Gross, as well as a cuban spy. The u. S. Released the final three members of the cuban five. Cuban president raul castro also addressed the cuban people. This in no way means that the heart of the matter has been solved. The economic, commercial, and financial blockade, which causes enormous human and economic damages to our country, must cease. We will spend the hour in a roundtable discussion, well go to havana to speak with kornbluh, who wrote, back channel to cuba the Hidden History of negotiations between washington and havana. Gd we will speak with and martinarbus and Michael Ratner. As well as robert muse, who wrote, the new normalization . All of that and more coming up. Welcome to democracy now, democracynow. Org, the war and peace report. Im amy goodman. President obama has announced the United States will restore full diplomatic relations with cuba for the first time in more than half a century. In a historic address wednesday, obama announced the shift would include the opening of a u. S. Embassy in havana. Secretary kerry to immediately begin discussions with cuba to reestablish diplomatic relations that have. Een severed since january 1961 going forward, the United States will reestablish in embassy in havana and highranking officials will visit cuba. Where we can advance shared interests, we will, on issues like health, migration, counterterrorism, drug trafficking, and disaster response. The softening of relations also came with the release of prisoners in both the United States and cuba. Cuba released alan gross, a subcontractor for the u. S. Agency for international development, or usaid, who was arrested in 2009 and sentenced to 15 years for smuggling in Illegal Technology for opposition groups. Cuba also released a top spy identified by newsweek as Rolando Sarraf trujillo, a former cryptographer at cubas directorate of intelligence who worked secretly for the cia. In exchange, the United States has released the three remaining members of the cuban five, cuban Intelligence Officers who were arrested in the United States in 1998 and convicted of conspiracy to commit espionage. They say they were not spying on the United States, but trying to monitor violent rightwing cuban exile groups responsible for attacks in cuba. Well have more on cuba after headlines. The official death toll from an Ebola Outbreak in west africa is climbing toward 7,000 as a new report faults the International Community for its slow response. A report by a uk Parliamentary Committee said the who and countries around the world failed to heed clear warnings about the outbreak. In sierra leone meanwhile, an 11th doctor has died of ebola, as the country has launched housetohouse searches to root out cases in the capital of freetown. New york state is banning the oil and gas drilling process known as fracking, citing potential risks to Public Health. Fracking involves blasting sand, water, and toxic chemicals deep into shale rock to release oil and gas, a process which can poison Water Supplies and pollute the air. Environmentalists have waged a fierce campaign to pressure the administration of new York Governor Andrew Cuomo to render permanent a 2009 moratorium on the practice. Following a twoyear study, acting Health CommissionerHoward Zucker said he had concluded fracking posed too much of a risk. The potential risks are too great. In fact, theyre not even fully known. Upon the limited data presently available to answer the Public Health risks would be negligent on my part. I have identified significant Public Health risks in the current data, and until the Public Health red flags are answered by valid evidence through longitudinal longterm studies, perspective and analysis, patient surveys with Large Population groups showing the risks for impact on Public Health are avoidable or sufficiently low, i cannot support highvolume hydraulic fracturing in the great state of new york. New york will the the first state with major gas deposits to ban fracking. The move will protect reserves in new yorks portion of the marcellus shale, a Massive Underground rock formation which stretches across multiple states including pennsylvania, West Virginia and ohio. , Vermont Governor Peter Shumlin has backed down on his promise to create a singlepayer Healthcare System in the state. Shumlin first won election in 2010 with a pledge to make vermont the first state in the country with singlepayer healthcare. But on wednesday, shumlin said the tax hikes needed to fund the system had proven too high. Im not going to undermine the hope of achieving critically Important Health reforms for the state by pushing could maturely for singlepayer prematurely for singlepayer when it is not the right time for vermont. This is the greatest disappointment of my political life so far, that we could not advance this as quickly as we had wished. But we shall preserve your, we shall get it right, we shall push on. In arizona, the final undecided congressional race from this years midterm elections has been decided in favor of a republican candidate. Retired air force colonel Martha Mcsally has defeated democratic incumbent ron barber. His defeat gives republicans their 247th house seat in the new congress, their largest majority since the great depression. Sony pictures has cancelled the release of a film about a