>> this is al jazeera america, live from new york city. i'm thomas drayton. let's get you caught up on the top stories. nerves on edge at the china sea as nations vie for control of the rich gas deposits. matters taken into their own hands to rescue the missing school girls in nigeria catastrophic flooding in eastern europe what a group of amateur scientists plan to do with a long, dead satellite.

good to have you with us. we begin with the south china sea. there are vast deposits of the oil and gas beneath the waters. resources of several nations, the source of tension - recently between china and vietnam. anti-china protests led bm to evacuate -- beijing to evacuate its citizens from vietnam. >> reporter: after daying of often violent anti-chinese protests the vietnamese appear to contain the disurpss. police -- disturbances, police broke up the protest in ho chi minh city. it's all over relevance by china to halt deep see oil exploration.

>> translation: the intention was to show support for the government's efforts to chase the rig from our waters. >> reporter: the squirmishes in the waters have gone on for two weeks. the worry is it could get out of control. vietnam's government is communist, like china, and tends to keep a lid on dissent. it was unable to stop days of violence. some attacked chinese factory - many were taiwanese owned - a distinction lost on the rioters. >> it's all about islands occupied by china, claimed by vietnam. beijing is involved in another sovereignty tussle with the philippines over the spratly islands. the focus for the choonas government is to get -- chinese government is to get their nationals out. war ships have been sent to speed up efforts.

>> translation: we are sending experienced people to vietnam. >> reporter: more than 3,000 fled the country. worried about the economic fallout, vietnam's government is promising to protect the investors - china and taiwan is among the biggest. the response of china's government to attacks on its citizens have been restrained. there are no counter protests here. it's close to the anniversary of the student-led protests 25 years ago i want to give you a better understanding of the area. it's a huge source of natural gas. brunei, china, inton oosha, philippines, malaysia and vietnam are drilling in the area, claiming ownership.

india said it would support vietnam in any dispute. joining me is professor wu, president of the jeffrey institute on south-east asia. china made a move to station an oil rig, in a boundary 150 miles from the vim nam coast -- vietnam coast. why did this cause tension? >> the i would say are under dispute. this is an effort by china to change the facts of the ground. the vietnamese see that as an aggressive act. and given the general defensiveness of china in vietnam because of historical reasons, it's easy to understand why the general public reacted with fury the way that they have in the last few days. >> if we can go a little deeper,

you mentioned there has been an uneasy relationship between vietnam and china. >> i assumed the level way to think of it is what ho chi min in the internal meeting after the vietnamese communist party. the french have been here for 200 years, but the last time the chinese came, they stayed for a century. so during the vietnam war, the chinese where with the vietnamese, shortly in 1979 china sent in a force so punish vietnam, which was then engaged in conflict in cambodia, and china supported others in cambodia. >> the u.s. expressed serious concern. what is the u.s. interest in the

region? >> well, the important thing for us is for sure the package of international shipping through that area. because what china has claimed is most of the south china sea up to the door sense of each of the countries there. and in recent period, the chinese have not only increased their public commitment to control of the south china sea, but have introduced an air defense zone in the east china sea that covers the islands under dispute with japan what the possible options to easing the conflict? >> i think there'll have to be serious regional resolution of

the entire south china sea issue, meaning that asea have to sit together and talk with china. china resisted that saying we should negotiate bilaterally instead of multinaturally. the philippines accused china of building an airstrip on some islands under dispute. the chinese are moving on a number of fronts. a conflict that is ongoing. we'll see how it plays out in the coming day and weeks. we appreciate your time today. thank you. heavily armed gunmen stormed libya's parliament building after attacking it with weapons and grenades.

