but leaving downtown misrata just a new tactic from the libyan colonel? some opposition leaders worry gadhafi forces will simply slip back in in civilian clothing making them more difficult to identify, even with predator drones. but even if the games in misrata are real, they say the nato mission remains unclear. >> i don't think we've made up our own minds what we're trying to achieve. are we trying to bring down the gadhafi regime which is not give to do. we could do that in 90 days. the tough part, what do we do when gadhafi is gone? >> reporter: the conflict in libya is quickly becoming overshadowed by an explosion of violence in syria. far more reports of stability in the middle east. on friday the syrian government unleashed one of the deadliest crackdowns since the arab uprising began. amateur video shows what happened when security forces opened fire on tens of thousands of demonstrators reportedly killing around 100. even now the death toll remains unclear. saturday the security forces opened fire again shooting into crowds of mourners killing m

humanitarian chief has said the libyan government has promised access to misrata, the only city still partially held by the opposition in libya. however, no guarantees that the assault by gadhafi forces will cease. more than 267 people have been killed in misrata. >>> now here's a look at other stories making news early today in america. a dallas deputy jumped into action after spotting a cascade of sparks shooting from a passing car. the 20-year veteran's dash cam rolled as he attempted to kick out driver's window before the car erupted into flames. the driver, unaware his car was on fire before the explosion, was able to unlock his door and escape without any serious injuries. >>> it was a tragic start to the school week in one pennsylvania school district. one of its drivers lost its life when she crashed into a building. the accident happened just after the driver had dropped off high school students and was on her way to pick up kindergartners. >>> a six-time street sweeper made a mess inside a barbecue restaurant. vehicle barrelled through the walls coming to a stop 15 feet insi

i am not just concerned about misrata. over the last few days a lot of libyans are crossing the border because of the intense fighting there. we had 6000-crossed in a few days period. we have to try to get into misrata and other cities as well. we have stocks on the border of tunisia and egypt. as soon as the security situation allows and as soon as we are able to do effective assessments, we will be able to move to where we need to. >> where did you visit in libya? what do you attribute this change of heart that allows the unicef ship -- >> i only went into tripoli and benghazi. i went to tripoli one day and went to benghazi on the following day. i was basically involved in meeting the leaders where i went. a lot of the aid is going into misrata is going in obviously might seek to area that is controlled by the opposition. with respect to the humanitarian corridor, we were able to negotiate. we are now able to negotiate that kind of access with the government of libya. i am not able to second-guess their reasons for doing

bloodshed despite the claims of the recent days the regime forces have continued to commit atrocities in misrata and the mountains. as the secretary said the united states condemns the gadhafi's continued brutal attacks on the libyan people could in violation of the resolution which calls for a call to the cost of such attacks on civilians and immediate cease-fire. the industry and shelling of the areas hasn't stopped. in the western mountains the pro regime troops have laid siege to the civilian populations apparently attempting to starve them into submission. with that backdrop i'd like to update you on two fronts. in the past several weeks, they're have been several meetings including the contact group in doha, the ministerial in berlin and the cairo meeting of the a you irritably. these meetings have reaffirmed the result of the nations to

we cannot say we averted a mass atrocity in ben gaza onghazi to one in misrata. that is not success. the longer this drags on, the greater the risk. the longer the imbalance on the ground may shift to gadhafi or some tragic event may fracture the coalition which may be difficult to hold together over a prolonged period of time. i know that the u.s. military has a heavy load on the back right now and the men and women in the uniform are doing everything that we ask of them with the unique honor and effectiveness. we must not fail in libya and i say this as someone who is familiar with the consequences of a lost conflict. we did not seek this military operation in libya, but we were right to intervene. we have to deal with the world as it is, and if the demands of the great power are taxing the supply of it, we need a debate about increasing the size and capability of the force and not taking decisions that increase the risk of failing in the mission in a country that is now at the center of the most consequential geopolitical opening since the fall of the berlin w

from one of the towns in the west that was was -- that he was attacking, restore power and water to misrata and pull back well to the west of ajdabiyah. so he was very specific in those matters with his announcement of his decision. >> so -- but there really were no clear conditions made. were there really clear conditions made where we were waiting for aresponse from moammar gadhafi on preventing this humanitarian crisis for which we have now are engaging in combat operations? >> he started these actions the minute that the people began -- that the uprisings began in tripoli and the other cities. and, you know, the response was, i think, clearly communicated to him what was going to happen. >> mr. secretary, i don't believe that this -- i served in tharmy and the marine corps and i know what humanitarian missions are and our men in uniform know what humanitarian missions are and they're generally in a permissive environment where our security concerns are simply the integrity of our logistical support. this is -- these are combat operations, were intended to be combat operations from the b

