eastern ukraine slides towards chaos, and pro-russian forces continue to protest. >> hello, you are watching, al jazeera, i'm sammy, always on the show, hundreds of high school students missing after their ferry capsizes off of the coast of south korea. nearly a million people in the uk, relying on food handouts. and the future king of australia, or just another britain holiday? we look at attitudes towards the

royals down under. ♪ >> now nato says it will strengthen its military presence around eastern europe after pro-russian advances in the east of ukraine. the interim government sent hundreds of troops to restore order. but now they are demanding more regional power. jackie roleland has the story. >> reporter: ukrainian fighter jets zoom over the city of donetsk. it's a clear message that they control the skies. but down on the ground pro-russian separatists don't seem to be listening, with the regional parliament parliament already in their hands, they now add the city council building to the list of conquests. >> we have come into this building so that kiev accepts our demands.

the demands of the ordinary people of the donetsk region. to allow a law on a local referendum. >> reporter: council members insist it's business as usual. about 100 kilometers north of here, in the city of kramatorsk, the ukrainian army seems to have suffered a setback. after retaking control of an airstrip on tuesday, the army has now lost control of the buildings. the separatists then made the short drive north to slaviansk. another parade, and some enthusiastic spectators. there were also claims that some ukrainian soldiers had switched sides.

>> translator: ukrainian military vehicles which were on the way were stopped by the people in kramatorsk. we came, and the paratroopers joined the army. >> reporter: the army denies any detections and sent military jets to underline the point. >> now let's join jackie live in donetsk. as we saw in your package, there, jackie, plenty of images of armed personnel carriers. do we know who they are, basically? >> there is a lot of confusion. there are a lot of claims and counterclaims. cheerily this war is being fought in terms of propaganda as much as control of territories and a building on the ground. what we understand is that separatists were able to take

control of some of these armored personnel carriers, and were then very much proudly parading their conquests. here in donetsk we haven't seen any military vehicles at the moment. we see police although they don't seem to be doing much to intervene in terms of these buildings that have been taken over. but as of yet, we have not actually seen military vehicles here on the streets of this city. >> it does raise a question when you look at some of the statements be the ukrainian government talking about how the vehicles were taken over, it does raise question over how much control they have over the regions in the east. is this a military falling apart? >> well, we have to bear in mind

that the conversional ukrainian army is up against an unknown force, in that there were men carrying an assortment of weapons some of them very up to date, but others more old fashioned or weapons that would be used for hunting. it is not felt that these are actually russian army units. it is felt that they are local people. but it is concerning that they appear actually wearing russian army uniforms. so the conventional army is up against an unconventional force. and there is sympathy, and pro-russian sentiment among the locals. we know people here in the east suspect that the west of ukraine has become decadent and evil with fascistic tendencies, but

it's also down to the police, and i think that really has been a key factor. here we see varying from complexity to complicity. so certainly in terms of law enforcement the authorities in kiev do certainly have quite a difficult job on their hands. >> all right. thanks so much, jackie rowland there. rescue teams in south korea are still looking for people missing from a capsized ferry. >> reporter: the early stages of this disaster were filled with terror for the passengers. but also with some hope, the rescue operation was underway swiftly. as they came ashore, the

government's response center said 368 had been saved 107 still missing. >> i held a handrail and moved towards the right of the ferry to try to get to the helicopter. rubbish bins were floating around me. and the water came up to my neck. >> reporter: and then a terrible revision. officials had miscalculated fewer than 80 children were found safe. >> announcer: the announcer told us we should stay still, but the ship was already sinking. there were a lot of students who did not get out of the ship. >> reporter: on the dock side fear was giving way to despair. >> translator: do you think they are alive now? they are all dead? then we should at least recover them. the authorities just keep saying that search operations are

underway. >> reporter: gathered here at this port, not just the emergency services but also the relatives who are keeping an anguished vigil waiting for any news to come back. among them are parents. this father saying another parent had received a text message from a child alive still inside the ship. he and the rest of the parents here could only hope that the coming howevers would bring them to certainty. investigators will also be looking for answers as to what caused the ferry simply to roll over in synch. harry fawcett, al jazeera. south sudanese rebels are ceased control of an important town in an oil-producing state. it is known to be a target for groups opposed to the government.

