welcome, everyone. we are following two major news stories this hour on cnn. isis militants in syria, now in american cross hairs. u.s. president barack obama announced a coalition during a primetime speech on wednesday. we'll bring you global reaction. it is judgment day for olympian oscar pistorius in the shooting death of reeva steenkamp. our legal analyst is where is judge will begin to read her verdict in just about 30 minutes. we will bring you live to the courtroom. and we're looking at these pictures. you can see oscar pistorius, there he is. she's coming in with his entourage and of course, just flanked by people on either side there. this is the big day for the

verdict. but it may not come today, it may come friday. it's expected this could be a long process as the judge goes through each of the witness' testimony and describes and explains why she has come to her decision. of course, there are no juries there in south africa. that's very important and that's why it is the judge. it's only the judge who will come up with the decision of verdict on this. of course, it's very difficult to predict. >> kelly phelps joining us, telling us there's no indication to know which way the judge will decide. you just saw the media scramble and push as oscar pistorius arrived. as soon as the judgment is read, we'll bring it to you live. >> welcome back to our viewers. >> let's give you will more information there in south africa, where we are 30 minutes await from this verdict being read by the judge in the oscar

pistorius murder trial. the accused just arrived at the courthouse as you witnessed there live. >> as we said, it may take hours or even days before we know if he's found guilty of premeditated murder in the shooting death of his girlfriend reeva steenkamp last year. the judge is expected to provide a lengthy review of witness testimony that could last into friday. >> pistorius has pled not guilty to the four neighbor charges. the first accusation is premeditated murder. he also faces three other lesser weapons charges. and also that he recklessly fired a gun in public. the fourth and final count is that pistorius is accused of having ammunition without a proper license when police searched his home. so the murder charge the most serious. but we are curious to see what

will happen to the lesser charges. >> south africa does not have jury trials, so the decision rests entirely in the hands of the judge. robin kurnow looks at the life of the woman on the bench. >> reporter: a high profile trial, with the potential of becoming a media circus. but sitting above the fray -- >> if you do not want to adhere to the rules, you are free to leave and security will make sure that you leave. it's important that you should be all here in that witness box. do you understand that? >> i do, my lady. >> reporter: stern, yet at times compassionate. inskrutable throughout. >> she's a bit of a different person in court than in the

office. >> reporter: she is a study of contrast says her clerk. >> i've been working with her since january, and she's just always smiling, almost like working for an angel. in the mornings, she will say, good morning, how are you? >> reporter: now her courtroom is again broadcast to the world. and her judgment, not just deciding pistorius' fate, but for many here an example to the world of justice in democratic south africa. >> she told me from the beginning, we will treat this case as all other cases. she's not really showing much emotion about the case. >> reporter: perhaps because she's a judge, who has faced far greater challenges. it was here in the late 1970s at the height of apartheid, that

she became part of a new class of female journalists. ready to risk everything to r0r report on the political violence. >> we were writing those stories. we were writing about the people that were activists and people being detained. >> reporter: this woman was a fellow journalist. >> we were doing things and she was not there. after work, she would go to the library and study. >> reporter: others in the newsroom saw her as detached. but she says it was because she was driven, focused on a future few could imagine. >> if you look at where she comes from and where she is now, it shows that she knew that one day we are going to be there, and we need to believe ready when we get there. >> reporter: a journey that's taken her from a once segregated soweto to the high court. >> today she is trying a white

boy. in my lifetime, i never thought that would happen. >> reporter: robin kurnow, cnn. >> as we await the start of the proceedings, kelly phelps joins us from outside the high court as she has for so many times. she is a cnn legal analyst, and senior lecturer at the university of cape town. so kelly, as we reported, it could take as long as two days for the judge to deliver her verdict. explain why it's going to take as long as that? >> reporter: judges in south africa, because there isn't a jury system as you mentioned earlier, everything relies entirely on them. and therefore, in terms of transparency of the law, and being able to ensure that the standards of a fair trial have been met, it's all the more important that the public and the parties to the trial particularly have a very clear

view of exactly how her mind operated when she came to the decisions that she reached. it needs to be excessible and clear to the parties involved which rules she applied, how she applied them. it's because of that transparency that then puts the accused person or the state in a position to understand if they have grounds for appeal later. obviously when you're in a jury system, there's a built-in legitimacy because of the multiple opinions being placed on the matter. with a judge, it's all the more important that you have that transparency. >> kelly, do you think the prosecution has succeeded in making the case for premeditated murder? >> i think premeditated murder has always been the biggest struggle. even as far back as bail, commentators were very surprised that they had attached this concept of premeditation to the