also yesterday, gadhafi loyalists continue to pound the city of misrata. at least 13 people were killed. >>> back here in the u.s., at least two people are dead and dozens more injured after a tornado ripped through a small town in southeastern oklahoma last night. as light breaks this morning, officials will try to determine the full extent of the damage as those efforts have been hampered because the twister struck just before dark, downed trees and power lines have blocked area roads. >>> now here's a look at other stories making news early today in america. in texas, one woman's violent struggle to fight off a brutal purse snatcher was all caught on video. the victim battled her attacker holding on to her purse as he dragged her across the pavement. unfortunately the snatcher was able to get away with the purse. no arrest has been made. >>> the u.s. military has a new eye in the sky. the atlas 5 rocket launched from the vandenburg air force base and it carried a spy satellite as its payload. we know the launch was part of a national reconnaissance offi

today's strike came after a bloody weekend in the rebel-head city of misrata where rebel forces unleashed a barrage of shells and rockets leaving 32 dead and dozens wounded. >>> this morning in afghanistan, officials are dealing with massive jailbreak of 400 prisoners, many of them taliban insurgents. officials say the inmates escaped through a tunnel they had been digging for the past five months. a taliban spokesman said 100 of those who got out were taliban insurgents. security forces launched a huge search operation and have captured some. >> and now here is a look at other stories making news in other parts of america. the skies over southern california became a combat zone when a gunman opened fire on an land chopper. one bullet hit the fuselage forcing the pilot to make an emergency landing. no one was hurt, on the ground, the gunman was subdued by family members. >>> a powerful explosion level a vacant house on long island. 20 nearby residents were taken to the hospital for evaluation. no one was seriously hurt. that explosion is under investigation. >>> a florida woman's uninvite

strikes in the country, essentially allowing gadhafi's forces to slaughter residents in the city of misrata. nato claims the air strikes have not slowed since it took over from the united states last week. >>> debbie wasserman schultz has been tapped to be the chair of the democratic national committee who will succeed tim kaine. he announced he's running for virginia's open senate seat in 2012. >>> after a firestorm of criticism, wisconsin governor scott walker has reversed the promotion of the son of an influential lobbyist to a high ranking state job paying more than $80,000 a year. democrats complained the appointment of the 27-year-old who has limited experience and no college degree amounted to cronyism. >>> and a potential crisis was averted in space after an old fragment of a chinese satellite threatened to fly close to the international space station. normally, nasa would move the iss out of the way. but it was discovered too late. it missed the space station by a little more than three miles. >> and now here's an early look at how wall street will kick off the day. the dow opens a

libyan evacuees say pro gadhafi forces are staging a massacre in the sieged city of misrata with the army using tanks and snipers against residents. that comes as a government spokesman says the regime is ready to discuss political reform. however, he insists colonel gadhafi, who waved to supporters outside his tripoli compound last night, has to stay. >>> in a major policy reversal, the obama administration now says it will prosecute alleged 9/11 mastermind khalid sheikh mohammed and four others before a military commission at guantanamo bay and not a civilian court. >>> mexican officials say two men identified as american citizens were shot to death in their vehicle as they waited at a tijuana border crossing. a gunman approached a line of waiting cars and fired into the victims' pickup truck as they waited to enter the united states. >>> and an american astronaut and two russian cosmonauts blasted off this morning in a spacecraft named after the first man in space. today's mission comes just one week shy of the 50th anniversary of yuri gagarin's historic flight. >> and now here's

in misrata, photography hetherington was killed. he was best known for co-directing an oscar nominated film. american chris hondros was also killed as their group came under fire. meanwhile, the obama administration is preparing to provide as much as $25 million to aid in the rebels fight against forces loyal to moammar gadhafi. it is intended for use of nonviolent equipment and supplies. >>> now here's a look at other stories making news early today in america. a deadly shoot-out inside a florida internet cafe erupted on camera. two masked men entered with guns drawn, but quickly retreated after exchanging gunfire with a security guard. one of the suspects later died from a gunshot wound he suffered in that gun fight. police have not made any arrests. >>> a delaware mother is now in custody after turning herself into police for a shocking crime all caught on surveillance tape. the woman allegedly instructed her son to grab a wallet, which she later stashed in her purse before they exited. the boy is now in the custody of a grand pa

