considered on peter lavelle when the cure is worse than the disease iraq is clearly again falling back into extreme civil strife washington says it wants to help but most iraqis appear wary of any more american assistance then there is afghanistan washington plans to finally leave this year the sad reality for all involved it's the fact that washington may never be able to leap. to cross-talk iraqi afghan legacies i'm joined by my guest richard murphy in new york he is a former u.s. career ambassador to syria and currently an adjunct scholar at the middle east institute also in new york we have don de bar he is an anti-war activist and host of a daily radio program and in washington we cross to peter van buren he is a veteran of the u.s. state department who served in iraq and he's also author of we meant well how i helped lose the battle for the hearts and minds of the iraqi people gentlemen crosstalk rules in effect that means you can jump in anytime you want and i very much encourage it peter if i go to you first in washington the blame game is raging again who lost the rock who los

iraq is not in position to become a player at all. iraq is weak. it is basically at the receiving end of the bigger players in the region. i think the development that took place in front of the whole world without any intervention to stop it was the return of al-qaeda in the islamic state of iraq, in such a big way with thousands and thousands of fighters. this will not disappear in a month or in a few months, or even in a year or two years. this is really a shift in the power play. now we have a new player on the stage other than the local government. we really have a force to be reakenne reckoned with which will make things much, much harder. >> if there is an end game in syria, can iraq then also take a little time to figure out it's medium- and long-term future? >> oh, certainly, if there were a resolution in syria, it would have a positive impact on iraq. really what is happening in iraq is that a group of sunni arabs has launched guerrilla war, an insurgency. this insurgency has been going on now for many years. and we know from the history

after saddam to be in iraq for all of us not iraq for the sudanese because the ruling iraq. and the other sunni partners did one man show one party one ethnic group or one part of the it's over their nation by just one occurred. this position no matter what the kurds are not allowed to have different sorts of opinions regardless on on where they leave and what kind of circumstances where they meet and whether or not they they're entitled to fighting al qaeda and their own backyard then are they going to morrow because this iraq is numbered i mean you claim that you cannot prove it in our in the fist any longer in iraq but you claim that you have to have an absolute unity when it comes to the kurdish question even though kurdish realities in turkey in iraq when he says syria is generally very different i search you know when i say the kurdish community i am not claiming that kurdistan is unity because every country has its own peculiarities when i say the kurds in syria for example we have more than thirty political parties every political party is putting their party agenda

troops in iraq after 2011 and then he portrayed iraq as kind of being this stable state which didn't need american troops. now that iraq is getting in trouble, we're selling them hellfire missiles. this is not helpful, this is actually destructive. you're not going to solve this problem with hellfire missiles. a counterinsurgency situation? you need have a political plan. you have to have a military operations but it's got to be embedded in a larger political strategy. right now maliki doesn't have a larger political strategy. what general petraeus had, we lack the leverage because we don't have troops there. we lack the loanch the get them to do that. >>rose: let's assume that obama did negotiate to leave some troops there, not to engage in warfare, but simply for some kind of peace keep mission. >> a buffer stabilizer type role. >>rose: would it have made a difference? >> it's impossible to know but i think probably it would have made a difference. certainly at the time a lot of people are saying, hey, iraq is tao fragile to leave them alone. you need to be an arbiter to act betwee

troops in iraq after 2011. he portrayed iraq as being a wonderful and stable state. now iraq is getting into trouble and we are sending them hellfire missiles and all sorts of high- tech munitions. this is not helpful, it is deductive. you will not solve this problem with missiles. we are facing a counterinsurgency situation in a rock and you need a political plan. you can have a military line of operations, but it has to be embedded in a larger political strategy. a do not have a political strategy. we need something like what general petraeus was able to do in 2007. they do not have the wisdom to do that. we would like the leverage. >> let's assume that the president had negotiated with the iraqi government to leave some troops there, not to be engaged in warfare that might be going on at that point in time, but simply for some kind of peacekeeping mission. >> a buffer, stabilizer type role. >> would it have made a difference? >> it is hard to know, but i think it would have made a difference. a lot of people were saying that iraq is too fragile to leave them on th

