he showed extraordinary skill during the later surge in iraq, and in managing security in iraq during his years as overall commander there. he commanded at multiple levels in the army's 82nd airborne division and commanded the 10th mountain division, all with honor and distinction. just listen to that. listen to that roster of accomplishment. few have brought that kind of depth and breadth of experience to this critical command. the level of experience that helped him lead centcom with distinction, skill and the confidence of the nation's leadership during an extraordinary and complex period. it is this depth and breadth of experience that allowed joe and me to always -- i meant joe dunford in that case, i'll get to the other joe in a moment, to all we safely rely on lloyd, including now when we face an enemy such as isil. the opportunities and challenges in afghanistan and iraq and throughout the region are always changing. but one thing hasn't changed. general austin's limitless commitment to his troops and to his country. now general austin's long tour in this job will soon come to

and al qaeda. on iraq and al qaeda what we said was what the analysts believed was the there were some historic conversations between iraqi and intelligence and al qaeda but as of 2002 there was no current relationship between iraq and al qaeda. there was no iraqi involvement in 9/11. there was not even iraqi foreknowledge of 9/11. that's what we said. scooter libby did not like what we said. he believed there was a connection. he thought we were wrong and after he put this paper out the set wages he called up my boss and told her to a java paper and fix fix it because it was wrong. we just put our hands up and said no we are not doing that. i told you earlier we are not partisan and we call it like we see it. where the umpire, where the referee we call like we see it. we didn't budge. scooter libby called john mclaughlin v. director of the cia to complain about the paper and george tenet and john mclaughlin said no, stop. and president bush did something really important. my boss who scooter libby called

in the territory that it controls in syria and iraq. whatever the numbers, u.s. law enforcement is pursuing those suspected of having connections to i.s.i.l. for more on who they are and what threat they possess, we have this report. >> reporter: who are the faces of i.s.i.l. in america? >> he was born and we lived and this is ironic this is where he would end up dying >> reporter: in may 2015 these people came armed with assault rifles to it an art contest in texas, mocking the prophet. he linked himself to i.s.i.l. in a tweet posted just before he and the other were killed by police >> super smart, super intelligent, all very polite, not radical in anyway >> reporter: three months later, the dourt of a policeman and her husband were-- daughter-- arrested for attempting to join i.s.i.l. in syria >> they started shooting and the people were running everywhere. >> reporter: in december in san bernadino massacred 14 of his co-workers with the aid of his wife. then three arrests later that month, a 19-year-old resident, a new york pizza aparlour owner and an minnesot

any other nation in the world, directly to deal with the problem of displaced people out of syria and iraq. and we are doing more to strengthen the defense jordan, lebron and other friends -- lebanon and other friends in the region. this is really important work. and i guarantee you it's going to continue. but the main reason for these efforts is the outrageous human suffering that this war has visited upon syrians and their neighbors. many of you may have seen the so-called cesar pictures last year. more than 10,000 photographs. each individual. so not repetive, but individualized. showing massive torture, starvation, extraordinary government policy by the assad regime. in addition to barrel bombing of children and innocent families, schools, hospitals, not to mention the fact that there was widespread use of gas, which we thought we had outlawed as an instrument of war after world war i. this was precisely why we are expanding our focus now and our response to the worst refugee crisis that the world has seen since the second world war. this fall, president obama will host a summit on the

bly's in destabilizing actions in syria, lebanon, and iraq, and the provocative acts actions of the missile program. i hope the witnesses will describe. i recently returned from a visit from iraq where i had to have a meet with the leadership in our military commanders on the ground. my visit came on the heels of a successful operation by iraq security forces to retake for mahdi. the success was enabled by coalition and power give a boost to the iraqi security forces, i hope this momentum will continue. in syria, as a result of the violence the humanitarian situation is dire. in regards isis, our military embarked on a campaign to ensure they are under increasing pressure. the deployment of special operation forces and other critical capabilities are important development. the overall conflict in syria secretary kerry is pursuing an ambitious agenda and should be recognized for his persistence. i look for to hearing the views of our witnesses on the assessment of whether the current peace talks might be a of luke. one other issue that struck me is our government's effort to counter isis and

