>> hi, everyone. this is al jazeera america, i'm john seigenthaler. fired up. >> it's a hole. it's a culture more teens smoking e-cigarettes - the reasons and the risks. >> standardized tests - as more student' parents opt out, teachers who say that's the wrong answer b.p. oil... >> the idea that the gulf has recovered is preposterous. millions of gallons at the bottom of the gulf of mexico.

the impact five years after the spill. never forget... >> if you enter the left you would go directly to the gas chambers. we talk to a last remaining survivor of auschwitz we begin with a disturbing report on the popularity of e-cigarettes, coming from the c.d.c., and it finds that the number of high school students using e-cigarettes is sky rocketing. bisi onile-ere is in detroit with more. >> there's a number of reasons why we see an increase. for one, health experts believe that e-cigarettes are targeted towards teens, and because they are not federally regulated, and here in michigan and other states minors have easy access to electronic cigarettes.

>> reporter: victoria randolph picked up her first cigarette at the age of 16. today this teenager prepares puffing on this. randolph is smoking on electronic cigarette. >> they have instagram and facebook pages and youtube channels teaching you to build on the stuff. it's a whole - it's a culture. >> it's a battery-powered nicotine infused vaporizer growing in popularity among teenagers. randolph says she was smoking a pack of cigarettes a day. do you feel different? >> i feel healthier. i don't have the cough or hacking i had smoking cigarettes. when i smoked cigarettes i felt i was covered in ash and smelt bad all the time. >> reporter: according to a report released by the c.d.c. on thursday the number of middle and high school students who tried e-cigarettes tripped in

one year to 13%. and in 2011 traditional cigarette smoking declined from 16% to 9%. >> the striking increase in middle school and high school cigarettes and haka is an emergency. >> reporter: scientists are yet to determine if there are long-term effects from using e-cigarettes. the food and drug administration is considering imposing regulations on the industry. among them banning sales to anyone under 18. >> electronic cigarettes contain and deliver nicotine. nicotine is dangerous to the developing child and adolescent brain. parents should take no comfort in the fact that their kids are using an e-cigarette rather than a burning cigarette because of the presence of nicotine. any tobacco or nick teen-con --

nicotine containing product used by a child or adult is bad for the that push and public health. victoria says she eventually plans to quit. >> i eventually will quit. i didn't use it for the culture. i got into the culture because i was using it. i was using it to quit. i still am. >> selling e-cigarettes to minors is banned in some states, there's no federal restriction of e-cigarette sales to children in the u.s. a propose add rule by the f.d.a. this summer could change that. and the f.d.a. has been working on reigning in the industry for a year. among many things it says it wants to curb sales to minors and disclose ingredients on all of the products thank you very much. john is a professor at george washington university law school and the founder of action on smoking and health.

he is in washington tonight. professor, we heard in the story that you are trading one bad habit for another. isn't it less dangerous to smoke an e-cigarette than it is a regular cigarette? >> the problem is there's no proof that you are trading one for the other. there's strong evidence that a lot of people who otherwise would be forced to give up smoking - for example, when it's banned in the work place, use the e-cigarette to ease the addiction at work and come home and smoke the regular cigarettes and get the worst of both possible worlds. the suspicion that somehow the e-cigarette is less dangerous than tobacco cigarettes is something the federal government says is not true and major health organizations say is not true. believe me the health organization would love advice that it would help smokers, but this doesn't show it's happening, it's bringing more children to nicotine's.

>> nicotine is not carcinogenic. >> it's addictive, more addictive than heroin or cocaine. >> it's not carcinogenic like regular cigarettes are. >> you should know most people who die from smoking don't die from cancer they die from heart attacks, strokes and other cardia event, they are not brought on by the carcinogens, but the nicotine. people think it's safer, it may not be. >> stopping radio and tv commercials for e-cigarettes is that the best way to stop this? or is there another way? >> it's one way to do it. the courts when i have cigarettes banned say it was the unique property of radio and tv to reach out and track kids. how many read newspapers or the magazines where the adds are.

