join them here in qatar, though i can't confirm tha

. ♪ hello and welcome to the news hour, i'm julie in doha with a top stories, as rebels in iraq attackn a new front from the capitol but they are fighting morning themselves for iraq's second biggest city. argentina's president will not give into extortion over her government debt. and the first percent can be worth tens of millions of dollars. ♪ rebels have taken over large parts of northern iraq and are fighting for control of another town. this time just 60 kilometers from the capitol, fighters attacked north of baghdad overnight and occupied several neighborhoods and driven government troops out of two other cities and control northern iraq in the western border into syria. there are a number of different groups who have joined together to fight the iraqi government. the islamic state of iraq and its goal is the creation of an islamic state linking syria and iraq. sunni tribal fighters are involved in offensive and then we have military officers during former president's sudam hussain's rule and they have trained the younger generation to fight. and stole is the publisher of the ne

you can't help but worry about them in doha. and we have no information on how the united states is actually going to see that they remain in doha, make no comments do no agitation. >> you're not as comfortable with that as apparently as he is? >> it's hard to be comfortable when you really haven't been briefed on the intricacies of carrying out this agreement. >> julie pace, is the white house at this point at all giving on the issue that this might have been badly explained to congress and badly explained to the world? >> i think they are starting to at least recognize that may be the case. i don't know if publicly you're going to hear a lot of that. i think there are a couple pieces where they clearly could have done -- >> can i stop you? do you think they're starting to recognize this? i'm trying to figure out who did this. >> i think it has been a slow process of coming to that recognition. you know, i was -- >> that's unbelievable. >> saturday when this happened and there was a real euphoria in the white house that saturda

. ♪ hello and welcome to the news hour, from headquarters in doha and i'm steven and attack on securityheck point in lebanon and it's connected to the fighting in syria and iraq. iraqis react to u.s. support and some say a change of leadership in baghdad is the only way forward. also ahead a discovery of a mass grave of migrants unearthed in mexico. a television celebrity surrenders to police live on television. ♪ but first a suicide attack in lebanon, a car bombing in syria and a fight up rising in iraq, in isolation the incidents of human tragedy but they are linked and together they tell the story of a middle eastern landscape that is changing very quickly. we will be reporting from iraq in a moment but first let's go to lebanon. and we are joined now in the eastern becca valley, tell us what happened. >> reporter: steve, i'm standing right next to the check point where the explosion took place and a suicide bomber blew himself up and can confirm the head of the lebanese general security was the target of an assassination attempt. he passed by here just seconds before that explosion

. ♪ hello and welcome to the news hour, i'm in doha with the world's top news stories.undreds of iraqi volunteers joined the fight against sunni rebels as they capture another town. dozens killed as gunmen storm kenya and al-shabob is being claimed and time to pay the gas bill and russia cuts off gas supplies to ukraine as the deadlines set by moscow comes and goes. ♪ and i will have all your world cup news including shining here in the world cup opener. ♪ sunni rebels in northern iraq scored another important victory as they push to the capitol of baghdad. it's the latest blow to the government. rebel fighters capture the town of talafa on monday after fighting with soldiers and also control the second largest city as well as the city of decrete, hundreds are joining the fight against the rebels and these are pictures from baghdad taken on monday morning and they are supplied with army fatigues and thousands of people volunteered after the top sheer clerk. sunni rebels posted pictures online showing fighters massacring hundreds of iraqi soldiers near decrete and a sour

we called him when we were in doha.>> reporter: and when weed and why he used a picture of the planes hitting the world trade center on 9/11 in a tweet he replied the picture is everywhere on the internet. he told us we couldn't donate to his campaign right out in but would have to give to another charity approved by the qatar government. he also wouldn't tell us how much money he raised but in one tweet last summer he asks allah to bless the people of qatar for donating so much money. we don't know where the funds went but at one point the campaign worked with qatar's volunteer work center to raise money to help syrian refugees. the work center was supervised by the qatar government's minlinistry of culture. the minister declined our request for an interview. so how high up in the government in qatar does the support for islamic extremism go? >> these are decisions made at the top so qatar operates as a monarchy. its officials, its activities follow the orders of the government. >> reporter: the emir is just 34 years o

>> cnn's richard quest is live from doha.f anything how they will assure these men will not be reintegrated and become a threat to the u.s. and others? >> reporter: the authorities are saying absolutely nothing on that crucial question. they refuse to give any details about the operation, save to say that the mandate to negotiate was agreed by the mayor himself, that it was generally what they described basic foreign policy principles of humanitarian considerations, and when you push them just that little bit further, they say they were able to act as the linchpin in these negotiations because they enjoyed the confidence of both the taliban, where the taliban actually have representatives in doha and the united states, which of course has longstanding military economic very deep ties between qatar and the u.s. even so, which ever way you pass their words, qatar very much at the center of what has been one of the most delicate and difficult negotiations. >> let's talk about defense secretary chuck hagel. we understand that he

you can't help but worry about them in doha. >> reporter: and what of that alleged taliban threat to kill bergdahl if word of the prison swap leaked? finestein says she doesn't believe there was a credible threat. >> no, i do not. i've heard of none, let me put it that way. >> reporter: but the senior u.s. official says that once a prisoner exchange deal was reached with bergdahl's captors, the u.s. had to move quickly, because of intelligence, other taliban elements might kill him to keep him out of u.s. hands. and the fbi is continuing to investigate threats against his parents. chris. >> barbara, thank you for continuinging to drive the reporting on this. it's a story that begs understand, let's bring in matthew hoke, he's a friend of the bergdahl family and a marine captain. captain, thank you for being here. give us a sense of where the family is at? the tough news that he's not ready to speak to his family. >> good morning. thank you for having me here today. they're doing as well as you can expect with someone in these ci

you can't help but worry about them in doha. and we have no information on how the united states is actually going to see that they remain in doha, that they make no comments, that they do no agitation. what's unfortunate is that i see no sign of the taliban relenting. >> for the chair of the intelligence committee in the senate not to have any idea, to have the same questions as anybody on the outside has is inexcusable. >> the same questions surrounding the condition of bergdahl. she thought he is not in dire condition as they initially stated. >> now the white house looks crazy because in the beginning they said we had to act right then because he was about to die. then they said he's in great shape. then they said we had to release him then because they were about to kill him. no evidence of that either. let's see what the white house comes up with later today. >> let's wish heather nauert good morning. >> hi guys. we've got new information that came in overnight on that deadly las vegas shooting over the weekend. a married

year from now when these five johnnys come marching home and are they now involved in war planning in doha? chuck todd is political director for nbc news, host of "the daily rundown" on msnbc and clarence page is a columnist for "the chicago tribune," first, the videos of bergdahl's handoff by the taliban to special forces. bergdahl is shown here sitting in the back of a pickup truck talking to taliban escorts while waiting for americans arrive. eventually, american special forces do arrive by helicopter. bergdahl and his taliban escort move toward them. you can see the americans briefly shaking hands with the taliban people, and then taking bergdahl back to the helicopter. the americans frisk him, load him on the helicopter and take off. it all takes about a minute on the ground there. chuck, you have a lot of things to do tonight, so i'm going to get your thoughts now. did the white house anticipate today, last saturday, did they know how the picture would deteriorate, the picture we have a bergdahl as a loyal american or not? the picture we have of these taliban detainees as dangerous o