>> announcer: this is al jazeera. >> welcome to the newshour. i'm darren jordan, from the news center in doha in london. these are the top stories - ukrainian forces move into to an airfield. the pro-russian separatists stopped their ground. >> among the other stories we are covering in europe - former italian prime minister silvio berlusconi is dealt a court order to do community service with elderly people.

>> also, tens of thousands honour the lives of 96 people killed during one of english football's dashesst days. >> and neither male nor female - a court in india recognises transgenders and gives them the same rights as everyone else. >> welcome to the program. ukrainian government troops have taken control of an airfield blockaded by armed groups in the eastern city of crema tors. this was filmed before the ukrainian forces got there. the operation is part of a wider offensive on gunmen holding government property across the region. there has been reports that troops are moving into the city of slovyansk, where armed troops have held state buildings for several days. kim vinnell joins us live. what is the latest from the airfield? what have you been

hearing there? >> there's dramatic scenes at the military airfield today, as ukrainian troops move in to regain control of the airfield from pro-russian protesters who have taken control of the base, as we arrived we heard reports of casualties. the defence ministry came out and said that it hadn't seen injuries. when we arrived there, pro-russian protesters barricaded the entrance. they are still there, they are not letting anyone out of the military airfield. there is tension there as one of the generals apparent lit from the military tried to get inside the base from outside. he's roughed up outside from the pro-russian protesters. he was let back in. shots were fired intermitt eptly, warning shots, i believe, to ask protesters to move back. around the airfield there are

fences and concrete walls. at some point it is open. i think they were warning people to stay back while they carried out their operation inside the airfield. >> what about the wider government offensive to flush out pro-russia people in the east. are you getting feed back on that at all. ? >> we interviewed the head of the anti-terrorism operation here earlier today outside i.s.i. am. seven a.p. cs, armoured personnel carriers, helicopters, and 200-300 special police soldiers and forces waiting there. he told us it would be an ongoing operation. i didn't get the feeling that he felt it would be a short operation. they are prepared, as they get the orders from kiev. >> all right. kim vinnell there. thank you.

>> meanwhile the russian foreign minister warned kiev on tuesday against using force on pro-russian protesters. he's threatened that a government will pull out of a conference devoted for a ukrainian crisis scheduled for thursday. >> russian foreign minister sergei lavrov has meanwhile condemned a decision of the government in kiev, as you were hearing, to send the troops to the east of the country. speaking in china sergei lavrov denied russia is stirring up the unrest in ukraine. >> translation: you can't send tanks against your people and at the same time hold talks i have said it before - the use of force will sabotage the talks planned in geneva later this week. they make up lies to justify the aggressive plans. they are spreading lines. the russian federation did not organise it all, i have never heard such. what it is is refuse one's own

people the rites to protest opinion and protest against lawlessness. >> the latest from fred weir in moscow. russian officials strongly warned ukraine all along against using force on pro-russian protesters. what more are we hearing from moscow? >> well as you heard, they are absolutely denying any involvement in the revolts that are spreading across the eastern ukraine. like you heard lavrov say it's a load of nonassistance. very have also been, in another direction, saying that they really encourage signs, and there have been signs that kiev reached out to the eastern ukrainians and negotiate grievances, let them have a referendum on federalization. they have warned repeatedly that any use of force could trigger

civil war in ukraine, and it would derail any hope for a negotiated settlement, especially the meeting coming up on thursday, if the operation goes on as it seems to be gathering steam. if if continues, if it becomes bloody, the russians are saying the talks are off. >> let me get a wider question from you here. what is russia's end game here. moscow has already annexed crimea. there are fears, of course, it will take eastern ukraine without full-scale invasion, what does putin want, and how far is he prepared to go, do you think? >> well, this is the $64 question, and we don't know, but the russians have published a roadmap for ukraine, which outlines their demands, what kind of ukraine they will accept. it should be ukraine that gives official status to the russian

