fighting continues in yemen. rebels have not responded to a saudi offer of a ceasefire. hello, i'm martine den nice doha. also to come in the programme - egypt's former president hosni mubarak's 3-year assistance on corruption charges is upheld, but he can now go free, having already served his time 70 years on, russia celebrates its victory day against the nazis with a massive military parade. relief in liberia as the west african country is finally declared free of ebola.

but first, saudi jets bombed areas close to the international airport in the yemeni capital sanaa. this comes a day after the saudis offered the houthis a 5-day ceasefire starting from views, if the rebels stopped targetting saudi villages. no official word from the houthis, for now heavy fighting continues. hashem ahelbarra has more. >> reporter: air strikes in yemen, coalition forces striking command centers, ammunition depots, and the homes of top military commanders. sadr province is a military target and civilians are urged to leave the area.

saudi arabian army officers say they will implement a 5 day humanitarian ceasefire starting from tuesday, but warn it will only hold if houthis stop targetting saudi villages. >> translation: these militia escalated the situation, targetting the saudi cities. that's why we need to take the cities and and guarantee the safety of saudi and yemeni cities. >> reporter: fighting is escalating across yemen. tribesmen loyal to president abd-rabbu mansour hadi say they have repelled a houthi offensive in a province. it's a crucial battle for both sides. the province has most of yemen's oil and gas reserves. >> translation: this is the front line, this area was under the control of the houthis, now we have captured it.

the rebels are regrouping and planning a counter-offensive. >> reporter: in the city of tiaz, pro-government troops backed by the militias captured the mountain. the strategic high ground overlooking the city. these are some of the weapons and military equipment seized from soldiers supporting deposed president ali abdullah saleh. if the houthis lose tiaz, they lose a vital supply line for their fighters in aden. hakim al-masmari editor of the "yemen post" and says the houthi rebels are unlikely to stop fighting to allow the ceasefire to take affect. >> rising public anger against the houthis in yemen because saudi arabia shows willingness to offer a ceasefire to end the clashes, and to give dialogue and negotiation a chance.

the houthis have now not responded or given positive reaction, that is why there's hatred to the houthis, have not given reaction, so that is why that is hatred why they are hated now. and why are they not allowing aid into the country. . >> hosni mubarak's sentence has been upheld. he is allowed to go home for time served. and his sons - who have already served their time. since hosni mubarak was ousted. he has faced a series of trials.

the most serious where he was charged with ordering the killing of protesters. he was sentenced to 25 years, but acquitted in a retrial. that verdict is being appealed and a decision made early next month. the second case of embezzlement. accused of squandering public funds. in his retrial on saturday the court found him guilty sentencing him to three years in gaol. as mentioned he served that time and, therefore, can walk free. hosni mubarak was also charged in two other corruption case and was cleared in one, and the other never made it to court now, an egyptian journalist exile says all charges against hosni mubarak and his sons were strategically picked. >> any could see clearly were

carefully picked. and the seeds were planted. it was not surprising that they were convicted at the first stage of the trial. i believe the objective of such convictions were to apiece the rising victims of the revolutionaries and the public. they knew very well that in the next stage. trials they were going to be acquitted. in my view, it aims primarily and basically to kill future chances for mubarak's ston run in an upcoming presidential election. the retrial of two al jazeera journalists in egypt had been postponed until june the 1st. mohamed fadel fahmy and mohammed badr are accused of supporting the outlawed muslim brotherhood. charges denied. they were released on bail in february after spending more than 400 days in imprisonment a

judge dismissed the charges, but ordered them to stand trial again 55 inmates and 12 police men have been killed during a prison break in diyala. more than 55 inmates are missing. police are searching for them. the prison holds around 300 inmate more protests are expected in guatemala calling for the president to quit. the vice president has already resigned after one of her top aides was linked to a multi million corruption scandal. victoria gatenby reports. >> reporter: thousand of guatemalans celebrated the vice president's resignation in the capital guatemala city. it was the culmination of weeks of protest. anger and frustration that had been directed to her and the

ruling party was replaced by chants and cheers and firecrackers. it was called a victory for the people. her resignation was announced by the president, and said to be a praised decision. >> after talks, i reiterate the vice president courageously made the decision to resign. what i think is everything had its time. their are processes that i insist should be followed and respected. there are processes followed by law, that all guatemalans should respect. the private secretary is alleged to be a leader of a scam. official took bribes to lower customs duties. investigators issued a warrant for his arrest when he was on a trip. when she flew home she held a media conference. they called on congress to remove her immunity from

prosecution and paving the way for legal action. others were implicated, including the head of the tax authority. when the president was elected. he promised to combat crime with an iron fist. and this corruption scandal suggested limited success. melina is not standing for office, but with four months before the presidential election, some fear the damage to the ruling party has been done. the presidential candidate withdrew from the race and protesters called for the president to resign too. russia held the annual vuctry day parade -- victory day parade to commemorate 70 years since the end of world war i. many western leaders did not show up because of russia's involvement in neighbouring

