we are aware of the death--reports of the death of mullah omar. we do believe the reports of his death are credible. beyond that i'm not in position to comment on the specifics surrounding his death. >> so if he died in 2013, what would that say about-- >> nancy, i can tell you that the intelligence community is looking at these reports and continues to assess the circumstances around his death. but beyond that i'm not going to be in a position here to speak candidly about what we know at this point. i'm sure when the i.c. has an update or anything determinative, they will be in position to update you. >> can you brief us on what the president's message is going to be? is it going to be a new approach message? >> i don't think he has a new approach or message. the message that he'll be offering tonight on iran will be very similar to the public case that he has been making for a few weeks since the deal in vienna has been reached. as you know he has been making the case publicly through interviews and through taking your questions-- >> so that was

as we said, omar reported to be living in pakistan.e needs to be reminded that the tensions have been high for years because the reported closeness between pakistan, it's intelligence services and the taliban not only within afghanistan, but within pakistan itself. obviously that dynamic has changed somewhat over the course of the last month and year as pakistan has embarked on a new military offensive to drive out radical elements from the could said tribal territories that border afghanistan and pakistan, and possibly resulting now in the death of the taliban leader, mulla omar. >> disappeared from the public eye for a very long time. nicole johnston has more on mulla omar's life and his impact on the region. >> the americans had placed a multi million dollars bounty on his hid. mullah omar the spiritual leader and leader of the taliban. a reclusive private man most of his life. this is one of the few photos of him. he began as a mujahideen fighter battling against the soviets during the 1980s. his confidant described to al jazeera h

mullah omar, this was an early indicator of how mullah omar was going to handle the question of bin laden. mullah omar basically told him to get lost. prince of turkey since then said he wished he had never even attempted to do it. so mullah omar was standing by bin laden long before 9/11. when 9/11 came on, you know, again, he lost his entire country on this point of principle of not handing bin laden over to the united states. >> rose: i remember -- in fact, i think he said it's against my religion not to treat a friend the way that i am treating osama bin laden. >> that's exactly right. he actually said, ten days after nine len it would be betraying islam to hand over bin laden. >> rose: are we going to hear reports from tin side as with osama bin laden -- we might have, could have, may have done this if we had been there? >> i can say in 2010 2010 i spoke to senior intel officials and military officials in afghanistan and they said we think mullah omar is spending some time in the city of karachi, and that's where the afghan's say he died in the hospital. karachi is a big pakistani ci

mullah omar this was an early indicator about bin laden, mullah omar told them to get lost.rince turkey wished he never attempted to do it. mullah omar was standing by bin laden long before 9/11. when 9/11 came on, he lost his country on this point of principle about not handing bin laden over. charlie: he said it would be against my religion not to treat a friend the way i am treating osama bin laden. peter: that is right. he gave an interview and said it would be betraying islam to hand over bin laden. charlie: did we come close to finding him? we might have, we could have. we might have been there? peter: in 2010, i spoke to some officials, military officials in afghanistan. they said we think mullah omar is spending some of his time in karachi. that is where the afghans say he died. it is a big city. 20 million people. now was that their assessment based on real information or a hunch? it was not clear. no one was surprised by the fact he was in pakistan. charlie: we had always believed that is where he was. peter: yeah. the senior leadership of the taliban has been livi

jennifer glasse has more on omar's death. >> reporter: mulla mohammed omar only a few photographs of him exist. communications from him came through the taliban's website usually on holidays or various. he was never clear if they were really his words. as a young man he was a mujahideen fighter battling the soiflt army's occupation of afghanistan during the 19 80s. how mulla omar became the civil proclaimed emir of afghanistan. >> eventually the taliban chose him because he had people and he had weapons to use. the second reason he was a famous person. >> his 30 fighters became thousands. the taliban took over afghanistan in 1996. under mulla omar's commander the taliban established security and order. stability came at a cost. harsh punishment was meted out to the people. he allowed al qaeda leader osama basharbin laden a refuge to operating in afghanistan. bin laden swore allegiance to oirmomar when bin laden's daughter wednesday omar's son. be mulla omar refused expelling the guest would have been anathema in peshtoon society. >>> after four quiet years still in hiding mulla omar

