on "america tonight" - trouble where you'd least expect to find it. >> i remember growing up in miami, every school i went to was in fested in gangs. it's not something i considered would be a problem up here, gang violence. it was a huge eye opener. >> violence and gang crime in a place known for another kind of wildlife. michael oku finds alaska's wide-open spaces a welcome new community, and an increasing

threat. also - a view of gaza under siege. a story developing at this hour. a plea for a pause falls on deaf ears. will an israeli casualty change what needs it be done. and the children that ran for their lives. >> what do you think would have happened to you if you stayed in el salvador? you don't think you would be living? >> lori jane gliha one on one with children who made a harrowing trip across the border alone. tonight they tell her why they did it, and whether the journey was worth it. good evening. thanks for joining us. i'm julie chen. the heavy campaign and fire

power enters a second week after hamas rejects a pause in the action deal. both sides launched new strikes. hospitals in gaza declared a state of emergency. 196 palestinians have been killed. 1400 injured. israel suffered its first fatality. a man near the border died after a shrapnel wound after a mortar attack in the south. the israeli defence minister was fired for criticising the top leadership for failing to take a harsher stand and not launching a ground invasion into gaza. nick schifrin is on the ground in gaza. 24 hours ago we talked about this and it sounded like a ceasefire or a pause in the action was a possibility. obviously that was not the case? >> no, it didn't, if you look at it from the respective of

palestinian fighting groups launching rockets into israel. they did not pause for a second. the opposite - they increased the number of rockets fired from gaza into israel. according to the israeli army 100 rockets flew from here into the southern central cities and a couple intercepted over tel aviv. it took six hours, the israeli cemetery resumed its campaign. we drove around gaza city and saw a huge number of rockets fired from here. we saw the sounds of f-16, booming thunderous blasts. clearly large bombs dropped by the f-16s. in the last couple of hours, it's quiet. the ceasefire is not dead. we are waiting for the political wing to respond. the violence is continuing. >> hamas says it will not stop firing rockets unless the

blockade is lifted. talk to us about what this means to daily life in gaza, what it means to have the blockade going on, as the bombs are being fired. >> they are asking not only for the blockade, but the rafa crossing into egypt to be open. both of those combine to strangle gaza. a lot of people call this the largest prin on the planet -- prin on the planet. almost all the people here cannot leave. there's a wall around it on the israeli side, the mediterranean sea, israeli warships peopling everyone or everything in to gaza, and egypt closed its crossing. that was key. a lot of the crucial elements, like health care, medicine, food, water, came through the rafa crossing, through the tunnels into gaza. in the last couple of weeks

there has been a spike in the humanitarian crisis. according to the u.n., a shortage of supplies at hospital. shortage of water, food, occasional spots. that is being alive waited. in the last 24 hours we saw announcements by the red crescent, the red cross and palestinian authority , that will bring in supplies. the fact that life was difficult beforehand because of the closed crossings and the siege, it's got more difficult in the last week as you hear outgoing rocket fire from here to israel. >> another round begins. nick schifrin reporting to us from gaza city. thank you. helping us with inside in the latest actions retired army general mark kimmitt joins us, serving as former assistant secretary of defense in the middle east. we are talking about 1700 air strikes, 1200 plus, give or take rockets, where does the fire power come from? >> on the part of the israelis,

they have a formidable air force in the region, if not the most formidable. in the case of gaza, for years and years we have seen rockets transported into the sea, into rafa, crossing into gaza, and coming down to lebanon as well. >> in this situation when you see the power, the power that they are getting in gaza is of a different caliber, as it were, to anything we have seen before. >> over the last 10-15 years we have seen the rocket capability go from the small ones ranging at 3.5km, to rockets that hit 120km. >> compelling in terms of the growing threat, but on the other hand that iron dome... >> tremendous capability. co-produced with the united states, co-manufactured with the

