london next. ♪ the main migrant trail from greece to northern europe is blocked after western balkan nations shut their borders. ♪ i'm loren taylor this is al jazeera live from london. also coming up, a surge in violence in the middle east, israeli police shoot dead two palestinians accused at shooting at a bus. at the fifth anniversary of the fukushima approaches, japan orders the shut down of two of his nuclear reactors. and tributes for george martin, the music producer known

as the fifth beatle. ♪ hello. dozens of refugees are continuing to arrive at an overcrowded camp on the greek macedonia border. slovenia brought in strict new entry requirements. that has lead to a domino effect of border closures further down the route with croatia and serbia saying they will demand valid e.u. visas from anyone trying to enter. the bottleneck in northern greece is getting worse after macedonia completely closed its border. this is the scene at a camp on wednesday. about 14,000 people are camping here, hoping to be allowed into macedonia. among them is ala who says the

situation is hopeless. >> now we have no choices at all. we cannot depend on the relocation program, and you cannot go anywhere except the legally ways, which i cannot depend on it at all, because it is so expensive and so daj rows, i cannot depend on the illy way. i tried once from the sea between turkey and greece, and i survived, but i cannot try it anymore. the illegal way is not the best way to go to anyplace. i just want to ask the e.u. leaders, just one question, if their children were stuck here in this rubbish, would they make the same decision they made to close the border. >> he was speaking to our correspondent hoda abdel hamid who sent this update. >> reporter: many said the opening of the boarder was their

last hope. and now they have no hope anymore. they are do have options. the option is to go through the relocation program, but because of all that they have been through over the past two to three weeks, and because of all of the restrictions that started adding up, many wonder how long the relocation program will take, and many of the people here are for example, women traveling alone with their children, hoping to join their husband. they are wondering if family reunification will still be valid, because it was simply not valid at the border here when it was opened and that trickle of people were going through. living conditions have become absolutely -- more than difficult, probably devastating. it is really miserable for the 14,000 people who are stranded here. >> most of the refugees are from syria where thousands remain trapped by the conflict. a u.n. humanitarian task force

has met in geneva to assess which areas are most in need of aid. there are 18 areas in need of humanitarian aid, and six have yet to be reached. the u.n. spebl envoy says attention will turn to the political situation in syria at the next round of talks on monday. >> when we start having the talks on month god willing, the focus will be on substance, on the agendas, on new governance, constitution, and elections, the future elections in 18 month's time. the issue about ceasefire and the humanitarian aid we hope in practice should not be addressed by the talks, because we have the task forces who will be addressing those. ceasefire and humanitarian aid alone are not a solution. the solution is a political transition in syria.

>> james bayes is in geneva and says the focus at the u.n. will be on the talks set to begin next week. >> reporter: this is supposed to be the day that those stalled talks, stalled back in february when -- while people were here in geneva talking about the future of syria, there was actually an intense indication on the bombardment in syria. the special envoy says the talks technically start today, but the only people arriving are other u.n. officials. he says he is hoping the two main parties to these talks will come in the coming days, and then substantive talks will start at the beginning of next week, the 14th. >> reporter: refugees from syria aren't just making their way to europe. many live in neighboring countries in camps. bernard smith reports.

>> reporter: free to play without fear of a bomb being dropped on them. these syrian children are now safe in a lebanese refugee camp. it took a two-month track through a war zone for this family to get here. there was shelling, says this 10 year old, people were dying and planes were dropping bombs. when they weren't hiding from the bombings, they were looking for something to eat. >> when we didn't find food we ate grass. my children would say this is grass, but i would have to tell them, i bought it. >> reporter: they had escaped from the city of deir ez-zor, much of the surrounding province is controlled by isil fighters. they are now laying siege to the parts of the city still in government control. >> translator: they weren't letting food or anything in. my children were early eating grass, but my husband and i weren't eating anything because we lost our appetite. if there was bread available, we would eat it.

