the problem wife iraq, with ice -- with iraq with isil, goes back to what we tried to accomplish the first time around. and just a little anecdote in the joins chief of staff was initially very opposed to the surge. not only military grounds. they thought they could accomplish pushing out al qaeda, defeating al qaeda in iraq. they were concerned because they didn't have confidence that, whether it was american diplomacy or more particular through iraqi's actions -- could address the basic questions to guarantee that iraq would be viable as a state after saddam hussein and that was how you share political power, and how do you share and divide up equitably the resources of a country that has the world's fifth largest oil reserve, and the united states did go in with a surge, as we all know, they did succeed, plus or minus, and kind of pushing al qaeda back in a way or underground, but they never addressed those fundamental -- managed to get the iraqis to address those fundamental issues. they linger style this day, and in a country that doesn't know how each community will deal with e

american foreign policy in the region since the invasion of iraq, what does the united states and iraqnd syria -- owe iraq and syria going forward? is it state building? is it something more grand in terms of the agreement? what should they look forward to? mr. fontaine: these are very small questions. [laughter] we will try to rip all of this of in teedo minutes -- wrap all of this up into two minutes. they would have given the sanctions relief to iran and then have to release iraq from their obligations. i do not think anybody would do that. on isis there are a number of steps that they should intensify in the military operation we have been doing this incrementally a year and a half now there are still areas that we could do more, particularly if the cease-fire breaks down and the geneva process does not take effect in a meaningful conversation. ofhink the establishment safe zones is going to be an important next step. finally, on what we syria and iraq and i would not put it that way. i would say what are our interest in what animates our values? we have given a lot to the effort i

of iraq? we've given a lot to an effort in iraq to a country in particular. as we look for models of sustainability, if you start to change by force or in any other way the external borders of the nation states, however arbitrarily designed, you open up a pan dora's box. it's a recipe for bloodshed, ethnic cleansing and everything else. within those borders, all sorts of things are possible. i think a strong man in the capital city, who who will owes out his civil society, is just fundamentally a model. i don't think you can put that back together. i don't think it's going to work in egypt who is trying to put it in place right now. the next step is models of federalism or power that have many, many complications. i think at least they have a potential to be successful. that's not something that you can bring about by announcing it should happen. it has to be something that is on the table in every one of these discussions about the future of these countries. >> first of all, i agree with you.

in iraq, the security forces we took ramadi. and then begun operations to isolate and pressure mosul, with the attempt to collapse isil's control over the city. cutting off to significant lines of key medication and raqqa including one of the last major arteries between there and mosul and between isil and yria and iraq. lives in results on targeting isil's leaders and finances. we have systematically eliminated isil's cabinet. taking at the ministers of war, and finance. we removed external plotters from the battlefield and took out the isil emir for southern mosul. on the economic infrastructure from oil, to cash storage, to financial leaders, it is putting a stranglehold on their ability to pay its fighters undermining its ability to govern and making it harder to get a new recruits. these are the result in our coalition. they are also result in our train and equip efforts as well. so far, with your support in congress, we have trained over 20,000 security forces and provided six full brigades worth of equipment to the iraqi

in syria and iraq. >> in iraq the total is around 3,500 now. i just want to remind you that that's the force management level -- >> understand. >> it's not like we do everywhere else. and the special operations complement that we're multiplying six-fold is from 50 to those 300 in syria. >> okay. general dunford, talk a little bit about rules of engagement, because a lot of times they talk about train and equip. we know that would only include defensive activity in certain areas. where are they now on that? >> senator, are you talking about our forces? >> our forces. >> our forces on the ground, number one, they're going after isil, so they're unrestricted in going after isil. that includes the air campaign. and if they're under attack and there's positive identification of an enemy and hostile intent, they are authorized to engage. >> they are. that's good. now, the question i have, the second question is all the activity. we have during the course of this hearing not really talked about anything outside of syria and iraq. but other things are

iraq is not a success story, no matter how we cut it. there have been so many delays, so much time has now passed, i am happy to hear as a human being that in fact, the destruction of mosul will end, the killings will end, the suffering that so many people have experienced in iraq will come to an end, presumably sooner rather than later, but all of this could have been done a long time ago and i don't mean to play monday morning quarterback. what i mean to say, that the coalition that secretary kerry and president obama previously had spoken about, that the coalition that they put together could have done a whole lot more much sooner than just have been too many delays, because the priority was elsewhere. the united states was negotiating with iran for a good two years over the nuclear program, the european focus was elsewhere, so therefore, the iraq situation festered time and time again, and all of a sudden, here we are, having presumably dealt with the terrorist extremist threat. now we're going to liberate mosul. all right, let's jus

