decades. trading and selling off the world's most endangered creatures at will. >> welcome to al jazeera america. i'm del walters. here's are thhere are the storie bringing to you. >> we want to bring these girls home. >> reporter: looking for the kidnapped girls in nigeria. voting in general elections

20 years after the end of apartheid. >> boko haram show nothing signs of backing down. another mass murder in northern nigeria happening in a town where the government official saying 100 people were killed in an attack by boko haram fighters. all of the time they are demanding fighters. abducting more than 200 school girls on april 14th. we're in nigeria with more on this story. >> reporter: the information from this attack is coming from the minister of the state, locally the commissioner who said that this village was raided by hundreds of armed militant who is embarked on a killing spree in which kite a qa

number of people were killed. we're trying to verify the accuracy of this report by reporting what minister is sa saying. we spoke to a senator from the same state who said yes, such an attack took place. it's important to point out that security infrastructure in nigeria is a federal set up, not a state set up. therefore the police, the military all armed security are controlled at the center. they have not commented about the attacks that are being reported by politicians within you bor burno state. many of the places where the attacks are taking place are incredibly hard to access by road or air.

that's why it can take days or weeks to filter down to urban centers the federal government run the security infrastructure you they are the people who are trying to fight. they are the ones who have the information about the security information. they are not as forthcoming as one might hope in the sense that they have strategy to get to the place, establish the facts, establish exactly what happened, and then getting it out to the public and media. in this particular incident the residents in this area told state officials that these attacks happened. >> al jazeera. now this new attack adding to the urgency to find those

missing girls. >> when you take over 200 girl e time having killed almost 4,000 people in two years it draws the nation and the world's attention for the immediacy of getting these thugs. >> it's not just a nigerian issue, it is a global issue. there are extremists around our world who are against education, against progress, against equality, and we must fight them and take them on wherever they are. >> the u.s. has pledged help sending ten uniform personnel. but there seems to be some confusion as to just what they will do. >> the flight o plight of the kd school girls has now made it to

america's media. in washington dc, los angeles, and in front of the united nations' in new york. >> we nee are a friend of my jer gentleman 2347 the u.s. said they have offered help from the first day. they say the nigerian government refused until now. >> the government had its own set of strategies in the beginning. >> the offer now accepted it seems clear that the two britn . >> at the white house spokesman

jay carney refuted that. >> we're not considering military resources. we would urge nigeria that any operation to free the girls would protect civilians and human rights. >> but they indicated that bo ko haram could become a potential target. >> the world will have to deal with organizations like this who cause such havoc in day-to-day lives. >> stressing the u.s. plans to help as much as possible but saying first and foremost they believe it is up to the nigerian government to secure the safety of their own citizens. >> it is against that violent and controversial backdrop that thousands of businesses and global businesses are meeting. nigeria is africa's largest economy. there are mixed signals

surrounding the crisis in ukraine at this hour. vladimir putin said he has now pulled back russian troops along the border, but n.a.t.o. saying there is no evidence that troops are leaving and reporting that things are getting worse. >> reporter: they say the donetsk region remains the terrorism using weapons and explosives. the most attention districts are slovyansk where anti-terrorist operations are continuing. there are clashes with armed forces. >> they're trying to find a way out of the conflict. as many as 200 people have been killed and those clashes between the ukraine military and pro-russian separatists. we've been tracking all the developments from kiev. >> reporter: there seems no natural rhythm, no certainty to the people here as to what each

day will bring. the residents here it is immensely exhausting. >> i want to stop as soon as possible. i don't want any more and the ukraine authorities have to do something because we're all tired. >> the wreckage shot down. the separatists say they brought it down with heavy machine gunfire. >> to be honest it was terrif terrifying. >> he keeps a wary watch. >> there is still some food left, but i don't know what will

happen later. i don't want anything. it's time for me to die. the town has been surrounded by ukrainian military units for a week now. it certainly is not winning hearts and minds. >> it's awful that the people are fighting each other. it's very hard to take in. even hitler did not go as far to send troops against his own people. >> we are at one with russia and hope we will stay with russia. >> a referendum has been promised here on sunday. in fact, the voters will not be balloted on whether or not they want closer ties with russia. simply if they recognize the unilaterally declared republic here. the inevitable consequence of a yes result would be closer links with moscow. and kiev is not going to let that happen without a fight. paul brennan, al jazeera, ukraine.

