city now— largely urban based upon the capital city. allenging for the government. you mentioned challenging for the government. gm. mentioned there that there is the risk of violence. let's talk about the response that we have seen from authorities, the police, riot police towards journalists, protesters. authorities, the police, riot police towardsjournalists, protesters. we have already seen a level of violence. so how do you see this unfolding further for them if they continue to take to the streets? well, in my view, it is remarkable that no— well, in my view, it is remarkable that no one — well, in my view, it is remarkable that no one has been killed yet. people — that no one has been killed yet. people have been hurt, systematically people have been beaten _ systematically people have been beaten up by the riot police along with journalists, beaten up by the riot police along withjournalists, so it is a very dangerous— withjournalists, so it is a very dangerous situation. situations like this that _ dangerous situation. situation

not so on the, the capital city about almost at the cost of the country. so they have been shooting the north eastern city off of, of the commission to attacking 2 minutes a clump 8 choir. how can i have court this over there, and then beat as rules, then the 8 for 70, the admission depots in the north of the company. so we're talking about striking. if i'm sort head on iraqi border and i'm churches more, the closest city will seal yes. okay, right, right. and that's a lot less less pulls the 2nd less pulls the 2nd because i, i need to clarify exactly what these explosions are. you. you are saying that you believe or you know that these are as really a tax strikes. how would you describe the absolute? absolutely. because that kind of low the explosions, impossible to be told that this is not the time sort of the to the reason is i'm not the gone fires. these are huge exposures. dad, the last couple of days have been experiencing. so israel lafayette, on these, our stockings air bombardments on the strategic areas across the country, but particularly focusin

an end of the 13 years of civil war and came just hours off to fight to enter the capital damascus. and took the city's port on the state tv building. the opposition forces now say they are urgently working to assess off a transitional governing body. the the forces say i side has now flagged the capital batch, our last slide down. his family have been in power in serious since early 1975 show to power in 2000 off to the death of his father office. the, the, the city of damascus has been liberated the tyrant for sure all a sudden has been talking. all the prisoners to be released from the prison of damascus. we wish that all are fighters and citizens preserve and maintain the property of the state of syria. long live syria. and these are the latest pictures of the presidential palace and damascus, which has been now vacated by our last subs. opposition. vices have been to the con pounds. you can see on demand have been filmed. looking through the pot of skeletons, as well as various pools and rooms. this of course was once occupied by bus y'all, a sides fall, but how fast aside. and then of course, by

rebel groups this hour saying they have liberated the capital city of damascus from president bashar ssad. nbc news not independently confirming the rebels claims as of yet. this is coming after they claim to have taken control of the city of homs , the third- largest city in syria. earlier, syrian state media denying that the rebels had taken homs, saying in a telegram post the reports were quote untrue. syrian president bashar al assad, ruling over the nation some 24 years. the u.s., which has about 900 troops in northern syria has been closely monitoring development in the country. we are going to go back to nbc news foreign correspondent ralph sanchez. as we get this information into us, as sunrise on the day that we are getting these claims about damascus, the question is what is the concern right now? is there a vacuum of power, basically, if those claims are true from the rebels? >> there are 1 million questions and 1 million concerns, richard, as you said. it is 6:20 in israel, 7:20 and damascus, and people in syria are waking up to a new reality. one of the first and most imm

so the national army has taken city amend these from the capital city in democratic forces as of in java, in the service of this report. this, according to the city and democratic forces. dakota, despite is a head that is a true style between the turkish back a city and national army, and s p a which is being brokered by the united states. we are here at one of the places that it'd be taken over by these fighters, the states that there's been intense buttons to take this view of men beach from various spots. and they'd be to continue to go to merge the euphrates river so that they have complete control. best of all locations of the you fate exhibit from good reach back because it's kind of according to the 5, did the a number of neck books of tons of either under the city of men beach. and that is why they are populating cautiously and saying that the, the people who are here are reluctant to come back because they are not sure what they will find from that to them. that black men beach is strategically important for the good is courses who have helped this area since the defeat of icy.

