Announcer this is a special edition of nightline. War on isis retaking raqqa. Good evening. Thank you for joining us. Tonight were taking you to the last stronghold of isis in syria where u. S. Backed forces are battling to retake raqqa. The citys fall would be a major defeat for the extremists trying to incite violence around the world, and the stakes couldnt be higher. Abcs ian pannell takes us into the streets where the war is raging from building to building and death is always just seconds away. Reporter one shot, one bullet, one kill. Perched on a rooftop in raqqa, an american man with isis in the crosshairs. This isnt really a mission of vengeance. Thats a dirty word. But this is more like justice. Reporter and somewhere on the streets below a fellow fighter, a syrian woman on a mission to reclaim her homeland. Translator if there is no determination on the ground, there will be no progress. Were moving forward. With the fighters of the ypg. These are the fighters of the u. S. Coalition working with. They are the foot soldiers. Were moving up to their forward base. Reporter two strangers bonded in a battle of the ages against the death cult that is isis. What began as a Popular Uprising against the assad regime in syria rapidly descended into a bloody civil war, allowing isis to move in. They named raqqa the capital of their caliphate. A darkness descended here, unleashing a frenzy of barbarism that shocked the world. But finally, last month americas allies breached the city walls, giving this volunteer army hope that the fall of isis is now within their reach. Our journey to raqqa began hundreds of miles away. Weve just left iraqi territory. Were going over the river. And syrias on the other side. Personally, this is kind of a big movement. I havent been able to get back into syria since 2014. That was partly because of the threat from isis. But now their territorys being diminished. The fight is being taken to them. And finally were able to go back and report on whats going on in the country. Reporter the Syrian Desert is a vast desolate landscape untouched by time where bedouin tribesmen tend their flocks as theyve done forever. A land worn down by sand, scrub, and now this war. This land and its people is steeped in tales of sacrifice. And every day the country bears witness to the suffering the war on isis has unleashed. They cry shaheed. That means martyr. On this day four soldiers were buried in one town alone. Arab and kurd all killed on the fr front line in raqqa against isis. These scenes have been repeated day after day across the north of the country. It underlines the amount of sacrifice people are having to make. This community of kurds and arabs and ethnic christian groups has done most of the fighting and most of the dying here. The flags of their forces are held aloft as symbols of pride and independence. But the suffering is real. In the cemetery we saw the mother of a child soldier. Mahmoud had lied about his age to join the war. He was just 13. Childhood ends early here, and the young must learn quickly how to grieve. Nedas just lost her father. Without blinking she vows to take up arms and avenge her father. Its a promise that may not be far off. Sosda bauer is our guys. For people whove never seen syria before, where are we and why are we going here . Translator were heading to our position on the front line to protect our people from isis and to liberate the land. Reporter she joined an all female fighting force straight out of high school. Around the world women fight for the same rights, the same pay. But in raqqa they fight isis. In a community that honors sexual equality sozda leads the band of young kurdish fighters. Translator you cant capture an entire neighborhood at once. You must go house by house. There are mines and snipers. But we are still advancing. Reporter there are no vast armies here unlike the fight against ice nis iraq. And in streets and alleys in raqqa sozda and her troops run the gauntlet of isis snipers. Were out of breath here. What the soldier here is saying is because snipers have been targeting the route you have to run in this exact fashion. Its like 200, 250 yards long. And look how lightly armed they are. No tanks, no humvees, not even body armor. The u. S. Is sending some vehicles and guns. I noticed youve got some homemade bombs here. Is that because youre not getting enough supplies, enough weapons from the u. S. Led coalition . Translator its true they are sending us weapons, but its way less than we need for the big battles we are fighting. Reporter but this is what theyre up against. Wellarmed isis militants in raqqa, filmed in a propaganda video, tried and tested in urban warfare. Sozdar and her volunteer force often have just bravery and belief to protect them. Your morale is high. Because you feel that youre winning against on the other side of the city the american sniper known locally as christian, stalking his prey. [ gunshot ] its just harassing fire. They do it to us. We do it to them. Its just like just. Its back and forth. Occasionally we get lucky. We kill each other. Reporter a volunteer from california, he came here on his own to take on the extremists. How close is isis . See the bombedout building right there . Yeah. Like four, five stories high. Beyond that. Just on the other side . Yeah. Reporter and this is his motivation. Manchester. Reporter the names of attacks isis has claimed in america and europe. Orlando, paris. Reporter engraved on his bullets. That just speaks volumes in and of itself. Yeah. What chance did they have . None. So justice for them. Reporter but the risks here are immense. Putting his life on the line with every step. Hed been fighting in a christian unit. Seen here in their own propaganda video. No part of you thats scared, nervous, anxious at any point . No. Not really. I came here for this. You know . This is the final standup fight between us and them. Reporter his unit is part of the local forces americas working with, a multiethnic coalition formed to take down isis. We have people from syria. On the right we have christian here. And then over on the left we have mesa whos from great britain. Reporter mesa, another volunteer. The fighting is all in this area. Reporter hes been here fighting for the cause for three years now. Do you ever have those moments where you think what on earth am i doing here . Those moments of sheer terror. Yes. Theres been a few occasions. Ive never really doubted the morality of what imery persona. I believe in democracy. And i believe in the people of syria. Reporter fighting to defeat isis but also to preseethmiddlet thats facing extinction. What is your message to america . I need just one thing. We need the christian and american, all people in america believe in the christian here. Reporter you need their help . Yeah. Reporter without the power of an army behind them the going is as slow as it is dangerous. Progress. Just weeks ago this building was still held by