i'm brianna keilar reporting from washington. wolf blitzer is on assignment today.k with our coverage of will ripley's interview with american detainees in north korea. one of the men that he spoke with was christian missionary ken naeth bae. charged and convicted of planning to overthrow the north korean government. let me play a bit of that conversation. >> well, american governments right now, i've been asking the american government to act upon getting me released here, and i do believe that special envoy need to come in order to resolve the situation that i'm in right now. so i do ask the u.s. government to send an envoy as soon as possible. i think that's the only hope that i have right now in order for me to go home, be reunited with my family. >> brian todd joining me now with more. brian, kenneth bae has been detained for quite a while at this point. tell us about that and also what he did, how he came to be charged with these crimes. >> bae has been in custody for almost two years. now, in april of last year, he was sentenced for, quote, hostile acts again

i'm brianna keilar in today for wolf blitzer.nt obama is getting ready to lay out his strategy for combatting the terror group isis this week and it's sure to be a

i have never been there, but brianna keilar is there and following what could well be the beginning of the 2016 presidential race. brianna? >> yes, this is an important visit that hillary clinton is making here, deborah, and we have seen hillary and bill clinton this morning. they went to a fund-raiser that will benefit iowa democrats in this key midterm year, and then coming to the political event which is also a fund-raiser, and you said it, even though hillary clinton has not declared that she is go g ing to run in 2016 in fact, insists that she is undecided about whether to throw the hat in the ring, but this state in iowa, a state so is inhospitable to her in 2008 is seen as the beginning of the potential campaign. >> reporter: hillary clinton has been the inevitable candidate before. >> i know, but there time we are go ing the fix it. >> reporter: and nowadays she is laughing along with the joke. at a friday service for poet maya angelou. >> i would like to thank some speakers and dignitaries and first and foremost mad dam presi -- excuse me. >> reporter: this weekend, she return

>>> i'm brianna keilar reporting from washington. wolf blitzer has the day off. to this bombshell from the justice department. attorney general eric holder is stepping down after nearly six years on the job. holder is america's first african-american attorney general and one of only three original members of president obama's cabinet still in office. the president will formally announce holder's resignation this afternoon. let's bring in our white house correspondent michele kosinski. the thing you wonder at this point is, holder has served so long, what's with this timing? why now? >> there's so much going on, so much they're working on. we don't expect to hear any more detail from the white house until the president speaks at 4:30 this afternoon saying good-bye and thank you to his good friend and long-time attorney general. he served nearly six years. but it seems like a surprise, but those close to him are saying hey, he's been thinking about this for a while, he had a long conversation with the president very recently, he's been wanting to move on and not wa

i'm brianna keilar. you're in "the situation room."

brianna keilar joins me now.all went down at senator tom harkin's final steak fry fund-raiser in acht. was this finally the kickoff of her campaign? >> reporter: i think it was seen as the de facto kickoff of her campaign, for sure, jake. but she wasn't declarative about whether she's run pg or not. when i talk to a lot of the democrats there, they wanted her to come right out and say, i'm running. they didn't get that. but everyone's operating under the impression that she is running and she did nothing to dispel that impression. >> hello, iowa! >> reporter: hillary clinton -- >> i'm back! >> reporter: throwing herself into the political fray for the first time in almost six years as she stumped for democrats facing tough elections in november and hinting that she's running for president. >> it is true, i am thinking about it. but for today, that is not why i'm here. i'm here for the steak. >> reporter: but in the state that dashed her hopes in 2008, clinton has lessons to learn from her last campaign and needs

i'm brianna keilar in today for wolf blitzer. president obama is getting ready to lay out his strategy for combatting the terror group isis this week and it's sure to be a topic at the white house briefing. we're keeping an eye on it and will be taking you there live. first, let's bring in white house correspondent michelle kosinski as well as security correspondent jim sciutto. the president said he had no strategy yet and now he's preparing to move for a speech on wednesday to explain the isis game plan, as he put it. here's what he said on nbc's "meet the press." >> what i want people to understand is that over the course of months we are going to be able to not just blunt the momentum of isil, we're going to shrink the territory that they control and ultimately we're going to defeat them. >> so what more will we hear from the president this week about the plan to defeat isis? that's really the question, michelle, what are we expecting? >> we're not really sure how much more detail we're going to hear. we know what we have hea

