ok jim your reporting from baghdad jim thanks very much for now. a judge in america has dismissed all charges against five men from the u.s. security firm blackwater over the killing of seventeen iraqis. the ganser accused of opening fire on a crowd in baghdad in two thousand and seven. the federal judge said the u.s. justice department and used evidence. prosecutors were not supposed to have the national health service in england is struggling to keep up with the rising number of people needing treatment because of alcohol. that's the claim in a report by health service managers at the n.h.s. confederation. they say better services need to be developed in the community. this is where alcohol is putting the n.h.s. under pressure. ambulance crews and accident and emergency staff deal with incidents daily. patching up the damage from heavy drinking. behind this front line. there is a less visible. but growing. burden of disease. today's report says the n.h.s. lead to pick up alcohol problems earlier. when it easier and cheaper to treat you reckon abo

saddam had not allow the republican guard into baghdad, for example. we assume that is because he did not fully trust will work mostly perpetual -- professional soldiers. in the late stages of the war fighting, we deliberately did not target republican guard units, because we wanted them to be that force of stability in the aftermath. there was a debate i recall about where we likely to swap one dictator for another. that was clearly a risk. >> afterward we went into war, there's still a debate going on about what it would lead to? >> no, because by then it was clear that the ambition we shared was to have a democratic iraq. but you ask me about prior to that, and certainly there was a lot of discussion. i can recall people suggesting that iraq would fall apart, that the three elements would divide and we would end up with restage rather than one state. there was a great deal of speculation as to what this might lead to, but by the time the war fighting began, it was clear that we saw a democratic country as being the outcome. >> thank you. we will rig

the security situation in baghdad deteriorated much more quickly and dramatically. so ultimately the problems were security problems. >> i've got one question which arises out of something interesting you mentioned earlier in the context of targeting. iraq was probably the most photographed country in the world in terms of overhead imagery. >> exactly. >> tim cross when he gets to baghdad, which you just mentioned, is astonished, he told us, by the shattered state of the infrastructure. not by reason of the coalition war damage, just absolutely shattered infrastructure. and, again, we've heard other evidence as you've just opinion saying about the condition of basic infrastructure in the south, patches and mends and things tied up with shoe laces. photographic imagery doesn't disclose that kind of quality condition can of an infrastructure system, is that right? >> well, i think it's -- the point you're making i think i agree with which is that we did not anticipate the extent of those kinds of practical difficulties that we were going to face. >> yeah. that's where

>> woodruff: then, an iraq update after deadly bomb blasts hit hotels in baghdad. >> ifill: as threats and plots multiply around the world, how strong is al qaeda? margaret warner poses that question to a former c.i.a. officer. >> the adversary is growing in its own sophistication, running different types of operations. and as we hit them in certain areas, neutralize capability, they shift to other things. >> the latest from haiti whereas many as 1 million p >> woodruff: the latest from haiti, where as many as one million people are still homeless. ray suarez is in port-au-prince, where he talked with paul farmer, the u.n.'s deputy special envoy, even as international donors meet in montreal to figure out how to help. >> ifill: and a fish story. tom bearden reports on the battle against the invasive giant asian carp. >> they are biological terrorists. and if they get in our great lakes , and hit, impact the ecology and economy, two different canadian provinces, it could cost billions. >> woodruff: that's all ahead on tonight's "pbs newshour." major funding for the pbs newshour is provi

judghas dismissed all chars against 5 blackwater security guards accuseof killinunarmed civilians in baghdad. >> suarez: the presint gets a preliminary report intthe attempt to bw up a u.s. airler. we'll talk tintelligence commity veterans about what went wrong. >> brown: then, a econd look' asaul solman asks economists one central questionbout the recessio >> why didant -- why didn't the fed tell us? >> why didn't warn you. >> yes >> suarez: gwen ifillooks back at a dmatic decade in u.s. politics. withmy walter, andy kohut and michaebeschloss. >> brown: and thpoetic partnehip between one of russia's leadingriters and the husband who trslates her. >> this gis a lot of advantages to the -- view. because he gets toranslate poems at we lived through tother. >> bwn: that's all ahead on tonight's pbs newshour major fundinfor the pbs nehour is provided by: >> this is the enginthat connts abundant grain from the american heartland tharan's best selng whole wheat, while keeping 60 billion poundof carbon out of e atmosphere every year. bnsf, the engine that nnects us. >> chevr. this is the por of hum

