out today while writing this piece, today is the 17th anniversary of the first mistake i ever made while working for david carr. i mixed up names in one of my first stories for him and i can still hear him making sure that i fully understood the gravity of the error. i still hear that voice when i mess up because as taught to me by david carr i know how important it is that i get it right. he made me better. he made all of us better and the world is a poorer place for his passing. our condolences to his wife jill and his daughters, maddie erin and megan whom he loved so much. that's it for "the lead." i'm jake tapper. wolf blitzer and "the situation room" is next. happening now, marines in danger after an isis surprise attack, using fighters in stolen uniforms. is a key air base safe for hundreds of u.s. troops? i will ask the former commander of the u.s. military's central command. fighting exploding just hours before a cease-fire in

eastern europe. will it draw the u.s. and vladimir putin's russia into a deeper more dangerous confrontation? and hate crime. the killing of three muslim students in north carolina takes on a whole new dimension as president obama makes a stunning and powerful new statement, and the fbi opens its own inquiry. i'm wolf blitzer. you're in "the situation room." breaking now, new inside details of today's attack that brought isis militants to a perimeter of a huge air base. hundreds of u.s. troops are inside training iraqis to defend their country. will the iraqis stand up and fight? are u.s. forces in danger? and since isis used sleeper cells to take lightning control of a town near the base are militants about to spring up in other places? the forward head of the u.s. military central command, retired general anthony zinni is

standing by to join us. let's begin with our chief national security correspondent jim sciutto. he's got the latest. >> when you looked at today's attack, here's where it was, right here at al assad air base right next door to al baghdadi just nine miles down the road. al baghdadi now under isis control. today's attack repelled by iraqi forces inside al assad base. they killed eight suspected suicide bombers who were dressed up in iraqi military uniforms. i'm told by pentagon officials that at no time were the 300 u.s. military personnel inside the base under threat. the base is the size of boulder, colorado. they were on the other side kilometers away. the fact is when you have isis in such close proximity to the base now controlling this town it's expected they will attempt to attack the base again and you speak to pentagon officials, they acknowledge the u.s. forces there are under threat. >> they certainly are. where else are u.s. troops

deployed in iraq right now? >> they are now deployed in five places outside of baghdad. one is here at al assad. another in erbil. another to the north of baghdad and also at another base just to the south. so four places here. the southern area generally under the control of iraqi forces but as you move up here you are getting into areas that are under greater threat from isis forces. the talk had been for a number of weeks of isis being on the defensive. you saw today, not just here in the central part of the country but also up in the north, isis making advances going on the offense again. so even with that pressure of the u.s.-led air campaign even with what are acknowledged much better stronger efforts by iraqi forces to repel them they still have the ability to carry out major military operations and the u.s. personnel who are here here and here are certainly more exposed. >> jim sciutto, we will get back to you. isis is on the move in west and central iraq. it's a different story in the

northern part of the country where kurdish fighters are preparing for their own offensive to try to take back more territory captured by isis. cnn's phil black traveled to the front lines of that battle. he is now back in northern iraq. he is joining us live with more. what's going on, phil? >> reporter: clearly it is a story of two different regions in this country. in the west around al baghdadi around that base in the province of anbar, it is a place where isis is very much on the offensive, where they control some 70% of that huge province and where the iraqi army hasn't been able to slow them down. here in the north of the country, more evidence today that isis is increasingly contained by kurdish forces. despite that there are still big towns around here big cities that they have very firm

control of. we were around a city of hundreds of thousands of people which is now largely abandoned but isis has a very firm control. we have kurdish fighters moving in slowly to try to take the city back not just from iraq but from syria and turkey as well. they have made some progress but as i say, very firm control on that city very firm control on the city of mosul as well. >> any indications that kurdish fighters the peshmerga, are getting any help at all from the regular iraqi military? >> reporter: not in this region no. that's really what they're waiting for. before some of these big cities can fall the peshmerga tell us they simply are in no position to do it on their own whatsoever. partly because of the ethnic sensitivities in this country, the ethnic makeup. the city of mosul, majority

sunni arab. these are areas the kurds simply do not feel they can enter safely. they don't necessarily believe it is their job to clear these cities alone so therefore, they are waiting for the iraqi army to prepare, to train, to be ready to be part of such a major offensive operation. they don't think that's going to happen imminently. it still looks some months away. >> phil black, we will check back with you as well. very disturbing situation unfolding in iraq right now. joining us in "the situation room," retired u.s. marine corps general anthony zinney. as you heard, we are learning that suicide bombers were able to get into that al assad air base near the anbar province. hundreds of u.s. marines are there. they are training the iraqi army. their efforts were thwarted but is this really worrisome right now? are those u.s. marines safe? >> well i think that al assad

is safe in terms of the ability of isis to take it. i think it's probably too well defended. the area around it is very open. air can be very effective. this was probably an attempt to cause some casualties. it didn't sound like it was a serious attempt to overtake the base. obviously the base is well defended by iraqi troops. but there is still the possibility of indirect fire. artillery pieces mortar rockets and lucky shots that can come in. to that extent i do think they're exposed. >> because we are also hearing this a lot of those attackers were actually wearing iraqi military uniforms. what do you make of that? >> well remember the isis forces overran a number of iraqi positions, iraqi military positions and i'm sure beside the equipment they were able to get their hands on they got their hands on a lot of

[ inaudible ]. that doesn't surprise me. >> you think the u.s. military can really rely on those iraqi forces given the fact that so many of those iraqi troops regular iraqi troops simply ran away in the face of an isis offensive in mosul? that's a huge city as you well know and other areas that are threatening other major air bases right now. can those u.s. marines rely on the iraqi military for protection? >> i think what you probably have is an iraqi army that's 18 months or two years away from generally being considered capable of retaking and holding portions of the country that isis have. i would guess they are a little bit better led and willing to fight a little more. i'm not certain about what they have out at the air base where the attacks came.

but right now, i would probably say it's a mixed bag and i think we are looking at at least 18 months to two years before we say we've got a fully capable iraqi army. >> should there be u.s. combat boots on the ground right now as they say, u.s. combat forces to deal with what's going on? >> i believe there should. i'm probably a minority of a few but the only u.s. combat troops will cause other coalition partners to gather around and be part of the coalition. i think the longer isis stays and holds ground in iraq the harder it's going to be to get them dislodged. they will win over people they will end up recruiting more people because they are defiant and they are in place. you can't take this ground with special forces special operations forces are not designed to take and hold ground. you need ground combat units to do that. if america is going to lead and provide command and control, we

at least need some there. right now, the strategy is relying on attrition through air power and that's going to take a long time. >> how many troops general, do you think the u.s. needs? >> -- they are not armed as well as they should be and the iraqi army, like i said has got a ways to go before they're ready. >> how many u.s. troops do you think should be there on the ground? >> i would like to see a couple of brigades and i really believe if you had a couple of u.s. ground combat brigades there would be other countries in the region that would provide others. they're not going to do it on their own. they want that u.s. leadership and participation, not just in command and control and air and intelligence but really the combat units. and i think you would see other countries come in. i also would arm the peshmerga better than we are. i think u.s. ground forces would provide backbone for the iraqi military also.

