bigger than just ferguson or michael brown. they're fighting to change a system that they say is stacked against them from birth. >> you hello, welcome to the news hour. jane dutton in had a. doha. coming up in the program. >> you will find no safe haven. we'll find you eventually. >> president obama rules out using ground troops.

ending libya's political crisis but some important players with missing in a conference in spain. d-day minus one. the final day of campaigning in scotland ahead of the referendum on independence. >> we'll find out why these indian students are speaking to speak mandarin. >> which begin with breaking news out of israel. the number two to benjamin netanyahu's party said he's leaving for personal reasons but some observers believe he has been forced out by netanyahu. u.s. president barack obama reaffirms he does not intend to send american ground troops to islamic state in iraq and the

levant. he said under certain circumstances u.s. ground forces may be needed. obama has been talking to u.s. troops at the central command. we have more from washington, d.c. >> reporter: the obama administration keeps trying to highlight the coalition that will take part in iraq, but he has been very unclear about who does what. when it comes to airstrikes he could only mention two other countries in his speech in tampa, florida. other critics have been telling the obama administration that unless arab countries take part in the airstrike that is a strategy that will not work. he has announced a frontman who will try to make that happen. >> i met with retired marine general john allen. he worked with tribal leaders who worked to free themselves from terrorists and he will build and coordinate this

coalition. >> reporter: commander john allen will try to ge talk with the sunni tribes and bring more allies on board. >> curdist forces fighting isil say they need help in stopping the advance of the group. peshmerga struggle to hold ground. there are reports that 12 civilians have been killed in fallujah after heavy shelling and airstrikes. >> reporter: i've just come back from the front line just ten kilometers from the border crossing between syria and mosul city. the kurdish forces there are saying they don't have the ammunition or the weapons to hold the line much longer.

they say they need boots on the ground to help them fight the battle. but in the south of the city of tikrit there is one airstrike mission completed. over 20 isil fighters were killed in a bombing attack in tikrit city center. in retaliation we hear reports that the citadel has been blown up in the city center by isil fighters. one of the explosion west of ramadi, a suicide-bomber blew up a truck killing seven people. >> professor of middle east history at the university of michigan, thank you for joining us. let's talk about john allen, he has experience in leading iraqi tribes. how important is it to get them on side?

>> well, it's symbolically important to not make this look like an attack on sunni arabs. they'll help with the image. frankly the most people in northern and western iraq are urban, and it's the urban leadership that needs to be brought over. >> what we're seeing is the u.s. taking the lead. how important is it for regional countries to be seen shouldering that burden? >> well, it's extremely important psychologically. this must not look like shia-ruled bag died is aligned foreign powers and kurds to attack sunni arabs in the north and west of iraq. it has to be seen as the sunni arab world replying to a brutal

organization, the islamic state in iraq and the levant. it's clear that surrounding countries are contributing to the actual war effort. >> there is reluctant to talk about what the strategy is going to be regarding syria in particular. how important to you think it was that we saw on tuesday the iraqi minister sitting with bashar al-assad? what are the conversation they're having there, and where does this leave iran? there is a two-stage process. what we've heard from the foreign minister a few days ago is that the syrian regime has rethought this thing and doesn't mind. if the west wants to bomb the islamic state group positions in raqqa, in eastern syria, they

see that as to the benefit of the regime, and probably the iraqis are intermediataries in negotiating these things because the syrian anti-aircraft will have to stand down. however, what happens if the islamic state group is substantially weakened over the next couple of years, and then the u.s. has pledged to back the free syrian army, which is try to overthrow bashar al-assad. suddenly they would switch around from being de facto allies to daggers drawn, and there would be another russian russian-american proxy war in syria. so the intervention in syria is very serious. >> indeed. thank you for talking us through some of the complexities. >> diplomats from more than a dozen countries as well as the u.n. and the arab league have met in madrid to try to find a solution to the political crisis in libya. right now there are two competing governments that claim