murder charge. essentially their case rests almost entirely on the evidence of one witness, who was the neighbor who said she heard the voices of a man and woman between 1:00 and 2:00 in the morning that sounded like arguing. but there were quote a few inconsistencies in her testimony that the defense have leapt on. and in order to base a case entirely on one witness' testimony places the state in a very hard position. so i think that's probably the least likely outcome of the trial today. >> all right. kelly phelps talking to us there from outside the court there. s as soon as we hear from the judge when she starts speaking, we will bring it to you live. >> all right. u.s. president barack obama's laid out his strategy for confronting isis, and it

includes air strikes on isis targets in syria. >> the u.s. is to lead a broad coalition with american air power supporting ground forces, but no american combat troops. arms and systems will flow to iraqi security forces and the syrian opposition. the coalition will move to cut off the militant's funding and stop the flow of foreign fighters. mr. obama says iraq's newly formed government will play a key role in defeating isis, also known as isil. >> working with the iraqi government, we will expand our efforts beyond protecting our own people and humanitarian missions so that we're hitting isil targets as iraqi forces go on offense. moreover, i made it clear we will hunt down terrorists wherever they are. that means i will not hesitate to take action against against

isil in syria or wherever they are. if you threaten america, you will find no safe haven. >> let's get reaction to mr. obama's strategy. anna coren is standing by. but first, let's go to mark preston who joins us from washington, d.c. mark, this is a reluctant president when it comes to presiding over wars and conflicts like this. what did you make of his speech and his strategy and how he tries to really limit u.s. involvement? >> clear lit a big speech, not only for viewers here in the united states but around the globe. president obama making the case that it just can't be the united states that goes in and tries to defeat isil. the fact of the matter is, it needs to be a very broad coalition. he was very careful to lay out what he's willing to do and what the united states is willing to do. they're willing to go in and increase air strikes. they're willing to put u.s. military advisers on the ground

to try to help the ground troops. he's very willing to help out with humanitarian needs. what they're not willing to do is to put ground troops into iraq or into syria. by and large his speech has been received fairly well here in the united states. certainly by the republican party. but yet they want to see more details from president obama. >> i want to bring in our anna coren at this point, as we talk about this coalition and what the complications are with this equation. anna, you're there in irbil. but there is some distance between irbil and baghdad. the kurds want to be independent, so as the u.s. talks about expanded air strikes and a larger coalition, how are the kurds likely to respond to it in the short and long-term? >> reporter: look, as you say, there is a desire to be

independent, but kurdistan has said it will be part of this new iraqi government. '9" is part of this country, and that is how it will proceed. obviously, as far as the new government goes, they do have some serious concerns. it was described by president obama as being an inclusive government. early days as we know, as far as the kurds go, their demands have not been met. such as their budgets for this year. their share of the oil revenue, the kurds said they'll give it three months but after that they could easily walk away, which could see iraq's new government collapse. there are a lot of factors at play. what i'm hearing is that they were pleased with president obama's speech. they were looking for a commitment and they believe that

they got that as he outlined, his long-term strategy against the fight against isis. we've seen more than 150 air strikes in the past five weeks. they've been calling for an intensification, and they believe with this systematic campaign that the president named earlier today, that they will get many more air strikes in the weeks and months, a sustained campaign. they also welcome the 475 u.s. soldiers who will be added to the force already here, taking it to well over 1500 u.s. soldiers. obviously they won't be operating in a combat role, but they will be advising, assisting and training the peshmerga, who have been operating very separately to the iraqi military. you are going to see under the u.s. leadership that coordination and cooperation that is so vital to take the fight to isis.

>> the kurds seem to be the group most pleased with president obama's speech. we've discussed now what's happening on the iraqi side, no issue there. the kurds welcome everything. but there's the syrian side. the u.s. president saying he's open to arming the syrian rebels, an idea that some seal as too little too late. and also who exactly do you sandstorm this is surely a political minefield for the president. >> no question. probably the biggest sticking point here in washington over the next couple of weeks. that is the most controversial component about this, does the united states not only arm but do they send military advisers in to train the syrian rebels? right now there are folks that have concern about that, thinking that exactly to what you said, who are we training? who are we arming? will they turn on us? so there's a lot of concern

about that. overall, the sentiment in the united states right now is that something has to be done. president obama has been criticized and will continue to be criticized because a lot of people say it's a little too late, but even if it is too late, something needs to be done. >> indeed. mark preston joique ning us ver late there in washington, d.c. and anna coren in northern iraq. thank you very much. a short break now. but coming up next here on cnn, we'll have reaction to president obama's plan to take down isis live from abu dhabi and paris. stay with us for that. it is decision time in pretoria. a judge preparing to deliver her verdict in the murder trial of oscar pistorius, accused of murdering his girlfriend last year. what will she say? stay with us to find out.

