>> fighting in northern iraq intensifies. u.s. and rebel forces in their positions. hello, you're watching al jazeera, live from doha. also ahead - heavy shelling in eastern ukraine despite a ceasefire between government forces and separatists. anger in afghanistan - five men found guilty of a gang rape, sentenced to death. and fighting the disease which blinds both young and old in nigeria, why doctors are hopeful of a break through.

the iraqi army says it's launching an offensive to retake the city of haditha and its nearby dam. iraqi and u.s. helicopters are targetting spots around the city. kurdish forces have retaken the gaza mountain. it fell to to the islamic state group in june. iraq's government says it can beat the islamic state group, but with hope. >> if we want a remedy for this council, there must be help from the global system, and if there is help from the american time, we'll target in a shorter time. jane arraf is in baghdad. how significant now that u.s. strikes are targetting some of

the western provinces like alan bar? >> hugely significant. it's the first time the u.s. launched air strikes in the area, which is an important area, since troops left in 2011, it signifies a widening of that campaign. it's not far from the syrian border, and it is the site of a dam which is the second biggest hyd hydroelectric generate and can flood large areas, all the way to baghdad, if the gates are open. haditha has been a stronghold, something that the u.s. feels that it needs to focus on. the areas around the syrian border, if it's going to make significant progress against the islamic state group. now they have started that campaign. >> there's a bloody history in places like haditha. how do the sunnis view the u.s.

strikes? >> it's a complicated dynamic by iraqi standard. we are hearing from local officials in haditha that they have the tribes on board to fight against the islamic state group. it's a 2-prong strategy - the air strikes taking down islamic state group checkpoints and armoured vehicle tanks seized from iraqi forces, and then on the ground you need to follow that up with a bush to get rid of islamic state fighters. that can only really be done in the sunni areas with the sunni trains. it's the same issue in the baghdad belt. the areas around baghdad, launching points for attacks on the capital itself. >> thank you. jane arraf there in the iraqi

capital. syrian air force launched strikes on several rebel targets on the syrian side of the golan site. it did not enter the demilitarized zone. orders from the al qaeda allied al nusra front took control of the area prompting military levels to be raised. eight strikes left eight dead. this video by rebel fighters shows the aftermath of an attack against the islamic state group, occupying large parts of syria. a ceasefire between ukranian government forces and pro-russian separatists has been breached. the government checkpoints in mariupol came under fire. it's the first serious violation of a truce declared on friday.

harry fawcett sent in report from mariupol >> reporter: it took little more than a day for the ceasefire to go up in flames. this is the result of a heavy assault on mariupol, closer to the center than anything that had come in previous days when pro-russian forces swept in from the east. >> what is clear is that the ceasefire is over. what we saw when we were out beyond the eastern fringes is a great deal of damage inflicted on ukranian forces, positions around the area. it could be that the russian backed forces are making the most of that, moving in towards the southern port city. >> early on saturday the ceasefire appears to be holding. allowing a clear few of what will be a battlefield. it was a battle waged a mid the villages. brought to the doorstep of the kindergarten. this one of three tanks taking up position here. >> translation: how can the

ukranian army, our defenders, hide in the kindergarten. there was no warning. what if there'd been children. the heroes come and hide in the kindergarten. where are they now. they have left to us our own destiny. >> a message for the children who will not be coming back soon, children they say who feel sick seeing soldiers in the sick. beyond this area, nervy soldiers guarding more mangled metal. nearby, a no man's land between the opposing forces, families decided to get out. the rumours were that more shelling was coming. given the power of the onslaught a day area, the fear was understandable. this was one target the ukranian artillery position. late on saturday they managed to salvage a field gun, and started to take it back to town.

even this was a sensitive operationful seconds after we filmed the images, the soldiers fired shots. now it's clear they had every reason to be jumpy. their enemy making the most of their losses, another onslaught league mariupol under threat of falling out of ukranian hands. and there have been explosions near the airport near donetsk. let's go to paul brennan, joining us from the city. has the situation calmed down there paul? >> not especially, no. we were hoping to come up with our camera position on the fringes on the airport. just as we were setting up, there was an incoming round, perhaps a grenade, something like that. it was a little too close for comfort, so we had to pull back at short notice to a safer position. no, it's not calm here.

it's clear that the ceasefire is not holding around the airport. we heard sporadic gun fire and barrages, which we believe to be from grad missile launches. there's a battle at the airport, it says that the ceasefire here is not observed from either side. the amount of fire could not be accidental. >> we'll let you get safety for now. thank you so much. palestinian president mahmoud abbas says he may break off a unity agreement with hamas over the way it's governed gaza. speaking in cairo, hamas was accused of running a shadow authority, and mahmoud abbas wants a single authority and rule. hamas say the comment are unjustified.

