nd again, i'm with al jazeera, baltimore. you can get more on all the stories and more if you head over to our website on al jazeera.com, you can see our front page there with our lead story, the earthquake aftermath and we are back with another update in just a minute. the search is on for survivors in nepal. relief agencies from agross the globe race to help after a devastating earthquake. japan's prime minister arrives in the u.s. and an american takes action against the u.s. government after being forced to give up his passport leaving him stranded in yemen.

good morning. and welcome to al jazeera america. it is a race in nepal to rescue those affected by earthquake aftershocks. more than 100 americans are missing and 6500 people are injured. authorities are still trying to reach remote areas of western nepal. an estimated 70% of the homes are destroyed at the epicenter. >>reporter: some government figures have already suggested that the toll will reach 4,000 by the end of the day. most of them will come from the

valley where most of the fatalities have occurred so far. we're expecting those to -- they have been unable to report the injuries. india and pack stand are coming to the aid, two countries who are have experience with efforts. regional efforts very much focused in. the airport is taking the priority. military aircraft and trying to get civilian ngos in as well. i was talking to a senior dutch diplomat who is part of the european effort. he's trying to sort out a large contingent of dutch rescue

personnel. rescue dogs will be sent across the region. they are ramping up efforts as they are increasing access. there were four large aftershocks overnight. tremors that made the international airport, the only real viable location for people to come in and out of the country come to a stop when there's an earthquake. well, the u.s. is part of the rescue effort in nepal sending 70 personnel and 45 tons of cargo so far. the biggest challenge now is reaching remote villages. al jazeera managed to reach one of them and file this report. >>reporter: we're in a village where at least 20 people have died just in this area. there's a cluster of old houses which all came crumbling down.

around six people were buried over here. they were all cremated yesterday. now the entire village is not only in a shock but also they're quite angry because of the lack of services from the government. this gentleman over here can you tell us what kind of help you've received from the government? >> so far we've not received anything from the government. we had armed police come with tarps and that's all. everyone is living outside. nobody is in the village, not even diagnoses. >>reporter: earlier we had found some government -- the locals are so angry they were not allowing any government aid to pass through. >> i will give you three packs for here.

they're expressing concern about how if this village which is just a few kilometers outside the city is suffering like this the fate of many other mountainous areas is unknown. we're seeing dramatic images this morning of the moment an avalanche swept down mount everest as it will earthquake struck. you can see a large cloud as a wall of snow and ice descends on the base camp. about 1,000 climbers were on the mountain at the time of the earthquake. it flattened the pack at the base camp and killed at least 18 people. powerful aftershocks triggered more avalanches hampering rescue

efforts. helicopters reached some of the most seriously injured and took them to katmandu scary situation there. now released journalist -- journalist from nepal is studying for his masters at. at the university of baltimore. have you been able to reach your family? >> yes, i've managed to speak to my father and mother. my mom and dad, the same day that earthquake hit nepal actually in the evening i could not talk to them because no telephone lines were working but my sister who lives in australia managed to speak to my father mother and brother who live in the village and then i talked with my sister and that's how i came to know that they are fine. my relatives are also fine.

but one of my distant relatives who was in katmandu died in an old temple and two are seriously injured. >> my sympathiesy sympathies for your personal loss. the community you're from is said to be in the epicenter. how many people live in that region? >> i live south of the exact epicentre though the district is same. in my village, there are about five 600 houses and what i have got -- what information i have is that about 80 houses are collapsed because of the earthquake. but in the villages surrounding the epicenter, i've been hearing 90 or more houses are collapse.

>> so what kind of assistance is getting through to those areas >> we've been hearing about roads being blocked off and nepal doesn't have that great an infrastructure anywhere with respect to transportation even before the earthquake. >> there's a problem. there's no good road like the international standards. some of the villages even have connected with gravel roads. that means you cannot imagine any sort of relief effort will be reached up to there. i've been hearing that some -- one or two helicopters have rescued a few wounded people from the village where -- near the village of the epicenter but because of the increment klemm

weather, they couldn't fly up to that village. that's what i was hearing. so even if there is some kind of relief and rescue because of the weather and infrastructure it has been difficult to reach those efforts to the people who are seriously injured. >> wednesday that nepal only has one helicopter. suggests that the country's going to be very dependent on outside assistance. what do you know about what kind of assistance it is getting and what's your assessment of your government's ability to handle this crisis? >> well nepal's government i think, never thought about such kind of big -- government really didn't prepare how to handle

such kind of -- how to handle the situation after the disaster. that's one fact. the next is the government in nepal, nepal didn't have stable government since last decade or 15 or even 20 years. that means you can easily imagine about the preparation of government. so far, the helicopters there are more private company owned helicopters but i think that's not enough. i've been hearing that india and neighboring countries are really trying to help rescue the needy ones. my assessment is at this moment nepal really needs basic things like tents so that people can stay safely during night. this is somehow beginning of --

the tent is the best thing. and then the medicine. they need very basic medicines for basic treatment. and then obviously the transportation, maybe the road transportation or the helicopter so the seriously-injured people could be transported to the nearby city like katmandu. >> thank you very much for telling us about your homeland and the problems there because of it will earthquake yemen's foreign minister is rejecting a call for peace talks from the former president saleh. he says there will be no dialogue with houthi rebels unless they withdraw all of their fighters. meanwhile, there is intense fighting in yemen's western city of taiz. officials say 20 civilians were killed in attacks today. the united nations is calling for an immediate end to the fighting as the humanitarian crisis worsens there.

