struggling to find food water and fuel - yemen's vice president voices the plight of his people and calls for dool oug and dialogue and an end to the fighting. >> hello again, i'm martine dennis i'm martine dennis. we are live from doha. also to come on the program - a year since the sinking of the sewol ferry. a direct line to vladimir putin, russians given a chance to

question their president another sign that china's economic might is slipping we'll start in yemen, where the vice president has called for an armed force to support the legitimate government in exile, and says a key priority is to deal with yemen's worsening humanitarian crisis. >> translation: the international community and the region have to intervene urgently in order to pave the way for the citizens to live in a suitable manner and to put an end to the crisis so it doesn't become a catastrophe. we need to express the utmost priority of the government is to deal with the humanitarian situation in yemen without distrip nation. that's why we decided the first step is to form a higher

committee. >> we can two to our correspondent in jizan. by is in saudi arabia. close to the border. we have seen the deputy president. give us an idea of his agenda. what seems to be his priority? >> yes what he has announce's a war time government program with top priorityies the. calls for more of that and channelling it to yemen who are in a desperate situation. and the is it priorities for other priorities,ing on the army to be answerable to the government. and a call for the people of yemen to unite and support the

effort aft government to bring about a peaceful solution to the crisis in yemen. he refused any idea of a dialogue before the houthis withdraw from part of the country, including this season. so in this statement they have laid out the general points or the main things that his government would like to focus on in this particular time including the higher committee to coordinate humanitarian supplies to the yemenis, and he has reiterated the will of this new government or emergency government to sit down around a table for negotiations but only after the houthis withdraw from parts of the country. >> reporter: now, when he was appointed, he was widely regarded as a conciliatory figure and commands a lot of respect throughout the country. >> yes, he is more of a figure

of consensus than even president hardy. many people in yemen have a lot of criticism against president abd-rabbu mansour hadi. his performance during the last few years. they described him as a weak president, a man who couldn't muster the support for his transitional government to democracy, and force the houthis out of sanaa. he could not do a lot of things expected of him as the man who had been chosen to head the transition. on the contrary he is liked by many people including the houthis, they tried to convince him not to tender his resignation when staging a coup trying to keep him by any means, even putting him under house arrest and during the recent messages sent by president ali abdullah saleh and the houthis. there was mention of him as a man acceptable as the leader of

yemeni in the post abd-rabbu mansour hadi era, a man expected to be a saviour for the country if he indeed becomes the president of the country in the future thank you very much. our correspondent in jizan in saudi arabia well there we saw the deputy president voicing the concerns about the humanitarian situation in his country, which is getting worse. the u.n. echoed that plus they've also announced that it's envoy to the country, jamal benomar, he has resigned. he has been overseeing efforts to reach a political deal between the rival factions that fell apart when the houthis staged their takeover. as the fighting escalates the number of dead and injured rises. more than 730 people have been killed in the air attacks and the street battles.

nearly 2,760 have been injured. we have more. >> reporter: on the offensive and pushing forward. fighters loyal to abd-rabbu mansour hadi make gains in aden and capture a tank used by houthis, destroyed another and killed 0 fighters. gain made and led to the defection and surrender of 50 soldiers loyal to ali abdullah saleh, an ally of the houthis. opponents to the houthis suffered losses, three killed in a battle for the airport, forcing their enemies to retreat. video emerged of residential areas targeted by houthi shelling. homes in aden were destroyed. the saudi-led coalition pounds

the houthis and allies from the air. among the targets a metal factory allegedly used as a base, reduced to rubble. the coalition limited its attacks to air strikes, al jazeera is told a ground offensive is being considered. >> it is part of the campaign plan. when the time and we find a necessity to go to the next step. i think it could be an option. gun gun >> reporter: it appears that the houthis and ali abdullah saleh's forces are on the back foot. the ousted president sent an envoy to gulf countries with a proposal guaranteeing him a safe exit. the saudis and their allies say that ali abdullah saleh cannot be part of the political solution. >> ali abdullah saleh and the militias are not part of the

plan. the plan is yemen. now we are facing the same thing, they are in the same vote, the same end. >> reporter: even if a military victory appears imminent for the saudi-led coalition, the political conflict within yemen's society remains. finding a solution will require a consensus by all sides, not victory by one now, within the past 36 hours there has been an increase in syrian government air strikes over aleppo and idlib. according to a human rights group, over 120 strikes killed 40 civilians. our correspondent is monitoring developments from lebanon.