language. ukraine that declares it's non-aligned meaning it never joined n.a.t.o., and thirdly this - some degree of decentralisation - that is what the russians are calling federalization, which the details are not spelt out, but it would definitely mean far more power to the regions, particularly there in eastern ukraine, to make up their own minds about their economic links, their cultural language rights and so on. these are the russian demand. i guess if they get them, they'll ratchet back the tensions. >> armed men have kidnapped more than 100 girls from a school in north-east nigeria. the girls, sitting for their final year exams were taken away in a truck of the the attackers burnt houses and other buildings in the town, killing a security guard in the process. we have more from nige ear's

capital abuja. >> a police spokesperson confirmed to al jazeera, that the attack on the girls' college happened late monday night, into the early hours of the tuesday morning. the premises of the college were stormed by armed me, ordering young ladies out of their beds, out of the dormitories into lorries. there was violence in the village where the college is situated. some buildings were burnt and homes destroyed. now, so far no one group has claimed responsibility for the attack, but it looks like the work of boko haram. the group that want islamic law imposed throughout the country, they are against western education, and the education that the girls were receiving. they've been behind hundreds of attacks in the region over the last few years. they are suspected of taking part and being behind the attack that took place in abuja on monday in which many were killed at a bus station. >> syrian state media is reporting opposition fighters

fired mortars into predominantly christian districts of damascus. it exploded near schools. a child was killed. 41 others were injured in the attacks. >> the deputy governor of yemen's province has been killed by armed men. he was targeted as he left his car east of the capital. the province was said to be a safe haven for al-qaeda fighters in the region. >> an explosion in the egyptian capital injured two plifs, targetting -- police officers, targetting a travk booth on -- traffic booth on a bridge in cairo, witnesses say they caught man running from the scene and handed him over to plus. >> al jazeera is demanding the immediate release of its journalists imprisoned in egypt. peter greste, mohamed fadel fahmy, and mohammed badr appeared in court on thursday. the case has been adjourned until this month. they are falsely accused of

providing a platform to the outlawed muslim brotherhood. they have been behind bars for 108 days. abdullah al-shami, the fourth al jazeera journalist in detinges has been held -- detention has been held without trial since august. he's been on a hunger strike for 85 days. jazz -- al jazeera rejects all allegations. >> the media body want egyptian bodies to allow journalists to act without fear of arrest. many journalists, including al jazeera staff have been indicted on terrorism charges since the military take over last july. >> jordan's ambassador to libya has been kidnapped. his car as attacked as he left his home in tripoli. his driver was shot and is in hospital. jordan adds prime minister promised to ensure a safe

return. the sister of the ambassador called for his abductors to release him. >> translation: my brother was the victim of an attempted kidnap in libya before. i'm calling on the abductors to release my brother. we pray securitiy will be restored. >> andrew simmons has this update. >> libya's interior ministry have begun an inquiry into the kidnapping. it was an official job. gun shots, the driver of the car was hit. he was taken at gunshot by two men in civilian clothes, wearing hoods over their heads. as far as the motivation and identity of the group goes, no one is sure. kidnappings are common in libya, it seems to be the first ambassador taken in this way. many diplomats have been taken in the past in libya.

the situation on the ground, in security terms is critical. the last kidnapping was three weeks ago. the secretary to the tunisian ambassador was taken. he is missing. january 5th, egyptian diplomats were taken, released in change for the leader of an armed group. but, as i say, no one is sure whether this is a political or a criminal act in terms of the ambassador. the situation now has been escalated. there are attempts by the interior ministry to take traces, to try to follow any leads possible, but it seems now they are not sure of what the next move will be. >> now, italy's highest court decided how silvio berlusconi will repay his debt to society for tax fraud. we have the details from the european news center in london. >> the man who served three terms as prime minister has now been ordered to serve italy's

senior citizens. every week silvio berlusconi will pay a four hour visit to a center for elderly people. the court stipulated that during the next year the former prime minister has to spend most of his time in the region where he lives. from tuesday to thursday he will be allowed to travel to rome. we have this report. >> silvio berlusconi is not the kind of politician you expect to end up in a retirement home. at the age of 77 he still is the leader of one of italy's biggest parties. one of the country's richest me, and enjoyed the company of young starlets and settled down with a girlfriend a third his aim. yet a center for the elderly is where he'll have to spend a lot of time in the next year. a court in millon ordered the form -- milan ordered the former prime minister to serve time for tax fraud, for serving community service for four hours a week.

