we also have deployed peshmerga units.ere some peshmerga units left with the people already that prevented isis from advancing into the mountains to commit massacres in that area. but at this time, there is ongoing process of rescuing these people on the mountain and so far thousands of families have been rescued. >> one final question, mr mr. barzani, before i let you go, tell us what you want president to do right now to help this situation. >> i hope -- well, we are thankful, we are all grateful to the brave decision president obama made in terms of supporting peshmerga with the air strike. we hope this air strike will continue. and the cycle of strikes against isis targets will be expanded to the areas where the bases of isis are locate and not necessarily only at the line of battle between isis and the peshmerga. so we hope that the area of operation is going to be expanded and this will be an ongoing process. >> and what kind of weapons do you want from the united states? >> well, weapons that are effective against a

zeina khodr is on the front line with peshmerga forces and has this exclusive report. >> the peshmerga are on the offensive. they are embattled with the islamic state group. the kurdish forces are not fighting alone. the u.s. air force is covering their advantage the skies. the islamic state is not making the task easy. we see explosions from within the towns they controlled. they have been leaving besides bombs. an objective of the military operation is to recapture the mosul dam, the largest in iraq from the islamic state group. it is a strategic installation providing water and electricity for surrounding areas. there's many front lines in the war. >> the peshmerga advanced on more than one front. we are just 30km from the city center of mosul. the strong hold of the islamic state group. >> in this region, east of mosul, the peshmerga recaptured three towns. one of them is here. this is evidence of the fight. peshmerga fighters managed to shoot one of the vehicles belonging to the islamic state group. but we were not able to enter the area, because the peshmerga are conducting clear

the attack is part of a wider advance by the peshmerga. so far those peshmerga forces have retaken the some towns. some troops pushed on to a town taken by rebel fighters, down there a few days ago. fierce fighting continues at the scene. >> there's a major battle in missual. the peshmerga are massing the troops at the mosul junction. kurdish forces are marching towards the city, one of the first to fall for islamic state fighters. hoda abdel-hamid is live in sharifa. tell us what is happening in the village where you are? >> we are in sharif. one of three christian villages. the forces managed to recap fewer the islamic state group. this is part of the retaking the mosul dam. it's in the hands of the islamic state group. an hour ago we showed you the smoke billowing from around that dam. the kurdish forces are not carrying out the operation alone. this is a major military operation. they are receiving support from the u.s. military. we hear planes in the skies. the u.s. military carrying out air strikes and the peshmerga forces are using

the kurdish peshmerga want to take back towns. the iraqi army and the united states are trying to drive out fighters. u.s. has been carrying out airstrikes against the armed group. let's look at the areas where there has been fighting. you will see that so far, there we go, forces have retain three towns, some of those troops have pushed on to the town of telkef, certain by the rebel fighters a few days ago and there has been fierce wipeding going on there now. a major battle going on for the strategic mosul dam, too. zeina chodr. >> there is al military operation. the peshmergaa forces are going to the west, trying to recapture vision villages to my east. the mosul damn is still in the hands of the islamic state group. the peshmerga forces have managed to recapture three christian towns. we are in one of them, sharkia. the town of telskaf, we weren't able to enter because there are explosive devices, booby-trapped devices on the side of the roams, in homes, the peshmerga are quite worried. there is a cleaning up operation while t

we know that the peshmerga are ill-equipped. u.s. trainers are on the ground giving advice, and the islamic state is really trained and well armed. they captured a lot of weapons. >> let's leave zeina khodr there, and we can see the fighting behind her. >>> in parts of northern iraq the refugees fleeing the fighting outnumbers residents. that is putting the strain on local services. hospitals are struggling to cope. >> reporter: public hospitals in the kurdish region were struggling. as a region of iraq they are supposed to get drugs and other supplies from the ministry of health and baghdad. because of the dispute in oil revenue, between baghdad and erbil, neither supplies nor salaries came for months. >> the last few we have, medical supplies - because of the economic crisis and the baghdad - it interrupted. >> reporter: this maternity hospital is trying to cope with displaced iraqis and the regular case load of expectant mothers. it's a difficult time for everyone. it's the same story in hospitals across the region. >> this is one

