let's bring in nick paton walsh. he's monitoring the situation in the capital of yemen from beirut. staggering numbers. staggering numbers here nick. >> reporter: absolutely. more than doubling in just the past hour or so as i think those in the yemeni capital try to come to terms with these blasts that hit two mosques in an area which is predominantly occupied by the houthies. suicide bombers walking into crowds of worshippers and people around to have secondary devices causing huge numbers of dead and injured. 300 injured including it's fair to say some senior leaders and politicians from the houthi movement. they are vitally important because in the past months they've some say with iranian support swept to power in the capital sanaa pushing aside the internationally recognized government of the president of yemen and taking control of the capital. increasing tension between them and those loyal to the president and those loyal to sunni tribes in the country really and many fearing that when you see in those blasts first and then second one so familiar to al qaeda tactics in the r

joining me from beirut lebanon, nick paton walsh. nick my first question written audio video statements. this is all popping up on these jihadists websites tying deadly attacks specifically to isis. what are you hearing about the authenticity of these claims? >> reporter: nick paton walsh, this is brooke baldwin. i'm trying to talk to you here live on cnn and wondering what you're hearing on the isis claims on the mosques? >> i'm not hearing anything. >> we'll try back. continuing on. we mentioned there's a second attack in just three days that isis is also claiming as its own. tunisia, that massacre in a museum where at least 23 people died. most of them foreign tourists from europe japan, australia, colombia many of those victims traveled there aboard two cruise ships which docked today in spain. some spoke about narrowly evading the tragedy. >> we realized what happened. we turn the television on and tunisia. and then you realize that you escaped from it but other people are not lucky. >> let me take you now back to nick paton wals

nick paton walsh is live from kabul, afghanistan. all of the different players and why this is so important. nick. >> reporter: it masses to the united states because yemen has been there for years and home of the al qaeda and arabian peninsula. it has been in collapse for years. the houthis are the ones in the as ascend. they are backed by iran. they swept the current inter international government out of power. the president hadi fled the area. his whereabouts are unknown at this stage. suggestions he may have left in a boat. that is unclear. the big game changer has been overnight that saudi arabia's air force has hit a number of targets across yemen. they wiped out the houthis air defense system that is the part of the yemen air force that the houthis have overrun. talking to awed saudi official they are suggesting that they are not confirmed by the separate states but leading a coalition here. that is important because these are predominately sunni nations. that replicates the rift across the middle east. they are on the receivin

let's get to cnn senior international correspondent nick paton walsh. give us the latest. >> a staggering death toll. three blasts very close to each other in terms of timing. two of them hitting key areas in sanaa, the yemeni capital. the albada mosque. al qaeda's practices across the region. suicide bombers entering each mosque targeting worshippers. a car bomb outsided outside of one and outside the other a suicide bomber exploded. the houthi group is the predominant target. they are predominantly shia and this is from the zaidi group. the death toll may be as high as 77 brianna, with potentially 200 injured. hospitals putting out an urgent appeal for blood on state tv. let me wind you back as to why this is such a significant attack. for months now there's been greater unrest than normal in the beleaguered country of yemen. the government pushed aside by this group known as the houthis who are predominantly shiias. they've swept away the current government. they put in their own not recognized by the west government of sorts, but we've seen violence

joining me from beirut lebanon, nick paton walsh. written audio video statements. this is all popping up on these jihadists websites tying deadly attacks specifically to isis. what are you hearing about the authenticity of these claims? >> reporter: nick paton walsh, this is brooke baldwin. i'm trying to talk to you here live on cnn and wondering what you're hearing on the isis claims on the mosques? >> i'm not hearing anything. >> we'll try back. continuing on. we mentioned there's a second attack in just three days that isis is also

nick paton walsh explains in this report. we have to warn you the images you will see are graphic. >> reporter: staggering death toll over 130 death and 300 injured. the hospital struggling to cope with the influx of the wounded appealing for blood donations. these blasts hitting at the busiest time of the work to key shia mosques. senior clerics and leaders there wounded, one senior clerical leader, in fact killed it's said by these explosions. the first hitting crowds plaster casted were use today smuggle in the explosives by the suicide bombers. after the first blast struck and rescuers rushed in a second device outside each of these mosques targeting those rescuers. thot that perhaps is behind the number of deaths. it adds to the instability and unrest where the government was swept out of power with the houthi movement. it is that element of sectarianism. these were shia who were the target here in their mosques. it is thought the extremisms were behind it. that is being used. but the prime suspect many would suspect, al

