these heavy machine guns have been given to the peshmerga by the british military. weapon has a range of nearly 2 kilometers and can fire up to 500 rounds a minute. it's a boost for the poorly equipped kurdish soldiers fighting isil. security is tight. the british defense secretary has flown to the kurdish regional capitol, erbil. he has promised more weapons and training. >> air strikes alone will not rescue kobani. these are operations that have to be conducted on the ground with the help of air strikes. but we are stepping up our commitment with the training and supply of weapons and ammunit n ammunition. >> reporter: british soldiers are training the peshmerga at this camp. we're not allowed to show their faces. there are security fears for them both here and back home. this peshmerga soldier has just completed a week's training on this heavy machine gun. the british government says it has already given 40 of these weapons to the peshmerga. the u.s. and germany among other membersover the international coalition have also supplied the peshmerga with equipment. t

the iraq kurdish peshmerga forces crossed the border on friday. we have more from the turkey-syria border. >> we are a few kilometers away from kobane where the sound of sporadic fighting and shelling has persisted throughout saturday. behind me is one entrance through the town from turkey where the iraq kurdish peshmerga forces crossed over late friday and early hours of saturday bringing with them much needed reinforcements for the syrian kurdish fighters who have been combating isil. the peshmerga forces when entered stationed themselves mainly in the western part of the city. they brought with them semi pickup trucks that were essentially carrying heavy weaponry like anti aircraft guns and rocket launchers, bazookas and the like. these were weaponries that the syrian kurdish fighters belonging to the ypg and allies from free syrian army had been calling for several weeks to say that they needed in order to swing the battle in their favor away from the advancements of isil. as it stands now, both sides continue to hold the positions they held p

and it appeared it was the peshmerga themselves, and particularly peshmerga involved with syria, who actually helped the yazidis more than anybody else. i don't know whether you can confirm that or not. >> well, indeed it was the peshmerga. a particular wing of the peshmerga that was able to come in on mt. sinjar and provide such important support at their time of need. am have moved away and found refuge in northern iraq. you're right. there is a huge concern about the plight of the women. this is one of the reason -- i traveled with justin greening to northern iraq. we visited a number of refugee camps and she made a further promise of additional funds. britain is one of the largest donors. i don't know if we have any figures we can provide. in northern iraq to assist in this very area. >> is there any information on the women? i keep asking that question over and over again. what information do we, as the british government, have about those yazidi women? they seem to sort of disappeared without a trace. >> we will -- we'll check and let you know, but i don't think we have very mu

more than anybody else. >> indeed it was the peshmerga and impact a particular wing of the peshmergathat was able to come in on mt. sinjar and provide support in their time of need. many of now moved away and found refuge mostly in northern iraq. you are absolutely right there is a huge concern about the plight of the women. this is one of the reasons and in fact i have traveled was just into northern iraq we visited a number of refugee camps and she made a further commitment of additional funds. britain is one of the largest donors and if you have any figures we can provide in northern iraq to assist in this very area. >> but is there any information? i keep asking that question over and over again. what information do we as a british government have about those ucd women? they seem to have sort of disappeared. >> we will check on that you now but i don't think we have got very much. as the minister said the peshmerga themselves not just the ones who got them off mt. sinjar but then the evidences as one would expect they were the most affected people in tracing the 3000 or so does s

and germany have also supplied the peshmerga with equipment.he peshmerga say that recent gains made against isil would not have been possible without the help of coalition air strikes, but weeks of bombing by fighter jets on the town of kobani on the syrian turkish board er have so far failed to dislodge isil there. and there are questions whether the peshmerga are able to take on isil in large civilian populations. >> translator: our morale is low. the government should take advantage of this and get to ready to take the town back. >> reporter: it is pledged to help the peshmerga too. >> translator: this is an international fight for humanity. we need as much help as we can get. >> reporter: this peshmerga soldier at least says he is ready. >> translator: we learned a lot from our british instructors. we are prepared for the battle. >> reporter: but it's a battle that is far from won. >>> meanwhile fighting against isil continues in the syrian border town of kobani, a number of kurdish women are among the fighters. one of those who has been en

the peshmerga in recent weeks have retaken the strategic town of rabia.h that, they say isil are changing strategy. they have used trucks laden with ex plos ifsz around checkpoints like this. peshmerga here say isil now send groups of fighters on foot who try to infiltrate the camp at night. >> they have tried to come in on foot. they day we retook zumar, they thought we had deployed here they attacked here three times in 24 hours. they used grenades. we repelled them. they used rocket launchers. >> the question is whether the pesh perfect can hold this position in the coming winter months when cloud cover will make coalition airstrikes more difficult. >> the airstrikes are very important for us. the second thing is anti-take weapon systems and night vision capability. we also need engineers for clearing devices. >> destroyed vimingz dot the road out of rabia. the peshmerga say they could never have retaken the town without coalition airstrikes and weapons. as winter draws closer, so the peshmerga's challenge increases to defend towns like this across nor

