saudi-led coalition steps up air strikes on yemen's capital as pakistan decides to stay out of the conflict. from al jazeera's headquarters also ahead - local elections get under way in nigeria. can the president garner more support. the u.s. and cuba take a step towards ending a decade long rift. >> coming up we'll tell you why indians prefer traditional books

over e-books. jap the saudi-led stepped up air strikes. including an armed depot, it's 17 days since the operation since the operations began. >> there has been no let up in the fighting. the war in yemen is in its 17th day and the frontline is unclear. in the neighbourhood of aden witnesses speak of street battles between supporters of the embattled president abd-rabbu mansour hadi, and houthi fighters. the houthis are the target of an intense campaign by a saudi-led coalition.

yesterday a cab was hit. yesterday there were fighting. the coalition released military pictures which it says shows the bombing of a sports center in aden, used as a houthi ammunition store. >> translation: the use of schools, stadiums and civilian installations is evidence of the abnormal behaviour of the groups and the actions intended to damage the daily lives of citizens and their infrastructure. the houthis reportedly had presence in over half of yemen's 22 provinces, and have a firm grip on the capital where thousands turned up to march and support. >> translation: we, the yemeni people came to take part. to refuse the act of aggression. the people of yemen are peaceful. i consider these attacks to be

an occupation of our land. >> reporter: concern is growing about the humanitarian impact of the war. two planes carrying aid arrived in yemen since the first time since air strikes, bringing in medical and surgical equipment to treat thousands of people. >> we managed to have a much-awaited second plane, 35.6 tonnes of medical supplies, but also generators, and enough material to fix the broken systems. >> reporter: the saudi-led coalition is trying to help president abd-rabbu mansour hadi return to the country. he fled to saudi arabia, but not all the kingdoms back the military campaign. pakistan's parliament voted to stay out of the air strikes, offering to come up with a solution instead. . >> to nigeria where elections are under way, people are casting ballots. it's a vote watched to see if muhammadu buhari's party can consolidate the victory.

muhammadu buhari defeated goodluck jonathan in the presidential vote two weeks ago people will choose governors and politicians. governor said wield power and influence and have unfettered access and control the purse strings in health education and infrastructure. there's a battle for the control of lagos, statement to have a g.d.p. of $91 billion. higher than 42 countries in africa. and river state with the largest wells in jay nixon. we have the election covered in yolo where the pressure from boko haram is felt. >> it really is an amazing feeling. people here seem excited about the future. finally able to vote in relative peace.

bear in mind a lot of people have been displaced by months and months of violence. boko haram would come into the villages, and many were displaced. a lot of people come from a town, three hours from yola, which is a capital. women, children, men, who tell horrifying stories of what they went through, how the villages were razed to the ground. people were killed, they ran to the bush trying to look for safety. the military and government has said it's safe to return to their homes. people have mixed opinions about going back to the north of the country. >> the only problem is that there are homes that are bombs. boko haram planted bombs in some houses. this needs to be checked. they need to be checked. and remove the bombs. >> from the beginning, we have some that didn't run away. now they are settled >> reporter: some people have

bags packed ready to go home as soon as they get the all clear that it's okay to go back to their villages. we have seen disturbing picutres of destruction and devastation that has been happening further north, mosques destroyed, bridges, homes, people don't know what they are going back to. the scary fact, unexploded devices. the army is telling them it's not 100%. the government warned people do not rush to go home. wait for the all-clear. wait for the all-clear. even though boko haram may have been pushed further back, they are so concerned about security, that they come in, sweeping it clean. an egyptian leaders sentence said to death from brotherhood.