saddam had not allow the republic guard into baghdad, for example. and it was assumed that was because he didn't wholly trust mostly professional soldiers, and indeed, in the later phase of the war fighting, we deliberately did not target republican guard units. because we wanted them to be that force for stability in the aftermath. but then there was a debate -- i can recall, about we're likely to swap one dictator for another dictator. i mean, that was clearly a risk. >> as we went into war, there was a debate still going on about what it would lead to? >> know. because i think by then it was clear that the ambition, particularly in the american ambition we shared was to have a democratic iraq. that you asked me about prior to that, and certainly there was a lot of discussion. i can recall people suggesting that iraq would fall apart. the three elements would divide. that we would end up with three states rather than one state. so those a great deal of speculations as to what this might lead to. but by the time the war fighting began it was clear t

other dinah magny is in baghdad.t to her to find out what will change and what will stay the same in iraq in 2010. >> reporter: iraq 2010, there are two key dates on the calendar which will fundamentally shape this country's future. march the 7th, national elections. iraqis will choose whether they want a secular or religious leadership, whether iraqi nationhood matters more than a myriad of ethnic and sectarian tensions. and then there's the time it will take to form an actual government. >> if you really have two elections here, you have the election for the members of parliament, the over 300 members of parliament, and enyou have what may be the more important election, which is the election of the prime minister president council of representatives and the determination of who will hold key ministry positions and so forth in government. >> reporter: the u.s. is banking on that transition to power being a smooth one because less than five months later, it plans to have pulled some 60,000 troops out of iraq. only 5

in iraq, baghdad was hit ba series of bombgs on the same day that a notorious henchman saddam hussein w executed. we have a report narrated lindsey hilsum oindependent telesion news. >> tee suicidear bombs in baghdad today. all targetedt hotels where foreigne stay. the bombers di't get right inde. bustill managed to kill mo than 30 people and injure 70 others. reporter: neighboring houses are were bln apart. fireghters helping suivors to safety. as iraq heads tords electionin early march, such attacks are eected to coinue or inease. the americans y the perpetrators are probablal qaeda in iraq, largely sunni grp supported by some members osaddam hussein'now banned ba'ath rty. today one of the most notorious ba'athists, beer knn as chemical ali was hanged. a judge read the sentence week ago. >> thanks be to god, he responded. it was his fourth deat senten for genocide and crimes against humanit iraqi ar video was used as evidencen court. here he seen presiding over the abuse oshi'a prisers captured during the upsing in 1991 which follow the invasion of kuwait. he gainehis nick name afte

americans felt about restoring electricity, i saw half of baghdad string the generators. when donald rumsfeld said the lights are on it was not because of anything he did but the study generators who were across baghdad in other neighborhoods. look at what the locals do. the locals know what the solutions are. microprojects are the way to go. quick projects that are sustainable and seen and controlled by locals. some one pointed out don't hand out soccer balls. empower the local. don't make them like you. give him the soccer ball. kill or capture, you have to kill or capture a few but fewer than we think. you will not find stronger advocates of the counterinsurgency approach than people who try to kill or capture their way out of iraq and afghanistan. this is why general kristol is such an advocate. he is trying plan a and he knows it didn't work. >> i agree with that. there is the enemy centric view which focuses on the enemy. they are partially correct. we don't need to focus on the enemy at all. there is some language that says that. we have to do some of that. general

and if necessary, to bypass some of the cities on the way, because they regarded baghdad as the keyenter psychologically and practically of the regime. >> looking back on the successful campaign, what was the reflection on what they prefer to do differently? >> on the war fighting? i am not sure there was a huge difference i would have made. the war fighting path was remarkably successful. we sustain some casualties, but by and large, it was a success. sir john made reference to an observation. one of the difficulty iies is tt the resistance left in the wake of the front line is being able to attack not the front line and the hard and combat forces, but some of the people as much -- not so much to the reader but in the side, so some of the attacks -- some of those loyal to saddam hussein took some american prisoners who were mechanics. i think a chef was taken prisoner. they were able to come in to the side of the advance and, and pes those people were not as well- protected. in a provincial case, the front line would have taken all the resistance with it. that may have been an issu

they were accused of killing 17 iraqi citizens in 2007 in a massive shoot-out in baghdad. the judge said the government improperly compelled the guards to make statements about the incident, which violated their fifth amendment rights. an official for the iraqi government calls the incident an act of murder. iraq is asking the u.s. justice department to appeal the dismissal. the u.s. commander in iraq says the iraqis are looking for justice. >> it's a lesson in the rule of law. we're a country of rule of law. iraq is a country that's abiding by the rule of law. and that's what protects its citizens in the long run is having a system where you use the rule of law in order to make your determinations. and i think this is the case. >> the blackwater employees were guarding a state department convoy when the shooting began. the company says its contractors were under attack. now, after the incident, blackwater changed its name to xe. >>> a suicide car bomb at a volleyball game killed at least 93 people. it happened yesterday in northwest pakistan near the border with afghanist