. >> first, kurdish peshmerga forces from iraq have entered the syrian town of kobane, joining hundreds of syrian kurds and opposition fighters to take on the islamic state of iraq and the levant. reconnaissance teams have been there for days, now ready to start the fight. we have a report from inside kobane. >> we are now standing in the western neighborhoods commonly known at kobane. they represent the springboard from which kurdish forces are fending off isil attacks, now in desperate attempt to control these areas and have a firm grip on areas to the east. to the right of the northern neighborhoods of kobane where the rye ridging can be seen in the backdrop, on these ridging the kurdish army and forces positioned, closely monitoring the fighting inside the city. the armed opposition groups who recently joined the kurdish forces are now deployed to the front lines, fighting isil, waiting for orders from the joint command, who are in turn waiting for the arrival have peshmerga kurdish forces with their superior gear and equipment. this will shift the balance of power on the ground. so

. >>> iraqi peshmerga soldiers have now crossed the board briefs turk any to syria to join the fight against isil. convoys, vehicles loaded up with heavy weaponry, antiaircraft guns and rocket launchers as well as the fighters seen here. the peshmerga fighters are joining syrian kurdish forces who are already defending the besieged town of kobane. the turkish president says he doesn't understand the push to arm isil opposition in kobane. >> translator: i want to stress one important thing about kobane, why kobane? why not other towns like homs or why not even. [ inaudible ] why not a rookie territory, 40% of which is occupied by isis. why aren't there interventions in these areas and why only in co ban any. >> let'kobane. >> we saw the convoy moving there undercover the darkness, understandably trying to avoid daylight hours, i don't know what you were able to see, but do you believe all the equipment and all of the men that they wanted to move has now crossed the border? >> reporter: essentially all of it, david has crossed over, barring a couple of oil tankers, that's according to

>>> the battle for kirkuk, kurdish peshmerga defends the iraqi oil town against the isil on slot. ♪ ♪ hello, this is al jazerra, live from our headquarters in doha. also ahead, demanding change, mexico's president agrees to calls for modifying policing methods. but to the plans go far enough? >>> tackling india's pollution problem. an environment the tribunal orders old vehicles off the streets of new deli. and big ben is broken. we look at the cul cultural dece of the port city. ♪ ♪ >>> there has been fierce fighting near the key iraqi oil city of kirkuk, kurdish peshmerga forces launched an operation to retake two areas from fighters from the islamic state of iraq and the levant. they were backed up by air strikes from the u.s. led coalition. iraq's finance minister says the fight against isil could cost a quarter of the country's budget. >> reporter: a battle for kirkuk, for days, isil fighters had been advancing towards the oil-rich city in northern iraq. and for a brief moment. they gained control of the military base and a individual on the outskirts. but the kurdish peshmerga f

. >> kurdish peshmerga forces celebrate the taking of jalala city. it was a tough fight with casualties on both sides, but isil fighters have been forced from the area. units were form to liberate the area from isil terrorists. our forces managed to free the entire area. >> iraqi jet fighters led the wave of the attacks in the early hours on sunday on the two key towns. then ground troops swept in checking the area for hidden explosives. >> we want a victory with the joint offenses. now the area is under total control. >> peshmerga casualties were treated in a nearby hospital, despite that there is increasing confidence in the iraqi and peshmerga forces. in june isil took parts of the province. while this operation is not over yet it's already being hailed as a success. and it's being looked at as a blueprint for future operations. this is a corporate t.v. effort between the iraqi air force, peshmerga forces, and iraqi ground troops, with syria down in anbar province will be the test of whether iraq can beat isil back. this will be more difficult tha