now, the peshmerga forces are on the offensive.have spoken to commanders and asked them what are you intending to do? push further into mosul city? they wouldn't divulge any details due to the sensitivity of the military operation. this is undocumentedly a very big push and what people are hoping for is displaced people can return to their homes. so far up to 1.2 million people have been displaced as a result of the ongoing crisis which started in june. >> all right. let's thank zeina chodr there. in parts of north he were iraq, refugees pleaing at a time fighting it outnumber the residents. >> that's putting a strain on local services f as jane araf reports from erbil: hospitals are overwhelmed. >> reporter: public hospitals in the kurdish region were already strugg struggli struggling. they are supposed to get drugs and other supplies from the ministry of health in baghdad. because of the dispute over oil revenue between baghdad and erbil, officials say neither supplies nor salaries have couple for months. >> the last few we have

it seems the peshmerga forces have been successful in retapuring the town? >> jane, they are pushing through. kurdish security officials tell us that they are now at a junction 12km from the mosul dam, and 35km from mosul. they plan to push through on both directions, according to some officials, but the main target is the mosul dam, taken over from islamic state fighters. the reason they are making slow progress is because the islamic state group has placed explosives all along the roads and in the towns they are in. the explosives are improvised, home made bombs and land mines. it is quite remarkable that they have managed to push through the towns, and fighting now going on for control of a major town, fulling a few days ago to the islamic state group. >> tell us why the u.s. air strikes are having little impact on the humanitarian situation. the justification for the strikes is that they are helping the minority groups in particular. >> essentially because to get to the people who need the help, including the villages, the vulnerable villages on the base

kurdish peshmerga forces retake three towns from islamic state fighters. hello, you are watching al jazeera live from doha. i'm jane dutton. also coming up, thousand of opposition supporters remain on the streets of pakistan's capital to try to force the prime minister out. >>> gaza under fire - how israel's devastating campaign left parents with a dilemma, with a school your due to start. >>> plus... >> i'm in new york city, where a south african exile whose liveneded in the 1960s is about to go -- life ended in the 1960s is about to go back to his homeland. >> kurdish peshmerga forces in iraq are reported to have taken three towns east of the mosul dam from islamic state fighters. peshmerga have control of them. they are now fighting to retake the town of telkit. the u.s. has been carrying out air strikes around the dam and the northern city of erbil. several armoured vehicles used by the islamic state fighters have been damaged or destroyed. islamic state fighters are targetting several minority groups in iraq. people in the yazidi community said the u.

zeina khodr has been with the peshmerga forces and has our exclusive report now. >> reporter: the peshmerga are on the offensive. they are in battle with the islamic state. but the kurdish forces are not fighting alone. the u.s. air force is covering their advance from the skies. but the islamic state group is not making their task easy. we can see explosions from within the towns we control. they have been leaving behind bombs on the side of the road as they retreat. one of the objectives of the military actions is to recapture the mosul dam from the islamic state group which controls a third of the country. it's a strategic fight to gain water and electricity. there's many front lines in the war. the peshmerga advanced on more than one front. we are 30km from the city center of mosul, the strong hold of the islamic state group. in the region the peshmerga recaptured three towns. this is evidence of the fight. peshmerga fighters managed to shoot a vehicle belonging to the islamic state group. we were not able to enter the area, because the peshmerga are conducting clearing operations. it i

yes, there has been some alreadieses by the pesh -- reverses by the peshmergas. some withdrawal of certain parts. pesh this is not a tactical war. >> reporter: this conflict is a spillover from the war in syria, one that no army has fought here. the combination of islamic state fighters with suicide bombers and american weapons made them difficult to stop. >> we need that this -- this to bide times and go on the offensive. >> one is to obvious take the mosul damn, now fallen to the islamic state fighters. at risk are oil feeds, protected by iraqi security forces, and then the peshmerga. now within territory held by the radical group. mosul, a center for power for the islamic state, is 60km from here. the city of erbil is the kurdish capital and a major economic hub, and a main target of the group. the united states leaves the air strikes will help to defend the city. propping up the kurdish security will be an another matter. >> millions of turks are expected to cast their votes for the first time. votes were decided by parliament. voting is under way across the

