do you feel safe and latakia now? this. feel safe and latakia now?safe and latakia now? no, never ever, no, _ feel safe and latakia now? no, never ever, no, no. _ feel safe and latakia now? no, never ever, no, no. i— feel safe and latakia now? no, never ever, no, no. iwill- never ever, no, no. iwill leave the moment i get the chance. i need my daughters to survive. this house was built brick by brick with help from my family. and it seems that some people in the neighbourhood noticed how nice it was and became envious. added to this we are alawite and my husband was a high—ranking officer in the regime which made things even worse. i don't feel secure, i will leave with my daughters when i get the chance. fin will leave with my daughters when i get the chance. on the outskirts of— when i get the chance. on the outskirts of latakia _ when i get the chance. on the outskirts of latakia other - outskirts of latakia other residents also adjusting to the new reality on the ground here. russia is drawing down its forces. their ally ousted at this airbase at

latakia has been reclaimed.heir entire city — all of syria belongs to the people now. it's the flag of a free syria that now flies here in the very heartland of the former regime. sunni, shieh, christian — they all came together to celebrate with a message of unity. the assad regime warned that there would be massacres here in latakia if they ever lost power — instead, there are celebrations. even among its core support, people suffered. but, while there's a lot ofjoy here today, for some, there's fear — there's a worry that there may be a reckoning, and that they will have to pay for their support of the old regime. some from latakia's alawite minority are too scared to leave their homes. alawites were syria's ruling class — but now, no more. ola, an alawite, hated the assads — but now she feels for her community. will you still go out tonight? translation: if a conservative islamic ideology takes hold - here, i don't think so. not me, my friends, or people i know. no, we'll all leave the country. we are muslim

latakia has been reclaimed.rious jailhouse, their entire city — all of syria belongs to the people now. it's the flag of a free syria that now flies here in the very heartland of the former regime. sunni, shieh, christian — they came together to celebrate with a message of unity. the assad regime warned that there would be massacres here in latakia if they ever lost power — well instead, there are celebrations. even among its core support, people suffered. but, while there's a lot ofjoy here today, for some, there's fear — there's a worry that there may be a reckoning, and that they will have it's the flag of a free syria that now flies here in the very heartland of the former regime. sunni, shieh, christian — they came together to celebrate with a message of unity. the assad regime warned that there would be massacres here in latakia if they ever lost power — well instead, there are celebrations. even among its core support, people suffered. but, while there's a lot ofjoy here today, for some, there's fear — th

latakia has been reclaimed. this is who rules latakia, and much of syria, now. ranks of hayat tahrir al—sham. a little over a week ago, they were enemies of the state. now they are the law of the land. in a city of regime loyalists, every call—out is a show of force. still, they are greeted as liberators, and these young fighters are now the city's police force. they are heading to deal with an assault in this neighbourhood. weapons have been drawn. they move fast to find the suspects, who they believe are still armed. as they set up a cordon, neighbours identify men and accuse them of links to the former regime. shouting. across syria, scores are being settled. after years of oppression here on the streets, there is a thirst for vengeance. it's a situation that could easily spiral out of control. so the man they are arresting is accused of being shabiha — a government informant, a regime informant. the neighbours are screaming from the rooftop that that is exactly what he was. so him and a number of other men are being taken into custody. translation: you will

quentin: latakia has been reclaimed.ous jailhouse, their entire city, all of syria belongs to the people now. it is a flag of a free syria that now flies here in the very heartland of the former regime. sunni, shia, christian, they came together to celebrate with a message of unity. the assad regime warns there will be massacres here in latakia if they ever lost power. instead, there are celebrations, even among its core support, people suffered. while there is a lot of joy today, for some, there is fear, a worry that there may be a reckoning and that they will have to pay for the support of the old regime. some from latakia's minority are too scared to leave their homes. they were serious ruling class, but now no more -- syria's ruling class, but now no more. she hated the assads, but now fears for her community. >> the conservative islamic ideology takes hold here, i don't think so. not me, my friends, the people i know. no, we will all leave the country. we are muslims who pray and fast during ramadan, but we don't li

quentin sommerville, bbc news, latakia.election in february after the chancellor olaf scholz lost a parliamentary confidence vote. his coalition government collapsed last month in a row about spending. our europe editor katya adlerjoins us. we've had political turmoil in france and in germany — two key players in the eu — how significant is today's development? well, jane, we have been hearing and seeing tonight that we live in turbulent, unpredictable times and a lot of things that we have long taken for granted in europe, such as that the united states would always have our back in terms of security and defence, or that the west would always be the dominant power on the world stage, those certainties are gone. and germany is no longer what europe or the germans believed it to be, that economic powerhouse, that huge exporter on the world stage with really stable, predictable politics. it was designed to be like that after the horrors of nazi germany. but now germany is seen as the sick man of europe. it's not falling apart

