embassy. well this was the 1st time that the us 9 actually admitted publicly to having strong 8 p.m.s. safe p.m.s. has accused the us many times in the past of having down for but there has never been basically a public admission to those actions so that is quite a significant event and one of the spokespersons of the fall of brigade said yesterday that it's one thing to strike them but it's another thing to do in public basically 'd development that the u.s. actually took that drastic 'd to strike what is essentially at least on paper a number of the iraqi security forces this is present quite an escalation to the longstanding pensions between the u.s. and the piano on the ground and 'd why we're seeing such a decide to fund of course the crowd of shoppers 'd today coming right up to the gates of the u.s. just one response the p.l.f. is also 9 to retaliate militarily and its political wing that currently dominates the parliament have also promised that they would be able in a bill to actually

embassy in baghdad u.s. officials taking that very seriously indeed let's cross back to some more of fault scene she is in baghdad just hundreds of meters away from the u.s. embassy someone what have you been hearing about the embassy staff in baghdad and the state over the protests outside that embassy well i cannot confirm whether or not. evacuated. 9 d but i have not. helicopters real embassy compound at least from the position where i am located of course the u.s. embassy compound treelike 9 and i'm not aware.

embassy was overrun. the u.s. diplomats who happened to be there in the building at the time were taken hostage. they were held hostage for a total of 444 days. 52 american diplomats in total. we know some thing of their treatment and it was not that great. they were blindfolded, interrogated, and beaten. we are privileged to have this cloth. this was used as a blindfold. on the economic officer robert blucher. the takeover of the embassy coincided with his first full day of the job. what a first day. on the second day, he was beaten . about a month later, he was called for interrogation and said he was line folded in a cold room for six hours. he could hear the cooking sounds of his captor's rifles in the background. very harsh treatment. this blindfold came to us through a friend of his. we know the end of the story that they were ultimately freed. when he returned to freedom, he was visiting friends and gave this blindfold to his friend as a thank you gift for hosting him. and he said, just wash it. luckily, th

embassy. keep your hands off the government. it's not clear who the government is. one group of students in the midst of many protesting zunts decide that they are going to make a powerful protest against the u.s. embassy. and again we are still -- even all the decades later not 100% sure what happened who thought what. there is a strong argument to be made that a group of the students from- dsh universities in tehran decide to kind of emulate the african-american civil rights movement process nef a sit in at the u.s. embassy to demonstrate the illegitimacy of the american presence and the witness against the american power. when the iranian students decided to make the protest, witness against power, applausably hold a sit-in. i think all along there were some knowing this they would go further. what happens is really a kind of catastrophic affair in so many angles. there were thousands of people protesting outside the u.s. embassy. the one group decides, one group of students decides to clim

embassies u.s. embassy and also a the united nations and it was temporarily opened up to the public a before anti-government protests began a and then it has been closed down again and impossible to actually enter this 45 from about having a special d edge but of course d this a is of course not being enforced at the moment because a of these huge masses of people. 'd who enter without any sort of 'd try to prevent them and it's really 'd quite remarkable and it's a sign that the government is standing behind the p.m.s. that the government is supporting the march as well as the message that they're trying to pass and this comes at a time of significant oil in baghdad because not just in baghdad in iraq on the whole the last few weeks and months have been marked by significant amounts prove and the government itself isn't quite a tricky sport he just took us through some of the recent events and how do you think this march on the. the u.s. embassy policing the war with. well this march and basically

embassy. is seen here and then the man next to him wearing the white turban that is political leader. who was recently placed under u.s. sanctions as well. in the iranian capital tehran explaining why these iranian backed political figures were at the protests. he is a very well known figure within the establishment in iran he fought on the iranian side during the iran iraq war between 1980 in 1980 has pledged his allegiances not only to the islamic republic and the ideologies of this country but also to the supreme leader as well as the head of the revolutionary guards full force awesome soleimani he doesn't make it a hidden fact that that's where his allegiances lie he is now head of the better organization which is part of the largest ruling coalition within the iraqi parliament alba non group as is the man we just heard from he is the head of the puzzle the network these are groups that came to be following the fall of saddam hussein and their various groups that were fighting amongst each