you see smoke billowing from the building. gunmen shut down streets. former general khalifa haftar is claiming responsibility for the attacks, saying his lynnian arm -- libyan army is committed to wiping out militia group. >> translation: today the battle that the army had to launch to defend our nation, the people and the officers being assassinated. it's not a coup against the state and we are not seeking power or authority or hippedering the course of democracy on friday khalifa haftar was accused of carrying out a coup offer his forces a -- after his forces attacked in benghazi. the military is struggling to pay for the latest operation, and is calling on the west for

support in yemen. al jazeera correspondent spoke to the yemen foreign minister. >> reporter: yemen's southern provinces are batter grounds. a large military operation against al qaeda is underway. the army is making gains. it recaptured areas, where these fighters established a state of their own, with a leader, a judiciary, and an army. yemen's foreign minister said his government will not let it happen. >> al-qaeda created a threat for the transition. second, of course, it has been a threat to the stability of yemen, as far as from point of view of economic development, investment. the government could not just stand and watch.

>> reporter: these soldiers are celebrating victories. yemen's army has been divided and weakened by years of conflict. it's under pressure to win the latest battle. that requires huge resources which impoverished yemen cannot afford. >> look at the sense of these operations on yemen's budget and military. it's beyond their abilities, yet we are continuing with the actions to preserve the safety of our citizens and security of the country. we hope that knowing the magnitude and change, we get support. >> reporter: the fight is mostly led by the fighters, neighbouring saudi arabia and the u.s. say they are stepping in to defeat one of al qaeda's

areas outside of pakistan. yemen's president say they are in a war with al qaeda, a war that could be costly if it continues for a long period. they are frustrated, they expected the international community to deliver financial and military support at this moment for the country. just a day after a group of western and african countries declared to unite in a fight against boko haram. nigerian residents say they may launch their own search party. christians prayed for their safe return. many say the government is not doing enough it bring them home. >> reporter: this is the epicentre of boko haram's attacks in recent years. they are unhappy with how the government is handling the

crisis. >> i feel disgusted and very bad for a country like nigeria, who has a lot of resources, a lot of mann power, a lot of army, you know, and they can't not contain a small group. >> but for the security forces. boko haram has represented new challenges that they are struggling to cope with. at times they are outgunned by boko haram fighters. something that should not happen, given how well-founded the nigerian army is. >> between 2012 and 2013 we gave them about 1.5 trillion, and that translates to about $10 billion. even if they were given a quarter of that money, i am sure the - they wouldn't have been

complaining of lack of equipment to fight. >> for now, boko haram continues its campaign of violence almost unhindered. it killed thousands of people. the last-month abduction of more than 270 school girls from the village of chibok by the group, it drew global attention. now the war against boko haram, like its attacks, could be taking on a regional dim possession. at a security summit in the capital of paris on saturday. nigeria, chad, cameroon and others agreed to share intelligence and coordinate their actions. >> boko haram will no longer find a safe haven in chad, nigeer or cameroon. the jointness that this creates enables the various nations to work together and recognise that boko haram is an international

phenomenon and needs to be stamped. >> reporter: while many in nigeria support the outcome of the summit, they believe the threat of boko haram will only disappear when the government manages to reduce poverty and unemployment in the country's north. ej, the deputy director of the african programme at the international crisis group, and led research in boko haram. good to have you with us, appreciate your time. when you lisp to the last report about the position of the nigerian military to fight back against boko haram, what does it say about the military and the country's per cent goodluck jonathan in his ability to problematic the people? >> as your commentator said, the problem is the government and the military aren't really equipped to deal with the threat. they have been pursuing a military solution to a problem

that is boko haram, and that is not adequate to address the change that the insurgency creates. >> when you look at the picture, what are we up against? how strong is this group? >> the group is not that large. the problem is that it's operating in a large and sparsely populated area. and the nigerian states don't have the security forces to control that entire area. >> we see the video of them with their vehicles and weapons, where are they getting their funding from. how are they getting their weapons? >> they were getting funding from external sources. we believe that has dried up. weapons that they have retained - but there's a large domestic weapons trade that probably is there as well. >> we know boko haram killed thousands of people. the attacks. why has it taken so long to act?

