>> tech know, every saturday go where science meets humanity. >> this is some of the best driving i've every done, even though i can't see. >> tech know. >> we're here in the vortex. only on al jazeera america. >> this is al jazeera america. i'm richelle carey in new york, with a look at today's top stories. possible all-out war and an ultimatum to russia. e.u. leaders urge russia to reverse their course in ukraine within a week or face sanctions. bracing for a show down in hong kong. in hours the chinese parliament expect to vote on a plan

crushing hopes to greater democracy. >> new n.f.l. policies on domest domestic violence, and a deeper look on how they may play out. our top story - the president of ukraine sends a warning, his country could be on the brink of a full-scale war with russia. petro porashenko met with european leaders at a summit. he said they were close to a point of no return. the e.u. gave russia a week to scale back or face sanctions. the ukranian army is retreating from donetsk and another town, virtually handing over to the separatists. tanks are destroying every house

there. >> 2600 reason killed. we'll hear from paul brennan in mariupol. >> reporter: for weeks the ukranian army was dominating in the east. in a town ukranian forces were circled. kiev admitted it was surrendering the town. a humanitarian corridor became a kill zone. instead of refusing freed captives the commander was left the task of collecting their bodies. they were given a corridor to get out. they were shot. it's a violation of international conventions. we came, but don't know how it will end. >> ukraine's border areas are shrouded in smoke. not all of it comes from the burn of the wheat stubble. near the town, we witnessed a column of personal carriers.

the soldiers waved but looked exhausted. two ukranian army trucks appeared carrying soldiers, carrying white flags, heading down a dead-end road, clearly lost. we flagged down a group of civilian cars, "where are you going?" "anywhere there's no shelling." >> what we have seen is convoys of civilians fleeing for safety, and tired, exhausted looking ukranian soldiers on top of their vehicles heading back to base after what appears to have been intense battle. indeed, the evidence of recent fighting is all around. >> residents here are utterly disorientated. >> translation: we are frightened. we don't know what will happen, we are worried about the future. we have nowhere to go, no money.

the spokesman for the national defense council lifted some ukranian gains, but gave details of setbacks. russian tanks entered the area and destroyed virtually every house. experts say it's the chechen style of the russian army, where they destroy every building, if they suspect someone from the enemy's side is in the building. >> reporter: new concrete tank barriers have been on the road leaving into mariupol. the graffiti is a white dove of peace, and the slogan reads no war. volunteers are building sandbags and are digging trenches. the separatists may have halted their advance, but the res tents are taking no chances. >> now, to the e.u. summit in belgium, where issues issued the

one-week ultimatum to russia, the decision to levy sanctions to russia does not come easy. many depend on imports and exports but agree actions need to be taken. more from simon mcgregor-wood. >> reporter: president petro porashenko came to brussels seeking assurances and help. he made it clear how serious the crisis has become. >> we are close to the point of no return. the point of return is full-scale war, which happened under territory controlled by those there, instead of the regular russian troops. offensive action, if we take would be the point of no return. >> he spoke to 28 heads of

government. she spoke about how to respond to it. the rhetoric on the crisis is heating up. >> countries in europe shouldn't need to think long before realising how unacceptable it is. the president went further saying the russian attack on ukraine is effectively an attack on europe. while intensifying criticism europe's leaders claim the solution is political. >> we need a sustainable political solution respecting ukraine's integrity and sovereignty. i believe it's more necessary than ever. we urge russia to stop hostilities, the arms, equipment and personal into the conflict region, and withdraw forces from ukraine. >> back in july e.u. leaders imposed sections on the russian economy - finance, energy, arms. the russian banded european

cultural imports. back then european leaders said they'd do more if the situation on the ground escalated, and this week it did that. the momentum towards tougher sanctions is irresistible. doing nothing is not an option. some e.u. states, and ones heavily reliant on gas are not so keen. getting agreement on tougher measures is always hard. >> the e.u. threatens tougher sanctions. financial ones are having effect in moscow. russia's economic output is enough to push them into recession. the global economy could be affected also. >> reporter: the west could deal a blow to russia by cutting off access to international payment systems, sup as the brussel-based society for telecommunications, or swift, a

