french units have been massing to the southwest of timbuktu. after traveling through on saturday night, there is now a pause. it is clear that they are preparing to advance on this key stronghold. >> the strategies have been the same in each town. troops from mali go first, closely followed by french forces. they want to create the impression that this is the mongolian government retaking towns and not a foreign army conquering them. >> the army needs to win the confidence of ordinary people. when the rebels took over the north, the army simply ran away. the french involvement has changed everything. >> it has been very difficult, we need a lot of logistical support and help with intelligence and communications. this is what we need to finish this operation. >> this group as a prisoner. they say that he is a rebel. the army has been accused of summary executions. they lead the prisoner away. senior french officers commanding the operations fly to the front lines. they have come to give the troops there final briefing. >> many of the rebels have

warm welcome in timbuktu.housands of egyptians have defied curfews to continue the anti-government protest. five days of protests are endangering national security. four people have been arrested in connection with sunday's night club fire in brazil. they are remembering the victims. >> family members buried this 18-year-old. he was in the nightclub that caught fire killing more than 230 people. he went back in to try to rescue trapped friends. >> he went in and out at least twice. the last time he won in, he never came out. >> the local gymnasium was turned into a morgue. she was going to turn 21 by the end of the week. monday was spent going through the interior of the night club looking for answers. the club was overcapacity. a flare was set off that apparently triggered the fire. there were no fire alarms or working fire extinguishers. the security guard might have closed the doors, trapping hundreds of people inside. it is believed the guards might have been unaware there was a fire and locked the doors t

but i can tell you the tension is rising here in timbuktu. there are scenes of looting downtown, with dozens of people out in the streets going one shop after the other, targeting shops that were held by ethnic touraregs. accusing them of collaborating with ms -- islamists and they say they are hiding arms, cash, and weapons. the malian army deployed in town, and is trying to contain the crowd, although it is not clear because there also kind of smiling and waving at the crowd. they have pulled out of boxes of weapons and rifles from some of the shops. >> very indicative of the danger the people of timbuktu. what do you think they had to endure during the months of islamist rule? >> the people here clearly talking about revenge. they are saying, we want revenge. they have been living nearly a year under very strict islamist rule. they have to comply to very strict practices. if they did not comply, they would be whipped. some peoples -- people will have their hands cut off or other terrible punishment like this. they are now saying there is n

the french and mali and troops have reached timbuktu. they reclaimed a strategically important town in the northeast. the fight to regain total control continues elsewhere. there have been french air strikes in one town. african leaders have been told their response to the crisis in mali has been too slow. the head of the african union chairman made the comments as the opening of the body summit in ethiopia. >> a stinging criticism of african leaders came from no less a figure that african union boss of the outgoing chairman, president of the need. he told delegates the deployment of peacekeepers had taken far too long. >> how could it be that when faced with a danger that threatens its very foundations, africa, although it had the means to defend itself, continue to wait? >> as leaders made their ways between meetings, it emerged the first troops from niger and chad arrived in mali and will be stationed in a recently recaptured town, a clear sign of progress, as the president of cenacle. >> we have to mobilize all people for security. >

timbuktu is a world heritage site.o it remains like some of the ancient cities, a place of wonder and of beauty >> brown: and again with caution because wedon't exactly know about the rules here, but to the extent that things, if things are lost, what is lost? >> well, it's an enormous amount of knowledge that we will not be able to replace because it is knowledge created by the people of the region. it is their knowledge of their tradition, their culture. it is knowledge of plants, of deserts, of science, of philosophy, of law. that really is a universal thing. to lose that is really very sad. >> brown: all right. mary jane deeb. thank you so much >> thank you. >> brown: you can watch all of fred's story on the ahmed baba collection on our web site. >> ifill: finally tonight, the story of the first u.s. veteran to receive a double arm transplant. doctors at johns hopkins hospital in baltimore, where the surgery was performed last month, released details of the operation today, and the reaction from the patient himself

timbuktu is a world heritage site.o it remains like some of the ancient cities a place of wonder and of beauty >> brown: and again with caution because we don't exactly know about the rules here but to the extent that things, if things are lost, what is lost? >> well, it's an enormous amount of knowledge that we will not be able to replace because it is knowledge created by the people of the region. it is their knowledge of their tradition, their culture. it is knowledge of plants of deserts, of science, of philosophy, of law. that really is a universal thing. to lose that is really very sad. >> brown: all right. mary jane deeb. thank you so much >> thank you. >> brown: you can watch all of fred's story on the ahmed baba collection on our web site. >> ifill: finally tonight, the story of the first u.s. veteran to receive a double arm transplant. doctors at johns hopkins hospital in baltimore, where the surgery was performed last month, released details of the operation today, and the reaction from the patient himself.