our efforts are directed both at daesh's core networks in syria and iraq and at straggling attempts toablish branches and inspire attacks elsewhere in the world, including in the united states. and we have known from the moment that we formed our international coalition in the fall of 2014 -- and by the way it merits remembering that this coalition has only been at this for a little over a year now. we knew that success was not going to be measured in a matter of weeks and months. it would be measured in years as it was with al-qaeda. and i said at the time, 2014, that it would take some time. so did the president. but in the end, mark my words, not as a matter of bragging, but as a matter of fact, daesh will be defeated. every country in the region that surrounds iraq and syria is opposed to daesh. iran, jordan, lebanon, qatar, turkey, down to the emirates, saudi arabia, and way beyond, which is why we have a coalition of 65 nations. the progress we have already made towards that end of defeating them is undeniable. last month iraqi forces with coalition support retook most of the pro

iraq. how secretary and identity, politics and settlement will shape the future in iraq and serial remains to be determined but our competition for influence is one we should seek to. fourth, or broadly to iraq and syria, by special operation forces will contribute a line of upper tour strategy but to be effective the temple of operation needs to be dramatically increased. for this to happen the iraqi government must approve an increase in the number of u.s. personnel on its territory. turning to the global jihad, global jihad has metastasize in time is not on our side as michael mentioned. global jihadist cannot be contained, they must be defeated and continually disrupted while they are in the process of being disruptive. sanctuaries must be denied. first, disrupting and defeat in the global jihadist and syria and iraq will require roughly the same way of precision airstrikes led by u.s. advisors and sufficient means. the global jihadist will not be defeated until the ungoverned space in which the app rated is, their ideology is discredited and stability is returned. this will require sig

an enduring victory must be won and owned by the people of iraq and syria. our role in the coalition is very important. the prime minister of iraq thanked me personally for the role that the australian advisors played in supporting the retaking of ramadi. but it was politically vitally important for him that the re-taking of that city was done, and seen to be done, by the iraqi army, and in particular the counterterrorism service, which is their elite unit. now this chink is isil's momentum is only the first step. the border between syria and iraq is a line on the map. neither country can be secured without a settlement in the other. unless the sunni populations in syria and iraq can be reconciled with a new and inclusive order, then isil or a success or extremist group will have a ready recruiting ground. the biggest challenge is plainly finding that political settlement in syria. the scale of the suffering is so great. a quarter of a million killed. 4 million refugees outside of the country. 6 million internally displaced. now the enmities are so deep, the

troops left lebanon, saudi arabia and initially iraq. ran as you can see on the next map, the changing middle east map in red has direct influence and some control over lebanon, gaza, syria, iraq and the awhile strategically designed to influence not only the major shipping in the gulf but shipping entering and departing the suez canal. let me at editorially when you talk to a leader in the middle east, an arab sunni leader, this is what they think of when they think of iran. this is how they see iran and what it is doing in terms of their future stability and security. excuse me. is there any doubt that iran is on the march and systemically moving toward their regional hegemonic objectives? some suggest that iran is agreeing to delay in acquiring a threshold capability toward a nuclear weapon is a transforming event that may lead to iran joining the community of nations seeking stability and security. give them a return of $100 million in sanctions relief funds and a proven track record of belligerence and armed violence to pursue its go

in afghanistan and iraq. we have a the a plant and a the plan b. >> diaz see any sign that western governments have these plans for the post islamic state? >> i can't see that. i remember with that it needed to intervene. with that intervention from the military. you have to be very careful because al qaeda will be there. of the other side of the mediterranean. and with those migrants you have to be careful. he does not like what i am saying. so in six minutes honestly. [laughter] they don't want to listen. those who you talk about the of the ots. he is a brutal dictator. have reestablished good governments there? nato is the most sophisticated clients in the world. of the modern countries and with those savings institutions the same thing in iraq. and a invaded iraq. en to set up in example to establish equality. and to make people coexist with each other. that is why we are facing a problem in iraq and syria. >> does see have any further comments to make to follow-up on what he said? some say the middle east