they are able to advertise on television, using the same imagery and tactics that have millions addicted to cigarettes in the '40s, '50s and '70s, and no one is doing anything about it. >> the use of cigarettes is going down among teens. the tobacco companies in part are behind the effort for e-cigarettes. you know with the support - with the big money that tobacco moneys have is there a way to get congress to regulate e-cigarettes at this point? >> sure, we know how to do it, we are able to slash smoking. all it takes is political will. it's not a problem of the lobbies. you are in an ironic situation, tobacco companies spend hundreds of millions getting kids addicted. once they are hooked. they come back and say okay we have a new device that may be - we won't guarantee it - maybe

we'll help you quit. >> good to have you on the programme, john. thank you very much in iraq thousands of people fled their homes in the city of ramadi the capital of west anbar province where i.s.i.s. appears to be on the verge of taking control. at the pentagon the top general says it holds little strategic value. jamie mcintyre is at the poent gone. -- pentagon. >> it's not that the general chief said that ramadi is not important, it's not as important as the fight to the north where baiji and the oil refinery is understand siege by i.s.i.l. forces. >> this video shot on a mobile phone shows an air strike on ramadi. the u.s. used air power to detract the i.s.i.l. advance. three villages were recaptured.

fighters are regrouping after losing tikrit, osama bin laden's home down. general martin dempsey downplayed the set back as an ebb and flow of a war far from over. >> i would rather that ramada won't fall. it won't be the end of a campaign should it fall, we need to get it back. >> dempsey says the more important area is towards baiji, where there has been progress. it's an oil-rich region including a refinery and dempsey says that it is more strategic. >> once the iraqis have control of baiji, they control the structure north and south and deny generating revenue through oil. >> in meetings this week, it was stressed that iraqi forces battling i.s.i.l. must be multicultural and report to baghdad. >> we support forces under the

command and control of the iraqi government irrespective of their sectarian make-up, which is the whole point. the way things got, the way they did in iraq is the collapse of a multi-sectarian approach. >> and in the speech in washington al-abadi called it an offensive to get everyone to fight together. >> in many ways the victory of tikrit shows how the rest will be helped and how federal and local forces work together to ensure the safe return of people to their homes. >> the pentagon says it's investigating reports from some shia militia burnt and looted in tikrit after pushing i.s.i.l. forces out. the pentagon says if it find that any part of the iraqi forces behaved inappropriately, they won't be supported in the

future in syria a toll after four years in civil war. the syrian observatory for human rights says 220,000 people have died in the conflict. more than 67,000 were civilians 11,000 were children. most of the dead were fighters either for president bashar al-assad or against him. 28,000 foreigners fighting with groups like i.s.i.l. or the al nusra front al qaeda's yemen branch seems to be taking advantage of the chaos, seizing a major airport, seaport and oil terminal. the fighters are consolidating their hold on the largest province coming as shia houthi rebels continue their offensive reassurances from russian president vladimir putin, spending most of a 4-hour tv appearance telling russians the economy will improve. it's an annual event, this year

it was on the impact of western sanctions over ukraine. he went on the offensive about a missile deal with iran. >> for russians it was riveting tv. their leader confident cocky and at times combative, fielding question. and for hours, we don't know if he was candid but his comments were on point. on the crisis in ukraine, he was asked if it damaged russia's economy. he said he didn't expect the u.s. and the west to lift the sanctions any time soon, and suggested the worst was over, and the economy is showing signs of recovery now that fighting in ukraine has slowed. vladimir putin denied there are russian troops in ukraine. and with a framework of a new agreement with iran all but finalised he said he would renew a contract to deliver an s-300

defense system to iran. >> there is absolutely no threat to israel. it's exclusively defensive weapons, given the conditions in the region particularly in relations with yemen, the supplies of this weaponry are a deterrent factor. >> vladimir putin wants a better relationship with the west but will not compromise russia's interest. >> we support normal relations between all countries in the east and west. the most important condition is respect for russia and our interests. i have said that that some big powers some superpowers claim exclusivity and record themselves as the only -- regard themselves as the only center of the world. they don't need allies they need vessels. i'm talking about the u.s. russia cannot exist in that kind of relationship organizers say interest was strong this year more than 2 million questions submitted

for vladimir putin. the tulsa county sheriff's office in oklahoma plans to review the deputy sheriff reserve programme. a 73-year-old officer was charged with manslaughter. robert baits shot and killed a suspect, saying he accidently shot eric harris when he pulled out a gun instead of a taser in baltimore, middle and upper class families are moving there because of their faith. they are part of an evangelical solution believing in fighting poverty from within. members of the church say it's the best way to help those in need. >> when it's your neighbourhood, you feel differently. they are yore neighbours not just the people you are helping. it helps you to live on an equal plain. when you see people, i'm here coming to help you, more like we

are neighbours we are figuring it up together morgan radford takes us to baltimore's sandtown neighbourhood for a look at the church and members uprooting their lives to help others. >> coming up five years after the b.p. oil spill, disagreement on how much the gulf of mexico has recovered. an alarming spread and a fight over needle exchange designed to stop the spread of heroin.