what are muslims supposed to do when they are being killed in the streets in afghanistan, in baghdadme right to defend themselves? in war people die. people don't make love. they kill each other. >> we want to remove this idea that islam is a religion of peace. it is not a religion of peace. there is evidence in the book of islam called the koran, sanctioning violence. >> reporter: but does the koran really sanction this kind of violence? no, says sheikh shahid, who has spent a lifetime fighting apartheid and islamic extremism in south africa. >> these extremists claim to know islam, but they are an a la carte version of islam, that seems to portray god and his messages as cruel and uncompassionate monsters. i demand them to provide proof from the text of the koran, the holy book islam. >> chapter 9, verse 29, what does allah say, find those of you who do not believe in omar and in hereafter. >> reporter: to decipher the koran we visited the same east end neighborhood where our journey began, to talk to imam usama hasan. they say, but look, these verses in the koran that are quoted j

ak-47's and rhinocerus horns high on khat, that is not the kind of place like we're talking about baghdad or afghanistan. this is a real feudal society. >> it's primitive, wide and it's almost ungoverned. and before talking about americans direct involvement in that, we ought to think about how we are contributing to the problems in yemen. the two leaders of al-qaeda in yemen are are ex-graduates of guantanemo. the bush administration to its demarry its released them in -- demerit released them in 2007. this administration has released six yemenises in the last month and it's got 91 yemenis in guantanemo. as you know, obama is dead set on closing guantanemo. all of this is suspended. they're going to re-examine these guys. because if these guys are released they're going to end up in yemen and in al-qaeda. the idea that we are to feed the insurgency in yemen by releasing the people as we have in the past is rather insane. and rather than speak about the event in detroit as complicating as closing guantanemo, we ought to speak about it as having us re-examine the idea of closing guantanemo

arrived in baghdad.een hours in surgery, blood transfusions, woke up two days later, and i got awarded the purple heart by general petraeus. but let me tell you the most important thing that happened on p that day. our leader called my family and told them i would be okay. that's what it's all about. as i embarked on that mission you go from baghdad to germany, germany to the walter reed, brooke army medical center. and i would end up spending almost 40 days in icu, a total of 18 surgeries, 195-118 pounds. two staph infections and this is when i felt suicidal. and i want to show you this video because it depicts what i looked like right after this battle. >> today major ed pulido leans on two cedar sticks. >> i need help. i had to ask for hem. >> but he'll spend the rest of his life leaning on his wife. >> this won't bring him down. i know that for a fact. >> nine weeks ago a bomb exploded beneath a vehicle he was driving through an iraqi desert. >> it's hard to talk about. >> pulido's knee was smoking,

hunter steve irwin is killed in a freak encounter with a stingray, saddam hussein executed at dawn in baghdadnd on february 11th a story that the media still talks about three years later, vice-president dick cheney accidentally shoots and wounds his 78-year-old hunting partner, harry whittington while on a quail hunt at a ranch in texas. the hunting accident, it's sort of the gift that keeps on giving for main street media, isn't it judy? >> it really did. we went straight from the pictures of people stranded on roof tops in new orleans, the inability of the federal government to the bush administration to respond, straight, straight to dick cheney shooting his friend with a rifle. i mean, it couldn't have been better. >> shotgun. >> shotgun. >> there we go. >> na, na. >> i'm not an outdoor girl. >>, but you know, it really set the entire tone, anything was fair game now. >> and fair game, was the coverage fair? >> it was fair enough. >> i mean. >> yeah. if no one dies these stories are a lot more fun. >> if joe biden had done it he'd be center ice on "saturday night live," too. >> jon: all

and until this in the book when i first got to baghdad there was a security protocol you go through when they require you to wear one vest the hell i am i aware three. i wear one, said on one and have won by the window in case someone shoots up the car so when we get to in our hotel as soon as we pull up to the hotel someone more curse our hotel. it's hit by two martyrs' and we scramble and ran the building and as i got out of the car to run to the building i could feel reverend a. andrews hands on my head and remember him saying lord, cover from the top of his head to the bottom of his feet. [applause] when i first got inside the hotel finally i wish i could say i had a great prayer but -- already? so i've run inside and my colleague who met me, a great producer of cbs news named ben placer said were you boys lucky. i said no i wasn't lucky i predawn. thank you. i look forward to signing your books. [applause] >> byron pitts is an emmy award winning journalist and contributing correspondent to the news magazine 60 minutes. for more information, visit us.macmillan.com/stepoutonnothin g.