and thoughts of the future or on homes of the capital city. a velocity remains without loss or a day off for a mass of us quite sure, because the south pacific island nation to rescue is a searching for survivors trapped on the collapse buildings in the capital port villa, police say at least forcing people have died and 200 were injured in the quake security 1st inch, capture the modem and the earthquake rocks to this mechanics work shop in port wheeler. and the last who was capital city was hottest hit by tuesdays magnitude sleep on point 3. quite emergency work is used heavy machinery to scour the wreckage. continuing this search for those trapped under the rubble and to the night a building housing, several international embassies was among those badly damaged. local health care services have been overwhelmed with more than 200 people treated for injuries. the quick knocked out communication networks, leaving many worried about their loved ones. but ben welter was no stranger to the natural disasters. uh, so we built them a tough definitel

a followed claim bite syrian rebels to have captured the capital city there. has been abandoned, with people seen leaving earlier. >>> a number of syrian troops have abandoned their positions. this is a checkpoint in the capital. we did hear from a guest earlier who told us that morale within the army and the troops there had been very low and would have played into how quickly things developed there in damascus. rebels also say they have entered the notorious saydnaya military prison north of the capital and freed the prisoners there. well, speaking 13 miles away from the syrian border, turkish president erdogan said that there is a new reality in syria following the rapid advance of rebel forces. >> there is new government in syria. syria belongs to the syrians, with all its ethnic and religious elements. it is the syrian people who decide in the future of their own country. >> reporter: and u.n. special envoy force garrett peterson has called for orderly peace talks to ensure there is a smooth handover of power. >> we need for an orderly political transitio

rebel forces in damascus have declared the capital city long—time ruler bashar al—assad. reports say that president assad has left damascus by plane for an unknown destination. more than five decades of authoritarian rule by the assad family have come to an end in syria, after rebels took the capital, damascus, overnight. (upsot oov 2 ")�*the city of damascus has been rebel forces in damascus have declared the capital city "free" of long—time ruler bashar al—assad. reports say that president assad has left damascus by plane for an unknown destination. more than five decades of authoritarian rule by the assad family have come to an end in syria, (upsot oov 2 ")�*the city of damascus has been liberated...assad has been toppled' say the islamist rebels, taking over state tv. (00v)the group, who have their roots in al-qaeda, have been trying to rebrand themselves as a nationalist force. they say they've freed what they called unjustly detained prisoners and hundreds of detainees held in prisons syria's president bashar al—assad is reported to

city center. so when you look at this picture, you're seeing that the, the position is ad listening to where the capital from 3 directions. and then the city and government is really, i reckon it's forces from the importance of data sold from the south from the know to the capital city. but it's not to me whether it be submitted to the strategy or if the government is losing the control. when you're talking about the analyst and the people that are familiar with visuals, don't want him to feel that enough actually does not. i mean, if it was the fact that you, but the goldman is not able to hold these positions any more, let's just add that. i'll just do that goes down to self interest here. well, as mentioned earlier, at least 2000 syrian soldiers have and so they're all along with all their recruitment and that's according to the wrong key government spokesman. now the troops are being hosted by the rocky army. my what i've been, what i had has this updates from both of that according to the made of, i'll call them district visits. the crossing told them no between city and back. what did the 2000 and

>> abu dhabi is the capital city of the united arab emirates.e are a connecting point between east and west from present day and throughout our history. david: the other major city that people know is dubai. and so dubai and abu dhabi have attracted a lot of attention in recent years because they have their amount of wealth and a lot of tourism attractions. so let's talk about your main mission as the minister of culture and tourism. what are you supposed to be doing? mohamed: what makes this job very interesting is the passion it instills in myself and all of my colleagues. we have something quite special here. what is special is the continuous pursuit of the enhancement on the life and that is not just for tourists. it is for the residents, for the emiratis living here. we continue to work to create experiences to cater to their needs. so as you can see, almost every single year there is additional experiences, additional institutions, additions of new concepts that come in and create this fantastic, carried experience for people to really enj

forces are leaving these places and they have the rightly going being re directed to the city, the capital city, damascus. and it's not only from the south then from the east, you have seen that earlier today, the position, the forces of picking the control of palmera. and that literally means that the city and government moves in the connection from the empire used to parts of the country. and there's not only that from the, nor now the position of the page in the 4th largest city of syria, how much they haven't got, but the admins do with the city of homes and know the enter the city of homes. the fee is collapses between the position and the government forces are still taking place. the forces, seeing that soon, perhaps they are going to be able to raise through the city center. so when you look at this picture, you're seeing that the, the position is ad listening to with the capital 13 direction. and then the city and government is redirecting its forces from the east improvements of data sold from the south from the note to the capital city. but there's not gonna be, what does that mean th

we are a little over 3.5 million people in the capital city. david: your position is to make sure people come here and not just understand the attractions but building a lot of things. how long have you been in this position? mohamed: i have been at the department of culture and tourism close to 10 years and i am humbled and lucky to be working for a government that has visionary ideas. the vision of investing in culture and institutions, not just set forth in recent times but from the inception of the country. enhancing with entertainment projects, projects at theme parks, public parks, beaches, etc., has involved -- evolved. david: when did abu dhabi become an independent country? mohamed: as a country, 1971, but the history of his people have dated back thousands of years. david: the founder of the country? mohamed: he was a visionary man and through his vision you see the country being created, it caters to the wants and needs of its people. it's can story is continued on by his son. david: when was oil discovered? mohamed: prior to the for

