>> join us on consider this... >> president jimmy carter joins antonio mora >> my administartion has a very strong human rights element. >> his perspective on the conflicts facing the world in the state of america. on al jazeera america >> this is al jazeera america. live from new york city. i'm libby casey. we have a look at today's top stories vladimir putin completes the process of making crimea part of russia, and the rest of ukraine signs on to strengthen ties with the european union. planes searching for flight 370 come up empty handed, but the mission goes on to look for large objects spotted on satellite. and reports prime minister and president are corrupt but

the move may have backfired. >> with two signatures that divide russia and the west deepen today. in belgium, ukraine signed a political association agreement with the european union, and the e.u. imposed more sanctions on russian officials. in moscow russian president vladimir putin signed a treaty making crimea part of russia. and secretary general ban ki-moon went to ukraine in an effort to end the crisis. is crimea now a permanent part of russia? >> reporter: well, libby, in an effect it's been that way for quite some time. it's basically a done deal because of those russian boots on the ground out in crimea.

we have heard about osce monit monitors that will be sent out to the mainland ukraine because there are fears that while they may have had athletes out in the crimea, there may be designs on the larger part of ukraine. the concern in that part of the country, in the eastern part is that there are agent provocato provocators, agents trying to stir up communities as a pretext for grabbing more land. but the ukrainians are concerned about possible provocation on the crimea peninsula itself where we have those two armies basically facing off against one another. secretary of defense chuck hagel in responding to those concerns made a phone call today to his ukrainian count part. we actually had an interview with the defense minister today. he said during that phone conversation there was praise from chuck hagel on the show of

you trained by ukrainian armed forces. but they said they're showing restraint for a variety of reasons. they're seeing a disturbing trend a tactic being used by russian personnel on the crimea peninsula using civilians as the front line when they try and grab military assets. >> the russian soldiers are placing themselves behind the civilian population. they're acting in an ugly way. behind the civilian population comes special forces. nationally for ukrainian sailors it is impossible to use arms against the civil population. that's how they take over military bases. they're not going to let russian force on their territory. >> reporter: now when he was here in kiev, u.n. secretary general ban ki-moon also expressed concern for potential provocations. saying the longer this goes on,

the greater the chance that something might happen. it might an slip, and that's what the international community is gravely concerned about. so they are clearly trying to de-escalate the situation, but you know, out in that part of the country in ukraine there are tensions. there are some far-right groups from the ukrainian militias. there is a concern that might actually be creating provocation on the ukrainian side of things. the government in kiev said that they were going to try and take away the weapons from those militias because they can't control them. there is a fear that they may be acting outside of the chain of command in the military. >> phil ittner, thank you. russian troops continue to take control of ukrainian assets in the black sea peninsula. jennifer glasse joins us live.

they are already making moves. >> reporter: that's right. the kremlin considers this russia from tuesday from when president putin first signed t. there are civilians in the forefront with the aggression and then russian forces come in behind, but it has been a difficult 24 hours for the ukrainian navy. >> reporter: with little fanfare they raise the naval flag that was until yesterday ukrainian. she's now sitting along side russian ships in sevastopol. the ukrainian naval academy has also changed hands. there was fan fear here and awkward flag raising where

russians have taken over saying the past two years of ukrainian control. there is not much glory for the departing ukrainian navy. the united states described what was happening in crimea right now as a land grab. what is happening to the ukrainian navy a sea grab. there is one ship left behind me still flying the ukrainian flag. >> reporter: it's not good that the last ukrainian flag is flying in the bay. not everyone is happy the russians are here. in near by city the take over is near complete. ships of both fleets that sat side by side but now only the russian flag flies here. many in the ukrainian military are unhappy with the way it all happened. there is no military honor in russia's actions.