judge dismissed the charges against them the five blackwater guards opened fire on a baghdad street in 2007, leaving 17 civilians dead. the shooting hardenened antiamerica sentiment in iraq. >>> still ahead on "world news" this saturday -- the new year brings new laws and lifestyle changes for millions of americans. how they'll affect you. >>> a young man stays in the game that he loves even though he can't see the field. true grit in the heartland. >>> and it's all in the timing. identical twins with birthdays in different decades. years from now, how will we look back on today? as the gat recession? or as the recession that made us great? allstate has seen twelve recoveries. but this one's different. because we're diffent. we realized our ings are not as important... as the future we're building with the ones we love. protect yours. put it... in good hands. ♪ that's when i'd had it with heartburn. the guy was hilarious. but i was in pain, so i stepped out. (comedian) hey, are you walkin' out on me-- is it past your curfew? i will never make that mistake again. that's when i'd had it

vice president biden arrived in baghdad. he's hoping to ease a political dispute that threatens plans for march elections in iraq. and britain raised its terror threat level one notch to "severe". the government would not say what prompted the change. the newshour is always online. hari sreenivasan, in our newsroom, previews what's there. hari. >> sreenivasan: we look at a new study showing children ages eight to 18 are spending more than seven hours a day in front of all sorts of screens, be they tvs, computers or cell phones. we'll talk to the lead researcher. on health care, analysts weigh in on the prospect of a scaled- back healthcare bill after the republican victory in massachusetts this week. finally, be sure to join us for an informal conversation with shields and brooks after the program. all that and more is on our web site, newshour.pbs.org. jeff. >> brown: and that's the newshour for tonight. i'm jeffrey brown. >> lehrer: and i'm jim lehrer. "washington week" can be seen later this evening on most pbs stations.

are grounds for concern as america is beginning to reduce its presence but even the government in baghdad seems to believe it will face an easier time in combating a domestic insurgency with occupation overshadowing iraq. in making israel palestine conflict, president obama addressed the issue with a lot of history of one-sided u.s. policies and the ratings suggested he did not enjoy the confidence of the palestinian people. of like every other country polled february and march this year the palace story and territories reported a marked decline in support for the united states government. they had a higher view of american policy for george bush than they did of america february 2009. of course, palestinians are still recovering from 2008 / 2009 that left palestinians and israelis dead creek and that even the election could call the rage with the devastation of that conflict and words could not be enough. obama gave his cairo audience something of a mixed message. he started by reaffirming america to its alliance with israel. he said unbreakable bond but the reflection on the plight of t

matching what would happen if al qaeda, you know, if we pulled out and al qaeda would be taking over in baghdad. the image he invoked was from vietnam, you, the north vietnamese tanks knocking down the open gates of the presidential palace in saigon. that wasn't going to happen in iraq. sample, demographics. 60 percent of the population are shiites are and they were in control of the army. of course, a shiite army. control the south. they weren't -- there was no way that the al qaeda baathist insurgency was going to be able to defeat them. and the kurds, who had certainly in the earlier -- you know, a few years ago, and maybe even still today, the strongest military in iraq. they weren't going to be defeated by the al qaeda out of. there was no support among the shiites for al qaeda, or the console sees who view the shiites as a people who should be killed. the kurds, virtually no support in kurdistan. so we are talking about a problem that existed in about 20 percent of the population. and of course, the problem solve itself when the fundamentalist element, who the local power structure, the b

as i embarked on that mission -- people from baghdad to germany to walter reed medical center. i would end up going to brooke army medical center and spending almost 40 days in icu, a total of 18 surgeries, and this is when i felt suicidal. i want to show you this video, because this is what i look like right after this. >> ed pulido leans on two seeder sticks. he will spend the rest of his life leaning on his white. nine weeks ago, of bomb exploded. >> it is hard to talk about. i could see through my leg. >> he nearly bled to death, and during the next six weeks, if he wanted to live, he had one choice. >> i lost a leg, but that is nothing compared to losing my life. >> of man who once trained iraqi soldiers in the heats can barely carry a lunch tray at a restaurant. it is unbearable without his wife. >> i cannot things up. >> sometimes he can still feel his missing leg. it will help. >> he said his leg was fishing. i reached down on the hospital bed and said, is that better? >> what you going to get dad? >> of ft. -- 8 ft.. >> it is a smile that could get a dad's heart to mit

he is deciding whether to return to kabul or baghdad. >> alexander?exander is living in california. he is engaged in ever more interesting projects on his house. >> you have a little wraps on in a hearing situation. this is only a minute or so. let's run this and then we will wrap it up. >> this morning, we meet on actions regarding investment banks and other financial institutions. ♪ ♪ >> the video, you must have gone over that idea because you were out in a normal position. >> actually, no, it did not work that way. the boy shot before the idea happened. that music, you might want to say how we ended up with that music. >> that was written in 1982. we heard about it from former traders from bear stearns and there were playing of that in the bear stearns trading room. it is very eloquent. >> in 60 seconds, what did you learn? you better go first. >> the most important is when they tell you that things are too complicated for you to understand. that is not to. -- not true. it is very simple. >> i think that what i learned is having spent so much of my