one night, gunfire echoed through latakia's streets, spreading fear of escalation.he next morning, we found dozens of spent bullet casings scattered across a square in the azhari neighborhood. a restaurant was ransacked in the attack. its manager, nabih badour, told us it all began when fighters cursed a man for being alawite. >> the problem began when they asked a young man on the street, are you sunni or alawite? he said he was alawite. they said screw you and the alawites. simona: an altercation followed, and minutes later, a heavily armed force stormed the restaurant. >> after five minutes, they came with machine guns, with live bullets, they entered the restaurant, they arrested three people, covered their heads and packed them into cars. we tried to ask who they were, but it was forbidden to speak. they put them in cars and took them. simona: this is one of the men taken into custody. he asked us to hide his identity in fear of retribution. >> at gunpoint they took us out of the cafe, they beat us, they blindfolded us and made us lie down, face to the ground.

leila: so, latakia is this area on the coast.atakia and tartus, there are multiple russian bases, so it's an area where the russians have reinforced and, of course, supported the assad family and the regime for many years now. it's also where the assad family comes from. they come from a little village called qardaha, and we went there today in latakia district. and, in fact people there weren't mourning the family at all. the tomb of bashar al-assad's father, hafez, has been burnt to the ground and it's covered in graffiti from rebel fighters, and there were people asset-stripping the assad's family house, simply taking what they had to get them through the winter. because what people there say is, we are incredibly poor. the alawite minority that he says he supported actually, other than his immediate family and supporters, he left us all to rot here, incredible poverty that we saw. he put us against the other syrian people, so we couldn't support them, and said that the sunnis would come and kill us like isis had, and yet actu

the one in damascus, the one in latakia, and the one in tartus, while the latakia and tartus provinces are the ones where the russians have their bases i, or at least the large bases and damascus of course, being the capital. and now that that is being impacted by the rebel movements, it's pretty clear that there is really no place for the government of bashar al assad. whatever is left of it, to turn and it is only, i think, a matter of hours if that before the final collapse of that government occurs, at least in damascus. >> yeah. and david, i just i want to go back to you for a second to talk about what's at stake for the u.s. here, because you were talking about these are not freedom fighters. this isn't the u.s. so excited to see this group of rebels come to power it seems to be we heard from jake sullivan earlier today that their main concern is making sure there's not a resurgence of isis in that country and and protecting that, making sure that doesn't happen. we also need to note that there are some troops, american troops there in syria, though they are not in the area where

and you also saw incitement take place from, you know, especially in latakia.ifferent videos of that. i won't mention the names because i think those still need to be verified. but you also had senior alawite preachers like come out publicly and demand de—escalation and so on. so you have these different things take place. there were these violent attacks that took plac against the new government security forces, resulting in at least a couple of dozen dead that happened in the tartous countryside. and there are these old scores to settle with shabiha, with these sort of thug like groups that supported the regime. and while the authorities did say there would be a general it's not clear that others will be given that amnesty, and there's a huge need for the authorities to guarantee a transitional justice system. that will be a process. because if you don't have that, then what you will find more likely to happen is vigilantism, which i don't think would be in the best interests of the country at all. so there are lots of things here, i think, that need to be pu

they have a big air base in khmeimim near latakia. they also have the tartus naval base very important for the russia. the future of those very much in question right now wolf. >> yeah, lots of dramatic historic developments unfolding right now. fred pleitgen reporting from moscow. we will clearly stay in very close touch with you as well. thank you very, very much and to our viewers, our special breaking news coverage will continue. stay with us. newsroom will continue right after a quick break we'll stop luther. >> never too much new year's day at eight on slow down honey, a new driver. >> you need new insurance. >> zebra compares over 100 insurance companies to find savings no one else can. up to $400 a year. trapper. oh look. it's my stop. the zebra we do the searching, you do the saving hey. >> who's beetlejuice? >> don't ever say that name not ever. beetlejuice beetlejuice the juice is loose shake, shake, shake up shake, shake i'm going to make you so happy lessons from the heart beetlejuice beetlejuice. >> rated pg 13. now stre

and then this picture is at in latakia. these these jets with the nose cones up looking like they're about to be loaded, loaded with cargo. what are you what do you take away from what we're seeing in this, this this true scramble that putin seems to be in, in syria? >> i take away from the fact he's trying to get the heck out of latakia and tartus, and that's been indicated by a lot of open source intelligence. you know, there's not enough airplanes on the runway right now. at latakia to take the amount of equipment at that base. but this is a start. we also know that the russian naval fleet has been leaving tartus over the last several days. so as you said earlier, it is a major withdrawal. they are trying to get out of syria because they're concerned about security in those two bases. >> and tartus, though i know you've been clear, tartus is is where any kind of front with nato would be for him. >> yeah, well, tartus is a critical naval base because it gives russia access to the mediterranean. it gives them their only ac