did the world finally figure out how to fight isil in western iraq and syria? >> well, i think the fight against isis or isil in iraq was already proceeding before last month. they were the iraqi national forces and the kurdish forces supported by the u.s. coalition, and they have taken back the city of tikrit, ramadi and they're trying to move to center of iraq. what's new is up until last week, they had not launched any major offensive against isis. the retaking of pal mire a. this is partly the result of the cease-fire, that has blocked it's main opponents and the opposition, and the russian and american pressure to negotiate in geneva the regime doesn't want to negotiate. and shortly after the brussels attacks, isis in palmyra gives them the momentum and changes the narrative from the dictator group who doesn't want to negotiate to the hero saving greco roman civilization in the deserts of syria, and you see a lot of commentators and politicians in the u.s. almost version. >> is the noose tightening state? >> i think it is. on pal mire a. i think that it's

the iraq war was beginning to ramp up. as a former soldier, a police officer and someone who had been in that community and around those types of people, i felt an obligation and supported the initial invasion -- invasion. contracting was opportunity for me to get over there without a health examination. amy: tell us about this company you contracted with. number ofere a contracting companies that are looking for just about anybody at that time. amy: the military would not have you because of your heart? >> the heart, but the thought back then was the war was going to be over very quickly, a matter of weeks of not months -- excuse me, matter of months of not weeks. the army did not think it had time to transfer in to include things like interrogation and thought he could save money on things like security and transportation. the idea would be that companies like caci would hire former soldiers who have this kind of these and training, bring them over to iraq to fill in the gaps and then send us all back home. nermeen: i wo

that's not where iraq's oil is in the western and northwestern parts of iraq. it's not where syria's historical strengths of its great cities are out in the center and east, and, so, you have now a sunni arab state that is economically destitute and dysfunctional, and that can only be a recipe for more violence down the road. so that's my practical reason against partition. i could still imagine confederation working and that gets to the mosul question. so my second point would be the real risk here at this point is not so much whether or not mosul will be liberated. it's already been held by the bad guys a long time so a lot of damage has been done and a few more months presumably won't change that a lot, but the question is who will stabilize mosul after i.s.i.s. is driven out and as just mentioned which sectarian group, which foreign power may have the greatest influence? i don't think we have a great answer to this. we have been foundering between shall we create a national guard or help the iraqis create a national guard that can locally recruited and stab

mission in iraq. u.s.ng to be working alongside iraqi forces to try to retake the giant, sprawling city of mosul from isis, which controls mosul right now. what are the positions of the candidates who want to be president? how do they feel about u.s. troop levels in iraq rising back up to a level approaching 5,000? what is their policy on this war going forward and when does the u.s. presidential election start turning to those questions? how is this going to look going forward? will we ever expect the optics in iraq to change? joining us now is courtney kuby, nbc news national security adviser, traveled with vice president biden in iraq in 2009, thank you for being here. >> thanks for having me. >> can you tell me about first of all the -- basically the scale of the escalation right now in iraq? it seems to me like we've gone basically from zero to almost 5,000 in just the space of like a couple of years or less. >> well, it's very incremental. we're seeing this increase of a couple hundred at a time, jus

wages one war after another in iraq. secretary of state john kerry just flew into baghdad on a surprise visit to address the latest crisis. we will speak with retired army colonel and professor andrew bacevich about his new book, america's war for the greater middle east. stockrere is a need to take of u.s. mimilitary involvementnn the region to recognize this failurure and therefore, to consider alternativeves -- and t is my personal judgment, that there are alternatives to the militarization of u.s. policy. why plus we will look at the obama administration deported 85 refugees to bangladesh, india, and n nepal o were seekingng asylum after fleeing repression and violence in their home ununtries. all ththat and more, comoming u. welcome to democracy now!, democracynow.org, the war and peace report. i'm amy goodman. black lives matter activists interrupted former bill clinton during a speech in support of hillary, in philadelphia on challenging the clintons on thursday, their support for the 1994 crime bill, which led to

