it very well morecambe -- a very warm welcome to "be journal." these are our top stories. kiev accuses pro-russian rebels of tampering with evidence at crash site. israeli troops considered -- continued their gaza offensive and their death toll tops 300.

there is growing international concern over the situation at the site in eastern ukraine where malaysian airlines flight mh17 crashed to the ground two days ago. you wreckage has reportedly been tampered with. some bodies have begun to fester in the summary heat and others have been removed under mysterious circumstances. the reaction in the netherlands has been particularly angry due to the fact that more than half of the victims on the flight were dutch. the dutch prime minister has had an intense telephone conversation with vladimir putin in which he urged the russian president to show the world he intends to help. guard the area where flight mh17 went down. investigators on the organization of security and corporation in europe have not been allowed full access to the huge crash site. workers begin moving the dead, it is still a mystery

who they are working for or where they are taking the bodies. at a meeting in kiev, ukrainian expressed his condolences to the dutch prime minister. the 298 passengers and crew were from the netherlands. rebelsister said the have been destroying evidence and intimidating investigators. he said the rebels had told the osce reporters to leave the crash site, that they would be taken hostage if they refused. his government accuses the rebels of being behind the attack. separatist leaders reject the accusation. he says his men could not have shot down the plane. we have no antiaircraft weaponry that would allow us to shoot down a plane at 10,600 meters. our antiaircraft weaponry only shoots up to 3000 meters. v says they-- kie

have intelligence proving russia was involved in the attack. that therefor sure were russian citizens operating -- and they came from the territory of the russian federation together with the missile launcher. i cannot confirm what the aims at the moment when they launch the missile. they knew that the height was more than 10,000 meters. they knew that the plane was very high. knew that probably it was a ukrainian cargo plane, a military plane that was delivering cargo. >> moscow is no wonder increased pressure to rein in the rebels. some western leaders say it is now president vladimir putin's

last chance to show he is interested in resolving the ukraine crisis or it >> the organization for security and corporation in europe was the first international team to access the crash site on friday. they returned there again 24 hours later and we spoke with alexander earlier. he is the deputy chief monitor of the osce mission in ukraine. we asked him if he had any evidence that pro-russian rebels were tampering with the site as kiev suggests. >> i can't verify that independently. it is a huge area as we have said. one also has to take into the into account that the area is in conflict. the site we saw today was close to the front line. we heard artillery fire and impact in the not too-far distance. it is difficult to conduct an

investigation under normal circumstances. i have to clarify that the osce special monitor does not investigate this accident. we conduct our regular task and mandate. verify on report and facts and report those to be 57 participating states of the osce. >> that was alexander from the osce in ukraine. kiev get the latest from where we are joined by a correspondent. roman, there is clearly an escalating war of words over who was to blame over this tragedy. what is the latest you can tell us? >> the latest is not an official information but something i have seen on social networks. putin ofressure on russia to move in with troops, large troops into ukraine. they think now or never.

it is like russia should respond to those sanctions imposed by western countries and accusations that russia could be behind that plane being shot down. russia must now react and react with force, military force in ukraine. such voices very, very, very dangerous. kievr as kiev and moscow, is now asking western countries, to his knowledge, the self proclaimed donetsk and luhansk as terrorist regions and is accusing moscow of shooting down the plane. moscow said it is nonsense. >> it does not look like there's going to be any chance of a cease-fire in eastern ukraine that the international community is demanding in order to proceed with a proper investigation into the situation at the crash site. >> even after president obama called for an immediate

cease-fire just a day before, it does not look like that. it looks just the opposite. ukrainian forces are having heavy fights with the separatists in the town of lujan scott -- luhansk, which is one of the separatists stronghold. it looks like ukraine is using this moment to try to regain territory previously controlled by the separatist. only a small area about 25 the debris ofre the plane lies, elsewhere the fighting continues. >> thank you very much for that update from kiev. on thursdayme down there were 298 passengers and crew on board. the families and friends of those people are less interested in all the politics surrounding

this terrible disaster and the question they are now asking is when they will be able to bury their dead. relatives of the victims have come back to the airport to mourn. flight mh17 took off here, bound for kuala lumpur. for some, this is the last place they saw their loved ones alive. their family from us were in the plane. she came for her cousin, who was traveling to thailand with her boyfriend when the plane was shot down. australia also mourns the loss of life. los two nephews and a niece in the crash. she had to break the news to her sister. >> i can just hear them crying in the background, you know? don'teaving a message, we know what to say. we can't talk to anyone.

