>> for many, many decades. >> definitely. >> arthur and pauline frommer of the frommer guides, i am ali velshi, and you have been >> >> to the voting booth in ukraine today - a divided crimean n peninsula decides whether to become part of russia. >> plus the criminal investigation into the missing malaysia airlines jet. >> three years sips the start of the civil war in syria, staggering numbers of the dead and displaced. >> plus an entire civilisation forced to abandon settlements in

the south-west. why history could be about to repeat it is. [ ♪ music ] >> it's 8am in ukraine, where residents of crimea are making a crucial decision. you are looking live inside a polling station in the city of simferepol, where the polling booths have just opened. welcome to al jazeera america. live from new york city. i'm morgan radford. the next chapter of ukraine's political crisis is unfolding as we speak. polless are open in crimea, where voters will determine whether to join russia or remain part of the ukraine. >> western nations say they should stay as part of ukraine. the vote has been called illegal. russia exercised veto power of an un-security council

resolution. china abstained. >> inside ukraine more clashes between supporters and opponents of that referendum. russia says it's been askeded to step in and protect demonstrators. voting is getting underway with 1.5 million of people in crimea eligible to cast a ballot. nick schifrin is at one of those polls stations. >> what are you seeing at the polls station right now. >> for weeks we had fear and loathing across crimea. huge amounts of intimidation, violence, tension. today seems calm. there are a lot of people here already at this particular tags that i am at. i was talking to a few of them, many back here 30 minutes early, it's not something you see at home, and a huge amount of excitement at this polling station, which is an pro-russian

neighbourhood. these people believe it's independence day for them. that they are righting a wrong. that soviet union gave away crimea, it was an administrative step that it took, not meaning: it became independent or part of ukraine after ukraine got its independence in 1991, and these people feel like it's the first time they have been able to say which side they will be on, and they have said they want to be on the russian's side. for the majority of people, that is a good step, a step they have wanted to take, and the first time they had a chance to do so. >> you describe this as an independence day of sorts. there has been weeks of violence between protesters leading up to the vote. are there fears of violence today >>. >> there's always fears of violence. what is having is that calm is

the creation of a mon op lie of presence on the street and in the voting booth of pro-russian activists. much of the opposition, as it were, crimean tat tars, a muslim population, deported by the russians. they are anti-russians, and they have called for a boycott. the intimidation has called for the silencing of everyone against russia. i saw 25 what could be described as activists, a small gang of men wearing ribbons associating themselves with the soviet union walking through the streets, perhaps making sure that people vote their way or, at the at least, making sure that anyone going to the voting station remembers that the police here have been ineffective since the troops arrived and law and order has been run by activists.

this peninsula is going to the polls as they walk through the streets, with those same pro-russian activists standing outside the polls and activists harass anyone that is pro-ukrainian. that is the situation. it is calm in part, because the only people here, at least that i have met so far, are those very excited and proud to be voting with russians. >> nick schifrin joining us live from the polling station. thank you for being with us. >> the u.s. and e.u. allies are threatening to hit russia with sanctions. moscow has not flinched. they voted on a u.n. revolution to delegitimize the referendum. we have more on the diplomatic fall out. >> the ambassadors of the security council meeting here on the east side of manhattan, in a rare saturday morning session, the intention to seek a vote showing the referendum in crimea on sunday is illegal. they must have known it was a

mission impossible from the start, with russia liable to wield its veto. the idea signalled to moscow how unhappy the rest of the world is with what it's doing in ukraine. >> the result of the voting is as follows. 13 votes in favour, one vote against, one abstenion. >> western ambassadors want to show how isolated it is on the world stage, by drafting a resolution show no legal status. 13 council members voted in favour, and china abstained, leaving russia to kill it with a veto it wields. the u.s. ambassador to the u.n., samantha power says this was the wrong time to use the veto. >> russia used the veto as an accomplice to military incursion. the veto given 70 million years ago to countries that led a fight against aggression.

>> moscow's line never wavers, violence could spread. >> the violence had to be noted. it happened over the months in kiev and other regions of the country. violence, which threatened and threatened to spread to other regions of ukraine. >> but ukraine's ambassador of the u.n. says russians actions hark back to the old soviet era. >> we upset with the difficulty proposed by russian delegation again. nothing serious, just words. at the same time, their paratroopers and - and other forces entered the mainland of ukraine. >> that resolution may have come too late to stop the vote, everything depends on what russian president vladimir putin

does next, the world will be watching. legal affairs come through the security council, you can expect the u.n. to be busy on this issue next week. >> we'll continue to bring you the latest on the voting in ukraine. you can get up to the minute information 24/7 by logging on to aljazeera.com. >> a criminal investigation is now under way in the disappearance of that malaysia airlines flight 370. it appears someone deliberately cut communication, diverted the plane and flew for another seven hours. investigators don't know why or where it went. al jazeera's lisa stark has the story. >> it's a chilling picture, the jumbo jet, with 239 on board, being flown for seven hours, miles off course, possibly with the plane running out of fuel. investigate juniors are

