get with general allen and we'll get back to you as to what we need. >> let's go over to mike viqueira now. the administration has john kerry in front of the hours foreign affairs committee. again, mike, i want to get your reaction as the news shifts on the ground between iraq and syria, and isil is taking villages, does that put more pressure on the administration? does the administration react on a day by day basis? >> i think the messaging coming from the white house is no ground forces they are going to stick to that come hell or high water, unless something completely unforeseen happens on the order of the fall of bagdad or something like that. let's talk about what is happening here in washington at this point, and we have just heard -- you are talking about a little bit of breaking news, harry reid was saying the senate will get around to authorizing not simply arming those rebels, remember covert aid has been going on for about a year now, and overt aid, the $500 million has to be authorized by congress. that vote coming later in the day in the senate. but after the election ha

mike viqueira will be with us. david shuster will be with us as well. we'll have a full run down of the rest of the day's news. there has been plenty to report on on this particular day. if you want to latest on anything we've been covering here in this extended coverage, you can head over to our website at www.aljazeera.com. i'm tony harris with david shuster in new york. "techknow" is next on al jazeera america. to talk to people, about their stories. we are not meant to be your first choice for entertainment. we are ment to be your first choice for the news. caltech >>> this is "techknow", a show about innovations that saves lives. we explore hardware and humanity in a unique way. this is a show about scientists by scientists. let's check out the team of so-called nerves. lindsay moran, an analyst - new technology can make guns safer. does it work. we put it to the "techknow" test.

mike viqueira for us at the white house. i want to look more closely at the islamic state group and how it operates. as you know it emerged from what it was originally an affiliate of al-qaeda or al-qaeda in iraq called aqi. the two groups are organized and funded very

. >> mike viqueira with me, and he has been following the president's entire day. it's been a busy one. this resolution requiring countries to take firm action to address the threat of foreign fighters the world over. >> fairly extraordinary. you have the president of the united states the chair of the united nations this month. but chairing this meeting in security council today and organizing to insure domestic laws are passed in each individual country. it is enforceable, but as a practical matter, tough to do. you see many countries, the majority directly affected by terrorism. we've heard from franÇois hollande. they suffered a blow when one of their citizens were murdered. and the king of jordan, they have a large population of syrian refugees living within their borders. it's a compelling and significant moment. >> i believe king abdullah is coming up in just a moment. the president introducing the king of jordan. >> thank you, mr. president. first let me thank president obama for his leadership on this issue. and jordan can will com be counted on to play a

but right now i want to bring in mike viqueira who we normally see from washington. >> great to be here. >> this is something the president does annually at the un. this year it is different. >> you are right. every year it does have a perfunctory air to it. it is sort of like a state of the union for an international audience. this follows a diplomatic flurry, and unprecedented and in all objectivity some stunning successes for the u.s. in the last 72 hours, perhaps week, with the coordinated attackses with arab nations, some unprecedented situations there. >> this fits into the category of nobody saw this one coming. a month ago we were talking about a president who said i have no strategy -- >> no strategy yet. >> yeah. so the question has to be asked, is it that they didn't have a strategy or they just weren't talking about it? >> well, first of all the president made that trip down to tampa to central command and signed off of the plans last week. really, dell, you have to say the galvanizing effect here, and we did see some remarkable bipartisan support for what is happening now o

we go to mike viqueira in washington.e will tell us what's next for congress. >> the country on high alert over a rare virus that has infected hundred was kids. the signs parents need to look for. >> there are serious concerns about the safety of a bowing commercial jet, coming from the people who build the plane, an aljazeera america exclusive investigation, looking into allegations of drugs on the job. >> our images of the day, an action-packed week one of the nfl, featuring exciting upsets and overtime games. >> my washington redskins lost their battles, the broncos did win in their opening weekend. >> tough realities... >> we chicago ch-iraq, because we have more killings... >> life changing moments... >> shut the camera.... >> from oscar winning director, alex gibney, a hard hitting look at the real issues facing american teens. the incredible journey continues... on the edge of eighteen only on all jazeera america >> congress getting back to work today, the president preparing to layout his noon fight the islamic st

