>> the united states widens its offensive against islamic state group fighters in iraq. the arab league agrees to combat the threat. you're watching al jazeera from doha, good to have your company. going up in flames - fighting in eastern ukraine threatens a shaky sees fire between kiev and separatist forces. >> flooding kills hundreds in pakistan and india, trapping thousands more.

>> 75 minutes for serena williams to clinch an 18th grand slam title. iraq's parliament is scheduled to convene on monday to vote for a new government. it's under pressure to reach political stability while the army battles the islamic state group. the military is getting help from the urks which expanded its air strike. for the first time american and iraqi forces bombed sides in haditha. trying to protect a strategic dam under the control of sunni tribes. john hendren has more from erbil in northern iraq. >> reporter: the iraqi army says it had captured the strategic dam at haditha and is moving in

on the city of haditha, which is nearby. the governor of that province was injured when an improvised device struck his convoy and a more tar attacked afterwards. he is said to be all right. he tweeted that himself. haditha is said to be all right. it lies between oil fields, and capturing that region would allow the islamic state group to have a lucrative source of oil. it's important because of the haditha dam. it's a reason the u.s. was asked to launch air strikes to protect it. american officials say that would have - exploding that dam could have flooded an area with thousands of iraqis, and reached as far away as baghdad international airport, threatening huge centers. the peshmerga troops in northern iraq say they are closing in on

the stronghold of the islamic state in mosul, moving 10km closer from the eastside to the city of mosul, making major gains and capturing mt zar tech and plan to move to mosul in the coming weeks. u.s. president barack obama is expected to outline his plans for further action against is on wednesday. we have more of that from washington. >> the u.s. says air strikes it is conducting in iraq are having an impact. the latest air strikes taking place on sunday - five destroyed a number of islamic state group assets, including humvees, four of them, as well as four armed vehicles, a fighting condition and a command post. the u.s. says the air strikes were conducted at the invitation of the iraqi government to support the iraqi forces in joint activists, to push back

the islamic state group. president obama, speaking on a sunday chat show outlined what he said would be a u.s. broader strategy when it comes to dealing with the islamic state group and combatting it. the president is expected to make a formal foreign policy speech, and giving us a window into what the objectives will be, telling them that the goal of the united states will be to plunt the islamic state group's momentum, degrade and destroy capabilities and shrink the territory that it controls. it's an effort that the u.s. hopes can be achieved through working with the u.s. as partners and allies. it will have a military element, it will not have boots on the ground according to president obama, the u.s. hops it will work with partners on the ground to push back the islamic state group. >> members of the arab league agreed to take all necessary

measures to defeat is. they endorsed a u.n. resolution call og on states to -- calling on states to end support and funding. they said they were prepared to cooperate with international and regional efforts. syrian targets have been targeted - pictures show the aftermath. activists say 25 people were hit. the islamic state group was in group of the this city since august. iran's supreme leader is in hospital, according to the state newsagency. the irna said ayatollah khamenei had a prostate operation. he replaced the founder of the islamic republic of iran. the search continues for families stranded by flooding in

pakistan. rains triggered the floods and land slides and more than 160 people have died. kamal - what is the scene there? >> just to give you an idea, this is an industrial town with a population of half a million. according to reports, 70% of the city is inundated under three to four feet of water. it is an emergency situation. we are told that the shopkeepers and businesses panicked when they saw the water rising. we are told that the river, which is not very far from here, is in peak flood, and there are, of course, complaints from the government of pakistan that there was no early warning given by the indians after they saw a huge body of water moving to

pakistan. thousands of villages in central punjab along the banks of the river have been effected. the road has been cut off. we'll take a longer route to get into the city. most of the area is underwater. the province declared a state of emergency. >> roads have been cut off. telephone lines have been cut off. many areas have not - there's no idea how bad the devastation is. can you tell us about the government efforts there? >> at the moment the government is overwhelmed. what we have seen on the way here is military that is active, using helicopters and boats to evacuate people. there are locality aid

organizations that are busy with relief and recovery effort, the government is overwhelmed, busy with the crisis in islamabad, and for days no one gave attention to the ongoing emergency situation. so there'll be a lot of criticism as far as the response of the government is concerned, but it is a big crisis, most of central punjab has been hit hard. livelihoods is normally not threatened. it's overflowing banks in several locations. flooding in ksh mir killed 120 people. indian prime minister narendra modi has toured the region it assess the devastation. rescuers are trying to reach thousands of people. riot police in turkey fired tear

gas and rubber bullets. demonstration in istanbul followed the death of 10 construction workers on shaet. the workers were killed when a lift they were in crashed to the ground from the 37th floor. ongoing fighting in eastern ukraine threatens a ceasefire between the government and separatist fighters. >> there has been heavy shelling as fighting for control of the effort continues. >> paul brennan reports. >> reporter: these pictures show the ukraine ceasefire going up in flames, a kilometre from the perimeter of the donetsk airport. the district has been in the firing line for months. caught in the crossfire between the ukrainian forces and separatists surrounding the air part. the deal in minsk had some believing the worst was over. they were mistaken.

