good morning, everyone. i'm tamron hall. this is "newsnation." we're following breaking news. we're awaiting a pentagon briefing any minute now. all this with president obama now heading to new york for the u.n. general assembly meeting. the president spoke in the past hour before heading to new york. >> we're joined in this action by our friend and partners saudi arabia the united arab em rates, jordan, bahrain, and qatar. america is proud to stand shoulder to shoulder with these nations on behalf of our common security. the strength of the coalition makes it clear to the world that this is not just america's fight alone. above all the people and the governments in the mid east are rejecting isil. >> the united arab em rates

confirms the air force took part in the strike. it's the first government to confirm the role it played in the mission. officials say more than 20 isis targets inside syria were hit in the wave of attacks that signal the start of what president obama has said will be a long campaign against isis in syria. the attack included missiles launched from u.s. warships and precision guided bombs fired by waves of fighter jets, bombers, and drones. that the targets isis command and control headquarters, weapons depots, and training camps. there are reports at least 70 isis fighters were killed and isis now threatening retaliation. separate from strikes against isis cent come said the u.s. acting alone targeted al qaeda veterans from the khorasan group which officials say pose the most imminent threat of attacking the united states. joining me now is ayman mohyeld

mohyeldin. joining us by phone ben hubbard. ben, let's get you in quickly as we're getting conformation that the united arab em rats participated in the air strikes. what does that mean? >> well, a lot of backing for this. if an entity of the islamic state it's important for the united states to have the arab countries behind this. the five arab allies. it's worth noting that a number of these countries that are joining the fight specifically saudi arabia and qatar were heavily involved in the syrian conflict before they decided to jump on to the american-led coalition. the islamic state -- these are countries that are funneling money and weapons to syria. if these government jumped on board the uae, qatar, and jordan

which tend to keep a lou erlowe profile when it comes to international relations. >> and the response from syria at this point, as we have been told from state department officials the syrian regime was notified that the coalition was going to take direct action but permission was not sought. what reaction are you hearing there? z>> well, i think that is -- by the syrian government on the lead up to this thing. any unauthorized action inside syria will be considered an aggress against syria. and in the tend happened -- >> i'm sorry to interrupt you. i need to take our audience to the pentagon briefing that started. >> isil and the khorasan group. the decision to conduct the

striebs was made yesterday by the u.s. central command under authorization granted by the commander in chief. the strikes were taken as part of the president's comprehensive strategy to degrade and ultim e ultimateultimat ultimateultimate destroy isil. the coalition partners in the fight against isil in these strikes included jordan, uae, bahrain, and saudi arabia with qatar in a supporting role. secretary hagel appreciates their partnership and in particular the strong work who gave the secretary an update on the operation throughout it. we do not coordinate with the ashad regime. on the united states did inform the syrian regime through our u.n. ambassador of our intent to take action there was no coordination and no military to military communication. in terms of the khorasan group, which is a network of seasoned

al qaeda veterans the strikes were taken to disrupt imminent attack plots. these terrorists have accomplished a safe haven in syria to plan external -- and recruit western es to conduct operations the united states took action to protect our interest and to remove their capability to act. in a minute, i'll turn it over to the joint staff j 3 director of operations lieutenant general to provide more detail about the operation. before i do,ic it's important to note a few things. first, and while i let the general get into the details of our assessment, our initial indication is these strikes were successful. second, while it's not our policy to discuss future operations. i can tell you last night's strikes were only the beginning. for this reason, and maybe some tactics, techniques, and procedures we won't be able to address here today to preserve options that we may want

available to us in the future. finally, we're going to leave it up to our partner nations to detail the specifics of their involvement. i think you may have seen statements by jordanians and bahrain. i also note that secretary hagel is immensely proud of the u.s. personnel who participated in and supported the miss. he deeply appreciates their service and sacrifices. with that, i turn it over to the genera general. >> good morning. last night at the direction of the president of the united states u.s. military force under the command of u.s. central command in conjunction with coalition partners in the region executed a series of strikes against isil and other terrorist targets in syria. coalition strikes targeted isil training camp of camps, headquarters, logistical nodes, armored vehicles, and