. >>> the things i'm seeing with syria and iraq and afghanistan refugees fleeing, it's shocking >> her mission to light the way for millions of refugees and how you can help. >>> a major snowstorm has already cleared stores in the southeast. >>> we'll let you know how much snow they'll get from that if you have any travel plans wait until you see how cool it gets in south florida this my complete fore >>> a woman is helping to shine a light on the syria crisis. giving a glimmer of hope. >> put these nasal strips to pump water out. >> she's not one to run away from danger. as a rescue paramedic, she has seen death and destruction firsthand. >> i have seen so much with so many disasters, usually, there's a beginning, middle and end >> she's seen those fleeing their homes and making a journey from turkey greece. >> the things i'm seeing, with all of the syria and iraq and refugees fleeing, it's just they're made out of rubber and only made for a few people. they're cramming in the boats. >> allison recently took a break from her work to spend time at home in miami. now, she's already back

this gives both iran and iraq tremendous resources to be able to prosecute this war and this escalates the war to the point that iranian forces actually cross the iraqi border dressed as kurds, iranian soldiers cross into iraq and actually engage with iraqi forces. the shah is very worried that this will lead to a full scale war between iran and iraq at that time when its american ally has been weakened by watergate, by the war. the fear is that they will find themselves in a position without the support of the united states. so he has a choice, either escalates the war or he makes a deal and what he does is he makes a deal. he meets with saddam hussein on the sidelines of the al jazeera opec summit and they issue a communiquÉ in which iran essentially agrees to seal its border with iraq, in other words, cut off supplies to the kurds and in exchange saddam agrees to make the territorial concessions that the shah had been demanding. >> so the shah he comes out more powerful as a result of this war and iran gets everything they want at the end of things. you write that iran has ambitions

in addition to our efforts in syria and iraq, another major priority for the coming year involves iran and the information of the joint competence of line of action that we agreed on last summer in vienna. the jcp 08 as it is called is a all ofnt for blocking iran's potential pathways to a nuclear weapon. , iran is now well on its way to dismantling critical elements of its nuclear facilities. just yesterday the foreign minister reported to me that the plutonium reactor is out and in the next hours it will be filled with concrete. and destroyed. all of their enriched material has been put on a ship and taken out and gone to russia for processing. that shipment that was taken out more than tripled our previous timeline of two to three months for iran to be able to acquire enough reckons -- weapons grade uranium for one weapon and it is an important part of the technical equation that will bring their breakout to at least one year for the next 10 years. meantime, the iaea will build up its capacity to inspect and know what iran is doing and for 25 years will be tracking every bit of uran

and now i'm back here watching us have to return to iraq just five years after we left. while we can debate and there's much to discuss about the military strategies to defeat isis in the short term, the focus of my questions today is about how we ensure we don't find ourselves continually going back and having to apply military power against isis or the next isis successor in the long term. we've heard many people testify before this committee about the importance of a long-term political strategy. general petraeus joined us last week and emphasized that. another general talked about the importance of state department coordination and how it hasn't been happening for a long time. so to begin, i just wanted to see if we're on the same page with a few high-level points. is there any one of you who disagrees with, from the iraq perspective, the need to empower the central iraqi government? that that's the best strategy we have on the table right now for a long-term political olution in iraq? >> sthi the -- i think the iraq central minister is someone who believes in nationa

our efforts are directed both at daish core networks in syria and iraq and strangling attempts to establish branches and inspire attacks elsewhere in the world including in the united states. we have known from the moment that we formed our international coalition in the fall of 24 teen. by the way, it merits remembering that this coalition has only been out this for a little over a year now. we knew that success was not going to be measured and a matter of weeks and months. it is measured in years as it was about qaeda. i said at the time, 2014 that it would take some time. so did the president. but in the end, mark my words, as a matter of fact, daish will be defeated. every country in the region that surrounds iraq and

our efforts are directed both at daesh's core networks in syria and iraq and at strangling attempts by the terrorists to establish branches and inspire attacks elsewhere in the world, including in the united states. now, we have known from the moment that we formed our international coalition in the fall of 2014 and by the way, it merits remembering that this coalition has only been at this for a little over a year now. we knew that success was not going to be measured in a matter of weeks and months; it would be measured in years, as it was with al-qaida. and i said at the time - 2014 - that it would take some time. so did the president. but in the end, mark my words, not as a matter of braggadocio but as a matter of fact: daesh will be defeated. every country in the region that surrounds iraq and syria is opposed to daesh - iran, jordan, lebanon, qatar, turkey, down through the emirates, saudi arabia, and way beyond, which is why we have a coalition of 65 nations. the progress we have already made towards that end of defeating them is undeniable. last month, iraqi forces, with coalit

