. >> i want to turn now to keir simmons, he's been following this story for us in no way iraq. today heard first happened from some of the refugees running for their lives. >> reporter: good evening, lester. some of the thousands of refugees, members of an ancient religious minority, have made their way down from mt. sinjar and to a refugee camp near the syrian border. today we went there and heard horror stories. they are consumed with anger and fear, homeless by the thousands and on the run. today at this refugee camp they set fires and protested and told blood curdling stories of atrocities committed against their people by isis militants. they shot them and then cut their heads off. and these were children? one man in tears. they rape the females. he said 84 members of his extended family are missing and

brian. >> keir simmons in the north of iraq for us tonight. keir, thanks. >>> the white house is taking pains to stress that even though president obama is on vacation, it's a working vacation in martha's vineyard. in between trips to the beach and golf course, the machinery of the presidency of course is there with him. they released a photo of the president today with his national security advisor, susan rice. then late today the news media were summoned as the president came to the microphones to talk about the situation in iraq. our senior white house correspondent chris jansing traveling with the president. there were rumors of this coup in iraq that prime minister maliki was out. president's remarks seem to be wishful thinking about the government there the u.s. wants, not necessarily the government iraq has. >> reporter: there's no doubt about that, brian. and it was a late decision today for the president to make a statement. and we should also say it comes at an absolutely critical time for both iraq and the administration's military a

lester. >> keir simmons for us tonight. keir, thanks. >>> the exchange of fire has resumed in israel and gaza after a three-day cease-fire came to an end. the israeli military says at least eight rockets were launched into israel and it responded by striking several targets inside gaza. this is all happening as discussions continue about trying to once again extend the cease-fire for several more days. >>> back in this country tonight, another day of sudden flood emergencies and high water rescues, this time in long island, new york, where well over a foot of rain fell in just a matter of hours, shattering records and trapping drivers on the highway. the deluge extends far beyond there. flooding neighborhoods and homes in several states. and tonight flash flood warnings continue near boston and up through other parts of new england. we get the latest on all this from nbc's rehema ellis. >> reporter: torrential downpours swept through the northeast this morning flooding highways and forcing dozens of drivers to abandon their

brian. >> keir simmons in the north of iraq for us tonight. keir, thanks. >>> he is one of the biggest names in big league nascar stock car racing in this country. and tonight all eyes are on tony stewart for an incident that took place on saturday night. at another place stewart likes to compete, at the local level at one of the small oval tracks that dot the american landscape. the places with devoted local fans who this weekend in upstate new york saw something terrible unfold in the heat of battle during a race. as a result a young driver is dead, and tony stewart could be in big trouble. we get our report tonight from nbc's kristen dal the -- dahlgren. >> reporter: he was a big name on a small dirt track. three-time nascar champ tony stewart racing in a sprint car, far from the spotlight until tragedy saturday night. >> tony stewart just hit that guy! >> reporter: video posted on youtube shows the fatal crash and what happened moments before. stewart's car, 14, and another car seem to tangle. number 13 spins out and kevin ward jr., the 20-

we have full coverage starting with nbc's keir simmons in london. keir. >> reporter: good evening, lester. raising the threat level to severe means officials believe an attack is "highly likely" though they insist there's no intelligence to indicate an imminent or specific attack. but as prime minister cameron spelled out today, it underscores the concern on both sides of the atlantic about the isis threat. kurdish fighters captured by isis militants, one later beheaded in a new video posted by isis. the latest in a wave of the latest in a wave of violent, extremist propaganda flooding the internet, some from british jihadists. james foley's apparent executioner had a british accent. >> this is james foley. >> reporter: that set off alarm bells. tonight, security here has been heightened as prime minister david cameron issued a blunt warning. >> what we're facing in iraq now with isil is a greater and deeper threat to our security than we have known before. >> reporter: cameron made clear this is not just a distant war. >> the ambition to create an e