ukraine. >> helicopters, nuclear missile launchers, tanks, soldiers in uniform. russia is in the middle of an ambitious military upgrade, trying to make its armed forces better equipped and more professional. other departments are suffering budget cuts, defense spending here has increased significantly, and this is a chance for russia to show off all that kit. . >> in past decades, principles have been neglected more and more often. we saw attempts to create a uni-polla world, and now see military block gaining momentum. 10 years ago vladimir putin sat

next to george w bush. western leaders were noted by their absence. ukraine's crisis badly souring relations. other leaders came to shake hands with the president. the chinese leader xi jinping. russia is displaying new relationships intended to mitigate damage to the older ones. also shown off is military. a newly designed battle tank since before the soviet union fell. russia is modernizing armed forces as fast as it is able. trying to build a professional military. other departments are facing severe budget cuts defense spending increased significantly. watching the parade were some of the few remaining people that fought against the nazis in what russia calls a great patriotic

war. perhaps it will be the last anniversary where it's possible. >> i have pride for the motherland. i'm amazed by the modern technology. i feel so proud. i'm satisfied that there are people that can defend the land that we once defended. >> victory day has multiple functions. it displays military might and slows off friendships and unites russians in the politically potent themes of sacrifice and victory. still to come here at al jazeera - people from myanmar used as slaves on indonesian fishing trawlers we hear from one mother who hasn't seen her son in years. plus as a race for the white house hots up. we look at the contenders so

far. far.

hello again, let's look at the top stories here at al jazeera. there has been more saudi-led air strikes in yemen at the international airport in sanaa. saudi arabians offer the houthis a 5-day truce that could come into effect on tuesday if the rebels agree to end the fighting a judge in cairo upheld hosni mubarak's 3-year sentence but is allowing the president to go home as he already served his time and more recently he spent

time in a military hospital russia is marking 70 years since it defeated the nazis in world war ii. several world leaders watched the military parade in moscow. most were absent in protest at the ongoing crisis in ukraine. >> now to syria, where international inspectors found traces of sarin gas in research sites used by the regime after activists reported chlorine attacks in idlib in the north. fighting in the area close to damascus continued between hezbollah, and opposition fighter for control of the strategic area. we have more. >> reporter: it's thought to be a battle of survival. if in the opposition hands,

damascus would be next and would cut off bashar al-assad's stronghold. they are gaining the upper hand with few losses on the battlefield. the syrian says 40 hezbollah fighters were killed. hezbollah fighters were killed, and they announced a strategic withdrawal. and damascus inspectors found traces of sarin gas and a nerve agent on the sites. samples taken from experts in december and january tested positive. it comes with increased regime attacks in civilian areas, the latest of which was a chlorine attack in idlib province, more than 70% were affected. >> we believe the factual record was straightforward and

devastating in terms of syrian regime use. as a factual matter, it is true that no one is mandated to establish attribution for the attacks, and we need to fix that. >> away from the fighting, in the southern city, the opposition is restoring historical sites that have been damaged during the war. the project is aimed at clearing and restoring the town that has a castle and a roman theatre. a ray of hope in a province that a new life without war may be possible. now doctors without borders says it's evacuating its international staff from south sudan, leer, because of concerns of an imminent attack. last year the hospital was burnt and looted during an attack.

. >> it's reported close to leer where we are running a hospital for the population in the region. we had to evacuate our staff as a precaution and cease the services. we estimate that the population benefitting from the services in the hospital is around 200,000. this year alone we have carried out more than 25,000 consultations. at the time of the evacuation we had more than 30 patients in the hospital. we have treated more than 2,500 children this year alone so that the medical needs in the area are great and the hospital is the only secondary health care facility they can access. burundi's defence minister asked for barricades to be withdrawn, and warned against night-time rallies. 13 died in demonstrations.

protesters say the president pierre nkurunziza's decision to run for a third term violates the constitution. the u.n. security council made an urgent appeal for calm. the world health organisation declared liberia ebola free. this is a country hardest hit by the out break, health officials are warning against complacency because new cases are being reported elsewhere in the region. caroline malone reports. >> reporter: these students are the picture of health as liberia is declared ebola free. the virus has not been seen in this country for 42 days, twice the incubation period. >> i lost my father to the deadly ebola virus. now i see my country getting back to normal. i'm happy i'll see my friends play, joke, shake hands. things i have not been able to do for six months. >> the people in neighbouring guinea and sierra leone are

still dealing with ebola. the world health organisation says both countries reported nine new cases in the last week. that's the lowest weekly total, this year, but it means ebola is spreading. new cases in sierra leone and guinea puts liberians at risk. >> we know that ebola, on the borders, especially with sierra leone, there are a lot of entry points in liberia and sierra leone, and guinea. >> reporter: the disease killed nearly 11,000 people since it was first detected more than a year ago. people with ebola get fevers, diarrhoea and often bleed internally. the virus spreads through bodily fluids and kills around half that it infects. there's no known cure for ebola, but a vaccine has been quickly developed over the past year. trials on healthy volunteers show it's safe and has

