we speak about his role in iraq and afghanistan and the cia. then the nation marks of veterans day. >> in this country, we take care @of our own, especially our veterans who have served us so bravely and have sacrificed so selflessly in our name. we carry on knowing that our best days always lie ahead. >> a major new investigation reveals how thousands of veterans are being denied disability benefits due to errors by the department of veterans affairs. >> there is nearly out of resources and in about of accumulated trauma that these soldiers, marines, and air men are experiencing, because of the war itself, continues to accumulate the law the war goes on. the military is playing catch- up more than 16,000 veterans are homeless. an estimated 18 veterans commit suicide every year. this is democracy now!, democracynow.org, the war and peace report. i'm amy goodman. "the new york times"is reporting high-level officials were notified in the late summer about the decision of david petraeus to resign. the relationship between him and his biographer pa

if we spent one day expenses of what's being expended on iraq. on the war how many thousands of schools could we build with just one day's war expenses how many thousands of vote could we build not just here but in every area that is like this that is how we're going to solve the problems we're not going to solve the problems by creating hatred animosity and and ill feelings that are going to last for generations. you know i love the united states very much i love the country very much i think it's very strong and i think fundamentally it is very very pure i think it is going to take the people as a body to stand up and say stop. there are people in california who are leading this effort to prevent army recruiters from going in and convincing seventeen eighteen year olds to go run period going to walk through minefields and be shut up like this is just because they're not old enough and mature enough to make those decisions. enough. to corrupt and criminal bush government takes advantage of our latin american brothers everywhere. but that's enoug

iraq war veteran shoshana johnson. i'm maria hinojosa. this is one on one. captioned by media access group at wgbh access.wgbh.org shoshana johnson, you were taken prisoner in iraq in the year 2003. you are actually the first black female prisoner of war. and now you have written a book about that experience. it's called i'm still standing-- from captive us soldier to free citizen, my journey home. welcome to our program. it's great to have you here. >> thank you. >> hinojosa: you decided to write this book, but you didn't have to write this book. >> no. >> hinojosa: you could have just put this chapter away. what was it that made you say, "you know what? i have to tell my story about being the first black woman prisoner of war"? >> well, there was so much out there, floating around, misconceptions about the experience and what happened to me. i just really wanted to set the record straight from my point of view. since the book has come out, i've come to the realization that no matter what i say, there's going to be people who believe what they want to belie

forces in iraq and afghanistan. he was also considered by some to be a possible presidential candidate. cnn military analyst james spider marks talked with me earlier about petraeus' legacy. >> it's terribly unfortunate. i do know general dave petraeus. in fact, we knew each other in high school and certainly at west point and then i had the great good fortune of serving along him in a number of assignments to include combat in iraq early on and paula broadwell was a young officer who worked for me about a decade ago, and she's just immensely gifted, bright, talented, fit, a great representative of the very best our nation brings forward. so you have these two incredibly gifted folks, and they make a human frailty, but at the end of the day leadership is all about competence and character, and in the case of dave petraeus, no one, no one would challenge his competence. that's a matter of record. but at the end of the day his character indicated a bit of a frailty, and i would suspect he probably didn't have somebody

i was in iraq there, man. you guys are letting him spin. >> let him have his say, please. >> okay. >> listen, i was over there as a private businessman. i have been going in there for the last nine years, both in uniform and as a state department official, now as a private individual. and to suggest that iraq today is the same iraq that david petraeus saw when he walked in the door just demonstrates that michael hasn't been there and unfortunately it doesn't make the story for him so i can't help him. >> i spent more time in iraq than you have, man. come on. let's be honest. david petraeus fueled an iraqi civil war that the shiites won. we installed a radical islamist government in iraq. i'm glad the general was able to make money off his service now that he's out there and can go and get contracts and do business in iraq. great. i'm glad american capitalism can get something back from the trillions of dollars and thousands of lives. >> okay. this has drifted into -- >> as a final note, can i say it's veterans

