High then theres this competition for the food and the water. Now the government is doing something about it. We begin tonight with a battle against i. S. I. L. And a new threat. This time the threat is directed at i. S. I. L. Itself. After months of fighting the group seems to be losing ground, suffering heavy losses from coalition forces. And that was before i. S. I. L. s videotape execution of a prisoner. A move that may have galvanized. Is countries divided in many ways now drawn together against a common enemy. The rage is intensifying in jordan after captured pilot Muath Al Kasasbeh was seen. Support from King Abdullah. Exacted with the execution of two prisoners including sajida al rishawi. She had been on death row for eight years. The pilots father praised the punishment. Translator i demand that i. S. I. L. Be annihilated. This militant group made up of groups are from all over the world. In jordan, growing fight against i. S. I. L. I. S. I. L. Has been our problem. Important to stay in the coalition, in order to make sure blood was not shed in vein. But u. S. Coalition suffered a significant setback after United Arab Emirates wants more search and rescue support from the u. S. At least 35 nations have led the u. S. Fight against i. S. I. L. 17 are giving both military and humanitarian aid. That includes the u. S. , saudi arabia qatar canada, france and germany. 14 nations are pledging humanitarian aid only including japan spain and switzerland. Four countries are providing just military aid. Christopher swift is a professor of National Security studies at Georgetown University in washington. Christopher is this a Tipping Point for i. S. I. L. And the coalition . Well, it is and it isnt. It is in that i. S. I. L. s very provocative and brutal execution of this pilot seems to have unified public support inside jordan, each one of these countries thats providing military assistance has its own domestic political concerns and part of what you are seeing with the uae standing down temporarily and calling for more search and rescue support is of great concern of their pilots being turned into hostages and being executed in a similar way. While we may think of that one way this the United States, in some of these societies in jordan and United Arab Emirates these are connected to pretty important stakeholders and they exercise leverage. In some ways is this less about religion and more about the economy and the political situation in many of these countries . And some of the some of the countries tar not democracies worried about an uprising . Sure. Well, if you look at the situation in jordan, the pilots father is a very prom narnt prominent individual in one of the very important families that backed the hashemite design city. Bending over backwards to get this young man home. But now that i. S. I. S. Has killed this young man in a horrible brutal way you see the family come back into the fold, rather than criticizing the government, they are rallying around the government, that is important for the king of jordan. Whether or not the uae should be involved in these kinds of operations theyre temporary standdown is a way of dealing with that issue internally while still nominally being part of the coalition. So a lot of the fighting is been in iraq and syria. How vulnerable is jordan to this fight . There is a fair amount of vulnerability, twofold, if you look at where the area where syria and iraq and jordan come together, thats a rural open mostly desert area, very hard to defend and not a lot of population there. If i. S. I. L. Wanted to move into that part of jordan, they would get far before encountering the jordanian army. Thats part of the reason King Abdullah is worried about. F16 fighter wing and patriot missiles were left behind in jordan. Asked jordan to cooperate in, quote, combating terrorism. Is there any chance that syria is going to cooperate in all of this . The prospects for meaningful cooperation between the alloite regime and jordan are very, very low. Because they have a common adversary doesnt mean they are adhered now. One of the reasons i. S. I. S. Has been so l successful successful as a military situation is theyve been able to divide those that might form a coalition against it. And this is one of the things that jordanian government and the u. S. Government, as well, are going to be considering as they go forward with their particular campaigns. So the uae which is a u. S. Ally and in this coalition has halted its combat missions and theyve claimed theyre concerned about several and rescue if their pilots go down like the jordanian pilot wement went down. Is this a bigger sign that some countries may not be as willing to go forward with this fight . It may be. And the reason might be twofold. The first is there is some concern in the region that the United States and the europeans have been somewhat less energetic in their prosecution of the war than some of the arab countries had hoped. Uae also has to deal with some pretty important internal political debates about the role of a muslim majority country going in a war against muslims in a country just a few hundred miles away. That was a big issue in jordan as well even a few days ago. But this particular execution the manner in which it hamed and thehappenedand the l insult, has changed that perception very rapidly. Lets hope they realize just what kind of adversary theyre dealing with here. Christopher swift thank you sothank youvery much. The fight against i. S. I. L. Makes for partnerships, qatar the country that funds this network. The pkk u. S. And turkey called the pkk a terrorist group. The group has been fighting the turkish government for years now its credited for a major victory against i. S. I. L. Nick schifrin sorts it out as he reports from turkey. Reporter this isnt supposed to be a war zone. These two sides are meant to be talking peace. But this curbingish city is battle ground. This city sits on the base of merchandise where noahs arc was said to have landed. 