we've seen statues actually come down in some of those regime strongholds in latakia and in tartus on the coast but we do continue to see clashes between the kurdish dominated sdf and some of the turkish backed rebel groups. and as you mentioned, there are other spoilers. spoilers potentially here, including isis fighters that remain and natasha, do you think that jelani is going to try and militarily sweep through the area? >> because what's interesting is he seems to have learned a lesson from the american occupation of iraq. he's not getting rid of regime loyalists as long as they flip sides. there is no purge that seems to be taking place it seems like maybe what he's trying to say is if you surrender that's fine. and you know we're trying to keep peace here yeah, it seems like jelani has actually learned quite quite a few lessons from the u.s. >> war in iraq, including to prevent looting protect institutions, including government employees. and so we've actually seen rebels enter places like tartus and latakia and essentially say that they will protect minorities regardless if th

and that he traveled to latakia in northwest syria.at is a coastal stronghold for assad and that is also where russia has an air base. so obviously, a lot of questions about where assad is headed and if russia will actually be giving refuge to assad. >> ambassador, we had on earlier, the u.s. envoy to syria said that he didn't believe that russia wanted him to potentially be headed to tehran. but with these new details, maybe that opens that possibility back up. >> yeah. let's now turn to a cnn exclusive we're hearing from syria's top rebel leader. speaking one on one with our jomana karadsheh that leader has advised his fighters to be, in his words, merciful to civilians, adding that any defecting soldiers in the assad regime would be safe if they laid down their weapons and surrendered. here's part of that conversation people who fear islamic governance either have seen incorrect implementations of it, or do not understand it properly. >> we are talking about something that aligns with the traditions and nature of the region. >> the

latakia in the in the mediterranean this is all sort of in the alawite heartland, if you will of, of syria which is on the mediterranean coast so again, this was uh, in russia's interest to exert its influence. an old client, assad's father hafez al-assad, was a client, if you will, during the soviet union of the soviets you know, that's where a lot of their military equipment was purchased from. so those alliances were sort of old alliances but they were what shored up assad. but what he saw arrayed against him were islamist groups were western interests in terms of the united states backing kurdish groups and of course, a plethora of other smaller, uh regional groups. but what his leader was able to do significantly, what gilani was able to do significantly, was over the past number of years while their grouping had been cornered in the northwest of syria, was rekindled relationships with smaller rebel factional commanders and bring them back on board under an umbrella and get some significant training. it appears to become a cohesive effective force able to make the lightning move

and it was then that the russians came into syria, expanded an air base near the city of latakia, and then unleashed their air force on the rebels in syria. and they were brutally effective. >> there were obviously a lot of casualties on the ground, but it also allowed for two things. >> it allowed for the syrian military to move forward and oust those rebels from large parts of the country essentially saving the assad regime. also, of course, with the help of iran and some of iran's proxies. but what it also did, jake, it also instantly made vladimir putin one of the most powerful leaders in the middle eastern region, a definitely a factor in that region. and it allowed russia to also project power not just into the middle eastern region, but all the way into africa as well. with that air base that they were using for longer distance flights. now, all of that instantly has been called into question. we were on a call today with the kremlin where they first of all, acknowledged that they did not see this coming, that this came as a surprise to them. they said it basically came as a su

we know russia has two main bases in syria, an air base in latakia and his only mediterranean port in tartus. putin has so far been silent about what's happening in syria, but we can see the troop and equipment movements. and tonight, the man who was running syria as putin's protected dictator, bashar al assad, is apparently speaking out for the first time since he fled to moscow. fred pleitgen is out front for moscow tonight. >> as syrians celebrate the demise of the assad regime. the deposed dictator, seemingly delusional, apparently speaking out for the first time since fleeing to russia his statement on the social media page of the former syrian presidency, appearing to be from assad himself, datelined moscow. i have never sought positions for personal gain, but have always considered myself as a custodian of a national project, the statement says this after syrians ransacking assad's palace discovered the luxury, the dictator and his family were living in. including a garage with dozens of luxury cars, including ferraris and a lamborghini. assad's wife asma, also known for her la

