this is the yemen compound in sanna where nick paton walsh is reporting live. general, if you could give me the layout of what would happen, what exactly might happen given what we're seeing on the ground right now? >> first of all, what nick has said is yemen is a strategically important country. many of us have been watching it very closely in its downward spiral over the last six months. in a noncombatant operation situation, there's always tension between the state department and the military that are involved in getting the people out of there. the military always want to go fast to make sure everyone is secure. the state department officials want to stay as long as they possibly can to ensure coordination with the government. and because we don't know if this is a true coupe, if someone on the inside is going to assume power, or is it just a popular uprising that's trying to influence the government? i think the ambassador probably wants to stay as long as he can. but, again, there's going to be that tension between the military and the state department on

senior correspondent nick paton walsh has the latest for us and explaining why this is so important in the context of what is happening in europe right now. nick. >> reporter: christine, there has been up to date with the events on the grounds. we heard continued shelling near the palace and administration. this is a shi'a movement called the houthis. they have been taking ground the last month. they got into a dispute over closed roads with presidential security who were trying to protect the presidential staff and there are clashes here and some breaking news i can bring you. we are hearing from officials close to the president that after a meeting for an organized cease-fire the president had with the officials of the houthi movement. he came upon open fire on the convoy. they suspect the gunmen were ally to the houthi movement. the houthi say no. they condemn the attack. this is possibly a third party trying to cause trouble. the president was out to make sure the violence stopped to get the cease-fire going. every hour we see in the city more plumes of dust and smoke suggesting th

i want to bring in nick paton walsh. what have you found out?most likely his younger brother cherif were actually in yemen. we know there were a number of trips focused on 2011 when cherif is thought to have used his brother's passport to come into yemen perhaps legally and focus is did they meet anwar al awlaki in that same year who is said to be the operational planner by al qaeda in yemen's lengthy statement. we learn today from an interior ministry official speaking to cnn that in fact in their data base of immigration here they believe that the first trip the first record they have of said kouachi coming to yemen is in august 2009. that is significant because it does mean it's possible that he was the roommate of the man known as underwear bomber who tried to blow up a plane in detroit on christmas in 2009. the official goes on to say they believe there were two or three subsequent trips after that lengthy ones going on potentially as 2012. that doesn't really tell you other information received but it's new detail and it starts to paint a

nick paton walsh is the only western tv journalist in yemen right now. nick joins us by known from the capital. nick let me start with this. we just lost nick on the phone i'm told. nick paton walsh has been covering this for us from the yemeni capital. he reported earlier a u.s. embassy vehicle did come under fire. no one was hurt in that. we are getting more reports about the chaos in the capital there. perhaps the presidential palace under siege. the prime minister's residence under siege again. the fear here is that chaos only allows for terrorists groups particularly al qaeda in the arabian peninsula, to increase their power in the region and grow as a threat to the west. on the subject of the west happening right now, a manhunt across europe for a man who could be an isis ring leader in europe. officials now draw a direct link between the terror group and the cell that was raided in belgium last week. authorities are hunting the leader of that cell as we speak. our phil black joins us now live from brussels. phil this isis terrorist is already belie

>> reporter: nick paton walsh, thank you so much for this breaking news. d to on the video now as the blessed battle of paris. a diabolical phrase if there ever was one. thanks nick. i want to bring in fred pleitgen. today was already a meaningful tense day in the city because of the release of the new "charlie hebdo" with the prophet muhammad on the cover. it's been one week since the attacks. even before we got this claim of responsibility from aqap there was already an increased presence of security on the streets. >> there was. and this heightens it that much more because it shows these terrorist organizations also see the significance of this day. the fact that they came out today with this video saying that the prophet has been avenged by these two terrorists is something that certainly is going to put the police here on even higher alert, the intelligence services on even higher alert as they're scrambling anyway to come to terms with the situation because they thought that they had pretty much taps on most of the terrorists here in this country. and

cnn correspondent nick paton walsh one of the few reporters inside the country. what's happening now, nick? >> reporter: we understand from the information minister that the presidential palace has fallen to what she described as houthies the rebel movement that swept across the capital in the past few months and intent on exercising power here in the capital. she called what is happening now the continuation of a coup. there is shooting from rooftops down to the street. she doesn't believe his life is in danger about you that he should step down because if he remains in power, he will be a figure head for houthies who seek to run the country. i should point out we haven't heard the houthi side of the story here yet. they are clearly angry or what they consider to be a constitution that's unfair toward them that was going to be introduced and they also said when the fighting started that the presidential administration in fact was they who were attacked. there's another side to be heard here. it is quite clear at this stage that there are clashes inside the yemen