>> well, the insurgency has been going on for five years. over the last couple of years the government felt it contained the problem to the north-east. it wasn't as pressing to elites in abuja and lagos. what is remarkable is it took the kidd napping of over 200 girls or the government to realise there isn't a military solution and they need a comprehensive approach. >> what ways can the international community help the government. intelligence sharing, sending troops - is that enough? >> intelligence sharing will help in terms of identifying where the girls are kept. we maintain that there is no military solution to this problem, and that ultimately the solution lies with nigeria's political elite. they need to support a comprehensive approach. as your commentators said, they

have the resources and mann power to address the problem if they want to. the problem is they have not generated the political will to do so at this time. ab sent that, any support from the west is probably squandered, as it has been in the past. >> as we heard in the last report, many nigerians support the summit in paris, but the actions of boko haram is said to continue as long as there's poverty and unemployment. is there an unlying problem here? >> we would argue that. the north-east of nigeria is desperately poor. living standard sunk over the last 30 years. that is clearly driving people to either sympathise or join boko haram. deputy director of the africa programme at the international crisis group. thank you for joining us another american contracted the disease caused by this

virus. we'll tell you what you need to know about m.e.r.s. a priest in chicago stepping in to fight the gun problem. the reward offered up to gang members to get the weapons off the streets. you are watching al jazeera.

welcome back. gun crime has been a problem in chicago, and has been on the crime thanks to a police push to take illegal firearms off the streets. as ashar quraishi reports a priest is stepping in to help to offer support for gang members. this is a haven for the faithful for eight decades. the mission changed to including fighting violence. >> it's easier in this community to buy a gun than a computer. >> reporter: father is taking an unusual tact, offering a $5,000 reward for information leading to the arrest of someone with

illegal guns. >> i want to get one gunrunner and throw the books at him, and pay off the reward and get that out there so that we can make an example. >> reporter: week after week chicago police show off guns off the streets. >> all the guns don't come through mr big, not one person funnelling firearms. they come in dribs and drabs from other places. >> reporter: in 2013 the chicago place seized 6500 illegal firearms, officers have recovered some 2100. on the poor south and west sides, the $5,000 boundy sounds like a lot -- bounty sounds like a lot of money. this is a member that can't risk showing his face and doubts that it will work. >> there's money to bury you,

that's what will happen. >> reporter: street justice aside, the father handed out the reward, and the top cop stands by him. >> when it comes to the issue of firearms, he's in the right place. anything he can do to support us stopping guns from hitting the street i support. and a reward for gun runners, yes, it's something that can help us. >> i think once somebody sees wow they are given a reward, they'll go to gaol - once we set an example, it starts a ripple effect. it's not the end-all answer, but part of the answer. >> the cold realities of life on the street where death is a daily occurrence. there has been at least 125 reported whom sides in chicago so far this year, including six killed by police there's a third confirmed case of mers. an illinois man tested positive.

this is the first time the virus appears to have jumped from one human to another on american soil. joining me is steven morse, a professor of enny deemiology at the school of public health. last time we spoke there was a single case in the u.s. here there's a third. the third person contracted it by another person who had m.e.r.s., from a handshake. >> or from sitting across from him at a business meeting. we are uncertain about what exactly happened there. one of the problems is that the test they use is a blood test, which tells you about previous infections, but there are viruses related to mers, and it's possible that it - we think it's mers, but it could be something else in the united states, and we just are not able to distinguish it. >> because the symptoms are subtle - similar to a cold.

>> in milder cases, yes. this patient reported no illness at all, as far as we know. they picked up the case because of contact tracing, going back and trying to trace the other people with whom the indiana case had been in contact. >> no signs of illness. is that common? >> we don't know. we simply don't know enough about what we call the endeemiology of the infection, which is how people get it exactly, how it's passed on from person to person outside the health care setting and close contact. we don't have, in fact, many cases that seem to odour -- occur outside, on the other hand it could be more common, and there may be a lot of cases that are not noticed. there are a lot of question marks. we don't know how it originated. >> that's correct, we don't know. we think the most likely

original source is a bat. that's not entirely settled, but there's good evidence s.a.r.s., the related virus - it's different, but it's a related family in asia coming from a little bat and was passed on to humans and other animals. we think my colleagues here have been able to find a strain in bats that is similar to mrs. how it gets from the bat to humans - camels is mentioned as a possible link. we know of people getting infected with no camel contact. there's some human to human transmission. it's been limited and it's not easy to spread from person to person.