he may serve at a center like this. he would like to inspected the time motivating the elderly, but do they want to be motivated by him? >>. >> translation: how can he help us, especially those of us that can't walk? what is he going to tell them? raise and walk. maybe st. peter could do that, not him. >> translation: he's elderly too, but with a lot more money and possibilities. if some of us don't have anybody taking us to the center, we are not able to come here. >> italy's highest court upheld silvio berlusconi's conviction for tax fraud, stripping him of his seat in the senate, and temporarily barring him from public office. it has not stopped him remaining an influential people, leading the center right party. while the court says he must stick to a curfew and only travel to and fro rome, he will

be able to campaign for his party in upcoming elections. while he'll spend a lot of time in a home, he'll show refractors he's far from refiring from the public scene. >> joining me now from milan is the italian journalist and commem tator. thank you for being with us. is silvio berlusconi going be happy with this as a punishment, do you think? >> sorry, i can't hear you properly, would you mind to repeat the second ward of what you said >> of course. do you think silvio berlusconi will be happy with this as a punishment? >> well, okay, first of all, thank you for asking me to share my views. the funniest part of the whole

thing has god to do with silvio berlusconi's age. he has basically built all this idea and imaging of a politician against getting old. now he will end up sharing his days with the elderly people in the care home. actually the punishment is not that heavy. if you think he only has to spend four hours a week in the facility. i guess if he was a poorer man, the punishment would have been harder than this. >> the thing, masimo is that despite the court cases silvio berlusconi faced, he's the leader of his party and is popular in italy. the rest of the world doesn't under why. can you explain that? >> yes. yes. i think that silvio berlusconi

is a product. he's not a man, and being a product, you know, the rule of advertising - it doesn't matter what you say about it. but the important thing is that you talk about it. it works for him. so for him the idea, the focus is to be on the add lines. if you thing about the scandal. sex with teenage girls or something, you have never lost -- he never lost elections because of that. i don't think it will affect too much his political activities. if the punishment would have been home arrest, that would have been different, because in this way he could campaign for european election, because he's allowed to go for three days a week. it's not really a punishment. >> good to talk to you. sorry for the loss of light. we have major electrics in

milan. thank you very much indeed. >> now, it was britain's worst sporting tragedy. 96 men, women and children crushed to death during a football match in 1989 in sheffield's hills borough stadium. 25 years on the liverpool fans who died have been remembered by tens of thousands of people at the club's home ground. barnaby phillips was there. >> outside the anfield stadium a large crowd. but they had not come for a football match, and the atmosphere was sombre. liverpool fans, but also other people from this city and beyond paid their respects. [ singing ] >> and inside the stadium the list of names of those who died. >> kevin trainer. >> patrick john thompson. >> peter ruben thompson. >> on and on. >> for us who have witnessed these 25 years, the family of

the 96, we have been struck by your determination, courage and absolute love. >> there were many famous faces in the stadium, players who were there that day at hillsborough, and the current first team, some of whom were not born in 1989. >> 96 individuals that were all loved, cherished and all wept too soon. those who we lost, and for those that have fought and campaigned tirelessly on their behalf and on the behalf of the survivors, you are the real true inspiration for us. >> the day's event may have been a comfort to those affect by the hillsborough disaster, ultimately those who lost loved ones want answers as to how family members were killed and who was responsible. they are hoping with a new inquiry under way, they'll have the answers in the coming months: the families fought a

long and tenacious battle to get the whole story out. their journey is not over. again, here in anfield nerp refinded -- they were reminded that they were not alone in their struggle ♪ you'll never walk alone >> more news from europe a little later. now back to darren in doha. >> we'll see you then. still to come on the newshour - the latest on brazil's energy scandal. >> i'm in brazilia, the capital of brazil where petrogas, the biggest state-run company is facing corruption allegations at the highest level. >> getting a loan through your phone. how farmers in kenya are jumping on the mobile banking bandwagon. in sport - find out which big name will be missing for real