my friend brianna keilar is filling in for wolf. >>> right now, three americans held in north korea speakt the conditions there, pleading for the u.s. government to bring them home. right now, in direct terms, british prime minister david cameron lays out his plan to combat isis and protect his country. does president obama need to follow suit? and pool party at the u.s. embassy? libyan rebels take over at least part of the abandoned complex and create a scene that looks a whole lot like spring break. >>> hi there, i'm brianna keilar. wolf blitzer is on assignment. a rare glimpse from inside north korea. the normally secretive nation gave our will ripley access to the three americans being held there. kenneth bae,

i'm brianna keilar.ou're in t"the situation room." >>> americans are worried about isis and not convinced that the president is strong enough to do somethinab

brianna keilar is stepping in for wolf blitzer and she begins right now. >>> hello, i'm brianna keilarrom washington. wolf blitzer has the day off. and you are looking right now at some live pictures from the pentag pentagon. we are waiting right now for defense secretary chuck hagel and joint chiefs chairman general martin dempsey to speak to reporters. this will be the first time that we have heard from them since the u.s. launched air strikes in syria and as soon as they come to the microphones, we will take you there live. >>> first, let's get some amazing video from an area along the syria/turkey border. this is really, you know, unbelievable pictures we have been seeing today. the battle here between syrian kurdish forces and isis fighters. here is part of what our crew saw. >> isis has been making arogress.

brianna keilar is stepping in for wolf blitzer and she begins right now. >>> hello, i'm brianna keilar reporting from washington. wolf blitzer has the day off. and you are looking right now at some live pictures from the pentag pentagon. we are waiting right now for defense secretary chuck hagel and joint chiefs chairman general martin dempsey to speak to reporters. this will be the first time that we have heard from them since the u.s. launched air strikes in syria and as soon as they come to the microphones, we will take you there live. >>> first, let's get some amazing video from an area along the syria/turkey border. this is really, you know, unbelievable pictures we have been seeing today. the battle here between syrian kurdish forces and isis fighters. here is part of what our crew saw. >> isis has been making progress. a few more miles each day. now, just take a look up at that ridge line right now. [ cheers and applause ] what you are seeing is tracer fire moving in to that ridge line that is currently occupied by isis forces. and around me, the kurdish crowd is cheering. take

brianna keilar reporting from washington.day off. to this bombshell from the justice department. attorney general eric holder is stepping down after nearly six years on the job. holder is america's first african-american attorney general and one of only three original members of president obama's cabinet still in office. the president will formally announce holder's resignation this afternoon. let's bring in our white house correspondent michele kosinski. the thing you wonder at this point is, holder has served so long, what's with this timing?

i'm brianna keilar. you're in "the situation room." >>> we are following breaking news. possible terror threats against the united states, including one by an al qaeda group based in syria. fbi director james comey says despite air strikes, the united states has to assume the so-called core zone terrorists could attack at any time. hours earlier, iraq's new prime minister reportedly said his country's intelligence agency had uncovered an imminent isis plot against the new york and paris subway systems. we're covering all angles of the terror threat at this hour with our reporters, guests, and cnn's global resources and we begin with cnn justice correspondent pamela brown. what's the latest you're hearing about the khorasan group? >> james comey says khorasan is still at the top of his list of priorities. he believes that the group is still in tact and could still be actively planning to attack the u.s. or europe. despite a series of syrian bomb attacks in western syria, the fbi director says, quote, he's not confident at all that the u.s. air strikes have taken out the k