>> treatment options. >> no cure, basically treating the symptoms. being in intensive care, making sure that the health care workers, who are most at risk, take the proper precautions so they don't get infected themselves. >> there are warning signs of 22 international air parts across the u.s. what are the concerns? >> as with s.a.r.s., we'll see m.e.r.s. spreading to the scpus other places -- to the u.s. and other places where people travel from the gulf region, there's question if there's local transmission, we could see a situation similar on s.a.r.s. we are tight on time, but does this change the risk to the general public, the third case? >> i don't think it changes it appreciably. people need to be mindful of the fact if they have a flu-like illness, they should keep an eye

on it. if they see their health care providers, be careful to tell them that they were in contact with someone who has had m.e.r.s. . >> good to see you again professor. >> i hope that was helpful. >> absolutely, it was for the viewers. still ahead - flooding in eastern europe. thousands driven from their homes. kiev perhaps to elect a new government. part of the nation has no interest in participating.

welcome back to al jazeera america. let's get you caught up on the top stories this hour. china is evacuating nationals from vietnam after deadly protests in hanoi. tensions flared over an ongoing territorial dispute in the south china sea, which is rich in natural gas reserves. christians in nigeria prayed for

the safe return of girls kidnapped by boko haram. yesterday a group of western and african countries agreed to unite in their fight against the group. yemen calls on the west as it launches its largest offensive against al qaeda. the military is struggling to pay for the operation - it is asking for support. yemen has one of al qaeda's strongest affiliates outside of pakistan. at least 44 died following the worst flooding in the balkans. thousands have been forced to evacuate from homes in serbia, bosnia and croatia. rising floodwaters is threatening the power plant. we have this report from serbia. >> reporter: in the air, and on the ground, the priority is to get to the old and the sick. this is 88-year-old woman, we meet her after she was rescued by the serbian army. she tells us her house was

submerged under a metre and a half of water. she was alone for days without food and during water. this is a massive logistical operation threatening to overwhelm serbia's emergency services. the serbian prime minister says the damage will cost the country billions. volunteers joined the operation. this man is a personal trainer from belgrade. he is here to help rescue those left behind. >> reporter: how many people are left? >> we don't know, about 30. >> reporter: it's not clear how many died here. every official we ask tell us that they have to wait for the water to recede to see the real damage. some of the water is actually pulling back, but there are still many houses completely

submerged by the flooding, and many people waiting to be rescued. this man would not give his name. he said he has seen dead bodies and is angry at authorities for not arriving earlier. >> they came too late. we had no woorning -- warning. the town is destroyed. in bosnia another menace is hiding under the flood rubble. landmines from the war in the early 1990s. the fear is the floods are washing away river banks, which will unearth exploded booby traps. in an area where the biggest power station is, it is under threat. capacity has been cut. waters have reached the basement of the plant, a shut down will blackout most of the country. for now it's stopped raining.

the worry is there could be another flood surge from the river in bosnia. the ground is already saturated. people are wondering where will all the water go. let's take you to california. tens of thousands of residents evacuated due to the raging wildfires are preparing to return home. firefighters near san diego are trying to guard the area hoping to prevent flames reignighting. they are focusseded on fires at camp pendleton. they are blamed for death, burn the through 20,000 acres and destroyed many ohms. the winds that -- homes. the wind that fuelled the fears are expected to pick up. it's app area of concern, not a good combination with the winds. >> it isn't. the winds gust up to 30-45 miles on hour across the mountains