when the crisis in iraq is fueled by this see we're in war. we risk the possibility of the extension of this militarization that we're seeing in iraq right now we're seeing it already in syria where a civil war has expanded to a regional war and it's now spilling over into iraq the increasing militarization by the united states to the iraqi government is only going to make that worse not better and of course the irony is on the one hand you've got the united states supporting the rebels in syria have now come over the border into iraq and we're also hearing this week no offering drones or military support not personnel but military support to fight these very same people before them there against them indirectly you have this scenario where the sunni population which is the minority but a large minority in iraq feel completely disenfranchised disempowered disconnected from their own government and so the u.s. is saying instead of in insisting that the government change its policy of discrimination towards one of egalitarianism many quality for

iraq's prime minister urges on kind of fighters in control of key towns to give that sounds the militants enjoy a rise of influence fueled by the war in neighboring syria. the army's greatest threat to the u.k. ministry is disconnected from the public who apparently don't understand what it's actually for the claim coming from a parliamentary watchdog. and russia's sledge hockey team prepares to make his deputy at the upcoming parlin pigs were made become to his family to find out where he is drawing his strength and inspiration from. this is a international coming to you live from moscow hello and welcome to the program. iraq's prime minister is calling on all kinds of fighters and all those who joined them to surrender the militant group has occupied k cities of the country's biggest problems and the government is trying to regain control let's not get more front aussies middle east than to pull a clear pull of the situation that seems to be becoming increasingly aggravated is iraq on the brink of civil war just like neighboring syria. well the situation certainly is becoming increasing

of iraq and the levant a u.s. military publication says the organization expanded its influence significantly last year and now boasts over five thousand members it was formed back in two thousand and four a year after the u.s. led invasion in iraq began these sunni extremists were initially known as al qaeda in iraq after pledging allegiance to the infamous organization the group's leader said this summer that its goals are to tear down the border between iraq and syria and destroy both governments many of its members are fighting against president assad in syria and the group says they carried out a suicide blast in lebanon a couple of weeks ago and care guard is a former danish intelligence officer who served in iraq he believes that al qaeda is as strong as ever and that iraqi security forces are overmatched in my opinion. has never been on the run it might have been downscaling due to pressure but once this precious lifted the organization is back in full force and it uses these. pulses to regain its bring th

just like in iraq. in both senior officials came to me and had all of these statistics about how the death rates were comparable and in iraq and afghanistan despite the time difference and so on because it was statistically a wash. it wasn't worth the investment to put additional resources into it. and so my reaction was a simple one. i'm a soldier that had been blown up and i want a helicopter there as quickly as possible. and so we sent more helicopters and i made that decision in january of 2008 or 2009. i can't remember which. and by july something like 80% are medical decorations are taking place in less than 40 minutes. .. that any one of those elements whether it's the money people or the technology people or the budgeteers or whatever, can basically slow down or stop something from happening. only the secretary of defense has the authority to override everybody in the building. and just say we are just going to do it. >> he another which it requires a leader with considerable willpower and commi

parts of iraq. in some ways they are not being held accountable. the sunnis and the shiite should work on re-conciliation, on being committed to getting rid of the militias and al qaeda. adopting the militias and al qaeda is dangerous to iraq. the shiite leaders understand what is happening. the sunnis and the shiite should work on re-conciliation, on being committed to getting rid of the militias and al qaeda. adopting the militias and al qaeda is dangerous to iraq. the shiite leaders understand what is happening. they are not blaming the sunnis. they are blaming al qaeda particularly. they believe as we believe citizens should feel there is justice and equality, and this will allow us to be rid of the terrorists. it is not true to say the sunnis are all al qaeda. the sunnis are a target of al qaeda. they are killing sunni leaders. sunni politicians cannot move freely because they are targeted by al qaeda. at the same time they are targeted by the government and some militias, who are doing somethi

