for hezbollah and iran both. and this gets back to what might be a likely retribution, enduring things that are reasonably deniable, is reasonably deniable. it's important to them. difficult for the world to have a consensus. but the until shows, what it does not show. even if you agree, for example, that hezbollah focus to try to head cyprus. it was not launched from a particular headquarters. can be difficult to get consensus of a grant politically on as well. i feel they feel that buys and some level of protection. [applause] >> i agree with all of that. i would say that to the extent there have been cases where there may have been cases in the past where some kind of specific retribution may have been exacted, it is the sort of thing that we are not likely to year anything about, either now or ever. and on the strategic level when we are thinking in terms of retribution, i think from the point of view of the united states, we always have to take into account who is really on the line here. hezbollah has an im

but there's lots of good literature on hezbollah and almost all of it is about hezbollah as a political factor in lebanon, and it is a political actor in lebanon or about hezbollah's as a social welfare provider and it is. or about hezbollah's activities in lebanon targeting israel, crossing the blue blue line and of course it's that, too but it's also a global terrorist group and over the years has developed into an organized criminal syndicate and if you really want to understand what hezbollah is all about you have to understand that, too and that was missing from the literature. in fact hezbollah has multiple identities. its social welfare, will shut and all that but it's other things. its lebanese, it's pro iranian, it's committed all but once to the decrees of the iraq clerics and to the fellow shia abroad and all these different things can sometimes pull so that you find hezbollah is sometimes operating along multiple identities, multiple strands that sometimes are mutually exclusive. consider for a simple as i am sure we will during the q&a how it might be that hezbollah that wa

hezbollah could attack our u.s.n beirut. >> if a strike is really limited in the sense it does not weaken the regime, there is a chance that the iranians and hezbollah and syria will absorb it. they will issue a lot of statements, do more operations in syria, but will try to avoid general confrontation with us. but if the strike designed by the administration is to increasingly escalate in syria, we've got to expect the iranian regime is going to escalate with hezbollah against the attempt, this report they will be attacking one embassy, i expect many embassy. they will attack in the gulf against our allies. let's keep an eye on how iran could respond us to. hezbollah has one of the largest networks of organized terrorism. maybe al qaeda is wider in numbers, but hezbollah is more dissident and organized and has the report of syria and iran. i'm not talking about our interest in the middle east but also in africa. hezbollah is present in western africa, in this hemisphere, in south america and also here at home and i

hezbollah believes a u.s. military strike only elevates the scale of the fighting possibly causing hezbollahle to strike at israel or even cause iran to pour nor weapons to hezbollah's a ar sendal. people may want peace but they say more likely the warfare will continue. >> and jackson is reporting from beirut. keeping track of syria' syria's chemical weapons. what the country has at their disposal and the weapons used to deliveer the agent. it's not just al qaeda-linked groups in that country. reason why iranians are riskinging their lives in the middle of war. . . >>> syria is believed to have one of the largest chemical weapon os stockpiles in the middle east. here are the main locations where those we upons are reportedly stored. according to to french surveillance the government has been developing its chemical we tpopbs program since the 1970s. the syrian government has more than a thousand turns of chemical agents. these chemicals include sarin and another substance called vx which is one of the most in

what would syrian regime do and hezbollah do. and more importantly, what would iran do, and not just in senior ya but -- in sera but the entire region. the syrian regime, if it gets a no-killer strike, limited one, they'll definitely try to rebuild the weapon systems with the russians, number one. number two they will attack sunni areas sad syria to prevent them from coming to damascus and taking over. and three, we have seen a series of assassination attempts or strikes inside lebanon against politicians against the syrian regular jim. so syrian regime will probably -- we hear the report before the the threat against the u.s. embassy in baghdad. >> intelligence will have a list of targets, of u.s. targets to reply against. >> shepard: your concern attacks would happen not just in the recent but around the world as a result of a strike on syria. >> the warrooms of return and hezbollah have done rehearsals in the sense they know exactly what step the pentagon -- the kind of attack. if the attack is limited, and i don't think they'

hezbollah believes a u.s.ilitary strikes elevates the scale of the fighting, possibly causing hezbollah to strike at israel or cause iran to pour more weapons into hezbollah's arsenal. people may want peace, but say it's more likely the warfare will continue. >> that is david jackson coming to us from beirut, lebanon. >> as congress prepares to debate military strikes against syria, the risk and memories of wars past are on the minds of decision makers. the administration continues its aggressive push so far action. with us this morning is the former new york law school professor and published author on international relations, mr. chang good morning. >> good morning. >> is there a risk that if we don't do something, if the u.s. does not do something, something worse could happen? >> well, first of all, there are always risks in any military action, congress is right to be worried about blowback. you are right, not doing anything as secretary of state kerry has said poses its own risks. here we need to be conc