the u.n. security council is holding a closed-door session on the situation in yemen in a few hours. the war there will be on the agenda later today as well when john kerry meets with egyptian foreign ministers there. coming up in the next hour more about secretary kerry kerry's meetings over yemen. the war in yemen is highlighting a separate issue that several yemeni americans are dealing with. dozens of them have had their u.s. passports revoked and are being forced into involuntary confesses at the american embassy there. one man is now filing a lawsuit against the state department. >>reporter: it's really rather incredible because it's one man against the state department. you have a situation here where

he is a yemeni american and a citizen since 1978. he'd gone back to yemen to go through the paperwork to bring his youngest daughter back to the united states. the next thing he knows they've taken his passport and won't give it back and he's left stranded in yemen. >> i felt devastated. i would never have expected something like this to happen. it didn't make sense. i didn't understand what motivated them to do this. what they said felt like empty words. i don't know what they're thinking. >> when you are abroad you're at your most vulnerable state, so in a sense, it's almost as if the folks going to the embassy seeking assistance are easy targets for the law enforcement officials who are there. >>reporter: he eventually received a one-way travel document back to the u.s. so he's here now but without a passport unable to leave the country to travel for work or fun so he filed a lawsuit on the

heels of another lawsuit filed by another group of yemeni americans. they say that one is about the failure of the u.s. to evacuate u.s. citizens out of yemen. many say they feel like second class citizens. our report takes a closer look at the case against the state department. >> you can watch more of the report tonight at 8:00 eastern japan's prime minister is on a week long visit to the u.s. he will meet with president obama tomorrow and one of the topics certain to be discussed is the u.s. military presence in japan. right now eight bases house around 50,000 active duty u.s. service members. the largest space is on the island of okinawa. >>reporter: it's a daily standoff on okinawa.

on one side protesters try to stop the construction of a u.s. air field and the other, the coast guard. the stakes have recently risen in a 20-year battle. >> we now have a governor who's opposed to the land reclaimation here. the people are supporting us. >>reporter: the biggest headache are the kayakers. they travel along the restricted zone markers looking for places to cross. this is obviously the sharp end of the campaign to stop the building of this base but protesters have been getting increasing amounts of support as a whole. recent elections to another single ruling party candidate win a race increasing its becoming a battle between okinawa and the decision makers in tokyo. at its heart is the u.s. marine air base deemed dangerously close to civilian buildings.

japan and the u.s. have agreed to relocation the facility. the prime minister honoring that deal is crucial to his desire to be a stronger more active military partner as the u.s. continues its military rebalance to asia. the governor's supporters are supported by environmental and political reasons and they say this would be the first time okinawa willingly handed over territory. >> the governor uses very clear terms in explaining why people here are opposed so people are beginning to realize we have a legitimate government and that the japanese government is being high handed in forcing this through. the next move is to seek a legal anullment of the previous

governor's agreement. in the meantime activists continue to try to slow down the work and draw attention to their fight. every day they're detained and returned to show and every day they come back again. in baltimore, thousands of people are expected to attend a funeral today for freddie gray, the african-american man who died a week ago after sustaining serious injuries while in the custody of baltimore police. peaceful protests this weekend were capped off by sporatic violence. >> we need to support peaceful demonstration and continue to enforce in our communities that violence and looting will not be tolerated in our city. together we can be one baltimore and seek the answers

as we seek justice and as we seek peace. on sunday a wake was held for gray. he was also remembered at a church service where the pastor said his family does not want anymore violence loretta lynch will be sworn in this morning. she becomes the fir african-american woman to lead the department of justice. her nomination was held up for months because of a disagreement between democrats and republicans over an antihuman trafficking bill. trafficking bill.

suspected syrian fighters were targeting israeli soldiers. >> the trial of accused movie theater shooter james holmes begins this morning in colorado.