what brought iran and the new iraq together, the post-saddam iraq? again, a common enemy. saddam first, and then after 2003 the american occupation. i don't think -- if you think about the new baghdad, now that saddam has gone, and isn't that a pity? some of us do miss him because it's difficult to not imagine life without him, but it certainly makes these complex issues so much more simple by comparison, but the iraq he so carefully constructed is gone. so what's the relationship between persian and shia, alawite, etc., etc. i don't think it can be reduced to the simplicity of those kinds of formulas, us against them, shia against sunni, persian against arab. i think their rivalries go back, as i said, a long time. you can go back to the seventh century when the mayans defeated imam hussein. don't bother with that. you can just to back a couple of years to the great rivalry that began in the '60s between saddam and assad, and this is a rivalry of longstanding. it doesn't change. relationships don't get simple just because a greater hated leader is gone. now, if you look a

(laughter) how about iraq? >> governor romney, was the war in iraq a good idea worth the cost in blood and treasure we have spent? >> it was the right decision to go into iraq. i supported it at the time; i support it now. >> jon: but do you support it -- (laughter). now? >> we don't want another iraq. we don't want another afghanistan. that's not the right course for us. >> well, i guess that's not a flip-flop so much as a principled recognition because of the iraq war's current unpopularity. (laughter) you know what? iraq and afghanistan those are yesterday's wars. it's tomorrow's war that counts and if there's anything governor romney has been vociferous about lo these past 18 months it is his uncompromising belief that it's time to rattle our sabers at iran. >> this is a president who should have instead communicated to iran that we are prepared, that we are considering military options, they're not just on the table, they are in our hands. >> the president should have built credible threat of military acti

iran has more influence than iraq now than ever. they are overflying iraq to reinforce syria. it breaks my heart we were so close to winning in iraq and obama administration dropped the ball. if they talked about leaving afghanistan rather than getting it right that will harm us for decades. when it comes to iran, why should the iranians believe that the obama administration is serious about stopping their nuclear program when all we talk about is leaving the region? if you are going to allow a side to kill 32,000 of their own citizens and do nothing about it because you have a hands off approach to syria, what kind of signal is that to iran. >> greta: afghanistan, as you look at afghanistan where is that country headed? >> when you make a list, like we are doing here, you can see in anyone would want to be a president. its problematic country. you have all the other countries and we say that by that time the government will be able to stand on its own feet. i think that is very problematic assumption. i think that government will be under horrendous pressure from the taliban

iraq with weapons for the syrians. syria because of our failure to intervene in any way, like providing arms, and establishing a safe zone, al-qaeda is coming in there, in droves. when this thing ends and all conflicts end sooner or later, we are going to have one heck of a time with the al-qaeda elements that have moved into syria and it is going to be very, very difficult. the eye -- the iranians continue on the path t nuclear weapons. afghanistan unraveling to the degree that everybody thinks the united states is leaving, because that's what the president said. and so, they are accommodating to that event -- northern mali has been taken over by al-qaeda. weak leadership has led to enormous shall i say long term challenges and chaos and frankly, difficulties that we will be facing for a long time. >> greta: if you were president which country would keep you up more at night egypt or syria? >> probably syria many egypt is very concerning also. syria is of much more near term problem in terms of the upheaval that is un

eight hour why did i go to iraq i was full of hate. for you know the out ahead of bush because he stole my dreams you see on it when he took my son and his death destroyed our family. action of thank. the tradition in the mexican tradition we plan to cross when the loved one has died. in one of the cemetery where he died we believe this is where the soul remains. her there. was. one. was the way and. of course we're going to meet the mother of a soldier who died in the right. got her son was an american citizen but she doesn't have any papers. been able to dish it out but i've got to. get mother she's fighting deportation. is everything ok. you know but it's not so bad. how are you dying and you. what's happening laughing i don't even know they sent parents don't have rights. already are they deporting you. think yes i met them are say. on the list i am during her. senior year of high score he said. i want to join the army but if i do they offer me financial help. let me go. i said there was a war. they told him they wouldn't send him

