>> this is another significant development... >> we have an exclusive story tonight, and we go live... british aid worker if father of two beheaded by the islamic state group - british prime minister david cameron calls it an act of pure evil. hello, i'm darren jordan with the world news. also ahead, liberian's president sacks officials for refusing to come back to the country during the ebola crisis. thousands stranded by floods in pakistan. we'll have the plate is. and still undefeated, floyd

may whether undetailed, and now ready for the next. welcome to the programme. the islamic state group beheaded another hostage. this time 44-year-old worker david haines from the u.k. - we'll have more on the killings in a moment. president francis hollande is holding an international summit on monday. australia is sending fighter jets and 600 troops to the u.a.e. to help the international coalition battle the group. let's focus on the killing of the british aid worker and the islamic state group released a video showing one of their men beheading the 44-year-old father of two. he was kidnapped in syria last year, and his killing follows the beheading of the steven sotloff, who was taken in 2013, and james foley was kidnapped in

2012 president obama called is barbaric and said: we'll go to erbil in northern iraq in a moment, first to emma hay board outside the british parliament. david cameron called this killing an act of evil. what else has he been saying? >> yes, condemning it in the strongest possible terms. when he arrived back at downing street he issued a statement saying we'll do everything in our power to hunt down the murderers and and ensure we do justice. the words echoed across the u.k., and many groups, the islamic society of britain coming out to condemn the killing of david haines.

his family talking of their sadness over the death, saying that he'll be terribly missed. in a statement his brother emphasised the fact that david haines had been carrying out humanitarian work for more than 10 years. not far from here, a meeting is due to get under way, a cobb roe meeting, an emergency meeting, which david cameron will host of his ministers and advisers, in which he expect a direct response to what has happened in iraq over the past 24 hours. the big question will be will britain, after the killing, want to play a bigger role in the coalition against islamic state and iraq. >> emma haywood there in central london. let's cross to erbil in northern iraq and speak to john hendren. what reason did david hayne's killers give for beheading him? >> well, in that video, the executioner addressed cameron

directly saying this british man is paying the price for your promise to arm the peshmerga in a fight against the islamic state. the peshmerga are the kurdish troops in northern iraq. they are the biggest threat in that part of iraq. they have been pushing back the islamic state with the assistance of u.s. air strikes, and they are moving towards the capital. and that is in mosul, a sunni r arab city of 2 million people. we spent time there, this is what we found >> reporter: from a strategic mountain ahead of an area held by the islamic state. kurdish forces push forward. i.s. no longer fire back, because any movement is punished by mortar strikes, like this one.

in a 3-hour battle they captured the mountain and bombarded the villages below, left empty by christians and yazidi. this is the village. this is shakool. this is the is, inside the village there. they bombarded here. now they no longer have the capability. >> a city of 2 million, 2 hours drive from the border, mosul is the iraqi capital of the islamic state. as mosul goes, so goes the war for iraq. >> this is the forward-most point for the peshmerga in iraq. in the near ground is bartela, a christian town held by the islamic state group, and beyond it is mosul itself. >> reporter: commanders are waiting on an order to push towards the most fortified bastian. first, the kurdish troops want

the backing of kurdish and shia forces. they want more american air strikes and arms. >> we need weapons, support. we need outside help. we need every kind of help, because we are poor people. >> the islamic state is a cancer. they'll take every country if you don't push them out. they'll take everything. it's better to destroy them as soon as possible. the peshmerga, they are nearly ready for what could be a battle against the war in the united states, or to use the acronym - dash. >> it's a matter of time before dash is thrown out of iraq. >> with mosul nearly in their sights, the islamic state fighters, a few hours from the supply lines in syria, time is a commodity that peshmerga have in short supply. >> do the peshmerga feel that eventually they'll get the

international help they'll need to condition the fight against the i.s. group there. >> they do. they have been encouraged by air support. they could not have captured the ground they have captured without that. as they move forward the 18 or so kilometres they have yet to do, from the east, they'd need air cover. iraqi american or both. they are expecting the u.s. air cover there. they would like, many of them that we spoke to, western troops to fight alongside them. they would like sunni and shia traps as well, that being a sunni town, but they are confident they'll get the help, and are encouraged by the international coalition, and they say it's a matter of time before they march towards mosul. john hendren there in erbil in northern iraq. thank you. as we mentioned australia sending 600 troops and fighter jets to the united arab emirates

to help the coalition. australia prime minister had this to say about the latest beheading. >> the beheading of a british aid worker is further demonstration that this particular terrorist group does not just do evil, but exhults in doing evil. i can advise that we have, within the last 24 hours, received a specific request from the united states government to contribute forces to possible military action in iraq. i can further advise that on friday night i had a conversation with the new prime minister of iraq, who indicated to me that he would welcome an australian military contribution to the restoration of order and security inside iraq. >> to like earia, where the --

liberia where the president sacked 12 government officials for not returning to the country during the ebola crisis more than 1,200 died, and infection cases are increasing. in a statement it was said they showed lack of authority. they were given a one month ultimatum to return. the pakistani army are rescuing flood victims by boat and helicopter. the army is blowing up dykes to divert the swollen rivers. one city they are trying to protect is jang. >> reporter: this is a village on the outskirts of jang village. as you can see for the last several days, almost 30 families from 30 homes are seeking refuge on dry land. they have been able to bring out some essential supplies with