nbc's keir simmons reports from iraq tonight. a warning, this report contains some images that are tough to watch. >> reporter: they have crossed a mountain on foot in the desert heat, forced to flee their homes. driven by their fear of isis. this woman says militants beheaded several men in her village and mounted their heads on the hoods of cars. isis is well armed but sheer terror may be their most powerful weapon. crucifixions, men tied together and marched to their deaths, shot in the head. others buried alive according to one iraqi minister. atrocities documented by the militants themselves, and shared with the world on social media. sending a chilling message. we take no prisoners. and these are the men confronting isis. today we met kurdish commanders who have known war for decades. are there men here who fought saddam hussein? >> yes. >> reporter: and now you're fighting isis. fighting fear and brutality, outgunned, using weapons from the past. the kurds share this space with the iraqi army, two historic adversaries now

we have full coverage starting with nbc's keir simmons in london. keir. >> reporter: fighters captured by isis militants. one later beheaded in a new video posted by isis. the latest in a wave of violence, extremist propaganda flooding the internet, some from british jihadists. james foley's apparent executioner had a british accent. >> this is james foley. >> reporter: that set off alarm bells. tonight, security here has been heightened as prime minister david cameron issued a blunt warning. >> what we're facing in iraq now with isil is a greater and deeper threat to our security than we have known before. >> reporter: cameron made clear this is not just a distant war. >> the ambition to create an extremist caliphate in the heart of iraq and syria is a threat to our own security here in the uk. >> reporter: isis has struck in europe killing four last may at a jewish center in brussels. and british extremists have passports that could allow easy travel to america. here in london this week we met with men who justified the murder of james foley. >> do

keir simmons, nbc news, london. >>> president obama has ordered a review of federal programs that fund military equipment for state and local law enforcement agencies. it comes in the wake of what many felt was a heavy-handed police response in ferguson, missouri. but tonight it appears that tensions are finally easing there after nearly two weeks of violent protests. here's nbc's ron allen. >> reporter: normandy high school's vikings took the field with heavy hearts, a moment of silence for michael brown, a recent grad. the team raced to an early lead. then dominated and won 21-8. >> he was a great kid. he was a graduate. he was in this program. and every day and every time we come to school here, we go to practice, we go to a game, we take him with us. >> reporter: ferguson also feels good today about four straight peaceful nights, as authorities move quickly following the protests to suspend two officers accusing them of offensive comments. dan page for remarks in 2012 seen on youtube including this apparent reference to his military service. >> i've killed a lot. and if i need to,

keir simmons has an inside look. >> reporter: desperation on a mountain refuge. people searching for aide from a british helicopter. and one boy clingen orn as it takes off. just 20 made it on board. thousands are still cut off by isis people from a chris chance community, president obama says, face genocide. elsewhere families are fleeing any way they can. in temperatures of over 110, one child only 5 days old, we want america to do more, they told me. the president's promise no boots on the ground is not what they want to hear. inside a church we found 4,000 more refugees from. there are clouds of families here. people just carrying their children. >> young and old, and while children play, parents struggle to hold it together. she holds her 10-month-old daughter, they arrive today without her husband. isis told her to wear an islamic shawl or be killed. >> they wanted you to convert. >> and north of here, back on mount sinjar, there's no hope in sight. the u.s. dropping of food may help save some from starvation. a lifeline in the face of isis cruelty. they ki

we saw them in the basement in keir simmons' package. i'm joined by nbc chief foreign correspondent richard engel. he's just back from the turkish/syrian border where many foreign fighters crossed into syria to join isis. the white house correspondent for the "new york times." she's been writing extensively about how the u.s. is trying to counter the threat. good morning to all of you. ambassador, how close are we to identifying the person who executed james foley? >> i think we are close. we're not yet in a position to say exactly who this is. but there is very sophisticated voice identification technology and other measures we have got which should allow us to be clear about who this person is before long. it's not about one brutal murderer. there are other hostages under threat as you've been mentioning. we think it's probably as many as 500 people from the united kingdom who have joined jihad, isis. so we are focusing our efforts across the board on how to counter this terrible threat. which is a betrayal of all we stand for and the