we speak about his role in iraq and afghanistan and the cia. then the nation marks of veterans day. >> in this country, we take care of our own, especially our veterans who have served us so bravely and have sacrificed so selflessly in our name. we carry on knowing that our best days always lie ahead. >> a major new investigation reveals how thousands of veterans are being denied disability benefits due to errors by the department of veterans affairs. >> there is nearly out of resources and in about of accumulated trauma that these soldiers, marines, and air men are experiencing, because of the war itself, continues to accumulate the law the war goes on. the military is playing catch- up more than 16,000 veterans are homeless. an estimated 18 veterans commit suicide every year. this is democracy now!, democracynow.org, the war and peace report. i'm amy goodman. "the new york times"is reporting high-level officials were notified in the late summer about the decision of david petraeus to resign. the relationship between him and his biographer pau

if we spent one day expenses of what's being expended on iraq. on the war how many thousands of schools could we build with just one days of war expenses how many thousands of boat centers could we build not just here but in every area that is like this that is how we're going to solve the problems we're not going to solve the problems by creating haiti. animosity and and ill feelings that are going to last for generations. i love the united states very much i love the country very much i think it's very strong and i think fundamentally it is very very pure i think it is going to take the people as a body to stand up and say stop i there are people in california who are leading this effort to prevent army recruiters from going in and convincing seventeen eighteen year olds to carry a gun and walk through a minefield and be shot if i deserve to because they're not old enough and mature enough to make those decisions. i i i. have. enough. of the corrupt and criminal bush government takes advantage of our latin american brothers everywhere. but that

started covering him in iraq during the surge. you have to remember this was a four star general who was almost the definition of moral fiber. he spent years cultivating his image. he was so disciplined he often ran with visiting reporters in iraq, afghanistan, i remember him challenging me to sit ups when i went to interview him in afghanistan after my double mass accept tomorrow. dave petraeus never let anyone win. he was wildly ambitious. he married the west point superintendent's daughter holly petraeus while he was a cadet at the military academy. he had been married to his wife for 37 years. the affair with his biographer paula broadwell may have taken place in afghanistan where she spent nearly a year chronic ling his life in her book all, in the education of general david petraeus. the author, paula broadwell, spent lot of time in afganistan. it's not clear whether the affair started there. but, if so, general petraeus may face consequences from the military, we're told. they can bring him out of retirement to demote him s

who came home from iraq and struggled to find some solace in his life, until he found opera. that is next. ñç@rÑo >>> marine sergeant kristen ellis was a machine gunner in iraq but after returning home, he joined the millions of americans struggling to piece their lives back together in the shadows of posttraumatic stress disorder and for ellis, this therapy came in the form of opera. photojournalist gabe ramirez explains. >> i identified so much as being a combat marine that i didn't think anything else outside the world would matter, but then people started to notice other talents of mine. i met charlie enberg and he issued a challenge. i want you to create a story that can be possibly turned into a musical. i had this idea and this story being this opera "fallujah." all aspects of the opera come from experiences of my own life. i joined the marine corps because i was one of those young men who didn't have any goals in life. so i thought that i'd be this kick ass guy with all of these cool machine guns on both hands, and at that time what i perceived to be war was what i

they traveled throughout iraq and i think there was tension between them. over the course of sell years and i tried to document it in the book their relationship comes full board to the other side. not like his relationship with bush but they're pretty close now and i think the president's excited to have him on his team and you can probably call him an obama guy. >> rose: there was a time when the president first went to meet him there, that there was some fetch between the two of them. >> to meet him in iraq. >> rose: yes. >> there was some tension because i don't think the president, senator obama at the time really believed what we were doing and the surge could work and was opposed to it. petraeus thought it was working and there was statistics and metrics to show what we were doing was showing progress. >> rose: and then he came home. >> petraeus came home. he came home from iraq that's right and went to central command after that. this is what he calls his favorite, his best assignment was really again a broadening experience for him at his senior ra

