we don't want to ally with assad, but strategically we're allied with assad. he is a bulwark against the spread of isis today. we're trying to destroy isis. but if america destroyed assad and helped that agenda to come forward, who's gonna take damascus? it's gonna be isis and nusra. (explosions and gunfire) >> smith: the war in syria is now in its fifth year. more than 220,000 are dead. half the country's people have been forced from their homes. and inspectors suspect that assad still possesses sarin gas. he is also weaponizing chlorine. (coughing) (crying) >> the assad regime is still using chlorine gas bombs against syrian civilians. now, chlorine gas is certainly of less lethality than sarin gas, but it is a chemical weapon nonetheless. so you have a regime that's using chlorine gas continuously against the civilian populace without international repercussions. >> i have family members who have been killed, and i have friends who have been killed. it is heartbreaking. i would say, mr. president that "you are going to go down in history, if you continue li

we're offering support to the opposition to fight the assad regime. but to think that you can just make the terrorists go away without dealing with the root cause of this crises and without depriving them of the recruiting tool that assad constitutes, i think is wishful thinking and obama thinks it's wishful thinking. >> rose: your role with the administration, because of your background, because of your experience, because of what you wrote, because of what your life has stood for, that on these very important questions where so many civilians are dying is there a conscience of the administration. >> i think the reason senator obama reached out to me a long time ago is he has always grappled with whether as a senator or as a president with the human consequences of decision making. whether that's decisions to do something or decision not to do something or nondecision. >> rose: and consequences of war. >> the consequences of war, the consequences of assad, the consequences of the north korean regime that has gulags with a hundred thousand people. i w

taking on assad? >> well, probably not assad. that's the one thing. that's a bright line. they don't want these troops to go in and fight the assad government. and who is to say. they put pressure on the rebel forces, and they might be better equipped. and they will be funneled by the united states, and they don't have better equipment >> so is the united states responsible for whatever these groups do? good or ill? >> that's a big whatever. because if they get in there and start committing war crimes, they start doing the same thing that we see isis do, looking for retribution and looking to settle scores, it's not going to look good. there are so many unintended consequences with this mission. >> major lyons give it to me straight here. does the united states ultimately have any impact in syria, will they need to commit ground forces? >> i don't think that you'll see infantry ground forces at the front. i think that you'll see logstitions, and what you see at the beginning of the iraq mission, because nobody does it cheeper than the united states. it's going to take a lo

is it all about assad? guest: no, but the syrian assad problem is key.here is no opportunity to do with it now because of the way it has progressed. we need to consider being more aggressive in dealing with the assad problem and striking at isis in syria. we can only do that if we agree asadsad is a primary objective. that would bring other countries on board. it would be a coalition with the unity of purpose and strategy. it is hard to have a strategy if you cannot agree who the enemy is. that is one of the problems with the syrian dilemma. it prevents us from getting a major alliance. host: gets compensated. -- it gets complicated. guest: yes. host: retired colonel derek harvey, currently the director of the global initiative on civil society and conflict. thank you for joining us. we turn our attention to veterans on this memorial day. the political director for the iraq and afghanistan veterans for america. marvin and deborah kalb will be with us at eight up slow to take your calls and comments. thank you for joining us. "newsmakers" is coming next.

fight against general bashar al-assad and his assets. waiting to secure damascus once the regime is toppled. in the north armed affection merged to capture idlib now they are focused on attacking the stronghold of president assad. activists say barrel bomb and chemical attacks have increased in syria. around 200 regime soldiers are said to have been sheltering in this hospital, after syrian rebels recaptured the city. and this was the result of another government barrel bomb attack in aleppo. this rubble was a school building which despite all the fighting in the city was still open. rescuers have been digging through debris but they believe many of the dead and injured are children. >> translator: i urge king salman i urge him on behalf of

jazeera that it will not rest until the bashar al-assad regime is overthrown. the government continues to spread messages on air waves and social media. we have this report. >> reporter: as fighting intensifies in the yarmouk camp south of damascus i.s.i.l. fighters scream rallying cries. showcasing to the world how they are closer than ever to syria's seat of power. on syrian state television the message couldn't be more contradictory. a bombastic montage and message - whether by land air or sea, the armed forces are as strong as ever. in syria, the propaganda war raged almost as long as the actual war. listen to president bashar al-assad and he vowed to vanning wish the enemies of syria. in order for us to have our

