school you know. but at least i have one place. i've been here for 33 years. they give me a job based on that. >> it will shut some time after pass over. it's been sold to a real estate developer, thank you for watching this edition of al jazeera america the news continues with my colleague thomas drayton good evening, let's get you taught up with the top stories. the brutality of i.s.i.l. displayed. the rebel groups beheads 21 egyptian christians hostage in libya video of a chaotic scene outside a cafe in denmark. we learn more about the gunman and another 2 feet of snow and bitter cold temperatures stretching to the mid west. >> the catholic church about to enter with new card unanimous, a

look at the transformation of the church in "the week ahead". . >> egypt's president abdul fatah al-sisi vowed to revenge the killings of 21 coptic christians. video emerged in which the men appeared to have been kill. the identities have been identified or confirmed by the copic church. for weeks the families pleaded with abdul fatah al-sisi for their safety. instead he's called for talks in a weak of mourning much. there'd been appeal for help. this protest took place outside a copic church. relatives of a worker kidnapped were desperate for their his

honour. they and the country are in mourning. >> it's horrific to see what happened and how it will affect the community, they were sons fathers, brother. >> reporter: fighters against islamic state of iraq and levant are massing. a video of a murder suggests that that happened on a beach in tripoli. i.s.i.l. says that they completely overran the city of durna, a little over 300km from the border with egypt. now they are considering the next move. >> it could provide the egyptians with the logic and rational to intervene inside libya. look at what is happening now. regional powers are sucked in. >> egypt had been coordinating efforts with the libyan government in tobruk. the national congress expressed the willingness to help.

and the italian government expressed concern. the island of lampedusa is 300km away and closed the embassy this libya on sunday. the death of the workers will add to pressure to stop i.s.i.l. in libya in its tracks. >> i.s.i.l. is a problem beyond syria and iraq. according to a romp the group rallied somewhere between 20,000, 30,000 fighters. it states i.s.i.l. has affiliates in afghanistan, egypt and libya, and other groups pledged forms of support. for more on this i would like to welcome al jazeera's international affairs contributor, and a professor of michigan. how real is the threat of the supposed islamic state affiliates. >> the threat of them is more real in some places than others.

there's not good evidence having substantial strength in a place like afghanistan or pakistan. people have made the announcement on social media. they were militants, they were there. they'd been blowing up for a while. they were swinging around saying they were doing it in the name of i.s.i.l. in libya, this is a - you know a real thing. that is to say people loyal to i.s.i.l. are really asserting themselves in some places like the city of durna. >> you say there's no evidence that they are reciting in other countries. >> what is happening - fix, i.s.i.l. is not - doesn't have a strong leadership model. it seems to be bands of volunteers grouping under that rubric. the leader of the organization has been badly wounded in a u.s.

air strike said to be in - convalescing in raqqa, doesn't seem to be active. we haven't seen him for a while. what is happening is people are going off to fight in syria, from places like libya, and when they come back they've been radicalized and some develop an allegiance and they try to assert themselves in their home country. >> what do you make of hundreds of muslims travelling to syria, travelling to iraq. is that concerning? >> it is in the sense that they are gaining battle training exposure to radical ideas on the ground. i think it's possible to make too much of it. prime minister david cameron in the u.k. said 400 had gone off. it should be remembered there are 3.7 million muslims in the

united kingdom, so this is a vanishing group of people. there are marginal personalities, criminal elements juvenile delinquents attracted to the potential for booty, and girls and so forth in this activity promises. >> how do we fight i.s.i.l. from spreading further? >> in iraq president obama's intervention from the air and coordination with the kurdish peshmerga paramilitary in iraq and ultimately with the iraqi army - if it can be rebuilt, that's the right strategy. but, you know there's no real force on the ground in syria, and you can't take on a phenomenon like this from the air. then the international community walked away from libya, where the government has collapsed more than once, and political power is divided between the east and the west of the