i'm brianna keilar. president obama has chosen

welcome to "new day," it's tuesday, september 23rd, 6:00 in the east, kate is on maternity leave, brianna keilar. forces pounding isis targets inside syria for the first time. a little bit of the sound of the situation, you're looking at brand-new video as well, just in, tomahawk missiles being launched from u.s. ships at isis targets, the mission is clear -- to degrade and destroy isis. the attacks described as intense with the missiles, as well as fighter jets and bombers. the targets? we're told as many as 20, mostly in the isis stronghold of ragga. in the northern part of syria. this was not just the u.s. we did not go it alone. >> five arab nations joined the campaign. jordan, saudi arabia, bahrain, qatar and the united arab emirates. look at the video of a separate u.s. strike against a network of al qaeda terrorists,

i'm brianna keilar. you're in "the situation room." >>> after fumbling for a definition, the obama administration now concedes that the united states is at war with isis. but as the u.s. scrambles to put together a coalition of nations willing to confront the terror group, there's stunning new information on the strength of this brutal enemy. u.s. intelligence calculates that isis may have tripled in size to more than 30,000 hardcore jihadists. even america's top military commander warns that airpower alone won't destroy isis, saying the u.s. will need reliable partners on the ground to do the fighting. our correspondents, analysts and guests are standing by with full coverage. and we begin with chief national security correspondent jim sciutto at the pentagon. jim? >> reporter: brianna, a new development tonight. we learned today that the u.s. will begin targeting senior leadership of isis. the spokesman for the pentagon saying this is no longer a defensive operation, it is offensive. it will more aggre

i'm brianna keilar. you're in "the situation room" . >>> our top story, three americans held by north korea issue a plea for help. north korea eased its extraordinary secrecy enough to give cnn's will ripley unprecedented access to the three detainees one of whom is serving hard time at a labor camp. will ripley was working on several stories when officials suddenly gave him the chance to meet with the americans. here's his report. >> mr. bae, will ripley with cnn. >> this is a moment we never expected during a cnn trip to north korea, officials take us to a secret location for a surprise interview with kenneth bae, the american missionary is serving 15 years hard labor for what north korea call achristian plot to undermine the government. >> can you tell me about the conditions at the labor camp in. >> condition in labor camp is i'm working eight hours a day, six days a week and working agricultural work to other hard labor, that is required to do every day. >> do you think you're being treated humanely

i'm brianna keilar. you're in t"the situation room." >>> americans are worried about isis and not convinced that the president is strong enough to do something about it. we'll have full details of our new stunning poll ahead. but first, the president is getting ready to lay out his plan to destroy the terror group. he'll speak to the nation this week just ahead of the 9/11 anniversary as a reminder of what the united states and its new coalition must confront. isis has put out a new propaganda video showing savage fighting and heavy weapons including captured fighter jets. our correspondents and guests are standing by with complete coverage. we begin at the white house with cnn correspondent michelle kosins kosinski. any guess of what the president may propose on wednesday? >> reporter: it's hard to divine what exactly this big presidential address on wednesday will tell the american public about the overall isis plan, especially since it still seems like the bulk of the strategy, as the white house defi

i turn you over to brianna keilar sitting in for wolf blitzer in "the situation room." >> thanks, dananow, detain americans eke out. north korea pulls aside its veil of secrecy and gives cnn rare can toes to three americans it's holding. and britain's prime minister wants tougher anti-terror laws to block jihadists from traveling to and from iraq and syria. and militia pool party. libyan fighters frolic in the pool at the abandoned u.s. embassy

i'm brianna keilar. president obama has chosen retired general john allen to lead the international effort against the terrorist group. the specifics are being finalized. the cia has increased its estimate of possible isis fighters. the initial estimate was as many as 10,000 and now the cia is saying that they can muster between 31,000 fighters. we want it get more details on the foreign fighters that are helping to swell the isis ranks in syria. brian todd is following that part of the story. what are you finding, brian? >> more than 15,000 foreign fighters, including about 2,000 westerners, have gone to syria to fight. the source said they have come from more than 80 countries. of those, according to a u.s. intelligence official, hundreds of them are westerners and hundred of westerners are fighting for isis, including maybe a dozen or more americans, brianna. so that's how the breakdown is right now. the 15,000 foreign fighters in syria is an astounding number because we know there could be as many as

