this is cnn breaking news.

hello, welcome to those of you watching in the united states and all around the world. i'm errol barnett at cnn center. >> i'm becky anderson at cnn abu dhabi. it is 11:00 a.m. watching cnn's special coverage of the u.s.-led air strikes in syria targeting isis. now here's what we know right now. the u.s. is heading up an alliance of arab nations in delivering the first air strikes on isis targets inside syria. the uk has confirmed it is not involved. senior u.s. official says the offensive started with tomahawk cruise missiles before the air strikes were launched. now, jordan says its war planes have already returned from their mission. a syrian opposition group says at least 20 targets have been hit. around raqqa and the de facto capital of the militants self-proclaimed islamic state.

sources on the ground report multiple isis fatalities. although many militants had evacuated we believe. syria's official news agency reports that the u.s. did tell syria's u.n. representative about the operation the day before. for more details from washington i spoke with cnn's chief u.n. security correspondent jim schudo. what he had to say. >> multiple military officials tonight, the start of this strike meant to be, a decisive blow going at key targets of isis, targets in the category told of command and control as well as resupply, training, hard targets. going after training facilities. places where weapons, ammunition were stored. where fighters and commanders might have been holed up for the night. continuing until day break when we will get a further update on

the number and nature of targets hit. as you mention, five arab partners taking part. the u.s. the only nonarab participant in the strikes tonight. that is something the administration, the obama administration was intent on building here. making this not yet another relatively lone american intervention in the middle east, but one that was, that it was joined by, local partners. you have those local partners, saudi arabia, united arab emirates. jordan, qatar, bahrain to. be clear, the participation i'm told by at least three of those partners is in what's called kinetic activities, dropping bombs, taking part in the air strikes, not supporting them, but taking part in those air strikes. that is extremely significant. this is just the first night. i'm told that this will continue. perhaps not at the same pace that we have seen tonight. and intensity. perhaps, settling into more of the pace that we have seen in the u.s.-led air campaign over iraq in recent days.

which is now in its sixth week. but, but that this is, the first very decisive step you might say in what promises to be a long campaign. just one thing i might add as well, becky, i reached out to members of syrian opposition. i have heard from the syrian opposition very strong support. one, syrian opposition official telling me, thank you, thank you, this is something we have been waiting for for so long. remember, this is an administration hat, that did not take the advice of even some of the president's own advisers to get involved in this conflict earlier, to arm some of the moderate syrian rebels. hillary clinton, leon panetta, pushed for that. the president refused now. you are the president doing both those things. one, arming the rebels now striking isis from the air. >> yeah, all right. that was jim. let's head to iraq and cnn's correspondent joins me from there. and these, anna, are air strikes to degrade assets on the ground.

we are learning more about what the strikes have achieved. and crucially to provide air cover for ground assets. who those assets are on the ground and what their scope and size is, still very unclear. you have been in an area of iraq, the peshmerga and iraqi forces have been working hard to combat isis where you are. do we have any clearer idea who is fighting isis on the other side of the border in syria? >> well, certainly in syria the rebel groups fighting isis. but obviously with what has been taking place in kobani, up close to the turkish border, how that township and surrounding villages and under siege now, for days. it has been the kurdish militia. with what has been going on up there. kurdish president here, president bazanhi calling it ethnic cleansing almost a call

to arms of kurdish fighters to go help their fellow militia there in northern syria. but, becky, you are talking about a very fragment eed group. this isn't a full-on military ready to fight isis. we also know the free syrian army, these moderate rebels who the united states and saudi arabia are prepared to tran up. that is going to take months. to accomplish. before they are back in, in northern syria. fighting isis. i think this is where there is a real hole in this strategy. and no one, by any stretch of the imagination said president obama's strategy to degrade and destroy isis is perfect. there is a lack of ground troops in syria to do the work, hard work, yes, u.s. air strikes, arab air strikes over the skies of syria are certainly going to take out important targets. take out buildings. take out, the heavy weaponry and

equipment. that has been moving across from iraq into syria. military hardware taken from cities like mosul, iraq's second largest city with a great deal of american weaponry. expensive, high tech weaponry, taken back and forth across the border. but no ground forces. here in iraq we are experiencing similar situation. but at least there is the peshmerga and iraqi forces with air cover can take the fight to isis. boots on the ground. but even with them, becky, there are ser yious concerns, if theye capable and up to the attack. there is the will, amongst the peshmerga, man tower and then the skill. there are serious questions. general dempsey recently saying that half of the iraqi security force is incapable of being a partner to the united states here in iraq.