he has pled not guilty by reason of insanity. the prosecution is arguing for the death penalty. and corinthian colleges closing its schools immediately, 16,000 students kicked out of the university today. this is believed to be the biggest higher education shutdown in u.s. history. about 25 million kids are taking the bus to school this morning but those same buses may also be keeping kids out of school. let's bring in nicole mitchell. >> this isn't even the germs. whether or not you ever took a bus to school you might remember that line of yellow buses outside your school waiting for kids to get on it spewing that diesel emission out the back. believe it or not, that's not good for you. about 300 washington state

elementary kids who rode buses to and from school were checked health wise both before and after cleaner technology and that was monitored over 600 trips, about 200 different buses, and they found lung function inflammation, and absenteeism absent teeism was much higher on buses that were not cleaner. if you have healthier lungs, still inflammation about 16% higher from kids that rode the bus and higher with kids with asthma. that cleaner switch means air born particles go down about 50%. there's been a switch. stricter fuel and emissions standards are required on

anything 2006 and newer but i would say especially if you have a kid withes are prio tour problems, you might want to check if they're on one of the older, dirty buses or something with newer standards. >> and also don't stand behind the bus. >> never a good idea. >> thank you. in today's digital beat, a deal between the united states and mexico is bringing in new light. for more than 15 years, water from the colorado river has not flowed to parts of mexico but that all changed after a deal was reached last year. the plan is to restore more than 40,000 acres which withered to about a tenth of its original size. farmers are now seeing a rebound. animals are returning and tourism has increased. the bad news is that the deal only lasts for two years and then water flow is cut off again. for more on this story head to

aljazeera.com and click on u.s. stories a growing population and a growing demand for meat. next, how plants provide a protein alternative.

scientists are trying to find ways to deal with the growing need for meat. a plant-based protein could be the situation. >>reporter: grilled, sauteed, processed, or packaged america's obsession with meat is ferocious. >> four pounds. >>reporter: and bigger is better when it comes to our appetite. we consume over 270 pounds per person per year. but now the demand for meat is spreading to new global heights and experts predict we won't be

able to sustain it. >> they were already not doing it sustain ably. >>reporter: to produce jus one pound of chicken, it takes about 468 gallons of water, two pounds of grain or feed and eight times the amount of fossil fuel than used to grow plants. the united nations estimated that meat consumption will rise nearly 75% by 2050. this has triggered a new crop of meat alternatives hoping to ease our reliance. here in california we have a small town with an cozy feel but it's the home of a startup that's anything but small. ethan brown is the ceo of beyond meat. >> we're taking protein from plants and instead of running it through the industrial system we're creating a structure truly

like meat. it's the beauty of that fiberous structure that's indistinguishable from meat. we're not going to stop until you look at a chicken breast and our product and say i can't tell a difference. even before i became involved professors at the university of missouri working on this were doing trial and error with the assembly of these proteins through the heating, cooling, and pressure aspect and about ten years later they got it. >> how do you produce an alternative protein that may deliver more protein per unit while also trying to reach cultural values and traditions connected to meat. >> we do product and recipe development here. we're going to make fajitas right now.

here we go. >>reporter: that's good. hard to tell the difference. >> thanks for joining us. stephanie is back in two minutes with more news. keep up with aljazeera.com. with aljazeera.com.

the death toll climbs in nepal as rescuers spend a third day combing through the rubble. the trial begins for james holmes more than two years after he's accused of opening fire in a crowded movie theater killing a dozen people and saying good-bye to freddie gray the afterman american man who died in police custody. he will be laid to rest today but the controversy associated

with his death, still far from over. good morning. welcome to al jazeera america. there is desperation this morning in nepal as a series of aftershocks rattled the region. it's impacting an already-challenging rescue operation. the death toll from saturday's 7.8 earthquake is now more than 3,700, 101 americans are among the missing. the quake wreaked havoc from katmandu to small villages and the u.s. is part of the international aid effort right now. at the epicenter, 70% of homes have been destroyed. al jazeera is live in katmandu this morning. what's going on there behind you? >>reporter: stephanie, as you

say, good morning to the united states. we're saying good evening to a large part of south asia. it's 5:00 in the evening. what you see behind me are some of the most historic temples in nepal. it's the focal point for many tourists who come to nepal and katmandu to visit this unique country in the mountains. it's been a pain staking rescue effort and day of recovery and rescue. behind me they've pulled out two bodies from a range of temples that all collapsed. just remember that the magnitude of the earthquake on saturday really destroyed buildings that were many hundreds of years old and built of very light brick and wood. these are palaces, hindu and

buddhist temples. the infrastructures have remained intact and stable but there's a great worry and fear that the palaces in this vicinity may collapse. they're marked off for a moment. >> what do we know about those injured beyond katmandu? >>reporter: the death toll is just the katmandu figure of just over 3,500 but authorities believe that will increase through the day. they're not giving up on finding anyone in any part of the rubble scattered across the capital. but further beyond into nepal, of course towards the

epicenter, many outlying villages farming communities, those that really live off the land don't think to come into the city and it's becoming very difficult there for the authorities and for the rescue services to try and locate villages that may need help. because many villages have been wiped out and the electricity source gone. i flew in here about 12 hours

ago. >> it's a sign something is wrong -- at first the climbers sound relaxed but that turns to

panic as they realize that a wall of snow rock and ice is heading straight for them. >> no. no. >>reporter: dazed and confused climbers emerge from the snow and begin to look for other climbers amongst the flattened tents. >> stay together. stay together. >>reporter: powerful aftershocks have triggered more avalanches making the rescue effort difficult. helicopters have reached the most seriously injured and taken them to the capital but concern is growing for those trapped on

the mountain with a limited supply of food fuel and water. despite the terror they must have felt these climbers survived the deadliest disaster in mount everest history. it's still not clear how many did not. >> we are live on the phones this morning from nepal with the public health director for save the children u.s. what are the greatest risks that are facing children right now in the quake zone? >> some of the risks that we're seeing right now in the immediate aftermath of this earthquake is one, hypothermia from sleeping outside every night. it started to rain. there's been a tremendous number of newborns infants, and children sleeping with their mothers under very thin tarps with whole family members, 10 to