so far peshmerga forces have retaken the towns. some pushed on. there's fears fighting gong on there right now. it is a major battle in mosul. the peshmerga have been massing their troops at the mosul juncture, some advancing towards the city. it was one of the first to fall. others were sent to fight at the traddagicly -- strategically vital mossel dam. the pictures shows smoke rising around the mosul dam. there's fighting there as i speak. zeina khodr joins he lie, and she is close to the mosul dam. what is happening where you are, and what you have seen? >> well, there's a major military battle. 2km down the road is the front line. we came back, the peshmerga are having a hard time advancing inside this up to. what we saw were explosions from within the town. what we understand from the peshmerga is that the islamic state group are leaving behind road side bombs to slow the vans. the islamic state group has retreated. this town was not under the control of the peshmerga this morning. the islamic state group were treated. sharkia is one of three

but for now the morale of peshmerga forces is quite high. they've managed to capture three christian towns in the ongoing offensive. >> joining us now is the deputy prime minister of the kurdish regional government, and he speaks to us from erbil. thank you for joining us on the show. now it does seem that the iraqi and kurdish forces are close to taking on the mosul dam, but what about the surrounding area and the city of mosul? >> thanks for having me on. it's a pleasure to be on. the dam operation is almost complete. they are now cleaning those areas making sure there are no planted bombs or i.e.d.s. the cooperation between the peshmerga force ohs, the kurdish forces and the united states has been very effective so far. it's intended to retake the dam at a strategic location. any further operations after that, as your reporters have said beforehand will have to be done in coordination and partnership in all sides. >> now as you mentioned you did have help in the operation of retaking of the dam. how significant--explain to us how signific

the peshmerga there stationed ready to defend their city erbil where we are now. that was deemed a success. we've also know that the peshmerga have been able to retake two important towns that they had lost. important because those two towns are only about half an hour away from where we are now. and the peshmerga were only able to do that because they have the air cover from the u.s. but having said that, the front lines keep an moving. so although we had successes up here in the north, in the ton of jalawa around an hour away from baghdad, we know that kurdish forces have been overrun by isis fighters and that they've lost that town there with losses of many of their fighters. >> duncan golestani, thank you for that. and stay safe out there. >>> we heard how critical these kurdish fighters are. they are reportedly receiving weapons and ammunition from the obama administration. the question for man is, should we have been arming elements an the grond earlier? and particularly, in syria? in a new interview with "the atlantic," former secretary of state hillary cli

but the peshmerga fighters here vow not only to hold this line, but to advance. quickly urged to leave as the peshmerga prepared to launch rockets at islamic state artillery nearby. back in the town, despite the colonel's assurances we found a virtual ghost town. only a few hundred of its nearly 20,000 residents who fled have returned. among them, english teacher ziad mohammed who unlike most returnees here actually brought his family too. he described what happened when islamic state force forces-- began shelling the town and then moved in. >> they are attacking, you see people the town empty, maybe the people you see here, the people come-- . >> warner: why did you come back? >> because you see, my building. and i like my space, if there is another attacking, shelling. but i don't fear for isil but maybe i fear for my children, for my wife. >> warner: most internally displaced iraqis have decide the risk is too high to go home. tens of thousands are in the irbil area, camping out wherever they canind shelter. like these 200 families from mosul parked temporaril

that includes the iraqi security force and the peshmerga forces.his began on saturday night we've seen a really historical level of cooperation between the iraqi army, the iraqi air force and peshmerga commanders. we've seen iraqi air force jets in the sky doing tactical strikes in support of peshmerga units. just today, the iraqi air force flew a c-130 to erbil delivering supplies to get to the peshmerga front lines. and we are obviously actively engaged in facilitating this coordination. it once again proved the military proficiency of isil and there's a political component and a military component. and that is what we are helping with. >> you were one of the architects of the surge. your experience in iraq goes back a dkade with all these ambassadors and military leaders, two presidents. so to what extent do we think some of those sunny tribal leaders of supporting isil or isis because of or as a result of the mistakes, acknowledged mistakes that baghdad made in excludeing sunni leaders from the government? >> i'll break it down like this. it's

