on syria, the recent voeto by te united nations security counsel has bolstered the assad regime and has regrettably demonstrated the willingness of china and russia to support regimes seeking to crush individuals who are seeking a better and a freer life. we hope that the directors here will share with the committee what we know about the individuals seeking to overthrow the assad regime. what do we know about who is supplying the assad regime with weapons? what the regime's intentions are, and what we know about the willingness of the syrian military to continue to kill and maim their own country men. relative to iraq, despite the political, economic and security challenges that confront iraq, the government's leaders appear to be willing to work generally together, to resolve issues politically rather than through violence. while there is much this new democracy needs to do to build a true stable and sovereign nation, we would like to hear our witness's views on the iraqi progress to date, and their outlook for compromise. we also look for un -- in what is the iraqi government's commi

the arab league urging urging te united nations security council to form a joint peace keeping forcen 5,000 people have reportedly been killed in government attacks, the latest numbers listed over 5400. dominic di-natale live with the late forest beirut. >> reporter: meg, some uglier and crueler tactics, snipers are apparently targeting innocent, unarmed civilians, deliberately shooting them in the back and legs to paralyze them. sky news from the u.k. has been there and heard and visited families of victims who have suffered or been hit in this way, particularly one 17-year-old boy who'd been shot through the head. he'd been out with his sister trying to find medicine for her. she, too, also suffered similar wounds. we've met people who suffered a similar fate, they were protesters which are a direct target of assad forces. it's getting uglier and grimmer -- [audio difficulty] assault on that city trying to round out opposition positions there, and conditions getting more desperate by the day as little electricity, water and rations and basic supplies are running out on top of that.

unite the social conservative wing of the party. the national security wing of the party and the pro growth economic wing of the party. and approximate if he is able te will have room ahead. as you look at the road though, it a tough road for santorum so long as gingrich is in the race. you saw what happens when gingrich is off the ballot. almost all of the support goes to santorum. so if this is a two-person race between santorum and romney. there's a lot of running room for santorum, but it's tough with three in the race. >> you say the odds are still very long for santorum. is that what you are suggesting? >> i think they are long, because i do think that money, i do think that organization and staying power matter. i think a that there's a lot of weaknesses in romney's candidacy and i think you touched on some of the message weaknesses with tony. that being said, i do think that the money and the organization should not be easily discounted. one of the things in your report earlier that you talked about which i think is key. romney has someone coming up in the race and they have gone negative on them and disqualified them with attack ads. i think