. >>> the price of backing assad, hezbollah's power in lebanon is it in decline. a essential report from beirut. >>> more than two years after the tsunami in japan, debris is still washing up on beaches thousands of kilometers away. >>> thousands of people are still waiting for help to arrive after a powerful earthquake hit pakistan's remote southwest on tuesday. the quake has affected an area the size of switzerland. the latest death toll is now at 348. the quake flattened large areas of the district that's the country's poorest province. judo is the only international news channel with a team in the worst affected area. our correspondent reports. >> reporter: three days after a major earthquake flattened entire villages in some districts, we have seen widespread destruction in anarwan. this is an impov riched district where people are still digging and they're not digging for gold or valuables, butter -- but they're looking for the missing, their loved ones unaccounted for. the women here have nowhere to goment . there is no shade from the sweltering sun. soon i

and he said hezbollah doesn't decide. was imsuleimani decides. and i thought you know w who is that. and then and then earlier this year when i was reporting a piece on syria somebody in the pentagon said to me this is the guy who is running the war in syria. he's got a command post in damascus. he's got hezbollah at his disposal. he's got his own revolutionary guards. flown in from iran. he's got-- . >> rose: flown in to be on the battlefield or other purses-- purposesness both. >> rose: he has iraqi shiite militia the ones they were supporting in their efforts to kill americans. >> rose: so shii-- shi'a militias are supporting the the efforts. >> the assad government. so he is sort of running this whole, he's running the war for assad in syria. and so as i started you know asking questions yeah he just came up everywhere. so if you just look at, i mean i kind of imagine this as a sort of a secretary res history of the last 15 years. >> rose: does he give speeches. does he do interviews has he been-- -- . >> it's all pretty carefully scripted. h

that's good. >> charlie: hezbollah forces are in syria today?on the border area of lebanon where they want to protect and serve and cooperate with us. but they don't exist all overseer i can't. they cannot exist all overseer i can't. from any region that they exist on the border. >> charlie: what advice are you getting from the russians? >> about? >> charlie: this war. how to end this war. >> looking for a solution, we have this advice and we are convinced about it. >> charlie: do you have plan to end the war? >> of course. >> charlie: which is -- at very beginning it was fullly political when you have these terrorists the first part of the same plan which is political should start with the stopping, the smuggling of terrorists coming from -- stopping logistic support, the money, all kind of support. second, you can have national dialogue where the different syrian parties sit and discuss the future of syria. third, you can have interim government or -- >> charlie: you would be -- then you have the final elections, parliamentary elections. and y

that's good. >> charlie: hezbollah forces are in syria today?on the border area of lebanon where they want to protect and serve and cooperate with us. but they don't exist all overseer i can't. they cannot exist all overseer i can't. from any region that they exist on the border. >> charlie: what advice are you getting from the russians? >> about? >> charlie: this war. how to end this war. >> looking for a solution, we have this advice and we are convinced about it. >> charlie: do you have plan to end the war? >> of course. >> charlie: which is -- at very beginning it was fullly political when you have these terrorists the first part of the same plan which is political should start with the stopping, the smuggling of terrorists coming from -- stopping logistic support, the money, all kind of support. second, you can have national dialogue where the different syrian parties sit and discuss the future of syria. third, you can have interim government or -- >> charlie: you would be -- then you have the final elections, parliamentary elections. and y

we have hezbollah operating there. it's a proxy fight. by the way, the russians have been here the whole time and complicit in allowing chemical weapons to be used. they got exactly what they wanted. they want add sad here for a year, at least extended for a year. they got that. and there's not one ounce of chemical weapons in this -- remember, it's a framework. there are a lot of shoulds, not a lot of hard dates. all this has to go to the u.n. not one ounce of chemical weapons came off the battlefield but we gave up every ounce of our leverage because we've taken away a credible military threat. the russians say we maintain that right to oppose it in the national security council. and they said that they would. >> so let me -- i want to bring in your fellow committee member congressman adam shift, your colleague on the intelligence committee and ask you what you think of this deal. i know you have been certainly open to trusting the russians to bring something usable to the table. >> well, i don't know that i trust the russians. i think

