protesters midnight deadline for hong kong's chief executive to resign runs out. he says he will not step down. ♪ we will be live in hong kong in just a moment. you are watching al jazeera, always ahead, the battle for iraq. isil fighters lose ground to government-backed troops. up to 100 people in the u.s. state of texas are being checked for exposure to ebola. >> i'm?

vermont the first state to require labels on gmo's, but even in this very green state, that law is meeting challenges. ♪ a midnight deadline set by protesters for hong kong's chief executive to resign has just passed. they threatened to occupy government buildings if he didn't step down. >> i'm not [ inaudible ] the chief secretary to [ inaudible ] to meet with representatives of the students to discuss matters. >> what was the message from him, and what was the tone? was he conciliatory at all? >> reporter: you know, what,

foley, for a man with a deadline to resign, he was remarkably calm. flanked by his chief secretary. they both fronted the press conference. he didn't say anything about resigning. there were several questions after the press conference about whether this message was a signal that he was stepping back. when a reporter asked him if he was resigning he deflected. he said as long as we follow the law we will be able to achieve universal suffrage by 2017. in terms of the protesters, he says he admired how the protesters have behaved. he did, say, however, these protests cannot continue because they are disrupting daily lives,

transportation, and he hopes it will come to an end soon. and he has nominated his chief secretary and two heads of the constitutional reform to have a dialogue with the hong kong federation of students. now this was in reply to their request for a dialogue over electoral reforms. and he said he hopes this move will be able to move the situation forward, and that they would be able to bring stability to the streets of hong kong. one other thing too, foley that was very interesting that we have been keeping our eye on. earlier on, we had seen police handing over boxes that looked like it was tear gas canisters. there were rumors that chief executive office was being -- was being -- the security was being heightened

into in particular building. he addressed that, and he said that yes, these government buildings are very important, the police are stepping up their security there, and if anything was to happen, the police will act. he did caution the protesters as long as they stayed away from the barriers, they didn't crash the barriers the police would not act against them. >> do you get a sense of what the authorities are going to do if the protesters don't back down and if they occupy government buildings, as they are threatening to? >> well, as we have seen security has been stepped up around hong kong, particularly around government buildings ever since the deadline for the resignation was given by the protesters. we have seen that happening, seen the security stepped up. we have also seen the protesters

gather in numbers right outside these buildings. tomorrow is the first day in which public servants are meant to go back to work. he addressed this and he said he wanted the protesters to allow these government workers to go back to work, not to disrupt public life, again, he reiterated that as long as the protesters did not crash the barricades, did not breach the police lines then nothing untoward would happen. >> all right. let's cross over to another reporter in hong kong who is at the protesters' camp. tell us what the reaction has been to the message from the chief executive. >> reporter: foley the protesters were listening to the speech live. it was very, very silent while he was speaking, but after that

there were loud boos across the board. they had been hoping that he would heed their mid-night deadline to step down, but there was no mention of that. they have been calling for people to stay here, though. since then there have been cheers and boos. it seems like the crowd has become a little bit noisier, i would say, but there seems to be no attempt to cross the barrier into the government building, which is just about 20 meters from me. they are still staying on their side of the barrier. what they have said -- and they seem to be maintaining it -- is that they are stay here at 8:00 am until the chief executive has to come into work and he will then confront him. >> all right. thank you very much. in other world news now, iraqi army soldiers are battling isil fighters for control of central iraq. isil forces were trying to establish an islamic state and

have taken over large parts of iraq and syria. imran khan reports on the heavy fighting. >> reporter: this is a rare look at the fighting in the ambar province. for days the troops have been fighting against isil. helicopters fly overhead, launching attacks and providing much-needed air cover. the pro-governed forces are inching ever closer, and are confident of victory. >> translator: we are supporting the security forces and we will ready to defend our city with our lives. we challenge isil. the tribe alone has 9,000 fighters. i call on all of the other honorable tribes. enough silence and wake up. rise up and join us in the fight against isil. >> they have already made significant gains against al

jazeera america. here the sunni troops show off captured isil equipment including mobile phones and foreign currency, which they say is hard evidence that many isil fighters are not iraqi. >> translator: they are foreign fighters who came outside of the iraqi borders. we will continue fighting them until the last drop of blood. >> reporter: the sunni troops and the iraqi army seem to be given an army boost by the coalition air strikes. however, there are significant numbers of isil fighters in the area, so the fight is by no means over. for now they are confident that the battle for ambar province is going their way. but smaller towns are easier to take back, and with isil fighters in control of the two

largest cities, taking back those areas represents a challenge. the united nations has accused isil as what it has liabled as a staggering array of human rights violations. it also accuses iraqi security forces of violations. the u.n. special representative for iraq has called the report terrifying. turkey's parliament is set to vote on a motion to fight against isil forces in syria and iraq. there have been protests outside ahead of the vote. if it passes, it will allow coalition forces to use turkish territory. bernard smith is in the turkish town on the border with syria with more. >> reporter: syrian kurdish

fighters tell us isil fighters have kept up the pressure this morning. much of the fighting is coming from the south, the east, and the west, the most intense fighting is coming from the southeast with isil fighters using hit and run tactics against the kurdish forces trying to protect kobani. later the parliament will vote on two motions that will allow turkish military forces to take part in international operations against isil forces in syria and iraq. health workers are testing a patient in hawaii for the ebola virusrus. if confirmed it will be the second case in the us. a man in dallas has already tested positive. as many as a hundred people including five children have had contact with them. 9,000 household protection kits have arrived in liberia, the worst effected country.

