>> and evening, everyone. and welcome to aljazeera america. i'm john seigenthaler in new york. kiev is burning. tensions between protesters in ukraine have reached a boiling point. lives are lost on both side, and we'll take you there live. >> . >> sister sentence. why an 84-year-old wants to spend the rest of her life behind bars. surveillance, those lights are not just helping you see, but helping others see you. and school spanking. kansas state lawmakers say that

teachers and others should be able to spank kids harder in their state. and a big cat, a man facing a deadly disease. >> we begin tonight in the ukraine. the central european country is in turmoil with its capital city under siege. a three-month long protest took a brutal turn of violence, and lives have been lost. you're looking at live pictures of fighting between the police and demonstrators in kiev. it's the worst we have seen since the protests started in november. at least 18 people have been killed so far, and hundreds injured. and the opposition met with the country's president today. and just a few minutes ago today, that those talks have failed to bring about a

resolution to end the violence. ander earlier today, vice president joe biden asked the president of ukraine to use restraint and pull back his military. they issued a travel warning for the american citizens in the region. and we want to go to richelle carey with it. >> reporter: john, it was a pivotal moment in the protests in the ukraine. police have blocked all roads, and the subway has been shut down, and right now, neither side is backing down. it has been a dramatic day of fighting between the ukrainian miss and protesters, an explanation of the violence that swept the country. kiev is engulfed in flames. protester barricades, removing them from the square. the interior ministry said dozens of police officers have been injured. this appears to show the bodies of two demonstrators among the

casualties. the aim to pressure legislature to restore the law for the 2004 constitution, and limit the powers of yanokovych. but when that didn't happen, independence square quickly became an inforeigno with an estimated 50,000 protesters, using firebombs and rocks, and improvised weapons, keeping the police out. the u.s. is calling on both sides to end the fighting. >> we're calling on the government, we continue to condemn the use of violence on either side. and we urge the president, yanokovych, to deescalate immediately the situation. >> the speaker of the ukrainian parliament says that the demonstrators must back down

before the negotiations can begin. >> i want to emphasize one more time that the negotiations are possible. but only if violence and provocation are in. >> but on the streets, people remain defiant. >> interpreter: it's really scary, with he can't understand how the government can hate their people so much. >> i think today, after all of this, i think that you must understand -- >> reporter: independent square has been the center of nearly three months of protests. they're looking for a solution. a sign that ukraine is heading for an even deeper political divide. the violence is not limited to kiev. attacks on government offices in the country, we're seeing new fighting. police and protesters are using

guns and molotov cocktails against each other, and it's a sign forked today. >> kiev is still burning, and we'll continue to watch this. and also joining us on the telephone is christopher miller, he's with the english newspaper in the city. and he has been covering the protests and in the thick of things at independence square, and here's what he has to say. >> in the last couple of hours in independence square, dozens of protesters and police, there have been reports that hundreds have been seriously injured. on the ground, i've seen protesters lose their hands when grenades exploded before they were able to release them. and dozens of others have been shot by the police. in some cases, it has been live ammunitions and in some cases, rubber bullets.

they have been shot in the head and the legs, and one young man lost his right eye after being shot by the police in clashes. the square right now is completely filled with thick, black smoke emanating from mounds of burning tires. set in front of protester barricades. the police continue to launch teargas and flash grenades at the protesters on the square, while the profiters hurl molotov cocktails, and anything they can get their hands on over the police lines. it's absolutely chaos and mayhem on the streets. women and children, for the last six hours, have been told not to come down to the square. if they are there, they're being asked to leave, and in some cases they're being forced out of the square. the police are also using bull

horns to encourage women and children to leave the square. so it seems as though they have a mandate to clear the square. as of right now, there's a fire burn on the h 6th and 7th floors of the trade building, and this is the building that has been used as the headquarters. >> christopher miller has been watching this up close, the editor of the kiev post. outside of kiev, russia realizes the values of the natural resources. >> reporter: in kiev on tuesday, thousands of anti-government protesters clash with the police. just down the street, inside of the country's parliament building, the government, led by president victor yanokovych, got a financial boost. russia's government, led by vladimir putin, said that it