they don't hatch the boots on the ground in syria. 190 air strikes here in iraq and french air strikes. still, becky, it not defeating isis. not retreating. they're here, contained. still fighting. they're not retreating. >> despite of course equipment being provided to those iraqis on the ground at times from the iranians. adding another dimension to all of this. all right, anna. for the time being. thank you for that. let's kid wh a's kid what we le the past few hours, who it is, who is involved in this sort of u.s.-led coalition. so far as arab nations are concerned. perhaps unsurprisingly, the saudis and uae, where i am, in abu dhabi, capital of the uae. great allies of the u.s. also, qatar, at odds with saudi

and the uae of late over the promotion and hosting of, of political islam which the countries here find incredibly dangerous. then you have got, bahrain in this region. the fifth placer in all of this, self announced as it were, jordan. let's get more on jordan's role in this operation. what we know the u.s. will be flying out of the persian gulf and out of the red sea. specifically what are these arab nations doing in the air and possibly going forward on the ground. this is what i learned from the jordanian state minister who i spoke to just amomenmoments ago mohamed al-mahmi. >> the airplanes actually have come back and have conducted air strikes against positions of the terrorist organization isis. and they're back. and we are confirming that we

will not hesitate to take any further action in order to target and to destroy the positions of this terrorist organization. in light of continuous attempts to infiltrate into our borders and undermine our security and stability. >> i think it is important to explain to our viewers, i am here in the uae in the gulf, just how complex this region is. and how important it is that this, this arab-led coalition as it were alongside the u.s. is involved. look, sunni arab nations, frankly now getting involved. bombing and degrading a group who in the name of sunni, sunni islam is fighting on the ground in iraq and in syria. just, explain for our viewers, if you will, how important and

difficult a negotiation, that sunni arab countries will be fighting from the ground and from the air. other sunni arab groups. >> we have been talking to our people. i have been talking to local media since the morning explaining that this its the right thing to do. that they respect no borders and terrorism will continue to spread and undermine the security and peace of the different societies. we think that -- that this is the right thing for nations to do. to, come together. decisively and crack down on terrorism and stop terrorism. >> the latest from jordan. errol. >> becky anderson live for us in the united arab emirates.

continue to cross over to becky as we gather more information on this breaking story. u.s. air strikes. u.s.-led air strikes in syria supported by at least, we understand five arab nations. at this point want to bring you a separate development just in to cnn. another story we are following. israel's military says one palestinian man was killed and another seriously wounded after exchanging fire with israeli forces. the two men are suspected of murdering three israeli teenagers this past june. israel says its security forces responded after the men opened fire on them. this has relevant, abduction and killing of the teens, hitchhiking in the west bank touched off a series of repry sales from both sites. which escalated into the round of fighting we witnessed there in gaza. more than 2,000 palestinians and 67 israelis were killed. over seven weeks during those clashes. >> we do have much more to bring you on our top story.

u.s.-led air strike in syria. stay with us here on cnn as we connect with our koemencorrespo around the world.

>> to those of you watching in the united states and around the world, welcome back to our continuing breaking news coverage. i'm errol barnett at cnn center. at this moment we want to recap and take stock and walk you through what we know about u.s.-led air strikes against

isis targets in syria. at least five arab nations are involved in the operation. the prime target. isis stronghold in raqqa along with several other locations nearby. the syrian observatory for human rights says at least 20 targets have been hit overnight. activists in raqqa say the governor's compound, a post office and recruitment center were damaged. sources on the ground also say there are several fatalities. meantime, jordan says its planes have returned safely now after carrying out some of those air strikes. u.s. officials say, saudi arabia, the united arab emirates and bahrain are also participating. qatar is involved. we understand. just, unclear exactly what role it's played so far. the uk has confirmed to cnn it did not take part in the air strikes. so that's what we know at this moment. more details to emerge here as the day moves on. but, let's take a closer look at how the international community has reached this point, for that

joined by the author of the new middle east, protest and revolution in the arab world and chair of contemporary middle east studies at the london school of economics. great to have you with us this morning. are you going to have to rip up the book, pull out the pages with what happened now. to see arab states to actively, publicly participate in a military campaign in a neighboring arab state its not something that we have seen in the modern world. >> well, i think you are making a good point. a major point. not just one particular state. you have saudi arabia. you have jordan. you have the united arab emirates. bahrain. and also, as a supporting state, other. as you know, qatar has been accused of basically -- financing some of the militants in syria. yet you have qatar, basically lending a helping hand to the attacks inside syria.