and it was the russians then that came in with their air force at that airbase in khmeimim, near latakia, which they still have that then really turned the tides on the battlefield. there was, of course pro-iranian and iranian forces who were on the ground as well. but russia's air force really coming in with a punch and helping bashar al assad's forces. and so they were key to him staying in power. also up until now. but it seems as though at this point in time, even the russians have realized that on the ground, so few people are now willing to fight for bashar al-assad, that the russians themselves are saying, look, it is what it is. they say that they're in contact with all the armed factions that are on the ground of course, the big issue that they now have is whether or not they're going to be able to keep those military assets that they have here their air base in latakia and then also that port, which is really important to them near the town of tartus, where they just recently conducted a big naval exercise from there. jessica. >> all right fred pleitgen for us in moscow, thank

and israel is now busy bombing syrian military installations like this naval base in latakia.ussian middle east experts warning about the huge loss to russia in the wake of assad's fall. when i saw these ships with our weapons burning, i simply felt like crying. this expert says, these are our weapons, our gear, after all, and our help to the syrians to protect their statehood but those now in charge in syria are working on a new statehood without assad. the former dictator, seemingly grappling with his loss of power. when the state falls into the hands of terrorism and the ability to make a meaningful contribution is lost, the statement says. any position becomes void of purpose, rendering its occupation meaningless. and jake, both u.s. and western officials are now saying that there's actually a large scale russian withdrawal going on from their military bases in syria. that is the air base that they have in khmeimim near latakia, but also the naval port that they have in tartus. unclear whether all of that is permanent, but the kremlin was actually asked about all of this a

latakia. and that will basically mean the end of that foothold they've had in the middle east now for ten plus years. that's significant. number two, what you'll see is an iranian retrenchment. further going beyond what happened with in the wake of the attacks by israel so if hezbollah was always the right fist of, of of iran's axis of resistance, the arm was syria. it was the means by which iran ferried people and munitions and weapons into the country, both by air and by land. and they will now presumably lose that conduit between iran and lebanon in terms of rearming hezbollah. so that's good for not just the united states. that's, of course, good for israel. so that's important there. so i think these factors are when you couple that with with the decimation of hezbollah, the decimation of hamas you see a very big, probably the most important impact being borne by the iranians. and then being further isolated in the region. >> yeah. and president-elect trump today called very explicitly fo

that will be near the city of latakia.ffensive by the rebels would not have been possible without the blessing of president erdogan. 6 million people had to flee syria and become refugees because of the war here. more than 3 million of them are in turkey. for a very long time turkey had put pressure on president assad to try to find a diplomatic solution to the conflict here to allow the return of some of those refugees. so i think there will be perhaps a push, some incentives for refugees who are now in turkey to return to syria. i was on the other side of the border in southern turkey and saw the first queues of people trying to cross into syria. people were saying they were very happy to see the fall of the regime, they were very happy with the opportunity to come back home uncertain to come back home, but a lot of people are still uncertain about the future and a lot of people are saying they will wait to see what will happen next with syria, with the situation here, before they make the decision to finally come back.

this is the aftermath of an israeli strike on the port of latakia in western syria.mpletely destroyed and submerged by water. israel said it had successfully destroyed syria's fleet. it's one of a number of military sites israel has been targeting since the fall of president assad, which we've been verifying. since the fall of president assad, including these four across syria. this is one on the outskirts of damascus. it's a site that's been linked to the country's chemical weapons programme, according to the un. this is the aftermath. the un found that chemical weapons were used by assad in syria — including in the capital damascus in 2013, which reportedly killed hundreds of people. israel have also said they've been deploying troops into syria — to a demilitarised area called the buffer zone. let me show you what that looks like. the golan heights are an area that israel seized in 1967 and later unilaterally annexed. the move wasn't recognised internationally — apart from by the us. but we've seen evidence that they've moved further into syria. we verified this i

the statement says that he had moved to latakia, after what he called terrorists had infiltrated damascusombat operations came under intensified attack by drone strikes. it then says that moscow requested the base to arrange an immediate evacuation to russia on the evening of sunday the 8th of december a day after the fall of damascus. our russia editor, steve rosenberg sent this report. where is bashar al—assad ? he hasn't been seen since he fled syria. today, a statement purporting to be from him appeared on the social media accounts of the former syrian president, dateline moscow. it's unclear who controls the accounts and whether assad wrote this: "my departure from syria was neither planned nor did it occur during the final hours of the battles. i remained in damascus, carrying out my duties until the early hours of sunday 8th december. at no point during these events did i consider stepping down or seeking refuge." president putin, who met army chiefs today, has reportedly granted assad asylum. but the kremlin leader has said nothing publicly about it. most of this speech was about