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u.s. president barack obama's plan for battling isis came after some intense pressure from critics who said he was not doing enough to stop the growing threat. >> and unveiling his strategy wednesday night, he told america, really the world that his administration is helping the u.s. make a difference. >> it is america that has rallied the world against russian aggression and in support of the ukrainian people's right to determine their own destiny. it is america that helped remove and destroy syria's chemical weapons so they can't pose a threat to the syrian people and the world again. and it is america helping muslim communities around the world, not just in the fight against terrorism, but in the fight for

opportunity and tolerance and a more hopeful future. >> okay. so let's get more reaction now to mr. obama's strategy. first, becky anderson joins us live from abu dhabi. becky, the big effort is to build this broad coalition, drawing from nations in the middle east. talk to us how those nations are likely to react to mr. obama's plan to wipe out isis and if they will be on board, even those strange bedfellows we've been talking about. >> reporter: that's right. those strange bedfellows. iran and washington, saudi with iran. iran really the elephant in the room on this. we are talking here about a concerted effort on counterterrorism to contain the spread of isis, without let's remember strengthening syria's assad, without strengthening iran, and the shia militia in

iraq and lebanon. that's the big challenge posed for secretary of state john kerry, who has arrived -- who is on his way to jetta today to speak to the regional allies. so who are we talking about? saudis have said they are on board as far as logistics are concerned. they will be mindful, though, of anything that will undermine their position as leader of the sunni arab world. then you've got turkey. of course, turkey always mindful of what will happen in syria, of course. don't forget turkey has 47 hostages in mosul at present. so any further air strikes or suggestions that turkey is on board may be a problem for turkey. then you've got iran, of course. ironically, rosemary, iran is at present the only regional country here that has been

active in helping the iraqi military and government on the ground in the north in trying to stop the scourge that is isis. let me just give you a sense of where the u.s. has been today so far as launching air strikes on isis is concerned. from a handful of what our u.s. military faces in the region, air strikes coming from air bases in qatar, in kuwait and the united arab emirates where i am here today. also likely going forward from turkey and from, of course, the "u "uss george h.w. bush" aircraft carrier. >> becky anderson joining us there from abu dhabi. let's go to jim bittermann in

paris. jim, real problem for france in this situation. they are put in this position where they -- the u.s. wants them to be part of this broad coalition, but it's going to be difficult for them, isn't it, considering their past with syria? >> reporter: i'm not so sure. i think that the french have been eyeing this out with the americans ahead of time. basically we've been hearing for example, even before president obama spoke, that president hollande is going to go to iraq tomorrow and going to reassure iraqi leaders that the french are on their side. they've been supporting iraq and in particular the kurds, with humanitarian aid and weapons. and they're going to continue that. the foreign minister said that france stands ready to join air attacks with the united states

in iraq. on seeyria, it is more delicate. what they're saying now is that they would like to support, just like the saudis would, the moderate opposition to assad. but to make that distinction between the moderate opposition and isis from 10,000 feet may be a little difficult. so they haven't been saying they would participate in air operations in syria. but they are saying that they would support moderates in syria against assad. >> jim bittermann there from paris. thanks for joining us. the white house says it is keen to have arab partners as part of the association against isis. the u.s. administration dispatched secretary of state john kerry to the region to try and win over some additional

support. you're seeing kerry here just over baghdad where he met with iraqi government officials and expressed confidence his mission will succeed. >> the coalition that's at the heart of our global strategy, i assure you will continue to grow and deepen in the days ahead. including at the u.n. general assembly in new york later this month. and that is because the united states and the world will simply not stand by and watch as isil's evil spreads. >> kerry is currently traveling to saudi arabia where he'll meet with the saudi king and the country's foreign minister. the white house says the saudis support this u.s. effort. there's also this aspect to this story. today, coincidentally marks the