country, and the groups - they are just criminal gangs. they are murderers and human traffickers, and drug smugglers and so forth. they take advantage of a power vacuum like that. and one thing that has to be done. a way has to be found to restore governance in a place like libya. as we mentioned egypt's president vowed to avenge the killings. here is what he said after the release of the video. >> translation: egypt reserves the right to respond at the proper time and style for inhuman killers, and i have called for the national defense council to follow up on the do. of this issue. >> what role do you see egypt playing now in the conflict. egypt is behind the scenes packing general khalifa haftar who has an armed force in

benghazi and probably egyptian planes have bombed i.s.i.l. in libya. i don't expect a conventional military intervention by egypt in libya. they have not done anything like that since going into yemen in the 1960s. it would be out of character. there'll be a covert operation, special forces operation, and the deployment of air power. above all cultivating libyan forces that would be favourable to cairo. >> we'll have to leave it there, al jazeera's international contributor, jaup cole. -- juan cole. appreciate your time we are getting a look at the chaos that followed the two shooting. amateur video caught this scope moments after a gunman opened fire on a cafe hosting a discussion on freedom of expression. hours later the same gunman shot

and killed a security guard outside a synagogue. the suspect is dead. there's an unprecedented police operation under way across the danish capital. at least five police officers are recovering from gunshot wounds. investigators say the suspect was a known criminal with a lengthy record. al jazeera's nick spicer is on the ground in copenhagen. in this video shot after the attack a victim of the gunman lies on the ground as people run for help. it's saturday afternoon, he shot through the window of a cafe where a debate on free speech is under way. police arrive the gunman fled leaving behind shocked and confused survivors. a man died. on sunday police remained vigilant after what is described as their biggest ever operation in recent history. the prime minister thanked them that morning, saying it was time for the country to come

together. we are not in a fight between islam and the west. it's not a battle between muslims and non-muslims. it's based on freedom of the individual and a dark ideology. >> reporter: the first attack on saturday was followed by a second at this synagogue. the same man opened fire killing a watchman and injuring two police officers. it ended here with a shoot out na killed a man that police wanted to question about the attacks. the same man was behind both of them. a 22-year-old known for gang activity and weapons protection. they did not release his name. the attacker may have been motivated by the charlie hebdo killings in paris in january. in the french capital they added

their voice. >> there is a denmark in france but the same determination to fight where we are, what we represent, the values the values of liberty, law, protection. >> people left flowers at the synagogue in the morning. they are shocked and worried. there's a calm and sombre presence at the synagogue where people pay their respects and police presence is strong. many can't believe what has happened. >> i'm really shocked about it. we spend our night in the streets. it happened an hour after we were here. it's personal for us. >> very sad. and i hope that it won't influence life here. >> leaders of denmark's community expressed their grief as well. condemning the attacks. there'll be a ceremony of

remembrance to mark what happened. to try to help people to move on if and however they can many french citizens stand with denmark in a show of solidarity. hundreds gathered at a candle light vigil outside a danish embassy. it was obvious a month ago when heavily armed gunmen stormed the offices of satirical "charlie hebdo" in paris. several were killed at a kosher market nearby. a total of 17 died in those attacks. western europe is on high alert after the attack in copenhagen. today in germany a parade was called off minutes before it was supposed to begin. police said they received solid information suggesting terror unfortunate groups would tart the event. a quarter of a million were expected to attend. back at home - new england is dealing with more stormy weather for the fourth time in a

month. strong winds and snowy conditions make for a dangerous situation. look at the scene. boston's mayor asked for people to stay home as officials tried to dig out fresh snow. a roof collapsed at several stores in new hampshire. officials are inspecting other buildings in the area. >> in chicago, there was a 38-car pile-up on the kennedy expressway. lake affect snow creates sliply and dangerous driving continues. officials say there are no life-threatening injauries. -- injuries. rebecca stevenson is joining us. it's downright chilly. >> it is. it was lake shore that had a 70 miles per hour wind gust. that's the highest of the resort. one coming from the north-east.