we have removed, an isil financer in iraq, their finance ch northern iraq, not to mention a number of top foreign terrorist fighters. they are off the field. and in the days and weeks ahead, we intend to take out more. every day isil leaders wake up and understand that it could be their last. with coalition support, local forces continue to push isil back in iraq. iraqi forces have consolidated their gains around ramadi and have pushed up the euphrates river valley. iraq forces have pushed towards mosul and as secretary kerry made clear last week, we will continue to assist iraq and so must the entire world as it works to stabilize liberated areas and promote governance. >> the virginia. he just had a meeting with his national security council. he is wrapping up what appears to be information on the fight against isis and the progress that the u.s. has made thus far. >> we'll keep you up to date what else the president may say that is newsworthy. stay with us for that. >>> first came the breathalyzer, now comes the text-alyzer. >> fall out from a bathroom bill in north carolina. the c

iraq, there is a war going on. country, itstable is an island of stability in the sea of instability in the middle east, but jordan is under pressure. tunisia is the same. they are a stable democratic country in modern africa, but they are under heavy pressure from terrorist organizations and we should help them now. we should not wait until they are really into deep trouble and then help them. prevention is better than intervention. that's a golden rule. we should help them now, not wait until later on. capacity building is also about building capacity before a country slides into conflict or crisis, and then if the country is in crisis, we should help them build capacity to get out of that crisis. as we should do in iraq, and hopefully also, in libya. karen: what about syra? d-- what about syria? do you see any role at all for nato? mr. stoltenberg: it is a great advantage for the coalition that so many nato allies and nato partners have been able to draw forces because nato has developed what we call interoperab

to 50,000need 10,000 based out of iraq to deal with of the iraq sight of this equation and what is happeningsyria. so i think the incrementalism is only going to drive up the build in the end. thoseter: and what was 10,000 to 15,000 chips be able to accomplish? correspondent: you would be able to effectively mentor a significant portion of the iraqi security forces in the south, manage a similar level force in kurdish., with the he would be able to conduct a much higher level of special operations in syria directed against raqqa. logistics, medical response, all of those support mechanisms that the indigenous forces need to be more effective. troops, we know they can do it because they are doing it today in afghanistan at about that level. that does not seem to be the political appetite to commit that kind of troop force against islamic state. layout what you see is the risk to the united states and national security if it is not done. i think it is quite clear as we look at the reachc date -- state's growing. shrugging, wey is have constrained their finances somewhat, but they have launched

in iraq.nment trying to keep it a secret. we'll have a special ♪ ♪ take on the unexpected. the new 2016 nissan altima. built to stand out. that reminds me... anyone have occasional constipation, diarrhea... ...gas, bloating? yes! one phillips' colon health probiotic cap each day helps defend against occasional digestive issues. with three types of go bacteria. live the regular life. phillips'. >> i agree with you on the wall and trump. i don't see how he gets mexico to pay for it by blocking people from sending money back. >> he can't. >> so i think you are right. i do think when it comes to something like trade policy, when donald trump talks about, you know what? we have got to take care of people who have been losing jobs in our country. we have got to do more there, you know what? we're not going to break all all trade deals and start trade wars, but i agree with the sentiment coming from donald trump that we should look out for our people. >> so you are agreeing me with me 100 percent on

in iraq.rnment trying to keep it a secret. we'll have a special report up ahead. ♪ ♪ take on the unexpected. the new 2016 nissan altima. built to stand out. if youthen you'll know howouth, uncomfortable it can be. but did you know that the lack of saliva can also lead to tooth decay and bad breath? well, there is biotene, specially formulated with moisturizers and lubricants. biotene can provide soothing relief and it helps keep your mouth healthy too. biotene, for people who suffer from a dry mouth. you're down with crestor. alright! now there's a way you can get crestor for $3. adding crestor, along with diet, lowers bad cholesterol. crestor is not for people with liver disease, or women who are nursing,pregnant, or may become pregnant. tell your doctor all medicines you take. call your doctor if you have muscle pain or weakness; feel unusually tired; have loss of appetite, upper belly pain, dark urine or yellowing of skin or eyes.erious side eff. ask for the crestor $3 card. ask your doctor