1 13th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks in the united states. there will be remembrance ceremonies in the coming hours there at ground zero in new york and at the pentagon in washington, as well as in shanksville, pennsylvania. those three locations where the al qaeda high jacked planes came down back in 2001. president obama will speak at the pentagon ceremony. all right. we do want to turn to another story in scott lalandscotland. there's just one week to go in voting that could result in the breakup of the uk. they urged voters to say no during a trip to scotland on wednesday. scotland's first minister, who is leading the yes campaign, said the visit shows they're in panic mode. >> yes, i think it's productive for their campaign. their reactions in the streets

of scotland sees this as desperation. the westminster establishment, they're not popular in england, never mind not popular in scotla scotland. >> a new poll released shows 53% of scotts who responded are against independence. now to this. more than 400 people have been confirmed dead in devastating floods caused by monsoon rains in india and pakistan. officials in pakistan are warning that the worst of the flooding is still to come. a short break now. but coming up, oscar pistorius has arrived at court for the decisive phase of his trial. we saw him arrive.

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welcome back to our viewers in the united states and all around the world. >> our top story right now, the oscar pistorius murder trial. after six months, oscar pistorius will learn if he's guilty or not guilty of murder. the judge will begin reading her verdict really any moment now in what's expected to be a very lengthy process. a mob of photographers greeted the olympic played runner as he's known. this was just 30 minutes ago.

prosecutors say he shot his girlfriend reeva steenkamp in a premeditated act. but the defense says it was all a tragic accident thinking she was an intruder. >> kelly fphelps has been covering this trial for cnn since the start. >> she's just outside the courthouse. kelly, good to see you this morning. we're waiting for the judge to start to read this verdict. talk to us about what we're likely to see happen procedurally. >> we're likely to see her walk in and take her seat. she may make some preliminary remarks, particularly considering there are so many people in this courtroom. she may want to warn people about courtroom decorum.

her judgment will be a lengthy process. it will be detailed. it will give a clear explanation of the reasoning she has followed throughout all of the different decisions and determinations that she's had to make in order to reach the final outcome. >> of course, as we wait for that, kell yet, a common suggestion has been that oscar pistorius has been given special treatment. we saw him, though, taken in the front of the courtroom there. of course, flanked by people on either side. talk to us about that. is it the case that he's received special treatment because of his celebrity status? >> reporter: i really 24i8 it's one of those assumptions that people don't challenge. the state has been at pains to dismay to the world that they are not giving him special treatment because he's a celebrity. but actually in doing so, arguably he's been treated more harshly than a regular accused person would be treated.

for example, one day when he walked into the courtroom in front of the media, i was standing with the police officials and the police themselves said to me, they thought it was ridiculous that he wasn't allowed to go in through the back door, because in other accused person needs to be paraded in front media befor into a courtroom. so the state has been at such pages to avoid showing they are giving him special treatment that they are going the other way. >> this case has captivated everybody in south africa. oscar pistorius was the golden boy. his personal story overcoming physical adversity and helping unify a divided count try. this has shocked so many people. over the past six months, though, i remember when this first happened last year and those headlines hit the newspapers, people just suspected and assumed they knew what happened. have you seen public opinion

shift over the past six months as we've witnessed the evidence be presented? unfortunately -- kelly, i kate -- hate to cut you off. let's listen in to the verdict. >> you may be seated. i'll tell you when to rise. in 2015, the accused stayed at house number 286 silver lakes. the house was a double story with a main bedroom on the first floor. the accused slept in the main

bedroom, which had facilities of a bathroom and toilet. to reach the bathroom, one had to walk through a passage. although there was no door separating the main bedroom from the bathroom there was a door to the toilet that opened to the outside that goes into the bathroom. the toilet is a small cubicle. the main bedroom had a sliding door that led onto a balcony. there were minds on the windows and thick curtains which hang on the windows and the sliding door. when the blinds were closed, the main bedroom was dark. on 13 february, 2013, the accused spent the evening in his home with his girlfriend, reeva steenkamp. in the early morning hours of 14

february, 2013, the accused shot and killed steenkamp, the deceased. at the time the 14shots were fired, the deceased was inside the locked toilet. the accused was charged with the murder of reeva steenkamp, with section 51, number 105 of 1997. in addition, he was charged with the following counts.