we know the russians have their main air base in latakia, near latakia, in a place called khmeimim, with which they project power, not just in the middle east, but all the way into western africa. as well. and of course, a big naval port just last week, the russians had big naval exercises originating from that port, where they fired some really powerful missiles, not just from ships in the mediterranean, but also from on the ground in that naval port in tartus. earlier today, on that same conference call, the kremlin was asked what will happen to those bases, and they confirmed that they simply don't know. they say they have to see how the situation inside syria is going to play out. who is going to be in power inside syria? the russians claim that they are in contact with all the armed groups on the ground in syria, as well. they did say that their forces inside syria at this point in time are on high alert. they say the situation is calm outside their bases but of course, the existence, the future of russia's military footprint inside syria right now very much in question. >> john, ju

they called for other christians who were refugees in latakia and aleppo to come back to take their land've changed? we hope, we trust. we trust in god, and we trust in the goodwill of the people. hts dominance has not been without discontent. protests like this one in march have been held against the detention of rivals, and what some say is their authoritarian rule. i'm talking to a lot of people here and everybody is very positive, everybody is very optimistic. and there's almost no criticism of hts here. no, no, they are now the heroes, to be honest. the syrian revolution people, the rebels also who were fighting assad for 1h years till this day, will not allow any dictators to come again. if they act as dictators the people are ready to say no. from the ruins of a war and a dictatorship, a nation is being reborn. but what kind of nation will it be? hugo bashagha, bbc news, idlib. around the world and across the uk. this is bbc news. for hundreds of years, residents in one town in northern canada have lived alongside their polar bear neighbours — but scientists are warning that clima

we can take you to syria, and the port city of latakia where many people have gathered in response to, overthrowing bashar al—assad, to celebrate the end of five decades of authoritarian rule. this is one of many mass rallies taking place in cities across the country after islamist rebels seized power last sunday. crowds began heading here to me had square in damascus outside the great mosque following friday prayers. our correspondent lina sinjab has been there today and says it is already beginning to look like already beginning to look like a party. speakers have been set up, music was playing and the call—out was to raise your head high, you are syrian. she also said rebels were posing for pictures with civilians. one pulled out a piece of paper and started to read poetry he had written praising the country. much reconstruction still ahead for syria of course but for the moment the mood is one of celebration in many places. now it's time for a look at the weather forecast with matt taylor. hello. at long last we will see the return of sunshine more widely through tomorrow. a few b

in the region demonstrating against the regime, including people from his own alawite community in latakia5ive confusion about what is going on there right now at the moment. , , ., moment. jeremy, our international - moment. jeremy, our international edited i international edited jeremy bowen, thank you. we haveju5t had a line coming in from the turkish foreign minister saying that bashar al—a55ad i5 that bashar al—a55ad is probably outside of syria. thi5 probably outside of syria. this comes with continued report5 he had fled the country to an unknown destination. caroline hawley look5 unknown destination. caroline hawley looks back on his rule. bashar al—a55ad took power in the year 2000, inheriting syria's police state from his father, hafez. the new young president, ju5t 3a at the time, promised reform. and after his inauguration, there was a brief period of greater political openne55. but the old family way of ruling soon reasserted itself. power was to have been handed down to ba5har�*s elder brother, basel, but when he was killed in a car crash, it was the quieter, somewhat awkward

but then he'd moved to the russian air base, the khmeimim air base in latakia, after which it becameitions of the syrian army had fallen. then, he says, the russian air base came under attack from drones that moscow, he says, decided on an immediate evacuation and that he moved to russia. he says, "at no point during these events did i consider stepping down or seeking refuge." again, an attempt to deny that he abandoned syria. so interesting comments from mr assad. no comments from vladimir putin. he hasn't said anything publicly about the fall of assad or events in syria. even though today he addressed senior military chiefs at a big meeting, everything he said was about the war in ukraine. no comment from the kremlin leader about syria. we we re we were looking at that news conference a short while ago with donald trump and he has been taking more questions and has called the rebellion in syria, "an unfriendly takeover by turkey". turkey fighting the kurdish rebels in the north use of the country. interesting the latest comments from donald trump on the situation current on situat

but then he'd moved to the russian air base, the khmeimim air base in latakia, after which it becamecow, he says, decided on an immediate evacuation and that he moved to russia. he says at no point during these events did i consider stepping down or seeking refuge. again, an attempt to deny that he abandoned syria. so interesting comments from mr assad. no comments from vladimir putin. he hasn't said anything publicly about the fall of assad or events in syria. even though today he addressed senior military chiefs at a big meeting, everything he said was about the war in ukraine. no comment from the kremlin leader about syria. around the world and across the uk. this is bbc news. you are watching bbc news. france has said it's mobilizing resources to provide relief and security to the people of its indian ocean territory of mayotte, following saturday's destructive cyclone. three government ministers are in the territory to see the devastation. hundreds of people are feared dead, and there's growing concern over essential supplies of food and water. the authorities are trying to co o