and syria. it maintains control of key iraq cities like mosul and fa lieu jasm they estimate that this key the rain will not be retaken this year. the u.n. reports that since isil's invasion of iraq in 2014, nearly 20,000 iraq civilians have been killed. nearly 3,500 people, predominantly women and children are children, are estimated to be isil slaves in iraq. it is no surprise that the training of iraq security forces has been slow. the building of support for sunni tribal forces even slower. in syria, there is no possible strategy to achieve isil's the feat on a timeline that would result in the tragic deaths of tens of thousands of syrians. there is still no ground force that is both willing and able to take cities, nor is the realistic prospect of one emerging soon. in the absence of a realistic strategy to create the conditions for the achievement of u.s. goals, the administration has fallen back on hope. the hope that diplomacy without sufficient leverage can convince russia and iran to abandon bashir al-assad and ight isil. yet we read just this morning that russia's air campaign continues

and peace in iraq is a worthwhile investment. lways give the right value to the region al dal dynamics. and they are already affecting a lot what is happening in iraq. as i said in will my presentation, i believe that peace building in iraq and in the region has to start bottom up. and this is why we are focusing at usip at the grassroot level because we know working at the micro level now in this region might not be the best option. so i think that investing at the grass root oig level, investing in civil society, eninvesting i governance at the local level is worthwhile and is a track that should be pursued definitely about that. >> similar for mercy co. it's less about looking at what the data tells you about that. it's more about we've seen it work basically. so if the question is investing for example in civil society and iraq an effective investment in terms of your ability to emilemr rate the investments, yes, it's effective. it's an investment that we'll continue to make. even though the program gave birth to this research

it also has a history going back to the iran iraq war, and eight year terrible war, unprovoked by iraq at the beginning, which is the saudi arabia yns helped to finance. and these scars are still not resolved. >> and there's isis. >> and there's isis and other jihadist elements, which, by the narrative of the iranians, they see that the saudis have, in part, encouraged. and if they will point to the fact that almost all of the terrorists involved in 9/11 were saudis, none were iranians. >> thank you very much. >> so tension piling upon tension in a region already fraught with sectarian division. when we come back, you heard what jack straw said about needing both powers to defeat isis in syria or iraq. next, how is that going? we get a special report from the iraqi city of ramadi. let's celebrate these moments... this woman... this cancer patient... christine... living her life... loving her family. moments made possible in part by the breakthrough science of advanced genomic testing. after christine exhausted the standard treatment options for her disease, doctors working with the cen

i think many would argue and identify a single thing, but it would be the iraq war. not just because of the financial and human cost, but because it tipped the strategic balance in the region. it put iran in charge in iraq. it led to sunni disempowerment, which is partly fueling al qaeda in iraq and isis. it made people wary of our engagement in the middle east. arguably, even over-wary. but i think we have to acknowledge that for every mistake of action, there would have been costs of inaction too. i am not willing to say it is the greatest single mistake because had we not done it, we might be sitting here talking about the mistake of leaving saddam hussein in power. that is why i am reluctant to identify single things. when you think about the region, in iraq, we intervened and occupied. and it turned out very badly. in libya we intervened, but did not occupy and it turned out very badly. in syria we neither intervened nor occupied and it has turned out very badly. the lesson is overall caution that there is no single answer or model. i would say there is not a sin

and peace in iraq is a worthwhile investment. i always give the right value to the regional dynamics. and they are already affecting a lot what is happening in iraq. as i said in will my presentation, i believe that peace building in iraq and in the region has to start bottom up. and this is why we are focusing at usip at the grassroot level because we know working at the micro level now in this region might not be the best option. so i think that investing at the grassroot level, investing in civil society, investing in governance at the local level is worthwhile and is a track that should be pursued definitely >> similar for mercy co. it's less about looking at what the data tells you about that. it's more about we've seen it work basically. so if the question is investing for example in civil society and iraq an effective investment in terms of your ability to ameliorate the blocking effect in the investments, yes, it's effective. it's an investment that we'll continue to make. even though the program gave birth to this researc