oil production was shut down in the area earlier this year because of fighting. people have been taking shelter at the un base. troops in the south african republic have completed their pullout. chad announced a complete withdraw of its forces from car earlier this month. some accused the soldiers of siding with seleka fighters. more than 100 schoolgirls who were kidnapped in nigeria on tuesday are still missing. the army is continuing the search for them. gunmen stormed the premise and opened fire on soldiers who were guarding the government college. here is the update from the capitol. >> reporter: more than 24 hours after the girls were abducted from the general secondary school, there is still no

further information from the security services. that's the military and police as to their whereabouts. however, we do understand speaking to people on the ground that there is a heavy military and police presence on the ground. here to talk about the insecurity that has come over the country in the last couple of day, i'm joined by a security expert. 100 girls allegedly kidnapped by the armed group boko haram, what do you make of it? >> first the bomb explosion on monday, and now the alleged hundred kidnapped. look, the nation needs to step up to the plate by declaring tootoo war. that way all of the necessary steps that need to be taken will be taken in order to arrest the situation.

fighting an asymmetrical war is quite difficult. but according to information from the defense authority, we came to find out that the town was under attack before some people pretending to be military went to the school and convinced the children that they were being evacuated when it wasn't true. but be that as it may, what nigeria needs is to call upon the international community to assist her. knowing that there is going to be a [ inaudible ] next month. therefore, we need to protect our nation and we encourage the international community to continue to come to nigeria. but let me ask those who have the abilities, they must have [ inaudible ] particular area as areas of interest.

therefore if they have information to share with nigeria, they should immediately do that. because nigh year ga needs it. >> many nigerians are angry about the level of lines have given that hundreds of millions of dollars are being spent annually on security in this country, and the root issues, poverty, unemployment, is not being addressed. that has nothing to do woe the international community. >> well, the other thing that one must understand is the international affiliation to this insurgency. we have al-qaeda operating from nigeria. we have had militants confessing they trained in [ inaudible ] with connection to al-shabab, therefore it still has an

internation international effect to it. we ask the international skunty to supply the technology that will be required to bring this to a conclusive end. until then it cannot be seen as a nigerian problem alone. >> reporter: thank you for your thoughts. we know the families of the girls who have been kidnapped are appealing to the nigerian government to do everything they can to find their daughters and tackle the security situation that seems to have blighted the area. the hope of most nigerians are that the girls will be recovered soon. >> still ahead a royal welcome for prince william and his wife. plus -- >> i'm at the airport in brilia, the capitol of brazil where there's only a couple of months

until the word cup, and as you can see there is still a lot of work to be done. ♪ well it's official...

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♪ welcome back. let's recap the headlines here on al jazeera. nato is increasing its military presence around eastern europe. an armed convoy carrying a russian flag entered the city of slaviansk. rescue teams in south korea are continuing to search for nearly 300 people missing after a passenger ferry sank off of the coast. at least four people are conf m

confirmed dead. in south sudan rebels have taken hold of the oil-rich town of bento. britain is one of the richest countries in the world, yet almost a million people are being asked to ask for food rations. lawrence lee reports from southeast england. holly aspires to be a business woman and says she never wanted handouts from anyone. certainly not the government. but she had to close her shop down for a month when her 4 year old daughter had to go to the hospital. when she got home she had no food and no money.

so she had to go to the food bank. >> we're nice people. we -- we don't -- we're not what people expect. we're not drug addicts or alcohol alcoholics. we haven't gotten ourselves in this situation because we have lived this amazing life. it's just the way it is. >> reporter: holly lives on england's south coast. it is posh here with a capital p. it's the fifth most expensive town in england, but here as elsewhere, the food bank has never been busier. some of the fastest growth rates are far casted in the industrialized world here. but now there is an entire layer of society, 1 million deep who simply can't afford the basics. the trus l trust which now has

some 30,000 volunteers has come up with some startling figures on food bank news. in 2010 just of 61,000 were asking for rash shuns. and last year the amount almost tripled again. >> many of these families they can be just an unexpected bill away from being in a cry sighs, and as incomes stagnate and bills continue to rise, things will get even more difficult. >> reporter: and now 40 senior anglican bishops have used this week to write to the government. >> when i think of the sorts of things that jesus did, he talked about the good some mare tan, it's the person who joins up with their neighbor, who does what they can for real people,

as well as just coming up with great ideas. >> reporter: a couple of days ago, the prime minister said he felt he was continuing jesus work in enabling social change in the uk, yet many in the church feel his government lacks basic christian values. australia which is a constitutional man ari can is rolling out the red carpet for the royal family. andrew thomas reports. >> reporter: they call this a royal tour, a chance for future mon ars to feet their future subjects. because the united kingdom's monarch is also australia's. as things stand prince william