>> we have clearly seen in the past two weeks you can't believe russia. putin said his troops ant here. i'm a military man. i see perfectly that these are military men. >> reporter: he said every deal ukrainians have made with russians have been broken. >> our ship should be sunk or blown up. it's a war now. no one is shooting at each other now, but god for bid anybody should start shooting. >> reporter: at the naval school handover the last show of independence. ukraines sing their national anthem trying to drown out the sound of the russians. >> that is reporting were sevastopol. planes in australia searching for two large objects that could be connected with malaysia flight 370.

al jazeera's andrew thomas has more from perth, australia. >> in beijing families and passengers know that news could calm their fears, but the absence of news could bring worse. the focal point of activity, an air force base to the north of perth. planes took off on a stagger basis to make the most of daylight but those on board reported nothing despite conditions significantly better than thursday's had been. >> we went out today and had really good weather, actually, compared to what we saw yesterday the visibility was great. we had 10 kilometers of visibility. there was no rain in the area. we had really good opportunity to see anything out there. >> the improved conditions mean a change in the nature of the

search by low-flying planes rather than relying on radar. >> although the search area is much smaller than we started with, it nonetheless is bigger when you're looking out the window and trying to see something by eye. we may have to do this a few times to be confident of the search area. >> reporter: dusk on friday brought more disappointment. the objects spotted by satellite had not been seen by those on any of these planes. five aircraft including this one were involved with friday's search because of the distance of the search area from here on the mainland. it takes ten hours of fruit flying time to get two ours of search time. as well as plains. ships are heading to the area. china is sending one of its search vessels and an australian naval boat should arrive on saturday. two.

>> it is the remote part of the southern even ocean, it's the most inaccessible suppose you can imagine on the face of the earth. but if there is anything down there we will find it. we owe it to the families of those people to do no less. 7. >> reporter: but for now for those families the wait goes on for news, even if it's news they dread. >> china's president said as long as there is a thread of hope the search for flight 370 must stay strong. 154 passengers on board the missing flight are from china. delegation of malaysian officials are in beijing to meet with grieving relatives. >> reporter: well, so far it seems that the relatives are not getting much more information than they already were being given over the last two weeks. they're saying it's more of nothing. basically this one concrete lead

that officials are saying they've had with the australian findings is still lead to go not much more in terms of closure for these relatives. now they're being told that this lead could basically develop into nothing more than potentially a containership that was passing in that area. what they're saying concretely they're not ruling out the possibility of a hijack or act of terrorism. this has led to more anger and frustration. they basically have been told that there is still no new information with regards to what might have happened to all the relatives that were on board that plane. >> whether conditions have forced search crews to turn back once and it could threat the search again off australian coast. we have more on that. >> reporter: hi, libby. we're talking about that little break that we're seeing now. but a wide area to search. not only are the problems in the search area but where the area

where the planes are taking off from, weather is keeping the planes on the ground. 1500 miles, today they have a little break so they can see the ocean. 9 clouds have cleared up just a bit but that won't last for long. the season there is going from summer and fall to winter. the storms are getting fairly active. here is the break and these areas of clouds are storms. they're going in this direction. they're from west to east. so it's not only storms but front that pass through the little break now but it will become pretty stormy over the next 48 hours. we'll take advantage of what we have now because that weather situation won't last. more storms are in the forecast. >> thanks, dave warren. britain's telegraph newspapers obtained the full record between malaysia flight 370 and air traffic coalers. most of the images were routine and gave no hint of the drama that followed. one thing that stood out was the message that repeated the call

made six minutes earlier. the plane disappeared as air traffic controllers in malaysia handed it off to the controllers in vietnam. officials say that spending includes operating costs for the plains and ships that assisted in the search. the pentagon said it budgeted $4 million for the search but that money could last until airline--until early april, and it all depends on flying areas. turkey's decision to ban twitter saying that it undermines the ability to express freedom. it comes as they they public allegations against them. we have more from istanbul. >> reporter: many twitter users logging on to the social media website got this message. it reads, the protection measure has been taken for this website.

