>> flight >> a crucial vote in ukraine is just about 24 hours away as crimea decides whether to become part of russia. and three years since the start of the civil war in syria the conflict just got even more intense. plus, the california drought so bad that farmers are turning to the supernatural for help. >> hollywood in hot water. why the entertainment capital of the world could be headed east.

>> we are following breaking news now on the search for the missing malaysia airlines plane. the prime minister of malaysia is expected to speak at a news conference any minute now, and we are not sure what he'll say. officials say there'll be a major announcement. we are listening to the event and will bring you the latest as soon as we get it. >> welcome to al jazeera america, i'm morgan radford live in new york city. it's 8am in ukraine, and the start of a fateful day for the people of crimea. in just 24 hours they'll vote on whether to join russia or remain a part of ukraine. western powers say they won't recognise the outcomeven as international observers arrive there. moscow says it will adhere to

the outcome of the referendum libby casey explains that an 11th hour appeal to stop the vote failed. >> a meeting between john kerry and sergei lavrov. >> we have no shared vision of the situation with western countries. sergei lavrov says sunday's vote in crimea is about self-determination. >> translation: we will respect the as a result and express our opinion after the results. >> secretary of state john kerry repeated the white house's vision that the vote carries no legal weight and is outside ukraine's constitution. >> neither we nor the international community will recognise the results of this referendum. secretary of state john kerry went into the meeting hoping to turn back the vote, ready to focus on what happens next and push russia not to react to the

crimean referendum with force. >> what was clear in the context of vladimir putin being unwilling to make any decisions regarding the next steps until the vote is taken, that's a decision of enormous consequence. with respect to the global community. >> president obama called for russian restraint. >> i have a strong message to russia that it should not violate the integrity and the sovereignty of its neighbour. we continue to hope that there's a diplomatic solution to be found, but the united states and europe stand to be united. not only in its message about ukrainian sovereignty, but there'll be consequences if, in fact, that sovereignty conditions to be violated. the international community is watching closely not tog russia's reaction, but what it plans to do with the troops

along the ukrainian border. minister sergei lavrov seemed to allay some of the fears. >> translation: the russian federation does not have plans to invade the region. we assume the rights of russian, bull garrians, and the ukrainians. >> eight u.s. senators are touring kiev and meeting with the ukrainian government. a show of the solidarity and american concern as to what happens next. >> one of the reasons there is so much support in crimea for joining russia is the ethnic and cultural heritage. there are those that fear they could be discriminated and persecuted if the referendum passes. >> nick schifrin explains. >> in the middle of the crimean cap tam, a prayer calls the people whose ancestors first populated the peninsula

2500 years ago. tatars are crimea's largest minority. this man is an assistant imam in a 350-year-old mosque. >> translation: i'm praying for the almight any for the referendum not to happen. >> down the road is crimea's oldest synagogue. there were once 70,000 crimean jews. today there are no more than 15,000. this rab yi is the youngest member of his congregation. >> the referendum is a fake the the results are already known. >> a swat sticka was painted on the synagogue's front door. the words read, "death to jews." >> i don't feel safe here. >> tatar homes were marked with an, "x", filling the population

with dread. >> seven years ago, as seen in the film, soviets marked tat tars home. ibrahim was born in exile and insists he won't be pushed out. >> the soviet union want to destroy my people, and now they want to destroy us as well. god willing we'll be masters of land. >> that hope feels the largest tatar rally. they decided to boycott the referendum that will decide crimea's future. >> if we come and vote it will be de facto recognising it is legal. >> the rabbi is not waiting for the results. he feels the vote has been decided. he and his wife concluded it's not safe in crimea and are taking their two young daughters and leaving. >> i'm leaving everything i have here, everything - people, property, car, belongings.

>> whilst the imam may stand steadfast, for his family he admits his fear. >> we are as orphans. no one is remembering us. no one is standing on our behalf. these two faiths have faced persecution. their faith is strong. but in crimea they fear it is no longer welcome. >> a new local government, which the u.s. calls illegal, if they win the referendum, they will offer jobs within the government to crimean tatars. they dismissed the offer and say they want nothing to do with a government they consider a threat, and a referendum they consider a fake. >> that's al jazeera's nick schifrin reporting from the crimean capital. the interim government requested aid from the u.s. for now the pentagon on the