>> reporter: save the children says shellings, bombings, and air strikes leave lasting psychological scars on children. and this family's story isn't unique, of course. there are not hundreds, not thousands, but millions of syrians who are suffering similar traumas. bernard smith, al jazeera. ♪ several attacks have taken place across israel and the occupied palestinian territory since tuesday. in the latest incident, israeli police shot dead two palestinians who allegedly opened fire on a bus. in the occupied west bank a palestinian was shot dead after attempting to stab an israeli soldier. nadim baba has more details. >> reporter: two palestinian men were shot near a check point that went up on tuesday. that was after reports that at least one of them had tried to attack a member of the israeli border police.

now we're now hearing that one of those palestinians has died of his wounds and he has been named as a 16-year-old teenager from the occupied west bank. not long before that, that incident in occupied east jerusalem. what happened was two palestinians traveling in a car fired towards an israeli bus in the remote area. no one husband -- was hurt, but the israeli police gave chase and during that chase, the palestinians fired at a jew rich israeli, and wounded that person before being shot by the israeli police. tuesday there were incidents not just in occupied east jerusalem but in other parts of israel itself, including in the port city of jaffa outside of

tel-aviv where a man committed several stabbings before being shot. and a palestinian attacker responsible for several different incidents. one of his victims an american tourist died of his wounds. that happened just down the road from where joe biden was holding a conference with the former president of israel after he just landed in the country. the up surge in violence comes as he was saying during a visit by vice president joe biden. he criticized palestinian leaders for failing to condemn the attacks. >> you never need to doubt that the united states of america has israel's back. and we know israel has our back as well, i might add. it's not a 1-way street. we're committed to making sure that israel can defend itself against all serious threats, and it's critical, because israel

lives as bibi knows better than everyone lives in a very, very tough neighborhood. a tough and changing neighborhood. iran has test fired two ballistic missiles that it says are capable of reaching israel. [ explosion ] >> reporter: iranian state media says that the missiles have the phrase israel must be wiped out inscribed on them. the rockets are underto have a range of 2,000 kilometers which is well in excess of israel's boarders. this comes despite criticism of earlier tests this week. japan has ordered the closure of two nuclear reactors because of security concerns. before the fukushima disaster 30% of japan's energy was

generated by nuclear power, now it accounts for just 1.5%. the latest court ruling means just two reactors remain online. the disaster in 2011 forced almost 165,000 people to leave fukushima, and more than 97,000 have still not returned. >> reporter: this man guides me through the main street of his hometown, passed the shop where he used to get ice cream, to his favorite chinese restaurant. this is just a kilometer from the fukushima power plant. he makes monthly trips here, documenting what has been happening deep inside the exclusion zone. amid the destruction, he finds small signs of hope like the appearance of a new gate.

>> even this [ inaudible ] people made this gate. >> reporter: yeah, yeah, it's a big statement. >> yeah. >> reporter: his home lies empty abandoned in moments five long years ago, but he is determined to keep a sense of connection to it, and to his community. his delight is clear when he bumps into an old school friend. his hope is to share this feeling by making a film about his town. >> [ inaudible ] i will make [ inaudible ] community again, and i want [ inaudible ] people. >> reporter: the disaster that scattered the population started five years ago, but it's not over. along the coast thousands of workers struggle to stabilize let alone decommission the crippled power plant. at the power station itself the problems continue to accumulate. hundreds of tons of ground water

are newly contaminated every day. this disaster still goes on. and it's effects are felt far away. 40 kilometers away, this was a hot spot of radioactive fallout, parts of it are still under an excuse zone. this man used to go to school here, now he uses his limited daytime actress to practice his art. his music influenced by disaster and dislocation. ♪ >> translator: when i am performing, i don't think. but even in that state of mind, my emotions, memories, and the future of my hometown, it all comes through as my music. >> reporter: >> reporter: he too is worried about the effects of five years of fractured life on his community. he is part of a long tradition of drumming here. one he is trying to maintain and pass down to those younger than him. two young men doing what they

can to hold on to an idea of home. harry fawcett, al jazeera, fukushima, japan. still ahead on al jazeera, we're in senegal where female genital mutilation is still being carried out. and the democratic presidential hopeful shocks hillary clinton in the latest primary vote. ♪ find fantasy shows. when it comes to the things you love, you want more. love romance? get lost in every embrace. into sports?