united states. it had an enormous affect on the eighty of the israelis to take a deep breath when there's a rocket attack and get the people into shelter, making sure no one has been kill. >> we talk about the iron developing. what does that mean. >> it's what president regan was coming up with. a dome over the country that can't be penetrated by rockets. it's an air defense system, raid areas and missiles that can detect incoming rockets and not only detect, but discriminate against those that hit populated areas from those that hit unpopulated areas. if it hits an unpopulated area, the rocket will not fire. >> the u.s. had a big role in the development of this. >> codevelop, yes. >> tremendous amount of funding. millions was put into the iron

dome system. >> going back to the bush administration. >> near the end of the bush administration, continuing on for the obama administration. >> we'll talk about the ground power in a moment. they have brought the tanks to the border, there's a lot of pressure from hardline israelis to move forward with a ground incursion. >> sure, the moderates inside of israel say we saw what happened when we went against hezbollah in '06. it was not pleasant. it's a tough fight. we go into gaza, where we left before, it will be a tough fight, large numbers of casualties and equipment. it will be a psychological victory for the gazans, if we go in and have our nose bloodied like against lebanon in 2006. >> thank you for beak here. another international hot spot. fighting in ukraine. russia's involvement in the war

against separatist rebels. an air strike killed 11, demolishing an apartment building in a spristist area -- separatist area. the united states and ukraine are urging leaders to adopt new sanctions against russia. the conflict is taking its toll on communities. a quarter of a million ukrainians scoped to russia. scott heidler joins us from donetsk in eastern ukraine. we are hearing reports that there has been an uptick in civilian casualties. what can you see there? >> most definitely. particularly in luhansk, to the east of here, donetsk province, what we saw first hand, there's intense fighting in the city. we had shelves coming close to us. we know there's been fighting again today on tuesday. now, in a 2-day, 48-hour window,

when you look at luhansk, there has been more than 32 killed. the vast majority, the majority are civilians. they are the numbers we know now. information is difficult to get out. when you look at the numbers we do have, you imagine they are a little higher. that's in a 2-day total. looking over the last 10 days there's an increase in the fighting in donetsk and luhansk. there has been a study increase in civilian casualties. >> as you see, the casualty numbers increase, there are tensions on the diplomatic front between russia and ukraine. >> absolutely, there's a couple of incidents spiking the tension between the two nations. we had an incident where russia accused ukraine of firing artillery cells into their territory. it landed next to a resist ten shall area. concerns were voiced it the ukranian officials. they denied that, that that was

anything that their army fired across. on monday we had an aircraft shot down. a cargo plane, the ukranian army, it said "this is nothing that the separatist fighters have, the equipment to shoot an airlane at this altitude. it likely came from the russian side of the border." tuesday was an air strike, 11 civilians killed. that was an air strike and requires equipment the separatists don't have. they are saying that likely came from the russian side. these specific events, and the tension between the nations will be brought up at the european leaders meeting when they talk about the situation here. >> scott, forgive me, but in the united states, the ukrainian conflict fell off the radar a bit. there hasn't been much attention in the united states. in the u.s. media, and i'm curious to know since the

elections, since there's been a sense that there would be an attempt to move forward in the new administration in ukraine, has there been a steady increase in violence or is this in recent days? >> there's a steady increase in violence. we had a ceasefire that was not a ceasefire for 10 days earlier in the month. comparatively it was less fighting to what we saw before. it wasn't a ceasefire. it was eventually declared over. that's when we have seen this steady increase in violence. we need to focus on the numbers that we saw, the areas targeted now, that they are civilian areas. it's coming in the broad daylig daylight. there's separatist fighters. it's a popular area. we saw separatist fighter military equipment, we know where there's installation, it's

a big concern when you talk about luhansk, when you talk about how the ukranian army is operating, trying to push the separatists out of town. if it comes here, the ukranian government says they will not do that. this is a city of nearly 1 million people, concerned about street fighting and casualties. despite that, the tactics used in other cities, there has been increasing numbers of civilians killed. >> thank you so much, scott heidler. after the break - the children speak. correspondent lori jane gliha with kids who made the terrifying border crossing alone. >> translation: once you cross the river, you have to run to a place that's an abandoned house for about 30 minutes. you drink water from the waterholes where the cows drink water. immigration caps you and us think -- catches you and you

think all the effort you made is not worthwhile. they explain why they did it and whether the journey was worth it.

