. welcome to democracy now!, democracynow.org, the war and peace report. i'm amy goodman. president obama has confirmed a u.s. drone strike in pakistan killed the leader of the afghan taliban. in a statement, obama called the death of mullah aktar hummad mansour "an important milestone." speaking earlier today in hanoi as part of his visit to vietnam, obama denied the killing marked a shift in the u.s. role in afghanistan. >> this does not represent a shift in our approach. we are not reentering the day-to-day combat operations that are currently being conducted by afghan security forces. our job is to help afghanistan secure its own country, not to have our men and women in uniform engage in that fight for them. amy: prior to war in afghanistan, the vietnam war was the longest war in u.s. history. as part of his visit to vietnam, obama announced the end of one of the last vestiges of the vietnam war, a decades-old ban on the sale of lethal military equipment to vietnam. >> i can also announce the united states is f fully lifting the ban on the sale of the military quitman to vietna

, coming up. welcome to democracy now!, democracynow.org, the war and peace report. i'm amy goodman. an internal government watchdog has concluded hillary clinton broke government rules by using a private e-mail server without approval for her work while she was secretary of state. that was the key finding of a long-awaited report by the state department inspector general released wednesday. the report concludes clinton would not have been allowed use of private server in her home has she asked the guys it posed "significant security risks." said she wouldn comply with all probes into the server use, she and eight of her deputies, including cheryl mills, jake sullivan, and huma een, declined to be interviewed for the investigation. her use for state department business is also the subject of an ongoing fbi investigation and has plagued her presidential campaign for months. we will have more on the report and the e-mail controversy after headlines. massachusetts senator elizabeth warren continues to criticize presumptive republican presidential nominee donald trump. speaking at the cente

democracy now!, democracynow.org, the war and peace report. i'm amy goodman. we begin today's show in baltimore, where a police officer was acquitted on all charges for his role in the arrest of freddie gray who diedd of spinal injuries last year after he was arrested and transported in a police van. officer edward nero faced misdemeanor charges of second-degree assault, reckless endangerment, and two counts of misconduct in office. a total of six officers were charged -- four were directly charged in gray's death. judge barry williams handed down the verdict in a bench trial on monday, ruling that the ststate has not met t its burden t to pe nero's guilt beyondnd a reasonae doububt. the ruling was met with little surise from m the commununity ia case t that many said waththe ststate's weweakest, howowever w protesters gathered outside of the courththouse and expressed disappointment in the verdict.t. >> this is not right. that boys back got broke. he is dead. if something happened to my son, i put myself in that families shoe. that is not right. the verdict is not correct. you should

democracy now!, democracynow.org, the war and peace report. i'm amy goodman. more than 700 refugees have drowned in only three days as border crackdowns across europe have forced refugees to make more dangerous journeys across the mediterranean. the united nations children's fund says many of the victims were youth fleeing war and violence in their home countries. the majority of the refugees were from eritrea, nigeria, somalia, and south sudan. under a european union plan enacted in april, all refugees arriving in greece are deported back to turkey, forcing people to attempt the more dangerous route between libya and italy. on monday, the photo of a german volunteer from the group sea-watch holding the body of a drowned child became the latest symbol of the migration crisis. sea-watch spokesman ruben neugebauer spoke out. >> it is always a difficult decision to publish such a picture, but in this specific case, we decided to send the picture out because of the greatness of the situation. we thought this material needed to be published. what we see here is the effect of european for

amy goodman. we begin today's special broadcast remembering the life and legacy of the legendary anti-war priest father daniel berrigan. he died on april 30 just short of his 95th birthday. berrigan was a poet, pacifist, educator, social activist, playwright, and lifelong resister against what he called "american military imperialism." along with his late brother, phil berrigan, father dan played an instrumental role in inspiring the anti-war and anti-draft movement during the late 1960's as well as the movement against nuclear weapons in the early 1970's. he became the first catholic priest to land on the fbi's most wanted list. georgetown university theology professor chester gillis once said of father berrigan -- "if you were to identify catholic prophets in the 20th century, he'd be right there with dorothy day or thomas merton." in early 1968, father daniel berrigan made international headlines when he traveled to north vietnam with historian howard zinn to bring home three u.s. prisoners of war. in the documentary "holy outlaw,"ather dan recalled spending time in vietnamese shel

up. welcome to democracy now!, democracynow.org, the war and peace report. i'm amy goodman. we are broadcasting from toronto, canada. san francisco police chief gregory suhr has been ousted following weeks of hunger strikes and protesting over police killings in the city. said at -- mayor edwin lee he asked for the resignation after a police officer shot and killed an unarmed african-american woman in a car in the bayview district, the same neieighborhood or officers shot and killed mario woods in december. >> these officer involved shootitings, justified or not, have forced our city to open its of whento questions and how police use lethal force. that is why i have asked for chief suhr for his resignation. the best injures -- interest of the city he loves so much, he tendered his resignation early today, despite the political rhetoric of the past be weeks, i have nothing but profound admiration for granted. he is a true public servant and he will always have respect. ouster comes after activist known as the frisco five held a more than two weeks hunger strike demanding the police

