el nusra front shift in strategy. kim vanel reports. >> reporter: on the outskirts of idlib rebel fighters take aim at shoot points. including al qaeda linked al nusra front. in syria's northwest. activist video purports to show getting ready for battle. regime forces reportedly closed off the city in preparation for attack, stopping residents from getting in and out while transferring command centers. taking idlib would be be an important victory for government fighters, allowing them to cut off supply lines. to the east indarazor, rebel fighters control large portions of iraq. and after meeting with bashar al-assad, more will are done. >> translator: there is cooperation but we are looking forward to having a high level of cooperation. what we have in common needs more coordination and we hope that this visit would be a first step towards more coordination. >> iraq one of syria's main allies, is also a key player for the u.s. in the fight against i.s.i.l. iraqi troops are working with the u.s. led coalition and its

in iraq.met every important figure in al qaeda's top command that's where he joined the ranks of el nusra front. >> this is going to be an important blow. >> over the years those gains were challenged by more moderate syrian rebels and later by islamic state of iraq and the levant. target the leadership of all rebel groups fighting against it. in a divided international community hasn't helped syrians seeking regime change. >> the regime has gotten stronger in the last several months. it seems to have picked up speed since the united states began to bomb i.s.i.s. and nusra as well, committed itself even more than it has before. it is quite clear that the regime with full iranian backing is confident. and this is one more demonstration that it's going to assert itself, the allies, the united states, this command of the united states, saudi arabia and turkey are now in complete chaos. >> as the u.s. led coalition also continues to target the group, the leadership gets more complicated every day. osama ben javid al jazeera. >> the brain behind the organization, the timing behind the attack i

the el nusra front is a problem the assad regime is a problem and you have this constant battle between factions in iraq. >> rose: anthony cordesman, thank you very much for joining us. >> my pleasure. >> rose: anthony cordesman c.i.s. in warrant washington. >> hunt: barney frank achieved a first dream in his 20s starting as top aid to boston mayor kevin white, serving in the massachusetts general court and 32 years in congress culminating as chairman of the financial services committee during the financial crisis. during that time he proudly paraded as a progressive a liberal champion of affective government but hid the fact that he was gay. he has written a memoir aptly entitled "frank" by barney frank in which he tells about these experiences. barney it's great to have you here. >> thank you. >> hunt: barney, how much of your public year in the first 20 years was affected by the fact that you were gay and couldn't disclose it? >> i now know retroactively more than i thought. there was one way it didn't affect me. that is, i never let that keep me back from being an advocate for gay r

that means it continued through el nusra then with isis, so what happened with those three, including isis they attack military basis-- bases. they kill our soldiers and destroy our economy. how could, according to this logic how could that be the best thing happened to me? in what logic. to lose? to destroy the country? to kill your supporters, and to kill others and to kill civilians, in what sense could that be the best thing that happened to me and to the government? that's illogical. that's unpolitical. >> how now would the new reality of isis what new changes do you see in attitude towards you and staying and the syrian government? >> regarding the west. >> yes. >> i think the west has changed its calculations after the rise of isis. but that doesn't mean they changed their approach to the conflict in syria and in iraq and in our region. i don't think they have learned the lison-- lesson well. and as a result that will not change the course of the events. because the very beginning of the problem from the western perspective is to change the system or the president or the govern

nusra front. al jazeera spoke with a fighter in the city. >> major advance of idlib city. there are no names of aral sham, sakora sham or any other. all fighters are fighting under sakur el sham. >> reunited with their families after what they say are years ton battlefield. returning to idlib now we are told thousands fled during this recent offensive. air strikes have been carried on in the last four days, unpress tented in this area because it had been in government hands. idlib had been seen as a relatively safe haven during this war. for now there doesn't appear to be a lot of concern here. that fighters too busy reveling in their takeover of this significant city. idlib is the second provincial city to fall, the first was rah ca. raqqa. haas a huge blow to the army. stefanie dekker, beirut. >> one secure officer was injured in the fight the operation was part of the government's crack down on suspected armed groups after deadly attack on tunisia's national museum. in a few hours thousands are expected to attend a solidarity march for the victims in the capital, tunis. >>> tens of thousands in singapore are paying their final rmentsrespects to lee quan yew. 91-year-o