>> we were going to pick up our stuff. i have a baby. we temporarily live in a dormitory. we got a call from my mother, who said her house was burning. >> each side blames the other for provoking the ceasefire. on this occasion separatists went first. >> they were standing here with the canons, with the ukranian army aimed at them. they were standing here. they shot there and got the response. >> the responses went back and forth all day sunday. to the east of here, to the east of the airport we heard small arms fire and the burst of machine-gun. over to the north-west we heard the explosions from rocket fire, prol a grad system of -- probably a grad system. this is a ceasefire on paper only.

fanning out from here, tanks took um positions on the -- took um positions on the city limit. they braced for more of this, pounding on the city limits. unquestionably a violation. in kiev, the government insists the ceasefire is in force. >> translation: the firing and shelling is a violation of the ceasefire conditions. the situation is under control. over the last 24 hours we had no information about civilian casualties, and we are not talking about a cancellation of a ceasefire agreement. >> for residents, inspecting the damage, faith in the truce is low. >> it's terrifying not just for the people, but the whole city. >> a few minutes later, something in the gans had the soldiers pushing people back from the checkpoint. officials from the organization and security in europe, o.s.c.e., charged with monitoring the ceasefire,

reminded of the magnitude of that task. and a reminder for everyone in this country that this conflict is not over yet. family and friend on board the malaysia airlines flight mh370 which vanished met to mark 6 months since the tragedy. many relatives of the family that went missing gathered for prayers. the majority were chinese. adrian brown was at the memorial in beijing. >> this temple is a place the families come to during the mid autumn festival. it's a time of coming together. for many families such a reunion is not possible. they are the loved ones of those missing from a malaysian airliner that vanished on march

the 8th, six months ago. they came to offer prayers and press demands for more information about the missing airliner. police were here in force, doing their best to prevent families talking to the foreign media. some families allege the police are responsible for open hostility, accusing them of beatings and arbitrary detention. there's reports of a woman spending three days in hospital. so there is a good deal of bitterness and anger among the families. they've been through the full ark of emotions. what was visible was the raw emotion that is still there. >> al jazeera is demanding the release of three journalists detained in egypt for 254 days, peter greste, mohamed fadel fahmy and baher mohamed received long sentences after a trial seen by many observers as to be

politically motivated. they are appealing their convictioning. secretary-general ban ki-moon raised the case with the egyptian president. you can join the campaign by using free av staff on social media, and find out more by going to the special page on the website aljazeera.com. >> there's more ahead. we'll report from bolivia's capital on how people are taking to the skies to get around. >> i'm in the niger delta. i'll show you what is behind what some say is causing nigeria's worst oil crisis in five years.

hello again, let me take you through the main stories this hour in al jazeera. the u.s. expanded air strikes in iraq against the islamic state group. they bombarded sites near the haditha dam.

the parliament is scheduled to vote on monday. >> flights and flash floods killed more than 160 people in pakistan. 120 people decide across the border in indian-administered kashmir. >> a tenuous ceasefire in ukraine is jeopardised by fighting in the east. the truce was struck between the government forces and pro-russian separatists. both blame each other for the breaches. president mahmoud abbas threatens to crease -- cae a unity government with hamas. political infighting comes after nearly 50 days of infighting with gaza. the arab league is being asked for $40 million to help rebuild

the strif. andrew simmonds has this report. >> reporter: delivery runsar as crucial now as they were in the war. aid agencies are providing a live line for tens of thousands of people. this is free drinking water that is filtered and safe. 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 by israeli shells. the fuel store and treatment plant was destroyed along with generated and turbine damage. full repairs will take a year, and the temporary fix will only offer part of what is needed. before the war, it only offered 60% of power. short falls made up by generators and egypt. >> it was short before the war.

now it will be much more severe. >> without a constant power supply gaza's sewerage is going untreated. the coastline is being polluted with outlet like this, pumping out raw sewage 24 hours a day. aside from that there's a health risk from bomb damage to main sewers. >> this area was filled with raw sewerage, singing down deep through the sand. nothing could be done to repair the pipe or treat the sewerage for a whole month. >> there are fears that underground water supplies for a highly populated area may have been contaminated. >> we are talking about raw sewerage. we need someone to come today, not yesterday, to take samples from our resources to give us a solution for potential contamination of our resources.