to try to drive them out of hair heartland, to try to end this stay that's developed in syria and western iraq. even if you succeeded in doing that, that's a really big f and complicated challenge. the horse is out of the barn in a sense that ideology is existing in multiple states, at least 12 that we know of that are active and communicating with central baÑ -- here is his most recent work. the rise of isis. >> caller: i tuned in a little bit late. let me get to my question. i want to go from 15 years ago today. if al gore had one that election al gore would have had probably the afghanistan war because of 9/11 which happened the following september 2001 but would not have invaded iraq. because of the republicans, i'm saying as a liberal progressive democrat myself, that george w bush invasion as hobble dictator of sudam hussein was, without isis emerging. so if iraqi war had not happened and george w. bush or dick cheney had not evaded iraq, there was no iraq war -- >> host: all right, bill, i think we got the point. that's bill in west hartford, connecticut. >> guest: the book argues and i

we continued to increase both the pace and the intensity of airstrikes in iraq and syria. when coupled with local ground operations we see isil reacting and moving around the battlefield. in turn, that makes it easier for us to strike. in december, we estimated 2500 enemy fighters were killed in coalition airstrikes across iraq and syria. finally, i want to give you an update on operation title wave 2. 'sis operation targets isil illicit oil structures. on january 2, coalition aircraft struck six and oil separation points. and to isil collection points -- collection points was upset he began, they conducted 65 strikes against oil targets. this has reduced their revenue by about 30%. we estimate that isil produced 45,000 barrels of oil per day before title wave 2. it has been reduced to about 34,000 barrels per day now. to close out, in addition to chipping away at their so-called we are also fitted them in the pocketbook. that includes -- that concludes my opening remarks. i guess bob burns is on duty. what is your question? ramadi andntioned the iraqi government has decla

it will shape the future of iraq and syria. our competition for influence with iran is one we should seek to win. fourth more broadly to both iraq and syria, raid biz special operations forces will contribute an important line of effort to our strategy. but to be effective, the temple of operations needs to increase. for this to happen, the iraqi government must approve an increase in the number of u.s. special operations personnel on its territory. turning to the global jihad. global jihad has metastasized. time is not on our side as michael mentioned. global jihadists cannot be contained. they must be defeated and continually disrupted while they are in the process of being defeated. sanctuaries must be denied. there are three points i would like to make. first, disrupting and defeating the global jihadists in syria and iraq and beyond will require the same way as precision air strikes, exploited by ground forces. the global jihadists will not be defeated until the ungoverned space in which they are is taken aw away. this will

and syria. it maintains control of key iraq cities like mosul and fallujah and our military commanders estimate that this key terrain will not be retaken this year. the u.n. reports that since isil's invasion of iraq in 2014, nearly 20,000 iraq civilians have been killed. nearly 3,500 people predominantly women and children are estimated to be isil slaves in iraq. a sectarian division in iraq it is no surprise that the training of iraq's security forces has been slow and the building of support for sunni tribal forces even slower. in syria there is no plausible strategy to achieve isil's defeat on a time line that won't result in the tragic deaths of tens of thousands of syrians. there is still no ground force that is willing and able to retake raqqah nor is there a realistic prospect of one emerging soon. in the absence of a realistic strategy to create the conditions for the achievement of u.s. goals, the administration has instead fallen back on hope -- the hope that diplomacy without sufficient leverage can convince iran to abandon bashar assad and join the fight against isil. and yet we rea

nobody looked up at her and iraq, libya, yemen, tunisia. these countries are the strong base of coexistence and many people believe in the conspiracy they destabilize the countries that have public systems. okay there is no question about that for the strength and coexistence and marginalization. they were marginalized in iraq. a majority say they marginalized under the pretext. we have to look at that and destroy that coexistence on iraq, libya, yemen and one way or another this is the problem. >> during that moment, the parties were tied to westerners powers and that gave a bad name and reputation to liberal institutions. >> you are correct. they were looking at a long-term solution, long-term stability of liberalism and introduce democracy and by several means for the people of the middle east out to be liberal and how to communicate and how to coexist and go to a political process where they will decide and determine. the new imperialism in the middle east are not in that experience at all. why for example doesn't work properly. there is

