[ ♪♪ ] u.s. secretary of state john kerry meets yemen's president abd-rabbu mansour hadi in riyadh as fighting rages. from al jazeera's headquarters in doha also ahead - pitched battles on the syrian-lebanese borders, both fighting groups claim victory britains go to the polls in

what is expect to be a close election in a decade and two tornados cause destruction in the mid west in yemen, there are calls for ground forces to swer the country. secretary of state john kerry is in riyadh meeting with yemen's president. he's expected to push the saudis for a pause in air strikes to allow in aid. we have more on the situation inside yemen. >> reporter: for thousands trapped in aden the sea is the only way out. they have been caught in the battle for the southern port city. the residents are terrified.

>> the condition is rockets, bombing, random shelling on the houses. no electricity, no water. >> they shoulder responsibilities or be set aside. >> many are confined in their homes. others are on the move looking for a way out. boats like this have become the only hope of survival. they have become dangerous. on wednesday, one of the boat was shelled by houthi rebels killing dozens of people. the district is important. it's not far from the city sport. the area is vital for control. the houthis and forces loyal to former president salah remain powerful here. in the province the fight is equally hard. forces loyal to the president are putting on the fight.

most of the city was destroyed. houthis and their allies. different areas were bombed. speaking from the saudi capital, the newly appointed team of staff, his priority is to organise the forces. >> the requirement is to unite and regroup the army. >> the houthis hit the equipment, cleared the bases and september the officers home. 80%. army is not doing the job. back in yemen, it's a battlefield. millions suffer. >> let's go live to the saudi capital. what sort of message are the saudies and the yemeni president extending to the islamic state.

>> they have interesting messages to convoy. the update we have or the latest is a statement by the yemeni government, about discussions that took place between president abd-rabbu mansour hadi and secretary john kerry. they conveyed the condolences over the killing of civilians in aden and stressed u.s. support, full support for president hardy. and that also is for the saudi-led coalition in the effort to restore legitimacy there. hardy explained the humanitarian situation. but this statement did not talk about a request for a few days now, trying to have a ceasefire for humanitarian purposes, at

least during this discussion and in the yemeni government statement, there was no mention of that. kerry has been in a series of meetings with different leaders, including the saudi group and in a meeting. we must get underway. these issues - the americans are supposed to take the ceasefire. and they ask for a u.n. sponsored invasion the discussions are tough. and we'll hear about them when we give that. >> thank you so much. we'll come back. thank you so much. the syrian opposition is denying hezbollah fighters are retaking key areas. the syrian army and allies

killed dozens it's happening in the mountainous border region. it could spillover. the battle is in syria's mountains have intensified. this is in the western parts. it's pushing out the government and fighters. it is on the lebanese border. it's considered a strategic supply route north of damascus and syrian opposition fighters know it. al nusra front do not want them to distract fighters from other areas against i.s.i.l. and the syrian government the the group's fighters are adamant about maintaining control in areas. the syrian air force targeted positions to prevent inters

understandings. the government denied losing ground and rebel gains prompt rare acknowledgment of setback and promises it raise the moral of troops. god willing we see them in the hospital continuing the battle to eradd cade terrorism. >> in neighbouring lebanon funerals were held killed during the battles. >> it's inflicted losses on syrian opposition fighters and promised to clear the area. the battle is near the divided part of lebanon, and is a cause for concern for others. the political parties say it's worried that hezbollah's advances could drag the army into syria's war. >> intervention by the lebanese force outside the country creates a threat for the army

itself and for the society. the syrian opposition says it does not want to across the boarder into lebanon. fighters insist on battling hezbollah, a vital life line caping the government in power. the lebanese army has been deployed in areas where they can't operate. in a fight close to home where people may take sides, based on whether they are sunni or shia they are seen as a threat to lebanon. >> a research analyst at the carnegie middle east center explained how rebel fighters are managing to make gains against the troops in the region. >> in the past two months we have seen a trend within the syrian opposition. the more they are uniting, the more they are proving to be efficient and are winning on the ground.

this is why they created an army umbrella that is successful. and they are witnessing a trend emerging on the mountainside when all the fighters are uniting on the one umbrella and coordinating the attacks, allowing them to be more lethal and efficient to stand ground in areas that they have controlled. in addition they created a kind of common command room between damascus and we have seen how much they are coordinating the attacks. in the past few days we see huh inside damascus we have several attacks, one of which was successful. that declared its responsibility of a suicide attack. it was coordinated within the attack of allah moon. the more that these factions and militants are coordinating the more they are uniting, the more they prove to be efficient facing the regime and allies.

since the eruption since sunday night, we saw how the islamic statias -- state was attacking. they are not contributing to the attacks. to the opposite these militants are between two fronts, one of which is the islamic state, and the other is hezbollah. >> voting is under way in the u.k. general election in what could be the country's tightest race in year. if neither of two major parties do more that half the seats, they may negotiate between former parties. laurence lee is in westminster with this update. election day in the u.k. for broadcast journalists are something of an out of body experience for weeks and weeks you can pontificate endlessly. from a point in time when the

polls open until it shuts, you can't say anything at all, which might be construed as influencing the way the voters vote. it's the same principle as court cases, where the jury hears the evidence. when they retire to consider the verdicts. decide who is right and wrong. you are not allowed to say anything at all. it restrikes broadcast journalists into things like when the polls are open and shut. nothing else. from the point of time when it was shut. which is 2100 g.m. t. it goes back out in the open. there are exit polls, it will be clear later, who has done well and who has done badly. the rules don't fly to other sorts of media. twitter and social media are unregulated. the newers are full of advise on how people should vote