they quickly drove the taliban from power, but failed to capture omar.er four quiet years still in hiding omar directed an increasingly violent war against the newly appointed development of karzai then his successor. roadside bombings became their hallmarks. the taliban made areas of afghanistan virtually impossible to govern. in cent years there has been political overtures, giving representatives a political office in qatar, and after years of saying they would never negotiate with what they called a puppet government taliban representatives sat down with afghan government officials. omar was nowhere to be seen, but an -- online message suggested support. there has been reports that he was dead but now the taliban has a new leader,. >>> the new leader has been an active and senior member for some years. he served as minister of civil aviation in the taliban regime until 2001. recently he has been asserting his position by writing an open letter to isil leader. he told him to back off from afghanistan. jennifer glass is live in kabul. jennifer what wil

the afghan taliban confirms its leader mullah omar is dead. leader is mullah mansoor who has been his deputy for three years. speculation is mound that go debris found on an island in the indian ocean could belong to the missing airliner mh370 the object appears to be part i've wing. and israel's parliament has passed a controversial law allowing for the force feeding of prisoners on hunger strikes. now, in other stories we are following the british prime minister david cameron has been criticized for using the world warm to describe the number of migrants trying to enter britain through the channel tunnel. there have been nearly 4,000 attempts this week alone. from calais, barnaby phillips reports. >> reporter: british workmen are in france reinforcing defenses around the euro tunnel complex. they hope this will be enough to keep migrants out and stop them from boarding trucks and trains to try to get across the channel channel. in britain the newspapers are increasingly shrill. something must be done to keep migrants out. the french are not

jennifer glasse reports ottoman first that he has replaced mullah omar. >> reporter: knew lahr omar wasritual leader and military commander of the taliban. famously reclusive only a few photographs of him exist. the fbi offered millions of dollars for information on his whereabouts. that remained a mystery in the final years of his life. communications from him came through the taliban's website usually on holidays or anniversaries. it was never clear if they were really his words. as a young man, he was a fighter battling the soviet army's occupation of afghanistan during the 1980s. his confidante described to al jazerra how mullah omar became the self proclaimed amir of of began stan. >> which the taliban was arising they needed a leader and eventually it's taliban chose him because he had 30 people and he had some weapons to use. the second reason he was a famous and well viewed person. >> reporter: his 30 fighters became thousands. the taliban took over afghanistan in 1996. under mullah omar's command the taliban established security and order if a country after ravage booed i chaos

mullah omar has always been a reclusive figure. he has not been seen in public since 2001 and there are only a couple of photographs of him as well. so he's always been an elusive reclusive figure really the only confirmation of his leadership in any kind of tangible form has been audio recordings released by him. of course, after the 2011 u.s.-led invasion here he went into hiding and said that he was staying reclusive because he didn't want to be able to targeted by international forces or the americans here. but now conflicting reports about whether he is alive or dead the afghan government claiming not only is he dead, he died in 2013 the afghan taliban denying that. >> and just two questions if you can jennifer, first of all where do the afghan government say they're getting their information from, if they're revealing it, and what impact will this have between the taliban and afghan government peace talks that is meant to kick off in two day's time? >> well, barbara, we understand that the source of the information, the afgha

they failed to capture mulla omar. after four quiet years still in hiding, mulla omar engaged had war againstham i.t against hame. representatives a political office in qatar, after years of saying they would never negotiate with what they called a puppet government, taliban officials sat down with afghan officials. mulla omar was nowhere to be seen. reports suggested he was long dead but the taliban movement he started is gaining a new political life with questions now who its next leader will be. jennifer glasse, al jazeera, kabul. >>> top members of the obama administration were back on capitol hill today for more hearings on the iran nuclear deal. as libby casey reports the senate armed services committee grilled the officials over the agreement's possible impact over u.s. defense. >> reporter: top military brass took a turn on capitol hill adding their voices and credentials to the military plan. >> it's a good deal, because it's prevents iran getting a weapon in comprehensive and verifiable way. >> pledging the u

