latest report also accuses the syrian government of war crimes including the suspected use of chlorine gas eight separate incidents earlier this year let's bring in defense consultant to void row for more on this now thanks for joining us traditionally what we've seen is the west blaming the syrian government for this conflict so what do you make of the fact then there we're now hearing the u.n. accusing islamic state militants of what they called systematic killings. well the u.n. . mandated investigation hasn't actually visited any sites that they claim have been. of chemical weapons have been used by the syrian government so they don't have any proof in actual fact that these weapons have been deployed there do you believe let's let's just say for argument's sake there have been deployed they do have no idea who's deployed them. we know from the past that it's been the first say and the rebels and probably the new group that's emerged. who have been using these so that they they can say definitively that it's the syrian government because they haven't been to these locations to investig

gas being mustard gas, chlorine gas, just to disable the soldiers and even kill them. so if a cannister went off near you, you needed to warn them. now, this artifact right here is a wooden gas alarm. normally, you would actually have it and take it above your head and swing it around. however, we bottle bolted it in for safety's sake, but you can hear the noise it makes. if you had those going off, everyone would know it's time to mask up and get ready for the wind to push gas over the top of you. what we have right here is an excellent specimen of an ft-17 french designed tank. it was built by the americans and used to train soldiers in france on how to drive and fire the main weapons on tanks. remember, before this tank, there weren't tanks. the british and germans had tanks but there were no tanks prior to this first generation of tanks. this piece right here is the tank that george patton fell in love with. of course, general patton went on to become the grandfather of american armor. and you can see it's very similar to tanks we have in america nowadays. the one t

barrel bombs and chlorine gas are dropped from helicopters. hospitals are she would, civilians, arrested, tortured, and killed. the u.n. investigators say no side seems capable of victory. there is no military solution to the long suffering of syria's people. but no side is ready to stop fighting. the international community has been unable to broker even a brief cease-fire. instead, the u.n. fears syria's conflict is about to spread across the region with devastating consequences for millions of people. bbc news, geneva. >> now, let me take you to ukraine because its president petro poroshenko says a road map will be agreed for a cease-fire. it follows talks with his russian counterpart. mr. poroshenko had a private meeting with vladimir putin on tuesday. he said work on a cease-fire would begin as soon as possible. but the distance between the two leaders seems great. president putin wants no direct role. he says it's up to kiev to conduct its own negotiations with the rebels. >> translator: we in russia cannot talk about any conditions for

government forces have systematically committed murder, forced, rape and disappearance and have used chlorine gas is a lethal weapon. omittedbel group's have massacres and war crimes. recruiting and using children in hostilities. the u.n. says the international community has failed 30 civilians but the rise is causing new urgency and alarm. the united states, which is attacking is in iraq is considering joining forces in syria. it is much more embedded with the civilian population and will be extremely difficult to attack targets in the area without causing casualties.civilian >> after three years of described -- destruction and killing the rise of the islamic state seems finally to convince the west the spreading severity -- civilian war is a direct rip to its interest. jeremy bowen, bbc news. >> for more on what it would take to defeat an islamic state, member of the national security working group and joined me from pennsylvania. you look at the u.n. report that suggest the islamic state has recruited child soldiers and had them in the training camps. it makes the white house how situations ab

commission has released a report accusing the syrian government of using chlorine gas to attack civilians. it was not included on the list of chemical weapons that damascus had agreed to destroy. >> this is the first time that the u.n. has assign blame for the use of such weapons. the commission said that government forces loyal to president bashar al-assad likely unleashed chlorine on civilians eight times in april. >> the syrian government forces aren't the only ones with bladder -- with blood on their hands. you and also believes that islamist state militants acting in syria -- the u.n. also believes that islamist state militants acting in syria have committed these crimes. >> people run from crime -- people run a mixed another assault. numerous barrel bombings and poison gas attacks have been carried out. they accused bashar al-assad's regime of widespread torture and sexual abuse. investigators want the international criminal court to look into the violations. >> syria is total impunity. crimes are committed each day, from all parties, and nobody is dealing with the criminal responsi