keir simmons, nbc news, erbil iraq. >> the debate now is how much u.s.ction in iraq will hinge on congressional approval. joining me tonight, congressman john garamendi of california. good to have you with us. >> my pleasure. >> president obama has 60 days to deploy troops without congressional approval. just how far do you believe he will exercise this power? >> i suspect he'll go the full 60 days. it's highly unlikely that this refugee issue will be resolved in the next month, month and a half. beyond that there are some very serious problems in the entire area that are not going to go away any time soon. so those 60 days are going to run and congress must do its constitutional responsibility, which is to take up the issue, stay, expand or get out. >> well, we talk about stay or get out, the reality is that there's a lot of political pressure on him either to concede to the wishes of congress along the way, you know, as an advisory board so to speak to join with him in this, but he's also facing political oppositions from the likes of lindsay graham an

this is keir simmons. >> reporter: desperation of a mounting refuge, people grasp from aid from a kurdish helicopter and as it takes off, one boy clings on. just 20 made it on board. thousands are still cut off by isis. people from a christian community, president obama said face genocide. elsewhere families are fleeing any way they can. in temperatures over 110, one child only five days old. we want america to do more, they told me. the president's promise, no boots on the ground is not what they want to hear. >> we need the army. >> inside a church, we found 4,000 more refugees from the ancient christian yazidi sect. >> people carrying their children. young and old. and while children play, parents struggle to hold it together. she holds her 10-month-old daughter and they arrived today without her husband. they told her to wear an islamic shawl or be killed. >> they wanted you to convert? north of here on mount sinjar, there is no end in sight. the u.s. dropping of water and food may help save some from starvation and lifeline in the face of isis cruelty. >> they kidnapped our girls and

nbc's keir simmons just landed there a bit ago. this, of course, is where those u.s. r strikes took place friday. humanitarian efforts continue now. keir, you're on the ground now. give us a sense of what you've been seeing so far. >> well, we went straight to a church where thousands of christians from a yazidi sect have gathered because they fled the areas around mosul where isis are in control, terrified. and it's hardly a surprise when you speak to them because they speak about being told that they must convert to islam, that may must wear shawls and if they don't they will be killed. the women saying they picked up their children and left in a hurry, some arriving just today. so they aren't any less frightened yet. what we saw was just thousands of people, large numbers of these families tonight are going to bed on the outside, just laying out mattresses with their children, and waiting to see what happens, whether or not the tide is turned against isis, or will they have to flee even further. >> any indication that the items, these humanitarian drops, are they ge

nbc's keir simmons has the latest. >> reporter: it appears the prime minister of iraq, nouri al maliki, once backed by the u.s., has been forced from power but is still trying to cling on. a new leader has been chosen, again supported by america. >> we are prepared to consider additional political, economic and security options as iraq starts to build a new government. >> reporter: that battle unfolds inside baghdad, that political baghdad. the fighting rages outside of the city with those isis jihadists, the fighting that was close to here appears to have shifted south again back down toward the capital. those u.s. air waves to be appearing to have some effect, pushing isis back in places, but it may not stop isis in the long run. meanwhile thousands of civilians are still homeless, caught in the middle in this ever divided country. keir simmons, nbc news, erbil, iraq. >>> a spanish missionary priest, the first european infected with ebola, died today at a madrid hospital. father miguel was flown from liberia to spain last week after testing positive for ebola. he had been in quaranti

we'll get more from keir simmons in erbil. >> reporter: desperation on a mountain refuge. people grasp for aid from a kurdish helicopter as it takes off from mount sinjar. one boy clings on. 20 made it on board. thousands cut off by isis. people from a christian community, president obama said place genocide. elsewhere, families are fleeing anywhere they can in temperatures over 110, one child only five days old, we want america to do more, they told us. [ speaking foreign language ] the president's promise, no boots on the ground is not what they want here. [ speaking foreign language ] >> reporter: inside a church, we found 4,000 more refugees from the ancient city. crowds of families here, people just carrying their children. young and old, while children play, parents struggle to hold it together. she holds her 10-month-old daughter. they arrived today without her husband. isis told her to wear an islamic shawl or be killed. they wanted you to convert. north of here, back on mount sinjar, there's no end in site. the u.s. dropping water and food may help save some from

keir simmons reports frommer bi frommer erbil, iraq. >> reporter: they are exhausted and sick. she has two more boys. both are missing. an escape route for these desperate people opened to be bombed. airdrops of food and water continued as people arrived with terrible stories of isis killings and starvation and thirst. many have lost their families. it's claimed some members of the ye yizidi population. in key towns, including the rare isis defeat. the battle was broadcast 20 miles away in erbil threatened by isis for days. >> people are crowded around the tv to watch the fighting taking place right outside their city. >> reporter: 1.5 million people live in erbil, representing everything isis detests. and this morning, thousands are still homeless and terrified. isis uses the fear as a weapon but the u.s. intervention may have provided a tipping point, giving people more confidence. that said, the divisions in iraq are deepening as nouri al maliki refuses to. >> the situation in iraq is constantly evolving. stay with nbc both on air and online. right now on our website, why a