and osama bin laden's son married omar's daughter. it shifted american attention firmly on to afghanistan. the u.s. commanded that the taliban give up bin laden, and he refused. in october of 2001, a united states-led coalition launched a full-scale war with the aim of destroying al qaeda, driving him from power, but they failed to capture omar. after four quiet years in hiding. omar directed the fight against karzai and his successor. starting native forces became their hallmarks, making afghanistan virtually impossible to govern. in repeat years, there have been overtures to the taliban. with offices in qatar, and they said that they would never negotiate with what they called a puppet government. taliban officials sat down with government officials. mulla omar was never to be seen. and by then, reports were that he was long dead. but now a new political alive with questions now about who the next leader been. jennifer glasse, aljazeera, kabul. >> omar has been one of the world's most wanted men for years. he had a bounty on his hea

that from mullah omar. when the peace talks are having, that are happening why mullah omar is not in the scene. they also claim that they have proof that mullah omar is dead, but they never came up with the proof, but they set out e-mails to all the journalists including us. we have confirmation from different multiple sources except for the taliban themselves. they will be releasing a statement shortly on this issue. stuart: if it is true, how much of a blow would it be to the taliban, bearing in mind that he could have been dead for several years anyway? >> there is already a fight amongst the taliban. there are reports of two factions within the telegram one that is pro-peace talks, the other which is anti-peace talks. the one is directly linked to the mullah omar tried. -- tribe. the pakistani government is leading peace talks. right now the likelihood of those peace talks will be postponed and what they have been trying to pursue might be hampered. with the follow from the news that has come out now. s

bin laden swore allegiance to omar. his son married omar's daughter. american attention was shifted firmly on to afghanistan after the 2011 attacks. expelling his guest would violate tradition. after four quiet years still in hiding, mullah omar directed an increasingly violent war against the newly point government of hamid karzai, then his successor. areas of afghanistan were virtually impossible to govern. in recent years there has been political overtures to the taliban. giving them a political office in qatar. after years of saying they would never negotiate taliban representatives sat down with afghan government officials. mullah omar was nowhere to be seen but on on line message endorsed the negotiations. by then, reports suggest he had been long dead, but the taliban movement he started is gaining a new political life with questions now about who its next leader will be. >> al jazeera kabul. >> in the last hour, the taliban has announced its new leader, whose been an active and senior member for some years now. he served at minister of civil av

mullah omar he is very close tomullah omar. he has taken a lot of measures to consolidate his power. he has tried to sideline rivals. he has tried to clear the way for his succession to become the next leader. the taliban and is a fractured organization. there are many commanders and other members that do not want him to be the next leader. there could be a very messy and even violent succession battle to see who becomes the next leader. rochelle: tell us why it has been difficult to confirm the death of mullah omar with various -- we know it has been confirmed now, but different versions of whether he was dead or not until yesterday when it was confirmed. mr. kugelman: i think that they have wanted to keep close control. his status about whether he was alive or dead. many of us assumed he had been dead for quite some time because he had been so quiet. all of these major events have been happening, including a challenge from the islamic state. mullah omar had said nothing. it is not a matter of trying to confirm he is dead, but

but failed to capture omar.quiet years still in hyden omar directed an increase will go i violent war against the new had i-a pointed government of karzai, then his successor ghani. roadside bombings became their hall makes. the taliban made areas of afghanistan virtually impossible to govern. in recent years there has been political overture to his the taliban, giving represents a political office in qatar. after years of saying they would never negotiate with what they called a puppet government, taliban representatives sat down with afghan government officials. omar was nowhere to be seen but an an line message endorsed the negotiations. by then, reports suggested ted long been dead. but the taliban movement started is gaining a new political life. now it has hey new leader. man sore. >> and jennifer glasse is live for us in kabul afghanistan. so jennifer you were just mentioning the new leader. what will it actually mean for the taliban? what changes could expect? >> reporter: we are not exactly sure barbara