nick paton walsh is in sanaa, the only western television reporter there.ick the situation where you are, is it escalating? >> reporter: well certainly. and now we really have a tense standoff over who will run the country. the houthi rebels have moved into the capital in the past few months and are now said to be surrounding the prime minister in his residence. at stake here is the outcome of closed-door negotiations that have come after a cease-fire that came in the middle of the afternoon. those talks really are going to have to magic some kind of incredible compromise to stop the fighting. so this morning, picking up all over again. in the early morning hours we heard blasts as the presidential administration worried after their chief of staff was kidnapped that more of them may face the same fate. they have their own checkpoints, clashes started, we don't know who was to blame but there was a remarkable sight here. the subject of an artillery jewel from the hills around it. residential buildings nearby hit. many injured and they called for a cease-fire

cnn international correspondent nick paton walsh is the only western journalist on the ground in yemen. nick? >> reporter: it's clear, says the u.s. embassy, that that vehicle was targeted with some shots at some point. we don't quite know who the gunmen were but a very tense capital now, carol. ♪ ♪ [ male announcer ] you wouldn't ignore signs of damage in your home. are you sure you're not ignoring them in your body? even if you're treating your crohn's disease or ulcerative colitis an occasional flare may be a sign of damaging inflammation. and if you ignore the signs, the more debilitating your symptoms could become. learn more about the role damaging inflammation may be playing in your symptoms with the expert advice tool at crohnsandcolitis.com. and then speak with your gastroenterologist. >>> fears this morning that a bloody power struggle in yemen could erupt into chaos. the u.s. military has upped its alert level but they say there's little they can do but watch and wait. yemen is crucial to america's and europe's war on terror. the failing nation isn't just a breeding ground f

let's bring in nick robertson in paris and nick paton walsh following developments in yemen. how wide is the net being cast for possible terror cells? >> reporter: it's being cast across northern europe and southern europe as well. this is a concern for intelligence agencies all over europe at the moment. what the french are telling us is that the three people that they've released are women. that the nine people that remain in detention here are, in fact can be held for another two days and may be held for even longer on the suspicion of the terrorism act. so at least two days before any of the others might be considered for release. and the concern is here that there could be other cells inside france. that is why france is on such a high alert with so many security forces deployed to thwart any possible further attack. >> and then nick paton walsh from yemen, you have new information on two french nationals arrested there? >> reporter: yes. we reported last night, yemeni officials saying two french men arrested in the past few months. they tried to leave the country. we no

the information minister in yemen told our nick paton walsh that the president there is no longer in control. there are concerns major concerns that a government collapse could send that country into full-scale civil war. the situation there is already one of pure chaos, chaos that is being exploited by radical groups such as al qaeda in the arabian peninsula. they are winning recruits there and there are grave concerns about u.s. interests there. a u.s. embassy vehicle was shot near an embassy checkpoint monday night. two navy warships have now moved into the red sea. they're ready to evacuate americans from the embassy, if need be. >>> a palestinian man has been arrested after nine people were stabbed on a bus in tel aviv. israeli police are calling this a terror attack. the attacker was eventually chased down shot by police and arrested. this is just the latest in a string of attacks against israelis in recent months. several of them deadly. the islamic militant group hamas which controls neighboring gaza praising these stabbings as brave and heroic. >>> happening now, japan worki

our senior correspondent nick paton walsh has the latest for us. explain to our viewers this morning this complicated web and how every one of these moves has an equal and opposite reaction somewhere else. it is incredibly dangerous. >> reporter: every time yemen spirals greater into chaos, it benefits al qaeda in the arabian peninsula. we heard in the last hour the shelling exchange of artillery intensifying. it is concentrated around the presidential administration and every yemeni official. let me wind back a bit to how we got to this morning. the president's chief of staff reported two days ago that the fear that most government officials could be abducted. people they are facing are facing opponents here. the houthi tribes and militia. they would detain a staff and the government puts some streets on lockdown to defend the key officials. the houthis did not like that. they were attacked. the government said it was the houthis who attacked them. the president is safe in his house. it is hard for people to come to him and him to meet political o

our cnn international correspondent nick paton walsh has more. first i have to warn you the images you're about to see may be disturbing. >> reporter: in the mist the shells are edging nearer the city center. one hit here meters away from dozens waiting for a food handout. four under sheets. families destroyed in the blink of an eye. one man simply at the wheel of his car. arena has seen her husband. >> translator: sergei's my husband's name she says. please give me a telephone number to enlist. i'll call. i'll go. i'll fight. i don't have any reason to live. i don't want to live. i want vengeance for my own. sergei used to joke if something awful happened to him here he wanted to be blown apart. and i used to say that if something happened to him, i'd go and fight for him. >> it's shocking scenes of random civilian death like this which many local residents will surely blame upon the ukrainian army that increasingly terrify the population here and make the job of those in minstk try to settle this war increasingly fraught. those peace talks bare

they're used to it conflict. >> nick paton walsh, be careful over there. we'll be in touch. nick the only western television reporter courageous enough from our perspective to be in yemen right now. we'll stay in close tough with him. the united states may no longer have an anti-terror ally in yemen. hundreds of americans if not more are at risk right now, diplomats, military personnel, other civilians. joining us now a key voice on national security issues republican congressman jason chaffetz of utah. congressman, the yemen's capital, the presidential palace and other key places are in control of the rebels. how dangerous is this crumbling situation in yemen right now for the americans who are still there? >> well, it may be the most volatile situation on the face of the planet at the moment especially if you're an american. we're deeply concerned about the embassy personnel the military personnel, others there in that country, the houthis are making a strong push and as was pointed out in the report no friends of the united states of america. yet i worry that the president

