>> start with one issue ad guests on all sides of the debate. and a host willing to ask the tough questions and you'll get... the inside story ray suarez hosts inside story weekdays at 5pm et / 2pm pt only on al jazeera america ♪ >> hello, and welcome to noir news hour from al jazeera in doha. here are our top stories. crimea formerly applies to join russia after a vote was called illegal by e.u. they will impose sanctions. motorists are told to leave

their cars at home. >> we have sport as mesi marks a major milestone as all time leader scorer. >> russia not ukrainian. that's the decision of crimea parliament which has formerly applied to join the russian federation. in which 96% of voters cast their ballot in favor of moscow. but the european union and u.s. say that vote was illegal. we go to brussels where e.u. officials have agreed to impose sanction. but first we have the latest out of crimea. >> reporter: things here are pretty relaxed. bigger things are taking place inside but the mood on the streets, parliament has declared

independence from ukraine. it has formerly apply to join russia. we've been speaking to one member of parliament who explains why. >> the e.u. and the u.s. don't understand our situation. everything here has been calm and peaceful. 97%, what more do they want? it's the will of the people. my constituency has voted to join russia. >> reporter: we've walked a short distance from parliament, and we've asked people how they feel about the prospect of joining russia and leaving ukraine. >> even though i'm from russia i'm torn. i have brothers and sisters in ukraine. i worry with them. i will miss ukraine.

the fascists give us no choice. i believe putin will restore order. >> we've lived in ukraine for many years. we'll miss it. we also feel joy. you saw how people celebrated. we don't want confrontation. >> reporter: now people of crimea face a whole range of practical issues. what money are they going to use, how do they pay these policemen and who do they take orders from. what will they do with crimean assets i. they also fear the prospect of international condemnation and isolation. >> we have two correspondents covering this story. let's go to brussels where the e.u. meeting has been taking place.

what is the e.u. actually going to do? >> reporter: well, we know just in the last few minutes, adrian, the e.u. official have been briefinbriefing journalists, ane know a little bit more about the first step in this potential tit for tat sanctions war. the european union will announce later on monday that they will target 21 individuals, crimean ukrainians and some russians with a list of targeted sanctions. they will all face travel bans. they won't be able to transit through europe, and they will all suffer asset freeze if they're fortunate to own bank accounts and properties in europe, they'll no longer have access to those assets. they will be frozen. we expect catherine ashton to

deliver a press conference and final communique in the last hour or so. it will be up to the russians. diplomats will be watching president putin very carefully. if there is further escalation on the ground, that list of 21 could be expanded and lengthened. they're working on the total list of 120 to 130 people, thi s is the first stage, it could grow until russia de-escalates in terms of the e.u. here. >> for the moment, many thanks. it may not come to sanctions. diplomatic channels are still open. the russian foreign ministry p putting forward proposals to resolve the crisis. peter sharp is live in moscow. what have they said?

>> well, the channels are certainly open. it was british foreign secretary william hague who said every cybil diplomatic channel is now open to try to resolve this crisis. and john kerry, secretary of state, has floated one suggestion on monday, and this would be an offer for the russians to are draw their troops and return to bases in the crimea in return for constitutional reforms that would protect the minority groups in the ukraine. now listen to this. this is the state department statement. he said, kerry made it clear that the crisis can only be solved politically. as ukrainians take the necessary political moves forward the statement says russia must reciprocate by pulling their forces back to bases and address

concerns over military engagement. that's in reference of the build up of forces along the ukrainian border. >> while all this is going on crimea has formerly apply to be part of the russia federation. president putin expected to address the situation tomorrow. what happens next? >> well, in the last few hours the russian foreign ministry has come up with their proposals. basicsly, they're saying they want to form an international contact group that would help organize ukrainians to provide their own solutions to end this crisis. now among the russian proposals are a decentralized new ukraine, and an ukraine that would protect the rights of the russian minority. it would make russia the second official language, and perhaps most important of all it's

suggesting that the new ukraine would become a non-aligned nation. it would be out of the grasp of e.u. nato, and russia. and this would be most militarily and economically strong. so really we're looking towards the speech tomorrow from vladimir putin on tuesday to see if he's going to be able to flesh out some of those proposals. it's moving very quickly. >> peter sharp in moscow. the syrian government said it is now in control of yabroud, the last rebel stronghold in western syria. forces have been taking the town for weeks. it means that the rebels have effectively lost their supply line for weapons on the western front which borders lebanon. iran of course a major ally

