a fox news alert on three stories this hour. president obama wrapping up remarks to the veterans in the american ledgion in south carolina. and video coming in from gaza city. celebrations after a ceasefire is reached between israelis and hamas. will it last? >> primaries today. and does the gop have the momentum to change the balance of power in the u.s. senate? and fox nows alert. a third american hostage held in

syria. i am jon scottment nfox news confirmed that the hostage held is a woman. isis is demanding millions in ransom for this woman's release. >> kathryn harris has more in washington. >> reporter: thank you. an american aid worker was believed to be among the hostages in syria we have new details about the woman and where she is from in this country. the investigative source would not elaborate to fox news on the demands for her release including 6 million or a prisoner swap citing concerns for her personal security. and four days after the execution of james foley was

issued. there was a bulletin that there could be problems here in this country. the it is difficult to predict the tribers for home grown extremist violence. lone wolf terrorism present plotting against targets of opportunity. >> i think the threat from isis is serious and strattic. and we have to be careful. isis direct cells are one thing. isis supporters that we can't compreend or understand is something else. that is where the serious threat may come from. >> a week before the foley execution was posted on line.

there is evidence that foreign fighters have returned to their home countries and started cells on their own initiative and others were tasked to do so. there is evidence of at least limited cells operating for isis outside of iraq and syria, jon? >> that is scary stuff, kathryn, thanks. u.s. spy planes are flying over syria the drones are gathering intelligence about potential targets and the administration weighs expanded military options against isis after the beheading of james foley. jennifer has more on this. >> reporter: the president signed off on the drone surveillance over syria in recent days and the drones will include u.s. global hawks and most part be unarmed. >> our message to anyone who

harms our people is simple. america does not forget or reach as long as we are patient justice will be done and we'll continue to take direct action where needed to protect our people and defend our home land. >> the president hasn't approved air strikes in syria the absence of intelligence over syria hindered the air force's ability to conduct air strikes against isis in northern syria should the government order them. syria warned it needs bashar assad's approval. >> when american lives are at stake and talking about defending our own interest, we are not looking for the approval of the syrian regime. >> the syrian civil war has been raging more than two years and

this is the first time the president authorized the defense department to send drones over syria other than to provide support for the hostage rescue in july. there are not enough drones to go around. they had to pull the drone to look for the missing girls in nigeria. they have had to rely on satellite surveillance which is not as good and has many gaps. >> thank you, jennifer. talking about president obama, he's speaking in the american ledgion convention in charlotte, north carolina. this as department of veteran affairs struggle to fix all of the problems that delayed medical care for the veterans. the president announced a series of executive actions to improve the lives of our country's heroes. >> i want you to know directly

from me, is that we are focused on this at the highest levels and we are going to it get to the bottom of the problems and fix what is wrong and we are going to do right by you and your families and that is a solemn pledge and commitment i will make to you here. >> reporter: we'll talk to chris moody and michael warren. >> the president spoke a while ago. did he say what he needed to say about fixing the va system? >> it was a smart move for the president. the timing can't be ignored. tomorrow, the va or the inspector general will be releasing a report about the gross misconduct in the va and there will be terrible headlines about the administration's handling of veteran affairs. this allows president obama to get out in front of that and soften the blow to say there is a problem and we are working to

fix it. >> michael, i heard the president say people will be held accountable. but as far as we can tell no one was fired for what they did. what do you think is going to happen as a result of that. >> he mentioned that the new va secretary bob mcdonald is authorized, when he announced when he nominated mcdonald to fire people if they are part of the problem. look at the audience. american ledgion is a large veteran's group that is vocal and forceful in the criticism of the obama administration of the va. the president had tough talk and the veterans watching this in the convention and country will be wanting to see more action backing up the rhetoric. i think the amount of rhetoric,

and all kinds of new spending and programs in the va, it is nice window dressing, but it doesn't attack the actual problem in the va. and they will be looking for more action. >> talking about the dod's announcement of cutting troops. 33,000, and the army face the brunt of that and army captains and majors got pink slips this year. we want to get reaction from what allen west had to say about this. >> it will be interesting, this is what we know. the president of the america took the army back to 1940 levels. and the united states marine corps post world war i levels and the united states navy same level as 1917 and we have the smallest and oldest fleet for the united states air force and a marine still sitting in

mexico. that is the back drop and the lies with regard to the va skal scandal. it shows a lot of bravado to go and address the american ledgion. >> he said bravado to show up there. they are a polite crowd. >> this it is something that president obama said he would do for a hong time. make a lean military. the wars have been winding down despite the violence in those areas. the official war of iraq and afghanistan no longer requires the manpower as it has under the wars under president bush. >> but we may have to ramp things up. we are looking at a crisis with isis. >> we heard president obama say no boots on the ground. he is reassuring they will not send more people and we will not