>> on tech know, >> what if there was a miracle? >> grace's stem cells are in this box. >> that could save the live of your child... >> we're gonna do whatever we can >> would yo give it a try? >> cell therapy is gonna be the next big advance in medicine

>> tech know, every saturday go where science meets humanity. >> this is some of the best driving i've every done, even though i can't see. >> tech know. >> we're here in the vortex. only on al jazeera america. of course, you know pressure has been on the obama administration to speed up the return of thousands of children to their home countries in central america. the president asked for billions to move along immigration proceedings, some lawmakers demand the children be sent home. u.s. law requires they have a hearing, and as "america tonight" found, when she spoke to kids in the system, it's a

process that can take years. >> reporter: making the journey north 2,000 miles from el salvador was never part of this girl's plans, she didn't have a choice. what do you think would have happened if you stayed in el salvador? you don't think you would be living. she said a group of men angry at her family kidnapped her, she was held at gun point, drugged and assaulted. she was dumped in a remote location. >> if you come from some place because they want to kill you. if you go back, they'll kill you. >> jos lean says the men threatened to come after her again. she is most comfortable telling the story in spanish. . >> translation: they told me it was just a scare, that it was not the real thing.

if we continue living where we were living, something more serious could happen to us. >> reporter: it didn't take long for the then 16-year-old to make a decision that would change the course of her future. >> translation: let me tell you the hardest step, which is the hardest one. it's to leave your family and everything you have. which maybe is not much, but it's all you have. it's the hardest part to leave everything behind. >> so he is the one that paid for the coyote to get you here? >> yes. >> reporter: in 2011 her uncle hired a smuggler to help the teen travel from el salvador to guatemala through to the united states. she'd travel by bus, motorcycle and take a boat along the rio grand along the border with

texas. >> translation: once you cross the river you have to run for about 30 minutes to a place that is an abandoned house. you end up drinking water from the waterholes where the cows drink water. then immigration catches you and you think all the efforts you change is not worthwhile. i didn't know if i would have the opportunity to stay here. >> this is one of tens of thousands of children that entered the united states in staggering numbers over the past few years. between october and june u.s. law enforcement captured 57,000 kids crossing the boarder without their parents. it's a 100% increase from the previous year. most came from guatemala, honduras, and el salvador. >> over half the kids are coming because of violent crime, gang threats, untenable situations.

>> elizabeth kennedy is a ph.d. candidate and has been studying the increase in child migrant traffic to the united states. >> you are more likely to die in these nations than in afghanistan, iraq, d.r.c. that is significant. >> reporter: when a child from central america arrives here illegally and alone, authorities do not send them back. why not send them back, why do we keep them here. why not send them back. >> united states adopted many policies written in the convention for the rights of a child. primary is nations will act in the best interests of a child. they are children, not adults. if there's a chance we could return them to harm, we don't want to do that. would we return children to syria? no, we wouldn't. afghanistan? no, we wouldn't.

>> under a 2008 law deportation proceedings are undertaken. they evaluate whether the child qualifies to stay here. are they a trafficking victim, is their life at risk or could they qualify for asylum. the law requires border patrol to transfer them to a shelter within 72 hours. >> now, a child could cross the border in texas. they may hope to reunify with family in virginia. if there's not bed spaces they'll go to california. everything is determined by where there's bed space. >> reporter: "america tonight" filed a freedom of information act request and found the federal government contracts with 100 only child-only shelters - many now overflowing with kids. the children stay in the shelters until relatives or foster families are found for them. can you describe the shelter where you ended up? .

>> translation: the house was big. it was fine there. they treated us well. >> reporter: this 18-year-old boy from guatemala stayed briefly in a new york shelter after entering the united states about a year ago. he is undocumented and scared to show his face. why did you come here? >> i was worried about the future and my life. i want to go to school. >> reporter: back home his family life was unstable. when he came to new york he worked as a busboy when a co-worker told him he could get legal help. >> we walked into the office with a packet of papers in english. he didn't know what they said or what he was supposed to do or what the court appearances meant, whether he had to go. >> reporter: robin burke runs a children youth center, atlas d.i.y. and is representing him.

