>> i'm victor blackwell. more demonstrations are expected today after the execution of a shiite cleric ignited a firearm storm of protests. [ yelling ] >> in iran dozens of demonstrators attacked the saudi embassy in tehran throwing, as you saw, fire bombs, smashing windows and furniture. riot police were called in and 40 people, so far, have been arrested. there have also been protests around the world. hundreds of people turned out to protest in bahrain and india. let's bring in becky anderson. first, help us understand why there's been a passionate response to the execution, not the of all 47 but mainly -- >> yes, nim al-nimr, as you've been pointing out, was an

outspoken critic of the sunni monarchy with a sizable support base. fiery sermons from that cleric on a fairly regular basis until he was arrested but little evidence to suggest he was active in taking bombs against the saudi state. i think this is the real crux of things. by executing him along with 46 other, what the saudis would call convicted terrorists belonging to groups like al qaeda. the kingdom sending a message it will not tolerate any form. you clearly have iranian sympathy for a shiite cleric in saudi. they have made that very clear during his arrest and the possibility of his execution.

this clearly inflaming tensions both between saudi and iran and in countries which have a shiite population around this region, and it's got to be said into southeast asia. let's do the iran saudi story and we can get wider. iran's supreme leader said that saudi's leaders will, and i quote, face devine justice as protesters in tehran on saturday night ransacked the saudi embassy. there are protesters outside the embassy again today in tehran. authorities there saying they are trying to disperse some 400 or so, we are told. but what is really important here is that we have seen evidence in recent weeks, until this point, of what looked like a bit of a thorn in relations

between riyadh and tehran. they would be sending a new ambassador to tehran to improve ties, as it were. so the latest incident only strengthening the hand, i think, of conservative hardliners in both capitals. witness what we heard from the supreme leader out of tehran today. also, a message from the iranians that rode outside the saudi embassy in tehran renamed today. fairly provocative in anybody's books. to compare those comments with those of the more reform-minded president rouhani in iran who condemned calling it unjustifiable. my point here is, you have two camps in iran. washington and the west clearly backing that camp of the president hassan rouhani. when you see episodes like this,

this really plays into the hands of the conservative hard liners. both in tehran and in riyadh. >> becky anderson, thank you for helping. for analyblnalysis let's bring james spider marx. u.s. ally washington is now working to renew or start anew its relationship with iran. talk about the high wire that u.s. officials have to walk. we can point out that the statement that came out was not from the president. it wasn't from secretary kerry. it was from a spoking person john kirby for the state department. >> victor, first of all, wasn't becky's reporting spot on? she laid it out in all the color and all the details that really described this complex kind of mosaic that we're dealing with. it's very difficult to get your arms around it. to your question, yeah, it's an

incredibly tough challenge that we have. and clearly i would say what the united states administration is doing now they are down playing -- they're not trying to enflame this. a spokesperson steps forward and said we're working diligently with both capitals in tehran and riyadh to mitigate. bear in mind saudi arabia and iran have major issues, and we see it every day in yemen. remember that saudi arabia has a hot war with shiite militia in yemen now. this is not a war by proxy. this is saudi arabia stepping up saying no more. they mobilized ground troops, they mobilized an air force. it's been tamped down. it exists and it will continue to exist like this and things like this will enflame that. what we have to realize is that we have a very strong relationship with saudi arabia. it is, as you said, victor, on a very thin line. it's nuanced but we have to maintain that type of base, that

type of relationship, trying to improve the trust that exists. as we realize now, also, we're trying to get this nuclear deal through with tehran, which the world has not completely embraced. so this is a very delicate dance that this administration is putting on now. >> general, we see the u.s. playing this down but more protests are planned today. do you think it could be the start of a bigger conflict in the region between the two rivals? >> probably not. i see this as an unfortunate step within this relationship that exists. riyadh will abide no protests. riyadh is all about control. when you look -- they've been in the region. they understand the region better than anyone. they lifted the arab spring. clearly there is no spring in the arab spring. it has descended in many places into complete chaos. we have unleashed these pent up frustrations that existed for years.

so saudi arabia is very aware of that. very much aware of the fact they could be dealing with a much larger challenge, and they have a singular industry. it is the oil industry and that is precariously kind of on a balance, as well, if it were to get broader, alisyn. i don't think it will be. everybody's best interest is to put a blanket on it and not let it get out of control. >> major general spider marks, thank you. ahead another big story here in the u.s. five levies breached along the mississippi river in illinois. the latest just overnight. the state's governor particularly concerned about people in the flood zones. not just because of the loss of water. ahead trump based much of his campaign on criticizing president obama. now he vows to undo a key executive order that obama has yet to sign.