13 either have been given the same sentence and an egyptian citizens was sent to hive in gaol for supporting the group and permitting false news. it can be appealed before the highest civilian court. in iraq i.s.i.l. fighters continue to attack areas in anbar. it is the biggest province and borders syria and jordan. it's territory near ramadi that the they say they have. >> reporter: the islamic state of islamic state of iraq and levant is trying to push the areas back. police reinforcements from areas have been deployed to the area after an i.s.i.l. fangs. many have been killed. soldiers say they've been able to hold back i.s.i.l. known by

the acronym daesh. >> translation: the coward try to enter and attack the center of the city. they will not enter as long as we stand and fight them. >> reporter: i.s.i.l. is using social media to say the fighters are in control of military posts, and that suicide attackers hit iraqi force and captured vehicles and military equipment i.s.i.l. traps and snipers are making it hard to move forward. >> we made slow progress and cleared a number of houses in some areas. around 30-40 houses and killed a sniper from d.a.e.s.h. after victories in some provinces, d.a.e.s.h. started to flee to another area.

>> reporter: iraqi troops took control of tikrit and another province after weeks of fighting. the iraqi government says it's planning a similar operation in anbar, understand i.s.i.l. control. the victories have been overshadowed by the sectarian nature of the fighting. human rights accusing the troops of view due actions. many are afraid of revenge attacks. hundreds of families are said to have fled the fighting. if the fighting in anbar intensifies, civilians are struggling to find safe places. the i.s.i.l. affiliated group, sinai province posted a video of its leader. there were reports that ha was killed. he was president when the egyptian soldiers were killed. the video shows a soldiers

asking the egyptian army to stop sending forces to sinai. >> u.s. president obama shook hands with the cuban president raul castro, the latest sign of a flaw. later on saturday the two will hold a private meeting at the summit of the meeting in pan ma. james base is in pan ma city. >> reporter: arriving for a summit he hopes can change relations with its neighbours, president obama started a process of normalization with the government of raul castro four months ago. a cell phone camera took pictures of the two chatting and shaking hands. in a matter of hours they are expected to have a proper discussion, the first time it happened since mr castro's brother fidel seized power in 1959. >> as the united states begins a new chapter in the relationship

with cuba, we hope it creates an environment improving the lives of the cuban people. >> reporter: the u.s. is key to show the summit that it's a change in the relations with the entire region. there's a cloud on the horizon. protesters are angry about an executive order by president obama, placing sanctions on senior venezuelan officials and condemning the government of president nicolas maduro. he made a point of visiting a place where civilians were killed during the u.s. invasion of panama more than a quarter of a century ago. >> translation: to reach justice, the united states has to ask for forgiveness from panama and latin america for the invasion of 1989. >> reporter: he is not the only critic of obama. at many side events, it's clear the left is tradition of latin

american politics is alive. these comments from bolivian president evo morales. >> translation: now that they can't dominate us with military dictatorships - what do they do? economic aggressions, trying to drown the imperialistic governments. when they can't do that, they try to divide us. >> reporter: some nations in the region are wary of the united states. but if that meeting between obama, and president castro goes ahead, it will be an historic moment, and if, as expected, the u.s. removes cuba from the list of countries that are believed to be state-sponsors of terrorism, things really will changed at the summit . stay with us here on al jazeera. still to come. we are in nashville, america's biggest gun group are meeting

and pro-gun politicians are seizing the moment. plus... >> i'm veronica pedrosa near thailand at the hub of the fisheries industry which is once again under the spotlight for human trafficking and live labour despite government promises.

welcome back let's recap the headlines. the saudi-led coalition stepped up air strikes in and around yemen's capital sanaa. military installations amongst

the targets hit. it's 17 days since the operations began. in nigeria selections are under way for 29 state governors and other state representatives. it is closely watched to see if muhammadu buhari's party can consolidate their victory. they defeated goodluck jonathan in the presidential vote two weeks ago fighting between i.s.i.l. and the iraqi army intensified. i.s.i.l. says it sees most parts of the area. the iraqi army says it's holding ground. let's return to the top story and the air strikes in yemen. i spoke to a former advisor to the last three yemeni prime ministers, and said there was risk of a wider conflict. >> very heard there was talks between the g.c.c. countries and the russians that the russians were not using the veto. they might ab stain from the