is working to destabilize iraq and control the natural resources. nearly a third of iraqis meanwhile think the u.s. supports terrorism in general and isis specifically. a sobering revelation considering the announcement of $150 u.s. aid package aimed at helping the iraqis. >> the leaders have claimed the u.s. backs isis. and i think this really underscores the weakness of the administration's policy in trying to cooperate with iran and iraq and in syria. >> reporter: a fundamental complication. the iranians like the u.s. are actually backing the abadi government in iraq although you can make the argument, the motives couldn't be more dissimilar. we heard from secretary kerry today. he said he did not discuss with the prime minister this notion of sending more american troops into iraq as the coalition tries to make the move on mosul. we know the pentagon has made it clear them feel like there should be a lot more. >> thank you. >>> some changes tonight in the catholic church potentially affecting millions of americans. pope france i is modifying the

iraq war veteran shoshana johnson. i'm maria hinojosa. this is one on one. captioned by media access group at wgbh access.wgbh.org shoshana johnson, you were taken prisoner in iraq in the year 2003. you are actually the first black female prisoner of war. and now you have written a book about that experience. it's called i'm still standing-- from captive us soldier to free citizen, my journey home. welcome to our program. it's great to have you here. >> thank you. >> hinojosa: you decided to write this book, but you didn't have to write this book. >> no. >> hinojosa: you could have just put this chapter away. what was it that made you say, "you know what? i have to tell my story about being the first black woman prisoner of war"? >> well, there was so much out there, floating around, misconceptions about the experience and what happened to me. i just really wanted to set the record straight from my point of view. since the book has come out, i've come to the realization that no matter what i say, there's going to be people who believe what they want to belie

we removed the isil financier in iraq. their finance chief, an is i will figure in northern iraq, and a number of top foreign terrorist fighters. they are off the field. and in the day and weeks ahead we intend to take out more. every day is i will leaders wake up and understand it could be their last. with co-leg support local forces continue to push isil back in iraq. in anbar province iraqi forces consolidated their gains around ramadi and pushed up the valley. recent offenses in the tigris river valley coalition forces pushed toward mosul. we'll continue to assist iraq and so must the entire world as it works to stabilize areas that is inclusive of all iraqi community so isil cannot return. in syria a coalition of local forces, some backed by special operations forces continue to make progress pushing isil out of the strategic town of a la-shahidi. with this we severed a critical supply line between raqqa, syria and mosul in iraq tightening the squeeze on isil in both areas. these forces have pushed isil out of 2,800 s

you have to focus on the political conditions in iraq.hat has proven to be just as difficult as going after isis on the battlefield. just a reminder that we are dealing with a country that, one, does not have a long history of democracy. withtwo, is factions that just do not want to be together in one country. you are trying to keep a country together that often doesn't want to be together. and if you're vice president joe biden, i don't think you are in iraq right now and looking at this situation as something that's going to be a favorable part of your legacy. >> so, when i woke up this morning and learned that he was in iraq, here the way my brain works. hillary is going to be indicted and he is trying to bolster himself to take the democratic nomination. my colleagues are correct. this is the last thing he wants to be associated with personally, iraq is such a miserable failure. the president's policies against isis are 250 here. 500 there. but they are not really boots on the ground. they don't really have guns, they don't really sho

nato has alliances in turkey, bordering syria and iraq.e're starting to train -- >> turkey is a member of nato. >> yes, but it's very important for us to be present in turkey to provide military assurance to turkey because turkey is so much effected by what's going on in iraq and syria. more so, we're training iraqi officers because we strongly believe that by building local capacity, by enabling those to fight in isil, that's a more sustainable solution in the long run. >> is anyone proposing that nato do to isis what it did to the taliban? >> well, nato and nato allies are doing that. >> nato -- individual nato countries are doing that like the united states, the uk, other countries, but as an alliance? that's what the americans -- a lot of americans want to hear, that nato is getting its act together and going to crush isis, which is seen as a grave threat. >> it's important that we are able together to fight si in an effective way. we have agreed that nato should capacity, train, assist, and then the high-end air strikes are done by th