plot to kill north Korean Leader kim jongun following threats against theaters and a hack of corporate data, which Officials Say was ordered by the north korean government. Theater companies had canceled showings of the 44 million comedy, the interview, starring seth rogen and james franco. Sony says it has no further plans to release the film. In colombia, farc rebels have announced a unilateral ceasefire following a round of talks with the government. The rebels say they will end all hostilities unless the army targets them first. Farc representative ivan marquez said he hoped the move would become permanent. Since we believe that we have initiated a definitive path toward the peace along with constituent process, we are a result to declare a unilateral ceasefire and en. Still it isd for an indefinite time, which should transform into an armistice. Talks between the colombian government and the farc aimed at resolving the 50year conflict resumed earlier this month in cuba. In new york city protesters , gathered in new york city wednesday to mark five months since eric garner died after police placed him in a banned chokehold. They pinned him in to the ground while he repeatedly said, i cant breathe. A grand jury declined to indict officer Daniel Pantaleo for garners death. Demonstrators are also calling for justice in the case of slain African American akai gurley, who died in november after an officer allegedly fired his gun by accident in a dimly lit staircase at a brooklyn housing project. The officer, peter liang, then texted his union rep as gurley lay dying. On wednesday, a group of attorneys staged a diein at a jail in brooklyn. This is lisa edwards and deborah right. We represent clients everything all day and we want them to know not only are we upset as to what has been happening with mike brown, eric garner, no office waiting on what is going to happen with akai gruley, we wanted to make sure our clients to argue today and any other boroughs you are here today and in the other boroughs know we work for them. We work within the system, but the system is broken. We need a special prosecutor. We need open grand jury minutes and that is what we need to get justice. A former corrections captain at the Rikers Island jail complex in new york has been convicted of a civil rights violation for leaving a mentally ill prisoner to die in his cell after he ate a packet of toxic detergent. In 2012, Jason Echevarria pleaded for help for hours as the detergent burned his insides. Captain Terrence Pendergrass repeatedly ignored reports the prisoner was ill, at one point telling a subordinate he shouldnt bother him unless there was a dead body. Echevarria was found dead the next morning. Prendergrass could face up to 10 years in prison. The fbi has launched an investigation into the death of an African American teenager who was found hanging from a swing set in north carolina. In august, 17yearold lennon lacy was found dead in a majoritywhite trailer park in the tiny town of bladenboro. He had been in a relationship with an older white woman. Local authorities quickly ruled his death a suicide, but his family and the local naacp have raised the possibility he may have been lynched. They say local Police Rushed to judgment and overlooked basic, questions like why lacy was wearing someone elses shoes. In south carolina, a 14yearold African American boy wrongfully convicted of murdering two white girls has had his name cleared 70 years after he was executed for the crime. In 1944, George Stinney became the youngest person to be executed in the United States. He weighed less than 100 pounds and had to sit on a phonebook to fit into the electric chair at his execution. Stinney was convicted and executed within three months of the murders by a jury of 12 white men after his white lawyer failed to call any witnesses in his defense. His family has long said he was forced into confessing. On wednesday, a judge threw out his conviction, calling the case an unfortunate episode in our history. And those are some of the headlines. This is democracy now, democracynow. Org, the war and peace report. Im amy goodman. President obama announced wednesday that the United States will restore full diplomatic relations with cuba for the first time in more than half a century. The historic remove move was reportedly facilitated by pope francis and the vatican, who helped begin secret negotiations last year. The softened relations come with a Prisoner Exchange. Cuba has released alan gross, a subcontractor for u. S. Agency for international development, or usaid, who was arrested in 2009 and sentenced to 15 years for smuggling Illegal Technology into the country for opposition groups. Also released was a cuban who had provided information about cuban spy operations in the United States. Obama did not identify the prisoner by name, but newsweek reports he is Rolando Sarraf trujillo, a former cuban Intelligence Officer who who who had worked secretly for the cia until he was arrested on espionage charges in 1995. Meanwhile, the United States freed the remaining members of the cuban five gerardo hernandez, Antonio Guerrero and ramon labanino. The men were arrested in the United States in 1998 and convicted of conspiracy to commit espionage. But cuban Intelligence Officers say they were not spying on