haider al-abadi, 50,000 bogus names on the army payroll. jane, is this part of haider al-abadi's wears to root out corruption as he said he wanted to do when he took power? >> absolutely. and this is just one of the series of steps darlene. they were basically forced into retirement. which means they don't spend time in jail or get punished in anyway. an effort to reform the institutions. what we're talking about is a tip of the iceberg. what we're talking about is 50,000 soldiers who did not exist but were still on the payroll. that means of course an incredible waste of money but also these army units didn't have the strength that they should have had. combine that with the corruption that led to this in the first place, army generals are essentially disappearing as i.s.i.l. got closer to mosul, it is basically undermining the sense of security here. >> jane, what is the latest on the ground? >> the iraqi military combined most importantly with a large variety of shia political yas are making gain against i.s.i.l. the baji front, there ar

it was abadi's first visit to ankara since taking office in september.n a joint news conference abadi said he asked duktolu to provide arms and cooperate in intelligence gathering. duktolu said his country's ready to extend military assistant to iraq including training iraqi forces. >>> the japanese government has released more interview accounts of the fukushima daiichi nuclear plant accident in 2011. one controversy has been that tokyo electric power company, or tepco, refused to use the term "meltdown" at the time. tepco operates the crippled nuclear plant. 772 interviews were conducted in 2011 and 2012 by a government committee that investigated the disaster. the testimony came mainly from government officials and tepco workers. 127 interviews were made public on thursday, after receiving consent from the participants. one is from an employee at the tepco headquarters. he analyzed conditions inside reactor in early april 2011. the worker said he thought the upper half of the nuclear fuel rods in the number 1 reactor core must have completely melted d

prime minister abadi himself put the topic of reconstruction on the table, and i'm happy to say thatof gulf states, which have capacity on their own have engaged in this discussion with prime minister abadi and the iraqis. i think it's up to them to identify themselves, but we are particularly excited about the prospect of having the region engage in a significant way, across sectarian lines, i might add, in order to be able to address this re - re -- reconstruction notion. so i don't't think this is something where americans or europeans or others have to recoil and say oh my god, we're going to be facing this monumental task of rebuilding yet another place when we have our own challenges. might we have to contribute to it? sure, we ought to as part as our foreign policy and engagement. but already, for instance, saudi arabia has made half a billion dollars available before we even fully engaged in this effort as a sign of good faith in an effort to try to say to the people of iraq that they could cross the sectarian divide and offer humanitarian assistance. now there are a number o

be contingent on a political change and the expectation has been that haider al-abadi will at least try heal the divisions in the country. that's not happening. >> there was high expectation from abadi to cool down the situation to cool the political tensions in iraq. the important in iran is the political actions. the political actions from the government did show that there is no serious well from the government to give sort of -- or showing goodwill to the people that they are serious -- >> what can they do on a practical level matthew, this is a government in crisis, this is a country struggling just to hold together because of the level of the security challenge, they're facing this -- you know. >> i think many things can be done. for example, thousands of sunni iraqis are in prison without going into the the courts. the government can do something for those people. the government can do something, there are a high percentage of sunni iraqis, they can give them jobs, they can afford them jobs, they can solve the problems within some of the areas still within government control.

with president abadi, now prime minister abadi, he has reached out to the sunnis, and i think the atmospherics are better. but, again, there's a time factor. if he doesn't deliver some of the promises to the sunni tribes that they are part of iraq, that there is a future, that could backlash. so, i mean, i sort of am trying to explain to an american audience, we have kurdistan, in a way we have shiastan, but we never have had a sunnistan. so unless we solve that part of the puzzle of iraq, then the sunnis will always fe isolated and to an extent betrayed. >> charlie: but sunnis are the best to explain that to them. you have to promise them that the shia prime minister is going to reach out and wants to have a relationship but the people best able to do that because of history i assume is fellow sunnis. >> to an extent. but again, i think there are a lot of iraqis, whether kurd, shia or sunni, that believe in a united iraq, and you've got to give those people the benefit of the doubt. but there is other elements playing inside iraq. you mentioned iran. iran, i don't think, would like to see a s