p mike viqueira is here with us in new york. and we need to point out in full disclosure we're owned by the qatarry government low they do not effect our editorial judgments in one way or another 3. but there is a new balance in the world as the united states has called on qatar and others to fight isis. >> the emir began with views on israel 37 it's certainly not heard that often on american television but not uncommon with taking israel to task and the warring in gaza. i thought it was interesting when he talked about the aid to syria, the help to syria. he was critical of the international community, and of course by implication the united states for not coming in earlier. he said no red lines were drawn. that's going to raise red flags because the president famously true a red line in the use of chemicals, and then deferred to congress in retaliation to that. it was a volatile and controversial speech from the emir. >> it would seem if this particular u.n. assembly is remembered for anything, it was the meeting where the glo

mike viqueira has been with us all day. and break down the elements of this resolution. >> an international coalition you saw a lot of head of state. it was a rare sight. the united states chairing in that capacity, and president obama brought this resolution, voted on it unanimously. and it would ban fighters for traveling for terror purposes. all the signatories to this is expected to ban laws. facilitating travel foreign fighters. it's legally enforceable. one of those leaders around the table is someone whose country is very intimately involved. dealt with the tragedy of this civil war king abdullah of jordan. here's what he had to say about this fight. >> it's not an arab, muslim fight any more. it affects every delegate here and beyond. it is the fight of our times. success requires an united struggle backed up by strong resources. >> turkey, lebanon, jordan, aflood. that man's country, a 20% the equivalent of 20% of his country's population now is equal in the number of refugees settled over the syrian border. >> he

white house correspondent mike viqueira has the details. >> reporter: it was two weeks after president obama said it would happen, and another week since he signed off on the plan. on the day after, it came as dramatic news. >> last night on my orders america's armed forces began strikes against i.s.i.l. target in syria. >> the first waves came in the early morning tart. areas around aleppo and raqqa were targeted. the tarts training camps and workshops. and waves of air crafts and f22s - hitting barracks and combat vehicles. military officials expressed the nature of the strikes. >> the intended target was the communications array on the roof of the building. the toma hawks detonated with air bursts, focussing on communication array. >> reporter: the last two arrays, an unspecified number of sortees flown by neighbouring arab says. the involvement was a key to going forward with strikes in syria. president obama called out the country by name. >> saudi arabia, the united arab imirates, jordan, bahrain and qatar. america is proud to stand shoulder to shoulder with the nations on behalf

mike viqueira, joining us now. the white house has released an estimate of the full cost of this new war against isil. but the pentagon said it has shelled out $560 million between june and the end of august, and it estimates daily costs averaging at least $7.5 million. pushing the price tag so far to some $740 million. the cost of war project is a study group consisting of study group in rhode island. it issued it's first report in 2011. it updated it this june. anita crawford is the codirector of the cost of war report. she is a professor of political science at boston university, she are rejects that another war will hurt america's economic recovery. dr. crawford. thank you for being with us. we were not at at time we were talking about sequesters and budget cuts we were not banking on another real war. the president had been talking about scaling back a different type of war, different type of emphasis. but now we're back at war and these estimates at the white house never really reflects what it costs america.

mike viqueira, thank you very much. nelson, a. >> how do attacks change like this. >> well, you want the element of surprise, and the u.s. was going to strike at the time and didn't know when. but now they have struck, and they will try to save the equipment that they can,. >> how does the u.s. know where to strike them? >> well, striking the targets, they need what they're discussing, and they need accurate intelligence, and the united states is going to use the full intelligence assets, everything from cellphones, to aerial photographs, and working with our partners in the regions, with the gcc nations to get the exact intelligence that they need. >> let's talk about khorasan. this has not been on the radar for the american public so far, and why is this strike different, how is it important? >> the name may be new, but the individuals who make up this group are not new. they're seasoned al qaeda operatives, and the u.s. intelligence has been tracking them for many years, and they have happened to come together inside