leadership. u.s. military forces also executed unilateral precision strikes against the khorasan group. an terrorist organization located in northwest syria. the intelligence reports indicated that the khorasan group was in the final stages of plans to execute major attacks against western targets and potentially the u.s. homeland. last night's strikes were organized in three waves. the first waive began around midnight in syria or 8:30 eastern standard time. i draw your attention to the map. the first slide, please. in the first wave of strikes the uss in the red sea and the uss philippines sea in the northern arabian gulf launched more than 120 40 tom hawk. it's the targeted area around

aleppo. the majority of the tom hawk strikes were against khorasan group compounds and training camps. the second wave skintded of f-16, b-1 bombers, and drones. they launch from bases in the region around 9:00 p.m. eastern standard time against targets in northern syria. targets included isil headquarters, training camps barracks, and combat vehicles. the final wave occurred shortly after midnight eastern standard time. f 18 from the uss george h.w. bush and regionally based u.s. f-16 among others attacked targets in eastern syria to include isil training camps and combat vehicles. principally in that circumstance to

-- circle to the far east. coalition partners participated in both the second and third waves supporting with a range of combat operation ability that began with combat air control to actual strikes on targets. the preponderance of coalition support was in the third wave. 96% of all the delivered munitions were precision guided munitions. and like now to show you several before and after pictures that highlight the affects of the munitions. next slide. next slide, please. this first picture shows an isil finance center. it's a before and after on the left is the brfr abefore, and te rights as you look at it was

after. now the intended target was the communications array on the roof of the building. the tom hawk cruise missiles dead nated with the effect focus on the communications array. as you can see on the right-hand side in the picture, the after picture, the rooftop communications is heavily damaged while the surrounding structure remains largely intact. if i can go to the next slide, please. the second picture shows an isil command and control building that was targeted by u.s. air force f-22 during the second wave of strikes. this strike was the first time the f-22 was used in a combat role. the flight of the f-22s delivered gps-guided munitions targeting, again, only the right side of the building. you can see on the left-hand side the before shot and then

you can see as you look at it on the right-hand side the after shot. you can see that the control -- the command and control center where it was located in the building was destroyed. if i can go to the third slide. the third and final picture is a residence near the town. it's along the border between syria and iraq. this was a residential area that had been used for training site and for logistics site for isil fighters. it was engaged with multiple gps guided missiles, munitions fired from f 18 launched from the uss george h.w. bush. as you can see, the aircraft targeted locations within the boundary, the fence line of the residence. there's a video here that shows exactly how that was done. so give me a moment to switch

the video and i'll let you look at that as well. off the same target. again, you'll note the effect of the strike were contained been the boundary of the target area. as the pictures in the video highlight strikes involve multiple aircraft and cruise missiles through several countries. it was through the careful planning and coordination through the combined arms operation center located in the region that these strikes were successful for minimal collateral damage. last night's strikes are the beginning of a credible and sustainable persistent campaign to degrade and ultimately destroy isil. our immediate tasks are to continue the degradation of isil

in syria and iraq. to build and strengthen regional partners, and build regional coalition. to assist in placing iraqi security forces in peshmerga forces on the offensive. to support the broader diplomatic efforts in the region to be implement a syrian train and equip program, and to continue to work with iraqi security forces and ministries. with that, we'll take your questions. >> reporter: when you talk about the mission continuing you didn't mention the khorasan group. can you tell us at all, do you expect the more against the khorasan group, should they assume this is it? and do you have any battle damage assessment against them. do you belief it's possible you killed their leader, do you have any sense what you accomplished? anything you're able to give us? >> as i'm you probably know.

we've been assessing the strikes. we have been watching the group for some time. we believe they were close in executing an attack against europe on the homeland. we know the khorasan group has attempted to recruit westerners. the khorasan group is clearly not focussed on the assad regime or the syrian people. they are establishing roots in syria in order to advance attacks against the west and the homeland. >> reporter: any assessment of what you did accomplish in those particular evacuastrike last ni? >> it would be premature to comment on the effects. >> reporter: if it's going to take you a year to train the free syrian army 5,000 troops on the ground. are you going to need ground forces in syria between now and then. if not, how is this any different from 12 years of war