. >> nbc's keir simmons joins me now live from london. we just heard british officials say that the threat level increase was based on intelligence. do we have any specific information on a particular threat here? >> there are quite focused in saying that there is not a specific threat. this threat level has been raised, i think, not surprisingly because of the drum beat of threats that we've heard from isis, both on social media, in interviews with the media and also, of course, the very fact that the alleged killer of james foley had a british accent. all of these things come together to leave british officials concluding that they need to raise the threat level. remember as well the large numbers or relatively large numbers of british nationals who are going to fight with isis. some 500 it's estimated, perhaps half of them having returned home. so that's the kind of basis on which they've made this assessment and decided they need to ramp up security for the uk. the first time that's happened in three years. but as you mentioned, the b

. >> just alarming interviews from keir simmons. we showed you a little bit yesterday. a little more today. top republican on the foreign relations committee just ahead. today's politics planner, president obama speaks to the american legion in charlotte at noon today. live coverage here. msnbc will talk about va hospital reforms. will veterans buy that the reforms are working? much more of tdr in three minutes. this is bill. his doubleheader day at the park starts with back pain... and a choice. take 4 advil in a day or just 2 aleve for all day relief. peanuts! peanuts! crowd cheers! my motheit's delicious. toffee in the world. so now we've turned her toffee into a business. my goal was to take an idea and make it happen. i'm janet long and i formed my toffee company through legalzoom. i never really thought i would make money doing what i love. we created legalzoom to help people start their business and launch their dreams. go to legalzoom.com today and make your business dream a reality. at legalzoom.com we put the law on your side. could help your business didavoid

our keir simmons joins me now from london where he has been hearing firsthand the chilling words of british citizens supportive of isis' mission. good morning, keir. >> good morning. the intelligence agencies view this as not just a hunt for the killer of james foley, but as a race to save the life of a second american hostage threatened with death. it's made more difficult because that gruesome video has clearly been edited. there appear to be two knives and one senior official speculated to me that the tape may even be dubbed. but they are convinced a british man is at the center of it, a man they are close to identifying raising uncomfortable questions about extremism in europe. these are the soldiers of isis, calling for more recruits. >> this is the land of jihad. >> reporter: many with european accents and passports that would grant direct travel to the u.s. >> ask yourself is this how you want to die? >> this is james wright foley. >> reporter: it was a british voice that accompanied james foley's murder, a citizen of america's closest ally, apparently administering death to a u.s. n

keir simmons, nbc news erbil, iraq. >>> a big mystery has been solved, those bleached white american flags that were hoisted in the dark of night on top of the brooklyn bridge. tonight two german artists have come forward to the new york times, they say they were the ones who replaced the flags. they say they did it to honor the german born engineer of the bridge. the flag incident took place on july 22nd, which happens to be the anniversary of his death back in 1869. nypd source tells nbc news they're looking into these claims. >>> how robin williams suicide is bringing a dark secret out of the shadows. something that affects so many families. ♪ ben! well, that was close! you ain't lying! let quicken loans help you save your money. with a mortgage that's engineered to amaze! ugh. heartburn. did someone say burn? try alka seltzer reliefchews. they work just as fast and taste better than tums smoothies assorted fruit. mmm. amazing. yeah, i get that a lot. alka seltzer heartburn reliefchews. enjoy the relief. ganncr: we took care of your back pain. you make him the mvp. tylenol is clin