and that is the capital city, damascus. there are no other major cities in syria that the student government is in full control, often losing data. okay, thank you very much, russel sir dar of full, that latest update that from the turkish syrian border. well deserves all motive has, is enhanced, prevents the 30 minute tree cries out semester like that while he was giving us this updates on an earlier well the gym and its spots trying to hold this strong holes of a film. so i actually have lots of, uh, uh, pro said the only the military novels, the older email, the 3 were talking about that. but let me just see here that we, we can hear another strike. it is close in of the same day the, the routine strikers my car, and i just said that they the, it's can text it over there. it's conducted on, on the, again, it's the on the bridge on rested in play to the yes. yeah. and has a sound another another as try conducted? yeah, that's true. that's what let me describe it. yeah. another another, this is going to be the age on the ro

they are seclusion into the capital city itself, leaving the even the all schools of the city as well. and all the other hand, the opposition forces that to control of their uh, sway their inclination in the south are rapidly advertising toward the capital. and does not only that, if from the east as well, the opposition forces they have taken the control of part of me right now from the east. they are rapidly advertising to with the capital damascus. and what all this is happening now, are you seeing that in homes, at the old sir neighbors neighborhoods of the homes, the cx, 5, these are still taking place between the or position forces and the government forces. and the opposing forces are saying that perhaps for them it's gonna matter a matter of hours of really expiring and kicking the, the government forces out or so look, we just took a, a tiny excerpt of a statement by the syrian government forces there thing. all right, they're saying that reports that syrian soldiers are deserving or not true. and they are saying that they are ready to defend the capital. can you, what report

mohamed: it's the largest land bank, the capital city, a little over 3.5 million people. david: your position is to make sure that people come here and understand what the attractions are of abu dhabi, but you are building a lot of things. how long have you been in this position? mohamed: 20 years. and at the department of culture and tourism, close to 10 years. i am very humbled and lucky to be working for a government that has visionary ideas. their vision of investing and culture, and cultural institutions, have been set forth since the inception of this country. the idea of basically enhancing it with entertainment projects, projects that are theme parks, projects that are public parks, beaches, etc. it has always continuously evolved. david: for those not familiar with abu dhabi, when did it become, as part of the uae, an independent country? mohamed: as a country, 1971, but its history and the history of its people dates back thousands of years. david: its found was zayed. >> the late founder of the country, he was a visionary man. through his vision you see this co

they are forces to the capital city, the mass cause because the position forces have managed to get closer and closer to the capital of damascus. no, indeed, in the town of that, he has been there taking the under control by the position. i know it is only 10 kilometers away to the capital, the mass, cuz then in some places you're seeing the classes are taking place at skirmishes or they can police's right 5 kilometers away from the capital. so simply at the also goods of the capital, the mass, cuz that are security issues and fires are going on and the government is using the control light. all of that is happening. the government forces the soldiers, the troops are dispatched in on leaving the force in northern is some neighbors, had been sold a part of their tablets to damascus. oaks bis, is not only about using the quotes or individual with areas in the top to each cell . the goldman is having an extreme difficulty to really put it through. so security forces together. can you tell us a little bit about the, the opposition forces self and who they all because they comprise of several d

when the positions fighters were, we're approaching admin seem to have the capital city, missouri. a port was one of the 1st places that the regime forces have left. it was hosting several, the air defense vehicles as well. this is a russian issue, the air defense system. and when we're getting into the airport, we also have seen a rushing move pump 0 is the phone system that was heavy damaged as a result of the is rarely a strikes and the 5 of here or says that there are steel, dozens of these and defense vehicles spread across the airport and this way they're expecting israel to come and to i pack them as well. and that's why the say the effort is still not safe. this will said there was a 0, damascus mazda airport, the b u. n. general assembly has passed a resolution to monitoring an immediate cease phone and goes to an emergency session member states source of evidence supports with you, an agency for protest in refugees condemning new is waiting. know that bands organizations operations gabriel is on there. is that in the u. n. in new york, the message is clear with these 2 re