in iraq and afghanistan. why is it any different that wack a whomole? >> the short answer is no be we will not put ground forces into syrian. the syrian train and equip program, as you said, would bring the beginnings of implementation. it'll be a multiyear program. it is as you pointed out it's not sufficient. i think we're appropriately sized for the task that we've been given. >> reporter: general, were any leadership targets included on last night's hit list? what results did you get? were any leadership isis leadership taken out? >> no. we did not target individual leaders but we targeted command and control. we developed the targets for patterns of life where

leadership would routinely go. if they were there, it was usually an indication of the command and control note. we didn't specifically target individuals. >> reporter: you talk about a credible and sustainable campaign. what does sustainable mean? how long can the american people expect the air strikes to continue and what shape will they take? strikes like tonight or targets of opportunity can you look forward for us? >> what you saw today and last night were a disruption to isil forces that were enabling their strikes into iraq. the way i would encourage you to look at this is look at what we're trying to do regionally. we're focussed, first, in iraq because we have a partner in iraq to work with. the iraqi security forces, the iraqi government. we're striking through the depth of isil's formations because we are trying to disrupt their support bases while we enable in

iraq their iraqi security forces with the help of partners to dislodge and ultimately remove isil from iraq i would think of it in terms of years, yes. >> reporter: general, i look to follow up on the khorasan group. you said there's evidence represent an imminent threat to u.s. homeland and europe. is it your sense the threat has been contained within syria or is there evidence they have sent operatives already outside of syria to plan for attacks? >> i would want to walk away from that and not talk about intel matters here. >>. >> reporter: you could say they're representing an imminent threat to the united states. the threat been deterred at the point because of the strikes or? >> let me -- let us give us some time to assess the targets and the effects we thought we had last night before we can answer

that. >> reporter: you talk about the strikes as hopefully having an effect on iraq. i wonder if you could assess a little bit, obviously iraq end of the campaign has been going on for awhile. do you think wow had an effect so far with those strikes and what more is going -- is hope for from this way? >> the most important thing is to create space for the iraq i y security forces and replace leadership that needs to be replaced to allow them to reorganize their equipment and rearm to get their ministry connected to this newly formed government. and to allow them to get on the offense. what we have been doing over the last couple of weeks and what last night's campaign was about was simply buying them some space so they can get on the

offensive. >> you talked about the overall plan along the iraqi peshmerga to go on the offensive. won't the strikes in syria benefit assad? you're hitting the khorasan group and isis. >> right now the task at hand is counter missile. that's job one. as you mentioned last night we were not only doing strikes in syria, we did several strikes in support of peshmerga forces in iraq. but the principle focus right now is countering the threat to islam. first to iraq and the region. >> reporter: the result of that is benefitting assad, isn't it? >> i wouldn't characterize the effects last night as benefitting ebenefi benefittibenefi benefitting assad. >> reporter: you said the syrians were informed through the u.n. it was going to happen. we've heard a lot about their air defense system being robust.

were any of your aircraft with radar coming in. was there radar or anything along the lines you can share with us? >> the target acquisition last night would characterize as passive. >> i won't get into specifically what we know they did. but i think it would be fair to say it was a passive radar. >> reporter: general, can you talk about the decision to use the f-35? >> well, what we were looking at was the effects we wanted to see on the target areas. what platforms in would be best suited to do that. we had a large menu of targets to strike from and we chose from there. it's less the platform than the effects we seek. it's what platform can deliver the effects. that's really the job. >> reporter: can you give us a sense of percentage of munitions

dropped by arab allies and what percentage of general targets were dropped by? >> let me host nations the partner nations that provided capabilities to us last night to speak to their level of effort. >> reporter: general, could you talk to what level coordination there was with the moderate opposition and whether there's been any movement on the ground either on the part of the opposition force to capitalize on these strikes or in the case of the syrian government forces. >> the region to moderate oppositions is rightly so in the hands of the civilian instruments of our national capabilities. so i'll deflect that and let our state department colleagues address that. >> have you seen isis take any

acti actions post strike? >> look, isis is a very well organized and very well resource force that is an adaptive learning force. it is -- we have -- it's too early to characterize precisely what isil has done in result of last night's attacks. but they are very well funded. they are a learning organization. and they will adapt to what we have done and seek address the shortfall and gap against our air campaign in the coming weeks. [ inaudible ] >> reporter: specifically the electronics. was that to disrupt any kind of electronic -- >> to look at the basis of support as well as command and control. we saw the -- we characterized the area in the activities that were going on there.

