one, a direct threat against a former "time" magazine journalist saying if the united states does not stop airstrikes, that they will kill him. and then saying that there will be blood in the streets. the islamic state will take the fight to the west to places like america if the u.s. persists in the airstrike. the president did not address that, and that is a key thing to observe. he really focused on the killing of james foley, what jim foley, what he called him in the familiar sense, met to his friends and family, and also to journalism and the syrian people as he was trying to tell their story. so we see there the president not essentially taking the bait of these videos, but instead focusing on the i will killing that the video displayed. >> libby casey for us in washington. 1 east coast time. we're on early because moments ago taking to the airwaves the president to discuss the

beheading of a journalist, and that journalist beheading being posted online. the president saying no faith teaches people to massacre the innocence. we heard from jim foley. they made a very emotional statement, thanking everyone for their prayers. >> he was strong, courageous, loving to the end. we hardly recognize our little boy. he just--he was just a hero. >> we know from the videos his last words from. [ sobbing ] i wish i could see my family. >> so jim had a big heart, and just--i just--you know, that's what we shared with president obama. we pray that jim's death can bring our country together. >> earlier we talked to another

journalist who was detained back in 2011. he said that foley was a good journalist who was just doing his job. >> i think what happened to james foley was a criminal act. it has nothing to do with islam or jihad. it is a criminal act. it is a bea barbaric act as described by the french. i take this view, that we should be allowed to work and we should be allowed to be protected, and i think the journalists around the world should unite, there should an charter to protect the journalists when in the field. those who try to kill the journalists or arrest them or not allow them to do their jobs should be responsible. >> we continue to follow the events in ferguson.

they're looking into the fatal shooting of michael brown, the grand jury is expected to review all of its evidence in the case today. police meanwhile arresting 47 more protesters overnight, but the streets are relatively calm compared to what we have been seeing over the last week. in a tar shah joins us live from ferguson. there is a sense that erik holder's visit, is it enough that it will quell the violent protests that we've been seeing? >> reporter: well, i will tell you, del, that the attorney general's presence here, after days of protesting, days of voicing their concerns, that perhaps they're finally being heard. they talk about the fact that there is a federal civil rights investigation going on, the fact that people here have seen fbi boots on the ground trying to get more information about

exactly what happened to michael brown is definitely show of support. people here believe, as one woman said, an opportunity to show them that, quote a community that has been disenfranchised is finally being, quote, respected. >> natasha, i want to you live to a sound bite. we talked to a local minister, i know you've met her. i asked her if there is an arrest but no conviction will the crowd accept that? take a listen. >> if the officer is cleared of murder charges, which he hopefully won't be because at a would be paramount disjustice, the residents, again, i'm not speaking on behalf, but because i know the climate here, i think that a cloud of mistrust will be

surmountable. i think the feelings of dise disenfranchisement will be sur mountable, and this will become a volcano. >> she is clergy. is there a sense that the crowd will only accept a guilty verdict? >> there is such a sense of urgency here among people. a lot of impatience. a lot of people saying they're not pleased with the pace of the multiple investigations under way. they distrust the investigation start from the start, and they don't understand why officer darren wilson has not been arrested yet. when i ask if they're not concerned, and they want to wait to make sure that there are enough facts in the case, many

say they believe there is enough evidence already and they believe that darren wilson should be charged. they said justice is swift for us but is delayed for the other side. >> natasha, thank you very much. calling fo, leading many to yes why military equipment is needed in small town america. >> they look like soldiers serving in iraq or afghanistan. combat ready with assault weapons and body armor, but these are local and state police in ferguson, missouri, responding to civil unrest after the fatal shooting of 18-year-old michael brown by a white police officer. their heavy-handed approach and tactics angered many members of the community.

>> they're using tanks and weapons against their own citizens. and it is not right. it is barbaric. but it has been going on in america for far too long. >> reporter: since 2003 st. louis county has received $9.6 million in funds from the homeland security department, that money has gone to buy equipment and also for training. militarizing the police is not a new trend in the united states. more than a decade after september 11th the federal government has given out $34 billion to local police departments to buy military-style equipment. most of the armored vehicles and heavy weaponry were used by u.s. soldiers in iraq and afghanistan, and later resold or given away free to law enforcement agencies. >> the putting on and carrying on of a military-style patrol

changes the dynamic. it goes from being a peace officer concerned with a community to playing more of a role of a soldier. >> reporter: police dressed in riot gear driving armored vehicles were heavily criticized. not just by human rights activists but also by u.s. attorney general derek holde eric holder. he released a statement: . >> but during the obama presidency, equipment transferred from one program from the defense program increased dramatically. an u.s. law maker plans to introduce legislation this fall that would create more oversight. but even if the bill it wases it won't keep those police department who is already have military hardware from using it. rachel levine.

al jazeera, ferguson, missouri. >> the school children are still feeling the effects. the school year in ferguson was supposed to start last week but classes have yet to begin. >> reporter: at jessica williams' house, mom has more help than usual unloading the groceries. school is closed because of the unrest in ferguson. that means 12-year-old walter stayed home and instead schooled his baby sister in a few subjects. >> i teach my sister how to sing her abcs and her 123s. >> walter's family live in jennings, where like ferguson, administrators shut down schools. >> had there is not an enough stuff for the kids during the day. that's unacceptable to me.

