hitting... >> today they will be arrested... >> ground breaking... >> they're firing canisters of gas at us... >> emmy award winning investigative series... >> we have to get out of here... south sudan: country of dreams only on al jazeera america people struggle to survive as fighting rages for control of yemen. ♪ ♪ hello and welcome to al jazerra live from our headquarters in doha. i am richelle carey. also ahead the u.n. says the yarmouk refugees camp is beyond inhuman as the clashes continue. we bring you the trauma of parents in kenya whose children have joined al-shabab ranks. plus in sigh ty land something people are doing whatever it takes to stop human trafficking. ♪

♪ food clean water medicines, everything is in short supply in yemen. people are desperate for aid as human train year groups and russia call for a pause in fighting. for 12 days a saudi-led coalition has been hitting houthi targets all along the country. head i fighting on the ground is blocking effort to help. omar saleh reports. >> reporter: two weeks of air strikes and the humanitarian situation in yemen is only worsening by the day. in the capital sanaa there is a rush to buy food and people are panicking and preparing for the worst this. long queue is for a sack of being wheat. the price has almost doubled since the war started. >> translator: the sack of wheat is almost $40 so the poor people can't afford too eat anymore. >> translator: some people come and buy 20 sacks whereas many

others want to get one sack. i have been trying to buy one for the last two days. >> reporter: the fighting and air strikes have led to fuel shortages too. and people are scared. >> translator: i have been here since last night. our kids and the elderly are at home. they are terrified of the bombing and the vibrations. we don't have wheat and flower. it's a stuff situation. >> reporter: the air strikes are hitting houthi targets but theretheyare also killing civilians many here are searching for the bodies of their family members. >> translator: this is the home of my brother they hit his home at 2:00 a.m. it was a random bombing of civilians. we woke up to find the house reduce to the rubble. >> reporter: in aiding in the south the humanitarian situation is not better. people say they have been without clean water for five days no electricity and stores are being cleared out of food. the international red cross says it's preparing two planes loaded

with urgent aid. >> the most urgent need in yemen are in the hospitals where there are dozens of wounded pima driving every hour. and the hospitals do not have the capacity to provide treatment. that's why our priority is to bring medical surprise to the country. i know there are many other needs in yemen as well. because people have been cut off for days now. and they don't have food and water in many locations. >> reporter: but that may provide little comfort for the millions of yemenis caught in the cross far. omar al saleh, al jazerra. meanwhile, fighting rages across yemen for control of the country rich. there are reports that forces loyal to the president mansour hadi have recaptured territories from the houthi rebels. government sources are said to have captured the air bars north of the port city in aden. they have been cornered in aden which is home to the presidential palace and government offices. a report on the latest violence. >> reporter: the saudi-led

coalition ramps up air strikes in aden. war planes strike bridges on the main roads that lead to the seaport city. the aim, according to saudi army officers is to prevent houthi fighters from sending reinforcement. radar systems command centers and checkpoints have also been hit. >> translator: the houthis target buildings and people. they have managed to move to certain areas to take cover from the air strikes. we are working in coordination with the tribes men and popular committees. >> reporter: by violence in aden shows no signs of slowing. afternoon days of heavy fighting and running battles many parts of the city have been destroyed. homes, shops and vehicles lie in ruins. civilians are being killed. houthi rebels along with

fighters loyal to saleh the former president are infiltrating districts near the city's ports. these are fighters loyal to president hadi. and they are putting up a fierce fight. they have received new weapons air dropped by the saudi coalition, but they remain largely out gunned and out numbers by their rivals. aden is a battle ground. and locals are caught in the middle. president hadi, who fled to saudi arabia, could be trying to restructure his military. he sacked the army's chief of staff, deputy chief of staff and the commander of the special forces. they are accused of treason. but his decision may have little impact. that's because the military is largely loyal to saleh the deposed president. and he is fighting alongside the houthi rebels in this war.

