leland vittert has more now from washington. >> reporter: arthel, no question this has major political implications on two levels. first, it gets the obama administration closer to the magic 100 number where the president feels he can keep his campaign promise to close the guantanamo bay prison. second, at least one of the detainees headed to uruguay is involved in a lawsuit of video of him being force-fed during a hunger strike to be released publicly. now that dynamic changes. this is the largest transfer of gitmo prisoners since 2009. and remember a significant number of those released have been known to head right back to the battlefield. uruguay is nestled along brazil and argentina. population more than 3 million. most of whom are christian. the cia world fact book doesn't break out a muslim population. and keep in mind, it's long-time president spent more than a decade under very harsh conditions in prison during the country's military rule. uruguay has long been known as a safehaven for those not wanted elsewhere in the world. after world war ii, a large number of nazis ended u

fox's leland vittert reports. >> pretty important mission he here.o to an honor to be part of that. but at the same time it's a little bit difficult being away from home. >> reporter: american 90 tow troops are celebrating christmas with dinner at the international security assistance forces headquarters in afghanistan. this is expected to be the last time most of them spend the holiday in the country. many are expected to leave afghanistan by december 31st. in cuba catholics are not only celebrating the birth of jesus christ they're also celebrating the news that the united states and cuba will resume diplomatic ties. >> now we can be united and love each other like brothers. be united with love and peace. >> reporter: meantime, across the atlantic in the united kingdom -- >> for me the life of jesus christ the prince of peace whose birth we celebrate today is an inspiration and an anchor in my life. >> reporter: queen elizabeth second par thaiing in her traditional christmas broadcast. the queen calling for reckon silage across the world and taking

leland vittert live from washington with details on that. leland?porter: well, jon, police in abu dhabi have wasted no time on this investigation that was made all the more difficult because the killer covered herself or in a burka. police say the suspect has confessed and targeted the victim simply because she was an american. in an overnight raid, they stormed a house and captured what they describe as a 38-year-old united arab emirates citizen of yemeni origin. police in abu dhabi believe she had help but believe the house that they raided was the base of operations. police believe the suspect also planted a relatively crude bomb outside the home of an american doctor that was defused before it could hurt anyone. this woman they've arrested is allegedly the woman seen in the mall surveillance tape in the killing of an american schoolteacher who was 47 years old, originally from hungary, an american citizen. she was a kindergarten teacher and mother of twin 11-year-old boys. their father has flown to abu dhabi to pick up his sons. the u.s. embassy

leland vittert has more now from washington. >> reporter: arthel, no question this has major politicalmplications on two levels. first, it gets the obama administration closer to the magic 100 number where the president feels he can keep his campaign promise to close the guantanamo bay prison. second, at least one

>> leland vittert, thanks a lot. >>> president obama sweeping immigration reform. we're now learning exactly what the process entails for illegal immigrants who are looking to get work permits. people must be able to provide documents, proving they were in the country continuously since january 2010. such as vehicle registrations, baptism records or even mortgages. the government is planning to start accepting applications as early as mid-february and will be hiring at least 1,000 new officers to process those applications. >>> and a panel investigating the cia's search of a computer network used by staff members of the senate intelligence committee will reportedly recommend a guest punishing anyone involved in the case. "new york times" says the panel will make the recommendation after the five cia officials staunchly defended their actions saying that they were lawful and, in some cases, done at the behest of john brennan, cia director. the searches occurred last year while the committee was looking into the cia's interrogation program. >>> a massive storm possib

leland vittert is live in washington with details on this sweep. good morning. >> reporter: tucker, good morning to you. over the past couple of weeks, a number of experts predicted this would happen, but the margin is particularly telling here as you can see. 56-44, bill cassidy over mary landrieu. you may remember mary landrieu tried to sponsor a political show vote on the keystone xl pipeline that failed and quick ly brought money to the republican party like an oil running dry. she is closely aligned with president obama and it worked for bill cassidy. >> people in louisiana voted for a government that serves us but does not tell us what to do. thank you, y'all. >> reporter: now republicans will have 54 seats in the senate come january. so it is certainly significant to give mitch mcconnell a little more margin to play with. and there's a larger story here. mary landrieu's loss means there's not a single democratic office holder in the south. they have produced a number of presidents from there. and speaking of those presidents, those helping t