for the last several weeks, we've been talking about the dire situation in the city of misrata. it's surrounded by gadhafi forces. it's been relentlessly attacked. it appears that the rebels in that city have made significant progress, witnesses and rebels say the rebel fighters have been able to push gadhafi's troops out of the center of misrata. it's intensified nato air strikes over the last several days. also, for the first time, the use of american predator drones. it appears that combination, the predator drones and the nato air strikes have given the rebels in the city of misrata a very important advantage. the question now, will they be able to hold the city or will gadhafi's troops go back in. >> richard, let me ask you about syria. violent protests continue there. where is the government in terms of losing total control? there's concern it's on the brink. >> it could be on the brink. analysts i've spoken to this morning think unless this government acts quickly, might not survive more than a few months. today, there were more protests as people came out to bury the doz

be taken into misrata. smoke was rising above the city and journalists were taken to a smalltown nearby. >>> hundreds of protesters marched to stop the use of nuclear power. families with small children joined other protesters in marches throughout downtown tokyo workers have been working to restore the cooling system at a nuclear reactor damaged by the recent earthquake and tsunami. radioactive leaking water is slowing efforts. >>> local elections in japan seen as a test for the japanese government in light of recent tragedy. the prime minister, naoto kan's, popularity has fallen. he has been under extreme pressure to step down for his handling of the crisis. diplomatic missteps and policy flip-flops have weakened his grip on power before last month's disaster. >>> much more to come. still to come, a giant-sized ceremony for defending world champions. all of the highlights from yesterday's ring ceremony at at&t park. >>> a terrifying twister caught on tape in iowa we have the video you must see to believe.

over the last few days we have seen opposition forces make significant gains in misrata. it's not yet clear whether they, in fact, control the city. the situation remains a little confuseed. we've seen the italians decide to contribute attack aircraft for the first time. kuwaitis donating known the opposition forces. we've seen ourselves and others with mentoring groups in benghazi. i think there's a danger in extrapolating the events of any one short period of time into the wider shape of the campaign. i think if we look back to where we were before the intervention when it was entirely possible that the regime launched a humanitarian catastrophe upon the people of benghazi and where we are today and the military capability of that regime, we are a long way away from that starting point. so i do not recognize it as a stalemate and i think that we made some considerable progress. if we look, for example, at the speed of which nato of able to put together its command and control, i think it's been considerably faster than in previous conflicts and i think the fact that we'

the same is true in the western city of misrata. a rebel group distributed this video which they claim shows a dairy factory moments after it was shelled by government forces. five civilians, they say, were killed. at the port in misrata, the only safe way in and out of the city, boats docked with weapons and supplies. and then leave with the wounded. human rights watch says gadhafi loyalists started using cluster bombs, a weapon that ox plodes above the ground releasing small highly exes plosive bomblets. >> which fall over a large area. it's hard to avoid casualties. >> reporter: the libyan government denies using cluster bombs. but they can't deny that misrata is under siege and civilians are dying there every day. government forces have taken up positions in residential areas. nato's hands are tied. if they conduct more air strikes they risk killing more civilians. lester? >> stephanie gosk in benghazi for us, thanks. >>> today is deadline day for filing federal tax returns. taxpayers had an extra three days this year because ap

as to whether we are seeing it here, there've been reports of civilians in misrata and that nature and i think you are seeing is much on the news, the international media because this is being reported by journalists and tv crews in that respect. as to the stalemate, think it is up for anyone who wants to make a judgment in that respect. what i can say is that over the last 48 hours and probably longer, the situation between right and adjdabiya in the last 48 hours has been the fluid between bragg and adjdabiya. the forces moved up and down highways. i outlined yesterday with the tmc tanks. if someone wants to find -- to defined that as the stalemate that is fine. all i'm saying is yes it is fluid but fluid in a reasonably small area. thank you. is there another question? >> michael with bbc. rear admiral yi said he won't be apologizing for the strikes that hit rebel targets in you said is not for you to make evidence to improve communication with the rebel command to does that mean in a sense you are keeping and impartial distance where you attack rebels if you see them as threatening