al jazerra. pakistan's parliament will continue its debate tuesday on whether the country should join the campaign against the houthis in yemen. saudi arabia has asked islambad for military help, including aircraft and also soldiers. the main opposition in pakistan says the government should not support this offensive. but act as a mediator instead. a saudi policeman was shot dead and three others injured during a raid in the mainly shia city. video has emerged on social media of what appears to be the operation saudi media state police retrieve automatic weapons, pistols and communication equipment. four people were also arrested. a u.n. official has described the situation at syria yarmouk refugees camp as beyond inhumane. the u.n. security council has been discussing thousand help around 18,000 mostly palestinian refugees caught in the cross fire. as fighting continues between rival groups.

most of the camp in "america tonight" in ruins after being over run by isil. stefanie dekker reports. >> reporter: they speak of incredible fear. these are some of the people that managed to get out of yarmouk. the syrian national news agent agency aired these pictures showing how the army and some palestinian factions have helped them get to safety. >> translator: in the matter of a certain minutes they could have executed all people you see in this school because isil called from the mosques if we catch one of you working with them the palestinian group fighting, or with the government they will cut our heads off. they have no mercy. >> reporter: for the first time video of isil has been posted on line showing the inside of the palestinian refugees camp. they have been fighting palestinian groups and others here for the past six days. this camp has been besieged for more than two years by the syrian government because rebel groups are also based here. its people starving with no running water and no electricity. now isil's presence and syrian

regime bombard in the what used to be a concernsly-populated camp is making a terrible situation even worse. even though some people have made it out. most of the 18,000 who try to survive here are trapped. >> translator: we cannot pay for anything. we are not on anyone's side. we want the whole camp to be safe. >> reporter: the palestine liberation organization is sending a delegation to syria to try to help solve the crisis. no aid is making it in to the camp, we are told beyak at activists inside the lack of medical surprise is making it impossible to treat the wounded. isil storming the camp has come as a shock here. their mere presence terrifying people. the u.n. is warning of a humanitarian catastrophe if the fighting doesn't stop. stefanie dekker, al jazerra beirut. forensic teams in iraq are excavating 12 mass grave sites believed to contain the remains of up to 1700 iraqi soldiers.

the men were killed last june by fighters from the islamic state of iraq and the levant. the mass killings of the shia soldiers from a former u.s. base outside tikrit has become a symbol of isil's brutality. tikrit was recaptured by iraqi forces and shia militias last week. ahead of an iraqi army mission to retake the city of mosul from isil the video has been released of u.s. and spanish coalition forces training government forces in urban warfare. they can be seen training and learning defensive fighting positions during drills at the range complex in iraq. in malaysia the new anti-terrorism bill was passed over 10 hours of heated debate in parliament. the legislation reintroducing detention without trial, which is actually revoked three years ago. on sunday 17 people were detained under suspicion of planning acts of terror in the capital kuala lumpur. kenya military jets have targeted al-shabab territory in

somalia. following last week's university massacre in nba which 148 people died. the air force says it destroyed two camps in the ghetto region but al-shabab says the bombs fell on farmland. the somali armed group has threatened to carry out more attacks unless kenya withdraws its troops from somalia. one of the four gunmen who cared out the university attack was the son of a government official. his father had reported him missing last years ago. our correspondent malcolm webb has met one mother in nigh robe whyin nairobiwho fears she may have lost her son to al that shabach. >> reporter: they are son left with men from the local mosque in 2012 when he was 22. these certificates show his conversion from tris kris at this anti-to islam two years bench she believes he's joined an extremist group likely al-shabab. he recently called her in the

night to check on on her. she asked him to come home. >> he told me he can't because he's wanted by police. i told him nothing is impossible to god so instead of calling he should just come home. he told me, mama, we will meet in they have edge. >> reporter: she says both the police and the people from the mosque kept questioning her and putting her under pressure. so she left nigh robe and i came to live here in-house on the countryside but she's not alone in losing her son like this, there are dozens of families across kenya who say their young men and boys have disappeared and they suspect that they have gone to paramilitary training with al-shabab. the kenyan recruits are a more recent addition to the group's mostly somali fighters. one escapee says they sends young foreign recruits to terry out attacks. when the group came to prominence its main aim was to