started to her that the law with explosions again and again repeatedly one after another in the capital city of the mass. cuz that has just recently been taken by the opposition. that just recently has witnessed the whole of this size redeem. often more than houses i that you so know that the new administration in syria is trying to, to, to pick it up into the new realities and to put away the smooth transition is where he's on intensifying the attacks in be in the last 48 hours we're talking about nearly $300.00 is ready a strikes across the continent from the north to the cost of cities, but particularly to the capital city of damascus is the same that this is products that are being conducted particularly last night. or the lot of just is very a little precision in, as well as military's history. so, and that may be perhaps true because be also what room and extremely disturbed by that it was almost lost and almost got on 3 hours on several boxes and buzzers of the explosions. and is rice coming again? the again, one after another. so, and these ads are seeing that they have destroyed the

this is one of the largest submitted, a pause in the capital city, damascus. indeed is just a farm. it says we from the city center. and this right behind me, it is a russian made attack a helicopter. and now it's completely burned out. as a result of the is rarely at a slug, this has been conducted intensively in the last couple of these. still the test see there are that some of the shut up notes. and also the parcel of the how to cost is this was just thrown away. this is one of the pause of this 2 of the how the cop there, of course, is not clear whether that is what i'm, that's how the attack had a couple of the just we have seen or whether it's belongs to that the carrier had a copy of the card with me, the 3 highly confident that's also a russian made, had to come through and you can see that it also has been see it by is right, a forces and completely burned out completely destroy each year. well the other side is that how good is that? a steel is traps and some of the how to cope those over there. some of them has been damaged, but some steel or their, their intact. good fo

is since yesterday they have come down to the long 100 feet of sites who are at on that on the capital city, damascus. so now, here we have been talking to the people to see that they have mixed feelings. on one hand, there is a celebrated ceilings that it has been finally the ends of this. i've done this up to 50 full years, but the other hands, they do not don't want to be expecting that the whole of that is going to be the right to have better, better and better suture. however, as of now, what we can see is that there are several position groups here is not only is ts that 24, but i level and then how much then homes are coming from north to damascus. but also the positions from the eastern part of the properties from the south and kind of the part of the country. and they have different addresses that have different items. you can background, they have different approaches and of course, different things about the future. all score for syria. however, one thing is clear, oh, that's what position forces at the end of the day, dominated by hired to tell me to show more face. yes, that is

trunk, breaking you 0. nazi a syria has folded into the hands of terrorists of the world's oldest capital city of damascus meets a new reality with total silence. an empty streets, a fall cried from yesterday. celebrations about the size of the militants. that took over damascus, locked the city down, just hours off for a promise of freedom to all. the high outside of the l. som. temporary group is now in charge, and bad people from leaving that home is from 4 pm until 5 am. and the groups leader appears that i'm also going to capital calling on the people to join the middle tree in the morning when institutions start to go about their work, i hope that security and policeman and anyone who carries a weapon will go to a base to join a division battalion or brigade. we will not accept or allow arms appearing or firing on the streets at all with across damascus of various government offices, right. the on file size, the terror campaign disrupt the nation. israel is also using several apples to bottom. the capital and the immigration impossible to palm and right, that's the passport office that's

when the position fighters were they were approaching and advertising to the capital city, missouri. a port was one of the 1st places that the routine forces have left. it was hosting several the defense vehicles as well. this is a russian issue, air defense system. and when we're getting into the airport, we also have seen a russian move pump 0 is the phone system does not have any damage as a result of the is rarely a strikes and do a procedure fight of here or says that there are still dozens of these and defense vehicles spread across the airport and this way they're expecting israel to come and to attack them as well. and that's why the say the effort is still not safe. this will said there was a 0, damascus must a port in the past, 13 years, more than 13000000 syrians have been forced to flee to countries all over the world . about half of syria's registered refugees, an estimate, estimated 3000000 people live in neighboring touch. here, the country hosts the largest refugee population in the world. lebanon is the 2nd largest host of syrian refugees, with about a 774000 registe

but more importantly, the mass cuz you solve the capital city that is just recently being taken by the position of forces. these costs of the, under the, is very a strikes but the, they're starting the age of the month and continuing. almost, i'm the month to morning 4 hours and the hours get so frequently here in a good low the exposures, sometimes close to us, sometimes inside the city itself, close to the center of the city. sometimes at the house goes to a couple of hours ago. i was at the met the minutes april which, which is one of the largest minutes a board in damascus. if you remember this one where we are, and i've seen that rushing me positive system being hit by where it is a freshman smoke, we're still rising over there. a few of the how the group does that work completed this form by the side extracts also a little bit far away from us. the wrong guys are still hosting buses of the in crabs and the helicopters cause of the beam boom by you is rare. so when you see, when you look at the scale of the text, so is the strategy is simply to leave a celia to the new administrat