count two, of the firearms control act. number 60 of 2000. in that the accused is guilty of the offense of contravening the provisions of section 120, subsection 7, sections 1, 103, 121-a, section 121. and section 151 of the firearms control act of 2000, discharge of ia firearm in a built-up are or in a public place. the indictment carries on in that on or about 30 september, 2010, and while traveling in a vehicle with other passengers, on a public road, the accused

did unlawfully discharge a firearm by firing a shot with his own 9 millimeter pistol through the open side door of the car they were traveling in. alternative to count two, con a contravention, number 60 of 2000, that the accused is guilty of the offense of contravening the provisions of section 120, subsection 3-b, with sections 1, 103, 121-a, section 121, and section 151 of the firearms control act, 60 of 2000. reckless endangerment. in that on or about 30

september, 2012, the accused mentioned in count two above discharged a firearm, to whit, his 9 millimeter pistol with reckless disregard for other passengers in the car. and/or people in the vicinity. count three, contravention of section 120 of the firearms control act. number 60 of 2000. that the accused is guilty of the offense of contravening the sections of 120, read with sections 1, 103, 121-a, section 121, and section 151 of the firearms control act.

discharge of a firearm in built-up area or any public place in that during january of 2013, and at a restaurant in the district of johannesburg, the accused unlawfully discharged a firearm, to whit a glock 27 pistol without any good reason to do so. the restaurant is a public place. to count three, constravention of 131-a, number 60 of 2000. that the accused is guilty of the offense of contravening the provisions of section 123-a, read with sections 1, 103,

121-a, section 121, and section is 51 of the firearms control act, 60 of 2000, negligent damage to property. in that on or about january 2013, and at on near the restaurant, in the district of johannesburg, the accused negligently used a firearm and caused damage to the floor of the restaurant. second alternative to count three, contravention of section 123-d, number 60 of twrou. -- 2000. that the accused is guilty of the offense of contravening the provisions of section 123-b read with sections 1, 103, section

121, read with schedule 4 and section 151 of the firearms control act, 60 of 2000, reckless endangerment. in that on or about january of 2013, at or near the restaurant in the district of johannesburg, the accused discharged a firearm, to whit, a glock 27 pistol at the table in the restaurant among other patrons in a manner likely to endanger the safety of the people at his table. and/or or patrons and the property of the restaurant. the accused had, in discharging the firearm, shown a reckless disregard for the safety of the patrons or property of the restaurant.

count four, contravention of section 90 of the firearms control act. that the accused is guilty of the sections of 90, read with sections 1, 103, 117, 121-a, section 1 121 and section 151 of the firearms control act. 60 of 2000. and further read as section 250 of the criminal procedure act 51 of 1977, possession of ammunition. in that on or about 16 february 2013, and at or near 286 bush willow street, silver lakes, in the district of pretieria, that

the accused has in his possession, 38 times 38 pounds, without a license in respect to a firearm, capable of discharging that ammunition. b, possessing ammunition. c. a dealer's manufacturing license, import/export or in transit permit or permit issues in terms of this act. and d, or is otherwise authorized to do so. the accused pled guilty to not

one and handed in an explanation of plea in terms of section 112 of the criminal procedure act, 51 of 1977. he also pleaded not guilty to counts two, three and four. and the alternative counts. the accused was represented by counsel. i sat with two assessors. explanation of plea. in his explanation of plea in respect to count one, the accused scredescribed the incid as a tragic one which occurred after he mistakenly believe

after an intruder or intruders entered his home and posed an imminent threat to him. the following excerpt is from the explanation of plea. during the early morning hours, i brought two friends in from the balcony. i had spoken to reeva who was in bed besides me. 4.2. un unbenoens to me, she must have gone to the toilet. at the time i brought in the friends, closed the sliding doors and drew the blinds and curtains. i heard the bathroom window sliding open. i believed that an intruder or intruder had entered the path

room through the bathroom win w window, which did not have bars. 4.4. i approached the bathroom, and with my firearm, at that time, i believed reeva was still in bed. 4.5. the discharging of my firearm was precipitated by a noise on the toilet, which i in my fearful state, knowing that i was on my stumps, unable to run away or properly defend myself, physical, believed that the intruder was coming out of the toilet to attack reeva and me. there was no explanation of plea in respect to counts two, three and four. admissions in terms of sections 220 of the criminal procedure at

51 of 1977. admissions in terms of section 220 of the cpa were handed in by agreement between the parties. in respect to count one, the admissions made by the accused concerned the identity of the deceased, the date, the scene, and the cause of death. the accused also admitted that the gunshot wounds were inflicted by him. that the body of the deceased sustained no further injuries from the time of death until the post mortem examination walls conducted on the decease body and that the doctor conducted the post mortem examination and correctly recorded his findings on exhibit b.