. >> brown: and we close with a conversation with first-time author and iraq war veteran kevin powers about his novel, "the yellow birds." that's all ahead on tonight's newshour. major funding for the pbs newshour has been provided by: >> music is a universal language. but when i was in an accident, i was worried the healthcare system spoke on with all its own. with united healthcare, i got help that treat my life, information on my phone, connection to doctors who get where i'm from and tools to estimate what my care may cost. so i never missed a beat. >> we're more than 78,000 people looking out for more than 70 million americans. that's health in numbers. united healthcare. moving our economy for 160 years. bnsf, the engine that connects us. and by the alfred p. sloan foundation. supporting science, technology, and improved economic performance and financial literacy in the 21st century. and with the ongoing support of these institutions and foundations. and... this program was made possible by the corporation for public broadcasting. and by contributions to your pbs station from v

a day that why did i go to iraq i was full of hate. for you know the out ahead of bush because he stole my dreams you see on it like he took my son and his death destroyed our family yet. i have action of thank. the tradition in the mexican tradition we plan to cross where the loved one has died. in all of the cemetery where he died we believe this is where the soul remains. yes. there. was. one. was the. most of course we're going to meet the mother of a soldier who died in the last guy he was just some was an american citizen but she doesn't have any papers the mother would be able to figure out if i got evicted by the mother she's fighting deportation. is everything ok. you know but it's not so bad. how are you dying and you. what's happening there laughing on the lady sent parents don't have rights. already are they deporting you. see yes i met them are say. on the list i am during his senior year of high school he said mom i want to join the army but assam. i do they offer me financial help. let me go. well as i said there was a w

with his initial surge in iraq and then enough going to stop when he applied iraq was going to go last this was going to the second these are two major leaders but they were sold us public opinion by betrayal himself which was an extremely evil man here batches of running in two thousand and twelve as a ripple to the republican contender in fact in two thousand and five this was the talk of washington the fact that the truth is going to run in two thousand let's walk and it was told by the major at the start of this and we'll get him makers then us mainstream media he's our hero is going to be our next president ok let's backtrack a little bit. this surge in iraq is one thousand and seven especially i saw it over there with my own eyes how it began and i saw how do was developing essentially betrayals was distributing suitcase full of money to these sunni insurgents in the sunni triangle especially to fight against al qaida and not fight against the americans saying it is safe by book about how fathers are a lot of the army was also fighting sunni is in the sunni triangle and especiall

iraq councils i'm a multibillion dollar arms deal with russia suspicion of corruption and its own buying process but experts question whether it's washington's hand at play. and prayers prevented amid fresh violence in bahrain's dissent clampdown an activist explains why he and more than two dozen others have their citizenship withdrawn. good evening international headlines live from our moscow headquarters who watching our team with me lucy tough enough well dozens of syrian security officers have reportedly been killed in twin bombings in the country's south it's the latest spate of violence in the escalating conflict which has already claimed tens of thousands of lives are his middle east correspondent paula slayer hostile latest. now what we understand is that there was an apparent double suicide attack according to activists on the ground the blast went off near a branch of the country's military intelligence in daraa that the explosions were followed by clashes between regime forces and rebels now targets and security institutions have become quite commonplace recently in syria ear

and obama's there to speak against invading iraq. but he wasn't comfortable this is the anti-war rally in their renault's who show up and he felt that of place even though he was close to invade iraq the point* was he was not against all wars but believed summer necessary and it just citing instances where that was the case. fed he felt the appropriate target were the leaders of the al qaeda who planned the attacks and he said i would take up arms against al qaeda myself. and maybe then he had dreams to become president of the united states but could not have been fish should powell to have his finger audit trigger. that no american impressive dance except president bush he is directly involved in the fight against terrorism and al qaeda. to the degree he could not have imagined to take up arms myself. i have good writing stories my whole life. it is says simple as 78 on the page sustain this you have discovered to organize their present the information. once you are past that stage the art of telling those stories demand you digest