control of the country. but they invited representatives for any one of those governments. the one they back. we also understand that the prime minister of that government has announced a new crisis cabinet. the united nations said that libya is on the brink of a civil strife. >> those groups want to destroy legitimacy they want the fighting to continue. the situation is creating new enemies between the tribes and increasing desire for revenge and create division rather than unity. >> a spokesman says things differently. referring to an agreement in egypt, they had this to say. >> the agreement draft is a severe violation to the sovereignty to the libyan state and pose as threat to the libyan national security. it opens the way for foreign

interference. succeedly they have no power to conclude any agreement of that kind because a strategic power needs to be done by the permanent government. >> reporter: the one clear message that came out of this conference is that they put their weight firmly behind the libyan government. libya, of course, had two governments and also the absence of the opposition government based in tripoli is something that will throw the effectiveness, whatever this road map is that they're talking about into question. when i asked the libyan foreign minister, how they plan to achieve this because it's very clear that the government in tripoli has no intention to give up power. they'll try to impose an ideology on the libyan people that is foreign to them, and they're not used to any

extremism. the legitimate government should be the only one that has the use of force. certainly the road map they spoke about, they didn't really layout how that would evolve. they talked about disarmament, but how they're going to do that where hundreds of thousands of men are heavily armed, wasn't clear. but what was clear any resolution to libyan's problems will have to come from libyans. when politicians and tribal leaders sit at the same table is when the problems in libya can begin to be resolved. >> let's go back to the minister stepping down. why is hey gone? >> reporter: he's not really

giving reasons yet. he wants time out from political life. he said that maybe he would even get to do stuff that he would enjoy, and he wants to take on various other challenges. he didn't get into the reason. of course, what we know there has been some differences within the cabinet in the past few months. not all of them are directly linked to the israel military operation in gaza. we do know that this interior minister is from netanyahu's party. netanyahu has come under a lot of pressure recently. right now the debate is over the budget. and there has been even called perhaps for early elections in order to sort out these divisions within the government even though the next election wouldn't be scheduled until next year. so perhaps this resignation, although we don't know the exact reasons because the minister himself did not get into these

reasons, does reflect that there is a crisis within the cabinet, within the government, and it is significant because this minister is from netanyahu's party. >> nisrreen thank you. gunmen storm the college in kano. officials have blamed the attack on the boko haram group, which has been carrying out kidnappings, and suicide-bombings in the north. any more details about what happened and why? >> reporter: well, actually it's not been confirmed that the gunmen are suspected to be from boko haram.

they started fighting with students and one suicide boome suicide-bomber killed 15 students there. one of the suicide-bombers was struck by the police as he tries to flee. but other eyewitnesses are saying that gunmen walked into the compound and started firing, and the two suicide-bombers detonated their devices killing at least 13 students and woun wounding 34 of their fellow students on campus. >> this is disturbing because it's such a repugnant act, but the fact that it's happening in kano. this has been relatively peaceful for a while, hasn't it. >> reporter: absolutely. the last attack was in june, forcing authorities to cancel

celebrations of ramadan. this one is raising fierce within the security community that maybe we are seeing the return of boko haram fight necessary the city after forces had put a lead on the attacks since the beginning of the year. >> reporting from abuja. thank you. shouldering the burden, lebanon hosts the most number of syrian refugees in the area, but at what costs? >> the syrian military is continuing to attack. a dozen people were killed in an air strike in a market outside of damascus. and further north shelling and airstrikes have killed 50 people in the last two days.

these pictures were up loaded up line and cannot be independently verified. amateur videos said to show a young boy being rescued in an apparent bombing in aleppo. this reportedly shows the rescue mission. again, al jazeera cannot independently verify it's authenticity. one-third of lebanon's population is now from syria. the small countries hosting the most number of syrian refugee anywhere else in the ring. it's putting a huge strain on communities. >> reporter: thousands of refugees have been turned back in the recent years. officially the border has not been sealed, but new rules are being implemented, and more strict cry fea criteria will be

enforced soon. they say there is no room to take in any more. >> we've asked the u.n. refugee agency to remove from their list any syrian refugee who visited syria for any reason. >> some people find that they have to go between the two countries. syria still has cheap medical care for chronic diseases, for example. >> if they go, there is no threat of persecution and ther and they lose their refugee. >> reporter: within lebanon for refugee there is threat that is rising and spreading across lebanon, and it's adding to their daily struggles to survive the harsh condition of the refugee site.