just because i'm away from my desk doesn't mean i'm not working. comcast business understands that. their wifi isn't just fast near the router. it's fast in the break room. fast in the conference room. fast in tom's office. fast in other tom's office. fast in the foyer [pronounced foy-yer] or is it foyer [pronounced foy-yay]?

fast in the hallway. i feel like i've been here before. switch now and get the fastest wifi everywhere. comcast business. built for business. it has been five years since the bp oil spill in the gulf of mexico. the clean-up is done but the debate over the lasting respect is not over. this week saw the release of two conflicting reports assessing the recovery in the gulf. jonathan martin has more.

>> you could call it the tale of two reports. bp say the gulf is rebounding environmental groups say it's not the fact. >> reporter: it was the worst oil spill, the explosion on the deep water horizon right killed 11 the hole took three months to plug. more than 3 billion barrels of oil polluted the gulf. two reports from released one from bp the company that owned the well one from the national wildlife foundation. they tell a different story. >> there's a long way to go. >> reporter: the nwf points to islands. a bp crew was seen digging up a 28,000 pound tarmac. and kat island, a nesting haven for birds before the spill is a lifeless sand bar. >> the mangroves die, and as they die there's nothing to hold

the sediment together. >> reporter: it's been shrinking. >> it eroded away, wave after wave >> reporter: in it's report, bp says because of a massive response the shores are rebounding. david with the national wildlife operation says it's hardly the reality. >> there's oil out here there's clean up that has to happen. the idea that the gulf recovered is preposterous. >> birds are a rare final, the lasting impact to wildlife is a widening debate. bp found data does not indicate a significant impact. the wildlife federation found there was, with 20 species having problems five years after the spill. >> this is the biggest spill history, happening at the height of the breeding season.

a time when blue fin tuna is spawning sperm whales are in the gulf. the idea that you would not have effects is pretty hard to believe. >> reporter: bottle-nosed dolphins were found dead along the coast. the nwf says there's evidence the deaths are connected to the spill. b.p. says there's no evidence of a link. it is to highlight the ridley sea turtles. since the spill in 2010 the nests found annually declined. it was suggested that the change could be a result of vary ability and record cold textures. >> the trustees role is to do the safety. >> with b.p. and the wildlife federation's reports far part we went to kyle for answers, a member of the wildlife team.

is it too early for either group to make an assessment. >> yes, in our view it is. >> reporter: he says researchers are still conducting studies, a project that could take another year. he says the rival 5-year reports are driven by agendas. >> you have two entities with different purposes. one is the responsible party - they are trying to take care of their shareholders. they are a large corporation, and they are looking to limit their liability. it is absolutely in their best interests to minimise the effect. you have the watch dogs of the environment and national wildlife federation pulling and peacing toot the pieces that they want to -- piecing toot the pieces that they want to discuss. >> reporter: bp declined an interview with al jazeera, but in a statement accused the

wildlife group of ignoring years of progress. bp contributed $700 million to projects like this. several hundred acres of marsh land form from sediment pumped through a pipeline aimed at repairing the damage. bp questioned the science and agenda of groups like yours. >> i confess the wildlife federation advocates for wildlife. we've been caught bp figured it out, that we advocate for wildlife. >> reporter: two reports with a different viewpoint. ultimately it will be up to a federal damages team to determine how much bp pays for the spill. while the government is assessing the overall damage and injury to the gulf the immediate concern is how much will it pay in civil penalties, based on what has been ruled, bp could face 13 billion in civil

penalties. a judge is expected to make a ruling on the penalty later this month. >> how exactly does the government decide what bp will pay? >> they are using research. one of the trustees says the government is conducting 200 studies, some of the same research that bp used they have gone in partnership. he said they were trike to put together a -- trying to put together a complete picture. they can't study every specie every inch or every mile. golf. and he says we are putting together a complete story and expect whatever we find that bp will likely appeal. jacob ward thank you. a rural found in indiana experiencing an uptake in h.i.v. cases. there has been 100 confirmed cases in austin a town of 4,000 people. health experts say needle