isis. >> nick paton walsh is joining us live from kabul.ecific broad appeal to afghanis? >> reporter: i think if you look at the taliban's condition right now, they're potentially going to some of them talk peace maybe with the satisfy began government and also advancing in some areas militarily too. that may leave some of their more younger radical frustrated and disgruntled and that might mean isis i'd control gi is attractive to those. that's what i think has u.s. and u.n. officials most concerned. they weren't so much worried about isis military capability or territory, but more they could become a flag pole for those who get disgruntled with the taliban. >> what is it like in kabul now? you're back there on the scene because the new afghani president is here this washington and asking to keep troop there is i don't understand the expected scheduled deadline. >> reporter: it's tense it's fair to say. there have been an enormous amount of helicopters in the sky. streets feel much emptier. there is no minister of defense now. is the talib

we turn now to senior international correspondent nick paton walsh. s following this story from kabul. nick how much does this decision change the situation on the ground? or is this more about symbolism? >> reporter: well 4,300 will be here for a milwaukee of 12 months -- for a maximum of 12 months longer. proportionately that is roughly 50% of the number currently here. longer so yes, in terms of that it has some practical weight that will provide more trainer on the ground to assist afghan national security forces in trying to hold back a resurgent taliban. those afghan soldiers facing a tough fight. losing many on the battlefield. also many through atrick to desertion, for -- attrition to desertion, for lack of a better word. initially reluctant to release 10% in the last year or so. potentially more ahead of that. that's a key issue. barack obama yesterday, i think very much trying to have both parts of the argument he'd like here. on one side part of the key tenets to his foreign policy will be i will end the wars in iraq and afghanistan. also he

let's go to our senior international correspondent nick paton walsh joining us from kabul right now. ck all this is happening as more terror explosions where you are in kabul today. what happened? >> reporter: a few hours ago over in this direction, about 300, 400 meters or so near two key finance and defense ministry buildings, there was a substantial explosion who was a suicide bomber in a toyota car detonating killing seven, including one child, injuring 36. that reminds people here about the extraordinary volatile security situation. that is of course r, why the afghan administration wanted to see more u.s. troops stay behind, to train up the afghan security forces here. ashraf ghani in his speech just now to congress referred to isis who are trying to get a foothold here as a terrible threat saying they were here to try to find and exploit vulnerabilities in afghanistan. those vulnerabilities are a myriad. the taliban resurgent here the afghan security forces receiving great casualties against them. and there are domestic problems here for ashraf ghani. he's sharing the governmen

. >> we're joined by nick paton walsh. nic, now that saudi arabia has launched this military operation in yemen, what is the latest on the houthi targets that have been hit and the response from the rebels? which countries are involved and what roles are they playing? >> reporter: it is still early days here. we know that saudis say they have 100 planes and on the border 1 50,000 troops potentially involved. we know that the egyptian government said it is ready to offer political and military support, as well. it is unclear if any of that is already involved in the operation. there are plenty of conflicting reports about the scale and breadth of the gulf countries involvement wee heard a statement out -- involved. we have heard a statement theyithey i combined and under the houthi advance three yemen, calling it a dangerous step for global security. if you listen to the white house statement, they refer to gcc-led operations which does suggest there will be more than just the saudis involved in this in in the hours or dice

senior international correspondent nick paton walsh is following all of this for us. nick, the number of dead just seems to keep on climbing. now this claim of responsibility that we're hearing from reuters, what more are you hearing? >> we've seen the same statement that purports to be from isis, islamic state as they call themselves, and it does emanate from a website which previously have released statements from isis in the past. i should point out the fact that this statement says isis is behind it doesn't mean that they are. but it's already circulating on social media. i have to point out many analysts of the other potential suspects from behind a multiple blast like this, al qaeda in the arabian peninsula, many say they haven't in the past targeted mosques, shia mosques and in this particular instance in such a way. many scratch their head in yemen to work out who could be behind this horrifying new departure. the sectarian nature of which is so chilling for a country already falling apart like yemen. let me explain again. these are houthies being targeted. the