for iraq and help iraq in such a moment. and at least by the advice -- to tell them, look, we are being blamed for changing the regime there. we want real democracy to be a established there. not the democracy we see no. so work together, and for those whom you have given them more than what they should get, we should tell them no that went too far -- and solve the problem in a peaceful way. otherwise, if the critics -- kurdish parties will expand, and the other will extend from other sites. then by that way the problem is not going to be solved. what happened in iraq was done by -- [inaudible] and i think the extent of power is still needed to rearrange things, especially for those whom you have given more than they should get. >> so this is a good question for all of us here in washington. the kinds of support that you are looking for from the united states, you've already mentioned sale of weapons, not by themselves but certainly the sale of the weapons, advice to the government on an inclusive, advice and expectation of

says this is now iraq's fight. >>> the obama administration says the fighting in anbar province iraq's issue, some critics claim some insurgent groups in the region ratchet up the turmoil knowing the u.s. doesn't want to get involved. mike viqueira is in washington for us. good to see you, and happy new year. some say failures in u.s. foreign policy are at least partly to blame for the situation in iraq. >> well, that's right, tony. today there's plenty of finger points and blame to go around about the deteriorating situation in anbar province. the bottom line truth is this tony. american combat troops are gone and not coming back. that leaves the obama administration with no good options to deal with iraq and this new insurgency. today the white house scoffed at critics who say that american military forces would make a difference in the fight for fallujah. >> there was sectarian conflict, violent ask tarn conflict in iraq when there were 150,000 u.s. troops on the ground there. so the idea that this would not be happening if there were 10,000 troops in iraq, i think, bears scrutiny.

you a current forest or an iraq. because. i still remember the smell of the chemical weapons so well i didn't see. the killing so. good luck. to build a. mission to teach me. this is why you should. only. please. welcome back to cross talk where all things considered i'm peter lavelle to remind you that we're discussing iraq and afghanistan. all right gentlemen let's switch gears here let's talk about afghanistan richard what's your reading of what's going on in afghanistan because karzai you know he talks a lot about the rule of law but it seems like the deal he really wants with the americans about remaining so keeping some troops there it's all about how much he's going to get paid it's all about mr karzai isn't it. well he's. certainly no no virtuous figure when it comes to straightforward government in our sense of the word that there has been a major corruption problem and it's something that the karzai leadership has done nothing about as far as i can tell so. no we are leaving the the military is going to come out wit

occupation so what is the fall of the city signify for not only the progress of iraq but the region as a whole joining me now to discuss is eugene career ordinator for the answer coalition thank you so much for coming on metal thank you so much for having me so eugene what the main factors that contribute to the near failed state of iraq today well i think the key factor that we have to mention is that the occupation of iraq by the united states fundamentally destabilize the country the united states just completely disassembled the iraqi state as it existed and not only didn't really put anything in place but actually set up a structure which made it sort of bit official for forces to become more the cereal to divide along sectarian and other sorts of lines of what we're seeing now is the real fruits of all of these time bombs land mines that were set by the u.s. occupation all coming to fruition all at the same time we saw two thousand and thirteen one of those deadliest years over eight thousand people died in iraq and i think this situation of pollution body is very related to that

invasion of iraq more than ten years ago. when more and more weapons are dumped into the region and the idiology that the enemy of my enemy can be my friend and therefore should be given more weapons all that is that ng up to just one catastrophe compound another now iraq's prime minister he said he wants these people to surrender their. will listen to any words or will he have to take action he said he will take action eventually if it's necessary. one. well you know there's been a lot of demands for surrender from fallujah gen other cities in the past decade as well and i think that al maliki is again as he has so often and other forces opposed to him as well for united states relying on maximal violence because of a political failure and on a willingness to sincerely engage in some reconciliation and democratic process and unfortunately from washington top u.s. officials are doing what they have done in various ways in the last more than ten years which is to assume and presume that more violence will solve the situation a

iraq arguing that america's current iraq strategy then was in adequate letters authors said that the only acceptable strategy is one that eliminates the possibility that iraq will be able to use or threaten to use weapons of mass destruction in the near term this means a willingness to undertake military action as diplomacy is clearly failing in the long term it means removing saddam hussein and his regime from power that now needs to become the aim of american foreign policy clinton didn't bite but when george w. bush came to washington the neocons knew they had somebody who would do their bidding in fact while campaigning in one thousand nine hundred nine george w. bush told his biographer mickey herskowitz that if he became president he wouldn't make the mistake his father made in only having a short and limited war with iraq you have a big enough war so that he become a wartime president with enough political capital to privatized social security cindy sheehan talked about this when she testified in front of congress in two thousand and five. and interviews in one thousand nine h