isis, a makeshift mosque. You can see here on the wall this is the flag of isis here. Here is an extract of poetry. And then if we go through here reporter remnants of the religion distorted to fuel their fight. We just have a look here. Sorry, guys. Reporter and evidence of what it took to keep them going. You can see the needle there. And there are a whole bunch of vials. This is diazepam. Its normally used to calm people down. Also used to treat pain. Its also evidence that isis was really up against it here. They felt the need to inject themselves, whether it was to calm themselves down, whether it was to treat pain, but its a sign of how much pressure they were under. Reporter men and women have spent years on the front lines in a war that offers no rest, no respite. Im not on a mission to like murder anyone. We just defend to help these people. But if a member of isis was in this room right now with all of us, what chance would he give you or you or me . None. Reporter when we come back, we meet the brides of isis and the countless families now caught in the crossfire. And one soldier paying the ultima y moderate to severe crohns disease,. I kept looking for ways to manage my symptoms. I thought i was doing okay. Then it hit me. Managing was all i was doing. When i told my doctor,. I learned humira is for people who still have symptoms of moderate to severe crohns disease. Even after trying other medications. In clinical studies,. The majority of people on humira. Saw significant symptom relief. And many achieved remission. Humira can lower your ability. To fight infections, including tuberculosis. 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Islamic state of iraq and syria. Theyre setting up checkpoints. And the worst thing about driving around is youre never sure what lies around the next corner. Reporter civilians have had to face this kind of fear every single day for the last four years. Since this war began millions of syrians have fled into neighboring countries and further, to europe. Creating one of the biggest humanitarian crises of this century. And the exodus continues. This is a camp outside raqqa. Where families come for aid. Homeless, hungry, and afraid. Just take a look at these people here. All of them have lost their homes, and dthis is what theyr theyre left with. After days on the road they have just this to eat, some tomatoes, chilies, a little bit of falafel. All of them have a single bag of possessions. They dont know what the future holds. Fathers, brothers, husbands. So many have gone. Hayams son fled isis only to be captured by the regime. What the ladys saying is this is her son. He had fled the city to get away from isis and was captured by the syrian regime. Hes now in sednaya prison, notorious for abuse, torture and worse. But even those who made it to safety are angry at years of occupation and oppression. What is your message to everyone whos fighting in this country . To the syrian regime, to isis, to the americans, to the coalition. What do you want them to do . Reporter the u. S. Led air campaign uses drones and warplanes to target isis, but the militants often hide among civilians. Human Rights Groups say ongoing air strikes in iraq and syria have taken the lives of thousands of innocents. This is what liberation from the hell of isis looks like for some. Desperate to shed any reminder of their oppression. For men that means cutting beards they had to grow long. For women its burning clothes they were forced to wear. But not everyone in this camp is now free. Inside the camp theres a separate section for isis brides. As we approach, we see a convoy of intelligence agents here to question them. These are the women who came to syria to marry the militants. You were born there . In bayern, munich . Landzot. Reporter they were hesitant to speak with us at first. This is okay. Reporter nadia was born in germany and traveled to syria to marry a marine she met on facebook. He was an isis fighter. People at home, they will look at you and say why did you come to syria . Why did you marry an isis fighter . Reporter she says her family drove her away after forcing her into an arranged marriage, so she was looking for a way out. I make a big mistake. Reporter she claims she didnt know what isis was or how brutal it could be. You must have seen they were cutting peoples heads off, they were killing people. No, no, no. I dont see anything. I stay only at home. I dont i dont have real friends. I am only a housewife. I have three babies. I am a reporter like many isis brides her future and her childrens future are in limbo. Her babies have no passports. This war has so many victims. People like christian and sozdan are fighters driven to be on the front lines in what they see as a virtuous struggle. And the stakes are too great now to quit. What happens when this war against isis is over . Do you see a time of peace . Translator yes. I believe there will be peace soon. Reporter sozdan was willing to sacrifice everything for that peace, and in the end she did. Just hours after we left her on the streets of raqqa, sozdar was killed with nine of her comrades. Another day, another funeral. Grief upon grief. But this time its sozdars face on the coffin. Sometimes bravery alone isnt enough. Remember the name sozdar. Shes been fighting isis for her homeland and for america. For Nightline Ian Pannell in raqqa, syria. Sometimes bravery alone is not enough. Profound sentiment. 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And as always, were online at abcnews. Com and our Nightline Facebook page. Thanks for the company, america. Good night. Welcome, everybody. Its a very special day here at the show because our contestants arent just here to get rich; theyre trying to win enough cash to send a special person in their life on an amazing vacation that they very much need and deserve. So stay right where you are. From ballys las vegas, its getaway week on who wants to be a millionaire. [dramatic music] [cheers and applause] welcome to the show. It is getaway week here on who wants to be a millionaire. [cheers and applause] todays returning contestant is a registered nurse and veteran of the u. S. Air force who is here on getaway week to thank her best friend for always standing by her side. From glendale, arizona, please welcome back barb hudak. [cheers and applause] welcome back, barb. Thank you. [dramatic music] [cheers and applause] welcome back. Youre in the middle of a great game, and actually, its a great place to be in the game because youre at that threshold. You just won your getaway for your friend. Yes, yes. Exciting. Got it. So thats in the bag. Congratulations on that. Thank you. So you served our country in the air force. I did. Thank you very much. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. [cheers and applause] youre at 5,000. That money is safe. What are you thinking about doing with the money . So the money, when i get the million, im gonna set up a part iik