there are huge concerns about these militias. let's not forget that the houthis attacked both the uae and saudi arabia before they were attacking ships in the red sea. there is a sense that a limit has to be put on these militias. jordan and the attack that the three american soldiers were killed in was on jordan. that was the first time that you have these militias targeting jordan so directly. and so there is a concern this is going to get out of control. but the key concern in the gulf at the moment is getting a cease-fire in gaza. which will take away some of the excuses that these groups are using to escalate further. and to see a serious american strategy an how to deal with the militias. again the militias have been getting stronger an stronger for the last 15 years. and part of it has been because of the u.s. turning a blind eye, seeing that they could live with them as long as their own troops are not targeted and yet we see them escalating year on year. >> stay with us. when we come back, we'll get to precisely this que

and and irgc related militias. essentially ouds _ irgc related militias.quds forces, the most lethal part of these militia groups. quds forces, not known — these militia groups. quds forces, not known to take its orders directly _ not known to take its orders directly from the iranian capital in many— directly from the iranian capital in many cases. so that is a clue, i think— many cases. so that is a clue, i think at— many cases. so that is a clue, i think at least, that they know they are dealing with personnel, militias that are _ are dealing with personnel, militias that are not necessarily all the time _ that are not necessarily all the time taking direct orders from the iranian— time taking direct orders from the iranian capital. the us intelligence community has had this threat running — community has had this threat running for a while that the central government and the iranian capital does not _ government and the iranian capital does not necessarily controlled the militias _ does not necessarily controlled the militias. so that is an issue they

mostly through the efforts of its proxy militias.— its proxy militias. since hamas's attack on - its proxy militias. and since hamas's attack on 0ctober| its proxy militias. and since i hamas's attack on october the its proxy militias. and since - hamas's attack on october the 7th and is robust response to it, this disruption has taken many forms. for example, houthi rebels in yemen have repeatedly attacked shipping in the red sea. the us says there has been over 160 attacks by militia on its positions in iraq and syria, but how does this network of allies work, how close is their relationship with iran and what is iran trying to achieve? if we go back to 1979, there was an uprising in iran against the monarchy, iran became an islamic republic. ever since, against the monarchy, iran became an islamic republic. eversince, it against the monarchy, iran became an islamic republic. ever since, it has looked to spread its influence in the region. in recent years, that has involved support for the assad regime in syria where iranian forces have been deployed,

and affiliated militia groups, so that means those iranian backed militia. u.s.ces struck 85 targets, to include long-range bombers flown from the united states. the air strikes employed more than 125 precision munitions, facility instruck include intelligence centers, rockets and missiles, and unmanned air vehicle storages, which is i think that would be drones, and logistics, and their irgc sponsors who facilitated attacks against the u.s. and coalition forces. so just interpreting that statement, that is quite a widespread number of targets, which underscores, doesn't it, just how established iran is in this region. it has become more and more established in recent years. all the way towards damascus and close to the israeli border, and what the u.s. is announcing here, 85 targets is that they have considered the killing of these three u.s. service members as reason to target a wide range of iranian-backed facilities. these command and control centers, the intelligence centers, the rockets and missiles, the drones, where drones are being kept it looks like the

went after these militias and trying to send a mischa -- message not just to the militias, but also to iran to stop training these militias here. we do certainly expect more information on the strikes as the evening here goes on. but it is important to note at this point that officials tell us that the u.s. has begun striking a rock and syria. this might not be a one-day operation. we might expect this to continue. officials have said the response will be multitiered, so that means they could go after facilities but also leadership and high-value targets across a rock and syria and a number of other targets and very much expecting another powerful series of strikes and actions like we have seen in a rock in syria. >> this is a significant development. over 160 directed at u.s. assets in the region. how do the strikes in the geography of it in iraq in syria, what does it tell us about where the united states believes these attacks are coming from? >> the u.s. has seen attacks from both militias in iraq and syria and that is not even get into the attacks from the iran backed rebel group

