09/01/2016 Reporters

Hello and welcome to Reporters, I'm Tim Wilcox.

From here, we send out correspondents to bring you the best

stories from across the globe.

In this week's programme.

On the front line in the fight to for Ramadi.

A week after Iraqi forces say they liberated the city

from Islamic State, we find the battle is far from over.

IS militants still control parts of the

centre.

Their flags are still flying a few hundred yards from here

and resistance is stiff.

Guns for sale - as President Obama announces tighter

controls on weapons, John Sopel finds little support

at an American gun show.

What are the dangers you think are out there?

I am often with my children and I think it would

make me feel secure if I had a means of defending myself and my children.

The bridge - Sweden's open door to the rest of Europe closes

for business to stop the flow of migrants.

This is one of the most welcoming countries in Europe.

When it comes to refugees.

But that is changing.

Is the African rhino just years away from extension?

--extinction.

We report from South Africa on the war against poachers.

And South Korea's new obsession with TV chefs.

Stephen Evans asks if more men in the kitchen has brought

changes for the country's women.

Men, what a performance!

Always cooking the big meal for the special

occasion.

I wonder if these guys ever do the cooking at home.

It is more than a week since the Iraqi

government forces announced they had won the battle for Ramadi,

liberating the key city from so-called Islamic

State.

But large parts are still under extremist control and fighting

continues.

Around 200 militants are thought to be holding out,

as thousands of civilians flee the violence.

The BBC was the first international broadcaster to reach

the front line in the Ramadi.

Our reporter travelled into the heart of

the city and sent this exclusive report.

This is what the fight against so-called

Islamic State has done to Ramadi.

Six months of brutal jihadi rule, a government offensive and coalition

air strikes have devastated the city.

We set off with Iraqi special forces to see what the victory they claimed

a week ago looks like.

As we push into the centre, it is clear

the battle for Ramadi is far from over.

This is the front line in Iraq's war against IS.

This building used to be a school.

But guns have now replaced students.

The soldiers say they have regained much of the city,

but the fight is still going on and IS militants still control

parts of the centre.

Their flags are still flying a few hundred yards

from here and resistance is stiff.

Peer through the sniper's window and you see the Iraqi flag.

But look to the right.

The black banners of Islamic State are flying, defiant.

Government troops say fighting IS is the hardest of all battles.

Much of the front line is rigged with

explosives and IS is an unpredictable enemy.

The west has trained Iraqi soldiers for this

fight.

The US, Britain and their partners are conducting air strikes

in support.

TRANSLATION: The support from coalition forces is important

because without them we would suffer a lot more casualties.

An air strike is called in as families emerge,

Iraqi troops taking them to safety.

This woman says her house was blown up.

She told me she and her husband were taken by the jihadis and used

as human shields.

TRANSLATION: We were stuck for ten days, each time

there was bombing our homes would shake.

We had no food, bread or water.

We were terrified.

A warm meal and a first taste of freedom.

This woman escaped with her children, still traumatised.

The mother tells me how IS ruled their

lives.

What they did to us was terrible.

You were not allowed out without a man and you were forced

to wear the niqab.

We were not allowed to use mobile phones.

Victory is days away here.

But the war against Islamic State in Iraq will not end

in Ramadi.

It has only just begun.

There will be more fighting as soldiers prepare to move

to tougher battlefields.

As Islamic State loses control in parts of Iraq and Syria,

it is widening its influence in other areas.

IS is recruiting across the mainly Muslim North Caucuses in Russia.

As many as 500 have joined the ranks from Chechnya alone.

Religious leaders there call IS the Devil's army.

As Sarah Rainsford reports, Moscow fears that Chechens

lured by IS to the war in Syria

could bring the fight back home to Russia.

They are preaching a new message in Chechnya about the dangers

of so-called Islamic State.

Religious leaders here call it the Devil's army.

Nothing to do with true Islam.

IS has lured hundreds of Chechens to Syria so far.

by its brutality.