would unblock a $15 million credit for the ukraine, it had been frozen because of political disarray, and it could give breathing room to yanokovych. it comes as opposition groups continue to demand constitutional changes. it undercut the efforts by the german chancellor, merkel. on tuesday, she met with the opposition leaders. >> we shouldn't underestimate the role of germany in this, especially the role of the german chancellor, one of the most influential people in the world. and it plays an important role in the development of the ukraine. >> reporter: while merkel and u.s. secretary of state, john kerry, are working on financial assistance for the ukraine's opposition groups, so far no offers have been made public. it has loomed large over the

political tenses since october. sparked by mr. yanokovych's decision to turn down a trade deal with the former european union and turn the soviet republic toward russia. they're trading partners, 25% of all exports go there, and russian goods are 36% of all ukrainian imports. still, it's made worse by corruption. and the ukrainian government, no matter who is in charge or where it turns, need to find billions of dollars to pay off loans and avoid financial default. meanwhile, the battle continues, and the tug of war from the east to the west intensifies. david schuster, aljazeera. >> and rochelle is back with us, and you've been talking about this. and talk about the geography. >> reporter: so this country is slightly smaller than texas,

but it has a population of about 46 million. it sits between western europe and russia. and that is key. the month of protests and violence, in alarm part from the location. ukraine is caught in the economic and political divide between russia and the european union, and geographically, it's playing out in kiev. 3 million people live in the capital. and kiev splits the country, and in the elections, the pro european party in the month and be west. and president yanokovych in the south and the east. the protests are erupting in the heart of kiev. in independence square, it has long been a gathering place, government buildings, and hotels and shops and cafes, and as you can see, it's an inferno right now. the brutal clashes between the

police and the protesters. >> we continue our coverage now. a researcher in london, she's also a ukrainian native, and she told us today about her response. >> it's an emotion of shock and disbelief that the images could be from the center and the heart of europe. we have seen violence on the screens from the middle east, from africa, from other parts of the globe, but we have never seen this kind of violence in ukraine since the modern history. so a lot of ukrainians are in deep shock, and they are trying to explain how is this possible? how is it possible that the government does not understand the depth, and the determination of people to find a compromise and so take it with all due seriousness? >> these are not minor changes. aren't we talking about a revolution in ukraine. >> we're talking about ukraine

about the over haul of the existing political system, where president yanokovych, since he came to power, managed to concentrate in his hands, both executive, legislative and judicial power, and in this way, this led to a crisis where no checks and balances can prevent misuse of violence, and the people on the street do demand a new constitutional treaty and social agreement where the balance will be restored and the human rights will be respected. >> there are really terrifying pictures that we have been watching. the video that we have been watching from the ukraine. protesters are being hurt and the police are being hurt as well. and do you think that the violence really damages the rebel's cause? >> well, the violence clearly damages the peaceful process. but it is resulted in disbelief

and anger in a way of hatred toward the current rentalim, which is news. and instead of sitting at the table and seriously addressing some of the issues, he's trying to port ray some of the people as extremists and radicals, and saying today that they're conducting an anti-terrorist operation, which started as a peaceful march toward the parliament. and it looked like, by the way the police force is around the parliament, they were preparing for an offensive move today. >> what happens in the fires? what happens to ukraine as the fires continue to burn and these explosions go off? >> it's clearly very dangerous curve that president yanokovych is taking, and it may spin out of his control. it may spin out of control of his political position, and i think it's now time to put a

very serious international mediation mission in place for both sides of the table. and to restore at least some trust behind the talks. >> our thanks. and now to the other big story tonight. unrest in venezuela after the high-profile arrest of a key opposition leader. the protests against president maduro continue in car rack us, ancar -- caracas, and some of tm are violent. >> lopez immerged after days of hiding, after addressing the crowd in caracas, he told them he was ready to surrender to face charges of terrorism and murder. >> i have nothing to hide. when i turn myself in, i beg you to remain peaceful. >> reporter: the former mayor has emerged as the face of a

protest, which took to the streets a week ago, with thousands of students blaming the government for soaring crime and inflation. >> interpreter: this is a fight for the young people, for the students, for the open esed and jailed, a fight for all venezuelans. >> reporter: president maduro accuses him of inciting violence, and at least four are dead. >> reporter: the security that you see behind me, minutes earlier, he told the crowd that he's going to give himself up and turn himself into the authorities, and he told the crowd to quit taking to the streets if he's in prison. >> in a sign of how politically divided this nation is, hours earlier, thousands had their own rally in caracas. addressing the crowd, the president accused of opposition of trying to destabilize the