yesterday, on a visit by defense secretary chuck hagel, iraq's new prime minister haider al- abadi asked more u.s. airpower and weapons. but hagel warned that u.s. firepower is not the solution. >> as iraqi leaders and the people of iraq know, only they can bring lasting peace to their country. >> warner: baghdad did take a step to reconcile with the alienated kurds last week with a deal to share the country's oil revenues between them. meanwhile, the u.s. is deploying 3,000 trainers and advisers to iraqi forces and may join them in the field. if and when they try to recapture the northern city of mosul. i spoke today with deputy prime minister talabani in washington, where he's urging u.s. leaders to remain engaged in iraq. deputy prime minister talabani, thank you for joining us. >> my pleasure. >> warner: the u.s. defense secretary chuck hagel is in iraq this week and your prime minister abadi told him yesterday that iraq needs more heavy weapons from the united states. do you agree with him on that? >> i think iraq and including the kurdish forces, the peshmerga, do require heavier w

hired al abadi tolhaideral al abadi requested more weapons and it will intensify as iraqi troops get more training. >> i leave baghdad encouraged by the cross they're all making and the vision for the future. that iraqis are committed to achieving. the coalition support, the iraqi security forces have retaken held territory in a number of places such as the mosul dam, amerli and the refinery. >> secretary of state john kerry is asking for authoritiation to use force against isil. kerry testified before the senate committee asking for strong bipartisan support. lawmakers have been pushing lawmakers to seek for this type of authority. >> are you going to ever explicitly seek an authorization from congress? >> we're seeking authorization now with respect to-- >> so--and if you don't receive that authorization will you continue the operation. that's explicit seeking. >> the authorization for what we're doing now in both iraq and syria? >> that's correct. >> absolutely. we have parts of 2001 and parts of 2002. >> we have reports on the latest push by iraqi security forces to regain contro

he met with troops and iraqi prime minister haider al-abadi. he pressed for more u.s. involvement in the fight against i.s.i.l., saying our forces are very much advancing on the ground, but they need more air power and heavy weaponry "we need that." asked about the requests by haider al-abadi, secretary hagel responded "i appreciate his directness, but only they can bring lasting peace to their country." >>> we end in north carolina, where cam newton sustained two fractures after his truck collided with a sedan and rode over a bridge. newton and another driver were taken to hospital with nonlife threatening injuries after the crash in charlotte. the panthers say he's in fair condition and undergoing test. the injuries did not affect newton's spine or nerves. it's not clear if he'll miss playing time. his back injury is similar to the one suffered by dallas cowboys quarterback tony romo, and he missed one game. that is some of what is happening around the world. coming up, what impact will a contested rape allegations at the university of virginia have on the nation-wid

as they seem to come together it's unclear how prime minister al abadi will bring sunni leaders into the fold, and cooperation with the sunnies in the north and west that could prove decisive in the fight against isil. >> what is also unclear is how this deal will affect iraq's national budget. the government was scheduled to present it's budget next week but that budget is outdated as oil prices fall to all-year lows. that leaves the government trying to fight isil while trying to pay the bills at the same time. >> thank you. a growing number of u.s. soldiers say they contracted life-threatening illnesses while deployed. during the wars in iraq and afghanistan the military disposed of hazardous materials in burn pits. now soldiers say that it caused lung disease and cancer. >> i've lost a lot. i don't like being like this. >> 35-year-old anthony thornton suffers from a rare and aggressive form of brain cancer. >> i cannot tell you my wife's middle name or my daughter's. i don't remember everybody's name. >> doctors had to take out part of his brain, his left lobe, and part of his hi

haider al-abadi made the request to the outgoing u.s. defense secretary chuck hagel who has been in baghdad. let's go to jane arraf who joins us live from the iraqi capital. is the u.s. likely to heed prime minister haider al-abadi's call? well, they are trying to do more. there are certain constraints. the u.s. does not want to get too deeply into the conflict with an uncertain outcome. the other are legal constraints. it wants to help and send weapons mented there's a lot of concern in washington if they speed up weapons deliveries, sent fighter jets and armour. what we see on the ground is with the u.s. air strikes, i canny forces have been able to push back i.s.i.l. forces in key areas, but in places around iraq's biggest remainry oil proved he is able to come back and keep fighting. >> reporter: this is the main army north of baghdad to tikrit. the i.s.i.l. gunmen they are fighting are here. iraqi forces regained control of iraq's biggest refinery. i.s.i.l. retreated from large areas. the group keeps coming back - in the form of sni