. >> keir simmons is joining us. hello, keir. >> reporter: dozens of refugees grasping for aid from a kurdish helicopter. one boy clings on. just 20 made it on board. thousands are cut off by isis and families are fleeing any way they can in temperatures of more than 110 degrees, this child just five days old, 4,000 have taken refuge in a church. there are just crowds of families here, people just carrying their children down the side of the church. parents struggle to hold it together. nadal holds her 10-month-old baby. isis told her to wear an islamic shawl or be killed. please, they beg, help stop isis. >> army, army america. >> reporter: the president's promise, no boots on the ground is not what they want here. >> a plane to bomb. okay? >> all right. now, that was keir simmons reporting there. joining many he is michael sang. he's now a senior fellow and managing director at the washington institute. michael, welcome to you. on "meet the press, " michael leiter, i know you know him, he described the threat from i

. >> that was keir simmons reporting, we have continuing coverage on the crisis in iraq online. head to nbcbayarea.com, search iraq air strikes. you'll find the latest on the develop lg story. >>> a sigh of relief for drivers. after nearly a year, warren avenue will reopen tomorrow. commuters can use it as an alternative to mission boulevard to get between 880 and 680. crews did a soft opening last night opening up a lane of traffic in each direction. this comes as construction wraps up for b.a.r.t. extension project. nearby restaurants and businesses are pretty excited for that road to reopen. they say they've lost a lot of money from the closure. >>> caltrans tonight is finishing the first of two weekends of work. it is including closing one eastbound bore. the work is being done to smooth out roadways leading to the tunnel entrance. >>> have you seen it? the moon shining brighter and bigger tonight. lighting up the night sky right now. and has about everyone looking up. >> kristi smith where kristi must have an incredible view. >> reporter: well, at first, we thought we might

keir simmons is in erbil, iraq, with plor. >> reporter: good morning. i.s.i.s.ing down on this city. in part, that was the reason the threat to erbil was part of the reason that president obama decided he had to act. just this morning from iraq's human rights minister, blood curdling stories. he is saying 500 members of the yazidi community have been killed. he's saying 300 women have been kidnapped, and there are even stories, he says, of i.s.i.s. burying people alive. little wonder that wherever i.s.i.s. goes, civilians flee. little wonder that there is a sense that this city which is a modern city, has to be protected, that they have to be stopped. on the outskirts of this city, kurdish fighters are battling with i.s.i.s. who are trying to control the roads to here. the question, of course, is whether or not that battle and whether or not that combined with u.s. air strikes helps to push back i.s.i.s., and if it doesn't, what does the west do then? back to you. >> thank you to nbc's keir simmons. >>> there's a phrase you'll hear a lot these days when the disc

as our own keir simmons found out. >> reporter: every time a vehicle comes down this road, they are attacking stones. and they are losing hope, this mantels me. >> where is the u.s. army? >> reporter: then, he says -- >> duncan golestani is on the ground for us. >> reporter: there are hundreds and thousands of refugees and the yazidis coming down. many are coming to erbil. it's estimated around 80,000 arrived in the last week alone. they have arrived literally overnight and they were forced out of their homes 45 miles west of here because they are christian. now they are being well-cared for by the churches and kurdish government but they just don't know how long they are going to be here for. meanwhile, the search goes on for a longer-term solution for the fight with isis if it can't be won on the ground, can it be somehow won by draining support away from them, by attracting sunni tribes away from them? with that in mind, we're keeping an eye on iraqi state television. they are saying that within the next few minutes they are expecting an important announcement from prime minister nuri al m

this weekend, nbc news keir simmons spoke with british citizens in london who openly support isis' mission>> there are a lot of people who would feel the islamic state does have a duty to protect themselves and defend against america. killing a journalist isn't protecting yourself. >> the vital question to us, who is really to blame for the death of james foley? i believe it's the foreign policy of obama -- >> it's the man who put that knife if his neck, surely. >> well, the thing you've got to ask is, why was this particular man chosen? it seems like he was chosen because he was an american citizen. >> joining me now, mia bloom, professor of security studies at university of massachusetts. author of "bombshell women and terrorism." professor bloom, we all see the videos from isis and i think unanimously across the political spectrum, muslim, jewish, christian, across all regions of the world, people just gasp in horror at the sheer brutality and yet at the same time, they have been massively successful in recruiting. how has isis been so successful in recruiting? >> isis has two kinds of