this area is in the hands of the peshmerga. hwe understand from the commander that they want to retake christian towns. the christians abandoned their homes when there was advancingment of the islamic state group. they said we can't do this alone. we need the cooperation of the iraqi government. what is happen something these airstrikes, and the advance on the ground is just weakening the group. it is not defeating the group. they control urban major centers in the sunni heartland, and unless there is a broad based government where all of iraqi's political parties and communities feel they are represented then it will be very hard to see how there will be an coordinated attacks to defeat the islamic state group. >> dana thank you. now israeli and palestinian representatives only have a few hours left to come to an agreement. the current cease-fire came to effect on thursday and it is due to expire on local time. the brigade hamas' military wing is replenishing it's stock pile of rockets and said it will use them if israel conti

peshmerga forces are now protecting our border on the other side that has isis. as long as 1,035 kilometers. the personnel has been stretched very thin and that's one of the reasons as to why isis has been able to make progress where the peshmerga is. >> you have tens of thousands of refugees from religious minority groups and christians who are fleeing to the kurdish region. you are strapped with so many people who are homeless and they need help now. >> absolutely. we have really raised this profile as far and as high as we can to the international community. it's a moral responsibility for the united states and the european partners to step in and certainly regional partners to step in and help. today, since june 9, we have now 1.2 million refugees and counting. our region's population is 5.3 million. one out of five or six is not a resident. over the weekend we received another 200,000. this is in addition to the quarter million refugees we have received from syria in the conflict taking place in the last three years. on top of this, no budget coming in from

because the peshmerga had never seen this before. it was the first time they had actually seen this piece of artillery that had been taking them out for days. to then witness what this u.s. air strike had done, completely destroyed this piece of artillery, they were truly amazed. it certainly buoyed spirits and confidence and morale. you know, as i say, they do believe they can fight the isis militants. but the residents who returned for their belongings, wolf, they don't agree. they honestly believe that isis will reclaim this territory. they know how aggressive they are. they know how brutal they are. they really just fear for their lives. so theme gone home, gathered whatever belongings they can. we saw this mass exodus of cars and trucks leaving makhmour and heading to us here where we are now in erbil, wolf. >> anna, as you point out, they're under no illusions. u.s. air strikes certainly can be helpful, destroying an artillery position here, an artillery position there, that certainly will help, but the isis forces, they are we

the peshmerg meg good are -- peshmerga are not the iraqi forces but it's part of one iraq nation. >>it is not part of one iraq government. >> one part of iraq nation. i got that. but the peshmerga are good fighters, and i can tell you we have already helped the iraqi government in baghdad resupply and give them provisions. we are heaping heaping in that s and looking at other options. clearly there's always the risk of things falling into the wrong hands. the peshmerga are fighting very hard, and thanks our our strikes and assistance and helping them get supplies, their morale has capability and proficiency has increased and they're keeping isil at bay in and around irbil. doesn't mean irbil is safe from the complete but they're taking it to them and we're helping put a hurting on isil in and around irbil. >> we're hearing that there are flags waving, horns honking, thanks to the americans and others for the help. i want to show you an area where this is happening. this is the area that isis now controls, and as you'll see there, isis doesn't recognize that border between syria and i

that will take troops on the ground and in all likelihood peshmerga but the peshmerga need to be resuppliedmunition and ability, that's what they need to facilitate the effort. the other strikes are pin bricks and limited to the erbil area. we need a broader campaign hitting deeper and broader i.s.i.s. targets, to eliminate their mobility and the freedom of action to strike where they want. right now they have the initiative along the line between kurdistan and the rest of iraq to hold the line and to the south along the euphrates river and the area around baghdad. that initiative needs to be taken away from them. >> sreenivasan: mr. istrabadi, what about that, that there will have to be boots on the ground and may have to be peshmerga ones? >> well, i don't think american boots on the ground are likely. i think that the president's been clear on that and i'm not certain that the american public would tolerate it. so, yes, i think there does need to be coordination between the peshmerga and other iraqi forces. i want to say very quickly that we should remember that the peshmerga are, in fac

it hasn't been easy for the peshmerga. they have been coming under sniper fire. the islamic state group has been using mortars to target their positions. this is an active frontline and the kurds with their limited resources have been firing back. the general hasn't left the battlefield since saturday, when the kurds started their advance under the cover the u.s. air strikes, he told me that they are facing a strong enemy. >> translator: they are well trained. many of them were former officers in saddam's army. there are also many air action , he chet ans and some from the afghanistan war. we are just nine-kilometers from the city center of mosul. peshmerga commander have no intention of pushing toward the strong hold of the islamic state group but they would be ready to do so only if there is an agreement among the iraqi communities. it's important for obama administration to show that its air strikes are not just helping the kurds but the iraqi nation as a whole. >> translator: we are fighting terrorist and terrorism for the whole world so all countries should