at a specific time and place and the neocons were all for that except he did not go all the way to baghdad and george hw bush felt he could not principally because it would have fallen apart so the new kinds went back into the habitual posture which was the greatest -- greatest criticize hours of foreign policy the world has ever seen. we do a terrific job of selling you the alternative throughout the bill clinton years. steadfast all through that time if you want to find an alternative way to look at the world and what ought to be done the neocons were there to provide it and only during george w. bush for the even able to come to the floor to utilize their power through guys who were not necessarily neocons bush and cheney and rumsfeld who were not in the neocon camp of academics and newspaper editorial writers. this is the art that retrace and the book and great detail and tell you a lot about very interesting people and i think i better stop now and len can fill you in the most interesting character. >> there is one person in the book from many of the characters are familiar to most re

moore was freed in baghdad this past wednesday. he worked as a computer programmer for a private military company in iraq when he was kidnapped by insurgents more than two and a half years ago. i'm greg. now back to "pirates of the 21st century." for all the latest headlines, log on to foxnews.com. >> welcome back to fox news report "pirates of the 21st century." i'm martha mccallum. as days passed tensions and condition aboard the ce cec future grew dire. we begin with amy kellog and the mysterious ali ali. >> and there he was, standing in a hotel lobby ready to talk about the dirty business of negotiating cash for the lives of hostages held by pirates. >> how did you get involved being a neglectator. >> i got involved in activity with a couple that has been kidnapped in 2008. i was there two months. and those two months i heard a lot about piracy. >> ali claims he spent years living in the united states, including maryland and new york. in manhattan he claimed he once worked as a driver for a legendary bandleader. fox news can't

as i embarked on that mission -- people from baghdad to germany to walter reed medical center. i would end up going to brooke army medical center and spending almost 40 days in icu, a total of 18 surgeries, and this is when i felt suicidal. i want to show you this video, because this is what i look like right after this. >> ed pulido leans on two seeder sticks. he will spend the rest of his life leaning on his white. nine weeks ago, of bomb exploded. >> it is hard to talk about. i could see through my leg. >> he nearly bled to death, and during the next six weeks, if he wanted to live, he had one choice. >> i lost a leg, but that is nothing compared to losing my life. >> of man who once trained iraqi soldiers in the heats can barely carry a lunch tray at a restaurant. it is unbearable without his wife. >> i cannot things up. >> sometimes he can still feel his missing leg. it will help. >> he said his leg was fishing. i reached down on the hospital bed and said, is that better? >> what you going to get dad? >> of ft. -- 8 ft.. -- 8 ft.. >> it is a smile -- a foot. >> it is a smi

the answers i got back is when a bomb goes off in baghdad or afghanistan and innocent women and children are killed, who cares for them? if a bomb goes off in america or london what is wrong that? >> a poll in the times of london showed a shocking 13% of british muslims believe the london subway bombers were martyrs and many british muslims see the iraq war as a war against islam, against them. we are talking about england, young mus sims who grew up in this country. i think people would be stunned to hear you say it is essentially foreign policy which is causing youngsters to blow themselves up on the subway system and youngsters to think that's cool. >> foreign policy has a lot to do with it. and -- but it's the minority radical groups that use that to get to our young people. >> some of those young muslims are easy prey because they believe the british government crackdown is scapegoating them as when minister john reed came talk to their parents. >> there are fanatics who are looking to groom and brainwash children including your children so all i say is look for those telltale signs

whether it is the shock and all of the mission to the tranquillity of what it looks like in baghdad to what we read able to provide for me specifically and those that have served our nation in this great room with a you been in this bitter of operations are not. one thing for me that was so satisfying is in that we gave the iraqi people their freedom. as i embark on this mission i also understood that the people on the ground would also be our intelligence. they would also be those individuals that we would begin to develop relationships with. and at times when you saw the death and destruction of what may happen to them, those images, of course, live with each and every day. but also knowing that what we were doing was truly a valuable mission in and whether our politicians did what they are going to do for us it was about winning and making sure that we accomplish a mission on the ground. and so as we stayed away from the political climate our job was clear to provide this support to it that they can control their own country and destiny and own future. one thing for me that is a ver