remember everybody's i think very concerned about casualties troops being exposed. go back to our involvement in iraq and afghanistan but remember in iraq and afghanistan, because we were doing counter insurgency operations, we were in every nook and cranny of the country and in every valley. that would not be the mission here. it would just be to strike and as the iraqi army got better to reinforce them or support them or provide backup. >> so when you say two brigades how many troops does that mean? >> i would say just to give you a number i would say 10,000 american troops ground and that's support, too. that's things like artillery and logistics support and all that. but it's just meant to be something that we can gather a coalition around. >> general, i want you to stand by. there's a lot more to talk about. iraq is certainly turning out to be a mess but there are other parts of that region also awful right now. much more to discuss right after this.

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we're following today's disturbing news isis fighters at the perimeter of a huge military base where hundreds of u.s. troops are training iraqis. we are back with the former u.s. military central commander, retired marine corps general anthony zinney. general, once again, thanks very much for joining us. in addition to what's going on in iraq right now, yemen is turning out to be a disaster for the u.s. that's where the u.s. military of course have been going after al qaeda in the arabian peninsula, aqap as it's called. the u.s. embassy has now been abandoned in the capital of sanaa. this is turning out to be a real disaster, isn't it? >> yes, it is.

yemen has always been a concern by the other nations on the arabian peninsula. it's always had very porous borders, a long coastline, not a very strong coast guard. its military has always been tied up in tribal conflicts and i know that the saudis and the others on the peninsula really worry about this becoming a transit point. it will be interesting to see what aqap does vis a vis the houthis. they are religiously different and will there be a conflict down there, will they work together in some fashion, will it become more of a base of operations located right on the peninsula and i'm sure these are the concerns that are in riyadh and abu dhabi and elsewhere on the peninsula right now. >> this used to be your area this whole area yemen, iraq, syria, the whole u.s. military central command region of responsibility. did you ever think looking back at your time there would be this kind of disaster unfolding, the u.s. having to abandon its

embassy not only in yemen but somalia, libya, obviously syria as well? this whole region looks like it's on fire right now. >> no i didn't. i thought we were making progress it was very slow. i was hoping the reforms might move a little faster. many young people disenchanted. but once osama bin laden and the al qaeda movement really took hold and once we went into iraq and sort of frankly broke it we ended up opening up this part of the world to the extremists getting planted in there and gaining sanctuaries. that of course metastasizes all over the region. >> you had a chance to read the president's war resolution he wants congress to approve giving him new military authority to wage this war against isis. you like that language as you have read it? >> well first of all, i like the idea that we go to congress.

i think constitutionally that's the way it was supposed to be. they represent the people and that demonstrates the will of the people. i think congress ought to be involved in these decisions. i don't like the idea that it's limited. i don't think the president should ever limit himself by eliminating ground combat troops or anything else. keep all your options on the table, as we talked about before. so it's not the best language but the fact he's bringing congress in i think is good. >> but if you had a vote if you were a member of congress the language as he's proposed it would you vote for it or against it? >> well i would like to see the language changed to give him more authority to use other forces. i don't like the idea that it's limited to three years. timelines don't mean anything in this part of the world. i understand why he put the time limit in but i think it more has to do with mission. i don't think we would have given franklin delano roosevelt just three years to win world war ii.

some of the language i would hope maybe gets changed in the congressional language that comes out of this debate but i do think that going to congress is the right thing. >> general, as usual, thanks very much for joining us. >> sure. coming up they may be fighting the same enemy as the united states but they are certainly not on the same side. we have new details of iran's role in battling isis. also president obama breaking his silence on the killing of three muslim students in north carolina. stay with us. flo: hey, big guy. i heard you lost a close one today. look, jamie, maybe we weren't the lowest rate this time. but when you show people their progressive direct rate and our competitors' rates you can't win them all. the important part is, you helped them save. thanks, flo. okay, let's go get you an ice cream cone, champ. with sprinkles? sprinkles are for winners. i understand.

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we're getting new details of iran's role in the fight against isis. the commander of that country's super secret quds force has spoken out. brian todd is joining us with more information. what are you learning? >> america could not have a more unlikely partner in the war against isis. u.s. officials would not call him a partner. they might instead call him the enemy of their enemy. he is general sulumani commander of the force of the revolutionary guard. he looks like george clooney and leads a shadowy unit that has a lot of american blood on its hands. he's made telling comments about isis. the iranian news agency quote him as saying this week in a speech in his home province quote, given the heavy failures that the isil and other terrorist groups in iraq and syria have sustained, we are sure that these groups are nearing the end of their life. he would be in a position to know. security officials and analysts

say he and the qods first have given crucial support to iraqi forces battling isis. they have slipped in and out of iraq since the war against isis training them giving them intelligence. a photo posted online was described to be of sulumani on the ground near an iraqi town at the same time that his forces were helping shia militias break an isis siege of that town. cnn cannot independently verify the authenticity of that photo. it sure does look like him. he is no friend of america's, however. u.s. officials believe during the iraq war, his unit provided iraqi insurgents [ inaudible ] advanced explosive devices that would penetrate the armor on american vehicles. a lot of u.s. soldiers died from those devices. he is no friend to america but right now, he's a pretty dire

enemy of isis. >> incredibly he has been involved in terror plots, other operations that have even reached american shores. that's the accusation isn't it? >> absolutely. treasury and other officials are saying he oversaw qods force operatives who in 2011 tried and failed to assassinate saudi arabia's ambassador to the u.s. that plot involved an attempt to bomb the ambassador at washington's upscale cafe milano. the iranians denied involvement in that plot but there's no doubt his reach extends far and it is lethal. >> brian todd thanks very much. let's get some more with our experts. joining us cnn intelligence and security analyst bob baer former cia operative. cnn terrorism analyst paul cruickshank. cnn military analyst, retired lieutenant general mark hertling. bob baer why do you think the commander is coming out and saying all of this? >> well in effect, they are our ally.