>> this father said he might have to sleep on the street with his six children after his landlord threw him out. >> many leib niece have little sympathy after three years of war next door. they blame the 1.3 syrians for their economic and security problems. this woman says security forces raided her home then arrested her four sons and husband. she wants the u.n. to help her find them and release them. the surge of suspected armed fighters hiding among the refugees has intensified recently. people say hundreds of innocent syrians are being detained and questioned. >> where do they want the syrians to go, to return to syria and be held there? will that make them happy? in syria if you're not killed by bullets, you'll die of hunger.

>> desperate they come to the u.n. as a last resort, but they say there is little anyone is doing to pull them out of this misery. >> the high commissioner for refugees joins us now. thank you for joining us. this attack that we're seeing, this growing attack on refugees, obviously a real worry. tell us what your experience is about this. >> first of all, one needs to extremely stress that the people of lebanon have been extremely generous. i don't know any other country in the world who has received so many refugees with such a dramatic impact on the economy, society, not to mention the security of the country. we have this tragic incident with lebanese soldiers that are

kidnapped. it's understandable that there is high anxiety among the lebanese population, and we're working, and discussing with the government how we can at the same time take fully in concern--fully into our concerns the concerns of the lebanese government, with the security of the economy, the country, and at the same time guarantee the level of protection. and for that to be possible the international community needs to be much more generous, lebanon has been to a large extent been left alone. we need massive support of the international community, to the host communities receiving syrians. next week in new york there will be a meeting of international support group with the five members of the security council, with the world bank, with the

other countries, this will be a massive group to support lebanon. if not, the situation will be let go. >> what are you bracing yourself for regarding american airstrikes. the increase of the attacks that we're likely to see in iraq and the impact it's going to have on the refugees. >> it has become a large confrontation. look at lebanon. it's important that lebanon not become the next site of conflict. my appeal to the international

community, as a quantum leap my appeal to the international community is to massively support lebanon and engage strongly in preserving lebanon's situation. >> what happens if they don't take up your challenge? what will happen to the refugees and the countries hosting them? >> we're presenting soon together with the u.n. agencies and the ngo community and the lebanese government a plan to the international community support not only the humanitarian needs, but also the development of structural needs of the local communities, and we hope that the international community will understand that it is absolutely essential to support this plan, and to support the lebanese government in the present situation to make sure that the syrian refugees can preserve their protection in lebanon, and to make sure that

this country is spared to th the conflict that has engulfed now both syria and iraq. >> thank you. >> the final campaigned push is underway in scotland. opinion polls suggest it is a tight race. if the yes campaign wins it will end an union that has lasted for more than 300 years. >> reporter: it is so close and so much to lose, arguebly for those who want to keep the united nations together. >> 81% of the rest of the u.k. would really love scotland to stay in the united kingdom. [ cheering ] >> at this rally in glasgow the city which could be crucial for the results, the man who has run

the much criticized better together campaign insisted that voting no was actually a positive message. >> a vote no is a vote for a stronger parliament with control over key services like health, like education, to make scotland strong, sooner and far better than years of uncertainty that would follow a vote for separation. >> reporter: both sides have said the next generation will feel the effects of this. the independence blocks criticized the lack of detail was suggesting these could be the first adults to be free of the maligned influence of westminster over their lives. >> increasingly people are opting for optimism than negativity, and the recognized

that it is not a magic wand. it does enable us over time to protect our public service, create more jobs and opportunities and get the government we vote for. >> reporter: so many frayed tempers over the politicians this week felt less like a conversation, but it's these people who will have the final say. >> u.k. politics have been changed beyond all recognition because there now exists a fully fledged grassroots independence movement that simply wasn't there a year ago, and it's demanding change entirely outside of the westminster body politics. [ cheering ] >> hthis may not be his best chance but it's his last chance that westminster has been give such a fright it may never agree to another referendum i in the future. and if it is a yes, politics may

never be the same again. >> in china permanent scholars are being tried on charges of separatism. it started with a heavy security presence. the chinese government accuses of provoking ethnic hatred and overthrowing the government. journalists were not allowed in the courtroom. in the home state of the indian prime minister who is celebrating his 64th birthday. china is one of india's top trading partners. there could be more job