people in gaza are still in need of humanitarian need. israel destroyed much infrastructure during a month-long bombardment. what little remains can't be repaired due to limited supplies. andrew simmonds reports. >> reporter: delivery runs like this are as crucial now as they were in the war. aid agencies are provides a life line for tens of thousands of people. this is free drinking water, filtered and safe. for those returning to damaged homes, when the water supply is working, there's no electricity to pump it from tanks and wells. gaza's only power station was hit repeatedly by israeli shells. the fuel store and treatment plants was destroyed. it's estimated that full repairs will take a year. and a temporary fix offering a fraction of the power. before the war they only had the

capacity to give gaza 60% of its power. some of the shortfall made up from supplies from rail and egypt. -- from israel and egypt. >> it will be more severe, it was short before the war. is it. >> reporter: without a constant power supply gaza's sewerage is untreated. the coastline is polluted with outlets like this, pumping out raw sewerage 24 hours a day. aside from that, there's a health risk from bomb damage to main sewers. this area was filled with raw sue im, sinking deep through the sand. nothing could be done to repair the pipe or to treat the sewage for a whole month. >> there are fears under groundwater supplies may have been contaminated. >> we are talking about raw sewerage, which was infiltrated to the aquifer.

they need something to come today, not yesterday, to take samples. >> that's one urgent need of many. the fighting may have stopped. little else changed. people have no option but to cope with the hardship. >> an shan prosecutor has targeed mohamed mursi -- charged mohamed mursi with leaking state secrets to qatar, qatar offered financial support during mohamed mursi's president. he wag -- was toppled in a coup by abdul fatah al-sisi. who is now the president. al jazeera is calling for the release of journalists who have been in kust for 261 days.

peter greste, mohamed fadel fahmy and baher mohamed received long sentences after a trial by many called politically motivated. the u.n. secretary-general raised the case with the egyptian president. qatar's government confirmed its security services are detaining two human rights researchers who wept missing seven days ago while researching living conditions. qatar says they are accused of breaking the law, but gave few other details. they've been criticized for the treatment of construction workers during the 2022 world cup. the military of foreign affairs released a statement saying: still ahead on al jazeera...

..seeds of discontent. guatemalans vow to declare their plants from multinational dramas. plus... >> the pigeon sat on a branch contemplating resistance. few understand what it is about, but a film wins the gold in lion at the vest. -- venice film festival.

welcome back. let's take a look at the headlines here on al jazeera. u.s. and iraqi army helicopters are striking islamic state group fighters around the city of

haditha. they, along with kurdish peshmerga beating back the fighters taking over large parts of iraq. the ceasefire between the ukranian government and separatists is breached. the government checkpoint came under fire throughout. explosions have been heard near donetsk airport. palestinian president mahmoud abbas says he may break off an agreement with hamas. speaking in cairo, he accused hamas of running a shadow government. and wants a single system resume. of course, in kabul, seven men have been sentenced to death in connection with a gang rape of women on 23 august. armed men, dresses as police, raped the women as they came back from a wedding. the fast-tracked trial lasted a couple of hours, and was broadcast live on television.

jennifer glasse is live in kabul. what happens next in this high profile case? >> well, the men do have the right to appeal, and there may be fall out for the police. the defense lawyer said that there were irregularities, not the least of which the men were publicly put in front of the afghans before the trial, and the trial itself. the men have the right to appeal. public opinion is very much. they've called for swift and open justice calling for outrage. they have been watching this closely and carefully, and that's why the police have been so public in showing that they can bring the men to justice. several of the men convicted to death, and a quick open stril broadcast on live television.

three other men are at large. police hoping to bring them to trial. >> it's not the only case one hears about where women are abused. why does this case mobilize a public outcry. >> cases like that are kept quiet. it was a local hospital that notified the police in the case of this. the case was so egregious and outrageous. a lot of cover cans saw these people as every man. the women were travelling back from a wedding with their husbands. they were stopped at a checkpoint that was not a checkpoint by a group of bandits. we hear from a trial that they have a string of convictions, accusations of crimes, of robbery, of murder and other rapes. in addition to that event that happened in last august. we have seen afghans very much

publicly calling for the death penalty here, and that is what the court very swiftly ruled today. >> all right, jennifer glasse there from kabul, thank you for that. now, more heavy rain is forecast in pakistan, where flooding killed over 100 people. the pakistani army is using helicopters and boats to evacuate people. 50 relief camps have been set up. more than 4,000 homes have been destroyed. >> in indian-administered kashmir floodwaters are eseeding. medical teams are deployed to guard against water born diseases. 100 villages have been flooded killing more than 100 people. aid workers say a planned 3-day lockdown in sierra leone to contain the ebola outbreak will make the situation worse. people will not be able to leave their homes between

september 19th and the 21st. the lockdown could spreadthe disease, because new cases will go unattended. the government says the shutdown will make it easier to trace suspected cases. 40 million people in nigeria - that's a quarter of the population - are at risk of going blind, threatened by a disease contracted by going to the river. >> reporter: this is a village deep in the jungles of northern nigeria. it's lush corn fields conceal a village full of blindness, a disease that blinds victims. children leading the blind is a common sight here. >> this 50-year-old is a victim of river blindness. >> translation: what hurts me most is i cannot work. i can't help my son. i'm at the mercy of others.

