>> this is al jazeera america. live from new york city. i'm tony harris. we have today's top stories. russia plans as crimea secedes from ukraine. and the move that could open the skies to more commercial drones.

>> the crisis in ukraine gets more complicated by the day as diplomats make another effort to find a solution. secretary of state john kerry spoke with russian foreign minister sergei lavrov, but he warned against any hasty move. and we're just now hearing reports out of crimea that a military base is under siege by russian forces. jennifer glass is in sim erpol. what can you tell us about this situation? >> reporter: we're getting conflicting reports from this air force base. not far about five miles from where i am i in the center of te

city. we understand that the gates have been broken in. there is a source inside that it's by russian forces as negotiations are going on. outside of the gate we're told by ice witnesses that there are just armed men not in uniform. this has been the confusion, tony, here over the last week or so. you've got men in uniform, unmarkemenin unmarked uniform, n forces, and we have seen mostly cossacks not as well equipped as the russian forces, and they're taking stances as well. we're trying to clarify who these people are. now that's the pattern that we've seen across the crimeaen peninsula over the past few days, that the russians have gone to the ukrainian military forces and demanding surrender

of their arms. we've seen sieges like this before, not with the gates being broken down, there is still a confused situation, we're trying to get clarity of who these folks are, what they want, but not a shot fired. >> jennifer yesterday, the city declared itself part of russia. what does that mean, and what is it going to mean if crimea as a whole attempted to follow suit here? >> i think the city of simferopol will ask crimeaens if they want to be remain as part of ukraine with expanded autonomy or be a part of russia. but you know, i was in back to

seri. the historic homeland to the crimeaen tartar, who were expelled by joseph stalin, and they came back in the 1990's. they say they're fiercely against moscow. they're not going to take part and they are very worried about what is going to happen. they're patrolling their neighborhoods and watching nervously about what is going on. you also have ethnic ukrainians, many of whom won't be happy about joining moscow. the whole succes secession talkg up, and of course we have thousands of russian troops across th crimea. people are nervous, and many

worried that something could happen, one drop of blood would start everything off and then the kremlin would feel justified to have russian troops here. but >> ukrainian intelligence sources tell al jazeera that as many as 30,000 russian troops are in crimea, and many are arriving through a ferry terminal seized by russian troops, and more are on the way. nick schifrin is on the way from ukraine. and nick, you saw some of the troop movements earlier today. describe that for us if you would. >> reporter: yes, tony, we're on the verwe're--they do not consir

themselves part of ukraine and do not want to be part of ukraine. a huge convoy of troops coming from russia by ferry, and they drive into the heart of the crimeaen. this will give a sense of how big it is, and the city is very much in support of that. we spoke to people who are protecting the russian troops what from what they claim is

provocation from kiev. there are a lot of people who want to be in russia, who live five miles as the bird files from russia. their family, some of them are split, and they're very much eager to vote for a referendum, frankly, that they have already felt that they long since voted for. they never felt they respected the government whether old or new in kiev or frankly in the capitol of kiev. these people are very much independent and very much are supporting the troops who are coming in by the truckload. >> can i have you state that again? tell me again about the number of troops, the estimate of the number of russian troops on that peninsula now? >> reporter: ukrainian intelligence officials tell me that there is some 30,000 troops in crimea.

at first it was 30,000, but the main invasion force has grown and there are more russian troops coming into crimea than u. troops that went to afghanistan. >> i just want that number to sink in as a sign of where we are. nick schifrin, thank you so much. france has joined the u.s. and other countries in condemning russia's military operations in ukraine. but at the same time france has been helping russia rebuild it's military. john terrett with more on that part of the story. >> reporter: embearment. [ in french ] i am bear racing. >> i aembarrassing for the fren.

the trial is underway right now, and they've called it the naval port in crimea, and the center of kiev and moscow. when asked if french would hold the contract if economic sanctions were imposed, and that seems to be on the cards, then french president françois hollande answered this way: . >> reporter: now the ships are part of a seriously expensive investment by moscow. vernow in this five-day conflict what happened was the russian troops evicted their

counterparts, but they suffered losses at the hands of more technically advanced georgian troops. and moscow was irked by that. according to the international institute of strategic studies, moscow's budget has gone up for $62.000000. the world's third largest military spenders. who are the first two figures? it doesn't take a genius to guess, china with $112.2 billion, and the u.s. with $600.4 billion. now the size of the military. what do we get with the money they're spending? it's long been unclear how many military personnel russia has to call on.