nbc's keir simmons talked to refugees who are starting to grow desperate. >> we need obama help us. >> why? what do you need him to do? >> we need food, everything. >> meanwhile, the u.s. is continuing to send weapons to kurdish fighters and france has announced it will start supplying arms as well. the u.s. is also keeping up air strikes against isis positions, but the pace of those strikes has slowed. over the last two days, u.s. military officials have stressed that the strikes effectively is limited. martin dempsey told "usa today" and i quote, the pace at which isis was advancing has been abated. it doesn't mean it will stay abated. while the fighting goes on in the north, new attacks in baghdad are spreading fear among the population there. two car bombs exploded today, following two bombings tuesday that left ten dead and nearly 40 wounded. the new violence comes against a backdrop of political instability sparked by prime minister nouri al maliki who is still fighting to hold on to power despite moves by the newly elected president to replace him. today maliki went on tv and i

. >> take a look at this exchange between keir simmons and a group of extremists over the weekend discussingsis in iraq and the death of james foley. >> there are a lot of people who would feel they do have a duty to protect themselves and defend against america. >> killing a journalist isn't protecting yourself. >> who is really to blame for the death of james foley? i believe it's the foreign policy of obama. >> it's the man who put that knife in his neck surely. >> the fithing you've got to as why was this particular man chose snen it seems like he was chosen because he was an american citizen. >> i don't know where that takes us. what do you make of that comment? obviously, an attack an our country, an attack on america. they picked out an american to do this to. what is all the nonsense about this guy? >> well, certainly there's no doubt it's a very disturbing sound bite to hear from that individual. certainly in the minds of individuals like that and some in the community, and they are not representative of the larger population. that's important to keep in mind. at least for the suppo

. >> nbc's keir simmons is live in london. the uk raising its terror threat. no similar action here in the united states. is that proximity? >> i think so, andrea. that is about the fact that they believe that 500 british nationals have travelled to fight with isis. half of them are thought to have come back. we have seen them making open threats towards the uk on the internet, even in some interviews with journalists. it's not surprising the british security services have concluded they need to raise the terror threat level because they would be remiss if they didn't and, god forbid, something happened. but something else about that prime ministerial speech there, andrea. he delivered a blistering assessment of isis. he described them as political poison. he said their ideology is not religion. he said in fact, it is politics, extremism opposed by all religions around the world and it needs to be tackled in that way. he set out a frightening prospect. he talked about the threat that a jihadist state might exist on the mediterranean bordering a nato country. h

ke keir simmons is follow thag story. >> reporter: they are narrowing down the list of suspects as they work to identify the man. the voice on the tape highlighting european nationals are fighting with syria and iraq. people who could easily travel to the u.s. isis has many thousands of fighters. british and american intelligence. the man who holds a knife in his left hand and appears to have a british accent, james foley's killer. experts will be analyzing his voice. >> security searches have data bases of voices of people they believe to be working in this area. >> reporter: one british newspaper claims to know who he might be. another says they raged the plan. lawmakers want to tackle the british jihadists. >> he thought it was necessary to leave this country and go fight in iraq and syria. >> reporter: more than 500 british citizens are zest mated to have joined isis. many more from europe. recruitment in the uk. >> there's something wrong with our society. >> reporter: the vast majority of muslims oppose isis, a message repeated at friday prayer. isis videos reveal fighters who tra

. >> let's bring in nbc news correspondent keir simmons live in london. what is the response out of russia? >> reporter: the foreign minister in russia is describing those claims of russia getting militarily involved with its own military in ukraine as simply conjecture. so russia is doing what it has always done, which is trying to aim towards plausible deniability, even while that deniability gets less and less plausible. then, at the same time, the ukrainian prime minister is saying that he wants to remove ukraine's status in other words, meaning i want to head towards nato and that will ignore the russians even more. effectively the big picture is things getting more and more tense. >> nbc's keir simmons, thank you very much. >> thank you, keir. gene, what can the united states and the president do with this conflict that is going on in the shadow of russia? >> very little, frankly. i mean, you don't invade russia. you don't get into a war with russia. you simply don't. sanctions are basically the only tool we have and the sanctions increasingly draco