and then a further strike here in baghdad, killing a militia commander.n the one hand, we had the us saying, "we are taking necessary action to protect our personnel and we will continue to do that." 0n the other hand, you have the pro—iranian militias who just last night, came out with the tough statement, vowing to step up their attacks. the mood music, if you like, coming from both washington and tehran has been, we do not want a major escalation and there have been statements to that effect from the white house and from the iranian leader. the problem is that these tit—for—tat attacks are continuing and everybody knows the risk of miscalculation is there. the risk that one of these attacks could hit a target that produces a really big escalation. and that is the fear for the authorities here in iraq. in that interview, he was also very frank about the influence of iran on his country. you spoke a lot about that. he was, i think, unusually frank and there has always been a reticence here on the part of people in public life to speak about that and ther

we had a lot of unconfirmed reports flying around on social media and also on militia, iranian militias, to say that various targets have been struck, but nothing is confirmed so far. i think the important thing about this is the important thing about this is the very fine balance that washington is attempting with this operation. it needs to have a strong response, strongly enough to satisfy american public opinion after the killing of three soldiers, strong enough to satisfy republican pressure in an election year, but not so strong that it triggers an escalating response from the other side, from the iranians backed militias, or indeed from iran itself. now, the messaging from both iran and washington in the last few days has been pretty consistent. both sides are saying the same thing. we don't want an escalation, we don't want a wider war. the us secretary of defence lloyd austin has said there is a way to manage things, in his phrase, so that things, in his phrase, so that things don't escalate further out of control. well, now we will think if washington has come up with a formu

we have a whole range of iraqi militias — we have a whole range of iraqi militias which are formed inch are formed in lots of different ways and have very different ways and have very different connections with iran and there _ different connections with iran and there are — different connections with iran and there are umbrella movements. it's very complicated to navigate the links _ very complicated to navigate the links in _ very complicated to navigate the links in that part of the axis of resistant _ links in that part of the axis of resistant-— resistant. iran's support of its network comes _ resistant. iran's support of its network comes in _ resistant. iran's support of its network comes in forms - resistant. iran's support of its network comes in forms such | resistant. iran's support of its i network comes in forms such as money. the us estimated that iran gave hezbollah hundred million dollars a year and estimates the houthis have benefited too. iran is also supplying weapons. recently, two military personnel died on boats in the red sea. the us release this image. 0rthere

militias witt— iraq, for example. militias will not _ iraq, for example.ake over saudi arabia. those countries have themselves vast resources — countries have themselves vast resources and a sort of unity which — resources and a sort of unity which has _ resources and a sort of unity which has long been lacking in places— which has long been lacking in places like iraq and lebanon on. places like iraq and lebanon on and _ places like iraq and lebanon on and it— places like iraq and lebanon on. and it is important for the united — on. and it is important for the united states, as we look at this— united states, as we look at this situation, to decide how bil this situation, to decide how big are — this situation, to decide how big are american interests in keeping _ big are american interests in keeping small american forces in places— keeping small american forces in places like iraq and syria? what — in places like iraq and syria? what is _ in places like iraq and syria? what is their mission and is the — what is their mission and is the intent to leave t

extent are the militias even listening? one of the most powerful iranian back militias, indicated that it would cease attacks, their reasoning, so as not to embarrass the iraqi government, but another group that is carried out multiple attacks has said they will keep attacking u.s. forces. so there is no one clear answer about where uranium back militias go from here. that is something we will have to see after these broader strikes, do they have the deterrence effect that the u.s. is trying to achieve? >> important to note that these are iran backed groups, it doesn't necessarily mean they are aware of everything they are doing, they often operate quite independently of iran, so i'm glad you pointed that out. oren liebermann, at the pentagon, we will come back to you. thank you very much.>>> curnal, -- colonel, you talked about and heard from lloyd austin about the possible expansion of targeting the next few days and weeks, this multistage operation that they have been talking about for several days now. would you expect

but they got militia. and so these new and new jersey boys are hot, rushed trains, and they're going to be sent harrisburg as soon as possible to try to defend this area. they're going to take three of the southern pennsylvania regiments. we're going to send one to where i live, york county. i'm going to send the 26 to gettysburg to guard the railhead and the 27th volunteer militia. by the way, heavily laden with coal miners who want the summer off from coal mines. they're going go to colombia to guard that bridge. june 15th through the 19th. here comes another great confederate beard, not just billy mahone. this is albert jacob's former states congressman shows up and this is a giant raid he's out looking for horses, as far as we can tell, than 67,000 pennsylvania horses are going to be taken by the confederate army during the gettysburg campaign, 67,000 horses and cattle horses and cows combined. it's a massive supply raid. so they're going to take chambersburg and all of a sudden check in a little is he