gain an understanding of what the target represented to them and decided disrupting at that would have the disruptive effect. >> reporter: centcom have a license to strike unilaterally without going through the secretary of defense for prior approval of targets or is hagel in the chain of command? >> yeah, both the secretary of defense and the president are in the chain of command. they'll remain in the chain of command. as far as what targets and future operations uld like to not comment on what our next -- other than to say you have seen the beginnings of the sustained campaign and strikes like in in the future can be expected. >> expected fairly quickly? if centcom sees -- >> the tempo will be dictated by the facts on the ground and what the targets mean in terms of the effect we seek which is to

disrupt. it would be difficult for me today to lay out some sort of lock step process. it's driven by the opportunities that we see. >> general austin has the authority to demonstrate. >> yeah. >> reporter: there are reports that isil is dispersing the people to mix with the population and hide. that is going to make air strikes extremely difficult. how are you going maintain their effectiveness and isn't that going to require something like j-tax are you going to trade the free syrians in this? >> your point about isil adapting to the air strikes is a good one. we have seen evidence they're already doing that. we've seen it now as a result of the air campaign thus far in

iraq. there are other ways to deliver precise munitions than putting a j tack forward. it obviously is something we prefer to do when collateral damage or concerns about the precision in a closed environment. when there's a convergence of forces is in play. there's obviously a desire to put something on the ground. but we don't always have to strike with it forward. we've been doing it successfully thus far in places not only the rural places like you saw in mount sinjar and with we move to support the person and iraqi forces that went to the mosul dam but a real tlif builtup area. we've been able to provide air support without putting forces

forward. and i think we will continue to look at how we can do that as we move forward. >> just to ask an earlier question different way. what percentage of munitions dropped last night were by u.s. forces? >> the preponderance of the force was came from us platforms. >> reporter: percentage? >> quite honestly, we'll have to get in the numbers and count the types of munitions. it's a little bit misleading because we used a different type of munitions. so we might have available to us a very precise munition that can service and effect with only one rocket, one missile. other may have to serve as a couple of times to get the effect we see. >> reporter: the strikes -- >> the math supports that. that's correct.

>> reporter: are there any plans to support the syrian kurds who have been fleeing now because of isis similar to what happened with the ya zee tezidis. >> the u.s. central command has been developing for some time. >> what kind of strike support -- >> we haven't ruled out anything other than to continue to focus on what it's going take to counter isil through the depths of the both iraq and syria. right now the way our partnership our coalition air campaign is working is we've got the ability to find and to fix and finish, if you will, let me use military jargon with the assets we have. those assets, by the way, include partner in the region.

>> reporter: the syrian observe story and other riots groups have been killed. they were claiming they were american strikes. do we have any conformation that sifl begans have been killed. is there a way to get the tally? how do you differentiate if it's the united states that caused that? >> we are unaware of any civilian casualties. but obviously limiting civilian kaush casualties for the united states. if any reports of civilian casualties emerge we'll fully investigate them. >> thank you, everybody. we were listening into the first pentagon briefing since the news overnight of the air strikes in syria. u.s. forces supported by at least five arab nations. right now we're learning that the white house indicates the president plans to drop by a meeting this afternoon with arab nations that participated in syrian strikes last night. we just heard great detail of the precision strikes.

and the focus of those strikes many of them the command and training centers used by isil and also headquarters and officers linked to khorasan, an organization i'm sure many of you didn't hear about until over the weekend there was an article in the paper of the washington post saying it was a threat. now we're learning there was perhaps an imminent plan to strike the united states and even europe by this particular organization. joining me now democratic senator bob casey of pennsylvania. last week he voted to arm and train moderate syrian rebels along with 77 other senatosenat. let's get your reaction to you have the uae coming out in a official statement saying it participated with its air force in striking isis and khorasan. your reaction, sir >>well, tamron, first of all, what we're seeing is the early and significant building of a coalition. it's one thing to say you'll

help with intel or other assets or resources. it's another thing to say you're going participate in this kind of an operation. so that is a good sign. i think it's a good start. we have a long way to go. not just to keep building this coalition, but to keep it intact and help with the other aspect of the strategy which involves cutting off their money, putting a lot of diplomatic and economic pressure on those not helpful, and making sure we're doing everything possible to implement the other elements of the strategy. but this is a good beginning but it's an early indicator. i don't think we can draw too many conclusions. >> to your point in the briefing we heard from pentagon officials we should look at this in temples of years not days and not overnight air strikes. with that said to your point you have the president headed to new york to address the u.n. general assembly. there have been doubt over the past few weeks whether or not