sharing among i.v. users is to blame. jonathan betz has been covering this story for "america tonight." >> we spent days in indiana. a way to stop it is to convince drug addicts to hand over needles for clean ones. the controversial indiana governor does not like it but is making an exception. but as "america tonight" discovered it may not stop the virus. >> reporter: kevin admits he's an addict hooked on opana. he's the face of a new epidemic one thought was on the decline in the united states. >> a friend of mine and myself went down and government tested for h.i.v. came back positive. blew me away. last thing in the world i expected to hear. >> reporter: he lives in austin in scots county indiana.

austin is facing the worst outbreak of h.i.v. ever. more than 100 cases since december. users say clean measles are hard to find -- needles are hard to find because of the law. indiana governor suspended that law. >> today i declared a public health emergency in scott county indiana. teams of workers arrived to provide testing, doctors, counselling and a needle exchange in an attempt to contain the outbreak. with little experience of its own indiana turned to an established needle exchange in chicago for advice. >> we began syringe exchange in jan '92 and have done it since. >> reporter: it relies on addicts like doug that bring in used needles.

when the programme was fought austin, they ran into resistance. >> participants were ready to be part of the solution breathing life into the governor's state of emergency and the health department came. >> reporter: law enforcement was cracking down on needle possession. chief spicer is used to arresting drug users, not helping their hab ipt. >> if it's going to save lives, i have to support what they tell me will work. they know more than i do. from the law enforcement side i can't enforce it we ain't able to do what we need to do. we are giving these people things to use drugs to. >> reporter: it bothers you you can't arrest at the moment. >> absolutely. >> reporter: dan big says such an attitude could lead to a public health disaster. >> unless we get serious about

public health in southern independent, throughout indiana, we'll -- southern indiana, we'll suffer from this. users have a card to show, but some worry they'll be charged when the programme begins. this town is on the verge of a larger outbreak. >> that report 10:00p.m. eastern next - the standardized testing debate. parents and students opting out. an educator telling us why he thinks the test works. middle and upper class families choosing to live in baltimore's dangerous neighbourhoods. we tell you why. >> they tell me your father is going up the children nip. i said what are you talking about, i was talking to him yesterday. >> remembering the holocaust -

one survivor's story.

hi everyone, this is al jazeera america. i'm john seigenthaler school debate - more students opt out of standardized tests. some educators say it's a mistake. [ singing ] mobile ministry. >> we try to invest ourselves into the struggles of people here in sandtown why middle class and wealthy christians move to one of baltimore's toughest neighbour huds. hoods plus bearing witnesses - remembering the holocaust with australian of the last remaining survivors of auschwitz this week eight atlanta educators were sentenced to prison tore falsifying -- for falsifies test results, the punishment touch. ranging from 1 to 8 years in prison. many believed it was inevitable. the awarding bonuses for higher

test scores. i talked with a parent yesterday who said schools need to pull back on standardized tests. >> there's no research basis for this center of testing. we are the only country that tests our children every year between grades 3 and 8, and all the countries that are at the top of the international rankings. they do not test yearly. >> you don't think it helps parents and students to know where they stand? >> i know where my children stand because i read the report cards, they are a narrative. i could show you something my daughter wrote in three minutes less 30 seconds. >> you want to change the whole education system essentially, right. you are talking about major changes in the which things are done now. >> i am talking about major changes, but i want to be clear that these changes are - really only happened in the american educational system the emphasis

on testing in the last 20 years and in the last five years. >> eric is the former vice president of national policy at the education nonprofit students first, and served as chief of staff to the deputy mayor in washington d.c. welcome. what is your reaction to what you just heard? >> i think it reflects a perspective that is limited across the country. most parents understand that you need to know how your students are doing, most educators need that information to make sure students are progressing. >> doesn't it encourage teachers to alter the test scores? >> i don't think it does. i don't think most will do it. >> they lose their job? >> stakes are high for the student. we need to build a system where educators are supported and have the resources and tools to get kids caught up. >> is it a good idea for teachers to teach the test?