the state's communication regulator said it's decision was based on four quarter orders against twitter. the government said twitter has ignored previous court orders to remove some web links. the decision came just hours after the prime minister erdogan warned to wipe out the social media website. can you imagine the conspiracies? we'll wipe out all of these. it can say this or that, i don't care at all. everyone will see how powerful the republic of turkey is. >> the deputy prime minister said the move was necessary. >> we took this decision as a last resort. these are not good things. but if laws are violated, at that point we have to do something and act. >> some people are still able to log on to twitter, including the

president. in some of his tweets he wrote: that is not going well. >> that makes people more angry, i think it's not a very--it's not a very smart reaction. >> banning twitter is entering personal space for people and limiting it. >> reporter: others supported the ban. >> the government shut it down because of the leaking of voice recordings. i welcome it, and i think they should also ban facebook. >> reporter: on behalf of all of this is the corruption allegations the government has faced since december. a series of videos, documents, and wiretappings, allegedly for the prime minister and his family were leaked on different

social media websites. prime minister erdogan has demade all allegations. >> reporter: the government said social media website including twitter, youtube and facebook has been used as platforms to spread lies. but the critics say the government is trying to block further allegation and silence dissent. >> turkey has blocked youtube in the past but this is the first ban on twitter, which is very popular in the country. it's so popular that word spread quickly on social media about how to get around the twitter ban. we have more. >> reporter: libby, twitter and google were some of the first companies to give instructions of how to circumvent the ban. one way is to send the tweet. twitter sends out this message.

saying turkish users you can send tweets using sms. and google dns is fast with great up time. use 888 and 8884 as your dns servers. that's basically a way to disguise where you're at. some people wrote this. look at this, this is a building in turkey. someone wrote in graffiti. the also some instructions were written here on this melt shutter these two gentlemen are looking at. this says android and this one says pc fire fox and more on the ban. the use of restricted sites. i spoke to the maker of hot spot, they said their downloads went from 10,000 per today to

70,000 over the last 4 hours in turkey. now what have people been sending out when they do circumsent the ban? images like this that says we will not be silenced. here is the prime minister. he's tied up in ropes, and also this cartoon saying welcome to istanbul and this police officer saying halt, are you carrying any weapons, drugs, twitter? this is a character from the smurfs and in this case he's supposed to be the prime minister. twitter sending out this message saying we stand with our youers in turkey who rely on twitter as a vital communication platform. we hope to have full twitter returning. >> it looks like people are backfiring. >> it is, and people are basically mocking the babb. >> coming up on al jazeera america america.

a new report showing that discipline is happening three times more than other kids.

it. >> the do yo dow closed down 28 points. bankrupt bitcoin exchange mtgox found 200,000 bit countie bitcos they were stolen. it is still looking for another 650,000 bitcoin that is have gone missing. north dakota oil boom is bringing thousands of jobs but the influx has created headaches for communities. in the final installment of our throwthree-part series "the new

frontier" talking about ove overcrowded classrooms. er a most of the children are from families of work workers. >> we come in from learning and we have to backtrack depending on where we're coming from in different areas. >> enrollment in the elementary and high schools have doubled from 500 students to more than 1,000. overcrowding forced the district to build an addition on to the elementary school and add a modular classroom. but the superintendent said that has not helped much because more and more new kids keep coming. >> we moved classes around and

refigured. >> the best solution is turning the high school into a middle school and building a new high school, but that will cost $50 million and stretch the district's budget. watford city's population has increased its property tax base has not because many of the new residents are renters, not homeowners. still voters overwhelmingly approve a bond referendum last week to help fund the new high school. >> in order to grow we need a good school system. >> where is that money going to come from? >> we indebted ourselves to the max. our local contribution is the best that can it be. we'll have to pull from loan opportunities and we're asking the state for help. >> that could come if the state