> for more on the situation in yemen, we want to bring in senior international correspondent nick paton walsh, he is watching the situation in yemen from kabul, afghanistan. of course, you have recently been in yemen. know what's happening on the dwlound. what is the latest on the houthi targets that have been hit so far, and the military response from the rebels? and talk to us as well about the countries that are involved in this coalition. >> reporter: we're in the middle of a war, and the saudi press agency saying they have taken out all houthi air defenses. that doesn't mean that the houthis which until months ago in fact were a loose group of shia movements, as well. they didn't suddenly match up an air deaf system their own. -- air defense system of their own. they, according to the saudis, have been destroyed as have the saudis including missile batteries, an air base has also been hit, as well. so the saudis very much claiming the first wave of strikes is metered to most degree what the houthis are able to do in terms of above yemen's own airspace. let it's move on now to the broad -

nick paton walsh, thank you very much. be careful. joining us now to make us understand how it fits, terrorism analyst, paul cruickshank and michael wise author of isis army of terror. if this is isis how big a development is that? >> it's absolutely stunning development. isis a fledgling presence in yemen. this is the worst terror tack ever in yemen and that takes a lot of doing as you can imagine. i think the strategy if it was isis is similar to the isis strategy with the bombing at the golden mosque in somora. the sunnis will be driven to the embrace of the jihadis. i think that's the strategy in yemen to tip the country into civil war, increase sectarian discord over there. >> michael, any reason to believe it's not isis? >> i think it probably is for the reasons paul has given. founder of isis abu czarzarkowi, it was driven between the core al qaeda branch. he was the one who blew up the golden mosque conduct beheadings and going after the shia. the goal to prompt overreaction by the shia that would lead to ethnic cleansing and

>> nick paton walsh reporting live from kabul, afghanistan, this morning.0 people onboard germanwings flight 9525. that's according to the airline's ceo. we're waiting to find out their names and where they're from. we'll bring you that information as soon as we can. in the meantime at the crash site investigators have started the grim process of identifying bodies and more dna results could take weeks. we also have new information about the plane's black boxes. the cockpit voice recorder has been recorded and is in paris right now although damaged officials say they'll have it up and working within a matter of hours. i'll be right back. mouths are watering, and stomachs are growling. or is that just me? it's lobsterfest red lobster's largest variety of lobster dishes all year. double up with dueling lobster tails. or make lobster lover's dream a reality. but here's a reality check: it ends soon. if you're taking multiple medications does your mouth often feel dry? a dry mouth can be a side effect of many medications. but it can also lead to tooth decay and

live for us from kabul, nick paton walsh.nk you. >>> we'll take a short break, coming up on "cnn newsroom," more on the crash of flight 9525. we will tell you about the airline german germanwings, the planes they fly and their reputation for safety. >>> plus we're learning more about those who lost their lives on the flight including these two acclaimed opera singers. now with the xfinity tv go app, you can watch live tv anytime. it's never been easier with so many networks all in one place. get live tv whenever you want. the xfinity tv go app. now with live tv on the go. enjoy over wifi or on verizon wireless 4g lte. plus enjoy special savings when you purchase any new verizon wireless smartphone or tablet from comcast. visit comcast.com/wireless to learn more. >>> welcome back. are you watching "cnn newsroom." i'm rosemary church. >> i'm errol barnett. let's check the headlines for you this hour. rain and snow could complicate search forein the french alps. a german airbus a320 crashed in the french alps killing all on boar

senior correspondent nick paton walsh monitoring this from kabul, afghanistan this morning. ense and tough situation there. nick. >> reporter: this really was a nation that is already in chaos and anarchy now headed into a regional conflict. saudi jets have been cleared. they have taken out houthi air defenses. the weaponry which the houthis tribesmen have taken off. war planes and surface-to-air missiles and air base as well. the egyptian saying uae and qatar and kuwait voicing support for this. that is vital. these are sunni nations. there is a rift where they are fighting shi'ite groups. houthi are predominately shi'a. that extends the fight in yemen where the president backed by the president of the united states kicked out and fled to the city of aden. it is unclear. that pits these two sides, saudis and houthis against each other in the volatile home of yemen. the u.s. are off the fence. stating they support the saudi move. they are adding support. that puts them on one key side of this. iranian iranians everyone says they are backing the houthis, they said they condemn

senior international correspondent nick paton walsh has our report. we warn you, this video is graphic. >> reporter: a staggering death toll over 130 dead over 300 injured. sanaa, the capital's hospital struggling to cope with the influx of the wounded. the blasts hitting at the aboutest time of the week during friday prayer. what key shia mosque in sanaa frequented by members of the houthi movement senior clerics and leader wounded. one clerical leader killed by the two explosions. the first it each mosque hitting crowds of worshippers. suggestions in some yemeni media and blaster casts used to smug in explosives by suicide bombers. after the first black struck and rescuer rushed in eric second device outside -- rushed in a second device out each of the mosques. that's perhaps behind the large number of death but add a troubling extra element to the instability and unrest across yemen where the government of swept out of power by the increase in the organized houthi movement who many say are backed by iran. it is that element of sectarianism here. th