scrutinising the backgrounds of everyone on board. in malaysia police searched the home of the captain. >> zaharie ahmed shah has more than 30 years of flying experience. now reports that the home of fariq abdul hamid has been searched as well, the copilot. >> investigators now know that someone in the cockpit turned off two free communication systems. first the system that sends out data on injured and aircraft performance, then the transponder that let's air traffic controllers know the altitude and position. there was a final routine voice communication from the cockpit, but then the secret turned off course, heading west. officials have now confirmed that blips seen on malaysian military radar were the missing jumbo jet, and someone was at the controls. >> up until the point at which it left military primary radar

coverage, this movement are consistent with deliberate action by someone on the plane. >> even with its communication systems disabled, the aircraft was sending out signals picked up by satellites. that's when investigators knew it was still in the air, and they determined two flight paths, one heading north. the other to the south, over the indian ocean. sources say that's the more likely path if those in the cockpit wanted to avoid detection. officially this is a wide open investigation. >> despite media reports that the plane was hijacked, i wish to be very clear - we are still investigating all possibilities >> the latest news is another blow to the families of those on board. understandably desperate to know

what happened to their loved ones. malaysia airlines has no answers. >> because this situation is now starting to look at criminal investigation under international law, we are not permitted to respond to questions at this time. >> dozens of planes and boats that had been searching the south china sea, and thailand, are being pulled out, moved west, into the vast indian ocean, to try to find a sign, any sign, of the missing jetliner. >> scott heidler is live in kuala lumpur. scott, any idea as to what kind of clues authorities are looking for at this point in the investigation? morgan, i think they are looking for anything, quite honestly. there was an investigation, deep investigation into the passenger list last week when we heard the

details coming out about people travelling on stolen passports. now it's being refocused because, as we heard from the prime minister on saturday, that there is distinct and clear evidence that someone deliberately turned the aircraft. took it off its flight path. that's why it's a criminal investigation. they are looking at who was on the flight deck, the knin crew. they are really focussed on this, because the evidence now is that it was a deliberate move to take the plane off course. we know that the copilot and the pilots' houses were looked at. you can imagine the investigation was ongoing. we hope to get updates from the police. now, all we know is they entered the two houses and begun the investigation. >> the passenger list and deliberate actions.

yesterday the prime minister said the investigation was leaving the south china sea, and focussing on two new areas, north towards khazakhstan, and south towards india. are those countries now getting involved in the search? >> they are. india had been engaged in the search and rescue operation for several days, starting at the end of last week. they are now being put on pause when you will, because you have these new large corridors. it appears the southern route is more likely. he'll travel over heavily watched skies if you will. there's a lot of territory, including pakistan, near afghanistan, going up north. the malaysian officials asked india to put it on pause, mainly because these are huge stretches of sea to be searched and can be

taxing on the nations, like the u.s. navy said and was something that the spokesman said recently. >> i'm very concerned first and foremost for our sailors, we have 700 u.s. navy sailors, and we have to watch the fatigue level. we sent out grief counsellors and chap laps, to make sure that mentally they are doing okay, and physically that you can't operate equipment 24 hours a day or push people to work 24 hours a day. we are concerned about the fatigue level. we are watching it closely. that's where we are right now. >> so you have all these nations involved in this, and it's a big operation. obviously there has to be some pacing to this and probably why india was put on pause, if you wheel. is it because there was information that possibly could have been implemented earlier.

that's why they are telling the indian assets to be put on pause until they figure out where it's better to look. their borders are much further south than the indian ocean. >> thank you scott for the update. >> three years since the start of civil war in syria, a look at where it begone, and why we are not closer to a solution now. >> and your honda mini van could suddenly catch fire. what the auto makers are not doing yet. >> we look at the polling stations in crimea - whether to join or not to join russia - that is the question there

today. >> in washington a sombre reminder of those killed in the

syrian conflict. the name of some of the 146,000 people that have died in the civil war were read outside the white house, it's been three years since the uprising began. the syrian war devastated families and cities and three years on the conflict is becoming increasingly complex. for a closer look at how we got to this point we turn to courtney keeley. >> the conflict began with children in daara chanting shogons. bashar al-assad's security forces rounded up 15 boys, some as young as 10 years old. they were beaten, bloodied, burned and had their fingernails pulled out. their parents protested. by may bashar al-assad rolled dangs into daara. the arab league suspended syria after the assad government

defied an agreement to stop violence against demonstrators. as the violence continued rebel fighters calling themselves the free syrian army launched counterattacks. at the end of may, according to the u.n., 108 villages were killed by syrian soldiers using hatch et cetera, knives and guns. by the end of 2012 the syrian opposition government gained recognition as the legitimate representative by the u.s., britain, turkey. the fighting continued into 2013. hezbollah fighters from lebanon joined syrian forces to capture the strategic town. assad's regime used chemical weapons. assad struck a deal, brokered by russia, allowing the u.n. inspectors to destroy his weapons. our contributor whose identity

we keep hidden say many syrians are abandoned by the west. >> hunger. don't forget the hunger that has really brought so many syrians in rebel held areas into submission >> two rounds of peace talks in geneva failed. the u.n. estimates more than 9 million people in syria need help. 2.5 million fled the country. >> on the battle front syrian government forces are closing in on yabrood, and lies north of damascus, the last rebel-held city and a weapons supply route for the opposition. >> these are government shoulders taking positions on hills surrounding yab brood. rebel fighters have two options - surrender or die.