been used to protect frontline workers in guinea. >> like with many fatal diseases that are relatively contagious we rely on a vaccine, trying to avoid catching the disease is what will help the most. >> the who has been criticized for being slow to respond to the outbreak, despite warnings from groups like doctors without borders, who dealt with the early cases. there are still lessons to be learnt in the health communities. doctors in liberia are feeling confident. >> if it happens that we have an upsurge of cases coming back, it means that would be a new outbreak, which we don't wish for. but if it should come, from the case management point of view, we are very well prepared. >> reporter: 4,700 people died from ebola in liberia, more than any other country. it has now got rid of the disease, and although there's a threat of a new outbreak, people are hopeful they have seen the end

of the ebola in liberia the united states is calling on north korea to reframe from raising regional tensions after reports it launched an underwater ballistic missile. state media reported it was sent from a submarine, and the leader kim jong un oversaw the operation. hours after the announcement officials reported seeing three missiles off the east coast. pyongyang's use of technology is a clear violation of the security council resolutions a container ship seized by iran has been released. the "tigris "was intercepted on april the 28th. it's now docked in the port.

24 crew members are in good position. it says it was because there was a dispute between it and a private iranian firm. a bomb attack planned for sunday has been discovered. police arrested a teen. he is due in court on monday. there were no links with five teenagers arrested for plotting an attack on veterans day the bodies of seven people killed in a helicopter crash in pakistan including those of the philippine and norwegian ambassadors arrived in the capital islamabad. military chiefs and government officials gathered to pay respects. the wives of indonesian and malaysian ambassadors were killed. the pakistani airport says a

technical failure caused the crash. 15 fishermen arrived in myanmar after being arrested. a leading indonesian fishing company is accused of treating more than 300 menace slaves, forcing them to work long hours without pay, beating them, housing them in unsanitary conditions. florence louie met the family of two fishermen. >> it was poverty that drove her son away, first to thailand and then to indonesia. >> translation: we are a farming family, it is no longer profitable to work on the farm. on the other hand we don't have money to start another business. the farmers were losing money and he needed to find a job somewhere else. >> this man told his mother he was working on a boat and he would be back in three years. those years have come and gone, without a word from him, until a few days ago.

kt found out her son is safe, after being rescued by indonesian authorities, and will soon return home to myanmar. her son could be one of hundreds of irregular migrant workers, forced to work in slave-like conditions on fishing trawlers, in indonesia. one company used a prison cell to lock up workers. these men, many from myanmar, were paid a pittance and abused, until they were rescued by indonesian officials. her son is among them. al jazeera met him in indonesia, last month where he's awaiting repatriation. it's small comfort for her. she didn't know if he was dead or alive for years. >> i have relied on my two sons. i can't rely on them now. the more i think about it the sadder i become. i wish my younger son comes back soon. >> reporter: all she has to do now is wait.

myanmar police and immigration officials are in the midst of confirming identities and processing documents of hundreds of fishermen. they are hoping to bring them home later this month. there'll be more men and women hoping to leave home, eager for better playing jobs abroad. despite stories of ill-treatment that compatriots come back with the chilean president is choosing a new cabinet. she asked all members to resign on wednesday. michelle bachelet's approval ratings is at a low after a string of corruption scandals. her son resigned as head of government charity after allegations of influence pedalling. the u.s. elections are next we are, patty culhane looks at the contenders and their chance

of winning in 2016. >> it's more than a year and a half away, but candidates are on the trail. >> we've come to take our country back. >> reporter: being nice to children. shaking hands and asking for votes. touting their past experience. so far there's a senator. this one and this one. and, of course, the senator turned secretary of state, hillary clinton. >> don't you some day want to see a woman president of the united states of america. [ cheering ] >> reporter: it seems likely there'll be more than a few governors jumping into the race. who has the edge? historically there's not one clear path. there has been 44 presidents so far. 17 have been governor of state: 16 were u.s. senators like: having senate experience can be a negative.

>> do you want me to talk? >> reporter: trying to explain complex vote remember this. this was from john kerry. >> i voted for the $83 million, before voting against it. >> reporter: they have challenges. they can say they have an experience of running a mini version of the u.s., but they have clear records, and they can be hard to explain. >> i wake up fighting for the people in my state. >> chris christie will have to explain why his state's credit rating has been downgraded nine times under his leadership. some historians believe in the end it matters less what a candidate has done than who they are. >> in a day and age of massive media, you need to be a charismatic figure, the power of presidential personality. people want to think that you are on their side that you touched their lives. >> reporter: the clock has

started. the candidates are making sure this time they have enough time to reach that goal. you can find out more about the day's top stories and background information on the al jazeera website. aljazeera.com. . >> fired over facebook. creating a sleepry slope. a lack at how this enforcement tool called civil forfeiture works. and an online platform embraceed by millions to tell their story unde