iraq in turmoil. rebel fighters take control of two towns in the north of the country. >> hello, welcome to al jazeera. i'm live from our headquarters in doha. coming up in the next 30 minutes - fighting intensifies in eastern ukraine, as kiev accuses moscow of sending tanks to help the rebels. >> security is stepped up in afghanistan ahead of the presidential run-off. neymar gets the footballers off to a perfect start in the world

cup's opening match. welcome to the programme. rebel fighters have taken control of two towns in northern iraq. they are both in the same province. the islamic state of iraq and levant or the i.s.i.l. is in control of several cities, including mossual and tikrit. we have this report. after days of criticism of iraq's army after abandoning their post, iraqi strikes back. they have released pictures targets in the city. it's a show of strength. this is the islamic state of iraq and levant, claiming victory in tikrit. the aims are to establish an islamic state that straddles the

border of iraq and syria. after fighting a campaign in the third of the country. the fighters have made gains. the story of the game is one of politics. the prime minister wanted a state of emergency law passed. he didn't get that after members didn't turn up for an emergency session. that left him furious and many wondering what to do next. in mosul, thousands flee as aid agencies struggle to cope with the influx of people. in other parts there's no iraqi army presence. fighters remain on the border. so for mosul is quiet as i.s.i.l. fighters ask the population to go back to work. the iraqi army reacted to allegations that they fled their position from mosul. we want to say that these locations are sovereign

locations and there are not orders to any units or brigades. the orders are clear. it's to remain in the locations and fight the terrorists without let up. anger is rising in iraq and i.s.i.l. here in the mainly shia south. young men cue up join the army. they want to fight i.s.i.l. decisions have to be made, that may well see young me like these fight. >> it seems to me that mosul is the focal point. what has been going on sense you filed the report. >> what happened is inside mossual there's a system of governance by i.s.i.l. and the associated groups. there were rumours that they appointed the governor, it is unconcerned. it's trying to get fuel into the city, they are asking people to

open shops, go back to the businesses and form councils that allow them to run the city. it's not just a military takeover, it's effectively a civilian takeover, taking over the civil institutions to give the city governance, it shows you how experienced some of the fighters are in running civil institutions, if they are able to do that. they want to start paying salaries. when the fall of mosul happened, they took over banks in the city. if they are paying salaries, it's likely they would have taken money from the banks. in other places i.s.i.l. fighters and their groups are maki making gains. in diala province they have made gains. the offensive continues, and we see a large military i.s.i.l. military presence in a third of iraq. >> of course, that military

preps is not anywhere near moss you will because the armed forces haven't gone in. nouri al-maliki called on tribal militias to protect towns. a difficult and interesting situation. that is absolutely right. what we are hearing is one of the biggest shia militia groups were inside syria, protecting shia shrines. they've been called back to iraq. they are coming across the border from syria into iraq. it's like like that they'll gather the shia militia forces and decide what to do with them. the biggest city that has fallen is mosul. it's likely that they'll go to mosul. you saw in the report that they are recruiting in large numbers, young men to fight in the tribal militias. they have done that in basra, which is shia, they are setting up the groups.

it's along sectarian lines. what that means remains to be seep. we see this in 2006. what happens is iraq was plunged into sectarian war. >> thank you for joining us from baghdad. >> security concerns in iraq prompted the united states to relocate u.s. contractors based there. president obama says he's considering all options to help the iraqi government. >> iraq will need more help. it will need more help from us and the international community. my team is working around the clock to identify how to provide the most effective assistance to them. i don't rule out anything. we have a stake in making sure that jihadists are not getting a

foot hold in iraq or syria. >> we have more from washington d.c. >> the message from the disagrees developed over the day. first they were keen to emphasise that they wanted to build the capacity of iraqi forces to fight back the advance of i.s.i.l. fighters, and urged prime minister nouri al-maliki to be inclusive in its role. as they developed many options were considered. we have this? >> we are concerned about what is happening in iraq, and are not concerned at waiting. we are providing assistance, we are in direct touch with prime minister nouri al-maliki, with leaders at the top level. i completed calls with people in iraq. i know the president of the united states is prepared to make key decisions in short order, as he made clear options are on the table and at the appropriate time i am sure you'll hear from the president.

the white house quick to emphasise that boots on the ground are not considered. later in the day, officials told "the wall street journal" that air strikes were considered in the short term. the backdrop was criticism on capitol hill, many of whom are unrepentant supporters, who argued that the decision by president obama to remove u.s. troops led to this crisis in iraq. john mccain going as far as to say that president obama's national security team should be fired and replaced with a team who won the conflict in iraq. when pressed. many republicans are not specific about what they are asking the administration to do. there's one voice on capitol hill which urged caution. chairman of the armed service committee who questioned what the air strikes would achieve, and he pointed out that many of