15 people if the that's the big concern. the other concern is fresh, clean water getting out to those in need especially children and infants. so we have an eye on the risk of communicable disease outbreaks. we're also concerned about the long term effects this trauma will have on children. we talked to a mother today who was talking to us about how throughout the aftershocks last night, their child was crying in each one of them. there are going to be long-term effects. >> and unicef is estimated up to a million children may have been affected. so you already have a few hundred personnel on the ground. how has your team been affected and have they been able to mobilize and address some of these needs? >> yes. save the children has over 500 national staff on the ground who are highly trained to work within the system and the

community. the ministry is here. we have 124 international emergency relief specialists. today three teams have been put together and sent out to different districts to distribute materials and essential needs. we're already on the ground doing assessments and planning for the next wave of distributions and relief. >> we're looking at pictures right now, some of the international aid workers flooding in to nepal but i understand that one of the biggest challenges there is getting to the areas that might have been the worst affected because of bad roads. are you able to dispatch teams to placesout side of katmandu? >> we are. save the children has been here since 1976. we have a very great understanding of this country and sub offices around the country.

we have to distribute materials. we also have prepositioned materials in two other warehouses. so there's multiple entry points into areas most affected. it is slower though that one would expect because of communication and difficulty traveling on some roads. >> we wish you and your colleagues luck. thank you. back here in the u.s. opening statements begin this morning in the trial of james holmes the 27-year-old who allegedly killed 12 people when he opened fire in a movie theater in colorado. three years later he's pleading not guilty by reason of insanity insanity. the prosecution is seeking the death penalty. >>reporter: july 20th, 2012 was the midnight premier of the summer block buster the dark

knight rises. it was also the night the world would come to know the name jails holmes. a few minutes after the movie began he walked into the theater wearing a gas mask and black body armor head to toe. first he threw tear gas and then he opened fire with an ar-15, a shotgun, and a pistol. he had plenty of ammunition. >> it took me a second to realize what was going on and as people were running away i hit the ground so i wouldn't be hit. >>reporter: police were on the scene in less than two minutes. they found holmes in the parking lot standing by his car. he did not resist arrest. he had killed 12 people and wounded 70 more. during questions, police say he told them he had booby trapped his apartment. police used remote controlled robots to get inside where they discovered an arsenal of homemade bombs and explosive chemicals. >> make no mistake, this

apartment was designed based on everything i've seen to kill whoever entered it. >>reporter: he's charged with 140 crimes including a host of attempted murder and first-degree murder charges. >> you have a right to remain silent. >>reporter: days later he maze his first court appearance looking dazed and sporting bright red hair. his lawyer claims he was in the middle of a psychotic episode when he carried out the attack. >> there is evidence of calculation and deliberation. >>reporter: prosecutors say he's sane and are now seeking the death penalty. at the time of the shooting holmes had recently withdrawn from the university of colorado where he was pursuing a ph.d. in neurorow science. people who knew him say he was into bat man and other

superheroes. he was also under the care of the school psychologist. in the days leading up to the rampage he mailed her a diary but the doctor never received it. the contents have not been released to the public but are expected to be presented during the trial. the trial itself could last for months with dozens of witnesses. more than 9,000 people were considered as potential jurors. the 12 ultimately selected and 12 alternates are mostly women. throughout the process, victims and family members have been present. >> it's just heartbreak right now. you know it's trying to work through what we've been given in respect to we're trying to get through this case you know as emotionally and mentally intact as we can. >>reporter: his parents have publicly asked that their son's

life be spared. he could face the death penalty. holmes spent the months leading up to the shooting buying guns ammo tear gas, chemicals, and body armor. the massacre reignited the national debate over gun laws. >> i hope over the next several days weeks, and months we all reflect on how we can do something about some of the senseless violence that ends up marring this country. defense lawyers begin the penalty phase in the boston marathon bomber sentencing. dzhokhar tsarnaev was found guilty of first-degree murder. the prosecution says he should be put to death thousands of people are expected to attend a funeral

today for the 25-year-old black man who died a week ago after sustaining serious injuries while in the custody of baltimore police. there was sporatic violence. >> we need to support peaceful demonstration and continue to enforce in our communities that rioting, violence and looting will not be tolerated in our city. together we can be one baltimore and seek answers as we seek justice and as we seek peace. >>reporter: outside the funeral home in baltimore, small groups of local residents gather to show their solidarity and express sympathy with the family of freddie gray. loyola university is up the