>> no and the research shows the best teachers don't teach to the test. the best probe the deep content knowledge, helping student think critically. when you go to the best schools, whether it's la, d.c. and new york what you see are student highly engaged in learning loving learning, having a great time. >> what i hear from parents is parents are upset that some of the tests really - and some of the questions on the test really are way above their island's level. they are not appropriate for students and that's what they are furious about. >> i think they are harder. we are going through a change. >> it doesn't help kids learn. >> it does. >> doesn't that - that goes against everything i heard in education. that frustrates students. >> it doesn't. students when you put a challenge in front of them high standard in front of them. they rise to the occasion.

any district that made progress, the first thing they do is raise the standards. >> if a kid is not prepared for a question asked on the test he or she may be turned off by the teacher and the education system. >> the issue of whether or not they are prepared is not of the test but the education system. >> you raise the level of the test before raising the level of education. >> we cannot test all the way through, we have a kid in sixth 7th 8th grade realising that he can't read. >> if parents opt out, what is the impact? >> the reaction is small, but the impact on others is big, if you take out a segment, you are no longer able to compare all the students. to identify who is struggling we need to know who is succeeding first. >> you say the people opting out are the more well off kids. >> what we see now are they are

predominantly white, wealthier in the suburbs. small numbers, and they are in a place of privilege. >> and the impact that has on those that are not well off. >> you are taking them out of the equation. if the research shows the students will score higher on the test, what we are no longer able to see is what does success looklike where should the kids me. >> this is asked a question, they are written for white kids meals, they are not fair to those who are smart, but don't under the way the question is phrased. >> there's not a single measure, but i think there's a rigorous conversation about how to make these better. that's where we should focus.

the idea that we should stop altogether... >> do you think the tests are fair? >> i think they are getting fairer. there are places where they are not so good. ed understand the parents and edu -- you understand the parents and educators frustration. we have to put in the information to get the better tests we'll see how parents and teachers react a florida man who flew under the radar and landed a plane next to the capital appeared in court, raising security around some of the most important landmarks. mike viqueira has more from washington. >> reporter: doug hughes arrived in federal court wearing a postal service uniform. >> do you have any comment? inside he faced two charge, including violating air space. if convicted he could face four years in prison.

hughes flew through the most restricted air space, rules put in place after september 11th. many assumed it was impenetrable. that's not the case. as he made his way down the pam secret service, capital police unaware, the f.a.a. had no idea neither the secretary of homeland security, jeh johnson. >> my first reaction was "what's a giro copter", highs light was undetected by all but tourists. >> this is not good. >> this individual literally flew in under the radar. >> hughes insists he has the best tension. >> terrorists don't announce their flights before they take off or broadcast the flight path. >> reporter: hughes talked with the tampa bay times and posted a video and interview.

>> i'm going to violate the no-fly zone. >> that much is certain. he violated the a.d.i.z. the air defense identification zone around washington, opened to preplanned pre-approved nights and p 56 prohibited air space around the vice president's house, the white house and the capital. hughes was apparently harmless intend on promoting campaign finance reform but blew past countless sensitive sights landing below the house speaker's suite of officers. >> the clear example is that someone mounting an attack that hasn't been planned easily pep traits some of the -- penetrates some of the sensitive air space in the united states. this is the case before 9/11 and now. >> reporter: there were other scarce. a plane carrying sir ronald

reagan's funeral group breached space. recently breaches brought about a review. even after those, solutions are still being looked at. >> not only is there new technology but threats this emanate from a lot of different places. >> it's a recurring question. in an open society where is the balance between freedom and security. >> remember the movie independence day, and the heat shields around the large spacecraft. we don't have heat sheeds. -- shields. we are a democracy we don't have fences around the air space. the federal court judge told mr hughes that he was banned from the white house and the capital and will be on home detention in joakim nordstrom to baltimore, dozens of middle and upper class families are moving into a dangerous

neighbourhood, not bad of genderfication, but say they are moving in to help others. morgan radford is here with that. >> that's right. i'm going to take you so new song church part of the christian community develop association, and that association and the family that i suppose the churches believe the best way to change a community is to become part of it. >> reporter: dr loft us is taking a stroll through the baltimore neighbourhood with his 2-year-old daughter. he mooed here five years ago after growing nup a middle class down 20 miles from the city. why? it is in the heart of inner city baltimore and is one of the most dangerous neighbourhoods. >> this is san town, look at the houses that are boarded up. is that common? >> yes there's a lot of vacant houses. >> reporter: loft us is part of a group known as relocators.