and handed over to the assad regime? we should first come up with a scenario for what we want the area to look like after the collapse of i.s. and i think i.s. is not invincible. >> you've written that it's a misconception that there is a international coalition fighting i.s. but it's shia militias. >> shia militias are fighting a much more efficient way. if we look at the international coalition, of course we have airstrikes, but the intention of countries like saudi arabia or allstate has been very much drawn away from the crisis in syria, and they are more concentrating on yemen and have even sent airplanes that were actually designed for their fight against i.s. in yemen. the international coalition is something of a virtual term. >> so a real review is needed of the situation at this point. thank you so very much for your time. there's hope that last for some of the refugees stranded on both in the seas of southeast asia -- both -- boats in the seas of southeast asia. >> malaysia and indonesia have agreed to take on

-- assad? >> they will not just fight isil and give the place to assad. >> what we are seeing is increasing levels of support of various pervert -- varieties as an alternative. >> i went people to understand that the radical sunni islamic group rather than having an army on the ground made up of allies. is that fairly accurate? we are choosing to work with terrorists. there is a vacuum created by -- >> some people are choosing to work with terrorists because of the vacuum. i do not think that was determined to be our policy. >> our allies in the region are supporting a terrorist group as a last resort proposition because america is a wall. at the end of the day, do you see a scenario of dislodging isil taking assad out, but does not require effort to put syria back together? >> no, i don't see it. >> we are talking years and billions of dollars. >> i believe so. >> if this were keeps going on, do you worry about jordan and lebanon being affected? >> especially jordan, a country of lived in and

-- assad? >> they will not just fight isil and give the place to assad. >> what we are seeing is increasing levels of support of various pervert -- varieties as an alternative. >> i went people to understand that the radical sunni islamic group rather than having an army on the ground made up of allies. is that fairly accurate? we are choosing to work with terrorists. there is a vacuum created by -- >> some people are choosing to work with terrorists because of the vacuum. i do not think that was determined to be our policy. >> our allies in the region are supporting a terrorist group as a last resort proposition because america is a wall. at the end of the day, do you see a scenario of dislodging isil taking assad out, but does not require effort to put syria back together? >> no, i don't see it. >> we are talking years and billions of dollars. >> i believe so. >> if this were keeps going on, do you worry about jordan and lebanon being affected? >> especially jordan, a country of lived in and

assad wouldn't last 15 minutes without iran's help do you agree? >> it's been critical to sustaining the assad regime. >> do you agree if we gave iranians $50 billion as a signing bonus for the nuclear program, it's highly likely some of the money would go to assad? >> and to the rest of his proxies that are seeking domination of the middle east. >> have you seen anything to suggest the iranians are changing the behavior for the better when it comes to the region? >> on the contrary, become being beinginging more aggressive. >> most aggressive in modern times? >> yes. >> would you say the iranians are directly responsible for toppling a pro american government in yemen by supporting the hugethys. >> they contributed to it. >> al qaeda in the arabian peninsula is growing as a threat to the homeland. >> not only that but isis is gaining position in yemen. >> do you agree with syria is now a perfect form for launching attack in the united states because there are so many foreign fighters with western passports? >> yes. >> do you agree with me that the

securing it means the rebels have the gateway to president assad's power base.claring achievement theres the mountain range. state television says government forces and hezbollah fighters have taken the strategic mountain top and other areas. it gives them advantage point. it is important for all sides, hezbollah and the syrian government use it as a route for weapons and fighters. hezbollah had deployed thousands of fighters and heavy weapons to secure the mountains, but despite the gains they have made so far, the fight is not over the rebels are relying on hit and run tactics in a rugged terrain, and hezbollah has already paid a heavy price. funeral processions like this have become common. at least two dozen hezbollah fighters have been killed since the battle started two weeks ago. isil says it took a town in the east. it has one of the main gas supplying stations and is close to the main electric grid. >>> in the north of syria, government jets hit aleppo for a second day. a series of air strikes targeted a number of areas in the south and southwest. activ