Like many, he was recruited online, drawn in gradually with talk

TRANSLATION: The idea became so appealing,

It was like I was under hypnosis. became so appealing,

They persuaded me this was the whole meaning of life.

That tjere is no other path than to die for the right

of my religion and those who are oppressed.

They messed with my head so much I did not listen to anyone else.

My parents, my wife, no one.

As we talk, his electronic tag goes off.

He has already served a prison sentence but the police still keep

tabs on him.

52 people have left to fight in Syria so far

from his neighbourhood alone.

It is the latest phase in an Islamist insurgency

that emerged after the brutal Chechen separatist war.

This woman thought her sons were off to Europe

to look for work.

And then her son called from Syria and said his brother had been killed

in the fighting.

TRANSLATION: If I had known I would have tied them up,

told the police, done anything to stop them, she says.

But she saw no warning signs.

This is one way Chechnya's leader deals with the

threat.

Here this man publicly berates men he says were recruiting

for IS.

And then their parents join in.

His security forces are accused of using more brutal methods.

Human rights groups warn that is helping

to radicalise people.

Now local insurgents have pledged allegiance

to IS.

The peace here is still fragile.

Chechnya wants to put war and violence behind it

but the battle against extremism goes on and

now there is a new threat for the so-called Islamic State.

It is managing to lure people from here to

join ranks in Syria and the fear is they will bring

the fight back home.

So at the Central Mosque here, they are keeping a close eye

on those at prayers.

Any hint of radicalism is reported but religious leaders admit

that countering IS recruitment methods is tough.

TRANSLATION: They are good psychologists.

They know how to approach people who feel that

no one listens or has time for them.

They listen to their views and sympathise and approve.

So the young person sees whoever is behind

the computer screen as a friend and comrade and he is recruited.

It is a battle for minds.

And Chechnya is once again on the front line.

If you want to save lives make it harder to buy guns,

that was President Obama's message to the American people this week

as he announced tighter control on gun

ownership.

The president who is enforcing most of the new rules

without the approval of Congress, was in tears

during the announcement.

He said while it was not possible to do anything about the last mass

shooting, it was his duty to try to prevent the next one.

John Sopel visited a gun show in Virginia and found gun control

remains one of the most divisive issues in American society.

Any guns on you today?

The first gun show of the year and people from all walks

of life are buying weapons and accessories in this

multibillion-dollar American industry.

Why have you brought your gun?

I am here to buy a laser sight for my gun.

What are the dangers you think are out there?

It seems like public events of terror and things

like that are on the rise.

I am often with my small children.

I think I would feel more secure if I

had a means of defending myself and my children in a situation.

All tastes are catered for.

Fetching pink rifles - presumably for women,

through to shotguns and revolvers, some

for self defence, some for hunting and others,

one can only guess.

Can I ask what this weapon is?

What is it for?

INAUDIBLE.

A short barrel gun.

Thank you.

You can get everything on sale here.

In America, where the right to bear arms is ingrained

in the Constitution, any moves by the President

to tighten the rules will be fiercely resisted.

It will only make crime worse.

It will make terrorism worse in this country.

It will only help the terrorist.

Nearly all the dealers at the show are registered which means

if you want to walk out with a hunting

rifle like this you would need to complete this Department

of Justice form and if it comes back clear, ten

minutes later, you can walk out with a rifle and as much ammunition

as you can carry.

But if you're a small non-registered dealer

like John Algood, there are no background checks required

whatsoever, the so-called gun show loophole.

If I wanted to buy this rifle from you, this fine black rifle

for $400, can I just walk out with it if I give you the money?

If you give me the money and show me your driver's licence

to prove that you are a Maryland resident, I can sell it to you.

I would ask you one simple question.

Are you a convicted felon, or is there any reason, legally,

that you cannot own that gun?

I say to you, no reason whatsoever?

No reason whatsoever, I would sell it to you,

and at the same token, you could lie to me, couldn't you?

There is no way I would know.

Mr Algood, like the president, thinks that is mad.