financial messaging service allowing business to move funds internationally. >> if we cut them off, we can force a rapid adjustment of the fine in 2008 in global markets after lehman fail. >> blocking access was instrumental in the sanctions regime forces iran to the table over its nuclear programme. russia has deeper ties. it would not be painless for the west, european economies, that rely on russian energy, and which so far failed to match u.s. sanctions blow for blow. russia is preparing to send a second convoy of aid to eastern ukraine. the cargo will be delivered to pro-russian separatists in donetsk. it's unclear how many trucks and how many cargo. russia's foreign minister

claimed kiev gave preliminary approval and it would be coordinated with the red cross. the other issue on the table is how to stop the islamic state group. the rebel fighters are gaining ground, threatening to spread across the middle east. >> the threat is not only to the region, but the spill over affecting europe. it's not because of the danger of foreign fighters. we need to work within the european union as well. >> australia prime minister says the country's military will transport equipment into iraq. the u.s. and australian cargo planes will ship guns to the country. the u.s. carried out more air strikes near the besieged town in the north-east part of iraq. planes dropped humanitarian supplies to civilians. the king of saudi arabia warned american political leaders that their countries could be at risk

of attack. >> translation: if no action is taken against is, after a month they'll reach europe and in another month the u.s. i'm telling you now, and you have to keep this in mind. i call upon you leaders to take the warning seriously. >> leaders are meeting this weekend to discuss ways to combat the terrorist threat from is your, coming a day after the threat level was raised from substantial to severe. rosalind jordan has more on that. >> there hasn't been a specific reaction to the comments of king abdullah. the u.s. has been saying for the past couple of weeks, that it does consider the islamic state group a serious security threat. on friday we heard from the secretary of homeland security, jeh johnson, who said there wasn't enough credible imminent intelligence justifying changing the nation's terror threat level from where it sits.

without that evidence, johnson says it's not worth terrifying the american people with a change in the threat level. it's not to say that the obama administration isn't taking a closer look at what can be done. we heard from the president, president obama, who said that his advisors, his military advisors are trying to work on military options that the u.s. can do to confront is fighters. that's larger issue at work, and the administration is trying hard to get it right. >> information tonight about the escape of the u.n. peacekeepers held by rebels in syria. they'll hike along the north-east border in israel. tonight the philippine military said dozens of workers were able to get away during a 7-hour gun battle. more than 70 peacekeepers are safe. others are under threat in the

region. the ceasefire in gaza is in its fourth day. for the fourth time in a month people are able to spend part of saturday at the beach. you may remember one of the more tragic incidents of that conflict happened on the beach - four children killed by an israeli air strike. more than 200 palestinians were killed in fighting and gaza's infrastructure was badly damaged in air strikes. one organization said it will take 20 years to reabout all the homes in the war. palestinian officials estimate costs exceed 6 billion. >> a decision affecting hong kong's political future will be made in a couple of hours. the question at hand, whether to allow a free election. adrian brown reports from beijing. >> 17 years since hong kong returned to chinese rule, the

deal that made it possible is starring to be threatened. china promise hong kong a high degree of possibility. the pledge is being tested. the political pressure has been rising since the protest in july. it was organised by pro-democracy groups, demanding a vote for every adult in the election for the next leader. china says fine, so long as candidates are patriotic and approved by budget. critics ait's not patriotic and war of more scenes like this. >> the chinese government try to give us fake democracy. 10,000 or more will come out and sit on the streets of central. >> that threat to coup hong kong central business district led to a pro-beijing protest two weeks ago. but it later emerged many taken

apart had been busted and taken to lunch. the protest shows the mood is heartening on both sides. >> we expect serious polarization in the society, although certainly law and order will not be an issue, but we expect a very difficult scenario for all parties concerned. >> reporter: hong kong's chief executive is cy lung. he was chosen. that's the election china wants in 2017. it appears in no room to compromise. >> protesters need to keep in their mind when you use demonstrations or protests to advance in democracy, you can't violate democracy and the rule

of law. >> chinese government wants to stop protests, they feel it is time to remind everyone of who is ultimately in charge. >> next on al jazeera america - a food recall that could impact your labour day cook out. and in a deeper look, the n.f.l. tries to get stuff on domestic violence. and the first openly gay player find out if he makes the team. first melissa chan in california. >> i'm melissa chan in california. our team has been following the drought. we looked at the impact on farmers. those farmers with orchards have less flexibility. they have to keep the trees hydrated. those that grow seasonal crops have the option to leave the land fallow. the drought has hit ranchers.