the peshmerga have been waiting on the border since wednesday. reconnaissance teams have been sent in over the past few days. now it seems that they're ready to begin the fight. now kobane has gained great significance not just for the kurdish forces defending it, but also for turkey. it's leaders have been watching developments there closely. we'll have more on that a little later. but first an exclusive report from inside kobane. >> reporter: we are now standing in the western neighborhoods these neighborhoods represent the springboard where they're fending off isil attacks. they have a firm grip on alias to the east. to the or the out of kobane, where the high ridges can be seen in the backdrop, on these ridges the turkish army and it's forces opposition closely monitoring the fighting taking place inside the city. now deployed to the front lines fighting isil, waiting for orders from the joint command who are arriving of peshmerga forces with equipment. this will shift the balance of power on the ground. forces are planning a new assault agai

you asked how many of those are peshmerga, three of those 12 brigades are peshmerga brigades. you asked about the request that the persshmerga has made for armaments of materiel. that is all being funneled through the iraqi government, and -- >> are they, how can you be assured that they're getting any of that? because publicly their ministers of defense and others are saying they're not receiving those arms. >> they are being given the armaments, all of the requests are ongoing, so just as i said in my statement, all the requests from the iraqi security forces aren't there yet, as i said in my statement, a good deal of this is still coming. you just don't produce large inventories of armaments in weeks or in a month. all of that is being worked through the iraqi security force through the iraqi government, and i also noted, by the way, in my statement, congresswoman, there were very specific amounts, significant amounts of armaments given directly to the peshmerga from coalition partners over the last few months. >> so up until this date as well as with the funding requests t

more than 100 peshmerga fighters crossed over the border. they arrived from iraq, but they accused turkey of delaying their entry. they were seen traveling toward a strategic hill on the western side of the city. let's bring in nick payton wall sh. they were seen cheering as they rolled in. they seem confident. >> reporter: certainly, this has been long awaited. they finally managed to enact that in the dead of night. we heard from witnesses, turkish military escorting the vehicles in. we don't know if that is the entirety of the peshmerga. over 30 vehicles and 150 plus militants. we know someone counted at least 100 going in. this is long awaited. that's about 100 kilometers from where i'm standing. they were there gathering, preparing the grounds, sent nine to ten scouts in to see the best way to affect their entry. they went in through the west hand side of the city, instead. that is more controlled by the kurds. one kurdish fighter telling us, it was a remarkable moment to feel that sense of kurdish unity when the iraqi kurds from northe

. >> let's go to syria where iraqi peshmerga kurdish forces have entered kobane, joining hundreds of syrian kurdish and opposition fighters to take on islamic state of iraq and the levant. they have been waiting on the border since wednesday. reconnaissance teams have been sent over, but now it seems they are ready to start the fight. we have an exclusive report from inside kobane. >> we are now standing in the western be enables commonly known as kobane. they represent the springboard from which kurdish forces are fending off isil attacks who are now in desperate attempt to control these areas and have a firm grip on areas at east. to the right of the northern neighborhoods of kobane, where the high ridges can be seen in the backdrop on these ridges the turkish army and its forces are are closely monitoring the fighting taking place inside the city. the armed groups who have joined the forces are now deployed to the front lines fighting isil, waiting orders from the joint command in turn waiting for the arrive of peshmerga kurdish forces with the superior equipment. this will shift

the peshmerga has gained ground. imran khan has the story. >> kurdish forces celebrate the taking of jalalla city. i.s.i.l. fighters have been forced from the area. >> units were formed to liberate jalalla. >> iraqi jet fighters led the first wave of attacks in the early morning of sunday, then ground troops swept in checking the area for hidden explosives. >> we won a huge victory with the support of the iraqi army and badr forces. now jalalla and sadiha are under complete control. >> others are foreign to solomonea. , dyalla province has seen clashes since june. when i.s.i.l. took over. it's already been held as a success, also been looked at as a blueprint for future operations. this was a cooperative effort between the iraqi air force, kurdish peshmerga forces iraqi ground troops and shia militia. however where i.s.i.l. have their strength near mosul and whether iraq can beat i.s.i.l. back, that fight will be much more difficult than the fights they faced against i.s.i.l. so far. imran khan, al jazeera, in baghda