several members of his family, after the soviets gained control of the capital saddle of kabul -- capital cityf kabul. only several days later, a new puppet leader was brought into afghanistan by the soviets. this invasion is an extremely serious threat to peace. because the threat of further soviet expansion into neighboring countries in southwest asia, and also because such an invasive military policy is unsettling to people throughout the world. this is a kalus violation of international law and the u.n. charter. it is a deliberate effort of a powerful atheistic government to subjugate an independent islamic people. we must recognize the strategic importance of afghanistan to stability and peace. a soviet occupied afghanistan threatens iran and pakistan, and is a steppingstone the possible control over much of the world's oil supplies. the united states wants all nations in the region to be free and independent. but this soviets are encouraged in this invasion by eventual success, and if they maintain their dominance over afghanistan, and then extend their control to adjacent countries, the

cities. and most of the government with throwing these forces simply leaving this town so or losing the control in these towns. so when all this is happening now at the north of the capital in the city of homes, which has been almost seized by the opposition fight, this is yes that they know we know that the, the outside of the alter the neighborhood of the city that or how the sizes that are taking place as opposed to the polls that are coming from the opposes you'll find that they're saying that it could be even matter of hours that they called god did the city center of the city or full of homes. but to day to the whole day, just seen that the russian is rags were desperately trying to stop the address of the position by bomb being. the towns that are connected to the city of homes of russ done and have these, but they failed to do so. so we're, so is it fair since you've explained the government forces have withdrawn without even fighting from multiple towns and villages really across the country? is it fair to say that they are now concentrating all their military assets and defense is around key locations 1st among them the capital, damascus, but also i think homes

forces entering damascus, these are the latest pictures from syria, they say they have freed the capital city they have said that syria's president, bashar al—assad, said that syria's president, basharal—assad, has said that syria's president, bashar al—assad, has left the country. plenty more. stay with us. hello there. storm darragh has continued to pull out, now weakened as it moves into the near continent. however, it's brought a swathe of disruption across parts of the country, with damaging gusts of wind. part two of the weekend does look better. although it'll stay very windy, we should see some sunshine across northern and western areas, and it won't be quite as windy as what we had through friday night and saturday. however, the winds could still cause some travel disruption, particularly for the channel ferry crossing, so just stay abreast of the weather forecast and keep up to date with your latest local radio stations. you can see the system, then, pushing across the near continent, sitting over the low countries. still lots of isobars on the chart, so sunday will be a very windy

and also the on to sort this down south to the capital city, damascus. but also people, many residents off the city of homes are also leaving the city that, as i said, is making the city of homes extremely vulnerable. and of course, increasing the chances of the position to take control of the city or so if we go back to hama, which opposition sliders took today. and the so reinforces the syrian military confirmed that they withdrew from homa. what information do you have on what's happening inside hama i asked specifically um, i'm specifically interested in what is happening to civilians there as well for that. there's also an interest in the angle of this this, this new k. so the bill position that has taken over the console or the city, or either for the 2nd largest to do a silver. yeah. now how about the 4th largest to do a problem or is it of syria and that's no marching toward the 3rd largest city homes. so this is what physician is lab by based. yes, we just have to have a to shop and say that that really some is formerly known as, as the most up f

o h t s. seized the capital city, damascus. with this victory, my brothers is a new history for the entire is womach nation. this victory, my brothers is a new history for the region. gilani is the siri informant. jihadist who has roots in, i'll call you to and is labeled a terrorist by the united states. his recent decision to use his real name off my to i'll shut off and when minute true fatigues instead of traditional jihad, his clothing is being interpreted as an attempt to be seen as a credible political figure. gilani built up the h t s, and syria's north west italy province were functions like a state governing 3 local ministries that to, to, to sharia lou, he is likely to be a key figure in syria during fluid and just said he does not plan to enforce islamic low on religious and ethnic minorities. yep. a little bit off is on and i left those insurgents belonging to the syrian national army, broke 3 government defences into the west of the city. with little resistance. initial coalition grew out of the assume a free seri

public statement after seizing damascus. multiple sources say president sharla salt has flipped the capital city. people are celebrating. what rebels are calling a new era for the country? serious prime minister says he's ready to assist with a peaceful transfer of government. the mariana evans, dean is good to have you with us. we begin in syria where the regime of president, bashar al assad has collapsed after a lightning rebel offensive the began less than 2 weeks ago. the capital damascus has been seized by a coalition of opposition groups led by the islamist high. yeah, it's tough fear l. sean, also known as h t. yes. they are celebrations in the streets of the capital and across syria. a solid has reportedly flynn damascus and is now in an unknown location. long time ally, russia says assad has resigned and had given instructions for a peaceful transfer of power. the russian for ministry said it did not know his whereabouts. let's now take a look at how events unfolded over the last few hours on saturday night regional leaders and best a lot sides ally, russia held an emergency meeting abo