them, but most of the restock laying at their home is now washed away. so the biggest challenge will be how these people will sustain themselves through this crisis. even though some of the farmers have been able to bring out the livestock and bring in some supplies that they could carry with them, most of their food stocks are gone. what you find is the women and children are sitting on the tarpaulins waiting for someone to help them. they say that they cannot go back to the villages, because there is water standing there, and the fact is that the foundations of the houses is now very weak, and so these people are not able to return soon. the most important thing will be that after this flood has swept through the region, there has to be rehabilitation, and to resettle the people back into their villages. >> in california, wildfires are forcing home owners to move to

safety. hundreds of firefighters are busy. heatwaves and regard droughts are fuelling the flames that have also spread across the cleveland national for est. time for a short break. when we come back... ..scotland prepares to vote on independence. we look at a battle with the english, centuries ago. we investigate what is turning columbia's professional cyclists from losers into winners. more on that. stay with us. >> we can modify emotional circuitry >> is this a miracle cure? or an ethical nightmare? >> there's a lot of mystery right now... >> rewiring the brain

an america tonight investigative report only on al jazeera america >> 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 dem @

welcome back. the top stories on al jazeera, the islamic state group released a video that appears to show the beheading of a british aid workers. david haines, a father of two, was kidnapped in syria last year. prime minister david cameron vows to hunt down his killers for what he calls acts of pure evil. secretary of state john kerry is in france for coalition talks, in paris to discuss a global effort. 40 nations agreed to help bring down the militants. australia prime minister tony abbott leant his country's weight to the international coalition, saying he's sending 600 troops and fighter jets to the united arab emirates and condemned the beheading of the british aid worker. opposition fighters in syria captured towns in the same area where the uprising began. the gains near deraa allowed some civilians to get to safer ground.

the struggles are far from over. [ gun fire ] >> reporter: in the country side around deraa, the rebels are making progress, retaking territory, one hill at a time. regime soldiers abandoned their positions after coming under sustained attack. in the war of attrition, the rebels are grateful for each small victory. >> translation: the syrian rebel front declares the liberation aft almall hill and we thank god for that. in this area the forces of bashar al-assad appear to have been routed. opposition fighters say they'll continue to gain and hold territory around the strategically important area. >> translation: after controlling the town of alnabo we started to move people to safer areas and managed to move public places in the town. >> it was the birthplace of the uprising against the regime.

it was at the start of the syrian rebel war in 2011. thousands of people have been killed since then. many millions throughout syria are living in refugee camps like this one. here on the syrian-turkish border, people are living in conditions that get worse. >> translation: life is very hard here. especially during the summer, when there are water shortages. each family barely gets a bucket of water a day. >> amidst the misery people make the most of what hot water they have. a school is running in this tent. it has dozens of children and a teacher working for free. we'll provide the children with what they badly need. the refugees are intent on staying here. they must wonder how long they can carry on like this.

al jazeera continues to demonstrate the release from three journalists imprisoned in egypt. peter greste, mohamed fadel fahmy and baher mohamed have now been detained for 260 days. they are accused of aiding the muslim brotherhood. charges seen as politically motivated and are appealing against the sentences. most jews left yemen, 250 are all that remain, and they face the tough choice to stay or go. >> reporter: this rabbi teaches his relatives. there are members of yemen's last jews. miss rart area jews say -- misrata jews say they lived in yemen for 200 years. the numbers have dwindled to a few dozen now. this is the patriarch, the chief

rabbi in the northern region of sadder. but in 2007 they were evicted by the shia houthis from their villages. his wife says they lost their lands and businesses. >> we were very happy in sater, but now we have lost everything, and i'm scared to go back there. i want to die in yemen. >> their children, ruben and sadia go to government schools. they don't feel comfortable revealing their jewishness in public. but they are confident yemen is a place for them to live. >> translation: i want the congregation to live with the muslim community, go to the same school, have a social life. i hate to see yemen religiously divided. >> the jews were moved to this government compound in the

capital sanaa. some left for israel. but this person wants to stay. he spent time with his relatives, farming at the backyard, a hobby that reminds him of a day when there are flourishing farmers. a few jewish families. yemen faces a delicate vasion. al qaeda's growing influence in the south, and a stand off against the government and houthis in the north. it's a delicate situation that may one day force yemen's last jews to leave a country they called home for hundreds of years. an air and sea search is underway in the philippines to find survivors from a ferry that sank. two are known to have died. nearly 100 were rescued near lay ta island. the ferry reported steering problems during heavy rain and

strong winds. now, scottish voters have four days left to decide whether they'll choose independence or stay part of the u.k. the story of the birth of that is one of warfare and wounds which have not really heeled. we have this report from the highlands of scotland. >> now 16 april, 1746, will find the two armies deployed facing each other here on the moore. the tortured relationship between the english and the scots goes back years. this is the moore where 40 years after the union, between the two countries was signed, there was a terrible battle. the english army set ba the entire community -- set about destroying entire community to break the will of the rebels. this is a classification of the highlight. it culminated in the high land