. >> leland vittert live. thank you.llen ders witch saying the sony hack has declared war on our first amendment. >> it is very big. it is the pearl harbor attack on the first amendment. the head of north korea did something no american president can do he sen sourced -- censored based on a film content. when happens when north korea or iran will they hack or force you to slow down? this is the beginning of a cyber war that could go on indefinitely and can really place our first amendment in danger. >>> sony co-chair amy pascal falling for the bait and meeting with al sharpton. after they exposed her racial jokes about the president. she agreed to let sharpton have a say in how sony makes movies. he still wasn't satisfied. >> the jury is out on where we go with amy. we need an immediate formula to see where we deal with breaking down the walls of inflicksible and so far i am moveable racial exclusion in hollywood. >> pascal apologized for her comments last week saying quote they were not an accurate reflection of who i a

leland vittert is live for us in washington. >>> ashton carter the former second in command of the pentagonortedly in line to replace chuck hagel. he has experience as national security under leon panetta and hagel. >> wet weather hitting both coasts again this morning. maria molina is tracking it all for us. >> good morning. we have areas of rain across parts of the east. i want to focus in on california because out here we have a significant storm system moving into parts of california. we are looking at as much as 2-4 inches that have been received already across northern parts of california out there around the san francisco area. yesterday we received rain as far south as southern california including the los angeles area. because of this we have flood aid vise ryes in effect. we have ongoing flooding in these areas. the issue is some of these reasons have been experiencing wildfires in the past. we have burnt areas that means the soil really can't absorb much moisture so you get a lot of runoff and a lot of flooding much are another concern as well on the hillside and higher elevation

for that we turn to leland vittert. >> the burden of proof in such cases is substantially higher than that in state court. raising the stakes the investigation will be led by loretta lynch who will leave the justice department after eric holder leaves. holder held few punches in a rare and hastily arranged evening press statement about the case. fr in addition to forming our own investigative work we will have a complete review of the material gathered during the local investigation. we have all seen the video of mr. garner's arrest. his death of course was a tragedy. all lives must be valued. all lives. his death is one of the recent that have tested the sense of trust that must be between law enforcement and the communities they are charged to serve and to protect. >> the reverend al sharpton tweeted about the grand jury's decision says mrs. gardener widow and i spoke about the gardener case. president obama says the issue of police violence and accountability transcends race and is now an american problem. >> coming by all of us as americans regardless of race, region, faith that w

i'm leland vittert. one of the finest killed in the line of duty about a week ago. >> he was a new yorker. he was a new york city police officer. he was -- he is a hero. >> with just ten days to go until the start of a brand-new gop controlled congress, how will president obama deal with the much changed political landscape on capitol hill? we'll have a live report. >> and we'll also have a live report about the officer and thousands of e-mails just released offering a rare glimpse of jeb bush, what they tell us about thinks leadership style as he makes moves towards a possible 2016 white house run, our political panel will weigh in. >> but first, a somber day here in new york city as friends and family and a sea of blue honor one of their own. >>> an overflow crowd of thousands of police officers from across the country filling this church in queens, joined by vice president joe biden and andrew cuomo and bill de blasio and our dignitaries. can we get the video, please? we're having technical difficulti

i'm leland vittert in for jon scott. heather: i'm heather nauert in for jenna lee. great to be with you again, leland the taliban is claiming responsibility for that slaughter is what is considered the worst terror attack to hit pakistan in years. half a dozen gunmen dressed in military uniforms entering an army-run school in peshawar, shooting at random, taking children hostage and military commandos quickly arriving and exchanging gunfire. greg palkot is live in london with the details of this attack. and what appears to be the broader reach of the taliban. hi, there, greg. >> reporter: hi, heather of the pakistani taliban is responsible for a lot of brutality but this has to be by all estimates its worst. the school in peshawar pakistan was stormed by at least six, maybe more, heavily-armed taliban militants early this morning. and then they went on a shooting spree, killing student after student. at one point setting a teacher on fire and making her students watch. eyewitnesses spoke of rooms and hallways strewn with bodies. the pakistani military did do battle w

i'm leland vittert in for jon scott. >> imheather nauert in for. in the downtown in the heart of sydney, australia, listen to this. [. [gunfire] heather: that drama played out. as frightened hostages making a break for freedom. running to officers and some appeared injured and in need of medical assistance. this follows an intense landoff followed more than 16 hours. groups of hostages managed to get out at different types. we don't know how they got out or if they were released of the police spent hours negotiating with the gunman. he is an iranian refugee with a violent criminal past. >> we have fox team coverage. greg palkot with breaking details from london. james rosen live from the white house where the obama administration has been monitoring the situation overnight and laura tunstil live from australia. you what is going on now and how did it play out the past hour or so? evidently we did lose laura's signal from australia. you can just imagine the chaos from the scene and overwhelming amount of cell phone traffic. there were reports about