will become king william of australia, baby george will one day be king gorge here. >> it's somebody to look up to. and that's how i was brought up, and i want my grandchildren to do the same. >> reporter: this is as much as celebrities as royalty. but you won't find many here critical of the attack. to the mon arky, but that is not universally shared. >> our constitution says that someone sitting on the other side world in a palace should be our head. and that is just wrong. >> reporter: which way do you want to go? >> reporter: but people voted against change. australia remained a monarchy, and elizabeth the second remains

queen. charles made a trip to australia as well. charles's popularity has dropped, but as his baby became a man, husband, and now father, support for the royal family has risen again. a slight majority is in favor of the monarchy. >> mop ari can. >> republic. >> monarchy. >> republic. >> monarchy, of course. >> reporter: with celebrities at the helm, the debate is on hold. >> they are promoting grand briton very effectively. we look forward to the day when the british people will welcome an australian head of state. >> reporter: the family have ten days in australia, whether they will some day come back as kings

will be up to their royal subjects on the other side of the world. a compound in east jerusalem has become the scene of more clashes between israelis and palestinians. stone-throwing palestinians were met with stun grenades. it's one of the most contested religio religious -- sites in the world. police have used tear gas to break up protests in haiti's capitol. there has been growing frustration in haiti, over rising living costs. both sides of venezuela's unrest have agreed to create a national truth commission. it is going to find out who is responsible for the deaths of protesters since february.

and wants the government to free jailed protesters. free health care helps save millions of lives around the world, but there's one place where the doctors are being forced to do their job away from home. cuba sends thousands of medical professionals to venezuela, and in return gets billions in oil. >> reporter: living out of a backpack for seven years. cuban nurse lives day by day cleaning homes, cooking, and hiding from the police. he doesn't want to be identified, terrified of arrest, because he doesn't have the proper documents. >> translator: i don't want to continue living in venezuela because of the insecurity. now i have to hide like a prisoner so the police don't arrest me for not having papers. my pass port isn't stamped.

>> reporter: he deflected from the social health program, a deal sealed by the two presidents. venezuela billions of dollars in oil, and in return cuba sends thousands of medical staff. the cuban doctors arrived to give health care to venezuelians that didn't have it. a south florida group claims nearly 8,000 cuban doctors have fled from venezuela. cuban doctor hernandez agrees, but says the number is not important. >> translator: it's true that some doctors have abandoned the social program, but the number is insignificant. over 100,000 have come and gone,

we have saved thousands of lives, so a few leaving will not effect the greatness of this work. >> reporter: thousands of poor venezuelians get free health care in these clinics. >> translator: excellent. i always come here because i can get good care. i never had any complaints. the doctors are wonderful. >> reporter: the cuban professionals have low salaries and are forced to stay in venezuela for as long as both countries decide. but this man wants a better future. >> translator: i'm like a boat strangded in a huge ocean without a rutter. i have lost nine years of my life here thinking that my decision to leave the program was better for me. but it has been a nightmare. >> reporter: unemployment, solitude, and desperation is the

price he has been forced to pay for his dreams. thousands of tourists will head to brazil for june's world cup. more than a million football fans will criss cross the country to watch the matches. but many airports appear to be running behind schedule. >> reporter: less than two months to the world cup, and travelers going through the airport in the city of brazila are greeted with construction. everywhere you look and everything you hear are signs they are not ready >> translator: what a lack of planning. everyone is treated poorly. this is chaos. >> reporter: this airport is not alone. more than 15 major airports that will be used in the 12 world cup

host cities are undergoing some sort of renovation. at the airport in brazilia, one of two new terminals are set to open any day now. >> translator: there have been worker strikes. companies that could not fulfill the contracts, overbilling that caused injunctions to the projects. there are multiple factors for the delays. >> reporter: brazil was granted the world up over seven years ago, but it wasn't until 2012 that the government decided to partially privatize the airports. therefore, construction really didn't get underway in earnest here until early last year, and that's why it's only a couple of months to the world cup and as you can see, there is still a lot of work to be done.

airport officials here keen to show off the new luxury vip loun -- lounge. it is said to be the biggest in latin america. >> in two months will see a completely different airport. and that's is the important point. >> reporter: until then, the rest of the airport essentially looks like one giant hard hat zone, not a day, hour, or even second to spare to finish. >> now nasa space probe has captured what appears to be the birth of a new moon. take a close look there. the outer ring was photographed on tuesday. you can see it there. it is believed an icy object has grown to the point where its

gravity is effecting the rings nearby. they are calling the new growth peggy. if confirmed, she'll become the planet's 64th moon. for more on these and other stories, go to aljazeera.com. in india, a woman's fate can take a cruel twist when her husband dies. >> they would beat me, both my daughter in law and my son would beat me.