an important strategic victory, but also will restore the confidence of the peshmerga. when thislly expected latest offense started into kurdish-held territory that isis would have been as successful as they were. there is a potential disaster that has been averted, both environmental and humanitarian. dam being blown would have led to severe flooding and loss of electricity. it would have been a desperate measure. dam, it sabotaged the would have been a very desperate measure. it would have wreaked havoc in mosul, which they are trying to use as their capital. it was have -- it would have caused flooding and loss of electricity, which would have essentially signed their own death warrant. >> this is truly a victory for iraq and for the kurdish peshmerga fighters who were at the forefront of this retaking of the dam. what are they going to do next? what is their next move? >> they said this won't be an isolated operation. they are going to continue to take the fight isis. that may well be villages east of modal 0-- of mosul. there are a number of minorities, christian a

the peshmerga came here last night and took the area and now everything is secure. there was a sniper on that hill, but we got him, too. >> when the islamists took the dam, it took -- sent a wave of alarm through kurdistan. this is their first major victory against isis and it will restore confidence, but it was by no means the chief alone. >> isis is not only a threat to kurdistan, but to the whole free world. that's why we were very happy that they helped us, and we thank all the countries who , so that these terrorists do not spread out to other nations. >> the kurdish regional government has made it clear they will only protect kurdish areas. the kurds are unlikely to advance beyond what they consider their borders. forces are continuing to fight the extremist fighters on a string of fronts, including in saddam hussein's hometown of tikrit. this as the united nations is readying a massive aid operation to try to help some of the 500,000 iraqis who have been displaced during the conflict. let's look at some other news stories for you on "france 24 -- on "france 2

and this is an opportunity for the peshmerga to get resupplied and perhaps carry on the offensive. this could be a key. >> general mark hertling, thank you so much. jim sciutto, thank you as well. this continuously breaking story. i want to take you to another top story we're following as well and that's fighting between israel and hamas. that fighting geared back up as a cease-fire is effectively over. we're going to take you live to the region for what exactly is happening at this hour. that's next. [ man ] look how beautiful it is. ♪ honey, we need to talk. we do? i took the trash out. i know. and thank you so much for that. i think we should get a medicare supplement insurance plan. right now? [ male announcer ] whether you're new to medicare or not, you may know it only covers about 80% of your part b medical expenses. it's up to you to pay the difference. so think about an aarp medicare supplement insurance plan, insured by unitedhealthcare insurance company. like all standardized medicare supplement insurance plans, they help cover some of what medicare doesn't pay. i did a

so the peshmerga have been heavily outgunned. they'll be hoping getting those weapons direct from the united states makes a difference. back to you. >> duncan golestani reporting from iraq. thank you. joining us at the table, michael kay. good to see you as always. what is your view based on what we know? >> i think the strikes are a short-term solution to a long-term problem. we look at the center of gravity of isis. what do you have to target within isis? what makes isis so potent? the thing we came up with is ideolo ideology. it's an incredibly hard thing to target. it's something you have to take a longer term approach to. now, if you look at how that might fuel the ideology in terms of air strikes, you have potential collateral. we've seen this with assad. assad in syria using the barrel bombs has created all sorts of collateral and fueled the insurgency. it's fueled people wanting to join isis to overthrow the government. then you look at maliki, who's a divisive prime minister. all the u.s. is doing with these air strikes

there's a lot of smoke on the horizon from the attacks from the peshmerga forces. isis militants are laying explosive tnt beside the road and inside houses in the hope of inflecting casualties on the kurdish forces. but from what we can see from our vantage point, peshmerga are pushing ahead and we can hear the jets overhead as well. that has been the situation for the last several hours. the jets fly over from time to time. and they are obviously looking for those isis key positions whether it be artillery, whether it be vehicles, whether it be those mortar positions. but certainly from what we have heard from the commander we are with, the peshmerga special forces, he says they are makin grounds. >> we did not have that information a moment ago that peshmerga are there trying to flush out these militants. you mentioned the jets that are over the scene right now. are these iraqi jets? u.s. jets were involved in the air strikes yesterday. >> yeah, the air strikes have been happening now for some days in relation to mosul dam. obviously the air strikes have been tak