country. [ speaking spanish ] >> interpreter: the fascists are in the hands of the law, and they will have to respond. >> reporter: as the police tried to escort lopez and his family to the military base, his supporters flocked around him, chanting "the people are with you" he face as i tough political position. he's becoming a powerful symbol. aljazeera, caracas, venezuela. >> and in thailand, police and protesters fought today in the heart of bangkok. a firefight lasted 20 minutes, and left four people dead. it comes after months of demonstrations, all trying to overthrow the prime minister. she faces growing popular push for her removal. coming up next, we continue

to follow the fiery protests in the ukraine. 18 killed and many seriously injured. we will follow it in the broadcast. and also, prisoner swap. negotiated with the taliban to help free a soldier. and plus, a nuclear nun. an 84-year-old activist is sentenced for breaking in a weapon's facility. >> and the new technology that is shining a light on privacy issues.

>> a pharmacy in oklahoma is refusing to provide a lethal injection. he's scheduled to die on february 26th, and his attorney said that it's inhumane and the pharmacy won't sell the drug, but the state will continue its plan. he was convicted of rape something murdering a 15-year-old girl. an 84-year-old nun has been sentenced to 35 months in prison after being convicted for sabotaging a nuclear facility. but she asked for more time. she and two others broke into

the security complex in 2012 to protest weapons storage. she told the judge that being in prison for the rest of her life would be the best gift that he could give. jonathan martin has more on that. and jonathan, how did the judge react to the sister? >> well, the judge said that he thought that the sister was a good person, and the other two that were involved. but he couldn't ignore the fact that what they did was serious. sister rice told the judge, please let me stay in prison for the rest of my life. and the fact that she was an 84-year-old nun, and he didn't want to give her a life sentence, and the fact that she had done a lot of good work over the years, working in africa and teaching children, and considering that none of these defendants were violent in what they did, but he said what they did was serious when they broke into this nuclear facility here in tennessee, spray painting the walls, and splattering blood on

the walls, and writing biblical messages. he said it was something that was serious, and something that they had to do time for. so he sentenced sister rice to three years, roughly, and he could have gone much higher, up to or 8 years. and the other men, considering their critical history, they got more time, seven years. and it's a lot less than he could have given. we talked to some of the supporters right after the judge made his decision. >> i was grateful, if that can be the right word, that the judge departed from the guidelines and sentenced them lower. but he should have said, here's a congressional medal of honor for you all. you keep doing this until america gets it and stops building these weapons. >> we have a responsibility to take care of them while they're in jail. >> so again, the u.s. government in this case was hoping for more

time. they felt that what the three d. though they didn't cause physical harm to anyone, they do believe this they caused harm when it comes to the reputation and the ability of the national defense, so again, they all will be serving some time in prison, john. three years for the life of this 84-year-old nun. >> john, though the activists were convicted of serious crimes, the they have a large gp much supporters, based on what you heard today. >> right, and we actually saw a lot of those supporters here. there were so many of them that came from all over the country. i would say about 100 people came. so many that they had to open up an overflow courtroom to allow a lot of them inside. and a lot of these people were here. and what i thought was really interesting, toward the end, she wanted to sing a song, and the judge allowed her and the other activists to come. [ audio difficulties ] >> we're having a little audio

problems, jonathan. and we'll get back to you later. thanks very much. now, to this story, a u.s. army sergeant has been held captive by the taliban for almost five years, and the white house is considering a prisoner swap to free him. more on the potential deal. >> reporter: the white house is not actively negotiating with the taliban, but it works every day to bring home bergdahl. he has been held for five years, and he's from idaho. the deal would trade him for five prisoners. and it would be likely for these men here. for a total of 155 prisoners still at guantanamo. who are they? he has been in jail for 12 years, and he was so

high-profile that the taliban promoted his capture to recruit more members. half a million dollars to safely get him out of afghanistan. and he has been a military commander, accused of killing thousands of shiite muslims, and considered one of the moster important to take. he smuggled weapons used against soldiers, and he used to be a police officer and a farmer. all five are considered high level officials and all labeled a high-risk to the u.s. their files warn that they will likely rejoin the taliban if released. and it's unclear how big of a threat they pose. biggest concern could be from bergdahl. me are losing time and leverage to bring home their p.o.w..

