did the kurds play a role in this operation? who'm not going to discuss participated but we had help from outside partners. >> the main u.s. allies in that region are the kurds? >> that's right. i will not get into details. >> ok. did the general of the kurdish forces say that they did play a role? >> the sdf have been good partners for the past few years. they were instrumental in helping to develop -- destroy the physical caliphate with -- of isis. they have been helpful in a variety of ways. >> i'm not want to let folks know what we did or did not see in this situation. those technical capabilities are not what i'm going to talk about. i can tell you we did have u.s. forces have eyes on al-baghdadi and we confirmed his death and took dna and confirmed dna from previous samples. >> is his body still in custody? >>'s body will be disposed of

properly. to the extent that we have, he died pulling the toggle on his vest. >> do you imagine we will follow the same protocol as osama bin laden? >> i would expect that to be the case. >> the president said there were a number of books that helped. -- folks that helped. he thanked russia first and the kurds last, should we read into that? >> no, i don't think you should read into that. the president talked about it being a very dangerous mission for our troops. the president made a great decision. going into foreign enemy territory at night, long-range helicopter raid. it was a courageous decision from the president. but incredible bravery and skill for our men and women in the armed forces. the intelligence community did it flawlessly. they had to fly over areas where there is significant antiaircraft capability. the syrians, russians, and turks, others. we appreciated the fact that our helicopters and planes were not molested. the kurds played an important role in the operation and we are

grateful for the kurds, the sdf and our allies. >> there was indication that that has been a five-month campaign to track him. is that a fair description that we are tracking him day-to-day? >> it is a fair description. you can imagine there are professionals that work for other agencies that were heavily involved as well as our armed forces. the president was aware of this effort and we felt we had a beat on him thursday and friday for sure. the president made the difficult decision to put men in harms way. he did that and it worked. it was a good day for the united states and our armed forces and the president. announcer: c-span's washington journal live every day with news and policy issues that impact you. coming up monday morning, we will preview the weekend -- week

ahead in washington with white house editor alex wayne and rollcall staff writer catherine mcmanus. and then a discussion on election security in the u.s. with david becker of the center for election innovation and research. be sure to watch c-span's washington journal live announcer: next, former supreme court justice and the receives the liberty metal at the national constitution center in philadelphia. just as gorsuch will present the award. justice gorsuch is the honorary chair. live coverage expected to start shortly. ♪

, whereer: live coverage former supreme court justice anthony kennedy will receive the liberty metal from justice neil gorsuch, honorary chair of the center. 1988 to established in commemorate the bicentennial of the united states constitution. the award honors men and women of courage and conviction that strive to preserve liberty for people around the globe. past winners are george w. bush, john mccain, john lewis, hillary clinton, muhammad ali, mikhail

gorbachev, and the dalai lama. coverage to get underway shortly. this is life on c-span. on c-span.

announcer: ladies and gentlemen, please take your seats. the program will begin momentarily.

announcer: while we wait for the weemony to get underway, have this. john conyers jr., a career war veteran, the longest-serving african member of congress in u.s. history, died today at 90. during his 53 years in the u.s. house, he built a reputation as a champion for civil rights. we are waiting for live coverage of the liberty medal ceremony to begin shortly, live on c-span. ladies and gentlemen, please welcome the