russia struggles to attract and retain conscripts and professional recruits. now the iiss estimates russia has 845,000 military troops to call on and then another 2 million personnel in reserve who recently serve in the russian forces. kiev has 129,950 military personnel to call on, but as you know it's a very poor country and they've been struggling to keep their own. and it's navy is struggling to repair its sole diesel submarine. they couldn't port because they couldn't afford to man the dock side. it's unlikely there would be a russian military invasion of ukraine, all the analysts say if

they were to do it, it would be a very unfair fight. >> thank you. diplomatic posturing over control over crimea has caused some ethnic tartars to leave. this family answered an invitation from the western ukrainian city of lviv where they hope to be part of an independent ukraine. ethnic tatars are muslims that make up 13% of the crimea population. the soviet union forced thousands of them from their homes in crimea. many fle fled to turkey. we have more from istanbul. >> reporter: the new blockbuster on turkey's tv starring a famous

turkish actor who plays a muslim soldier in the russian army whose loyalty to his homeland crimea led him to switch sides and help turkey. fighting with the russian empire for centuries and finally subjected to mass deportation by soviet leader joseph stalin in the 1940s nearly half dying from starvation and disease. >> they had 15 minutes notice just enough to grab a piece of bread and the qur'an. >> reporter: many are watching closely to what is going on in crimea. >> we will not suffer the separation again. we're receiving calls and e-mails every day from them. we are a very different group here in turkey. we're educated and will not behave like the russians. >> and the crimeaen tatars have

the backing of turkey's government. he stressed the importance of crimea to turkey and called for stability and the reservation tn for the territorial integrity of ukraine. but everyone is worried about the escalation of force. when they heard this might have changed the flag to a russian one, they came across to make sure it had not and show support for ukrainian independence. the connection of the mediterranean with the black sea. europe is that way, and ukraine, crimea and russia that way one of the world's historic highways and people's memories span centuries. >> along with these decembe dess of again gues khan, had a warni.

>> russia needs to keep this into mind. >> without turkey support crimea's tatars believe their people would have been wiped out. they say they have learned from their history. >> i got to tell you more questions today about how this long, hard, slog of a winter is effecting the economy. the release of monthly jobs this morning and there were more jobs added than expected. patricia, this report was a bit of a surprise right on the upside. >> absolutely, a surprise, and this did, indeed, take a lot of people by surprise. the economy added 175,000 jobs last month. that was well above the consensus estimate. the unemployment ticked up to 6-poin6.7%, and those looking fr

work, that held steady at 63%. when you look at the quality of jobs, it really wasn't what we like to see. we added 6,000 manufacturing jobs and 15,000 construction jobs last month. of course, you do have to take into account what was happening with the weather. regarding that headline number of 175,000 jobs, that was above estimate, and it was certainly better than the previous two months, but as former labor department officials seth harris reminded us the bar was very low. >> well, this report beat expectations but that's because our expectations are very low. over the last three months the economy has added on average only 129,000 jobs. that's significantly down the first 11 months of 2013 when we were adding more than 200,000 jobs a month. >> reporter: now many economists are still optimistic about the underlying strength of the

economy, and many believe that it will accelerate when the weather improves, tony. >> that is kind of my take on things. i understand that this number, when you look at the quality of the jobs may not be what we want or what we need, but given the head winds of this economy along with this winter that we're talking about, this is not an awful number even though the national rate ticked up a little bit, right? >> oh, no, it's not an awful number. >> we need 200,000 or more. >> expectations were low at the beginning of the year. and nobody knows for sure exactly how much the weather has impacted the numbers. it made the picture extremely opaque. what we need is a month of data free and clear of horrendous weather to really get a handle of how strong the underlying economy is, and one reason why people are optimistic is the consumer confidence numbers have rung in pretty strong. that's forward looking, telescoping how people feel