But in America, guns are seen as symbols of freedom and liberty,

an intrinsic component to national identity,

and it is part of the national psyche from an early age.

Look at this giant gun.

Jon Sopel, BBC News, at the Nation's Gun Show.

It was not only President Obama who shed tears this week

over government policy.

Sweden's Deputy Prime Minister cried as her country,

one of the most welcoming in Europe to refugees,

announced it was introducing new border controls.

The new measures mean the Oresund Bridge, the crossing

between Sweden and Denmark, made famous by the TV crime drama

The Bridge, will no longer be open for business as usual,

and as Jenny Hill reports, the decision has caused

unease in Sweden.

This is a country which likes to get on with its neighbours.

Sweden's Oresund Bridge is a link to Denmark and an open door

to the rest of Europe.

Not any more.

For the first time in 50 years, there are controls at the border.

Trains re-routed, commuters delayed, refugees turned away.

No-one without a passport gets in.

And here is why.

160,000 refugees arrived last year.

Sweden is running out of room.

This tent city was hastily built just a few weeks ago.

These tents are usually destined for disaster zones overseas.

Right now, Sweden is having to use them to deal with the crisis right

here on its own doorstep.

This is one of the most welcoming countries in Europe

when it comes to refugees, but that is starting to change.

Who knows what that means for Javid?

He hopes his wife and children will join him from Afghanistan.

Sweden, he tells us, has been good to him.

There is too much cold.

But they give us heaters and everything, gloves and shoes.

So people have given you clothes?

Yeah, yeah.

The border controls are said to be temporary.

Some fear they will do permanent damage.

This, after all, is supposed to be the Schengen Zone,

where European citizens have the right to borderless travel.

No wonder, perhaps, the country's Deputy Prime Minister shed tears

as the decision was announced, a decision she went

on to describe as terrible.

It has gone down badly here, too.

The people we met in this Malmo coffee shop told us they have

friends, jobs, even homes just across the bridge in Copenhagen.

I actually had a nightmare the other day that I went to Copenhagen

for shopping and I did not have any ID or passport and I was, like,

how am I supposed to come home?

I think we're going in the wrong direction.

I think that we probably should be more into the soul of Sweden and be

more welcoming, because I do not think the way we are handling

the situation right now is the way to do it.

As Sweden struggles with its decision, the refugee

crisis continues to divide Europe, exposing its borders,

perhaps even changing its horizons.

Jenny Hill, BBC News, Malmo.

They have existed for more than 50 million years, but now Africa's

rhinos could face extinction.

South Africa has the largest population of the species

in the world but their very existence is under threat

from poaching.

Fuelled by the huge demand for their horns in Asia more

than 1,000 rhinos were killed in South Africa's game

reserves last year.

Viewers may find some of the images in the BBC's

Nomsa Maseko's report disturbing.

Another brutal year for the rhino population.

The onslaught has taken a turn for the worst and authorities

There is no indication that rhino poaching is under control here.

At least one rhino is killed by poachers here in South Africa

every day.

That has devastating effects on their population.

One private game farmer lost six rhinos in just the last three years.

The animals were slaughtered for their horns, which are used

in traditional Asian medicine and regarded as a status symbol.

The horn is worth more than the animal, even more

than an ounce of gold, and there are fears that the rhino

could be extinct within ten years.

I think there is a very real chance that the only place our children

will see a rhino is in a zoo.

Unless something changes quite dramatically.

Unfortunately, all the efforts that are on the table now from demand

reduction to better global law enforcement to community projects,

are long-term projects, these are not things that can

be solved overnight.

There are no easy answers or solutions.

Private rhino owners are setting up security groups

to tackle the problem.

The Black Mambas anti-poaching unit is an all-female team which patrols

private game reserves.

Barely an hour patrolling with the Black Mambas and we have

been set up by poachers.

This may be a small group for now, but it is hoped that their eyes

and ears will play a powerful role in anti-rhino poaching.

What I'm here to teach you about is...

conservation in the hope that the next generation will take

conservation seriously for the sake of the environment and the economy.

