capability gapings. and i think that's what you are seeing. >> michael stevens thank you very much. we see there, our headline story is about syria. more on all of those conflicts at aljazeera.com. the syrian government steps up air strikes over two of the country's largest cities as doctors detail the use of chemical weapons on civilians. residential areas are now being targeted in aden as al-qaeda reportedly takes over a major airport in southern yemen. >> i was scared to death and didn't want to show it. >> chicago starts to make amends for some people tortured by

police. ♪ this is al jazeera america live from new york city. i'm randall pinkston. the united nations today is holding discussions on the alleged use of chemical weapons by the syrian government. the meeting comes on the heels of a human rights watch report claiming president bashar al-assad's regime used toxic chemicals in barrel bomb attacks last month. in the last 36 hours there has been an increase in syrian government air strikes over aleppo in idlib province. mohammed has the latest from beirut. >> reporter: over 220,000 people killed in the past four years of fighting in syria, that number being provided by the syrian observatory for human rights who say that over 60,000 people

killed since the fighting began in syria were civilians, and over 11,000 of those killed were children. they also reported that clashes have intensified especially in idlib province, the second provincial capitol to have been overtaken by rebels. that happened at the end of march, and since then there have been more air raids in that area. in the past 36 hours, we're told there have been over 120 air raids, and that civilians are really really suffering. it has gotten so much bloodier. it has gotten so bad, in fact human rights watch released a report in which they accuse the syria regime of using chlorine in barrel bombs. dozens more migrants are

feared drowned off of the coast of italy when their ship capsized. it's the latest incident involving people trying to get from africa to europe. more than 500 migrants arrived in italy today after being rescued. the italian coast guard says it has saved 10,000 since friday. hundreds more apparently drowned this week trying to make the crossing. now to yemen where military officials al-qaeda has taken control of a mayor airport in the south. infantry members reportedly fled fighting. after seizing the airport the rebels captured the sea port and an oil terminal. in recent weeks nearly 200 u.s. citizens left yemen. these americans were among those who arrived on an overcrowded fishing boat. more than 730 people have been

killed in air attacks and street battles. much of the fighting is taking place in the port city of aden. jamal has more. >> reporter: on the offensive and pushing forward, fighters loyal to yemen's president hadi continued to make gains in the port city of aden. they managed to capture a tank used by houthis, destroyed another, and reportedly killed at least ten fighters on wednesday. the gains made have also lead to the defection and surrender of 50 soldiers formally allied with former president saleh. video has also emerged of residential areas being targeted. homes in an area of aden were

destroyed. the saudi arabia lead coalition continues to pound the houthis and their allies from the air. among their targets a metal factory allegedly used as a base reduced to rubble within seconds. although the coalition has limited its attacks to air strikes, al jazeera has been told a ground offensive is being considered. >> the [ inaudible ] where the time would be appropriate, and we find that we have the necessity, the necessity to go to the next step. >> reporter: it appears that the houthis and saleh's forces are on the back foot. the ousted president has sent an envoy to gulf countries with a proposal which would guarantee him a safe exit. but the allies say saleh cannot

be part of the solution. >> they are not part of the -- of the plan. the plan is yemen. now we are facing the same [ inaudible ] they are in the same boat. they should find the same end. >> reporter: even if a military victory appears eminent for the saudi-lead coalition and president hueadi, the political problem remains. again today vladimir putin met the public via television. the russian president holding his annual question and answer marathon in moscow. it lasted four hours. many of the questions centered on the economy and sanctions imposed on russia over its role in ukraine. >> translator: we did have discussions with entrepreneurs, and i said they shouldn't expect

that sanctions would be lifted any time soon. it's a political question. it is a strategic issue for many of our partners who want to stop russian development. i don't think it's related directly to the situation in ukraine. about 3 million questions were submitted. two years ago one of the sessions went for five hours. in south korea grieving parents are snubbing the country's president and prime minister. they refuse to meet with their country's leaders as the nation paused to remember the hundreds killed when a ferry sank one year ago. as harry fawcett reports the families accuse the government of obstructing the investigation. >> reporter: a year since the sewol sank and the president came to the port to offer condolences to the parents and it seems to grant one of their key demands. >> translator: i now believe that it's time for us to seriously prepare for the ship's salvage. we will quickly take necessary

measures >> operator: but the parents decided not to meet her, accusing her government of hindering an independent investigation into the causes of the disaster. in the student's hometown first the prime minister was denied access to the main memorial and when the time came for a ceremony, the families called it off. underlying the anger, deep grief that a year has done little to heal. >> translator: i get a reoccurring dream. i wish that someone could make a time machine, so i could go back to 10:00 am on april 16th. there i could go and tell them to get out quickly, and they would all be out in five or ten minutes. a year has passed but nothing has changed. >> reporter: the images burned into the collective memory of this country. the mobile phone footage that came later hurts still more. those children showing obeying