the west of chaos to iraq and syria. washington's support for armed opposition has been at its extremes. in washington on domestic counterparts. the as contrasted to be in control of fallujah and ramadi is the islamic state of iraq and the font also known as ice axe. it's seen as a formidable fighting force in its militants are among the most radical cells in syria. nice is itself dates back to the early years of the iraq war was formed in sunni insurgents and soon after pledge allegiance to bin laden's two years later it was rebranded as the islamic state of iraq in two thousand thirteen us military successes against the side gained a strong influence in syria. it's light ad lib on to its name and of course the latest developments. the group is taking control of fallujah and other parts of the anbar province iraq and proclaimed an islamic states under scared gore the former danish intelligence officer who served in iraq tells us how kind is just itching for a fight. in my opinion that he and caden has never been on the

backed chaos to iraq and in syria washington support for armed opposition has benefited extremists in washington i'm going to check on our quiz. as you know it is a group now said it should be in control of illusion and ramadi is the islamic state of iraq and the levant also known as isis it's seen as a formidable fighting force and it's militants among the most radical cells in a syrian isis is self dates back to the early years of the iraq war it was formed in april two thousand and four by sunni insurgents and soon after a pledge allegiance to bin laden two years later it was rebranded as the state of iraq in two thousand and thirteen its military successes against us again strong influence in syria we saw it add to its name and of course and then also developments the group has taken control of loot in other parts of the province in iraq and proclaimed an islamic state earlier we spoke to iraq war veteran adam told us the resurgence was essentially going to need by the u.s. occupation i've had a long way since my time an illusion two thousand and four and been able to step back an

the latest on the unrest in iraq. in a series of new developments on the nsa surveillance us senator ran fall plants are bringing t nsa support for relieving the american right on the nsa is sidestepped the question over whether or not they find on contracts for a nap coming on. in four states without foster the nation's energy boom have found that there is a

from iraq. al qaeda is thriving and our allies and our friends are in retreat. >> the current situation in iraq is deeply disturbing. the violence there is a human tragedy. the resurgence of al qaeda affiliated forces in falluja and elsewhere represents a threat not just to the people of iraq but to our own security and to that of our friends and allies in the region. share in concerns that many of us have expressed about recent developments in iraq. the united states has announced it will expedite military deliverye, including of uavs and hellfire missiles. the administration has stepped up intelligence sharing to help iraq security forces in the fight. that is appropriate. they are holding ongoing conversations with iraq about other ways in which the united states might assist. that is appropriate. assistance that might be the sale of weapons, such as attack helicopters, to iraq. the issue here is not whether such aircraft would help iraq fight violent extremists. it would. the question is whe

we have an al qaeda problem in iraq. those shooting at us have been quiet. they wanted us to leave. >> the shi'a, but the sunni side is the issue. statement. they said: >> ross, when you hear that, talking about engagement, do you start worrying that this could mean troops on the ground? >> i certainly wouldn't agree with it if that were the case. you know, my perspective as an american citizen, concerned with what my government is doing, and wanting to feel my government is doing the right thing, i feel we have to withdraw support for the maliki government. they are oppressive. they are using violence to crush political opposition. undemocratic. they are selling weapons to the regime, and that's what they are killing civilians with in fallujah. all support needs to be withdrawn from them. >> i'll let you weigh in on that. no support at all? >> prime minister nouri al-maliki is the elected prime minister of that country. it may not be perfect, but it was good. government formation was messy, but he emerged as the prime minister and that's more legitimacy tha

the tribes are divided in iraq. half of them are collaborating with the iraq he army and one one -- he is is the brother of one leader that created the awakening militia made up of members of sunni to fight al qaeda in iraq. today, as i said before, many people of falluja said they've never seen any member of al qaeda in falluja. so i think this is part of the government's policy to divide .he sunnis number will sto we face -- members of tribes were struggling against the iraq i army and others were struggling against al qaeda. it makes them very confused. it is very difficult now to know what will happen in the future. >> thank you both for being with us. we're going to continue our conversation with feurat alani in a post-show we will post online to talk about the documentary he did specifically in falluja and the effects of what the u.s. did their and what is happening there today. feurat alani is a french-iraqi journalist aced in baghdad. we're speaking to him in dubai. he was from 2003 to 2000 eight anniversary