hezbollah is watching what we're doing. if we don't stand up and enforce this prohibition, they will take the wrong lesson from it. >> reporter: with polls suggesting americans oppose getting more involved in syria, the administration is promising military action won't launch another war. >> in a very limited, very targeted, very short-term effort, unbelievably small limited kind of effort. >> reporter: critics warn that won't have much of an impact on bashar al assad and the white house won't offer more details to explain how it will. the deputy national security adviser now says he spoke inartfully when he said the president wouldn't act without congressional authorization. but complicating matters is the new russian offer to push syria to place its chemical weapons under international supervision. syria has one of the largest chemical weapons stockpiles in the world and officials were ste skeptical of the offer but were careful not to reject it. the russian offer could weaken international support for military action whi

security forces replaced hezbollah's men at checkpoints set up after the attacks. hezbollah, said the move, the first of its kind, should silence critics who believe they're acting as a state within a state. >> translator: hezbollah's message is they want to return to a state. i expect them to announce it will pull out of syria and say it is no longer involved. it has paid a high price, and the future of syria is now in the hands of russia and the united states. >> reporter: the leader sent a message to those that support syria's opposition, to resolve the conflict through dialogue. >> translator: i want to extend a sincere and honest invitation to saudi arabia, the gulf, turkey and the rest of the arab and islamic state. review your positions. you're betting on a failed military option. the solution is political. >> reporter: hezbollah never shied away from declaring the stayed policy, and that's to prevent damascus from falling. this policy hasn't been without a price. it has earned itself enemies, especially since the forces have fought alongside the regime. it'

in part due to signs from ir iran-backed hezbollah. more likely, according to analysts, there could be a hezbollah strike against enemy and key u.s. ally. comments today were purposely vague. >> a silent approach. the ambiguity is launched. >> keeping al assad in power is seeing as key to political links for hezbollah with it's main sponsor iran. >> they have sent fighters in syria to battle. they want that link preserved. that is existential for the military. >> the war in syria is already hitting home in lebanon. this memorial in the hezbollah strong hold of south beirut is the site of the car bomb which left 27 people dead. it is widely believed that is retaliation for the hezbollah backing of the assad regime. on this day in beirut, they were still repairing the damage. >> this is not lebanon. we are a country who knows how to live. >> seeing the devastation from the 2006 war with hezbollah and israel are still fresh. that is why some say that hezbollah's leader may not risk the issues unless the u.s. goes big. i don't think there

the blast widely seen as retaliation for hezbollah's backing of the assad regime. tell us if hezbollah hits anything, it will probably be its arch enemy and key u.s. ally, israel, but only if it's a big u.s. strike. memories of the devastating war between israel and hezbollah in 2006 are still fresh. and so here as in the states people are watching, waiting, assessing. >> greg, thank you very much. almost a year after the deadly attack on the benghazi conflict, members of congress and the family of those killed have unanswered questions. one of the authors of a new book that may provide some answers. plus, nasa's sending an unmanned rocket to the moon. what the space agency hopes to learn about this new mission. [ male announcer ] this is claira. to prove to you that aleve is the better choice for her, she's agreed to give it up. that's today? [ male announcer ] we'll be with her all day to see how it goes. [ claira ] after the deliveries, i was okay. now the ciabatta is done and the pain is starting again. more pills? seriously? seriously. [ groans ] all these sto

hezbollah said it's part of their political map. looking at the future what would be the consequence of involving themselves more than they are now. do they want to be involved in this crisis? or do they want to be watching what is happening? the price would be high in the future. >> the geopolitical movements are very interesting. thank you for coming in and talking with us. >> later in this news hour we'll go to washington. also ahead. >> i'm david mercer here on the streets of mexico city where thousands of people have come out to protest proposed government reform. >> and coming newspaper sports, she's done it again. serena williams wins the u.s. hope for a fifth time. >> and the southern philippines 220 people are being held hostage by muslim rebels. members of the national libation front are fighting with government troops. at least six people have been killed so far. the group wants to establish an autonomous region for muslims. >> exchanging fire with fighters from the liberation front. the battl civilians running forr but s