there is cheering and dancing in the desert city of timbuktu tonight. just a day after french forces liberated the city from atlantic rebels, there also leaves and reprisals. as western governments way their involvement in the operation, the long-term security in the north of the country is still in doubt. >> dancing on the streets. the relief is clear as french and local troops took back at the desert town and opposed. already, there has been looting and retributions as angry crowds threatened to kill those that fought for the islamists. they will try to wage a deadly insurgency. preventing that will be up to african troops, for molly and its neighbors. they're looking to raise money for the african mission which will include british military trainers. the defense secretary has spelled it out but has not commented on it. >> france has made it clear that they see a short intervention to stabilize the situation on the ground while the african forces from neighboring countries and the army have deployed to sustain the situation in the longer term. >> seni

i hope the world will look at timbuktu because timbuktu is living a truly difficult moment today. >>takes days to reach the city by car, and most aid agencies cannot take the risk. for now, timbuktu and its people face this crisis alone, isolated from the world. >> the report by may ying welsh, our guest speaking to us from the headquarters of al jazeera in doha, reporting in that piece from mali. may ying welsh, i want to ask about the role of the u.s. few people understand there's a heavy connection with libya in the current conflict in valley. can you talk about that? >> it is true that a lot of the fighters that started this whole conflict had recently come back from libya. the tuaregs have been rising up their governments in niger and mali for decades now. back in the 1980's, muammar gaddafi offered them a place in his army and military training camps. a lot of them when they're hoping it would be able to further their own cause. they ended up becoming part of his military. when he fell, they came back to mali and niger, some heavily armed and in a very desperate position. and t

french and mullion troops have captured timbuktu from rebels -- and malian troops have captured timbuktu from rubblebels. african leaders meeting in ethiopia accused of doing too little, too late. >> stinging criticism of african leaders came from no less a figure than the african union's own outgoing chairman. he told delegates the deployment of peacekeepers had taken far too long. >> how could it be when faced with the danger that threatens its foundations, africa, although it had the means to defend itself, continues to wait? >> as leaders made their way between meetings, it the merged they have arrived and will be stationed in the recently recaptured town, a clear sign of protest the president of senegal told me. >> we have to organize people. >> where are you going to get the money to pay for all this thurman -- to pay for all this? , but wee not so rich commo can have talks. we cannot go further. >> others warn that conflicts in africa are interlinked. protests in molly could lead to problems elsewhere. -- in mali lead to problems elsewhere. >> the issue of extremism, it is a netwo

. >> coming up in the next half- hour, french and malian forces receive a hero's welcome in timbuktu. then at egypt's military warns the central state faces collapse if there is no end to ongoing rising protests. >> as brazil mourns the hundreds who died in the nightclub blaze, questions being raised about public safety. >> french and malian forces have strengthen their hold on timbuktu a day after the evicted islamist forces. >> the militants left behind a trail of destruction in the united nations world heritage site, looting tombs and burning into documents. residents have welcomed the soldiers with open arms. >> just days ago, the islamists still controlled timbuktu. now their flag has come down. soldiers and civilians are celebrating. >> i dreamt of this day. mali is being reborn. >> most residents of the ancient trading town were relieved when paratroopers arrived. timbuktu has been in the hands of islamists for 10 months. >> for 10 months, the islamists enforced a strict form of sharia law. this man says his hand was chopped up because he was accused of stealing a mattress. thi

bbc news, timbuktu. >> french troops only took on the islamist rebels two weeks ago. in afghanistan, they have been battling the taliban for more than a decade now. nato troops are starting to withdraw. what kind of country are they leaving behind? we're in afghanistan and he sent us this report. >> the afghan capital of kabul is a bustling city. 100,000 troops are anywhere to be seen. they're starting to leave. he tells me afghanistan is a different place from when they arrived 11 years ago. it is remarkable how things have progressed. health care is very different to what it was. education has moved on hugely. i think in terms of the progress to the things we would understand, and there has been a momentum. it has progressed to an extraordinary way. >> the taliban had not gone away. soon afghan security forces will have to fight them on their own. the man who led the intelligence war for most of the last 10 years said the attacks are set to get worse. >> it reduces this. the taliban are going to change their tactics. they are going to modify their strategy. there ar

he was visiting timbuktu in early 2012 with the islamists arrived. >> these four or five days that i spent there after the coup -- that was the worst time. also in terms of my personal experiences with people. and then, there's what relatives told me about the rapes, desecrations, people being stoned to death, limbs being cut off. it was just like the middle ages. >> but on the way to visit a friend from timbuktu, he says that hopes for a better future are slowly returning. he's bringing his fans -- friend some information from home. a secretly filmed video shows the horror of daily life in timbuktu, including vandalism by islamists, who intentionally target holy sites. >> the holy grave sites that they have destroyed by the soul of the people of timbuktu. this was only possible because mali's army was weak, and past governments have done very little to build up the armed forces. the north was always the neglected region. >> but things appear to be changing now. for the first time in months, the military intervention is raising hopes among many malians that there might be a brighter