nick schiffron gathering reaction from the middle east, but first, let's go to mike viqueira in washington. mike, the eyes of the world were on president obama as he laid out his case. what exactly did he have to say? >> well, del, the president says it will take a steady relentless effort to eradicate the islamic state group, and organization he calls a cancer. though easy opening the door for expanded airstrikes in syria now, crucial details are still coming together. >> my fellow americans. >> laying out his case to the nation, president obama outlined his strategy in combating the threat posed by the islamic state. he included this message to those he said are neither islamic nor a state. >> if you threaten america, you will find no safe haven. >> that includes an expanded air campaign in iraq. beyond protecting americans and providing humanitarian relief. the president is now prepared to strike in syria. >> i've made it clear that we will hunt terrorists who threaten our country wherever they are. that means i will not hesitate to take action against isil in syria, as well as iraq. >>

mike viqueira, what do we know about this strategy? >> reporter: well, secretary kerry in much anticipated testimony on capitol hill, and he was in for a rough go. it came from democrats, many of whom were skeptical of the plan the president laid out a week ago in primetime. should congress be voting? can the president rely on the authorization in the attacks following september 11th. who is in this coalition? while secretary kerry and other officials have talked about some 40 nations who is going to be doing what, and in particular what are the arab nations from the gulf and middle east, how are they going to contribute. the biggest question of them all and the most contentious in the hearings we've seen over the last few days who is going to carry the fight in syria? obviously no american boots on the ground. secretary kerry said that there would be no arab boots on the ground either. they're relying on the free syrian army. this conversation between senator corker and secretary kerry. >> who is going to put boots on the grouped agai

mike viqueira standing by at the white house. mike, tell us what this coalition looks like. who is in it? what will it do? >> reporter: well, significantly it will include many members of the region, countries from the region and significantly many sunni-led governments in the region. the president made a point, they allowed the cameras to go through the french door winds anwindows and watch president obama talk with the president of saudi arabia. other sunni-led governments are on board. this is a perception issue, this could not be a western-led invasion of iraq and syria, and make no mistake when the president talks about expanding airstrikes into syria there is an iraqi upon comment of this as well. isil is operating there well. including references to the regional coalition including gulf and middle eastern states. >> we'll have to see how this new tact all works out. mike viqueira for us at the white house. i want to look more closely at the islamic state group and how it operates. as you know it emerged from what it was originally an affiliate of al-qaeda or al-qaeda

mike viqueira joins us live from just outside of the white house with more, mike. >> reporter: well, tony, the president is under fire even from some political allies here in washington for being over cautiously in his approach to the islamic state group and in particular military action he may or may not take into taking that group into the syrian stronghold. he had tough talk, and he tried to really update the statement that he made last thursday, tony, that was so controversial. that said he had not a strategy yet. he was still undergoing consultation with the pentagon and regional applies. here's what the president had to say. >> we'll continue to shrink isil's sphere of influence, it's effectiveness, it's financing, it's military capabilities. to the point where it is a manageable problem. and the question is going to be making sure we've got the right strategy, and also making sure we've got the international will to do it. >> the president went on to say that the objective is to destroy and degrade the islamic state group's military capabilities and the threats to the homeland

mike viqueira is following all this in washington. we've known about this, but the pipet gone is getting ready to confirm the news. >> reporter: you're right, they did confirm it. this is an organization that has demonstrated not only in fighting what is now the central government in mogadishu after it had been driven from the somali capitol two years ago, but notably responsible in kenya for the killing 67 individuals at the west center shopping mall inside nairobi. president obama spoke to this as well more directly today at his press conference. he tried to make a link, david. of course the president has been under fire for the still forming strategy or lack of strategy more specifically in fighting the islamic state group in iraq and into syria, but the president pointed to this and highlighted as an example of a deliberate strategy. he said it was systematical and methodical killing him on monday using manned and unmanned aircraft, a 500-pound bomb was involved killing a number of of the leader's colleagues and co-terrorists as w

mike viqueira has more. >> reporter: criticism on the president's comments last night.ector of national intelligence had said months before that that is in fact what happened. the intelligence community basically did not see this coming. president obama endorsed that view, and that brought a storm of criticism accusing the president of not taking responsibility. josh earnest defended the president and explained what he meant. >> i think the president was pretty clear both then as he was back in august, that nobody predicted the speed and pace with which isil would advance across the syrian border with iraq, and make dramatic gains across the countryside in a way that allowed them to hold large chunks of territory. >> the president added and the intelligence community agrees, the ability of the iraqi army was overestimated as was its willingness to fight the terrorist group. >>> all this week nick schifrin is reporting from the syrian/turkey border on isil's impact, how it recruits and is smuggling foreign fighters. nick you had a remarkable conversation with an isil fig