the cost of hay has gone up. many had to face the tough decision to tell their cattle. migrant farm workers. many from mexico and central america has fewer jobs - no problems, harvest or work. as the drought deepened. those in the valley started to drill wells, wells longer than the empire state building. dry conditions produced dramatic before and after pictures. the worst has cost the west 63 trillions of lost water. >> we will not see much knock on fruit and vegetable prices. farmers warn us if the drought continues, prices will go up in

2015. time to take a deeper look at the n.f.l. and how it's been

tackling domestic violence issues. less that a week before the start the commissioner made a major announcement. >> reporter: in a rare akurns the most powerful executive in american sports says he was wrong. after intense blow-back for only suspended baltimore ravens ray rice for two games for this attack on his fiancee, things are about to change. in a letter to team owners, n.f.l. commissioner reasonablying e-cadell said: -- roger cadell: a new policy was announced: . >> the policy plies to any

n.f.l. employee, not just players. it will not be retroactive. ray rice will serve 2-game suspension and nothing more. >> the n.f.l. personal conduct policy often doesn't require a criminal conviction to be in force, and is not subject to bargaining with the players union. the n.f.l. players union said in a statement: i spoke to robert bowlen, the chair of sports and management at the newark university, and mike freeman, an international writer, and from denver colorado, bruce, the director of the national collision against domestic violence and asked if they were surprised. >> i have to say i was stunned.

i have covered the league, the n.f.l. has never taken domestic violence serious at all. what happened with ray rice is an indicator, they have not seen it as a huge issue to be a part of. when they did this. i can tell you myself and everyone around the league was stunned. no one expected this. first of all, rocker cadell admitted that he was wrong, which is unbelievable. i can't remember a commissioner admitting he was wrong in any sport, but just the fact that the n.f.l. knew - they knew that what happened with ray rise, the two game suspension for knocking his fiancee unconscious, was not enough, and i have never seen, again in 25 years of covering the sport how almost the entire country and beyond, in every spent -- aspect - everyone came

down on the n.f.l. from every spectrum of the media. that caused them to change. what do you know about what happened behind the scenes to make this happen. the league has gotten bad press, but people watch on saturdays to watch it happen. what happened to make it happen. >> i think a difference was that as opposed to 10-15 years ago, there's a large woman fan base. there's a lot of women who watch football, and care about it. there are a lot of women, based on what i have seen and read in minor action with fans who are upset about it. that caught the n.f.l. by surprise. like i said before, they have never gotten this level of across the board criticism since

i can remember. i have never seen anything like this. everyone was united, except maybe ray rice, and this punishment was way too short. >> i have your statement here, robert. let's break down the language of what this does. the language talks about six games for a first sentence, and says with consideration given to mitigating factors, does that mean there's a lot of grey area. >> there's a lot of grey area. we don't know whether an offense means a criminal conviction or an arrest or an incident being reported. that's a world of difference. the commissioner has allowed himself to sum airy suspend somebody, if there's something serious like rice, caught on video tape. it leaves a grey area. it leaves the idea of someone

like rice, who goes through a diversionary programme, and doesn't sustain a conviction, would he be an offender. it's in the commissioner's hands. he's the appeal on this. this is a place that could end up in court down the road. >> it talks about domestic violence, which is a specific thing. it doesn't talk more broadly about violence against women. say a player is at a club and assaults a woman, that doesn't necessary fall under this policy? >> no, it wouldn't. i looked at the domestic violence statues. they can be ordinarily ontrued and there's no -- construed. there's no construction given to that. so an altercation in a club with a stranger would not be covered. >> a lot of grey areas. this may end up in actuality - what your thoughts, ruth on what