at the same time america's partnership with iraq, its interests in iraq, its engagement with iraq did not end and iraq's challenges in reconstruction, in building democratic governance in the midst of diversity and very fierce politics, those did not end. iraq continues to work on those challenges and it is challenged today as well by the turmoil roiling its neighborhood. at this moment after a year of tragically escalating violence in his country i can think of no more important time to hear from our guest this morning, speaker usama al-nujayfi. we're very honoredded, mr. speaker, that you have chosen to join us this morning. it's a moment i think for all of us to hear from the speaker about the challenges iraq is facing. how the united states can play a role in helping iraq meet these challenges to stablize his country, to stablize the region and to advance american interests in, i think a long-term u.s.-iraqi partnership. mr. speaker, thank you so much for being with us. let me now turn the podium over to my colleague, kenneth pollack, senior fellow at the saban center to make form

well, i say if iraq-- if iraq is in chaos because we withdrew our troops then the obvious solution is to send our troops back in. right, senator mccain. >> first of all, no combat troops, obviously. let's get that out of the way. i would suggest perhaps sending david petraeus and ambassador crocker back over there. >> stephen: okay, yeah, david petraeus could fix this thing if you just gave him a tank on the battlefield. now obama-- (laughter) i think obama must do this. ladies and gentlemen, it is important obama has to do this because once you've been at war in a place, you are always responsible for anything that ever happened there. that is why-- and i've said this before, that is why you must never end wars. think about this. if you think about it, they're never, ever would have been a world war ii if we hadn't stopped fighting world war i. that's just math. or are you a a fan of hitler, president wilson. or take that, or take that pussy napoleon, he retreats from moscow, pretty soon rasputin, the commies move in, crush chef bangs his shoes, the next thing you know putin is tople

today has been in iraq since the united states invaded iraq through lowish the iraq you took advantage of the presence of the united states now the war shifted more than against for an occupier but but then secondly that purpose for i agree with you that history but if we look at syria right now again the united states to one degree or another is supporting groups that a take the mantle of al-qaeda and because the united states wants assad to go i mean i just don't get this here ok there's some good al qaeda in there some bad al qaeda. well but what's funny peter. and i think we got it like you are i'm spinning and so this money will go quickly go back to daniel go ahead sir go ahead first of all the united states you know the u.s. is being criticized all over the united states and the president is reluctant to be involved in syria in order to avoid inflating the support for al qaeda because of its invasion and he's being criticized i think the united states is very cautious not to interfere personally in the. conflict in syria and be it there are elements of al qaeda i mentioned two o

the city of fallujah, i try not to think that they gave their life for anything that we were doing in iraq but they gave their life to the man to the left and right and that does help me and has meaning that we lead our own lives each day and what we do with the rest of our lives but i try not to tie that to anything that is geopolitical in nature or to the future of a country that we really have no control over. >> rose: our conversation with stanley mcchrystal and a look at the battle for fallujah, then and now when we continue. >> funding for charlie rose was provided by the following. >> >> there is a saying around here, you stand behind what you say. around here, we don't make excuses. we make commitments. and when you can't live up to them, you own up and make it right. some people think the kind of accountability that thrives on so many streets in this country has gone missing in the places where it is needed most. but i know you will still find it when you know where to look. >> rose: additional funding provided by these funders. >> and by bloomberg, a provider of multimedia news a

iraq. it is a subject that we will be in our lastt segment. we will spend 45 minutes on that subject as an expert on foreign-policy issues from the corporation. here are some headlines from papers around the country. "u.s. walks tightrope by handing arms to iraq." we will talk more about that. here's the story from reuters. about thes iraq insurgent attacks. joe spoke with iraq he prime iraqier -- spoke with the prime minister. it a message he repeated in wither call on monday speaker of the iraqi council of representatives. veterans feel the staying -- the sting. it for david, seeing the images qaeda flags flying over buildings in recent days has been devastating. a silver star for heroism on his 29th birthday fighting as an army staff 2000ant on november 10, four. the article goes on to interview other u.s. service members who fox in that area -- who fought in that area. we are talking about the supreme court halting gay marriage in utah. phone lines are open. the conversation is also goi