of the syrian government and his helped to secure that victory in yabroud. ibrahimi is hoping for a third round of peace talks in geneva. a major rebel advance towards damascus was reversed in july of 2012. since then the government has taken a number of key strategic towns. a perhaps the significant last june. the isil announced it's arrival in syria, which led to increase factional fighting within option groups. we're joined here in studio, ash

har quaraishi whawhat is the nes the major supply roads for weapons and supplies. west on the border of lebanon, south and north. that's where we have the most immediate threat. >> is it fair to say that assad's forces are winning the war, the opposition certainly losing the fight right now. >> absolutely. the opposition has now as we speak there is a significant meeting of the top commander of

the opposition on the border in the northern part of syria. and there is little that we can do. there are two options. first, send troops back to yabroud at the risk of losing more fighters. second, the safe stronghold. the problem is they would brace for a decisive victory. it could be the one to decide the future of the country. >> ibrahimi would like to pressure president assad to attend a third round of peace talks in gentlemen knee geneva. with the gains on a the ground would he want to waste his time? >> he would definitely go with more leverage. the opposition until a few weeks ago said we are going into the

third round for a more transitional government. now i was talking to the same people and they're saying, you know what, we've been abandoned by the western backers, we'll just go. >> thank you very much. >> there has been an explosion in libya, reports of a car bomb in the eastern city of ben ga b. five people have been killed. many injured. ros, what does the u.s. pentagon say about this operation. >> reporter: they're basically saying that the u.s. government was requested by libya and by cypress for help in trying to regain control of the tanker,

which had left the port late last week and was under the control of a group of libyans who are upset that the central government isn't trying to share oil revenues with the eastern part of the country. now what happened apparently was that around 10:00 late on sunday night in the eastern mediterranean a team of navy seals from the uss roosevelt boarded the ship and took control. the ship is now on its way back to a libyan port. we don't know if they are he's headed back with sailors maintaining control of the vessel. it presents a bit of a boost to the government in tripoli, which of course saw it's prime minister kicked out late last week because of the seizure of this ship and the hijacking of these millions of barrels of o

oil. >> roslind jordan. three al jazeera journalists have been held in an egyptian jail for 79 days. they're accused of having links to an terrorist organization and spreading false news. al jazeera rejects all allegations and demands their release. meanwhile, a journalist from al jazeera's arabic channel is also in custody. hegyptian courts has i flounced his detention for another 45 days. he has been on a hunger strike since january 23. with much more to come on the news hour. how this could give mongolia a

>> and find out what nowak djokovic battled roger federer. >> u.s. president barack obama is due to meet wit for talks, bt could easily be derailed by events on the ground. >> reporter: this is a funeral for a man shot in the back of the head by the israeli army they say for throwing stones. one week later his mother is still in disbelief. >> i think they could have arrested him, put him on trial, anything, but not kill him.

>> reporter: it's this continuing killing and conflict between israelis and palestinians the u.s. believes can be resolved. starting with the draft agreement u.s. president barack obama will deliver to president mahmood abbas during a meeting on monday. it's thought there is some consensus for palestinian state on gaza strip territory occupied by israel in 1967. the land swaps israel could keep most settlements, and palestinians would be given lands elsewhere. complicating negotiations is the fact that israel has continued building illegal settlements. 0,000 unites since talks back in 2013.

>> reporter: president benjamin netanyahu wants his country recognized as a memor member st. jerusalem is another obstacle. palestinians want jerusalem as a capitol. international law mandates compensation and right of return of palestinian refugees displaced in 1948. this is a sticking point for israel. israel is insisting on keeping military presence. it now seems hopeless for palestinians. >> they have been negotiating for 20 years. since my son was born. today he was killed and thousands have been killed and thousands oars during those years of talks.

>> reporter: there is little left for peace making. there is a nine month deadline that means differences created over decades may have just a month to resolve. al jazeera in the occupied west bank. >> al jazeera security forces deploying in large numbers they're seeking a fourth term in office. their president has been in government for 15 years. in pair race only drivers with odd numbered license plates are allowed to drive, and on tuesday it will be the return of those with even numbered plates.