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in oregon armed protesters have taken over the headquarters of the wildlife refuge. they are monitoring the situation. no government employees were on the land at the time because the refuge was closed for the holidays. >> it grew out of a plo test that happened earlier in the day nearby 0 town of burns. that rally was to show support for two local ranchers dwight and steven hammond convicted of a arso arson. they are expected to surrender. >> one of the men is the son of nevada rancher bundy who was the center at the intense stand off with the bureau of land management over grazing fees for his cattle. i spoke with amonob bundy how lg

he expected the occupation to last. >> it may be days. it might be weeks. it might be longer than that. what we cannot do and what we must not do is just allow what is going on to go on. people need to be aware that we've become a system where a government is actually claiming and using and defending people's rights. they're doing it against the people. and we cannot allow that to happen. in order for us to prosper as a people, we have to have access to the land and resources. >> an attorney for the ranchers who will be going to prison tomorrow said they do not welcome or agree with what the armed protesters are doing. there's a nightmare scenario

brewing in southern illinois west of miller city. that's as the mississippi river breaks through the levee. according to cnn affiliate that water flowing for six miles into the state completely surrounding two small towns. illinois governor said the situation is serious. >> here in alexander county it's the worst we've seen. the levees have been breached in at least five locations. the water is coming over at a pretty high pace. hundreds of families have been requested to evacuate. unfortunately, the majority of families we contacted so far said they don't want to evacuate. they want to stay with their homes. a flood in the winter when it's 30s is different than 80 degrees in june. a big risk of hypothermia. please honor the request and evacuate. stay safe. >> next door in missouri the

clean up is underway after days of flooding there with help from an emergency declaration signed yesterday by the president. here the threat continues with the water line over the town's ground level. the mississippi river at record-breaking levels running 15 to 20 feet above normal. donald trump on the campaign trail promising to unsunign any orders that president obama would sign this week. fight back fast tums smoothies starts dissolving the instant it touches your tongue and neutralizes stomach acid at the source tum, tum, tum, tum smoothies! only from tums

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donald trump is not happy about president obama's reported plan to tighten gun control laws. yesterday in mississippi the republican presidential frontrunner vowed to veto, his term, any executive action the president takes on guns. calling an assault on the second amendment. >> he's going to sign another executive order having to do

with the second amendment. having to do with guns. i will veto. i will unsign that so fast. so fast. [ cheers and applause ] >> cnn senior political analyst ron brownstein joins us now. >> for republican audience, it is. i think every republican presidential nominee candidate will promise to undo this order before the primaries are over. look, this is, you know, as we talked about it yesterday. we're seeing presidents from both parties in recent years that recognition it's hard to get bipartisan agreement with congress and a strategy of moving ahead with unilateral executive action. this is the weak spot in the strategy, victor. the next president, if from the other party can undo what you have done. we've seen the same thing on immigration and the deferred action. every republican nominee, i think, is talking about undoing that as well. it is a real risk for president obama if democrats do not hold the white house after 2016.

>> so supporters at the event there didn't seem phased at all by the new video from al shabaab the statement from donald trump barring muslims from coming into the united states. listen to one supporter here talking to a reporter. >> i think that's fabfabricated >> you can see where it was cut in. at least that's my opinion. i think that was strictly -- i may be wrong, but i think that was a made up deal there. if they did, he has no control over that. >> why no discussion of it. why not mention it during the hour long speech at the rally? >> you know, it's been through the primary season the conversation is often been how is donald trump maintaining his support despite his most controversial comments? what has become more clear over time he's building his support

because of his most controversial comments. i mean if you look at polling among a big chunk of the republican base, not all of it, but a portion of it, especially voters attracted to trump. they agree with him on ideas like building a wall, deporting 11 million undocumented immigrants, and barring muslims from entering the u.s., at least temporarily. on all of these fronts, i think voters are with him. the inclination as we have seen over and again is to overlook what many in political circles would view as disqualifying behavior because they fundamentally agree with what he's been saying. i've been waiting for someone to give voice to the sentiments. whether they're majority sentiments or whether you can build national winning coalition on it in a general election is a different question. there's no question he tapped a powerful cord in the republican pry pair. >> -- primary. >> he didn't mention al shabaab