>> reporter: over 220,000 killed the syrian observatory for human rights say 65,000 killed since the fighting and that over 11,000 were children. the syrian observatory for human rights reported that clashes intensified. especially in idlib. it happened at the end of march. since then there has been more air raids by the syrian regime according to activists in the area. over the course of the past 36 hours we are told that there has been over 120 air raids, that dozens of barrel bombs have been dropped and civilians are suffering. that it's gotten so much bloodstainsier, so bad, in fact that just tuesday human rights watch released a report in which they accuse the syrian regime of using chemical warfare using chlorine in barrel bombs dropped in idlib over the past - over

the course of the last two weeks in march also in syria at least eight were killed in a dozen attack in damnar. -- damascus main roundabout in the town and homes destroyed. the area has been bombarded by government air strikes and artillery now, a south korean president says steps to salvage the wreckage of the sewol that sank last year will begin soon. memorial services are being held to mark the anniversary killing 304 people most high school students. nine are still missing. there has been protests by the families of those who died. some of them blocking the prime minister from taking part in the service. organizers cancelled the

seniors, alleging government resistance. the president faced similar protests at another event. families say demand for a thorough probe is not met. are harry fawcett is in seoul where mourners gather the. here there is more than a tinge of protest in the air as well. that's been the case. families have been opposing what the government has been doing in the year since calling for a fully independent investigation to explain to questions they had about corruption and lax standards leading to the

sinking, the problems with the government-led rescue effort that they say meant so many more than were necessary did lose their lives. be saw the were the visited the port and offering a concession saying that she was commit to raising the ship from the seabed to recover the nine still missing people. no matter what the cost would be, because the government talked about the cost. that wasn't enough for the families and cancelled the event in the home down as a result of that. they are standing firm. it's a day of grief and continued anger. and that's the story of the sinking. not just the tragic loss of life, but the deep divisions and harsh questions asked about the way that public life is run in this country, questions that are unanswered a year on

the signs of the search area for the malaysia airlines flight mh370 will be doubled if no wreckage is found by the end of next month. the malaysian minister made the announcement as officials met to discuss the hunt for clues. the disappearance of the boeing and its passengers is one of the biggest mysteries in aviation history russia's president vladimir putin is fielding questions, taking questions from a live studio audience. he stated that there were no russian military in ukraine. he was asked whether sanctions would be lifted soon. >> when it comes to sanctions we had discussions with

entrepreneurs, and i said they shouldn't expect sanctions would be lifted. it's a political question and a question for many of our partners. i don't think it's related directly to the situation of ukraine. we do what we can to support the minsk agreement. sanctions are not lifted. we should use the opportunity to turn it around. we replace certain imports, stimulating our economy and certain industries. >> still to come here at al jazeera - we'll hear from migrant workers who say they are under attack in south africa. >> and thousands of people struggling to make a living in the u.s. are fighting for better wages.

we replace certain imports, imports,

hello again. these are the top stories - yemen's vice president called for the armed forces in the country to support the legitimate government in exile. the priority for the government was to deal with the urgent humanitarian situation. in south korea grieving parents snubbed the prime minister and the president on the first anniversary of the sewol ferry disaster, accused of obstructing an investigation into the disaster which killed 304 people and the russian president vladimir putin is fielding questions currently from a live studio audience for his annual

call in show. this is the 13th he's done. there were no russian troops in eastern ukraine. questions on the slumping economy and sanctions dominated the start of the session. our main story is the developments in yemen. professor of modern and contemporary history from qatar university joins us in the studio. tell us about your thoughts when you saw the new deputy president making his political statement in riyadh. it sort of signifies the start of a new process of negotiations i would say. >> since 2013ers there has been a debate since houthis controlled some of the city, and the president was under house

arrest and other ministers. i think the time came for the legitimate government in the eye of the international community to speak to the hub lick, to the yemenis, and say you have a government and politician that think of your interests and want your life to be better. for that as we watched they were focussing on three elements. one is to the yemenis - we are here thinking of you thin of your concerns and your suffering, and we try to work on this. for that reason it was clear that the message is yemenis inside yemen, that there is a government trying to function as early as possible to get things in order. >> it seems as though the weight of responsibility is firmly placed on the soldiers of this man. does that mean we have seen the end of the abd-rabbu mansour hadi era? >> it's early to say that.

however, it seems that there is a sort of preparation. we knew that abd-rabbu mansour hadi had an issue within the military, we had an issue with some tribe leaders and the region as well. he was not actually performing as he should be when he was the president. i think there are a lot of criticisms to his presidency in the few months before the houthis took over sanaa. >> another development is the bowing out of jamal benomar from the process, the u.s. special envoy opening the way for a new u.n. figure. will that energy negotiations. >> yes, and no. jamal benomar was blamed of being responsible playing sometimes a negative role. no because the new envoy should know exactly what happened in yemen, and what is the real role of the - you know the envoy of

the united nations. he was criticized by the government and houthis, he did not play enough role to contain the crisis and engage parties together and times actually blamed him for being - helping houthis and other players. >> thank you very much indeed. >> my pleasure now, amnesty international says rampant human rights abuses continue in bahrain despite government reforms. the abuses against shia muslim activists and critics of the shia leadership include torture, arbitrary aarrests and a ban on protest. amnesty began a fact-finding process since the crackdown on protesters. bahrain's government has not responded to a request for comment ultimately is calling for more help in rescuing migrants that risk their lives crossing