the white house could pull together the coalition. in fact, he's done that. >> i think he's off to a good start. the president and secretary kerry worked hard as well as the administration overall. it was good news to hear the president to say that 40 countries are willing to help in some fashion. i think that will grow and the help will be more evident. but this is early. we've got to be cognizant this is early in the overall strategy. but an important point to make, i think, the other elements of the strategy in the long run will be more important than any kind of military kinetic activity. but i think, tamron, one thing to mention with regard to what the lieutenant general told us about the nature of the strikes. the high degree of precision is significant. one thing i know about our military, they take great pains and go to great lengths to be very precise.

to hit command and control structures, to hit other elements of even enemy force so they're not hurting people you don't want to target. the precision as evidenced by the video as well as the photographs i think is pretty telling. >> i should point out you were the first senator to say the syrian president assad must go along with supporting arming the free syrian army who is now part of the president's strategy. i'm hear you heard the question posed to the officials at the briefing of whether or not these air strikes benefit assad. what are your thoughts along those lines or are we seeing just a dual track here? >> well, i think, tamron, if i were to have the question posed to me. the basic answer is we don't know for sure in the long run what the strikes will do on the ground in the internal battle within syria.

i've been on record for a long time advocating for training and equipping and helping the syrian opposition, the well vetted elements of it. i think now we're on the path and the president has that authority. but i think it's too early to assess what it will do to that conflict. i think we have to stay concentrated on targeting isis or isil. and making sure that any group in that reen khorasan was mentioned in the briefing if you're planning attacks against the united states, you'll be hit. if you're in operation about to strike the united states you'll be hit. and if you're helping any organization that is planning attacks or any kind of terrorism against the united states you're going to be in the cross hairs. i think this is a very strong message. not just to isis but any other group that might be plotting or might be part of helping that effort. >> senator casey, thank you so much for your time. we appreciate it. as mentioned our breaking news coverage of the air strikes in syria continues throughout

the hour. as we heard the u.s. also launched air strikes against a group of seasoned al qaeda veterans in addition to isis. up next i'll talk live with terrorism analyst evan coleman about the organization coreson and the imminent attack. it appears that group was planning. but first, breaking news from alabama. police say three people have been killed in a shooting at a ups facility in birmingham. officers tell ap the gunman who was an employee was killed along with two others. police say the situation is over. we'll keep you up to date. we'll be right back. j.j. watt? you know there's a game on tonight right, amy? oh, i know, but it's my turn to chaperone. right, but you could do both. how? nfl mobile is now free with the more everything plan from verizon. i have verizon! download it, you can watch the game right here. come on, let's boogie! oh, helen.

for the first time watch live local sunday games on nfl mobile. included with the more everything plan exclusively from verizon. feet...tiptoeing. better things than the pain, stiffness, and joint damage of moderate to severe rheumatoid arthritis. before you and your rheumatologist decide on a biologic, ask if xeljanz is right for you. xeljanz (tofacitinib) is a small pill, not an injection or infusion, for adults with moderate to severe ra for whom methotrexate did not work well. xeljanz can relieve ra symptoms, and help stop further joint damage. xeljanz can lower your ability to fight infections, including tuberculosis. serious, sometimes fatal infections and cancers have happened in patients taking xeljanz. don't start xeljanz if you have any infection, unless ok with your doctor. tears in the stomach or intestines, low blood cell counts and higher liver tests and cholesterol levels have happened. your doctor should perform blood tests before you start and while taking xeljanz and routinely check certain liver tests.

tell your doctor if you have been to a region where fungal infections are common, and if you have had tb, hepatitis b or c, or are prone to infections. tell your doctor about all the medicines you take. one pill, twice daily, xeljanz can reduce ra pain and help stop further joint damage, even without methotrexate. ask about xeljanz. even withou♪ methotrexate. fill their bowl with the meaty tastes they're looking for, with friskies grillers. tender meaty pieces and crunchy bites. in delicious chicken, beef, turkey, and garden veggie flavors. friskies grillers. you think it smells fine, but your passengers smell this... eliminate odors you've gone noseblind to for up to 30 days with the febreze car vent clip.