opts to send oil revenue. right now the city only gets a quarter of the money while the state gets the rest. it may be addressed in a special legislative session later this year. if watford city does not get additional funding it may have to go further into debt. or find a way to squeeze more students into its schools. diane estherbrook, al jazeera, north dakota. >> a new government report said black students in public schools get more punishment than their white peers and less access to veteran teachers. david shuster is here to break down the numbers. >> reporter: the information comes from the department o ofatiodepartment ofeducation. 5% of white students from suspended each year. that compares to 16% of black

students who are suspended this year. black girls are suspended at a rate of 12%. the numbers are more stark when it comes to preschool. 18% of all preschoolers enrolled but they account for 42% of preschoolers who are suspended once and 48% of preschoolers who are suspended twice or more. the report details the facts about access, about 40% of public schools they don't even offer preschool. and where it is available it is mostly only part of the day. now regarding access to matthew and science opportunities in high school, 81% of asian americans and 71% of whites they attend schools where they have the full range of math and science, algebra one, two. calculous, ge geometry and phys.

but only 57% of black students and 67% of latino students have access. they don't have the same opportunity. the data does not explain why the disparity exists but it does underscore when it comes to equal opportunities for education success our nation still has a long ways to go. >> what have we learned about the quality of teachers from this report? >> the report indicates that you tipped to find more new teachers, teachers who don't have the right certification in low income areas, latinos, blacks, they have to deal with those circumstances whereas whites less. the inequality goes across the board whether it's education, the quality of the building, the certifications of the teachers. >> suspension were free schoo p? >> the reason why they think that happens is because you have

less-trained pre-k teachers. there is no indication that kids act out differently. it's the way teachers respond and train something different compared to adult who is are supervising. >> thank you so much. why the supreme court said funding for schools so low that it is against the constitution. and how the drought in brazil may have you paying more for your cup of coffee.

>> kansas state legislature are faying the decision pay up or else. lawmakers weighing a proposal to boost a funding.

the supreme court found the funding so low that it violated the constitution. >> this is the only assignment. >> with four kids in kansas public schools josie said she's frustrated with the state's repeated cuts to education. >> educators have been cut, nurses have been cut. some of the classes have 27 kids in there. >> the tug-of-war over school funding in kansas has come to a head as the state supreme court ordered the republican-controlled legislature to spend more on schools. four kansas school districts and 30 parents sued the state saying the schools were underfunded. in 2009 during the recession the state started cutting millions of dollars from education. kansas now spends $900 less per student. at schools in elementaries 90% of children receive free or reduced lunch even with increasing enrollment there is no money to hire more teachers. overcrowd something such a big issue that students are taking

musk up on stage while cafeteria workers are getting ready for lunch and the noise you hear is from a pe class that is going on. the principal said that the state cuts lead to der pairties between wealthy and disadvantaged districts like hers. >> it's easier in a more affluent community to increase taxes. and in rural areas and poorer areas you may not have that to draw from. >> reporter: the supreme court agreed. but that decision is not a total victory for some education advocates because the supreme court left it up to a lower court to decide how much overall spending per schools is at adequate. >> that puts us right back in this whole court and appeals and lengthy process. >> the issue is especially contentious because while lawmakers have not increased education funding led by

republican governor sam brownback, they did in 2012 pass the largest income tax cuts in state history. some lawmakers are quick to defend the current education spending factoring state, legal and federal help. >> we do spend a significant amount of money at all three sources together. 12,000 plus dollars, almost 13,000 per student. with the high courts order josie hopes to see changes in her children's schools soon, but is realistic knowing that the big picture issue of overall education spend something still unresolved. jonathan martin, kansas city kansas. >> critics of kansas gover gover browbrownback yeahs decision sat will cost 3-point billion dollars overall. but others say inow those cuts o

the right for g.o.p. governors. jason johnson joins us. how common are these tax cuts. and are other states, other governors doing the same thing. >> yes, michigan, ohio, florida, the idea of cutting taxes in order to stimulate growth in the state has been popular since the reagan administration. it actually works in the short term. the state of kansas has improved. there are more businesses. people are spending more money and pope people are moving to the state. eventually those tax cuts will haunt these governors but it won't haunt them this fall. >> talk us to about education