. >> the malian army is sending a clear message that it is back in timbuktu. memories are still fresh of its humiliating retreat less than a year ago. now with french troops firmly at its side, the army is once again in control. with power comes responsibility . both for the civilian population and for people accused of involvement in the rebellion. we first saw this prisoner with malian troops several days ago, about 80 kilometers to the southwest of timbuktu. the troops brought him north as they advanced. he tells me the soldiers have beaten him. he denies that he is a jihad is. the army says it has no choice but to keep him at the base. right now, there are no police or law courts here. >> we are not the justice. we have some elements to say that he was -- evidence to say that he was linked with the terrorist group. we will give him to the authorities. justice will do what it should do. >> the army has also detained two shopkeepers from timbuktu. it later emerges they are at the military base for their own protection. local people accused them of helping th

french forces in mali advance on al qaeda insurgents in timbuktu. and an air force veteran speaks out on the sexual abuse she faced inside the service. when the "cbs evening news" continues. [ bop ] [ bop ] you can do that all you want, i don't like v8 juice. [ male announcer ] how about v8 v-fusion. a full serving of vegetables, a full serving of fruit. but what you taste is the fruit. so even you... could've had a v8. [ male announcer ] if you can clear a crowd but not your nasal congestion you may be muddling through allergies. try zyrtec-d®. powerful relief of nasal congestion and other allergy symptoms -- all in one pill. zyrtec-d®. at the pharmacy counter. the boys use capital one venture miles for their annual football trip. that's double miles you can actually use. tragically, their buddy got sacked by blackouts. but it's our tradition! that's roughing the card holder. but with the capital one venture card you get double miles you can actually use. [ cheering ] any flight, anytime. the scoreboard doesn't lie. what's in your wallet? hut! i ha

then there was a report of another air strike to the north of timbuktu where the rebel group was.nd is unclear whether the vehicle was carrying explosives. on the ground, the latest we have had are those by the strong as supporters of the french military regaining the town and also this village that fell to the rebel forces after the french air strikes began. it was important from a strategic and a psychological 0.0 view to push the rebels back from that village. >> there pushover african troops to take over this intervention. this intervention was not supposed to start until much later this year and was supposed to be african-lead. do think african trips can take over now? are they up to the job? >> it is wanting property nations to pledge hundreds of troops to take part in mali. it is quite another thing to get the troops ready and get them here are the ground. they think having the the adjustable where with all the transport across the continent from average of to cross the borders to come here is quite another if they. they are saying that the broad and denounced both concerns

there is cheering and dancing in the desert city of timbuktu tonight.ces liberated the city from atlantic rebels there also leaves and reprisals. as western governments way their involvement in the operation the long-term security in the north of the country is still in doubt. >> dancing on the streets. the relief is clear as french and local troops took back at the desert town and opposed. already, there has been looting and retributions as angry crowds threatened to kill those that fought for the islamists. they will try to wage a deadly insurgency. preventing that will be up to african troops, for molly and its neighbors. they're looking to raise money for the african mission which will include british military trainers. the defense secretary has spelled it out but has not commented on it. >> france has made it clear that they see a short intervention to stabilize the situation on the ground while the african forces from neighboring countries and the army have deployed to sustain the situation in the longer term. >> senior military figures say that u

the french presence may have stabilized timbuktu and the other cities and towns, but the french are anxious to quickly hand over to african peacekeepers and have welcomed the reunion talk of a possible -- the renewed talk of a possible united nations force. >> it would be extremely positive. i want this initiative to be carried through. them as well as its military move, -- >> as well as his military moves -- it's military moves -- as well as its military moves, it is also pushing for talks. >> iran says it is starting to speed up its and richmond of uranium. enriched uranium can fuel nuclear power plants -- its e nrichment of uranium. enriched uranium can fuel nuclear power plants. it can also power bombs. two people who provided vaccines in afghanistan have been killed in pakistan have been killed. it is the number of attacks in the past month to 12. gabrielle giffords has called for action to stop gun violence, speaking at the first senate hearing to happen since the massacre last month in which 20 children and six adults were killed. she says congress must act and, in her words, be bold