embassy in iraq they will be held fully responsible. it was only after several hours that iraqi security forces arrived to protect the embassy grounds. straight's washington that where we join knotted up his bureau chief alexandra welcome our xandra how seriously is washington taking this attack. very seriously i would say secretary of defense has announced that the pentagon is sending additional marines to protect you as personnel in iraq and there are reports that 2 apache helicopters were sent to fly over the embassy in a clear show of force so this is a very serious situation after all hundreds of members of the militias tried to storm the embassy and breach the outer wall even though they didn't manage to get into the embassy buildings secretary of pompei or spoke to the iraqi president and to the iraqi prime minister on the phone today and according to the state department he made clear that it will protect and defend its people the u.s. has invested millions in military aid in iraq since they told us saddam hussein so how will th

embassy has basically been as a result of rocket attacks targeted at the embassy but most of the time these rocket attacks so many fall anywhere near the embassy they don't really injure or hurt anybody put to have. hundreds or thousands of p.m.s. members strength in uniform some of them carrying guns this close to the embassies certainly perceived as a significant threat to the embassy staff though you did touch on this just a little bit earlier but i want to just go back and explain to us about how the protesters have managed to get this close to the embassy and exactly what security forces there are doing you were signed before by appeared to be allowing the protesters to just toss. indeed and let's be very clear these protesters are not the same protesters who have been demonstrating against the government for free months these are crowds are p.m.s. members or their supporters the majority of people are wearing military uniforms there are some civilians but they're also appear to be supporters or loyalists of the pm because not a broader presentation of the. iraqi population or th

embassy. but iraq's government is in bind. the u.s. is still an ally in the fight against so-called islic state, but its relationship with iran is much closer. the embassy is not thoughtedo be in any ite danger, but american reinforcements have already arrived. u.s. marines, part of a special unit, making the short journey from a base in the nearby kuwait. nuala: a little earlier i spoke to the atlantic council's iraq initiative director. >> it is alarming. it is a really sad turn of events. a lot of it is unnecessary because of this sort of back d forth hostilities between tan united state iran, and iraq is caught in the crossfire. i tnk, as i said in my tweets earlier from yesterday t today, i believe that we are going to witness a new relation bad turn between the united stas and iraq i 2020, different than what has been before and's 2003.-- since 2003. this is the first time we see demonstrations in front of the u.s. embassy in baghdad's003, and i believe that these demonstrators will not

embassy home. and they're chanting anti-american slogans they're demanding their way after all of american troops from iraq prime minister out of the matty has called on protesters to retreat condemning any attack on embassies but the fact that these crowds have been allowed to reach the embassy gates appears to signal the government's implicit endorsement of the message they're trying to send to the wonderful team al-jazeera but that and more now with mike hanna in washington d.c. mike more troops headed to iraq any more details on that is this is being confirmed by the secretary of defense marc as bird would appear that the troops are not being deployed from the u.s. they will be redeployed from troops already stationed within iraq there are some 14000 u.s. troops in iraq most of whom are involved in training iraqi forces in the ongoing fight against eisel these situations. of confidence that would appear by the trap administration in iraqi government assurances that u.s. property and personnel w

embassy. seen here the man next to him wearing the white turban is the political leader has ali who was recently placed under u.s. sanctions. in the iranian capital tehran explaining why iranian backed political figures were present at these protests. but he is a very well known figure within the establishment in iran he fought on the iranian side during the iran iraq war between 1988 he has pledged his allegiances not only to the islamic republic and the ideologies of this country but also to the supreme leader as well as the head of the revolutionary guard sports force hossam soleimani he doesn't make it a hidden fact that that's where his allegiances lie he is now head of the better organization which is part of the largest ruling coalition within the iraqi parliament group as is the man we just heard from he is the head of puzzle the network these are groups that came to be following the fall of saddam hussein and their various groups that were fighting amongst each other and also fighting

embassy in baghdad. that this is the same outside the embassy right now the iraqi kids like the prime minister is urging the remaining protesters to leave. i'm stan grant this is al jazeera life and also coming up australia's inferno what it looks like for rescue crews driving through the bush. spot fires raging nearby new year's celebrations get underway in sydney with a massive fireworks display over the famous harbor bridge and opera house. last go and flees corruption charges in japan the former new chief but surprise arrival in lebanon a. deadline to to sob time's up for the gunmen blamed for an outbreak of fighting in the capital the central african republic. and we begin with breaking news from iraq when members of an iranian backed group and their supporters have boxed into baghdad's heavily fortified green zone and surrounded the u.s. embassy the iraqi prime minister. has warned against any aggression and foreign embassies and he's urging the remaining protesters to leave most of members of the