let's go to the white house, and correspondent from al jazeera, mike viqueira. i think there's debate on whether air strikes alone will be effective, but a greater debate about the long-term plan. >> right. there are contingencies that the plan is happening on. first of all, it's predicated on a newly formed iraqi government that the white house uses a precondition before it was going to launch robust air strikes, beef up a preps in iraq, and remember the air strikes have been going on for a month. and as the president says, ignore the border, which is virtually non-existent and go after the islamic state group inside syria itself. administration officials say the plan is to systematically roll back the gains made over the course of the last several months by the islamic state group, to shrink their territory, and another tenuous part of the plan, to arm the free syrian army with the moderate vetted opposition, and train them as well, and the training surprisingly will be on saudi territory. the president, in an indication of how sensitive the topic is, while st

mike viqueira reports. >> reporter: after a month of mixed messages on the fight against the islamicoming from the president, the vice president, and top officials, the president will get everybody on the same page. he announced in an interview yesterday he'll be giving a speech on wednesday to talk about the strategy to take the fight to the islamic state group, perhaps into syria itself. in the meantime, the president is making very clear, there are a couple of things that will and won't happen. first he is trying to prepare the country for a long fight. this could took a while perhaps into the next presidency. it require a coalition, not only of the traditional american allies like in nato and european nations, but also regional nations, with the gulf states and other middle eastern states, joining as yet unnamed and unformed coalition still under negotiation. secretary of state kerry is heading for the region as we speak. and the president and his aids have said time and time again no american troops on the ground. so if the president's goal is to destroy and destrgrade the isla

mike viqueira is in washington. the united states is confident troops on the ground in iraq and syria is necessary, but if no american boots are in the fight, who will do the fighting? >> that is the question. president obama aides say it will be the moderate vetted opposition, the syrian rebels, the free syrian army, as a matter of fact, there is a debate in the house of representatives, beginning tomorrow, with a possible vote on wednesday to allow overt military aid. there is covert aid by the c.i.a. this is overt military aid, training and equipment, american equipment to go to the free syrian army, and they will be trained, according to the president's plan, on saudi territory. congress has to vote. the white house insists it is not a precondition if they were to start air strikes. if they go that way they say they'll begin the air strikes from a time and place of their choosing. it's a number of questions hanging over the operation. one of them includes a key factor, who is in the coalition. we heard reports f

mike viqueira joins us from the white house. the white house released a couple of excerpts of the president's speech. maybe share those with us. >> reporter: i certainly will. two and a half hours before the president takes the grand hall behind me on what they call the state floor of the white house. the white house releasing excerpts from that speech. the first one reads at follows. the president will say i can announce that the president will lead a broad coalition to roll back this terrorist threat. the objective is clear. we'll degrade and ultimately destroy isil through a comprehensive and sustained counter terrorism strategy. the president emphasizing once again as white house officials continue to do over the last seller days that this will be a coalition including many state state-led. and he says it will not involve american combat troops fighting on foreign soil. this country terrorism campaign will be waged through steady relentless effort against isil wherever they exist using our air power and our support for partn

mike viqueira is in washington. it seems not everyone is on the same page as the president on capitol hill. >> that's absolutely right. you cite that had late breaking information from europe. germany will not take part in the airstrikes. the air campaign against the islamic state group comes as the administration continues to try to build that international coalition. with questions now emerging about just who will join the coalition and the president's plan to arm the syrian opposition. >> a day after president obama vowed to destroy and dismantle the islamic state group, the dash to rally international support with secretary of state john kerry traveling in the middle east. >> arab nations play a critical role in that coalition, the leading role, really. >> and on capitol hill, where the president's plan is winning bipartisan support. >> my hope is that everybody supports it. >> it's important that we give the president what he's asking for. >> that includes $500 million to arm and equip moderate syrian rebels fi