not necessarily in iraq. i don't understand what the president is doing. why he wants to engage war. but, it is not my call. i would also -- i had been told there are many more forces in iraq than we're publicly announcing. what the hell? as usual, we don't know with a game plan is. i do not understand why he is decided to jump into a war that was being run -- is being run by .he syrian army i can just speculate that are anti-putin, anti-russian instinct in america continues apace. that's all. amy: in your introduction to your new book "the killing of osama bin laden," you write -- "in a review of my interviews about obama's early decision to raise the anti-afghanistan, one fact stood out. obama's face in the world of special operations. and in stanley mcchrystal, the commander of u.s. forces in afghanistan who worked closely with dick cheney from 2003 to 2008 as director of jsoc." seymour hersh, can you elaborate on this? >> it is amazing. ,ook, you win the presidency hope and peace, whatever it was, and you discover because -- you don't have the power yo

you have to focus on the political conditions in iraq. that has proven to be just as difficult as going after isis on the battlefield. just a reminder that we are dealing with a country that, one, does not have a long history of democracy. withtwo, is factions that just do not want to be together in one country. you are trying to keep a country together that often doesn't want to be together. and if you're vice president joe biden, i don't think you are in iraq right now and looking at this situation as something that's going to be a favorable part of your legacy. >> so, when i woke up this morning and learned that he was in iraq, here the way my brain works. hillary is going to be indicted and he is trying to bolster himself to take the democratic nomination. my colleagues are correct. this is the last thing he wants to be associated with personally, iraq is such a miserable failure. the president's policies against isis are 250 here. 500 there. but they are not really boots on the ground. they don't really have guns, they don't really s

they will target the islamic state in syria and iraq. molly henenberg is live in washington with more. >> reporter: b-1s are out of the region. b-52s are in. the air force pulled its b-1 bombers out of the middle east in february, brought them back home for maintenance. and the pentagon said the b-52 bombers would be sent in april. and now they're in the region, stationed in qatar, for operations against the islamic state, isis, in iraq and syria. bombing operations against isis had fallen to an eight-month low in february after the b-1s were pulled out. the air force says the b-52 is a long-range, heavy bomber that can perform, quote, strategic attacks, close air support, and air interdiction and maritime operations. air force lieutenant general charles q. brown jr. said in a statement, "the b-52 demonstrates our continued resolve to apply persistent pressure on isis and defend the region in any future contingency." the b-52s arrived in qatar one day after secretary of state john kerry was in iraq, promising that the anti-isis coalition

: iraq says it's now fully recaptured the city of hit which sits in a key supply line between iraq and syria. it's the latest in a string of iraqi victories as american military advisers in iraq are moved closer to the front line with isis. in all isis has lost around 40% of the territory it once controlled in iraq according to u.s. officials. they also claim that coalition air strikes have killed 25,000 isis militants in iraq and syria and the pentagon says only 200 foreign fighters are joining the extremists each month, down from 1,500 a year ago, but the numbers don't tell the whole story. isis still controls the city of fallujah and u.s. military advisers are now back in the surrounding province of anbar, one of the bloodiest battle fields after the american invasion of iraq. mosul, iraq's second biggest since 2014, but according to a u.s. intelligence official, mosul probably won't be recaptured before next year. across the border in syria, regime forces and a kurdish-arab alliance backed by the u.s. are both closing in on raqqa, the so-called "isis capital." but even if isis is d

did the world finally figure out how to fight isil in western iraq and syria? >> well, i think the fight against isis or isil in iraq was already proceeding before last month. they were the iraqi national forces and the kurdish forces supported by the u.s. coalition, and they have taken back the city of tikrit, ramadi and they're trying to move to center of iraq. what's new is up until last week, they had not launched any major offensive against isis. the retaking of pal mire a. this is partly the result of the cease-fire, that has blocked it's main opponents and the opposition, and the russian and american pressure to negotiate in geneva the regime doesn't want to negotiate. and shortly after the brussels attacks, isis in palmyra gives them the momentum and changes the narrative from the dictator group who doesn't want to negotiate to the hero saving greco roman civilization in the deserts of syria, and you see a lot of commentators and politicians in the u.s. almost rushing to embrace a new version. >> is the noose tightening around the territorial islamic st