keir simmons is in iraq for us this morning. hey, keir. >> reporter: craig, good morning. this morning it appears the prime minister of iraq nuri al maliki has been forced from power, but he is trying to cling on. a new leader has been chosen again supported by america. and while those political battles unfold in baghdad, the fighting with those separate -- with those jihadists, i.s.i.s. continues to rage. the fighting that was near here seems to shift closer to baghdad. u.s. air raids do appear to be having an effect. pushing i.s.i.s. back in places but the pentagon concedes they may not stop i.s.i.s. in areas. >> keir simmons for us in iraq. thank you. >>> now to an extraordinary close call in manchester, england. you can see two people walking down the sidewalk. then a car comes barrelling through the railings just missing the pedestrians. it slammed into a college building there. the driver was take ton the hospital with minor injuries. amazingly those pedestrians were not hurt. >>> and some frightening video this morning that proves as a parent you can never be too ca

>> that was keir simmons in erbil, iraq. >>> a glimpse into the thinking of the commander in chief when president obama spoke to reporters at length about his decision to involve the united states, again, in iraq. via air strikes and humil teumhn aid. one question seemed to put the president on the defensive. >> last question. >> president, do you have any second thoughts about pulling all ground troops out of iraq and does it give you pause as a u.s., doing the same thing in afghanistan? >> yeah. you know what i just find interesting is the degree to which this issue keeps on coming up, as if this was my decision. >> the president was responding to criticism from the right that the exit of the last u.s. combat troops from iraq in 2011 directly caused the current outbreak of violence in iraq. the criticism has comes from people like former vice president dick cheney and senator john mccain. they blame the president for the violence and the rise of isis. president obama argued that he could not have left any troops in iraq because the sovereign iraqi government would not allow the troops

nbc's keir simmons, i know we'll hear from you again, thank you so much from erbil. >>> the fightingertainly continues. ten palestinians have been killed in air strikes since the cease-fire broke yesterday. the death toll now, 1900. hamas' barrage of rockets has been nearly unabated. 68 since friday. joining me, our guest who previously serves as spokesperson for the palestinian organization. at this point, are the talkings in cairo just a face siilitatora brief cease-fire or do you expect more from them? >> well, unfortunately, i think that there isn't going to be a cease-fire any time soon. i think the reason is there's a lack of international leadership to pressure israel to implement basic human rights, meaning the opening up of the gaza strip and the ending of this illegal blockade that's been placed on the gaza strip for more than seven years. given that there's no international leadership at this point in time, we're left with the situation where the palestinians, who are the more weaker party are trying to negotiate with a much more powerful party without anybody stepping in

. >> thanks so much to nbc's keir simmons.urn now to a the ranking member of the subcommittee on intelligence and emerging threats. thank you for being here. talked in that piece about identifying the man in that video. do you have information that makes you feel pretty confident that intelligence officials are getting close to identifying him? >> first of all, thank you for having me on the program, t.j. we are getting much closer to understanding exactly who that individual in the video was. the intelligence community is working nonstop to identify that individual and i have confidence we'll know who that individual is. >> how soon do you believe? how much can you tell us? >> i can't put exact time on it. i just know that we're making significant progress on understanding who that individual is. >> there's also -- at least the chair of the armed services committee has called for a possible investigation into the leak of that failed raid to save james foley. we heard about that news this week as well. what's your take? should

we have nbc news correspondent keir simmons live in erbil. ht now? set the stage for us, keir. >> reporter: good morning. thanks. what is happening here is the fighting continues about 20 miles from this city of erbil and we are hearing the u.s. has now decided to deliver arms to the kurdish peshmerga forces who are fighting isis in this area and that will be hugely welcome and through the weekend they will be pleased with that. through the weekend, they do appear to have made some gains working on the back of those u.s. air strikes, they managed to regain control of a number of key towns on the roads out of erbil here. perhaps that is a tipping point. isis thrives on fear. that is one of its weapons, as well as its armor and its guns. practic perhaps the u.s. air strikes are building the confidence here and allowing them to push isis back. at the same time, i circumstances is sophisticated. they are strategic and they will be thinking about when their next move is. there is a lot of heads that will be considering what next move to make. isis'