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>> that harmony, that politeness and that equilibrium that japanese people call "wa". at the other side of history, fukushima's heroes were not enough. people have lost their trust, especially in the authorities. the myth of nuclear energy, of it being economic, safe and clean has been swept away. >> "fukushima: a nuclear story," narrated by willem dafoe. hello, again, a reminder of the stop stories here on al jazeera. slovenia has become the third

bakken country to tighten boarder controls. and international task force is aiming to reach an estimated 600,000 sirrance in besieged areas by the end of april. and three palestinians have been shot dead in a second day of escalating violence in the occupied territories. in the u.s. hillary clinton has suffered an unexpected setback in the race for the democratic presidential nomination. she lost the key state of michigan in the latest primary elections. on the republican side, donald trump gained more ground. kimberly halkett reports. [ cheers ] >> reporter: it was the win he was waiting for. the u.s. state of michigan, where young democratic voters there overwhelmingly backed bernie sanders. >> i just want to take this opportunity to thank the people of michigan who repudiated the polls that had us 20, 25 points down a few days ago.

who repudiated the pundits who said that bernie sanders wasn't going anywhere. >> reporter: and now he is vowing to take the political revolution all the way to the nominating convention. it was a big night too for republican front runner, donald trump, who also defied the wishes of the political establishment, picking up wins in the southern state of mississippi, the northern state of michigan, even hawaii. he proved his brood appeal is strong among conservative reporters. >> i hope that the republicans will embrace it. we have -- don't forget, we have democrats coming over. very importantly. we have independents coming over. if i win and if i get to go against hilary, polls are showing that i would beat her. >> reporter: in idaho it was ted cruz that came out on top. marco rubio winning not a single state. it's a result so poor there are questions about whether he'll drop out before the march 15th

vote in his home state of florida. he says no way. >> we not just going to win the florida primary, we are going to win florida in november, and we are going to turn this country around. >> reporter: clinton still leads in the democratic race, and did pick up mississippi thanks to overwhelming support by african american voters. she took aim at the campaign being run by our republican opponent. >> every time you think it can't get any uglier, they find a way. and as this rhetoric keeps sinking lower, the steaks in this election keep rising higher. >> reporter: in one week both parties will vote yet again, delegate rich states like ohio, florida and illinois will be up for grabs. it could offer donald trump the opportunity to cement his front runner status, and also give bernie sanders a chance to close

the gap on hillary clinton's lead for the democratic presidential nomination. north korea says it has miniaturized nuclear war heads which can be mounted on to ballistic missiles. kim ki-jong has described it as a true nuclear deterrent. >> reporter: the statements by kim ki-jong have apparently been made during a visit by the north korean leader to see work on his country's nuclear program, meeting with scientists and technicians, and accompanied by a photograph being carried in the newspaper showing kichl with what appears to be the device in question. kim is being quoted as saying his country now has the technology to miniaturize a nuclear war head and put it on top of a ballistic missile. these claims are not particularly new, and they are treated with scepticism by south korea and the united states.

the interesting thing from south korea's part is that north korea does now seem to be recycling some of its claims as a way of keeping up the stream of rhetoric, and now attributing the claim to the leader kim ki-jong. this is a time of heightened tensions on the korean pensz peninsula. we have unilateral sanctions from south korea, and beginning this week, military exercises between south korea and the united states, so this does seem to be the latest response from north korea. a ukrainian pilot captured in 2014 is on hunger strike and in danger of dying. she is on trial in russia accused of directing artillery fire that killed two journalists. she faces 25 years in jail if found guilty. rory challands has more from moscow. >> reporter: this controversial trial has dragged on months

longer than anticipated. many were half expecting a verdict on wednesday. that was tonight be, but there was still plenty of drama in the courtroom. the final statements contain a blistering attack on vladimir putin. >> translator: you cannot put all of the people in here. putin will not be able to keep power at the cost of people's blood. this is against nature, against people, against god, and against everything in the world. all i can do is show with my own example that russia with its nationhood and total tear an regime can be whipped into sub if one is not afraid, and if one is tough. >> reporter: and then to ram home her disdain, she did this. >> translator: and now did you want my final statement? here is my final statement for you. >> reporter: her mother and sister were there to support the