the modem and the earthquake rocks to this mechanics workshop in port villa know asked who is capital city was hottest hit by tuesday's magnitude. see button point 3, quite emergency work is used heavy machinery to scale of the wreckage. continuing this search for those trapped under the rubble into the night a building housing, several international embassies was among those badly damaged. local health care services have been overwhelmed with more than 200 people treated for injuries. a quick knocked out communication networks, leaving mainly worried about their loved ones. but ben welter was no stranger to the natural disasters. uh, so we built on the tough definitely, but um the upgrade took everyone by surprise. um we know that with communication that was uh, routine interrupted uh it was uh, a bit of uh, scary situation where families were not able to check in on each other. um uh, but also when we have cycles in the past, we were able to track it then were able to prepare and get best supplies ready at this time around. and everyone was taken by surprise. access to drinking most of i

up next upheaval in syria as rebels stormed the capital city of damascus. more on all the turmoil in the middle east coming up. deep breath. cancer is a journey you don't take alone. you did it! our cancer care team works together to care for all that is you. it's here. wendy's new salted caramel frosty. rich, sweet, salted car-uh-mel kur-uh-mel car-mel ugh, whatever. the iconic frosty with a salted caramel twist. gotta be wendys. it is inevitable. chloe! hey dad. they will grow up. [cheering] silly face, ready? discover who they are. [playing music] what they want from this world. and how they will make it better. and while parenting has changed, how much you care has not. that's why instagram is introducing teen accounts. automatic protections for who can contact them and the content they can see. ♪ early this morning in the latest crisis in the middle east, we want to show you the scene of syria's capital city of damascus. this is a live picture, actually, right now coming to you from syria. as you can see, many people in the streets there. let me tell y

the good thing of our georgia, is that because russian armies standing right here very close to capital city and 40 kilometers. when you drive the main road used to heat up, used to see occupying force with the russian flags from the main main highway of georgia. you know, obviously does not help. it does not help their propaganda machine and to work uh and genuinely um, it's very easy for trojans to, to understand, to get exact idea of the 3 others to choose and to be honest, the russian rate. but you always want problem to the go down government very smart cri, deep wind taking itself from the rest of the world and moving into a service. how do you envision? and actually people should probably try now. they understand that everything russian is not working in georgia. so now they chose and other parts, which is the chinese past and every time to communicate with the people. china is presented as the savior stage for the future of georgia. and we're going to have to leave it there. very interesting speaking to today, tina tina and thanks for joining us. thank you. the new at tennessee and s

the military and the streets of seoul, south korea, the capital city, implanting a decree of martialwas overturned or by the country's parliament 190-0 unanimous vote. these demonstrators are calling on him to step down saying he's no longer fit to lead south korea. >> hard to believe that actually happened. it is insane. bizarre. >> reporter: the state department issued a warning to americans in south korea saying the situation remains fluid as officials canceled appointments, 30,000 american soldiers are stationed in south korea though they have not received any special instructions. americans on monitor bring this closely. it has one. 2 million members saying they will go on strike and we anticipate later this week a vote of impeachment against the president. neil: imagine what his passport looks like. one of my favorites is with me, we were talking about this is south korea, in venezuela, syria, this is south korea. what happened and why has there been virtually no reaction? >> those scenes are really scary and folks living through this, something of concern if nothing else and t

it's the capital city of that state, which is called saxony-anhalt. and so therefore, you know, it's a fairly large city with obviously a fairly large christmas market. and the christmas markets there in that state are quite well known. the ones that are in magdeburg are known for being very beautiful and certainly attract a lot of people, especially on a friday evening. you know, around the time when all of this was happening in the late afternoon, early evening, when especially a lot of families would have been at that christmas market? of course, we know that it is. it is the last friday before christmas day. and so therefore a lot of people do their shopping at these christmas markets, buy little gifts. and i think we've seen from that video just how many people were there on this evening. so certainly that would come as no surprise. and certainly anybody who would want to target that christmas market would know that as well. the authorities, of course, also would have known that that would have been the time to strike such a christmas market, beca