the problems stemmed from the original invasion in 2003. robert grenier is a former counterterrorism specialist and explained how iraq could help to deal with the crisis. >> there's a lot that the u.s. could do. it's unlikely that they'll do it. boots on the ground is a non-starter. that is true. if boots on the ground meaning combat forces. then i think that that is a bridge too far. what i think the iraqi army needs is u.s. trainers and mentors on the ground in limited numbered who can help to stiffen their resolve and develop them. it was removal of the trainers and mentors that left the iraqi army vulnerable as it is now. my view is that nouri al-maliki is part of the problem, not the solution. he is going on about wnting to

have further executive power. that, or a lack there of is not the problem. nouri al-maliki has plenty of power and has shown a penchant for seizing it. the problem is he has alienated the sunni community and made a base of support for the extremists. they don't want them and in the future they will not want to live under them. they've been driven into the arms of extremists. they don't see a place for themselves. ukraine is accusing russia of helping separatists by moving tanks into eastern ukraine. violence is jeff callating in the -- escalating in the region. from donetsk kim vinnell sent this report. >> reporter: this video can't be independently verified but claims to show a tank in the

ukranian si. this tank crossed over from russia. all up, three russians tanks are on ukranian territory, two are under attack by ukranian troops. separatists say they seized the tanks from a warehouse and haven't received help from moscow. kiev has not accused the kremlin of sending the tanks. russia is being blamed for failing to tighten border controls. separatists say kiev is the aggressor. >> our government calls us terrorists and separatists. they have bought tanks, aviation, self-propelled, artillery weapons, today or tomorrow they were preparing to storm the town. people are walking around. we are here to protect our families. >> reporter: ukraine has thrown military right behind a bid to

contain control. the first town ukranian troops have taken over, the military commander told us morale was high. >> translation: in most distribute the town was recaptured from bandits, scoundrels - let's call them monsters. the army has work to do. slovyansk is shelled nightly. ukraine's new president says he is making diplomatic inroads. he spoke by phone about a plan to bring peace to the east and steps to be tape. reports of russian tanks entering ukranian territory could make talks going forward very difficult. still to come - from the south china sea to new york. vietnam and china take their

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welcome back. you are watching al jazeera. this is a reminder of the top stories. two towns in iraq fell to rebel

fighters. united states says it's looking at all options to assist iraq. security concerns prompted the u.s. to relocate american contractors based there. ukraine accuses russia of sending three tanks across the border to support rebels. two of the tanks have been attacked by its troops. >> now, returning to our top story on the advance of rebel fighters in iraq. kurdish military forces in the military say that they are on high alert against the i.s.i.l. armed groups. hoda abdel-hamid spoke to a commander in the kurdish region of qatar. there has been some fighting between the kurdish forces in northern iraq and members of the i.s.i.l., happening wednesday evening, on the outskirts of mosul. according to a kurdish commander, the iraqi soldiers have evacuated the bases in the

areas, and so they decided to move in to make sure the military hardware fell into the hands of the i.s.i.l. that's a main concern here for the kurds, special in areas where there's a sizeable community. this happened also in kirkuk. >> translation: i want to confirm that there has been no fighting between us and i.s.i.l. and kirkukment there were reports that we control the whole of the area. that is not true. we have beefed up the forces. we took over some of the bases. they warped us that they were leaving, but we found empty bases. we took over the bases to secure them. i want to make clear we never pushed the iraqi army out. the kurdish forces are on high alert. these are in defense, in areas where there's a sidable kurdish

community. so far they haven't been asked by baghdad to come to the rescue. until now. we have not received a request for help from prime minister nouri al-maliki. the agreement no iraq is that any request must come via official channels. the only request were from the local army officers or the prime minister's staff. this is not legal. we don't consider this an official request. the flow of people has slowed down. out of estimated half a million that fled over the past few days, 300,000 have made their way inside of the kurdish region. this is a major concern for the authorities here. after spending five years as a taliban prisoner of war, u.s. army sergeant bowe bergdahl is due to arriving home.

the pentagon says he has left germany and is headed to texas. he was handed over to u.s. forces in afghanistan two weeks ago, part of a controversial prisoner exchanged following the release of five taliban leaders. afghan security forces are on high alert to head off saturday's run off. foreign minister abdullah abdullah who survived an assassination attempt is expected to defeat his opponent. there are coninspectors that increase -- concerns that increase in attacks could affect voter turn out. we have more center a strong hold in central afghanistan. >> the only way in or out of maydan, the capital city here, is through check points like this one. operated by the afghan national police, vehicles are searched and so to are the passengers.

it's part of security against the run off. they have promised to attack polling stations. it's less than an hour from kabul. the armed group has brought in armed groups. ouren my's plan is -- our enemy's plan is clear. all of our security forces are on high alert and the people will be protected. >> with over 22,000 polling stations to secure across the country it will not be an easy job. afghan security forces fared well. there were no major attacks. orders came out in record numbers. in the past few weeks there has been a sharp increase. and that has many concerned the run off will work different of the the taliban launched a spring offensive last month.