pilot. and when friends and family started singing the ukrainian national anthem, the court was cleared of cameras. her verdict will now be delivered march 21st and 22nd. prosecutors want a 23-year sentence. but her health is of growing concern. she is vowing to continue her dry hunger strike, no food and no water. dead or alive, she says, she will return to ukraine. six men involved in a sophisticated jewel heist in london have been sentenced to 34 years in prison. they used a drill to bore a hole into a vault wall. the three-ringleaders who are all older than 60 were each jailed for 7 years. most of the jewels stolen are still missing.

a civilian is now among those confirmed dead in a suspected car bomb explosion in somalia's capitol. three police officers were also killed? the bombing. al-shabab is reported to have claimed responsibility. despite efforts to eradicate the practice of female genital mutilation, 3 million girls remain at risk ever year. in senegal, the practice has been illegal for two decades, but the practice continueingses. >> reporter: like every other girl, this 8 year old loves being with her mom. playing jump rope with her friends. and getting her braids done. but what sets her apart from other young girls here is the decision her mother took not to circumcise her. the practice known as female genital mutilation, fgm is

widespread. it is considered an act of purification. >> putting a piece of my daughter's flesh to make her pure makes no sense to me. this was hard for people to accept. we have been shunned for saying no to the cut. >> reporter: fgm is illegal, but age-old traditions take precedent over the law. girls as young as two have it done. because she hasn't, some adults curse her. saying she is impure and dirty. >> there are others who have it done, but we don't really talk about it between us. >> reporter: charities organize village fer rums, getting local celebrities, mothers, and muslim leaders to speak out against the practice. the iman explains incisions have

nothing to do with islam. a local artist urges others to denounce those who insist on the practice. the practice takes place away from town, deep in the countryside. so we're on our way to meet a woman that continues circumcise young girls. she knows it is illegal, but parents continue to bring their daughters to her to get the procedure done. >> reporter: for each cut, this woman receives two bars of soap, 6 kilos of rice, a chicken, and $3 in payment. >> translator: it's not just tradition. it's a job. if you take it away, do you think an old lady like me can find a job? >> reporter: it is mothers that

have suffered from fgm, yet challenge tradition who are bringing an end to this practice. so despite what others may say or think about her, she feels free, protected, and proud of her mother. nicklas hawk, al jazeera, southern senegal. the pioneering producer has died. george martin was the studio mastermind who helped to shape the legendary sounds of the beatles. charles stratford looks back at a unique career. ♪ >> reporter: george martin conducting an ore kestrel song of" yesterday." martin's credited with discovering four young lads from liverpool who arguably became the most widely listened to and

best-loved pop group in history. he became known as the fifth beatle, helping to develop their sound production in the studio, and crafting songs that changed music and popular culture forever. martin signed the beatles in 1962 after the band has been turned down by other labels. he produced vifrt wally every beatles recording. martin said he was immediately taken by the humor of the fab four when they first met. after inviting them to abby road studio in london, he asked them whether there was anything they didn't like about the setup. i don't like your tie for a start george harrison famously replied. ♪ >> reporter: martin described his feelings after a concert in 2002. >> i did very little. i just played two pieces.

but the warmth from the people touched my heart. it was overwhelming. >> reporter: he served in the royal navy during the second world war, was married twice, and father to four children. tributes have flooded in: with more than 50 number 1 hits in a career that spans six decades, the guinness book of world records, named him the most successful producer in history. he became sir george 20 years ago, and today the music world is mourning the loss of a masterful producer.

charles stratford, al jazeera. ♪ and don't forget you can always keep up to date with all of the stories we're reporting on and also of course the sport by checking out our website. the address is aljazeera.com, and you can also watch us live by clicking on the watch live icon. aljazeera.com. ♪ a pivotal night in the race of the white house. bernie sanders scores an upset win in michigan. while donald trump tightening his grip on the republican nomination. >> go ahead and shoot me! put the laser right there, put the bullet through the head. the fbi now investigating one of its own in the fatal standoff with oregon occupier ♪