female passenger: wow. smells good in here. vo: so you and your passengers can breathe happy. you raise her spirits. we tackled your shoulder pain. you make him rookie of the year. we took care of your cold symptoms. you take him on an adventure. tylenol® has been the number 1 doctor recommended brand of pain reliever for over 20 years. but for everything we do, we know you do so much more. tylenol®. we continue to cover the breaking news of the day. joining me now from london ayman mohyeldin.

and evan coleman. some of the information we learned from the pentagon briefing regarding syria and its response to the air strikes believe the word was passive as described in the briefing. >> that's correct. that was at least an indication by some that the syrian government which came out early today and said it had been notified by the u.s. and the representative which was also confirmed by the u.s. several hours later that in fact it was aware that strikes were going to take place. perhaps the timing as we heard from the pentagon briefing was not made clear to the syrian government for for all who have been following the story it was only a matter of time. i think the syrian government made an active decision perhaps not to engage the u.s. air force not to engage the arab countries carrying out the strikes. as the pentagon described the air defense systems were pretty much passive. i think the syrian has a government choice to play up the issue of the u.s. violating the

sovereignties. or will it try to play along with this knowing that a weakened isis would strengthen the ability of their regime to retake the area it lost over the years to the civil arwar. >> anyone knew from the president's statements that it was imminent. it seems the timing overnight has a lot to do with concerns of the united states and europe being targeted by khorasan. >> that's correct. i think there was two issues here. obviously at play. the u.s. has been repeatedly saying they were in the final stage was planning attack. that's going to come down to the intelligence community and what specific intel they may have had about an attack. as we heard from pentagon officials that target lists and the other targets that the pentagon and central command wanted and had identified perhaps were at the ripe point for the striking, so to speak. i think the real question is how long the campaign will remain in place. will it intensify?

what kind of developments can we see on the ground try to push forward -- push supporters of these air strikes including like the peshmerga, kurdish forces into trying to take that territory that is being given up by isis if it emerges like that. >> let me bring you in. no isis leadership targeted in the first wave of the attack. these are buildings and structures. but we heard in the briefing that isis is adapting. we were talking on the break they're moving their equipment and moving other critical, i guess, personnel that it needs with the next wave perhaps coming soon. >> that didn't just start yesterday or today. i think we're maybe underestimated isis a little bit. they were well aware they were going to strike from the ground. but for the last few months. they would have been stupid to keep their resources concentrated together. >> there's been ongoing surveillance with drones.

>> yeah. look. there's no doubt we struck some important targets here. i think it's important to note that isis knew it was coming. they started dispersing their assets beforehand. we need to do more damage than that. >> i think it was clear with the briefing from the pentagon saying it will be credible and sustained assault on isis. the numbers are around 25,000 that you point out in the isis army. and when you compare that to al qaeda at the height right after 9/11, you said the numbers were around -- >> look, between 1986 and 1996 maybe 20,000 people got trained in afghanistan. maybe. that was over ten years syria has been going on for three years and we're talking about one single group. isis that has upwards of 20 to 25,000 fighter. it doesn't include the official franchise in syria, which apparently the khorasan group. it's referring to the region of

afghanistan and pakistan. so khorasan group is just al qaeda operatives trained in afghanistan and pakistan in syria now. apparent apparently -- we've seen video of european fighters. european recruits who are saying yes. many of our brothers were killed last night. many were wounded. why is that a problem? well, look, it's threatened us the same way isis has. there was a video that came out a few weeks ago of an american fighter, a young kid from south florida who said he was going to come back here and kill americans and go after president obama. >> andrea mitchell reported last night there were new warnings that some isis trained americans returned to the u.s. they're under surveillance by the fbi. when people wake up and hear news of the air strikes, you wonder about the timing this of all. >> sure. there are ongoing threats to the