20 of turkeys population and long complained much neglect. They fought the government and call themselves a martyrs movement. Those two died in fighting are enshrined on posters. Bullets filed by police right before they drove through the front door. Translator the purpose of the extermination operation is to end the legal Kurdish Movement and annihilate its members. Reporter the violence is mutual. The movement is affiliated with the militant pkk which the u. S. Calls a terror group. An Opposition Group accuses pkk of burning their offices and killing nine of their members. Translator if Security Forces stay quiet the more the pkk builds an empire of fear. Reporter violence built and residents built trenches. No cars can come through here anymore because residents have blocked it by building this massive ditch. There are hundreds of these across the city, deep, three or four feet deep, and the purpose is to prevent police from coming into these neighborhoods and making any arrests. But when we visited heavily armed police move around easily. In this neighborhood residents say police are using a new law to act with impunity. So what have the police been doing in this neighborhood . Translator its like theyre paid for each tear gas they fire. They want children to throw stones at them. They are starting the complex they see us as the enemy. Reporter inside the familys home, holding up a picture, of 12yearold nahat. I loved him so much, my angel, he was a flower, a flower of kurdistan. Reporter the family says in early january as nahat was surrounded, he suddenly drops. Police had shot him in the head. His mother, his Community Want revenge. I hope his heart burns for his son like my heart burns for mine. Reporter tens of thousands of people attended nahats funeral. Rapid in a kurdish flag they carried him through the streets. At his grave they promised v for victory. Turkish authorities will maintain their pressure and so will kurdish fighters, fueled by a 12yearolds grave at what they call the martyrs cemetery. Nick schifrin, al jazeera turkey. Sakuraisacsakurais mussowi. Jonathan betz has more. Saudi arabia is one of the u. S. s most strategic allies in the completely. Now, former al qaeda operative sakuraias. Moussawi now in null released Court Document mussawi claims officials helped fund queastled inal qaedain the years before the 21 2001 attacks. Look we are not against islam or the jihad we financed bland. Bin laden. Who was then the countrys intelligence chief prince bandar been sultan, and and alwa al masal. And some say hes mentally ill. Remarked he was an extremely intelligent man. Our psychiatric experts predicted his behavior to a tee. It fits right in line with their fear that hes suffering from dilutions. Moussaoui even said he discussed the possibility of shooting down air force 1. But moussaoui was arrested before he could carry out that plan and days before the hijackings that would change the world. Jonathan betz, al jazeera, new york. Now to washington. Tough talk on ukraine from the president s nominee for defense secretary. Ashton carter says he supports sending weapons to help ukrainian rebels. The white house has resisted arming ukraine. Carter has taken a harder line. The nature of those weapons i cant say right now but i inclined in the direction of providing them with arms, including to get to what im sure your question is, lethal arms. A full senate vote on carters nomination is expected as early as next week. Proponents to sending u. S. Arms to ukraine point to recent gains. Rebels are advancing in that countrys east threatening to take control of a a strategic railway hub. Charles stratford reports. Ukrainian army fire a volley of grad rockets towards front lend. Separatists they have surrounded be debaltseve. A city under siege. You can hear shelling and shooting. At night it was very intense. He says. I have to go says this man. Its bad in there very bad. We followed a bus along the mud roads into town. Attempts at negotiating a temporary troos for safe passage had failed. Go go go go, catch them, catch them. The shemg is intense. The the shelling is intense. The very few people on the streets run for cover. What sounds like ar till rar or mortars fires towards targets we cannot see. There have been repeated efforts trying to get some of the wounded out of debaltseve. Calms for ceasefire some of those ceasefires have been ignored. We followed a convoy into the city. The men tell us they are going to an area that is too dangerous for us to film. Translator were trying to deliver aid to people who are still here at our own risk. We could not organize a temporary truce to come here safely. Reporter approximately 25,000 people used to live in debaltseve. After weeks of heavy fighting, it is not known how many are living here now. Only the very brave remain. I walked to deliver aid to people every day says this woman, as another shell explodes close by. Debaltseve is of strategic importance to both sides in this conflict. Its a Major Railway hub linking territory the separatists control with russia. Its believed up to 8,000 Ukrainian Government troops have been deployed to try and defend the town. Theyre suspicious about what they say are separatist spies. This armored personnel carrier blocked our path as we left town. The soldiers questioned us before letting us drive on. This road is the soanl only way into debaltseve from the ukrainian side. While fighting intensifies it is the only route out for many civilians who remain inside. Charles stratford, al jazeera debaltseve. Eastern ukraine. A lot more coming up on this broadcasted. Why hundreds of people are killed at Railroad Crossings every year and whats be being done to stop it. Plus the Measles Outbreak, how far should a school go to protect students . The creator of the notorious website silk road, has been convicted in federal court. Found him guilty on all charges silk road is an online black market. It allows participants to buy fake i. D. s and passports. Sentenced in may. The nationwide Measles Outbreak is continuing to grow. One Group