or app al gore had won a new member 2000 and there was no iraq war-- host: okay. i think we got the point. guest: bill, that's a good question and as a journalist i try to avoid putting political labels on it, but the book argues and i strongly believe that the iraq invasion was the original sin, not just the invasion itself, which gave the jihadists this cause they had been looking for particularly zarqwi who wanted to fight america and predicted the fight would take place in iraq and was ready for the americans when they arrived in 2003, but as a sin of omission not having secured apparatus in place, displaying the party which essentially anyone that was a professional inside iraq in the early 2000 had to be read-- member of the party and is now in the armed forces, said governor knight a country with a huge security vacuum and eight angry disenfranchised elite population that was happy to help on insurgent coming in andd there were plenty of iraqis that would've thought the americans anyway, but when zarqwi comes in he is able to meld this is-- religious extrem

assurance measures in turkey, capacity building in iraq.i will also add that what we do in afghanistan, our biggest military effort ever, is relevant to the fight against terror, including against isil. and we stand to do more in libya libya. one issue we discussed during my visit to washington this week and also with secretary ash carter was the possibility of nato providing awacs support, our surveillance plane. that is on the table now and it's going to be addressed in nato. and then we will be able to provide you with a more resized into. but awacs support in one way or another is now an issue which is discussed. >> we promised the secretary-general that we would get him out of your on time, and i apologize to everyone who's questions we didn't get too. thank you so much. i think the fact that there are so many questions testifies both developments and level of interest. and we've still managed to cover an enormous amount of ground. thank you so much for your candor in for the completeness other interest. thank you. >> thank you. [appla

we see that in iraq and in syria as well. we see a small contingent of forces helping the syrian democratic force together. and we see it working. you can't argue with 6,000 square kilometers liberated in the last month, an area larger than the size of delaware. you can't argue with that progress. nor can you argue with the amount of clearance we've seen through both the tie tigris and euphrates river in the past few months. these forces coalesced in both countries around a common enemy and it is the ground forces along with the devastating air power we provide that are dismantling this enemy. >> the coalition partners are also not, they do not have a consensus about excluding indigenous groups as well. how are you going to -- for xample, turkey is not happy in northeastern syria, and there are groups who are supporting some other groups other than the ones that the united states tried to support. replicate going to hat as well for a longer term? colonel warren: this coalition has gotten stronger every day ove the last 20 mon

in iraq before your term of office ends? i'm thinking of the recapture of mosul, specifically. >> we've made significant progress. talking to you and others a year ago -- >> rose: right. -- and looking at what's happening over the course of this year, there was a question as to whether we'd not only get an iran nuclear deal but more importantly would they actually start getting rid of their nuclear materials, and a year later even the head of the israeli defense forms indicated that iran has abide bid that deal and iran's nuclear program has been greatly constrained and the deal's working as it's supposed. >> rose: and also behavior. we also said we were going to go after i.s.i.l on every front and that is, in fact, what we've done. this is a long, hard fight as i just said last week, but what we've seen is they've lost territory and, as we get closer to mosul in iraq an and raqqa ad syria, their two primary strongholds, what i've said to our secretary of defense and our generous is let's continue to resource what works and,

remains committed to and supports iraq's government and military. in baghdad earlier this morning local time again, a surprise unannounced visit. he met with prime minister alabadi, and after his meeting secretary kerry pledged $155 million more in support and aid, humanitarian aid to iraq. the secretary of state also reaffirmed the u.s. military's support of the country and iraq's military and along with that secretary kerry met with kurdish regional governors. clearly this is significant. it's a move to build consensus and cooperation between the kurds and iraqi leaders and military commanders as u.s. troops prepare iraqi and kurdish forces to retake the city of mosul in northern iraq. more troops, u.s. troops, have been deployed to iraq to help in the preparation for this final assault. john, mosul remains an isis strong hold, and when this assault begins it is likely to be the most significant, intense, and bloodiest fight so far in iraq and it will have major regional implications although at this point, john, there remains no specific time fra

is working to destabilize iraq and control the natural resources. nearly a third of iraqis meanwhile think the u.s. supports terrorism in general and isis specifically. a sobering revelation considering the announcement of $150 u.s. aid package aimed at helping the iraqis. >> the leaders have claimed the u.s. backs isis. and i think this really underscores the weakness of the administration's policy in trying to cooperate with iran and iraq and in syria. >> reporter: a fundamental complication. the iranians like the u.s. are actually backing the abadi government in iraq although you can make the argument, the motives couldn't be more dissimilar. we heard from secretary kerry today. he said he did not discuss with the prime minister this notion of sending more american troops into iraq as the coalition tries to make the move on mosul. we know the pentagon has made it clear them feel like there should be a lot more. >> thank you. >>> some changes tonight in the catholic church potentially affecting millions of americans. pope france i is modifying the