>> pollution peer in paris and the surrounding area has been rising so much so that free public transport was introduced on friday just to try to get people outside of their cars using an alternative method. from monday, from early this morning cars with odd numbered plates were the only ones being allowed in. those those who ignored the ban were fined. >> i think it's a very good idea to fight against pollution. now i'm a sales woman and fortunately we're part of the group in otherwise it be a problem to work. >> in a few years since these measures, it seems obvious there will be more of these in the coming years. >> reporter: although cars with three people are allowed in the city. there is concern how these

measures are impact on the french economy. it calls to address the problems of pollution in the future. >> greece introduced similar measures ten years ago and since then air quality has improve the significantly. >> reporter: athens used to be one the world's most polluted cities in the 1970's and 80's. but 30 years ago it started limiting traffic through the city center. it allows cars ending with odd numbers on odd days of the month and cars with even numbers on even days. it limits traffic access. since 2,000 it has replaced a third of its fleet of diesel buses with buses running on natural gas. but it's olympic aspirations is what spurred massive expansions

of its transport. when they won their bid for olympics games. they created the metro, but now it carries 800,000 people a day in a city of 5 million. as part of a successful bid to host the 2004 games athens created a rail thine that circles the city. road tax and petrol tax has risen so more people have left their cars at home. traffic through the center has fallen by an estimated 20% and many people prefer to use bicycles instead. >> and the weather plays a significant role in problems with air accurate as richard will explain. >> reporter: thanks very much. yes, it's the area of high pressure that we've got at the moment that which is basically effecting the weather across the western parts here. if it wasn't the high pressure we probably wouldn't have the

issues that we have. really the question is what is helping to clear that very poor visibility that we've got. is it the restrictions of the french government has put in place or i has it picked up a westerly breeze. that could create a part in improving the air quality that we've had from a weak ago. if you look at the current pollution levels anything over 100 is going to effect it. paris is not faring too badly compared to other cities in europe. in glasgow, it's not looking here. the question is where are we going to see the pollution continuing being bad.

with france under this area of high pressure we'll see further pollution in the capitol for the coming days. >> people in sudan have been suffering since south sudan became an independent country in 2011. the economy has shrunk, the value of the currency has fallen and unemployment is rising. we have reports from khartoum. >> reporter: sudan is facing difficult times. no one knows this more than khartoum skilled labors armed with their tools. carpenters, plumbers, they gather here every morning looking for clients. most will leave empty handed. >> getting work has become difficult. i can't rent a house for my family here. i have to move them to the village. life is difficult. >> reporter: with mucthe pricess

continue to increase many people are finding it harder and arrester to make ends meet. according to the u.n. warning system, 735 million sudanese don't have enough to eat. for the past three years she prepared meals for these traders in the market. she said she has had to raise her food prices because of the rise in the cost of food. >> the government must do something to bring down the high prices. the situation as it is is unsustainable. >> but the government itself is blamed for the economy crisis. >> i blame them for this suggestion who used to be for a long time without oil. and the policy make us depend on oil.

then when the oil went out of our hands we are sinking about this problem. >> reporter: this was the reaction last september to a government position to raise oil subsidies. demonstrations where dozens were killed. and thekhartoum, sudan. >> a national conference is about to get under way in nigeria facing the west african country. nigeria currently rank second in south action. it is the most populous country in africa and is africa's top oil president obama producer and

recently been included in the freshly coined mint group for emerging economic giants. mexico, indonesia and turkey are the other members. live now, what do we except from this conference? >> reporter: well, adrian, this conference takes place a at a vy critical time. the past few weeks in nigeria has been tense with allegations of corruption in the oil sector and just on saturday dozens--19 people killed across the country as they tried to enter job examines by the government here. so a very crucial time, very difficult time. and for years people have been calling for this conference for an opportunity for regular

citizens to discuss their issu issues. this conference comes with a lot of criticism with 500 people discussing all these problems but staying away from the issue of unity of this country. with me here is mike from the south. he is a constitutional lawyer and human rights activist. i understand that you're among those supporting the conference. tell us where do yo why do you s a good idea? >> this conference is a very good idea because of the many, many problems that are inherent within nigeria. up-to-date many my year nigeriao belong to minority groups.