including bahrain. the united arab emradz. the american public and international public. this is not an american campaign. this is an international campaign. regardless of how significant, the operational and the military aspects, of the contribution of the arab states. they do lend legitimacy to the regional. international coalition. they've send a strong message to so-called islamic states. arab states are deeply involved in this fight now. and i think, what we have seen, this is not just a -- basically one or two attacks. you are talking about almost reportedly, two dozen attacks. and the operation continues. part of the operation to degrade and weaken the so-called islamic state in syria. syria is really the headquarters -- and the nerve center of the so-called islamic state.

are in syria. syria is the nerve center and the most important really, shelter and refuge. for the islamic state. all the analysts we have been talking to, today, reiterate the point. it is a big deal not just because you have a single arab state but because you have five. this would make it seem as if they're all going to stay a part of this very long term campaign to erase isis. but how did we get here? in previous conflicts in the region. how did we get to the point where the u.s. was able to pull together five arab states. we had the unique threat of isis. a group that many saying, perverting islam. a gross exaggeration of what it really stands for.

they are convincing and scaring. moderate sunnis to support them. now to have saudi arabia and other states participating. when did things change do you think? >> i think, this is again, you are really asking, a big question. about the contacts. why we have reached this particular point. why almost all the powers, not just arab state as you know. including turkey, including iran. saudi arabia. you have a -- a cold war taking place in the middle east. in the last ten years or so. between, shiaa dominated iran and sunni dominated saudi arabia. now both countries, iran and saudi arabia, are on the same page. the so-called islamic state. yesterday, the four ministers of saudi arabia, and iran, met in new york. and they have made it very clear, that, that the so-called islamic state represents a threat to their tone interests and to regional security and the national security at neighboring

states. what the rise and the surge and the advances of isis, or the so-called islamic state in iraq and syria have done. is to send a powerful message to regional players. that national security is on the line. that the rise of the islamic state threatens not only -- the social fabric of co-existence in the region. shiites, kurd, and turkish, threatens the very foundation of the nation state itself. you have realignment, regional powers. realignment though they have major differences. you have a convergence of interest. when iran suggests it is willing to fight the so-called islamic state. again, this tells you a great deal. how the iranian leadership, have used the advances of the islamic state. here is a very -- critical point

though. if i was president bashir al-assad, i would feel anxious, not buzz the cecause the coalit bombing the headquarters of the islamic state. the co-lgs could change and shift targets in the future. one, two, three years. this coalition could turn against at sad government itself. in particular if the conflict basically continues to escalate. so the potential for this coalition, constructed by the americans, is very real. even though the assad government has probably welcomed the attacks. the assad government has made it clear, the obama administration has informed the syrian governments, of the impending attacks, that again if i were in damascus, i would worry this particular coalition could replicate, nato operation as the you know.

which, which, toppled president, the late president moammar gadhafi. >> a new powerful alliance emerged in the region. the chair of contemporary middle east studies at school of economics thank you for your insight this morning, just past 8:20 where you are. thank you very much. we want to get you to the united states capital, 3:20 in the morning. senior white house correspondent, joe johns joins us, i understand you have new information for us as we are bringing in new bit of details on this developing story. what do you know. >> right, errol. information just across, and what the allies did last night. i will read it. says they conducted 14 strikes against isis targets. the strikes destroyed or damaged

multiple targets in the vicinity of, raqqa, abu khamil, isil, fighters, headquarters, command, control facilities, storage facility, finance center. sa play trucks. armed vehicles. they also say, all air craft safely exited the strike area. so no aircraft apparently were shot down. also, they say the air strikes destroyed two isil humvees, and armed vehicle, a fighting position, southwest of kirkuk. and one of the most interesting things i think in the entire release that comes from centcom. on the second page, it says separately the united states has taken action to disrupt the imminent attack plotting against the united states and western interests conducted by a network of seasoned al qaeda veterans. some times referred to as the