we have seen damascus, the capital city, fall to the rebels completely almost for the first time in 15. there is still fighting ongoing within the city. i can still hear gunfire and the occasional explosion but apart from that, i can safely tell you by the morning, the whole of the capital will be under the control of the rebels and this will probably herald a new dawn for syrians. this is something people have been pushing towards and has culminated in this offensive in damascus which was really actually supported by people within damascus themselves taking to the streets and picking up arms and taking this to another level. there is a lot of anger. there are a lot of people starving. people who were fed up with the long years of war, the lack of development in the country and definitely change was on the agenda, and the loss of syrian army moral, we've seen army positions be abandoned. we seen soldiers literally take off their military attire and wear civilian clothes, escaping anywhere to safety. we have seen chaos today and something which was completely unexpected. no one ever env

at a mosque in the capital city, the leader of the largest insurgent group addressed his fighters. >>his victory, my brothers, is for the islamic nation. this victory is a new history for the region. john: ordinary citizens roam the presidential palace in damascus, taking selfies. across the country, symbols of the assad family's repressive 53 years in power came toppling down. in 1974 president nixon became the first u.s. president to visit syria, meeting with -- they ruled syria by relying heavily on security forces to crush descent and they forged alliances with russia and iran. a civil war ignited in 2011 killed hundreds of thousands and forced millions of civilians to flee their homeland. today the syrian diaspora celebrated. in iraq, in istanbul, in paris. >> a renewal. a renewal. we are starting on new foundations without all the tyranny. john: and in berlin. >> this day today, last night, it has the same meaning as the fall of the berlin wall. this is freedom for us. john: the speed of assad's collapse surprised many around the world. at the white house today, president biden

meeting with the leader of angola, president biden spoke at the national museum of slavery in the capital city of rwanda and talk about the history of slaves who were brought to the united states. he also spoke about u.s. objectives and a number of infrastructure projects in angola. because of technical issues, the beginning of president biden's remarks are not included in this broadcast. president biden: our nation's original sin, a civil war that nearly tore our nation apart. and the long battle of jim crow. the civil rights and voting rights movement, which got me involved in the public life. during which american cities were burned. to the still unfinished reckons with racial injustice in my country today. historians believe people of angola accounted for a significant number of all enslaved people shipped to america. today millions of african-americans have roots in angola. as i said at the u.s.-african leaders summit i held in washington two years ago, our people lie at the heart of a deep and profound connection that forever binds africa and the united states together. we remember the s

the government in its capital city of damascus. now calling syria a free country after a 13 year civil war. the rebel groups are being led by the islamist militant group rts. in less than two weeks, they advanced across the country, taking over large cities like aleppo, homs and now the capital. syrian ally russia is not saying where bashar al assad is, but confirms he resigned his post, left the country and called for a peaceful transition of power. bashar al assad has ruled over syria in authoritarian style for nearly 25 years, with support from russia, iran and hezbollah. he inherited the post from his father, who ruled with an iron fist for three decades. while many syrians are celebrating in the streets, the end of the 50 year tyranny of the al assad family. geopolitical experts note that the coalition of groups who brought that half century rule to an end was once affiliated with al qaeda, so the situation remains in in an unbalanced territory right now. the white house says it is monitoring the situation. back here locally a

they are now in control of the capital city of damascus but the journey here was quite specific when look at how these rebels went city by city to take over the territory along the main highway to get here, you see these regime tanks on the side of the road. some of them abandoned. others hit by the rebel forces. as we continue to work our way toward the capital of damascus, we saw hundreds of these rebel forces along the sides of the road, some resting, others in pickup trucks and stopped to talk to them about what the battle was like and got new insight into what took place during that rapid 11-daylight evening offensive. i asked them about influence from iran and hezbollah and asked them about the american administration and president-elect trump. answers were quite surprising. when they spoke about the region they wanted to stop with syria. they had no interest to fight israel. they wanted to stay here and protect the country and give freedom to the syrian people and spoke about the american administration. the rebels armed still in military fatigues talking about the president-el

so the mascot is the largest city and the capital of the country, which is now still under the control of the city and government. and then the 2nd largest cities on it. and it has been taken by the position profit on 10 days ago. and now, so they have taken the control of the fort largest as your home a soon after the full of, of, of apple. and now they're seizing the did the city off homes, which is the total largest city of the country. and now they are taking the parts of that city. and when you go to solve the, the major cities from south 20th or, or particularly that are, these are major cities are completed on the control of the position. when you go to the use of the come to the data zone, another major city or rock at the north. these are the major cities. they are also now taken by the forces backed by usa, mainly the as the of city, democratic forces that are made of main the needle goods. so the code, the slides. so now the only 2 major cities that are under the control of the gun and are the most, cuz let's talk here at b was the cost a city or, or syria. so just to cities