>> now concerns over iran's nuclear program. talks resumed with iran and global powers. but on both sides, there seems to be little success. >> reporter: talks on iran's nuclear program once again. the foreign minister greeted the e.u. official in charge of foreign policy. representatives from thish international community, known as the p5 plus 1. the security council as well as germany. these countries came to a deal with iran in november. it was a historic agreement, but only a temporary one lasting six months. now they must attempt a permanent deal. there are many issues still to be resolved, as well as areas of mistrust and suspicion. >> during these negotiations on the comprehensive agreement, all concerns about the iranian

nuclear program will have to be addressed. and of course there will be intensive and difficult work lying ahead of us. the overall objective remains to seek a comprehensive solution to ensure that iran's nuclear program is peaceful >> reporter: one of iran's main negotiators was interviewed on a state tv channel. he knows many people at home, including a leader, are convinced that the process last name succeed. as he left the interview, i asked mr. hireachi about it far. >> how would you describe it? >> we are deciding to continue. >> no one in the process doubts that it will be complicated. there's an interim deal for six months ago, but there's a clause

that said it can be extended for a further six months ago. it will be long negotiations. >> coming up, we continue to follow the fiery protests in ukraine. 18 have been killed so far, and many are seriously injured. we'll follow it in the broadcast. and also, fewer jobs in the economy, the impact of raising the minimum wage. new high-tech lights can help you see and others see you. and spanking in school. kansas lawmakers want to take it one step further. i must begin my journey,

which will cause me to miss the end of the game. the x1 entertainment operating system lets your watch live tv anywhere. can i watch it in butterfly valley?

sure. can i watch it in glimmering lake? yep. here, too. what about the dark castle? you call that defense?! come on! [ female announcer ] watch live tv anywhere. the x1 entertainment operating system, only from xfinity. >> welcome back to aljazeera, i'm john seigenthaler. on this tuesday night, more this half hour, including secret surveillance. how sports stadiums are keeping track of you. and plus, spanking in school,

how they think it should happen more, and big cats and a deadly disease. >> reporter: in the ukraine, rioters are moving in on the protesters there. and kiev, demonstrations going on, and turning violent. at least 18 people were killed in fighting between the police and demonstrators. vice president, joe biden, called the ukrainian president and urged him to end the violence. and so far talks have failed to bring a solution. we'll continue to follow that story for u. venezuela political divide deepens today. and protesters for and against president maduro, and he turned himself in after the government put out a warrant for his arrest. looking for ways to curb

iran's nuclear program. talks today in vienna, iran drew a hard line saying that it won't bow to pressure to get rid of its nuclear weapons. and the americans are saying that it will be a complicated and lengthy process, john. >> thank you, a new report out today says that raising america's minimum wage has positive and negative affects. increasing the hourly pay from 7:25 to $10.10 would mean a raise for about 16 and a half million workers, and the report says that a pay hike would lift 900,000 people above the poverty level. but the cbo said that it could put 500,000 people out of work. "real money's" ali velshi says that it's a very complex debate. >> if you raise the minimum wage, there are a lot of small

businesses who say we can't afford that minimum wage and let people go. we heard from the national federation of independent businesses and their own research says that the minimum wage hikes shows that it would be in the restaurant and franchise sector, and we're in a recovery right now, and the focus should be on creating jobs, and not the labor costs, i'm not in the business of telling people we're right or wrong, but the national common mist said that the minimum wage should be 0. >> found on by members of his own party, the concern is about losing jobs to foreign companies. accused culprit, naphtha. the north american free trade agreement.

>> flurry big questions that president obama will face from his counterpart in mexico city on wednesday. they call it the three amigos summit. and when president obama meets his fellows in mexico, he'll have explaining to do. hamstrung, and unable to followthrough on big ticket items. the keystone pipeline in limbo. and the project would bring oil stands to the gulf coast. mr. obama must choose between environmentalists, who opposed pipeline, and thinks allies. canadian prime minister, steven harper, is pushing hard for approval. >> this north american leadership summit is happening at an interesting time when we