into the south-west interior of arizona and new mexico. this is where we are watching closely. weather conditions that could be favourable for a firefighter are more dangerous for sparking fears, latter this week. as we see what is happening now. you see it's a westerly flow across california. wind gusts to the west, up to 30 for san francisco. lighter around los angeles. you see in the ipp land val -- inland valleys, once you cross the mount earnings they are strong, up to 40 miles per hour. monday and tuesday, the bulk of the humidity. it helps any kind of dry area, but now it is shifting over parts of the south-west, and it's not going to help so much with the dryness as it will to the sparking thunder storms. lightening strikes sparked showers when we have dry conditions. tonight we will see most of the rain fall, and that's usually welcomed in time of year. it will be stretching across

washington, oregon, idaho. the risk of weather will be primarily around montreal, and south dakota. as we get into wednesday, the risk will shift towards even texas. so we'll look out for strong thunder storms midweek and because of how dry texas is, we could see a new wildfire sparked. a look at temperatures now. we are staying cool on both coasts. the hot weather cooling off for parts of the west. tripple digit heat easing the storm tracker, jet stream, dipping down, giving us low pressure to the west. we'll see a lot of activity as we get into the middle of the book. for your forecast tomorrow - more rain for parts of nevada. great news, but we will watch for the thunder storms. >> thank you. tens of thousands of protesters

gathered in seoul voicing outrage over how the government handled the ferry disaster. during a candlelight vigil many chanted "take responsibility, give our children back." they want the government to find 19 passengers who are missing and figure out what caused the ferry to sink, killing many people, many of whom were high schoolers. many have been arrested and detained in relation to the mine collapse in turkey. the detain ooes include executives from the mining company. 303 were killed when an explosion caused the mine to collapse. it's the deadliest mining disaster. causing anger at the government and mining industry due to a lack of safety measure. ukrainians prepare to vote in the presidential elections, there's not a lot of support, at

least in the east. the sfl-declared leader of donetsk said a presidential poll will not happen on his watch. >> in the russian speaking east, campaigning ahead of the presidential election is under way. separatists occupying state buildings declared an independent republic, say people are not going to vet. the newly appointed prime minister for donetsk people' republic say those tasked with organising the vote are quitting. >> translation: people are leaving the polling station, the election commissions and going home. there's no pressure on them. it's simple. the elections are not interesting to anybody. the moscow born and raised leader told me his troops will not use force to stop the vote. but according to an election monitoring group, they are trying to do that. >> 10 people come to the

electoral commission. with their guns. and said that now in donetsk it is a territory of donetsk republic, and it is illegal to organise president election of ukraine. >> reporter: six out of 22 electoral offices in the region have been shot says. this station here is not working. it is unlocked, but no one is inside. whilst looking for someone we found a flag of the donetsk republic, and the offices in side have been sealed, it says. life tips as normal -- continues as normal, but the

volatility is not unnoticed. >> translation: i'm worried about my safety at the polling staugs. it -- station. it could be provocation, some using force. >> translation: for us the donetsk people's republic does not make sense. >> it says it's prepared with monitors on standby and urms people to vote -- urges people to vote. in the east, 22% of people plan on staying home. 21% is not sure who they'll vote for. it sparks fear that unrest could fuel calls that the outcome is not representative. voters in greece are voting in elections seen as a referendum on policy. the leftist potential party is leading the voting. they are choosing mayors and up to councillors.

some want greece to leave the european union. changes ahead for egypt's newest leader. a newly elected prime minister campaigned on reforms in his open state. as we report, replicating that in the rest of the country may not be easy. >> reporter: euphoria in india as the b.j.p. made history, emerging with a stunning single-party majority. the first in 30 years. the so far candidate narendra modi is widely credited for the victory after aggressively campaigning on a pro-development platform. >> narendra modi is for conclusive growth, including growth means all caste, creeds and state.