since then there has been a series of attacks, including an assassination attempt. food vendor says the threat of violence will not stop him voting. he noticed fewer people on the streets in the days leading to the run off. he wants to cast a ballot for change. >> translation: the security situation is not very good. i'm voting. i want peace, not war. god willing the new government will bring afghanistan peace. >> reporter: with polling stations showing evidence of fighting, peace by afghans may feel a long way off, even with a new president. >> an egyptian court extended al jazeera abdullah al-shami's detention for another 45 days. his lawyer requested release on medical grounds.

he's been held without charge since august and has been on a hunger strike for more than four months. he insists he will not break his fast until he's released. >> three al jazeera journalists falsely accused of supporting the muslim brotherhood have been held for 167 days. last week egyptian prosecutors demanded the maximum penalty, wanting 7 years for peter greste, and 15 for baher mohamed, and mohamed fadel fahmy. al jazeera continues to demand the release of all of its journalists detained in egypt. china and vietnam have taken their maritime dispute over territory in the south china sea to the united nations. the latest standoff is over an oil rig which the chinese moved into waters near the islands. they have accused each other of aggression. china, vietnam, brunei, malaysia have fears, claiming ownership over a group of islands in the south. the spratly and parasell islands

are thought to be rich in mineral deposit. this month china used the oil rig off the coast of vietnam, sparking a standoff in its waters. rob mcbride september this report from the south china sea. >> reporter: we are on patrol with the vietnamese coast guard in the south china sea, hotly contested between vietnam and china, a dispute inflamed with the introduction of an oil rig, leading to confrontation between vessels on both sides. the vessel we are on is heading to the zone where the oil rig is with us. other vessels from the vietnamese coast guard - they are expecting to come into contact with chinese vessels, trying to prevent them getting closer to the oil rig. there's been a number of clashes. the vietnamese accused the

chinese of ramming the vessels. they have showed us documentary evidence. video of handphones. for their part the chinese claimed they have been rammed by vietnamese vessels in the same dispute. there are a lot of shipping in the waters at the moment. vietnamese and chinese as both sides try to assert their territorial claims here. brazil's footballers have the world cup campaign off to a near perfect start. nooemar scored twice. sara coates has more. >> initially croatia had the early chances in a group a clash, the pressure resulting in a goal in the 11th minute. the miskick confused brazil's

defense, marcelo prodded the ball into his own net. oscar almost immediately had a chance to equalize. steve padesklo vrk a making a save. then the two sides of brazil's star striker neymar, the barcelona man booked for an elbow on real madrid midfielder luca modavic. neymar scored the equalize are, making it 1-1 at half-time. brazil took the lead thanks to a soft penalty decision. neymar stepped up. he made it 2-1 all the same. oscar made the game safe for the hosts with a goal in the 90th minute, a perfect start for brazil. football taps in brazil have been -- fans in brazil have been celebrating victory. we have more.

>> reporter: it is impossible to examing rate the excitement -- exaggerate the excitement and joy ta brazilians feel when their team wins a football match. this is the first time in 54 years that the world cup was held in brazil. it's been fraught with problems as we know here in the rio de janeiro neighbourhood thousands of fans are forgetting that for now. it has a 36-year-old tradition of watching world cup matches in which brazil takes part. tens of thousands of people. when the game is over, the party continues. especially if brazil has won. many people are angry at the international football association, and enormous cost and waste of hosting the world cup. in this part of rio de janeiro. people put aside their complaints long enough to let

their passion for football kick in. >> japan is the world leader in technology, there are fears it's falling behind in the development of robots. there's hope to regain a top spot to fund diseeps for military -- designs for military applications we went to have a closer look. >> reporter: in a factory space borrowed from a friend. this man tests a creation. 15 years ago he left his job as an engineer to chase his dream of building fighter boks. it's been a lonely upfill battle. >> my problem is not enough money and resources. you need money to build bigger robots and buy parts. i work within this scope. >> his large and mini inventions

have won awards. designs could be more advanced. >> he looks to places like the u.s. where hundreds of millions have allowed companies to build weapons of the future. including developing humanoid soldiers. fearing losing the arm's race, japan's government is stepping in. >> it's very game changer for us. >> he is charged with creating impact. >> it's a competition. not only within japan, but the world, where you are seeking ideas. you have to be in the front case in this game. >> the idea of human i said waging wore war used to be the

stuff of science fiction. >> hollywood has long entertained with tails of intelligent machines. today real-life drones operate in conflict zones, with some able to attack targets. the u.n. began to debate whether to ban the bots. rights groups are urging nations to do so. if they make a decision fully independent from human being, who to kill, when to kill, and if the robbers kill, how are you going to make those robots accountable. >> reporter: this man is against war and builds the machines to entertain crowds with the arms race and robotics having begun, he doubts whether any woun or nation can afford not to get

involved. and you can follow those stories on the website by logging on at aljazeera.com. iraq is the top story, ongoing developments and our correspondents across the region have more on that in the coming bulletins. do stay with us. on the move. not only taken the second city, but moving on other major cities and heading toward the capitol. a decade after the american invasion, is iraq spinning out of control and heading into civil war? it's the inside story.