>> time nine for 60 minutes live around the world. these are the headlines. scotland votes today on whether to stay in the u.k. or become an independent nation. alex salmond and gordon brown have already cast their votes. a major counterterrorism -- terrorism plot foiled. a french citizen is effected with the -- infected with the ebola virus for the first time.

also coming up for you this hour, a slice of french cinema history. the two years after the release the police station featured turned into a police and cinema museum. as france's literary season gets underway, we will meet some of the possible molière's of tomorrow. scottish voters are going to the polls today to answer one straightforward question -- should scotland be an independent country? that can't -- that question has divided scots for months now. the results will not come out until friday morning. charlotte hawkins took a closer look at how voting is working today.

>> ballot boxes ready for up to 97% of the electorate to catch -- cast their vote on the future of scotland and the united kingdom. almost 4.3 million people have registered to vote, of these some 800,000 postal votes. turnout is expected to be much higher than any other recent election, over 80%. the vote is open to more people in scotland then german elections are. 16-year-olds and 17-year-olds can vote. scots living abroad are not allowed to take part unless they are sent overseas as part of the armed forces. this means that many famous scots who've taken part in the campaign will not actually be able to vote. this is one of over 2500 polling places across the country. when voting closes at 10 a clock p.m. local time, the ballot -- 10:00 p.m. local time the

ballots will be transferred to counting centers. the counting centers will declare their results to the chief accounting officer. she will announce the results as soon as it becomes impossible for the other side to win. there will be no exit polls of an idea of the outcome beforehand. results from some counting centers will take longer as the ballot papers from remote areas take time to transfer. it is because of this and the large turnout prediction that the result isn't expected until breakfast time on friday morning. >> "france 24's" is at a polling station. she tells us more about the boat today -- the vote today. >> a lot of people turning up at this polling station. we saw queues of people showing up, people voting on their way to work. we've been speaking to people about why they voted.

all of them feel it is a very momentous day lots of emotion here. people are excited, some are fearful that it might be a know -- no. there is a lot of dissatisfaction with the westminster government among independent supporters. others are fearful this could change the country as they know it. they know there is a lot at stake. they expect this to be a very high turnout. >> tell us more about the turnout. are there lines across the block -- around the block? this could be massive. this could be a record in scotland. more than 97% of eligible voters in scotland have registered to vote. polls are predicting it could be well over 80%, perhaps 90%. the last time there was a national vote, the general election in 2010, the turnout was around 60%. this would be way higher.

it has people very passionate. people are all over the streets and the pubs and in the cafés. there is a real debate going on. people are very divided. >> the oil revenues and whiskey exports have been big talk it's -- big topics in the run-up to the vote. both sides are promising more prom -- a more prosperous scotland, but there are many issues that remain unresolved. we have been raking through the pledges and the facts. >> will scotland go its own way or will it stay with britain? when they cast their votes they will decide and there are several factors still unaccounted for. politicians in westminster have ruled out a currency union with an independent scotland. the yes side accuses them of bluffing, saying it would be in

their own interest to share. there are warnings that thousands of jobs in scotland's finance industry are at stake. big banks like rbs and lloyds say they will move to london if the yes side wins. trade is another hot topic for scottish exporters. the whiskey industry is worried about losing access to the european union market. the european union has said scotland's membership will not be a given. >> we've got a great u.k. diplomatic network, very focused on trade promotion. we are a biggest country that can really get -- a biggish country that can really get access. >> the yes and no camps are undivided -- are divided about the size of reserves. the government present's reserves over 48 billion euros

in the next five years, more than double the british forecast. both campaigns have promised a more prosperous scotland. it is now up to the voters to choose. >> we will turn our attention now to australia. the country has issued the largest anti-terrorism operation in its history. the raids kicked off after security reports said the islamist state organization was planning a random attack on a member of the public to show just how far-reaching it is. nicholas rushworth reports. >> the major swoop operation. police carried out the largest anti-terror raid in australian history in the suburbs of brisbane and sydney. hundreds of homes were searched after intelligence showed militants connected with the islamic state organization were planning to be had a member of the public in australia. , exultation's, quite direct or -- exultation's -- >>

exhortations, quite direct exultation -- exhortations that they were going to conduct demonstration killings in this country. >> the raids came just days after australia raised its threat level to high for the first time. >> there are at least 60 australians who are serving with isil and other terror groups in the middle east. there are at least 100 australians that we know of supporting them. >> local media reports that one threatened to kidnap an australian citizen and behead them in a public place before uploading the video to social media. attention is focusing on convicted sydney terrorist -- believed to be in northern syria. on wednesday, a business owned by his sister was shut down while being investigated over