i'm not avoiding my responsibility as part of the government for what was taking place in baghdad and beyond, but i wasn't in the same way directly responsible for that in the way that responsibilities were allocated. but nevertheless, as far as the military part was concerned, when those requests came, i had to make a judgment, i hope consistent with the answers i gave to sir roderic a moment ago, between, what did we need to do in the south and what was our primary focus there, and what contribution did we need to make as a good ally, as part of the coalition, to operations further north. i think that was not the only operation i turned down, simply because i felt that perhaps our priorities still remained in the south and that we had played our part. eventually, we did decide that, because the americans were conducting a major, a very significant operation, in and around fallujah, that we would relieve them of some duties i think it was in an area known as north babil. >> so these decisions, not to put too fine a point on it, were mistakes? >> i think they were, i think that it wou

judge dismissing the charges against the blackwater security guards accused of killing 17 people in a baghdadntersection in 2007. the judge said prosecutors built their case on sworn statements given under a promise of immunity, violating the guard's constitutional rights. prosecutors can appeal that ruling. new problems with the president's pick to head the tsa and we'll take you behind the scenes to the fbi during time square. now, back to special report. >> welcome back to our special new year's edition of special report. here again our panel. steve hays, senior writer for the weekly standard. a.b. stoddard of "the hill" and charles krauthammer, as the american remembered their war dead on memorial day, korea's laters act with condemnation, underground nuclear testing and president obama called it threat to international peace. what about the north korea situation? >> well, back in the campaign, there was this tense exchange between president obama and his now secretary of state hillary clinton on the question of engaging dictators and engaging space and certainly one of the people that wa

he sent long letters to the leaders of the jewish community and baghdad in which he urged them to take up arms, crossed the waste and join him. thousands came. they called him the king of the jews. we don't know what he look like, he lived in the muslim world where image making was a sin. this is thought to be an obstacle, but i think it is a boom. a picture is a moment in a sea of moments. so it distorts as much as it reveals. until the hunt is more vivid without a picture. as is king david, as is crazy or is. in the picture, david outgrow it would be a stick figure in period costume. without he is wild haired. with happy eyes and dressed in a suit pulled from a dumpster on skid row. he stands in the streets screaming, your fathers or to attribute the mr. t. said he would attack the garrison, dried out the errors and purify the town then leave his ragged army to palestine. in old books his story builds, then soon after he sounds a battle cry, his arm is gone, he is gone. it's a story without the finish. according to most dollars, this probably means the rebellion was crushed and outri

. >> we know that there's overcrowding and houseing in kabul and baghdad. there may not be anything we can do about that in the short run burks if there are other types of equipment or needs not being met, let us know about that. >> thank you. larry sperling from the oes bureau. want to applaud the earths you've laurnled with respect to the qddr, a much-needed look at the direction that weaver going. i'm wondering if you can share any insights on the kinds of reform that is might occur as a result of that review. in particularly, whether putting development in diplomacy on equal footing means greater integration or greater independence of decisionmaking between state aid and also to what extent we might see stream lining of the various decisionmaking processes for planning and budgetting. >> well, larry, those are all very important questions. i'm not going to preempt or preview the qddr. we will be having many meetings to explain what the proposed conclusions are and the policy that is flow from them. but i think just your question illustrates the need. i

as i embarked on that mission -- people from baghdad to germany to walter reed medical center. i would end up going to brooke army medical center and spending almost 40 days in icu, a total of 18 surgeries, and this is when i felt suicidal. i want to show you this video, because this is what i look like right after this. >> ed pulido leans on two seeder sticks. he will spend the rest of his life leaning on his white. nine weeks ago, of bomb exploded. >> it is hard to talk about. i could see through my leg. >> he nearly bled to death, and during the next six weeks, if he wanted to live, he had one wanted to live, he had one ch i lost a leg, but that is nothing compared to losing my life. >> now on man who once trained iraqi soldiers in 130 degree heat can barely carry a lunch tray at a restaurant. unbearable he says. sometimes he can still feel his missing a leg. it will hurt. >> he said his foot was pitching, and i can reach down on a hospital bed, and i said, is that better. i scratched his foot. >> you are going to give him a new foot? at target panama -- at target? >> it is

you probably remember seeing the images of dead corpses in baghdad street, dozens of them every night american casualties going way up. so that was what finally inspired me to get cracking on a question of command. the book is largely historic low, although i mention i'm a historian. so there are nine historical cases. the last two being iraq and afghanistan up to 2008. it does draw some general lessons from those various cases, although i point out repeatedly that counterinsurgency there are very few instruments that will work in all cases. so an important part of the leadership is being able to figure out when you can use those particular methods. the first case i'm going to talk about is the malayan emergency of 1948 to 1960. and i'm going to start in the middle of that in october 6 of 1951. go on that date the british high commissioner, sir henry, decided to take a trip to fraser's hill which is about 65 miles outside the capital city. he went in a four vehicle convoy but on the way, two of the vehicles had to stop for technical reasons. but they pressed on. and when they came to