the wind going, and we'll looking at the snow fall totals looking at the storm damage caused from the snow. that's the dots in purple. we have heavy snow in place and the melts on top of it. roof collapses and from the wind. the snow reports from this storm that came through, were the highest, especially when you focus around the state of massachusetts. impressive amounts, anywhere from 18 inches of snow up to 25 inches of snow in places. by far, boston looking at an incredible day, setting a record 13 inches of snow from the storm passing through today. breaking the old record of 1940, putting you up for the first 15 days of february 53 inches above formal. that's how much snow has been coming down and now the temperatures now. it's 6 below zero and now it is

7 degrees in new york. when we look at the wind speed. they are gusting 25 to 40 miles per hour, making it feel colder. a windchill warning is outside. it doesn't take long to get frost bite. we are looking at half an hour. all the north-east - it feels like 19 below zero in york city. it's a dangerous call. >> taking every part of the body 30 minutes to develop frost bite a message of humility and public service from the pope. celebrating mass with new cardnoons, including nose from myanmar and libya. he says the purpose of the church was to help the poor and persecuted. >> translation: the way of the church is not to condemn anyone for eternity it's to spread the compassion of the law. the way of the church is to go

out in search of those that are distant, on the outskirts. >> the pope tried to make the church more welcoming and the hierarchy less judgedal. many -- judgmental. many credit pope francis for changing the catholic church. but can one man change many years of tradition. that's the topic of "the week ahead". coming up the f.a.a. laid out a plan that may put a lot more drones in the air. more of the requirements and privacy ahead. a day-old ceasefire in ukraine has done little to stop the fighting. we take you inside the war-torn country next. >> a weakening euro is causing effects. but it may be else elsewhere. .

the f.a.a. imposed highly anticipated rules for commercial drones. the plans would open up the skies to remote controlled aircraft. president obama ordered federal

agencies to publish policies on how to use drones. it could take 18 months or more to finalise the rules. the agency proposals allow users to supply small drones weighing 55 pounds. they would not be able to fly above 500 feet in the air. people 17 years or older could fly the devices if they past an aeronautics test. and they'd have to pass a t.s.a. screening. todd curtis joined michael eaves earlier via science to talk about what the rules would mean. >> there are rules and regulations - although they are not looking over everyone's shoulder when they nigh their aircraft violations will be put to the system. i have to hasten to add that the rules are for commercial use of drones and say nothing about the private and nop commercial

use which is largely unrestricted. >> we had an incident last month, i believe, a drone crashing into the white house. it seemed to involve recreational user losing control. how do you police the skies in a situation where you a people that go buy you at a store up running a drone. >> that's the problem. not only can anyone do that at a store, but the polices and capabilities are such that almost anyone that wants to fly a drone, that is capable, that can fly above 500 feet putting others at risk if they wanted o be reckless all they needed was a credit card. >> uninsured americans have a few hours to sign up for a subsidised plan through healthcare.gov. the obama administration wants 9 million signed up. despite a glitch yesterday, 37 states served appear ready to

meet the enrol. goal. sporadic fighting continues in eastern ukraine, even after a ceasefire. charles stratford filed this report from eastern ukraine. separatists fighters guard their position close to the front line. fighting has been intense. the situation may be calmer in other areas of the region since the ceasefire was call. the shelling continues not far from here. we are in a separatist controlled town one of the closest to debaltseve. now, we are hearing incoming and outgoing shelling despite this call for a truce. >> the separatists will not let us film their firing positions. >> it five minutes after the ceasefire, the ukranian army fired towards us and towards residential buildings. some live there. especially older people.

i'm not sure how many died. we informed them in advance if they fired first, we'd respond. that's why we are firingful. >> fighters say the heavily fought over town is not included in the ceasefire deal. ukranian military say the separatists started the shelling after the truce began. a few kilometres back from the front line from debaltseve. these men are not fighting for the first time in weeks. they use the opportunity to train. many of these volunteers have never used weapons like this until recently. they tell us to crouch down behind the makeshift glass wall before throwing their grenades. the tanks aim the tart in a distant field. there is a deep distrust of the ukranian army here.