the commissioner has done? >> i'm very encouraged by it, as the organization is, and all those working hard to have the commission address this issue. there is a lot of work still to be done within the organization and the culture. it's a clear message that it will not be tolerated. i think there's room to grow, and there always is as far as education and ensuring that players understand punishment is not what we want. you want you to understand it's not okay to commit violence at all. >> some said because the n.f.l. got bad press, that's the only reason they are doing it - do you care about the motivation, or just the fact they are doing something? >> i think it's both pressure. the pressure from society at

large saying this is not okay. i think some people got together and talked with the n.f.l. and said you don't understand at a deeper level what it means to cause harm to women, children and families. you are causing harm because you have an influence on society. i think they paid attention to that. several organizations met with the commissioner, several individuals stepped up. i think mr freeman is correct. there's a fan base now that there has never been before in the nf l. they stepped up saying this is not okay. if you want to continue to support and be part of the society. we'll have to do something different, and address the fact that violence on the field is no longer viable. >> is this something that could

have been done. >> it could have been done a while ago. but i don't think there was any end to this, together pushing them. they felt it was an issue no one cared about. like a lot of people in the league, they do smart things, they are, like a lot of big businesses, motivated by what happens on the outside. so despite a number of domestic violence incidents, they were not pushed until ray rice happens. there was nothing like ray rice that caused the reaction that it has. that was the big thing. >> we are talking about the n.f.l. let's talk about other leagues and be honest. when you look at the other commissioners, they had never, do not have a record of holding

abusers accountable. it's a team by team thing, the number of ba have a strong record. do you think other leagues will feel pressure. the n.f.l. has an advantage, the ration situation creates impetuous, but the commissioner with a disciplinary policy, not fully part of the collective bargaining, where they have to create dollar for dollar, that's an advantage. if you think about it, the n.f.l. is probably a single unit in the united states. the others have an issue, they need to take a leadership role. it's hard when you go to the

that. >> from a player poif, i want to talk to you. you have dealt with players. is there a concern about what the players have with the policy. >> much like anyone involved in a domestic violence incident, whether wrongly or rightly accuse, there's a difficult process to it. sometimes it can be used offensively. particularly iffish high earning. >> it's not the norm. >> it's far from the norm. in this case, in the rice case, the spouse said "please reinstate him, don't suspend him." victims don't want to report much it's an enormous change. it makes the cases difficult to prosecute and defend and judge in a secondary matter. i suspect other unions would push hard to make it after a conviction. >> we are delivering you back into this. one thing that the commissioner

outlined in a lengthy letter is that they were going to expand the programs that they have no college, high school and youth football and seek to create programs developing the character of young men who play, coach and manage the game, emphasising respect for women and appropriate ways to resolve conflict. teaching report for women is one part. what would the successful programme look like to you. >> well, i think a successful programme targetting the young men would be boys to men. there are several programme, such as boys to men in the local community. i think the n.f.l. owners would have to take a proactive approach to working with the domestic violence programs, and healthy relationship programs to ensure the educational opponents are in place, there's so many.

he's correct about that. in order to end domestic violence, so you don't set out a policy that punishes it. you have to foster an environment that helps everyone, boys, understand that violence against women is not okay. >> another part of this letter. >> go ahead. >> i was going to say. i think one of things the f if l will do is a public service announcement where you see players stop. these type of initiatives. you'll see players start to do that now with domestic violence. that's something the n.f.l. wants to do. >> it seems what is up next on the agenda for roger goodel to see how he enforces this is greg

hardy from the panthers. he admitted to threatening to kill his girlfriend, his ex-girlfriend, and said he was sorry he was a distraction to the team, as opposed to apologising to her. i think there's pressure europe on roger goodelle to she what will happen to him. >> the greg hardy case is a horrible case, i hate to compare these things with what happened with ray rice. good -- i don't know if the union will fight it, i think they are. that case may be huge because it will be a good test case. that's a really horrible test case, and because of the quirkiness of the carolina law