focusing narrowly and specifically on iraq and syria, the effort by iraqi syria security forces is an important step forward in the effort to degrade and push back and shrink the size of the territory that that isis controls inside iraq. as we've said all along, from an analytical perspective, there is no single action that is going to result in the degradation of the isis threat. this is something that will take time. damian: you have been at this a long time. it seems like some of the counterterrorism model for al qaeda was to follow the money and also to root out communications and intercept planning that might be targeting western targets. the inspiration idea that we saw in san bernardino where you have two people that have self radicalized. have you guys have to adjust what you do in order to address that sort of idea? rasmussen: the two different variants of plotting you just described pose different challenges. when you are dealing with an organized terrorist group that has the ability to direct and plan and plot over a long. of time, while that is potentially dangerous becaus

our efforts are directed both at daish core networks in syria and iraq and strangling attempts to establish branches and inspire attacks elsewhere in the world including in the united states. we have known from the moment that we formed our international coalition in the fall of 24 teen. by the way, it merits remembering that this coalition has only been out this for a little over a year now. we knew that success was not going to be measured and a matter of weeks and months. it is measured in years as it was about qaeda. i said at the time, 2014 that it would take some time. so did the president. but in the end, mark my words, as a matter of fact, daish will be defeated. every country in the region that surrounds iraq and syria is supposed to daish. iran, jordan, lebanon, qatar, turkey down through the amorites, saudi arabia and beyond which is why we have a coalition of 65 nations. the progress we have already made towards baghdad and defeating them is undeniable. last month, iraqi forces with coalition support we take most of the provincial capital of her body, further reducing the area c

we also saw major gains on the ground against this organization in syria and iraq by ancaps off by an impressive victory by iraqi forces with coalition supported romani. just this afternoon earlier this morning ii had a videoconference with our commanders as well as secretary ash carter from our ambassadors from turkey and iraq and we discussed the road ahead and securing the mahdi and moving forward and the rest of the campaign for which we have a clear plan and clear expectations. i should also.out that last year was also a good year for democracy and such countries as nigeria, sri lanka, burma, and there were significant elections as well in venezuela, argentina, the central african republic and elsewhere. all of this is not an end unto itself. ititself. it is a means by which we move to achieve our goals and to secure the values and interests of the united states and make us more secure and offers greater economic opportunity. and all of this sets the stage for what will surely be a challenging,a challenging, extremely busy but i am convinced very promising 2016. on the joint comp

their objective to accelerate and intensify the campaign in iraq and syria. the u.s. navy launches bombing raids from an aircraft carrier in the gulf. the coalition wants to weaken isil and degrade it's ability to capture and hold territory. part of the strategy is to target logistics and resources. these images show jets targeting areas controlled by isil in eastern syria. and western leaders need to current isil's message. >> it's resilience should strength our action. we should keep fighting on all fronts. we'll root them out on the ground and in people's minds. >> when it comes to the fighting on the ground, the coalition depends almost entirely on local iraqi and syrian forces. several countries are providing them with training. but there's no talk of putting their own boots on the ground we're enabling local motivating forces. as the only practical strategic approach not only to defeating isil, but also of sustaining its defeat there after. >> it was a large gathering. nevertheless, there were some notable absences from the table. russia, which is carrying out i

anger from sunnis that feel aggrieved and marginalized has been rising. when iraq'srime minister visited on tuesday, he vowed to restore security for all residents, for many. the promises ring hollow, and they were accusing the government of not doing more to rein in militias, and protect sunni citizens. >> in diyala, there has been many violations in towns and villag villages. we see the attacks. of the go is not able to control the action or reaction. as it battles i.s.i.l., and confronts a growing humanitarian crisis, iraq's security and government are stretched thin. the threat of rising sectarian violence makes a volatile situation that much more dire >>> and still to come on the newshour. dawn raids to break up a sophisticated human smuggling ring in turkey and term ni. >> protests -- germany. protests in the arab spring are met with tear gas. >> in sport. i'm andrew thomas outside sydney's cricket ground. i explain why a tournament for women marks an important moment in the professionalisation of the women's game >>> first, 20 people have been killed on an att

man stood at or near the pinnacle of power for four decades, from watergate up to 9/11 and iraq and beyond, and you don't stick around at those levels unless you're really good and really effective, and i think that's why the left has had such an obsession with dick cheney, you see this even in barack obama's comments today. called him the worst president of his lifetime and there's a joke there but it speaks to, a., dick cheney's extraordinary influence on our time, and, b., the central role that he occupies in the intellectual universal of barack obama. >> host: dick cheney is in the left head. >> guest: and under their skin for sure. >> host: tell me about getting the interview, because having been the press secretary in the bush administration, at the end there, dick cheney was a reluctant interviewer. so, how did this come about, you had a chance to spend several hours with him, longer than even he had agreed forks he opens up about everything. >> guest: well, there's a back story here, as you know. from our dealings way back when. i covered the bush-cheney white house for fox news in