>> we are training because it's a ceasefire. there has been many ceasefires before. we don't believe in them any more. they have broken many times. >> most civilians have been evacuated or left towns close to debaltseve. the fighting in this area is not over yet. charles stratford - eastern ukraine the italian coast guard rescued more than 200 migrants 50 miles off the sicily coach and brought to a port in italy. four smugglers threatened the search teams. most are africans many treated for inscruries around 300 migrants died trying to get to europe through the mediterranean. almost 3500 died trying to cross the sea. thousands in athens maftened in an aind austerity rally in

support of a newly elected government the the protesters criticized economic austerity. solidarity took place in other cities. eurozone finance minister look at proposals for short-term financing until a more permanent solution is found to get the country out of debt. while the euro's continuing problems are causing concern, it is creating significant worry in parts of the u.s. alan fisher has that story from atlanta. >> this is german class, immersing students in georgia in the language possibly laying the foundation for a future career this is a country where spanish is a fastest growing language. >> germany is the largest economy, basically controlling the e.u. >> europe has a growing share in the market in manufacturing

services and finance. in atlanta there's more than 270 countries with german links, that means a problem over there can become a problem here. >> south-eastern states can become a hub. they are all big players. they need supply logistics, support. other industries cross the atlantic. >> they have a positive outlook on the u.s. market. a lot of companies plan on increasing the strategic focus. reasons are strong demand from the customer base and proximity. >> it means it's more expensive to set up businesses in the u.s. that investment might dry up. suddenly it will be a lot easier for european firms to just produce in europe. they are producing, and paying wages. they are paying electricity

costs in a currency that is cheaper compared to the u.s. and other currencies. >> a low-value euro makes exports more expensive. southern states offer big incentives for states to set up. >> companies come because they need to be in the market. the manufacturers need to be here. they want to be seen as having a commitment to the market the region suppliers need to come because they follow the large manufacturers, the currency of those shifts are short-material blips. interstate 35 links many. with a number of companies, it's known as the autobahn. a word learnt early in schools, still ahead, in "the week ahead" pope francis gained a reputation for remaking the catholic church. but is it true change or just a

change in tone?

a word learnt early in schools, chools, a word learnt early in schools, chools, a word learnt early in schools, ools,

a word learnt early in schools, ools, welcome back to al jazeera america. egypt's president vows revenge after 21 prisoners by i.s.i.l. appeared to be killed. he is holding talks with the national defense council. the united nations condemned the killings the gunman behind two shootings in denmark had a lengthy record and had been arrested several times on weapon and gun-relied charges. one nan was killed after there was fire at a cafes, and another man was kill at a synagogue a few hours lair fighting conditioned in eastern ukraine despite a ceasefire. heavily shelling was reported. the ukranian government said the truce is mostly being respected. it is sunday night and time

for our regular look at "the week ahead". the pontiff is trying to spread the reach of the church beyond roam and europe. cardinals in latin america, asia africa - among other places. we start with background. here is john henry smith. >> reporter: pope francis urged cardinals to reform vatican bur okay rahs yip. -- bureaucracy. proposals including merging officers reducing waits. saturday he went behind the catholic strongholds, choosing 20 new cardinals, some as far away from the vatican as tonga and myanmar. voices from parts of the world that have rarely been on the vatican's radar. the pope has gone where no pope has gone. moves like that earnt the pope

app reputation for being a transformative leader. less than two years ago, on march 13th, 2013 pope francis became the head of the roman catholic church. catholics and non-catholics noted that pope francis practices what he preaches. he spoke out on global inequality and echoed the sentiments by turning down the pal asia apartment -- pal ashial apart: he bi ---al pacial apart. he bypassed the pope mobile for him ble transportation. tee took off the red shoes, slipping on the black shoes a priest would wear. one of his first acts is to kiss the feet of inmates. >> he's in a better position to understand us. when we talk to him, he connects to us. this is like he is with us.