bashar al-assad's stronghold. the u.s. has in the past reframed from arming syrian opposition fighters. they were concerned about its weapons landing in the hands of groups like al nusra front, and al qaeda affiliate. but nusra is now joining moderate groups in their fight to repel i.s.i.l. from syria. saudi arabia qatar and turkey provide significant assistance for cereal rebels. fighters hold ground in major cities. more groups are now considering joining forces to defeat bashar al-assad. >> the u.n. says the syrian government must stop using explosive weapons in the yarmouk refugee camp the camp on the outskirts houses pal stinian refugees and was attacked overnight on friday. the u.n. relief agency says it's alarmed for the safety of civilians within yarmouk. the secretary-general ban ki-moon condemned the shelling of the camp. thousands were forced to leave after armed groups entered the camp at the beginning of april. >> egypt's army said it killed 29 fighters in 11 days of raids. 133 suspects have been arrested in t

about assad. can stay in bunkner damascus. we are going to get isis. >> what happened we had to get rid of assad and now it's isis. >> it's a different world. maybe you haven't noticed in the last six months. >> six months? in six months? >> yeah, six smonts a different world yeah, yeah. >>not a different world. >> see all the my grants coming over from africa? did you miss it? >> it's the exact same world. you need to admit that you were wrong by saying we needed to overthrow assad. >> i didn't say anything about assad. i had no analysis on assad at all. >> didn't say anything about assad? i find that hard to believe. >> you have to go back and check. >> i know monica has. >> this was a talking point. we have to get rid of assad. never mind the fact that isis. >> you are bringing up stuff that wasn't brought up here. >> i'm making the point that you guys are wrong all the time. >> things are going so well right now aren't they,. >> i will give monica the last word. >> obama causes every single pr

charlie: when i spoke to assad he said he was not using chlorine gas. said, would you allow inspections? he said we are not using chlorine gas. would you allow inspections? are we anxious to ask -- to inspect? if in fact he is, what is the case that can be made to change that? how do you change that? ambassador power: we have a fact finding mission. it came back with the highest degree of confidence. that chlorine gas is being used systematically in syria. they described hundreds of witnesses who described helicopters coming and victims who don't have even a scratch. we brought two doctors to the security council about three weeks ago in the hopes of shaking people into seeing this cannot go on as business as usual. to your question, our belief is there is a loophole in the international system where all that can be found is high confidence that chlorine was used. they do not have a mandate, have not at the mandate to point the finger at who did it. we need to close the loophole and an attribution mechanism needs to be created. but let's not kid ourselv

the reason we did not was because bashar al-assad gave up his chemical weapons. that's not speculation on our part that, in fact has been confirmed by the organization internationally charged with eliminating chemical weapons. i don't think that there are a lot of folks in the region who are disappointed that bashar al-assad is no longer in possession of one of the biggest stockpiles of chemical weapons of any country on earth of the those have been emanated. it is -- eliminated. it is true that we saw reports about the use of chlorine in bombs that had the effect of chemical weapons. chlorine itself has not been listed as a chemical weapon but when it is used in this fashion, can be considered a prohibited use of the community, we are working to investigate that. if we have the confirmation we need we'll work with the international community and the organization charged with monitoring by the syrian government and reach out to patrons of bashar al-assad like russia, to put a stop to it. with respect to the situation in the arctic it's fair to say that i know a l

assad is just a puppet in the hands of the iran government.oreign occupation on syrian land. the syrian revolution succeeded, the syrian revolution accomplished its goals in delegitimizing the regime completely and now we have a liberation war we are going through and managed to put the iran and forces loyal to them outside the northern area of syria from the south and i think they are gathering forces in damascus and hezbollah is retreating and focusing on very small portion in the damascus and the area. i think they are busy after the victories the rebels have accomplished over the last few weeks. >> you're talking about victories but not so much when it comes to innocent people i mean the amnesty international just released a report about the atrocities committed by both the rebel forces and the government why is that going on? i mean how can you talk about peace when innocent people are being killed at such a rate? >> well you have to be very careful talking about amnesty reports and i'm for it and you have to go specifically to the report

assad fighters still hold ground in major cities.e rebel groups are now considering joining forces to defeat assad. al jazerra. >>> meanwhile, a u.s.-led air strike has killed at least 52 civilians in northern syria. that's according to a monitoring group. the syrian observatory human rights said the target was the isil-held village near the town of. [ inaudible ] activists say children were among those killed and not a single isil fighter was injured. the pentagon said they cannot confirm the report but are researching it. >>> professor of contemporary middle east studies at the london school of economics he says the new coalition of rebel groups is proving too much for president assad's exhausted forces. >> well, i think there are two major points. the syrian army in the last six months or so have suffered some major setbacks in i idlib and in other strategic targets. the second element is that the first time in probably two years the opposition is fighting under a unified command. that is the army al-nusra front. al-nusra front is