about the employee. >> let's get the nation a little bit of warm weather and see what happens then, thank you. venezuela is expending it's loan with china to improve it's infrastructure. president nicolás maduro is struggling to keep the country from flat lining, many are angel over high inflation, crime and shortage of basic goods like sugar and flour. paul beman reports. >> reporter: we heard reports of intense fighting in caracas where there has been fighting night after night. we found people running, people on motorcycles and groups of men throwing rocks in the direction of security. these guys were just waiting for a rush by security forces. when these motorcycles came down the street, that's what they

thought it was. it was probably people on motorcycle taxis, but they were very agitated. it was hard to have a conversation with anybody. >> they say the government is fascist, and the government is calling them fascist. they're throwing monthly to have cocktails, and there are people watching it like it's the evening's entertainment, like it's a baseball game. >> reporter: that's when the mood started to shift. this mob violence increasingly is the face of this protest movement in caracas, and the concern is this is how it's going to play out across the country as this crisis continues to unfold. >> paul beban reporting.

coming up on al jazeera america, a win in court could mean a big step towards the commercial use of drones. and freezing temperatures may have been a drag this winter, but they created this awesome site in the midwest. we'll take you inside the ice caves.

>> environmental groups are warning the department of agriculture and states here in north carolina with the disposal of infected. carcasses.

>> late last month the water keeper allowance and north carolina river keepers sent these photos and a letter to governor pat macquarie to send out a letter of emergency because they believe the carcasses are not disposed of properly and there is a high risk of contamination of the ground water. >> wthey responded, we are aware of the situation. commissioner is monitoring the situation and we're confident he'll request additional support from the governor's office if needed.

to date there is no back scene and despite the herd losses farmers are not required to report the virus to state or federal officials. but farmer and environmental concerns along with pork prizes are starting to rise. robert ray, al jazeera, north carolina. >> and appearance of a c pac pac with the first looking of running for the white house. we'll have a look at the highs caves that are a hot tourism spot in the midwest.

>> presidential candidates are firing up the base this week taking their red meat message to

conservative activists. libby casey is live at the conference for us just outside of washington, d.c. libby, chris christie, the governor of new jersey, who wasn't even invited to this event last year got a standing ovation yesterday. who is getting the loudest aplus today? >> reporter: there are some speakers that they watch to see how they perform, and to see what they bring to the table. among them chris christie and mitch m mcdonnell. they were watched to see how they performed but the focus, senator rand paul, and there was no doubt that the crowd was in full support of senator paul. no other speakers had gotten as much attention. no other speakers as a many

attendees. i want to share the message that he was sharing. he talked about personal freedom and government intrusion. >> yet, as our voices rise in protest the nsa monitoring your every phone call. if you have a cell phone you are under surveillance. i believe what you do on your cell phone is none of their damn business. >> reporter: so you can see what kind of a reaction rand paul is getting from the audience. he's focusing on domestic issues and talks about liberty, and a lot of things happening here at c pac. one other interesting thing, c pac is a straw poll for presidential hopefuls, and all right the leader, rand paul. >> libby, is there a divide within the conservative movement that goes beyond what we often talk about, that is the tea

party faction of the party? >> governor huckabee, foreign govern of arkansas talked about trying to unify the party and trying to get everybody under the republican mantle really unified with one voice, one message. but the best way to unify is criticizing president obama, and criticizing the policies of democrats who are currently in congress and talking to young people here you really feel it. they may be socially conservatives. but that's not driving their support. they are liking rand paul because he's talking about autonomy and he's not talking about abortion and gay marriage. you do see divisions there. a lot of team, same opinions, it's just what they'll focus on. >> libby, appreciate it. thank you. an organization you may not expect is one of the key

sponsors of c pac. the motion petition of america, the group is using its sponsorship to court new friends in washington. >> reporter: holds, the move of movers and shakers and liberal causes, but what people think about hollywood's political bed bedfellows is being rewritten. the signs are clear that washington conservative and hollywood have forged a friendship, one of c pac's sponsors the motion picture association. >> everyone thinks of hollywood closely associated with liberal causes and politicians, and the truth is much more complicated than that. >> reporter: melanie sloane is the director of the non-profit citizens of responsibility and ethics in washington which released a report that shows the