>> greeted by huge crowds around the world, it wasn't long before the pope took on a sort of rock star status. last year francis graced the cover of "rolling stone" and time named him person of the year stating: the pope's message is having a positive impact on his one year anniversary as pope in march 2014 a pugh pole found 85% of catholics have a favourable view of him. 71% said pope francis represents a major change in direction. a majority of non-catholics feel the same way. pope francis moved it away from an abuse scandal.

instead he turned the conversation towards social and political issues showing more compassion to the challenges followers face in a modern world, joining the global conversation on climate change. this september when he visits the u.s. he'll become the first pope to address a joint meeting of progress. critics say while pope francis is taking the lead in changing the tone. he's done a little to alter positions on issues like homosexuality. >> suddenly he's a man that will do things. time may be on the church's side. church's attendance and voluntary donations are up. changes are small, but significant steps in the right direction. when pope francis addresses a meeting those in the church

spect him to focus on global inequality. last week he talked about interfaith relationships between islam and christianify. looking ahead the top has made it clear what he believes are major issues for the church including climate change sex abuse and addressing corruption and conyism within the vatican. emphasising change and emphasis. to talk more i'd like to welcome father thomas reece, the senior analyst, and also sister. father thomas there are more european cardinals than the electoral body. how much do you think it will reshape the catholic church? >> this is significant. 46% of college cardinals is

european now. this is the lowest it's been history. it could go lower. this is a move in the right direction. what we see the pope do is increase the number and the personnel of the college cardinals from the developing world. we have places in africa issue, oceaniana. this is getting a new voice into the college cardinals, having an impact on the church. >> sister mary when we look at the regions, there seems to be a global shift from europe is it clear that pope francis wants refugees and the poor to be at the center of catholic life. >> i certainly hear it and i say american women, religious, and women religious are happy and eager to continue the good work

they have bun for decades. has the pope surprised you as a sis they are, as a -- sister as a catholic. >> i was pleased, unsure a bit in the beginning, because of some difficulties he had in arch tina. as he said -- argentina. as he said when he was younger than he should have been to take an office. however, i continue to be pleased with the direction. it will take a long time and i love his efforts at structural transformation and spiritual transformation. >> father thomas too early to tell. are there fastly different values from those in europe or north america. >> i think that the new cardinals that the pope is

choosing, both in europe and outside of europe are the values of the poem. these are people that work well with other bishops, who are pastoral in their approach to the people concerned about the boar and marginales said. the emphasis that he wants. the rehandling of the church. i think these cardinals will be on board to help him to do that. that is important. >> as we mentioned. 20 cardinals elevated. 15 actsively serving. five are from europe. two from italy, and one elevated within the vatican. three are from latin america, panama mexico and yooura guy. two are from oceania. new zealand and tonga. for the second time.

pope francis picked no new cardinals, does that make a difference? >> i personally think it will. as father tom said the pope is bringing the voices of those that have often been silenced or visibleful he's bringing them to the table, to the public eye hope they'll be pastoral people capable of changing the entire world. >> he's been relabelled the reformer. is he remaking the catholic church or is rebranding a better definition? >> i think it's both. he's not changing church doctrine he's going back to the gospel of jesus, the gospel of compassion, the gospel of love. he recognised that the first words of eadvantage illizition

should be god loves you, not a list of rules and regulation telling people how bad they are. the compassion how we should respond to god's love is by loving one another, and loving the poor and caring for them. so his emphasis on the poor on concern for peace around the world, for interreligious dialogue and improved relations and his concern about the environment. these are emphasisees that he is making. sister mary do you see women having a greater voice in the church? >> i think there's a promise of greater voice.