mike viqueira is at the white house with more. >> the president promised action. when? >> we don't expect anything until after the elections. that is a change. in june the president exacerbated by the introns gent, house republicans refusing to move a bill, that was comprehensive immigration reform, that provided a path for citizenship after hurdles were to be cleared. first and foremost provided beefed up border security in the form of 20,000 border patrol agents and other technologies to deal with what is happening. the president said he wanted information. it's the end of summer, and the indications from the podium behind me, if you put on your washington decoater -- decoder ring, and read between the lines, it's clear nothing will be posed by the president to alleviate the crisis. we heard from heidi zhou-castro about the reality on the ground. when it gets to the abstract world in washington, things change more. some would say misshapen, the issues that are separated from what people are going through and trying to accomplish. legislatively and in terms of providin

mike viqueira is live in washington. good morning. what is president obama's primary objective at the u.n. this week? >> good morning to you. stephanie. in a phrase, coalition building, seeking to expand the existing coalition, some 40 to 50 countries and instituting travel bans against people who go to join the forces of isil. there have been other things on the agenda, maintaining unit against putin in the ukraine and what to do about ebola. >> after vowing an air campaign to destroy islamic state of iraq and the levant, president obama looks to disrupt the ability to grow its army with help from the united nations. >> president obama will convene a very unusual head of state summit on the issue of foreign terrorist fighters to try to stop the financing to terrorists in iraq and syria. >> a record number of heads of state will be at the u.n.'s general assembly this week, when president obama presides over the 15 member security council, he'll ask for a resolution punishing anyone to leave their home country to join isil. there are 1

let's go to mike viqueira on capitol hill. and how is the administration planning to respond? >> it's fascinating the way that this is unfolding, the debate on capitol hill. but in the wake of the comments from the chairman of the joint chiefs of staff yesterday. and the white house has furiously tried to walk back those comments, but what we're going to hear, what general dempsey said the other day is true, if he were to come to the president and say, we need advisers at not the so-called brigade level at the headquarters that he just referred to. but at the front lines, calling airstrikes to advisers as they're engaged in battle, then the president will consider this, and they're going to split this hair fine, david. and it still does not mean that they're in combat and will not be engaging the enemy directly. it's a fascinating thing that they have been talking about for the last hours. >> congressman smith, and after that, secretary hagel's opening statement. let's hear what the congressman ranking minority member, smith has to say. >> ever since 9/11 and since we have lea

for more let's get the view from washington where mike viqueira is standing by. ke is little bit complicated that you don't have two key countries involved in this. but they seem to have a lot of countries in the region supporting them. >> it really underlies the complexity. countries that are nominally allies with long-standing animosities towards one another certainly. and the policy, you have to say still does rest on tenuous assumpti assumptions. first of all let's start with the arming of the free syrian army. supplying them with overt arms now. something that will require authorization from congress. congress looks like they are set to vote on in perhaps as early as thursday of this week. and when you ask the white house whether that will happen before air strikes take place in syria, they say that is not a precondition. we heard the chief of staff say that ground troops are going to be necessary to route isil out iraq itself. and what do we call this thing? do we call it a war? secretary kerry said it is not a war. the white house spokesmen said, yes, we ar

now to make sense of all of this let's go to mike hav viqueira, s not at the white house but right here us now. mike, this is the stuff that gets discussed in intelligence briefings at the state department, we don't hear about this from the admission station because it's just too hard to keep straight. but this is the problem. america has a bad record of backing the wrong team. >> and i think a lot of people were surprised that the syrian air strikes happened as soon as they d it was two weeks ago when president obama went in front of the american people in prime time and said he wanted to do this. it was a day after that signed off on the plans that the military put before him. but even today, general bill mayville part of the joint chiefs of staff overseeing this operation said it would always be iraq first because they have an army in iraq. >> right. >> ineffective as it may be, half of iraqi battalions are said to be not trust worth and i that's an assessment of the u.s. intelligence academy. they have the per herringer fighters fight teeming with th them. >> but they are a governme