>> that urgent need. the fighting may have stopped. little else has changed. the people have no option but to cope with the hardship. israeli police fired rubber bullets at palestinians protesting the death of a teenager who died at another protest in gaza. dozens hurled rocks and fire bombs, police used tear gas and stun grenades. over a million people face starvation in somalia, the food situation in the country worsens. according to the united nations 60% of those at risk are internally displaced people. the country faces the second famine in three years. it can be prevented if donors increase funds. nigeria is facing its worst oil crisis, the country losing

billions due to theft. they are selling off their oil fields. we have this report. >> reporter: setting off at the break of down, the men are on a mission in the niger delta, part of a force drawn from various security agencies, and civilians tasked with curbing oil theft. an hour into their patrol they arrest suspects. they ordered them to reveal the location of their illegal business. they make their way from the open creek into the mangrove. they strike gold. this is where stolen crude is refined. they destroyed the site and set it on fire. >> we have to move back. it's a dangerous business. explosions could happen at any moment, and the fire can extend miles over the water. within seconds, the area is

engulfed in darkness. >> this is why they do it. everywhere is smoking. >> reporter: despite the efforts, oil nest in nigeria is at -- oil theft in nigeria is at its highest amount since the former government gave amnesty to thieves in the area. $8 million was lost. multinational giants reduce on-field presence, selling fields as a result of the theft. tucked in the forest the men are cooking oil. their site was destroyed, they came back. >> there is nothing we do for a living. this is the only source of wealth that we do and eat. without this, we can't survive. >> reporter: on a good day the workers at one end of an organised crime chain can make $200. oil pipelines criss-cross the community. the poverty of those around the

source is there to see. the majority of stolen crude is not refined in niger delta. larger bunker operations include transferring it to bathroomers, that take -- bargers, that take it to larger vessels in the atlantic ocean. security personnel are said to be involved. >> those who ought to protect the pipe line and help the nigerian economy are participant in this matter. politicians at abuja and local ends are participating in the business. >> reporter: despite low-level arrests, there's no serious prosecutions until those at the helm of the trade are held to account. the riches will keep burning

away. british prime minister david cameron has reportedly held talks with queen elizabeth over the upcoming referendum op scottish independence. scots will decide their constitutional future on the 18th. an opinion poll put the yes campaign in the lead for the first time. >> armoured police used water canon to disperse water canons in san diego. thousands gathered to mark the 41st anniversary of the military coup. the march had a peaceful start. unrest broke out between police and stone-throwing protesters. >> bolivia's former capital is one of the highest cities, and one of the most traditional. large areas of the city was relatively unchallenged throughout the century. we have this report on the cable

car that is bringing communities together. >> reporter: at first glance la paz looks far from the cutting edge of transport. most parts of the mountain is unchanged. narrow cobblestoned streets are crammed with people and traffic. the installation of a mod rn cable car system changed that. >> translation: time is precious and hard to come by. we expect to help the customers save 12 million hours of their career. >> the cable car is about more than beating traffic. it is about integrating two distinct sectors, the poor, and the wealthier that live downtown. >> the part of the city that sits atop the mountains is home to more than a million people.

most are ethnic indians. many live below the poverty line. the arrival of the cable car brought about an economic bonanza. a stand to sell fresh orange juice was set up. that, she said, changed her life. >> translation: i was thinking of emigrating to brazil to look for work. now i don't have to. i can support my husband and children. pay buy utilities and my debts. >> that is the purpose of the cable car, to integrate the neighbourhoods, making the economy flow more freely. jamie saves two hours a day in her commute to a small book stand she maintains downtown. she no longer has to pay for daycare, as she can take her baby's trolley in the cable car. even though they cost more than

$200 million to build. the three lines are delivering benefits. serena williams is celebrating her 18th grand slam after a victory over caroline wozniacki in the us open tennis final. the result never looked in doubt. after racing to a 3-1 lead, williams claimed the opening set in 40 minutes. her danish opponent put up a fight in the second. serena williams won 6-3, 6-3, winning the tournament without dropping a set. still to come, a year living in a sports stadium, we tell you why those displaced are waiting to go home.

august falls to the lowest part of the year. don't despair, i'll tell you why many believe it's a fluke, and there are reasons to be optimistic. india's prime minister marks 100 days in office. i show you hits and misses and why he's a sell e ebb rity in the united states. drugs help americans save millions. there's a spike in the price of previptions. i'll show you why a lot are not