isn't it a shame on hezbollah to do this to us?e check point was one of many set up by hezbollah after a massive car bomb in the group's strong hold in southern beirut. which is right next to the camp. after sunday' shooting, various palestinian groups note calm the situation. >> we met with hezbollah and lebanese officials and we decided that this is an isolated incidents that should have no political or security impact. but is a sounding bell and if it not being on the will from all sides to limit the damage. >> reporter: the incidents has highlighted the plight of hundreds of thousands of refugees. >> everyone is being seen as a suspect and being stopped and searched in the camp. the situation sin tolerable. any solution should include elimination of checkpoints and stopping the friction between the personnel. they have decided to hand over any criminal suspect to the security. >> reporter: it's aimed atta sroeugd further problems. atta voiding any further problems. security and confrontation in the past and now they say that th

that's a strategic loss for hezbollah and others. because those chemical weapons were part of the deterrent of israel and the u.s. i think they're feeling secure that the regime will be around for a good while longer. >> reporter: but they no longer feel secure at home. their strong hold in beirut has been linked with car bombings, the area is now protected by the state. security forces replaced hezbollah's men at check points which were set up after the attacks. hezbollah said the move of its kind should silence critics who believe the group is acting as a state within a state. >> hezbollah's message is that we want to return to the state. i expect the group to soon announce that it's pulling its forces out of syria. it will say that it is no longer involved. it has paid a high price for its role and the future of syria is in the hands of russia and the united states. >> reporter: it's leader has sent a message to resolve the conflict through dialogue. >> i want to extend the sincere and honest invitation to saudi arabia, turkey and

of hezbollah?- >> are our three principle supporters of assad and the rest of the world is in -- and there are three principle supporters of assad and the rest of the world is in horror. are iran and hezbollah allowed to see him stay in power, as well as do so with the use of chemical weapons, that is extraordinarily dangerous for jordan, israel, lebanon, and our interest. look of how that vote might break down, any vote in the house underneath u.s. military strikes -- in a house military strikes. 100 37 leading toward a no vote and 92 saying they are undecided. at accounts for 305 members of the house. 217 are needed to pass. taking a look at a map of syria, this is the area outside of damascus where a european union that for the european and -- where the european union agrees that a chemical weapons attack did occur. german newspapers are reporting the united nations may have some initial findings that could be released by the end of next week. germany has just signed on to a statement issued by

syria has been trying to supply hezbollah with these sophisticated munitions.e care about the use of those weapons. we want to make sure syria does not become a training ground and safe haven for terrorists. the fact is al qaeda has gotten stronger the longer this war has gone on. the longer we allow it to fester and continue, the stronger al qaeda becomes. third thing is we are interested in regional stability, particularly stability of countries like jordan. jordan now has 500,000 syrian refugees. it was already straining. >> you think its stability is jeopardized? >> this is not simply syria. >> you haven't mentioned what i think is arguably, at least in my view the biggest one which is iran. >> exactly. i was saving this for last. this is the vital point. this is a proxy war in which iran is fighting for dominance in the middle east. it sees through victory in syria a straight line that runs through shiite iraq, al awad and all the way to hezbollah dominating lebanon. so whether iran suffers a strategic setback or gets strategic advantage by winning in syri

they created hezbollah, they are backing assad, they want assad to win. publicly they play in this way and that way. on the ground they are supporting. there's one conversation that never takes place. the ayatollah khamenei sits down with the head of the irgc, and his people they say to him, we cannot solve syria. the united states is a superpower. the use of force is counterproductive. if we use force in syria it will make it worse, so we should forget it. that conversation never happens. they say how do we cause maximum pain to the americans, and that is the way they do it. that is the way we need to do business as well. we do not have to solve syria. our interests are punish our enemies, create a framework that allows other people to get on the ground so we did not have to do it. that is international politics. we have to make our side stronger. >> who is our side? >> the saudis and the turks. we want to make it run suffer and we want to make assad suffer, and then we ask who can line up to do that who will not cause us pain? there is a lot of people o

was was influential and in doing so the problem is that hezbollah has not directed its weapons against the chests of the innocent lebanese. and you are using this as your way to implement. a regional let's say. and. this is something unacceptable and we will continue to stand against such such plans from the day through the democratic process that. has been. to us by our constitution. and that's it for this edition hearing from what signora lebanon's former prime minister who i met in beirut thank you for watching i'll see you next time here on. the loose and search for justice should individuals including. government officials be legally held to account for starting aggressive force like in iraq is it fair to push their officials be given immunity from prosecution if they're not held accountable alternately responsible. play an issue free cretaceous three. three. three. three stooges free. zone free blog video for your media project a free media. israel's prime minister brings. to washington as he praises president obama for the sanctions which problems the country into economic despa