repeated instructions to stay put as the sewol overturned trapping them under the water. meanwhile the captain was the first to be rescued. the families say the full story of corruption and a botched rescue hasn't been told accusing the government of putting restrictions on a special investigation and attempting to undermine its independence. the grief and commemoration has been overshadowed by the acrimony that still surrounds the sinking a year on. some in this country believe it's time to move on, that the families should accept generous compensation and allow the nation to heal. but on this anniversary evening in central seoul, evidence of support for their fight. thousands, many students gathering to mark a day when other young people were failed

by their elders. palestinian protesters and israeli socials clashed earlier today in the west bank. some of the demonstrators hurled stones at israeli forces outside of a prison. the soldiers responded with tear gas. the palestinians were preparing to mark prisoner day which traditionally happens tomorrow. israel today is remembering the millions who died in the holocaust. sirens whaled for several minutes across the country. this year marks 70 years since the liberation of the nazi concentration camps. israel is in the process of deporting thousands of asylum seekers back to africa. but most of those people want to stay even if they are imprisoned in israel. our correspondent explains.

>> reporter: when israel rounded up thousands of asylum seeshgs and put them here it was thought restrictions on their movement and access to jobs would norms to return home. but only some have left so the government offered an alternative. written notices given to some say they will be deported to unnamed african countries, thought be uganda and rwanda. this man received this notice and reforces to be deported to rwanda, because he says it is unsafe. >> translator: i know rwanda there is no security and no strong government there, and no u.n. protection. no one stays in rwanda. it's a transfer point for refugees who use brokers to go to safer places. >> reporter: the ministry says it will encourage infiltrators to leave in an honorable and safe way and serve as an effective tool for fulfilling

our obligations towards israeli citizens and restoring the fabric of the life of the residents of south tel-aviv. if they refuse to leave they will face a hearing that will determine their indefinite imprisonment. the israeli authorities say 1,500 asylum seekers have agreed to be deported but there are tens of thousands of migrants who have requested asylum here. many believe their asylum applications weren't even reviewed. >> they throw my asylum request, and they -- while i have been waiting for the interview for the request. last month they call me and just told me to leave the country without seeing my request. is it fair at all? >> reporter: human rights

activists say the israeli government may be keeping details of deals reached with the african countries intentionally secret. >> israel maybe is giving weapons in exchange for unwanted refugees. i think the israeli public would be outraged if they learned that israel is giving millions and hundreds of millions of dollars to get a few hundreds of people out of israel. >> reporter: these men say they would rather be jailed in israel than deported to an unknown destiny. coming up on al jazeera america, paying reparations after decades of abuse. chicago planning on helping people who were tortured by police. and a look at the condition of the gulf of mexico five years after the bp oil spill. two reports paint very different pictures.

officials in panama beach, florida promised a major crackdown after a sexual assault happened on a crowded beach. >> reporter: this is the portion of the individual dwlee police have released to the public. the explosive part is what you don't see here an unconscious young woman being sexually assaulted on a florida beach. >> this is like no more than a group of wild animals preying on a carcass as it's laying in the woods. there were three subjects shown on video with an incapacitated female as she lay incapacitated, these three subjects were sexually battering here. >> reporter: on wednesday police arrested a tennessee college student. he is the third person to be

charged in this case. the 19 year old victim has not been identified. the alleged incident took place in brood daylight at a time when thousands of students were crowding panama city beach. >> we have got to get control of our beaches. it is not safe for our children. >> reporter: residents have been asking local leaders to reign in the beach's spring break. the city bans alcohol consumption on beaches during spring break time. >> i don't believe the original two guys that we arrested personally new him. but we do have him on video, and we do have the victim identifying him. and now that we have in his custody, we were able to identify him as the third person in the video. >> reporter: they are still searching for a fourth suspect. there are reports today that a volunteer sheriff's deputy in

oklahoma who shot and killed an african american man may not have taken state-mandated training. supervisors after the tulsa country sheriff's office were told to sign off on robert bates records even if he had not completed gun raining. other reports were reportedly lost over the years. he is charged with manslaughter for fatally shooting the man earlier this month. in chicago the city council is considering a sweeping plan to compensate people who say they were tortured while in police custody. they say the officers beat them suffocated them and even used electrical shock to get them to admit to crimes. >> they did play the game called russian roulette on me. >> reporter: daryle cannon says chicago police officers shoved the barrel of a shotgun into his

mouth. >> the other detective told him go ahead and blow that mother [ censor bleep ] off and then they pulled the trigger. >> the first time they pulled the trigger, what did you think? >> i was scared to death and i don't want to show it. my mind felt like my head was being blown off when i heard that click. then they put me in the back seat of the detective car. they had my feet outside. i was still hand guff -- cuffed they pulled my pans and shorts down and started to shock me with a cattle guard. >> reporter: he spent 24 years in prison for a crime he says he didn't commit. he is one of 120 mostly black men who endured torture at the hands of chicago police between

1982 and 1991. this week the city finally acknowledged the victims of the case [ applause ] >> the city council introduced an ordinance that would set aside $5.5 million for dozens of victims connected with the scandal. this woman says it is significant on several counts. >> this is the first time any city in the united states of america has ever acknowledged racist police practices, and provided reparations. and to be clear, we are talking about reparations for black people in this instance. that is a huge landmark. >> reporter: the mayor supports the proposal which some hope to close the book on one of the city's darkest chapters.