be ramping up. >> we will talk about something else of a political nature. kay hagen, a democrat senator not polling so well and in fact she's speaking right now and not wanting to put herself in position of being closer to president obama who is not popular in that state. she and the president are speaking there at the same time. >> awkward if they pass each other in the hallway. kay hagen has been vocal in her criticism of president obama and the va issue. north carolina has a lot of veterans and a large military presence and so i think that she's speaking to that. and she's been hit hard. there is a concerned veterans for america has been hitting her hard in 2 million in a ds. and facing a tough republican

challenge tom hillis. and she is in a lot of trouble. she is reacting to a tough political situation she finds herself in. president obama probably understands it doesn't help her to be seen with him. the state of the north carolina didn't vote for him in 2012 like it did in 2008. it is probably moving away from the democrats and certainly an awkward meeting in charlotte. >> we'll have to leave it there. thank you. >> a young american missing after going on a hike with a friend in jerusalem. the latest on the search for aaron. >> and a terrifying scene, students saw the driver slump over the wheel before the crash. >> do you think the government fully addressed the concern of the nation's veterans? our live chat is up and running

go to fox news.com/happening now and get in on america's asking. you do a lot of things great.

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nearly two dozen people hurt in a school bus crash in houston, texas. 20 people were hurt when the bus veered off of the road and smashed in a tree. students say they saw the bus driver slump forward just before it happen. all jurisdiction are said to be minor. >> authorities in israel right now are searching for a missing 23-year-old man from new jersey back here at home. aaron is his name. he is a student who disappeared while hiking with a friend in the forest. conner powell has the latest in know about his disappearance? >> reporter: hi, heather, aaron was last seen hiking with a friend in the jerusalem forest

last week and missing every since. his family said this type of behavior leaving and disappearing is unusual and the family and american officials are actively trying to find him. the 23-year-old lake wood, new jersey resident has been missing several days and studying a jewish religious school. israeli police have been actively looking for him in the forest and using dogs and search parties. they found some of his personal items around the area where he was last seen. they are working assumps that he may have fallen in a ravine or accident. they are looking into the possibility of being kidnapped though there is no reason to believe he was kidnapped. the current conflict in gaza was sparked after three boys

kidnapped three israeli boys. israeli officials and american officials looking into it. and the main priority is trying to find the 23-year-old new jersey resident. they have little on the information and leads to go on. they are asking for anybody with information in israel to help find them. >> we are certainly hoping for his safety and our prayers to go out to his family here in the united states. thank you so much. they are called the enemy of the united states. and now feds are local police departments about isis. they could attack here at home. will america support military action to take out isis? a convicted killer jo hanvander

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how about this for a story? remember convicted killer, joran van dersloot. and he is removed to a prison. after threatening to kill the jailer there. he was convicted of killing two girls. he married his pregnant girlfriend in a prison ceremony. >> isis threatens to kill more americans after we witnessed the brutal murder of james foley last week. the white house considers its

strategy, will isis' recent actions turn the public opinion on whether the u.s. should get more involved and should it matter and are americans tuning it out. when asked on how the u.s. is dealing with the rise of isis in iraq, 40 percent said they don't know enough. and when it comes to the civil war in syria they don't know enough. >> and we'll talk to the executive washington editor of the wall street journal. the president is loathe to get reengaged in iraq and get engaged in syria and now the isis problem to confront. if he decided to change his course and go after them in a big way militarily, will he have the support of the american people? >> i think it is an open question the and the numbers that you cited suggest two things.

americans are not just reluctant to get involved in a military way in the middle east, they have checked out of the crisis summer that we have gone through and tuned it out. and that second conclusion, if the president wants the u.s. to get more deeply involved, he will have to stand up on the bully pulpit of the white house and explain to the american people why it is in their interest. maybe the killing of james foley, the journalist beheaded by isis was graphic enough danger to people of the need to get involved, but that is still an open question. >> i know you were acquainted with daniel pearl who was beheaded in afghanistan. and now case happening again. my understanding that the polls were taken before the foley execution and that has been on front page newspapers and outraged people.

in a strange way, is isis signed its own death warrant by publicizing that killing in a gruesome way? >> they are findings before the foley execution. and isis is gathering steam and building all summer. but that didn't register until there was an event like the foley execution to remind them and tell them in an unforgettable way that there is an isis danger out there. and they are targeting america. the threat has been building but it hasn't hit home until the last couple of weeks. we don't know what the affect is going to be. it is possibly that isis may have done the execution and may do more, i hate to say it, thinking that it will terrorize americans in to backing off. it may have the opposite affect. they may have miscalculated.