there is a need for nigeriaens to come together to discuss these differences. we never really agreed to come together as a nation. the protectorate-- >> that brings me to my next point, we have 500 people representing all of these ethnic and linguistic groups discussing the issues over three months. how real realistic is it that e expect anything substantial from this conference. >> very realistic. we all know what the problems are. what we're going to look at is to discuss the problems thorou thoroughly. there are some area that are noble areas like we should discuss the unity of nigeria.

not to discuss the unity of nigeria is to continue to engage in monologue or soliloquy. ththere are so many reasons why why--rather, i believe we should discuss all the problems, all the challenges which are due to have more common grounds. there will be compromises here and there, so no one is going to risk stereotypes of position saying oh, you must give me all this or nothing. >> thank you very much. thank you very much for your thoughts as you've heard there are a lot of critical issues to discuss in this conference.

of course the success of the conference depends on whether these groups are willing to look at it from a national perspective or acting as representatives of interest groups. at the end of the day whatever comes out from here still needs to be ratified and lost through the national assembly. we have many thanks, indeed. >> still lots to come on the news hour. australia steps up in its role of the search of the malaysia ft malaysian 370. and houston rockets feel the heat in miami.

>> hello again. we have the news hour on al jazeera. headlines this hour e.u. foreign ministers have greed to sanctions on 21 russians and ukrainians. crimea has formerly applied to become part of russia. they're overwhelmingly voted to breakaway from the ukraine. the u.s. navy seals has seize ad-libban oil tanker and escorted it back to port. the french government has introduced major restrictions on car use in paris after pollution

has reached dangerous levels. only cars with odd numbered license plates are allowed to drive. crimea's vote to breakaway from ukraine. the opinion page editor from the moscow times, michael, good to have you with us. not surprisingly the proposals have been branded as completely unacceptable by ukraine. i wonder how all of this, the hard line against kiev, the protests, the intervention, the threat of sanctions by the u.s. and e.u. how does all of that impact on putin's political capitol there in russia? >> reporter: putin knows he can pretty much get away with the annexization of crimea. once russia acknowledges th the

annexation, i don't think these al jazeeras will hurt too much russia. russians may feel higher prices. the ruble may drop, capital flow outside of the country. the kremlin will present this as this is the price you have to play because of the western aggression. it's the wests fault that we're forced to do this because they stand behind the revolution in kiev. so i think it won't hurt--there will be the attempt to isolate russia, but i think it's all been contemplated by putin, and i think it's a reasonable cost. he thinks it's a reasonable cost to incur. the other issue is he takes the issue further than the crimea, then it would invoke a much more series reaction from the west and the price putin would incur

would be much higher. >> putin does not care about sanctions against him and his inner circle. president obama announced he's freezing the assets of the russian officials involved in the incursion in crimea, but i come back to that issue of political capitol. is this going to bolster his grip in power, is this going to make him more popular? >> reporter: definitely. he has now a 70% popularity rating, the highest in two or three years. the way this whole annexation was presented particularly in state media was a big victory. putin stood up to the west. putin returned russian land that was by historical mistake was give ten to ukraine. many russians see crimea hazard

historical russian land. russians have for a long time wanted crimea to be returned to russia. it was the revolution in kiev that offered the opportunity. putin acted very quickly and took advantage of the vacuum and instituted what i call special operation. first of all it was sending forces into crimea, and then it was ousting of the current leader and placing his person in power. then it was carrying out a propaganda campaign in crimea that it was a choice between the fascists in kiev or the support of mother russia. this is all done in two weeks, very hastily done, and you see the results, 95% voted for

joining russia. >> michael, how will president putin and the russian government get around the inconvenient fact that what he has done is illegal in the eyes of international law. it's not just the west, putin standing up to the west, as far as international law is concerned, what he has done in crimea is illegal. >> reporter: of course, he would love to be i in debate of international law. every time he criticizes u.s. it's because it violated international law. but he had to do what he had to do. he sees himself as modern day bush who can get away with international law because it's russia. he'll be receiving criticism for violating international law.

