hello and thanks for joining us for krp's special coverage. i'm max foster. ahead this hour, a second american journalist apparently beheaded by isis. we remember steven sotloff and take a look at how world leaders may respond to this act of terror. plus, pro russian separatists brought over ukrainian forces in a massive firefight as president obama and nato allies prepare to meet about the growing crisis. and warnings the ebola outbreak is spiraling out of control. in liberia there was chaos in the streets after one patient escaped from a treatment clinic. u.s. officials have confirmed the authenticity of an isis that appears to show the

beheading of american journalist steven sotloff. sotloff was works as a freelance journalist last year. he appeared alongside james foley which showed foley's beheading. daniel baron was a friend of sotloff's since childhood. >> steven was high hero. he was traveling to the most dangerous, troubled places on the planet so that he could report back stories of human suffering. he was someone who could not ignore pain and justice. it's a terrible tragedy. anyone who cares about freedom of expression and human life should be appalled and saddened by this really horrific act. >> nic robertson is joining us

from cardiff, wales, where world leaders will be gathering for a nato summit. this is going to dominate discussion, isn't be it? a direct threat to america. >> reporter: it's certainly going to go on the agenda although not in the original planning. the original planning fortunate tow summit was about afghanistan and how the nato forces transition through the draw down of international troops inside that country. ukraine is very big. this is the biggest, most important nato summit. russia drawing nato back to its core to face a threat in the east. confidence building for baltic states and countries in the east of europe like poland, rotation of troops through those countries, positioning of

equipment. one part of the summit, however, is going to be about the future of nato and the auspices of that part of the agenda. a dinner and banquet on thursday night. president obama will perhaps get an opportunity to push for what has risen up his agenda, the agenda of british prime minister david cameron and that is isis. the despicable, horrible killings that they're broadcasting of americans inside syria and the threat, therefore, coming from inside iraq and syria. president obama wants to build a coalition of countries willing to tackle the isis problem so this will be on his agenda, but, again, it's not the principal focus here. as we saw with the beheading yesterday, clearly he will come

in with a much keener sense and the other leaders here, a keen sense that this has to be dealt with. this is a place to talk about and get nato support for what they can do. >> coalition building but this video is not about it. it's brittain joining u.s. air strikes and within this video is a direct threat made against a british hostage as well saying effectively if you join this campaign the british hostage is next. >> yeah. brittain and the united states have been very clear that they don't negotiate with hostage takers and terrorists in the past so i believe the reality here is that this is a very, very tough situation but the threat that is perceived to be coming from isis that it has so many foreign fighters, 500 from brittain, hundreds from france,

denmark, many, many other countries foreign fighters have been drawn to syria including the united states drawn to isis, in syria and iraq. the threat that isis poses is businesser than the threat that it poses to those hostages that it has right now, including the british hostage who is the latest to be threatened in this particular video. there's also an assessment that isis will do whatever it will do to these people anyway. the bigger and broader concern and the reason for building of consensus by president obama and the reason is that it won't stop in iraq but that it will come to europe and the united states. that's what they believe has to be dealt with, max. >> in terms of responses today, we know that the british prime minister's got a cobra meeting responding to this. there's been lots of cobra meetings recently, but how -- you say they can't negotiate with terrorists.

so what will the response be? there needs to be britts concerned by seeing what they're seeing obviously. how does the british prime minister respond in a progressive way to deal with those concerns? >> reporter: well, politically, and he's in a very, very tough position here, but politically the issue of intervention in iraq, in afghanistan has become very toxic for british politicians. it has become toxic for many european politicians and even president obama as well. there isn't broad support in brittain, in the united states for troops to get involved in actions in the middle east. the high death toll we've seen of british troops, american troops, other nato troops in afghanistan, we've seen the death toll for those troops rise in iraq as well. that means there is very, very little support for action on

isis. what these horrific beheadings do in political terms is allow prime minister david cameron, president obama to really connect with the public and say, look, this is the threat that these people pose. this is who these people are. they have become a much greater problem than they were. the al qaeda of the past, new brand of it, islamic state has become more nilistic in its approach and it needs to be dealt with. we can expect political leaders, if you will, not to capitalize on the horrific videos but to take, if you will, political advantage to build the coalition. >> nic in cardiff, thank you very much. an expert on terrorist groups like isis joins us now here in our london studios. thank you so much for joining us. some suggestion that all of the films we've seen recently including the last one of the american beheading, if i can

call it that, were filmed at the same time because you have the same character. what is your impression? >> that is the thought. this is staged without the hostages knowing what their fate is going to be. it's also supported by the fact that some of the french hostages who had been released earlier, they also revealed that they were forced to make these type of videos and take part in these type of scenarios. certainly isis has done this in advance. they've edited it. they've fine tuned it. this is done very much for the option of publicity and trying to extract the fear factor. we are talking about another grisly video. >> the fear factor is working. they're threatening, you know, a british hostage will be next and they know that obama is going to be -- they're talking directly to obama and to cameron, aren't they? and they know they're going to hear the message. they're being affected in the most horrendous way.