we were actually expecting a major announcement this friday from haider al-abadi -- from the minister. abad said that all options were on the table. we expected he would clarify what he meant by that statement. one idea tossed around by high-ranking officials is that of halting all security cooperation between palestinian security forces and their israeli counterparts. that has not yet been official, and the announcement scheduled for sunday indicates this may not be a very easy decision for him to take. >> thank you very much for bringing us up to speed. with elections in israel looming just over three months from now polls out today show that a joint election by the left leader, her stanford og, could pose a serious challenge to netanyahu. one poll suggesting that the livni ticket would win slightly over the right-roenicke likud party. earlier this week, france's last hostage ways released by al qaeda's north african affiliate. 51 is back on home soil. people are asking what the terms of his release were. he was kidnapped in mali in 2011. the country admitted that prisoners were exc

. >> the incoming of prime minister abadi changed the battlefield with is.lso the current situation on both front lines, mount sinjar and the town of tel afaar the data fields are close to each other. there will be cooperation on the political and military level. you mentioned cooperation on the military level, could there be cooperation from the iraqi army and peshmerga to take mosul? >> definitely cooperation will increase. especially the close distance between both battlefields, mount sinjar is controlled and operated by kurdish peshmerga and the yazidi, tal afar is controlled by iraqi fighters and paramilitary troops. >> thank you for that reporting from baghdad. france has been hit by a second attack in two days, reportedly by someone yelling "god is g reat" in arabic or to leavenworth when a driver rent his car into pedestrians in the eastern city of --\11 ere hurt when a driver rammed his car into pedestrians in the eastern city of dijon. here's more from the french interior minister. >> we advise calm and caution. fear is the goal of terrorists. a ha

these initiatives take strong leadership as existed by prime minister abadi and they will help the work of our coalition. in many ways they will contribute to the work of this coalition. the united states is constantly looking for means to enhance the effectiveness of our actions and i'm confident that each of the coalition members represented here is going to do the same. this matters because the rise of dash was rapid, but it in fact has left those terrorists very exposed. what was relatively easy for them last summer has become more difficult. dash casualties are going up by the day. muslim leaders across the globe are speaking out against the killers who have sought to hijack a whole faith, and dash's repellent nature is becoming more evident with every ugly execution and every former recruit's admission of being duped into believing dash is something that it most clearly is not. the leaders of dash recently asked their followers to unleash volcanic eruptions of hate in every country. our own rallying cry is not so dramatic. but it is far more responsive to the needs of people every

. >> reporter: the iraqi prime minister haider al-abadi made clear that iraq wants more u.s.ir strikes and heavy weapons, there's feared that the weapons could fall into i.s.i.l.'s hands if the u.s. supplies then. the american government delayed the shipment of fighter jets bound for baghdad saying security is not good enough in the air base it was destined for. instead, they are going to arizona, where iraqi airmany will train on them there. that's left iraq, according to officials, without enough air power to defend themselves, and without enough heavy weapons on the ground to beat back i.s.i.l. in areas where they are still maintaining the strongholds. i.s.i.l. retreat from major parts of the north here, but they are trenched in anbar province, and in sala had eem province. three provinces. that's a challenge. the iraqi prime minister is trying to reach out with a series of steps aimed at consideration >>> al jazeera continues to demand the release of our three journalists who have been held in prison in egypt tore 347 days. peter greste, mohamed fadel fahmy and baher moha

long-term process of working with the iraqi government under the new leadership of prime minister abadi. to combine with efforts to hold up the capacity of the sunni tribes, ultimately in the form of a national guard, also our support for the kurdish peshmerga -- to provide a viable ground force that can take that territory from isil. we have seen in the effort to hold back and repel the assault, taking the refinery and the mosul dam, we have seen success. holding back an assault on baghdad. incrementally and it is very tough going in anwar, seeing some progress there. there will be good days and bad days. that will be rebuilt. our air campaign, which has consisted of hundreds and hundreds of stripes has contributed substantially to that progress. the isil campaign will take time and in syria in particular it will be more challenging because, unlike in iraq, we do not have a government with which we can and will cooperate. >> obviously you are looking to do more of the of the administration and its allies, to do more, and we have had reports today, too, discussions with turkey, creating

abadie was installed in baghdad. have you made any assessment of how he's getting on? what are the prosspeblths for him having a more inclunsive government? >> thank you for the opportunity to appear in front of you and thank you for the work you are doing not just in the region, the country but the middle east as well. it helps our work, the government's work, that the british parliament is engaging in trying to understand these issues in furthering british influence. i'm very grateful for what you are doing, i understand you have had a very interesting visit yourself and i'm pleased to be here. you ask a simple question. it is a short amount of time that he's been in place, but if we look back in june of this year where things stood with isil moving down the tigres and euphrates river, things looked bleak. the mosul dam potentially could have been blown up. baghdad itself was under threat. and we look at today and we see that maliki is no longer there, abadi is in place, he has a more inclusive government than anybody expected to produce. and think if you look back a