i want to do so much for others, but i can't. >> reporter: also, river blindness is a leading cause of protectable blindness much the fly that causes the river blindness, known as black fly, breeds along the river banks and bites people when they fetch water or do their washing. up to 150,000 have been stricken by the disease. river blindness has caused major descriptions. children have been forced to leave school to care for relatives. >> disease is a curse. you see the young men and women wasting away. you become week, you can't farm or work. >> cultural production dropped significantly. >> airports are underway to stop the spread of river blindness, including drugs and programs,

and those that have a chance for those to gain their sight. >> we have come far. lots of people at risk of the disease are getting the drugs to treat them and make it free. they get the treatment. we begin to see good signs. >> government aid workers - and individuals, are subjected to the same objectives. mohammed in nigeria. >> saddam is denying sending repponsre weapons. sudan said the aircraft was carrying equipment for joint forces on the border. the french journalist held hostage by fighters says a

captive was a man set in by a deadly attack. >> he kept it secret, but after revelations in the french press, he has spoken out. the french journalist was held captive, saying one of the gaolers was mamoosh. he was accused of shooting dead four people in brussels in may. >> translation: after the arrest of namoush for the acts he's accused of in brussels, i was shape a number of documents allowing me to identify him. the former hostages, police and legal authorities decided to keep this secret. >> a reason for this was that when he and three other journalist were freed, they left a number of hostages behind and wanted to protect them. namoush was one of a small number of fighters affiliated.

they were supervising dozens of prisoners in aleppo. he was fierce. >> translation: namoushe treated me. i don't know if he mistreated other hostages. he tortured syrian prisoners. >> namoush was arrested in france, stayed after and was extradited to belgium. the lawyer that represented him was surprised by the latest allegations, saying the question travelling to syria was never raised. >> there was never a question of the role he allegedly played as a gaoler. it surprises me. if this turns out to be the case, why didn't someone ask the question. >> they are facing trial over the killings. a belgium judge is due to rule at a hearing next friday. firefighters battle huge

wildfires in the u.s. state of california. 700 home owners moved to safety near yos 'emminie national pa . park -- yosemite national park, a quarter of the blaze has been retain retained. >> farmers are concerned in guatemala that their crops will be stolen. [ chanting ] >> reporter: chanting seeds for life, not business, protesters take to the streets in guatemala city. the groups are demanding the government retract the law that they believe will open the door to the privatisation of seeds. they say the so-called monsanto law threatens the food supply, making the core poorer. >> translation: we farmers choose the best corn to replant. this is how we work for

thousands of years. this allows others to patent the seeds, and the guatemala state will penalize people using this way of planting. in june the congress passed the law for protection of new plant varieties. it is meant to protect the intellectual property of plant breeders who created or discovered plant varieties. using seeds without permission could be punishable by fines, imprisonment or both. analysts say some seed producers are in favour of the law. >> they see it as a positive thing. all the research and development they do will we protected from the big companies that come in and take them and patent them themselves. >> those look at it as a good thing. >> innovation has going on before the law was passed. >> scientists at the government's institute of agricultural science and

technology created more than 140 improved seeds. many are given to be reused. none are patented. >> the head of the institute says legislators should respect enough ruling declaring corn a national pat ra moany. >> this puts the genetic diversity at risk. a person or company can protect the planned materials without investing anything, or without recognising the rights of the indigenous community who discovered the materials. >> the monsanto law is due to take effect in late september. with 70% of guatemalans growing their open crops, it will be hard to convince people that what is good to plant breeder is best for the country. a quirky movie from sweden won the top prize at the venice film festival. as phil lavelle reports,

describing the winner is not easy. >> reporter: they love a surprise at venice, something a little random "the pigeon sat on a branch contemplating existence" >> reporter: this was the reaction as the winner was announced. this was the press area. look at the journalists and critics clapping. even though few understand what this film is about. a pigeon sat on a branch reflecting on existence touched people. few get it. the plot is surreal, but it's beautifully shot. many rude for the economy. they are happy. >> it's great. so funny and clever. the pigeon is a point of view from which the pigeon saw the existence. also a good night for this film,

the postman's white night. best director is the other name for the tries. the half drama, half documentary is set in a secluded part of northern russia. it's a place that hasn't moved on. some lives never change. the look of silence took the grand jury's prize. this the only documentary. >> a raw look at the impact of the indonesians. the film has been almost universally received here. the world's oldest film festivals wraps up for another year. this was not a shock result, it was a feel-good result. the film that the critics loved took the top prize. many admit they couldn't follow it. italy's economic problems showed here. fewer came, fewer spent. many that came left with smiles on their faces and bewildered

puzzled look, as they tried to figure out what the film was all about. >> and if you want to get more on the stories, and the others we are following here, head to aljazeera.com. >> while responding to one crisis russia's threats to ukraine, president obama talked about another, the growing power of the so-called islamic state. he said he'll degrade and destroy the islamic army, but how? it's the inside story.