you know couple years ago, they were killing americans in 2007 the qods force ambushed by american soldiers and executed in karbala. they were responseible for the cafe milano attack. i could go on and on. almost as much as bin laden. this was changed by the rising' the islamic state. they are the only allies we in effect have. the people doing the fighting right now is not the iraqi army but militias that answer to sulumani. >> as you know general hertling a lot of officials announce this qods force, the iranians are helping the iraqi military go after these isis forces but at the same time they say if in fact they were to succeed and isis were destroyed in iraq it wouldn't take very long for these iranian forces to begin their operations right against u.s. military personnel. do you buy that? >> i do wolf.

we have seen that before. your report earlier talked about how they contributed and bob just mentioned their contributions to the war in 2007 and '08. we watched this group very closely. they were actually transitioning or transferring rather these things called explosively formed penetrators, efp, which was an advanced form of improvised explosive devices that would penetrate some of our best armor. they were the ones that helped some of the militias go up against the american forces. i'm very suspect of this particular group and this particular general. >> let me switch gears and bring paul cruickshank into this conversation. paul you are getting new information on that belgium raid that triggered these activities in belgium, that some terrorists effectively escaped. here's the question. how close were these terrorists in belgium to an actual attack in that country? >> they were very close indeed according to senior belgian

officials. they had automatic weapons, they had all the chemicals necessary to make tatp a high explosive, many times more powerful than those devices in boston. they had police uniforms so the suspicion is they were trying to gain access to a sensitive site. belgian officials believe the senior leadership of isis were behind this. they sent this belgian cell back to belgium to launch this attack. a lot of concern about this. they also found a gopro camera suggesting they wanted to film this attack. belgian officials, this was going to be a terrorist spectacular in the heart of europe they believe it was being coordinated by an isis operative from greece using an elaborate system of phone calls, also coded language so the concern was this group was about to launch some kind of massive terrorist attack in belgium. >> let's say that these isis terrorists in belgium were targeting a place like nato headquarters outside of

brussels. what could that mean for isis' ambitions against not only nato and europe but the united states? >> i think we are going to find out as paul started to get into this was going to be a huge attack and i would imagine against the united states. we are the number one enemy of the islamic state. i have no doubt in my mind and i have had this confirmed by law enforcement people we are the target inside this country. now, they have told me there are people here answering to the islamic state, not quite sure what that means, but they are quite confident they are here and we are a target. is it going to happen tomorrow, ten years from now, i can't tell you. >> these u.s.-led air strikes against isis what's the impact of all of that general hertling? >> i think it's continuing to blunt them. i give them high grades it's causing them damage across the board from a strategic and operational perspective. they can still conduct tactical operations to be sure as we have seen today in anbar but

also as we have seen in europe. there are individual cells and individual groups that can conduct attacks but they are being thwarted by these air attacks and it's causing them to change the way they do business. >> guys everybody stand by. we have more information coming in. also coming up the fbi now opens its own inquiry into the killing of three muslim students in north carolina. president obama's condemning the killings. plus a hot war in eastern europe. despite the countdown to what's supposed to be a cease-fire. at ally bank no branches equals great rates. it's a fact. kind of like shopping hungry equals overshopping.

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was that you jason? it was geoffrey! it was jason. it could've been brenda. tanks rolling through the streets, artillery shelling on enemy positions, fighting raging on in ukraine one day before a cease-fire is supposed to begin. we have correspondents on the front lines of the battle between pro-russian separatists and the western backed ukrainian government. let's begin with nick paton walsh, on the ground for us. nick, what are you seeing? >> reporter: we are about 23 hours away from when the guns are supposed to fall silent and we have seen today ourselves how it seems separatists' rocket launchers were rolling towards the front lines in one part of the area. went through here behind me in the past few hours, we have still heard outgoing and incoming shelling. no signs of things slowing down. sadly, though the civilian losses continue to mount. we saw ourselves how yesterday at 8:00 in the evening, a family

put their three children into the bath the first time they had running water in their home in separatist held areas for about a week. mother went on the bedroom to get a towel, came back and found an artillery shell had destroyed their bathroom and killed all three of their children. when we saw them furious about the cease-fire blaming the ukrainian military for firing that shell when everybody knew where it came from what was the cause of that tragic loss of life but it builds on a broader picture of civilian anger here on both sides, too. another town hit today by shelling in ukrainian government held areas. a child also killed two people dying there. the ukrainian president saying that could jeopardize the minsk agreement themselves but many focusing on a key town to the northeast of where i'm standing. it's got potentially hundreds if not thousands of ukrainian troops in it. they have encircled it the separatists, saying it should be theirs under the minsk agreement

and they tell us they are firing a bunch of shells which will drop leaflets on to the troops. you can see pictures of them here. an elaborate device telling the troops how they can in fact surrender. of course they are also firing heavy artillery into the area as well. there are a lot of heavy weapons being used here but the controversy, the anger and frankly, the tension in the next day or so could be a key point to derail the disagreement. it's absolutely clear both sides think it's theirs. it's absolutely clear the violence is swirling around it. we haven't even seen the guns fall silent now, so much is already going wrong. >> supposedly in 23 hours the cease-fire will begin. nick stand by. i want to bring in our senior international correspondent fred plietgen. what are you seeing? >> reporter: the big question here is whether the pro-russian separatists will try to make a push to take this city before that cease-fire is set to go in

place. certainly what we can see on the ground is that this city is on the edge. you have checkpoints all over the place. you have patrols going around checking vehicles and there has been a lot of fighting in the past couple days as well. the interesting thing down here wolf is that here it appears to be ukrainian forces that are trying to make a push on the one hand to try to get the pro-russian separatists to get a little distance between themselves and the city but also to try to take pressure off ukrainian forces in other places make the pro-russian separatists put forces down here to try and bind them down here. there was a tank battle that apparently happened here today, it went on for quite some time, tanks trading shots. there haven't been any casualties in that. in the past couple days however, there have been a lot of casualties here. there is one ukrainian force which actually answers to the interior ministry of this country that's making a big push, took back several villages. they have hardcore fighters that have been going around so it's

very fierce down here and again, the big question for the people down here is are the pro-russian separatists going to try to make another move to try to get this town because it is key. this town if the pro-russian separatists take this town they would have a land route going all the way to russia to crimea which of course russia annexed at the end of last year. it's very very important and certainly when you go around here and talk to the ukrainian fighters who are in this town none of them will tell you they believe this minsk agreement will hold. >> fred pleitgen stand by. joining us is daniel baer. ambassador, thanks very much for joining us. is the cease-fire really going to take hold in 23 hours? >> well certainly that's the hope. this will be the latest test of russian and russian-backed separatists' good will and their intentions to follow through on words with action.