suspicious transfers and missing funds. the anti-terror operation comes days after prime minister tony abbott announced he would join the u.s.-led coalition against the islamic state organization. >>'s fr has puta inn place tighter measuresc to make it more difficult for jihadiste -- france has put in place tighter measures to make it more difficult for jihadists to leave the country. the united states is stepping up its role in the fight against the islamic state organization. president barack obama's request for correctional -- congressional backing to fight armed rebels in syria is halfway home, easily approved by the republican-controlled house. that legislation must now be passed by the senate, but that does look to happen. some politicians fear weapons could end up in the hands of the

enemy. >> syria and iraq, two war-torn countries where the islamic state's organizations operate beginning by fighting syrian president bashar al-assad's troops. over the course of the uprising, divisions grew between rebel factions and the jihadists on the ground. the west witnessed their rise and refrain from harming the more moderate syrian rebels, but washington has decided to change strategy. on wednesday, the u.s. house of representatives approved president's plan to arm and train moderate syrian rebels to fight the islamic state organization. >> this is the best of the bad options that we face him and that could halt the advance of isil in that region -- we face that could halt the advance of isil in that region and guard against the threat that they pose to us and others in the region.

>> several congresspeople expressed fears that weapons could end up in enemy hands. that's what happened when the islamic state swept across northern iraq earlier this year. >> the amendment is to train and equip syrian rebels. let's see how that has worked in the past. this is isis propaganda that was on the internet. this is american tanks in the possession of isis when the iraqis cut and ran. this is a humvee that went through a parade. >> the u.s. and france have been delivering weapons to those fighting, notably the hush murdoch -- the peshmerga. >> turkey is considering setting up and policing a buffer zone to help refugees coming in from syria. our regional correspondent has more now from the border. >> this is one of the southernmost crossing points

between syria and turkey. we are told that hundreds of people are making their way through here on a daily basis. they say this is one of the last points of passage, where they feel safe enough to cross, far away from the troops of the embattled syrian president bashar al-assad, but also far away from the organization of the islamic state. >> the free syrian army controls the other side of the crossing kalama their from here. >> while the international community is struggling to put together a plan of action in order to curb the progression of the fighters belonging to the organization for the islamic state, local turkish authorities and the president are now openly talking about the possibility of his troops setting up what he is calling a buffer zone on the other side of this border. >> we have been asking for that for three years now.

she should have done it before the massacre started. it is too late now. >> we hope the turkish government will actually do it. a buffer zone would be good for syrians. it would help the resolution -- the revolution. >> turkish authorities have not yet identified the role this could serve. it could be there to prevent yes -- yet another massive wave of refugees from making their way into turkish territory. the violence is increasing in neighboring countries. >> a french citizen has been infected with the ebola virus. the health volunteer was working with on a group, doctors without borders, when she caught the disease. she is set to be evacuated back to france today. >> as the spread of ebola continues unchecked. france is preparing to receive its first patient with the disease.

a french national working with one of 2000 volunteers for doctors without borders. the french ngo has been in west africa, trying to combat the disease. >> the affected person showed the first symptoms on tuesday. straight after, she was tested for the disease and the test confirmed the infection. afterwards, she was placed in quarantine. >> the victim's identity has not been revealed. she will be airlifted to france for treatment. the news came as the trial for a new ebola vaccine started in the u.k. the vaccine is being developed from a modified chimpanzee cold virus and an ebola proteins. the first volunteer to be tested is a former nurse. >> it is really sad what is going on out in west africa. what could i do?

i can't go out there and work or anything. i can help -- my little bit of help they would do -- would be to participate in the vaccine trial. >> typically, if we got started in six months, we would do very well. this has happened in four weeks. this is as fast as anybody has ever seen a trial comments -- commence, particularly for a vaccine that has never been given to a human before. >> if the clinical trial proceeds well, under advanced version of the vaccine could be ready by the end of 2014. a similar trial is also underway in the united states. >> there are more travel headaches for those of you planning to fly air france today, now in its fourth day of massive pilot strikes. pilots are angry over a new low-cost airline they say will threaten their pay and their working conditions.

air france pilots want the pilots for the new low-cost company to have the same contracts that they have, but the air france ceo says that is not going to happen. the air france strike is just the latest headline -- headache for french president francois hollande. he is due to face a grilling of that -- on that and many other things in a long-awaited press conference. he has the lowest approval rating of any fresh -- french president ever. this last few weeks has included record high unemployment and a tell-all book by his ex first lady, painting him as cold and power crazed and that he secretly hates the poor. let's take a look at our headlines. scotland is voting on whether to stay in the u.k. or become an independent nation. alex salmond and gordon brown

have already cast their votes. >> a massive counterterrorism operation foiled up -- a plot by the islamic state jihadists to allegedly beheaded a member of the public. a french citizen is affected -- infected with the ebola virus for the first time. let's start with "courier international." >> we keep hearing about the islamic state organization. what is it like behind the scenes? at what they are taking a closer look at -- that's what they are taking a closer look at. what is it like for those living in territory occupied by the islamic state organization. how is this self proclaimed caliphate actually run?