maullah omar had been rumored to died in the past but none of those rumors had been confirm: mulrah omar emerged as the taliban leader back in 1996. the backing of osama bin laden after the 9/11 attacks. there have been a number of reports about his death in the last years but they were later dismissed. we look at where the information about his death comes from. >> two sources in the afghan government. the afghan president's office and spokesman for the national director of security both saying that they believe that mullah omar died in a hospital in karachi in 2013. the afghan taliban denying that to al jazeera saying that mullah omar is still alive and in charge of the taliban. omar had always been a reclusive figure. he has nod been seen in public for more than a decade, really since 2001 and there are only a couple of photographs of him as well. he's always been an elusive reclusive figure. only the confirmation of his leadership in any kind of tangible form has been audio recordings released by him. of course, after the 2001 u.s.-led invasion here he went into hiding saying he was

the afghan taliban confirms that its leader mull la omar is dead.der is now akhtar mansoor. >>> israel's parliament has passed a controversial law allowing for the forced feeding of prisoners on hunger strike. >>> and the iraqi government has denied allegations that it is using torture in its prisons. the allegations are being investigated by a u.n. committee. rights groups says abuses are widespread. imran khan sent this update. >> the iraqis have denied the charges of torture in a statement, they said we do not torture people and there is no evidence provided by the u.n. tribunal or other human rights groups to contradict that. however, there is a legal problem. torture isn't clearly defined in the constitution. some would say this has been a deliberate measure to allow them to get away with opening secret prisons and torturing iraqi prisoners. there's plenty of publicly available evidence on this over the last ten years we have seen reports from amnesty international and other groups about these secret prisons, there's been plenty of testimony fr

mullah omar was a leader of terrorist groups in afghanistan.e has led numerous destructions, suicide attacks, and has killed many innocent civilians. as an afghan, i am happy he is dead. i am glad to hear about the death of mullah omar but i am not happy that another successor will emerge. after years of speculation new details of his death have emerged. officials say he died under suspicious circumstances at a karachi hospital. they say an investigation is underway. westerns are now being raised as to why it took so long for all of this to come tonight -- questions are being raised. sarah: what impact is it likely to have on the taliban and? we asked jason. jason: already a fractured organization, and they have always been fragmented. in pakistan, a very coherent organization in i think we will see that fragmentation increase over the coming weeks and months -- and i think we will see that fragmentation increase. there are two w major -- two major areas, including the more senior leaders probably in pakistan, and the other is those who believe

mullah omar was a leader of terrorist groups in afghanistan.e has led numerous destructions, suicide attacks, and has killed many innocent civilians. as an afghan, i am happy he is dead. i am glad to hear about the death of mullah omar but i am not happy that another successor will emerge. after years of speculation new details of his death have emerged. officials say he died under suspicious circumstances at a karachi hospital. they say an investigation is underway. westerns are now being raised as to why it took so long for all of this to come tonight -- questions are being raised. sarah: what impact is it likely to have on the taliban and? we asked jason. jason: already a fractured organization, and they have always been fragmented. in pakistan, a very coherent organization in i think we will see that fragmentation increase over the coming weeks and months -- and i think we will see that fragmentation increase. there are two w major -- two major areas, including the more senior leaders probably in pakistan, and the other is those who believe

. ♪ >>> the afghan taliban has confirmed to al jazeera it's spiritual leader mullah omar is dead. it has always elected his replacement. the afghan government said it had enough evidence to confirm that he died two years ago, but the taliban refused to confirm. there is still some conflicting reports from the taliban about where and when exactly he died and whether they have in fact chosen a replacement. >> reporter: shiulie, in the past 15 minutes, though we have received a statement and tweet from official taliban spokesman that confirmed the death of mullah omar. but now it's confirm by afghan taliban in afghanistan too. let me take you to the impact of his death. if we believe he died two years ago, in the past two years taliban has gained a lot of afghanistan war. they have achieved a lot of military and politically in afghanistan like -- if we compare 2013 with now, taliban were -- in 2013 only focusing on the south, now they are more splitting the war in the past two years to northern afghanistan. just in the past 48 hours taliban captured another district in the southern a