have a lot of things to do. for progress for canada, awaiting the keystone decision. >> reporter: on trade, the president is being undercut by those who are usually the most supportive. democratic leaders have openly declared their opposition, refusing to give any deal congressional approval. and organized labor is election wary. >> reporter: what happens is, the company's outsource production, from mexico, and that puts downward pressure on wages here in the united states, able to threaten workers in the u.s., if they don't cut wages or organize labor unions, they're going to move to mexico. >> reporter: immigration reform is stuck in congress. half of the 12 and a half undocumented immigrants to the united states are from mexico. >> there's widespread doubt

whether this administration can be trusted to enforce our laws. >> reporter: that is disappoint from mexico and it's leader. >> immigration i think to the mexicans is a litmus test of how serious the united states is about the economic agenda and the relationship between the two countries. >> and there are others at the top of the agenda, with climate change and security. >> a new round of fuel efficiency standards for trucks is on the way. president obama ordered improvements for gas mileage for medium and heavy-duty trucks to be in place by 2016. he said that the higher standards increase standards and air quality, and bypassing congress with an executive order to implement those changes. an update for water contamination in west virginia.

the results of a chemical spill there last month. the governor said that he's lifting the state of emergency, it was put in place in nine counties after the elk river was contaminated, and the water has been deemed safe. but in a letter to the cdc, they asked for other studies. being placed in new high-tech light that can detect everything from people waiting in line to suspicious activity. but they're warning about the potential for misuse. jake, this hidden security layer feels like the new frontier. >> reporter: well, john, the truth is that there's always been a relationship between design and security. a sort of invisible partnership.

ballers that you see here can stop a car, but have been dressed up to look like sculpture. and the port authority in new jersey has decided to start a pilot project to allow airports to plant cameras and sensors into the very light fixtures to which you would typically put l.e.d.s. and they're going to be able to watch us all through that invisible technology. >> how are these different from the security cameras that we see or don't see? >> reporter: from a purely engineering standpoint, it's a good idea. technology has gotten small enough so the cameras can draw pure a few of the existing l.e.d. system, but it's new territory, pioneered by las vegas, which fills its casinos were cameras, and it has refined that over the years, and london, but fantastic, it's the tiny and

invisible nature of these. >> should we expect to be tracked by nearly everything there. >> you know, the truth is that we can expect to be tracked by almost everything almost everywhere. every place in public that you go is going to be a candidate for this kind of thing. they estimate that there are 4 billion lights expected to be switched out by this technology. but there's a flood of data that we don't have the software for yet. it's when the software catches up with our incredible intake of surveillance stimulus and foot am, that's when we're really, really not going to be anonymous. >> jake ward on a beautiful night in san francisco. thank you very much. the east coast was hit again today with 3-6 imps of snow, and over the weekend, a storm dumped

12 inches in the northeast. adding to the thousands of problems that have plagued travelers this season. 70 flights have been canceled. the most or record. there was some relief in store. temperatures expected to reach the 40s and the 50s for the rest of the week, we hope. in tonight's tribute to black history month, we turn back the block 26 years. that's when debbie thomas was the first american athlete to win a medal at the olympics. our john henry smith talked to thomas about that life-changing experience. >> debbie, you took bronze in the olympics, and i know you wanted gold. and was that a positive experience? do you have good memories or bad memories? >> i kind of make fun of my bronze medal. i say that it looks gold. i was winning and ended up with the bronze, so my final olympic

performance was not my favorite of all time. but i did make history. i became the first black athlete to medal in the olympics. so it's a bronze medal. so i can't complain too much. >> debbie, how did you get into figure skating in the first place? >> well, my mom exposed me to a lot of things, and i chose one of them, and strangely, my favorite person in the ice show was this comedian, mr. frick, and the real mr. frick had been following my career, and he was this and gave me flowers after i won my championship. and it was pretty surreal having your childhood idol be there when you were on top of the world. >> reporter: debbie, from your olympic exploits to your life as an orthopedic surgeon, you are

an achiever, and what caused you to be? >> i tell people, i'm too stupid. and i'll try just about anything, and it has been more challenging in the last couple of years, all of the years added up. i'm battling the healthcare field. and hopefully i can do some good, and change things around with the way our system works. >> american figure skaters haven't done so well. and is this a crisis in the american figure skating or a blip on the radar screen? >> i would say that davis and white did pretty darned amazing last night and made history. and i wouldn't say that american figure skating hasn't done well. figure skating is a hard sport. you can get injured and it can change things, but i think our ladies are going to do exceptionally well, and obviously davis and white,