translation: this embassy has been proved to be an embassy of plotting against iraq, the embassy of spying on iraq and the embassy of running schemes of sabotage in iraq. tensions rose dramatically over the weekend as american warplanes carried out air strikes against military targets in iraq and syria. at least 25 fighters were killed. the us blamed the pro—iranian group kata'ib hezbollah for a rocket attack on friday that killed an american civilian in the northern city of kirkuk. donald trump points the finger at neighbouring iran. iran killed an american contractor, he tweeted this morning, we strongly responded and always will. now iran is orchestrating an attack on the us embassy in iraq. they will be held fully responsible. he also warned iraq to do more to protect the embassy. but iraq's government is in a bind. the us is still an ally in the fight against so—called islamic state, but its relationship with iran is much closer. the prime minister condemned america's air strikes at the weekend, but when the crowd moved on the embassy this morning, iraqi security forces did not st

embassy in baghdad. the demonstrations turned violent with protesters hurling stones and setting fires which you can see there. while security forces and embassy guards fought back with stun grenades and tear gas. a group of demonstrators shouting "death to america" have broken down the gate leading into the u.s. compound. president trump responded on twitter, writing, "iran killed an american contractor, wounding many. we strongly responded and always will. now iran is orchestrating an attack on the u.s. embassy in iraq. they will be held fully responsible. in addition we expect iraq to use its forces to protect the embassy, and so notified." nbc's hans nichols is in florida traveling with the president, and ali arouzy. ali, what's the latest? >> geoff, the ambassador apparently was on leave for holiday when this attack happened, it makes sense, it's the holiday season. but we're told he's now on the way back to the embassy. we're hearing the staff is on lockdown at the embassy. they are in a secure par

the embassy's takeover made for an evening's entertainment, whole families came to the embassy and chanted death to america. death to the shah. shaw. meanwhile, bruce was still at the foreign ministry arranged for thier safety and told them to take three in the swedish embassy upstairs. >> i walked up the stairs to the swedish embassy's office suite and they were expecting me. >> at the foreign ministry, the foreign minister met with them. he told the diplomats he would speak to the revolutionary counsel that not and assured him the crisis would soon be resolved. >> he asked me where i propose to spend the night and i said, well, that is your responsibility, mr. foreign minister. i am here with the assurancce your government will provide protection for me in my mission. it is your responsibility. can you assure me i will be safe on the streets? obviously you cannot. >> he wanted us to go away. his attitude was i have enough headaches. your people are just making my life more complicated than it need be. >> so they were then taken to an ornate ballroom used for diplomatic receptions. they d

embassy in iraq they will be held fully responsible. it was only after several hours that iraqi security forces arrived to protect the embassy grounds. as guards was in there were joined a double years of bureau chief alexander welcome alexandra how seriously is washington taking this attack. very seriously i would say secretary of defense has announced that the pentagon is sending additional marines to protect you as personnel in iraq and according to media reports 2 apache helicopters were sent to fly over the embassy and a clear show of force additional secretary of state pale spoke with the iraqi president and the iraqi prime minister on the phone today and according to the state department he made clear that the you asked will protect and defend its people now the u.s. has invested millions in military aid in iraq since so tall old saddam hussein so how will the u.s. attack iraq you're talking the u.s. embassy those 2 incidents how's that going to affect their relationship well i think that it's fair to say that the strikes conduct

embassy in iraq. we're learning about growing concerns within the white house that tensions could escalate if the hours ahead. >>> inappropriate. a moderate republican senator says both parties are wrong to prejudge the president's impeachment trial. but susan collins is signaling she would support a deal by democrats and a potential break from her party's leadership. >>> overrated. president trump takes aim at nancy pelosi and the democrats as the year of his impeachment comes to a close. he's ringing in 2020 with a new twitter rant. >>> and pelosi's power play. we'll show you how the speaker is flexing her muscle as she