>> isis have a very effective form of communications. they toy with the community and affect one's emotions. unfortunately mr. sotloff's fate has been decided at the time of mr. foley's. this was preplanned. they're trying to provoke brittain and the united states into involvement in iraq and into syria as well in terms of airstrikes. >> the first response we're expecting is from david cameron. he's hosting a -- or chairing an emergency meeting of senior security people in his circle, then he goes to parliament to speak. how can he respond without being seen to be responding to terrorists. >> very difficult situation. on the one hand brittain, the united states, they do not negotiate with terrorists. they do not pay ransom with other countries like france, germany, italy, but at the same

time the measure now needs to be to deal with the threat in brittain and the potential blow back. there are some 500 brittains who have gone to iraq and syria to link up with groups like isis. if some of them survive they'll come back and plot attacks. there are measures to counter the threat, almost preemption. the threat has been increased as well. unfortunately, this is becoming a very difficult situation. this is not like after 9/11 where you had terrorists going to pakistan, terrorist training. these are smaller, operating in a much more discrete way. their ability to carry out attacks can be more devastating. on cnn we're getting brand new information about a phone call between the russian and ukrainian presidents. will it lead to fighting stopping in the ukraine? we'll have live reports from kiev.

the crisis in the ukraine, a kremlin spokesperson says president vladimir putin has spoken to his ukrainian counterpart. this is after a pro russian fighter said they're on the verge of retaking the donetsk airport in ironeastern ukraine.

kiev said it's powered by an influx of russian troops. moscow flatly denies it. reza sayah has the story live from kiev. reza, what do you know about what's been happening on the ground? >> reporter: well, max, i think it's important to first off talk about this phone call. it could be something significant, a sign of a possible break through or it could be another vague, ambiguous statement that means nothing. however, on the surface it certainly sounds positive. russia's inner fax news agency is reporting that according to russian president vladimir putin's spokesperson, mr. putin has spoken in the past few hours with ukrainian president petro poroshenko and the two have largely agreed on a way out of this conflict. here's a quote from the spokesperson according to interfax, the viewpoints of the presidents of the two countries largely coincide on possible

ways out of this grave crisis. we should point out that kiev has not confirmed to cnn that this phone call took place, but the question is if it did take place, what did these two leaders agree on? because up until this report for the most part they've been trading accusations in veiled insults, max. a positive development. we're working to find out if kiev is confirming this report and we're certainly working to find out the details of this phone call and if, indeed, these two presidents agreed on the way out of the conflict, what the details of that agreement are. max. >> but we would be able to assess what's going on from the ground movements as well possibly if we don't get that response from kiev very quickly? >> reporter: yes, certainly. i think a focal point of this conflict is the port city of

mariopol. rebel forces are poised seemingly ready for an attack. they haven't gone in yet. whether they go in or not, whether they attack or not will probably depend a lot on what happened to this phone call and possibly the nato meeting in wales and the talks that pick up later in belarus. max. >> in terms of mariopol, an extraordinary situation for people living there trying to defend themselves from an onslaught of powerful forces. what are the stories we're getting out of there and what's life been like there? >> reporter: well, you can certainly sense the anxiety and the tension building over the past several days because 20 kilometers east of the city you have rebel forces poised to go in, and for the past several days you have ukrainian forces, volunteers, even residents doing everything they can to build their defenses, finding everything they can to block every single entrance to the city and they're essentially

waiting to see when the rebel forces come in. they haven't come in yet. if they come in, many observers say this is going to be a ferocious and bloody fight and potentially a turning point in this conflict, max. >> reza sayah in kiev, thank you very much. dina magnay is on the ground. she got a first-happened look at the rebel advance before this reported phone call took place. >> reporter: they're confident and surging forwards. rebels with t-72 tanks that almost almost brand new. hard to believe this was won in battle. pro russian separatists are now in control of the town after a three-week siege. a commander who says he's the mayor, too, shows us his stockpile of trophies insisting all were seized from the enemy. >> reporter: how can we tell this is definitely ukrainian?