madrid in the copa del ray final. that's all to come. >> now, india's supreme court issued a landmark ruling recognising transgender people as a third gender. activists say it will give relief to millions that face discrimination in india's deeply conservative society. >> india's transgender community has officially been recognised by the supreme court. >> i'm pleased about the judgment. i'm overjoyed. the court ruled i'm an equal citizen of india. i'm a human being and will not be treated like an animal. >> two sprort judges -- supreme court judges advised the government to recognise transgender as a third sex the

the civil rites of transgender people are guaranteed, as are opportunities and access to equal employment. the court also said recognising them is not a social or medical issue, but a human rights issue. >> for those fighting for a cause, it is how they are defined by society that matters. pem in india were defined as male, female or other. >> we talk about other. who is an other. a lot of members refuse to be part of others. others could be a cow, a buffalo. when you say transgender, a third gender identity. >> translation: people within the transgender community here struggled to find acceptance in society. because of that many are sex workers and are discriminated against. those in the community hope the official recognition will give them access to better education and health care. >> the next generation of finding themselves, that they

need to be educated. that's what we want. we lost out. we want our children to do better and not face the same problems. >> there are an estimated 3 million transgenders in india. 50,000 live in new delhi. >> on the sidelines of indian society the transgender community can map out a future behind singing, dancing and begging. the legal decision may be a step in the rite direction. in this conservative country it may take longer to accept. >> helen belcher is a director with a charity trans media watch. this has been described as a landmark ruling. how significant do you think it is, and how much pressure was the government under to recognise transgenneders? >> my understanding is that trance people in india were

trueing to get -- struggling to get rights because they were refused rites to medical treatment, jobs and health care and benefits because their appearance didn't match their documentation. for trance people in india, i think this is significant. there are some subpoenaings concerns that then all transpeople get lumped in as a separate gender, which is not necessarily how some transpeople see themselves. >> it's an important point you make. how do you think the ruling then will affect the ordinary lives of transgenders. i mean the court ordered the government, as you say, to provide them with jobs and education in line with other minorities. that will be hard to police. >> i think it is. what this ruling will do is place a legal recognition, so people can monitor what people do, and what isn't done, and i think that all of that kind of social pressure backed up by

legal recognition will help people address some issues. >> legal experts say that this particular ruling in india puts transgenders in a strange situation. on the one hand they are protected under the constitution. on the other hand they can be penalized under existing law for having consensual gay sex. >> that's the issue that india has to resolve around lesbian and gay relationships, the recriminalisation of gay relationships last year makes life quite tricky for not just transpeople, but a wider range of people. it's difficult to apply labels like gay and lesbian to transpeople, because gender is generally a spectrum. people tend to view themselves as male or female. actually, there's a lot more diversity. the identity of transpeople becomes somewhere on the spectrum. if we stop thinking about gender

as one of two or three boxes, that helps, but it makes labels like homosexuality and heterosexuality more difficult to define. >> let me ask you about your organization, transmedia watch. how do you keep the issues in the spotlight and reflect the changes that trance gender face around the world. >> we are u.k. based but have links to charities in other countries. we look at how the media reports on trance issues. i have a wider role with other things i do in the uk. largely it's a matter of people self-reporting issues. so health care and employment and civil rights are three big things which are generally problematic for transpeople around the world. it's a question of keeping those issues in politicians' minds and the media's mind, making sure

when the media reports on them, that it does so with accuracy, dignity and a level of respect accorded to everyoneless. >> thank you for talking to al jazeera. >> still to come on the newshour - air pollution in the east. storms in the west. we'll tell you what it is. a u.n. special representative raises concerns about violence against women in the u.k. >> in sport. why lawyers as well as cricketers are getting ready for the new season of the english premier league. stay with us.

