How private companies recruit former child soldiers for military operations in Iraq, Afghanistan and elsewhere. From opportunistic guns for hire on the fringe of domestic conflicts to a global force operating within a multibillion-dollar industry - the private military sector seems to be flourishing. As armies and war increasingly become 'outsourced', private military companies have taken on a wider increasing range of responsibilities, from security and intelligence analysis to training and combat roles. "The private military industry is a part of how the countries fight wars today ... The US government doesn't track the number of contractors used in places like Iraq or Afghanistan. We know it's a lot, we don't know exactly how many," says Sean McFate, a professor at Georgetown University who used to work for a private military company.
A four-part series that reveals how a secret pact formed a cartel that controls the world's oil.
A series on the Palestinian 'catastrophe' of 1948 that led to dispossession and conflict that still endures.
We meet an extended family of immigrants from Somaliland and discover how they now live in six different countries.
More than a decade ago the US launched a war against Afghanistan, but was it a justified battle?
Dr Lansine Kaba, a leading historian on Africa, discusses the status of French-African relations today.
Two years after the revolution, the dramatic turns in the country raise questions about democracy and dictatorship.
Forty years on, we explore the story of what Egyptians call the October War and Israelis the Yom Kippur War of 1973.
In this two-part series we meet an extended family of immigrants navigating their lives in six different countries.
Who was the man behind the legend? We get an insight into Nelson Mandela's life through the eyes of people who knew him
An award-wining series tracks personal journeys of a diverse range of children who were born in apartheid South Africa.
This series explores the dark and dramatic history of France's relationships with its former African colonies.
After several years of war Al Jazeera looks at what is left of the Syrian state.
An inside look at the US Federal Reserve, the most powerful - and least understood - financial institution on earth.
The story of Count Folke Bernadotte of Sweden and how he rescued concentration camp inmates from Germany during WWII.
An investigation into the role of one of the most influential banks in the world.
A four-part series that gives a rare insight into the country on the move, with history in tow.
A three-part series looking at the history of France's black community and their long struggle for recognition.
A powerful film with exclusive footage from the day of the Israeli assault on the densely populated Shujayea district.
Since the start of the latest Israeli offensive, Palestinians ponder how they will be able to rebuild their lives.
As censorship increases worldwide, journalists are being attacked, kidnapped and even killed for exposing the truth.
What challenges have generations of immigrants faced in a country torn between secularism and religious diversity?
We examine the events over the past years that have led to the current crisis.
We find out what happens when a war is waged on a besieged area, where half of the population is below the age 18.
Filmmaker Michal Przedlacki talks about the issues behind his film and his time in Aleppo.
With bombs exploding and under sniper fire, we trace the lives of ordinary people in war-torn Syria.
Forty years on, Al Jazeera examines three weeks of war from which both Arabs and Israelis claimed to emerge victorious.
Al Jazeera investigates the shocking truth behind a deadly Israeli attack on a US naval vessel.
When big pharma blocks essential HIV/AIDS medication to the third world, it is the poor who suffer.
One hundred years after the Ottomans joined the war, this three-part series tells the story from an Arab perspective.
Cameraman Yasser al-Jumaili's unseen footage takes us into the lives of Syrian rebels – but he pays the ultimate price.
An insight into a girls' school in Afghanistan which imposes an even stricter interpretation of Islam than the Taliban.
Mexico may be hitting the perfect storm when it opens its energy resources to foreign investors.
The untold story of how the Lebanese community overcame the odds and found their place in multicultural Australia.
A special series of prison documentaries from life on the inside to adjusting to life on the outside.
From democracy to the market - we examine the devastating impact of the Greek financial crisis on ordinary citizens.
This five-part series follows 12-year-old Marappa, a former street kid, on his quest to find his missing sister.
Portraits of four individuals who are fighting against the odds to succeed and give back to their African communities.
The devastating impact that war and living under the constant threat of drones has had on the people of Afghanistan.
We explore how US foreign policy in the Middle East is driving the media's negative portrayals of Arabs and Muslims.
Al Jazeera explores the origins and evolution of the world's most feared and powerful insurgent group - ISIL.
Al Jazeera gains unprecedented access to ISIL's central leadership and explores the threat it poses to the Taliban.
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Can a 'green' economy save the planet? We investigate the buying and selling of nature.
We follow one man's astounding undercover crusade to expose judicial corruption in Ghana.
Peru's chief drug prosecutor is profiled as she takes on an inventive and ruthless enemy, the cocaine trade.
Can a 700km wall along the Kenya-Somalia border stop al-Shabab attacks? We investigate the threat of the armed group.
Bolivia fights to maintain its traditional use of the coca leaf as drug trafficking threatens national customs.
How a group of men from China's Uighur community were sold in Afghanistan and imprisoned in Guantanamo as terrorists.
A couple working to protect LA communities from gang violence is caught in the crossfire of the US war on gangs.
An in-depth look at the most famous whistleblowers of the 21st century and what drives them to speak out.
From drone operators to strike victims, we examine the impact of remote-controlled killing and the future of warfare.
How 18 cows became Israel's most wanted fugitives and symbols of Palestinian resistance.
The story behind the world's newest and potentially most powerful currency.
In this Al Jazeera Special, we look at the key issues ahead of Thursday's vote that could shape the future of Europe.
A story of blackmail, conspiracy, courage and fear. We follow the Italian judge trying to take on the mafia.