if he's in hiding, moved to another location in the country, perhaps latakia on the mediterranean coastrt for him. is he going to try to hold out with a group of loyalists there? is that going to be an ongoing military threat and problem in the country? so, so right now, rebels are talking with military officers and intelligence officials who may have an understanding of where assad was going, because he may have been involved in his transport or just aware of some part of the planning and as i understand it, rebels have been to the airport to search for clues. again, there for where he may have gone and what he may have done. and my understanding is from sources familiar with the situation that assad's helicopter was found at the airport in damascus which they therefore rule out that he's moved, moved off by helicopter. but the assumption is that he will therefore have left by plane. but again, the question is in which direction and in which plane, because a number of planes left the airport in the time frame that they're looking at. but but the key thing at the moment for the rebels w

russia is now abandoning some of its smaller bases in syria and consolidating in the port city of latakiathe rebels say they don't want a fight with moscow or washington, but it's not clear if they're forcing the russians out or if they're leaving on their own. >> we don't have any contact with them. the location of this airport is very important, and we've received orders to be here. >> the state department says that any americans who need help getting out of syria should contact u.s. officials immediately. in london, greg palkot, ktvu, fox two news. >> and i'm back right after the break. we have the rain that is dying down now, but it comes back just in time for the weekend. we'll take a look at that. see you back here. >> all right. now to alex savidge and a look at some of the stories we're working on for west coast rap. coming up at the top of the hour. alex. hey, mike. >> thank you. coming up tonight at seven. an arizona woman is behind bars right now, accused of killing her own adult granddaughter. we'll tell you what we are learning from authorities about the chaotic moments befor

he also said he was spirited away from the western city of latakia from a russian base.hat same date. so it is kind of unclear what he's getting at. it seems like the story isn't quite straight. >> israel has launched a new round of air strikes in syria, right? what can you tell us about that? >> that's right. the syrian observatory for human rights said the air strikes by the israelis overnight against points all across the country and mostly around here in damascus have been some of the worst that they've seen in the week since the assad regime fell and the israelis began striking targets here in syria. the israelis say they're doing it because they're trying to hit major weapons that they're worried they're going to fall into the wrong hands as the country moves through a period of instability and they also launched a ground incursion and taken the buffer zone just past the golan heights into mainland syria. this is something that's attracted criticism from the international community and the new leader from syria and the man who leads the islamist group that took ove

russia is now abandoning some of its smaller bases in syria and consolidating in the port city of latakia. the rebels say they don't want to fight with moscow or washington, but it's not clear if they're forcing the russians out or if they're leaving on their own. >> we don't have any contact with them. the location of this airport is very important, and we've received orders to be here. >> the state department says that any americans who need help getting out of syria should contact u.s. officials immediately. in london, greg palkot, ktvu, fox two news mystery drone sightings in the northeast continue to ramp up, and now some lawmakers are taking action. >> the department of homeland security says there is no evidence the drones are linked to foreign interference, but little else is known about them. senate majority leader chuck schumer is co-sponsoring legislation that could help provide some more clarity to the growing mystery. this would expand the government's use of technology, such as the robin radar system, which is capable of detecting unknown drones, he's asking the dhs, the dep

russia is now abandoning some of its smaller bases in syria and consolidating in the port city of latakiawant a fight with moscow or washington, but it's not clear if they're forcing the russians out or if they're leaving on their own. >> we don't have any contact with them. the location of this airport is very important, and we've received orders to be here. >> the state department says that any americans who need help getting out of syria should contact u.s. officials immediately. in london, greg palkot ktvu, fox two news. >> the u.s. coast guard reports a 100 foot barge ran aground near the berkeley marina during this weekend's big storm. you can see the large vessel very close to the shoreline. that barge got stuck right near interstate 80, near the gilman exit in berkeley. the coast guard sent us photos. witnesses say the barge broke loose from its moorings and got kicked around the water during the powerful windstorm. it appears to have been stranded during the high tide. the coast guard was eventually able to move it. >> the walt disney company has reached an agreement with disneyl

possible as far as we know, the russians have not decided to evacuate their bases and tartarus and latakiao so, that really would mark a strategic defeat for russia as it is right now. it's just maneuvering on the battlefield. they could well wait it out and see. one key is, where is assad? if he's actually out of damascus? if he's in a safe place, if he's got communications, this government is still alive to get rid of this government, you've got to get assad. >> but if he's out of damascus, doesn't that also lower the incentive of his troops that's exactly right but it depends on whether he's still executing command and control through, you know, his radio and electronic means. >> and we don't have the ability technically to see this. the united states does obviously, so does russia. so does israel. so a lot of people are watching this to see what happens. and then the question is if he's overthrown, what happens in syria? i think one of the good things from the united states perspective is that hezbollah has been weakened iran is relatively weak, but there's going to be a long series of

