Tradition. History. Culture. Discover the best memories of your life. And now bbc world news america. This is bbc world news reporting from washington, im jane obrien. The Islamic State shows a british hostage, we are on the front lines with the syrian army which is waging its own battle against the extremist. It is not going to work because they are experienced, battle hardened. The polls are close in scotland. We will know whether people voted for independence. Colorado is known for its Natural Beauty but these days the dream of living there comes at a cost. Welcome to our viewers on Public Television around the globe. Today the Islamic State continued its propaganda war by releasing a video showing a british journalist saying he is a prisoner. We will have more on that in a moment. We start with a battle on the ground in syria as the u. S. Tries to form a coalition to s. , Bashar Alassad is already taking them on. Team haswen and his been with Government Troops and were given access to the frontline. This is what the war has done, a district on the edge of damascus. It has been fought over since rebels seized it two years ago. A new government offensive, more airstrikes, is happening now. The way syrians used to live is a memory. The syrian alarm he allowed us into a corner of the frontline, about a 20 minute drive south of damascus. Was recaptured recently from rebels after hard fighting. Outpost, around three hundred meters separating the front lines. What happens here says a lot about the war and the way the fight against the Islamic State might go. These soldiers said they were volunteers and the west was finally catching up with their belief that on the opposite side of the lines were really just extremist were really just extremists. Morale was high. General seemed popular. He did not want to identify himself. Islamic state is a threat on the world. They will take us back to the stone age. As a military power, they are not a threat. Can crush them without the help of the americans. The afternoon firefights start when bullets came in from rebel positions. The syrian army has been much more effective than its enemies expected. The syrians say any fighting is not going to work because they are experienced in battle hardened and they are fighting every day. The u. S. And the u. K. Believe this army is the tool of a regal dictator. Brutal dictator. They were shooting at a mixed of al qaeda supporters and the faa, which americans want to use to fight Islamic State. Syrian soldiers say the west should help them. I want to fight these people. They are coming here to destroy our country. I want to tell my family and my people, the syrian oh, the great syrian people. The area that has been recaptured is devastated. Rebels blew this school up when it was being used by syrian soldiers. Only shop,ages this womans children were terrified by the gunfire. They are moving from one place to another. I have been displaced five times. What future do you think they will have . Is notwar in syria ending. It is renewing itself and its politics are getting more tangled and bloody. Jeremy bowen, bbc news. As we mentioned, a new video showed a british hostage held by extremists. Unlike previous posts, the film does not show an execution. Theead, the hostage says Islamic State has been misrepresented. Our security correspondent reports. A photographer, and journalist, a man who went to dangerous places to tell the world what was happening. There is a bridge. Today he appeared in the latest propaganda video from the Group Calling itself Islamic State. A video different from those that have come before. Performance, he acknowledges he is their prisoner and his life hangs in the balance as he gives a political message. Disastrous wars in afghanistan and iraq, why is it our governments appear so keen to get involved in another unwinnable conflict . Britishpeals to the government to negotiate in the way he says European Countries have. Fromis video is different the others we have seen. It is shot inside and not in the desert. No one is killed. Islamicrom the group state is seen but the aim is similar. Using a hostage to try to spread its message to Public Opinion as a challenge to government policy. This was john cantlie in syria before he was detained in 2012. He tried to escape and was shot and released following a raid by the free syrian army. He went back to syria in november in 2012 and was captured again with the james foley, the american killed in a video month ago. Today, news organizations had agreed not to report his disappearance. His families have been informed about the video. The foreign secretary gave his reaction after the first news emerged. Ive heard the report of another video released on social media. Obviously we are doing everything we can to support them and their families. Is no mention in the message of the other hostage, alan henning. Fresh appeals have been made for release. Ce it is not clear why the group is taking a different approach. John cantlie says he will appear in further messages. So what will it take to come back Islamic State . With george,poke the former nato Supreme Commander for europe a short time ago. Hagel, therechuck is now a plan on the table to Islamic State in syria. What do you hope it will look like and how quickly could we move from here . I hope it will be shaped with clarity of what the end state is. The rebels ine syria, but we have to be careful because there are different syria thatements in are not friendly to the united states. It is going to take clear understanding by senior people to understand what is it we want to do