revolution, but the russians should be in cooperation with the world. the situation is getting grave, and we may be heading to a war if the russians don't take care of the situation of peace and stability of this important strategic area. aid in this area has not reached the people. >> we are hearing that some of the shipment by the red cross would reach aden but how would it reach the people? >> the importance of having these forces to organise resistance to organise the supplies is important. as i said regional war is quite a problem with the iranians showing muscle and bringing jets of their fleet in the gulf of

aden. >> pakistan decided not to provide military support to the saudi-led coalition. parliament says it wants to maintain neutrality. nicole johnson is in islamabad. >> reporter: after almost five days of debate pakistan's parliament decided to support the territorial integrity of saudi arabia. >> there had to be a lot of balancing. you cannot afford to annoy iran. they've been able to play a conciliatory role along with turkey. >> reporter: the other consideration is iran. thursday its foreign minister

zarif led the military chief in islamabad. iran backs yemen's houthi but denies giving them weapons. the resolution states: >> reporter: pakistan does not want to offend the shi'a community by starting fighters in yemen, who belong to a sect. most university students we spoke to say pakistan should keep out. >> pakistan should not send forces. >> saudi arabia and pakistan's military have strong ties conducting joint exercises is there there are almost 1,000 soldiers. riyadh call for ground troops jets and fighters jets. it trusts pakistan and its army

of the sixth largest in the world. so far pak stan is not sending extra troops. the resolution is a reflection of the balance, seen to support saudi arabia which gave it financial assistance. it doesn't want to upset iran and increase territorial efforts at home gunman attacked a labour camp killing 20, overpowering eight security guard and shooting workers. no group claimed responsibility. libya - nine people have been killed and 20 wounded in fighting in benghazi. the conflict happened west of the city and was between a coalition of militias and forces loyal to the general kevin hastings. he backs the tobruk government. and they have two rival parties

the thai government vowed to do more to stop slave fishing after more than 500 men were rescued from a remote indonesian island. they have been working for beat owners in the industry where abuse and mistreatment was rife. veronica pedrosa went to an area where some workers are attempting to rebuild their lives. >> reporter: at a buddhist ceremony, hundreds that died at islands or at sea are mourned. few of the survivors pray with the monks. they ask that we don't show their faces, because rescued workers and families have been threatened with violence for telling their stories. a recent investigation found as 4,000 men on thai fishing boats are stranded on remote indonesian islands. workers' rights in thailand who uncovered the abuse say the priority now is to get the men

home safely. they need help from the government. >> the government is too worried about the export sector, and the international human trafficking report - they are more worried about their image than solving the problem. >> thailand is the world's third largest exporter of fish and fishery products. the industry was worth 8.8 billion in 2012. the international labour organization estimates 17% of workers are subjected to forced labour. >> this is the hub of the fisheries industry in thailand. it is where many trafficking victims say they are recruited and then sold on by brokers to fishing boat captains, and where seafood tainted by this labour is brought to be distributed nationally and globally. >> for years, cases have emerged that expose labour abuse in thailand's fishing industry. >> now we are changing the system.

we announced that in the beginning, it's not just announcing. we are putting into action in legislation, setting rules and regulations and checking the boats. >> even though they are now free, workers rescued are haunted by their experiences. this workers was trapped for 13 years on boats and indonesian islands. >> i don't know what to do next. i have to wait for compensation from the employers. from the employers. during the period of waiting, it could be 2-3 months. i want the government to help us. >> reporter: the future looks uncertain for workers like these, who have been rescued, let alone those stranded or trapped in the systematic abuse hillary clinton is set to launch her long-awaited 2016 presidential campaign. that's according to various u.s. media reports. the former secretary of state is expected to make the

announcement on twitter on sunday. this will be her second bid to be president. she failed to win the democratic nomination in 2008 against president obama. >> hillary clinton is probably glad not to attend the national rifle association, several there took aim at her gun control views, over those of president obama. republicans are promising to defend gun rights and fight what they see as restrictive laws. tom ackerman reports from nashville. >> reporter: the 70,000 people who thronged the nashville hall demonstrated the strength of a potent democratic bloc. those that see gun ownership as a constitutional right and a haloed tradition. people like this young mother from arkansas owning four guns. >> more for protection. i have to do more practice shooting.