, coming up. welcome to democracy now, democracynow.org, the war and peace report. i'm amy goodman. french president holland and greek officials have said the egypt air passenger jet the disappeared this morning en route from paris to cairo has crashed. egyptian and greek authorities are searching for the jet, which has 66 people aboard. there is no information yet about what caused the crash. last november, a russian airlines plane was brought down over egypt, killing all 224 people on board. the self-proclaimed islamic state claimed responsibility for taking down that plane. meanwhile, an azerbaijani plane has crashed in southern afghanistan, killing 7 of the 9 people on board. the pentagon says the plane crashed during take-off when one of the plane's wings clipped the runway. ecuador, venezuela, and el salvador have announced a are recalling their investors from brazil over the suspension of democratically elected president dilma rousseff. she faces impeachment proceedings over accusations of tampering with government accounts to hide a budget deficit. but she has accused her right-win

up. welcome to democracy now!, democracynow.org, the war and peace report. i'm amy goodman. honduran authorities have arrested four men in connection with the murder of environmentalist berta caceres. caceres was gunned down in her hometown of la esperanza last month. for a decade, she led the struggle against the agua zarca dam, planned along a river sacred to her people, the lenca. last year she won the prestigious goldman environmental prize. she had faced repeated threats. the honduran president hailed the arrests. >> the authorities have captured four suspects in the death of our fellow citizen berta cacer es. we said this was a hit on the honduran state. and i repeat it again, taking the life of berta caceres is a hit on the honduran state. amy: the suspects have been identified as sergio rodriguez orellana, a manager for social and environmental issues for desa douglas geovanny bustillo , who had worked for a security firm hired by the dam project. the other two are reportedly an army major and retired captain. berta caceres' family has called for an independent investigation,

!, democracynow.org, the war and peace report. i'm amy goodman. vermont senator bernie sanders has won the democratic primaryan kentucky. with 99% of kentucky precincts reporting, clinton leads sanders by .5%. sanders thanked his supporters in both states. >> let me also take this opportunity to say a word of thanks to the people of kentucky. [cheers] somethingd primary -- i'm not all that and these asterisk -- enthusiastic about where independents are not allowed to vote -- [boos] defeatedretary clinton inack obama by 250,000 votes 2008, it appears tonight we are going to end up with about half of the delegates from kentucky. amy: meanwhile, donald trump has moved a step closer to cementing the republican nomination. he is projected to have won 70% of the vote in oregon, where ted cruz and john kasich appeared on the ballot, even though they have dropped out of the race. we'll have more on trump and the results later in the broadcast. bernie sanders' victory in oregon comes amid tensions with the democratic party after sanders' supporters erupted into protest saturday at the nevada conven

war and peace report. i'm amy goodman. in north carolina, 11 people were arrested over the anti-transgender law. hundreds of people dissented on the state legislature as part of the moral monday action calling for north carolina to repeal the law. known as hb to come or the bathroom bill, the measure nullifies ordinances protecting lgbt people from discrimination and forces transgender people to use the bathroom that matches what they were assigned on their birth certificate. the justice department has sued north carolina over the law, which calls -- because discriminatory. north carolina has sued the government to defend the law. on monday, the aclu and lambda legal asked the judge to block enforcement of the law by issuing preliminary induction will -- injunction. releasing a singer burned her birth certificate on stage. she came out as transgender in 2012. democratic voters head to the polls in kentucky and oregon today. the primaries come after supporters of bernie sanders protested procedures they saw as favoring hillary clinton at the nevada convention over the weekend. ba

more, coming up. welcome to democracy now!, democracynow.org, the war and peace report. i'm amy goodman. dozens of civilians have been killed in an airstrike on a camp for internally displaced syrians in idlib province near the border with turkey. at least 30 people were reportedly killed, some of them children, and dozens more wounded. u.n. humanitarian affairs chief stephen o'brien said the bombing could be a war crime. it's still unclear who carried out the strike, with reports it was either syrian or russian planes. a witness condemned the attack. >> we are displaced people and people were set on fire. they set tents ablaze. followed theck announcement of expanded truce brokered by russia d the united states, which brought a degree of calm to the embattled city of aleppo. but in a message to russian president vladimir putin, syrian president bashar al-assad said he still sought a total victory over rebels in aleo, where fighting over the past two weeks has killed about 300 people. house speaker paul ryan, the highest-ranking elected republican in the country, says he is not ready to endorse