this while moammar gadhafi's forces continue to pound misr a misrata, the only city with a significant rebel presence in the government controlled west. >>> katie couric has announced she will be leaving the anchor desk at the cbs evening news after five years on the job. she is yet to reveal where she will go next. >>> a teenager in utah has an unusual talent and showing it all off on youtube. you can watch the 13-year-old is amazingly accurate with a football, even making far away shots into a basketball net. his online video has received more than 150,000 hits in just a few days. good for him. sign that kid up. it is five minutes past the hour. let's go to al for a check on today's weather. >> brought to you by kay jewelers. >> what school are you from? >> just outside louisville, kentucky. you've got strong storms this morning. let's look and show you what's happening, kansas city, missouri, action news, cloudy and cool and 57. as we show you where the risk of strong storms are, we're looking at the very likely into kentucky of a strong risk and then a high risk in birmingham, hunt

they stepped up air strikes in misrata and ajdabiya destroying 25 of gadhafi's tanks. members of the african union say gadhafi is in favor of a cease-fire as they head to eastern libya for negotiations. >>> yemen's president insists he won't step down until 2013. protesters rallied in yemen following deadly clashes on friday. in syria, government troops sealed off the mediterranean city of beniyaz where four anti-government protesters were killed sunday. after a week of escalating violence, working toward ta a cease-fire suggested by hamas would be a grave mistake. >>> a new law that bars women from wearing face-covering islamic clothinging in public goes in effect in france today. violators face a fan equal to $215. the penalty is larger for anyone who forces a woman to wear a face covering. firefighters from two dozen states are in hot dry west texas battling wildfires that destroyed at least 75 homes this weekend. wisconsin was hit by seven tornadoes on sunday. that destroyed 25 homes and barns. on saturday, a tornado injured 16 people and levelled about 100 buildin

over the last few days we have seen opposition forces make significant gains in misrata. it's not yet clear whether they, in fact, control the city. the situation remains a little confuseed. we've seen the italians decide to contribute attack aircraft for the first time. kuwaitis donating known the opposition forces. we've seen ourselves and others with mentoring groups in benghazi. i think there's a danger in extrapolating the events of any one short period of time into the wider shape of the campaign. i think if we look back to where we were before the intervention when it was entirely possible that the regime launched a humanitarian catastrophe upon the people of benghazi and where we are today and the military capability of that regime, we are a long way away from that starting point. so i do not recognize it as a stalemate and i think that we made some considerable progress. if we look, for example, at the speed of which nato of able to put together its command and control, i think it's been considerably faster than in previous conflicts and i think the fact that we'

from one of the towns in the west that was was -- that he was attacking, restore power and water to misrata and pull back well to the west of ajdabiyah. so he was very specific in those matters with his announcement of his decision. >> so -- but there really were no clear conditions made. were there really clear conditions made where we were waiting for a response from moammar gadhafi on preventing this humanitarian crisis for which we have now are engaging in combat operations? >> he started these actions the minute that the people began -- that the uprisings began in tripoli and the other cities. and, you know, the response was, i think, clearly communicated to him what was going to happen. >> mr. secretary, i don't believe that this -- i served in the army and the marine corps and i know what humanitarian missions are and our men in uniform know what humanitarian missions are and they're generally in a permissive environment where our security concerns are simply the integrity of our logistical support. this is -- these are combat operations, were intended to be combat operations from th

the vast majority of the strike took place near misrata. nato and its partners have undertaken a challenging mission. it is our contribution to the world's efforts to solve the libyan crisis. i look forward to taking part in the contact group meeting in qatar on wednesday, which will provide the international framework for a lasting settlement. i have also taken note of an african union cease-fire proposal. since the start of the crisis, nato has been in constant touch with the african union as well as other regional and international organizations. i want to be clear. there can be no sole military solution to the crisis in libya. nato welcomes all contributions to the broad international effort to stop the violence against the civilian population. any cease-fire must be credible and verifiable, as the united nations security council has made clear. there must be a complete end to violence and a complete and to all attacks against and abuses against civilians. and that any solution to the crisis must respond to the legitimate demands of the

here in benghazi said that they would stop fighting if gadhafi pulled back from libya cities including misrata and allowed peaceful demonstrations to take place including in tripoli. gadhafi said that was a trick. now, on the ground, the fighting is continuing. mostly focused around the city of brega. and the rebels are doing better. they're digging in, not retre retreating as much, they have better weapons and they are fighting. >> and we have seen several high profile government defections. how is this affecting the rebels? >> reporter: the defections on the military side are now actually helping the rebels. before there had been many army units and military commanders that had defected to the rebel side but hadn't been doing very much. they were mostly staying on their bases. now they're going out to the front line, there is a new rebel military leadership composed almost entirely of former army units. >> richard enbell with the latest from benghazi. thank you. >>> thomas roberts is at the news desk for more of today's top stories. >> good morning, everybody. we begin with another emergency