>> >> reporter: i'm telling on glass. they are christian eadvantagelicals who bleest the only way to help poor communities is to move in and become neighbours. >> it helps you live on an equal plane and see people less of "i'm here, coming to help you" and more like "we are neighbours we are figuring this out together." [ singing ] >> reporter: he's a member of new song a church founded on the idea that everyone should have a personal stake in giving strength to the suffering. >> we take up residence. i decided to take up residence. >> that's the pastor of new song. >> i've been through so much stuff in my life... >> reporter: he says 25 mostly white middle class and upper class families relocated to

inner city baltimore. >> you say the church was founded on the principal of incarnational ministry what does it mean? >> when you think of incarnation, you think of christ and heaven god saves him. he comes down and takes on human form and invests in the struggles of humankind. that's what we try to do invest ourselves into the struggles of people here in san tonne. >> you are saying god wasn't a commuter god so i'm not a commuter man. >> that's right. >> is that what i hear you saying? >> yes. >> reporter: you moved into the heart of sandtown. let's keep it real baltimore is one of the top 10 dangerous cities in america. were you scared? >> a little bit. you know like there's scary stuff that happens anywhere in baltimore. there's a lot of ways i stick out. >> reporter: after all, sandtown

is 96% plaque. >> reporter: a lot of re-locatators are white, and you are black, and the majority walking around is black. is there skepticism, where people think this is a form of white gentrification. >> definitely. there's a running joke that the drug dealers thought the whites moving in were cops and the cops thought only white folks that move here are drug dellers. -- dealers. this is antoine who says the streets are as hard as they team. >> this intersection changed my life. i shot a man, almost took his life. >> reporter: he spend 3.5 years in prison for the shooting. when he got out he says it was the same new song church community that helped him turn his life around. >> they helped me to realise that i'm part and partial of the community. new song was the only place he could get a job.

bennett has been working there for 20 years alongside people like loftus who helped the community warm to the idea of relocating. >> it was after they stayed a long time and became neighbours and bought homes that folks were more at ease. >> some critics might say it's a white complex. if you are a white guy you come in trying to help the community. what do you want people to understand about what you are doing here? >> i would want people to understand that i have come in to be a partner, and i think primarily to serve and empower and be led by the people here in this community. >> reporter: while the new song community admits there's a lot to fix on the streets... >> hope is not extinct. [ sings ] new song partnered with

habitat for humanity to rebuild over 300 homes, and built a school and house for female drug addicts. >> i'm curious how long the families plan to live there. do they pull out in a couple of years? >> i asked that. some said no they were there for the long haul. >> we heard one man react. generally, what did you hear about the people that moved in? >> my producer and i were in the streets. we asked a lot of people. no one really had a negative reaction. but one woman put it poignantly and looked at me and said "help does not have a colour." fascinating story, thank you today people around the world are marking holocaust remembrance day honoring 6 million jewish killed by nazi gemini. gene was 16 when he and his family were sent to auschwitz.

he shares his story in our first person report. >> i'm gene cline and i'm a holocaust survivor. in the spring of 1944, the slaughter of the jews has been going on for years now, all over the europe wherever the nazis occupied. it was our turn now in hungary. hungarian soldiers waking us up and telling us you are going to get on trains and move to places and we don't know where. start marching to the train, which consisted mostly of cattle cars big carts with sliding doors. and the journey takes three days and three nights. we arrive to the destination, which we don't know where it is what it is. doors open. we have maybe a few minutes to

hug when the order comes. women and children on the left-hand side. men and boys from about mid teens up all in rows of five and you start marching on. i get up to the front. my father is next to be. an ss officer points to him, you this way you this way they were playing god. if you went to the left you go directly to the gas chambers. after i talked to a polish prisoner who - i ask him how come my father went to the left and i to the right. he said "come with me" pointed me to the barracks and pointed in the distance to a big tall chimney assuming sparks, he said "your father is going up the chimney" i said "what is he