i have confidence that our embassy in baghdad has been communicating with the government divert iraq or able ambassador chris hill to make sure that they understand what this case means, where it is in the legal process. >> today you have it both, as you said earlier jordanian and egyptian leaders and ministers here. on now, we're coming up on the first anniversary of the israeli cause a hamas confrontation. it in other areas such as the west bank there's a new launch appearance center, who have both israelis and palestinians actively daily working together to build a science center and other economic pursuits, yet this isn't occurring with gossip. and it appears that fatah and hamas are political and odds. what to do it the times will egyptians enjoy dance as well as secretary clinton bring to the table to lessen those animosities? >> let me take half of that question and certainly you heard some passionate staymans little while ago from said net -- from secretary clinton from foreign minister judah, and that the critical importance of the middle east peace, the urgency that we all

also you asked about baghdad. right now -- i thank you are where there is a. >> and move afoot in the krg to combine the puk and kdp pesh. it's already happened at the minister of the pesh level, the equivalent of the minister of defense if you will in the krg. that's already happened at that level and now the desire and the actual action and movement is to combine the puk and kdp pesh forces. that is significant. it's a natural step in the evolution in the peshmerga being immigrated into the iraqi army at some point in the future. it has support from baghdad there's progress in that. of small steps but there's progress in that. let me toss it back to you in case i didn't answer the question properly for you or if you have a follow-on. >> just a follow-up. it could you give us -- to do you have any figures and numbers about the size of the peshmerga and right now and you believe that this krg would agree to have a the peshmerga integrated within the iraqi army? >> i can't give you -- i can give you the size of the

and indeed the attack yesterday in baghdad did as well.nd president obama was right to demand a greater accountability and cooperation from our intelligence services as a result. in afghanistan, president obama set in motion a troop increase intended to prevent that nation from averting to a terrorist haven. and in iraq, december was the first month without an american combat death since the war began. a hopeful sign as the united states prepares to withdraw combat forces this year. as we speak, american troops are risking their lives around the world. and our terrorist enemies are working hard to undermine our security and safety. but the president's thoughtful decision-making process and efforts to rebuild relationships with our allies are signs of a wise and effective foreign policy at work. in closing, we know that this is a time of real anger and angst in america. for those of us who weren't alive for the great depression, these are the hardest economic times we've ever seen. and the size of our hardship is the size of our test as wel

five guards re accused of killing 14 civilns in baghdad in 2007. but last week, a federaludge in washingtothrew out the charges. toda maliki promised lawsuits both american and iraqi courts. >> for our part, we have de what is necessary to proct our citizens ando punish those o committed the crime. we he formed committees and filed a lawsuit ainst the black water curity firm. both in america and iraq weon't abandon our right to punish this firm. sreenivasan: the blackwater guards claimed thewere ambushed. osecutors and many iraqis sa the guards use of chine guns and grenades was unpvoked. the first business dayf the new year s a surge in stocks and the price of oil. wall street surged on encouraging news about manufacturing in the u.sand china. the dow jones dustrial average ined nearly 156 points to close just under0,584. the nasdaq rose 39 pointto ose at 230 and oiclosed above $81 a barrelor the first time in nely three months, as frigid weather gripped the stern u.s. d drove up demand. the number of bankrucies in the u.s. rose 32% in 2009. the a

baghdad and tell us us what will change and what will stay the same in iraq in 2010. >> reporter: iraq0. there are two key dates in the calendar which will fundamentally shape this country's future. march the 7th, national elections. iraqis will choose whether they want a secular "religious leadership. whether iraqi nation offers mere a myriad p tensions. then there's the time it will take to form a government. >> u6 two election, the election for the members of parliament, the over 300 members of parliament, and then you have the what may be the more important election, which is the election of the prime minister, council of representatives and the determination of who will hold key ministry positions and so forth in government. >> reporter: the u.s. is banking on that transition to power being a smooth one because less than five months later, it will plans to have pulled some 60,000 troops out of iraq. only 50,000 will stay after august 2010, all advise and assist bringing gads. while this is going organization you also have the vote of foreign investors. thir see increasingly willin

general petraeus just made an announcement in baghdad a couple days ago that there are 70 million inilitary aid to yemen will double in the coming year. >> what do they have to do with that money? how are they going to attack this? given the two things you mentioned, one is the tremendous domestic instability and on the other hand one many of the analysts say is the most chapter of al qaeda outside of pakistan and afghanistan. >> chris, you're right on the money. most places al qaeda goes is where government control is weak. this is a very weak central government. president saleh's been in office for 28 years. it's not a very competent and it's sort of a corrupt -- >> well, we just lost our satellite signal with general mccaffrey. our thanks to him. maybe we can get him back in a little while. are you back, general? >> yeah, i guess. yeah. >> we just lost you after your first sentence talking about the difficulty given the fact of the internal turmoil and the strength of al qaeda in the arabian peninsula. >> yeah. well, i think the key is that what we're going to see is the saudis an