. >>> now to libya where government forces bombarded the rebel held city of misrata with at least 100 rockets. this as the rebels appear to be more organized in their push west. nbc's stephanie gosk is in benghazi this morning with the latest. stephanie, good morning. >> melissa, we were allowed through the rebels forces, haven't been letting me through for days west of ajdabiyah. when we got to the front lines, we were surprised by what we saw. these are not just rag tag revolutionaries, here are units of professional soldiers who defected from gadhafi's army when the uprising began. they say new, more advanced weaponry will be in their hands within days. we're in the last staging area before the front line. we haven't seen any of the new heavy weapons. what we have seen are the new land cruiser pick up trucks. they said they come from qatar. the gulf nation of qatar has also supplied new boots and uniforms. a career officer said professional soldiers have started to control some of the less predictable volunteers. the rebels are still excitable, but we are united with them, he says.

league to act in a multilateral fashion, and we supported that move to save the lives of the people in misrata and elsewhere in libya. so libya was a unique situation. however, we continue to look for ways and are pursuing a range of possible policy options, including targeted sanctions to respond to the crackdown and respond to the crackdown and make clear this behavior is unacceptable. already you know syria is under significant sanctions, and we are looking at other means to increase the pressure on the riegeeem on the syrian -- regime on the syrian government. as it is for all of these countries, it is up to syria to decide who its leader should be. that's what we believe. and the syrian people should certainly be respected, their rights should be respected. they should not be attacked, they should not be killed as they express their grievances to the syrian government. but again, our position in all these countries has been that it is up to the people of those countries to decide what their leaders are and we call for processes of reform. >> you mention sanctions would be targeted. could

hitting fixed and mobile targets in tripoli, misrata, with such freedom of movement because we moved quickly in the early hours of the operation to render an effective regime air defense and command and control. the first struck late saturday night, the 19th, tripoli time. the no-fly zone was essentially in place. we have tipped to rike whe and when needed and it's my expectation that under anywnato leadership that level of effort and focus will not diminish. what will diminish are operations as we turn our attention to providing unique enabling capabilities. i've been involved with operations for much of the last decade. from the balkans to iraq and afghanistan. so many forces so fast. the enemy wasn't just gadhafi' military it was also the clock as he marched on benghazi intent on brutalizing the people there. but we were read there were pilots and sailors moving into position ready to act. we were able to do that because we, the collective we, not just thunited states, have invested in close relationships with one another facilitated and improved over time through annual excises,

meanwhile rebels said a rocket barrage killed at least 23 people in the western city of misrata. >>> baseball's all-time home run king barry bonds was convicted wednesday of one count of obstructing justice. but the jury was deadlocked on whether bonds intentionally lied while under oath about steroid use. >>> some electrifying news. take a look. they say lightning never strikes twice but here at the big apple lightning strikes three times. spectacular. now back to stephanie with the weather. >> announcer: ail's pick city of the day brought to you by venture card. what's in your wallet. >>> all right. we're with the crowd. i found all the birthdays. you're from southern california, so you're a little chilly out here? >> really cold. >> she says new york city is pretty hectic. it's a city that never sleeps. we're going to take you to another city, san francisco, al's pick city and we'll show you the weather out there. usual san francisco a little damp, a little on the cool side. let's look at our forecast as we head through the day today. we are going to see the weather. pretty nice t

this as britain released videos of destruction of a tank near misrata. >>> when he's not busy on this broadcast, apparently lester holt likes to rock out. that's our lester jamming on the bass guitar last night at the grand ole opry, lifting the leg and everything in nashville with luke bryan. >> i always joke with people that i'm only doing the news because i can't make it as a musician. when my album gets done, i'm out of here. >> it's now 7:18. i love the leg lift. >> he's a good musician. >> excellent. >> he's terrific. multi talented, lester. way to go. >> makes his own clothes, too. >> do you play an instrument? >> no. >> please. >> that was loaded. anyway, let's see what's going on. big storm in the northeast. lightning, heavy rain last night. slowly lifting into new england. we'll see another half inch to an inch of rain. another system in the pacific northwest. that will be a potent weathermaker later in the week. rest of the u.s., sunshine in the plains. warm and sunny through the gulf coast with showers through the western great lakes. windy conditions through southern cali