talking about, i was with my father yesterday, how can he go up the chimney?" he said "this is auschwitz, we are shipped here to be killed." i realised i have to come up with a goal in my mind to survive. i calm up with two. i -- came up with myself. i said my mother and two sisters are alive and well and they'll make it home. i had no idea what happened to them in auschwitz, but i told myself they were alive. the other thing was these nazis, if they kill me, they win, if i stay alive i win. one morning when they were coming out - you could only spend a couple of hours, because you were laying next to prisoners who were dying, it's awful. they come out. the first thing we notice, no guys at the machine-gun towers. all of a sudden there's a break

in the fog. we see two horses approaching with one human being on one of the horses. one of the polish kids said "look at his hat." red star. what a feeling. knowing that you made it. so the three of us as fast as our skinny legs could carry us, running to the barracks opening the door and all the languages yelling "we are free we are free." this is something you don't forget gene cline's mothers and sisters survived auschwitz. you can read his story in the book "we got the water." we'll be right back.

>> go one on one with america's movers and shakers. >> we will be able to see change. >> gripping. inspiring. entertaining. talk to al jazeera. only on al jazeera america.

china is building projects like the world's largest bridge a long gas pipeline. one project had the u.s. on edge, and barbara is there with that. >> a large portion of the south china sea have been in dispute. china lays clean to much of it. the surrounding nations claim parts as well. the smaller countries say that china is trying to strong arm them out, because the region is rich in oil.

newly released satellite images show nine islands that china is building with sand in disputed territory. construction china defends as within its right. . >> translation: the relevant construction is reasonable, justified and laughful within china's sovereignty. it does not impact or talk to any country and is behind reproach. >> reporter: of concern to the u.s. is the sea includes prime shipping routes. the white house asked china to back off tactics. in the next hour how the south china sea plays into washington's efforts to forge a better relationship with budget arts programs in america's public schools had a tough time. budget cuts are the first to go. the one school in miami found a unique way to engage students and show the world why art

matters. andy gallinger has more -- gallagher has more. >> reporter: inner city stalls are often stark places, this middle school is no exception much 96% of the pupils live below the poverty line, there is something that makes the place different the the walls are adorned with the street art that make a collector green with envy. >> every student or more helped to paint the murals. >> reporter: much of the work organised by robert appalled at a school so close to miami's win wood neighbourhood had no art of its own, when he reached out for help, the answer changed everything. >> not a single artist protested, asking how much or asked what they get out of it. this is for the school - awesome. >> reporter: what followed was a flurry of activity.

we hear about art transforming community. the pace of change at the school is breath-taking. this is the first mural spray-painted in november. with six weeks there were 70 others all by artists from around the world. >> the project is so successful that the school hired the first art teacher. classes are full to capacity after a generation. >> i like drawing my own characters. i say to myself like oh, i want to be one of them. >> reporter: in all, 73 artists changed the school into an open of air museum. the choice to contribute was easy. >> there's no point having a gift if you are not giving it away. the whole point of art it to connect. if i'm not sure doing that i'm not doing my job.

>> reporter: in the u.s. public school system millions are denied access to art. the middle school may be the start of something new. >> now this for a few days every year the atmosphere in washington d.c. changes. it's brief, a soothing scale, and traffic in the city. it's the national cherry blossom festival. images are incredible and so is the story behind it. >> reporter: on the ground of the washington monument in the park circling the tidal basin they are in bloom and beautiful. 4,000 cherry trees adorn the capital, giving some famous sights an enthey arial enchancing glow and with varieties with names as colourful of the flowers, like the out flowering cherry tree

and the wooeping tree. they are a tourist attraction and a sign of awakening. to appreciate the blossoms you should know the stories behind them. it begins in 1885 where with a woman urged officials to plants trees in washington after returning from japan. >> it was a proposal pushed for 24 years. in 1909 she wrote the first lady. and she agreed in 1910, 2,000 arrived in tokyo. upon inspection they were found infested with insects. the president ordered them burned. in 1912 japan shipped more. they were healthy. and they were the start of a spectacular tradition that conditions to this day. enjoyed splendor of a season that is fleeting and soon be gone until next year

sure sign of bring. that's our news for this hour. thanks for watching. i'm john seigenthaler see you tomorrow night. the news continues next with antonio mora and barbara.

the fierce fight for ramadi. >> i would rather that ramadi not fall. it won't be the end of the campaign should it fall. >> i.s.i.l. may be on the verge of taking another key iraqi city, forcing families to flee for safety. >> a rally for unity thousands of south africans take to the streets standing together against xenophobia and violence. massive corruption