he can appeal to the jury - i'll let the brilliant legal mind there deal with that part of it. if it's implemented quickly, that'll be a huge test. >> that will be a difficult one. >> since he announced it's none retroactive will he be able to look at it. maybe he'll look at at criminal conviction - he my suspend under the old rules. one of the complex matters, jim brown, one of the greatest player, who had a complex relationship with domestic violence. mike con concludes it. it's interesting that it's a business and implementation issue for sport. >> are you encouraged this became a national conversation

in a way it never was before, with violence against women. this was a national conversation that led to something. how do you feel about that. >> we feel encouraged for those of us working for a long time. to bring the attention to the issue like we have for years. i think someone like commissioner goodell listening and understand of the seriousness of it. we have a new conversation. it's fantastic. >> ruth, robert, mike, wonderful conversation. thank you to all three of you for joining us on the saturday night. have a great weekend. >> thank you. >> the n.a.t.o. summit is set to start in wales next week.

how it could affect the crisis in ukraine, that after the break. and a landmark ruling on gay adoption.

welcome back to al jazeera america, here is a look at the top stories, the e.u. held a summit in brussels to discuss the crisis in ukraine, they have given russia a week to pull back or face tougher sanctions. the president is asking e.u. leaders saying that they are on the point of no return of all-out law. >> attacks on the islamic state group. humanitarian aid has been given to thousands of the fighters. it's been warned that the islamic state could attack u.s. and europe. u.n. peacekeepers to the philippines surrounded by armed fighters - they are free

tonight. the philippines military said dozens of workers were able to get away. more than 70 filipino peacekeepers are safe. others are under threat. the n.a.t.o. summit is said to start next week in wales. n.a.t.o. used blunt language to condemn action, saying it's part of a dangerous pattern. t the 55-year-old alliance focussing on ukraine. >> n.a.t.o. was created in 1849, to protect western allies from perceived invasion by the soviet union and eastern europe. the purpose was summed up as keep the americans in, russians out and germans down. the crisis in ukraine amplified the tensions between russia and the west. the soviet union collapsed. nick burns says the atlantic

alliance is essential for americans and europeans. >> n.a.t.o. provides the nuclear defense, the territorial defense of the continent and has been that way since 1949 and has been the most successful alliance in modern history. >> reporter: with the end of the cold war, the soviet war pack vanished. 10 countries joined between 1997 and 2004. countries that were soviet allies or part of the soviet union. >> does that decision look good. imagine with the aggressiveness of vladimir putin, mag what he would -- imagine what he would try to do to extend the effort into romania, bulgari. >> since the fall of the berlin wall, n.a.t.o. moved into areas beyond the mandate, like sending troops into afghanistan, and helping victims of hurricane

katrina. it's welcoming former warsaw rivals distresses vladimir putin. russia's fight in ukraine is, in some ways, an attempt to retain russian influence, and russia wants to ensure ukraine does not become n.a.t.o.'s newest member. >> robert hunter, former ambassador to n.a.t.o. says they need to send a message to russia. >> this is a critical week. there may have been more time to play with. with the president of the united states going to wales, with all the allies there, with the focus. world on it, nato will have to show that it means business in terms of sending a message to vladimir putin. i am sure that's why the european union said "well, let's wait a week and see what we have to do on sanctions." the alliance will have to shore

up the security of the country. members of n.a.t.o. they'll have to provide more arms and ammunition and training for ukraine, and they'll have to say to mr vladimir putin - there are limits to what we can and will let you do. >> robert hunter, former u.s. ambassador to n.a.t.o. the national intelligence agency of afghanistan was the target of a deadly suicide attack. armed fighters stormed the building in jalalabad and detonated two car bombs in the government office. six were killed, 33 others injured. the taliban claimed responsibility. the leader of muslim brotherhood in egypt will not face the death penalty. it was upheld for mohamed badie and seven other leaders. the highest authority advised the court to opt for the higher sentence. mohamed badie can be sentenced to death for an earlier case.