what do we know about mullah mohammed omar? ♪ ♪ >> his name was mullah omar.is only a matter of time. ♪ >> the rewards for justice program is offering an award of up to 10 million dollars for information leading to the prosecution or unrest of -- or arrest of mullah mohammed omar. jane: for more on the death of mullah mohammed omar i'm joined by the former u.s. ambassador to afghanistan. thank you for joining me. if these reports are true, and it appears they are, how significant are they? >> at the symbolic level it is very important. mullah was not a field commander. it was more of the symbolic leadership of the taliban that cap the various -- of the taliban the cap the various pieces together. it is possible that his death could lead to the fragmentation of the tally ban. -- of the taliban. there are at least three leaders that could succeed him. it could lead to hard-line leadership, or a group taking over. we have seen that in a rock. we have the islamic state, which is much more brutal. we could have a more moderate leader who could be good for a settlem

they have confirmed the death of spiritual leader mullah omar. talks between the taliban and the afghan government on friday will not go ahead. jennifer glass on the death of mullah omar. >> reporter: it's unclear what changes we'll see under the new taliban leader. the taliban sources telling al jazeera that mansour has been involved in making political decisions over the last few years. there are obviously two different areas of the taliban. you have the political side and the military side. the fighting has been serious in this spring fighting season and over the last couple of weeks, in the last couple of days taliban has taken dozens of villages in the district in the north and south as taliban fighters continue to fight across the battlefield. peace talks between taliban representatives and the government scheduled for friday have been put on hold. the african government hopes they'll be rescheduled soon and people close to the taliban leader were involved in the first round of talks on july 7th and that may be reason why the government is

omar, thank you. today the defense attorneys in the colorado movie massacre case wrapped up their defense. they're trying to save the life of the man who killed 12 people and injured 70 by proving that he was insane. barry petersen is at the courthouse tonight. barry? >> reporter: well, scott the defense ended with a bit of show-and-tell, a video of james holmes in a jail cell in november of 2012 about four months after the shooting.an be seen standing. then he runs head-first enter a wall. all this to reinforce the contention that holmes had a psychosis that prevented him from knowing right from wrong. not knowing right from wrong in colorado is what gets a verdict of not guilty by reason of insanity. just having a mental illness, even a severe one is not enough. after closing argument, the jury begins its deliberations wednesday morning, and scott if they find him guilty everyone, including the jury, goes right back to work to decide if he gets life in prison or death. >> pelley: barry petersen outs

taliban leader mullah omar is dead. mullah omar became a wanted man after he shelt erdered osama bin laden in afghanistan leading up to the 9/11 attacks. omar has not been seen in public since 2001. officials believe he died over two years ago despite letters published as recently as july 14 that have been attributed to the leader. chief correspondent bill nealy joins us from london. if he died two years ago, why would we only be hearing about it now? >> very good question tamron. good morning to you. those reports of his death are unconfirmed but they are gaining in number and credibility. remember, mullah omar is one of the most wanted men in the world, the one-eyed leader of the afghan taliban for almost a quarter century. else the man who welcomed osama bin laden as a guest into the country in the 1990s. then after 9/11 he was head of the taliban government that refused to hand bin laden over or to expel him from afghanistan. he fled as u.s. and coalition forces swept in and he then led the insurgency that claimed t

importantly, it appears that it was also omar's choice to appoint mansur because he was close to omar. he was in charge of the administrative matters. also, the senior military commanders are fighting. so it appears that despite reports, the taliban have united behind this new leadership that is perhaps why they were keeping his death a secret even though the intelligence decided to blow the whistle and say that he had already died. >> okay. but this transition period seems to have called into question what was a rather precarious peace process that had begun on july 7. >> well, indeed. it may be seen as a temporary setback. one thing has to be understand, that pakistan's role from day one was to facilitate the talks. the fact that these people were sitting across a negotiating table was a big important development. there is also a need to restart those talks. the taliban realize the importance of that. the government also realizes the importance of that given the threat from is which has been trying to assert itself in afghanistan and try to make inroads. there is united. this will b

their bond came familiaral when bin laden's son married omar's daughter.ut it was attack in the u.s. for which al-qaeda claimed responsibility that shifted the american attention firmly on to afghanistan and its leader. his alliance with bin laden rose to international prominence when the twin towers went down. omar said expelling bin laden would have violated the tradition of hospitality. it would a refusal that would cost the afghan people dearly. a united states coalition launched a full scale war with the aim to destroy al-qaeda and the taliban regime that harbored it. the u.s. did get rid of the taliban regime but failed to capture the leader. but he did not give up his political fight. he directed a war against the newly appointed government. the war wreaked havoc across afghanistan. roadside bombings targeting afghan security, and nato forces became their hallmark. it made the government's task virtually impossible. the karzai government did extend a hand to omar in november 2008 urging him to lay down his weapons in exchange for his safety. but he