street and a few students felt it was important to show that his death had an impact on the entire community. >> really increasing that conversation and making sure that we just aren't talking about what's going on in this city and this country, we have to -- >>reporter: saturday thousands gathered to march the streets of baltimore, there was a sense of solidarity crossing race and social class. it was a day of peaceful protest. yet, this was the image that the complete has seized upon. a few cars and windows were broken but there was no mass rioting. baltimore was never aflame. the few minutes of vandalism relayed around the world were ultimately unrepresentative. >> i was proud of the crowd for telling others to calm down and relax. residents put themselves between police officers and the crowd to

ask for calm and peace. >>reporter: but that doesn't stop those who feel the police have no case to answer for seizing on opportunities to make their case. >> it's a threat to civilization itself. >> the march yesterday for hours and hours was completely peaceful and we're here today to show solidarity with the family and show that there are people in the communities and this city working together and making things better. >>reporter: he will be buried on monday morning but as in other cities around the u.s. there's a sense of determination in baltimore that problems widely known but rarely publicly discussed will not be allowed to recede into the background again. on the agenda today, the supreme court takes up a case on excessive use of force in wisconsin involving michael kingsly who was tased while in

custody. ash carter will lay a wreath at the 9/11 memorial today. and top diplomats from the eu will meet in ukraine and are expected to press keiv on implementing the minsk cease fire agreement a destructive storm is hitting texas. you can see the hail actually coming down this morning. other states also expected to get hit later today. so let's bring in our meteorologist, nicole mitchell. i understand these tornados came in overnight. >> yes. continuing overnight which is always scary because sometimes people aren't hearing the warnings. so here's a look at the radar and as we put this into motion things really firing up late into the afternoon. i paused this actually. see those two lines in there? bow echos. that indicates especially high

winds. we've had hail and high winds with this as well and now you can see the line pushing into louisiana. 20 reports of tornado already. one as recently as 4:00 a.m. this morning hitting two residences but because of the time of night they don't know whether or not there's injuries. that has not been reported at this point. and you could have more reports during the day because some tornado don't get seen in the overnight period to confirm them. >> okay. thank you. reaching the president's e-mails. mounting questions after russian hackers gain access to president obama's private correspondence. a breach more serious than first thought

this is believed to be the biggest higher education shutdown in u.s. history. thousands of truck drivers may take the day off in the latest action in a long running labor dispute in los angeles. truckers want better wages and more protections. about 16,000 drivers work at the port. and a bill to raise hawaii's smoking age to 21 is now on the governor's desk. if he signs it, hawaii would have the highest age restriction on smoking in the u.s. a breach of president obama's personal e-mails may be more serious than first admitted. russia was allegedly behind the breach this fall. >>reporter: in october russia scooped up email exchanges between president obama and other senior government officials. the white house would not

comment on the report published sunday by the "new york times." if accurate it would represent one of the most significant known electronic intrusions into top levels of the u.s. government. unnamed officials cited said no classified information was collected by the hackers and that the deepest, most secure servers carrying classified data including messages from obama's blackberry were not breached. the report says all signs point to a russian origin for the hackers and they're presumed to be linked to or working for the government of president vladimir putin. last week ashton carter revealed russian hackers penetrated the pentagon's unclassified systems. >> we analyzed network activity associated with russia and then quickly kicked them off the network in a way that minimized their chances of returning. this episode illustrates a step in the right direction.

>>reporter: the u.s. itself has spied on other world leaders electronic communications. leaked information from former national security agency contractor edward snowden shows the agency tapped the german chancellor's cellphone. the hacks come at a time of extreme tension between the white house and the kremlin. an unnamed u.s. official told the times the russian angle to this is particularly worrisome. the clinton foundation admits it made mistakes in how it disclosed information about its finances while hillary clinton was secretary of state. the acting ceo addressed a $2 million donation from a canadian being taken over by a russian uranium producer at the time. she says they did not report the

donation because canada bans disclosing that information without consent. this comes as a new book alleges a pattern of foreign donations and speaking fees coincided with favorable policy treatment when clinton was secretary of state he made his name in the boxing ring but former heavy weight champion turned mayor of keiv ukraine, now faces the most important fight of his life. >> he was at the forefront of the protest that swept a prowestern government to pow nor ukraine, sparked an armed conflict in the east and put a deep chill in relations between russia and the west. ukraine's economy is in crisis while in the east there have been steady violations of the latest cease fire. we sat down with the mayor and asked him what he thinks

russia's president end game is in ukraine. >> the ideas to review -- ukraine have to play very important role in this. we are ukranian don't -- our future almost 80% of population sees a future in modern european democratic country, ukraine. it's our goal. >> with regards to ukraine's security future do you want to see ukraine be a part of nato or do you worry that if ukraine is wedded into that alliance that it will set it up to constantly be a pawn between russia and the west? >> the population decide that at this point and the chance to be part of it is big because all