>> and the american public skeptical and tired of wars, as you suggest. the president has the option and power to shape public opinion to get the american people behind what he decides to do. do you think he has the inclination to do that? >> we'll see. in his reluctance to get involved in iraq, he's in tune with the american public. he will try to look at a strategy to bring international forces to go after isis. an american bombing campaign may make people feel better and a necessary part of containing that group in the middle east, is probably not sufficient. you need more help on the ground from iraqis and arab partners in the mideast. and odd bed fellows as iran. and the president is trying to

create an environment and the military pressure from the u.s. is not the only answer here. >> can you kill your way out of this crisis with isis? it seems like there are more fighters popping up and willing to shed blood, the more of them you kill. >> you framed the dilemma right. can you bomb your way out? probably not. sunni arabs are going to have to say this is not the answer. and you heard the chairman of the joint chiefs say that. you need sunni arabs who live in middle of iraq and syria come together and say this is not the islamic world we want to live in. they have to assert. that and it will have to start and everybody on all starts, it will start with an answer to isis within those countries not without. >> we may be in the process of

finding out what the american people think and how far they are willing to go. >> after a month of violence and possibly long- term ceasefire agreement between israel and hamas. we'll go live to gaza city to talk about that. >> voters in four states go to the polls in closely watched primaries and could determine the balance of pour in washington. we'll break it down. thanks to angie's list, now it is. we've made hiring anyone from a handyman to a dog walker as simple as a few clicks. buy their services directly at angieslist.com no more calling around. no more hassles. start shopping from a list of top-rated providers today. angie's list is revolutionizing local service again. visit angieslist.com today.

major developments in the middle east. you can see folks are taking to the streets in gaza. they are celebrating a possibly ceasefire. just moments ago, israel and hamas accepting an egyptian brokered ceasefire plan to end the seven weeks of conflict. john is in gaza city with the latest. john, will this one hold? >> reporter: that is a great question, will it hold. certainly several others have not. they latested a couple of hours and this one, i can tell you, heather we heard the cell practiceatory gunfire and rattle of guns as people shot in the air and tonight there is a pool party going on in the hotel pool. we have seen buildings that we haven't seen before lit up and cars on the streets and people on the street and that is not

been the case since this started seven weeks ago. it is a huge contrast and hours before it went in to affect noon eastern, we saw a barage of rockets fired at israel and israel responding with air strikes. they have just pounded the gaza strip and levelling high rise buildings and killing several more including several people in the southern gaza strip of ra fa today. an israeli citizen was killed on the border. 69 israelis and five civilian and 64 soldiers. in terms of the deal, right now, israel agreed to lift some of the restrictions of the gaza blockade to allow relief supplies and construction materials to flow in. and easing the restrictions to

allow fisherman to fish six miles offshore. and if it holds, broader talks will happen of hamas demanding including lifting off of the blockade. and will this hold and will we see ceasefire fall apart? for now, there is celebration here on the streets of gaza city. we'll have to see if this one is indeed holding up. heather. >> certainly have our fingers crossed. >> u.n. officials said that one of their helicopters was shot down in africa the u.n. mission said the cargo helicopter went down in the southern part of sudan. that area has seen a lot of fighting between the government and rebel troops. three crew members were on the chopper and one was injured seriously. search and rescue was dispatched. we'll bring you as we get more

information. >> right now, four big primaries that could impact republican momentum heading in elections just ten weeks from today. voters are going to the polls in arizona and florida and oklahoma and vermont and could be drama in arizona. larry sabno. look nothing your famous crystal ball and what will the results tell us of what might happen in november? >> we'll focus on two states, florida and arizona. in florida, we know who the two nominees for governor are. governor scott and former governor crist who was the republican predecessor to governor scott and then became an independent and running will be tonight as the democratic nominee for government. he is a tripartisan.