said it hit 85 targets linked to iranian backed militia.the attack launched at midnight local time saturday in response to a drone strike in jordan, it killed three american soldiers on sunday. u.s. president joe biden warned that this is just the beginning of the u.s. response, adding, quote, it will continue at times and places of our choosing. we are still waiting for more details on the damage but a pentagon official says casualties are expected. we will have more on this story as it unfolds. >>> dozens of french say they will continue to protest since the government has not approved the request for change. many others started lifting blockades after the government announced confessions. to the north, dutch and belgian farmers have joined together in a broader blockade on the same day complaining in part about eu regulations. >> translator: my message to europe is they should think very carefully. we have very nice products here in the eu and we want to continue to make those products. >> translator: people are fed up. we can see it cle

says it hit 85 targets linked to iran backed militia. the attack launched at midnight on saturday in response to a drone strike in jordan it killed three american soldiers on sunday. the mayor says it was hit in the strikes. u.s. has not said which cities were hit, but it has warned that this is just the beginning of its response. a senior white house official confirmed that the u.s. will not strike inside iran, but they are focusing on targets outside the country. the retired lieutenant general, mark, says why the white house is trying to accomplish. >> this is the first stage and it is more than proportional of sending a signal not just to the popular mobilization forces on the ground in syria and iraq, but also to the iranian government, we are telling them we will not continue with putting up with these continuous harassing attack that truly we have been putting up with before the seventh of october. this is something the iranian government has been supporting for years, if not decades, against u.s. forces and against israel as well.

the militias are not going — example. the militias are not going to _ example. are not going to id jordan, they are not going to go and — jordan, they are not going to go and take over saudi arabia. those — go and take over saudi arabia. those countries have themselves vast resources, and a sort of unity, — vast resources, and a sort of unity, which has long been tacking _ unity, which has long been lacking in places like iraq and lebanon. _ lacking in places like iraq and lebanon, and it is important for the — lebanon, and it is important for the united states, as we look— for the united states, as we took at _ for the united states, as we look at the situation, to decide _ look at the situation, to decide how big our american interests _ decide how big our american interests in keeping small american forces in places like iraq _ american forces in places like iraq and — american forces in places like iraq and syria, what is their mission _ iraq and syria, what is their mission and is the intent to leave — mission and is the intent to leave them there indefinit

. �* , . ., proxy militias. attack on october the 7th and - proxy militias. and since the hamas attack on october the 7th and the i attack on october the 7th and the israeli response to it, this disruption has taken many forms, for example, houthi rebels in yemen have attacked ships in the red sea, the us says there has been 150 attacks on its military positions on iraq and syria, but how does this network of allies were? how close is their relationship with iran and what is iran trying to achieve? we go back to 1979, there was an uprising against the monarchy in iran and it became a republic. ever since, against the monarchy in iran and it became a republic. eversince, it has sought to spread its influence in the region. that has involved support for the assad regime in syria, support for his brother —— hezbollah. we syria, support for his brother -- hezbollah-— syria, support for his brother -- hezbollah. ~ . ., ., ., ., hezbollah. we have a whole range of iraai shia hezbollah. we have a whole range of iraqi s

but they got militia. and so these new and new jersey boys are hot, rushed trains, and they're going to be sent harrisburg as soon as possible to try to defend this area. they're going to take three of the southern pennsylvania regiments. we're going to send one to where i live, york county. i'm going to send the 26 to gettysburg to guard the railhead and the 27th volunteer militia. by the way, heavily laden with coal miners who want the summer off from coal mines. they're going go to colombia to guard that bridge. june 15th through the 19th. here comes another great confederate beard, not just billy mahone. this is albert jacob's former states congressman shows up and this is a giant raid he's out looking for horses, as far as we can tell, than 67,000 pennsylvania horses are going to be taken by the confederate army during the gettysburg campaign, 67,000 horses and cattle horses and cows combined. it's a massive supply raid. so they're going to take chambersburg and all of a sudden check in a little is he