>> reporter: they spent several nights getting involved. >> i heard al sharpton. i heard march-ton. i heard almost everything that possibly can go on in the world. >> reporter: how did you decide to take your kids to the protests? >> , um, i just wanted them to see how it really is, just because it was on tv it wasn't fake. i wanted them to see that this is really--this is really happening, st. louis, we're making history right now. my kids will know this is real, and we need to stand for justice for everyone. >> reporter: he said he's learning a lot after dark but he's anxious to go back to class. >> i miss science and math and i miss my friends. >> reporter: some of the people that we see are in the community. wallsters superintendent brought her staf staff to help clean up

after the protest. she's prepare to go welcome students back to campus knowing there is likely to be many questions of what happened here. >> i think it's very important to have many different avenues to talk with kids. it's not just the teachers, the counselor, the principal, my goodness, it's the custodian. we want to show kids that they have a lifeline. >> will you bring this in the lesson plan or how will you bring this up in the classroom. >> you should not be talking about race, violence and equity because of an event. that's a reactive way of proceeding. we try to be protive. we talk about those things, all thosism those isms, we don't shy away from it. >> reporter: in ferguson teachers like jennifer stevens will welcome kids back next week. >> we need to establish our routines and normalcy, but i

think we'll be setting asigh time to talk about this, and they'll bring it up. i'll bring it up. we'll read about it. we'll write about it. we'll discuss. >> i feel that it should an topic or discussion to where, you know, they talk to the kids and stuff like that about what's going on, and you know, how do they feel about the situation because behind this a lot of kid might need counseling or something. it's hard to adapt to the situation. any situation then while this is happening in our own city, these kids are scared. >> reporter: williams said she wants her children to be learning constantly at after the last few days she want her town to learn some lessons, too. >> what is your ultimate folk for this community? >> i just hope to be a change period all around within the community, within the police department, within people. people come together as one, and you know, not only just stop killing each other, too. >> now to the latest in the

israeli-gaza conflict, hamas remaining defiant. israeli airstrike failed to kill their commander. nick schifrin is live in jerusalem, and nick, there are new threats coming in from hamas. >> yes, del, this from the press conference given in the last 20 to 30 minutes. he said that mohamed daf, the military commander survived, and said that there was a threat of planes coming in 80 miles north of gaza starting at 11:00 p.m. tonight we've seen hamas fire at ben-gurion before, and they have evacuated in the past, and alexandria hahamas has threatened before. they threatened all israelis

against moving back to their homes along the gaza border as well as gathering in large areas within 40 and 50 miles of the gazaen border. similar to what we've heard from hamas over the last month and a half. >> have we heard a response from israel? >> we haven't. the israeli military has been responding essentially through airstrikes instead. over 100 airstrikes since midnight last night. local time. that's when the cease-fire was planning or had intended to expire. expire five or six hours earlier. and one of those targets, of course, was mohamed daf as we've been talking about. in the meantime, 180 rocket have been fired. 34 of them intercepted by the iron dome. so it's one of the most violent days we've seen, del, 20 palestinians killed according to palestinian medical officials and 120 wounded.

>> nick, that being said is there any chance that both side would return to the diplomatic table? >> as is always the case in the middle east, this violence will be followed by some kind of discussion. the question is when that happens. i asked the senior u.s. official in the middle of these negotiations about that, and he predicted that the violence would lance through the weekend into next week and by then both sides would actually get back to the table right now. they're refuse to go talk to each other. but what is happening egyptian officials are speaking to officials from hamas and palestinian officials and separately to israeli officials so there are two tracks. eventually that track will be right back in cairo, but for now the talks seems to be dead. >> nick schifrin live for us in jerusalem. thank you very much. as that fighting in gaza begins again, the effort toss rebuilt is once again put on hold. the damage in gaza is extensive.

a >> when the dust finally settles in gaza, the rebuilding will begin. the destruction has been widespread and comprehensive. out of a population of 1.8 million, nearly 60,000 people have lost their homes. hundreds of businesses and factories have been destroyed, and gaza's only power plant was severely crippled by israeli bombardment. minute authorities think it will cost three times of its economic output to rebuild. it has received pledges from kuwait. but rebuilding may not go as smoothly as hoped.

donor fatigue could be an issue. after the conflict in 2006 more than $4.5 billion in aid was promised to rebuild, including $1 billion from saudi arabia and hundred million dollars from the u.s. but only a fraction of that money every actually reached gaza. in part because of israel's at egypt's tight control of what enters the gaza territory. those countries feared materials for reconstruction could fall into the hand of militants. one-fourth of gaza's population displaced and with the electricity and clean water in short supply the fear is this time the lack of foreign aid could be catastrophic. ali velshi, al jazeera. >> russia's president vladimir putin and ukraine's president poroshenko will be facing face to face. this is after they had a brief encounselor in june.

officials say it could lead to peace in ukraine. russia has been accused of arming the pro russian separatists. meanwhile in the war-torn city of donetsk, people have gone the border to buy supplies. conflicts have left them without food and necessities. aid is still waiting for red cross inspection across the border. ghana's healthcare system has been praised around the world, but the system that is supposed to help the less fortunate is running into financial troubles. and two new people in america being tested for ebola. the details are up next.