the mediterranean sea into europe. at least 400 are feared drowned after a shipwreck off the coast of libya on monday. the italian coast guard says they managed to save thousands of migrants since friday but the number of people dying en route spiked this year. we'll go live to our correspondent paul brennan in sicily. >> you are in a southern part of italy, where the immigrants try to land. tell us about the scene? >> we moved down here because the problem posed by the migrant situation in southern italy is not a drip drip but a tidal wave of migrants. hundreds arrive every day,

augusta, where i'm standing is expecting to receive a ship midafternoon with nearly 600 migrants on it. 592 is the count by the coast guard. another ship is coming into another port with 301 migrants on board, and there's a third that has around 110 refugee migrants on board. the coast guard count so far is in excess of 10,000 plucked from the waters of the mediterranean. they know there's five ongoing operations including the three i told you, but two more where they are not sure how many migrants have been rescued. you see the problem as the summer months approach and the peak season to cross the mediterranean gets into full

swing. the problem is massive. tens of thousands in a matter of months. >> all this at a time ever the e.u. cut dramatically its commitment to maritime patrols in the mediterranean. >> that's precisely the problem highlighted by humanitarian groups in the past couple of days. back in november the operation by the italian navy funded to the tune of $10 million a month was scaled back and overtaken by a small operation called triton a border control, funded at $3 million a third of the budget. previous operation. it's to protect europe's borders, not a proactive search and rescue. humanitarians say that leaves migrants to drown. it's not doing enough to rescue them from the water, it's leaving them to their own fate and that is not good enough for

humanitarian groups. it's polarizing opinion. there are others saying europe should follow the example of australia and turn the migrants away and that may deter them from setting off in the first place. it's a polarizing debate. >> paul brennan from sicily in south africa thousands of foreigners are seeking shelter in police stations and refugee camps in johannesburg. the south african ruling a.n.c. party condemn the zenno fobing attacks against immigrant shopkeepers, six have been killed and thousands forced from their homes, attackers tell them to get out of the country. our correspondent spoke to some victims of the violence in durban. >> reporter: these migrant workers in south africa say they'll do anything to protect

themselves and families. >> we are sick and tired of this xenophobia. they kill us lots. we didn't kill maybe one person. >> there has been a wave of fighting between immigrants and locals. here in durban four people have been killed. thousands fled their homes. gloria is from mozambique. >> here in a sports field she came to south africa 20 years ago, but the men that chased her and her nine-year-old out of her home insisted that she doesn't belong here. >> translation: they say we know you are not from south africa, can you get out. you must go, because when we are done here, we are coming for you. i ran away. >> here in a sportsfield foreigners feel there is safety in numbers. they have food from agencies. they don't now how long they'll be here. be here.> there's thought to be more than 1,000 families. they say they are confused and can't understand why they are not welcome.

>> some locals accused immigrants from other countries of taking their jobs. the unemployment rate is at around 25%, but others say the anger is misguided. this is a protest against south africans who have been screaming and shouting to the government, for their voices to be heard, and the government ignored them. now, people are starting to protest. >> it will get dark and cold. most families would rather be in their homes. they can't leave yet, not until they are sure some of their neighbours won't attack them again now, fast food workers in brazil are protesting to show solidarity with u.s. colleagues. demonstrators took to the streets in sao paulo saying brands like mcdonald's exploit young people, and can't live on the hourly wages paid by american corporations now japan has over taken china as the largest foreign

holder of u.s. debt the first time that china has been knocked off the top spot on the creditor league table. both own the most american government bonds and recently they swapped places. china has been selling off and japan buying more. this third place is a group of private banks and hedge and pension funds in the caribbean. belgium is in fourth place, these are the foreign creditors, the in the one spot adding to the u.s. treasury, it's the overall largest holder of u.s. debt meaning the u.s. is effectively loaning itself the most amount of money. a market analyst at cnc in london and says this shows the strengthening of the u.s.

economy. >> i think what this reflects is the differing in direction of the u.s. and japanese economy. just because in the u.s. things are improving over there, we are looking towards a hike in interest rates, whereas in japan, the central bank of japan has an agressive policy of buying government bonds, like the u.s. was doing. as a result, interest rates in japan are low. so japnese sabres are moving out of japan into the u.s. to organise a bigger growth rate. . >> things in china are weaker it looks like the federal reserve will raise interest rate. the people's bank of china is

likely to engage in an aggressive easing policy pushing interest rates lower in china. as it stands interest rates in chine e are above 5% not the same as japan, for the chinese to blood to ubs and buy as many treasuries, i think that's why they are holding the money back not going after interest rates aggressively using it for their own economy. >> diplomacy lost, the u.n. envoy to yemen steps down as the vice president tries to rally throws late to the president. >> russian penalty vladimir putin