overthrow the western bank government. they brought a brutal law but also stability in the areas they controlled. in 2007, ugandan troop as received to support the government. the first country to contribute to an african union force al-shabab threatened retaliation in uganda. in july 2010 it came with devastating effect. 74 people were killed by suicide bombers while watching the world cup final. it was al-shabab's first attack outside so mole i can't. 10 i can't's army joined the fray in 2011, it entered southern somalia following al-shabab kidnappings on the kenyan side of the border i'm week later attacks in kenya began, the 2013 attack on the west gate shopping mall caught the world's attention, at least 67 were killed. the attacks on so civilians in somalia and abroad detracted from the claims to be a movement for the somali people. but they drew the attention and support of al qaeda. but at home, al-shabab was losing most of its territory to the african union troops.

>> they have been pushed away from most of the territory that his they used to hold, including the very lucrative port. therefore al-shabab is extremely desperate to create its relevance. >> reporter: the force in somalia has the up are hands but the government it backs is accused of being extremely corrupt. a situational shabob has tried to exploit. when the groups attacked last week on sleeping students at garissa university was its bloodiest yet. killing more than twice as many people as at west gate. so while weaker than it has been in years it still poses a deadly threat. malcolm webb, al jazerra nairobi, kenya. still ahead in the bulletin. >> i am andrew simmons reporting from on orphanage in ukraine where more than 100 children have been caught up in a tug-of-war between the two sides in this conflict. after street protests, community members in the u.s.

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>> al jazeera america brings you a first hand look at the environmental issues, and new understanding of our changing world. >> it's the very beginning >> this was a storm of the decade >>...hurricane... >> we can save species... >> our special month long focus, fragile planet ♪ ♪ welcome back. it is good to have you with us, i am richelle carey in doha. these are our top stories. eight agencies are warning of a humanitarian disaster in yemen. intense fighting there has delayed the delivery of aid. hundreds of people have been killed since saudi arabia and its allies began bombing houthi rebels in yemen last month. a u.n. official is describing the situation in syria's yarmouk refugees camp as

i don't understand humane. that camp has been over run by isil and the u.n. security council has been discussing how to help around 18,000 palestinian refugees trapped there. kenyan military jets have targed al-shabab territory in the ghetto region of somalia. following last week's university massacre. in which 148 people were killed. the somali armed group has threatened to carry out more attacks unless kenya withdraws its troops from somalia. four years ago a world first framework agreement on human trafficking was signed in the asia pacific. it set common guideline to his help the region tackle the problem. the u.n. estimates the illegal trade affects as many as 2.4 million people worldwide at any one time. a majority of the victims are in the asia pacific region where there are around 3.5 million vulnerable refugees. those affected can find themselves forced in to slavery. or even the sex trade. the u.n. says many of those

traffic the are children. in southern thailand locals have taken matters in to their own hands to stop human trafficking. they are armed and determined to stop their communities from dee teardeteriorateing in to lawlessness, al jazerra's ma ga or teague adjoined the patrol. >> reporter: deep in the jungles of southern thailand these men pa pedroia control one of the busiest smuggling smuggling routes of they are all volunteers who have answered their government's call for civilian to his do what they can to stop human traffickers from using thailand as a transit points. thousands of refugees from me anbar and bangladesh come through here every year in search of better lives and these men hope that taking matters in to their own hands will prevent a rise in crime and lawlessness because of the presence of illegal migrants and the armed gangs that smuggle them through. >> translator: the government officials are involved in the human traffic i caners.