>> two more people are being tested for the ebola virus in the u.s. one woman experienced ebola-type

symptoms after returning home from sierra leone. a doctor has been sent to west africa. he is going to be meeting with officials in sierra leone, liberia and guinea. more than 1200 people have died from that disease since the outbreak began. ghana earned international praise for giving free medical. >> these people have been cueing up for hours to sign up for ghana's national insurance. it's proving very popular. it was introduced ten years ago and there are now more than 10 million subscribers, it means access to free healthcare and medicine for those most in need.

waiting for her child to see the doctor at the country's larges largest hospital. she has been using the national medical for years. she said it's not efficient. >> i have to get here at 8:00 a.m. you have to go to the insurance desk and fill out forms, it all wastes time. sometimes it's 2:00 p.m. before you can see the doctor. >> it faces major funding challenges, and it's compounded by ghana's deteriorating situation. >> the government has not paid its bills to those providing the service. this is one of the busiest pharmacies. they sale 3,000 health insurance patients every month, and they have not been paid by the government since the beginning of the year. it's a similar story for this private clinic just outside of the capitol. the medical director said he's struggling but he continues to see health insurance patients

because he does not want to abandon them. >> financially, because the last payment was five months ago, a . >> reporter: the boss of th health insurance said they are committed to paying providers, but it was too ambitious to begin with. >> it's quite challenging. challenging, one, because our benefit package is quite huge, covering over 95% of those in the country. perhaps in hindsight we could have begun with a a lower package, and increasing this package as we got looping. >> reporter: the scheme is financed by national insurance task of 2.5%. plus the annual plat membership

peas that has won $6. critics argue it is not sustainable, and it's hard to see how the service remains viable unless people pay more. al jazeera. ghana. >> and coming up on al jazeera america, mcdonald's. things aren't too happy at the home of the happy meal. we'll show you why the chain is being taken to court around the world. and the price of this comic is soaring. the details are next.

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this doesn't do it for you? [ doorbell rings, dog barks ] oh, that's what blows your mind -- the advanced technology of a doorbell.. [ male announcer ] tweet an expert and schedule a callback from any device. introducing the xfinity my account app. >> welcome back to al jazeera, i'm del walters. attorney general eric holder is in ferguson, missouri. he's meeting with city leaders, and police arresting 47 protesters overnight. they say the tensions are calmer than last week. world leaders are expressing outrage over the murder of journalist james foley in iraq. president obama condemning those

killings and said that the the u.s. will continue facing islamic state extremists. the golden arches are looking a little less golden these days. mcdonald's saying it's seeing worst sales in ten years. that's just one issue facing the fast food giant. >> reporter: this mcdonald's commercial showing happy workers dancing their way through a transaction paints a pretty picture but is a stark contrast to reality. in may mcdonald's workers protested for better wages, demanding $15 an hour and the right to be unionized. this protest is just one of dozen around the country. last month, the worst monthly

sales for mcdonald's with sales slumping 2.5% in july. some analysts say a contributing factor is what happened in july. a meat plant in china was shut down after a tv report showed workers picking up meet from a factory floor as well as shipping meet after it's expiration date. meat that was sent to mcdonald's restaurant all around asia. but it doesn't end there. russia announced last week it's taking the company to court over unsanitary conditions saying inspectors found e. coli in salads ten times the safety levels. to top off a difficult summer mcdonald's is having a hard time convincing investors that it's still a good value. it's stock is down 8.5%. outperforming burger king and jack in the box. and then the press where it says mcdonald's with two consecutive quarters of

declining sales. that doesn't bode well for the golden arches. >> the government is helping buyers to sift through all the recall. it helps drivers know if their vehicles have been recalled and if they have been repaired and are safe or if problems persist. this is the first appearance for the man o man of steel. it could top $3 million. that would be a new record. this issue you're see something in mint condition and sold for $2.1 million in 2011. the auction ends on sunday, in case you're curious that $0.10 investment would represent a 300,000% return on investment.

not bad. we want to thank you for watching al jazeera america. fault lines is next. a reminder you can check us out 24 hours a day by going to www.aljazeera.com. haiti, october 2010, at a hospital in a small, rural town north of the capital. these were the first victims of a horrific, unknown disease in a country still reeling from a devastating earthquake. patients were dying in the space of a few hours. children were especially vulnerable. al jazeera was the first news channel on the scene. in the following days and weeks we tracked the epidemic as it