nick paton walsh joins us folklife sanaa. so nick -- joins us live from sanaa. so nick we've seen tensions between the houthi rebels and government forces in the past few days. you're in sanaa. set the scene for us there. >> reporter: there's much more than escalating attempts both trying to gain control over the presidential administration in sanaa. one official told me part of the administration who controls that building controls effectively yemen. so many are saying that clashes we're hearing been me, and there was a cease-fire that was declare about an hour ago now that has not stop the constant sound of gunfire. and we're in fact hearing it move to a different part of the city now. there are yemeni officials characterizing this is a fight for power in yemen. that matters enormously because yemen has struggled to put itself on its feet in the past few years. a tall civil conflict getting worse and worse. now giving you background. the fighting in yemen is between one movement known as the houthis, the militia pro-domnantly shia -- predominantly shia, in the

there is so much to talk about and so i bring in our senior international correspondent nick paton walsh who's reporting today from beirut and with me in new york is retired lieutenant colonel james reese. nick, if you could tell me more about this connection to anwar al awlaki and the time that either one or both of these brothers may have spent in yemen and then of course this three-year divide between all of that. what more are we knowing about this? >> reporter: that's really what investigators must be desperate to work out now. it's possible that if anwar al awlaki who's said to have had some sort of operational command at kouachi brothers' attack on the "charlie hebdo" magazine, if he died in 2011 and left the plot in an adequately resourced or a targeted fashion, then it could be the brothers sat down and did nothing effectively as a sleeper cell for three years. but investigators will be keen to work out if there were further contacts between yemen and then, if they got further cache. we know according to barbara starr's sources, perhaps as much as $20,000 may have brought back b

cnn's nick paton walsh is on the ground in yemen. reporter: well as you mentioned, 10:00 this morning, the presidential chief of staff was in the very center behind me and kidnapped by armed men. now there was immediate condemnation from the american and british embassies here and hours later we discovered that in fact one key movement here a collection of tribes militia who have in the past few months put the upper hand in the civil conflict racking yemen for years. they have actually taken the capital city in the past few months and said in the last few hours that in fact they had detained the president's chief of staff, because they were concerned the president was about to usher in a new constitution they have not approved. and they wanted him to be careful of the sensitivities, quote, of the situation. the real sense of tension here between the group predominantly from the shia sector of islam and the presidential administration here who are often on the same side of the fence as many sunni tribes and other groups here as well w

our senior international correspondent nick paton walsh is joining us from sanaa. only western tv journalist on the ground risking his life being there. and also bob beyer joining us from telluride. the latest i've heard nick there is almost like a coup attempt under way in sanaa chief of staff to the president, was he captured by these rebels the u.s. military is on stand sdlt by. set the creepscene for us nick. >> reporter: it makes you wonder how much the government is holding on to the raineins power. new any said houthi said they took the chief of stand. there are check points all over the city. clashes began. we don't know who started it. and we started a remarkable sight, heavy artillery among a building that if you control, you control the country. they tried to talk a cease-fire, but the prime minister's convoy was attacked. houthi representative was also attacked. state tv, state news agencies were under houthi control, houthis denied that. government controlled that a coup attempt. there is now a cease-fire. it's been relatively quiet for a few hours. the

let's go right to cnn senior international international correspondent nick paton-walsh. ck, at this point, what do we know about this tentative agreement between the two sides? >> reporter: well, both sides we are hearing from some houthi officials and the presidential administration both sides seem to think it's going to work out but there's a lot of hurdles to cross and a lengthy timetable here. in essence, the deal says that the houthis will remove themselves and their militia from the presidential palace around the presidential residence, the hills overlooking them and let normal life get back going here on a daily basis, and in exchange the constitution the new draft of it will be edited and changed to give houthis more representation more power. they will most likely get key officials in key ministries too and they also will release the presidential chief of staff who they kidnapped over three days ago. the question really we haven't got the answer to here is does this leave president hadi in power in some way or is he really a figurehead in a much more watered-down

nick paton walsh reporting. thanks so much. jim sciutto is with me again this morning in front of "charlie hebdo's" offices in paris. let's talk about al qaeda in yemen. is there absolute proof that they actually planned this massacre? >> there is not absolute proof. there are indications at this point. you have the claim of responsibility today and video. you always take those with a grain of salt. there are other things leading in that direction. indications that the kouachi brothers traveled to yemen and had arms training in 2011. now you have u.s. officials saying that they are operating under the belief now that al qaeda in the arabian peninsula gave those kouachi brothers $20,000 in 2011 to finance such an attack. you have hard ties to al qaeda, aqap in yemen in addition to the claim. it's not the only group you have ties to. there's a web. core al qaeda's chief recruiter tied to the kouachi brothers that takes you to pakistan and not to yemen. it doesn't mean the two groups -- if not operate together operate with the sam