. >>> plus omar sharif. the egyptian born actor who became an international superstar, tonight a lack at his life, his roles and the path that he helped pave for others. ♪ ♪ ♪ >>> we begin this hour with a shocking admission from one of the most powerful leaders in u.s. law enforcement, james connolly the director of the fbi says the bureau made a big mistake in its background check of accused charleston church shooter dylan roof. according to him roof should never have been cleared to purchase the gun he allegedly used to kill nine african americans. paul is here with more on this. paul. >> yeah, david this is a truly remarkable admission by the director of the fbi saying essentially that the system failed. a background check that should have raised red flags did not so a loophole plus error are are are what allowed dylan roof to buy the gun he then used to murder nine people. >> does the defendant have a criminal history? >> the answer to that question is yes. dylan roof was arrested in columbia, south car

the actor omar sharif has decide at the age of 83. barker looks back at sharif's career. >> a regular on the red carpet, omar sharif's be career spanned several decades. he was born omar shaloub. his meteoric rise came in 1962 through lawrence of arabia. through which he will would have be won a host of awards including a golden globe. three years later sharif won a further golden globe with the title role of dr. zhivago. continued to work into old age his latest interview was in 2013. >> i was a shy boy i enjoyed being shy because and working in acting because i could be someone else. >> his agent says he died of a heart attack in a hospital in cairo.

. >> meet omar, a saudi citizen living in san diego.he was one of the first people to help the hijackers on our shores. in this highly redacted fbi classified document, he had been in the u.s. on a student visa since 1993. >> is there any record that he was a student in the united states? >> he professed that he was a student. i checked with the university that he said he attended. they had no record of his activity as a student. >> as a reporter for the san diego tribune, kelly thornton was aware of him. >> he was thought to be by some a saudi spy spying on other saudis for the saudi government. he often had a camera. >> baoumi was also collecting a salary for a subsidiary of the saudi aviation company. there was this story. >> when baoumi comes up to san diego at the request of the saudi consulate in los angeles, we don't know what happened in the one-hour meeting that they had, but as soon as the meeting was over, baoumi and his driver went to a specific restaurant, ended up at a table next to the two hijackers which led to him askin

. >> remembering a legendary leading man, a look back at the life and big screen career of omar sharifd the first chapter of harper lee's new book is out. and fans of to kill a mocking bird say the sequel has a big shock never the first few pages. ♪ ♪ >>> history was made today in new york's canyon of heros the u.s. women's world cup champs were honored with a ticker tape parade. it's the first time an all female team has received the rare honor. they were showered with tons of confetti and the cheers of thousands of screaming soccer fans. >>> at more than half a century the sequel to happenner lee's which is i can book to kill a mocking bird goes on sale tuesday, but the opening chapter of the novel hats been released on line, no spoilers here, but there is a major not twist that some fans has described as heartbreaking. >>> legendary actor omar sharif whose film career spanned six decades has died. the 83-year-old sharif appeared in a number of classic movies including lawrence after rare i can't and dr. zhivago we've look back at his iconic career. >> reporter: few movie lovers can

attributed to omar.p claimed he was still its leader earlier this year. >> looks like he died and no one noticed. >> we have the hazy details surrounding his death. >> reporter: an extraordinarily patchy way in which to announce someone's death in keeping with the murky life that mullah omar led and how little was known about him in hiding well over a decade. after messy reports in the media, suggesting a press conference may be imminent in which the presidential palace would announce the death, that didn't happen and there were leaks suggesting that in fact he had died in a hospital in april 2013 in karachi, pakistan. it took hours more for the presidential palace to issue a statement saying based on credible information, they thought that mullah omar was dead and had been dead over two years. the exact circumstance of his death are known. and afghan intelligence source saying this occurred when he was in a hospital of an unknown illness. questions reverberating. what word from a taliban, indeed they ha