. >> reporter: it's a significant achievement for the new iraqi prime minister al abadi, narrowing angreement in his process. this agreement brings the iraqi government to the one step closer to the more inclusive government that president obama says is necessary to fully defeat isis. susan rice said that this fight must be owned and maintained by local forces. that, of course, jake, is still an open question as to whether the local forces can truly stand up to isis fighters on the ground. >> all right. jim sciutto at the pentagon, thank you so much. >>> in other world news, a gruesome massacre in kenya. workers were ordered to lay on the ground and executed by terrorists. at least two people were beheaded. the attack and in london, what is the kenyan government saying about this attack? >> well, the kenyan government says that it believes that al shabaab is responsible for this attack and keeping with the m.o. that we've seen from the organization and an attack at the beginning of last week with a very similarly and also divided people along christian and muslim lines and executed th

there is a new and hopeful presence in baghdad in the form of prime minister abadi.in baghdad, it's also important to understand that that the government has only been complete for 60 days, two months. it's the first of there's been a full government in baghdad since 2010. it's the first time we've seen a minister of defense and a minister of interior, and in the context of prime minister abadi having been appointed to a position of prime minister only since the eighth of september, i think we can all be pleased with the direction of iraq seems to go. we have a political partner. the relationship is evolving. his government is evolving. he is ultimately having, will have to take full to take full appreciation of the many, many challenges that he has to face in the aftermath of the molecule regime but also the challenges that one-third of the country basically is in the hands of daish, that much of this could mechanism collapsed in the process. for this is a gentleman who we know well, a government that is taking shape. it faces economic difficulties as well as politi

iraqi prime minister haidar al abadi announced moves today to bolster his military against islamic stateces. he announced he's retiring two dozen security officials. he also attacked military corruption after news that iraq has been paying thousands of troops who exist only on paper. >> ( translated ): if there were inspection teams, they would have discovered this long ago. i feel sad that we've paid salaries for mock soldiers at a time when we don't have enough money. we have soldiers fighting and being killed, while there are mock soldiers receiving salaries. this demands more than simple auditing. >> woodruff: also today, the united nations reported more than 1,200 iraqis died in violence last month. that's down slightly from october. and afghanistan's new president is overhauling his military and security forces in a bid to turn back the taliban. the associated press reports ashraf ghani will fire civilian and military heads in the most volatile provinces of his country. the pentagon and state department played down reports today of creating a possible buffer zone along turkey's bor

both iran and the abadi government have denied that iran is conducting air strikes in iraq but our pentagon and secretary kerry have stated that that may indeed be the case. there are reports going back to june of iranian jets actioning targets in iraq. targeteers people planning missions in the military operations in iraq, working with the shia militia and security forces, in and around the shia areas and along the sectarian fault lines. so they are there, and with these reports of iranian air strikes in iraq, it's a little concerning to the sunnies that we do need to fight i.s.i.s. >> they have official ly been sited, we have this al jazeera video showing seemingly iranian planes bombing inside iraq. >> they're demonstrating their capability, and i don't think they feel constrained by the international community or the u.s. to not do these air strikes. there are reports they're doing them in syria as well. >> these jets are fairly old, they're not entirely accurate. >> they were given to the iranians in the 1960s and 70s before the ayatollah khomeini took power. what kind of munitions are