that is an unusual thing. it is a close race and i tell you what happened in the last seven months. scott has come from behind. the incumbent scott came from behind and tied with and slightly leading crist. obviously florida a megastate and critical in 2016 as it was in 2012 and in 2,000. we are watching that closely. >> typically california and new york are democratic states and texas looks prepared to go republican. if a republican governor can win the state of florida. that helps to counterbalance what always happens california and new york? >> florida helps and also illinois. this is an interesting one. illinois, that is obama's home state and the state he represented as a senator. you have a race for governor, where there is a republican,

bruce rounder has a pretty good shot to out of the democratic governor pat quin. and interesting things can happen in midterm because you don't have coattail. the presidential coattail the way you do in the races for the white house. >> speaking of presidential coattails, the president was in north carolina, and kay haggen was no where to be found, why? >> because president obama's popularity there is low. he won the state barely in 2008. and lost the state in 2012. and now his popularity is down in the the 40% range. and haggen is trying to find things to do while obama is in town and that is used by her opponent state house speaker tom tillis. and that race is one with of

seven, that really is tight as a tick. and it will determine the outcome in the senate. those seven races in the country. and north carolina is right in the epicenter. >> you are sure that republicans will pick up senate seats in south dakota and montana and west virginia. and republicans need six to regain control of the senate. there are seven other states where they have a possibility? >> at least seven. i think the best shots are in places like arkansas, louisiana, and alaska, colorado, you could always see the iowa, i almost forgot to mention iowa. that is come on the checkerboard. and outside chance in new hampshire and other places. you have deeply red states down south. this is a midterm election and the turn out will not be as high

and they are in states where president obama's popularity is in the low to mid30s. and the question is, what the margin. is it a seat or several seats that is going to matter come 2016? >> and in 2016, republicans are going to be defending a lot more seats than democrats will and you could see control slip back another way. >> thank you. >> and every senate election, go back six years to understand it. the senators elected six years ago that are coming up. >> always good to talk politics with you, larry. thank you. >> and a lot more politics to come. burger king wants it their way. fast-food chain buying tim horton. they make a bunch of doughnuts. and in doing so. they will legally move their

company out of the united states in an effort to cut down on taxes. it is called a tax inversion and gaining steam on wall street and making law makers here in the u.s. hot under the collar. talking about the tax inversion strategy and why it is gaining so much traction. companies pay 35 percent in taxes here. >> tax inversion. when an american company buys a foreign business. and they merge and move outside of the united states. in this case berger king and buying tom horton. and the united states has the top corporate tax rate in the industrialized world and the united states is one of the few countries to tax businesses on monies they make on other countries. that can the tax bill.

>> the administration would have you to believe that they pay nothing if they put headquarters canada and that is not true? >> absolutely, the company will pay u.s. taxes on all of the u.s. income. and american businesses should resist the inversion so they could save money on the taxes. it is a matter of economic patriotism. democrats are calling for a burger king boycot. >> they want your money and pay their taxes, too. >> and republicans say they largely prefer to use inversions as a reason to overhaul the tax code. congress will pass a bill to curve the tax inversions. >> oh, they could deal with the tax code. >> it is a campaign issue for the democrats. berger king is a visible

company. and they will try to get legislation. in the end of the day, it is unlikely the congress will do anything this year. it is up to the treasury and there is a good chance treasury will do something. >> officials are examining ways to address inversion without congress. administrative action would take time and have to survive legal channels. u.s. surveillance planes in the skies over syria and air strikes could be coming. are they the best way to stop the terrorist? and how the u.s. can lead a worldwide effort to defeat isis. >> and home recued to smouldering rubble in minutes.

>> coming up. awaiting a briefing from the pentagon with rear admiral jon

kirby. this just in burger king issuing a new statement about the reported move to canada. will they or won't they make a whopper move to avoid paying a loafed taxes here in the u.s.? and a new program to help make it easy for mortgage rates deductions. we'll tell you about it in the top of the hour. a woman and five children hurt when a house explodes in dallas. look at the video nothing left but smouldering wreckage. neighbors heard a loud boom and the home was fully engulfed by the time the firefighters arrive. they is a natural gas leak led to the explosion. >> let's talk about the battle against isis. air strikes alone will simply not cut it and the u.s. needs to lead a broader effort to stop isis and the reign of terror

before it arrives on our shore here in the united states. president obama talking about how to deal with the crisis in the remarks before the american ledgion convention. >> the crisis in iraq underscores how we have to meet the terrorist threat. not large scale military deployments that overstretch our military and leave us in occupying countries feeding extremism. but it has to be a broader part and support our partners. >> joining us is an author of a recent editorial in the wall street journal. daniel is a senior vp for the american enterprise institute. i don't know if you heard the president's sound bite. but it seemed like he blamed our troops and past occupations for the terrorist crisis.