syria and iraq, saudi arabia and iran are waging wars by proxies. the rupture of the relations today, we are seeing now the relationship between the sunni dominated saudi arabia and the shia dominated iran is at the lowest point. we could witness further escalation, but what has happened in the last 24 hours is bad, particularly as the struggle between the two gulf giants could easily be exacerbate tensions. the international community hoping for a diplomatic solution in the next few weeks at the end of january. people were hoping for a deescalation and a ceasefire. forget about it. in beirut is intense. they are up in arms trying to rally the lebanese and the muslim population against saudi arabia. the situation is bahrain is very tense. you have sizeable shia communities throughout the gulf. remember, even though saudi arabia and iran are waging a war by proxies for power, for geopolitics, for influence. the particular struggle has taken on sectarian connotations because you have sunni, saudi arabia and shia dominated iran and it is poisoning the

i think many would argue and identify a single thing, but it would be the iraq war, not just because of the financial and human cost, but because it tipped the strategic balance in the region. it put iran in charge in iraq. it led to sunni empowerment, which is feeling al qaeda in iraq and isis. it made people wary of our engagement in the middle east. arguably over wary. but i think we have to acknowledge that for every mistake of action, there would of interaction. had we not done it, we might be sitting here talking about the mistake of leaving saddam hussein in power. i am reluctant to identify single things. you think about the region, in iraq, we intervened and occupied, it turns out, very badly. in libya we intervened but did not occupy. up very badly. in syria we neither intervened nor occupied and it has turned out very badly. for how wemodel should deal with these governments? again, i would say there is not a single mistake just as there is not a single answer for what we should do going forward. you, chairman. i want to thank all of you for being here. general, i want to a

they bring in the voices and the of iraq and the situation over there so this promises to be a great is our firstd this iraq event of the year. for those who have been following us, we try to make sure that the voices of iraq, realities of iraq are reflected in our conversations voices data, the iraqi are present through the data and through the work. quickly -- so the presentation of the report will bydone as nancy mentioned michael young first and she gave background of their bios so i will not get into that again. are outside. you can pick them up but they definitely come with a rich experience and michael will go have professor shapiro also comments on the report and dr. elia. michael. up to you. here.n do from michael: thank you. much to thery united states institute of peace for this opportunity to talk research.y corps' and to all of you for coming to we've found out sectariangovernance, identity and opposition groups in iraq. have a bracingo discussion about what these findings might mean for all of and policyymakers shapers. first of all, i think i want to make a kind of up-f

it is still beheading people, and still destroying the inh inheritance in syria and iraq, like it diday. so while we hear this bravado from the american defense secretary, and while he is trying to get this coalition of 24 countries, two years -- it has been two years since the coalition started against isil. certainly the bombing has been going on for more than a year, and what is the result? isil remains and is still sponsoring attacks around the world. so really this bravado is way over the top. >> so you are saying they are not taking this issue seriously? >> yes, i am saying they are not taking this issue seriously. i think in the beginning they certainly did not even address it. the russians have been bombing various opposition locations, not really isil. the americans have been taking on isil for a year and a half, two years. nothing happen. they built a coalition of 60 countries, 24 are active. >> look the u.s. earlier this week said it's a that it had leaked documents showing that isil have cut their fighters' salaries by half. >> they have been cutting salaries by half in th

the us-led coalition began bombing iraq and syria in late summer of 2014. since then they have launched over 6000 airstrikes in iraq and over 3000 in syria. the main cities targeted are ramadi.d baiji and france has stepped up its efforts, contributed to 20% of airstrikes. u.s. officials said last week that coalition airstrikes killed eight civilians in 2015, but air wars, a collective of independent journalists tracking the number of airstrikes and casualties, say that hundreds of people have died. military commanders are talking of a new phase with an emphasis on targeting infrastructure and supply lines. with a greater focus on syria. the islamic state group says two of the jihadists behind the paris attacks in november last year came from iraq. a photo in the latest issue of the group's english-language propaganda magazine identifies two iraqi men alongside the ledger planner of the attacks, killed in a shootout with french police. the islamic state group also confronted the death of the masked british militant known as jihadi john, who appeared in inclu