ukranians see our future in european union. to be part of matter or not, my personal opinion, yes. but it's very sensitive decision and this decision we have to do it with understanding. >> you had a very successful professional boxing career. but when you were in that boxing ring there were rules. now you're in a different arena, a political arena where a lot of people that you're up against play by no rules. how have you adapted to this new arena? >> it is true. in professional boxing you have just the rounds. in politics nobody knows how long the distance. the second point, in politics

especially young democracy as ukraine, to compare to boxing ukraine is like mixed fight with no rules. and we want to bring european standards of life not just in life, in country, also in politics. it needs clear rules. if you destroy the rules, you have to be disqualify. >> he bes keiv must lead from the front when it comes to reforming the country. tonight we'll learn what he's doing to weed out corruption in the capital and restore security to all its residents regardless of their political leanings. >> you can see the whole interview tonight at 9:00 p.m. on al jazeera japanese prime minister makes an official visit to the u.s. why his trip is being billed as historic and dna hacking, the work of

chinese researchers that some scientists say has crossed medical and ethical lines. l and ethical lines.

aftershocks in nepal continue to rattle the country. at least 3,000 people have died. 101 americans are among the missing a funeral will be held today in ball but for freddie gray. over the weekend there were demonstrations against police violence >> and the trial of jails holmes begins this morning in colorado. he is accused of killing 12 people in a crowded movie theater in 2012. he has pled not guilty by reason of insanity. the prosecution is arguing for

the death penalty >> a serious fuel shortage is impacting humanitarian efforts in yemen. it is causing power outages at hospitals putting patients' lives at risk. ambulances in parts of the country aren't running either because there's no fuel. this morning, the world food program says 12 million people throughout yemen are going hungry. that is a 13% increase since the war began. the u.n. security council holds a closed-door session on the situation in yemen in a few hours. war in that country will also be on the agenda later today when john kerry meets with his counterparts. he'll also meet with his iranian counterpart for the first time since laying out the framework for a nuclear deal earlier this month. negotiators are trying to finalize that deal by the end of june. jails smith joining us from d.c. this morning to discuss the

ongoing conflict in yemen. so secretary kerry has said iran is supplying houthi rebels in yemen. while it continues to negotiate the terms of this nuclear deal with iran the obama administration has made it seem like these are completely separate issues but behind closed doors, do you think one plays into the other? >> well of course they're connected, stephanie. we find ourselves in the unique position of being on the same side of iran against daish and iraq but in a conflict with iran on their support of the houthis in yemen. so i'm sure secretary kerry will be addressing this issue with the prime minister today. >> kerry is also holding separate talks with jordan and egypt but when it comes down to it do the saudis and iranians need to be in the same room for there to be any political

situation in yemen? >> i don't believe they need to be in the same room now. it appears to me that if you look at what the saudis have been doing, the air strikes are aimed at creating a situation where the houthi advance has stalled and creates an opportunity for engagement. it looks to me like that may be in the offing and that's why the foreign ministers of the gcc, the united states and egypt are getting together today. so i hope we have an opportunity to do that engagement and if secretary kerry is doing that in parallel with the conversations with the iranians then there can be a positive outcome. >> do you think there are also back channel talks happening between the u.s. state department and the houthis? >> i don't know if we're having direct talks with them.

but once again, we have interlock tours who can support that effort and perhaps engagement with iran through oman. so i'm sure that conversations are going on. >> so it sounds like what you're saying is that the saudis felt like the air strikes would actually bring about a political solution? >> combat power does not in and of itself ever solve anything. the best it can do is set conditions where other instruments of state craft can take place. so i believe that the saudis only ever had limited goals in the air strike and certainly it was the set conditions that a negotiated settlement could take

place because what they're ultimately looking for is a reset to the yemen transition that goes back to 2011. this would involve a negotiated settlement between the houthis president hadi's government and allow for representation in that government by the houthis. >> jails smith, former u.s. ambassador to saudi arabia. thank you for your time and insights this morning. >> it's good to be with you. >> thank you the vice president will swear in loretta lynch today as the 83rd attorney general at 11:00 a.m. eastern. the senate voted thursday to . her nomination was held up for months because of a disagreement between democrats and republicans over an antihuman trafficking bill the prime minister of japan is in the u.s. for a visit. his trip will include a dinner at the white house and he will

address a joint meeting of congress. here's more on what's on the agenda. >>reporter: there's a host of urgent issues on the agenda. first, trade. the u.s. and japan have been haggling for decades over market over u.s. products especially in agriculture and autos. now they are closer than other. all part of a 12-nation deal called the trans-pacific partnership, tpp, that would significantly open markets across the asia pacific and the united states. opposition here at home though to president obama from members of his own party, democrats opposed to a potential deal. it will also focus on asia pacific security. there's a volatile volatile dispute between china and japan over a set of islands in the east china sea.