everybody as we have heard already from your correspondents everybody on the ground there needs this cease-fire. the cease-fire is needed to stop the killing, to stop the violence. the violence that has been fueled for many many months now by russian coordination russian supplies russian fighters. the cease-fire is the first step to deescalating and obviously, we welcome the efforts of chancellor merkel president hollande working with president poroshenko and president putin earlier this week and we will judge the russians and the russian-backed separatists by their actions, not that are words. we welcome the effort to start the path of deescalation through the cease-fire and withdrawal of heavy weapons that is supposed to follow in the days that follow and we will see tomorrow night at midnight is when it is supposed to start. certainly all of our hopes are that there will indeed be an end to the fighting then. what happened today, the uptick in violence has not been

encouraging. >> do you trust president putin? >> i don't think we are in even a trust but verify. we are in a verify and then possibly begin to expect a continued path down the path of deescalation. president putin and the separatists he backs need to make good on their word. obviously this is a commitment they made back in september. chancellor merkel and president hollande worked with president poroshenko to try to get president putin and the separatists he backs to recommit to the agreements that they made back in september. that remains the formula for a peaceful deescalation a peaceful resolution of this crisis and you know the hope is that the deal that was hammered out this week starts us down that path. the path as chancellor merkel has said will be long. the road is long ahead and the international border will need to be brought back under ukrainian control and the ukrainian side of the border

there will need to be a great deal of political effort that follows from the cease-fire but we will be focused in the next 24 to 48 hours to seeing whether that cease-fire can hold tomorrow night, which obviously for everybody on the ground would be a good thing. >> as everybody says actions speak louder than words. as far as russian military actions are concerned, what are you seeing right now inside ukraine? >> well wolf unfortunately, the cease-fire is supposed to start tomorrow night at midnight but obviously we can judge the good will and the spirit of the parties who signed on to that by their actions immediately. and we have seen the russian military has deployed heavy artillery and multiple rocket launcher systems where they are attacking ukrainian positions. we are comfortable these are russian military and not separatist systems. russian military has also deployed anti-aircraft systems

and in the same way, we are confident that these are russian military systems, not separatist systems. the russian military is preparing on the russian/ukrainian border to transfer new arms to the separatists. none of these actions are in the spirit of the agreement that was reached earlier this week. they call into question the credibility of president putin and the separatists he backs. so we will be watching very closely and hoping that 23 hours from now, we will hear the guns fall silent which all the people on the ground in ukraine so desperately need. >> ambassador, thanks very much. appreciate it. we are also following a huge break in a major international scandal linked to suspected iranian terror. we are talking about the 1994 bombing that killed 85 people at a jewish center in argentina. argentina's federal prosecutor died under very mysterious circumstances last month after announcing iran was behind the attack.

today, a new prosecutor declared there's enough evidence to investigate whether argentina's current president and other top officials covered up iran's alleged role in the 1994 bombing. coming up after international criticism, president obama's finally addressing the murder of three muslim american students in north carolina. what did the president have to say? his statement is coming up next. plus isis is closing in on an iraqi base with hundreds of u.s. troops. we are going live to iraq for the very latest.

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president obama for keeping quiet. in a statement today, president obama said i'm quoting, no one in the united states of america should ever be targeted because of who they are, what they look like or how they worship. the fbi opened and inquiry into the shooter's motive. so far, no hate crime charges. what's the latest on there, jean? >> reporter: wolf the north carolina bureau of the fbi does confirm with me today that they are continuing to process evidence and helping the chapel hill police department. the ultimate question here the true issue is what was the state of mind of the defendant, 46-year-old craig hicks? who is this man? someone motivated by hate or someone so obsessed by parking spaces that he shoots to kill? a local tow truck driver says he remembers craig hicks.

he called to get cars towed off the property where he lived. >> when they said it was a parking dispute over there, i'm not too surprised. it go the to the point where he was no longer allowed to call. if he called we wouldn't go out. >> reporter: a neighbor says it wasn't only parking spaces that got hicks riled up. >> a few types i would pull in and my car music volume would be loud. he would open his front door and tell me that he was not very happy about that. >> reporter: one of the victim's best friends says he was always careful about where he parked when the visited. >> he would tell us where to park exactly. there would be a small ramp in front of his area. not in front of mr. hicks' house. >> reporter: this and the question of whether it was a hate crime will be looked at in an fbi preliminary inquiry. >> you would define something where he has given statements to other people friends, colleagues family members that

he had that degree of hate. he posted things that were more specific. >> reporter: hicks' facebook page shows a hatred of religion. and a love of guns yes, that is one pound 5.1 ounces from my loaded .38 revolver and five extra rounds. his ex-wife told the associated press, his favorite movie was "falling down" about a man who goes on a rampage. hicks thought it was hilarious. law enforcement needs to dig deep. >> it's basically incomprehensible to me that you can murder three people by shooting a bullet into their head and killing them over a

parking spot. >> reporter: i spoke today to her best friend. we know he wanted to help so many in this country and the world through his dental ministry in a sense, giving and teaching oral hygiene. i asked him, how would he think if now he may be forever remembered even on a larger scale in the country and the world in such an impact to make forever? he said he would be overwhelmed. wolf? >> jean do we know exactly what happened in the moments just before these three young students were shot in the head? >> reporter: here is what we have learned. a law enforcement source with knowledge of the case says that this defendant saw a car that he believed was in his parking place or in the incorrect parking place, went to the condominium -- they were next door neighbors and that he allegedly shot them all dead inside the condominium. that's what we know at this point.

specifics, no. >> the president of the united states now speaking out on this and the fbi launching a preliminary inquiry as well. jean thanks very much. more on this story coming up in our next hour. at the top of the hour hundreds of u.s. troops on the front line near isis as the group advances on an iraqi military base. will american troops be forced into combat? the ♪ music ♪ test test. ...the getaway vehicle! for all the confidence you need. td ameritrade. you got this.