in a television interview this week, iraq's prime minister haider al-abadi, says it's no secret there are advisors helping the embattled iraqi government. just like american advisors, but he flatly denied there are any iranian fighters on iraqi soil. >>> it may be the enemy of your enemy is your friend. but for one point, it's suspicious of the shia majority in expense of the sunni minority. >> in the studios tonight, welcome back, chris. >> it's a pleasure john. >> so iran is not willing to admit they're carrying out air strikes, why? >> well, i think that they don't want to affect the political situation too negatively right now. and the big problem in iraq, iraq particularly, is that the sunni population is deeply mistrustful of the central governmental because it sees it basically as an agency of iran. it's not, not only a secret that iran has advisors, they're all over the place in iraq. and they are working very closely with the militias. when one town was taken a couple of months ago, taken back from i.s.i.s, sulimani head of the kuds force of iran head of a sort of sinister gr

but going back to isis, i think that prime minister a body -- abadi is committed. he has bureaucracy that he has to fight through. we are all giving him the benefit of the doubt. i think he will deliver, but again, the clock ticking. >> there is no question in your mind that this battle against won, and can be the definition of that is what? whatrst, we have to decide side we are on. nations in the arab and islamic world have to stand up and say, we are against this and it's going to our people that there is a right and a wrong in this and people have to make a decision. it is no longer that we can allow complacency. 9/11 was an attack on the united states by any two missed group to try to create a clash of civilizations. they wanted the west to fight islam. we knew that was their target. they were actually after us. this is our war. this is a war inside islam. .e have to own up to it we have to take the lead and we have to start fighting back and all of us have to stand up to the plate and take our responsible he's. >> and if you do that, extremism can be what, ma

. >>> the prime minister abadi sacked 24 senior officers from the interior ministry after a day afterution there are 50,000 bogus names and the story from baghdad to talk about the steps to fight corruption in the country as he says he wants to do, jane. >> reporter: it's fighting i.s.i.s. as well and corruption and fighting i.s.i.l. rather and security in general is all tied up together in this particular case a new prime minister told parliament he had found in just going through the records of just four army divisions and there are many more army decisionss still to be gone through, 50,000 cases of what he calls essentially what we are calling ghost soldiers, what iraqi call spacemen, people who do not really exist on the ground. this is particularly crucial because they should be people who are fighting i.s.i.l., instead they are soldiers who do not show up for work and sends part of salary to commanding officers or soldiers who did not exist in the first place. this is not a new phenomenon and exists in pretty much all iraqi ministries but it's particularly urgent knot -- not jus

and prime minister al abadi, the iraqi prime minister is co-hosting this session with the secretary ofte, john kerry, so presumably, there are differences and the best example was the fact that we found out this week that the coalition air assaults have not prevented the iranians, for example, from getting into the act and bombarding several positions inside iraq. so, therefore, the coalition is not able to coordinate so far as these, all of the different operations that are taking place. and something which i am sure they are also discussing in order to coordinate better is whether or not they are going to trust local candidates, local actors who will put boots on the ground since western powers do not want to do this. who is it that we are going to trust? what kind of allies are going to be on our side? it's not just sufficient to essenti essentially coordinate air assaults. the real struggle starts when you begin to think about putting boots on the ground and trusting the local actors to take over the burden. >> and that is certainly? >> it will take a long time. >> right. >> that's

this comes amidst reports of disarray in the army's ranks, as iraqi prime minister haider al-abadi has revealed the presence of 50,000 so-called ghost troops -- fraudulent names which generate salaries that are then collected by army officers. the deal also as a blow to efforts to close guantanamo prison by excluding language sought by the obama administration allowing the transfer of prisoners to u.s. soil. and the bill includes some steps to curb sexual assault in military ranks, but keeps sexual assault cases in the military chain of command. it comes as new data shows reports of sexual assault in the u.s. military have increased 8%. more women have come forward publicly to accuse comedian bill cosby of sexual assault. three women joined together at a news conference, including beth ferrier, who told her story to the national enquirer in 2005. the tabloid ended up killing the article in exchange for a favorable, front-page interview with cosby. >> i believe mr. cosby drugged me and sexually assaulted me that night. anyoners, i did not tell about what he had done to me because i was

prime minister haider al-abadi said his army is taking the offensive, but he asked for more american planes and weapons. >> woodruff: the united nations' world food program has resumed aid to more than 1.7 million syrian refugees. the agency said today a social media campaign helped raise more than $80 million, enough to resume its food voucher program at least through january. the vouchers go to syrian refugees living in egypt, iraq, jordan, lebanon and turkey. >> ifill: in ukraine, government forces and pro-russian separatists largely pulled back from fighting today. the so-called day of silence was a bid to revive a long-term cease-fire that was signed in september. since then, more than 1,000 people have been killed in fighting across the luhansk and donetsk regions of eastern ukraine. >> woodruff: doctors in sierra leone spent a second day on strike, demanding better care for medical workers who get ebola. three doctors died in just two days last week, in the west african nation. meanwhile, the world health organization said the virus is spreading rapidly in western sierra leone