his calculation is this will last a certain amount of time, and then it will all--then people will forget about it. when the soviet union annexed the balkans, the u.s. did not recognize the annexation for 20 years. but he considers those costs and all the accusations of violation of international law as a reasonable cost for gaining new territory, gaining the territory that was always russia's, and in return he is considered a hero by most russians. >> michael, thank you very much. >> i want to show you pictures

out of brussels, they're addressing journalists following the announcement, the meeting of the e.u. foreign ministers in brussels announcing limited sanctions will be applied against surgeon russian interests. we'll let you know if anything press-worthy comes out of that. catherine ashton will be addressing journalists live. there has ban step up on the malaysian flight that disappeared. it is believed a crucial signaling system had been turned off. >> we'll do our duty to insure that our search and rescue

responsibilities are maintained and upheld, and we will do our duty to the families of the 230 people on that aircraft who are still absolutely devastated by their absence and who are still profoundly, profoundly saddened by this as yet unfathomed mystery. >> we have more from andrew thomas in sydney. >> reporter: he had been asked by malaysian prime minister to take control of the search along one of the two roots of the southern secto vector that thate would a taken. it would have crossed the indian ocean largely a thousand kilometers or so off the australian coast. it's natural for australia to take charge if the plane went down that southern route it most likely would be what is

australia's search and rescue zone. it's huge, 10% of the world's ocean total. australia already has two surveillance planes that have clocked up 50 hours of search time. australia's prime minister said he has asked head of military to discuss with the malaysian military chief what additional resources should be provided and how they should be used. but where they'll go in that southern utah is not clear yet. >> the reporting of more heavy missiles and fighter jets than ever before. here is more from the report from the stockholm peace institute. 75% of india's arms come from russia.

as for experts the u.s. ships the most arms internationally. it exports account for almost 30% of the global trade. after the u.s. the next largest supplier of arms are russia, germany, and china. earlier i spoke with peter who spoke with the group who released that report. what do they make of india's massive purchasing of arms. >> it's driven by three things. first of all, it's threated by pakistan which has been going on for a very long time. but also how it looks increasingly at china as a potential adversary and much of the import is clearly related to that, and the example that they seek more and more on tact with the united states and try to import weapons from there can

also be related to the threat perceptions towards china in particular. that in combination with the fact that the indian economy is growing and can actually afford to secure more arms. >> arms with a watertight guarantee protection from the united states. why do the gulf kingdom, some of them just tiny states, feel the need to spend so much on defense? >> well, it's a very good question. they clearly feel there are threats there. iran is very high on the agenda in the region, and internal threats related to arab spring, related to tensions and confli conflicts in iraq that would flow over into saudi arabia. they're preparing for that.

when you look at iran and see that it's a threat one has to release tharealize that iran haw minutes to build up it's army and armed forces. they don't have access to arms imports. they're under united nations arms embargo, and on top of that they have an industry which is only capable of producing less advanced not impressive weapons types. why do arab states invoke that many arms? >> pieter the report shows that the u.s. are still the major arms producer. what does that tell us about the state of the world today with the volume of international transfers of major conventional weapons growing by, what was it, had percent in 2013? is the world safer or more dangerous place now? >> that's a very good question.

i personally say these developments do worry we. they seek to resolve tensions with arms. it's important that at this supply stage that they consider very carefully that they're not driven by the economic benefits of it but look at the risk that arm supplies may lead to excessive build up. for example, again, the economic profits and certain short-term political advantages are put aside in, and really the issue should be arms control and not armament. >> now in venezuela opposition supporters have marched to the cuban embassy. they say that cuba has been working behind the scenes, and they're calling on cuba to stop

interfering. demonstrations come after a month of protests in venezuela. 300 people have been injured in those protests. hundreds of police in mexico have been fighting with each other over corruption charges. officers went on strike because they want the town's police chief to resign. they lashed out at colleagues who supported him. police on strike want higher pay and better working conditions. a second earthquake has struck just hours afte off the . they called for warning of tsunami but called off the warning. >> reporter: a failed harvest.