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happening now, engaging isis. u.s. helicopter gun ships in the air in iraq. they are close to combat after the terrorist launched a sneak attack on a base used by american forces. terrorist prison break. al qaeda takes advantage of a power vacuum. more countries abandon their

embassies in yemen. president obama is weighing in on the murder of three muslim students as they look into whether it's a hate crime. 40 years of parody. snl marks a milestone. a look back at one of the show's favorite targets. me. >> i'm wolf blitzer. worst name cnn pentagon correspondent, wolf blitzer. >> it's obvious the guy made it up for the war. >> we want to welcome our viewers in the united states and around the world. i'm wolf blitzer. you are in "the situation room." let's get right to breaking news. u.s. helicopter gun ships are engaging isis forces as new gains by the terrorists. isis unleashing suicide bombers dressed in iraqi military uniforms in an attack on an air base where american forces are based. isis is now in control of a nearby town activating sleeper

cells to help the fighters break through security checkpoints. senator james risch is joining us a leading member of the foreign relations and intelligence committees. our correspondents an analysts are starting by to cover all the news breaking right now. first, let's go to jim sciutto for the very latest. >> reporter: we are learning tonight in the last 24 hours, u.s. helicopters were deployed during that assault today earlier this morning. tonight, eyewitnesses on the ground reporting seeing u.s. helicopter gun ships engaging isis which is now contested but in isis hands. u.s. doe fenceefense officials tell us that the 300 u.s. military personnel were not under threat. they say with isis here, the threat to the air base and the american personnel continues. coalition warplanes flying over the western iraqi town of

al-baghdadi. this after isis militants seize the town and launch an attack on air iraqi base housing u.s. military personnel. a small group of fighters dressed in stolen iraqi military uniforms attack the air base where more than 300 american milly teary american he will are training iraqi forces. iraqi troops fought back killing eight suspected suicide bombers with the help of american surveillance surveillance. >> did the attackers breach the base security? >> we're still looking at this. it's hard to say whether they breached the perimeter or not. they got to the perimeter level at the very least. they were immediately engaged. i think it's important to note. by iraqi security forces right away. >> reporter: u.s. forces stationed at the base were away from the assault and under no threat. but they were clearly closer to

combat. isn't it fair to say that these military personnel are in combat if not in combat troops considering the threat that's around them in. >> there's no question that they are close to danger. i mean there's no question about that. but there's not going to be a return to a combat mission on the ground. these individuals are not in a combat mission on the ground. again, as i said they have the right to defend themselves. should they feel under threat they certainly have the right and responsibility the obligation to shoot back. >> reporter: a rear admiral told us the u.s. does have contingency plans to evacuate military personnel if necessary. isis is on the offensive in the north. here the group parading what it claims are kurdish forces in cages after capturing them in battle. u.s. forces close to danger that's not just at the air base. u.s. forces now deployed in four

locations. these are areas that are much closer to combat than they were before when they were confined to baghdad. it's because of the forward position troops and talk of moving them closer for instance in an assault on mosul planned for the spring by iraqi forces, that they are facing greater danger as we go ahead. not combat troops but certainly closer to combat. >> when i hear u.s. military helicopter gun ships are involved in an operation, that sounds like combat to me. >> reporter: it is combat. when i spoke to the admiral, he said that as well. we have pilots in the air, not just helicopters but in f-18s and f-16s flying over the country. as we saw with that jordanian pilot that went down that involves danger. it's combat from the air and

from a distance but the distance is shortening over time as the forces are more forward deploying. >> jim sciutto with the latest. thank you. let's go to another front line against isis where a new battle may be getting under way. phil black is joining us live from northern iraq. what are you seeing what are you hearing over there, phil? >> reporter: wolf increasingly in this country it is two different stories in two different regions. in the west of the country, around the air base this is where isis is still very much on the offensive, where the iraqi army and local tribesmen have not been able to slow the advance. here in the north, kurdish fighters have slowed isis. they have contained isis. they have even rolled back some of its territory. isis still controls key towns and cities. all of these firmly in isis control. the kurdish fighters alone, while they have moved to within very close positions of these towns and city they are in no

shape just yet to liberate these towns and cities on their own. they still battle isis every day. isis still lashes out at their positions on almost a daily basis. the kurdish fighters in this region are waiting for the iraqi army to finish training preparation to join a new offensive that would finally clear isis from the north and northwest corner of this country. >> do the kurdish forces -- you have been with them for several days. do they say they're getting the military equipment from the united states that they need? >> reporter: they tell us all the time they are incredibly grateful for the air strikes. beyond that they are frustrated because no they believe they need greater weapons, new, more advanced weapons, heavy weapons and armored vehicles. that's what they are going up against in isis. remember when the iraqi army fled it left behind all of its weaponry much of it supplied by the united states. those are the weapons and

vehicles that are being used against the kurdish fighters the peshmerga. they have basic light arms, much of it old, much of it relics compared to what they are going up against. there's frustration. they believe they are fighting well. they believe they are winning. they certainly want more assistance from the united states and the west because they believe they are performing the function of being the ground force in this international coalition against isis. so far, they have been the most effective, the closest to a force that is really fulfilling that task. >> the kurds make good points. thanks very much phil black. terrorists are on the move in yemen. they attacks a prison freeing six of their fighters. a u.n. leader says the country is collapsing before our eyes after a rebel coup that's giving rebel groups freer reign. three nations are closing their

embassies because of the violence. brian todd is joining us. he has more on this disaster that's unfolding. what are you learning? >> reporter: the scene in yes, ma'am yemen that three close allies of the united states germany, italy and saudi arabia are shutting down operations at their embassies there. it's the suspension of operations at the u.s. embassy in yemen that may be the most damaging development in the fight against terror. tonight, new details of that embassy's role against a deadly american enemy and what has been lost now that everyone in the embassy is gone. at the for the phied embassy in yemen, a scramble to get out. documents and weapons destroy and all americans inside even the marines, evacuated from the country. analysts say before the pullout, it was often buzzing with intelligence operations. now -- >> you cannot put officers on the ground. you can't go out to meetings. you can't drive around. you can't even go in country. so we are again -- i will say it

effectively blind there. there was a huge set back losing this embassy. >> reporter: a former cia officer, bob baer who took part in operations in yemen, says now that the embassy has closed, dozens of u.s. intelligence operatives have left yemen and with them some crucial listening capability and human intelligence. the cia won't comment. it is drawing major concern tonight because al qaeda's most dangerous branch one of america's most forbidable enemies operates out of yemen. they claimed responsibility for the "charlie hebdo" attack in paris. they were behind the 2009 under wear bomb plot and at tempt to place bombs in printer cart ridges. both those attacks targeted the united states. the master bomb maker hunbehind those plots is still at large, still believed to be operational. with the u.s. embassy