three of our al jazeera colleagues spent 345 days in an egyptian prison. peter greste, mohamed fadel fahmy and baher mohamed were falsely accused of helping the muslim brotherhood. in gooun peter greste, and mohamed fadel fahmy was sentenced to 7 years, and bard are three. all have appealed and al jazeera is demanding their release. police released tear gas and rubber bullets on a crowd of thousands. >> they are not continuing with a push to the prime minister's residents, they were stopped without warning, before the march set out. we are getting reports that hundreds have been injured, including women and children, and some of them, because of tear gas, the police inspector

said they have not used live ammunition, but resorted to rubber bullets. the situation is for the last several hours, we have been hitting ambulances rushing to the scene, and at the bureau in islamabad, a kilometre or two away, we can smell the tear gas in the air. >> kamal hyder reporting there. a military coup took place in lesotho, the prime minister fled to south africa saying his life was in danger. soldiers seized the hours. the army denies staging a coup. they are encouraging peaceful, political dialogue. >> in columbia gay rights activists scored a win. the constitutional court ruled in favour of a same-sex couple wanting to adopt a child.

we have this report from bogota. >> it's taken five years, but columbia's constitutional court ruled veronica will be able to adopt her partner's daughter. we decided that a person's factor of the same sex cannot we a factor of exclusion >> reporter: it marks a first in this conservative catholic country. it comes with limitations. only gay couples can adopt. and only after living nothing for two years. the lawyers say it's a step in the right direction. this is historic if you think seven years ago there were no rights for same-sex couples. the constitutional court, step by step. has been extending the rights of citizens, upholding the constitution. >> in the capital opinions are

divided. i don't think this is a good decision. it's a biological mother, kids need a father-figure, our ways, everything. who is the father, who is the mother. >> for some people, it's difficult to accept, because they are conservative and traditional. they should understand this is about basic equal rights. it's the right decision. >> the ruling faces stronger positions from the catholic church and conservative politicians, senators are collecting signatures to appeal a decision. >> they want to use the referendum to disguise the religious intolerance. in our constitution basic fundamental rights cannot be subject to a referendum. this is the last of a court ruling, but it comes amidpolarizing debate, and meeting congress on the issues. president santos decided to stay

out of the dispute. the gay community believes that they could be granted equal rights. next on al jazeera america, wet weather down south is causing flash flooding. we'll have your forecast. major news from the medical world, a drug to prolong the life of millions of americans. first a look at one of the big stories of the summer - the closing of abortion clinics in louisiana. >> doctors who have abortion had to have admitting privileges at hospitals near their clinics, it was signed into law in jooup. it is -- june, it has been challenged by clinics and doctors who wanted more time, cooking a judge for more time, applying for privileges. now that the law has been

upheld, it will be likely that three of the five clinics in louisiana will close. there's one doctor that has admitting privileges, but he says if he's the only doctor in the state that can perform abortions, he'll likely quit his job because of harassment he has face the over the years.

>> it's a chilling and draconian sentence... it simply cannot stand. >> this trial was a sham... >> they are truth seekers... >> all they really wanna do is find out what's happening, so they can tell people... >> governments around the world all united to condemn this... >> as you can see, it's still a very much volatile situation... >> the government is prepared to carry out mass array...

>> if you want free press in the new democracy, let the journalists live. >> i'm joie chen, i'm the host of america tonight, we're revolutionary because we're going back to doing best of storytelling. we have an ouportunity to really reach out and really talk to voices that we haven't heard before... i think al jazeera america is a watershed moment for american journalism it doesn't have a name yet, but a new drug may prove to be one of the biggest advances in cardia care. medication can prolong the lives of people with heart failure. lowering a risk of death, hospitalisation by 20%. the drug was the subject of a file involving 85-00 people, and it was halted because benefits were so clear cut. the research was published. heavy rains are causing flash flooding in parts of louisiana, we have the latest on that.

startling numbers. >> especially when you hear about rainfall, any time it's more than four inches, it's shocking. we are talking about amounts of over seven numbers of, we have a lot of flash flooding, video to show you where rain was coming in so hard and heavy, that it flooded out basements, homes filling up. we have a high watertable. it's no shock that that amount of rain, over 7 inches, caused a lot of problems. we are seeing on the radar heavy rain stretching up. rain totals were intense. the heaviest was around lake charles louisiana. however, we do have amounts in new orleans totalling over an inch and a half, and birmingham, you have come in an inch and a quarter. the rain is heavy. we have flash flood watches effect. here comes round 2.