talks of a possible road map to peace, but government forces continue to pound the western city of misrata with tanks and artillery. rebels fight daily gun battles with loyalists. civilians are caught in the cross fire. injuries that doctors there aren't trained to deal with. >> we are not qualified to be war surgeons, but no choice. >> reporter: french and british foreign ministers want nato to do more to protect libyan civilians. they need more low flying planes like the usa-10 known as the tank buster. the u.s. is in charge of the operation and the plane flew regular missions. now it's on stand-by. the u.s. insists it will continue in a support role but as nato asks for more help the u.s. air force is ready to step in. an update on a story brought to you earlier this week. no word from the four journalists including two americans that went missing in eastern libya. they have been gone without word from them for ten todays. natalie? >> all right. stephanie gosk in benghazi, libya. stay safe. >>> japan ordered the operators of the crippled fukushima nuclear plant to pay $10,000 to each ho

and their top commander is openly criticizing nato for not doing more to protect the citizens of misrata, a town in the west that's been surrounded by gadhafi's forces for weeks now. nato, in its defense, says they have been holding back because they are concerned about civilian casualties. here in eastern libya, there is a u.s. envoy in the city of benghazi, chris stevens. he's here on a fact-finding mission to offer ways that the u.s. can support the rebels with nonlethal assistance. there is no talk of giving them weapons. >> all right, stephanie gosk. thanks for the reporting. >>> at least nine deaths are blamed on severe weather in southern u.s. the massive storm system cut across from the mississippi river to the carolinas causing tens of millions of dollars in damage. the national weather service confirmed eight tornadoes so far. of the 38 suspected twisters that ripped through the region. >>> boeing has acknowledged that it miscalculated the risk of metal fatigue in its 737 jets built in the 1980s and 1990s saying it was aware cracking would occur but it was not aware it could ha

storm shadow and the brimstone missile which is a low collateral weapon for use in urban areas such as misrata. in addition, tornado has a gun, which carrier did not. tornado has longer rates than hairier. tornado has a two man crew which helps with better mission control from the air and if i just may remind the committee of the logistics, legacy, there were not enough hairier to do afghanistan and what we've been asked to do in libya had we taken the alternative decision and kept hairier but not tornado. if ms. docherty is asking had we had another 3 billion pounds would we like to have kept more aircraft, the answer is yes. but we're trig to deal with the government's primary objective of a $158 billion deficit. >> i won't get drawn into this, but you mentioned range and logistics, you probably won't correct me if i was to suggest that we're currently running at least one of our aircraft from norfolk rather than from italy. do you not accept what some commentators have made, that if you had illustrious in the mediterranean, we would not have to have a 2, 3,000 mile refueling change. >> the

we are though as we speak continuing to take action including in misrata and various elsewhere. we look to the commanders to tell us, to advise political authorities with the need to do to successfully undertake that mission to vignette senate can i follow on that? you said that we and i am assuming you meant nato is continuing to attack the qadhafi forces. the united states is not involved in that though. i think we dropped three bombs over the weekend they were all air defense and one radar. is the u.s. during the meetings last week and in the continuing conversation is the u.s. getting any pressure from the allies to get back involved in that mission that involves specifically targeting the ground forces, the tanks and what not? >> the president made clear from the start, the united states made clear from the start that after the initial phase of the campaign which the united states was very much in the lead through its air assets and strikes and suppression of their enemy defenses and submarine cruise missiles the intention of the united states was then to transition through

we are though as we speak continuing to take action including in misrata and various elsewhere. we look to the commanders to tell us, to advise political authorities with the need to do to successfully undertake that mission to vignette senate can i follow on that? you said that we and i am assuming you meant nato is continuing to attack the qadhafi forces. the united states is not involved in that though. i think we dropped three bombs over the weekend they were all air defense and one radar. is the u.s. during the meetings last week and in the continuing conversation is the u.s. getting any pressure from the allies to get back involved in that mission that involves specifically targeting the ground forces, the tanks and what not? >> the president made clear from the start, the united states made clear from the start that after the initial phase of the campaign which the united states was very much in the lead through its air assets and strikes and suppression of their enemy defenses and submarine cruise missiles the intention of the united states was then to transition through