we are supporting our peshmerga fighters as much as we can. we really need help to acquire modern weapons, because we think this fight is a long- term war, and it will not end easily. >> warner: was that the problem in jalawla? >> there, we have problems larger than weapons. arabs in those towns support isis, that's the bigger problem. jalawla has always been a bastion of baathist support, there are 1,200 former high ranking baathist offices there. it's always been a bastion of terrorists, even when the americans were here. >> warner: to test that notion, we had mohamed mala hussein, mayor of khanequin where the peshmerga are based, take us in his convoy of heavily armed men to meet one of the many sunni arabs he said have fled to khanequin from jalawla. amer yusef, a successful contractor, left with his family of 13 in june as islamic state began infiltrating jalawla. he has a decidedly negative view of the islamist group. >> ( translated ): they are a terrorist organization that wants to harm us. they have harmed most of the families that ha

peshmergas have broken through. they are telling us that there's a village there, and they are trying to take back from the fighters. the push is ongoing, but they got into the town. >> the push is ongoing. any ideas at this statement what their planning to -- at this stage what they plan to do next. how significant is the battle. >> i think what they do next is reliant on what is going on. they are honest. they could not have taken amerli. they have been relentless in june on saturday. u.s. fighter jet, iraqi helicopters, and iranian fighters jets pummelled the. >> s line. the peshmerga are saying they've been led by what is going on from the air. the areas are softening up and they are pushing in. taking amerli is significant for moral because they are worried about the turkman residents inside amerli. they were worried that the men would die. it's a small dent really, and a battle in the whole area. there was another area, way is further to the east of amerli. they have managed to make inroads in there. they have

but on this front the peshmerga are not getting support from the u.s. air force because the islamic state group is adapting to the reality. they're using sophisticated weaponry as well as explosive devices to slow the advance of the forces. peshmerga would like more help from the iraqi army but they have not had help since they took the heartland in june. >> it is necessary because when we make a coordination together, we could respond to them and fighting them better than now. >> reporter: further east there is cooperation. iraqi forces are helping the kurds recapture the towns. this will be a long term battle. so far the kurds and the iraqi army don't have the support of local sunni communities. they need them on board or else this could turn into a war against iraq sunnies against a war against the islamic state group. al jazeera. >> remember to join us tonight as we take a deeper look inside the islamic state group. we look at who is funding that's organization. that's a deeper look at 8:00 p.m. eastern. >>> the fight owner eas over eastern ukraine

this is the peshmerga. like everybody has full confidence. so yeah, even now with the air strikes, with the support from the u.s., people are still concerned. nobody has confidence in anything anymore. >> i imagine so. i guess my question, do they think the united states has done enough or do they need the united states to do more? josh earnest, white house press secretary, said a couple of days ago, the united states isn't the answer when it comes to the issues in iraq and dealing with isis. i get the sense that if you talk to the kurds and you talk to folks in erbil, they believe the united states is the only answer? >> reporter: yeah, there's mixed reactions. i mean, yeah. but a lot of people, probably the majority are saying they want more support, they want more action. maybe even troops on the ground. like a lot of people were expecting a bigger reaction earlier actually from the united states. so most people -- others don't really want outside interference, they want iraqis to mobilize. but yeah, the majority, yeah, they want a bit mor

, the bra peshmerga soldiers kill these tanks and apcs. look, this is a 600 mile border. you can't protect that with rifles. you need first-rate, first-class equipment capable of standing up to these guys if you're going to hold your ground. >> i wish the president would listen to these guys, because i know he won't listen to me. but there is a plan. mr. president, five minutes, authorize your military people. let's do something right in america. [ applause ] >>> christians and yazidis in iraq have been given a choice, leave the region, convert to islam or die. my next guest knows all too well my next guest knows all too well the brutality of female announcer: sunday's your last chance to save big during sleep train's triple choice sale. for a limited time, you can choose to save hundreds on beautyrest and posturepedic mattress sets. or choose $300 in free gifts with sleep train's most popular tempur-pedic mattresses. you can even choose 48 months interest-free financing on the new tempur-choice, with head-to-toe customization. the triple