>> not long ago a prisoner swap taking place in slovyansk. in syria more evacuations taking place in the heart hit city of homs. rebel fighters have now been granted safe passage to the north. once done homs will once again be under government control. it has been under siege for nearly two years. most of the people had no access to food or medicine. you may recall earlier this year 1400 people were evacuated under an u.n. operation. chemical weapons attacks by the assad regime continue. opposition leaders say there have been more than 60 attacks in 15 different towns. they made those allegations in istanbul displaying videos as evidence. last august the u.s. and european union concluded the assad regime did use sarin gas

in an attack. nearly a thousand people were killed. history made today in south africa with all eyes on those who were casting their ballots. so-called "born frees" are voting for the first time. they were born after the apartheid rule. today all races were eligible to vote and did. >> many of these voters families have worked on this land for generations, but they don't own it. 20 years after the end of apartheid and most of the land is still in white hands despite promises of reform. >> last year they protested and won a promise that the government will bring in a minimum wage. there is still no sign of it. landownership are key issues

here. >> the demographics are most are mixed race. an anc supporter while he votes democratic alliance. >> look around. they don't get jobs under the anc. you can't become a director general under the anc. the only person that the anc is interested is the blacks. >> there aren't enough jobs and many people believe landownership is a way out of poverty. it is something that they must address. >> they must share the land in south africa. wendy used to be an anc members but she's going to spoil her

vote this year. >> she's using her experience on the farm to teach these women to grow their owned food. they're tired of waiting for the government's help but it's expected that most south africans will vote. some of them are certain that the next 20 years will be better. others are merely hopeful. al jazeera, western cape, south africa. >> anti-government protesters in thailand are celebrating. they're happy with the court ruling and forcing the primary minister to step down. shinawatra was accused of violating her power. coming up on al jazeera america. it used to be an abandoned factory. now it's an urban farm that is

now creating jobs. how an entrepreneur started with an idea to a start up. >> in colorado the state coping with one of the most serious wildfires ever. that story coming up.

>> lawyers for a man on death row in texas trying to delay his execution. attorneys say they don't want a repeat of last week's botched execution in oklahoma. they want access to the source of the drugs used in the botched execution. meanwhile another group is calling for cocktail drugs. the constitution project says they want states to drop database stop using those drug mixtures and replace those mixtures with a single drug. they say states should use drugs approved by the federal regulators. they say the public should have

some type of say before executions take place. a wildfire breaks out in oklahoma. it's mostly contained but it's still not out. they killed one man and displaced hundreds of others. this comes on the heels of the white house report warning of global warming and more fires like the ones that we're seeing. as tom ackerman reports, the firefighting season is now yearlong. >> after two back-to-back years of serious wildfires, california hoped to get a respite in 2014. instead the firefighting seen has come early with close to 900 plays logged since january. a rate more than three times the historical average. >> we have not seen these numbers, though, since the 70's, which causes us to really gear up not knowing what mother nature is going to throw at us this year.

>> firefighters have been hired early and the firefighting fleet, the world's largest has had to adjust it's maintenance routine to keep planes and helicopters on regular stand by. not only is rain still scarce, the snow melt that should be filling the state's rivers and reservoirs this spring is only one-third of the typical flow. the state directive to cut water use to 20% applies to the firefighters, too. the tinder to these blazes, the dry brush that grows close to communities. >> having it on the ground such as you see it here will help the fire carry right through homes. >> for several years now fire officials have been keeping volatile under pressure ten meters from its properties. this is an invasive species called scotch broom. notoriously flammable once it

dries up. they're suppl up rooting the plt where it pose as threat. removing the eucalyptus frees in san francisco. it was once blamed for compounding the damage in one of the state's most destructive urban fires. since the 90's, the ability to fight the fires has grown six times. >> one way to deal with that is to use the botanical treatments manage those systems appropriately and that should reduce losses of life. >> in the short term california's best hope is el niño.

