one is an american. extremists stormed the radisson blu hotel in the capital city of bamako and they are still led up there. we are told now they were armed with guns and grenades. american and french special forces helped the malian troops with their response and we're being told now that officials believe there are no more hostages still inside. but we know that two of the attackers are dead. we just don't know how many are still in the building. >> a dozen americans and including the chief of mispersonnel in that dozen were rescued. i have no u.s. injuries or deaths to report at this time. we're working to verify the safety and the city of the u.s. citizens there. leon: group led by a former al-qaeda leader was claiming responsibility for the siege. maureen: this week of terror attacks is weighing heavily on the hearts of local muslims during friday's prayers. with that part of the story, we turn to sam ford in the satellite center.

sam? sam: maureen, the terror attacks in mali today and in france last friday, lebanon a few days earlier and the attackers all claiming they are acting in the name of islam. we spoke with muslim worshipers on this most important day of the week and heard over and over again islam is not about terror. since these worshipers last came to friday prayers at the islamic center in d.c., terrorists attacked, killed or wounded hundreds in france and struck earlier today at a hotel in mali. >> we have the groups that are not muslims. they are terrorists. sam: signs are up outside the mosque. one said be a true muslim. condemn terrorism. in light of the u.s. reaction such as the house voting to all but keep syrian refugees out of the country, a one-time imam at the mosque -- >> the congress right now doesn't want this problem to relocate itself inside the united states. you can understand that

policy. sam: but he insisted that the past u.s. policies like france and saudi arabia are behind much of it. for others it was personal. this worshipers who had friends in france who were hurt. >> in france people were having drinks with friends. why don't they go attack soldiers? why? as muslims we are proud and we know how to fight. we will fight against those people. >> speaking of isis. a group on a a lot of minds today. we also interviewed the u.s. ambassador who talked about the attack today and not letting the terrorists win. in the satellite center i'm sam ford, abc7 news. maureen: thank you. tonight french investigators are reporting new details about the terrorist strikes that have killed 130 in paris.

the paris prosecutor confirmed the identity of the woman terrorist who died in wednesday's raid. she is a relative of mastermind of the attack. investigators are looking to identify a third body found in the rubble of wednesday's raid. france's senate voted to extend the state of emergency in the country for three months. leon: the attack on paris and mali put the world on alert. but lost in the attacks are the 43 dead in beirut on the bombings the day before the terrorist attacks. scott thuman is joining us to tell us we should pay attention to what is going on there. this is coming from your reporting reporting in beirut, right? scott: right. people think bombing is not unusual but there had been a relative calm for a long time. what we saw was a significant

change for the worse. the scene was chaos. suicide bombers attack a cluster phobic neighborhood in -- closter phobic neighborhood in beirut. while americans may not feel a connection to country where dictators pictures cover the walls those who are living in lebanon say they should. eli is a political analyst and activist. what would it mean in the fight against terror? >> all organization that would find the safe haven and some places in lebanon and act with impunity. scott: there is a reason. the so-called arab spring that spread five years ago from tunisia to egypt, libya to yemen and beyond was meant to liberate the oppress and spark democracy. instead without constitution

or structure they fail. terror groups took over. many worry that isis has the sights set on lebanon. even in a place like beirut where they have learned to live with war for a long time, what is happening right now is a new and worrisome challenge. meanwhile, the u.s. has been selling military equipment and weapons. to lebanese in hopes of holding the terror group at bay. the member of parliament insists it isn't just a one-way street. lebanon is vital to american interests for other reasons, too. >> what we come one human intelligence. the lebanese and the interim security forces have people who are detained. scott: nobody is suggesting that we send troops and the lebanese will tell you they are relatively successfully fending off isis at the border but when the white house said they were sending troops to syria it said it would send special resources to lebanon,

jordan and turkey. keep in mind, the political instability in lebanon is huge. they have been without a president now for a year and a half. leon: the situation has bun unstable for some time. nice job going there. good stuff there. we haven't seen video like that yet. the last time the u.s. military played a major role in lebanon, more than 200 americans were killed in a terror attack. scott thuman will bring us back to the u.s. marine barracks. the bombing there. we will show you what is there now. you can see it in the entirety this sunday with "full measure" with sharyl attkisson. maureen: coming up at "abc7 news at 6:00" -- the murder mystery in springdale. what police hope to accomplish by releasing the new video. leon: the victim in the twerking attack saying something else about his case. he pleas to the prosecutors for something that will surprise you. maureen: thanksgiving get-away is here. we are live at reagan national with awe long the security lines are and what to expect if you are getting out of town

the next few days. steve: i'm steve rudin in the belfort furniture weather center. a shot of cold air in time for the end of the upcoming weekend. all you need to know plus the thanksgiving travel forecast

announcer: you're watching "abc7 news at 6:00ment" on your side. maureen: tonight, prince george's county police hope video released today will help them catch a killer.