breath taking and fabulous. >> reporter: debbie thomas, bronze medalist in the 1988 winter games, and thank you so much for your time. >> i had forgotten that the first black athlete to win a medal in the olympic games was in 1988. >> salt lake, we had veneta flowers, and she won gold in a two women bobsled. and the same year, jerome good morning inljer -- wonfor hockey. they had their first in 1908. and 80 years later, it has taken to catch up. >> we sort of think in the summer games, when rudolph broke the barrier many many years ago, but it was 1978, not necessarily that long ago. jessica, thank you very much. and we continue now. a food warning tonight.

some hot pockets are being recalled. chili cheese steak and hot pockets have meat from diseased and unsound animals, that's according to the usda. and the company that provides the meat for the pastries was not properly inspected. coming up, we continue to follow the fiery protests in the ukraine, and casualties on both sides, and why some students in kansas might come home from school with bruises. and betting the farm, a cattle rancher takes a big gamble on his future. >> we're back at the big cat sanctuary in texas. where last year, a deadly canine disease was the loss of six tigers and lions, and now it has changed for the better.

>> while today's snowstorm wasn't the biggest we have seen, and new york, they built a snowman, but we'll see rain coming through tomorrow. this is what is left of the snow. still snow going on in parts of maine, and deer island received 13 inches of snow, and more is to come in the overnight hours. right now, the temperatures are 33, and new york, seeing 36°. tomorrow, we're going to be seeing rain here in the coastal reinks, and that's going to be

snow. down a little bit, and new york is happy about that. but we'll be seeing snow up to the north. in new hampshire and vermont and maine, that will prolong the ski season for you. but the big problem in the next day is the storm system coming out of the west. this is going to be totally different. this is the first outbreak in the mississippi river valley. snow to the north. but it's here in the central regions that weexpected to see damaging winds and isolated tornadoes in louisville. that could be a major problem, and we'll keep you updated on this. the news is coming up next.

>> and the latest now on the turmoil in the ukraine. the capitol of the country is under siege. 1 people were killed today in a clash between the police and demonstrators. and hundreds more were injured, some critically. peace talks failed to find resolution, and earlier today,

vice president, joe biden, called on the ukrainian president to pull back. if. >> a lawmaker in kansas has a new bill to spank children. it would give the parents the right to spank kids hard enough to leave a mark, and this bill would allow children to be hit up to ten times, allowing for strikes that could lead to bruising. in washington d.c., joie chen standing by to tell us what's happening on "america tonight" at the top of the hour. >> good evening, john, tonight on the program, something that you probably never thought about, though it involves one of our most majestic creatures. the moose, this quite sizeable resident of minnesota's northwoods, is an iconic creature, and it's in trouble. researchers say that the numbers of moose have declined rapidly.

they're literally dropping dead. and they don't know why. they have launched an extraordinary effort to track survivors. trying to know what happens happening here. is it predators or a virus? joining in the effort to find out. >> we're talking about half a dozen things that could be contributing to this. but you haven't been able to nail down one certain cause yet? >> no, we're trying, but i think it's going to take some time yet. and our challenge is, do we have enough time before there aren't moose left in minnesota to answer the questions and. >> "america tonight's" adam may from the minnesota northwoods were fool up from the ground on a report of the firing in ukraine. see you tonight. >> a tough and early winter took its toll on ranchers in south dakota, after 40,000 cattle died in an october blizzard. instead of giving up, many of

the ranchers are doubling down. >> reporter: as western south dakota struggles under winter's icy grip, there are signs of rebirth at waylon ranch. >> these are all first calf heffers. >> these are some of the 400 cows that he bought to replace the 400 that died last october. they perished when an unexpected blizzard swept through the state, trapping the herds miles from shelter. faced with a $600,000 loss, he wasn't sure if he could continue ranking. >> what changed your mind? i hated to quit on a bad note i guess, didn't want to feel sorry for myself. there might be good years in the livestock business. >> reporter: to stay in the business, boylen is buying more pregnant heffers. >> is that a good deal? >> if the they have a calves, ad