>> in malaysia, there were prayers for the passengers and crewmembers on board. they are asking, we need to get in as soon as possible to get the remains to bring them back to the country. you know that the government is doing their best. >> the tense situation in eastern ukraine means there are no guarantees over when or if the bodies will be returned. go from one grave international crisis to another. israel is pressing ahead in its ground offensive in southern gaza. the israeli chief of staff says the intention is to further intensify the operation. at least 340 palestinians have been killed since the start of the latest hostilities and two israeli soldiers were reported dead on saturday following a previous military death earlier this week. at the gaza clinic, doctors work around the clock to save

those critically injured in israel ought offensive. in israeli blockade means even the best hospital in gaza is missing vital resources. that often includes electricity. >> the coverage is only 40% of the needs. this light is from generators and these generators are old and 10 discovery if we are in the middle of an operation, like this gentleman last night, the lights go out. the palestinians pick up the phone and use the lights to illuminate their field until the lights come back on. >> the death toll on the israeli is rising. a man was killed by a rocket fired into israel. two israeli soldiers were killed after intercepting hamas militants who were trying to enter by a tunnel network. the tunnels are a target of the israeli offensive.

ofthey are down nine to 50% the operation. it is a gradual mission. we are increasing pressure. we are striking this organization and decreasing his terrorist capabilities. >> israel is expected to widen its ground offensive in the coming days. palestinian civilians have been the to seek shelter as death toll in gaza has already passed 300. >> we are joined in jerusalem. tonya, we have seen israel say it is stepping up its ground operation. what does that mean? >> it could mean that the focus might shift to other areas in the gaza strip. the israeli army says that -- they are trying to destroy hidden stocks of rocket launchers. the targeted tunnel systems

which they say militants could use to infiltrate israel and according to one such incident happened where two israeli soldiers will killed. for the people in gaza, it means more uncertainty. air bombardments and shelling continues. according to the human agency for refugees, the number taking -- the number of people taking shelter is over 60,000. this is more than in the 2009 conflict. some are also saying they stayed home because we don't feel safe anywhere because the shelling continues and there is no way to leave gaza anyway. >> is a very serious situation without any doubt what so ever. what are diplomatic efforts going on behind the scenes? >> we understand that there are diplomatic efforts but it is not clear they will lead to anything right now. we understand that you and secretary ban ki-moon is expected in the region. cairo was also pushing for a

cease-fire. fox seem to have stalled. there were reports of an initiative by qatar. people believe that with the mounting death toll of over 300 palestinians, it might increase the pressure on the international community to act. so far we do not see any change on the ground. tania kramer, thank you for keeping us up-to-date. thousands of people to the streets of on london to protest against israel's offensive. protesters marched to the israeli embassy in the british capital. they called on the government to withdraw its support for israel's attacks. between 15,000-20,000 people took part in the protests. at least 27 people have been killed in dozens injured in a series of car bombings across baghdad. three bombs went off in the space of 10 minutes includes a

-- including this one. the attacks hit mostly shia neighborhoods. the army backed by shia militia continue to fight a sunny inserts is a great -- sunni insurgency. a very different note now. italy's vincenzo nibali has expanded his lead in the tour de france. he finished second in the race race's 14 stage -- stage and the yellow jersey went to rafal majka. not the yellow jersey, but he was the winner. he broke away early in the race. the yellow jersey. he is ahead of spain's aleja ndro. story,ng our top ukrainian officials are accusing pro-russian rebels for tampering with the investigation at the

site of the malaysian airline jet that was shot down on thursday. kiev says the rebels happens destroying evidence with the support of russia. russia are calling for an international probe into what happened. >> cape spear in newfoundland. the most easterly point of the north american continent. every summer, icebergs float past the k. many have drifted -- cape. many have drifted thousands of kilometers from greenland in the north. most melts before they get here. the number of icebergs off cape spear has risen. people say that is due to global warming. this barren landscape is how to add keene, a fifth-generation

new flint -- newfoundland mariner. he used to fish like his ancestors. now he catches icebergs and sells the fresh meltwater to breweries. >> depending on the wins and the tides, the icebergs will come up in may. some years is more than others and some years they melt faster. no two years are similar. this year, 2014 is a good year for icebergs. >> before and lets me on his leslie on his ship, he sends me to a safety course led by jim miller. he is an experienced diver and captain. he will briefly on dangerous i might encounter on the sea and

show me how to survive in an emergency. his surveye onboard will -- his boat. i have to put on the scuba suit. i have one minute. >> go ahead. >> the neoprene suit puts up a ferocious defense. climbing into it is a battle. while i wrestle with the stiff rubber, jim reminds me that a sinking ship is not a stable platform like this. right now, that is no help at all. is a minute and 45 seconds. so you fail by 45 seconds but at least you are in a good suit. jim wants me that reacting correctly if the engine fails or the weather turns rough can be a matter of life and death at sea. >> what is at once me to do this training? >> you're going icebergs