would you expect to see civilian casualties from this and also from the militia targeted? also from the militia tarueted? ~ ., , ~ targeted? wanted the striking thins targeted? wanted the striking things about _ targeted? wanted the striking things about the _ targeted? wanted the striking things about the strike - targeted? wanted the striking things about the strike was i targeted? wanted the striking things about the strike was a l things about the strike was a long lead up to it. the attacks on american soldiers have been to last sunday, it is almost a week later. during that week, the white house is telegraph this punch. everybody in the new world knew was coming. in fact there was not report on american newspaper today where you had an official saying the attack will be on fabric third and fourth. this was the worst kept secret in the middle east. it hasn't been on the third and fourth, it has been on the second. fourth, it has been on the second-— fourth, it has been on the second. , . ., , second. the second here but the third in the _ second. the second here but t

— backed militia? festival, good evenin: , backed militia?ing, and thank— backed militia? festival, good evening, and thank you - backed militia? festival, good evening, and thank you for - backed militia? festival, good - evening, and thank you for having me on the platform. if we look at what's happened over the past few weeks we know already particularly if we put in context the shift in strategy applied in response to the attacks in the red sea, we've seen that when that shift happened the decision was to choose an option that would limit the damage beyond the boundaries of degrading the military capabilities that put the attacks in existence in the first place, so i think it is absolutely fair to suggest that what we are looking at is an operational plan that will try to achieve something very similar, identifying the sources, the military sources, the various components of the train and decide which one to take out in order to give a signal one knows where these sources are and one wants to focus on compelling the authors of the attacks

i mean they're not just hitting these militias.y seem to be hitting, you know, revolutionary guard facilities and perhaps trying to compromise the supply lines from iran to these militias? >> well, the initial round of strikes will have targeted command centers. they would have hoped to kill some of the advisers to send a strong message to iran as well as the supplies of missiles and rockets. at the end of the day, the really important thing these strikes will do will be to prompt a reaction from these militias that will probably unveil other targets for the days that are to come. >> what do we expect to see next? so you're suggesting that there might be a response from these militias, which sort of gives their position away? >> absolutely. you'll see them squirting out all over the place potentially. now, they've had time to prepare. not just the last six days, but for months now as they've undertaken these attacks without a response from the u.s. so they'll be prepared for these kind of strikes. but inevitably they will now do th

group, — despite the other partner militia group. his— despite the other partner militia group, histed its us| bases against iraq and syria, they will continue _ bases against iraq and syria, they will continue their— bases against iraq and syria, they will continue their attack- bases against iraq and syria, they will continue their attack until - will continue their attack until americans— will continue their attack until americans leave _ will continue their attack until americans leave iraq - will continue their attack until americans leave iraq and - will continue their attack until americans leave iraq and also will continue their attack until - americans leave iraq and also the war in— americans leave iraq and also the war in gaza — americans leave iraq and also the war in gaza stops. _ americans leave iraq and also the war in gaza stops, so _ americans leave iraq and also the war in gaza stops, so we - americans leave iraq and also the war in gaza stops, so we can- americans leave iraq and also the . war in gaza stops, so we can expect that attacks _ war in gaza stops, so we

it was in a missile strike which killed a high—profile militia leader.their attacks on us forces. there are about 2500 american troops here, not combat forces but they hear adverse advisers to help prevent a resurgence of the so—called i guess but we know there will be talks between the iraqis and the americans and we are told those talks are to draw a timetable for the withdrawal of us forces. in the meantime the americans are saying they will continue to take any necessary action to defend their personnel. iraq finds itself caught in the middle between its two allies, the united states and iran. the concern the foreign minister expressed is expressed by many who have been spoken to on the streets.— spoken to on the streets. thank you very much- — to pakistan now, where two former prime ministers have claimed victory in thursday's election, and tension is growing as the country waits for the final results. a senior aide to jailed former leader, imran khan, says candidates he backs will try to form a government. his pti party is not recognised by the ele

iran pays no price when militias are attacked. the militias don't care.hen you diminish their capability for the moment you've struck them you haven't diminished their overall capabilities. the attacks are going to happen. the administration needs a real plan with respect to iran and counters iran in the area, secondly, diminishing capacity to stop these attacks. we can't play defense forever. our systems to protect our troops and ships cannot continually respond to attacks with 100% success. tolerating the attacks tolerates casualties. we need to diminish their capability and take this problem to iran. >> let me ask you, congressman turner, speaker johnson said he's putting forward a standalone israel security bill for $17.5 billion. you'll need 219 republicans in the house and one said he's not on board with this. this does not look like it has an easy path forward. what does this do to complicate all the other significant national security priorities that i know you support like ukraine? isn't this just a political statement? >> well, i'm concerned abo