keir simmons in london. keir, thank you very much.odd is nbc's political director and moderator of "meet the press." chuck, good morning to you. the president says no military action by the u.s. against russia over ukraine, but the sanctions we put in place clearly haven't forced vladimir putin to back down. does the administration think with more time they'll have a greater impact? >> they've always believed in time. that's what they've been preaching is patience, patience, patience. but that said, there are still more sanctions that can be done. particularly by european partnersm told they've already some put together. they had already planned a new round of sanctions even before this latest event of putin putting troops over the border. next week the president goes to europe, that big nato conference in wales. expect all of the european allies at that conference to be standing together with yet a new round of sanctions. but i can tell you none of them have an appetite for any military confrontation with russia. that's why we'll jus

. >> keir simmons, thank you so much. we always love having you on.in london, we wouldn't have to wake up at 4:00 a.m. to do this show. so maybe we'll see you over there sometime. "morning joe" starting at 11:00 or 12:00. >> i love that. >>> coming up at the top of the hour, the call to arm police with body cameras. we'll show you the one incident that shows exactly why they could be a game changer for violent police encounters. >>> plus is mitt romney the man america needs? >> this guy is blowing out republicans in iowa and new hampshire. >> well, who else is there? >> blowing them out. >>> also, the closest thing you'll get to a "friends" reunion. we'll break down that in hollyweird and it was really weird. first, the west coast bracing for a big storm. bill karins will have that and more when "morning joe" returns. great. this is the last thing i need.) seriously? let's take this puppy over to midas and get you some of the good 'ol midas touch. hey you know what? i'll drive! i really didn't think this through. brakes, tires, oil, everything. (whist

joining us now from erbil, iraq, nbc news correspondent keir simmons with the latest. >> reporter: good country has been nominated as prime minister. his name is haider al abadi. the current prime minister nuri al maliki was little known outside iraq and was backed by the u.s. but he has now, it appears, been forced from power but he is still trying to cling on. that is the political battle that is unfolding in baghdad each as fighting rages around that capital city. it appears those battles between the isis jihadists and the iraqis and kurds that were taking place near here just a few days ago have shifted south again, back towards baghdad. those u.s. air strikes do app to be having an effect on isis. pushing them back in places, but the pentagon concedes it may not stop them in the long run and, meanwhile, of course, thousands of people are still homeless and caught in the middle of this ever increasingly divided country. >> the pictures coming in are absolute riveting and incredible and heart breaking. keir, thank you so much. we bring in pulitzer prize winning columnist and associat

nbc's keir simmons is in northern iraq. keir, good morning. >> reporter: craig, good morning. the families you can see camped behind me have walked across a mountain to be here. tens of thousands of them are running from isis in exodus biblical scenes in the 21st century. fear has turned to fury here. an entire people facing persecution. today they set fires and protests crowding around to tell us of isis blood thirsty reign. and how jihadists kill. they shot them and then cut their heads off. isis is well armed but sheer terror may be their highest power. crucifixions shared on social media. men marched to their deaths. >> it's a medieval mind-set with modern weapons to kill anyone who disagrees with them. it's a dangerous combination. >> reporter: divisions that threaten to tear iraq apart. these people are an ancient religious minority. no arabs, no islam, they shout. every time a vehicle tries to come down this road, they're attacking it throwing stones. they are angry and desperate. >> we need obama help us. >> reporter: why? what do you need him to do? >> we need food, e

and as nbc's keir simmons explains, some of the iconic symbols are now becoming a thing of the past. et more british than this. a red phone booth. hold on a second. i'm going to have to phone you back. i'm live on the "today" show. sorry about that. where was i? these phone booths now, the problem is they're getting replaced by cell phones like these and they aren't the only british icon that you may one day only see in the movies. in a quiet corner of england, once bright red now slowly rusting. what used to be a national symbol today symbolizes how quickly life is changing. a world where a pocket of change connected you to e the folks back home fast disappearing with cell phones and texts and e-mails. look at this. these are britain's heritage, right? >> they are. they are the most frequently seen bits of the british image. >> reporter: across britain you can still see them, you just can't use them. they're so iconic, they've even been turned into a work of art. one's even been turned into a little library. christian lewis restores the pay phones right down to the rotaries and the c