. >> and as we bring in mike viqueira here, mike, it's important to mention here, that it also i would think ratchets up pressure on the turks, that -- the united states and other western members of this coalition would be putting increased pressure on turkey to secure that border. would you agree? >> well, one of the most controversial aspects of what the president proposes to do is just what he came out and tried to build momentum on after the vote in the house and now the senate, and that is to arm the free syrian army, train them on saudi territory, and many people feel that plan is inadequate, far too hopeful that the free syrian army, which the president just a month ago disparaged as doctors, farmers and pharmacists and said it has always been a fantasy to arm them, and now it's a linchpin or a key aspect of what the president is going to do. so who else do you rely on if you are going to need boots on the ground to route out isil within syria itself. the kurds ef denthly have suffered a setback today. but this is a very sensitive subject in turkey. there are 49 turkish hostages

and mike viqueira is at the white house with more. >> john the next couple of days here we expect toe key questions answered as the president and the central command announcing that the first air strikes actually have taken place, and it's interesting on the eve of this debate and as the air campaign gets started, public support for what the president is doing is remarkably strong and growing. and this is 180 degree reversal from where it was last time. 60% of democrats support what the president is try doing. 66 republicans -- 66% of republicans say the plan doesn't go far enough, while 54% of democrats worry that the plan will go too far. but only 18% think it will decrease the chance of an attack on this country. 34% say it will actually increase the chances, john. what we are waiting to find out is what kind of fruit is this going to bare. they haven't named the members of the coalition. also there is the question of arming the so-called moderate vetted opposition in syria. >> so there is not really going to be a vote before the midterms or is there? >> there will be a vote on au

and to make sense of this, let's go to mike viqueira, he's not at the white house, but he's here now, and mike, this is the stuff that gets discussed at the brief beings and the defense important, and we don't hear about it here, but this is the problem. america has a really bad record of backing the wrong team. >> president obama went to the american people and said that he wanted to do this, and at the central command, he went to tampa, florida and signed off on what was put before him. but even today, lieutenant mayville said that it's always going to be iraq first because they have an army in iraq. about half of the iraqi battalions are said to be non-trustworthy and that's the assessment of the u.s. intelligence agencies. they have the peshmerga fighting with them. >> they are an army, run by the government, and they're happy to have the americans. >> the president made disparaging comments about the free syrian army, and now that the u.s. is embarking on this strategy, and the problem is, or part of the question is you create this vacuum now by hitting isil as hard as they did,

mike viqueira for us at the white house. mike, appreciate it. >>> today's senate arms hearing was interrupted four different times by protesters. [ banging of the gavel ] would you stop taking advantage of the freedom of the place. leave the room. >> demonstrators of code pink called for the return of all troops. >>> an unified iraq is a necessary part of the presidential strategy against isil. the result, iraqi and kurdish forces are left battling isil without government support. >> this convoy of recycled russian artillery and tanks is not enough to hold a line for much longer. in a bunker on the front line we talked to the field commander for the area of operations from mosul all the way to the syrian border. the general is worried. [ explosion ] >> reporter: this peshmerga forward position is 10 kill matters from the gate, the area from syria to the road of mosul and the direct route to the sinjar mountains, but they say they're battling against a much superior force. >> as an army we need everything from a to z. everythi

mike viqueira. white house correspondent here in new york with the united states. back in washington. >>> syrian kurds say isil fighters are closing in on the city. in less than a week 150 syrians have fled from syria into turkey. they're trying to keep upe up with the wave of refugees. >> lining up for a plate of foote food. each is desperate. each is syrian. they arrived four days ago. they brought nothing with them. the boy delicately carries the food back to his family. this one tray has to feed seven people. >> what is your life look like here. >> does this look like enough food? he says angrily. what can we do? >> reporter: he and his family fled isil brutality. isil has taken over their town. picture are too gruesome to show. isil captured 200 villagers across the border. we saw isil, they're killing children. killing young men. there is nothing that they're not doing. >> reporter: refugees have flooded this small town, living and sleeping wherever they can whether outside here or inside this room. this is usually a wedding hall. today there are 500 people w

mike viqueira is here with more on that. what more do we know about the targets that were hit. >> reporter: isil commanded control, infrastructure, logistics, and a whole host of targets in raqqa and aleppo as well. and this group, the corison group. many americans had never heard of them and they were turned an imminent threat in the execution phase of attacks against the u.s. homeland. it was two weeks after president obama said it would happen, and another week since he signed off on the plan. on the day after the expended attacks came as dramatic news. >> last night on my orders the strikes on syria 234. >> reporter: sea-launched tomorrow hawks from aleppo and raqqa. targets were manufacturing workshops, and for the first time in combat f.-22s hitting barracks and combat buildings. >> now the intended target was the communications array on the roof of the building. the tomahawk and cruise missiles were the effect of communications. >> a feature missing from past u.s.-led attacks. officials say their involvement was key o