officials say there will be a major event on monday when the prime minister and top american officials sign a deal with japan where japan agrees to take a bigger role in providing for its own self-defense. he will also visit boston san francisco, and los angeles during his visit to the united states. contend with china's rising influence and japan is key to its strategy. >> china is not a sleeping giant. it's already awakened. so the issue is how u.s. manages china. and what u.s. is saying currently as -- but changing the focus of the u.s. security

strategy from any other region to asia. and asia has been a very -- east asia has been a very stable region for the last three or four decades and it's because of the u.s. presence in japan. u.s. has the most troops in japan and then that is the -- that provides the stability of the region. >> now in indonesia, eight foreign convicts could face the firing squad as soon as tomorrow. protesters have been calling for clemency. they're from australia, brazil, nigeria and the philippines. u.n. secretary-general is in italy today to address the growing migrant crisis. he'll be meeting with european leaders to talk about the problem. the root of it lies in the migrant's home countries in africa and the middle east.

but addressing the underlying causes may be the hardest part. >>reporter: these are not good times. his 18-year-old son has been with smugglers in libya. >> sometimes i feel like i've lost my sanity. you can imagine how you would feel when your child calls you and says he's been beaten and threatened with death unless you pay up. it's sad. yet, even if we pay the money we still have no guarantee that my child will survive. >>reporter: he left for libya a few months ago. his family asked him to come back after he failed to cross the mediterranean. he says the smugglers treated him bad. >> they're butchers. they don't care about the lives of the migrants but rather the cash they extort out of their

families. they won't think twice about

killing people. >> i had no choice but to hang onto that cushion. >> they were in the water for two hours before they were finally spotted and rescued. soldiers in chili are cleaning up as much ash as possible after several volcanic

eruptions. rain is expected over the next few days which could cause mud slides. about 400 soldiers were called into areas hit the hardest. some homes and restaurants have already collapsed by the sheer weight of the ash. almost 7,500 million cubic feet of ash spewed from the volcano and there's still the possibility for more eruptions. school buses may be keeping some kids out of school. let's bring in nicole mitchell for today's environmental impact. so some of these buses are making kids sick? >> yes and we're not just talking about germs. it's the buses themselves. think back to when you were a kid and how many are those diesel buses that just spew emissions out the back. well your kids are breathing that in. so research that just came in last week found that students and they took students before clean technology was adopted and after and it made a huge

difference. they studied lung function and how it related to absent teeism on numerous buses and trips. if you reduced to the cleaner buses and cleaner fuels, 14 million fewer absences are projected, 16% healthier lungs. but that's up even more with kids withes are prio tour problems like asthma. so that is tremendously big deal. so if your kid is susceptible, you might want to see the bus they're actually taken. the epa has required stricter emissions for 2006 and newer buses but there's still a lot of old ones on the road. >> you see the old buses sitting idle all the time with those fumes coming out. all right. thank you. on the science beat this morning, researchers in china

are going where no scientists have gone before announcing they have altered the dna in human 'em embryos. >>reporter: clustered regularly interstaysed short palindromic repeat. it means small stretches of repeated dna. but don't worry about that. worry about what it could mean. it's the basis for an exciting gene editing technique. it's a way of hacking evolution itself. it's a sort of defense mechanism inside dna. it can destroy an attacking virus cutting up the dna of that invading virus like a knife. researchers have figured out they can trick it into cutting wherever they want along specific dna sequences knocking out certain genes. they also know how to use it to insert new genes into dna.

one team even figured out how to activate genes that might otherwise be dormant. this means we can manipulate dna. it seems as if it can work in almost any common organism including human beings. it could be a remote control for altering, say, a fetus inside a pregnant woman. chinese researchers have used it to modify human embryos turning off a potentially fatal blood disorder. some believe it could be used to create genetic immunity to hiv itself. parents could pick their child's eye or hair color or determine height or body type. its amazing technology with amazing potential burt research into humans is the line that no one has dared cross before now.

that's because we're changing the genetic inheritance of all of someone's kids grand kids great grand kids. they'll all inherit whatever tinkering has been done. that can be a good thing. swap out the genes that predispose your family to schizophrenia and you wipe it out in your blood line. but that's the trouble. everything you do is true in the genes of that person. we're mess, the future of the human human species. it worked as intended only about half the time. any mistake is a permanent alteration. that is why a group of leading researchers including the scientists who discovered the importance of this have called for a global moratorium on human experimentation. they feel we're just not ready to play around at this level yet but chinese researchers have done it. they're editing the basic

material of human beings making it a major moment in the history of science. we are now playing god. in today's digital beat a deal between the u.s. and mexico is bringing in new life. for more than 15 years, water from the colorado river has not flowed to parts of mexico but that changed after a deal was reached last year. the plan is to restore more than 40,000 acres which has withered to about a 10th of its original size. farmers are already seeing a rebound. animals are returning. and tourism has jumped. the bad news is that the deal only lasts for two years and then water is cut off again. for more on this story, head over to al jazeera and click on u.s. stories. civil rights pioneer ruby bridges talks about her role in the movement. >> i don't see myself as a hero

which lots of the kids say. i do see myself as a role model the. >> she talks about her fight and race in america today next. america today next.