>> reporter: voters were impressed by narendra modi's achievement in gujarat, a state he governed for the past 12 years. while the country's g.d.p. growth is below 5%, gujarat is revelling in low unemployment and a thifing business -- thriving business environment. the state is a hub for manufacturing, and per cap ita income had nearly doubled between 2004 and 2010. yet economists warp that narendra modi will -- warn to narendra modi will face challenges in bringing prosperity to the rest of india. >> it could be lethargic in the center, and ipp different to the -- ipp different to the concerns he has. >> reporter: gujarat's do. has been problematic. thousands of residents, this

woman and her family were forced out of the slums to make way for a park. officials promised them homes outside the city that was four years ago. >> translation: narendra modi must have given houses to a lot of people. i have not seep anything. all i -- seep anything. all i want is for them to give me a house or send me back where i live. for years narendra modi's government has been accused of neglecting the most distrapinged. >> -- disadvantaged. many have been left behind by development. with a thumping major city rich and poor indians expect narendra modi to deliver op his promise of -- on his promise of economic progress. pope francis is preparing for a historic tripe to the holy -- trip to the holy land. he leaves for jordan, and

israel. his trip is the subject of "the week ahead". . >> reporter: this will be an interesting trip for papal watchers. pope francis is the first jesuit pope, the fourth pope to go to the holy land. he's commemorating the 50th anniversary of pope paul the v. he will walk through the holy land with two friends - a muslim from argentina and a rabbi. and will take steps - joos us - -- jesus - taking the footsteps of jesus, and working on fractured, sensitive land with decades and centuries of strife and conflict. everyone will watch him take every delicate step. he is visiting a different area, christianity is on the decline and two-thirds are muslim. >> reporter: absolutely and the whole region will watch him.

a lebanese marin item leader will attend. hezbollah has warned that that is a sin, that he is coming to jerusalem, a disputed city. some say he's coming too close to israel. syria, the syria christians, the iraqi christians will watch, and anyone delighted in pope francis, and you never know what he will say. >> we look forward to your report. join us 5:30 for "the week ahead". leck none's -- lebanon's president is calling for hezbollah to pull out of syria, saying it is fuelling sectarian tensions in a war-ravaged country. the story of the war came ta cannes. the film, including more than 1,000 internet clips is premiering at the film festival "silverwatered it delivered by a

director in paris, shot by a citizen journalist. [ gun fire ] >> reporter: these images emerge from syria on a daily basis. on the news, on tv scroops, and now on -- screens and now on the big screen at the cannes film festival. "silverwatered" was directed from afar. its maker cut together 1,000 videos from exile in paris. one day he talked online to a woman in homs and she said "what would you film if you were here?" he told her and this is the result. >> i started to feel i was back in syria. it became real, deep, beautiful. show became, you know, my homeland and after i discover -

yes, for me she is a metaphor of syria. >> this is a movie that brings the viewer closer to the daily horrors of life in a war torn country. it pictures seconds of rape, death and resilience. >> reporter: you're going back to syria? >> yes. >> reporter: are you scared? >> even if i die there, it's not bad. >> reporter: these are people that lost everything, scpept their dignity. she carries with her a bag of soil wherever she goes, a piece of homs. it's important to have a peace of it with you at all times. >> the message is the broken thing. there is no language, there is no way to describe what i feel.

>> reporter: her house no longer stands. her home will never leave her. she fought the law and the law won. [ chanting ] >> now supporters an occupy wall street activist are fighting to keep her out of gaol. her story next on al jazeera america.

occupy wall street protesters are on the streets of new york after a controversial conviction. a jury found sicily mcmillan guilty of assaulting app officer -- an officer.

mcmillan and supporters say he is a victim of police brutality. [ chants ] . >> reporter: they came by the dozens to show support for an activist in gaol on rykers island. occupy wall street protesters cecile mc million was convicted -- mcmillan was convicted of striking an officer, and faces 7 years in prison. this shows the incident. mcmillan elbows the officer in the face whilst being led out. she said it was reflective of him grabbing her breast and has photo of the bruise to prove it. she was accused of lying. >> cecile is 5 foot 4 female. the officer was 6 foot, 200