we have another storm system setting up to bring in strong forms as we get into sundays. let's look at that storm. that will bring more heavy rain. parts of western washington and each into central washington and oregon, 5 to 11 degrees below normal. the cooler air will continue the tract, taking a different perspective, moving into montana, and will continue pulling the air from tomorrow afternoon into tomorrow night. that's where the thunderstorm will fire up. getting the risk, creating potential in iowa, kansas and south dakota. we will watch them earlier in the afternoon, and the wave will roll east, and we'll watch it closely. textures will feel like they are just getting hotter as we get

into labour day. south of the cold front, it will heat up along the mid-atlantic to the north-east. we'll continue the labour day risk, storms around the lake, towards chicago. coming up on al jazeera america - a warning before you throw cheeseburgers on the grill, there's a recall to tell you about. and how tiny apartments can create huge issues. >> from one wall to the other - that's all you have. >> sure, you'll save money, but it could cost the neighbourhood in a big way. it appears no one has seen a good movie. next on the box office, a summer slump. >> first, a big story from the summer of 2014. the als icebucket change. >> i'm john terrett in new york.

who would have thought one of the most talked about stories of summer 2014 would raise big laughs, tonnes of money and no small amount of controversy. als ice bucket challenge caught the imagination of people of the world over raising awareness for amyothophic lateral sclerosis. i took the plunging near the empire state building, a small crowd cheering me on. >> i do this. >> and the challenge spawned spin-offs like a rubble challenge, to rebuild after the war. some complain it's a waste of water when so many go without. others say no need to make a spectacle of yourself, donate quietly. wherever you stand tonne this, you can't deny the als ice bucket challenge will not easily be forgotten.

before you throw cheeseburgers on the criminal, take note kraft is recalling about 8,000 cases of a signature food. the kraft sentence cheese has a use by date of 20th or 21st of 2015. it wasn't stored at the proper temperature. because of that the cheese could have spoiled and could make you sick. tiny apartments are a growing trend, developers are building apartments with microunits so small some barely hold more than a bed. >> reporter: evan paul takes pride in this apartment on manhattan's upper side. he rents for $1800.

no one has seen the apart: i had to get it before anyone put their papers in. median rent for an apartment in manhattan is under $2500, one bed rooms, 300. evan pays less because he went into an apartment created before the '80s. demand for housing for one person is so great new york lifted zoning on one project and is alog a development to be created composed of 55 mike units. between 260 and 350 square feet, they'll be so small they are built miles away in a factory, when complete, they'll be driven in, stacked on top of each other. this is one complete unit.

it's representative. you are standing in the hallway. 22 will be set aside for middle and low-income, paying $900 to 924. the building will be densely populated. they'll have an half an inch of space between each to reduce noise transfer. in new york, this is an experiment. in seattle dozens have been around for years. >> it's a bad idea. it forces an upward escall agency in land prices. in urban areas, a challenge to producing affordable housing is the price of land. sara is watching the experiment saying singles become room mates, competing with families.

>> a three bed room apartment, if it takes three or four single people and rent it, the landlord can get more money than if a family was renting. >> in san francisco. developers are building apartments for families. this unit has two bedrooms, a kitchen, living room and less than 632 feet. wow. 40% of the studios in manhattan housing experiment will be made available to middle and low income workers. developers will take applications next year. >> a surprise ending for movie lovers, ticket sales dropping to lowest levels. >> drop it. hey. >> drop it now. >> no problem. no problem at all. not even blockbusters like "guardiens of the galaxy" could

save the day. it's the first time no movie earned $300 million. it's expected to change next summer, there's "star wars", "mission impossible v", and "50 shades of gray." i'm richelle carey, thanks for watching, "consider this" starts now. that and more ahead. >> in gaza it is quiet after two months of fighting. the key to success is stringent honouring of the ceasefire. the way to do that is to end occupation. the project is an attempt to create an ideal university. you want to elevate what an undergraduate degree is about. >> it is not reserved for sitting passively. >> the general brought calm to new orleans. >> in missouri, he said he would repeat the message.