i'm leland vittert in for john scott. >> i'm arthel neville in for jenna lee.t could be from the plane to drift away from the crash site. so far rescuers have pulled seven bodies from the sea including a flight attendant still wearing her airasia uniform. meantime, a pent coastal church in indonesia confirms today that 41 of its members

leland vittert at the white house with the full menu. hi, leland. >> reporter: a lot on the president's plate before leaves. we expect the fbi to issue a formal statement blaming the north koreans for the hacking in the next couple of hours. keep in mind over the past couple of days the white house has been saying an awful lot but largely sitting on their hands. we have also learned that at the behest of sony, american officials looked at a rough cut of this movie that included the ending sequence where the character that for prays kim young sign the north korean leader dice -- kim jong-un. they gave it their blessing. very interesting. the once unknown movie at the center of the with white house calls a serious national security matter, yet still they are holding their punch. >> before we start to publicly speculating about a response it's appropriate that we allow the investigation to move forward. sophisticated actors when they, carry out actions like this are often times, not always, but often seeking to provoke a response from the un

i'm leland vittert.inest killed in the line of duty about a week ago. >> he was a new yorker. he was a new york city police officer. he was -- he is a hero. >> with just ten days to go until the start of a brand-new gop controlled congress, how will president obama deal with the much changed political landscape on capitol hill? we'll have a live report. >> and we'll also have a live report about t

i'm leland vittert in for jon scott. >> imheather nauert in for.downtown in the heart of sydney, australia, listen to this. [. [gunfire]

leland vittert is live at the white house with this. what are you hearing so far? >> reporter: so far things are quite. nothing on the schedule today. they are trying to walk that fine line between saying nice things about ash carter and laying the ground work for the nomination without actually doing it. in large part trying to take the temperature of the capitol hill folks and the media as well. this is josh earnest yesterday after reports leaked that the president settled on ash carter. >> he deserves and has demonstrated strong bipartisan support for his previous service in government. he's somebody who does have detailed understanding the way the department of defense works. >> reporter: senators are lining unbehind hip. senator inhofe of oklahoma says he supports them before it's even been made official. martha: there were some names floated for this that pulled themselves out of the running immediately and didn't want the job. >> reporter: this is a job that was seen as a no-win in washington. nobody really wanted it considering the contentious relationship

. >> ho, ho indeed, i'm leland vittert. special edition of "america's news headquarters." , leah. leah: i'm leah gabriel. we'll bring you festivities from the faithful in the vatican to pilgrims in bethlehem. leland: the very simple of the christmas spirit. it is not too late to give to those in need. leah: the show will go on. after you will "the interview" opening in hundreds of theaters and online have sony does an about-face on the controversial new movie. but we begin with protests erupting on christmas eve near ferguson, missouri. >> i can't breathe. i can't breathe. >> hundreds of protesters taking to the streets in the town of berkeley for the second night in a row, this after police there say an officer shot and killed an armed teenager who allegedly pointed a gun at him. officers say the officer was conducting a routine check at at gas station when 18-year-old antonio martin, pulled a gun causing the officer to fear for his life. tensions simmer near the boiling point. david lee miller is live in our new york city newsroom. david lee? >> leah, half a dozen people

. >> leland vittert is live in washington with the unfolding story. good morning, leland. >> good morning. north korea is old adage good defense is the best offense. belligerent ever what we heard from the united states. even despite president obama turning up the heat yesterday. the fbi for its part claim it has evidence that the reclusive nation is behind the hacking essentially linking north korea by electronic fingerprint. including bits of code and al al gori thims. plus they say certain internet addresses use youd in the attack against sony linked back to the >> says something interesting about north korea that they decided to have the state mounts an all out assault on a movie studio. they caused a lot of damage. and we will respond. we will respond proportionally and we will respond in a place and time and manner that we choose. >> the north koreans said a while ago the movie the interview itself is an act of war. grave consequences. the u.s. continues ache accusations saying they can prove they are behind the attack. it wants a joint investiga

