♪ god ♪ ♪ this is "nightline." >> tonight, chemical attack. threats of military action triggered by these horrific images of children struggling to breathe in a syrian rebel stronghold. >> it was an atrocious attack, it was horrible. >> accusations of another chemical attack on civilians by the syrian government. >> we've reached the moment when the world must see justice done. >> president trump calling out russia and putin. what's the likely u.s. response? plus, self-sabotage. mostivational speaker tony robins feeling the heat after a controversial remark in one of his self-help seminars. >> if you use the "me too" movement to try to get significance and certainty -- >> receiving pushback in person.

>> i think you misunderstand the "me too" movement. >> the possible fall-out for his empire. and travel fantasy. she's known for living in the lap of luxury, so iah carey staying in a $40 a night hostel? it's blowing up social media. but first the "nightline" 5.

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♪ good evening. thank you for joining us. tonight president trump weighing military options, calling syrian president bashar al assad an animal after another apparent chemical weapons attack in syria. with russia and iran both allied with syria, is the u.s. being drawn into a larger global conflict. we warn you, the images you are about to see are disturbing. here's ian pannell. >> reporter: the dchaos and carnage of syria's war, spilling into douma, the rebel-held district near the syrian capital damascus. the area has been bombarded for months, hundreds of innocents killed. but watch what happened two days ago. haunting images. difficult to watch. but if the world has largely

ignored their suffering so far. perhaps this really was a red line crossed. and no longer possible to ignore. an alleged chemical attack that left children pouring into a make shift clinic, eyes burning, some foaming at the mouth. many struggling simply to stay alive, and some failing too. >> the last two days were the worst days that i watched and faced here. >> reporter: mohammed sanaa was one of the medical staff tending the victims. >> the situation was too bad because of the high number of the injuried and the few number of medical team. >> reporter: entire families appear to have been killed in the attack. rebel activists and rescuers say perhaps 40 or more are dead, suffer kating from an unknown substance. for now, the claims impossible to verify, but some are asking whether the syrian government has once again attacked its own people with chemical weapons --

a war crime. >> it was an atrocious attack. it was horrible. >> reporter: president trump condemned the alleged attack today, vowing to make, quote, major decisions how to proceed over the next 24 to 48 hours. >> we are very concerned. when a thing like that can happen, this is about humanity. we're talking about humanity, and it can't be allowed to happen. >> i think the one thing that makes this different for this president is those images. when he sees something like that, he reacts to that. i think that makes a difference. >> reporter: at this point, the u.s. hasn't afirmed chemical agent was used. but a state department source tells abc news the victims' symptoms are consistent with an asphyxiation agent and a nerve agent of some type. >> we are beyond showing pictures of dead babies. we are beyond appeals to conscience. >> reporter: u.n. ambassador nikki haley and eight other countries today in a tense, emergency, u.n. meeting, directly targeting syria's

president bashar al assad and promising u.s. retaliation. >> the monster who is responsible for these attacks has no conscience. not even to be shocked by pictures of dead children. >> reporter: but there are no easy steps here. efforts to confirm what's happening in the war-torn country are made all the harder by the interference of foreign powers. russia still backs assad, warning military intervention can lead to the most serious consequences. russia would lose credibility with the syrians if they were to engage any attack and fail to do so. which means there's a potential for a u.s./russia confrontation. >> reporter: over the weekend, president trump tweeted, blaming russian president putin and iran for backing syrian president assad. >> does putin bear responsibility for this? >> he may. he may. and if he does, it's going to be very tough. very tough. >> he'll pay a price if -- >> everybody's going to pay a price. he will, everybody will. >> there have been four strikes in douma alone since the

beginning of january. what's different this time, we have more people killed and with the video aftermath of those children suffering. >> reporter: russia's u.n. representative today called the attack fake news, claiming it was staged and that russian specialists who went to the area took soil samples. [ speaking foreign language ] >> translator: not a single local resident confirmed the chemical attack having taken place. so a local hospital, there were no reports about symptoms from a toxic substance. just chlorine. >> reporter: this video shared by a local activist showed what appear to be russian agents assessing the purported attack site, leaving without taking samples. but only independent monitors can assess if a chemical attack has happened, and that work takes days or weeks. not the brief time the russians spent on site. the suspected chemical attack is the latest in a conflict lasting

years that's killed 400,000 and decimated entire cities, prompting an exodus of over 5.5 million. >> assad is killing his own people, and how he does it is not as important as the fact that he continues to kill hundreds of thousands of the syrian people. >> reporter: back in 2012, president obama said that the use of chemical weapons against civilians would cross a red line and bring enormous consequences for syria's president. >> a red line for us is, we start seeing a bunch of chemical weapons moving around or being utilized. that would change my calculus. that would change my equation. >> reporter: but assad escalated attacks on his own people. as the rebels responded with force, america largely stood on the sidelines. until just over a year ago, when images emerged of a chemical attack in the northwestern town where more than 80 people were killed. >> that crosses many red lines.