this is our big the the effort challenge many localville i thinks are involved. but i don't think they benefit as much as the officials. >> reporter: refugees rescued try to enjoy a semblance of freedom. she paid traffickers to help her and her daughters free a camp in myanmar. they spent a month on a boat and then were to be smuggled through thailand across to malaysia. the volunteer militia restless cured her as traffickers try to lead her group through the defense jungle. >> translator: the guards are very violent. they were always beating us. they even beat us with the guns they carried. sometimes they use aid rope too. two men were shot dead and one was beaten to death. when i saw it i just wanted to die. the suffering was very bad. >> reporter: to prevent further suffering the volunteers set up checkpoints. and pretty much act as the local police. they have the support of the

community. who give them food, petrol and money for their needs. but not everyone believes this is a good thing. the leaders of the minority muslim groups here are concerned that the presence of armed civilian rescuers is just going to complicate matters further. >> translator: if the muslims are carrying weapons they will still know they will get treated fairly. about the buddhists have weapons and i am not saying all of them. but some with intimidate and treat rohingya very harsh. >> reporter: but that was not the case for her and her daughters, they were brought to a shelter and say they are just glad to be alive. she still aims to get to her husband in malaysia. with no one stopping them the men in the jungle say they will continue their work. armed and determined to step in and fill the gaps their government has been unable to. marga ortigas, al jazerra. i am joined now by alain pierson from bangkok she's from

human rights watch and we appreciate your time so much, ms. pierson. in the report that marga just brought to us, she talked about the community basically taking this matter in to their own hands, which obviously means they don't feel the government is doing enough. and one person that marga spoke with also accused the government of in some ways being corrupt or complicit in what's happening with the human trafficking there. what are your thoughts on that? >> you know, i think it's deeply trouble that go communities are taking the law in to their own hands and the reason why they are doing that is because of lax law enforcement. and whether this is local authorities simply turning a blind eye to the activities or traffickers or in some cases the active collusion of local authorities with traffickers in order to allow them to pass through checkpoints or in some cases everybody freeing people from detention centers back in to the hands of traffickers. and this has been reported on by investigative journalists by human rights groups for many years now and rather than

thoroughly investigating and prosecuting these cases of official involvement in trafficking, unfortunately what we have seen is too often an approach that actually shoots the messenger so to speak. where journalists that report on these claims are actually facing criminal defamation charges as oppose to the traffickers facing prosecution for their activities. >> so let's talk about over the past 10 years though. that multinational initiative that was supposed to really make a dents in human trafficking. has that happened at all in the past 10 years? >> unfortunately we haven't seen much progress really over the last 10 years in terms of the numbers of trafficked. it's still very significant numbers of people being enslaved. whether it's things like on fishing boats or women being enslaved in prostitution or as domestic workers. i think where we have seen progress is now that there is more identification of victims who find themselves in these

circumstances. there is actually a better quality of services that are provided to those victims which is positive. and i think there is a great air awareness of governments that in sectors like domestic work ultimately if you want to stop trafficking what you have to do is provide better protections to these workers. but i think ultimately, as long as people have to flea countries because of persecution because of poverty if there is no safe, legal champions for migration then times are going to be compelled to use the services of smugglers or traffickers and if governments aren't cracking down on the services and if they are actually aided by corrupt officials then we are not actually going to see much progress in terms of reducing trafficking. >> before i let you go i want to ask you about one of the top stories we have been following today. this controversial anti-terrorism bill that has passed in thailand, basically that allows detention without trial. apartment i known say malaysia, my apologies. it allows detention without trial. your thoughts on that?

>> yes, this is very trouble that gotroublingthat there is he this new draconian law. the government got rid of this a few months ago. now like a bell zombie risen from the dead we see this new act allowing people to be detained for up to two years without facing trial and that can effectively be renewed year after year. it really strips away due process rights of individuals. they are also troubling provisions that allow people to have a lack of access to council exempt when they are being interrogated so we are very concerned about the progress on this new terrorism provision in malaysia. >> all right, thank you so much for your time this morning. to ukraine now where the fragile ceasefire in the east continues to holds despite daily violations by pro-russia separatists and ukrainian forces. and there is growing concern about the war's impact on children as andrew simmonds explains, there is state carat the center of this crisis.