evacuation analysts say that al qaeda branch is emboldened. >> we saw an attack recently on one of the largest military bases in south yemen. they stole the weapons and actually then left and vacated the base is now controlled by tribes not the yemen military. >> reporter: aqap overran a prison in southern yemen and freed six of their militants. u.s. officials tell cnn, the counterterrorism capabilities in yemen have been impacted by the chaos. they insist they still have assets in place to combat al qaeda. >> we still have a military counterterrorism capability inside yemen. we do have some number of special operations forces that are operating in yemen. >> reporter: u.s. officials are also training forces still. there have been drone strikes in recent days. but analysts say there's still a major void with few if any american intelligence operatives

to work on the ground with their yemen counterparts. that cooperation with the yemens was seen as crucial to the operations against al qaeda. >> how will the u.s. compensate for the loss of the intelligence operatives on the ground in yemen if they don't have them how are they going to know where to go after potential al qaeda targets? >> reporter: it makes it more difficult. they can have surveillance and conduct signals intercept. they can do counterterrorism from saudi arabia or off the coast of yemen and there are special operations forces on the ground in southern yemen. but nothing takes the place of those intelligence operatives on the ground operating from the u.s. embassy there. they are crucial and now they are gone. >> that embassy shut down at least for now. thank you. joining us, senator james risch risch, a member of the foreign relations and intelligence committees. senator, thanks very much for joining us. what's going on in yemen looks

totally like a disaster. the u.s. the saudis germany, italians they are all pulling out, shutting down the embassies right now. how concerned are you that yemen potentially could be ruled at least huge chunks of it by aqap al qaeda in the arabian peninsula, which is based in yemen? >> wolf i guess the conclusion from your story is chaos reigns. that has never been a terriblebly secure place. there's always been difficulties there. the country has been divided with houthis in charge of one area and the al qaeda in charge of another area. but now where we have pulled out and pulled out some of the key operations that we have there, it's going to be more difficult to operate within yemen. we have been operating for some time as you know but the president will have to step it up there. there's no question about it. i think on the top of the story,

there's good news there, not the least of which is the iraqis actually stood and fought. they actually won. more importantly, of course is the report that others are hanging on there that are fighting. the kurds are our best friends in it the region. i have encouraged the administration at every level to engage the kurds to help us. the kurds are begging for our help. we keep being told they have to go through baghdad to arm the kurds. i don't know who made up that rule. somebody needs to help these people out. these are fierce fighters. they are great friends of ours. we ought to help them. >> they don't have the equipment they need to fight these isis forces. >> no question about that. >> phil black pointed out, the isis forces have taken over advanced u.s. military hardware when the iraqi military basically abandoned as they ran away in the face of the isis offensive last year. i want to talk about iraq in a

moment. let's finish with yemen. are you confident that yemen will at some point be secure or is it just going to be chaos there potentially al qaeda in the arabian peninsula not only growing but becoming a greater threat? the houthi rebels shiites, dramatically backed by iran right? this is a lose lose situation for the united states. wolf that was a great point you made about iran. i was going to comment on that. their fingerprints are all over this. they are very much backed by iran in every way possible, financially, militarily and everything else. they need to be reigned up. you asked me my opinion in the short run. this is not a very pretty picture. i can't fathom that this thing is going to right itself. it's going to take intervention from the outside, certainly other arab nations need to get engaged. the other -- many of the arab

nations are very very concerned about what's happening in yemen. >> let's see if they step up and do something. stand by senator. we have more to discuss. we have to take a quick break. more with senator james risch right after this. let's take a look at your credit. >>i know i have a 786 fico score, thanks to all the tools and help on experian.com. so how are we going to sweeten this deal? floor mats... clear coats... >>you're getting warmer... leather seats... >>and this... my wife bought me that. get your credit swagger on. become a member of experian credit tracker and find out your fico score powered by experian. fico scores are used in 90% of credit decisions. it's happening. today, more and more

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probably in more danger than our u.s. marines. for one thing, the iraqis them services defeated them and reportedly killed all the attackers. so i think that the marines can take care of themselves. they really can. having said all this you know we're going to be facing when we get back to washington, d.c. a vote on the request for authorization for military force. all of this is making the vote probably tilt one direction a lot more. and this thing is moving very quickly. congress is going to have to move very quickly behind it. the president needs to stiffen up a bit in this area also. i'm hoping he will once the resolution passes. >> what do you want to change in the resolution? i assume you want major changes. >> you know wolf there's a debate going on right now. as you know there's a spectrum

in the congress. on the one side there's ones that don't want to engage at all. on other side they want a full blown foot soldier invasion. neither one of those are going to win. but it needs to have more attention than its getting. the big criticism right now is people don't feel that the president has the will power that he should have to impress our will on what's going on there right now. and we have the capability of doing it. we're going to need to do it. a degree with the people who say that we should not have a full scale engagement. i think it's going to take some people on the ground. i think the president's idea of using the special forces is a really good idea. certainly, our air power and the drone power is going to be very devastating to them if they would step it up. they're going to need to step it up. >> should the american public senator, be ready for a 20 or

30-year involvement in that part of the world giving this level of insurgency and what is going on? >> you know, wolf you would certainly hope not. but if you step back and look at it and look at it from 30,000 feet this thing is -- what you do is you go in you get the hot spot you suppress it. and then you try to walk away. what happens? it blows up again. i will say this. in the last half dozen years or so the situation has become very different as far as engaging the enemy is concerned. what we have done using our air power, using drone power, has been very very debilitating to the enemy. now, you remember we started off with -- in iraq hundreds of thousands of troops. then in other -- in the other conflicts, we have had thousands of troops.

that's been ratcheting down. in addition to that the arab countries are now as i have reported to you before are very very concerned about what's going on with the radicals. they weren't before. they are now. i think things are going to change dramatically. and it is going to take the arab nations themselves as they have said it's their war. they need to accept that. >> you told me the other day, senator, that isis the terrorist were moving beyond their what you called their aspirational goals of trying to hit the u.s. homeland that they may be in a more advanced stage. i wonder if you want to elaborate a little bit. >> yes, i'd like to elaborate but i can't, wolf. most of that material is classified. but i can assure you, we deal with this every day. we believe that they are moving beyond their aspirations. this is a group that as you have seen has been very very

successful in a really short period of time. they are emboldened. they are moving as we saw today against a base that contains ss u.s. forces. these people are very bold. their preferred target is the u.s. homeland. >> are there isis terrorist sleeper cells in the united states right now? >> you know as far as i'm going to go with that with you wolf is to tell you that there are people who have traveled to syria, fought with isis and have returned to the united states. i think people can draw their own conclusions from that as far as what that means for us here in the homeland. it is a dangerous situation. >> certainly sounds that way. all right, senator. thanks very much for joining us senator james risch of idaho. inside the isis plot to attack the heart of europe. cnn is getting exclusive new information. we're following the

investigation into the killing of those three muslim american students in north carolina. the president broke his silence on the case. we will tell you why.