>> now he's in america, he can go to school, go outside without fear of being recruited by gangs, and has somebody taking care of him, something he hasn't had for a while. >> reporter: some children never find legal help or show up for court hearings. >> the children are not afforded a right to a lawyer. we have six and seven-year-olds going up in front of a judge or attorney by themselves. specting to represent them selves. >> burke is helping her client apply for a visa. in court she has to prove she was abused, abandoned or neglected by a parent in guatemala, giving her a chance to live and work in the united states. this boy wants to become a history teachers, but knows he might have to go back. >> translation: i'd prefer to be here, so i could have a better

future. >> reporter: after you got here, what was the most difficult part? >> to come to the united states? >> yes. >> i don't know. to know you have to learn the language. >> reporter: jocelyn's path is a step away. after two years navigating the court, she was granted special immigrant juvenile status. >> there's a lot of complexity to the legal peace of it. part is it takes time. >> an attorney at kirkland&ellis argue that jocelyn had been abandoned by her mother. >> her mother was not able to supply a safe and secure environment. there was systematic violence in the community, tantamount to abandonment by her mother. >> what is the burden of proof for determining whether a child

has experienced what they say they have experienced? >> it's a great question. it's true. the kids often come with nothing but the clothes they are wearing. you have to build is case. >> reporter: now 19, living in virmia, jocelyn is hoping to sharpen her english skills and become a nurse. >> what would you say to the people who want to send individuals like you back to their home country? >> i don't think it's a good idea sending them back. if they are here, if they try to come to the united states, it's one special reason. because if you are going to your country, why you want to come

here? . >> reporter: some, like jocelyn will get the opportunity. some won't. for many, the chance is worth the risk. "america tonight"s lori jane gliha. let's talk about the opportunity. how many kids get this kind of special status? it puts them on the path to a green card. >> this is a status for unaccompanied minors to claim. it allows them to stay and live and work in this country. if you look at the numbers, there has been nearly 3,000 approvals for the status this fiscal year. keep in mind it could take a child years to get that. the cases may have started years ago, but this year we've had almost 3,000 approvals. >> let's talk about the

situation with the kids. you mentioned in your report that it's difficult to get the kids sticking in the system and oi proved. is it trapped. >> there are a lot of kids that slip through the cracks, that don't show up for court, that don't understand the process or may go under the radar. the department of justice doesn't keep track of unaccompanied minors, but do keep track of the rulings judges have made. for kids from el salvador, guatemala, and hopped , more than 5300 rulings for juve names, and of those -- juveniles and of those 2600 were not there, it was in absentia. some of these rulings were in their favour. they may have been granted asylum. >> they don't know. >> they may not know, and there may be various reasons. they could be under the radar, you know, and unaware. >> a quick thought. it seems to me to be difficult for the kids to prove their

cases. a girl that says she was kidnapped. how will she prove that will happen. >> i was wondering that. i think the burden of proof is different. you do have to go. sometimes you'll get an affidavit from one person. or information from another social worker. there are adults that they have been in contact with. >> thank you so much. tomorrow on "america tonight.".. >> they made it sounds like "you're going to a summer camp." i travelled with my 5-year-old sister. it was painful. she asked mum "why do i have to leave?", how could you explain to a 5-year-old child that she had to leave her mother and father, you know? correspondent lori jane gliha with an almost forgotten piece of immigration hist.

operation paid roe pan, an airlift of children from cuba to the united states, and the memories of those that made the faitful trip - wednesday on "america tonight". and a story of drilling for oil in the florida everglades, and what may have brought it to a halt.