>> reporter: within days, president trump ordered air strikes on a syrian airfield that was used to launch that chemical attack. >> when he dropped those tomahawk missiles last year, it was seen so big and so alarming and 59 tomahawk missiles. the truth is, that was a pretty small strike. they were able to start flying off that airfield i think it was days. >> reporter: nearly two weeks ago, president trump expressed a desire to get u.s. troops out of syria. >> primary mission in terms of that was getting rid of isis. we've almost completed that task and we'll be making the decision quickly in coordination with others in the area. >> reporter: but it's the syrian regime, not isis, that's killed hundreds of thousands of people in this war and launched nearly half a dozen chemical attacks over the past year, according to the u.n. >> obviously what we did last year has not deterred assad as he continues to kill his own people with chemical weapons. >> reporter: while the world

condemns the possible use of chemical weapons, it's the almost daily barrage of bombs from conventional warfare that's taken the biggest toll since fighting broke out between assad's army and rebel groups seven years ago. i saw the horrors of the civil war early on, while reporting for the bbc. this hospital in aleppo was overwhelmed every day by victims and casualties. >> the situation inside here is one of unbelievable chaos. we've just been here for a very brief time, and every few minutes, new patients are brought in, as the doctors work under fire to try and keep them alive. >> reporter: eventually it was flattened by regime planes. the rebels too accused of war crimes, but it's the regime that's charged with killing on an industrial scale. the challenge, how to respond. >> this is not necessarily a precursor to more u.s. presence or military action in syria. but it does complicate the

extraction process if the president does want to continue withdrawal from syria. >> reporter: tonight a ceasefire of sorts in the town where the alleged chemical attack happened. rebel fighters and their families leaving in a convoy of buses. but this isn't over. the fighters, the families, the children will move elsewhere, and there will be more days like these. after years of non-stop pain and death, america and the world must now decide what they're willing to do and what difference it will really make. for "nightline," i'm ian pannell in london. ♪ up next, the tony robbins face-off with a woman at one of his seminars. what he said about the "me too" movement, and why she's ush approximating back. h approximating back. very much. ee pushing back. i was in the stone ages as much as technology wise. and i would say i had nothing.

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♪ you know, tony robbins built a one-man self-help franchise by fixing other people's problems. now he's managing a crisis of his own after a video emerged of the motivational guru confronting a woman with the "me too" movement. he's been flooded with condemnation. here's abc's linsey davis. >> who knows what i'm talking about here? say i. >> reporter: tony robbins, the self-help guru who famously encourages his clients to walk on fire and now being raked over the coals himself, after igniting controversy with his comments about women in the workplace. >> if you use the "me too" movement to try to get significance and certainty by attacking someone else, all you've done with a drug called

significance to make yourself feel good. >> reporter: robins made the statement last month. san jose arena was packed with attendees. among them, nanene who questioned what robbins was proclaiming. >> i have lot of "me too" stories, and i'm a survivor. i think it was the "me too" movement that gave me the courage to speak up. so i was like, tony, you've got this all wrong. >> i think you misunderstand the "me too" movement. >> there's nothing wrong with that, i'm not knocking the "me too" movement, i'm knocking victimhood. >> reporter: but she doubles down on "me too" movement. >> certainly there are p.eople who are using it for their own

devices, but there are a significant number of people who are using it not to be, to relive whatever may have happened to them, but to make it safe for the young women who -- [ applause ] >> reporter: robbins invites her to join him, pushing his point, and pushing her. >> put out your fist. why are you pushing back? i didn't tell you to push back. when you push someone else, it doesn't make you more safe. it just makes them angry. >> apparently it's something he does at a lot of his seminars, this pushing exercise. but i didn't know where he was going with it. i'm a tall woman. i'm 5'8". when he stepped up to me and looked down on me, i triggered because he looked angry. >> reporter: and the larger than life personality continues. >> i saw someone the other day, very famous man, saying how stressed he is because he interviewed three people that