this is video of bernard parker moments before he was shot in his car in springdale last week. the leads dried up and police need help to track down who shot him. a $25,000 reward in the case. we are following new againments about dozen of homeless individuals in the tent city in the district. leon: tonight the camp being cleared. the residents bar given repeated warning and notice to do so. there is no impact on the clearing of the tent city. the man at the center of a d.c. twerking assault in the sex abuse case is asking prosecutors to drop the case. you may remember the video showing the two women twerking and grabbing the man's privates at a gas station. the 40-year-old middle school spanish teacher said his connection to the church led him to change his mind about pressing charges even though he feared for his wife at one time. coming up at "abc7 news at

6:00" -- the man who flew a gyrocopter into the lawn of the capitol enters a plea. >> plus, it is said to be the start of the great holiday get-away. what you need to know before heading to the airport coming up. >> i'm robert burton. coming up in sports this is all about the college hoops. a quick turn-around for the hoyas. george mason in a semi-final battle with oklahoma state. we talk hoops at 6:00.

maureen: news from metro tonight. riders will soon see alcohol ads on trains. thursday, the metro board voted 7-1 to allow the ads. metro predicts it will bring in about $5 million in advertising over the next several years. critics argue alcohol advertisement leads to underage drinking and other issues. douglas hughes was the man who landed a gyrocopter on the grounds of the u.s. capitol. today he pleaded guilty to charge against him. his attorneys are asking for probation. prosecutors agree not to ask

for more than ten months in prison. part of the plea deal hughes will be forced to give up his gyrocopter. >> it is not a cop-out to me to plead guilty and take the heat for what i did. that is the essence of civil disobedience. maureen: hughes called his flight an act of civil disobedience to protest big money donation in politics. he will be sentenced april 13. leon: more conventional method of travel. the thanksgiving get-away is already upon us. in light of the recent terror attacks and the t.s.a. is on alert at area airports big-time. brianne carter standing by at reagan national airport tonight checking things out to tell us how things are shaping up out there. gives advice about what folks should do if they are heading out of town going through the airport. brianne: we are seeing stepped-up security. take a look behind us. it doesn't look too busy tonight. we are seeing the line build

in the last half hour or so at reagan national airport. but if you are traveling in the busy holiday season you won't be alone. one thing to speed the process up, make sure you follow this rule. make sure you have a 311. less than three ounces of the prepared liquids in one of the bags that is going to be the quart size clear plastic bag. officials say that over the holiday weekend the sunday after thanksgiving is going to be the busiest travel day of the season. make sure you are keeping everything moving, not only follow the 311 rule but also make sure that you get to the airport at least two hours ahead of your departure time. just here in the d.c. area officials with the airport here at reagan national and dulles say they expect more than 1 million passengers will travel through the airports between now and after thanksgiving. they are asking you to abide by those at the security

outside and t.s.a. is expecting extra staff on hand throughout the busy travel season. reporting live, brianne carter, abc7 news. leon: thanks. take a look at this. snow! this is coming in from sioux falls, south dakota as part of a storm system expected to hit the midwest, including chicago. winter storm warning in effect until 3:00 tomorrow afternoon. o'hare is a hay juror hub for travel -- major hub for travelers so if you are heading there, check on your flights. maureen: one of the travelers arrived in district. the u.s. capitol christmas tree. the tree was unloaded this morning and put in place at the capitol. it's a lux spruce from alaska. the first from the state. ill traveled more than 4,000 miles stopping in 14 communities before getting here. the tree will be lit on december 2. leon: mm-hmm. it will be a beautiful scene. for sure. but our guy doug hill is standing by at a tree lighting ceremony happening tonight. he's out at tysons corner. hey, doug. doug: hey, there.