cnn senior international correspondent nick paton walsh is the only western journalist in yemen. nick much of today's fighting concentrated around the presidential palace but we're hearing airports, roads are being shut down. what's happening there right now? >> reporter: it's quiet in the capital now. it seems as though the rebels who moved in today to take over the president's administration have been fought the day before have appeared to have made their point and their leader has appeared on television here and asked for changes be made to the new constitution. really i think laying out a kind of broad program of increased desire to have his hands on the leaves of power without necessarily having any titles to go with it. he still calls the president, president hadi. he was in his residence today and there was intense gunfire in the streets outside. he is safe we nrlsunderstand but cabinet members aren't sure whether to turn up to work tomorrow. it's a state with a huge vacuum at the top. we don't know if the houthis want hadi to stay. we know certain areas are loyal and talki

i want to go to nick paton walsh who's in sanaa for us, the only western journalist there. what are you learning, nick? >> reporter: wolf what we have now are the early signs of a deal potentially between the current yemeni government and the shiite houthi rebels who have taken over the key institutions here. these are this is the first time we've seen something laid out that looks like a road map out of the crisis is. we don't know if these are agreed to yet. we've seen a draft of the deal. i've spoken to an official that outlined key points. in short, it's who would get edits, changes to the new draft of the new constitution. they would effectively see that altered to suit their demand. in exchange the government would have key institutions released by the militia that have swept into the presidential palace around the presidential residency as well. they would have the immediate relief of chief of staff who over 72 hours ago was kidnapped from the capital city. this is the early stages. we're getting the details from twitter account of the spokesperson of the washington d

cnn's nick paton walsh is the only western tv journalist in yemen. he joins me now live from the capital sanaa. nick give us an update on the situation and from where you have been observing things is this actually a coup that we are witnessing? >> reporter: we are seeing a lot of activity on the streets here which does in the words of the information minister seem in her mind to amount to completion of a coup which she says has begun yesterday. let me explain what that means. we've heard from her and from two interior ministry officials at the presidential palace the key symbolic building of power in yemen, was surrounded this morning. apparently the houthis have moved in and taken over that entire compound. it seems to be in their hands now. she says there was a period of shooting outside the house of the president of yemen. he didn't leave the building. he is said to be safe. but that is certainly a cause for great concern. and it led the information minister a member of his cabinet, to say he had no control in the control at this particular time.

our senior international correspondent nick paton walsh has just left the capital of yemen, sanaa. nick give us a sense of the latest. let me know what it was like there in your final moments. did you get the sense that country was slipping into just pure chaos? >> reporter: interesting to see how houthies took control. they have had control for months. it was interesting once they wanted out that they would head into much more of a spiral toward the unknown. the streets were pretty calm. we heard sounds of gunfire occasionally fireworks too. and on the drive out through the airport came across four or five polite and reasonably calm checkpoints. a lot of them were young and that's half of the strength many say, of the houthi movement is harnessing frustrations to a degree. the airport itself was reasonably calm. they did look for former regime members. the issue now is what next? it was a bit of a high stakes gamble by the president once his cabinet and prime minister left their jobs to also quit and in the word of one of the ministers earlier naming and shaming a deal that was bei

♪ >>> we want to take you back out to yemen right now because cnn has a correspondent there, nick paton walshpital where the presidential palace is that has come under siege by rebels. there is a cease-fire in place right now. is that holding, nick? >> reporter: tough to tell. the problem with cease-fires is things can go wrong quickly. ten minutes before you joined me we heard sustained exchanges of automatic gunfire right behind me in the distance. that would be problematic. rebels on the streets don't know who is shooting at who. it could fall apart. it's been a messy day frankly. the presidential administration under sustained artillery jewelling. already started with presidential staff trying to make themselves feel more secure by cutting off roads around their key buildings. the rebels didn't like that and both sides blame the other side for that. right now we see a strange calm. i was at the u.s. embassy and for families working there it's a calm situation. there is no sign of them imminently going anywhere at all. it's a tense city certainly because that political deal which is suppos

here's our nick paton walsh. >> reporter: what we know is significant. a patrol of hezbollah fighters that were inside syria. the fighters are fighting alongside the syrian regime. and six hezbollah fighters were killed as a result of those explosions. now a source close to hezbollah tells me that among those six dead is a man in his early 20s. deeply significant because he's the son of one of hezbollah's most notorious commanders. the fact that israel is able to hit key leadership like this if in fact they knew that was their target shows potential for intelligence being quite good on israel's side. the question is what is hezbollah's reaction. a fragile peace between lebanon and israel. hezbollah key to that. we are, of course expecting some sort of reaction from them public publicly, some statement about this. all eyes watching as to whether they have the resources to retaliate against israel. they are engaged on a number of fronts across the middle east now assisting other shia militia or governments and deep concern over potential escalation of yet