brianna keilar, thank you so much. >>> we're getting a reminder, we're awaiting to hear from david cameront of speech as to what may be next after the third beheading, this ticme of british aide worker by isis. t. [ meows ] ...and let in the dog that woke the man who drove to the control room [ woman ] driverless mode engaged. find parking space. [ woman ] parking space found. [ male announcer ] ...that secured the data that directed the turbines that powered the farm that made the milk that went to the store that reminded the man to buy the milk that was poured by the girl who loved the cat. [ meows ] the internet of everything is changing everything. cisco. tomorrow starts here. why not your eye color? new air optix® colors prescription contact lenses enhance your eye color for a naturally beautiful look with consistent comfort. find your perfect color and get a free trial offer at airoptixcolors.com. when a pro at any 2014 pga tour event sinks a hole-in-one, find your perfect color quicken loans will pay your mortgage for an entire year. that is how it's done. truly amazing! get in the

. >>> good morning, and welcome to "new day," kate is on maternity leave, brianna keilar joins us.news, u.s. and five arab partners starting air strikes on isis targets inside syria. >> we're seeing and hearing what could be going on even right now. those are tomahawk missiles, fired from the sea into syria. headed for terror targets on the ground. launches like these followed by air strikes from bombers and fighter jets. the u.s. targeted more than a dozen sites we're told in and around the northern syrian city of raqqa. supposed to be the home base, the stronghold of isis. the five arab nations lending a hand of some sort. we need details on that but jordan, saudi arabia, bahrain, qatar and the united arab emirates. >> separate strikes launched by a group affiliated with al qaeda. we have learned that the khorasan group as it's called insyria was plotting imminent attacks on western interests, including here in the u.s. we have complete coverage and we begin with pentagon correspondent barbara starr. give us the latest. >> the pentagon had picked the targets very carefully. hitti

here's cnn's brianna keilar. >> reporter: hillary clinton has been the inevitable candidate before. >wadays, she's laughing along with the joke. at a friday service for poet mayaing maya angelou. >> next i would like to thank the amazing speakers and some dignitaries. first and foremost, madame pres -- excuse me. >> reporter: this weekend, clinton returns to iowa for the first time since her stunning defeat to barack obama and john edwards in the 2008 caucuses. >> we're going to get up tomorrow and keep pushing as hard as we can. >> reporter: the harkin state fry, hosted by the state's longtime democratic senator, is a must on the checklist for any democrat with presidential aspirations. but for clinton, iowa is the state that hobbled her white house ambitions right out of the gate. >> she is as commanding a front runner as we've had in the modern primary system. but there are a lot of democrats who don't want her to take it for granted. and iowa, certainly, from 2008, is a reminder of the risk ifs you do seem to think thanks for granted. so i think she has to begin to show democrats

i'm brianna keilar. you're in "the situation room." >>> following breaking news, a u.s. government source telling cnn that officials now believe some senior members of a specialized terror cell survived an air strike this week in syria. the u.s. abruptly attacked this group called khorasan, in an effort to disrupt the terror plot the u.s. described as imminent. also following an extraordinary battle that unfolded live here on cnn between isis militants and kurdish forces trying to keep the terrorists from seizing a town near the syrian/turkish border. we are covering all angles of the breaking news with our correspondentings and our guests this hour. we begin with the latest, with cnn senior white house correspondent jim acosta. what are you hearing at the white house, jim? >> reporter: i can tell you the white house is seeing positive signs in the fight against isis. but top administration officials remain deeply worried about the threat posed by another terror group, khorasan. after assessing this week's air strikes in syria, u.s. officials tell cnn's evan perez they b