. >> reporter: curdist peshmerga forces celebrate the taking of the city. isil fighters have been forced from the area. >> our forces managed to enter and free the entire area. >> reporter: iraqi jet fighters led the first wave of attacks sunday on the two key towns ground troops swept in checking the area for hidden explosives. >> we want a huge victory with the support of iraqi army and forces. as we launch a joint offensive. now this area is under control. >> reporter: casualties were treed treated in hospital and others were flown out. despite that there is increasing confidence in the iraqi and peshmerga forces. in june rhythm took the province, while this operation is not over yet it is already being hailed as a success, and it's being looked at as a blueprint for future operations. this was a cooperative effort between the iraqi air force, iraqi peshmerga forces and shia militias it may serve as a blueprint for future operations. however, where isil has its strength in mosul and the border crossing with syria and down in anbar province will be the re

the peshmerga forces when they entered in the western part of the city, and they brought with them pickup trucks that were carrying anti-aircraft guns, rocket launchers, about about a did yobazukas and the like. allies of the syrian army had been calling for several weeks to say that they needed to swing the battle in their favor away from the advancements of isil. as it stands now both sides continue to hold the positions they held prior to the peshmerga forces entering with one side that is isil side, controlling the eastern and southern parts of kobane, and those who have been defending it against isil advance, holding the surgeon and western side of the town. >> al jazeera arabic corresponden correspondent has crossed into kobane. his report has been translated into english. >> reporter: we are now standing in the western neighborhoods commonly known as kobane. these neighborhoods represent the springboard of which kurdish forces are fending off isil attacks who are now in desperate attempts to control these areas, and now have a firm grip on the areas to the east. to the right, the h

. >> indeed sammy, earlier today the kurdish coalition forces that is coalition of the peshmerga forces local ypg syrian forces opened up a new front between on to the isil fighters from the southwest of the town that is behind me, essentially shelling the suburbs of the town and the neighboring villages where it's believed there with are isil positions and saw mortars there and smoke rising from there and the mortars are fired by peshmerga forces while the local wpg fighters are moving on the grounds to capture the ground and it's important to let you know this is and why this is such a significant story to the turks is there are several shells that fell inside the turkish border to show you how volume tile it is. meanwhile there has been a sound of drones flying above as well as other coalition and that is explosion we hear as well as other aircrafts above and seems to be more activity than there has been in the past 48 hours or so. >> why is this taking so long? it has been quite an extended battle going on involving several countries and groups. >> well, that is what everyone is ask

. >> more fighting in kolbane. 150 kurdish peshmerga forces joined the battle to defend the to town.hey have been supported by u.s. air strikes. on the turkey/syria border with more. >> reporter: it now appears isil fighters are under attack from several different fronts. on the one side, you have the syrian kurdish fighters who have been combatting them for weeks now. now, they have been joined by the peshmerga forces who came from northern iraq through turkey and are now fully engaged or at least to a great extent in this battle firing mortars constantly throughout the day from the western side right behind us onto the eastern side. they have also been reinforcing their positions with deliveries of more weapons coming in. added to that has been the attacks that have come from the air, from the u.s.-led international coalition that has been targeting isil positions. however, until now, there has been no news of a shift in territorial control. what we understand, though, that there has been fierce fighting, and this is coming from our colleague inside the town who has told us that th

on this hill you will see as the camera zooms in some peshmerga troops who have been positioned there just away from that the camera unfortunately can't bring there is some smoke rising from some of the surrounding villages and suburbs to the southwest of kobani where essentially the kurdish coalition of peshmerga and syrian kurdish forces have been saying that they are opening up this new frontier essentially to try and gain more ground on isil fighters and push them out of the entire southern part of kobani. it's also important to note the reason why today we have dressed up in this gear is some shells have actually landed inside turkey for the first time in a few days if not weeks, a few hundred meters behind us. so there is an evident escalation in the battle, so far all be it without any real significant change in terms of who controls what across the town. >> highlights how close the fighting is as well. now jamal the success of this operation in kobani really does depend on the strategy between the peshmerga and the syrian kurds. is there any more development on that strategy?

you asked how many of those are peshmerga, three of those 12 brigades are peshmerga brigades. you asked about the request that the persshmerga has made for armaments of materiel. that is all being funneled through the iraqi government, and -- >> are they, how can you be assured that they're getting any of that? because publicly their ministers of defense and others are saying they're not receiving those arms. >> they are being given the armaments, all of the requests are ongoing, so just as i said in my statement, all the requests from the iraqi security forces aren't there yet, as i said in my statement, a good deal of this is still coming. you just don't produce large inventories of armaments in weeks or in a month. all of that is being worked through the iraqi security force through the iraqi government, and i also noted, by the way, in my statement, congresswoman, there were very specific amounts, significant amounts of armaments given directly to the peshmerga from coalition partners over the last few months. >> so up until this date as well as with the funding requests t