The most vulnerable victims of poaching are rhino calves.

Humans play the surrogate parents. of poaching are rhino calves.

The calves which have been brought here usually witness their mothers

They all come in traumatised, shaken up, they have

lost their mothers, they have been betrayed by our species, humans,

This three-month old sets out on his morning walk with the one

person that he trusts.

For now, he is protected, but once released back

into the wild, his safety is not guaranteed.

Now, it is the only time of year when people hope what happens

in Vegas does not stay there.

The Consumer Electronics Show was in town, and the big names

in technology were showing off their latest creations.

Rory Cellan-Jones went along to take a look and found friendly robots

are the latest big thing.

Is this the year you get a robot for your home?

In Japan, 7,000 people have already ordered Pepper, a robot

which is a companion offering a hug or a high five, rather

than a purely practical device.

For us, the robot is very different from the other digital devices,

because the way you interact with it is very natural,

there is no keyboard, no screen that you touch.

This is Buddy, another robot interacting with humans in Las

Vegas.

As well as following you around and looking cute, this robot,

due to go on sale later this year, does have some practical uses.

When you're out of the house, Buddy can act as a night watchman,

watching out for strangers like me turning up.

Virtual reality is another big theme here with all sorts of VR

headsets on show.

This one combines the real and virtual worlds so you can

see your fingers and use them to spin the Earth around.

It is all very well having these wonderful new gadgets

but they all need power.

My phone is down at 7% right now and anyone with a smartphone knows

it is hard to get through the day without a charge but one British

firm thinks it has got the answer.

Intelligent Energy is developing fuel cells to power

all sorts of devices.

This prototype is for a smartphone and keeps it charged for a week.

It is bulky now but could be built into the phone one day,

and the firm says visitors to the show could see a big change

for the better.

They will never have to plug into the wall once.

They will have a device that will be charged and powered for the whole

week while they are here at CES.

You're saying that is a realistic prospect within the next five years?

Most definitely, it is inevitable.

This electric concept car, developed by a Californian firm

with Chinese money, is one product that will never go on sale,

but at this show, motoring is yet another industry that the technology

firms think they can transform.

Rory Cellan-Jones, BBC News, Las Vegas.

Finally, the biggest TV shows in South Korea are about cooking

and the stars are men.

A lot has changed in the last few years.

Male dominated kitchens would traditionally have been taboo.

Stephen Evans has been finding out if more men in the kitchen has

brought about changes for the South Korean women.

Turn on the TV in South Korea and all you see these days is men

in the kitchen.

Zap through the channels and male celebrity chefs

dominate the ratings.

Sam Kim is a star in the studio, and in his own restaurant.

You want to spend your time with your family.

Everyone wants to come to see me and wants to take

a picture together.

Even if you do house chores, to go outside to empty the trash,

everyone wants me.

The rise of male cooking shows how this very traditional

country is changing fast.

This is a cooking competition for men.

This man is 65.

He had a spell working abroad while his family stayed home

in Korea, so he did what his father never did, he learned to cook.

In the past in Korea, men or boys cannot approach

the kitchen, and they do not know how to cook.

Men cannot live without a wife.

It was a big surprise when I heard he started cooking classes in here.

It was a very big surprise and I was very delighted

to hear that.

Is he a good cook?

Yes, I was really surprised.

He is a really good cook.

Men in aprons is one sign of changing gender roles.

As South Korea modernises, traditional ideas of what men should

do and what women should do are changing, gradually.

Men, what a performance, always cooking the big meal

for the special occasion.

I wonder if these guys ever do the cooking at home.

While the men completed the cooking, the women stayed next door looking

after the children.

Young women now get jobs and work just as much as men,

but the figures show that when they reach 30, they leave

work to have children.

More men in the kitchen does not yet mean more women in top

jobs in business.

Stephen Evans, BBC News, South Korea.

And that is all from Reporters for this week.

From me, Tim Willcox, and the whole team in London,

goodbye for now.