. >> mike viqueira is at the white house tonight. and mike, there was a general response to the statement. tell us about it. >> first of all, the white house spokesman, josh earnest started talking about it almost immediately. and on airforce 1 with josh earnest, he termed what general dempsey was talking about as a hypothetical scenario. and the spokesman put out a statement that said, yes, he supports the man in iraq and syria. and trying to walk that back, for a general to talk about hypotheticals and conditions, it's not that unusual. and many people now are having serious questions, and that was the context for a lot of what you heard a moment ago about the plans to arm a free syrian army in syria. and after all, today, the administration estimates some 31,000 isil fighters to be from both of those countries, but 2/3 of them are in syria, and it says that the program now, stand up the forces, the free syrian army forces, to give them equipment, it's going to take five months and a year before they can get them into the theater, w

mike viqueira has the latest. >> that's right. chuck hagel recounting the president's meeting, going to tampa, the air force base, the home in charge of operations, the president signed off on what the military is developing, going after oil christopher gibson, command and control -- i.s.i.l., command and control. the senate is passing, on its way to the president, the measure, the authorisation that the president needed. he doesn't need it further authoritiesation for the larger air strikes, but if he offers overt aid to the syrian rebels, they'll be training in saudi territory. that is so interesting. you listen to the debate over the course of the afternoon, everyone is standing up and raising objections to what the president wants to do. many think he's going too far. a lot like john mccain says he's not going far enough, here is comes, the measure is passed, and here it comms to the president. a major hurdle here, a lot of skepticism, and some outside congress, general james maddize in charge for a long time says tell the ene

mike viqueira is in washington. the u.s. seems confident that troops on the ground in iraq and syria are necessary but if no americans are going to fight, who will? >> it's a great question, who, what, when. a lot is unanswered at this hour. we expect answers in the coming days. these questions loom large. ground troops are necessary, says the white house group of staff in television interviews. the question is whose ground troops. the free syrian army - the president spoke to them, training them. a hurdle has to be cleared first, a vote in congress to organise aid to the individuals, rebels within syria, the president spoke disparagingly about the capabilities of the free syrian army, and others. who is in the coalition of the united states. up to 10 member nations from the arab world. they have not been named. when will the expanded sorties start. not only within syria, but within iraq. at the time and plus of our choosing, but they are not letting on that it will be any time soon. most of the indications are a few key eve

here is mike viqueira with more. >> after a month of mixed messages on the fight with the islamic stateroup, coming from the president, the vice president, and top officials, the president will get everybody on the same page. we'll be giving a speech on wednesday to talk about the strategy to take the fight to the islamic state group. he is making very clear there are a couple of things that will happen and things that will not happen. this could take a while perhaps into the next presidency. it will require a coalition, not only of the traditional american allies in military expeditions, but also regional nations with the gulf states and other middle eastern states joining as yet unnamed and unnormed coalition that is still under negotiation. and also the president and his aids have said time and time again, no american troops on the ground. so if the president's goal is to destroy and deare grade the islamic state group in syria and push them back, who occupies that space? he said syrians themselves and specifically the free syrian army. this is an organization that the united states

. >> mike viqueira is here in the studio to continue the conversation. did the president make his case. >> it was a full-court press. the president was active, histone was aggressive. he came before the united states general assembly, chided some allies, spoke forcefully and put it in the context of this is the reason why the united nations exists, to come together did fight against a force like i.s.i.l., like what we see, not only in syria and iraq, but other areas, into nigeria, boko haram. it was a very comprehensive and active presentation. >> the rhetoric changed a little from the president. he was blunt, aggressive, judgmental. when you compare what the president did, a major foreign policy address, wanted to lay it out back in may at the graduation, he talked about the need for military force, but only as a last resort. the emphasis was on diplomacy and nation building and coming together in economic sanctions as we have seen in iran, russia and the ukraine. this time the president was talking about the use. the only thing these killers described