we have to look at why assad is losing power.with. the more important thing is you have a combination of a couple forces free syrian army some moderate and even conservative islamists. the combination of the forces are contrary to what isis believes. they continue the momentum and assad loses support from iran you are going to see isis depleted in the areas they are in in syria. but, there's a problem there. if that all happens, who is going to govern if assad does give up power or is overthrown? that's the critical piece. there could be a formation of all kind of loose engagements between all the groups later on if they don't stay together. >> let's talk about what's going on. the aftermath of the terror attack in garland, texas outside of dallas. this american terrorist now dead elton simpson. he was in twitter contact with a guy names hussein, well known terrorist, computer specialist if you will. what does it say to you? >> there's a small story. a terrorist in syria is trying to radicalize people. classic profile. 20-21 year

>> assad has to go.t and the rebels that are in the north and all of the chaos that' happening through a lot of syria circles around a lot of people that do not like assad. assad has to be removed and you have to put someone in that is a qualified leader that can build trust in the area. that stops some of the recruiting to that area. that's a key aspect. we have to remove command and control. i was surprised, the president talked a lot about not putting boots on the ground an, then last week he put boots on the ground in syria. >> let me stop you real quick. you say someone else needs to be put in place. does that person exist? who is that? do you know who that is? >> that is the responsibility of the administration to work with the individuals in the probably southern part of syria to be able to coordinate raise up leaders there to be able to build up the coalitions and get that done. we can't have a rebellion that's happening and not work with individuals on the ground. that is the responsibility of t

assad still has a lot of power. 65% of syrians perhaps even more live under assad rule and not under rebel rule. he has iranian backing. he has sent emissaries and ministers to iran and there is no announcement of new money and new loans. that's worrying the supporters because they're not sure how far iran will go to back them up. it's a real question about the sponsors what kind of perimeter assad can put up. there have been indications that alawites drews christians, the minorities who are terrified of islamic rule are not signing up. they've in a sense been bled white. that's what the sunni activists are saying. we don't know if that's true yet. i suspect that there's is a long battles that we'll see years more of fighting. >> thank you very much, indeed. joshua for your views on the stories. >> no a flood of migrants continue across the mediterranean from north africa, fishermen are those who discover and rescue migrants and often see them die in the water. we have reports where the fishermen are feeling the strain. >> returning to port. these men have tales to tell, but on this

more rebel groups are now considering joining forces to defeat assad. hashem ahelbarra, al jazeera. >> the syrian observatory for human rights, says the saudi attack children were among those killed and not a single i.s.i.l. fighter was injured. no confirmation of the report but it is investigating the claims. >>> two explosions have killed at least 13 people in iraq's capital. officials say the bombs went off just minutes apart in the public -- popular commercial area of baghdad. first suicide car bomb detonated near cafes filled with customers. second car bomb also struck in the neighborhood. >>> egypt's army says it has killed 29 fighters in 11 days of raid in northern sinai. 133 suspects have also been arrested, in a year long crack down. groups based in sinai have been attacking egyptian security forces since president mohamed morsi was overthrown in 2013. >> migrants were captured, 2500 in number over the past few days in mediterranean. stefanie dekker has more from catania in northern italy. >> rescued at least 2400 migrants. we are told there we

i had no analysis on assad at all. >> you never said anything about assad?that very hard to believe. >> i know monica has. >> in is a talking point. we have to get rid of assad never mind the fact that isis is the enemy of assad. >> you are bringing up stuff that wasn't dealt with here. >> i'm bringing up the point that wasn't dealt with you sit sit here and act like you have the solution to everything. >> give monday cat last word. >> causes every single power in the world. >> give your cohort the last word. go. >> when you have a commander and chief in the united states that is weak or perceived as weak, have you advancing enemies and chaos around the world. we know this from history. now what we see is isis is raging across the middle east. isis is on the pref sis of getting a nuclear weapon. china is ascending. even cuba didn't get concessions from us and got a great deal. >> are they going to invade key west? i heard the cubans are coming. >> they might. >> they might have -- >> when our enemies see that the president is a 98-pound weakling who is not w