pound. he's capable of grabbing someone to the point of league a bruise. >> reporter: mcmillan and supporters say she was a victim of brutality. this video shows minutes after her arrest. photographer stacy was in the area that night. >> it looked like an army of police officers lining the front side of the park. it was one of the most frightening things i have seep. she pointed her lens at mcmillan and captured the image. >> there are four picture the the first is the officer trying to make her stand, and she's screaming. her mouth is open, she looks to be in pain. the second is she's lost her ability to hold herself up. the third he has her arms glached back and tip toes touching the floor. her head is over her body. the last one he's trying to get her to sit down, and she doesn't

know how to do that, she's pain and so unconscious. photos i took were admitted as evidence in court, and i tesified on her behalf. >> reporter: mcmillan awaits her sentence in gaol, writing to supporters: freedom is something people who convicted her want for her two. nine of the 12 jurors wrote to the judge asking she do community service rather than gaol time saying: mcmillan's future is out of her hands. >> reporter: a judge in the manhattan supreme court will hand down the sentence on monday. other activists promised to be here in solidarity. the future of the 25-year-old faces behind bars is one she'll have to face alone.

we do want to point out the new york police department and the manhattan district attorneys office did not return al jazeera's calls for comment. tonight al jazeera america will debut an 8-part series examining the u.s. legal series called "the system" with joe berlinger and he focuses in part one on false conhavings. >> i have done a lot of cases with false confessions. this has a push. in this case there was not a false confession, there was not a cop figs at all -- confession at all kirsten did not confess to the crime. instead she claims she was raped in a parking lot and defended herselfly stabbing her attacker. she told a counsellor about the incident. when a homeless man was found dead is mutilated in a dumpster on the other side of town, the

counsellor called the homicide group. >> when the detectives came to their house, she thought they were questioning her about her being a victim of a rape, attempted rape, a violent crime, not a suspect in a murder case. she was led to believe by the silence, they were talking about the cause. that is a big trafesty that we are dealing with. we invite you to watch "the system", here on al jazeera america. over the course of the last 50 years we launched thousands of satellites into orbit. most do not work. we tell you about an amateur effort to bring one back to life.

welcome back. the third commercial flight to the international space station updocked.

it arrived a month ago and is on the way back to arth with science samples and other commitment spacex has a contract with n.a.s.a. for a total of 12 cargo flight. since the soviets sput sput nick in orbit thousands of satellites have been launched into space, hundreds operational. many have run out of power or burnt up in the airth's atmoss -- earth's atmosphere. a group raised about $125,000 to reignite an old sat lie, jacob ward explains. >> there's a forgotten satellite and a few every day people want to get it back. in 1978 n.a.s.a. lauged the icy -- launched the ey 3 satellite. in 1983 it was repurposed to be

the first spacecraft to intercept a comb et -- comet. after 1985 once it did that it forgot. it drifted further from earth. this summer it will orbit back to earth scrks this woke a vol -- and this week a volunteer tam of space enthusiasts will try to contact it and control it. think of them as a sal vim team, if -- val sij team -- salvage team. if they get it up and running they'll have a satellite for educational sushesz. they -- circumstances. they have to build a unique computer language that n.a.s.a. used. the telemetry data looks like a taxi receipt. it is jiper ush. if they speak the large wuge, the rest is straightforward. most of the instruments were funking in 2008.

there's power to achieve a course change of about 40 metres a second, which is what they'll need to get it into a stable orbit. they'll have a public science lab in the sky ready for any student that wants a glimpse of the planet or what is beyond it. >> restaurant workers in mexico broke not one, but two records. 3,624 chefs met in mexico city previously held in dubai. the counterparts joint the fun, snatching the largest waiter race title. the goal was to promote mexican gas tron omy, something that was a victory. a lot of full bellies. i'm thomas drayton. "america tonight" weekend is next. for news updates from around the world head to aljazeera.com.

thanks for watching. on "america tonight" - the weekend edition. the state of execution. struggles to find death drugs. botched executions and in a state that puts more convicts to death than any other - doubts the system can be fixed. also ahead. the fix - addicts looking for a way out find what they and neuroscientists say is a miracle - but it's also an illegal drug. we