nor their militia arms.ar, that the united states has the upper hand militarily. flan united states has the upper hand militaril . . . united states has the upper hand militaril . . , , ., militarily. can i just get your militarily. can i 'ust get your thoughts that _ militarily. can i just get your thoughts that we _ militarily. can i just get your thoughts that we are - militarily. can i just get your thoughts that we are seeing | militarily. can i just get your - thoughts that we are seeing some reaction from republicans secure in the us. 0ne reaction from republicans secure in the us. one from congressman baron donald's, republican from florida saying, these strikes should have occurred the same day service members were killed. the weakness that president biden is shown to preserve the past three years has and power to bad actors across the middle east. this and power to bad actors across the middle east-— middle east. this is an election ear and middle east. this is an election year and it _ middle east

they're not just iranian militias, they are recognized by the iraqi government as their forces.o these strikes against these iran-backed militias are a strike on their own forces, their own government forces. so the language there is very strong, they're not giving an indication about how these iran-backed militias will respond. and the iranian foreign ministry spokesman has said, again, that this is a clear violation of the sovereignty and territorial integrity of both iraq and syria, and on top of that saying that the united states is violating u.n. charters, which is something that the iraqi government is saying. so a lot of condemnation with political and international diplomatic intent, but no indication how they'll respond militarily. but i think very clear from the language used, if not today, if not tomorrow, if not next week, there will be a response. >> all right, nic robertson, thank you. >>> let's go to wilmington, delaware, where president biden is spending part of his weekend, and cnn senior white house reporter kevin liptak is there. kevin, as we've been saying, t

striking militias in retaliation for the deaths of three u.s. soldiers. >> just like the tides on myrtle beach nancy mays' loyalty comes and goes. she recruited nikki haley in 2022 when donald trump backed her primary opponent. trump called mace crazy and terrible. fast forward to now. >> nikki haley is china's favorite governor. [booing]. >> and she's her way. south carolina would be manufacturing spy balloons right here in our state. [applause] >> she rolled out the red carpet for communist china when she was governor. governor haley went from doing taxes to raising them. >> what a difference a year and some political wins make when mace used to be all over charleston about haley's credentials. >> nikki, we love you. the world loves you. >> the only candidate on the stage that talked about how we should protect them and not demonize threat is nikki haley. >> she's done some tremendous work on the national stage, also the golden stage. right now she's the leadership of this world. >> i also want to say former south carolina governor and u.n. am

in us soldiers, which the us blamed on iranian backed militia.— iranian backed militia.da , the iranian backed militia. in baghdad today, the funeral _ iranian backed militia. in baghdad today, the funeral was _ iranian backed militia. in baghdad today, the funeral was held - iranian backed militia. in baghdad today, the funeral was held for i iranian backed militia. in baghdad| today, the funeral was held for 60 fighters killed in us air strikes, condemned by the iraqi government. the air strikes here were calibrated in what seems to be an effort to prevent an escalation in iran. we still don't know how effective these latest attacks will be and how or if iran and its proxies are going to respond. from iraq to yemen, the war in gaza has exacerbated tensions across the region. talks of the ceasefire will continue and may help to prevent even more violence. with some context, here's david waddell. talks of the ceasefire will continue and may help to prevent even more violence. the british and american response to houthi attacks on ships entering or leaving the red sea has

has deterrence fails| the militias. has deterrence fails and if— the militias.s and if you are going to _ the militias. has deterrence fails and if you are going to retaliate. the militias. has deterrence failsl and if you are going to retaliate in the time — and if you are going to retaliate in the time and _ and if you are going to retaliate in the time and place _ and if you are going to retaliate in the time and place your— and if you are going to retaliate inj the time and place your choosing, and if you are going to retaliate in. the time and place your choosing, is that not— the time and place your choosing, is that not an — the time and place your choosing, is that not an escalation, _ the time and place your choosing, is that not an escalation, particularly. that not an escalation, particularly given— that not an escalation, particularly given ail— that not an escalation, particularly given all the — that not an escalation, particularly given all the rhetoric— that not an escalation, particularly given all the rhetoric with - that not an escalation, par