good year. >> at roughly $200,000 a head now, he took out a $1 million bank loan to finance the herd and put his ranch up as collateral. it's a gamble, but boylen is convinced it's worth taking. >> feed prices came down. >> and interest rates. >> interest rates are wonderful. >> reporter: they're trying to help ranchers like him with more flexible loan programs. >> we have an assistance program. and we can extend payments, and we do subsidized interest rates. >> reporter: boylen got some help from a charity. and he may qualify for the government disaster funds under a farm bill. he said it's difficult receiving that kind of help, but he's grateful for t. >> i would like to see the snow

melt away, and we have plenty of sheds, and we're as prepared as we can be. >> that's cautious optimism from a man who has already weathered quite a storm. dianeester brook. >> and now to a sanctuary in dallas. a virus left one lioness and six tigers dead. >> what are you doing, pumpkin? hi. >> this is where some big cats go when their owners realize that lions and tigers aren't meant to be pets. when the animals are no longer making money for them, like in circuses. the wildlife and education center is a non-profit that rehabilitates and forever cares for these abandoned animals. last year, an outbreak of canine distemper, a measles like virus

that affected only animals, spread here. >> while it being the virus almost destroyed us emotionally. it didn't destroy us as a sanctuary, with we have to keep in mind that our mission continues. >> last month, 22 cats showed symptoms of the deadly virus, and seven died, but 15, including shammah here, survived. how? because of an immeasurable at of work by the staff here. >> we started the day giving meds, and we would have to cajole and baby the tigers until they would eat. and we tried every meat that we could get our hands on. and we wouldn't stop until 3:00 the next morning, trying to get them better. >> from a tragic and devastating summer, talk about what you did to make sure that doesn't happen again. >> what we have done primarily is to vaccinate the cats, which is the best possible vaccination

for the big cats, and that is the ferret vaccine. >> there are no guarantees, but no one here believes that they will see another distemper outbreak, which they suspect was caused by an infected raccoon. they hope that adding to the memorial wall will be the result of match death, and not disease. recently, they took in ten tigers and three cougars from a wildlife foundation, getting out of the caged animal business. >> the relief was palpable. it was heartbreaking to walk by empty cages for so long, and now that the cages aren't empty anymore, it's a sense of purpose. >> there are now 63 big cats here, all symptom free. aljazeera, wily, texas. >> and coming up all new tonight on our newscast, the

message to president obama from uganda's leaderrer, saying that he will sign legislation on the anti-homosexual assault law, but warfare, what the u.s. navy is doing to use the weapons of tomorrow in today's world. that's tomorrow at 8:00, 6:00 pacific time. in central europe, the fires still burning in kiev. 18 people killed in the clashes and hundreds more injured in the clashes between the protesters and the police. you can hear the speeches being made in independence square tonight. opposition leaders met with the country's president this afternoon, and but the two sides couldn't come up with a solution to end this violence. it has been going on since november, and nothing as bad as what we have seen today. we're monitoring the story when

we rejoin you. the picture that caught our eye in the newsroom, it is from ukraine, showing beauty over chaos. a rainbow appears just as an anti-government protesters takes cover with the protesters and the police. see you back here at 11:eastern, and richelle has the headlines after this.

don't miss techno. 7:30 eastern on aljazeera america. >> welcome to aljazeera america. i'm richelle carey, and here are tonight's top story. in ukraine, riot police are moving in on protesters in kiev. the demonstrations have turned

violent today. at least 18 people were killed in fighting between police and demonstrators. joe biden called the ukrainian president and urged him to halt the fighting. in venezuela, set back for the opposition. the leader, lopez, turned himself in after the government put out a warrant for his arrest. and thousands of protesters have filled the streets of caracas foreand against president madura. >> an 83-year-old nun has been convicted to prison after sabotaging a nuclear facility. she and two brothers broke into the facility to protest weapons storage, and the others were sentenced to 62 months ago. an oklahoma pharmacy won't give the stit of missouri a lethal drug it needs to kill a man. taylor is scheduled to die, and

the pharmacy agreed not to sell it. and they will use another drug. "america tonight" with joie chen is up next, and you can get the latest on aljazeera.com. on "america tonight." world on fire! aingeer and activist explode in two increasingly important nations. ukraine, where a violent crack down on protesters leads to blood sh*et and deat she had an. and venezuela where the opposition leader turns himself in. leading supporters in to the streets. also tonight, the mighty residents of minnesota's great north wood and a mystery, that's