now a snapshot of stories making headlines on "america tonight". russia launches a criminal investigation into a deadly subway accident. the train derailed. riders trapped for hours before rescuers could free them. 21 died, more than 150 were injured. sharp decline in the numbers of new alzhiemer's cases. americans over 60 now have a lower chance of developing dementia than they did 30 years ago. >> more than 5 million americans and 35 million people worldwide suffer from alzhiemer's, a common form of dementia. >> muddling back against california's drought. the state is considering a tough penalty $500 million. tough restrictions for

overwatering lawns or washing a car without a hose nozzle. the suavings could bring -- savings could be enough to bring 3 million people water for a year now updating a story, plans to drill for water in the florida everglades triggering outrage and environmental worries. there's more to it. adam may reports that many of oil wells are on hold, for how long. [ chanting ] >> south-west florida has become the latest battle ground in the search for oil. new techniques are making it possible to drill in areas where it was difficult. many say the resulting waste water will be toxic. >> i hope people realise it's about clean water. >> these women have been fighting the oil wells around the everglades for months. they live next door to a

drilling location. >> it's about 400 foot from here. this is part of the watershed that fits the ever glades. >> if the oil field goes in, it means noise, dust and trucks passing by the durantes homes. as part of the drilling millions of waste water laced with chemicals will be ipp jected into the ground. they fear it will poison the water supply. >> we need clean water and air. it's not political. it's a right. >> the fears became reality after our original report. the oil-drilling company, called dan hughes, was cited for injecting a chemical gel into the ground. dap hughes was fined -- dan hughes was fined. the company pulled out of florida in all but one location. there are still 370 million

barrels of untapped oil never the everglades, according to the u.s. geological survey. >> inbound, marker 6. >> a few oil wells operated by other companies in the greater everglades have been pumping away day and night for decades. deep in the heart of the sip rouse national -- cyprus national reserve. drilling operations are taking place on national park territories? >> yes. >> reporter: how many oil wells are here now? >> approximately seven or eight. >> reporter: don oversees the oil and gas operations inside big cyprus. future wells could use the same sec knowledgy as -- technology as these, including injecting waste water. how do you feel the operation is running? >> they have done a good job. >> the rights of the oil, and

some 800,000 acres in florida, belong to descendants of baron collier, the largest landowner in the state. they were behind the original plans to drill. >> we left several messages with collier companies, but they left unanswered. we came to their headquarters. i tracked a company spokeswoman. she said they have no comment. collier says that the proposed oil wells will be safe. >> the dur ants aren't buying it. they are hope that the well next door has been put on hole. they have no idea if the companies will try again and hire another company in the future. >> people get upset when the rainforest goes. we are letting the everglades go. this is a special place where they let oil drilling at the grand canyon, would that be allowed? where will we stop?

is anything sacred? >> "america tonight"s adam may with us. this is not a halt to action down there. it's a valuable area. >> it's very valuable land. it's not a permanent halt. dan hughes, the company that pulled out. they said they would not return our calls, but they released a statement saying that they are pulling out for economic reasons. it's confusing when there's 3 0 million -- 370 million barrels untapped. a lot of companies have had their eye on that area, waiting not the right technology. >> it is clear for us to look at the area saying it would be endangered. what are the risks. >> a lot of environmentalists say this is different to other parts of the country. the water system is very, very connected. a very porous limestone under the everglades.

the watertable sits high and moves around. for example, where they do the oil drilling in the sip rushings if there were a -- cyprus, if there were a major accident the oil could get into the water system and spread. in a couple of decades of doing drilling there's not been problems. it requires big oversight. and that's been a complaint when the one well, run by the dan hughes company, they used the chemical gel. people didn't find out about it for some time. it raised a lot of alarms among environmentalists and local officials in colier county. >> you think of the everglades, and the last thing you think is oil. is this in the consciousness of a lot of floridians. we are not talking about the everglades or the places that we as tourists will go to. >> the everglades is a small area. when you look back at decades ago, it was bigger. this is a large eco system.

parts have been drained for development. so there are a lot of different places where people say "look, we should go in", there's a lot of natural resources. the question is can we do this sound. can we do it safe without damaging the environment. there are a lot of powerful voices in florida that say, "no", large powerful groups are standing up to this. on the other hand you have big business looking at this. this is a microcosm of the debate, playing out in south-west florida. >> thank you so much. when we return - alaska's wildlife. >> i don't think anyone that visits, if they did, ride along with the anchorage police, they'd have a rude awakening. growing diversity leading to new challenges in a place you least expect it. gang violence has come to town.