but more than that, peshmerga, who we speak w. the kurdish forces, say they're a formidable enemy because they don't fight conventionally and they're completelying will and happy, in fact, to die. what they have done along all of the areas where they're doing battle is laid explosives. they have very sophisticated explosives expertise, so they have lined buildings with bombs that have to be dismantled. in shallula, not for from the border, it's seized by the islamic state, and it's one of the areas where the peshmerga are trying to take back the territory. >> well, it extends as far as west as the mediterranean. and the death toll from syria's war is 191,000. they attacked the failure of the international community to act. >> the conflict in syria is facing outwards in an uncontrollable process, whose eventually limits we continue predict. afghanistan, central african republic, the democratic republic of congo, iraq, libya, ali, the occupied palestinian territory, somalia, south sudan and ukraine. these crisis show the full cost o

you know, they've moved on from the peshmerga live. lot of the fighters and chae commanders now are not battle trained. they don't actually have the experience. which gives you a sense of the sail of the problem here. those are the only boots realistically that are on the ground, the peshmerga, to some degree, the iraqi army, but they're not a very potent force right now. they will depend on american air cover but that might not be enough by itself. >> i'm sure it won't be. they need a lot of sophisticated weaponry to deal with the armor, the sophisticated weapons that the isis troops stole from the iraqi military, almost all of it u.s. manufactured and left behind by the departing u.s. troops. and we'll see what the u.s. is willing to provide these peshmerga/kurdish fighters. it's a pretty depressing situation as you and i agree. thanks very much for joining us. bobby ghosh, the managing editor of "quartz," we'll continue to have him here on cnn. >>> up next, the man who lived in the shadows has now shown his face. we have the inside

from your reporting, have these weapons, the necessary weapons, reached the peshmerga? >> no. they certainly haven't. this is one thing we hear from generals and the soldiers on the ground. we need weapons to counter these advanced weapons that isis have taken from the iraqi army. do know that a couple of truckloads arrived recently but they were russian-made more tars and -- mortars and small arms. they need antitanks. they need heavy artillery and need to train how to use them. this tis the crucial part here. working with the iraqi government in baghdad. >> journalist benjamin hall who is right there in the kurdish city. all the best and thank you so much. >>> much more ahead on the shooting of the unarmed black teenager in ferguson, missouri. we'll talk to a trial attorney and how three different autopsies could affect that case. that is as we wait for the president of the united states to speak on this matter and iraq. that's coming up in the minutes ahead. this is america's choice for news and information on cable. you're on fox news channel. so ally bank really has no hi

peshmerga forces are on the ground trying to advance. to recapture a dam which is still upped the control of thing under the control of the islamic state group. t the peshmerga, the kurdish forces are not involved in the operation. they are receiving support from the u.s. military. an ill-equipped force would not be able to undertake a major battle without air support. the peshmerga spokesperson, kurdish forces captured three villages, as they pushed towards a highly strad eemic installation, the mosul dam, providing visity, it's a highly strategic fight. it is not over. >> five have been injured in shelling by the iraqi army officials say they aring targetting fighters from the islamic state and other factions. violence escalating where the ukrainian forces said a fighter jet was shot down after launching an attack on rebels. a rebel leader says he's planning to launch a major offensive, bragging about having 12-00 fighters trained in russia. ministers from russia, germany, ukraine and france are meeting in berlin. >>> a u.s. special en

>> reporter: in the last hour we learned that peshmerga special forces in kilometers of that. they are currently clearing out the area that has been battled. we've been since early this morning and they have been aggressively targeting the militants with heavy artillery, lots of smoke has been on the horizon, lots of loud explosions. it was seen that the militants have retreated, the problem is they have gone and laid land mines explosives along the road and certainly in a number of buildings. we also believe that there are snipers along the main road from us to where the dam is, mosul dam. we're in mosul province, we can see mosul lake and the dam, obviously flows on from there. yes, we do understand that peshmerga soldiers are within kilometers of the dam having a brutal battle with these isis militants who certainly are digging in. >> and how resourced, how prepared are the kurds because as i understand it, isis is fighting with american weapons, the kurds are not so well equipped. >> reporter: yes. that's exactly right. obviously the air strikes the u.s. air strikes have b