and other religious women around the world hope the pope will act, the pope and those with whom he works, will act to allow women to appoint women to appropriate places within the vatican which have been held by archbishops and cardinals. i think there's hope. i love the call to religious to wake up the church. that's a call for all of us. >> father thomp as you see you shaking your head. would you like women to take on a greater role. >> absolutely. in the united states already women play an extraordinary role. they created the church in the united states. today the three largest catholic organizations catholic release service, catholic charities u.s.a. the catholic hospital

association, all three are run which women, super women who are incredibly competent and very giving and pastoral. we see in these women and women religious who built the church in the united states the hospitals. we should value them and continue to use them. and use them more. >> i want to talk about the pressing issues. sister mary, has the church under pope francis done a good job in atoning for past sins? >> i think it's a job bigger than the pope. i believe the pope's efforts seems to be a move in the right direction. what is coming from it looks

good. that's an issue that needs response the aftery level. the individual the perpetrator. diocese. again, maybe for me the best news is the door is not closed. there's work to be done and we recognise that. >> father thomas? >> it's important. i think that - i think that the church has rules in place right now, especially the rule of zero tolerance. any priest who was ever involved in abuse is removed from the priesthood and never act as a priest period. that rule is in effect. we have to make sure that that rule is enforced. that's up to the bishops on the local level. when they don't enforce the rule. they caught to be kicked out recollects removed. told they have to redesign.

we need to see that. that will be necessary to restore credibility of the church. it's important. finally, we have to reach out and continually apologise to the people harmed the families the children the victims of abuse. and do whatever we can to help them in their healing. >> more work needs to be done. pope francis launched an ambition house cleaning. what do you make of the past secrecy, the financial circumstances and how the pope is handling the situation? this is not rocket science or theology it's good practices that we have to put into play. we need good competent laypeople.

bishops don't have n.b.a.s. we need good laypeople involved. that's what the pope has done at the vatican. he's brought in competent people good management cops to look at it. they have spent hours doing forensic audits of the vatican bank looking at every account. they are bringing in outside people to look at the vat dan. this was never done in the past. this is an area that is getting under control, and, you know. we'll always have a few scandals, let's catch them and deal with the people make sure they are prosecuted and dealt with that way. >> more transparency. sister mary can pope francis change direction on the attitudes on issues such as contraception, divorce - has he been clear on the issues. >> i'm not sure that he has been clear on the issues.

i'll be cures how the senate and the family continues its work from a new months back and what will come in just about another year from now. i personally believe some of that can change. i will be curious how the cope listens to catholic faithful. married coups. -- couples, gay and straight people. i'm holding out home. -- hope. i see steps in compassion understanding. we need that. >> when the poem talked about moem -- pope talked about homosexuals he said "who am i to judge?" are today's conservatives

conservative about homosexualism. >> i think some are. conservative catholics like the hope. it's the talking heads, elite conservative bloggize fear that is upset and worried. most see what the pope is trying to do is be compassionate towards people. the church has a lot of rules and regulations. what he says is we have to be pastoral towards people. to deal with people in the concrete. deal with people where they live. and deal with people with compassion and love. anyone with common essential thinks this is the way to go. jesus welcomed the sinner he didn't wall them out. he welcomed them and told them that god loved him.

>> is it too early to say what the lasting legacy will be. >> that's interesting. it might be too early. as father tom was talking during the discussion. i'm thinking we celebrated 50 years of vatican to the opening of vatican two. we celebrated that a couple of years ago, whereon the 23rd was recognised as opening the windows of change. i feel like the pope is opening doors and windows. of change. at the vatican, and calling for change beyond the vatican, that is something that is hopeful and invites a gospel response. >> many hoping for more change. thank you both for being with us

on "the week ahead." >> thank you well before we go let's look at other stories coming up on "the week ahead". monday - african leaders gather cameroon for a summit on boko haram, to discussion joining forces to fight the group. u.n. designated friday as world day of social justice. sunday - the academy of motion pictures arts and sciences hands out the cossar awards. "birdman", and "the grand budapest hotel" are up for best picture. stay with us, we'll be right back.