al jazeera america.

these days it seems there are few places in which kids are immune from the perils of the streets. take alaska. in the minds of many it conjures up images of an outdoor paradise. there's another reality - the growing presence of street gangs, many organised around ethnic identity. michael oku travelled to anchorage to take a closer look at the problem and what is being done to address it. >> hang on a second. i suppose i'm supposed to go code 3. we'll go a little faster. >> reporter: lately every night in the land of the midnight sun has been busy for this officer. this evening he's been on patrol for half an hour. when a report of a stabbing

crackles through the radio. during his nine hour shift he will respond to as many as 15 separate incidents. >> anybody that comes up to visit, if they did a ride along with the anchorage police department would have a rude awakening. all right. >> reporter: this call involves a troubled sun who threatened his mother. >> he has the equivalent of a boy knife or a small machete. >> reporter: in this case no one was injured, but that's not always the case, alongside domestic disturbances and duis anchorage is dealing with a threat you wouldn't expect. >> there has been a stabbing or shooting once a week. you don't associate it with alaska. i grew up in miami. every school had gangs. it's not a problem i thought we'd have up here. >> reporter: according to the

fbi there's 50 street gangs in alaska. this is the chief of police of the state's biggest city. >> they have weapons, and fight between gangs and within their own clik or crew. >> reporter: most gangs are not highly organised criminal enterprises but throw backs to an earlier day and aim. wayward kids and young adults choosing to run fast and loose together. nonetheless, he says, they can be dangerous. >> they like to posture, they like to sues drugs, and that leads -- use drugs, and that leads to all the things that lifestyle spins off into fights over perceived slight and drugs. who owes who money for drugs. >> it's a disturbing trend that plays out along the allies and roadways of mountain view, one of anchorage's poorest

neighbourhoods. kids battle pressure to fit in. >> kids are here spoking weed. >> here in mountain view we met this group. they are members of a boys and girls club, a group working hard to keep kids on the right side of the law. do you take drugs? >> no. >> reporter: do you have friends that have? >> yes. >> why is the gang banging group popular? >> the way they speak, the clothes they wear. >> they hold guns. run on 22. their cars are fast. >> reporter: they run on 22s, as in 22 inch rims? >> yes. >> reporter: why have gangs taken route. mountain view is not only poor,

but a diverse neighbourhood. trouble spots face the challenge of assimilating into a new and confusing way of life. gangs can be a way to belong. the blood killers, the monning owlian boys society, the sons of samoa. >> we started sos. we were jumped by other races. >> reporter: in the late 19 '70s, while living in southern california, this was an original member of the sons of samoa. do you think kids find something sexy about being in a gang? >> no, it's not to do with sexy. they find someone to embrace. they look out for each other. they take care of each other. they trust each other more than they trust their family. >> reporter: over the years sos morphed into something larger. it is reported the gang is heavily involved in drug trafficking up and down the west coast, with killings common.

they worry about that spreading to mountain view. >> what i see is kids that want to be gang members, following the footstep of the low 48. you can say them. tell them you don't want to spend the rest of your life in prison. >> reporter: 10 years ago gang life was left behind to begin a new life in anchorage. despite the gangs preps, he says the streets are safer than california, and he is a speaker at the boys and girls club. >> the streets will teach them if you don't teach them at home. that's how they get involved in drugs. >> he is also trying to help kids in mountain view, using a different approach. >> a lot of the kids live in the trailer parks. probably there's 5 families in one trailer. >> this is a home town hero here.

would authorities look to you in your childhood as an at-risk kid. >> any kid that doesn't have an option is at risk. being a low income kid, we moved a lot. we didn't move to where the rent was highest, we moved to the areas where, you know, the represent was cheapest. >> reporter: in the early 2000s after a short career with the n.f.l.'s arizona cardinals, he returned to mountain view. he runs a group which encourages kids to channel ethnic pride through music and dance. today, kids are performing at a festival, celebrating the neighbourhoods diversity. >> we are here to increase chances of success. the kids see it, see it working hard for them. how we do that is using what we love.