nick paton walsh, cnn, beirut. >>> the leader of a pro russian rebel group flatly rejected peaks withkraine because he believes his troops are on the offensive. the statement from the people's republic of donific came friday as -- donetsk came friday as he met with university students. he said his forces will drive ukrainian troops from the region. the u.n. human rights group says nearly 5,100 people have been killed in the conflict in eastern ukraine since last april. >>> a contagious disease is spread spreading at a u.s. amusement park. coming next here, details on the measles outbreak at disneyland. >>> also, a closer look at a growing movement of parents who refuse to vaccinate their children. >>> also ahead this hour it has been the best friend of shopaholics flyers for 25 years. coming up the big change "skymall" catalog is making to try to stay vital. [ male announcer ] stop! living with hair loss, that is. losing your hair is no fun and no one wants to be bald but there is hope. getting my hair back was the best thing that ever happened to me. i'm happy with the way i look now

nick paton walsh, cnn, beirut. >> reporter: u.s. video in which aqap claims credit for this attack. they say they think the video itself is authentic but not ready to determine yet whether al qaeda helped carry out the paris assault, to what degree it helped carry out the assaults there. still to come the kouachi brothers are the latest in a long list of siblings beyond at tangs. what's driving these siblings to extremism, right after the break. financial noise financial noise bulldog: through monday, save up to 40% on clearance mattresses. get up to 48 months interest-free financing on tempur-pedic. pup: i found a red tag! [laughter] bulldog: mattress discounters' year end clearance sale ends monday. >>> we first saw the killer's faces and heard their names hours after the massacre at "charlie hebdo." sharif and said couch chi. they were immigrants or finned at a young age. i want to go back to paris and jim sciutto. jim, the moment authorities revealed to the world these were brothers many people had this sixth sense of deja vu. >

. >> nick paton walsh, i want to go first to you, who is directly threatening u.s. embassy personnel in yemen? >> reporter: unclear. the stage and threat has always been there. if you're referring to the more recent threat that would be related to the instability here. we don't know who is behind a u.s. shooting monday night. we do know historically it's al qaeda in the arabian peninsula who are the more broad threat because of the drone program that's been in place and because of how the u.s. embassy is an integral part of that. >> ambassador burns, how many diplomats do you suppose are inside that embassy and what are they doing? >> i don't know how many diplomats are there. i can tell you, carol, we need american embassies in critical middle east countries like yemen. they're the direct link to the government of the country. we have had very close relations with the current government the embattled government of yemen. the question about security carol, will come down to this. can the local government protect our embassy. in every country in the world we depend o

nick paton walsh, cnn. >>> this is the 70th anniversary of the elizabetheration of auschwitz. noz concentration camp in german-occupied poland. >> soviet troops liberated the camp this day in 1945. survivors are returning from ceremonies later today to mark the anniversary. henry corman is one of them. he talked to ivan watson about the seemingly random life or death decisions that happened as prisoners arrived at auschwitz. >> mr. corman have you ever been back to auschwitz? >> no. today's the first time. i see here looking around here. i see this gate -- i would run through here. i think -- i think it was right here there was an assessment mangala was working here. you know who this was. this was life. this was death. >> reporter: you saw him? >> sure. he was passing by. i was naked, only shoes. depends. strong -- what can i do? i didn't know if i remain like this i wouldn't be here today with you. >> henry corman was referring to joseph mangel, the nazi doctor who sent so many prisoner to the gas chambers. >> the nazis killed more than a million people at auschwitz. most of

let's go to nick paton walsh in yemen.also are customarily used to seeing you in beirut where you're based. give us the latest on what this means. >> reporter: well this israeli helicopter strike happened in an area called the amal farms near the golan heights. actually inside syria. we know from a statement from hezbollah that six people they said were martyred. part of what they referred to as a hezbollah survey mission in the area. we know hezbollah have been active inside syria fighting alongside the regime. a source close to hezbollah, though has told us the key detail here that amongst those six dead is a man called jihad magnier. the 20-year-old son of one of the more no forcetorious members killed intuate in damascus. a man considered to have spurred terrorist acts targets in hezbollah in his career. the fact his son was targeted and the israelis knew where he was. we don't also know who wased in the convoy suggests the movements and we don't know how hezbollah will respond. they are, of course going to be deeply c

here's nick paton walsh. >> reporter: the president is at home this morning, but it's not his men outside. at the tanks, well they're not his anymore. instead, it's these houthi militia running the show. young, almost dazed at the change. look at his hands when we ask who's president. nobody president? you can't see around the corner from here. that flag is the presidential residence, where the president still is, but the guards have left and instead it is these houthi gunmen who are offering him, they say, protection. when we asked them who is the president, they point at themselves saying the people are now the president. an easy win that may not last. and the country is split? >> yeah. >> reporter: the houthis were polite. tuesday, they also stormed this military base home to powerful weapons, and they used this entrance to take the presidential palace. where the republican guard have now left their post. the houthis controlling this literally the door to power. in the markets, where a cart was sold as normal the vision of the former president, the houthis, he says as even the south wa