agreed to send military rations. the new leaders in kiev are preparing for the worst. >> soldiers in ukraine are mobilizing, preparing for possible conflict with russia's army poised not only in crimea, but along the mainland border regions. ukraine's military is a shadow of its former self. once one of the most powerful in europe, today ukrainians in uniform is 90,000, down from 750,000 at the collapse of the soviet union. that is minister cool compared to what they -- miniscule compared to what they face from russia. experts pointed out where the russian forces are ready to sweep in and most likely overwhelm the ukrainians. >> here, on the borders of ukraine, in the eastern part. and north and earn part, russian troops - a quantity of 220,000

are deployed. and they are preparing for actions. >> in a last-ditch effort to beef up defenses. the government announced 60,000 guards at recruitment stations. many are answering the call to service, because they know they stand near defenseless. and many more are highly critical of those that put their country in this position. >> we don't have an army at such. as far as i know the country does not have weapons, either out of order or too outdated. the authorities do not care about security of ukraine. >> even ukraine's former nuclear arsenal is nothing more than a museum piece. in 1994 a nonproliferation pact got rid of it. in a park in kiev where weapons

on display, families came out. maybe they are basketing in the sunshine of former military glory. >> there was a time when ukraine's military might was a force to be reckoned with. after cutbacks and changes in geopolitics. that deterrent is largely a thing of the past. >> the u.n. security council could, this weekend, vote on a resolution to declare the crimean referendum illegal. while russia is expected to veto, western powers appear to force the vote to demonstrate russia's diplomatic isolation. >> it's been three years since the civil war in syria began. the conflict seems to be getting worse. on friday there were reports of shelling by the government forces in a key rebel-held area. as many as 40 rockets hit every

few minutes. getting rid of syria's chemical arsenal is a major issue. we have this update. >> we know that it's badly behind schedule. the most toxic chemicals from supposed to have been removed from the country by the end of last year. we are in the middle of march. it seems that something less than a third of the extra dangerous chemicals have actually been removed from syria. >> the syrian government says it's due from issues, reporting for disposal. >> a week after the disappearance of malaysia airlines new evidence suggests the disappearance may not be an accident, that foul play may be to blame. sources say someone may have deliberately flown the jet hundreds of miles off course. satellites picked up signals and

it's believed the jet may have turned west towards the indian ocean. each day it becomes more crit cam. the little black boxes - they only send out signals for 30 days. we are a week into this. recovering the black box is imperative to understanding what happened. this comes as the search expands into the strait of malacca and towards the indian ocean. a u.s. destroyer is joining the efforts, and it's a vast expanse of water to find one play, and the 239 on board. the uncertainty is taking a toll on the families of the passengers. and we are awaiting a live new conference with the malaysian prime minister. that's a live look, where uncertainty is taking a toll on the families. >> florence louie has this report. >> the lack of information is too distressing. seven days, and still no clear

direction of where the search for the missing malaysia airlines flight is heading. the atmosphere is tense as relatives meet officials from the airline in beijing. if they don't find the answers they are hoping for. >> translation: we have been stuck here too long. every day is a torture. i don't know how many days we'll have to wait. i just want accurate information as soon as possible. >> in kuala lumpur families have been put up in a hotel while they wait for news. >> volunteer caregivers have been assigned to help them cope. >> the families hope the plane will be fine and the family is safe. few of the family, they think it is low. and they are prepared to accept what may happen. >> across the country though,

some have not given up hope, placing their faith in higher powers. >> we just performed a ceremony for the safety of the flight 370, so with the grace of alla we plane that it and the crew and passengers will be found safe and in good health >> and so day seven of the search for the missing jetliner ends like all days - with insufficient leads and fewer reasons for families to believe their loved ones are alive. >> and we are still waiting for this live press conference in kuala lumpur where the prime minister of malaysia is slated to speak. we'll bring you the latest details as soon as he comes to the podium. >> for some, nothing says st. patrick's day like a nice cold beer, but this year it will be without its brew. why sam adams are refusing to

take part in the festivities >> californian farmers turning to the spirit world to help out with an epic drought.