this morning they are concerned that a ground forces backed by air had taken control of timbuktu airport. they are now underway to retake the desert town itself. the french military is on the offensive, alongside government forces, trying to drive out islamist forces from the north of the country. let's get the latest from our cap -- from the capital. >> very little information is coming from timbuktu, phone lines have been completely cut off and it has been like this for days. the little information that we have is the french have confirmed that they have managed to get ahold of these airports and secure them, and some french paratroopers were deployed, they tried to find a way into town. we expect these troops to enter the town, whether they are facing resistance remains a? for some of the residents. some fled just a couple of days ago, fearing the fighting. two days ago, militants were still here. >> that was thomas on the latest in mali. it is true university knowledge that jane austen is one of the most enduring and popular writers of the english language. now one of her most popula

timbuktu.and before they retreated, they burned a library that held scrolls dating to the middle ages. it was unclear how many were destroyed. meanwhile, the people of gao celebrated after the rebels were routed there on sunday. lindsey hilsum of independent television news filed this report from gao. a warning: it contains some graphic images. >> reporter: malian intelligence officers investigating. the barrels in the courtyard they say were intended to flow up the bridge over the river niger leading into gao. this was a jihady bomb factory. interrupted by french air strikes they left traces of their trade. potassium nitrate to mix with charcoal for explosives. bullets but also empty stashes. the neighbors were never quite sure what was going on in here. >> i think they were arabs. we couldn't identify them. because they wore turbans and scarves. they didn't speak to anyone and we were afraid so we didn't ask them anything. >> reporter: these are like payments which they're giving to people wo

. >>> in north africa now, al qaeda-linked rebels have retreated from the ancient city of timbuktu in mali. rebels fled after torching several buildings including a library that held manuscripts dating back to the 12th century. the rebels had controlled timbuktu for ten months. >>> coming up on the morning news, high water down under. flood victims in australia struggle to keep their heads above water. this is the "cbs morning news." (announcer) make mornings special, with fancy feast mornings gourmet cat food. mornings are delicious protein rich entrees with garden veggies and egg. fancy feast mornings. the best ingredient is love. [ male announcer ] every time you say no to a cigarette you celebrate a little win. nicorette gum helps calm your cravings and makes you less irritable. quit one cigarette at a time. for hollywood's biggest stars. let's have a look. who is it for? it's for becky. she must be important. [ neil ] oh, she is. now, he designs for the star in your life. becky, will you marry me? yes! neil lane bridal. uniquely beautiful, hand-crafted rings from hollywood's mast

militants have simply been falling back rather than trying to stand and fight so we've got up to timbuktu here there's only a few towns left extatic so. scenes in the towns that have been liberated crowds running up to thank the french troops but now we also see the involvement of some of the from other powers there's a west african force some thousands of troops about to come in to take over some of the garrison work in preparation for taking over from those french troops and we also see from brussels overtures of an e.u. force coming to train and other troops and also the u.k. saying that they can send a considerable force also not to be directly involved in combat but for training more local forces come under stand the u.s. is also already involved told more about that they are indeed they've they've so far been supplying transport planes to the french efforts to help them and some are fueling planes as well it now seems that they've gone a bit further than that they're currently the u.s. is currently engaged with their next door with negotiations looking at trying to create a drone ba

timbuktu.and before they retreated, they burned a library that held scrolls dating to the middle ages. it was unclear how many were destroyed. meanwhile, the people of gao celebrated after the rebels were routed there on sunday. lindsey hilsum of independent television news filed this report from gao. a warning: it contains some graphic images. >> reporter: malian intelligence officers investigating. the barrels in the courtyard they say were intended to flow up the bridge over the river niger leading into gao. this was a jihady bomb factory. interrupted by french air strikes they left traces of their trade. potassium nitrate to mix with charcoal for explosives. bullets but also empty stashes. the neighbors were never quite sure what was going on in here. >> i think they were arabs. we couldn't identify them. because they wore turbans and scarves. they didn't speak to anyone and we were afraid so we didn't ask them anything. >> reporter: these are like payments which they're giving to people wo