ambassador power: the consequences of war, of assad the north korean regime.as not a born bureaucrat. certainty not a born diplomat. charlie: that is why we are curious about this. ambassador power: what drew me to the now president is how much he cared about the set of things i valued. he was the only senator out of 100 who read my book and what to do -- wanted to know what to do to stop those career that was not a fluke. now he is the president. those questions, have we looked under every stone? what can we do about chlorine? are we shining a light on north korean horrors? charlie: i sat down with the foreign minister of iran. i have known him for 20 years and we have had many conversations. he said, sanctions did not bring us to the table. did sanctions ring them to the table? ambassador power: absolutely. charlie: he said, we do not want a nuclear weapon. ambassador power: i wouldn't even say trust and verify. i would say verify and never trust. as he noted, there is not a lot of trust between us. charlie: can it be overcome on the question of syria, even

the allo wight birth place of bashar al-assad clan. we'll continue the focus on damascus and toppling the regime, i assure you bashar al-assad's fall will not take a long time. >> here is the leader saying much the same. >> we are preparing to storm the village and expel the gangs. god willing we will declare the city. within a few days it will be a free and liberated city. >> then there's i.s.i.l. promising to take over far more than one country in a quest to establish a calafat. in the sir clan conflict -- syrian conflict truth and clarity is part of the problem. >> i.s.i.l. is in charge of large parts of territory stretching. government forces have been pushed back they still hold parts of aleppo and areas east of hama and homs. meanwhile, they are moving south of idlib and towards latakia. as the syrian conflict enters a fifth year. the only thing clearer is how much suffering there has been. the country's humanitarian crisis grinds on. despite the boasting. it seems clearer than ever that in this war there's no bragging rights. >>

assad fighters still hold ground in major cities. more rebel groups are now considering joining forces to defeat assad. al jazeera. >> at least 13 people have been killed in two explosions in the iraqi capitol baghdad the bombs going off minutes apart in a commercial area. the first was a car bomb detonating near cafes the second struck in the same neighborhood? lawmakers blame isil for these attacks saying fighters have infiltrated sunni refugees fleeing to the capitol from other parts of iraq. >> it's been a bloody few nights. this neighborhood was rocked by two bombs in quick succession late sunday. the latest attack according to some lawmakers was committed by the islamic state of iraq and the levant coming into baghdad disguised as displaced residents. isil's claimed responsibility for the bombings, saying nothing about its fighters in disguise. those fleeing isil violence have wound up in camps across baghdad. they were already afraid of revenge attacks a fear heightened after these bombings. >> this is all nonsense. we fled is

the iran backed assad regime together with iranian proxies like hezbollah continues the slaughter that has killed more than 200,000 syrians and displaced 10 million more despite this tragedy, the administration has defined its policy in syria more by what it will not do rather than by the end state we aim to achieve. although the u.s. military is trained and equip program for moderate syrian forces is finally providing assistance to the fighters, the administration still has not decided whether it will defend syrian opposition against assad's barrel bombs upon their return to syria. refusing to support the forces we train is not only ineffective, it is immoral. while it is still unclear what president obama's willing to do in syria, it is clear our partners do not draw confidence from statements of what we will not do. ramadi's fall should lead our nation's leaders to reconsider its indecisive policy and incoherent strategy that has enabled isil's expansion, undermine regional stability strengthen iran, and harmed america's credibility. what we desperately need is a comprehensive strat

they have also pushed back president bashar al-assad posts -- president bashar al-assad's troops. the rebels took control of the capital in the via a few weeks ago. they have moved even closer to the mediterranean coast. it is the heartland of the country out of white minority. -- the country's aloueitte minority. those who stay are happy that the rebels are here. >> thank god that the opposition has taken over this city. now, there is no trace of the regime or its killing squads. but we are still suffering from airstrikes and bombing attacks. >> the rebels sent an opportunity and they are ready to advance another part of inland province. they have little interest in u.n. led peace talks in geneva. >> if a political solution was still possible -- is lyrical solution was so possible at the first two geneva conferences. and now all that matters is what happens on the battlefield. a third conference is just an attempt to rescue a thought. >> the suit -- rescue assad. >> the two sides are not interested in a resolution to the conflict, no matter what happens. >> 18 of german journalis