it will this says ukraine. . ukrainian. >> reporter: the ukrainian national guard lost many men here targeted by very accurate artillery, trapped until a humanitarian corridor was agreed to let soldiers out, or at least some of them. he said he tried his hardest to show mercy. i proposed to them a million times to give up and get out, but many of their officers are fighting for money and the regular soldiers are forced into it. they died with tears in their eyes because they have no experience and they don't know who their enemy is. ukraine's national guard had basics here at the local school. even before the siege this town was pro rebel. the ukrainians seem to have done themselves few favors with the locals. they put their guard and

anti-tank units here. probably they didn't think about the fact that this is a school and kids go back on september the 1st. they only thought about the territory and not us. the territory now is trashed and so is much of the town. on a hillside near the town we catch a glimpse of the massive extent of the fire power used. the remnants of a huge ground fired missile, who fired it and at what impossible to say. for mile after mile we saw the carcasses of tanks and other vehicles, remnants of what appears to be the fiercist battle yet in this month's long war. this burned out tank on the road is one side of an incredibly fierce battle in what looks like a chaotic retreat. there are burnt out vehicles everywhere. there is unexploded ordinance all over the ground. it looks like this was the ukrainian's last stance as the

rebels crept forward. ahead more details are coming out about a u.s. air strike on monday in somalia. we'll show you why pentagon officials say this dealt a major blow to the group al shabaab.

new information on monday's u.s. air strike in somalia. a pentagon spokesman said the

leader of al shabaab was killed when they fired missiles on an al shabaab encampment. they said he was the intended target and that the attack appeared to have succeeded. he's said to have directed the siege of the west gate mall in nairobi, kenya, last year. in scotland a new opinion pole shows a surge in support for independence in the united kingdom. backing for the yes movement which favors seceding is at the highest level of 47% and trails the no side by just six points. election officials were predicting a very tight race against the orders, those wishing to remain united. pollsters said that, rather. the poll did not decide -- the polls close on december 18th. parts of thailand have been

hit with their worst flooding in 15 years. karen mcginnis joins us. >> hi, max. we are watching the weather situation not expected to get better as the area of low pressure travels right along this boundary. the monsoonal trough which is an apparent feature we see. it involves 17 provinces across thailand. let's show you the images coming out of thailand. as max just said, the worst flooding in approximately 50 years already at least six people reportedly killed in the flooding. monsoonal rain will continue through the week and through the end of the work week. they've picked up in excess of 80 centimeters of precipitation. here are some of the other reports that we have seen in some isolated areas. over 134 millimeters being reported there. all right, we've talked about a

lot of the precipitation across china and beijing. it's reporting significant rainfall. it looks like in the forecast a dry weather pattern expected there. in the united states, numerous wind reports coming from thunderstorms, mostly from the southeast to the ohio river valley. over the next day or so we'll expect scattered thunderstorms in the deep south. a frontal system sweeps across midwestern united states with an area of low pressure traveling across southern canada. isolated thunderstorms across the southeast with some wind gusts reported around 75 kilometers or higher in some cases. a few isolated reports of hail with some tree damage reported across sections of the ohio river valley. across the deep south, readings will be around 30 to 35 degrees celsius. tropical storm dolly is slowly ringing out the process across the central coast of mexico.

it made landfall to the south of tampeko. national hurricane center said over the next 24 to 48 hours as this lifts over the mountains it will be a remnant of low pressure. some areas could pick up as 67 -- 200 millimeters. >> we'll keep an eye on that. up next, isis under pressure. what the u.s. and the allies have in store for defeating the extremist militant fighters. the u.s. president is in estonia trying to reassure nato members about russian fighters. [ male announcer ] eligible for medicare?