isil fighters who control large parts of iraq and syria have destroyed historic buildings they considerontrary to their interpretation of islam. >>> iraq's foreign minister vowed to go after those fueling sectarian divisions in his country, making the pledge north of baghdad on tuesday. government backed shia fighters have attacked sunni owned businesses and mosques in that town. civilians are getting caught up in the crossfire. they're having to flee. >> the streets look calm for now but the mood remains tense. while many school children are back in classrooms and bakeries are selling bread once more, the remnants of last week's sectarian violence are easy to spot. from the wreckage of a cafe attacked by isil because it was frequented by shia militia men to the burned out remains of a sunni owned market fire bombed in reprisal attacks. >> the sunnies accused of has she boring terrorists. the displaced are not able to return home. >> this family is so scared, they've asked us to blur their faces and not to reveal their names. the last thing they wanted to do was to leave. >> we were ord

you have still isil in control of mosul in the north, and iraq's government, iraq's security forces haven't yet entered mosul to fight isil. you have a fight still verge raging in rimadi, even though government forces were able to retake the center, the government complex of rimadi, still fighting isil in the north and east. then you have other pockets, areas where isil are trying to do resurgent attacks. it's a very complicated situation. whatever the government may come out and say in response to the ayatollah's remarks today, well, that still remains to be seen. they can't really say much. their hands are kind of tied, because in iraq, by and large, when you speak to the average man or woman on the street, they seem to believe that the remarks by iraq's government when it comes to their fight against isil and trying to ensure the security of the citizenry of this country, they seem to believe that that's a lot of propaganda. there's not a lot of trust in the government or the government institutions here in this country, and that's why they're going to need to respond to these remarks an

he showed extraordinary skill during the later surge in iraq, and in managing security in iraq during his years as overall commander there. he commanded at multiple levels in the army's 82nd airborne division and commanded the 10th mountain division, all with honor and distinction. just listen to that. listen to that roster of accomplishment. few have brought that kind of depth and breadth of experience to this critical command. the level of experience that helped him lead centcom with distinction, skill and the confidence of the nation's leadership during an extraordinary and complex period. it is this depth and breadth of experience that allowed joe and me to always -- i meant joe dunford in that case, i'll get to the other joe in a moment, to all we safely rely on lloyd, including now when we face an enemy such as isil. the opportunities and challenges in afghanistan and iraq and throughout the region are always changing. but one thing hasn't changed. general austin's limitless commitment to his troops and to his country. now general austin's long tour in this job will soon come to

isn't it a bit overwhelming and put this into perspective for us. >> what we have right now in iraq isee million people internally displaced and nearly 10 million people that need humanitarian assistance. what this means is that one out of every five children in iraq has been displaced or had their education disrupted or somehow been effected by this crisis. these numbers are hard to grapple with and are so huge and large that just looking at them over the years it's an immense difficulty dealing with it and you can see the conditions which people are living and the camps offer refuge but only 10% of the people displaced can come to the camps and 90% of them are living in host community, unfinished buildings with families who have taken them in and their access to education, access to services, access to basic life is limited. >> also jeffrey can you tell us we were earlier discussing about the prospects for some of these children and there are more than 3 1/2 million children just in iraq alone and if the world community doesn't act what is the future for them? >> the children of iraq

and the fight against isis? are they doing everything they could to get fellow sunnis engaged in iraq and syria?hillip: i don't think so. saudi arabia is in many ways a partner with us in the intelligence realm. sunni-sunni,t is they are a partner, they work with us, and they understand it threatens them because isis threatens the kingdom. the problem is, it is not their top priority. we all have a lot of different adversaries and rivalries in the middle east, but the problem is we break them differently. for the saudis, iran is the top three, and then you get a soft -- assad because of iran, and then you get isis. if you look at what they are doing in syria and elsewhere. and elsewhere, sure, they want to fight against isis, but they are more tolerant of extremist groups because they are fighting assad and iran. that is the problem, it is just not at the top of their priority list. david and vali, go ahead and follow up on phil, then my question is, are we seeing in the american foreign-policy, whether it is the national security council, state department, or pentagon, competing factions as to