people in iraq in the western side of iraq are supporting the revolution so everybody is interfering you know that's why the picture is such a mutilated one and i think that the external powers would have to follow the general line that has been promoted by russia china and the other countries that there must be a political solution and the present moment the west continues to pour arms and now they want to create the vehicle that they can give them provided that this vehicle is not going to use the arms against the west just like what they have done without a bun just like they've done with. with many other instances they create these institutions on the basis that they would be our friends they would be the people who are presenting our interests i eat western countries and then once this picture chains they become against us we have the same situation in many countries and i think this is what the risk that we have at their moment in syria well if you say that the only way for peace then is for these external powers to stop their interference so how realistic is that quite briefly

iraq's defense minister denies the country's counseling a massive russian arms deal but will review claims of internal corruption. veteran general david petraeus his career is the cia's boss is over as rumors swirl that there's more behind his resignation than an affair with his biographer. and prayer is prevented i mean fresh violence in bahrain's dissent and activist explains why he and more than two dozen others have as their citizenship withdrawn i speak to. so very good morning from moscow it's kevin know any of this with the top stories from dozens of syrian security officers have reportedly been killed in twin bombings in the country south is the latest spate of violence in the escalating conflict that's already claimed tens of thousands of lives he's middle east correspondent paula has got the latest for you. now what we understand is that there was an apparent double suicide attack according to activists on the ground the blast went off near a branch of the country's military intelligence in daraa that the explosions were followed by clashes between regime forces and rebels now ta

. >> i was having nightmares about iraq, a place i've never been. captioning sponsored by cbs this is the "cbs evening news" y cbh scott pelley. >> pelley: good evening an american soldier accused of a elley:ic war crime watched in a courtroom as children described m as crders of their families. of te were two days of testimony e wehe case of staff sergeant robert bales. bales is charged with 16 counts ts pre-meditated murder and six ntunts of attempted murder. prosecutors say that for reasons unknown bales walked off his post in afghanistan in the middle of the night then shot and stabbed civilians in two villages. the hearing at a military post in washington state was called to decide whether there is enough evidence to court-martial bales. john blackstone has been hevering in the courtroom. >> reporter: staff sergeant afghs watched the video feed from afghanistan show no reaction as ten afghans told of the night their two villages ctre awakened by gunshots. ildrenf the murder victims were children. the massacre was one of the worst crimes attribu

the rally was against the pending invasion of iraq and obama was there to speak against invading iraq, but he was uncomfortable because this was an antiwar rally and familiar anti-war types from the chicago area who show up at every anti-war rally, and he felt out of place because even though he was opposed to invading iraq, the point of the speech was he was not against all wars, some were necessary, just, and cited instances in history where he thought that was the case and felt the appropriate target for the united states were the leaders of al-qaeda, the men who planned the attacks on this country in 2001, and he said i would take up arms against al-qaeda myself. well, at that point, maybe he had dreams then in 2003 of someday becoming president of the united states, but he could not have envaitioned -- envisioned how. to the extent that no american president had perhaps president bush at the end of his last term. you know, the president of the united states is directly involved in the fight against terrorism and against, in particular, al-qaeda. to a degree, i think, he could nev

democrat tammy duckworth lost both of her legs in iraq and she has just won a seat in congress. she believes that the downturn is a moment in history. >> the giants, the lions of the world war ii generation step away, and the korean war generation steps away, and when the last of the vietnam vets, as they begin to retire, now you go to the all volunteer force, and there are just fewer of us in general. >> reporter: duckworth says she has spent a lifetime in service, and she believes that service is what has helped her and other veterans win their races for elected office. barbara starr, cnn, the pentagon. >>> thank you, barbara. >>> next the words of the president and the sights and sounds from this veterans day. that was me... the day i learned i had to start insulin for my type 2 diabetes. me... thinking my only option was the vial and syringe dad used. and me... discovering once-daily levemir® flexpen. flexpen® is prefilled. doesn't need refrigeration for up to 42 days. no drawing from a vial. dial the exact dose. inject by pushing a button. flexpen® is insulin delivery...