troops will not return to iraq. secretary of state john kerry made several headlines as he continues his middle east tour. iran, who is not invited to the peace talks can play a role from the sidelines. the puzzle is more defined. as for south sudan, john kerry told both sides that upcoming peace talks cannot be a delay gimmick to continue the fighting. as gerald tan reports, the talks were delayed on sunday as the violence rages on in south sudan. >> april 2013. sudanese president omar al bashir on his first visit to juba since south sudan's dependence, marking a stunning turn of events following two years of frosty relations with the neighbours engaging in war about oil. basheer is returning to the south. this time to address internal fighting that has already killed more than 1,000 people since december. >> this is one of the surprises of this crisis, that the government in juba appears to be mortgaging its nationalist credentials, so serious is the challenge to authority. >> for the past three weeks, fighting ha

fighting in falajua has concerns over the fighting in iraq. the northeast is bracing for cold temperatures and while in hawaii, the sun is providing energy. >>> deadly violence is continuing to escalate in iraq and car bombs killed as many as 1el people. the suny fighters are continuing to fight. secretary of state is saying that the u.s. is supporting the iraqi government but not putting more troops on the ground. the al qaeda linked group islamic state of iraq is in control of two cities there. we have the attempts to regain power. >> after a standoff for days they are ready to enter the city and fight the group. the agreement to do so is hard fought. the standoff is indicating the tension between the new tribes and the government but now the prime minister has an agreement and poised to act. >> the increased coordination wean the army and the tribesmen and the army is providing the tribes with the weapons. i think this issue is resolved within one or two days to expel the groups. >> but one or two days is opt a mystic and they have surgical

forces in iraq was not for the sake of iraq alone. it was first and foremost in our national security interest to continue training and advising iraqi forces and to maintain greater u.s. influence in iraq. that core principle should have driven a very different u.s. approach to the sofa -- that's the status force forces agreemet diplomacy. the obama administration should have recognized after years of brutal conflict, iraqi leaders still lacked trust in one another and a strong u.s. role was required to help iraqis broker their most politically sensitive decisions. for this reason, the administration should have determined what tasks and troop numbers were in the national interest to maintain in iraq and done so with ample time to engage with iraqis at the highest level of the u.s. government to shape political conditions in baghdad to achieve our goal. we focus on this failure not because u.s. troops would have made a decisive difference in iraq by engaging in unilateral combat operations against al qaeda and other threats to iraq's

but you have seen, suzanne, in iraq. now you see in syria and lebanon, a surgeance of war fueled by al qaeda front groups and this isis groups which nick robertson was talking about, fighting in both syria and iraq. and you see al qaeda-inspired groups and somalia and in yemen. so this is a real problem for the arab world. it's a real problem for the united states in trying to diminish level of violence in all those places. but what's most worrisome, suzanne, for a long time now, people have been predicting that the syrian civil war might produce a wider war. we're beginning to see that happen, particularly in iraq and lebanon, where these sunni and shia passions and divisions between them are now playing out in all three countries, and that's a big problem for the arabs, as well as the united states. >> nick, in light of that fact, because it's such an important point you made, where should the u.s. be focused? should it be focused in iraq, syria? where do you think it's most important? >> well, the united states is by

it's difficult to deal with lives lost in iraq. it's difficult to deal with lives lost in a car accident of a military member or a suicide of a military member, because we're brother and sister in arms and there's a relationship there that's built that you'll never forget. and so i can never explain properly to anybody when somebody gives their life, but the bottom line what i do know in each and every one of those cases, they raised and volunteered to be in the military because they're proud to be part of the army. they were proud to do this mission. they were proud to be involved in that. and many of them died doing the things they wanted to do. and that's what i remember. i remember their service and their sacrifice and i remember that they dedicated themselves to something much greater than themselves personally. that's what the army's about and that's what i remember. even though i know it's very difficult as we look back at some of the sacrifices that were given. >> what sort of future do you see for iraq and besides the smal