rebecca stevenson joins us with a look at the forecast. how many times have you heard folks say enough of the snow enough the cold temperatures. >> that and i see goose bumps everywhere. it's cold outside. we look at the winds gusting up to 30-40 k/hr. temperatures close to zero. it feels like it is 30 below zero for albany. 19 below zero is what it feels leek. as we get into the low temperatures anywhere from the upper midwest, that's where we have low temperatures not how it feels, but where it is at. and the low textures in the north-east. anywhere from single digits and a little bit of wind. it will feel colder. we have a powerful storm, now we

are tracking one if the midwest. anywhere from 5-8 inches of snow. that snow will stretch over brushing areasful arkansas. our focus for icy areas along highways interstate forces. you'll want to crawl ahead. the southern portion of it will bring icing sleet and potential of rain over into the mid-atlantic. monday not a great day. it will be freezing cold. dealing with more snow from kentucky tens to the mid-atlantic, and washes d c, where you have a potential of getting snow 6-12 inches and it will take its time getting to

you. we'll see the snow in the air. and have storm warnings in effect. we point out the rockies, specting to get up in the high elevations up to 20 inches of know in pikes peak. in colorado - 20 inches of snow. we had more in the storm that went to the north-east. it's interesting to think of it in that way. coming down in parts of the north-east. that stretching of winter weather continues into the north-east as we stay cold. the storm will track through, bringing rain across northern florida. high temperatures tomorrow staying chilly. >> the latest system will it move to the coast or the north-east. >> it will move out over water. little bit of a break for boston. >> tiny break. >> thank you. carnival kicked off with a kaleidoscope of colour in rio de janeiro. 3 million revellers celebrated on the street.

the party coincides with the 450th birthday. lucia newman reports. >> reporter: this is the first of two nights in which rio de janeiro's top 12 samba schools will parade each night until the early hours of the morning. right now you see one of them. the theme is the black roots of brazil. an extraordinary show more than a parade. each school has almost 2,000 members. the floats the costumes the music is incredibly elaborate. some compare this to an open of air opera. brazilians wait until this year. because rio de janeiro is commemorating a special anniversary. >> reporter: it's a view that took portuguese explorers' breath away. a lot has changed since the

tropical seaside community was founded 450 years ago. in the 1920s copacabana looked like this. with luxury hotels and visit scores this year. coinciding with carn vam, it has begun to celebrate the 450th birthday. a 450th year. a chance to revisit culture. >> the first carnival dates back to the 1700s samba and indoor ball room parties were the rage. a far cry from the enormous parades bringing up to 2 million

people on to the streets. >> it's the anniversary of rooeg, the theme of carnival. a time when people don't go to work. after 4.5 centuries the city has not only grown in size but problems. >> rio was plagued by drug gangs, high murder rates, overcrowding all this as it proposed to host the olympic games. local and olympic officials believe the games would help to transform the city. >> it's a landmark of a city that bim global. -- became global. rio wants to do the same. >> construction is under way to build a metro and bus system. to the majestic and run down port area and improvements are causing major traffic congestion and other inconveniences a

sacrifice many welcome. >> translation: everything that helps to lift the image is to be applauded. we had a bad imaging, it is improving. >> with authorities expecting a million visitors in the next four days rio earned it is place as a city of major event. the challenge is to overcome complex obstacles towards development, without losing unique flavour. speaking of the olympics the drone that you see behind me will be used for sporting events next year. for now, it's a long way off. all eyes on the parades. the show you see behind me as brazilians wait to see way of the 12 schools will win the crown this year a woman's vacation was

nearly spoilt before her plane took off. it was bound when she was stung by a scorpion. the woman is doing just fine. thomas drayton in new york thanks for watching. >> we're all following stories of people that have died in the desert. >> and the importance... >> experiencing it, has changed me completely... >> of the lives that were lost in the desert >> this is the most dangerous part of your trip... >> an emotional finale you can't miss... >> we got be here to tell the story. >> the final journey borderland only on al jazeera america

children once sacrificed their childhoods, even their lives working in american mills, mines and factories. the us rooted out child labor practices 75 years ago. but today, us agriculture remains a stronghold for child labor. >> i know most kids come out here to help their parents out get the money to pay the bills. >> it's just another day on the fields of america.