i guess we have here in studio rabbi eli abadi. he visited alan gross when gross was in prison in cuba. great to have you. first of all, your reaction to knowing mr. gross is now back home on american soil? >> well, i'm thrilled and very excited to hear that he's freed and what a wonderful time and occasion for him to be free as we celebrate the holiday of chanukah where we celebrate the miracle of the oil and this is truly a miracle that alan gross has been freed. >> you spoke to him, you met with him in cuba, correct? >> yes. >> what were his frustrations while he was in prison there? i'm sure he was shocked and infuriated at the cuban regime but did he feel like he was getting the support he wanted and needed from the american government all along? >> i tell you, when i visited him almost two years ago together with a cuban american loyal he was frustrated at the cuban government but he was more frustrated at the american government at that time. at that time he was trying to refuse to meet with any american official because he

abadi is trying to work out the command and control issues. so again, i guess in terms of the theme of this panel, you know, is it a policy failure or an inevitable rise? i mean let's go back to, say, january of 2014, and we start hearing the first intelligence briefings about the rise of isis and it's movement toward iraq. if you were advising president obama, what would you tell him to do at that point differently? and it wasn't an intelligence failure. at that poifblt could we have stopped in it and i want to press you, a little bit more, you said a lack of support for the fsa paved the way for radical actors. and again its goes back to this notion of allies. if only we had backed the right allies in this fight. we know from history that our allies are often imperfect, they tend to use our aid in is certain ways, it perhaps imparts too much credibility of the fsa in terms of their combat capability. if you could just explain that a little bit more in terms of the time frame, from what i understand the amount of training that would be requir

prime minister abadie has claimed no knowledge of the recent airstrikes, but her rant has that it didcarry them now. so who currently controls the airspace in iraq given the iraqis don't have efficient capabilities and if no coordination had taken place in the arabian's without coordinating permit didn't arent violate iraqi airspace. will there be repercussions from not. as we continue talks, we ignore violations that iran continues to make as it takes place, will this be a violation of her rare that we turn a blind eye to? the secretary has called a rainy in action in iraq against isil as positive despite the fact that tehran's incessant meddling in baghdad and its sectarian tension in iraq and in syria has played a large part in the rise of isil. is it ministrations you that having a shiite iran from what the world's foremost supporter of terrorism in spite of our nuclear talks invade iraqi airspace to attack sunni isil, does the administration view this as a positive development? to testify it is our goal, not that it's an absolute necessity to find a future in syria that does not

so the "new york times" reported this morning that there was a major deal between the abadi government in baghdad and the kurdish leadership in erbil and that was a permanent, long term deal to provide 17% of the national budget to the kurdish region. in addition, a billion dollars to pay important the salaries and weapons for the pashmerga. it's estimated to be between 250 and 357 fighters. they are experienced. they are proven allies of the united states. they helped capture saddam hussein. isis is estimated to be between 31,000 and 41,000 fighters. this seems to be a major change in the dynamic as it relates to iraq's ability to push back isis. i don't know if you caught the news of this deal this morning, but i would like you to comment on it because i think unless and until you can break the momentum of isis, doesn't matter wherefore rent fighters are coming from. the fact that they are come cigarette most important and the success, the momentum that has been sustained by isis over a long period of time is the only reason, is the only reason you have foreign fighters coming to ira

basically abadi, they didn't prefer him but can live with him.you know, syria is different because the situation -- you all know syria better than i do. it's not like you can take assad out and find some other easily. maybe you can, but it's more difficult. the point about isis i think is absolutely right because in isis in syria, it does not threaten iran directly. isis in iraq does. in fact, isis toward positions are 25 miles from iranian border right now. that's almost more distance, little further. sure enough iran conducted an air strike ten days ago or so because right there where isis is moving forward toward the iranian border, isis could move east. they could shell the iranian border guards. they can drive a suicide truck toward the iranian border positions. they can shell rocket. yeah, isis is a direct threat. i think unless isis moved in large numbers toward the iranian border. this air strike is first of what will be more on isis. >> thank you the. we turn to you. turkey obviously is major regional player. used to be the most diplomat