opportunities for indians in china. >> reporter: these chinese language students in new delhi are investing in their future. with china's growing influence in the world they believe learning mandarin now would pay off later. >> china will take over the world. for that it's important to learn chinese to earn lots of money. >> the school has seen a steady stream of students since it opened. one of its objectives is to bring indian and chinese people closer. >> not only are the indian people learning the chinese language, they're learning the chinese culture. >> reporter: thanks largely to trade. life on india was limited to restaurant like these. but over the past decade chinese goods have flooded the market which smart phones being the

latest imports. now they're holding talks with the aim of increasing trade answer further. this app was a created by a group in india. it is a service in growing demand. >> everybody in china is having confidence in this, we all want to participate. >> reporter: but not everything is running smoothly between the two asian powers. a border war in 1962 left bitter feelings on both sides, and that dispute conditions. but like the politicians some people are trying to focus on bringing the two sides together. chinese and learning ind hindi

at one of new delhi's universities. >> maybe a teacher. i want to go back to china and teach in the university, i think. >> reporter: something she hopes will lead to a better understanding and prospe prosperous road to china. >> u.s. secretary of state john kerry will testify before the senate foreign relations committee. we'll take you there live. and venezuela weighs selling the u.s. it's oil. >> i think the trusted techniques incorporate a lot of spin technique as well. >> the eating method is helping this south korea team to get a giv grip on cricket as well.

>> protestors are gathering... >> there's an air of tension right now... >> the crowd chanting for democracy... >> this is another significant development... >> we have an exclusive story tonight, and we go live... >> a firsthand look at the ongoing battle against the isil threat. >> bombs are cracking off in the distance... >> this is a booby trap in the islamic state >> ...a sniper around the corner here... >> from the front lines, josh rushing reports, on al jazeera america >> looking at the top stories.

u.s. president barack obama confirms he does not intend to send ground troops into islamic state in iraq and the levant. kurdish forces in northern iraq say they need foreign troops to help stop the advance of the islamic state of iraq and lavant. they're struggling to hold their front lines against the group. diplomats from a dozen countries have met in spain to mind a solution to the crisis. they're warning that the situation could di descend into a civil conflict. secretary of state john kerry will be testifying to the confronting isil.

a third doctor from doctors out border has contracted ebola. having welcomed an u.s. plan to tackle the outbreak describing it as a significant moment. liberia has been hardest hit by the disease which has killed close to 1300 people. u.s. soldiers will be sent to the capitol to help contain the disease. the world bank has warned the ebola outbreak could have a catastrophic impact on all economies in west africa. the first vaccine has been injected into the first volunteer. >> reporter: trying an ebola vaccine. a hopeful attempt to be researchers and volunteer ruth adkins. one they hope to stop the

outbreak. they said it was nothing but a duty to help stop the disease. >> it's making me sad of what's going on in west africa. what can i do? i can't go out there and work or anything. i thought, well, i can help my little bit of helping would be to participate in the vaccine trial. >> reporter: developed by the u.s. national institute of health and the british drugmaker glaxosmithkline i, it has a protein that matches the virus itself. the technology behind it has been in the making for years after undergoing animal testing the results gave researchers the confidence to go ahead and begin human trial testing and given the current urgency, time was of the essence. >> this is a remarkable vaccine trial.

just about a month ago we had no idea if this vaccine citied or if it was going to be available for testing. >> reporter: the trial would involve 60 people participating in it, and it's a series of safety tests aimed at preventing infection with the ebola virus. glaxosmithkline said if it is found effective, the "world health organization" that is even called on medical workers from all over the world to provide help in affected areas. in the meantime ruth will be closely monitored for any adverse affects. if this vaccine proves to be a

remedy in the crisis it will be ready earlier this next year. >> a plan to purge corruption from the administration meanwhile two people have been killed in gun battles in rebel-held donetsk. the military has been put on full battle alert. >> russia will not present us with peace or stability. there must be full battle readiness. >> the latest fighting is threaten a two-week long cease-fire in the east. we have more from donetsk. >> reporter: it happens at 9:30 in the morning. yuri, who lives on the top floor, was disabled. his body, neighbors said, was