iraq's second largest city from isis. cnn's senior correspondent arwa damon was granted exclusive access to the frontlines. she joins me live from erbil. tell us what you have seen, arwa. are you there, arwa? tell us what you have seen on the ground. >> reporter: i'm here. >> arwa, tell us what you have seen on the ground as you have been granted exclusive access. >> reporter: they did manage. >> it is tough to get a live shot from that part of the world. >> reporter: the operation. while we were there. >> all right. it is tough to get access out of there. we will try to talk to arwa. you see some of the pictures there. >> a long time and coming to move on mosul. if they can do this, it will be a huge undertaking and victory if they can chase isis out. >> we will try to connect with her again. >>> new attacks on the race for president. bernie sanders calling hillary clinton unqualified for the job. the new drama ahead. >>> new late night attacks in the race for president. bernie sanders calling hillary clinton not qualifi

there has been some good news from iraq. fighters joining isis has been drastically reduced thanks to the deadly effects of us air strikes. major general fighter gersten, head of the u.s. coalition says the number of fighters joining isis by 90% past year. fighters used to enter iraq and syria at rate of 1500 to 2,000 fighters each month. he sees only 200 foreign fighters joining isis each month. up to $800 million in isis cash has been wiped out. >> we have done a lot of bank strikes, bulk storage, bulk cash facilities have been completely destroyed. their ability to finance their war through oil refineries has been destroyed. their ability to keep track of their taxes to oppress their people has been destroyed. reporter: we'll be monitoring the senate armed services committee all morning and update as news warrants. gregg? gregg: jennifer griffin live, thanks. martha: using teleprompter at his rallies and speeches. he did a speech of different sort at wash yesterday at former nixon center. reviews are coming in. did it mak

is increasing its role in a fight against isis in iraq. once on the ground, he met with iraqi prime minister abadi, formalizing a new plan that will bring in 200 additional u.s. troops as advisers, and authorizes advance u.s. army mobile rocket launchers, and apache helicopter gunships to help the iraqis retake the taken city of mosul from isis. >> these are capabilities that will continue the process of accelerating the defeat of isil. >> how do you respond to those who say the incremental approach just doesn't get the job done? >> well, we are going to accelerate this campaign every time we find an opportunity to do so. i'm very comfortable that our operational approach is the right one. >> reporter: tonight just released gun camera footage of u.s. air strikes underscores the pace of the ongoing american-led air campaign. but despite today's announcement of more troops and war fighting equipment, carter is adamant the u.s. will not fight a ground war. >> in the end, iraqi forces have to do the defeating, sustain the defeat. we can help t

both in syria and iraq. we have seen the momentum in recent weeks and have seen what has been successful and these actions reflect the decisions made based on success on the ground. we want to build on that success. >> you mention medical personnel and logistics. could one of her that the u.s. is contemplating setting up some sort of field hospital or a medical support for fighters into syria? >> i think you want to incur that will provide support that these forces deed to succeed. and then we put into place the e theirf setup to enhanc safety and security and to do everything we can to make sure the forces who will be in harm's way that everything is being done to make sure they are as safe as possible. >> so the medical personnel is to support the u.s. forces, not to provide medical assistance to local fighters in syria? >> i'm not getting into details but again, the idea here is to support u.s. forces who are going to work with local partners. we are taking every step we can to make sure that u.s. forces

iraq -- there is a war going on. jordan is a stable country, an island of stability in the sea of instability that is the middle east, but jordan is under pressure. tunisia is the same. a stable, democratic country in northern africa but they are under heavy pressure from terrorist organizations, and we should help them now. we should not wait until they are really into deep trouble and then help them. prevention is better than intervention. that's a golden rule. we should help them now, not wait until later on. capacity building is also about building capacity before a country slides into conflict or crisis, and then if the country is in crisis, we should help them build capacity to get out of that crisis. that is what we should do in iraq. were hopefully also in libya. libya.opefully also in karen: what about syria? do you see any role for nato? mr. stoltenberg: it is a great advantage for the coalition that so many nato allies and nato partners have been able to draw -- to provide forces because nato has developed