iraq's prime minister al abadi stated it's no longer a secret iran has advisors helping the iraqi government, said their presence is just like that of american another vicars but flatly denied there are any iranian fighters on iraqi soil. >> the minnesota teen convicted of trying to join isil is back in custody. the judge ruled he is a flight risk and danger to the community. he can be freed if the community agrees to watch him. the 18-year-old was plan to go join isil in syria. >> burn pits left soldiers with severe health problems. one vet said exposure has made his life a day to day struggle. >> worldwide reaction to the decision in the eric garner case, how it's making headlines around the world, caught in our global net. >> protests for eric garner spreading from coast-to-coast, dozens marching in seattle in a mostly peaceful rally, the city experiencing protests following last week's grand jury decision in ferguson, missouri. >> the atlanta journal constitution calls an nypd tweet tone deaf, it read the nypd is committed to rebuilding public trust. the response on line was not pretty.

al jazeera america >> who said the following: >> our big quote is from iraq's foreign minister al abadi, writing about the new government welcoming the forces in the fight against isil. >> president obama putting in motion plans to restore diplomatic ties with cuba. he is said to be thinking about executive actions next month. some cheer the move, others say he is doing the wrong thing. we are joined now by a professor of campaign management at n.y.u. a risky move for the president, heading into a republican controlled congress. good move, bad move? >> i think it's a good move for the president, i have to say. think back a few weeks of the election where he took such major losses, and everybody thought he was a lame duck, nothing was going to happen. in the last five or six weeks, he's done an enormous number of things on immigration, on cuba, in terms of the iran nuclear talks. he's really gone out and done some things he wasn't doing and some people have said he's done more in the last five weeks than -- >> some saying he has cemented his legacy in history as a president who has done

ambassador, you indicated earlier that the deal between prime minister abadi and the kurds was a big deal, that the central government in baghdad will permanently resume payments to kurdistan representing 17% of the national budget, including a billion dollars to pay for the salaries of the peshmerga and weapons for them as well. and why is it important? because to date there hasn't been an effective count veiling fighting force in iraq. now there appears to be. the peshmerga estimates are about 190 fighters. they've proven to be reliable. they're experienced, and they've also proven to be reliable allies to the united states in our involvement in iraq. iraqi officials now want to push for a winter offensive in mosul. and american officials, it's been reported, are concerned that this schedule is a little too ambitious. can you explain that? >> let me first say on the peshmerga -- one additional point i want to make addressing your question in about how we're kind of in a new era here. part of our plan is to train and equip, as you know, 12 iraqi brigades. three will be kurdish. and

so the "new york times" reported this morning that there was a major deal between the abadi governmentaghdad and the kurdish leadership in erbil. and that was a permanent, long-term deal, to provide 17% of the national budget to the kurdish region. in addition, a billion dollars to pay for the salaries and weapons for the peshmerga. in the kurdistan area. the kurdish army or the peshmerga, otherwise known as those who confront death, is estimated to be between 250 and 357,000 fighters. they're experienced. they're an effective army. they're fleuristic. they're proven allies of the united states, in assisting us in the invasion of iraq. they fought side by side with the american troops. they helped the united states capture saddam hussein. isis is estimated to be between 31,000 and 41,000 fighters. this seems to be a major change in the dynamic as it relates to iraq's ability to push back isis. i don't know if you caught the news of this deal this morning, but i would like you to comment on it because i think unless and until you can break the momentum of isis, doesn't matter where fore

and just last week we were in brusels with a new prime minister, prime minister abadi speaking to some 60 entities and countries about his efforts to bring people together. to recognize there was no room for the kind of sectarian divide that had torn the place apart previously. now, iran plays a hand here. it's got to be stated. there's an impact in -- in -- in iraq, with iran, because iraq is 80% shia. and there are interests. and historically -- and other interests, if i might add. religious sites, other kinds of things. so hopefully the shia militia with whom the current administration is currently working to try to restrain them from violence against sunni, and the sunni tribal chiefs can come together with confidence that the military is evolving in a way that, together with their concept of a national guard, and with new respect within the government itself for inclusivity and participation, that can unite people around the goal of focusing only on getting rid of dash. our feeling is that the training is coming along, that with the oil deal and other measures being taken, there's