it's 8:50 eastern taking a look at today's top stories. israel is defending air strikes this weekend that killed four people near the syrian border. the four fighters tried to plant bombs. they suspect the syrian fighters were targeting israeli soldiers parts of texas with under a tornado today. these are live pictures out of the dallas area. you can see some of the damage already being wrought by this storm system. large hail and flooding hit overnight and into this morning. areas from louisiana to florida may get hit next. the defense begins its case today trying to spare dzhokhar tsarnaev's life in the penalty life after being found guilty in the boston bombing attack. friends and family have arrived

in boston to testify on his behalf some folks are already lining up in d.c. for one of the most coveted tickets in town seats inside the supreme court as it prepares to hear arguments in same-sex marriage cases tomorrow. a lot of businesses have already made their decision on the subject. >>reporter: this is the ben and jerry's ice cream factory in vermont. and while they're churning out their favorite flavors, they're also dishing up a serving of civil rights. the company is one of 379 businesses in the u.s. that have signed a brief before the u.s. supreme court in favor of same-sex marriage. >> i think it is easier for companies to speak up on behalf of same-sex marriage because i think society is much more accepting now and i think this will evolve over time. i think hopefully sooner than later it will all be behind us

and we'll all wonder what the fuss was all about. >>reporter: it's a wide variety of industries now supporting same-sex marriage. everything from banks to technology companies, hotel chains airlines even sports teams. they argue that the patchwork of laws that now exists is bad for business. same-sex marriage is allowed in 37 states and the district of columbia but it's banned in 13 states. businesses say that costs them money to keep up with the laws and it hurt when is they try to recruit the best talent. those on the other side argue there is no constitutional right to same-sex marriage and they say it should be left up to each individual state. >> ruby bridges was one of the

first black children to integrate an all white school in the south. she sat down to talk about where the country is more than 50 years later. >>reporter: ruby bridges, the brave little girl whose walk to school became a symbol of the civil rights struggle chose to lead a private life for the next 30 years. her journey is remembered in this iconic painting. the problem we all live with by norman rockwell. >> you became the face of integration. did you see this? >> i did not see that until i was about 17 or 18. but, you know my child psychologist, dr. robert coles, he was friends with norman rockwell and so he did this one and a few other pieces. but this was, i think, one of the first. >>reporter: she says racism and violence are very real problems

today. in 2010, her elledest son was gunned down in new orleans. he was only 17 years old. i think once obama was elected, it was like taking gasoline and pouring it onto a fire. i think racism just bubbled up once he was elected. so even though we made that progress, you know it's like two steps forward and three back. and it's like living through the civil rights movement all over

again. >> hi. hi. hi. look at you. >>reporter: today at 60, bridges travels to schools across the country teaching students about the importance of tolerance. >> you know about forgiving; right? >> yes. >> so you just have to put that behind you. >>reporter: you've dedicated your life to kids in many ways. >> yes. >>reporter: and school children and schools. why? >> because i remember -- i remember what it was like sitting in that classroom. i know what it felt like when the little boy said i can't play with you. and he didn't even know me. and i see so many kids that are struggling. i can see the pain in their eyes sometimes. >>reporter: among the top honors she's received over the years bridges says she's most proud of this. >> it's like home and these are my kids. it's like coming home.

>> more than 40 years after being threatened bullied, and cursed for simply going to school this school now bears her name. >> do you feel like it's important to educate the students today about what happened to you? >> absolutely i do. and i do feel a sense of responsibility to share my story and explain to them that racism has no place in the hearts and minds of kids. that it's adults that pass it on. i believe if we are to get past our racial differences, it's going to come from our kids. and since my experience is that other child, i choose to work with kids. >> i'm going to leave. i'm saying good-bye. okay. >> thanks for watching. that's al jazeera new york. l jazeera new york.

>> tonight. >> it's crazy money that you can make here. >> behind america's oil boom. >> it's a ticking time bomb. >> uncovering shocking working conditions. >> do you know what chemicals have been in that tank? >> and the deadly human cost. >> my big brother didn't wake up the next day. >> "faultlines". al jazeera america's hard-hitting... >> today they will be arrested. >> ground-breaking... >> they're firing canisters of gas at us. >> emmy award-winning investigative series. "faultlines": death on the bakken shale. tonight, 10:00 eastern. only on al jazeera america. >> part of al jazeera america's >> special month long evironmental focus fragile planet

>> sunday. pop-rock, new wave icon kate pierson. >> woo! woo! woo! woo! >> revealing the secrets behind her biggest hits. >> i can express myself in a different way. >> her latest controversial track. >> i was very taken aback. >> and making a long lasting impact on the world. >> i have to just be myself. >> every sunday night. >> i lived that character. >> go one on one with america's movers and shakers. >> we will be able to

see change. >> gripping. inspiring. entertaining. "talk to al jazeera". sunday, 6:30 eastern. only on al jazeera america. welcome to allen schauffler i'm at katmandu. after this country's largest earthquake and the death toll is rise to go over 3-and-a-half,000 people. and and the president moves to tighten his power. and war poverty and oppression at home, to make it and tough times await these my