army only he has become an assad army.en we are talking about a lead state or regime we have to expect they will use any way possible for them to protect themselves and to keep themselves going on. >> having said that, two attacks in the past week just on this town sara-kiv and seem to be describing how would you characterize, let me put that back the tactics and strategies of the assad regime now would you use the word desperate? do you anticipate there will be more chemical attacks? >> ma'am, after he used the main using of chemical agents 2013 and when he delivered the chemical agents i said never, ever deliver everything he has. even in that timeframe never considered these is from the poison chemical like this it is something used in even in the houses but they don't concentrate on how the military guys can use this okay? so he used it many, many times. there is a lot of reports in the united nations and a lot of evidence from inside and outside he used it last night. so and i expect and i said when the -- when the co

he told how his school was destroyed by the fire of assad's forces.s all sides continue to be right, more neighborhoods continue to be reduced to piles of rubble. >> a lebanese t.v. station leaked a secret video recording of a former minister admitting that bashar al assad knew about a plot to attack lebanon. the minister was close to the syrian regime and the lebanese shia group hezbollah. we have this report from beirut. >> an extraordinary twist and a damning leak which reveals part of syria's role in lebanon. this video from a hidden camera shows a former lebanese minister talking to an in former. >> the leak as far assed after a military court sentenced him to four and a half years in prison. he insisted he was set up and misled. his lawyer argued the crime never took place. the prosecutor charged him of collaborating with the head of the syrian intelligence. the plan was to start a wave of bombings and sass nations against politicians and religious leaders inside lebanon. because he's already spent time in jail, he could released in less than a

strong assad's stronghold. the u.s. has in the past restrained from arming syrian opposition fighters. it was concerned about its weapons landing in the hands of groups like the nursa front, an al-qaeda affiliate but nusra is now joining moderate groups in their fight to repel isil from syria. saudi arabia qatar and turkey provide significant assistance for syria rebels. >> in yemen, the sawedees have discovered they really have power. the united states is following them in yemen, killing shiites. they can turn this toward syria. the united states is not going to stop them from arming these islamists. >> assad fighters hold ground in major cities. more rebel groups are now considering joining forces to defeat assad. al jazeera. >> at least 52 people have been killed over the last two days in u.s.-led coalition airstrikes in syria. the syrian observatory for human rights said the target was the isil village near the town of sarran. it is close to aleppo where the government and rebel groups have been in fierce battles. i

it borders turkey and provides access to assads hometown and the coast. >> reporter: another gain for syrian rebels in northern idlib province. this is a coalition of fighters which includesal -- al-nusra front fighters. >> translator: thanks god we liberated the town in just few hours. i swear they run like rats. >> reporter: after days of ongoing battles regime soldiers have level. the state's news agency says government forces have pulled out to the outskirts to regroup. but families are fleeing. >> translator: some people are scared that the regime will destroy the town using barrel bombs. >> reporter: rebels have also moved on to the village in the western countryside, killing a number of government soldiers. days earlier, rebels captured another town last month they took control of idlib city the province capitol. the next major battle for these fighters would be president bashar al-assad's strong hold on the coast. and syria's a palmyra, the islamic state of iraq and the levant is widening its control. these photos show a glimpse of one offer is -- syrias notorious prisons. fur

bashar al-assad used chemical weapons. that's part of the frustration of the situation in iran that many allies felt over the course of the last several years. in yemen, the united states backing the effort there by the saudi-led coalition to fight the houthis, to drive them back, a pause in the bombing campaign. i had an opportunity to ask the saudi arabia foreign minister whether or not it could be extended as the united states wants it to happen and he says that's always a possibility. many of these issues not just the nuclear talks, front and center at the summit today. >> mike viqueira camp david. thank you. joining us now is al jazeera international affairs contributor joining us from ann arbor. good to have you with us. a lot has been made that only two heads of states of the six g.c.c. countries showed up to the summit arguably because they disagree with the way president obama administration dealt with iran. but this afternoon they looked like they were the best of friends. >> the people that came from the various