the organization uses a mix of terror and empowerment. the organization has made a pot -- a point of getting electricity and water running as well as basic social services in an effort to win over hearts and minds, and it has a nice amount of cash to do so. the group has filled its coffers with money thanks to pillaging racketeering. the flipside of all of this is the harsh application of sharia law. women are forced to wear the full head they'll -- head veil. there is a strict separation of the sexes at university. there are religious police patrolling the streets to make sure this is applied. there is one particular focus put on the education of children. according to this article, the islamic state organization is trying to indoctrinate children by giving them ice cream and

carnivals etc., but also making them watch crucifixions and still means -- and stonings. according to a recent report in human rights watch the organization is recruiting children under the cover of free education, education that includes the instructions in the use of arms. the ngo suspects the islamist group will use children for dangerous missions, like suicide attacks. >> back to french -- france. a special report on the islamist state -- aerosonic -- on the islamic state organization. >> the islamic state organization is better connected, even more bloodthirsty, and stronger than al qaeda. these mutant barbarians, as it calls them, will be even harder to fight than bin laden's group. one interesting thing that we've been experiencing here in the

media -- the difficulty of naming the islamic state group talking about it. we've been calling it isis, islamic state organization. it is not a state. it is more like a war machine that controls a patchwork of various territories. is that a good excuse to use a catchphrase to name these terrorists? if we use the name they have invented for themselves, are we falling into their propaganda trap? >> francis calling it an abbreviation of the islamic name it has given itself. let's move onto french politics. the man of the hour is former president nicolas sarkozy, who might be running for president. >> we've been talking about this for months maybe even years. we all sound like broken records. most of the french media agrees it's not a question of if, but when. one right-wing magazine says he

cannot help it. it is stronger than he is. they had a great quote they attributed to him. francois hollande will end up tarred and feathered. they promised to tell the extraordinary tale of sarkozy's comeback, which it calls a high-risk operation. he's going to face a number of obstacles if ever he does make a political comeback. he's facing a growing number of rivals, quite a lot of legal trouble, and there is the question of his legacy. he was already president for five years. has he changed? is it the same sarkozy? sarkozy says he has changed in the past seven years. he has taken a step back and taking time to think. he has changed a little physically. there he is in february 2014 and november 2007 on the right. he's definitely a little older and more wrinkled.

>> one person who seems not to have changed since i've been in france france's favorite news anchor. >> who in the world is she? she made it to the front page so many times that you lose count. she's an institution in france, france's favorite anchorwoman. she's been reading the news on france on a big broadcaster on the weekend for 23 years. can you imagine that? my grandfather was a big fan of hers. why is she on the front page this week? she talks about the fact that she is a fighter. she talks about the struggle to stay young. she talks about her love life, her private life. if you want to get the dish, check it out. >> thank you so much. thanks for watching "france 24." time for sports. psg began their campaign with a hard-axing -- the equalizer.

barcelona topped the early group after a header gave them a hard-earned win against the cypriot side. >> it might surprise you a little bit, a match like this one. i think it will help us in the future. when i saw how tired my players were at the end of the game -- i rarely see my players that tired. i think the other team was the strongest team. to take a draw and go back with one point -- i think it will help us progress physically and i hope that my team will soon look fresher. >> two scores over roma as they beat moscow in their opening group thing. the 2013 champions, byron unit

-- bayern munich, came through thanks to a winner from b oateng. >> you believe you're going to win. it gets more difficult the closer you get to the end. we were lucky that we scored that goal at the end. >> schalke claimed the result of the night in london. a deserved second-half equalizer. maribor and sporting also ended 11. the 2004 champions with the start of the night after they hammered their opponent 6-0. bill about's first appearance in the champions league -- bill balogh -- bilbao's first

appearance in the champions league ended at 0-0. a four-man breakaway 16 km from home. he tried going on his own but was reeled in. then came the pellets on. it came down to the last 500 meters. a great win. and the small town in switzerland could witness history tonight when fogh attempts to beat a cycling record set nine years ago by a cyclist who twice tested positive in doping. tony martin has considered an attempt on the record of 49.7 km. it is the perfect place to make history. >> it was pretty quiet.

nobody has tried to break the record for many years. he wants to do it. that's why i got interested. i was looking at how they wanted to achieve it, how they would approach it. all of a