>> to own up a and help the victims have their sense of cloture. >> reporter: the deal would provide up to 100,000 dollars for each victim offer free counseling, and a formal apology issued by the city. one thing the city could not take back is burj's 3 outside thousand dollars a month pension. >> even with that conviction he was able to keep his pension, so at this point, we really have no other recourse. >> reporter: it's something darrell says he would like to fight. he says the city's acknowledgment is a start to healing. >> it's a partial victory, and sends a message throughout the united states that at some point in time you can bare enough pressure on government without a physical riot or something of

this nature here and make change. nearly five years after the deep water horizon oil rig exploded in the gulf of mexico local communities are still feeling the impact. there are a lot of questions about what went wrong and what is being done to clean up. >> reporter: the blowout on bp's oil rig in 2010 sent more than 3 million barrels of crude gushing into the gulf of mexico. five years later there is a widening debate and two conflicting reports about the recovery of the gulf's ecosystem. >> there's still oil out here and still cleanup that needs to happen. bp says the gulf is rebounding. but the national wildlife federation says the oil is spill impacting species.

but who has it right? we went to an independent source to get answers. a member of the group tasked with determining the long-term damage caused by the spill to help sort out just where the gulf stands five years later. >> you can watch jonathan's full report tonight at 8:00 eastern. people in california are being asked to conservative water, but some of the richest counties have more water than others. and veterans helping veterans. some former service members ride into washington to assist wounded warriors.

>> i think we're into something that's bigger than us... >> that's the pain that your mother feels when you disrespect her son... >> me being here is defying all odds... >> they were patriots they wanted there country back >> al jazeera america presents the passion... >> onward.. >> pain... >> it's too much... >> ..and triumph... inspirational real life stories >> all these labels the world throws at you, that's what drives me to push.. >> of ordinary people >> i tasted the american dream, i liked it... >> living extraordinary lives... >> if we could multiply this program, we could change the

world >> from the best filmmakers of our time >> i give al jazeera tremendous credit, because it's not traditionally what broadcast journalism does >> the new home for original documentaries al jazeera america presents only on al jazeera america astronauts at the international space station are finally getting their coffee break. the craft is expected to reach the iss tomorrow. one of the things in it is the iss espresso machine. one of the biggest challenges in designing the machine was how to prevent the drink from floating away. last week state officials in california said communities that use more water per person need to cut back at a higher rate.

but residents of those towns say the rules don't take into account factors like the local climate or if they had been saving in case of emergency. and while almost all of california is parched, there is one county that has water to spare. militia chan takes a look. >> reporter: the ravages of the california drought. but north of san francisco, it's water, water everywhere and every drop to drink. >> so our reservoirs are at 95% capacity right now. >> reporter: it's one of the richest counties in the state and the country. here is yet another problem these residents don't need to worry about. >> we take a look up north and we can't help but with envious.

we're sitting here straging with what little waters we have and being told hey, think twice before you flush. >> we're not part of the state water project or the central valley project. we're a very unique system here that has a local supply. our mount tam is where most of our water comes from. >> good water management is key, and can have an impact on the worst drought the state has seen in a century. just 100 miles away the situation couldn't look any different. retired farmer bob worries how his peers are responding to the drought. digging deeper wells and sucking ground water dry. pushing the state to build more

reservoirs. buying water from other districts. >> when my grandparents came here part of their annual food budget was to pitch fork salmon out of this creek and can them. >> for him the creek shows the follie of the region's water policy. already the energy -- envy of the region few people enjoy water conditions like the lucky residents here. the district says that as wealthy as people here are, they have acted responsibly, conserving water belong before the drought. >> we do feel lucky, but it's part luck and part vision that somebody looked forward to saying what if? i think a lot of it is geographic as well.

but we're still part of the whole state, so we're part of the solution. >> reporter: but only a part of that solution. it doesn't compete to buy water, and it doesn't sell it either. there are no pipelines to carry it. a group of special cyclists rolled into the white house today to greeting from the president. they are riding for the wounded warrior project. it's the eighth annual soldier ride involving veterans who suffered injuries. it's designed to help them boost their physical health. and vice president biden and president obama greeting them as they arrived. thanks for joining us. the news continues next live from london and for the latest headlines you can go to our website at aljazeera.com.

♪ yemen's new vice president tells the houthis rebels to end their offensive. ♪ ♪ watching al jazeera live from london. good to have you along. in the next 30 minutes another 41 feared to have drowned as the migrant crisis off the coast of italy gets worse. a dramatic increase as syria they say the war has killed 220,000 people. and call the president houthis faces the public f