and how do we train them and what is the clarity in terms state. End we heard from general dempsey it could take a year to train the first 5000 moderate opposition rebels. Exactly. If i were advising general righty, he is doing the thing. All options are on the table. Our boots going to be on the ground . All options are on the table. That does not have to include boots on the ground, as people like to say. On theady have the boots ground. Prepare for all contingencies. The got to be able to read tea leaves of what needs to be done. Does he have a contingency plan . Things change. Stuff happens. Youve got to be prepared and dempseys and job is to give advice to the president and to congress. He has done that. We are waiting for the details on them. In general, i want you to stay with me. You are an expert on nato. I want your perspective on the visit of the president of ukraine today. Before meeting with obama, poroshenko spoke to lawmakers and had this to say about what ukrainian soldiers need in their struggle against russianbacked rebels. They need more Political Support throughout the world. They need more military equipment. [applause] lethal and nonlethal. Nightvision goggles are important. We cant keep the peace with a blanket. Not to most important, win the war, but keep the peace. This is a very impassioned plea by poroshenko. He has a point, doesnt he . Should the u. S. Supply arms to the Ukrainian Army . In time, that will happen. Reallyow we have to understand, and again, in ukraine as well, what is the end state we want to achieve . I believe the Ukrainian Military has really done well against not separatistsrussian and russian forces. This was one of the reasons why putin had another attack. They demonstrated they are willing to fight for their country. Because of that, we should support them. It should include more than nonlethal aid. This argument in global terms saying this is a global threat and a battle for democracy and the free world. To nato to take more action. Nato, this was in the 1990s, Russian Council and a Nato Ukraine Council to bring ofh countries into the space democracy and freedom, etc. Got to do some work in their own government, corruption, and other things that have taken place. They are fighting for their sovereignty. We ought to be able to help. Nato should help end the session at wales also a lot more details coming. General, thank you for joining me. You are watching bbc world news america. Still to come, the view from boulder, colorado cant be beat, but the prices are driving some people out of the market. Police in australia have carried out a major counterterrorism operation that has resulted in the detainment of 15 people. The raids involved 800 officers came after senior officials received intelligence individuals in the country planned to kidnap and behead a member of the public. John donaldson has the latest. Police are calling this the biggest antiterrorism operation the country has ever seen. In the early hours of the morning, 800 officers raided dozens of homes in sydney and brisbane. Had the intention and had started to carry out planning to commit violent acts in australia. Has appeared in court charged with conspiracy to preparing a terrorist attack. It is believed to behead a themr of the public, drape in a flag and video them. The prosecutor said it was designed to shock, horrified, and terrify the community. Afteres less than a week australia raised his terrorism threat level from medium to high, meaning officials believed an attack was not just possible, but likely. Direct exhortations were coming from australian who is apparently quite senior in isil to network some support in australia to conduct a demonstration killings in this country. Government is worried about the number of australians fighting with extremist groups in the Islamic State middle east. There are around 60 already with around 100 more offering support from within australia. Tonight, the polls are closed in scotland and the wait begins to see if the voters choose independence or to stay in the u. K. After appeals on both sides, turnout was very high end by tomorrow we should know if history has been made. Alan little looks at how the day unfolded. From the beginning, the burden of proof has lain with the yes campaign to sway the public of the virtues of their case. For most of the campaign, they have been behind, but they have been energetic and creative, it engaging people. The time voting began, the polls suggested they had come from behind to draw almost level. Is the most important moment of my life and for my ancestors and for the lives of my children and their children and their children. Forever more. It will be easy. Weve got a mountain to climb. There is a mountain that is worth climbing. No campaign was quieter with highprofile politicians rather than activists taking the lead. It has been no less passionate in its defense of this berdych union, especially in these closing weeks and today it was on the streets. Feel positive. We are getting great reactions. We need to keep going until 10 00. To a missed but it did not deter the early birds. Thee were queues before polls opened. That is unprecedented participation. It is an important day for sure. It is very important, not just for future generations, and us. Importantn extremely day. Probably the most important of my life. It is the future of the country. It will be interesting to see which it will be. The man who led the campaigns voted early. At westminster. So did two others, the former prime minister, gordon brown, and the deputy minister Nicola Sturgeon in glasgow. In glasgowult could be decisive. Labor voters have been crossing to the yes camp. Had they done so in large enough numbers to push the independent. Ide over the 50 mark what a day to get married to cement a personal union at the very time the old political one faced its greatest challenge in three centuries. The campaign has reached into every remote corner of scotland. 