he has worked this land for over a half century. but the lack of rain in november of last year has destroyed his entire crop. >> the rains were late. we managed to till the soil, but we had no rain and it was all destroyed. >> reporter: he said it's been over 30 years since he has faced such a devastating dry spell. his village is one of the worst-affected regions. normally these families would have been busy harvesting the fields, getting ready for celebrations in april. but that seems a world away now. >> i couldn't even harvest a single stock, to be honest. we won't have enough to eat in a few days. >> reporter: the lack of water

stunting the few years of corn that survived. villages have scoured the field to collect whatever they can in the hope of getting some money. farmers are struggling to cope with mounting debt. most have taken loans and have no means of paying back. authorities say the lack of rain will badly effect the next planting season as well. government officials here estimate national production has fallen around 11%. while it's too early to qualify they say the effects might be be worse on the next planting cycle. some areas are struggling for drinking water. tanks like this have been depleted. many people now have to travel a long distance to collect water or buy supplies. rains are likely to begin by the end of march. but for thousands of farmers it

will be too late. al jazeera, northeast sri lanka. >> just ahead on the news hour we're in india. millions celebrate just weeks before national elections. more problems as the olympic track star collapses in new york. we have more just ahead with jo on sport. >> there's no such thing as illegal immigration. >> al jazeera america presents... a breakthrough television event borderland a first hand view at the crisis on the border. >> how can i not be affected by it? >> strangers, with different points of view take a closer look at the

ongoing conflict alex, a liberal artist from new york and randy, a conservative vet from illinois... >> are you telling me that it's ok to just let them all run into the united states? >> you don't have a right to make judgements about it... >> they re-trace the steps of myra, a woman desparately trying to reunite with her family. >> to discover, and one of their children perish in the process, i don't know how to deal with that. >> will they come together in the face of tradgedy? >> why her? it's insane. >> experience illegal immigration up close, and personal. >> the only way to find out is to see it yourselves... >> on... borderland only on al jazeera america >> this is the real deal man... >> one of the people in india

are celebrating th the holly, te triumph of good over evil. but it has a political edge to it. >> this is one of new delhi's oldest markets. indians are buying lots of colored powder gearing up to celebrate holi. it means that many people are buying the colors of their favorite political parties. >> i am doing great business this year. with elections coming up all colors are selling really well, equally green and orange. >> reporter: the elections explain why the colors and symbols of india's political parties are everywhere, and that excitement has rubbed off on holi celebration that traditionally has marked the beginning of spring.

gadgets with water guns with a touch of politics. >> even my children are excited. they asked me to come and get water guns decorated with his picture to play holi. >> reporter: but before the surge of burst of colors the old must be burned. across new delhi people gathered to say good bu goodbye to the od hello to the new. it sums up the mood of politics. they're eagle for see the start of the new era of governance. so this year holi and politics mix, and as they do the country's politicians will be hoping that this year's fes fese festiveyfestivities. >> now for sport with jo.

>> reporter: mesi became barcelona's highest ever scorer. >> reporter: a moment of history for mesi. at just 26 years of age, his 370th goal for barcelona. it surpassed the previous record of 1987. the argentinian scoring. that strike is all it took fo, macing a mockery of defense as sánchez made it 2-0. spanish international with

brillance. barca kept going, making it 5-0 before an incredible performance with a hat trick. the 7-0 victors, their four points with a clean message that they're still in the title race. >> brandon rogers has played down his team's chance of winning its english title since 1990. a drama-filled game where they were given three penalties and united were reduced to ten men. 3-0 the final score. now just four points behind clears chelsea.

>> we continue to play well. it's obviously a big win again e british clubs. but to dominate the game. >> reporter: well, the big game the derby produced one goal. djokovic has cemented his play as world number two. >> mistakes allowed djokovic to claim victory. it's his 42nd career title. in women's tournament,

struggling with a knee injury left the court in tears. the victim is expected to propel pennetta to 12. miami heat returned to winning ways. they beat the houston rockets for most of the game. james throwing it down in the first. king james was not miami's main man. they had to rely on others. they would win 113-104. the chicago blackhawks were

in action and crushed the red wings at home. they had went in with a power-play goal. that was as good as it got for them with blackhawks adding three more. marianne hossa was the star of the show as they went out 4-1 winners. olympic running champion insists he's fine despite collapsing. preparing to make his full debut in london. he took a tumble on saturday. he recovered to finish second he briefly lost consciousness and was taken away in a wheelchair. for more information go to www.aljazeera.com/sport. that is all the sport for now. go. >> thanks, indeed. we have the day's top stories straight ahead. but that's it for this news

hour. bye for now.