mpaa is giving more and more money to conservatives. >> in recent years hollywood has seen many of its interests not being promoted in the way that it would like. >> reporter: the mpaa headed by former democratic senator chris dodd declined our request for an interview. it still gives millions to democratic causes but according to the report in the 2012 election cycle the mpaa contributed $2.4 million to organizations that include conservative dark money groups. those that don't have to reveal their donors. >> i think senator chris dodd came in and assessed the situation and realized if the mpaa wanted to be a major player, it would have to shore up it's credentials with conservatives. >> reporter: velente was known as an urbane washington lobbyist the public face of hollywood for

nearly four decades. but often forgotten hollywood heavyweights who are anything but liberal, you get the picture. actor and former senator fred thompson said that there is a possible power shift in washington. >> there is a belief that republicans are more likely to win. >> reporter: but others say hollywood is not shedding it's liberal skin just yet. >> hollywood is still liberal. it is not shifting towards the conservative movement, but the conservatives in hollywood are now speaking out. that's the difference. >> reporter: speaking out and spending millions of dollars to make sure that hollywood's froms like anti-piracy and

intellectual protection are being heard. >> after a party atmosphere piles of trash sits on the street for the seventh consecutive days. garbage collectors want more money, the city agreed to give them more money but workers said it was not enough. to the netherlands when congolese rebel leader was convicted for his part in the war crimes committed during the 2003 attack. he was acquitted on charges of rape, slavery and child soldiers. he was only the second to be convicted since the court was formed in 2002. imany are fleeing to the

republic of congo, malcolm web has that story. >> reporter: almost everyone on this boat has relatives killed or have gone missing. they were hiding in a church for weeks fearing for their lives. now they've made it to safety. there was a lot of gunfire. i don't know where my children are or my parents. >> reporter: nearly a million people have fled the violence in car, and fo they have crossed te river. >> on this side is the central african republic, and on the other side th the african repub. areas that can only be accessed

using boats like this. >> reporter: this is the landing site on the congo side. the villages were deserted cooks ago. they wait for trucks to take them to refugee camp. he said that his girlfriend started to have an affair. then they came and told him to leave her and continue on. >> i got up and they shot me in the back. >> this man left when his brother was killed. he was targeted for not having a traditional haircut. >> they saw him and said because of his haircut he was a muslim, so they killed him. >> reporter: he and his friends are in a band. they insist on showing us their routine here at the landing

site. [♪ music ] >> reporter: they used to perform in front of hundreds of people back home but they said the musk scene stopped with the violence. it will probably be a long time before they can perform again. they'll live in ex-pile exile, t won't be easy, but this allows them to forget their pain and what they left behind for a minute. >> the woman accusing an army general of sexual assault took the stand today. maria has more on that and other headlines across the country. >> reporter: in fort bragg, north carolina, an army private testified that the brigadier

threatened to kill the woman if she told anyone about their three-year affair. prosecutors say he used his authority to corers the captain into sex. the general pled guilty to lesser charges of adultery and impeding an investigation. the kansas supreme court said the state's public school funding levels are unconstitutional. the court ruled kansas' poor school districts suffered after some payments were cut because of lower tax revenues during the recession. parents brought this lawsuit i in 2010 alleging the spending cuts resulted in lower test scores. in detroit a judge's hearing closing arguments in a case against michigan's same-sex marriage band. voters approved the ban in 2004, but a same-sex couple sued because to be able to adopt each other's children, the judge is expected to make a decision in the weeks add. duvall patrick approved a

bill. a man who took photos up skirts of women was not against the law, so the senate responded by passing new legislation. >> what did we say yesterday, that it should be law. >> reporter: and the legislators heard you. >> thank you. this winters' freeing cold temperatures built a frozen path to adventure. turning ice caves into tourist destinations. we report from bayfield, wisconsin, the site of a midwinter business piano. >> reporter: it's a trek more than a mile long. from deep snow across a now-frozen lake superior. but for those who make the journey to the hidden case of the national park, they say its worth it.

>> it's beautiful out here. >> even though it's freezing. >> you have a chance to get in, and under and around these frozen things. >> reporter: eyes formations rarely seen. created by the lake's own wave patterns and colored from the sandstone cliffs. each cave slightly different from the next. it's not just the natural beauty that is attracting so many, it is accessibility. typically you could only get here by boat. but because of record subzero temperatures you can get here by walking across this frozen lake. and thousands are doing just that. but most would have misted out on this naturalfy numbe naturalt was not posted on twitter.