and sierra leone's foreign minister told al jazeera that nobody saw the outbreak coming. the world health organization says for the second week in a row, the total number of reported new ebola cases has fallen, but points out that cases are being underreported from several countries affected. overall, though, there are few signs that the epidemic is being brought under control. all of this is being discussed in london, as the secretary makes a plea for international help. >> reporter: a few pledges i can tell you, the cuban government is here. they say they are going to send 63 doctors and more than 100 nurses to sierra leone. all of the help is welcome, but i think there is a sense that the fight against ebola, the coordinated international

response is still some way being hind the curve. if you bare in mind a very bleak warning, they were talking about in sierra leone five new cases every hour, and they expect that to increase to ten new cases by the end of october. in japan rescue teams are still working to bring bodies found on the mountain. and two nations technical at war, what handed when north and south korean footballers played for gold at the asian games? stay with us.

>> its disgraceful... the only crime they really committed is journalism... >> 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,

♪ress in the new democracy,

welcome back. our top stories on al jazeera. hong kong's chief executive has defied a midnight deadline set by protesters to resign. he says he has offered talks with student leaders. [ gunfire ] iraqi army solders are battling isil fighters for control of central iraq. some of the heaviest fighting is in anbar province. and doctors in texas are checking for people who may have come in contact to the man who has ebola. palestinian says israel plans to build more homes in jerusalem. the white house has heavily criticized the proposals.

this could be a new obstacle to peace. >> reporter: to israel this is [ inaudible ], but for palestinians it is known as [ inaudible ]. soon it will be the site of a large israeli settlement. last week the government cleared the way for construction companies to submit tenders for its redevelopment. this is an israeli property broker. he shows me the plans for the project, which was first proposed in 2012. it will feature more than 2600 units and be home to over 13,000 people. >> translator: it's not something new. >> reporter: whatever the case the move towards starting construction here has sparked international outrage. palestinians want this land as part of their future state, but

they say that building settlement effectively divides the land and makes plans for a future state increasingly difficult. barack obama raised the issue with benjamin netenyahu. he told him of his deep concerns while meeting at the oval office. and then josh earnest went a step further. >> this development will only draw condemnation from the international community. distance israel from even its closest allies. >> reporter: israel's construction of settlement ands territories it has occupied has been one of the main obstacles to peace talks including the latest u.s.-brokered negotiations which collapsed in april. >> i believe it's the reflection of this israeli government's

determination to totally undermine the two-state solution and peace process. >> reporter: all israeli settlements on occupied territory are illegal under international law. once finished the development will completely separate settlements in west jerusalem from the west bank. a suicide car bomber has killed three army officers and injured ten others. the taliban says it carried out the attack. another explosion targeted a u.s. convoy. . in libya suicide car bombs have attacked an air base in the east. fighting has always been reported in the city of benghazi. seven soldiers are reported to

have been killed as bombers attacked a checking point near the air base controlled by forces loyal to the generate general. the wartime bosnian general is delivering closing arguments at the hague. he is charged with 11 crimes, including genocide. he is accused of the 1995 massacre in which more than 8,000 muslim men and boys were killed. simon mcgregor wood has more. >> reporter: thursday was his last chance to try to defend himself against the 11 very serious charges brought against him by the prosecution. on thursday they decided to confront the issue of genocide. he nominated his american legal advisor peter robinson to deal with that issue, and perhaps the most notorious crime he is accused of is the mass cure. he is accused of masterminding

and directing the massacre of more than 8,000 muslim boys and girls. on thursday he simply denied he knew what was happening, and therefore the charge should be thrown out. >> the truth is, he never planned or orders these executions, and if you agree to the legal lynching urged upon you by the prosecution, an innocent man will be convicted of a crime he didn't commit. >> reporter: he dealt with the charge against him that he was accused of terrorizing the city of sarajevo. the city same under repeated shell fire. 10,000 residents from all different communities were killed during that period.