breaking tonight, u.s. helicopter gun ships are engaging isis after they seized a town in iraq and attacks an

air base where american troops are. we're getting new details on a plot to attack the heart of europe. joining us now philip mudd mark hurtling paul cruickshank and salma hamdani. paul let's start with you. you are getting new information about the raid last month in belgium, foiling an isis terror plot that supposed by the information you are learning it was a lot more -- a bigger than we originally thought. >> a lot bigger. belgian officials telling me the isis leadership were behind it. they sent a cell back to belgium to carry this out. the plan was to launch a terrorist spectacular. when they went into the safe house, they found automatic weapons, they found chemicals necessary to make explosives

they found police uniforms suggesting they wanted to gain access to sensitive sites. they found a gopro camera suggesting they wanted to film this for propaganda purposes. they believe the cell was coordinated by an operative in greece. he had a system of phone calls to communicate with them coded messages. they believe it was a very sophisticated plot and isis leadership was behind it. >> phil, if the isis terror i haves in belgium were targeting a major area like nato headquarters what does it tell you about going against the united states? >> look the pivot of isis over the past year is remarkable. here is the reason why. 20 years ago, if you had looked at radical islamic groups who wanted to spark revolutions in places like algeria or egypt, they would have said let's take out the local government let's take out the local police station. like it or not, the revolution of al qaeda and bin laden was to

tell them if tu really want to stage a revolution in the middle east you have to remove the head of the snake, the americans. very few leaders have taken on that message. we have seen leaders in yemen do. now we have seen isis do it. the message from this potential planning in europe now in belgium is that isis has now realized that their target isn't just baghdad. they have absorbed the bin laden revolution. the real target is the americans and nato and go after them at the same time that you are attacking iraqi forces. >> general, you heard paul say that this raid belgian police discovered chemicals, automatic weapons, police uniforms a gopro camera to record it. it sounds pretty sophisticated to me. that potentially tells us something about isis capabilities right? >> certainly does, wolf. and i would say, i wouldn't quite put it in sophisticated but it is advanced.

going back to what phil said it would have been extremely devastating depending on what the target was. this is something that when you are talking about uniforms and the opportunity to use automatic weapons and explosive devices, compare that to what happened in paris with just a couple of guys wielding guns. imagine something like that against a primary target where someone copmes in in police uniform. it would have been devastating and shocked the world. sglf >> it would have. let's turn to yemen, a subject you know. the u.s. suspended operations there earlier this yeek for all practical purposes shutting down the u.s. embassy, britain, france and other countries have followed suit. this looks like the situation is going to be a breeding ground for the growth and expansion of al qaeda in the arabian peninsula. the terrorist group could

flourish right? >> yes. aqap has operated in yemen for such a long time. however, we heard today about a prison break. this is not the first time that they used political turmoil to have prisoners escape. the same base was targeted before. in 2011 when the revolution happened a lot of prisoners escaped. so the risk of aqap performing operations is always there under the presidency. right now under the houthis. a spokesperson from the political office of the houthi group stated that aqap is their enemy. so right now, the danger is if the houthis renus tofuse to share power, they may join to fight the houthi group in yemen. >> paul i want to play for you a clip. we heard it from senator risch here in "the situation room." talking about isis and its aspirational goals of going

after targets in the united states. listen to this. >> there are people who have traveled to syria, fought with isis and have returned to the united states. i think member canpeople can draw their own conclusions from that as far as what that means for us here in the homeland. >> i asked him, paul about sleeping cells, isis operatives already in the united states with plots or whatever. that was a pretty blunt answer. >> yes. and he's making news with that wolf, that this is new information that there are isis fighters now on u.s. soil people who have trained in syria, the sort of people who over there would learn how to be skilled in urban warfare, learn how to make explosives have experience in killing people are now back on u.s. soil. this is a very significant development. this is new information as far as i know. and obviously, very worrying. >> phil the senator is a member

of the intelligence community. clearly, he is well briefed. what does this say to you? >> look i don't think that's a blunt answer. let me be more blunt as someone who witnessed 2,000 threat briefings. if you have this number of north americans that is several hundred going over to syria, if you've got 1,000 or more europeans going over to say there are people back here who have undergone training out there is not a significant revelation. let me tell you what is the significant revelation. if you are sitting there tomorrow morning at 7:15 and the fbi threat briefing and you think you can own dozens of people coming back to america who may decide overnight that they want to conduct an operation, the answer is you cannot. you can't conduct surveillance on that many people sigh mulmultaneous simultaneously. if we go on for this fight at years at a time and if there are americans and canadians who come back home one will succeed because you can't sit on that kind of risk indefinitely.

>> that's worrisome to me. stand by. we will continue to follow the breaking news. find out more about the escalating battle against isis specifically what you can do to help protect iraqi children affected by the violence. visit cnn.com/impact. just ahead. at "saturday night live" celebrates a big anniversary, we are looking at some of my favorite moments when the joke was on me.

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new tonight, president obama is condemning the murders of three muslim american students in north carolina. he is calling their killing brutal and outrageous. in his first public statement on the case he says no one in the united states of america should ever be targeted because of who they are, what they look like or how they worship. the fbi and other federal authorities are looking into the shooting and whether it amounts to a hate crime. let's bring in pamela brown, tom

fuentes. what are you learning? >> the justice department officially announced that they are launching this inquiry into whether the murders violated hate crime laws and we're getting a statement from the attorney general. this statement says that he pledges the full resources of the department of justice to help ensure justice will be served in the case. he goes on to say, protecting the safety and security and civil rights of this country is and must remain a top priority. we will never waiver in this commitment and going forward we pledge to stand with the families of these three remarkable young people. again, the department of justice opening up this preliminary inquiry, which is just a civil rights investigation. this has been ongoing from a very early on to see whether hicks did violate hate crime laws. sources tell me partner evan perez that there are no indications that investigators have gathered so far indicating this was a hate crime. but again, it's ongoing and very

preliminary. wolf? >> you know tom, you are a former fbi assistant director. now that the president has weighed in the fbi has weighed in the justice department is weighing in at least they suspect it's possible this wasn't simply a crazy guy upset about parking but it could be actually a hate crime. right? >> wolf not to dispute the president or the attorney general, they should be aware that the fbi was asked to come in and help the chapel hill police department the night of the murder. they helped do the crime scene. they have been helping from the beginning and providing expertise to the police department even before it has been called a preliminary inquiry or any other name that is what washington provides for an investigation. because the police department recognized they don't have the experts in proving the elements of hate crime. they could do a triple homicide. but they knew and said sewed from the beginning that they knew the world would be watching