a top official in the government says that more than at least 1r50 kurdish peshmerga fighters dies in the last six days alone, at least 500 also wounded. the kurdish peshmerga have been bloodi bloodied by the isis militants in the last couple days and that is what has caused the peshmerga to pull back and a half million displaced iraqis who have flooded in now. >> among the half million who fled there, i think the americans thought as much as well positioning the military advisers there. can you talk about the americans and the refugees? >> i haven't got a look at the u.s. military or diplomatic presence on the ground here. but i've certainly seen this -- enormous flood of displaced iraqis and it's pretty emotional to see. all of these people left in a matter of hours wednesday night as the kurdish peshmerga were pushed out of towns and villages and members of the mosaic of ethnic and religious minority who have lived for thousands of years in northern iraq sent running by any means possible. and there is a christian contingent here. more than 100,000 are on the run. i saw people slee

peshmerga say they need to be better equipped. they are fighting the isis militants with superior weaponry. certainly the air strikes changing the situation on the ground, allowing the peshmerga forces to take the fight to isis militants knowing they have that cover, if you like, from the skies. obviously, they need to be careful around the dam facility because it is just so vital. >> anna for us this morning in mosul. thanks, anna. >>> the clock ticking on the gaza cease-fire. the truce is set to expire in less than 13 hours. israeli and palestinian negotiators are in cairo talking about prolonging the peace. the demands of the two sides won't be easy to reconcile. the palestinian delegation demands an end to the economic blockade. fred pleitgen is there with more. there's not much wiggle room in teen. >> reporter: it's very difficult. if there's no agreement, they are willing to go back to hostilities that would be devastating not just for the people in gaza, but on the israeli side as well if the rocket attacks start again. the

and the peshmerga forces. yes, there has been some reverses by the peshmergas, some disorganization, some withdrawal of certain parts. but this is not a classical war. >> reporter: this conflict a spillover from the war in syria that no army has foughtment the combination of american fighters with suicide bombers and american weapon seized made it difficult to stop. >> we need this to buy time, to regroup, to re-organise, and to go on the offensive. one of the priorities will be to retake the mosul dam, the biggest in the country, now falling to islamic state fighters the. at risk are oil fields protected by rocky security forces and the peshmerga, within territory held by the radical group. mosul, the center of power for islamic state fighters is 60km from here. the city of erbil is the kurdish capital and a major economic hub and a main target of the group. the united states believes the air strikes will defend the city, but propping up kurdish security forces will be a longer mission. >>> air strikes ordere

, the bravery of the peshmerga soldiers kill these tanks and apcs. look, this is a 600 mile border. you can't protect that with rifles. you need first-rate, first-class equipment capable of standing up to these guys if you're going to hold your ground. >> i wish the president would listen to these guys, because i know he won't listen to me. but there is a plan. mr. president, five minutes, authorize your military people. let's do something right in america. [ applause ] >>> christians and yazidis in iraq have been given a choice, leave the region, convert to islam or die. my next guest knows all too well the brutality of radical islam. you don't want to miss this. we'll be right back. that's why allstate claim free rewards gives you money back for every year you don't have one. and why if you're part of the other 5%, allstate offers claim rateguard. so your rates won't go up just because of a claim. no matter what comes your way, your home protects you. ...protect it back allstate home insurance from an allstate agent. virtually all your important le

a spokesman for peshmerga is standing by.uncer] who could resist the call... ...of america's number-one puppy food brand... ...with dha and essential nutrients also found in mother's milk. purina puppy chow. >>> u.s. air strikes in iraq against isis are credited with helping iraqi and kurdish forces to retake some strategic locations including the dam in mosul. those kurdish fighters are known as the peshmerga. they are aligned with the semiautonomous region known as kurdistan. they have historically been great warriors, very courageous, but are they large enough to stop isis? a senior british media observer doesn't think so, telling the daily beast they're doing their best but they're not the element they were. with the bulk veterans from guerrilla warfare from 20 to 30 years ago. this bringigadier general is th spokesman for persshmerga in erbil. are you losing ground or gaining ground against the isis forces in kurdistan and northern iraq? >> initially we lose ground but now we are gaining ground after we received an air s