group which have established a safe haven iven syria to develop external attacks, test improvised explosive devices and recruit westerners. these strikes the release says, were undertaken only by u.s. assets. so, that's the short read from the united states guchlt on what happened. over the past few hours. involving all of the al lays that we have mentioned before. including, saudi arabia, jordan, qatar, the united arab emirates. back to you, errol. >> of the main takeaway there is that the u.s. detailing specifically what the u.s. assets were committed to. saying all aircraft did escape safely and going through there, more details on the number of strikes and what was targeted. all of it going back to what we knew earlier it was a real effort to dismantle the real

heart, or, stronghold, of isis. in syria. a place where they would train and resa play fupply fighters. thank you very much in washington, d.c. continue to connect with you throughout the day. at this moment we want to get back to united arab emirates. around 11:30, approaching in the morning there. and becky anderson is continuing to gather reaction from there and beyond. becky. >> yeah, we just got some more on this pending release. and to add what joe was just saying and give it some sort of regional context here. the pentagon saying the strikes were conducted from air ships in, international walterters, r sea, northern arabian gulf. remotely piloted. bomber aircraft deby u.s. central command area of central operations. in addition, the kingdom of

bahrain, jordan, kingdom of saudi arabia, qatar, uae where i am today. also par tticipating in or aporting the targ either. all aircraft safely committed the strike area. fascinating. we are well aware there are five operations involved in air cover, or strikes. how the assets are divvied up. slightly unclear. we will get more information as we are able to from ministry of foreign affairs here in this region. the jordanians i spoke to an hour or so ago, said they actually conducted air strikes in syria. their planes, all arrived safely back in the kingdom. and they will continue this behavior as long as they feel aggression from isis who let me tell you, they say have already infiltrated their own borders. and jordan as you know, sitting on the cusp of what is this

incredibly tense and difficult area that isis would look to call the islamic state. going forward. now, let's see if we can stand back from what is going on in this region and get reaction from europe. i know that, standing by at downing street. in london. what are we hearing from the british government? >> the prime minister's office just confirmed the uk is not involved with these most recent air strikes. in syria. but ministry of defense has also told us the conversation about the air strikes is still ongoing. britain hasn't made any definitive decision. the key point to remember here, of course is that last year, lawmakers voted not to have air strikes in syria. even though the prime minister's office says this is still an option, the possibility of air strikes in syria, it would need to find a way to convince lawmakers or find a way to get around that issue. before, getting involved militarily. so, just to reiterate, the prime

minister's office saying the uk is not involved in air strikes at the moment. but a defun tiff decision hasn't been made whether or not to get involved yet. >> yeah, alluding to the decision, the vote was taken in parm last august. after the use of chemical weapons by the syrian government. just to clarify at this pint. no involvement to date by the british. although i think i am write in understanding what you said. the min streep of defense in the uk has the had these discussions on going. before i let you go, step back and discuss what you have been working on. a lot over the last few weeks. that is the rise of sort of, would be jihadists moving out of the uk and into this sort of theater of war. across syria. what do you know to date?

>> what we know there are an estimated 400 to 500 british fighters who have traveled to syria to john groups like isis. and britain is not alone in this. france has had an estimated 700. the netherlands, belgium, germany have all seen similar numbers going to fight there. this is a europe-wide problem. but britain is in the unique position. of hostages that have come out from isis. not only a british hostage executed. another threatened with execution. the militant that appears to be carrying out the killing apares to be british. in that sense, britain is in a unique position. this is why. britain has been out front in the the coalition. and countering extremism and terrorism here at home. the emphasis from the prime minister's view has been to prevent fighters from going to syria. that means find weighs to take away passports.

controlling extremist narrative here at home and in britain. likely to see, the prime minlster talking about at general assembly later today. it's why, britain is keeping a close eye on the ground in syria and iraq. >> yeah. all right. thank you for that. we will take a very short break at that point. we'll be back after this. breaking news here on cnn. u.s.-led air strike over syria.