iranians back militias in iraq and syria-— iranians back militias in iraq and syria. ., ., ,, ., .,, and syria. that do appear to be 0 eratin: and syria. that do appear to be operating not _ and syria. that do appear to be operating not entirely - and syria. that do appear to be operating not entirely with - and syria. that do appear to be operating not entirely with the | operating not entirely with the green light and the go—ahead from iran itself? i green light and the go-ahead from iran itself?— from iran itself? i think it is possible- — from iran itself? i think it is possible- i _ from iran itself? i think it is possible. i think— from iran itself? i think it is possible. i think there - possible. i think there is a strong iranians and is with the particular militias that are acting against the united states but in the past we have seen as it requires a much greater risk tolerance from the united states that so father biden miller —— biden administration has been willing to show. when we have done this successfully, during the 2000s of the last administration,

we have been striking shia militia groups funded by iran.es in iraq — predominantly in syria, a little bit in iraq. here, we connected the two, did more strikes and hit the resupply lines that go between the two. so, it is a little bit of a larger version of what we have been doing. if you think about it along the range of options presented to the white house, this is in the middle to low range in terms of level of violence. we should say us central command, for people not familiar with that, is a military division in this region. so you are very familiar with the region, the activities and so on. how effective do you think what happened tonight will be? not very. 85 sounds like a lot, relative to what we have been doing, which is a few here and there. think about it this way — the base, one of the bases we hit in syria, another base in eastern syria — these bases have hundreds of complexes within them. we have also been signalling for five days, for five days we have been saying, "boy, we're really going to hit you hard and we really do not

the airstrikes were against iran's islamic revolutionary guards corp quds force and affiliated militia groups. these are new pictures released by us central command these are new pictures released by us central command of 8—1 bombers taking off to carry out the airstrikes. well, presidentjoe biden issued a statement on the strikes, saying: well, the strikes are in retaliation of a deadly drone attack on us forces last sunday. three us soldiers were killed and more than a0 personnel injured at a us base called tower 22 injordan, near the border with syria. the white house blamed an iran—backed militia called islamic resistance in iraq, and vowed a "very consequential response". shortly before this round of strikes, the bodies of the three sergeants — williamj rivers, kennedy sanders and breonna moffett — islamic resistance in iraq, and vowed a "very consequential response". shortly before this round of strikes, the bodies of the three sergeants — williamj rivers, kennedy sanders and breonna moffett — were repatriated to the us state of delaware, where they posthumously received military

that white militias would be saturate did with klan members and they either had to rely on black militias, which produced a violent reaction themselves and did not that that same history and therefore same training is very controversial actually. but but yeah there was there a heritage of klan involved with reconstruction there a white militias? yes. and so here's the final question that going to ask. we have many more. i would advise everyone to by the book, and you'll get more questions ask. we will have the information about how to get a hold of the book. somebody actually asked if they could send you a bookplate that you would sign so they could put their and we will include information about how to do that so if someone wants to turn their book into a signed book and commemorate it moments that they had with you that possible but couple questions came in about how does all this compare in your mind to hamas and that kind of terrorism the activity today. okay that's easy to answer it compares very closely and compares all too closely. i something about that at the beginning. you know

we have a whole range of militias i houthis in yemen.onnections to iran. there is an umbrella group with militia involved so it's hard to establish the links and iran's support for its network comes in severalforms. first, money. in 2020, the us estimated that iran gave hezbollah $700 million a year, as well as $100 million a year to palestinian groups, including hamas. and it estimates the houthis have received hundreds of millions of dollars too. iran doesn't acknowledge this funding, but as well as money iran is supplying weapons too. recently, two us military personnel died in an operation to intercept a boat in the red sea. the us released this image. it says the boat was transporting iranian—made weapons to the houthis — or there's hezbollah — one estimate put his arsenal at 130,000 rockets and missiles. it's believed many of them come from iran. and if iran is supplying money and weapons, is it also coordinating the actions of its allies? after october the seventh, the us acknowledged we have not yet seen evidence that iran direct