hunting. it is dangerous. you are dealing with a small boat and a big piece of eyes. , andse anything went wrong wants to be comfortable to know you can get on the safety equipment and help rescue yourself. >> the next morning i drive north to port union, a small harbor. this is where captain ed keeps his ship. ae green will waters is former fishing vessel that he bought in 2007 and converted. and end his crew are getting the vessel ready. it will be the first time they had out the season. it is a perfect day. there is little wind. the ocean is calm. ed looks for icebergs. >> we want these flat on the water. it is probably two meters out of the water. it does not have legs. like a square piece of ice. we have to put our cables around

it. we cinch it up tight. we do not like an unstable piece of ice. >>. ahead with 850 horsepower. first, at once to locate the icebergs and determine which direction they are drifting. tomorrow he will go out again and start catching them. a few kilometers off the coast, we board the ship's skiff. he wants to look at an iceberg that way several thousand tons. the ice is around 20,000 years old. we are literally looking at the tip of the iceberg. most of the huge lump of ice is submerged. >> there is a bigger part under the water. from 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15 times bigger. >> we are a few meters from the

iceberg when the motor suddenly stops. >> is a couple of thousand tons. >> that does not sound good. powerless next to the iceberg for what feels like an eternity. it is an uncomfortable feeling huge chunk of ice control over any minute. the water looks calm but is also cold. just four degrees celsius. finally we are moving again. captain ed is as calm as can be, or at least he looks that way. but i am relieved to get away from the ice. incidentally, hunting icebergs is not a problem for the environment. sooner or later they will melt on their own anyway. boat. court back to ed's suddenly, another problem -- ed discovers a leak.

the water is dangerously close to the battery. if it gets wet, it could kill the engine for good. but the engine does not quit. finally we reach the green waters. i had to memorial university of newfoundland to talk to professor steve renaud. researches icebergs specialty. he says there have not been so many iceberg off of newfoundland in many years. they pose a danger to shipping just like in 1912 when on iceberg caused one of history's most famous maritime disasters. >> you can see down here, i have penned in the location where the titanic met its fate and it is inside the zone of iceberg for this season as well. >> renaud's students are doing research.

are seeing what happens when steel, aluminum, or concrete strikes and iceberg. the professor is monitoring the work. i am amazed at how hard the ice is. in this experiment, it resists the huge pressures for 30 seconds. then it is all over. i returned tong fort union for the iceberg on. ed heads out in his skiff. he stays close to the coast. at this time he has nets on board. nice these, isn't it? >> no, ed does not like it. too small, apparently. we move on. this one is better, though. ed decides to take it. must be wrapped

completely around chunk of ice. not an easy feat from a small boat. but ed is experienced. he has been at this since 1997. the green waters edge is closer to haul the catch on board. >> give him the line. taken up. -- take it up. >> ed climbs up to the mothership for the tricky part. he does not like to let anyone else operate the hydraulic crane. too many things can go wrong. like this -- the line slips unexpectedly. luckily, my skiff is a safe distance away. this time everything goes smoothly. we set out again. too big.k of ice is i asked myself, how in the world are they going to do that?

-- transport that? the answer is simple. ed trims it down to size. ed says this block of ice probably weighs about three tons. he gets as it has been drifting from greenland for the past three years. ithe guesses that it has been drifting from greenland for the past three years. now it is a race against time because ice melts quickly when it is being towed. >> not much is left out of three tons. look. [laughter] >> but the mood on board is good. i am happy that we are back in port and everything went well. the sea has brought the crew a lot of ice this year. between now and august, captain sell 2his men hope to

million liters of iceberg water. 25% more than in 2013. after collecting the melt water in a tank, ed sells it to his customers. one of them is this brewery on the outskirts of st. john's. it is one of ed's main customers. they use the pricey liquid to produce about 250,000 liters of beer per year. he says that bruce sells -- brewed from iceberg water sells well. he invites me to his laboratory, where he test the quality of the ingredients uses. >> right here i am testing for dissolved solids, which is all the minerals and impurities in the water. this water is very pure.

this one only has eight parts per million of dissolved solids, which is very pure and clean. >> demand for iceberg beer is so good that the brewery cannot make enough. most of the beer is sold here in newfoundland, but it is also popular with tourists who like an unusual souvenir from their visit to canada. ♪ >> in the evening, ed keenan heads to a pub to celebrate the successful start to this year's iceberg hunting season. it also happens to be his birthday. he will not reveal how much he earns with vice versa. i guess it could be as much as 100 million -- 100,000 euros.

does not have to worry about is supplied. even with global warming, it is going to be a very long time before all of the ice on greenland is gone.

>> for many peoples, civilizations, and faiths, nature, or the natural world, has been an important access point to the sacred. and as we experience the wondrous spectrum of life forms that surround us here on earth, perhaps the most urgent question of the 21st century is, how do we balance the biological needs of other species with our seemingly unending needs as humans? since all life on earth shares the same home, we find ourselves