i wish my allergies would let me take you home. the power of allegra relieves your toughest indoor and outdoor symptoms fast and stays strong for 24 hours. stop suffering. start living. this is cnn "breaking news." welcome back to our viewers in the united states and all around the word.

i'm errol barnett at cnn center. >> and i'm becky anderson in abu dhabi in the united arab emirates. as the u.s. leads a coalition to strike syria. and isil. >> becky, at this moment. here's what we know so far. a u.s.-led air campaign began bombing isis targets in syria early tuesday. the military says the strikes destroyed or damaged training compound, headquarters, and command and control facilities in raqqa and three other syrian cities. the u.s. said the target hit at least 14 isis sites. now tomahawk missiles launched from the sea initiated strikes, followed by bombers and fighter jets. united arab emirates, bahrain, saudi arabia, qatar and jordan supported or participated in these strikes making them very significant. we also have new information from u.s. central command, or centcom as it is known here in

the past hour, it says the u.s. has taken separate action to disrupt "an imminent attack." against the u.s. and other western interests. centcom says veteran al qaeda militants were plotting attacks from a safe haven they established in syria. so a number of developments there. the u.s. made eight strikes against the targets. centcom said it included training camps, explosives buildings and other facilities. we want to stress these separate attacks were carried out by the united states only. and that was their aleppo. becky anderson has been covering the breaking development from abu dhabi. becky in the centcom press release. they aimed to lay a definitive blow. only evidence we have seen that one picture, communications tower near raqqa sent out via twitter. as day light emerges we need to see how definitive the attacks

really were. >> yeah, i'm sure we'll get more flesh on these bones as it were in the hours to come. i was thinking as you were speaking there of what was saidsaid saiden in the u.s. centcom release, alluded to regional players and how incredibly important the local pan-arab coalition of the willing is and will be going forward. u.s. centcom saying, paraphrase here, bahrain, saudi, qatar, and the uae participated in all supported air strikes versus isis. all aircraft safely exiting the strike areas. we have spoken to a minister in jordan this morning who confirms that their planes were in action over syria. they have all returned safely. but will continue to attack what is this counterterrorism effort, as the, as the u.s. would have it known. but i think most people in this region would be more, sort of,

call it a war at this stage against this sunni muslim group. but what everybody is doing, carving up their assets. how the u.s. is using the pan-regional players for help if not actual action in the air, remains to be seen. for more on the strikes, i'm joipd by rick francona, a retired air force lieutenant, colonel, appreciate your time this morning. as far as i can understand, u.s. aircraft, at least flying out of both the red sea and the persianal arabian gulf here. and let's start there. before weave talk of the arab allegiance here. describe to me what you understand may or will have happened with the u.s. assets in the air, where they have they come from, their scope, what have they been after? >> first thing we know happened,

tomahawk strikes, t-lands, tomahawk land missiles. launched from ships, red sea, mediterranean, could have been in the persian gulf. we don't know where they came from. that would have probably gone after targets like, power supplies, power generation, and communications to pave the way for the manned aircraft to comen. then the manned aircraft would have come, some would have come from carriers, we know there is a carrier in the persian gulf. given the scope of this operation and the description of the aircraft there was land-based aviation there. so it probably came from some neighboring countries. of course the countries aren't going to tell us which bases were used. but i would suspect probably using jordan or -- the uae. bases down there. we have refueling cape built ab. we can go quite a ways. i think that's probably what happened. and hitting targets all over.

now the targets ranged all the way from aleppo which is in the northwestern part of the country all the way down to the iraqi border at abu kanal. a far range of targets. not only isis, but the group that is presenting a transportation threat to the united states. overall, quite a large operation, or wide ranging operation. then you add to that these five arab nations which i think adds not only a military dimension but a very, very important political dimension. we show support for a coalition and it's, think a success story for the administration thus far. >> it is fascinating isn't it. you have absolutely put your finger on it here. not just the use, potential use, in the air, or in support of the u.s. by arab nations. it has the the human dimension, too, hasn't it.