and during the prosecution case, many witnesses were called some u.n. military observers who were there at the time of the fighting, and they aledge the vast majority of the shelling was from serb forces, ranged on the hills that surrounded the city. he tried to undermine that argument. he criticized many of the witnesses called by the prosecution, saying they weren't qualified to make the judgments that they had made, and aledging that they were biased. this dove tails neatly with his general strategy during the whole course of this trial that it is biased against him and the serb peep. he has tried to present himself as a man of peace who strove to prevent the war from breaking out, and when it did, the serbs were simply trying to defend themselves. next week the prosecution gets a

chance to come back and answer some of the allegations by the defense, and then the judge will call an end to the evidence. we will hear the verdict sometime in 2015. pro-russian separatists are battling of control of the airport in donetsk. tanks, rockets, and mortar have been used. they have tried several times to capture the airport recently. more bodies have been recovered in japan. the volcano erupted without warning on saturday, killing 47 mountain hikers. and as reported, bad weather is hampering efforts to try to find more. >> reporter: the rescue part of this mission is over. but these rescuers are still searching for bodies. more than a thousand soldiers, police, and firefighters are taking part in the effort.

they have found bodies wedged between rocks, some half buried in ash. and more on a mountain top. almost two dozen others are still unaccounted for, in what has become japan's worst volcanic eruption in nearly a century. they continue to detect seismic activity in the area. the mountain is still spewing out steam. the popular hiking destination was packed with hikers when they were trapped around lunchtime on saturday. media reports says the deaths were caused by rock injuries and asphyxiation. in the foothills is a village. people are anxiously watching the billowing smoke. many are using masks as a precaution. this woman is 85 years old, and she has been praying.

>> translator: i brought offering money to the shrine and prayed for the eruption to settle, so our hometown would not be lost; that we would be protected. >> reporter: for a few hours on thursday, the search for the missing was stopped because of heavy rain. it's a painful wait for those who haven't been able to find family members, but on the mountain, conditions are tough. rescuers say it's like working in damp concrete as they go over crevasses and unstable rock. but until everyone is accounted for, the task continues. in less than three days brazilians go to the polls to elect their new president. we have been looking at the various candidates and what they have to offer. in the last of our three-part series. we talk to supporters of

opposition candidate. >> reporter: fine tuning the sounds of his instrument, he is getting ready to perform a small concert in the biggest shantytown where he lives. the person he will be playing in front of today is who he considers the perfect choice for president. >> translator: silva has a lot to offer poor people in these communities and others like it in brazil if she is the president. the proposals of her government not only favor the rich but also those underprivileged. >> reporter: she became a candidate when her running mate died in a plane crash. since then she has captured the attention of brazilians. one poll a couple of weeks ago suggested she would win in a runoff. that caused the worker's party to sharpen their attack on silva, insinuating she is too

weak to be president. something she has shot back at forcefully. >> translator: the candidate going to the second round in this election is the one with the new posture, with proposals, with respect and debate, not the posture of attacks. >> reporter: silva is running an unorthodox, almost zen like campaign. short on money and organization, but with an unusual alliance. many people say they can relate to her own humble upbringing. she always has on her side many elites who view her as their one and perhaps best chance of winning. >> reporter: back at the shantytown, he cracks a smile as silva finally arrives. she is greeted as a hero, and

the music starts. she is confident, hoping she will hit the right notes with enough voters to win. indian prime minister modi has been helping to tighten up a slum area in new delhi. it comes ahead of the clean india campaign. the campaign focuses on getting rid of human waste. now to bangladesh where circus performers are worried about their future. >> reporter: the lion's circus, one of the oldest entertainment institutions. it has been traveling around the country for 109 years. for many performers, the circus is a family trade that has been passed down from generation to

generation, but shiulie worries her children will be the last to uphold this generation. >> translator: i'm nervous about what my children will do when they get older. i'm not sure the circus will be around when they become adults. >> reporter: her children don't go to school. the circus is the only life they know. when they become adults, they find they have few options outside of the circus. this generation also find they have few options inside the circus too. these days televisions are everywhere, bringing the best of global entertainment into everyone's homes. this wasn't a problem for this man who has been in the business for 40 years. when he joined, the circus does thriving. >> translator: when i started there was no satellite tv, and

there were not many options on radio. there was no internet. >> reporter: the circus still man ages to draw a small crowd, even if sometimes it does so by giving away tickets for free. not everyone in bangladesh's villages is tooked to their tv screen. >> translator: it's nice to have an activity that lets you get out of the house. >> reporter: it costs the organizers about $500 a day to stage the circus. on a good day, they say they are barely able to make back their money. if the numbers stay that way, the performers will have reason to fear that the show will not go on >> rarely has been there so much to play for on a football pitch. it was north versus south korea in the battle.

the two countries are still technically at war, and there was a dramatic outcome with south korea scoring in the last minute. they clenched victory and prevents the match from going into a penalty shootout. more news on our website, aljazeera.com. hi i'm lisa fletcher and you are in the stream. afghanistan enters a new chapter in its democracy this week. hear from afghans about their hopes for the road ahead, and what the u.s. is banking on this time around. ♪ my digital