>> president obama is set to arrive in arkansas for a firsthand look of devastation in last month's tornadoes. the president said that they will meet with first responders and travel to california for a democratic fundraiser. a former meat smoking plant al jazeera's reports it's been transformed into an urban farm. >> inside this expansive building grows a secret garden. john adle thought it was a vacant former factory. >> when i look around i see waste everywhere. i am a big history buff and i see beautiful buildings with a lot of potential. i see the potential for reusing what's around us and not trying

to come up with something new, but to bring together what we have. >> he did that by starting a non-profit verticaller ba vertim called "the plant." it is creating jobs on chicago's southwest side. it's a symbiotic union. right now its home to a tea producer, hydroponic garden, fresh fish gardening and a brewery. >> it's a waste and intense business. but the outputt will be grains and carbon dioxide that we can give to our other plants. >> reporter: shelby phillips started as a volunteer and now is in charge of the plant's hydroponic operation. >> they are the integral part of the system. we just feed the fish, and the

feed gives the fertilization to feed the a plant. >> reporter: what makes this farm unique is that it produces no waste. it is put back in the system to nourish other parts of the cycle. the long term goal is to make the building produce it's own energy. it will do that with a huge anaerobic digester to consume waste from neighboring business and convert that into power. >> the plant seeks to create a replicatible model. we hope people will take this and apply it to their own businesses whether it's non-profits or int even into thr own businesses. >> reporter: al jazeera, chicago. >> last week we told but an ordinance that targets homeless people in florida. it prohibits people from storing items on public property while that ordinance passed unanimously it has 30 days

before it goes into effect. advocates saying that it was specifically designed to target the homeless population. coming up, it's been six months since the philippines were hit by typhoon haiyan. we're going to be talking to one man who is trying to move on after losing 22 members of his family. >> on the next talk to al jazeera lawyer david boies gives surprising insight intos his most historic case bush vs. gore and tells of his relentless fight for civil rights >> this is the defining issue today... >> talk to al jazeera only on al jazeera america

>> welcome back to al jazeera america. i'm del walters. these are your headlines at this hour. russian president vladimir putin meeting for those looking for an answer to end the crisis in ukraine. it says that they're pulling back troops along the border but nato said they are not seeing the with drawls. >> boko haram blamed for a new

atrocity in nigeria. the reports that the group killed people in a town and kidnapped more school girls in decision to the 200 is has kept captive since april. it's been citizen months since typhoon haiyan hit the philippines. some families there are still trying to cope. >> they're hoping that he's finding a place to store away a painful memory. he lost 22 members of his family. his wife, children, grandchildren, brothers and sisters, and cousins. six of them have not been found until now. he's left with his only son. all the others died when typhoon haiyan struck central philippines.

>> i dream of my children, i remember the voices of my children, they will never leave my mind. >> he met president iphone know a feaquino aquino.he held , but nothing came. >> most say they were given little opportunity to grieve many remany unaccounted for. the chances of ever finding them are next to zero. the death toll continues to rise. more than 6,300 people are now considered dead. more than 1,000 remain missing. the government said the efforts

to identify bodies through dna testing is underway. those who survived are faced with an even uncertain future. unable to find jobs and decent housing. a struggle that worries many. >> one of the things that we're trying to do is identify very early people who have emerging issues and mental health issues, and be able to point them towards the appropriate treatment. >> reporter: they have adopted an orphan boy. a haiyan survivor just like him. he hopes with him he can build pleasant memories again. but he knows that they may not come easily. he said his government has failed to understand how much identifying haiyan's dead rather

to the living. >> the vatican plans to be he haheedified. the proposed miracle is attributed to the late pope. the miracle said to be the healing of a baby from an incurable illness. major league baseball is going pink. more than 200 players are going to be using pink bats this sunday. the louisville sluggers will be autographed and then auctioned off. and if you want to, you can buy your own special pink bat at www.mlb.com. we want to thank you for watching al jazeera america. fault lines featuring an

abortionist in texas. and to find updated news throughout the day go to www.aljazeera.com where the news continues 24 hours a day 7 days a week nonstop. we'll see you then. it's friday afternoon ain te rio grande valley in texas. >> abortion is one of the most common medical procedures for women around the world. >> two friends are meeti reading a manual about how to give yourself an abortion? are. >> yeah. >> you said you are -- >> for sure right now, i am seven weeks. >> okay. yeah. that's good because once you get to 12 weeks, it gets riskier >> they wouldn't let us film their faces because here, like in mt