. >> nick paton walsh in afghanistan this morning. >>> still to come findings following an alleged gangity of virginia fraternity party. that story from charlottesville. >> reporter: good morning, carol. live in charlottesville, virginia where police are expected to release the findings of their investigation involving a woman who goes by the alias jackie in a "rolling stone" article that alleged a graphic rape and new holes poked into that story and what we're expecting to hear from police next. when account lead craig wilson books at iaquinta.com. he gets a ready for you alert the second his room is ready. so he knows exactly when he can settle in and practice his big pitch. and when craig gets his pitch down pat, do you know what he becomes? great proposal! let's talk more over golf! great. better yet, how about over tennis? even better. a game changer! your 2 0'clock is here. oops, hold your horses. no problem. la quinta inns & suites is ready for you, so you'll be ready for business. the ready for you alert, only at iaquinta.com. laquinta! >>> in just a few hours we might finally l

nick paton walsh got the a chilling exclusive look inside. >> reporter: where there has long babyeen faith and war serene hills and aed a new and modern plague has now come. you're seeing rare pictures filmed by our cameraman of what we are told is an isis recruitment session in afghanistan. brothers, i'm here to tell you, the recruiter says, about syria. after a decade of war, taliban is strong but fractured and the u.s. is leaving. the u.n. warns isis is getting a foothold in afghanistan and this may be how. this afghan says he's come back from fighting in northern syria and is one of five recruiters. his pitch is simple. come fight true jihad for al baghdadi for a $500 wage. some are driven. my aim is to fight infidels, one says, in syria or if they ask me to in afghanistan i will. others aren't sure and just poor. i definitely need the money but will stay here and hope peace comes. there is a bit of theater here. isis application forms for them to complete on camera. but also a clear message to angry young of a gap afghan s disillusioned with taliban, wars and even now a more rut

>> nick paton walsh joining us with the breaking news this morning. thank you so much. let's bring in lieutenant colonel rick francona military analyst, in syria. colonelle, good to have you. >> good morning. >> first, your reaction to the breaking news this morning, sources telling cnn that the military is pulling out the last 100 special forces out of yemen? >> yeah. after that excellent rundown by nick it's easy to see that we are fast losing any capability we've had on the ground in yemen. after the loss of the embassy, which was a severe blow we were able to at least keep these 100 special forces there. that was deeply shrouded in secrecy. they were still able it to do some operations and work very closely with their yemeni counter parts. that capability has gone and we've got zero presence on the ground. this really complicates our efforts to go after al qaeda in the arabian peninsula. as we all know this is one of the more capable al qaeda affiliates. they've actually mounted attacks against the united states fortunately none of them have succeeded, but they have

nick paton walsh has this exclusive report from kabul. >> reporter: where there has long been faith and war, in afghanistan'ser is marine hills, a new and modern plague. you're seeing rare pictures filmed by our cameraman by what we are sold an isis recruitment session in afghanistan. "brothers, i'm here to tell you," he says, "about the mujaheddin in syria." after a decade of war the taliban is strong but fractured, and the u.s. is leaving. the u.n. warns isis is getting a foothold in afghanistan, and this may be how. this afghans he's come back from fighting in northern syria and is one of five recruiters. his pitch is simple. come fight true jihad for isis baghdadi for a $500 wage. some listeners are driven. "my aim is to fight gyp if idles -- to fight infidels in syria or if in afghanistan i will." others report sur. "i delve need the mope but will stay here and hope peace comes," one add. there's a bitter fear here, isis application forms for them to complete on camera. also a clear message to angry young afghans disillusioned with the taliban's wars. there's now an even more ruthl