nick paton walsh, cnn, donetsk. >>> other stories coming up for you.he greek prime minister is vowing to keep his an i austerity campaign promise. >> how can he do it without greece defaulting on its debt? the answer might lie with the new finance minister. we take a look at his key role in the new government. at ancestry, we call it a hint.. our little leaf that helps guide you through the past. simply type in a name and you're taken on a journey. a journey that crosses generations. and continents. all to tell the most amazing story. yours. discover your story. start searching for free now at ancestry.com meet the world's newest energy superpower. surprised? in fact, america is now the world's number one natural gas producer... and we could soon become number one in oil. because hydraulic fracturing technology is safely recovering lots more oil and natural gas. supporting millions of new jobs. billions in tax revenue... and a new century of american energy security. the new energy superpower? it's red, white and blue. log on to learn more. >>> welcome

cnn's nick paton walsh is calling it as all out coup. is it? >> reporter: it's certainly a change in the balance here. if it walks like a coup if it talks like a coup is it a coup? i have been speaking to a yemeni official who's pretty well briefed on these things. he spoke just recently to the president who is still in his residence here in sanaa. that's a place surrounded by houthi militia men. part of his guard left yesterday but part remains. they're now sharing the job of protecting him with the houthi begun men gunmen outside. that's his take on the situation. the president considers himself to be president and thinks he can come and go as he pleases. a picture here certainly which has some accuracy. going on to say that no one's called on the president to step down. no one has called for the government to be dissolved. the leader of the houthi last night called the president so it's very confusing that the stage to work out who's actually in control of this country. the houthis are making it clear, the dominant power. they have their fin

our senior international correspondent, nick paton walsh, has the report. >> reporter: the president is at home this morning, but it's not safe outside. attacks, they're not his anymore upon instead, it's these houthi militia. almost dazed at the change. look at his hands when we ask who's president. >> nobody president. >> reporter: you can't see around the corner from the flag is presidential residence. where the president is but his guards they have left. instead, it is the houthi gunmen offering him, they say, protection. we asked who is the president now. they point at themselves saying the people are now the presidents. an easy win that may not last. >> i don't know. >> reporter: the country split? >> yeah. yemen without -- without country. >> reporter: the houthis were polite but are listening. tuesday they also stormed this military base, home to powerful weapons. and they used this entrance to take the presidential palace where the guard have left their posts. the houthis controlling this, literally the door to power. in the markets, the still land cart was sold as normal. d

cnn's nick paton walsh is there. >> reporter: what's key is for them to swiftly establish the links in reality between in yemen and the attacks in france. the 11-minute statement says a u.s. citizen killed in 2011 killed by anwar al awlaki was operationally running that attack they call the blessed battle of paris in their own sick terminology. what is vital for french investigators to work out is if there were continued conversations or resources passed from here yemen, to the kouachi brothers. we know that potentially one of them came here as early as 2009 and maybe cherif potentially traveling on his older brother's passport came here in 2011 and may have returned to france with tens of thousands of dollars. that's vital information because there are other cells around europe. do they have links to the al qaeda hot bed here of yemen? very key to put its branding on what it calls the blessed battle of paris troublingly. a quiet day after friday prayer. much anger on the streets at the image of the prophet muhammad offensive to so he many muslim's being published in the "charlie hebdo

joining me from the capital of sanaa is our senior international correspondent nick paton walsh. i understand you have breaking news for us. >> reporter: well we've just heard in the last few minutes that two french citizens have been detained in yemen. they were detained on suspicion of offering logistical support to al qaeda in the arabian peninsula in the south. i should point out that this official says this detention occurred as they were trying to leave the country a few months ago, so we were talking about something that way predated the paris attacks. that doesn't necessarily mean these individuals had no connection or no knowledge of what happened in paris but it doesn't mean this is a reaction to investigations happening inside paris. we are told these individuals were not there in a competent form. they were offering a discourse, of course. that could be anything from being a doctor to following money perhaps, and yemeni authorities are trying to work out what to do with them next whether they should be charged but clearly another sign that yemeni officials are despera

our team coverage begins with cnn senior international correspondent, nick paton walsh, the only western tv journalist in yemen. what do we know at this hour nick? >> with power vacuums that made washington's policy makers most nervous and this morning we have awoke ton an absolute void at the heart of the government. the president is stilled by the president by the leader of the houthi rebels but his presidential body guard, we understand according to a senior houthi gunman. is he still the president? do the houthis want to claim that title for one of their own? that has to be worked out today, but a real sense of a vacuum here inside sanaa, that's vital for the u.s. because any sense of chaos simply makes life easier for al qaeda in the arabian peninsula. there's a sense of fear about the u.s. diplomats, one of their cars shot up two days ago. they are still here but the u.s. military on standby to pull them out of here. and the real question of course being how does the rest of the country react? we're hearing rumblings from the pro government south that they feel they're deeply conce