up. welcome to democracy now!, democracynow.o, the war and peace report. i'm amy goodman. president obama has become the first sitting u.s. president to visit the japanese city of hiroshima since u.s. warplanes dropped the first atomic bomb on august 6, 1945. the bomb killed 140,000 people and another 100,000 seriously injured. three days later, the u.s. dropped a second atomic bomb on nagasaki, killing another 74,000 people. obama spoke today at the hiroshima peace memorial park today. >> among those nations like my own that hold nuclear stockpiles, we must have the courage to escape the logic of fear and pursue a world without them. this goal inalize my lifetime, but persistent effort can rollback the possibility of catastrophe. amy: in news from the campaign trail, donald trump has officially secured the support of enough delegates to become the republican party nominee. trump is now supported by 1238 delegates, one delegate above the threshold required to clinch the nomination. he won't become the party's official nominee until the republican national convention in july. this co

and peace report. i'm amy goodman. protests erupted outside a donald trump rally in albuquerque, new mexico, tuesday night, overshadowing trump's victory in washington state's republican primary. police said anti-trump demonstrators threw rocks and bottles, overturned barricades, lit fires, and smashed the glass door to albuquerque's convention center where trump was speaking. police descended on the protesters on horseback and in riot gear using pepper spray and smoke bombs. inside the convention center, protesters repeatedly interrupted trump, who responded by taunting them. >> you know, they are bernie sanders supporters but i am hearing that we are going to get about 40% of bernie sanders -- he is not going to win. againstem is rigged bernie sanders, so he can't win. but i am hearing we are going to get close to 40% of his supporters. maybe not these people, though. get them out of here. get them out. get them out of here. amy: donald trump won the republican primary in washington state with over 77% of the vote, bringing him closer to clinching the republican presidential nomina

, the war and peace report. i'm amy goodman. in brazil, former vice president michel temer has assumed power as interim president after the senate voted to suspend president dilma rousseff and begin impeachment proceedings over accusations she tampered with accounts in order to hide a budget shortfall. rousseff has called the move a coup and vowed to fight it. on thursday, she said the impeachment trial is a threat to brazil's sovereignty and its constitution. presidenton of a elected by 54 million people to whom i say now, right now at this decisive moment for brazilian democracy and for our future as a nation, what is in play in the impeachment process isn't just my mandate. what is in play is the respect of the polls come the sovereign will of the brazilian people and the constitution. amy: the attempt to oust president rousseff has sparked massive protests across brazil. on thursday, dozens of women chained themselves to the gates of brasilia's planalto palace in support of rousseff. protester fatima spoke out. >> the crew leaders in brazil are trying to get president dilma out and

book titled, "callings: the purpose and passion of work". amy goodman and i recently interviewed dave isay about the book, but we began by discussing the case of maurice bickham, a former death row prisoner who recently died at the age of 98. in 1958, bickham, an african american, was sentenced to death for shooting and killing two police officers in mandeville, louisiana, even though bickham said the officers were klansmen who had come to kill him and shot him on the front porch of his own home. many other people in the community also said the officers worked with the ku klux klan, which was a common practice in small sohern tow. maurice bickham served 37 years at angola state penitentiary in solitary confinement for 23 hours a day. dave isay chronicled his story in the 1989 radio documentary, "tossing away the keys." bickham won seven stays of execution, but louisiana's governors repeatedly denied him clemency until, under enormous pressure, he was finally released in 1996. days after he was released, he traveled to new york, where he was interviewed on wbai's "wake-up call" by

peace report. i'm amy goodman. donald trump has virtually clinched the republican nomination after senator ted cruz suspended his campaign following a devastating defeat in the indiana primary. trump won about 53% of the vote, capturing 51 delegates in the winner-take-all state. in his concession speech, ted cruz shocked his supporters by announcing his withdrawal. >> from the beginning, i've said that i would continue on as long as there was a viable path to victory. say it, i'm sorry to appears that path has been foreclosed. we left it all on the field in indiana. we gave it everything we've got, but the voters chose another path. amy: in the democratic race, vermont senator bernie sanders pulled a surprise upset by winning just over 52% of the vote. we will have more on the results later in the broadcast. the bernie sanders campaign has launched a petition urging the clinton campaign to transfer money her massive joint fundraising venture to state parties. this comes after politico investigation found less than 1% -- found less than 1% of the $61 million raised by clinton's reco