says it hit 85 targets linked to iran backed militias. the attacks launched at midnight, local time on saturday, in response to a drone strike in jordan, that killed three american soldiers last sunday. syrian military says the strikes caused quote, significant damage and killed civilians and military personnel in the eastern region of syria, near the syrian border. cnn cannot independently verify the number or nature of those casualties. u.s. warned this is only the beginning of its response, but a senior white house official confirmed that the u.s. will not strike inside iran. only focusing on targets outside of that country. >>> the federal judge, overseeing donald trump's election interference trial in washington, d.c. has postponed the case. it had been set to start on march the fourth, but cnn's katelyn reports the delay is due to trump's claims of presidential immunity. >> donald trump's first criminal trial will no longer be about the 2020 election and the end of his presidency. that is because a federal judge on friday said it co

the bbc his country could be pushed into conflict by attacks on its territory by iranian—backed militiasforces. and pakistan's army chief calls for unity after the leaders of two rival parties both claim victory in the election. hello, i'm frankie mccamley. we begin this hour in gaza, where the death toll has now passed 28,000 — according to the hamas—run health ministry — and concern is growing over the shortage of food. the united nations is warning of looming famine, with half of gaza's population now in a food emergency. people living in isolated northern areas have told the bbc that children are going without food for days, and they're using animalfeed to make bread. one in four households is facing a catastrophic lack of food, according to the un, because of renewed fighting and aid convoys being regularly blocked from reaching some areas. 0ur middle east correspondent lucy williamson has this special report. in the middle of a war, a battle for survival. men sent to fight over cans of beans and sacks of flour. the un is warning that famine is coming fast, to gaza's northern areas,

i of iran backed militias. just exlain. ~ . ~ of iran backed militias.in. ~ , of iran backed militias. just exlain. ~ ., explain. i think i make yours by now know about — explain. i think i make yours by now know about this _ explain. i think i make yours by now know about this arc _ explain. i think i make yours by now know about this arc of _ explain. i think i make yours by now know about this arc of iran - explain. i think i make yours by now know about this arc of iran backed i know about this arc of iran backed militias from yemen to lebanon, which iran and its allies call the axis of resistance, they include hezbollah in lebanon, they include various militias operating in iraq and syria, many of them grouped under non—real grouping called islamic resistance in iraq, andy houthis in yemen —— grouped under. all of them attacking, saying they are doing this in solidarity with palestine and that they will not cease until there is a cease—fire in gaza. it was in iraq and syria, it seems to be only a matter of time before american lives were lost, more

militia groups backed by iran began a series of attacks on u. s.ordan. according to the pentagon, there have been more than 160 attacks today. after one at the attacks by an iranian-backed militia killed three american soldiers stationed in jordan last weekend, president biden ordered today's retaliatory strike. in the meantime, israel's military response to the october 7th harris that dak continues to definitely civilian life in gaza. at least half of the buildings have been destroyed or damaged since the war began. new reporting for the new york times shows that the idea purposefully and systematically demolishing homes, schools and mosque. israeli officials told the times that the controlled demolitions are meant to create a buffer zone along the border of gaza, which would violate u.s. policy against the production of gazan territory. that revelation comes days after israeli security forces decided that doctors sent patients -- in the occupied west bank and killed three palestinian militants. the escalation appears to be in clear violation of i

k. launch is 2nd night of retaliatory attacks against the ronnie and link militias, washington and london saving his science belonging to business. the rebels in yemen follows us heirs price, and the rack and syria, also in the show as fighting continues in gaza, come off, consider is a truce offer made by israel and international mediators to bring a halt to nearly 4 month findings. plus a summer sheet wave, dr. dudley wildfires in showing at least 46 people are dead and more than 1100 homes are destroyed as authorities feed with residents to evacuate the mariana evans, dean, welcome. the united states and britain have launched a series of airstrikes on the who's the militia in him. and washington and london put out a joint statement saying they had dozens of targets, which included underground weapons depos missile systems and launchers and radars. the strike is part of the us military's efforts to discharge and fees from further and disrupting global shipping lanes in the red sea. earlier i asked middle east analyst and military expert for roger shanahan to tell us more about the targe