. >> nick paton walsh, thank you. >>> coming up here we have more on our breaking news. sergeant bowe bergdahl will be charged we've learned with desertion. this is according to his attorney. we're learning the army will be making a statement. that will be happening in precisely an hour from now. wow... woohoo! i'm dreaming... pinch me. no, not while you're driving. and, right now, you can get a one-thousand-dollar volkswagen credit bonus on jetta models. seriously, pinch me. it's not a dream. ow! it's the volkswagen stop dreaming, start driving event. stop dreaming, and test-drive one today. hurry in and you can get 0% apr plus a $1000 volkswagen credit bonus on 2015 jetta and passat models. ♪ ♪ i'm almost done. [ male announcer ] now you can pay your bill... ♪ ♪ ...manage your appointments... [ dog barks ] ...and check your connection status... ♪ ♪ ...anytime, anywhere. ♪ ♪ [ dog growls ] ♪ ♪ oh. so you're protesting? ♪ ♪ okay. [ male announcer ] introducing xfinity my account. available on any device. >>> this is cnn breaking news. >>> all right, here we go. top of th

nick paton walsh joins us from kabul with the latest in the conflict. nick?us it seems slightly to the north of the capital in the houthi stronghold of sanaa. where the houthis say four people were killed in a market. and six killed in a house hit near a houthi leadership target. we can't verify those claims but obviously there is mounting aggression on the ground from many alongside the houthis here. most troubling, a regional dimension to this now. significantly obvious. you mention houd this could potentially derail u.s. talks with iran the u.s. are backing the saudi coalition. the saudi coalition is broadening now, predominantly sunni in the arab legal meeting in sharm el-sheikh. they will be continuing to discuss the joint arab strike force so to speak. the united military force, they want to use what they see to be hotspots around the world. fundamentally we're seeing the prospect of saudi troops and maybe even egyptian troops being introduced into this war. that would be a sunni ground fight against a predominantly shia houthi rebel movement backed by

cnn senior international correspondent nick paton walsh joins with us more. >> michaela the chaos hasmonths has take an dramatic turn for the worse. on a regional scale, in just the last few hours. the houthi rebels who are predominantly shia backed by iran have swept across the country. they kicked the president out of sanaa, the capital, he fled to the south, to aden. there are reports he may have fled the country. the saudis have taken upon themselves to militarily intervene, worried about a pro iranian group taking control of a country along their southern borders. their airstrikes involve 100 war planes three or four nations in the gulf suggestions the egyptians may militarily be involved as well. it's a stark moment there are suggestions civilian casualties from the strikes and there are the united states providing intelligence and even targeting information we understand towards their key ally saudi arabia. this does potentially drag saudi into a proxy war with the houthi pro-iranian group in yemen right now. it has a severe consequence for what's happening in the middle east.

let's bring in our senior international correspondent, nick paton-walsh. i know you spent a lot of time in yemen. you were just there a few weeks ago before the u.s. had to in a panic evacuate the entire u.s. embassy there in the capital of sanaa. these latest attacks on this friday at these mosques in yemen killing well more than 100 people, what does it tell us? >> reporter: it tells us that there's a potential lurch here towards sectarian violence in yemen. the country has been chaos for years. the collapse of the government happened because a shia group called the houthis swept into the capital, kicked out the president that the west recognized. they have been very successful many say, in sweeping across the country because of iran's backing but they face a lot of sunni tribes and a lot of those are backed by extremist groups like al qaeda, also like isis. today, it's particularly important because we haven't seen this kind of sectarian violence in yemen before. across the middle east but less so in yemen. this kind of brutal attack was something that

let's get to cnn senior international correspondent nick paton walsh.

isis as our nick paton walsh reported the other day, they've been actively recruiting there. >> presidenton't have the security yet. if this falls, some of the eastern provinces, he's got a lot of trouble. it's a good move and he's a different kind of leader than karzai. >> david are you of the same mind that isis is not really a threat to afghanistan? >> that's right. taliban has been in afghanistan for so long isis is a new player. taliban have their own objectives and goals, they're not going to take direction from isis. where there's a possibility for them both to benefit from cooperation, that is certainly possible and we need to monitor that. >> there's the idea that this thriving in chaos. so let's talk about the fact that this withdrawal is happening and it goes back to your further point it needs to be reconsidered. it makes one wonder if it does not throw the entire place into chaos. if you have forces like al qaeda, and taliban and perhaps even isis sort of you know chomping at the bit to get a stronghold there, it is kind of a recipe for disaster there, no? >> yeah absolutely.