the United States, but rather trying to monitor violent rightwing cuban exile groups responsible for attacks inside cuba. President obama outlined the exchange as the prisoners were already returning home. Over many months, my administration has held casersations about alans and other aspects of our relationship. Pope francis issued a personal appeal to me and to cubas president raul castro urging us to resolve alans case and the release of three cuban agents who had been jailed in the United States for over 15 years. Returned home, reunited with his family at long last. Alan was released on humanitarian grounds. Separately, in exchange for the three cuban agents, cuba today released one of the most important intelligence agents that the United States has ever had in cuba and who has been in prison for nearly two decades. This man, who sacrifice has been known to only a few come a provided america with the information that allowed us to arrest the network of cuban agents and included them in transferred to cuba today will stop as well as other spies in the United States. This man is now safely on our shores. The deal between the United States and cuba is a major diplomatic victory for cubas president raul castro, who has offered to engage in direct conversations with obama as equals since he came to power in 2006 after taking over from his brother fidel. Castro announced the changes in his own midday address to the nation. As a result of a dialogue at the highest level, which included a phone conversation i had yesterday with president obama, we have been able to make headway in the solution of some topics of mutual interest for both nations. As fidel promised on june 2001 ,hen he said, they shall return they have returned to our homeland. The enormous joy of their families and all of our people who have relentlessly fought for this goal is shared by hundreds of solidarity committees and parliamentsrnments, organizations, institutions, and personalities who, for the last 16 years, have made tireless effort demanding their release. We convey our deepest gratitude and commitment to all of them. President obamas decision deserves the respect and acknowledgment of our people. News of the u. S. Cuba deal follows news that usaid tried to infiltrate cubas Hiphop Community in a botched plot to foment antigovernment unrest. As part of the program, the agency hired Creative Associates international, a firm that also played a key role in the cuban twitter program, a fake social Media Program launched in another bid to undermine the cuban government. In the hiphop case, Creative Associates was directed to recruit young rap artists looking to make social change. The Program Ended up endangering some of the artists, and their careers. On monday, the head of usaid said wednesday he will step down said he will step down in february. Rajiv shah gave no public reason for leaving, and in a statement said he had mixed emotions that the United States is restoring diplomatic relations with cuba as outlined by president obama on wednesday. Im now taking steps to place the interest of the people of both countries at the heart of our policy. First, i have instructed secretary kerry to immediately begin discussions with cuba to reestablish diplomatic relations that have been severed since january of 1961. Going forward, the United States will reestablish an embassy in havana and highranking officials will visit cuba. Can advance shared interests, we will. On issues like health, my gratian, counterterrorism, drug trafficking, and disaster response. Second, ive instructed secretary kerry to review it as a states state sponsor of terrorism. The review will be guided by the facts and the law. Third, we are taking steps to increase travel, commerce, and the flow of information to and from cuba. This is fundamentally about freedom and openness and also expresses my believe in the power of people to people engagement. With the changes i am announcing today, it will be easier from athens to travel to cuba. Americans will be up to use american credit and debit cards on the island. I believe american businesses should not be put at a disadvantage in that increase commerce is good for americans and for cubans. So we will facilitate transactions between the u. S. And cuba. Willfinancial institutions be able to open accounts. It will be easier for u. S. Exporters to sell goods in cuba. I believe in the free flow of information. Unfortunately, our sanctions on cuba have denied cubans access to technology that has empowered individuals around the globe. So i authorized increased telecommutings connections between the u. S. And cuba. Businesses will be able to sell goods that enable cubans to communicate with the u. S. And other countries. Well, today we spend the hour looking at this new chapter in u. S. Cuba relations. Here in new york, attorney Martin Garbus is a member of the cuban five legal team. And Michael Ratner is president emeritus of the center for Constitutional Rights. He has written several books on and the coeditor of joining us from washington, d. C. , is robert muse, an attorney, and an expert in u. S. Laws relating to cuba. He was in havana, cuba, on wednesday when the deal was announced. His recent piece published in the americas quarterly is, the new normalization . In havana, we go to