united states from variety of different groups in syria. not just isis. it's important to put those threats into context. we're not talking about hundreds of people or 9/11 trained operatives. there are americans trained there. they're coming back here. i can tell you working with the fbi and european law enforcement on the, they're extremely concerned they're going to miss somebody coming back and that person may not be a 9/11 hijacker. as we saw in events in boston and in fort hood texas, you don't have to come deer an aircraft to kill a lot of people and hurt a lot of people and make a big situation or issue out of things. that's what they're worried about. >> thank you. ayman, thank you. joining me now is former u.s. ambassador to the united nations for special political affairs. he's the ceo of meridian international. politico has an article zutsdsing the credibility of the united nations. it says in part since obama and

the arab countries involve active without u.n. approval some may express doubt about the relevance of the global body particularly when some countries with veto power are content on blocking concerted action. your reaction to the coat and the coalition that the administration was able to form. >> the united nations is still the only useful body we have to bring nations together address issues of peace and security. it's not as effective as it could be on the security council. that's why you see the military action taking place as a coalition outside of the united nations' framework. the silence from the u.n. in terms of any sort of dispute of legitimacy of this action is a reflection of the fact that many nations feel concerned about this threat from the islamic state. as far as the coalition is concerned, it is very significant that a country like the uae and some other countries

in the region which are hesitant to admit u.s. military cooperation said they're parking lot of the coalition. they engaged in syria. outside the u.n. authorization. >> i also want to get your reaction to former prime minister tony blair. he was on morning joe how the president should address the united nations when he addresses the general assembly on wednesday. let's play that. >> everything has a great opportunity to unit the world. and in a way he particularly, i think, is able to come and say, look, i'm not someone who started one thing to get into this situation. but here is the threat. it's a threat that concerns all of us. >> and your reaction, sir? >> the president has a great opportunity to lead. in this case, he's going to talk about three major transnational threats. you have ebola, isis or isil, and the climate change which is increasingly a concern. we can't forget about ukraine. you had a country, a sovereign

country, invaded. the united nations traditionally, it would have been the biggest issue on the table in the traditional u.n. context. so he's got to take advantage of the opportunity and paint a picture of two systems. a system of hope, democracies, and the alternative which is a dangerous place. >> former u.s. ambassador to united nations. thank you for your time. we appreciate it. the is heading to thetown speak about climate change. we'll talk live with the spokesperson. brought nearly 400,000 people to the streets of new york. support both mental sharpness and physical energy with berocca. proud sponsor of mind and body. and we're new to the pacific northwest.

the rain, the mud -- babam! it's there. the outside comes in. it's kinda nasty so you start the towel-mop shuffle. where are you sun?! [ doorbell rings ] oh, wow, it's a swiffer wetjet. this puts my towel mopping to shame. whoa! ewww. sunshine is overrated, now we can get messy. [ laughs ]

back to the breaking news of the day as the president gets ready to address the united nations. he will drop by a meeting with the coalition partners who participated in last night's air strikes in syria. in a briefing moments ago, the pentagon said the strikes were

successfully conducted mostly the united states and, quote, only the beginning. >> they are alerting organization, and they will are will adapt to what we have done and seek to address their shortfalls and gaps against our air campaign in the coming weeks. >> joining me now from london is a professor of political science. you wrote about isis and in part of the piece you wrote, you said it is a killing machine powered by blood and iron through terrorism and signals to friends and foes that islamic state is a winning course. get out of the way or you will be crushed. join our caravan or make history. if that is the message that isis wants to send, what joins with the us overnight with these air

strikes. what do they want to send? >> look, i mean yes there many members, regional states that joined the american campaign, but the main function is to provide legit mas tow refute the argument that this is an american operation. he wants to distinguish himself from his predecessor. he does not want to undertake the military campaigns. he wants regional powers to do the right thing and support air power and logistics and command and control. most of the attacks by the united states, it's a u.s.-led

operation. it doesn't make sense. you need a huge ground force in order to dislodge the so-called islamic state from syria and iraq. we are talking about almost 30,000 troops and yes, the islamic state is adjusting and adopting. it controls major cities and you have to dislodge them from the major cities whether in mosul or tikrit or wherever. regardless of how many air strikes. 200 or 1,000 or 10,000. without a ground force on the ground by the regional powers and the allies, the odds are i would say are below 30% as opposed to 50 or 60%. >> syria is the seventh country which the u.s. has launched air strikes in the obama era.