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welcome back to cnn. i'm max foster in london.

these are the headlines at this hour. u.s. officials are working to confirm the authenticity that isis says is the beheading of journalist steven sotloff. he went missing in january of last year. they say they're prepared to kill a british hostage next. the report that russian and ukrainian presidents spoke. it's not clear whether this may be a break through. we'll bring you more details as this comes in. rather, we have a new video of a libyan air force fighter jet crashing and bursting into flames. this happened in the city of tabruke. the pilot was killed and possibly more people on the ground. the crash happened during a ceremonial flyover. it was part of a memorial service for a pilot that died last week. they blame both crashes on mechanical failure. more now on the isis video showing the apparent killing of

the journalist steven sotloff. the comments from australian prime minister tony abbott. >> the extraordinary thing about this movement is that it does not simply sew evil, it boasts of evil. it's proud of evil. it advertises it's evil. in a way, almost never before seen at any time in the modern world. you've got to go back to the middle ages to see this arrogance and atrocity. >> well, spokesman for sotloff's family says they are aware of the isis video and they're grieving privately. randi kaye has a look at how the journalist is being remembered. >> reporter: honest, thoughtful, courageous. that's how those who knew steven sotloff describe him. the 31-year-old freelance journalist had traveled the world reporting for various publ in libya he wrote an article for

"time magazine", a firsthand account from the guards who witnessed the attack on the u.s. compound in benghazi. he spoke with cnn about it in 2012. >> there was no protests. they were armed with a.k. 47s, rpgs. they had blast demolitions -- explosives for blast fishing, they had grenades. >> sotloff lovedoved journalism majored in journalism at the university of central florida. he grew up in south florida with his parents and younger sister. besides journalism his other love was the miami heat. june last year he tweeted, is it bad that i want to focus on syria but all i can think is a heat finals repeat? after college sotloff began taking arabic classes and writing freelance, sometimes taking chances. in egypt when a friend warned him not to meet with the muslim brotherhood he went anyway writing in the world affairs

journal that he headed straight to the lair where he believed i would be devoured. in syria sotloff's reporting focused on the human side of the conflict. syrians displaced waiting seven hours in line for a bag of pita bread. in 2012 sotloff wrote, it's not bombs that are killing refugees, it is lack of medicine and proper sanitation. even when he feared for his life, he kept on reporting. >> he was concerned that he had been on some kind of a list, and this was about the time that isis first turned up, first started showing up, and he felt that he had angered some of the rebels, he didn't know which one, by taking footage of a hospital in aleppo. >> steven sotloff was apparently looking to leave syria soon, move home and attend graduate school. >> he told me he had one last story that he was working on. he didn't tell me what it was. and he said that this was kind of the end.

he was a little bit tired of it all. >> reporter: tired and perhaps something more. >> he had the same fear that all of us have working in syria, the paranoia, the fear, the uncertainty. >> reporter: a friend fondly remembering him on twitter wrote this, at a smokey cafe in cairo tapping on his keyboard sharing contacts and smiling widely. the last time i saw steven. a wonderful soul. rest in peace. randi kaye, cnn, new york. the white house has requested all authorized requests to send 350 u.s. troops in iraq to protect american personnel in baghdad. jamana is in baghdad and joins us live. this video is very clever in terms of media manipulation, isn't it? they know that obama will be forced to watch this video and get the message.

the message they're giving to the u.k. as well is don't join this coalition. this is part of the isis strategy, isn't it, but the west cannot be seen to respond? >> reporter: absolutely, max. analysts and experts would tell you this has two messages, one, trying to deter, trying to stop countries from basically going after isis. it also sends shock waves and fear amongst local populations here, too, when they see videos like this and other videos that have been released of so many of these countless isis atrocities that we have seen over the months talking here to iraqis, max, they would tell you that this is the kind of brutality that they have been living with for years, first in the years of al qaeda in iraq but now a much larger and brutal scale with

isis. videos like this do intimidate and spread fear amongst the local population. of course, a message to the west. and also as experts would say, that this is a recruitment tool. they also send this to their followers, those that want to join isis. it has been very instrumental in their recruitment, but here in iraq people are unfortunately, max, not surprised to see the sort of brutality that they have become accustomed to. just yesterday amnesty international saying that this group, isis, is likely responsible for systematic ethnic cleansing taking place in northern iraq. people here have been suffering from this and they say now is the time for the world to join them in their fight against this group. >> are they frustrated with america and the west but being slow to respond? >> well, if you talk to iraqi

officials, max, they are happy to see the u.s. air strikes. if you see the impacts that they have had so far since they started in august on august 8th they really have slowed down the momentum we saw. isis looked like an unstoppable group that had taken over large parts of this country, but it's not enough. the -- isis is still very powerful, very capable. the airstrikes have not weakened this group. more needs to be done. isis is still in control of iraq's second largest city, mosul. also cities like fallujah and tikrit. they have not been able to do this on their own. the u.s. air strikes have helped them regain tore tori like we saw around the mosul dam, like we saw in the town of amerli over the weekend, but this is not enough. more needs to be done. but also at the same time they realize that also within iraq