it's not only iraq that's aflame. lebanon and syria have destabilized in the past couple of weeks, as a result of fanatical islamists. a group calling itself the islamic state in iraq and syria seeks to erase the border between the two countries and create a jihadi haven underscoring the difficulties in this part of the world transcend nations. as for the countries, themselves, much of this appears as a proxy fight between iran and saudi arabia. among the questions, what should the u.s. response be? today's "new york times" spoke of the emergence of a post-american middle east in which no broker has the power or the will to contain the region's sectarian hatreds. senators john mccain and lindsey graham, critics of the obama administration's withdrawal of american troops are saying that their predictions that a vacuum would be filled by america's enemies and would emerge as a threat to u.s. national security interests have now been proven correct. secretary of state john kerry said yesterday that the united states is r

war in iraq ended two years ago al qaeda has taken over the city of fallujah the u.s. is sending drones to the iraqi government but not troops at least for now what this means for the region coming up. and did you hear about the polar vortex if you turn on the t.v. this week you've seen the mainstream media of sassing over the cold will take a look at how the media has made this cold weather ops story later in the show. it's wednesday january eighth five pm here in washington d.c. i'm liz wall and you're watching our. the follow from the edward snowden revelations continues at most some of the most significant changes could first be happening in the states in california state lawmakers have introduced a bill that would ban state agencies from working with the national security agency the bill aimed to prevent the n.s.a. from spying on californians it would do this by denying n.s.a. facilities in the state access to basic utilities like electricity and water the bill also bans officials and agencies from cooperating with the n.s.a. those of violate the rules would be sl

ultimately, iraq belongs to iraq. even afghanistan belongs to afghans. they ultimately have to be responsible for that. >> steve? >> is the war on terror over? >> of course not. in fact, it's spread in a way that makes it even more dangerous. you now see al qaeda elements in other terrorist elements creating strongholds in africa. syria has become probably close to what afghanistan looked like not so long ago. we have issues in afghanistan, iraq. i worry about the stability of jordan. clearly the stability of lebanon has never been great. even more undermined now. and i think you look at some of the regional players, and they see the u.s. as an unreliable partner in the region, and i think that is creating a vacuum whereby these individual countries are now pursuing their own agendas in ways that are quite frankly not in our national security interests. >> if you go back to 2008, president obama said he would consider sending in u.s. troops back into iraq if al qaeda were to establish that as a base of operations. given what has happened in ramadi, given

iraq's prime minister al qaeda fighters in control of key towns to give up that says the militants enjoy a rise of influence fueled by the war in neighboring syria. the army's greatest threat. military is disconnected from the public who apparently don't understand what it's actually for and that's the claim coming from a parliamentary watchdog. also the sled hockey team prepares to make its debut at the upcoming paralympics meet the captain's family to find out where he is drawing his strength and inspiration from . center here in moscow this is international with the twenty four hours a day iraq's prime minister is calling on al qaeda fighters and all those who joined them to surrender the militant group is occupied key cities of the country's biggest province and the government is struggling to regain control middle east correspondent is following the conflict. well the situation certainly is becoming increasingly volatile but we've now heard from the iraqi prime minister it is him urging all those who have joined al qaida to give up the fight he has hinted at the possibility of harde

is discontent in iraq right now is because the u.s. led occupation put in place a lot of structural injustices that are the root of all the violence in iraq right now one of the results of the occupation of iraq was that the sunni community. became a very marginalized targeted group within iraq. butting in on by province right now. i think for the u.s. government to continue arming the rocky government to facilitate their internal oppression of various ethnic minorities within the country i think that would be very immoral on our part and i think it would be even more immoral for us to send troops to participate in this repression. meanwhile in neighboring syria the strengthening of al qaeda linked groups has led to growing infighting between once allied rebels fierce clashes between rival opposition factions have killed at least seven hundred people this week almost one hundred of them are believed to be civilians who were executed by militants from the islamic state of iraq and levant the outbreak of civil war within a civil war has