this is a winter-fest. the market and the extravaganza at tysons corner shopping center. what is happening right now, lou and chili from the morning show at 97.1 wash f.m. is on now. they will introduce santa in a minute. santa is coming in on a three-seat cherry red motorcycle. then they are going to light the tree up. it is loaded with people enjoying the holiday season. so until we wait a moment or two for santa to get here. check out the weather. let's talk about the temperatures first. this is pretty chilly around the area, especially with the breeze continuing. we have number in the upper 40's and lower 50's. look to the west of the metro area. 43 in winchester. 41 in frederick. we have enough of a breeze on top of that to knock wind chills down a bit. overnight with the clear skies and the issue is we expect the temperatures to drop at or below freezing. 32 in germantown by morning. 36 in dale city. 34 in waldorf. 36 in northwest washington.

the weekend looks good. at least we're not in chicago where they will have several inches of snow. we're going to be 52. we have a blustery sunday with partly cloudy and weather in the 40's. then we're on a roll. it will get chilly but then it will warm up. we will be in good shape next week especially for next wednesday to big travel day. thanksgiving day. for the shopping to follow on friday, just about perfect weather. so here is the deal at tysons corner. wait for santa to roll up. i think it will happen. we will stay with this as long as we can here to hopefully get it lit up on time. if we don't get it lit on time, this won't go on my resume wheel. that is okay. it's just a matter of getting the -- i saw santa out there. he was revving the engine a couple of minutes ago.

here he comes. if we have a moment or so to stick with it. i think chili is getting ready to introduce the old guy in the white beard driving his -- leon: this is unbelievable. maureen: elliott from "american idol" who will be performing. doug: we are waiting for san santorumta to light the -- santa to light the tree. will it happen? never mind. we'll show it to the you at 11:00. leon: what a tease! maureen: put on a red suit and light that. leon: you go light it. doug: ho, ho, ho. maureen: thank you, doug. robert: playoff teams went on the road. skins haven't done it yet this season. another chance this sunday in carolina. another big ten team for the hoyas. we have the update on g-town and wisconsin

announcer: and now the toyota sports desk, brought to you by your local toyota dealers. robert: we'll start with college hoops. george mason continues to play in the charleston classic. today was oklahoma state in the semi-final. we'll pick it up in o.t. cowboys up one. moore to the seven-footer thompson. smash check! george mason up by one. later, mason down to one again. and marco from downtown.

they get the win over o.k. state. yeah! the final 71-68. i don't know if that counts as an upset. georgetown and wisconsin at m.s.g. cameron didn't leave his game in college park. he made it rain. four three-pointers in the first half. four of five beyond the arc. leading all scorers with 14 points at intermission. they are in the second half. hoyas lead the badgers by seven. in football, redskins are back on the road. if they can't stop cam newton it could be a dance party for the quarterback. the skins are 0-4 on the road. if they are thinking about the playoffs the road losses need to turn into wins real quick. >> it's just that time of the year where the playoff team separate themselves from the teams that aren't going to make the playoffs. right now we have to gel. put together a few wins on road. you know, try to take control of the division. put our season in our own

hands. robert: okay. it's not the first time that fenway park has been transformed to something other than a baseball stadium but is it the first time in nearly 50 years it has been transformed for football. on saturday, boston college and notre dame will play in the first football game at fenway since the boston patriots hosted their final home game in the afl against the cincinnati bengals, december 1, 1968. there is plenty more hoop action tonight. terps host ryder. uva takes on long beach state. fun night in high school football, too. we have the highlights tonight at newschannel8 11:30 the high school sports final. leon: speaking of the highlights, see if doug hill has the lights lit at tysons corner yet. doug? doug: i had a chat with santa and he offer his apologies for being late on the draw here. but it is lit. the concert is underway. everything is working out fine. a great way to kick off the holiday season here at tysons corner. steve rudin is back in tonight at 111 :00.

we will will have an update on weekend weather. have a great weekend. see you monday. leon: have a good one. maureen: and "world news tonight" with david muir is coming up next. leon: we'll be here at 11:00. in the meantime have a good night out there. drive carefully if you are hitting the roads in advance of the holidays.

tonight, as we come on the air, we have just learned that at least one american killed in the hotel under attack. several american guests inside. terrorists storming in, armed with guns and grenades. was this all connected to paris? meantime, the fugitive from the attacks. believed to be seen in that video. reports of his phone call. is he now afraid of isis? ryan ross reporting. and the plane dd diverted. and melania trump. >> and