actor omar sharif has died at the age of 83. and in tennis, the world number one djokovic books his place in the final. he has defeated andy murray and will face the king of centre court, roger federer. it is good to have you with us. greek lawmakers are set to vote on sweeping reform proposals that could unlock a new bail out for the cash strapped country. the main point thanks in taxes cuts to pensions, slashes to , defense spending are exactly the measures that greek voters rejected in a referendum last weekend. the greek prime minister is walking a political rope, and the greek economy is on a knife edge. at least the country's creditors are taking this latest offer seriously. >> proposals from athens are still too fresh for a response from european creditors. >> they arrived last night. the institutions are going to look at it for us and they will do the math and see if the figures add up. they will look if they bring structural improvements to the economy. then we will see what the bottom-line is in terms of support for th

omar sharif, the injection foreign film legend has died. he was 83. he suffered a heart attack in cairo. he started acting in the 1950's and one international fame, weighing the title role in dr. zhivago. -- playing the title role in dr. zhivago. >> he was destined to become a global r. >> his performance as the doctor/poet remains high point of his career. he then came with lawrence of arabia. >> i would like to hear his opinion. >> his ability to slip into the most diverse of roles kept him in the business until his 80's. though he never regained the star power of his younger years, he was continually recognized equinix and colleagues alike -- by critics and colleagues alike. he never intended to become an international's arm. he might have been happier if he stayed in his native egypt with his family. he remained a national treasure there throughout his career. omar sharif died of a heart attack at a hospital in cairo. he was 83 years old. brent: pope francis has visited a notoriously overcrowded high-security prison in santa cruz olivia -- santa c

so omar was an obstacle to peace. with him out of the way, now taliban can reach an agreement and simply say we don't have a leader, our council has agreed it's the best interest of the nation to make peace. >> thank you for taking us through the perm tagses associated with the death of omar. thank you. >>> we have got more to come on the program, including -- >> the price of continuing the syrian war is simply too high. >> the u.n. unveils its latest plan to help end the war in syria. >> hello again. these are the top stories here at al jazeera. the verdict in the trial of three journalists is due to be handed down in the coming minutes or hours. they are accused of colluding with the muslim brotherhood, charges they deny. malaysia has sent investigators to india. the team want to find if it belonged to the flight that disappeared last year. the afghan government announced on wednesday that omar died more than two years ago, but that's being denied by the taliban. let's get back to our top story, that expected verdic

the taliban it is a confirmed the death of omar. malaysia's civil aviation chief flown to france for investigations into a piece of debris. a piece of a wing flap washed up on reunion island earlier this week. >>> a public inquiry has been taking place into the death of former russian spy. it's been eight years since he drank tea containing a fatal dose of radiation. it continues to strain relations between moscow and london. >> doctors were mystified by his symptoms. only when samples were analyzed was the full enormity of his condition revealed. he had ingested the rare and deadly radioactive element palodium 210. he was a former kpg man who fled russia. by 2003 he was cooperating with the british secret intelligence service. the inquiry has had evidence. >> we'll meet to the consider whether he sustained public attacks on the regime and on the fsb and mr. putin in particular to have had any connection with his death. >> the evidence is focused on the involvement of these two russians. the pair traveled to london more than once to

zhivago to lawrence of arabia, we remember the great omar sharif. >>> and making history in the canyon of heroes. why today's big celebration was unlike anything we've ever seen before. "nightly news" begins right now. >> announcer: from nbc news world headquarters in new york, this is "nbc nightly news" with lester holt. >>> good evening. today in the shadow of the south carolina state house it took an honor guard just 36 seconds to lower a symbol that has divided this nation for a century and a half. the applause was thunderous and sustained. look at the crowd. after 54 years the confederate battle flag was brought down from the site for the very last time. it was a swift and dramatic turn in history. born of the racist murders of nine members of a black church in charleston less than a month ago by a man who embraced that flag. tonight we have two reports. ron allen starts us off from columbia. ron, good evening. >> reporter: good evening, lester. all that remains of the confederate flag here now is the concrete slab behind that monument on the ground that the flag pole used to stan