>> in two house it had 10,000 views and when we woke up we had 85,000 views at that moment we knew something big had happened. >> reporter: bayfield of a population of 420,000 people. and since january its business have been overrun with visitors. it will be weeks before the only hotel in town has a vacancy. >> we're typically closed in the winters. i think it may be the biggest exposure potentially ever. >> reporter: at maggie's restaurant the chef can't keep up demand. at night it's the only restaurant in town that's open to feed the thousands of hungry visitors that started showing up. >> we almost tripled last year's numbers. >> reporter: but the ice displays are weather permitting.

the surge in business no one is sure just how long the sculptures will last or if they'll return next year. >> this is decreasing the amount of ice on lake superior. the polar vortex has made it one of the coldest winters on record, we know this is not typical. we're describing this as an endangered national park experience. we're not sure if your kids or grandkids will be able to do this. >> reporter: 80,000 have braved the subzero temperatures to get to the caves. on the weekends they're attracting 10,000 views a day. more than any other day in the parks history. it's a rare glimpse of a natural phenomenon that may never be seen again. >> i got to tell you the ice cover could break records. last month nearly 90% of the great lakes were frozen over. dave warren is here with the latest, you know, we can't often

agree on up is down, down is up, right? but we can agree this has been a brutally cold winter. >> meteorologist: we are a talking about the 90% there, also 90% of california still in a drought despite all the rain we've seen. let's look at this right now, talking about this ice not going anywhere this weekend, seeing the cold air return. this is another surge of bitter arctic air. single digits in minneapolis below zero in bismarck, fargo, and this will push across the great lakes to the east. this is not diving south, it pushes to the east. there is the cold air now and it will be around new england by sunday. oh from right about here, from the philadelphia area to the north, right through the midwest, and another surge of arctic air this weekend. this is bitter cold air that moves south. the temperatures are warming up a bit across the southeast. now we're talking about the

pacific northwest. we're starting to see more and more storms come in. this storm a big storm air in the gulf of alaska this will bring moisture in from the northwest and western canada. if this moves down we'll have more rain and snow where we need it. for now the drought continues. the severe drought area is still the same size. >> yes, we need help out there. appreciate it. good weekend to you. today, have you heard of this? today is national day of unplugging. that's an awkward thing to say. it's the day to go off the grid and live out in the real world. for some people that's easier said than done. online rehab next.

>> welcome back everyone to al jazeera america. fans of the late author and screen writer leonard have a chance to see his items. >> reporter: when a great writer passes away he leaves behind his life's work but also his stuff. elmore dutch leonard's stuff is on sale here in michigan. leonard's books and short stories inspired films like "get shorty" and other films that made him internationally famous. some books are available to buy but it's his personal items that are attracting interest. everything from table lamp, garden tools and even his christmas ornaments are for sale. a lot of folks came just to see the house where leonard lived and worked, and perhaps to buy a small momento. the house is not for sale any

more. someone bought it for $1.6 million. leonard sometimes known as the dickens of detroit passed away last august. david hawkins, al jazeera. >> you know this, i'm not telling you anything that you don't know. technology is a constant in our lives from smart phones to our computers. but for some people that technology can become a destructive addiction. the movement to unplug from it all. and alan, tell us more about this. where are you--oh, boy, you're loaded down with technology. >> reporter: totally loaded down as most of us are these days, tony. this brings us to the national day of unplugging. the fifth annual people all over the world urged to just cut off from the computer, the video viewers the ubiquitous hand-held device that does all things and even the remote control.