the syrian government was thought to have dropped chlorine gas in april. >> the chlorine has been dropped bombs, from helicopters belonging to the government authorities. so the finger points there. >> reporter: video posted on social media purports to several of those alleged chlorine attacks. while cnn can't independently confirmed video, it shows an um in of syrian civilians fleeing the smoky aftermath of an explosion with their faces covered. more video shows wounded civilians, including children in a field hospital, some having difficulty breathing. several are receipted with oxygen masks. investigators admit their report will mott stop what they say are the hundreds of civilians being killed each day in syria. but they hope to use their evidence to build a case for future prosecution at the international criminal court. cnn. >>> well, the u.s. says, the u.s. military, rather, says it is considering its options to deal with isis both in iraq and in syria. in the meantime, another humanitarian crisis developing in northern iraq. barbara starr has the details. >> reporter: desperate ir

. >> juan, he's used chlorine gas after all this and chlorine is banned. >> charles we were talking abouting far worse. all you're trying to do, i think, is to jump on the president. it just doesn't work. world recognizes if, in fact, the chemical weapons were available and had been captured by the rebels we would be in far worse shape with isis. >> we are where we are. steve. >> juan, you may believe the president shouldn't be involved in civil war but martin dempsey said we can't eradicate isis unless we're involved in syria. >> there's no evidence or indication right now that isil is actively plotting to attack the united states homeland. that's true right now. >> isil is a sophisticated and well funded as any group that we have seen. they are beyond just a terrorist group. they are tremendously well funded. oh, this is beyond anything that we've seen. so we must prepare for everything. >> this is an organization that has an apocalyptic end of days strategic vision which will have to be defeated for you up question can they be defeated without addressing that part of their organization

the panel set that syria's government has used chlorine gas, barrel bombs against its citizens, both are illegal under international conventions. barrel bombs are often packed with shrapnel, chemicals or oil. >>> air strikes on syria targeting the latter of the islamic state group. libby casey is in washington with more on that. libby. >> reporter: john, the white house is by news agency's reports seriously considering air strikes. it's not going it alone. white house spokesma spokesman h ernest today, says the white house is keeping its option he open and ernest says they're engaging other countries on this issue. >> there are large numbers of ways that countries around the world can csht t -- csht contrio this effort around the world. >> a handful of countries are already providing or have promised to provide supplies and arms to kurdish fighters in iraq battling islamic state so there already is a degree of coordination. and white house officials says it's not only up to western allies but regional governments can have a role when applying to sunni leaders. white house is saying i

including chlorine gas attacks on civilians, an i.s. of crimes including torture murder and recruiting child soldiers. back in the united states the mother of journalist stephen sotloff, a prisoner of i.s. for the last year made an emotional plea to the group's leader for his release. >> as a mother i ask your justice to be merciful and not punish my son for matters he has no control over. i ask you use his authority to spare his life and to follow the examples set by the prophet mohamed who protected people of the book. >> for more i'm joined by daily beast editor christopher dicky. good to see you. >> good to see you ali. >> some sort of air coverage or surveillance in syria maybe even air strikes in syria what are you thoughts on this? >> i think if they're going to be effective two things. one they need to figure out exactly what they want to hit. we can talk about air strikes in general, they need figure out what they need to hit. the crisis is in aleppo, nowhere near iraq. >> northwestern syria. >> northwestern syria. if i.s.i.s.

among the accusations the president there bashir al assad his regime attacked his own people with chlorine gasht times back in april and it's three years that president obama said he needs to go and quite a long time since he crossed the red line yet there he is. our chief intelligence correspondent kathryn harris is live in washington. we're learning more about the islamic state's military capabilities. >> reporter: that's right. the terrorist group isis or isil has taken a strategy jig approach to gain recruits and equipment according to a new analys analysis. an independent and privately funded research group reads in part isil did not become effective suddenly in early june 2014 it had been steadily strengthening and actively shaping the future operating environment for four years. >> there's been a deliberate and very thoughtful approach to how they built themselves up. they have armored units. they have vehicles. they have tactics. they have command and control structures. they are very well organized. it's not a bunch of terrorists running around. it's organized militant army. >> report