military campaigns in iraq and afghanistan reports say that he has had an affair with his biographer paula broadwell currently under f.b.i. investigation over trying to illegally access petraeus as classified e-mails chess spent a year with a former cia chief in afghanistan interviewing him for a book on u.s. warfare well intelligence experts will tell colonel tony shaffer told our team that there could be more behind this resignation than just moral issues. one of the lessons of washington is whatever they're talking about. the issue is something else entirely and i think that's what's here let's be very blunt here general eisenhower the commander or forces of world war two related d.-day invasion one hundred forty four had an affair with his driver. roosevelt knew about it but they didn't believe it so there's something else deeper here something else that i don't think anybody fully understands this general general petraeus had his critics over cia a lot of folks have problems at cia i'm much. case officer trained by cia not cia but i know a lot of friends over there and you know

democrat tammy duckworth lost both of her legs in iraq and she has just won a seat in congress. she believes that the downturn is a moment in history. >> the giants, the lions of the world war ii generation step away, and the korean war generation steps away, and when the last of the vietnam vets, as they begin to retire, now you go to the all volunteer force, and there are just fewer of us in general. >> reporter: duckworth says she has spent a lifetime in service, and she believes that service is what has helped her and other veterans win their races for elected office. barbara starr, cnn, the pentagon. >>> thank you, barbara. >>> next the words of the president and the sights and sounds from this veterans day. of tablets from dell. it's changing the conversation. ♪ a short word that's a tall order. up your game. up the ante. and if you stumble, you get back up. up isn't easy, and we ought to know. we're in the business of up. everyday delta flies a quarter of million people while investing billions improving everything from booking to baggage claim. we're raising the bar on

have even though many of them can't use that because the graduation rate for iraq and afghanistan vets is about three percent right now because of the psychological and physical trauma associated with war but even that g.i. bill is being cut and so while defense spending is going up as president obama bragged about in his foreign policy debate with mitt romney that defense spending has gone up every year he has been in office there's actually cuts happening to the things that affect veterans the most and so education is one of those but employment is a big problem you're more likely to be unemployed if you're a veteran of the iraq and afghanistan war than if you never joined the military homelessness is just proportionate foreclosure and eviction is just proportionate mental health problems and substance abuse is just proportionate. and these are things that could be addressed very quickly and very adequately if only the funds were allotted to those things but the reality is those controlling the funds are putting those things towards those who are making billions and billions of dolla

. >> may 7 of 2007, my vehicle was struck by a roadside bomb in baghdad, iraq. i remember the explosion very clearly. it's something i'll never forget, and ultimately over the next two weeks, i would lose my legs above the knee. well, when i came home, of course, wounded, that was a new experience for me. i had never come home without my troops. i really felt alone. i did say absolutely enough is enough. not that i got to a point where i felt like i was going to take my life or anything like that, but i just didn't want to be a burden to anyone, and i just wanted to kind of crawl in my hole and kind of collapse on myself. i'm very grateful, and thank god that i didn't do that. for me when i tried to quit, when i tried to crawl into that shell, it was very uncomfortable because that wasn't who i was. i'm the garrison commander of fort belvoir, va vachlirginia. we support a base of about 15,000. all of our services appreciate the value that someone has regardless of what they don't have anymore. this event that happened to me doesn't define me, and it's not someth