i'm leland vittert in for john scott. >> i'm arthel neville in for jenna lee. rough seas are causing debris that could be from the plane to drift away from the crash site. so far rescuers have pulled seven bodies from the sea including a flight attendant still wearing her airasia uniform. meantime, a pent coastal church in indonesia confirms today that 41 of its members were on that plane. senior foreign affairs correspondent greg haltoff is live with more on the search. >> reporter: as you noted, the rain, the wind are hampering search efforts now of the airasia flight 8501. but there was some progress today. as you noted more bodies have been recovered for today. three yesterday. those returned were give full military honors upon their arrival in the indonesian city of surabaya where the doomed plane left from on sunday. all told four males and three females recovered including a 4 1/2-year-old boy still leaving 155 of those aboard still missing. the search is also hampered by misinformation that had been reported a man was found today wearing a life preserve

bill: leland vittert live with the response there. adam housley live in l.a. with the fallout. byron york here with analysis on all of this. let's start with leland. what is the white house's response on the cyberattack? >> reporter: so far they're saying a lot from the past couple days in the white house but largely sitting on their hands despite what is reported conclusive evidence north korea is behind this. this put this movie, known as "the interview," at the center of what the white house calls a major national security matter. still though, they are pulling their punches. >> before we start to publicly speculating about a response it's appropriate that we allow the investigation to move forward. sophisticated actors, when they carry out actions like this, are often times, but not always, but often seeking to provoke a response from the united states of america. they may believe a response from us in one fashion or another would be advantageous to them. >> reporter: we have also learned from senior officials here, that there was members of the united states delegation that

leland vittert live from washington with the latest. how did police track her down? >> reporter: good morning, eric. police in abu dhabi wasted no time on the investigation, made it all difficult because the killer covered herself in a burka. this is police video of the raid. they are confident they have their woman. in overnight raid they stormed a house and captured what they described as a 38-year-old united arab emirates citizen of yemeni origin. allegedly a woman seen in mall surveillance tape of killing the school teacher. ibolya ryan. she was a kind garth own teacher and mother of twin 11-year-old boys. her father has flown to abu dhabi to pick hupp his two sons who obviously don't have a mother. eric: this is so tragic or so sad. you have to wonder if she was targeted because she was american. suspect says she had help. >> reporter: the police believe she had other people involved in the plot. the house raided was base of operations if you will. they plant ad crude bomb outside home of american doctor that was defused before it could hurt anyone. american emb

. >> let's get to leland vittert live in washington with the latest. >> good morning. the white house says effectively they do not want to get ahead of the f.b.i. who is leading this hacking investigation. reports indicate conclusive evidence of north korea's involvement. one source, though, couldn't rule out a wider conspiracy perhaps involving iran, russia or china as accomplices in this. the once relatively unknown movie is now at the center of a major national security investigation, and come from that, possible countries involved include all of those mentioned. meantime we are learning that at the behest of sony, americans officials watched the end of the movie that included the successful assassination of kim jong un and approved it. a major point of discussion at the white house briefing. >> before we start publicly speculating a response, it is appropriate that we allow the investigation to move forward. when they carry out actions like this, they are oftentimes seeking to provoke a response from the united states of america. they may believe that a response fr

. >> joining us live with the breaking details is leland vittert. >> good morning. certainly a big development. so far the pentagon is only issuing a nondenial confirmation of the capture, refuse to go say much about what appears to be on its surface a lesbian niece -- a lebanese operation to capture the wife of al baghdadi. he reportedly has multiple wives and which one it is has raised a question. one official is suggesting it could be an ex-wife which could explain why she was in lebanon. on the other hand it is known the woman has close ties to al baghdadi. people within his circle hold significant power, including women. there could be other reasons for her whereabouts. >> he's a recognized leader of isil, and command and control of the organization which stems from leadership makes him valid in our minds from a targeting perspective, and i won't go beyond that. i'm not going to talk about a lebanese military operation. >> some tap dancing by the pentagon spokesman. in the past little while, a spokesman for the iraqi interior minister said this woman, while an

the side of leland vittert you have never seen.he past. i hadn't been successful. quitting smoking this time was different because i got a prescription for chantix. along with support, chantix (varenicline) is proven to help people quit smoking. the fact that it reduced the urge to smoke helped me get that confidence that i could do it. some people had changes in behavior, thinking or mood, hostility, agitation, depressed mood and suicidal thoughts or actions while taking or after stopping chantix. some people had seizures while taking chantix. if you notice any of these, stop chantix and call your doctor right away. tell your doctor about any history of mental health problems, which could get worse while taking chantix or history of seizures. don' take chantix if you've had a serious allergic or skin reaction to it. if you develop these, stop chantix and see your doctor right away as some can be life-threatening. tell your doctor if you have a history of heart or blood vessel problems, or develop new or worse symptoms. get medical