technically i would be breaking the law. no doubt it will be seen as acronystic yet here the broadcasters don't mind at all. they view the principles of people being left alone on voting day. >> it sealed a deal to form a new government hours before a deadline. the majority is extremely thin. mike hanna explains it went to the wire. at the last moment was an agreement reached. the leader securing major concessions before agreeing to throw in eight seats. it gave the israeli prime minister the support of the majority in parliament a slim majority of one. time is of the essence. not only because i'm leaving now to call the president and the chairman of the knesset to tell them i have managed to form a

government. but we'll need to form it by next week to give a strong and stable government to the state of israel the full extent of the concessions will become apparent in coming days as binyamin netanyahu finalis the composition of his cabinet. but it's clear that this will be a government of extreme right wing sensibility. jewish homes have their roots in the settlement movement. and the leader called for the creation of more settlements not less along with the expulsion of palestinians. the government will be at the mercy of two ultra orthodox parties, which demanded and been granted the pledge of renewed welfare benefits to ultra religious u and exclusion from service. the inevitable increase will in turn put pressure on the nominated finance minister who brought his breakaway party back

into the likud fold. it do take the withdrawal of support by a single member of one of the coalition parties to bring the government down. >> so with the end of weeks of negotiation, binyamin netanyahu is left with a one seat majority. it will be a weak government at the mercy of settlement movements and two small parties. and coincidentally at an annual religious festival there's added spring in the step of dancers. dancers. the p.l.o.'s chief palestinian negotiator reacted angrily. the face of a new form has been

revealed. they vehemently led the charge. and impose a perpetual regime. congratulations israel, your new government ensured piece is not on the agenda. still ahead saudi arabia lened senegal a helping hand to redevelop the infrastructure but it comes at a price. the leader of the iraqi kurds says a referendum will be held after the fight with i.s.i.l. is over.

>> "inside story" takes you beyond the headlines, beyond the quick cuts, beyond the sound bites. we're giving you a deeper dive into the stories that are making our world what it is. >> ray suarez hosts "inside story". weeknights, 11:30 eastern. on al jazeera america.

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..in many communities most young men and women were killed or left and it could impact on recovery and surviveal.

many people's homes have been destroyed. their spirits will be repaired. recovering it possible. it's a lengthy process that is always possible. fighters or on the run. it's a huge desire to turn home. the question being asked for is a return to work one protestor has been killed, and nine others injured in burundi's capital. demonstrators were protested against a decision to run for a third term in the elections. foreign ministers survived to strike a peace deal with the opposition more than a dozen have been killed and scores wounded since protests began

since protests began the central african republic said it will take legal action suspected of child abuse. french soldiers were deployed to the country. several children the youngest nine, alleged 14 soldiers in bangui sexually abused them in exchange for food. in iraq. i.s.i.l. is said to be behind an attack in anbar province. it reportedly hit military headquarters with rocket propelled grenades. one iraqi soldiers was kill. three i.s.i.l. fighters were killed. iraq has been trying to retake anbar province for months the pentagon says iraq is not gaining ground in a fight to

retake the bangui oil refinery. spokesman declined to predict the outcome saying it's impossible to know how it will play out. funding has come from the black market. >> the president of iraq's autonomous region promised a referendum on independence when the fight for islamic state is over. last year the vote was postponed saying the focus would be op working with baghdad to wipe out i.s.i.l. >> reporter: the pope emeritus benedict are playing a major role against islamic state of iraq and levant. they have taken 20-30% of lost territory against i.s.i.l. the success reignited. a delayed referendum will go ahead. >> i can't give you an exact

time frame. i can assure you that certainly an independent kurdistan is coming. >> reporter: a speech was given in washington after talks with president obama. the u.s. is opposed to kurdish independence as is turkey. ankara's fear is it could inspire kurdish's own population to act. they shelved plans for a referendum this year. and when iraqi prime minister abd-rabbu mansour hadi made his first visit to the autonomous capital. all eyes were on coordination. cooperation is revealed and coordinating a plan for the peep. >> complicating matters are the areas where the peshmerga battled i.s.i.l. and won. and maintained control. kirkuk was a disputed area but

some fear the peshmerga will not hand it back. any push for independence will be peaceful. i believe i believe that it's a continued process, i will not go into details, this will not happen through violence or killing. we want it through peace and dialogue. the region prospered after the u.s. occupation of iraq and the discovery of oil reserves bought billions investment. they want to make the most of the money, and realise a long held dream of self-discrimination. >> a series of tornados tore through the u.s. oklahoma hardest hit, where the tornados damaged homes and cut power to thousands of people. gerald tan has the latest terifying, yet awe in tiring, a tornado whips through

the u.s. state of oklahoma. more than two dozen twisters touched down on wednesday, cutting a path from texas to nebraska. they flipped cars tore down trees and lines and ripped up roofs. they brought downpours. the national weather service declared a flash flood emergency, a first for the city. in the business district streets from inundated as water filled parking lots forcing shops to close. >> distraught dis-cheveled saddened. the earlier you get it cleaned up the soon you you can get back to business. >> people have been advised to stay off the roads until debris is cleared and the severe weather past. a tornado watch remains in effect but oklahoma and other states in the great plains and

midwest. of course you can get more on all the stories that you've been following if you head to the website. >> britain heads to the polls in a tight race that could change the future of the united kingdom. >> i will hold those accountable if change is not made. >> baltimore's mayor asked for a federal investigation into her police force as questions emerge over an officer's past before the freddie gray case. >> secretary of state john kerry is in saudi arabia, pushing for a humani