still inside. they needed something to do. they were cleaning up. the remains of the rocket that struck this home wedged into brick work. this neighborhood has been shelled repeatedly since the weekend. they feel powerless to stop it. >> it you want stop this war, if you want i will get down on my knees but only if it will happen. >> reporter: the people of donetsk are returning but few are receiving salaries or pensions. some are having to keep the food rationed. rebels rejected the deal of autonomy wednesday. they only had contempt for kiev's politicians. >> they pretend to decide who gets to heaven and who gets to hell. that's not their decision to

make. >> reporter: back in the neighborhood the rebels warned residents to expect another attack. we heard mortar fired and ukrainian forces return fire. >> reporter: shelling on residential areas continually. there is no chance of resolution between these two sides until they can agree on something concrete. >> reporter: i met ni na finding shelter in the cellar. afraid to leave. i would go to russia now, if someone will drive me. but who will take me there, and i can hardly walk. so the shells keep falling and killing, autonomy seems besides the point.

those caught up in this are praying they were living in some other country. al jazeera, donetsk. >> in pakistan health workers are scrambling to manage a looming health crisis after two weeks of severe flooding. there are fears that stagnant water to lead to the spread of disease. nicole johnson has more. >> reporter: this huge tide of flood waters is moving through southern pakistan. in it's the southern punjaw ar area, now this main road at multan has been cut off. army engineers have come in here. they've used explosives so that the floodwater would spread out over agriculture land and villages and there by protect some of the main cities like mutan. the strategy does appear to have

worked, but at the same time hundreds of villages are underwater, the water is starting to go down, people are hoping in the next couple of weeks they'll be able to return home to see if there is anything left. >> good afternoon, i'm david shuster. secretary of state john kerry is preparing to testify. the committee is going to discuss the strategy to defeat islamic state in iraq and the levant, the democratic chairman bob menendez of new jersey i is giving his open statement. you may note behind secretary of kerry, you'll see a group of people dressed in pink with protest signs. that's a code pink, which is occupied the first two rose of spectator seats behind secretary kerry. they held up signs saying that the u.s. airstrikes is

equivalent to terrorism. an interesting scene. let's listen to the opening statements and secretary kerry as they talk about the obama administration's efforts to tackle islamic state. >> the national agenda and leaders ready to empower the iraqi security forces and kurdish peshmerga forces to take the fight to isil. in syria it means training and equipping a vetted syrian force. free of isil and all violent extremist groups would free assad and his regime backers. this fighting force should be prepared to support a post assad political structure whatever the circumstances of which he ultimately leaves syria. by negotiate or other means. the president has laid out a comprehensive holistic strategy that purports all the tools to defeat isil.

what i expect today is some specifics. the timeline for this mission, the scope, the resources in both personnel funds, intelligence, military assets and assistance, as well as the role our coalition partners will play. we must be clear-eyed about the risks before providing our enduring support for this operation. the fact is that we're living in 2014. not 2003. we must not commit the mistakes of the past. we must find the objectives and the political end that we seek through this campaign. i want to hear what success looks like in iraq and syria across the region, what conditions will indicate when it's time to end military action. now, this is what we know about isil. it has brutally, mercilessly barbarically followed through on its threats to kill american hostages james foley and stephen

sotloff and beheaded british aid worker david haynes and threats to kill another worker alan henning. iit enslaves women and children. it has seized iraqi equipment as a formidable fighting force. it is pumping oil and selling it to the tune of $1 million a day to fund it's brutal tactics along with theft, extortion and external support. it is recruiting disciples for its unholy war at a frightening pace from europe, the u.s. and anywhere they can find di disaffected person. turkey has declined to participate to stop that flow of fighters, and to counter isil. it has declared the territory it