>> welcome back. a quick reminder of the top stories. ukrainian government troops have taken control of an airfield in the eastern city. the operation is part of a wider offensive on gunmen holding property across the region. >> armed men attacked a school, kidnapping students in the north-east. a security guard was also

killed. an italian court ordered silvio berlusconi to perform a year of community service at a center for the elderly in milan. he was sentenced to four years for tax fraud last year. >> now, the u.n. released a report criticising the human rights situation in ukraine. it says there's evidence that the people in crimea were harassed and arbitrarily arrested before the referendum last month. it documents incidents of torture and ill-treatment of protesters. we have more. >> in november 2013, the protests in kiev were about president viktor yanukovych refusing to sign an association agreements with the european union. but soon they turned into something else. the new united nations report says the excessive use of force by the special police and other security forces led to a significant radicalization of the protest movement. it calls for an investigation into the deaths of 121 people,

including protesters, police and other officers between december and february. >> the interim government should ensure accountability for human rights violations committed, prosecutions and adequate sanctions of all those responsible for the violations. >> the u.n. team looked at the situation in crimea, where a controversial referendum led to the region joining the russian federation and a de facto annexation. it is diff for people that want to keep ukrainian citizenship to stay. >> the u.n.h.c.r. says: >> of course, the area of most concern now is eastern ukraine.

the situation remains particularly tense after pro-russia demonstrators took over government buildings in self cities. >> in the east of the report says it will be important to immediately fake initial measures to build confidence between the government and the people, and among the various communities, and reassure all people throughout ukraine that the main concerns will be addressed. >> but at the moment there's not much sign of confidence building or dialogue. without pressure, d seems unlikely the ongoing crisis or the human rights violations that come with it, will end soon. >> a u.n. representative has given a frank assessment about the u.k.'s effort to stop violence against women and girnals. >> the u.n. representative has been examining the issue. she found levels of sexism here in u.k. that don't exist in other countries. she's concerned about how women

and girls are por frayed in the u.k. -- portrayed in the u.k. media and raises concerns that harassment is occurring in school. >> the austerity measures, the localism is having an impact. cutting back on services, turning women away from refuges. shortening the hours you provide services. putting your staff on - on fewer hours. reducing the pay of staff. these are indicators that the funding crisis is impacting the service providers. and particularly the service providers in the violence against women and girls sector. >> to france, where campaigning has been in full swing for elections more than 2,000 kilometres away. hundreds of thousands of

france-based algerians are having their say about whether the president should serve a fourth term in office. >> the challenge are for the aljeer jan presidency takes his campaigns to the streets of paris. he is is a former prime minister, a member of the old guard and is nearly 70. his team is trying to sell him to voters as a man who can bring about change. >> translation: he's a man who respects the law, a man of his word. when he says he'll do something, he does it. he is not promising the moon, but will implement. >> more than 800,000 algerians living in transhave the right to vote. they have started to cast their ballots. this is a constit upsy that all the candidates want to win. including the wt himself. >> the president is standing for a fourth term.

he's 77 and suffered a stroke last year. the most notable thing about his campaign is he has been virtually absent from it. his team insists he is fit to govern. >>. >> translation: the health of the president has improved greatly and continues to do so. at the end, it's the algerian people that will decide. the president governs with his head, not his feet. >> the overrising priority is stability. they have seen what happened in libya and egypt, and they experienced their open decade of violence in the 1990s. for many people a vote is a vote for stability. a growing number of algerians reject the whole process. they believe the elections are designed to preserve a system which has seen as fundamentally corrupt. >> translation: they will ever respect the will of the citizens, there has been

systematic fraud. after the experience of all these elections, i think it's absurd to go and vote. >> despite his ill possess, and his ab -- illness and absence from public life the president is widely expected to be re-elected. algeria is a young country and the voices demanding change are unlikely to go away. >> a marathon pilgrimage set off from poland to the vatican to celebrate the connonisation of pope paul ii. so runners will make their way to vatican city in two-hour relays, with rests in between. he was made a saint on april the 22 nted. >> it brings you up to date with the latest news in europe. >> back to doha. >> a chinese court dloou out a law -- threw out a lawsuit filed by members of the public after a