We investigate a secret order that allowed Israel's army to kill Palestinian civilians to stop the capture of a soldier.
The little-known story of secret negotiations between the Taliban and the US to build a pipeline through Afghanistan.
Harrowing insight into the rise and fall of one of the world's most cruel dictators, former Chadian President Habre.
A look at the invisible weapon of Bashar al-Assad's regime: the kidnapping and torture of tens of thousands of Syrians.
A look at the powerful pesticide industry, its effect on the developing world and how small farmers are fighting back.
Meet the evidence hunters risking it all to collect and document evidence of war crimes committed during Syria's war.
A look at the life and legacy of Thailand's King Bhumibol and the challenges facing his successor.
As Colombia's president receives the 2016 Nobel Peace Prize, he discusses the FARC peace deal and challenges ahead.
An investigation into the origins and ideology of the rebel group and its bloody rise.
An inside look at how world leaders and the American public were duped into a war that cost thousands of lives.
The story of Canada's residential school system and the indigenous survivors who bear witness to its abuses.
We tell the story of Mouawiya Syasneh, the boy whose anti-Assad graffiti lit the spark that engulfed Syria.
Philosopher Srecko Horvat looks at Europe's identity crisis and asks if the continent is colonising itself.
A look at the information wars waged by Israel and its supporters to win the hearts and minds of the American people.
We investigate the clandestine world of art and antiquities trafficking.
Exclusive access to a police station in India run by women for women reveals a unique perspective on a changing society.
A six-part series on Wukan, the Chinese fishing village which in 2012 held its first democratic elections in decades.
An investigation into the financial, political and ethical implications of performance-enhancing drugs.
How private companies recruit former child soldiers for military operations in Iraq, Afghanistan and elsewhere.
'War on terror' or competition for natural resources? A look at the US and French military presence in Africa.
Thousands of ISIL fighters are training in the mountains of Afghanistan, plotting an attack on the Kremlin.
A look into the global economic system, focusing on the role of debt and Europe's debt crisis spiraling out of control.
The June 1967 Arab-Israeli war lasted only six days but its consequences are still felt across the Middle East today.
An insider's view of Romania's fierce fight against corruption and for radical change.
How a genocide survivor in Bosnia and his years-long search for human bones continues to inspire hope.
An investigation into the deadly health and environmental costs of the electronics industry.
After years of waging war overseas, US veterans returning to civilian life struggle with PTSD, homelessness, addiction.
What is the legacy of Iran's Islamic revolution and how does it affect Iranian society more than three decades later?
Al Jazeera spoke to those who knew the man behind the 1979 Iranian revolution that shook the world.
We follow ousted President Marc Ravalomanana as he tries to win back power amid political intrigue and foreign interest.
Journalist John Pilger on how the world's greatest military power, the US, may well be on the road to war with China.
Al Jazeera's exclusive interview with the director of the anti-nuclear campaign that won the Nobel Peace Prize.
From Mumbai to Tangier, Dubai to the Maldives, this investigation bares an emergency: the world's sand is disappearing.
Underprivileged Indian students compete for a place on a life-changing scheme to get into a prestigious IT academy.
Star pupils begin to emerge in Super 30; a life-changing scheme to beat the odds of a poor upbringing.
A look at the effect of the GCC crisis and how it's affecting life in Qatar - from family ties, to business, to art.
Through the eyes of a Libyan-born filmmaker, we explore the dark stories that emerged from Libya during the 2011 revolt.
Is water a commodity or a human right? Cities across Europe are fighting water privatisation.
A look into the complex world of ocean bed ownership and how nations are vying for their own piece of the puzzle.
Big data politics and how the American public was tricked into opening the doors of the White House to Donald Trump.
In 1967, at the height of the Arab-Israeli Six-Day War, the Israeli Air Force launched an unprovoked attack on the USS Liberty, a US Navy spy ship that was monitoring the conflict from the safety of international waters in the Mediterranean. Israeli jet fighters hit the vessel with rockets, cannon fire and napalm, before three Israeli torpedo boats moved in to launch a second more devastating attack. Though she did not sink, the Liberty was badly damaged. Thirty-four US servicemen and civilian analysts were killed, another 171 were wounded. Later Israel apologized for what it claimed to be a tragic case of mistaken identity. It said that it had believed the ship to be hostile Egyptian naval vessel. US President Lyndon Johnson was privately furious but publicly the White House chose not to challenge the word of its closest Middle East ally and accepted that the attack had been a catastrophic accident. However, as this exclusive Al Jazeera investigation reveals, fresh evidence throws new light on exactly what happened that fateful day - and the remarkable cover up that followed.
Murder is the leading cause of work-related deaths for journalists as censorship increases worldwide. Journalists have been killed, attacked, kidnapped, or forced into exile because of their coverage of war, crime and corruption. In 2006, UN resolution 1738, which demanded greater safety for journalists in conflict areas, was passed. Since then, over 600 news media workers have been killed, while more have been imprisoned or disappeared while on the job. Countless others have been intimidated into self-censorship or have gone into exile. Journalists reporting from Mexico, Russia and the conflict zones of Iraq, Afghanistan and Syria tell their personal stories of kidnapping, intimidation, and beatings. They have experienced the loss of colleagues in the field and have been close to death themselves. Killing the Messenger features exclusive, first-hand accounts of journalists who have faced dire consequences in their pursuit of the news. http://www.aljazeera.com/programmes/specialseries/2014/07/killing-messenger-201478101852958418.html