and >> it is the weekend. things will change your rapidly. a system will develop making its way to the east. some people will see snow, snow and rain, and possibly severe weather down videos the south-east. as we go through the next couple of hours, you see the spotty showers. things are not looking bad. there may be rain coming into new york. 57 is the high, on saturday there's the rain shower and and out. monday we'll see snow pushing through. mostly in the morning, as the day progresses. it will get better. as the week progresses the temperatures will come back to

about 40, the mid 40s, by the time we get to tuesday. to the mid west possibly rain showers here, mostly on the western part of washington oregon. it's looking clear. washington seattle we see the in and out showers. heavier rains. sunday things will be getting a little brighter as we go towards the beginning of the week. towards california, a few clouds pushing through. snow in the higher elevations. temperatures - look at this. we expect to see a high temperature of 90 degrees. that drops how far. tuesday, much different. a high at 73. quickly to texas, we see - expect to see rainy conditions, especially for the eastern part of texas, continuing through louisville. and dallas, your forecast is thunderstorm , temperatures dropping to 55 and rainy on

sunday. >> farmers have tried everything to get water during what may be the worst drought in california history. some are using what men consider strange magic to get it. >> sharon hates it when people call her a witch. a water witch. she's not a water witch, no, she's a professional douser, a member of the american society of dousers, and her work serious business for a serious matter. >> i felt that energy. you can feel the energy when you stand over a water bay. it feels like chills going through your body, because the electrons are coming up. it makes like a chilling feeling. >> the hunt for water in drought-stricken farmers looking underground. drilling wells costs $10,000, and that adds up if you don't strike water on the first, second or third try.

dawesers, some believe, can help. sharon looks for water at a vineyard. >> the vines are dormant. they don't need water. in a few months it will be summer... >> we are going to take you to the live news conference in kuala lumpur in malaysia where the prime minister is addressing the missing malaysia airlines flight. >>..to share all information transparently with a wider investigation team. and i requested that our friends and our allies joined the operation. as of today, 14 countries, 43 ships and 58 aircrafts are involved in the search. i wish to thank all the governments for their help at

such a crucial time. since day one the malaysian authorities have worked hand in hand with our international partners, including neighbouring countri countries, with aviation authorities and a multinational search force. many of whom have been here on the ground since sunday. we have shared information in real time with authorities, who have the necessary experience to interpret the data. we have been working nonstop to assist the investigation. and we have put our national security second to the search for the missing plane. it is wide by understood that

this has been a situation without precedent. we have conducted search operation over land, in the south china sea the straits of malacca, the andaman sea and the indian ocean. at every stage we acted on the basis of verified information, and we followed every credible lead. sometimes these leads have led nowhere. there has been intense speculation. we understand the desperate need for information on behalf of the

fament lis and those -- families and those watching around the world. but we have a responsibility to the investigation and the families to only release information that has been corroborated. and our primary motivation has always been to find the plane. in the first case of a search operation, we search near flight 370's last known position in the south china sea. at the same time it was brought to our attention by the royal malaysian air force that based on their primary radar and aircraft, the identity of which

could not be confirmed, made a turn back. the primary radar data showed the aircraft proceeding on a flight path which took it to an area north of the straits of malacca. given this credible data, which was subsequently corroborated with relevant international authorities, we expanded the area of search to include the straits of malacca, and later to the andaman sea. early this morning i was briefed by the investigation team which includes the faa and tsb, the aaiv, the malaysian authorities and the acting minister of

transport on new information that shed further light on what happened to mh370. based on new satellite communication we can say with a high degree of certainty that the aircraft communications addressing and reporting system or acar was disabled just before the aircraft reached the east coast of peninsula ma'am asia. -- malaysia. short lit afterwards, near the border between malaysia and

vietnamese air traffic control, the aircraft's transponder was switched off. from this point onwards the royal malaysian air force primary radar data showed that an aircraft, which was believed, but not confirmed to be mh370 did, indeed, turn back. it then flew in a westerly direction, back over peninsula malaysia before turning north-west. up until the point at which it left military primary radar coverage this movement

consistent with deliberate action by someone on the plane. today, based on raw satellite data, which was obtained from the satellite data service provider, we can confirm that the aircraft shown in the primary radar data was flight 370. after much forensic work and deliberation, the faa, ntsb, aaib, and the malaysian authorities worked separately on the same data... >> that was the prime minister of malaysia saying that based on satellite communication, they

can see and confirm that the aircraft communication system was disabled just before it reached the east coast of malaysia, and shortly after between vietnam and malaysia the transponder was switched off. all in all he said these movements were consistent with deliberate action of someone on the plane. and we can confirm that that turn around was, in fact, mh370. again, that's the prime minister of malaysia speaking now. stay tuned. i'll bring you more at 6am eastern. i'm morgan radford with al jazeera america.

>> hi, i'm lisa fletcher, and you're in "the stream." man bossy or b bossy? it's time to hear what girls think, we talked to teens to find out how they define leadership and empowerment.