it wasn't enough to train an addititnal three peshmerga brigades. and adding another 1500 people certainly isn't going to be the end of this mission. if we're successful and we can create sunni units as well, which is essential to driving out the islamic state. so it isn't a matter of mission creep. from the start it's been clear, the air campaign could only work if you could get political unity within iraq, and you could create a mix of iraqi ground forces that could drive the islamic state out. >> sreenivasan: so is there some confidence that either the u.s. or anyone else has that adding these 1500 military trainers, ramping up, let's say, another 20,000 iraqi troops in a few months, will be enough? >> we n nd to be very careful here. nono,,re is no confidence that this will be enough. first, it isn't a matter of months, although you can make progress with the better units in that time. it's been stated very clearly this could take several years. and for it to work, you have to convince the sunnis in the western part of iraq and inin ky areas in

war planes and iraq peshmerga forces who bombarded the militants again monday. its iraq, the kurdish region got unexpected start from baghdad. that countries defense minister visit add training camp where there are reports of isil closing in. >> the peshmerga are part of the iraq defense system and our support is with them. what the army has is for the peshmerga. >> much of the public's attention has been on kobane in syria. meantime, the u.s. and its coalition partners continue those airstrikes in iraq as well to try to tamp down-ice as i will and stop its advances there. >> also this morning, the u.s. is tightening restrictions on travelers who come into the u.s. without a visa. what is behind the security measures? >> the concern is foreign fighters, individuals from western nations going to syria to join the fight on behalf of the more radical groups there. the concern is they could come back to western europe or to the u.s. without a visa radicalized. the u.s. wants more information from them to better determine who should or should not be allowed into the

iraqi security forces are now joining with the peshmerga round oil refineries. there will be setbacks and the progress. overall we are seeing good progress. we are not where we need to be that this is a longer-term, difficult, challenging mission. >> you have 1400 advisers there now? in special forces. there is a call for 1500 more. when one ago? -- when will a day ago? >> over the next few weeks. they are going, as you know, to provide the training and the assistance and the equipping of 12 of iraqi security force brigades, including a three peshmerga gauge. -- brigades. we have designated four areas in iraq to do that. >> is their review at the pentagon and with the white house to reconsider our options there? is there a review of american strategy in iraq and syria? >> there is no official review of any of the decisions of the president has made or our strategy, what there is on a continuing basis. the must always be an assessment of how well -- there must always be an assessment of how well we are doing. are there areas that we need to reshape, sure. we have

the peshmerga saying they could never have retaken the town. winter joins closer. peshmerga continues to defend towns like this across iraq. >> in the iraqi capital baghdad, eight have been killed. the explosion happened at a tent serving the pilgrims. 22 others were injured >>> an agreement in yemen has been signed to form a new government the the deal has been accepted by the houthi rebels, opposition and the houthi parties. it's not clear how long it will take to become a reality. the deal has been netted by united nations special envoy. >> all parties have reached an agreement to authorise the president highly, and the prime minister to form a government. according to competence and integrity standards, and reporting laws in human rights, and in partialitiy in state affairs. in contrary, they set force peace. >> al jazeera correspondent is in sanaa for us. now, before we get to the deal, omar al saleh, we hear reports that yemen security fighters are battling fighters in the north. what can you tell us about that? >> yes, well, the fighting between the al qaeda

on the ground, iraq peshmerga fighters fired mortar shells in heavy fighting against isil. the heavily armed peshmerga began crossing the barredder from turkey friday in pickup trucks and armored vehicles, marking the first time turkey has allowed ground troops outside syria to reinforce syrian kurds. in iraq, canada conducted its first combat airstrikes in the fight against isil sunday. two canada jets dropped laser guided bombs west of the iraqi capital. this air strike comes after last week's deadly attack in the capitol. the isil threat could an underlying factor in tuesday's mid term elections. >> this is the last chance for america to pass judgment on the obama administration and on its policies. the president said he's not on the ballot, but his policies are. >> voters will be asking themselves who has my back and they will consistently across the board say democrats have their back. >> now of course the mid term elections will be decided on a host of issues, not just what's going on internationally but domestically with the economy, health care and other issues like