been in the us and bridge and launch the 2nd night of retaliatory attacks against a rainy and link militias, washington and london say the target the sites belonging to who the rebels in yemen . this follows us as strikes in iraq and syria, which killed at least 45 people. also coming up in the us, the democrats kick off the contests to choose that presidential nominees present bite and success in the south carolina primary is all but assured what is low approval ratings, means the vote is still being seen as a test of his future reelection. chances will have analysis and the wives of russian soldiers fighting in your train appealed for their husbands to be brought home. police, detain dozens of reporters at the mc mobilization protest outside the kremlin in moscow. the other i am told me on that equal welcome to the program. the united states and britain have launched a series of abstracts on the, who's the militia and examine washington and london, put out a joint statement saying they hit dozens of targets, including underground weapons dumps missile systems and launches and radars. so t

previously when america has been retaliating against iranian backed militia, the target list has been familiar. safehouses, weapon storage, places of that order. america has tried to go up a gear but in a controlled way. president biden has been trying to a square the circle and deliver a response that is strong enough to satisfy public opinion in united states in an election year after the killing of three u.s. servicemen, strong enough to keep the american public pressure at bay but not so strong that it triggers a further escalation either by iran itself or by its proxy militias. we did have a statement from lloyd austin a few days ago saying the situation can be managed as he put it in such a way that things do not escalate. now we will see if that is in fact the case. certainly the intention is there on the part of the white house and appears to be there on the part of the iranian leadership that a bad situation should not get much worse. the iranian leader said today that iran would not start a war but if anyone tried to bully it, there would be a strong response. the mood music

and so a lot of these militias inside iraq, absolutely, they are shiite militias that have been fighting against the u.s. presence and that have been associated and sometimes with aspects of elements of the iraqi government, which makes things very complicated. hamas, no. hamas is a sunni organization. what they share is opposition to israel. and as iran kind of established itself as the patron of different groups that stand up to israel, they had this relationship with hamas. it got a little complicated in the syrian civil war because hamas was not necessarily on the iranian side in that one here. so the reason, what you said is really important, joy, people have to understand, this is what is so dangerous. we're walking into multiple regional conflicts, multiple wars in a sense because there's a war currently taking place between israel and hamas and these other groups. then there's this sectarian tension, the sunni/shiite tension. the reason the groups don't get along with iran. one reason is the sectarian divide. we're stirring a lot of -- there's a lot of hornets' nests being kicked

against iran, against the iran- backed militias in the middle east.sued by iran state media today, iran's foreign ministry spokesperson calls the attacks quote, a violation of the sovereignty and territorial integrity of iraq and syria, and a violation of the u.n. charter. joining me now, nbc's allie raffa who is at the white house for us, and then dallas is tracking the latest from the pentagon, and wraps inches in tel aviv. so ali, walk us through what the president decision-making is, the iranian response from the foreign minister is not surprising. >> yeah, andrea, we know this was a very complex and delicate decision make for the process as you decide what to do from this menu of options he was given by his national security team and top advisers. from the beginning, after last weekend's attack in jordan that killed three u.s. service members, the white house knew that this response, whatever it may end up being, had to serve many purposes. it obviously had to retaliate against these iranian-backed militias for conducting that strike. it also had

the --oular from those militia groups there?tion, from those militia groups there? tt;e: popular mobilisation, part from those militia groups there? tt9 popular mobilisation, part of the aki security forces, they —— iraqi security forces. they issued a statement saying locations were targeted by us air strikes, on the border with syria. they included what they call logistical warehouses and one of them, they have said is a medical unit for the popular mobilisation forces. and they were stating the size and scale of casualties, it varied from one killed 22, tip three, but all in all, it led to this announcement from the iraqi government of 16 people killed, including civilians. as for the retaliation is, nothing from those armed factions, but one of those leaders, under the so—called islamic presence in iraq, referred to baghdad and kuwait as the basis for this and imply there could be a response to the source of fires, as he put it in his statement, should they not stop these air strikes against the locations of those armed fact

say the target sides belonging to who's the militia in yemen . this follows us astride from iraq and syria state of the news from berlin. you'll find much more on our website at w dot com and told me that i will look forward to the issue started. we started to understand fully and watching. nice uh do for us, ukraine was assembled. are we moving towards europe or not? on the 2013, this does have for democracy protests in ukraine. the country response to your price to ship to west have recognized the danger.