iran and hezbollah are two of the three biggest allies of assad.ran and hezbollah are the two single biggest enemies of israel. if iran and hezbollah are advantaged by the united states not curving assad's use of chemical weapons, there is a much greater likelihood that at some point down the road, hezbollah will have access to these weapons of mass destruction. israel will for certain be less secure. i would also argue -- >> but it is more likely that hezbollah will attack because of this attack? >> israel feels confident in its ability to deal with hasbro but if it does so. israel has on several occasions seen fit to deal with threats to its security. not once has assad responded to that to date. i think there are a bunch of things we should talk about in a classified session. let me just make it clear to you that you asked these questions. will this or that be more likely to happen? if the united states of america doesn't do this, is it more or less likely that assad does it again? do you want to answer that question? >> i think it is unknown. >

iran and hezbollah are two of the three biggest allies of assad. and iran and hezbollah are the two biggest enemies of israel. >> jeanine, who do you agree with? >> secretary kerry is echoing what they're saying. that israel is much more afraid of iran, but you have to remember, while the israelis are not expecting retaliation, chuck night disagree with me, but they're not prepared for the attack on the home front that hezbollah did in 2006. that war really showed israel's vulnerability from the kind of attacks from hezbollah that could happen here. though i agree it's very unlikely. and the other point, that the united states aligns, and they deliver these kinds of chemical weapons. they are divided at the highest security levels and some see it as an opportunity to break that iran-hezbollah access, and others are much more afraid, including net inyahoo on the opposition. so we have to agree with the strike, but we'll have to see if the united states is in line with the views on of this. >> all right, jeanine and chuck, hope you'll be back with us

supported by hezbollah and sunni who have been sending the arab jihadists to syria. intervention in syria will not solve the situation. it will escalate into a regional war, will increase the number of refugees. we are sure that -- and most of the syrian know that damascus is not preferred for, like, external intervention and external war and that will make people inside syria pay a lot of a high price because there be more injuries. there will be more refugees knowing is talking about the syrian people. i think that's the main concern is to punish. >> i am going to stop you there because i want to pick up on that in our section segment which we will get to here briefly. as you are watching, you are hearing from syrians deeply involved in or actually living this crisis. just heard, even they don't agree on how the u.s. should handle this situation. so how is america to decide the best course of action? we are going to get to that after the first break. here are a couple of other stories you are making comments on. [ music ] >>> when you draw a red line for a dictator

for the syrian law enforcement right now but aren't you afraid that they may become targets for hezbollah. when we have been already for quite some time. it is my. certain terrorists. this is something i don't want to live accuse anybody because this is this is the subject matter of the international tribunals to. deal with this matter. for sure for sure this is this this this is this that is there. but in this respect you only did once and you have to live in dignity and this is something that we are freedom seekers and we believe that what's happening in syria is something unacceptable from from all aspects and what is happening in lebanon by the continued. back against the states as such and the holding of weapons by a group of lebanese and that was initially was really used to. to drive these rate is out of lebanon and thanks for the work that they have done in this regard i mean hezbollah was influential and in doing so the problem is that hezbollah has directed its weapons against the chests of the innocent lebanese. and you are using this as your way to implement. a regional. let's

hezbollah is already involved in combat in syria.s battling alongside forces the regime there and that has caused some blow back. we went to one neighborhood here in beirut which saw last month a massive car bombing aimed thought at the hezbollah interests. 27 people were killed in that now, despite how important syria is, as an ally to hezbollah though, it might not go big unless the united states goes big. the folks here are still remembering the 2006 clash between israel and hezbollah, which left a lot of devastation, a lot of destruction, they don't want to have that one more time. as you can see, shep, a lot of assessing and reassessing, on all sides, all corners of the globe. backing to you. >> shepard: greg palkot early this saturday morning in beirut. there is more word from russian's navy that we have word that the russian navy ships have heading to syrian's doorstep in the eastern mediterranean. according to a russian news agency. the u.s. already has a number of destroyers in that region. a kremlin official says the main r