funding cuts. >> if i give you more of your money back you're going to go out and spend. if i cut the tax in this area people will buy more cars, mov y more television. but it only takes five years for local families to realize that funding is being taken away from public schools and then also public universities. eventually businesses don't want to move to your area because the executive don't want to put your junior high kids in a school that doesn't have a football team and a school that doesn't have a track team and a school that doesn't have music class. governors are not thinking eight to ten years down the road. they're looking at one election cycle. >> have we seen those results play out politically as well as on a community level? >> definitely, you see it right now in kansas. you see this in ohio, michigan, you see it in places like georgia. whenever you do these kinds of

cuts, eventually the people who are suffering the worst they're going to come out, vote against you. there have been electoral consequences. here's the catch. no one has been able to get in a been's mansion complaining about education. i don't think sam brownback's job is at issue. who is against education? under most situations you can attack teachers, school funding and keep your job. but the citizens and the students will suffer and you'll be bounced out after one or two terms. >> how do the parties view these governors. not just sam brownback but governors in ohio state, wisconsin, are they seen as up and coming leaders of the party? >> oh, yeah, this is--this is the farm team for the republican party in 2016. each and every one of these governors, susana martinez, rick scott, who will probably not keep his job in florida, they are all seen as potential

candidates or vice president candidates for 2016. you look at scott walker who is already considered a g.o.p. contender. there were two recall votes for him. he managed to keep his job but i don't think that will play well nationally. the republicans are playing a dangerous game. again, in the short term tax cuts are a brilliant idea. in the long term everything that you don't fund will be a tax on these citizens down the road. that's what they're not listen to go. >> thank you for joining us. >> thank you. >> nine people have been killed in a daring attack on kabul's most luxurious hotel. the attack comes days before a pivotal presidential election which could determine the country's future relationship with the u.s. jane ferguson reports from the afghan capitol. >> reporter: gunfire inside

kabul's most prominent total. this arena is close to the presidential palace in the city center. afghan security forces storm the hotel in 20 minutes but they had already open fired on civilian in the restaurant. >> nine people were killed. one from u.s. and one from canada and pakistan and india. others were wounded. >> people nearby said they were worried about the growing intensity of attacks in the last few months. >> we want the government to pay serious attention to the security of our people in capitol provinces.

as recently our enemies have increased their attacks in the country which resulted in the killing of our people. >> the hotel was full. with presidential elections in two weeks it's a busy time for hotels like this. and some say it's those elections that have spurred the taliban to increase its attacks. the group quickly claimed responsibility for the killings. it's fighters speaking handguns and bullets into the hotel, sending a message to foreigners and afghans that nowhere is safe in afghanistan. james ferguson. al jazeera, kabul, afghanistan. >> uganda's anti-gay law has cost the government another $6 million in annual aid from the united states. the country's health minister said that the u.s. did not renew a contract to help pay salaries for hospital workers involved in a.i.d.s. programs.

the state department said the money only helped 18 senior health officials. uganda lost $10 million because of the controversial bill. in thailand the constitutional court has flown out the results from last month's general election. tie lapped's prime minister called the elections to try to end months of political unrest. but opposition protesters prevented more than 10% of voters from team and a schooli . and protesters have been calling for prime minister shinawatra to step down since last year saying her government is corrupt and ineffective. in syria the government is making gains against opposition fighters and changing the dynamics of the ground war. rebel fighters have been forced to flee to lebanon. lebanese border town with deep

towns with the assad government. charles stratford has the latest. >> reporter: this video was filmed by journalist on tour with the syrian military in the town of yabrud close to the lebanese border. it was shot four days after the syrian army had recaptured the town. al jazeera cannot independently verify the video. the army shows journalists, weapons and ammunition which it said belong to fighters which deserted its opinions. the army regained control here on march 19th. those residents interviewed on camera at least expressed relief the military is in control. >> when they told me that the army is here, i said finally, i am relieved today. i slept calmly. >> the syrian army backed up the fight freers southern lebanon have made significant gains in