the rebels dismissed that, saying there's intense fighting at the western entrance of the city. this video shows rebels destroying a tank. many are calling for urgent reinforcement, warning that the city could fall any time. these fighters are desperate to retrieve the body of a colleague, killed trying to repel government troops. we here one of them saying bullets are coming from everywhere. there has been fighting in yab road for a month. the army is on the offensive. if it gets full control, it will be the second biggest military achievement since the start of the uprising. the first was the recapture of the city last june. yab u is the rebels last strong

hold. if they loose it, they loose a weapon supply route. it pays the way for government troops to retake rebel conditions around damascus. >> thousands of people fled after bombing and shelling began ahead of the government offensive. >> turning to the past to provide signs of hope for the future. ancient american civilizations revealing how the south-west survived devastating droughts of the past.

>> two storms slamming into the u.s. we have one in the pacific north-west with rain fall and heavy mountain snow, and another swirling out of texas, across louisiana bringing potentially storms into the south. that storm is tracking up to the north, north-east, and we'll see it collide with cold, code air, bringing problems.

first of all, with all the moisture coming up out of the gulf, we'll see potential from severe storms were mississippi, to new orleans, over to pensacola, and panama city. some of the storms will stretch to the central parts of alabama. for the most part it's a risk, but still something to watch. there'll be heavy rain, and we'll see gusty winds. we'll see the snow changing over from rain for the virginias, winter storm warnings going into place across the mid-atlantic states. most of the snow staying south of new york and manhattan island. if you go to d.c., you'll get a few inches of snow. the heaviest between west virginia and virginia. you see the intensity band tracking across the way, starting tomorrow night into the morning. another winter monday morning commute for the areas in the

mid-atlantic. temperatures, when you start out, will be chilly for the halve marathon in new york. starting out at 30. milder into the south and south-west. high temperatures staying on the cool side for most of us anyway. the south-west is staying with the drought and the heat. you can see how we cool off dramatically to the north as the cold air blasts in. slowly but surely we'll get to thursday, when spring begins. >> as part of a continuing series, al jazeera examines the impact of droughts on people and their livelihoods. this morning we turn to focus on the american west, a region reeling from a dry spell. it's not the first one. rob reynolds explores arizona's past for answers to its future. >> today all that is left of mesa grand are the eroded remains of buildings and temples surrounded by the urban straul -- sprawl of phoenix,

arizona. for 1400 years, it was the center of the hohokam group, a sophisticated people says ashingiologist jerry howard. >> they were really unique in north american archeology. they built enormous irrigation systems, the canals brilliantly engineered to carry water. they were enormous in size. >> canals, 14 metres wide and 5 metres deep irrigate an area of 500,000 hectares, supporting a population of 80,000 people. about 600 years ago hohokam's civilisation collapsed. the reason, water, or lack of it. at the university of arizona, the world's largest collection of tree ring data tells the story. >> scientists studying wood can tell how weather patterns shifted with disastrous results for people like the hohokam.

>> it was one of the most serious droughts in the last 200 years, obviously affecting the people quite badly, i would say. >> there's a drought going on right now. do we have any idea whether we are at the beginning, at the middle or towards the end. >> no, not until it's over, and then you know. >> how long could it last? >> well, the one in the 1500s lasted almost a century. >> global climate change caused by modern human activities will make future droughts force says geoscience tist jonathan overpeck. >> the draught in the middle east , australia, malaysia - these are all the face of climate change. this is what we'll see more and more of as the earth warms up and in many parts dries out. >> and that brings us back to mesa grand. the people that live here for

more than 1,000 years are no different to people from today. they probably thought the way of life could go on forever. nature proved them wrong. >> it gives us a cautionary tale. they outstrip the available water. we are doing the same thing, following down the same path and in the future it will hit us again. where do we get the water next. a question for which the past provides no easy answer. >> the department of water resources predicts that by 2050 arizona will have enough water for half of its residence. >> honda is recalling 900,000 minivans that could suddenly catch fire. oddy sis from 2005 to 2009 could crack and catch fire. a temporary fix is being

offered. >> david brenner died at his home after a battle with cancer. highs gravestone will read "if this is supposed to be a joke, i don't get it." >> i'm morgan radford, thanks very much for watching. hi, i'm lisa fletcher, and you in "the stream." chocolate made in a 3-d printer, food innovations are everywhere. are they going to catch on? find out. ♪ i'm casey cap listen, and i'm keith caplin, and 'r