but he talked about isis. let's play what we heard from donald trump about the creation of isis. >> they've created isis. hillary clinton created isis with obama. created with obama. >> to your point, it works in the primary. it works in the room. >> yeah. >> what could this mean for maybe not just donald trump but even any other republican nominee moving into the general. >> right. i think you hear a version of that argument from whoever is the republican nominee. i think the complex situation we are in when george w. bush left often in 2008 most americans believed his protecting the nation from terror in terms of the war in iraq and afghanistan failed. as you come to the end of the obama presidency, most americans think his approach has failed. we've soured on both the iron fist and the velvet glove. it may be that the rise of isis

is the single biggest policy vulnerable from the obama era for the general election. and i think one of the critical questions in 2016 will be whether americans believe that we are making progress or losing ground against this very real threat. >> ron brownstein, thank you very much. >> thank you. and there's a lot more to come for president obama's executive action on guns. coming up at the top of the hour on cnn "state of the union." dana bash anchoring this morning. good morning. i know you have carly fiorina, bernie sanders. >> a big show and it's hard to believe we're finally in 2016, which means it is actually the presidential election year. 29 days until the iowa caucuses. so, of course, there's a lot to talk about with both of these candidates who are vying for the republican and democratic

nominations. you know, both having some struggles right now, but it's presidential politics in 2016. you never know what can happen. >> it seems like it's already been a long political season. dana bash, we'll be watching "state of the union" starts at the top of the hour 9:00 a.m. eastern here on cnn. another programming note monday morning donald trump will be live on cnn "new day" beginning at 6:00 a.m. eastern time. that should be very, very interesting, as it usually is. chris brown is back in hot water this morning. what las vegas police say he did to a woman that has the singer under investigation. plus, we know the identity of the suspected gunman who opened fire on a pub in tel-aviv. police have raided his home, and today the suspect's family is speaking out.

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approaching the bottom of the hour. it is day three of the manhunt for the gunman who killed two and wounded eight others. police have named the suspect 31-year-old nsaha at melhem. they are trying to find him. his uncle said he's suffering from psychological disorders. here are other stories making headlines. new pictures from rahmadi, iraq where iraq forces are sweeping neighborhoods where isis fighters are suspected of hiding. iraqi troops have retaken the city from isis. at least the center city. but the terror group has control of some areas of the city.

this as isis suicide bombers attacked iraqi forces at a military base neear rahmadi. a 2-year-old boy drown after the crowded dingy he was traveling on slammed into rocks off the greek island. the first known migrant casualy of 2016. the other 39 passengers were rescued. some of them were taken to a hospital and treated for hypothermia. that rubber vessel had set off from turkey in windy weather. a brazen assassination in a town south of mexico's city one day after being sworn in as mayor, armed men entered the mayor's home and killed her. police killed two of the gunmen as they fled. two adults and a juvenile were arrested. the area is a known haven for drug cartels. in bernardino, california hundreds of employees at the inland regional center will return to work tomorrow with much tighter security in place

including a new fence around the property. it's been closed since the mass shooting a month ago. the facility provides services for disabled people. employees have been working from home using ipads. in las vegas police are investigating a report of an altercation in a hotel between singer chris brown and an unidentified woman. the woman was allegedly struck and had her phone taken away when she took brown's picture in a hotel room. the victim had minor injuries, apparently. police tried to contact brown but he already left the hotel. president obama and his family return from their hawaiian vacations today. one of the first pieces of business is reviewing possible action to reduce gun violence in the u.s. he also has to prepare for the annual state of the union speech this year on january 12th. >> looking forward to that. so happy you can begin your morning with us. >> "state of the union" coming up at 9:00. bernie sanders and carly fiorina

the guests today. up next is "inside politics." thanks for being with us. it's 2016 and donald trump says time to dig deep. >> a minimum of $2 million a week and perhaps substantially more than that. >> and tv ads and attacking bill clinton helped trump turn national huge poll numbers into early state victories. >> we are going to go right after the president. >> and the new year brings big change. major staff shake shake up for ben carson and do-or-die shift for jeb bush. >> having the best organization on the ground. >> plus hillary clinton shatters the $100 million mark fundraising.