music, art, dance. we try to make it happen. if there's something we can do more of, we are trying. it's clearly emotional for you. >> well, it... ..i think when you build something which your heart - it should be. >> reporter: in mountain view there are fresh reminders of the dangers facing its youth. three months ago 15-year-old precious alex was shot to death in her sleep. caught in the crossfire of a fight between two men and her mother's fiance. >> for me i have a 16-year-old daughter. so, i mean, to see - thinking about it, you know. it's rough. >> at the time of his arrest one of the men charged in alex's death told police he was holding marijuana. the link between drugs and violence is not lost on those back at the boys and girls club. did you know precious alex.

>> we grew up in the neighbourhood together. >> reporter: how has her death changing you, if, in fact, it has? >> how has her death changed me? that's a good question. at the beginning you asked if i had done drugs. i said a lie. i did weed before. i've done it multiple times. seeing her die over weed, i feel like that is not where i want to end up. believe it or not, these red sox fans - yeah, they are tipping their hats to a yankee. only explanation is jeeta mania. that is coming up next.

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[ ♪ music ] yes, indeed, after more than 3,600 hits, five world series wins and little drama off the field, derek jeter makes his 14 ds and final all star appearance. like him or not the 40-year-old yankee left his mark. this could be the last time. we tip our hats to one of the all time greats. he has respect from everyone. speaking of respect. we remember another sports legend, the life of alice coachman davis, the first african-american women to win olympic gold when there were really no role models for her to follow. she played a trail in the

segregated south, and she was a winner who never gave up on her dream. >> reporter: with one explosive leap alice coachman-davis soared into olympic history from the hard dirt of georgia clay. raise in georgia of the jim crow's south, the fifth child of 10 growing up in the depression years, alice got away. there was no track for black girls in alabama in those days. alice was born to run, and she did - faster than the girls and any of the boys. barefoot on the dirt country roads, she didn't just run faster, she thought bigger. guided by her own ingenuity, born of necessity. she made her own crossbar of sticks and rags to practice the high jump. at maddison high the boys coach trained her in the 50 meter dash

and the high jump too. she face said a tougher hurdle at home. a disapproving daddy. he once told her "bare feet shouldn't fly, long legs shouldn't spin, braids shouldn't flap in the wind. sit on the porch and be a lady." in time she leaped over his disapproval. winning an amateur championship at 16, and jumping into education at university. she qualified for the 1940, '44 and "48 olympic games. with the outbreak of the war, was only able to compete in london in 1948. she broke through more barriers there. a leap of 5, 6 not only broke the record of the day, but making her the first black woman to win olympic gold. her segregated home town was

united to hon or alice coachman-davis. she said that day made her happier now than when i won. she never stopped reaching for new challenges, becoming the first black woman to get an endorsement deal with georgia's coca-cola in 1952 and honoured at the 1996 games in atlanta as one of the 100 greatest olympians in history. alice coachman-davis was 90 when she passed away monday. she's been inducted into nine different halls of fame, and the elementary school in georgia is named in her honour, hopefully as inspiration. that's it for tonight. tomorrow, the immigration in a different time. five decades ago the yates brought 14,000 unaccompanied --

united states your brought 14,000 uncompanied cubons to the use. it was dubbed pedro pan and funded by the american government - but why. lori jane gliha goes in depth. if you would like to comment log on to the website aljazeera.com/americatonight. you can join the conversation on twitter or at our facebook page. goodnight. more of the "america tonight" tomorrow.

>> the violence has continued just a couple of miles from here >> just a short while ago we heard a large air strike very close by... >> people here are worried that this already serious situation may escalate. >> for continuing coverage of the israeli - palestinian conflict, stay with al jazeera america your global news leader. a participation ceasefire between israel and hamas never took off. what damage is down to the children caught in the middle. welcome to "consider this". those stories and more straight ahead. >> hopes for a ceasefire to end the eight days of fighting unravelled. it is a message from the faction that they never took the