and then, of course there is the airbase at khmeimim, which is near latakia, where the russians haveeady said that for now the safety of their military assets have been guaranteed by the armed groups. but they are also saying that their forces on the ground in syria are also on high alert and of course, one of the things right now is that the status of those bases, the future of those very much in doubt, wolf and clearly, russia has been preoccupied with its war against ukraine. >> and that's why its military capabilities in the middle east especially in syria, have been reduced. one of the reasons why this rebel group was able to succeed until recently, the russian government was very much aligned with the bashar al-assad regime. fred pleitgen in moscow for us. thank you very, very much. at the same time, the u.s. is conducting strikes on isis targets in parts of syria after rebels took control of the country. we have details on those operations and what this power shift in syria means for the united states. a lot more coming up after this quick break cnn heroes an all-star tribute

country is not back to normal they are still, for example on the in the coastal areas of tartus and latakia uh, some problems of law and order. and as long as security will not prevail, it will be very difficult for the population to go back to some kind of normalcy, let alone for the humanitarians to try to deliver on their mission. if we look at the north and the northeast of the country, there are still ongoing hostilities between different groups and it will be difficult in such conditions for the people, for example, to go back home a lot of people are willing to go back home or to move from one region to another, and it is not safe yet to do so um, there is, of course another problem, which is, as i said, the resumption of the public services. we need to ensure that public services essential and critical infrastructures are not only spared but can function so all this will require the different parties to the conflict to find some arrangements to comply with their obligations under international humanitarian law and to, of course, let humanitarian organizations work, which is very dif

there's a there's a russian air base in latakia province, as well as a naval base, a russian naval base on the mediterranean. it's only naval base on the mediterranean which are still there and certainly there's a possibility that russia could reinforce its military presence in syria because obviously they've invested quite a lot over the decades in the assad dynasty, going back to the 1970s. they don't want to lose those investments, but certainly, given their preoccupation with the situation in ukraine, it's questionable to what extent they can really throw a lot of resources into syria at this point. rosemary all right. >> our thanks to ben wedeman bringing us that live report. appreciate it health officials in northern gaza say israeli airstrikes killed at least 200 people over the weekend. the director of the kamal adwan hospital says five buildings in two different areas in the north were hit during attacks on saturday leaving many buried under the rubble. gaza's civil defense says 40 people in the same family were killed in one strike. a deadly israeli airstrike was also reported

substantial military assets that they have inside syria, a massive air base in khmeimim very close to latakia, but then also a port in the mediterranean in the city of tartus. the russians, of course, recently conducting a naval exercise there. the russians themselves also now very much in question. what is going to happen to their military assets on the ground and whether those will need to be pulled back to russia? fred pleitgen cnn, moscow i'm joined by jill dougherty, a cnn contributor and adjunct professor at georgetown university. >> jill, thanks so much for taking time tonight. >> sure. >> so first, i want to begin with what this means for russian influence in syria and the region. it invested enormous resources in money and troops on the ground there. and participation, frankly, bloody participation in a bloody campaign by assad against his his own people and now assad is gone. what does it mean for russia yeah. >> i mean, there's, you know kind of the property part of it, the bases, the air base and the naval base. but i think when you get into prestige and influence in the middle ea

militants in eastern syria in return, assad gave moscow a 49 year lease on both its main air base near latakia and a military port in tartus, allowing vladimir putin to project power throughout the middle east. the fact that russia has its military assets in syria also makes moscow a key player in the middle east. but now the russians acknowledge that that status is in jeopardy. once a key ally for the russian leader, putin now allowed assad and some of his family members to flee to moscow, a decision folks in moscow told us they support naim qassem. we don't abandon our men, he says. he is our man. it was the right decision. he has nowhere to go. he would have been killed. but even here, syrians living in russia telling me they're happy assad's been ousted. we will be able to live in calm and peace and be able to safely visit our country, he says. we don't have to worry that someone can throw us in prison because they don't like what we said. we're happy that the dictatorship is over. moscow hopes the end of assad's rule will not spell the end of its military engagement in the middle east. wh