this and giving it consideration that it could be a hate crime and that that's something under investigation. giving it a new name doesn't alter the fact the fbi has been working since tuesday night on this case with the police department. >> it does point out, don lemon, that the president of the united states is now officially publically weighing in with a statement. you heard that quote that i read earlier, a statement suggesting that potentially he is concerned that maybe these three young students were targeted because of their religion. >> earlier when the attorney general of the united states was asked about it before the statement that he just released, he said he believed that there was enough circumstantial evidence to launch a civil rights investigation. the president was really -- maybe he was in a way shamed into it because as you know they were shocked the president did not say anything. now he has officially weighed in. i think because the president

weighed in it puts more weight into it. >> what's the reaction you are getting from muslim american advocacy groups to this new development, the fbi, the justice department the president, the white house weighing in? >> the reaction is this is a step in the right direction. civil rights groups sent a letter to eric holder asking for a civil rights investigation to be launched. in fact, one organization muslim advocates sent out a statement after this was announced saying we are grateful they have opened this. this is an important step forward toward the ultimate goal of a full federal investigation. >> do you believe, tom, that the fbi is involved now in this investigation, civil rights investigation, that there could be a hate crime because of the public pressure because they suspect, yes, this individual allegedly went ahead and killed these young students because of

their religion? >> i don't believe that wolf. the fbi was working this case before the public knew anything had actually happened at chapel hill. as i said the police recognized what this case was going to be and the worldwide attention it would draw. they asked the fbi to come in and give them help with the expertise, crime scene investigation as well as the interviews to try to determine what the elements are and how to go about proving the hate crime. the other aspect of this is that they have a triple homicide. usually, the hate crime statute is designed to increase the penalties on a regular crime. so if it's a class b felony, it can be raced ed raised to a class a. hicks is looking at the death penalty. if the cases were prosecuted individually, he could be sentenced three times to death. adding the hate crime to the prosecution can't increase that. he is already standing to be executed if convicted of the murders. it's a little bit of at this point the political nature

applied to the investigation but trying to make sure and reassure the world that the u.s. government and our criminal justice system is fully addressing this issue as a hate crime and that they do sympathize and have empathy for the community that may be concerned that it could have been a hate crime. >> we will leave it there. we will stay on top of the story for our viewers. when we come back a very very different story we're following. 40 years of satire and slapstick. "saturday night live" celebrates a huge milestone. a closer look at one of its top targets over these past decades. >> this is cnn. >> good evening. i'm wolf blitzer. >> i'm wolf blitzer. worst name cnn pentagon correspondent, wolf blitzer. >> i'm wolf blitzer. such an exciting name for such a boring man.

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cnn is about to try something new and fun. six of our anchors are testing their knowledge of presidential trivia. it's a tough competition. here is a look at the teams.

>> i have jake tapper. thank you, god. thank you. jake knows a lot about presidents. >> i thaugought it was going to be like which president is currently president. >> my teammate is john burrman. i think he pretends not to know so much and then knocks it out of the park. >> he's really good at trivia. >> it's about the oscars hollywood. that's what he told me. >> you got don and chris. >> i want to beat tapper. >> don and chris have a lot of fun. >> i hate that i have to carry this entire team. >> always. >> joining us once again, one of quiz show competitors, don lemon. tell us about this show that's going to air monday night. >> i'm so scared when people see

this. it's really fun. i think we were all a bit hesitant about being in a quiz show. it turned out to be a lot of fun. we were playing for charity. why not just let down your guard and do it. i don't know a lot about presidents. >> it's going to air on president's day. that's the point. >> the whole focus is presidents. we were given a whole book and all those notes to study. after the show we want to go out and have a few cocktails and not study. we had to study. >> did you actually go through all that research and learn? >> i did and it all got jumbled in my head at the last second. you know the answer and in real life you can go. when you have someone like tapper or someone like behrman. tapper knows everything about politics. by the time you're like ugh, they already have weighed in.

>> you have a bell. >> this is one of them. >> you have to really hit it. >> we had actually buzzers. there was one called face off. you had to give clues about what was on the screen but your partner couldn't see the thing. chris and i on ours i don't want to give too much away we got a little bit confused and we made the game harder than it had to be because you could use the name of the president. >> how did and er sonerson cooper do? >> he's always awful. he was terrible as usual. he showed up with the same outfit on p a black suit and purple tie. he wore my outfit. obviously, he's great. >> did you coordinate that? >> no. he saw me i think in makeup room and he went to his off and grabbed a purple tie because he didn't want to be overshadowed by me. no it just happened.

>> were the questions hard? >> who is the tallest president? lincoln. the second tallest. it's johnson. tapper got all those questions. >> don't tell us anymore. we want to see it monday night. >> it's fun. tune in. >> you can watch don every night monday through thursday. tune in monday night, this coming monday night, 9:00 p.m. eastern for the cnn quiz show president's edition. another big tv event is coming up. saturday night live celebrates its 40th year. i consider it a badge of honor i've been spoofek. which wolf do you prefer? >> this is cnn. good evening i'm wolf blitzer. >> worst name cnn correspondent wolf blitzer. >> i'm wolf blitzer.

such an exciting name for such boring man. >> what kind of name is wolf? >> it's so obvious he made it up for the war. >> i'm wolf blitzer and this is. [ inaudible ] >> homey where you at? >> me? i'm in "the situation room." >> straight up. you know. >> all right, yeah. >> i'm going to do push ups and i want you to count them out loud. blitzer get up here and sit on my back. >> one. two. three. >> no more on screen news crawl. the crawl is a privilege, in the hospital a ride. >> my face is being haunted by the ghost of an old beard. >> it's like hi we now take you to our war correspondent.

>> let george bush and his henchman and wolf blitzer. >> you're watching "the situation room". >> you like that. that was very funny. >> that was hilarious. >> over 25 years. >> i needed that. i like that. i love that. >> do i? >> you don't do that. you're not boring at all. >> they did a good job. it's very funny. snl, congratulations, 40 years. wonderful entertainment. that's it for me. thanks for watching. erin burnett outfront starts now. breaking news. u.s. helicopter gun ships bats battling isis fighters in iraq as they close in on hundreds of american troops.

pentagon spokesman is my guest. three pluzmuslim students shot execution style. information about the man shot with their murders and my interview with the fathers of the victim. the aaron hernandez murder trial. he caught on tape taking apart of his cell phone after the murder. was he covering up evidence? let's go outfront.