>> reporter: many complain about the media's distortion of their motives. >> they don't want to use it, but have it just in case something happens, to protect their family, that is a misconception, you know, a bunch of crazy people out there shooting stuff up. that's not the case x >> most of the crowd was here to see the guns and the gear, the nine republican hopefuls were here to tell them they would not only preserve gun owners rights, but fight to expand them. >> marco rubio targeted the tight handgun laws in washington. it is excusable in washington the seat of the people's power, the constitutional rite to bear arms is in jeopardy. and that's why i took action last month to roll back d.c.'s restrictive gun laws. >> reporter: he and the others broadened their messages to restate a central theme, that president obama is lenient. >> why don't you focus more on keeping weapons out of the hands of islamic terrorists, and less

on keeping weapons out of the hands of law-abiding americans? >> but with president obama's office coming to an end, the candidates warned the audience that hillary clinton would be worse for gun owners. 10 police officers and california have been suspended. footage emerged appearing to show them beating a suspect that had surrendered. in the clip officers can be seen beating a man for around a minute. that was, of course, after he was subdued with a taser. the sheriff of the country described the actions as excessive. . >> i'm asking for patience while we complete a thorough and fair investigation. i'm disturbed and troubled by what i see. it does not appear to be in line with policies and procedures. a portion of it.

i ask that you allow us to conduct the investigation, and i assure you if there is criminal wrongdoing on the part of any deputy sheriff or a policy violation, we will take action. >> reporter: e-books are popular in many countries, but in india the good old paper books are pop u ever lar. they account for 1% of sales. >> reporter: the latest e-readers are on display. college student - e-books are the future. >> i find it convenient. when you go back to read anything, you can do that and don't have to carry heavy weight with you but kumar's opinion appears to be in the minority because most here of all ages prefer traditional books. a preference shared by millions across india. books are popular, and they sell

anywhere. e-books are not preferred. book readers and sellers are embracing new technology. books are more popular thanks to online sales. at the time people had to order books through the male taking weeks or months to arrive. >> today we can right now, we get the payment immediately. that is done. >> reporter: a magic that increased book sales, while e-books fall behind. e-book sales have risen in india, but are no match for centraleditional books that are available and cheap. besides that there's a certain prestige in india of owning a book that happens when they hold it in their hands. economic growth meant more people can afford books, which is why sales are up. others say books are part of the

culture. >> in india the book is an object. it is considered sacred. >> reporter: this person says he and fellow writers prefer traditional books, but say the debate over e-books may not be necessary because the basics of writing and read are are the same. >> anguish of writing have not changed. joys of reading has not changed. all that changes is the way the book is delivered from author to reader. that will keep changing. >> reporter: no one is sure if the younger generation will shift loyalty to e-books or not. for now, for most in india, nothing beats a book. i want to show you now some pretty special home video. this was shot by ravt roe naughts -- astronauts living on the international space station, using a go pro camera and have completed two walks to repair

the iff for the first -- i.s.s. for the first spacecraft capable of transporting astronauts. >> for more on space and other stories, head over to the website aljazeera.com. you can see the front page there. this week on "talk to al jazeera" u.n.i.c.e.f. executive director anthony lake. >> you see children everywhere who have not given up hope. if they haven't given up hope, what possible excuse can we have for giving up hope? as the syrian war enters its fifth year he says critical efforts are needed to stop millions of children becoming a lost generation. >> every one of those numbers is an individual child. but th