clearances and a dismantling of the highland way of life. >> this area and its defeat of the forces of the scottish prince charles was the beginning of the end. what the people say is it was clear that the union of england and scotland was by no means a marriage of like minds, and a guerilla war, carried on for half a century. it was, however, in the centers of the english ariff stock rahsy, who wanted to protect their culture against a catholic takeover by europe, at any costs. >> over the centuries, the people and economies merged. scottish nationalists say now it is the english, not they, that have betrayed the principles. >> there's a sentiment. but at the same time there's a feeling that the unions are no

longer delivering, and when it doesn't deliver, it's seen as an agreement which can be renegotiated, changed or ended. whereas the rest of the u.k. see it as the state of things. >> fancy signing here, there we go, thank you. south in england many are horrified that so many scots want to turn the back on the marriage. these campaigners have been travelling around the english cities. getting people to sign a petition, imploring the scots not to drift away. >> is it better when you live on an island, is it better to join with each other, make decisions jointly that affect all of you or is it better to re-mann mate an arbitrary -- ae animate an -- reanimate an arbitrary line, and suddenly people on different sides of the line are parts of a different bodies politics. >> reporter: whether scots see themselves as scottish or british is part of the tradition. an old enemy is never far away.

after all, the scottish anthem, flower of scotland, remembers those who beat the english army at a battle of ballot burn. and every scott knows the words. polls have opened in sweden to parliamentary elections. predictions indicate the center left is about to take power. the social democrats have a slight lead over the conservative "eggs. they've been -- coalition, and have been campaigning on a platform of increased spending on education, heath and schools. breaking news - an american has been sentenced to six years in prison in north korea. matthew miller was arrested in april for violating his tourist status. he was charged with most il acts against korea. he is believed to have torn up his passport in pyongyang and appealed for asylum. last month he appealed to

america for help. miller is expected to be convicted for propaganda purposes. >> it's not clear what he is charged with. is seems to be the case that he crossed the border and applied for asylum in north korea. whether - was it a joke or if he wanted an asylum, we know not. if you look at - have a look at the past, a number of the educated westerners came to the soviet union asking for asylum. many were arrested and executed. by definition, they were seen as spies. in this case, i would not expect anything that dramatic. most likely north koreans want

to remind western tours, whose number increased, that they should behave themselves and should not be eccentric. >> how much is north korea using this case as leverage to try and reopen dialogue with the united states? >> of course they try to use it. he'll be given a lengthy prison system, but not in the normal regular prison, but most likely to a special security for the foreigners, where conditions are relatively good. the koreans will demand high level american delegation to come. i'm sounding so certain about this, because this is what we have seen many, many times before. foreign tourists, american tourists is arrested for misconduct. and then they demand high level american politician. ideally a former president, to come and to get the american

tourist back, and then it's presented as a propaganda victory. >> the boxing champion floyd mayweather junior extended an unbeaten streak to 47 fights after victory over marcos maidana in las vegas. in the second rematch, mayweather came out on top with unanimous points decisions. the fight leaving a sour taste as mayweather claimed he was bitten by the hand. he pockets 32 million. a showdown with mani pakkier could be next on the cards. >> it's a possibility. we can't say what the future holds. as of now, i want to go home and take a break. spend time with the children, and then see who is next. hopefully mani pakkia. >> cyclists from columbia are giving the world's best riders a run for their money.

they are taking the runners in other top races. we go the mountains of columbia to find the secret to their success. >> after years in the doldrums, columbian cyclists are riding high. the return to the top of the cycling world surprised many. stringent doping testing helped riders who live and train at a high altitude like columbians. another answer can be found here in the mountains. the coach has been modelling the new columbian cyclists. it improved tremendously in three fundamental aspects. selecting scientific data on the performance. it changed the mentality, half to train, half to eat and made the decision on their own.

>> reporter: of all the columbians in the giro d'italia half were products of the 472 development programme, including winner. and the stories are inspiring a new generation of talent. like this man, who won the tour. one of the most important races for young riders, hoping to make the transition to a big european team. >> translation: we have become more confident, overcame fears. once we were perceived as mountain climbers, but we proved we can make results, cross winds, and races. >> reporter: unlike other teams in columbia, the first 72 introduced a number of rigorous testing to focus on the training, and set up an independent biological passport. columbia is a country passionate

about cycling, it struggled with banned substances. this was the reason he created the team. >> we have to get rid of doping. we feel we have more support. with more strict with doping, i think we'll be more successful. the first 72 team is a ticket out of columbia. many hope it will offer a future and a level playing field back home. 60 years after the famous american writer ernst hemingway won the nobel prize for literature, his grandsons travelled to cuba to see the medal for the first time. it's on display in a small town

near havana. he lived there for 20 years and wrote "the old man and the sea", and "for whom the bell tolls", and it's a museum to his other literary trends. keep up to date on the website at aljazeera.com. president obama told the american public while he believes the islamic state must be destroyed and explains how he wants to do it, now they are taking a closer look on if it can work.