cancer-inducing chemical was found in tap water. it was 20 times above safety limbs. the court ruled that only government agencies could sue. the court decision is seen as a setback by activists who say major environmental reform is needed. >> air pollution in china and other countries is making storms stronger thousands of miles away in the united states. researchers say tiny polluting particles over cities like beijing are blown towards the north pacific. scientists say this causes the clouds to grow denser, resulting in more intense storms over the ocean. these are then blown to the united states. >> a professor of geosigns at

oxford geosilences says it has a local and global impact. >> we had this pollution in the u.k., north-west europe and the u.s. until only a few decades ago, and it was bad in eastern europe up until the end of the soviet union. these are mostly fine particles generated from the emissions of cars and power stations and so forth. and they obviously have serious local health impacts. they give rise to a lot of asthma cases, and severe local health problems. but it does have global impacts. we see the impact of aerosols swept over the cities, interacting with clouds. the key feature of the study is they have taken a multiscale approach. they have looked at the global picture, and at the much finer scale account of what happens as

the aerosols interact with clouds obvious the pacific. the effect is substantial. it's important to understand that. >> a growing number of activists have been killed trying to stop the destruction of the environment over the past 10 years. global witness says many murders have gone unpunished, saying more than 900 were killed fighting against land grabs and other causes in 35 counties much the rate has risen along with increased competition for natural resources. the most dangerous places are in latin america and the pacific. over 100 killed in honduras, and 67 in the philippines. 10 perpetrators have been connected. one of the men killed was in the philippines. >> it has been more than

three years sips her husband was murdered. but she says the pain has not eased. the father of five was shot dead in broad daylight. jerry was a high-profile environmental activist who exposed corruption in western philippines. some of his reports implicated government officials. >> i'm the mother of five children and left with five children to feed. if, you know, like me i have to be practical. if i become noisy, and they are killed, what happens to the five children. but i still believe that they have to be more vigilant, especially for those that can overed to. even for those who can't. >> two men were implicated when the killers confessed. they had ordered the murder. they are on the country's most wanted list. >> this is what was fought for,

the prrves of the environment k preservation of the environment. activists fought against logging and mining. it divided officials and residents in a prove jps where 80% of the people -- prove jen, where 80% of people live in poverty. global witness released a report saying the philippines is one of the most dangerous place in the world for environmentalists. 67 people have been killed since 2002. a striking number are alleged to have been killed by state agents. the application of the environment has never been more dangerous. president aquino promised to end the killings. for many, the culture of impunity is too hard to wreak. >> on the national level you have the message. on the local level you have local officials working - some, some, not aum. some local officials are part of

the problem. they work with criminals, they are part of hoodlums committing environment crimes. >> patsy came to accept that it may take time before justice is served. until then, she hopes the people will at least remember what it is that her husband died for. >> allegations of corruption in brazil, where the state-earned energy schint petrogas is under investigation. reports show at least one bribe paid by a fop executive. >> brazilian energy giant petrogas is defending itself against allegations which, if true, is one of the biggest corruption scandals in history. it was revealed in 2006 petrogas paid over $1 billion for a

refinery sold for $32 million the year before. it sparked a federal having. >> documents leaked to an investigative journalist and published under "bribes of petrogas", revealed a former company director was involved in a wide-ranging global kickback scheme of. >> it became clear that the corruption was high, was organised, involved offshore accounts. it involved lobbyists, intermediaries. >> in a statement to al jazeera, a petrogas spokesperson said the company was watching and cooperating with the having. petrogas is the biggest and most powerful state-run company in brazil, with links with all parts of the government. that's why here in the capital brazilia politicians of all stripes are running scared wondering how big the scandal will get, and how it may affect

them. none will lose more than the woman that occupies the palace behind me, the president. >> before president, ruse eff was energy minister and the chair of the council board at the time some of the allegations of core possession took place -- corruption took place. she has not been linked to the wrongdoing, but adversaries are calling for an inquiry. she running for election in act. >> translation: we want a congressional investigation allowing us to somon key -- sumon key people to give us testimony. >> sergio, a former president, rejects claims of corruption. >> i kaept be sure that pet -- cannot be sure that petrogas was a transparent, clean company. >> reporter: to the

allegations? >> i think they are politically motivated. >> with an investigation ongoing, it's unlikely the scandal will go away soon. >> time for another short break when we come back we'll have the sport, and novak djokovic gets off it a flying start in the monte carlo masters. more on that.