for its part, the white house insists it does not cooperate with assad's government. mike biker is here, former c.i.a. covert operations officer and president of diligence llc a global intelligence and security firm. always good to see you. >> thank you. >> let's start here, do you believe that assad had anything to do with this? then talk to me about the significance of this new development that we're reporting on and what it means to the overall fight against isis. >> yeah. you're pointing to one of the real problems we've got in terms of how do we deal with isis in syria a when we don't with a to be cooperating with president assad, with the syrian military. in fact, are actively trying to train and arm syrian opposition. but at the same time, assad in a sense wants the same thing we want which is for isis too permanently disappear. are wele cooperating with them? no, i don't think so. where the delta force conducted this fantastic operation that, eastern part of seer why is where all the key oil fields, refineries are. so it's natural that the syrian military woul

the battle doesn't end at the heartland of the birth place of the assad plan we will continue our planple the regime and i assure you assad's fall wasn't fake a long time. >> reporter: here is the leader of al-nusra, saying much the same. >> translator: we are preparing to storm the village and expel these gangs god willing, we will declare the city south of idlib within a few days it will be a free and liberated city. >> reporter: then there is isil promising to take over far more than just one country in their quest to establish a caliphate. truth and clarity have been two of the most obvious casualties. but here is what is known. isil is now in control of large parts of territory stretching far, as well as recently captured palmyra. while government forces have be about pushed back, they still hold parts after help owe and areas east of homs. they seem to be moving further south of idlib. as the syrian conflict enters its fifth year, the only thing certain is how much civilians have suffererred. with more than 300,000 people killed the country's humanitarian crisis grinds on in the

ambassador says she has no doubt the assad regime is responsible.a power said the position on set upping a no-fly zone has not changed. >> you have to assess whether going to war with the assad regime is likely to bring about the results you seek, it's an extremely complicated enterprise and it's one ultimately that if at sad regime tests it, would entail shooting its planes out of the sky. i think sometimes people refer to a no-fly zone as as if it's some soft side option that we we are turning a blind eye to it's a very complicated enterprise. >>> and you can see that full interview on talk to al jazerra at 4:30 gmt on saturday. >>> fifa's 209 members are preparing to vote in a srez hal poll in zurich. as the corruption crisis surrounding world football's governing body, that crisis deepens. currents boss step blatter is refuse to go resign despite calls for him to do so. in his first statement blatter said it's impossible to supervise everyone, it comes after sefo visuals were arrested among 14 indicted by the u.s. on corruption charges. >> we, o

the iran backed assad regime together with iranian proxies like hezbollah continues the slaughter that has killed more than 200,000 syrians and displaced 10 million more despite this tragedy, the administration has defined its policy in syria more by what it will not do rather than by the end state we aim to achieve. although the u.s. military is trained and equip program for moderate syrian forces is finally providing assistance to the fighters, the administration still has not decided whether it will defend syrian opposition against assad's barrel bombs upon their return to syria. refusing to support the forces we train is not only ineffective, it is immoral. while it is still unclear what president obama's willing to do in syria it is clear our partners do not draw confidence from statements of what we will not do. ramadi's fall should lead our nation's leaders to reconsider its indecisive policy and incoherent strategy that has enabled isil's expansion, undermine regional stability, strengthen iran, and harmed america's credibility. what we desperately need is a comprehensive strat

it's clear assad is responsible and important for russia to acknowledge it. >> russia to explain whyt know who is responsible for chemical attacks and one saying they are not sure. we know who did it. with the government know who did it. they claim they don't so if they don't why wouldn't they want the u.n. to look into that? >> reporter: the russian ambassador told us the draft proposal has been sent to moscow for review and no decisions have yet been made and if the u.n. blames assad government for attacks given the security council's divisions holding them accountable could be difficult and even more difficult is the innocent civilians who have been the victims and those still under threat of being the next. gabrielle with al jazeera, the u.n. >>> the u.s. defense secretary says american troops have started training a small group of syrian tighters to combat the islamic state of iraq and levante and ash carter says it will be a few months before the first group of 90 fighters will be deployed. >> these trainees are recruited, they are vetted and only then are they put into trainin

they say they're ready to push into president assad's strong hold. isil is also consolidated its position and has reportedly blown up a prison and launched a counterattack on kurdish and government forces in the east. >>reporter: the scene in aleppo this morning is great. activists say government helicopters have just dropped barrel bombs. this ambulance is rushing to help survivors. many are dead including women and children. many groups fighting in syria is in aleppo but the province next door syrian rebels have overrun the town and the field commander is promising more gains. >> we still have weapons that we never used before. we promise our brothers that very soon they will see the new weapons. >>reporter: fighters of coalition and rebel groups including al-nusra fighters have plans to attack president assad's stronghold on the coast. syrian forces have been on the retreat in recent days. these military vehicles are set to be heading into the province of hama and the coastal areas beyond. it could be the next crucial battle for the rebels and the