there were no admissions made with respect to count two. in respect to count three, the accused admitted that a shot went off while the firearm walls in his possession. in respect to count four, the accused made an admission that at all times relevant to the count, he had not been issued with a license to possess the ammunition. i now deal with the summary of events. in respect to count one, the accused and the deceased had had an argument, and that the accused had then intentionally shot and killed the deceased who had locked herself in the

toilet. the state called a witness, mrs. esther, resident at the same complex as the accused. who awoke a few minutes before to hear what she thought was a woman's voice. to her, it sounded as if the woman was engaged in an argument with someone. she could not locate the voice or tell what language was being spoken or what was being said. shortly after 3:00 in the morning, she heard what she thought were gunshots. mr. peter johnson and ms. michelle berger, husband and wife, stayed in an adjacent come mention, about 177 meters away from the house of the accused. they both heard screams that

they interpreted as those of the woman in distress. and she explained she heard three sounds she thought were gunshots. a few minutes later, she and her husband heard someone crying out loud and a man shouting for help. another witness and his wife were immediate maybes to the left of the accused's house. she woke her husband up to report she had heard a bang. soon thereafter, they both heard a man crying very loudly. she heard a man crying help, help, help, help.

at 3:16:13, she called security to report the loud crying. but did not get through. she tried again at 3:16:36 and the call lasted 44 seconds. another witness heard a man shout help, help, help. according to her, this was approximately five minutes before her father received a call from the accused at 3:19. another neighbor of the accused. when one is facing the house of the accused, she is the immediate neighbor on the right. she awoke to hear a than crying

out very loudly. she did not look at the time, but estimated that it could have been 3:20 when she woke up. the accused denied the allegations that he killed the deceased intentionally. he also denied that there was premeditation. the essence of the explanation of plea as well as the evidence of the accused is when he armed himself with his firearm and fired through the toilet door, he was acting in the mistaken belief that the deceased, who was then unknown to him in the toilet, was an intruder who posed a threat to his life and to that of the deceased. he believed that the intruder or intruders had come in through

the open bathroom window. at the time he had his back to the bed just after he had awoken to bring in two friends from the balcony. he was therefore unaware that the deceased had left the bedroom to go to the toilet. the following common cause facts, which relate to count one only. it is common cause that on 14 february, 2013, shortly after 3:00 in the morning, screams were heard from the accused's house. that the accused went on his stumps, fired four shots a t the

toilet door. at the time the shots were fired, the deceased was inside the toilet. that the door of the toilet was locked from the inside. that the door of the toilet opened to the outside that is into the bathroom. the that three of the four shots struck the deceased. that the deceased sustained a wound on the right side. a wound on the left upper arm. a head injury, and a wound on the web of the fingers. and that the deceased died from multiple gun shot wounds. also common because is soon after the shots had been fired, the accused called for help. that he used a cricket rack to break down the door, removed the

deceased, that he was very emotional soon after the incident, and that he was seen trying to resuscitate the deceased. the issues. it is clear therefore that the issues are limited to whether at the time the accused shot and killed the deceased he had the requisite intention and if so, whether there was any premeditation. not withstanding the limited issues, a lot of evidence was put forth and counsel argued extensively over two days. it shall not be possible nor will it serve any purpose to rehash the evidence in detail. hence, a summary of the evidence

above. it would also be fruitless to repeat every submission by counsel. this court has, however, taken all the evidence and that includes all the exhibits and submissions by counsel into consideration. i may add that there were a number of issues, which arose during the course of the trial. these issues took a lot of the court's time and correctly so, as at the time such issues were important to the parties. the issues concerned were whether or not the police contaminated the scene. the length of the ex-tension chord that went missing from the accused bedroom. and the authenticity of

photographs of items depicted in various exhibits. having got to the evidence as a whole, this court is of the view that these issues have now paved into significance. when one has regard to the rest of the evidence. the reason for that view will become clearer later in this judgment. i proceeded to analyze the evidence. i deal first with count one. there were no eyewitnesss. the only people -- >> all right. the judge there working through the charges against oscar pistorius in the murder case against him. of course, she has to determine whether oscar pistorius intentionally killed his girlfriend reeva steenkamp.

that does it for this house of our special coverage. >> "early start" is next for those of you in the states. for everyone else, we return you to the verdict.

how to destroy isis. the president reveals his plan to take down the terror organizations from air strikes in syria to training rebel fighters, sending more u.s. troops back to iraq. we will break this down with live team coverage from around the world starting right now. good morning. welcome to "early start." i'm john berman. >> i'm christine romans. it is 4:00 a.m. in the east. a call from president obama for a stepped up commitment in the fight against isis. in the