>> hello, this is al jazeera america. i'm tony harris in new york city. the people of boston are telling the world today that they are strong. boston strong. thousands are out to pay tribute to the victims. boston marathon bombings at a ceremony a short while ago. any moment now a moment of silence will be held at the finish line. there you see the massachusetts governor a moment ago, patrick. the vice president of the united states is on hand as well. being led in a moment of prayer before the moment of silence. do we have audio? >> thank you. >> my understanding is the moment of silence has begun, so let's line.

[ bells toll ]

♪ over the rampahts we watched were so gallantly streaming ♪ ♪ and the rockets red glare ♪ the bombs bursting in air

♪ gave proof through the night ♪ that our flag was still there ♪ ♪ oh say does that star-spangled banner yet wave ♪ ♪ over the land of the free ♪ and the home of the brave [ applause ]

>> once again, we are taking a

look at the vice president of the united states, joe biden. the governor of massachusetts, patrick. this is boylston street. the 2013 of the boston marathon will be run next week. let's talk to john terrett. john is at fenway park, a mile or so away from boylston street. if you would, walk everyone through the day, the people who are joining us here on al jazeera america. walk us through what this day has felt like and the symbolism of this day, some of the moving speeches from the vice president, and the governor of massachusetts. >> well good afternoon. i think it's been a kath artic experience for the city. everyone in boston wanted this. they knew they had to do something to mark the first

anniversary of the explosions on boylston street at the end of the marathon. they didn't know how to balance that with the race, which is next monday, the 118th marathon. that, hopefully, will be a celebratory event. everyone wants it to go well. this is a sombre event, something where tears are being shed and memories brought back to life. this is a way of looking forward. watching this outside the home of the boston red sox, fenway park, i think they have achieved that. hats off to the boston athletic association and the city, who managed to bring together the various event at which people have been able to remember if pay their respects, and look forward to the future. it began early this morning with a wreath-laying ceremony in the

city, and moved to the hooens convention centre, well attended, 90 minute event, spectacular, heavenly music, provided by the orchestra and young people's choir and moving speeches from the governor patrick, and survivors who spoke about how they feel now, 12 months on, and from the vice president joe biden. who ramped it up at the end. his message is bot job is strong -- boston is strong, you are inspirational, referring to those present, injured, surrounded by their families, and that boston represents something that is good for this country and for other cities like it around the world. it's been an extraordinary day in many respects. as i say, something that the people of boston wanted to experience. >> now that this has happened, i think they feel they can move on a little bit and the next test

for them will be next monday. >> john, you mentioned that there were a few survivors who spoke at the ceremony at the heinz convention centre. i think we have some tape of one of the survivors making comment at that event. let's have a listen. >> a year ago today we chose to run towards smoke and danger. we chose to utilize our belts and purse straps to create torn quays. we held the injured in our arms. we chose to offer our hearts to those in despair, and our treasures to those in need. we chose to love and that has made all the dumps. >> patrick downs speaking. we'll taking back to boylston street, john terrett is with us. today was a huge moment for the city, it seems to have cleared

that hurdle beautifully. you mentioned it a moment ago. next week the marathon will run again. and that presents a whole other set of challenges and security concerns for the city, doesn't it? >> well, we have been told, we've been in the city for the best part of last week. according to the state emergency management agency, 35 officers will be lining the routes of the towns leading into boston. according to the police chief, he has 2200 staff at his disposal. all leave is cancelled on monday. he can use them if he needs to. it's a long way. they'll do their level best to make sure next week is an ordinary boston marathon. >> appreciate it. thank you for watching. in is al jazeera america. i'm tony harris.

"borderland" is next.

>> we made border security a top priority. >> it's not really immigration. it's an invasion. >> they're a constructive part of our society.