he saved the war in iraq, he saved the war in afghanistan. really stood up for the president when he had to get rid of another commander, general mcchrystal a couple years and take over this job. for this to happen when people thought he was in the last duty station in his career has been a surprise for people across the military world. >> quickly, any idea who is next? >> i know the deputy is going to take over for now. i think that will be another round of musical chairs for the new term in the obama administration who will take over for preys at cia. >> phil, thanks. that does it for "the cycle." martin, it's yours. >> thank you. good afternoon. it's friday, november 9th. we're following breaking news, the director of the cia, general david petraeus, has resigned. ♪ >>> we will get to the president and negotiations over the fiscal life in a moment. we have breaking news regarding general david petraeus who has just resigned as head of the cia. his resignation letter reads as follows. after being married for over 37 years, i showed extrem

so i have dedicated this poem to iraq. i think it will be helpful for you to know el kubenchi, along with el watanabi. el kubenchi is famous for music, a great history and tradition of music, and he has taught all the gray modern singers of the 20th century who came out of iraq. his music has touched me and you will hear it in this poem, 32 beads on a string. i woke from the nightmare of a gutted macom, not because i have not yet bled my life in yellow, but because minarettes looking sky ward. one burly buffalo looking for hooves and hot breath because the skin is not yet numb and the lights are not yet flickering, i will continue to sip at my hot tea and stare at the dust-colored noon. one white dasha screams with the brilliance of red. can you hear them, the melodious intent, the glimmering mood in their eyes. face stitched by seam, a garment i have sewn to my skin. whatever remains of el gubenchi's 1932 cairo studio recording lives between the old cobblestone quarter and my still-warm mahogony ear. i should have gotten

and he had a frequent contact with him via video teleconference from iraq. in fact the two call each other good personal friends. i think, of you can juxtapose that with his relationship with this president in that when they really first it was senator obama and petraeus was in iraq. obama was opposed to that war. he called it the war of choice afghan a war of necessity. they traveled throughout iraq and i think there was tension beyears and i tried to document it in the book their relationship comes full board to the other side. not like his relationship with bush but they're pretty close now and i think the president's excited to have him on his team and you can probably call him an obama guy. >> rose: there was a time when the president first went to meet him there, that there was some fetch between the two of them. >> to meet him in iraq. >> rose: yes. >> there was some tension because i don't think the president, senator obama at the time really believed what we were doing and the surge could work and was opposed to it. petraeus thought it was working a

i have known general petraeus since the beginning of the surge in iraq. one of my first assignments on this beat at the pentagon was to go to iraq and he had just been assigned there in 2007. i want to tell you what i know about him as a person. he is a man of intense moral fiber. when i was sick with cancer he would write notes that would check on me as well as many other -- at time he was responsible for the war in afghanistan and i saw him at numerous wounded warrior events and he would take hours and hours with the warriors. when i came back the first interview i came back after a year off for cancer treatment, i was invited to afghanistan and i had an interview with him when he first took over in afghanistan. i have phone him for a long-term. if you look at his history he married the superintendent's daughter at west point. when he was a cadet at west point holily was a superintendent's daughter and he was known by friends and biographies that have been written including a recent book, a man incredibly ambitious from the moments he stepped in to west

iraq's defense minister denies that the country is canceling a massive russian arms deal that will review claims of internal corruption. and prayer is prevented amid fresh violence in bahrain's dissent an activist explains why he and more than two dozen others had this citizenship withdrawn. hello a very good evening she futures choice kevin zero in here at r.t. tonight with the top stories for you and first dozens of syrian security officers have reportedly been killed in twin bombings in the country south it's the latest spate of violence in the escalating conflict that's already claimed tens of thousands of lives artie's middle east correspondent paula slee is called the latest. now what we understand is that there was an apparent double suicide attack according to activists on the ground the blast went off near a branch of the country's military intelligence in daraa that the explosions were followed by clashes between regime forces and rebels now targets un security institutions have become quite commonplace recently in syria earlier this week there was an attack in the problems of h