to your point regarding the strikes and the effectiveness or ineffectiveness depending on how you view the long scale, what do you believe is necessary beyond the troops on the ground. they won't be u.s. troops. what else is necessary to defeat isis? >> what we are talking about, the strategy is based on a top down approach. this is mainly a top down approach. you need to compliment the approach with a bottom up. you need to work with local communities. in particular we keep repeating the same local sunni communities. some of whom have joined the islamic state on the front and they provided refuge and shelter. you have to convince him that the so-called state is not their friend. you have to deny the state is social oxygen.

and turning the local communities, we are talking about five or ten years are sustained and risky. a final point that they will stop the advances of the islamic state and prevent it from advancing against both the governments in iraq and also against the syrian army. we are trying to survive and consolidate the authorities in these towns and cities. >> thank you so much for your time. we appreciate it. president obama is scheduled to deliver remarks within the next hour at the climate change summit after force from nearly

400,000 people. the people's climate in march, a lot of news happening today. what do you and many of those over the weekend hear from the president? >> it's more than just hearing from the president and heads of state that are going to the united nations. since we had so many people in the street saying we are the ones on the outside who are working in the communities and doing the things to take action on climate change. where is that political will to do the 15i78. willing to be arrested saying we will bring this issue to wall street like the financial centers of the world. >> there is more than the remarks of the president. you cannot deny the importance of hearing from the president today. >> definitely with what's going on today, elsewhere there is a

lot of pressure. there is economics and political systems that are impacting people. those are causing the climate crisis and causing war and occupation and a bunch of issues. we saw that over the weekend all those people were in the streets saying we want to see responsible action and i think we can say we were there for climate change and we were there for justice and the key part is justice. we had to shorten the interview and we wanted to get your reaction to the president's reactions he will deliver in the next hour on the climate change summit. thank you for joining us. andrea mitchell is up next. no. not exactly. to attain success, one must project success. that's why we use fedex one rate. their flat rate shipping. exactly. it makes us look top-notch but we know it's affordable. [ garage door opening ] [ sighs ] honey, haven't i asked you to please use the --

we don't have a reception entrance. [ male announcer ] ship a pak via fedex express saver® for as low as $7.50. [ male announcer ] ship a pak via fedex express saver® thlook what i got.p. oh my froot loops! [sniffs] let's do this? get up! get up! get up! get up! loop me! bring back the awesome... yeah! yeah! yeah! with the great taste of kellogg's froot loops. follow your nose! youlooks amazing.on weight watchers? looks like my next dinner party. that's only 4 points? with weight watchers you can enjoy the food you really want. dine out on favorites... or cook up something new. i can do this every day. join for free and start losing weight now. learn how to eat healthier, while enjoying the foods you love. get inspired at meetings, online, or both. weight watchers because it works. ♪ [music] jackie's heart attack didn't come with a warning.

today her doctor has her on a bayer aspirin regimen to help reduce the risk of another one. if you've had a heart attack be sure to talk to your doctor before you begin an aspirin regimen. [ female announcer ] we love our smartphones. and now telcos using hp big data solutions are feeling the love, too. by offering things like on-the-spot data upgrades -- an idea that reduced overcharge complaints by 98%. no matter how fast your business needs to adapt, if hp big data solutions can keep wireless customers smiling, imagine what they can do for yours. make it matter. say "hi" rudy. [ barks ] [ chuckles ] i'd do anything to keep this guy happy and healthy. that's why i'm so excited about these new milk-bone brushing chews. whoa, i'm not the only one. it's a brilliant new way to take care of his teeth. clinically proven as effective as brushing. ok, here you go. have you ever seen a dog brush his own teeth? the twist and nub design cleans all the way down to the gum line,

even reaching the back teeth. they taste like a treat, but they clean like a toothbrush. nothing says you care like a milk-bone brushing chew. [ barks ] >> first strike. president obama delivers on the promise to go after isis in syria and reveals the u.s. struck a little known al qaeda branch that he said was plotting attacks against the u.s.

>> once again it must be clear to anyone who would plot against america and try to do americans harm that we will not tolerate safe havens for terrorists who threaten our people. >> the u.s. with five allies hit over 20 targets including isis headquarters and training sites. >> our initial indication is these were very successful. last night's strikes were only the beginning. >> the two leaders are not likely to meet in new york and he thinks the air strikes are illegal. even as secretary kerry tries to expand that coalition. >> we face a common threat and our response has to be all hands on deck.