>>> kurdish peshmerga forces strike i.s.i.l. targets inside kobane for the first time. >>> hello, i'm at al jazeera's headquarters in doha. also ahead a deal is signed in yemen to form a unity government. it comes against the backdrop of more fighting. a hero's welcome from some from burkina faso new interim leader. the african union condemns the military take over. the u.n. says there's con cluesive evidence that humans are -- conclusive evidence that humans are changing the earth's climate >>> kurdish forces are battling the i.s.i.l. armed group on two key fronts in syria and iraq. for the first time iraqi kurdish forces known as peshawar joined the fight against i.s.i.l. they have been sent to help syrian kurds stop i.s.i.l. fighters taking it. let's start, though, with that battle that is going on, . jamal joins us from the turkish-syrian boarder. where have the latest clashes left kobane? >> in terms of gaining new territories, it's not apparent whether any side has retreated or made gains, what we have seen, and who they k

the peshmerga are still deliberating on whether to september that.nd the governor of erbil has been here to discuss how to launch an offensive to retake mosul. it is isil's strong hold, and very close to the dam. we hear there are already around 5,000 volunteers that escaped mosul that are ready to be part of a potential force to take that offensive on in mosul, and there is beginnings of discussions as to whether those 2,000 kurdish volunteers, being also involved on that push towards this major isil strong hold. so certainly some very interesti interesting diplomatic developments here today. >> indeed. thank you very much. >>> syrian fighters say they have seized u.s.-made weapons in rival groups. >>> al jazeera has obtained exclusive video from inside a city in western syria. it was one of the cities where anti-government protests were held at the start of the conflict more than three years ago. now opposition groups are trying to recapture it from opposition forces. >> reporter: this amateur video shows the city within reach of opposition fighter

we will train up six or seven brigades of regular forces, plus peshmerga forces, to go on the defect -- the offensive eventually. this is going to take time. >> to end the war in iraq -- he is way beyond ending wars in iraq. him, andued without now he is reacting to it, as he well should. >> embarq province, what do you read into that? province, what do you read into that? >> these people are ready to throw off the fetters of isis and rise up against them, that they will want to see americans, american commitments, and a different iraqi government than they had in the past. >> what can you tell us about how the airstrikes are going? >> the airstrikes are having an effect. the one flaw in the plan so far is, we are not going to be putting any of these advisors out in the field with the iraqi unit, so they can call in airstrikes directly. that improves efficiency and increases the confidence of these iraqi and peshmerga soldiers, to see americans on the ground with them. >> wouldn't they then become combat troops? withoutis a distinction a difference. these troops will be involved in p

. >> there's increasing confidence in iraqi and kurdish peshmergaings forces. peshmerga forces. it's being looked at as a blueprint for future operations. this was a cooperative effort between the iraqi air force kurdish peshmerga forces, may well serve as a blueprint for further operations. however where i.s.i.l. have their strength, towards erbil, will be the real test of whether iraq can beat i.s.i.l. back. that fight and in those provinces will be much more difficult than the fights they face against i.s.i.l. so far. imran khan al jazeera baghdad. >> still to come on this al jazeera news hour. the battle for donetsk airport. we have rare access to the conflict on both sides. plus, talking business, the egyptian leader, abdel fattah al-sisi is on his first visit as president. >>> the catch described as one of the best in nfl history. ukraine says the lithuanian government has agreed to provide military aid as it continues to battle russian backed separatists in the country. at the airport north of the city of donetsk there's been constant fighting. harry fawcett gained access

it is perfectly in keeping with the mission that we've been assign ed there to assist isil from peshmergas as they improve their capability against isil. >> it is helpful. last week general dempsey said, he hinted at this need. and he said the precondition for that is that the government of iraq is willing to arm the tribes in anbar. do you have any assurances the government of iraq is going to work closely with these sunni tribes and arm them and is part of this plan to arm them yourselves or pay them or do anything akin to the awaken iin the previous strategy? >> through the iraqi train and equip fund the department requested funding to provide training to tribe operating under the ministry of defense. we expect they will be able to conduct some of the training at the same locations we will train iraqi army and peshmerga brigades. i would also add that the prime minister intends to continue outreach with the sunni tribes. he was out in anbar doing exactly that, encouraging his leadership to do the same, to continue that outreach, and while i can't put a fine point on exactly what all th

it is perly in keeping with the mission we have been assigned there to asif the iss and peshmerga forces as they improve their capability against isil. >> it is helpful. last week, general dempsey said that -- he hinted at this need and he said the pre-condition for that is that the government of iraq is willing to arm the tribes in ambar. do you have any assurance that the government of iraq is going to work closely with these sunni tribes and arm them, and is part of this plan to arm them, yourselves, or pay them or do anything it can to the awakening the previous strategy? >> through the iraqi train and equip fund, the department has requested funding to train train to go tribes. ultimately, we expect we will be able to conduct some of that training at the same locations where we will train iraqi army and peshmerga brigades. i would add the prime minister has made it clear he intends to continue outreach with the sunni tribes. he was out in anbar recently doing that. he has encouraged his iraqi security force leadership to do the same to continue that outreach and while i can't put a