this is an effort to fight a group in the name of sunni islam is fighting both in syria and iraq. what you have got its sunni-arab nations to hold their hand up and say "this is something we want to get rid of." the problem in this region where i am, ongoing rift here. the support that qatar has been providing for the muslim brotherhood. you know, feared by saudi, by, by egypt, by the uae here for the rise, for their support of the rise of political islam. it has been very interesting to see that qatar is involved. how they are involved. remains to be seen at this point. as you rightly pond out there are bases in certain regions we never find out are being used. what we do know, interesting. the jordan ians have held their hand up. spoken to me on air. on cnn. we have flown our aircraft into, and out of syria.

and we are part of those air strikes. we had perhaps, if nothing else, jordanians would be well equipped to keep the and they have been infiltrated by isis across their own boerrders. a big effort from the jordanians already. >> i saw the interview with the jordanian spokesman. very revealing what he was willing to say. for them to say that, shows, a lot of commitment on their part. i hope we are going to see the same thing from other arab countries. the question will be -- very important -- these are the sar rab government are saying. us now we need to see what kind of popular support these, these operations by the arab countries enjoy on the arab street. let's see what the popular reaction is to this. if popular reaction supports the governments. i think that is a very important step for the future of the

operations against isis. it actually shows that there is regional pride in here. >> yeah, my experience, i will let you go, sir. to throw thins in. if this is a quick, effective operation. an operation that anybody you talk to in the uae and beyond says is a scourge to the region. then this operation will get the support of the man and woman on the street here. if it is an ongoing and long operation. that may then be questioned. it remains to be seen. we are hours into this. we very much appreciate your time here on the cnn. if you have your tablet, laptop viewers nearby. check out cnn.com. right now we have regular updates on the u.s. air strikes and the involvement of the arab nations you. know where to go, cnn.com/international. we will be right back.

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and why with our partner in brazil, we are producing a biofuel made from renewable sugarcane to fuel cars. let's broaden the world's energy mix, let's go. this is cnn "breaking news." >> welcome back, everyone to cnn's continuing coverage. we do now know u.s.-led air strikes against isis targets strike at least 14 targets in the syrian city of raqqa.

and a number of areas in eastern and northern syria. see them highlighted on your map there, in a press release, released by u.s. central command. they say the strikes destroyed or damaged multiple isil targets in the four areas you see highlighted on your screen. we mentioned earlier that this campaign did target raqqa, but of course, it was not confined to that location in and of itself. we want to give you a bit more information on the stronghold of isis. that's raqqa specifically you see on your screen there. center of the country. 160 kilometers east of aleppo. once home to 200,000 people. many of them have now fled. important to keep in mind that isis militants took control of raqqa in january of this year. and really turned it into their unofficial home base. since then, activists say isis has run raqqa like a police state. controlling absolutely everything from power and water

to schools and banks. isis religious police are said to patrol the street there enforcing strict islamic law. there is a dress code for women. smoking and drinking alcohol are banned there. anyone who violates isis' version of the law is punished severely. activists say public executions have become a daily occurrence in raqqa. so the u.s.-led air strikes focused on that isis stronghold as well as a number of others in the country. now, a 15-year-old girl in an iraqi refugee camp can speak to violence only too well that isis puts on people. isis fighters shot and killed that young girl's brother. and the group kidnapped her forcing her to bear witness to even more violence and pain. >> reporter: inside this refugee tent in the stifling heat, aria, not her real name, goes about her daily chores. this is not a burden, but rather

a distraction from what this 15-year-old girl has suffered and endured. she asks her parents to leave, she doesn't want to talk about what happened to her in front of them. six weeks ago the family fled their home in northern iraq as isis stormed in. a convoy of vehicles with black flags drove past them. minutes later they were surrounded. >> translator: they forced us out of the car, explains aria, girls and women were separated from the men. they only took the girls forcing into a minnie vivan. they were drven to mosul and locked in a three-story house with dozens of teenaged girls captured. for three weeks they were kept here. during a time, the sheik came, collecting girls include herring sister-in-law. he forced himself on her. i was scared. a lot of my friend were rained.