occupies as caliphate with intent to seize mortar tore from u.s. partners and allies from jordan, saudi arabia to lebanon. the risk is real. it's urgent, and it's grave. we would be fools not to take this threat seriously. isil is an enemy of the united states and the civilized world. now as i have said many times temporary and targeted airstrikes in iraq and syria fall under the president's powers as commander in chief, but as the military campaign lasts for an extended period of time, which i gather it will, it's my believe that congress will need to approve an aisles pacific use of military force. i'm personally not comfortable with reliance on the 2001 aumf that relies on the thin theory that isil is associated with al-qaeda, and not on the 2002 iraq aumf that relied on

misinformation. i expect the administration today and the days ahead to give operational objective by which we will defeat isil to address the very grave isil threat we face. now let me be clear. i support the president's strategy and his sense of urgency, and i commend you, mr. sec, for your efforts with allies in the region who also face violent and destabilizing threats from isil. let's not, however, make the 9/11 mistake of rushing in with the authorization of military force that has become the overriding authorization for the last 13 years has been used for indefinite duration and has been used from south asia to the

persian gulf. it is comprehensive and appropriate in scope and duration to meet the threat and sustain the fight. it is our ability to answer three fundamental questions. what will it take to ultimately degrade isil. we need to get it right. in my view not just get it fast, and in doing so we need a bipartisan approach that puts politics aside and the nation first. this is a long-term effort, and we in congress must be very deliberate in our consideration of any new strategy, new authorities, and new funding that it will take to meet the new threat we face. i believe we need to defeat isil before they develop the operational capacity to perform a september 11th-like attack. i never want to lose as many citizens fro citizens citizens

from my home state of new jersey or members of the united states like we did that day. let me turn to the members of ranking. >> thank you, mr. chairman, i appreciate the full and broad opening comments and the way you have described our concerns over isil and their capacity over time to harm americans. i know we're here a few days after the president publicly addressed this as the nation and many others around the western world are--around the civilized world are outraged at the conduct of isil, and i know americans are greatly concerned about over time the effects they might have on this nation, as you just expressed. we're also here exactly one year

and two weeks in this very room discussing the u use of force in syria. not necessarily because of the products but because we all worked together in such a way to come to an end that we thought was best for the country, much in the light and the tone that the chairman just laid out. i just want to start by welcoming our secretary. we've had some conversations. i appreciate his hard work. i don't with i do want to say that i'm disappointed that the administration has chosen to go about what they're doing without explicitly seeking the authorization of congress. i think that's a huge mistake. i realize that part of that, unfortunately, has to do with the political season that we're in, which is to me very unfortunate that that might an factor to some.

i also realize that part of the strategy and plan are big parts of it are still being created, therefore it's being put together as we move along, and we're not really in a place right now for congress to fully ascertain what the plan might be. as the chairman just mentioned he's going to deal with the committee. the committee will deal with the authorization. i just want to say to our secretary i hope when that's done it's done with the administration explicitly speaking that, not saying if congress wants to play a constructive role, it can, and it would be welcomed, but one where you seek it and it's ladies out in classified and open settings what it is that we're seeking to achieve, and how we go about it. i know much of this is being made up as we go along. i do hope--i do hope the

secretary today will outline the true nature of the threat. i know he was in a meeting prior to coming in here where some of that was being discussed, but i hope clearly today you'll layout what you think the true nature of the threat is. thirdly and one glaring piece, i know that secretaries of state probably don't have the same opportunities that senators do to visit people in refugee camps, and to see people that we said we would support and don't. we've been pushing in this committee for years, for a long time to arm and train the vetted moderate opposition. we passed out of this committee a year and a half ago almost on a 15-3 vote that we've been pushing for it for longer than that. in spite of the fact of alleged

activities occurring we have not done the things that we said we would do. as a matter of fact i would say that the position that the administration has taken over this last year and two weeks since we were here meeting about the authorization and passing one led to many of the problems that we're facing today, many of the problems that is causing civilization itself to be fearful. i appreciate the fact that the secretary is here today. that the administration has stepped forward and would have the beginnings of a thought process as to how to address it. i do want to say what i've heard about dealing with the moderate opposition to me is odd. i know that the administration especially the white house has stated how generally thankless.