4. 3 Million People are registered to vote. In the western isles, the airport was closed because of the weather. Ballot boxes will be transported by fishing boat. The National Total will be tallied on the outskirts of edinburgh. The official whose job it is to make the announcement is mary. Its exciting. The end of the day, even if people dont like the results, we will trust it as accurate. My job is to ensure the that we use will ensure people have confidence in the result. The dye is cast. After an extraordinary debate, the future of the 300yearold union between england and scotland is decided. It is a highly charged moment of immense consequence. Alan little reporting. Of course the bbc will have the results as they come in. That is in a special program that can be seen on bbc world news. In sierraews, people leone are preparing to stay indoors for three dates as part of a strategy to curb the spread of ebola. 6 millionhursday, must to stay at home, except for volunteers will deliver soap and information about inventing ebola. 560 people have died from the virus so far. Chinas president has announced landmark economic deals with india. Invest 20 to billion in indian infrastructure over five years. Both leaders highlighted the need to solve order disputes amid indian allegations of an incursion by chinese troops. Now to our popup project, looking at communities around the u. S. Forder, colorado is known its laidback lifestyle. The small city at the foot of the Rocky Mountains is becoming increasingly expensive to live in. Residents are facing a shortage of Affordable Housing and options of a solution to the problem are limited. We went to boulder as part of the project and have this report. It does not take very long to go from boulder into nature. That is the whole point. This is part of what makes boulder, boulder. In the city below, land and space is prompting concerns. More and more, denser and denser. Slide toward being a rich, white town. It does not feel like a real city anymore. Boulder was a hippy destination in the 1960s. More recently, it has been a business group. That has changed things. Boulder is one of the worst u. S. Cities for income inequality. As its popularity grows, it cant really physically grow. Boulder,he land around the city has purchased to keep preserved. It is called open space, about 45,000 acres. That, combined with the desirability, created a housing for very low income and housing resulting form market forces, the middle has hollowed out. Feeling thatn is squeeze. She is a nurse and has been able to stay in boulder because of her subsidized housing. She will lose that help if her salary goes up any further. Gotten to this point where my head is above the water line. If i were to have to then leave boulder, or into the market rate, once again the water line would be really high. So why might she have to go . Number ofk at the affordable rental properties, which have dropped by two thirds. And it is estimated in five years, five years, people making under 60,000 a year will not be able to afford a place to live. One alternative is to break the law. Christina lives with nine other people in a coop. More people, less rent. Technically, boulder does not allow more than three or four unrelated people to live in a single house. I love being frugal and working a small nonprofit. If that means i cant afford to be here, maybe i cant be here. That is sad. Options really comes down to a choice of priorities. Do you make the city dancer, but with room for the middle class . Or will that hurt its character . I came here because of the small town feel and im concerned that is changing. I dont know you can force affordability on all markets. It is not right or fair. It is what happens sometimes. And maybe it comes back to the land, the very thing that draws people to boulder and protects their city. And also forces them to make decisions about what kind of place they want to call home. Beautiful. That brings the program to a close. Stay with us on bbc world news and online for all of the results on the Scottish Referendum and you can reach us on twitter. For all of us, thank you for watching and tune in tomorrow. Funding of this presentation is made possible by the freeman foundation, newmans own foundation, giving all profits to charity and pursuing the common good for over 30 years, kovler foundation, beijing tourism, and union bank. Tradition. History. Culture. Discover the best memories of your life. Bbc world news was presented by kcet los angeles. Announcer previously on the roosevelts, Franklin Roosevelt was stricken with a mysterious disease. His legs felt funny, and he felt feverish, and he never walked without help again. Announcer but his secret wouldnt keep him from the white house. Franklin roosevelt i pledge myself to a new deal for the American People [crowd cheering] announcer and now part 5 of the roosevelts an intimate history. Announcer funding for this program was provided by members of the better angels society, a Nonprofit Organization dedicated to educating americans about their history through documentary film. Members include. Additional funding was provided by the Arthur Vining Davis foundations, dedicated to strengthening americas future through education;