hit the button for a day. i did this for myself, and to get a feeling to unplug for 4 hour24hours, and for others form unplugging is a matter of survival. >> reporter: by the time we met them in seattle i had been unplugged for 24 hours. no iphone, no google maps, no television. i was feeling a little disconnected. >> i'm worried about what is out there, what is happening with work, friends, etc. family. it's fairly normal. we have become very hyper connected as a culture. >> reporter: breaking that hyper connection is a goal here. at one of the country's first internet treatment centers, a 45 day live in session costs $23,000 and the waiting list is long. >> the point is to rediscover the things that make you human. >> reporter: for andrew fulton

and others unblogging is a chance to get their lives back. there is counseling, intense physical workouts, daily chores and connecting with nature. an abscesan obsessive gamer aftr spending weeks in his room online. >> it is like a drug. you don't have to think about the real world. and once you're out of that virtual world, it's just depression. >> reporter: outside of the world of gaming, social media and endless media options there is reality. >> there is nothing wrong with entertainment unless we're entertaining ourselves to death. >> reporter: health insurance does not help with this treatment. the concept of internet addiction still needs more studies, but in china and south korea it's seen as a social health threat. >> it's similar to an eating disordered. it's not like you can say just because i have a problem with

food i'm never going to eat again. >> reporter: this man has a connection with music, something he abandoned while on the internet. >> go watch youtube, the real world doesn't matter. >> reporter: as every here's the real world does matter they have simple advice for people like me and maybe you unplugging for a mere 24 hours. that advice, do it. >> for one day be present, and then i invite you to bring more of those days in to be present. it really will change your life. >> reporter: now, these folks are heading for big changes in their lives. they're trying to develop personal survival plans. they're going back in the world after this course of treatment, and probably outpatient treatment as well. they're going into a world where this thing is not going away. hand-held connectivity is a fact, and they have to learn to deal with it.

it's not really all that difficult. give it a try for the next 24 hours. just, you know. push the button, turn off. >> you went off the grid for 24 hours. you look okay. >> reporter: you know what, it was really interesting, tony. it wasn't that difficult, but it was definitely unsettling. we get so used to reaching for this thing, and taking a picture, sending it to a friend, calling mom, doing whatever. so it really did teach me a little bit about how i use the device, and how i might be able to set it aside once in a while and make my life a little different. fascinating experiment. >> people all over the world are pledging to take part in this national unplug day. maria following that story on social media for us. >> reporter: yes, tony, today marks the fifth annual day of unplug, it's the day first started by the non-profit reboot, and over the years it has really grown. hundreds and hundreds of people that have gone online to pledge

that they will be unplugging tonight at sundown. and they have different reasons for unplugging. one says i unplug to renew, refresh, and relax. and take a look at this one. this one says, we unplug to spend quality time with family. >> okay. >> reporter: different reasons, mainly to connect with other people. now how possible is it to unplug for a full day? it's not that easy. co-founder of the webby awards takes part of the event every year. take a listen. >> we do use a car, and we play the record player and landline for emergencies, but for us the screen is what takes you out while you're sitting next to someone and you're not really there. we do a lot of writing and reading, but for me it's the screen. >> reporter: so although the official day lasts for 24 hours,

the idea is to create awareness about this, and how these devices affect our daily lives, and maybe to do this on a more more regular basis on shorter periods of time. and let me unplug my twitter account. >> are you kidding me? >> reporter: no, i'm not. >> you're talking about leaving the grid? >> reporter: all on twitter. >> give me something to toss at you right now. thank you. spring is on the horizon. it is time to set your clocks forward for daylight savings time. you will lose and hour, but that means extra light at night. we have more stories when we come back. this is al jazeera america. pan am flight 103 exploded in the skys above lockerbie. only one man was convicted of the attack >> the major difficulty for the prosecution, that there was no evidence... >> now a three year al jazeera

investigation, reveals a very different story about who was responsible >> they refuse to look into this... >> so many people at such a high level had a stake in al megrahi's guilt. lockerbie: what really happened? on al jazeera america

>> this is al jazeera america. i'm tony harris with a look at today's top stories. russians have reportedly overrun an ukrainian base in simperfol.

they broke down the gates and entered the base where ukraines are stationed. no shots were fired. the economy created a better job report last month. the unemployment rows t rose to. texas rick perry began day two of the conservative conference with a speech on the penalty of ideas. and original ruling of commercial drones expecte. and congolese rebel leader has been convicted for his role in the killings of 200 villagers

in 2013. he was found guilty for war crimes at the hague. he was acquitted on charge of rape, sexual slavery and child soldiers. i'm tony harris. those are the headlines. >> the supreme court's decision in roe versus wade made it har d to ban abortion, but states like texas make it harder for women to end pregnancies. that's the inside story. >> hello, i'm ray suarez. in many states a m