hezbollah is already involved in the fight.itants are over in syria in combat alongside soldiers of the syrian regime of assad, and that has caused a little bit of blow back for their group here in lebanon. take a look at what we saw today in beirut. >> the war in syria is already hitting home in lebanon. this memorial at a hizbollah stronghold, the site of a car bomb blast last month which left 27 people dead. as you can see, people are already trying to make repairs, fix this up. but widely seen as retaliation for hezbollah backing of the assad regime. >> despite how important syria is to hezbollah, experts tell me that they might not go big if the united states does not go big. memories are still fresh here in lebanon of the 2006 war between hezbollah and israel. and that left a devastation and destruction all around the country. finally, melissa, one person came up to us. he told us that these -- i don't think there will be a strike on syria. this region cannot handle it. wishful thinking. maybe. understatement. probably. b

iran and hezbollah are two of the three biggest allies of assad. and iran and hezbollah are the two single biggest enemies of israel. so if iran and hezbollah are advantaged by the united states not curbing assad's use of chemical weapons, there is a much greater likelihood that at some point down the road, hezbollah who has been one of the principal reasons for a change in the situation on the ground, will have access to these weapons of mass destruction. and israel will for certain be less secure. >> but i would also argue more likely that hezbollah will attack because of this attack in response. >> and israel feels quite confident of its ability to deal with hezbollah if they were to do so. you will notice that israel has on several occasions in the last year seen fit to deal with that's to its security because of what's in syria and not once has assad responded to that to date. i think there are a bunch of things we should talk about in a classified session. but let me just making it very clear to you that you know, you asked these questions, w

hezbollah, who are the best warriors of bashar al assad, hezbollah is not what they would call -- andfew months, hamas, which was sheltered, the political headquarters of hezbollah was in damascus. so you already have islam on the two sides. but what i believe and that is what has been proven by libya, if the west intervenes, if the congress and doctors as i hope president obama, if the congress endorse if obama is allowed to strike, you will say -- you will see how the landscape in the opposition will move. if obama does not strike, the radical islamists will take the lead. if the west appears to be on the good side, which is the side of the people, the radical islamists will lose ground in the opposition. it is always like this. when the west takes the lead, the pro west take advantage. when the west is munich spirit, then the islamic radicalists take credit and that's one of the reasons why it is so important for the international community for the west, for america, for france to build this strong alliance. >> do you believe what happened in egypt with the generals taking control

who are opposing hezbollah and russia. sense and we can't trust an administration who did not trust the lie and then lie about it. >> what do you think the reaction of the prior behavior of this government will be as we ahead at to talk about going into syria? >> in order to execute a serious and credible policy, you have to have capability and credibility. the biggest problem you have right now, we don't have the military in place around syria to deal with an expanded conflict. we will go in with punch. i think the colonel had it right. this administration lacks the credibility given their previous issues to deal with from benghazi going back to when they came into office. they are not credible in how they want to deal with it. it's a political decision. it was the president's red line when you lock at how he expanded to be the world's red line. that is a chance that is not realistic and true. the capability and credibility is questioned. the credibility of the president is at stake. >> what does one do? we will show them

let me talk for a couple minutes about the regime in iran and hezbollah. what happens in syria is of great consequence to our security interests as it relates that regime and hezbollah. that regime meaning the iranian regime. their support for hezbollah through syria has resulted in constant plotting against the united states and its allies. the assad regime in syria is the conduit of this relationship between hezbollah and the iranian regime itself. i support this authorization of targeted and strategic military action to hold the syrian regime accountable and because it will diminish the ability of iran and hezbollah to conduct acts of terror and to protect american lives if we hold them accountable, and of course, the syrian people. indeed, other than al qaeda, other than al qaeda, hezbollah's killed more americans than any other terrorist organization in the world, including 241 marines in 1983. hezbollah has consistently partnered with iran's islamic revolutionary guard corps to bolster assad's regime. the regime in iran has provided funds, weapons, l

hezbollah are two of the three biggest allies of assad. iran and hezbollah are the two single biggest enemies of israel . so if iran and hezbollah are advantaged by the united states not curbing besides use of -- not curbings assad's use of chemical israel will be less secure. >> it is more likely that hezbollah will attack if we >> you willsponse. notice that israel has on several occasions seen fit to deal with threats to its security because of what is in syria. that once has assad responded to that to date. i think there are things we session.lk about in a let me make it clear to you that -- you ask these questions will this or that be more or less likely to happen. if the united states of america doesn't do this, senator. is it more or less likely that assad will do it again? own --ink it is on your i think it is unknown. >> senator, it is not unknown. if the united states does not hold them accountable for this it is a guarantee that assad will do this again. i guarantee it. to theyou to go classified briefing and learn that. let me