on friday peshmerga forces from iraq joins the fight. we have more on the turkey syria border. >> the sound of coalition aircraft flying above kobane continues as the battle seems to intensify for control of this town. for several hours on monday there appears to have been battles on the southwestern side of the town that kurdish coalition forces and the local syrian ypg, it seemed to open up to another frontier southwest of kobane, trying to essentially pile the pressure on isil fighters. mortars were fired, and shells fired by the peshmerga forces as ypg marched on on the ground. on the eastern side there were now sounds of explosions coming from there as well. it appears that the tempo in this battle continues. the battle has gone on now for over a month. it is a small town and questions are being asked as to why it is take something long to capture such a small town. >> in northern eastern nigeria a suicide-bomber has blown himself up in a shia ceremony. people marked the holy day of ashour. religious leaders say the death toll is hi

numb three,e've got to get armsn tands othe peshmerga, those troops in e north ine kurdh part of aq. they are t best figer on the field ou side and we have to o ntinue to revale e iraqi serity forces. that will take time. we can do all thosehings but it is enuraging, we are seeg so results in effect from this air campgn but we can't bank this. we're not going to win this wee going to neeroops on the ground. >> andust as progrsms to be athand in the fight against the islamic state, now rports th ty aresing rfacto-air missiles against our apache attack helipters. how much peril and how effective are thr countermeasures lily be? >>'m worried about , lou. at the moment, we only have about a half don u. helicopters involved inthis fight, but i think ertime, that's going to be an area where we can put forceo real efect on the battlefield. the fact that we're seeing the lamic state with these hand-held missiles, very concerning. again, it speaks to the need for troops on the ground and it's not just thehelicopters. ultimately the are very dangerous for transport aircra as tey are movi troop

it was only the kdp peshmerga he allowed to be entering into. so there's going to be some power struggles and some game playing. and again barzani is still very tied and country controlled in some ways by turkey. that's going to be a red line for the kurds and syria. i just want to make one point about the ap question about our strategy to overthrowing assad. i speak on my own behalf, but there seems to be two trends within the coalition. as of this point the united states' strategy is not regime change in syria. there are coalition partners and i will say turkey is one that prioritizes regime change in syria. for the united states it seems that iraq is an easier beast to tackle. i say that relatively because there's already a government in place. there are forces on the ground. there are people working in partnerships. syria does not have that. so one of the issues between, i'd say, some u.s. and coalition partners in turkey is turkey wants the no-fly zone, the buffer zone and overthrowing the assad regime. so i don't see that in the larger gam

. >>> peshmerga fighters headed towards the town of kobani in an effort to help fellow kurds defend the city of kobani against the islamic state. joining us, retired four star army general, former vice chief of staff, general jack keen, chairman of the institute for the study of war. fox news military analyst. your reaction, if i may, to secretary hagel on the long term threat from the islamic state, contrast if you will, this. >> isil extremism radicalism, terrorism is a threat to every state, to every society. unfortunately, i see these things continuing to stay out there, jim. i think we're in for a longer term challenge here than maybe any of us would hope. >> as you know, general, i shudder when i hear folks talking about a longer battle than we anticipate. your thoughts about what the secretary said? >> yeah. well, fundamental to the plan is we do not want to put brigade combat teams on the ground. i would agree with that judgment as well. but if that's what you want to avoid, then you, depending on indigenous forces, local forces in iraq and syria, and if that's the case, why are

. >> reporter: peshmerga sources telling us here in erbil that after coalition air strikes on a village around 15-kilometers from the regional capital here in erbil, it's the closest, there was heavy shelling by isil forces on peshmerga positions in that town. an indication of potentially a push there by isil to come closer to the regional capital here. it comes on the same day as an iraqi delegation from the defense ministry, including the defense minister himself. pledging a friday guide of 2,000 volunteers, 2,000 kurdish volunteers to come and help defend this frontline in the north of iraq. what is important here the defense ministry says the volunteers will come under the eyiraqi army. the per herringer still deciding whether to accept the oftener. in the winter months we hear there could be greater difficult any defending that frontline. the iraqi army also pledging heavy weapons, more weapons for kurdish forces here. kurdish forces saying that they have received weapons from some of the coalition forces, but, again, asking for more. so as i say, heavy fighting, very close to the