changes need to happen because there is a political aspect to this. iraqis are going to have to ub phi, government policy is going to have to change, they're going to have to make sunni arabs who are key in the fight against isis feel included, bring them back into the fold so that isis no longer takes advantage of the way sunnis have been feeling and exploiting that and gaining ground in sunni arab provinces and communities and also something iraqi officials tell us, max, you cannot deal with isis only in iraq. this is one battlefield, iraq and syria are one battlefield for this group so it has to be also their presence and activities in syria need to be tackled to -- in order to try and weaken this group and ultimately defeat it here in iraq, too. >> jamana, thank you very much joining us from baghdad. dealing with isis will be one of the many topics on the agenda during u.s. president barack obama's trip to europe.

take a look at the political global crises he's dealing with. that's on top of political instability in places like afghanistan, pakistan and yemen. president obama arrived just a few hours ago. where does he even start? what do you think he's going to talk about first? >> reporter: well, the emphasis of this visit to estonia is clearly to try to reassure the baltic republics, estonia, latvia and lithuania that the u.s. will stand behind them in the event of any aggression. there's great concern here. they're concerned about the increased assertiveness of the kremlin and vladimir putin has said he has the right to intervene to protect the rights of russian speakers wherever

they are in the world and estonia has a russian population of 25% of the people. that heightened concerns here together with the ongoing crisis in ukraine. that's obviously the main reason that president obama is here. inevitably the issue of isis and the latest killing there of american journalists, that's going to be high on the agenda. those gruesome images and videos surfacing as president obama was making his way on air force one to estonia. he hasn't commented on them yet and the issue yet, but the expectation is he will later on. he'll have a meeting with the estonian president. after that there will be a joint news conference where if he doesn't make remarks about isis initially, he almost certainly will be asked about that situation and his response to that apparent killing of the u.s. journalist. >> and just on your knowledge of the kremlin and russian media, what's your interpretation of this interfax report saying that

putin has spoken to his counterpart in ukraine and said everything is pretty much resolved. what are your thoughts on that? >> i think what was actually said in that conversation is that some of the ideas that president poroshenko of ukraine had were essentially shared whi by vladimir putin. that's been widely interpreted as a positive step in terms of forging a deal to bring a cease-fire to the crisis, to the ongoing security situation in ukraine. i think what it will mean in real terms we'll have to wait and see but the kremlin has made it clear what it wants. it wants a federal system in ukraine in which the ethnic russian speaking people have a large degree of say over their stated affairs and how they're run and that russian is promoted as an official language in the country. if president poroshenko is

saying, yes, we'll do that, that may be the overlap that they're looking for to de-escalate in ukraine. we'll have to wait and see. >> waiting for a response from kiev as you speak. thank you very much, matthew. still to come on our special coverage, fear and chaos in liberia as an ebola patient decides to take matters in his own hands and makes a run for it.

we are expecting more information today on another doctor who's tested positive for ebola. on tuesday a group called serving in mission said one of its american doctors working in liberia had been ineffected. he was working in a maternity ward not treating ebola patients and is in an isolation unit. on tuesday they warned the outbreak is spiraling out of control. >> the number of cases continues to increase and is now increasing rapidly. i'm afraid that over the next few weeks those numbers are likely to increase further and significantly. there is a window of opportunity to tamp this down, but that window is closing. we need action now to scale up the response. >> containing the virus is the biggest struggle health workers

face. borders have been closed, flights canceled and schools shut. doctors in monrovia have a different challenge, dealing with a patient who fought his way out of a hospital. >> reporter: the man in the red shirt is believed to be infected with ebola. witnesses told reuters that he had left an ebola clinic in monrovia, liberia. he wanders through a market carrying a food and using sticks and stones he used against doctors who treated him. local doctor tries to convince him to stop. a large crowd surrounds the sick man. the doctor tries to hold back the crowd while health care workers in protective clothing chase the man down the street. the angry crowd shouts at the workers saying, the clinics aren't doing enough.

it's not clear why the man left the facility. the u.n. says restrictions on people's movements and quarantine zones to stop the spread of the disease has led to panics and also food shortages. liberia's president said the health care system in her country is under stress but conditions are slowly improving. here in the market health care workers continue to try to convince the man to go back to the hospital. after that doesn't work they can be seen dragging him to a truck and pushing him into the back as he struggles to get away. as the ebola epidemic shows no sign of slowing down, both patients and doctors grow more desperate. michael holmes, cnn. well, the first subject in the human trial of an experimental ebola vaccine is being injected. 20 people between the ages of 18 and 15 were given the vaccine to

see if it is safe and if it prompts an immune response against ebola. $1700 for their trouble and no human will be infected with the actual virus. initial results of the trials are expected later this year. when we come back, a look at what happened behind the scenes when north korea may set up a rare meeting between cnn and three american detainees. [ man ] look how beautiful it is. ♪ honey, we need to talk. we do?