. >> that's the worrisome scenario, where hezbollah decides to strike israel. and then israel retaliates and all of a sudden this coalition against assad falls apart because israel joined its side and won't pull together. i agree, which means if israel does respond in that situation, it's going to be a challenge for american diplomacy to limit the israeli response to targets in lebanon against hezbollah and let us handler syria, or if there's extensive escalation in syria, it has to be done by a u.s., nato coalition. the chances of this are unlikely but it's important to think them through. so assad knows if he's foolish enough to escalate, we can outescalate him. >> shepard: nice to see you, thank you. >> the list of countries that apparently agree with president obama about a strike is strikingly short. but now, the british prime minister says a failure to punish the assad regime would be a huge mistake, yet his parliament would not allow him and his country to participate. well to the new normal as "studio b" continues on this wednesday afternoon. is claira.

eventually hezbollah managed to barely fight the israelis to a stand still.ge victor from that war. >> there's a potential problem. we've overestimated the strength of assad's forces. one of the big problems about all of this is we have no certainty at all. we simply don't know somewhat's going to happen. >> there's been a massive airlift by the iranians that's basically bailed them out. >> the hezbollah fighters have made a significant difference on the ground. >> you have to bring them in openly. because they were slipping. >> what it comes down to in the arab world is if you survive, you win. ann marie, you've seen it a million times. even in the egyptian wars with the israelis. >> i think you've got to pick up on what nick said. why did he use chemical weapons? he's using them because his back is against the wall. they're now in damascus. the opposition was controlling a large parent of this suburb and he in the end had to use chemical weapons to get them out. so again, i'm not at all certain that -- >> is that really the reason? >> i wouldn't rule out th

and he was expressing frustration with hezbollah, an armed group, also political party. and he said hezbollah doesn't decide, gassim suleimani decides. >> and i thought who's that. and then -- and then earlier this year when i was report a piece on syria somebody in the pentagon said to me this is the guy whose's running the war in syria. he's got a command post in damascus. he's got, you know, hezbollah at his disposal. >> rose: the president of colombia, looking at al shabaab and dexter filkins when we continue. >> funding for charlie rose was provided by the following. >> from our studios in new york city, this is charlie captioning sponsored by rose communications from our studios in new york city, this is charlie rose. >> rose: the president of colombia juan manuel santos calderon is here. he was elected in 2010 with 69% of the vote. he occupied an important positions in his government's cabinet before assuming the presidency. he served as colombia's minister of foreign trade as well as minister of finance and minister of defense. santos has waged a successful campa

hezbollah and iran tried to kill one of our ambassadors overseas.inst us. a message of weakness here would be very damaging to our national security over time. >> last question here really question. president assad talked to pbs's charlie rose today. he said assad had a very clear message, charlie rose said assad had a very clear message for the american people -- stay out. take a listen. >> he had a message to the american people that it had not been a good experience for them to get involved in the middle east, and in wars and conflicts in the middle east. that the results had not been good. and that they should not get involved. and that they should communicate to their congress and to their leadership in washington not to authorize a strike. >> it's been a tough sell for this administration, senator casey. can you understand the pressure that your fellow lawmakers are getting right now from their constituents, who absolutely do not want to be involved in this conflict on any level? >> there's no question we're all under pressure, because of the

i think they would lose hezbollah and lose this whole kind of shiite imperialí.j they have. >> rose: having the iranians lose syria without having a whole group of radical islamists take power. >> i think that's the $64,000 question. i think it explains the reluctance of kind of everybody here, including the president. which is how do you move this thing without creating a gigantic power vacuum in the middle of the middle east. we've seen that before. >> rose: what do you think on that point, david? >> i think this is the problem for the president. i mean, the oddity here is that the president and the iranians have a common interest in making sure there's not a sunni jihadist leadership in syria. at the same time the iranians may well feel that what they've seen come out of this entire debate and what's going to play out in the next few weeks in congress, is that deep reluctance within the united states and understandable reluctance get involved in another middle east conflict. especially at a time when the u.s. feels as if it's probably rest reliant on middle ea