on friday 100 peshmerga kurdish forces from iraq join the fight. we have more now from the turkey-syria border. >> reporter: the sounds of coalition aircraft above kobane continues, as the battle seems to intensify for control of this town. for several hours on monday there appears to have been battles on the southwestern side of the town after kurdish coalition forces belonging to the peshmerga forces and the local syrian forces opened up another frontier of the southwest of kobane trying to pile the pressure on isil fighters. mortars were fired and shells fired by the peshmerga forces as the ypg marched on the ground. on the eastern side there are now sounds of explosions coming from there as well as there appears to be tempo in this battle conditions. but the battle has gone on now for over a month. it is a small town, and questions are being asked as to why it is taking so long to capture such a small town. >> back to the incident we told you about in turkey. at the beginning of the program where a boat carrying undocumented migrants has capsiz

peshmerga reinforcements that include women look to push back isis militants. >>> and a new video from boko haram dashes hopes for the return of hundreds of abducted nigerian schoolgirls. i've always loved exploring and looking for something better. that's the way i look at life. especially now that i live with a higher risk of stroke due to afib, a type of irregular heartbeat, not caused by a heart valve problem. i was taking warfarin, but wondered if i kept digging, could i come up with something better. my doctor told me about eliquis... for three important reasons. one, in a clinical trial, eliquis was proven to reduce the risk of stroke better than warfarin. two, eliquis had less major bleeding than warfarin. and three, unlike warfarin, there's no routine blood testing. don't stop taking eliquis unless your doctor tells you to, as stopping increases your risk of having a stroke. eliquis can cause serious and in rare cases fatal bleeding. don't take eliquis if you have an artificial heart valve or abnormal bleeding. while taking eliquis, you may bruise more easily and it may take l

on peshmerga, potentially a push by isil to come to the regional capitol here and comes on the sames iraqi delegation from defense ministry including defense ministry himself pledge agree brigade of 2000 volunteers, 2000 kurdish volunteers to help come defend this front line in northern iraq. what is important here is defense ministry said the volunteers will be under the iraqi army and peshmerga still seeing if they will accept the army and looking to winter months ahead with greater difficulty defending the front line and iraqi army pledging heavy weapons, more weapons for kurdish forces, kurdish forces saying they received some weapons from coalition forces but asking for more. heavy fighting close to the regional capitol and this offer by the iraqi government pledging more support for the kurdish regional government here in defending against isil attacks. >>> in syria fighters from the al-qaeda linked al-nusra front said this town is a stronghold for the revolutionary front but fell to al-nusra after fighting on the weekend. >> reporter: they show up weapons recovered from the s

dod has deploy ee eed 1500 troo advise the iraqi army, counter terrorism services, peshmerga. the president has announced 1500 more will go. we have airlifted ammunition to those fighting isil. the administration enlisted around 60 countries to fight against isil. a number have undertaken strikes in iraq or syria and some volunteered to send special forces to iraq to help. of course congress approved temporary authority for the dod to train and equip elements of the syrian opposition to fight isil. in other words, mr. smith says, we have come a long way in a fairly short amount of time. thank you to the two of you for leadership in arriving at most of what i just mentioned. even though we have made substantial progress, more remains to be done to combat threat of isil. isil able to control territory in iraq and sir i can't have will without question plan and plot attacks on the west. we all agree as we've seen what they've been doing to people that they have taken to the people of beheadings, executions et cetera. i'm paraphrasing here to make this short mr. chairman. going fo

kurds inside the city say the peshmerga came in with heavy weapons. those have been able to provide the back up they need to push isis back to let their syrian kurdish nigfighters push back t the east and west. that is what the kurds are claiming. isis have a vote in the fight and set to bring in reinforcements. potential progress, substantial progress here in kobani. it comes after a bad weekend, as you mentioned. iraqi sunni tribe members who had suggested they may be willing to rise up against isis, but finding a space in which to operate, if that tribe is risen up, it could be a key assistance for the u.s. strategy there. the massacres of 50 tribal men and women there, significantly hampering that, but also maybe the tipping point which may send this tribe into action against isis. will the iraqi government give them the arms and weaponry they need? christine. >> nick paton walsh. thank you this morning. tragedy. >>> this morning, new polls showing the clearest sign yet that republicans may be on the verge of taking control of the u.s. senate. pul