>> i couldn't believe that clip. i wasn't able to see the president when he addressed the foreign ledgion. what is he talking about and suggesting that the presence of american troops is fostering extremism? that is extraordinarily offensive. >> especially given the audience he was speaking to. the grouch veterans which he is not popular with a lot of veterans. only a 30 percent approval rate. go ahead. >> remember, they didn't ask him. the white house goes to them to ask to appear to make a speech. what was he thinking and his speech writers. is this really his world view? the problems of the world is by america being there? we look around the world, we are no where. >> and remember the apology tour. he seemed to indicate that back

then. i want to ask you about the wall street journal editorial. you put a policy prescription terror dealing with isis that is more than military action. you we should put together a coalition. and look at our partners. uk and germany. they are providing arms for the kurds and possibly training down the road. who is the coalition going to be made up of? >> the problem forked the united states and the wars, that we could have helped people on the ground who had common enemies. like free syrian army and iraqi government and kurdish. and the sunni tribes and we ignored all of those parties and leave things so long, we end up going in ourselves because our allies can't do it for us. that's what we need to do. build a coalition in the region,

with the parties on the ground that want to fight isis and terrorist in the region and want to fight our shared enemies so we don't have to put ground troops on the ground. >> jordan has a lot to lose if isis goes in there and kuwait, you think that would be a part of the coalition. >> today's news has the egyptians and conducting strikes on lirrian terrorist. there would be parties. we have the guys on the ground and we have the iraqi military but they need their happen help. they were not up to the job of defending isis and we need to go back with training and help them with targeting and close air support but we need a political and economic strategy to deal with the region and help them and force them to address the conflicts that are going on. >> you have to say, we have to

stop the money that isis has. i hope we find the banks and take that money away from them. we'll have to leave it there. her article is in the wall street to leave it there. thank you so much. >> thank you. a woman accused of killing a man she met online appearing in court today. we'll tell you about that case. and a powerful earthquake in northern california devastates homes and businesses. the shaking might not be over yet. . . factors like diet can negatively impact good bacteria?

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more aftershocks rattling nerves in napa today. just 48 hours after the 6.0 earthquake that caused an estimated $1 billion in damage to california's wine country.

the u.s. geological survey says a 3.9 quake this morning shook up more than houses. >> i felt the aftershock that scared the crap out of me. that's why i came running out of my apartment. just any little jolt gets me nervous now, because that was quite a shake we had the other day. >> police say there have been no new reports of property damage. this just coming in, northumberland county, that area is confirming that miranda barber pleaded guilty to murder charges to avoid the death penalty. her and her husband are accused of killing a man they met last year on craigslist. her husband pleading guilty earlier today, david lee miller is here on this bizarre case. >> reporter: you probably never would have heard of miranda barber if not for the fact she claimed in a jailhouse interview that she killed at least 22 people from alaska to north carolina.

barberç made that admission afr her arrest in november for killing a local man she said she met on craigslist. this morning, barbara and her newly wed husband pled guilty in the stabbing of a man. the couple picked him up in the parking lot of a shopping mall, according to reports. miranda repeatedly stabbed the victim while her husband strangled him with a cable. the arrests were made after phone records were tracked. barbara said things turned violatent after he inappropriately touched her. the couple faced mandatory life sentences for the murder. the plea bargain, it takes the death penalty off the table. they pled guilty to stealing $250 from the victim. at the time of the murder, the barbours had only about married three weeks. miranda barbour has not been

charged with any other murder. those who know her says she craves atension and is not a serial killer but a serial liar. her and her husband will be sentenced next month. >> bizarre story. david lee, thanks. a midair battle breaks out two between airline passengers, leaving them both in handcuffs on the ground. we'll tell you about the tiny pieces of plastic that led to a brawl at 35,000 feet.

could the administration have been more active in keeping the peace?

i fox news alert and a big fire under way in the houston area. this is a warehouse in pasadena, texas, broke out just about exactly an hour ago. you can tell by the color of the smoke. the firefighters are nowhere near getting this under control. when there's this much black smoke and not a lot of white smoke, that fire is still actively burning. not clear what kind of warehouse it is. you have to hope there are not workers somewhere in the

building that cannot get out. because that's an awful lot of smoke and awful lot of flame. this fire burning in pasadena, texas. we'll keep you updated throughout the afternoon here on fox. thanks, everybody, for joining us today. "the real story" starts right now. we are standing by for a briefing from the pentagon, just hours after we learned the u.s. has begun flying surveillance missions over syria. hello, everyone, i'm shannon breen in for gretchen carlson. welcome to "the real story." with senior defense officials telling fox news -- are air strikes far behind? the president on his way back to washington after speaking to veterans and addressing the v.a. situation with them at the american legion's national convention in north carolina. so far, american air strikes have centered on isis targets inside iraq. and syria insists the u.s. needs permission to