but that is where russia has a naval base in tardis and an airfield right outside latakia.o we could see the russia lose its foothold in the middle east. and of course, iran, i think is is most severely impacted by this. they will now lose their their air and ground routes through syria that used to supply the hezbollah into lebanon. so very significant for those countries on a major basis and for other countries in the region, jordan, turkey others, they'll now see the return of millions of refugees who have been housed in their countries for years hopefully, for them returning to syria. >> i was texting with retired general this morning who is very concerned about what's going to happen to assad's massive arsenal of chemical weapons, to say nothing of the huge cache of surface to air missiles in syria. how worried are you about those weapons getting into the hands of the rebels, specifically the part of the rebels that is the islamist militant group tass hayat tahrir al-sham whose leader has or had ties to al qaeda yeah, i think there are a number of immediate concerns we

syria comes down to is its naval station at tardis and its air base north of north of tartus and latakia province. if the russians can make a deal with a new syrian regime and keep those bases i don't think they care that much about assad for iran, it's very different if assad and his alawite regime are replaced by sunni islamist iran is in deep trouble and its ability to support whatever's left of hezbollah, whatever the israelis haven't destroyed, and this whole opportunity for the rebels in syria, we owe to israel and we owe to israel's destruction, ongoing destruction of hamas in the gaza strip and its ongoing dismemberment of hezbollah in lebanon, the middle east is definitely changing to iran's detriment. but let's also be clear these syrian rebels, by and large, are islamists themselves. many are al qaeda isis fighters and a terrorist regime in damascus is in lieu of the assad regime. is like potentially jumping out of the frying pan into the fire. the u.s. shouldn't get involved militarily but it is dead wrong to say we don't have real interest in the outcome of this fight. >> ye

russia is now abandoning some of its smaller bases in syria and consolidating in the port city of latakia they don't want to fight with moscow or washington, but it's not clear if they're forcing the russians out or if they're leaving on their own. >> we don't have any contact with them. the location of this airport is very important, and we've received orders to be here. >> the state department says that any americans who need help getting out of syria should contact u.s. officials immediately. in london, greg palkot, ktvu, fox two news. >> a new special airing tonight on ktvu is taking a look at the tragic death of former one direction star liam payne in october. the 31 year old singer fell to his death from a hotel balcony in argentina. we're joined now live by tmz's michael babcock to talk about tonight's special. tmz investigates liam payne who's to blame? michael, thanks for speaking with us. >> good morning. thanks so much for having me. >> well, there's some really compelling interviews in this report. i had a chance to watch some of the clips. you spoke with an eyewitness, as wel

we're not just talking about their massive air base that they have in khmeimim near latakia, but of course, also the big port that they have as well in tartus where just earlier, last week, they launched a gigantic naval exercise testing some pretty potent longer distance missiles some of them nuclear capable. so these two assets, very important for the russians right now, very much in in question. the russians, however, are saying that bashar al-assad is now on the ground here in moscow members of his family are as well and just a little side note on that, just to show that the russians seem to be right now, at least not interfering with any sort of transition that's going on in syria. we are also learning, wolf, that on the former embassy of the syrian arab republic, the flag of the syrian arab republic under bashar al-assad has apparently been taken down. and also the plaque of the syrian arab republic has also at the embassy here in moscow, been removed as well wolf, and things like that don't happen by themselves. >> a very significant developments indeed. fred pleitgen, thank you ver

he's the senate representative to latakia the alawi stronghold, to assure the alawite minority that there won't be retribution against regime supporters. all of this strikes me as a as headlines. casey. the question is whether the trend lines will hold as he as he and the complex and consolidated sort of loose alliance of islamist groups begin to deal not with the issue of rebellion. that's hard, but governing is harder. and look, the reality is the track record here for overthrowing middle east dictators is not an inspiring one. in egypt, mubarak was overthrown. a repressive government followed. in libya, gadhafi was overthrown. libya is plunged into internal chaos and division in yemen. abdullah saleh overthrown the houthis govern large parts of the area is in in iraq, which may be the best example. saddam is overthrown. and yet in iraq, in so many respects is dysfunctional. so the real question, i think, is whether or not you can convert this extraordinary moment which demonstrates the importance of individuals in for good or ill, in the course of of human events, whether or not jilani

have to look at for russia, they have a couple of bases here one in tartus and another one in near latakia. this is an air base. this is a naval base the idea here control the eastern mediterranean or at least have the facilities to do that. the other thing is that syria, including these bases plus bases that the syrians operate around damascus and several other places were used as logistics hubs for the russians to move stuff into africa. same thing for the iranians to influence other areas in the middle east, including over here in lebanon. so this becomes a huge deal. both iran and russia are now impeded in terms of their operations and their ability to control events, not only in the middle east, but beyond that in africa and other places. as well. >> yeah, a significant blow to that crew. it will be curious to see what happens next. colonel cedric leighton, appreciate your analysis. as always. thanks so much. thanks, boris next. just days after president-elect trump said that january 6th investigators should be jailed, his fbi pick who has suggested the same is on capitol hill trying