Believes all children should be vaccinated. The other group thinks immunization should be the parents choice. Michael okwu has the story. When john and olivia took their child to the doctor for a cold they were shocked to find out she may be infected with something worse the measles. Carrier was a boy whose parents had chosen not to vaccinate. I was angry but at the time, most concerned about what do we do next . Reporter what followed was a 28 day county imposed quarantine. No walks no fresh air no certainty about what the next day might bring. The simons live in oakland across the bay from marin county which has among the highest rates of nonvaccinated schoolchildren in the state. Its all part of greater San Francisco and a hot spot in californias largest rash in measles cases in years. Its spreading across the u. S. 14 states from california to new york. 102 cases in all. Just this year. The great majority afflicting individuals who were not vaccinated. Theres one pediatrician whos not troubled by the plummeting vaccination rates. Dr. Bob sears. Half his young patients arent vaccinated. I tell the parents that thats an okay decision. I think its a legitimate decision. The topic is a political lightning rod. All 50 states require schoolchildren to be vaccinated with exemptions for medical or religious reasons but now 20 states, including california, allow parents to file philosophical exemptions. Last year, california passed a law requiring a pediatricians signature for those exemptions. Some parents continue to believe for example that theres a link between vaccines and autism. Numerous comprehensive studies have looked at the relationship between vaccines and autism for over a decade. And found no link. Livia never got the measles but the simons wont soon forget the whole episode. You cant decide not to vaccinate your child and also then not be exposing other children to risk. Michael okwu, al jazeera, San Francisco. And can you see more of michaels story on america tonight coming up at 10 00 eastern time. But we continue the discussion now. David ropec the author of how risky is it really . Why our fears dont always match the facts. I want to pronounce your name right. Easy to say siegenthaler. You got it. What is your reaction to this debate . Boy this is really complex. First thing to know, as complex as this might be, most kids do get vaccinated. This nonvaccination piece as michael suggested happens in isolated areas. There have been worst ones over the states in the last several years. This is getting a lot of attention because of the disneyland connection, bad things arent supposed to happen in disneyland. If i may thats the first part, second point with jennifer and dave the parents of livia there parents have a basic goal in life which is to take care of their kids. They talked about being angry to the other people who exposed their daughter to measles but what do they want to do is, what should we do next . Thats where most parents are coming from not the liberal values or the libertarian values we do need to give parents a break they are struggling. You say this is driven by fear . Well sure. I mean but fear is a loaded word. We all wake up in the morning with one job subconsciously which is to get safely to bed at night. That is my expertise here, the psychology of what we read in the tea leaves, that is not all the information. So we use a lot of instincts to sense whether its dangerous or if our friends say it is or our political leaders say it is, we jump to that conclusion. If were against man made things we jump to the conclusion that man made things might be bad. It is a very psychological as opposed to purely objective danger, thats all we have. If you say the governments putting my child at risk or the parents on the other side, saying these parents are putting my kids at risk. Where do you put the two together . This is an easy one. Society for the longest time is to protect ourselves from things we cant protect ourselves from. No matter how conservative you are, the police, the law we dont allow drunk driving or people to do things that are bad for society. It is mandatory to get our kids vaccinated but we are a democracy, we give people a choice. It turns out for every state but mississippi you can opt out. The candidates say we dont have choice. Theyre lying for political sex aggrandizement. For self aggrandizeful. We have a right to ask people who want to sanction them if they dont and i would not be averse tot idea of economic to the idea of economic sanctions against parents who dont vaccinate raise their insurance costs a little. We do that for smokers for drivers. As long as they still have a chance to opt out. My suggestion is you come back on the program again and talk about the topic you spend a lot of time on, fear, on a whole host of issues maybe measles david, thank you for talking to us tonight. Coming up next, the deadly commuter train crash in new york. Why so Many Americans are killed at Railroad Crossings. And separation with a high border fence. Border fence. S. Hi everyone, this is al jazeera america. Im john siegenthaler. The investigation into the deadly train crash in new york. Whats being done to prevent another one . Homecoming. Peter greste, united with his family. The pleas for two al jazeera journalists still hin bars. Behind bars. Heartbreak and healing. Im so happy i was able to see them. Their loved once divided by the u. S. Mexican border can meet. Taming the Wild Horse Population in the american west. And we begin with new details from last nights train accident in suburban new york. Investigators remain on the site tonight, where a metro north commuter train slammed into an suives that was stopped an stuive that was stopped suv that was stopped on the track. Investigators are focusing on her and why she stopped. The crash happened at a Railroad Crossing its where many train accidents occur. There are hundreds of thousands of them in the United States. Tonight a new debate over whether enough is being done to make those crossings safe. Lis