day. one was a woman. two were men. the woman was better qualified, but she was very attractive and he knew, i can't have her around because it's too big a risk and he hired somebody else. i've had a dozen men tell me this. >> reporter: the founder of the "me too" movement wrote -- "me too" movement wrote -- >> how bad is this for tony? >> i think it's terrible. his career is based on two things. one is empathy, the idea that people hire him, go to his meetings and seminars because he understands them and he's trying to help them. if you're going to be dismissive and hostile to things that thousands of people believe, that's bad for your business. >> reporter: this incident went viral, garnering more than 5 million views. but nanene said internet notoriety was the last thing she had in mind when she registered for the conference. >> i'd seen his stuff on youtube

and thought maybe he could help me figure out how to move forward in my life. >> reporter: an out of work lawyer, she paid nearly $3,000 to attend the event. that money has been refunded. mccool is one evof millions who have turned to robbins, whose self-help seminars have the vibe of a rock concert, preaching about personal performance, physical fitness and what he calls emotional mastery. he's also a best selling author, entrepreneur. >> most people don't even make a resolution anymore. why? >> reporter: with a reported net worth of $500 million. he's even the subject of a netflix documentary "i am not your guru." >> i used the intervention to teach principle in the middle of it. i love that. >> reporter: robbins issued an apology yesterday on facebook, saying, i apologize for suggesting anything other than my profound admiration for

the #me too movement. abc news reached out for comment and we were referred back to that facebook statement. >> my first reaction to watching that, it's just really exhausting. frustrating. there was a moment in particular in the video where she stood up to voice her opinion. >> not for you, personally. >> and he silenced her before she could get her thought out. he cut her off. that's so telling of the larger conversation and everything that's happening with that. just the silencing of this woman. >> reporter: editor essenceegant compiled an art asking women who have experience the workplace harassment to share their stories. >> i politely refused. he tells me that i'm turning him on and i owe him at least a kiss for that. it's widespread, as far as age, industry, profession, level of profession. some stories were coming from girls as young as 15 working in retail and other stories were coming from women who were doctors, who were senior executives. >> reporter: she says sharing

these stories is an important part of changing workplace culture. >> when you elevate these stories and you give people this kind of platform, it eventually leads to action. and we can start to challenge policies and power structures that have first so long, like perpetuated this behavior and allowed it to go on without any kind of punishment. >> is i'm sorry enough? >> it's not enough once. it has to be said over and over and over again. if you look at his message, whether you think in self-help or not, it's about transforming yourself and learning from what has happened to you. this to me, if tony robbins is smart, and he is, is a learning moment for him. >> reporter: while mccool may not have found the enlightenment she was looking for, she found something unexpected. a sense of sisterhood. >> a woman reached over and tapped me on the shoulder and she was in tears and she said, you effing rock. that was awesome. i will never forget you.

>> reporter: for nig"nightline, i'm linsey davis in new york. up next, mariah carey's new video. ♪ ♪ >> abc news "nightline" sponsored by talts. of 100% clear skin with taltz. e the chance for people with moderate to severe psoriasis, up to 90% had a significant improvement of their psoriasis plaques. with taltz, 4 out of 10 even achieved completely clear skin. don't use if you're allergic to taltz. before starting, you should be checked for tuberculosis. taltz may increase risk of infections and lower your ability to fight them. tell your doctor if you have an infection, symptoms, or received a vaccine or plan to. inflammatory bowel disease can happen with taltz, including worsening of symptoms. serious allergic reactions can occur. ready for a chance at 100% clear skin? ask your doctor about taltz. try it for as little as $5 a month.

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♪ ♪ finally tonight, mariah carey is known for her luxury lifestyle, but a new viral commercial for hostel world imagines an international diva disaster. >> welcome to our hostel. >> hostel? >> i'm so sorry. i thought i booked a hotel. >> that's when things go from bad to bear. but the short-tempered diva changes her tune when the manager says these magic words. >> oh, nearly forgot, there's a bar. >> leave it to mariah to turn a nightmare into a fantasy. ♪ ♪ just a sweet sweet fantasy

baby ♪ ♪ when i close my eyes ♪ you come entertain me >> what? >> that's one hopping hostel. thanks for watching "nightline," and as always we're on 24/7 on our "nightline" facebook pabelg. line" facebook pabelg.

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