this strategically important region. the military said before the fighters fled yabrud was one of the last rebel-held towns in the area. it's difficult to say exactly how great the gains made by the army and pro government forces across the country are. in june of last year government forces and hezbollah fighters recaptured a town close to the lebanese border. the military then launched assaults on the remaining rebel-held strongholds. the army has retaken control of a number of rebel-held areas in damascus. rebels have lost ground surrounding the major cities of aleppo. the army recaptured an ancient torres, and these pictures reportedly showing pictures on

the 900-year-old embattlements. the conflict has killed more than 140,000 people. charles stratford, al jazeera. >> ten people are still missing after a motel fire on new jersey's shore. maria has more on that story and other news around america. >> libby, four people were killed in the fire at point pleasant beach. the fire broke out this morning. several others were injured and others still missing. the cause of the fire is under investigation. in florida an fbi agent has been clear in the shooting of a chechen man. 27-year-old died while he was being requested about his friendship with tsarnaev,

charged with the bombing in boston. a man was shot by a beanbag fired by police. this is another encounter in new mexico how police shoot rifles filled with beanbags. the new york city explosion that destroyed two buildings and killed eight people last week has local officials concerned. for u.s. investigators its raising questions about the conditions oreport. >> rescue teams run to the scene to dig out the injured and retrieve the dead.

investigators immediately suspected a gas leak. it leveled two five-story buildings and raised questions about new york's aging infrastructure. >> many people are surprised to learn that the main gas line serving this area is more than 125 years old. it's too soon to say about that pipe o that's what investigators are trying to find out now that most of the scene has been cleared of the debris. >> initial tests by the national prance poretation safety born found a leak in the main. more than half of the gas lines are made of materials more prone to leaks. they're doing what they can to replace the pipes with the financial resources available. >> we are planning to replace 65 miles of gas main per year.

that's up from 30 miles to 40 miles every the last several years and is fairly aggressive program. >> the center for an urban said >> so many american cities are facing an aging and in some cases decaying infrastructure. >> the investigation is ongoing as is the debate of how to pay to fix nation's crumbling infrastructure. one thing is clear the devastation that can come from one old leaky pipe. al jazeera, new york. >> and finally in new mexico two film companies producing documentaries about the legend of a video game had to halt production. they didn't have the proper permission to dig. the filmmakers want to explore

an urban legends about the video game maker atari that allegedly buried millions of unsold game you wants. >> it sounds like they could be a hit on ebay if they're actually found. >> they could. >> thank you very much. coffee prices all over the world could get higher because of the dry spell in bra still. we have this. >> a drought, the worst in living memory has struck brazi brazil's coffee belt. >> how much rainfall have you had this year? >> we've had 10%. we had just 10%. >> fifth generation coffee pla planteplanter.

>> when you cut it in the middle, you see this part should be bigger. >> reporter: to the untrained eye the coffee bushes on his plantation look green and glossy. but a closer look shows how the genes aryou bean is shriveled u. they'll have less coffee than expected which means higher prices for coffee drinkers all over the world. workers are darned by towering piles of coffee bags. brazil is by far the world's laterallest producer of coffee

the price for futures ove over r the beans topped $2 for half kilo. every day their job is to slurp up endless cups of coffee. he is a coffee taster matching growers with buyers and exporters. he bluntly summed up what the drought will mean. >> inferior quality. and of course, higher prices for consumers. >> he says he can only hold out so long without rain. >> if we have another dry season like this i don't know what we can do. >> nature has put brazil's coffee country in a predicament as bitter as the beans

themselves. al jazeera, brazil. >> coming up on al jazeera america, a big upset in the march madness today. and we'll look at wichita state's undefeated team prepare to make history.