continued killings, torture, and other war crimes including multiple barrel bombings laced with chlorine gas since april. the libyan government is warning of a full-scale war. on sunday, islamist militias claimed control of the libyan capital tripoli after taking over the main airport. on wednesday, the libyan ambassador told the un security council his country was descending into "full-blown civil war if we're not very careful." the outgoing u.n. envoy to libya said over 100,000 people have been displaced since the conflict escalated last month. >> the threat from the spread of terrorist groups has become real . their presence and activities in a number of libyan cities are known to all. at present, the toxic security situation and the very limited capacity of the government to counter the threat may well have created a fertile ground for a mounting danger in libya and beyond. >> protesters have gathered in dayton, ohio to call for federal probe into the fatal police shooting of an african-american man in a beavercreek walmart. police say john crawford ignored commands to drop a gun, which

an independent commission said today there's evidence the syrian military used chlorine gas at least eight times in april. the targets were villages in the north, where islamic state fighters now have control. israel's prime minister, benjamin netanyahu, declared victory today in the latest war in gaza. more than 2,100 palestinians and 70 israelis died before a cease- fire took effect last night. netanyahu spoke today at a news conference in jerusalem. >> ( translated ): with the establishment of the cease fire, i can say that there has been a huge military achievement here, and also a political achievement. hamas was hit hard and did not get any of the demands they made as a condition for the cease fire, not even one. >> ifill: meanwhile, gazans streamed back to communities reduced to rubble by seven weeks of fighting. thousands of homes were destroyed or severely damaged, leaving many people weary after the third round of fighting since 2007. the centers for disease control and prevention warned today the ebola outbreak in west africa will get worse. dr. tom frieden spoke during a

by the way, there is evidence of chlorine gas usage by bashar al-asaad.need to have airstrikes, we need to help the free syrian army, when need to help the kurds and assist a re canadian sill yaition went sunni and the new fast. the president needs to tell us what the strategy is. two interesting events took place this week. one was the ceasefire between israel and hamas. no american involvement. attacks by uae in egypt, air attacks against the islamists in libya without even telling the united states of america. when the president said the united states was going to attack syria because of the chemical weapons issue and didn't, believe me these countries decided they would have to foe their own way. martha: i think people will look back at that moment as a turning point in the way the u.s. is perceived around the globe. we may be experiencing the result of that. the president when he spoke to the american legion, he said something that may go back to his reasoning for pulling out of these countries in the the first place. he said troops on the ground can

they can still use chlorine gas and other things not classified officially as weapons.hey are terrible and brutal. the syrian civil war led to serious not having chemical weapons. ub. it makes the regime more tolerable from an israeli point of view. as for the alternative, there is a phrase going around they are at the fence. israel holds most of the golan heights. rebels have taken an area known by. someone who might be the free syrian army. the israelis watched this. they are at the fence. the response has been, in secret. try to make contact with everybody. try to be as friendly as we can. you heard about the hospital northern israel? which is a good part of publicity? they are treating wounded people from the syrian civil war? is that an intelligence bonanza opportunity to interview people and send them back in. treat only your favorite people. treat some of the people, the family members, may be some of the people from the major organizations. the israelis do not have the answer. they cannot unlock the mystery we have been talking about, how to protect the u.s.. or

they can still use chlorine gas and other things not classified officially as weapons.hey are terrible and brutal. the syrian civil war led to serious not having chemical weapons. ub. it makes the regime more tolerable from an israeli point of view. as for the alternative, there is a phrase going around they are at the fence. israel holds most of the golan heights. rebels have taken an area known by. -- someone who might be the free syrian army. the israelis watched this. they are at the fence. the response has been, in secret. try to make contact with everybody. try to be as friendly as we can. -- you heard about the hospital northern israel? which is a good part of publicity? they are treating wounded people from the syrian civil war? is that an intelligence bonanza opportunity to interview people and send them back in. treat only your favorite people. treat some of the people, the family members, may be some of the people from the major organizations. the israelis do not have the answer. they cannot unlock the mystery we have been talking about, how to protect the u.