leader of an began taliban, omar, is dead.nd hasn't been seen since. he's been crossing back and forth. now looks like he's dead. we are joined with kristin live with the developments. do we believe this is true? >> fox news cannot independently confirm this. according to the pakistani newspaper is reporting omar died more than two years ago from tuberculosis and that he's been buried in afghanistan. omar was known as being reclusive, difficult to track. this is someone the u.s. wanted for a long time. he was born in 1960. he fought in the 1980 soviet occupation. he forged close ties to osama bin laden and became supreme leader in 1996. he's believed to have sheltered osama bin laden during the 9/11 attacks. u.s. had a $10 million bounty on his head since. appears he's been dead two years. tuberculosis the alleged cause of death. at this time, fox news cannot independently confirm this report. it comes from the pakistani news by way of "u.s.a. today." >> what a story. could have been dead the last two years. chrkristin with th

he is from southern afghanistan, as was mullah omar. was minister of aviation and transport the taliban government. he is in favor of peace negotiations with the afghan government? >> from what we know so far, yes. he was delegated to the talks that took place in july. this means he is in approval. there are many other leaders of the taliban and there are factions in the taliban who seem not to be so keen on talks. laura: those talks have been postponed, we learned, by the taliban. what do you read into that? >> i think it is a timing issue. the last 48 hours has been a lot of news about the death of the appointment of a new chief. -- the death of mullah omar and the appointment of a new chief. there will be an effort made by the taliban who are keen to talk, as well as pakistan come in trying to persuade some of these leaders to sit at the table for talking. laura: do you feel confident that the tax will take place? >> i'm confident they will take place. whether they will be fully representative of the taliban is another question. whet

omar's son, according to some reports, wanted to be leader.ine factions within the taliban that don't want to get into talks. there was an assessment that omar didn't want it get into talks. with him gone this left a roadblock to that. manhour, the mansour, the new leader does want to get into talks, that's what he understand. in the past it's been positions in the government for taliban positions within the military structure for a number of taliban fighters within the context of the afghan army. so there have been sort of some ground work laid for peace talks in the past. but the political reconciliation the whole of the taliban organization many are assessing to the potentially under threat at this moment. if the taliban stays together under mansour then perhaps they can get under talks and his guidance after more peaceful strategy and accommodation can be made with the government over a period of time p but the threat of the organization is if they can't state together then isis within afghanistan that is growing, looks to be a potential w

mullah omar's death would do more than close a chapter on 9/11. it would also create a void at the top of the taliban and give other terrorist groups like isis a chance to move in. jane? >> pauley: david martin, thank you. in colorado, a mother is trying to save the life of her son. the mother of james holmes convicted of murdering 12 people in an aurora movie theater testified today in the sentencing phase of his trial. barry petersen is at the courthouse. >> reporter: a convicted mass murderer to the world, but a troubled son to an anguished mother, who communicated in the final months before the shooting primarily by e-mail. >> i didn't realize that his loudest cry for help was his silence. >> reporter: arlene holmes said there was one critical moment when the theater massacre might have been avoided. it was a phone call she received about a month before the theater shooting from university of colorado psychiatrist dr. lynne fenton who was treating holmes. but, mrs. holmes testified, the psychiatrist never said her son was mentally ill. >> we w

mullah omar -- tells cbs news that american officials are trying to confirm if omar died in the lastning his government is also checking reports of omar's death. the al qaeda ally led an insurgency after u.s.-led forces in afghanistan following 9/11. the taliban spokesman says according to his information omar is very much alive and still leading the movement. >>> tom brady says this morning he never tried to cover up deflate gate evidence by destroying a cell phone. nfl commissioner roger goodell made that claim tuesday as he rejected brady's appeal on his four-game suspension. goodell says an assistant smashed the phone after league investigator ted wells asked to see brady's text messages. the super bowl mvp responded, quote, i replaced my broken samsung phone with a new iphone 6 after my attorneys made it clear to the nfl that my actual phone device would not be subjected to investigation under any circumstances. to try and reconcile the record and fully cooperate with the investigation after i was disciplined in may, we turned over detailed pages of cell phone records and all of