our senior international correspondent nick paton walsh is inside yemen.t's home. you had a chance to see what was going on. looks like this is -- this country is on the verge of being a failed state. tell our viewers what you saw. >> reporter: around the president's residence it was clear he was inside. it was clear his security detail had run away the day before in the violence. guarding him, sharing the duty with the guards still inside were the young hauthi militia. they said they were in charge the people now. that bebegangan a day it was clear the president's power was diminished in some way. talks continued. of course the hauthi militia were in charge of the presidential palace and many other key buildings. in the last few hours we heard of the tentative peace plan. the hauthis and the presidential administration seem to be on side. it's a one-sided deal. the hauthi ss have good points in the city released the presidential chief of staff. on the other side the government has to allow a rewriting in some degree we don't know how significant, but subs

we also have the only western tv reporter on the ground in yemen for us nick paton-walsh. let's begin with our pentagon correspondent, barbara starr, who's got the very latest. >> reporter: this evening, government forces in yemen are said to be in control of the presidential palace but the surrounding hillsides are in control of the rebels. everyone is looking for a cease-fire agreement to be signed in the morning, but no one is expecting peace. gunfire, rebel fighters, checkpoints. smoke rising near the presidential palace. yemen facing chaos. many say this is the beginning of an attempted coup by houthi rebels even as there were claims of a cease-fire. >> i do not think that the cease-fire will hold. that's what my gut tells me based off of what we have been watching over the last year going on in sanaa and throughout yemen. >> reporter: shiite houthi rebels backed by iran have been challenging yemeni authority for months. yemen's information minister tells cnn's christiane amanpour the yemeni prime minister is surrounded by militias stationed on rooftops around his hom

>> nick paton walsh. been under fire for what critics are called a failed strategy to combat terror groups like al qaeda and isis. white house correspondent michelle kosinski joins us to tell us reaction from the white house. >> there have been questions during the critical time when not just the u.s. but the world has been focused on the visible threat posed by isis. is the u.s. doing enough and has it been doing enough to stop al qaeda in the arabian peninsula, in yemen, which has been such an effective exporter of terror and bomb-maker now thought to be linked to the horrific attacks in paris. much has been made of the president calling the u.s. strategy there, working with the yemeni government something of as success story. four months later, many are calling millennium an failed state with, rebels taking over the capital. what does that mean for the strategy moving forward? and analysts are also looking at past aspects of the strategy. did the u.s. and the yemeni government essentially cause al qaed

he pledged his allegiance to isis but according to the source who told nick paton walsh he did not go the sources did tell nick and cherif kouachi is thought to have gone to syria last year, seen near the turkish/syrian border, that is the last location according to intelligence sources tell cnn of hayat boumeddine, the woman who was the girlfriend of the terrorist, amedy coulibaly. when we come back, more coverage of the terrorist attacks in france, more coverage of this unity rally which is starting to get really exciting here with a lot of people very inspired. we'll be right back after this. ♪ ♪ ♪ abe! get in! punch it! let quicken loans help you save your money. with a mortgage that's engineered to amaze! thanks, g. mayo? corn dogs? you are so outta here! aah! [ female announcer ] the complete balanced nutrition of great-tasting ensure. 24 vitamins and minerals, antioxidants, and 9 grams of protein. [ bottle ] ensure®. nutrition in charge™. --ocaptions by vitac -- www.vitac.com . welcome back to cnn's continuing coverage of the aftermath of the terrorist attacks in france. this m

nick paton-walsh, be careful in yemen for us. the united states shouts from a suspect's father disrupt today's court hearing for the man accused of planning to bomb the united states capitol. a live report is coming up. >>> at the top of the hour we are getting new details about the breaking news. a source telling cnn members of that belgian terror cell have the m couldcomponents to make powerful explosives. some members of the terror cell right now are still very much at large. please! no. please? no. for those headaches that just aren't bad enough for a lot of please. please. please. medicine, there's new excedrin mild headache. please! please! 35% less medicine plus a booster to end everyday headaches fast. wow, my headache's gone. excedrin mild headache. [container door opening] ♪ what makes it an suv is what you can get into it. ♪ [container door closing] what makes it an nx is what you can get out of it. ♪ introducing the first-ever lexus nx turbo and hybrid. once you go beyond utility there's no going back. you're driving

here's cnn's nick paton walsh. >> reporter: what is ski for french investigators to swiftly establish the links in reality between here yemen, and those attacks in france. al qaeda and the arabian peninsula's 11-minute statement suggests a u.s. citizen was in fact operationally running the attack who they call the blessed battle of paris in their own sick terminology. what is vital for french investigators to work out after that 2011 death, there were continued conversations or resources passed from here yemen, to the kouachi brothers. we know potentially one came here as early as 2009 and maybe cherif potentially traveling under his brother, older brother said's passport came near 2011 and may have returned to france with tens of thousands of dollars. that's vital information because there are other cells around europe. do they have links to the al qaeda hotbed here of yemen? keen to put its branding on what it calls the blessed battle of paris. and of course now a quiet day after friday prayer in the capital. much anger on the streets. at the image of the prophet muhammad offensive