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u.s. officials are vowing to do all they can to help three people kept in north korea. some analysts say north korea may want to use the detainees as leverage for nuclear talks or for lifting sanctions against the regime. will ripley has more about how the chance meeting unfolded. >> reporter: an abrupt detour during a trip to cover pro wrestlers on a sports diplomacy mission to north korea. one minute we're on a sightseeing tour, the next we're in a van racing through the north korean countryside. government minders are on the phone getting instructions. there's been a change of plans. we're told to expect an interview with a government official. when we pull up to this building we learn who's really inside. >> mr. bae, will ripley with

cnn. >> reporter: kenneth bae is serving 15 years of hard labor. pyongyang is giving us strict access to kenneth bae. north korea calls it a favor. we get the impression sther' looking for a line of communication with the u.s. >> i'm the only prisoner in the camp. >> reporter: bae is held separately from what amnesty international says are 250,000 prisoners. they endure horrific conditions at six prison camps. bae says his health is failing but his treatment is humane. >> i'm working eight hours a day, six days a week. >> reporter: as bae serves his sentence, he's waiting. fowle is awaiting his fate. >> i'm getting desperate. >> reporter: his notes detail the crime. >> it was a violation of the tourist purpose as well. >> reporter: that covert act of leaving a bible could cost fowle years of freedom.

experts say religion threatens the north korean regime. only the leaders are considered divine. each man is held in a different room down the same hallway. they never have contact with each other. in this room matthew miller, awaiting trial for tearing up his tourist visa and seeking asylum in north korea. >> reporter: why did you come here seeking asylum? >> during my investigation i have discussed my motive and for the interview is not necessary. >> reporter: now all he wants is help from the u.s. government. >> this interview is my final chance. >> reporter: a chance to return to his old life away from the absolute isolation of being held in new orleans hornets korea. during our trip government minders are always watching, note not unexpected here. what caught us by surprise is how north korea seems to be reaching out to the united states using these three men to send a message. will ripley, pyongyang, cnn.

tropical storm dolly is making its way continuing to do so. landfall in mexico is next, karen. >> yes, it certainly is. and this never really got a whole lot of traction as it wound its way through the gulf of mexico. it was pretty close to land, but the warm waters of the gulf of mexico kind of fueled the system and it did make landfall right around tampico just a little bit to the south of that. now a lot of that moisture will ring out right across the mountains. that's a very typical thing. once these interact with the land they fall apart. it has not been common but it's not exactly rare that some of these systems that move along the gulf coast make landfall across mexico then exit out, at least the remnants do, and push into the pacific ocean. it will regenerate. we've seen that so it will be a fairly interesting phenomenon. we don't think this will happen but nonetheless we keep the

possibilities open as a rainfall moves in across tampico. we think that will be fueled especially farther to the north where some of these rainfall totals could be as much as 200 millimeters. there have been a few reports of some damage. i checked some of the rainfall reports right around tampico. they weren't especially heavy over the last 12 hours but it looks like the remnant low will continue to enhance some of that moisture. across the united states a few thunderstorms just kind of battered the area into the lower great lakes and ohio river valley. also into the northeastern united states and for the southeast. nearly 100 reports of very high winds have been damaged and one reporter, as we'll see right he here, liz in dayton ohio was battered by the high rainfall and high winds. she was not damaged but to make her point about the severe weather she stood out in the wind and the rain. back to you, max.

>> it looks like england on an ordinary day. thank you very much, indeed, karen. that does it for this hour of cnn's special coverage. for our viewers in the u.s., "early start" is up next. for our international viewers, i'll be back with today's top i'll be back with today's top stories. -- captions by vitac -- www.vitac.com

another american apparently beheaded on camera. isis claiming they have killed steven sotloff, the journalist kidnapped by a terrorist one year ago in syria. the video threatening to kill another captive in u.s. air strikes in iraq do not stop. what we're learning this morning from this video and hundreds more u.s. troops headed to iraq this morning. that's ahead. all eyes on president obama this morning, in eastern europe, set to speak to the media within the hour. what will his response be to the apparent murder