>> march madness is in full swing. michael yves joins me now with news of another big upset. >> yes, libby. cinderella is wreaking a havocs all over the country. last year's darling was florida. this year it's mercy university with the bears hoping that some of that florida gulf magic rubbed off on them.

and maybe it has. mercer in the game on a 25-run with 78-71 win. and what may be even more impressive is that mercer knocked off the blue devils just 26 miles from duke's campus. >> there was no doubt in my mind that we would be there. i didn't know if we would finish the game. you know, everybody called us underdogs. i said let's be super dogs. everybody else thinks we're underdogs. let's get it. you've live these moments and those guys don't have the experience and have not played on the phone like you have in tough environments like you guys have, and you can get it done. >> speaking of cinderella's wichita state wore it's glass slipper all the way to the final four before losing to louisville. this season they have done anything but fly under the radar. in fact, after a 34-0 season wichita state is now positioned to make history.

wichita state has had a lot to celebrate as they head into the nsa tournament undefeated. but that does mean that they have a target on their back? >> not only are they undefeated but from their conference having the number one seed, they're stacking all the hips. >> despite making a final four run last season questions remained how they will handle the pressure to finish the regular season undefeated and go on to win the national title. >> duke was a great team. we knew that they would be far more competitive, more difficult challenge for us this time around. no doubt about it. it's sur real and a bit shocking. disappointment from that loss never goes away.

>> i don't think anybody thought that we could win. i'm not even sure that we could win. it was a great moment. it was really a defining moment for duke university to come back and avenge that loss from the year before and be a dominant team. i think it put a stamp on college basketball and really started a great run. >> despite the remarkable season the they have doubters from the weak schedule which did not include a single game against a ranked team. >> i think that's what motivated them in some respects because they had more naysayers and more doubters. they haven't played anybody. their schedule isn't as difficult. what i would impress upon peop people. >> you know, why everyone is skeptical at times is every time they played you go, they should win. i never watched them play and

say, this one, this is the won. they're going get so they haven't gone to louisville, florida, they haven't gone into chapel hill on a consistent bases. >> you have to take it one game at a time. >> they got something to prove. you know, i think they know how good they are. i think they realize how good they are, and people within the game of college basketball, coaches, players, they know how good this team is.

but now they're going to get an opportunity to show fans. >> wichita state will go for the 35th straight win in two hours. >> michael, everyone is talking about their busted brackets. many people taking the warren buffet challenge but so many fans have been blown out. >> just way too many upsets to pick. it's picking the right upsets after mercer i think there were 50 remaining that had the first eight teams selected but now we've had another set of games and that will be dwindle down. >> this is why i'm making my brackets tomorrow. thank you so much, michael yves. a look at today's top stories as we return to al jazeera america. al jazeera america gives you the total news experience anytime, anywhere.

more on every screen. digital, mobile, social. visit aljazeera.com. follow @ajam on twitter. and like aljazeera america on facebook for more stories, more access, more conversations. so you don't just stay on top of the news, go deeper and get more perspectives on every issue. al jazeera america.

>> this is al jazeera america. i'm libby casey with a look at today's top stories. several developments in the ukraine crisis, russia signed papers to officially annex

crimea. and ukraine signed trade deals with the european union. ban ki-moon is calling for direct talks between russia and ukraine. russians are being hit with financial problems as western sanctions take hold. many have not been able to use their credit cards. two return banks say see is a and mastercard has stopped providing service. but former economic adviser to vladimir putin said further sanctions won't really work. >> they could certainly affect gas, oil they could affect different sectors of russian industry. it will not produce any desired affects. please remember russia was a part of the soviet union and for seven decades it was isolated economic system. and it was able to survive. >> well despite intent search efforts no signs of missing malaysia 370 in the south indian

ocean. the pentagon has spent $725 million on the search. those are the headlines. i'm libby casey. inside story is next. for up days from around the world led to www.aljazeera.com. >> new reports from america's classrooms show daily life in school is very different for white kids than minority kids. from pre-k to high school squad ways day it's the inside story. >> hello, i'm ray suarez. it probably wouldn't rock your world to hear the kids who g