also you asked about baghdad.combine the p.u.k. and the k.d.p.-pesh. it's already happened at the minister of pesh level, the equivalent of the minister of defense, if you will in the k.r.g. that's already happened at that level and now the desire and the actual action and movement is to combine the p.u.k. and k.d.p.-pesh forces. that is significant. it is a natural step in the evolution. pesh-merga being integrated into the iraqi army at some point in theç future. it has support from baghdad. there's progress in that. small steps, but there's progress in that. let me toss it back to you in case i didn't answer the question properly for you. or if you have a follow-on. >> just follow up. could you give us -- do you have any figures, any numbers about the size of the pesh right now? do you believe that the k.r.g. would agree to have the pesh integrated within the iraqi army? >> i can't give you this. i can give you the size of units that i'm -- that i sit across from or deal with their commanders. and i can't shoo

approach to send the air assault to baghdad. which you turned down, i think. what was in your mind, how did you judge it? >> i think there was a balance. in some extent i'd have to recognize in a number of the questions today, my focus was basra and the south. because that's essentially where british troops where or where they were made engaged. i'm not avoiding my responsibility for the government on what was taking place in baghdad. i wasn't in the same way directly responsible for that in the way that responsibilities were allocated. but nevertheless, as far as the military part was concerned, when the request came i had to make a judgment consistent with the answers that i gave a moment ago. between what did we need to do in the south, and what was our primary focus there? and what contribution did we need to make as a good ally as part of the coalition to operations further north? i think that was not the only operation i turned down, simply because i felt perhaps our priority still remained in the south and we had played our part. eventually, we did deci

sreenivasan in our newsroo >> sreenasan: in iraq today, a suicide car bomber attacd a police crime l in baghdad. at least 22 iraqisere killed and 80 more injud. reue crews combed through the rubblend cleared debris, only to finmost of the dead and injured were police officers e blast follows the executio of saddam hussein's cousin known aschemical ali", and raisedpeculation that today's attacks were retaliaon by sunni insurgents. but the top u. commander in iraq, army gener ray odierno, said he saw "aolutely no connection" betweethe two. an american ba inside kabul was the target of a suide bomb attack. 14 people we wounded, including eight amerans. thbomber set off a minivan packed with explosivesear camp phoenix. the taliban claime respsibility for it, saying the bomber was aiming a civilian cvoy. it comes jusover a week after taliban gunmenaunched an assault on kul that brought e capital city to a standstill the los anges city council gaveinal approval to close most shops that sell medal marijuana. the are currently between 800 and a thousa pot clinics operating acro l.a. but undethe new rul

mewhile, the head of the us ceral command paid a new year's visit to americanroops in baghdad. genel david petraeus said the iraqi elections scduled for march 7, are of "enoous importance" the country's future. britain launched an immedie review of its current rport security measureafter the failedlane bombing over detroit. prime minister gdon brown said he is considering instling new technoloes like full-body scanners to screen ssengers. we have a report from ul davies of indendent television news. >>eporter: some may feel its an invasion of priva, technology thacan see under your clothes. but the itish government appears to be the late to decide its an acceptab price to pay if stops a potential suicide bomber. this system which has been successfully trial at manchester cld soon be a fixte at all of britain's airports. in a stateme gordon brown sa, the detroit plot thankfully failed. but it has been another wakep call. he added there was now a nd to enhance airpt security systems beyond the traditional meares. full body scners have already been introduced at american airports.

larry collins one day locked me in my bedroom in baghdad, so i wouldn't send the photographs of the iraqirevolution, and long time ago, to paris match but i was able to avenge myself a few months later by giving him a wrong train schedule to a chain leaving to-- and i was the last journalist to be able to interview the-- of absentia. one day we were spending a few days of vacation on the golden sands of central bay and that is when we said to each other, why don't we try to write a story together that would have an appeal to french public and to an anglo-saxon public and that is when in fact we found out that hitler had given 14 times the instruction to his commander in paris to defend the city and its last man and to destroy it. and yet paris had escaped from the most destructive conflict in the history of humanity. it was a miracle, and this miracle was that frank uroamerican miracle because paris, and i was in the city as a 13-year-old child, paris had been liberated by 20,000 american soldiers from the fourth infantry division and 20,000 french soldiers from the second armored divisio