>> reporter: in ukraine a country in conflict, there is everybody a fight over children who don't have a home. they are aged from under five to teens. and they are all under the care of the state. but they are from the self-declared republic of con everything now looking to rauch for its future. yet they have been living since last july under the control of the ukrainian government. the children were moved in secret as the fighting was at its height. and after they say separatist fighters told them that they were going to be moved to russia for their own safety. >> translator: they told us whether you want to go or not you have to go. we told them we wouldn't. we start today cry. they used such strong words they didn't care that we were children. when we said we are not going they said, just try staying. and we will shoot you and your

teachers. >> reporter: whatever happened, these children became pawns in a political playoff. the ukrainian government make the first move. >> translator: threatening children is not acceptable in any situation by any side. it shouldn't have happened. but these kids were threatened. >> reporter: and the donetsk breakaway republic is trying to use an ace. accusing ukraine of stealing its children. >> translator: they are obliged according to their official responsibility to his return the children back here. this is a real crime. and there will be a time when someone will face justice. >> reporter: the majority of these children have been living in institutions like this most of their lives. now they find themselves in a tug-of-war between the two sides in this conflict. many of them say they are confused. some feel cut off from it all. and that's the sad reality. these children are officially

classified as orphans many have been abandoned by their own parents, though. all of them have family contacts back in donetsk. and most feel even more detached than they would do normally. >> translator: at the moment, i can't go home because of the rebels. we need border passes. it's as if it's another country. my relatives can't visit me and it's bad. very bad. it's been a year since i have seen them. i miss them. >> reporter: it's questionable as to whether the new ukraine or the separatist donetsk peoples republic is really looking after the best interests of these children. they are having to cope with a dramatic experience of war along with the isolation a feeling often unwanted. andrew simmons, al jazerra ukraine. and the u.s. city of ferguson some of those who hit the streets protesting racism are contesting the local elections to bring in change. kristen saloomey reports.

>> reporter: the crowd at st. mark's family church may have been small. >> an informed voter can make a difference. >> reporter: but the field of city council candidates, particularly black ones in ferguson missouri has never been so large. four african americans are running for three open seats in the april 7th election. >> we have an opportunities to effectuate sustainable real change right here in ferguson. >> reporter: change is exactly what many of ferguson's residents have been demanding ever since a white police officer shot mike brown an unarmed black teen. the white officer was cleared of wrongdoing. but a federal investigation found a pattern of racist policing in the city and its courts. it will fall to the next city council to make the reforms demanded by the u.s. justice department. adrian hawkins is a federal worker and a single mother of two. >> when i saw the candidates i said, somebody has to run.

somebody has to come and somebody has to help us. so i decided to be the change that i wanted to see. >> reporter: about two-thirds of ferguson's residents are black. but the vast majority of elected officials are white. ferguson isn't unusual. throughout st. louis county there are many communities that were once predominantly white that have shifted to predominantly black. and overwhelmingly the leadership in those communities hasn't kept pace with the swing changes in demographics. brian fletcher the former mayor of ferguson is now running for city council. a part-time job that pays just $250 a month. >> it's about participation unfortunately our off can african americans don't participate as much as caucasian in our community. >> reporter: only 6% of eligible black voters turned out in the last elections. >> reporter: whites at 17% weren't much better. patricia bynes is working hard to change that. >> i am very hopeful. i am seeing an incredible amount of interest.

people are getting the message that if they want change, they are going to have to get involved and they are going to have to, you know, take the reins and lead it. >> reporter: but it will take more than new candidates. angry residents will have to make their voices heard in the voting booths as well as on the streets. kristen sloop i, al saloomey, al jazerra. ♪ the u.s. spends tens of billions of your taxpayer dollars to route ot on the home front but what are you really getting for your money. whether terrorism protections work the way they are supposed to.