in the north they're focused on the strong held of assad. activists say that barrel bombs and chemical attacks have increased in northern syria following major gains by the opposition in idleb province. around 200 regime soldiers are in this hospital in the suburb of i had lip after rebels recaptured this city. >> and this was the result of another government barrel bomb attack in aleppo. this republic was a school building which despite all the fighting in fighting in fighting in the city that was till open. rescuers are going through the debris but they believe that many of the dead are children. >> i urge all syrians to turn the storm towards syria. we cannot take this any more. >> the syrian opposition political leaders have been following the campaign in yemen led by saudi arabia. they're calling for similar military action against the syrian regime to diminish and defeat assad's forces. >> coming up next on al jazeera, people in london are saying that they're being pushed out of their homes for wealthy foreign investors. making big imp

the assad regime no longer has access to those. at the time we were clear that that declaration remained incomplete. there's in doubt that more work needs to be done to ensure that the assad regime fully meets its obligations. while the declaration isn't complete, we know that the opcw charged with this as its mission is look into those. as the president made clear if those reports are confirmed, he is going to work with the international community specifically russia in order to apply pressure to make sure that never happens again. >> and what kind of options would be on the table for enforcing this? i mean i suppose that red line still stands. i know he took the option of not using military force at the time and opted for this idea of trying to work with russia and rid syria of chemical weapons. but i suppose if this conversation gets restarted again, we have to go back to that question, and that is the question for potential of military force. i'm curious, where do things stand in this area? >> i think my boss josh entertained a

and assad came out yesterday and, in fact, publicly acknowledged that he had suffered some losses. but what concerns do you have if the battlefield in -- [inaudible] looks like assad could be getting shaky like the status quo is changing for him that isis and al-nusra might be, again, gaining strength and destabilize the situation? what risk does that pose in and, mr. secretary, on a completely different subject for you one has to ask about -- [inaudible] in texas just to get you on the record if i may. your response to the governor of texas who expressed his concern that the united states military could risk the civil liberties of the people of texas. >> why don't i just take that one first barbara, just on your second question. we have given information to authorities in texas any information that they've requested. we're very open and up front about our training activities in the united states, and i should say that we're very grateful for the support of communities around the united states for in all of our training facilities. we count upon people's, the support of americans i

more rebel groups are now considering joining forces to defeat assad. hashem ahelbarra, al jazeera. is >> the syrian observatory for human rights says the coalition has killed nearly 52 civilians in it also says children were among those killed and not a single i.s.i.l. fighter was injured. no confirmation of the report but it is investigating these claims. >>> joins us live from baghdad and we certainly appreciate your time. the government says what's happening is i.s.i.l. is basically embedded, among displaced sunnies who are trying to flee safety, does that ring true for you is there any proof on that? >> well, first of all let's speak on frank basis. there is humanitarian crisis, which is very obvious for anyone in the world that are about 250 250,000 and has been displaced from theirs homes because of the fighting with i.s.i.s. and i.s.i.s. has occupied their territories, this is first. and secondly, this is a very important issue is that they must have camps or some sort of support, governmental support for their resistance to be an iraqi lived on the iraqi home land. which is

also ahead on the program, al-nusra front accuses the united states of working with the assad regimeo bomb areas under its control. >>> hospitals in yemen are struggling to cope as losses mount on both sides. >>> i'm in western myanmar where the government's plan to cancel temporary id cards threatens to leave hundreds of thousands of people in limbo. ♪ >>> the president of the european football body has asked fifa president sepp blatter to resign. this is ahead of friday's presidential vote which is widely expected to grant blatter a fifth term. platini has urged other organizations to follow his lead. he had a press conference in zurich a short time ago. >> sepp blatter was affected by what i said because i am a friend with him, and we worked together in '98 when he wanted me as president of fifa and when i said i don't know nothing about fifa. i was open with the president. i need your help so it means that there is a long story with that -- with that. and i said that you have to leave. he was very sensitive on that. i said we are friends, but we will be friends after, and we have