military in the streets of seoul, south korea, the capital city of mike to capital city.w that was ultimately overturned by the country's parliament in a 190-0 unanimous the vote now they are calling on the president to step down saying he is no longer fit to lead south korea. >> i cannot believe that actually happened. it's really insane and bizarre. >> today the u.s. state department issued a warning to americans in south korea saying the situation remains fluid, as officials canceled consular and visa appointments. nearly 30,000 american soldiers are stationed in south korea, although they have not received any special instructions. the americans are certainly monitoring all of this closely. we did learn today that south korea's largest labor union said 1.2 million people are going to strike if the president doesn't step down, and we do expect an impeachment vote later this week. john? >> john: trey yingst with the crazy news out of seoul for us. trey, thank you. sandra? >> sandra: a landmark case on the docket, the first time the supreme court is hearing arguments inv

to damascus, which is something that has happened now that they are in the opposite that in the capital city off of damascus. so just let's remember that the admins of the position has started on the 27th of november. it has started from the progress of ellipse, which is directly connected to turkey and turkey. it has been the lifeline both in the province where this is the level position was bes, seems 2016 on for the last 8 years. and now the same position has taken control of other people, the 2nd largest city of syria. and then how about the 4th largest, and now the homes, the 3rd largest, and finally the capital of the country. so for georgia tech, on one hand, it is quite according to the calculus for why we agreed to put you on a team because they what took his position was an entire city and government position for more than decades and seen the government gun is something that i'm kind of was wishing for and also the believe that's a stable the celia run by deal position will put a half create that will put the trinity that the, the city of effigy is in charge of roughly around $3.0

uh, this occasion very close to where on team and damascus is and the country side around the capital city of this, of the city as well as the shoes security implications for the new leadership. there's so trying to establish itself for the it's we're hearing these explosions. i'm in the capital, followed to a day of celebration across the entire country after the 1st friday, pres, as, as the full, the shaw, left side to leadership. russell spoke with people in the capital who are mocking that symbolic moment of change. his hoops of his report from damascus. the doors of damascus were close to the position for more than a decade. but now with them in church time, does this thousands are coming to celebrate the victory in the cities largest and oldest, most cool. my welcome bye coffee and suit as me for that a stripe and another star city and state. this is a new day. we feel like a free butterfly for 13 years. we have feels like our country was stolen from us today. we feel this is our country and we have our rights for some. it's a bitter sweet thing as the remember the last as of the pat

in guatemala, with 100 migrants arriving in the capital city, guatemala city, immigration officials say the majority of those reports of in guatemala nationals who are being detained. and several of us cities mold in $70000.00 to being returned to the country since january. the central american country says it's ready to accept the parties from other neighboring countries a most being seen as a major shift and regional migration policy in new york city general is released both to come for to jane, present official, brutally beating an inmate. we do well and you that the footage we're about to show you is graphic is distressing. police officers are piece of be punched and kicked the 43 year old robot brooks in the face and body. while he was hang coughed, the incident took place on the multi correctional facility in new york. on december, the 9th, he died of his injuries, the following molding. the new york attorney general has the open an investigation she had pretends he has moved from washington dc. i think as always, when we, when these sorts of videos come to like, the question is a

syrian rebel forces have overtaken the capital city of damascus and toppled the assad regime that has ruled syria brutally for generations. nbc's raf sanchez is in tel aviv with more. raf, what's the latest? >> reporter: well, willie, this is history in the making and at lightning speed syria's rebels began their surprise attack less than two weeks ago taking city after city, and this morning they have taken the capital, damascus, they have toppled the assad regime, and they are declaring syria a free country. we are seeing scenes of celebration all across syria from people who are hoping that this is the end not just of 13 bloody years of civil war but also more than 50 years of dictatorship by the assad family, but there are also fears especially from syria's minority groups about how these islamist rebels will govern now that they are in charge. the whereabouts of former president bashar al assad are unknown at this time. russia says he has resigned from his post and he has fled the country, but they are not saying exactly where. what is clear these stunning developments in syria a

what is fascinating as he is targeting the smaller areas rather than big capital cities. ame for the reopening, and instead he has come here to focus on small acts of faith, religious processions, the devotions, the parent lives that maintain the faith here for centuries in this very small pocket of france. —— prayer. the pope has decided to put the spotlight on these residents and say this works. for people who do not practice the faith, there is something cute you can tap into that benefit the common good, so this morning we heard him applaud the way the folks have been motivated by theirfaith to build hospitals and schools and support other social development, and for a pope who comes from the global south, this is the faith he is familiar with, so he is happy to see it alive here in europe in a very secular country. it in a very secular country. it is a well tour of corsica, nine hours in total, as we see the children being brought up for the papal blessing. such a moment for these little kids. but of course, when he meets emmanuel macron, is that going to be an awkwar