remember timbuktu the ancient center of learning for islam. the oldest universities in timbuktu, older than oxford or harvard or cambridge. they're there in mali. mali has been pivotal place not only for africa but for much of the world and it is unfortunate to see the developments happening there now. >> brown: let me ask peter pham to bring us up to date to talk about the various insurgency groups. how organized. .. what do we know about them? how organized are they? what are their potential ties or actual ties to al qaeda and other worldwide groups? >> one of the insurgency groups al qaeda and the islamic ma greb was the first al qaeda franchise outside of south asia in afghanistan, pakistan and al qaeda in iraq. it's connected to al qaeda and very well resourced because the last decade they've been make making a lot of money kidnapping for ransom. earlier this year, last year, excuse me, they obtained close to $10 million in ransom for several european hostages. they've also made a lot of money assisting drug traffickers. it's the preferre

over the weekend, the france, mali operation to control of the key towns of timbuktu, sparking scenesof celebration in the streets. the u.s. meanwhile has confirmed plans to expand its military support to french soldiers in mali. there will now provide aerial refueling and aircraft to allow for a speedier deployment of troops to the battlefield. the obama administration has gone ahead with the military support, despite concerns around the violation of u.s. laws barring military assistance to governments that came to power through a coup. at the u.n. refugee agency spokesperson melissa fleming issued an appeal for more aid to mali and said civilians in the north are reporting ongoing abuses by the rebels. >> we are renewing our appeal for urgent scaling up of international aid for hundreds of thousands of people now displaced by the war in mali to prevent a now worsening of an already very acute, fragile, humanitarian situation across a. what is really worrying us are the accounts we are hearing from the internally displaced and refugees. a former resident, for example, who left town a

surgery at the university of timbuktu. she remembers her days in ancient egypt, when the to the chips were united thousands of years before. she remembers lives in west africa. she remembers all of this and she tells it to her grandson who wants to be a writer. they have a special relationship. she swears in the secrecy that he tell no one that she has these memories were people think she is a bit fruity, as she says. but she remembers these lives in extraordinary detail. and he is inspired by it. he gained his confidence from it. and this is, of course, to symbolize the enormous consequence. sometimes we think of slavery, we calculate the economic consequence of the. but we have not calculated the psychosocial consequence of it, unless we factor in the loss of memory, which was occasioned by deliberate and systematic program imposed from those -- by those who controlled us. >> this young man you write about, gray, your protagonist, doesn't expect much of his older brother, outside of anything conventional. and yet when th

now they've taken control of an airport in timbuktu. they destroyed muslim graves there. they said worshipping idols goes against their beliefs. the french and malian military are trying to, in his words, eradicate the terrorists. >>> poce oicerin brazil have arrested four people in connection with a fire at a nightclub. at least 230 people died on sunday, and hundreds were injured. police are interviewing the club's owners and members of a band. the musicians set off fireworks during their stage show. investigators believe the sparks set fire to the ceiling. the band members said fire extinguishers didn't work. police are still trying to find out why so many people were trapped. >>> a chinese statesman has spoken in favor of warming up ties with japan. former foreign minister tan zechwan said he hopes ties can be broken. tan said japan and china have issues that can't be avoided, such as the dispute over the senkaku islands. the two leaders have been at odds since the national government nationalized the islands. china and taiwan both claim the territory in the east chin

timbuktu, and universities, oxford, cambridge, harvard are there in mali. it has a long tradition of extremism and supporting learning advances through religion and through political process these. we have to create a space where people who are pushing peace processes, that their voices can be heard. not only those who are backing military intervention that could lead to greater civilian chaos. >> thank you. drastically insufficient, that is how the international rescue committee this practical response to the situation in syria saying that the civil war has unleashed a staggering humanitarian crisis. hundreds of thousands have been forced to flee the violence. they are now making the refugee s' lives even harder. >> that has been the worst of winter is for people who fled the worst of wars. across a blanket of snow in the valley, you can see syrian families in the distance. they have taken refuge by a mosque. all of the roads in are blocked by snow. we can only reach them by foot. two rows of concrete blocks are now home. these do not keep winter snows out

french fighter jets have targeted positions outside timbuktu. they are attacking rebel training camps, and for structure, and logistics'. the operation also on balls airstrikes with combat helicopters helping their forces retake the stronghold. other targets include deploying 550 soldiers near the front line and to help guard the capital. isre in the capital and what the latest with the fighting? reports thating have also bar and a provincial town which is 400 kilometers north. we understand from these reports a we have not been able to confirm with the ministry, but we understand rebel fighters mounted an attack close to that town. it is a government town. there is a military base there. we understand the french carry out air strikes at some point early on monday. in addition to the strikes were talking about, they have also had a statement from a very important group year on the ground and the jihad in west africa. they said the french have attacked islam, so they will attack the heart of france. they have 500 troops here on the ground. they s