war and peace report. i'm amy goodman. the justice department has sued north carolina over its anti-transgender law. the law bars transgender people from using the bathroom that corresponds to their gender identity. it also invalidates local ordinances aimed at protecting lgbt people from discrimination. attorney general loretta lynch announced the lawsuit monday, saying the government stands with transgender people. >> this law provide no benefits to society. and all it does is harm innocent americans. instead of turning away from our neighbors, our friends, and our colleagues, let us instead learn from our history and avoid repeating the mistakes of our past. and let us reflect on the obvious but often neglected lesson that states ancient discrimination never looks good and never works in hindsight. amy: north carolina officials , meanwhile, have sued the federal government in order to defend the anti-transgender law. north carolina governor pat mccrory criticized the justice -- the obama administration's involvement. >> our state legislature believes this was an unnecessary gover

democracy now!, democracynow.org, the war and peace report. i'm amy goodman. in iraq, hundreds of protesters have left baghdad's heavily fortified green zone after taking over the parliament building saturday and staging an overnight occupation of celebration square. it was the latest in a growing number of protests demanding and end to corruption in the appointment of new officials to parliament. before the protesters withdrew, spokeswoman threatened future demonstrations if the changes don't occur. >> if this demand is not met, the people would then use all legitimate means, beginning with storming the headquarters of the three executive branches and going on strike. amy: meanwhile, 32 people died in the iraqi city of samawa sunday after isil militants carried out two suicide bomb attacks. the pentagon has released its report on the u.s. military's bombing of a doctors without borders hospital in kunduz, afghanistan, last year. the attack killed 42 people, including patients and staff. the report claims that the bombing was a mistake caused by human errors andquipment failures.

!, democracynow.org, the war and peace report. i'm amy goodman. brazil's senate has voted to suspend president dilma rousseff immediately and begin impeachment proceedings against her on accusations of tampering with accounts to hide a budget shortfall. the 55 to 22 senate vote followed more than 20 hours of debate. one politician described it as the "saddest day for brazil's young democracy." vice president michel temer will assume the presidency during rousseff's suspension. temer himself has been implicated in brazil's massive corruption scandal. several of his top advisers are under investigation, and just last week he was ordered to pay a fine for violating campaign finance limits. attorney general jose eduardo cardozo called the vote a historic injustice. >> honest, innocent woman at this moment is being condemned. a judicial pretense is being used to oust a legitimately elected president over ask which have been practiced by all previous governments. historic injustice is being committed. an innocent person is being condemned. amy: military police fired tear gas at thousands of protesters who

!, democracynow.org, the war and peace report. i'm amy goodman. we're on the road in portland, oregon. on saturday, presumptive republican presidential nominee donald trump made his first campaign visit to washington state where he addressed thousands of supporters in spokane and later in lynden. he decried the loss of manufacturing jobs and vowed to win washington state in november. he also warned of the threat posed by syrian refugees. >> we should build safe zones for syrians, but we can't bring them to washington state. and you don't even know where they are going. you saw what happened in paris, what happened at the world trade center, you saw what happened in california with a 14 people they worked with were shot and killed , many people in the hospital. right now, many people in the hospital. these are people that nobody knows who they are, and they're going to be in your community. you can't do it. amy: meanwhile, outside the rally, dozens of #stop trump activists blockaded a highway in lynden as trump held a rally in the rural community near the canadian border. three activists w

. i'm amy goodman. protests against the oil, coal, and gas industries erupted across multiple continents over the weekend as part of the global campaign to break free from fossil fuels. in washington state, 52 people were arrested after blockading railroad tracks leading to two oil refineries. protesters pitched their tents on the tracks and occupied the bnsf railway tracks from friday afternoon until police broke up the encampment early sunday. >> this has been one of the most inspiring things i have ever been a part of in my life, i have to say. grip ofto break the fossil fuels on our economy. temperatures to 1.5 degrees celsius. there is no current plan anywhere in the world to do that. the only thing that has been proven time and again to bring about rapid and massive social change our mass disobedient movements. amy: meanwhile, hundreds of kayaktivists took to the waters to around the shell and tesoro refineries. they displayed a banner in front of the refineries that read, "transition together." liz lafferty spoke out about why she decided to take the waters. >> i am her

of the headlines. this democracy now!, democracynow.org, the war and peace report. i'm amy goodman. we're on the road here in new york, then on today to canada, to madison, wisconsin, and then to toronto, canada. the "new york times" is reporting president obama has just passed a little-noticed milestone. he has now been at war longer than any president in u.s. history -- longer than george w. bush, longer than franklin d. roosevelt, longer than abraham lincoln. obama has taken military action in at least seven countries -- iraq, afghanistan, libya, syria, pakistan, yemen, and somalia. just last month, president obama announced the deployment of 250 more special operations troops to syria in a move that nearly doubles the official u.s. presence in the country. as war spreads across the globe, a record 60 million people were driven from their homes last year. experts warn the refugee crisis may also worsen due to the impacts of global warming. over the weekend, nasa released data showing 2016 is on pace to be by far the hottest year ever, breaking the 2015 record. april became the seventh