chief senior international correspondent nick paton walsh is following the story for us from beirut lebanon. nick? >> reporter: we seemed eded to have lost nick and we'll try to get him back in a second. >>> the fate of two japanese hostages held by isis is unknown this morning. the deadline to pay a $200 million ransom has apparently passed. the men shown in iraq last summer were featured in a video released by isis earlier this week just hours before that deadline, an isis spokesman telling a japanese broadcaster that a statement about hostages would soon be released. that statement has yet to come. one of the men's mothers making a desperate plea for her son's life while trying to appeal to his captors in the process. >> translator: to all members of isis kenji is not an enemy of isis. i really think he's a man who is able to help you as your friend once you get to know him. >> since august isis issues multiple videos featuring brutal beheading among them five western captives including three americans. >>> japan awaits the fate of two citizens america is fighting isis sympathizers at ho

let's get to cnn international correspondent nick paton walsh, the only western tv journalist in yemenhey say that last night near a checkpoint near the u.s. embassy, one of their embassy vehicles was shot at. they say they don't know who was behind the shooting. but they say that they began shooting in the air, but then turned the guns on the vehicle itself and i quote here these were not warning shots, there was intent there. now these vehicles you see them in the city they were pretty recognizable. armored so in this case that vehicle, no injuries inside it. there were u.s. citizens u.s. diplomatic personnel inside that vehicle. they often travel in more than one vehicle in a convoy. we don't know exactly what reaction the u.s. citizens there took. the u.s. diplomats took. i understand they may have simply driven on into the embassy. but clearly, someone shot at them with intent to cause injury death, potentially. close to the embassy itself. obviously we know that the embassy is been on a heightened state of alert, always has been. it's part linked to a key drone program here in ye

let's go to nick paton walsh. rebels say they're withdrawing fighters. what's the catch here?well this is the tentative deal brooke. what it basically says is that the rebels will pull out of key buildings they're occupying and places above the buildings that give military advantage over it in exchange the constitution will basically have the ability to be rewritten. a new constitution which they disagreed with. they'll get to make changes with that in consult with the government. effectively they're finding some sort of way out of this crisis. the problem here brooke is there's a timetable laid out. everything has to go according to that. we're hearing earlier reports perhaps some withdrawal of militants have began. one may be in the buildings they're occupying. the real question people are asking effectively is who are the militants in the streets with guns that pushed the government into enormous concessions? we don't know the shape of the constitution how much power, the changes they're going to want to see here, and how much power the president surrounded by fighters in h

i want to bring in our senior international correspondent nick paton walsh for more on this claim of responsibility. this video from a commander of al qaeda in yemen. they claimed responsibility for the attack that took place behind me. >> and they report to give some sort of detail as to the kind of people in the leadership who are behind planning of this. the statement is given by a media spokesman. he's clear in this 12-minute speech that anwar al awlaki's success, a man not seen in the spotlight, was involved in the planning but operational command was done by an american citizen now deceased. he's a yemeni descent killed in 2011 by a drone strike. if we're to believe the contents of this claim of responsibility investigators are now going to work out precisely what kind of trail and links there are between the yemeni group and the brothers in paris. they said they work for al qaeda in yemen. french officials have hinted and confirmed that said the older brother, went to yemen on a number of occasions. perhaps cherif went on the passports of said in 2011. the question is if plann

nick paton walsh joins us now from beirut. >> reporter: as investigators piece this together it's remarkableuld have come up on the radar. one of the most famous well known attempted bombers in the last decade the man known as the underwear bomber was according to a man we caught up a roommate of said kouachi for a number of weeks. during multiple trips to yemen, said kouachi, the older of two brothers behind the paris attacks made some extraordinary high-profile friends. a local witness tells cnn he briefly roomed with the man that tried to blow up a plane to detroit in 2009. these winding streets kouachi studied arabic grammar at a local institute and sometimes played football with children. this is where in 2011, kouachi met this researcher. he showed our producer the institute lodgings where he says the paris gunman and the underwear bomber shared an apartment for a week or two, probably in 2009. he remembers what kouachi told him about the underwear bomber. >> those former lodgings are now office place and the school closed down despite the link to one of the most famous bombers in the

nick paton walsh has more on the crisis.he capital of yemen. >> reporter: a day of stark physical change here in yemen. the president, prime minister and cabinet have, we've heard from multiple sources resigned. this is after days of turmoil here the sound of gunfire, shelling a political deal that seemed to provide a road map ahead, requiring the houthi militia to withdraw and release the president. that looked like it might save the situation, but today it began to falter. we're hearing the sound of gunfire now. clearly that deal faltered and now the president, prime minister and cabinet no longer want to continue in their roles. a letter put on twitter by the minister of information, former minister of information said they no longer want to be part of what they consider a legal, political process, and wanted no longer a part of what would come now in the future. clearly concerned at the future now. we do not know quite what comes after the president. obviously, the dominant force on the streets have been the houthi. a po