they believe this moderate opposition to be. we look at this, and today it's our entire ground game. i have supported the training and arming of these rebels for some time. i will say that i was shocked yesterday to hear that in the armed forces testimony these rebels were actually going to be used against isis. all of them that i've met with, and things may have changed, but their focus has been taking out assad. i know they've had a two-front battle or war raging as they've tried to do that, but i'm surprised the administration is basing their entire ground game on a group of people who candidly are going to receive very little training under the small organization that has been put forward, that's our entire ground game which brings back the point, too, talking about the very nature of the threat.

it seems to me the administration has placed many, many caveats on what we will not do, and at the same time the rhetoric describing the threat is far greater than it seems to me the plan that is put together. i'll close with this. i know that typically when you have a coalition you have the coalition put together before you announce it. i hope that what we're going to end up with is more than a group of code holders. we'll have people on the ground that will matter, and the commitments that will matter as it relates to this. this effort as we all know is not going to be an one- or two-year effort. it's going to be a multi-year effort. some people are saying a decade. some people are saying a decade.

i do think its important as our chairman laid out that all of us fully understand, fully understand the nature of the threat, the commitment of this administration to deal with this threat in the appropriate way. i welcome you here today and i welcome your? and to answer our questions. >> with that, mr. secretary, we thank you for your service to our country. we know that you have just recently arrived from building this coalition, and we appreciate you being here today to inform members what has been achieved, what is in front of us, and with that the floor is yours. >> well, chairman menendez, ranking member and members of the committee my friends and former colleague i thank you for

holding this hearing on an issue that is obviously fraught with all the high stakes both the chairman and the ranking member just described and all the members of the committee understand deeply. i look forward to this opportunity to define the threat that isil does pose, the ways in which it does, and of course our strategy for defeating it, and all of that could not be more critical for the country. during the years that i've had the privilege of serving here and working with different administrations it always struck me that american foreign policy works best when there is discussion, dialogue, a vetting of ideas back and forth. really, a serious discussion much more than an articulation

of one set of ideas, then another, and they oppose each other and they set out there. there is no real effort to have a meeting of the minds. so i want to make sure that by the time we're done here today and we know what the administration is thinking, and you have a clear understanding of what it is that we have done so far and how we see this, and how hopefully we can come to see it together. what we're doing now and where do we go next? i state unequivocally, it's not a passing sentence that i welcome the input, i need the input of this committee because it is together that we're going to be much stronger and much more effective in guaranteeing the success of this effort. and it's a big effort.

in a lot of ways. it's about isil in the immediacy, but as we will discuss today it's about more than that. i want to underscore at the start. there are debates from the past 30 years, 29 of which i was privileged to serve in the senate that will undoubtedly fill up books and documentaries for a long time, and iraq is certainly one of them. iraq has caused some of the host heated debates and deepest divisions in the past decades. the choices about which people can honestly disagree. but i didn't come here today and hope that we don't have to rehash those debates. the issue that confronts us today is one that we ought to be able to agree. isil must be defeated.

period. end of story. collectively we're all going to be measured by how we carry out this mission. you know, as i came in here, obviously, we had some folks who spoke out. and i would start by saying that i understand dissent. i've lived it. that's how i first testified in front of this country in 1971. i spent two years protesting a policy. and i respect the use of code pick and the use that have right. code pink was started by women who were opposed to war, but who loss thought that the government's job was to at a

take care of people, give them healthcare, education and good jobs. if that's what you believe in, and i believe it is, then you ought to care about fighting isil. because isil is killing and raping and mutilating women. they believe women shouldn't have an education. they sell off girls to be sex slaves to jihadists. there is no negotiation with isil. there is nothing to negotiate. they're not offering anyone healthcare of any kind. they're not offering education of any kind. for a whole philosophy or idea, cult, whatever you want to call it, frankly it comes out of the stone age. they're cold-blooded killers marauding the middle east east and making a mockery of a peaceful religion. that's precisely why we're building a coalition to try to

stop them from denying the women and the girls and the people of iraq, the very future that they yearn for. frankly, code pink and a lot of other people need to stop and think about how you stop them and deal with that. so. >> war will not protect the homeland. >> it's important for people to understand there is no invasion. the invasion was isil into iraq. the invasion is foreign fighters into syria. that's the invasion. and it is destructive to every possibility of building a state in that region. so even in a region that is virtually defined by