. >> thanks, mike viqueira at the white house. we go to analysts filmmaker and friend of stephen sotloff and james foley. matthew, good to have you on the program. all the information you have heard indicates that your friend has been killed. what are your thoughts? >> it's very difficult. i lost two friends in two weeks to a ruthless organization, and it's--it's tragic. i've spoken with the families before. i'm sure they're heartbroken. >> had a are your thoughts--it just occurred to ask you this, what are your thoughts about isis, isil, at this point. the cause that they're fighting for this islamic caliphate. >> they're radical lunatics. they take a path that most muslims don't agree with. they've captured people, sold them into slavery. murdered people. beheaded people. it's an organization that is out of control and it's medieval, really. >> when is the last time you spent any time with stephen? >> i had dinner with stephen a few weeks before going to syria. we talked about syria. we talked about james foley, actually. >> wha

. >> mike viqueira joins us now. good morning. it seems president obama called for international assistance are being heeded by denmark. >> diplomacy a success thus far for the obama administration. president obama and various leaders we just heard from in london are stressing the fact that this is a long term project and there's no question bit. despite the apparent military success initially in the first few days here, the arab campaign in skies over syria, it's been going on in iraq for several weeks prior to that. it is still a long term project, and as a matter of fact, the pentagon cannot at this point say what the military impact has been on isil's capabilities. they are still assessing. even going after the tooth and tail, in iraq the weapons systems, the forwardly deployed equipment and material that isil has deployed there. in syria they're going after command and control, logistics, those oil refineries, striking isil's ability to race revenue and fund their operation. >> tell us about the subway threat that iraq was cl

mike viqueira, what do we know about this strike gym. >> reporter: you reported that the somali government reacted to the killing of godane by american bombs on the godane south of mogadishu. that is the capitol, somalia has not even had a central government for the better part of two and a half decades. godane and his group al-shabaab had occupied mogadishu up until two years ago when they were driven out by ethiopians and many other african nations. the spokesman there said it is a significant operational and symbolic blow. this is an individual who had been in charge, godane of the al-shabaab network for some six years. his predecessor was killed by a similar airstrikes. while in wales the president talked about this operation by u.s. military forces, and lauded the military for their effectiveness and threw some parallels as you were talking with josh rushing in iraq. just listen. >> president obama: we have been very syste systemic and methodical going after people who threat arabian-u.s. operations and homeland. >> that deliberation is what the president has been criticized for by th

. >> mike viqueira at the white house, on this very busy day, we appreciate it. secretary kerry continues his tour of the region to build up support for battling the islamic state group. he landed in jordan. a long-time u.s. ally. secretary kerry is expected to deal with the jordanian king, jordan has been an important player in the syrian crisis. 600,000 syrian refugees live there. the islamic state group has grown dramatically since gaining a foot hold this year. it stretches across northern syria and into iraq. the u.s. has conducted 154 airstrikes against the islamic state group in iraq, mostly near the mosul dam. they have been able to help to push back the fighters. the u.s. airstrikes are aimed to help kurdish fighters to push back against the islamic state offensive. it is supposed to help turn the tide against i.s. but it's future could be shaky: we have more now from erbil. >> reporter: even in the best of times the union between iraq's kurdish region and this central government in baghdad is a troubled partnership. >> we're about to leave baghdad. we'r

. >> mike viqueira with me, and he has been following the president's entire day. it's been a busy one. this resolution requiring countries to take firm action to address the threat of foreign fighters the world over. >> fairly extraordinary. you have the president of the united states the chair of the united nations this month. but chairing this meeting in security council today and organizing to insure domestic laws are passed in each individual country. it is enforce able, but as a practical matter, tough to do. you see many countries, the majority directly affected by terrorism. we've heard from franÇois hollande. they suffered a blow when one of their citizens were murdered. and the king of jordan, they have a large population of syrian refugees living within their borders. it's a compelling and significant moment. >> i believe king abdullah is coming up in just a moment. the president introducing the king of jordan. >> thank you, mr. president. first let me thank president obama for his leadership on this issue. and jordan can will com be counted on to play a