it's hard to talk about it. sexual abuse is a taboo subject in this culture. off to admit being a victim 'tis unheard of. while aria claims sunny wasn't rained. this visibly traumatized girl has been through much more than she is willing to admit. i see their faces all the time, i have nightmares. i can't stop thinking how they forced themselves to on the girls. i have seen and been through too much. aria's story is one storien one tent among the thousand here. there is a growing body of evidence of crimes being committed by isis against yzidi girls and women aimed at shattering and tearing apart these communities. aria and her friend were taken by two isis militants she calls abu hassan and abu jafah, they forced uts us to marry them threatening to hurt us if we didn't. they gave us a fun to call our families to tell them we

converted they've called her uncle who knew people prepared to help. when the militants left the house, the girls dressed and escaped to a safe house. i never thought i would be freed from isis. i am happy to be with my mother and father. but i found out my brother was killed. isis shot him when they took me. everyone at this camp knows what happened to aria, what her shame is dwarfed by her guilt after learning what her freedom meant for the other girls. >> translator: they rained them as punishment because we escaped. they tightened security so no girls can escape any more. anna coren, cnn, northern iraq. >> aria and so man other viy ot victims can take comfort, the u.s. and five allies have constructed air strikes on key isis targets in syria. we will have more on these air strikes and how they may impact a growing refugee crisis in the region, after this short break.

stay with us here on cnn.

>> this is cnn "breaking news." >> welcome back to our breaking news coverage. the u.s. and five arab nations have launched the first air offensive against isis militants in sear yeah. the u.s. says 14 strikes were carried out in and around raqqa and three other cities, we have them highlighted for you on this map. the u.s. says all aircrafts

safely exited attack zones, including isis fighters, training, compound, headquarters, command and control centers for fighters across the region. 47 tomahawk cruise missiles were fired to pave the way for the air strikes. file footage of that. syria's official news agency reports that the u.s. did tell syria's u.n. representative about the operation in raqqa just the day before the attacks took place. now, interestingly, turkey did not participate in this wave of air strikes in syria. but as we report, a huge number of syrians are fleeing isis into turkey causing a massive refugee crisis. >> reporter: since friday's isis began sweeping through kurdish parts of northern syria, according to the syrian observatory for human rights, some 200,000 refugees have flooded across the border into turkey. turkish authorities putting that number at 130,000. still the largest influx we have

seen since the syrian civil war began over three years ago. the authorities here, aid organizations really struggling to deal with influx. entire families arriving just with the clothing on their backs. exhausted. despo despondant. some saying they had to wait for days to be able to cross. turkish authorities trying to keep something of a level of control over the situation, trying to register everybody. vaccinate children. families temporarily sheltered inside schools while aid agencies and the government hastily build up refugee camps. now for the time being, the town of kobani, seems to be isis' main focus at this stage is holding out. isis swarmed fighters from various other front lines toward this strategic area that if they were to capture would allow them to have a more direct logistical

route to the stronghold. a syrian kurdish official cnn spoke to said they have received some reinforcements, some turkish kurds coming in to try to fight alongside them. some of them have military experience. others just civilian. that has helped to boost morale. the syrian kurdish official is saying, we are up against tanks, military equipment and machinery. much of which isis managed to obtain when it took over huge swathz of northern iraq earlier this summer. unclear at this stage, how long this town of kobani can actually hold out. one syrian kurdish activist that cnn spoke to warning of a possible massacre of tens of thousand, if some sort of international support is not brought into help these kurdish fighters keep isis outside of the town. arwa damon, cnn, turkey. >> unfortunately, the challenge of refugees in the situation is

just getting worse. more than 3 million people have fled syria due to the ongoing war in the country. according to the u.n. the number could be much higher. you see a breakdown of it here. more than 1 million registered refugees in lebanon. turkey has taken in 847,000 syrian refugees. more than 618,000 registered in jr. dan. take a look at numbers of total refugees registered and unregistered. this according to regional governments. 1.6 million in turkey. 1.5 million in lebanon. 1.4 million in jordan. just one reason why this single story has regional and global implications. you have been watching cnn's "special coverage" with me, errol barnett. stay with us. much more breaking news coverage coming up next on "early start."

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we have major breaking news this morning. the u.s. launching air strikes against isis targets in syria overnight. we have new details just in. good morning. welcome to "early start." i'm john berman. >> i'm christine romans. welcome to the viewers from the u.s. and around the world. the military officials saying the targets hit were in the isis strong hold of roqqa. the aim is to demand control and supply and training facilities. the air strikes are a significant escalation of the terror group. that campaign has been