as we mentioned, it's a heavily fortified embassy. there's many, many layers to breach before protesters could get to those staff members. they are deep inside the compound, somewhere in lockdown, and i don't believe they're going to be evacuated yet. the situation doesn't seem to be growing out of control. in fact, it seems to be quieting slightly, so they'll probably wait it out until they see how the evening unfolds. >> we're hearing from one u.s. official estimating around 6,000 protesters, there were around 6,000 at the demonstration site. hans, talk about the tweet from the president in which he blamed iran. we know secretary of state pompeo spoke with the iraqi president as well. what are you hearing from administration officials in general about any u.s. response with regards to this attack on the embassy in bagdad? >> reporter: it's clear they're holding iran responsible. what's interesting about the president's rhetorical flourish on twitter, he's involving himself in iraqi domestic politics, talking directly to the people o

embassy in tehran. kathleen stafford is an artist whose work has been acquired by american and foreign embassies in museums around the world. 1979, she was a visa clerk at the embassy in tehran when it was seized. she was one of six americans exfiltrated from iran with the assistance of the central intelligence agency and the canadian government after the embassy seizure. please join me in welcoming our panelists. [ applause ] thank you again for being here. i'd like to set the stage. in 1979, what was the political climate like in iran when you arrived there? >> well, there were curfews. we were limited in terms of where we could go. my question was, what does an islamic republic look like? that was the reason i was there. this was the stated goal of the revolution, to establish an islamic republic. people were unsure. everybody was treading lightly. people who were known to have been workers for the shah lived in fear. people lived in fear. there were people yanked out of their jobs and, because of th

american embassy and consulate in baghdad. watch out you have touched our soldiers and our brothers they said fires at the outer gates as they try to get inside the embassy grounds the situation appears to be escalating now with hundreds perhaps thousands of members of the popular mobilization for setting the reach to the close of the u.s. embassy there filming stones there burning ceased the trying to climb the wall to reach the u.s. embassy compound and they're chanting anti-american slogans are demanding the wave told all american troops from iraq. the action is in response to u.s. airstrikes that killed dozens of fighters from the hezbollah brigades which form part of the popular mobilization of forces it all began as a funeral procession to honor those killed crowds pay their respects as the bodies passed by and vowed to avenge their deaths in the hall there are those of honor that on the disk our glee act was carried out by the u.s. and israel they will pay a high price we will take a strong stand and we will not forget

embassy. it was feared the u.s. might engineer a coup, a countercoup against the automomy of the people. one group of students in the midst of many protesters students decide that they're going to make a powerful protest against the u.s. embassy. and, again, we're still even all these decades later not 100% sure what happened or who thought what. there's a strong argument to be made that a group of these students from tehran, universities in tehran, decide to kind of emulate the african-american civil rights struggle. they're going to have a sit in at the u.s. embassy to demonstrate the illegitimacy of the american government's presence in their country. and kind of a witness against american power. when those iranian students decided to make their protest, to witness against power, to plausibly hold a sit in, i think all along there was some who knew they were going to go further. what happens is really a catastrophic affair from so many angles. there were thousands of people protesting outsi

embassy is located. well thousands of people are trapped on a big stride as bushfires worsened in the states of victoria and new south whilst the flames have now cut off the seaside tourist town of now that cleared up. we've been running community meetings so everybody knows that i'm sorry this is the system was that we activated soren into that community once we're aware that that far i was about to hit the town. early this morning and when i leave that i o'clock this morning the songs were activated so everybody in that community that had a plan to go to the place at the village we are aware of is the premier you said some people chosen not to take that goss and are mining their han's in is also why the communities we want be putting trucks into dollars here is fully briefed in a fully with the full that fought impacted on that community by the engines they talk in the chances absolutely the former chairman of nissan fled to lebanon from japan where he faces trial of the financial misconduct allegation

i called the embassy and got an answer from the switchboard, embassy occupied. i had a direct extension. i called bruce langdon's office. anne answered and said it is bad. she said to get a hold of the guys in the communication center and find out what is going on from them because they are still in touch with state. i called again using this extension, called them. they were shredding materials. they were taking care of classified stuff. they said call state. they gave me the number at the state department to call the operations center so they had another link. my staff, some of my staff were helping me do this. god bless them. they were taking a chance. but they were monitoring what was being said on radio and television, taking notes and transcribing it. we were feeding that back to washington. but also linking to the communication center until they said we have to go out. state said tell them they have done a good job and say goodbye. the next thing i heard was tell them they are gone. we told them that. that is when the vault was breached. they were taken o

translation: this embassy has been proved to be an embassy of plotting against iraq, the embassy of spying on iraq and the embassy of running schemes of sabotage in iraq. tensions rose dramatically over the weekend as american warplanes carried out air strikes against military targets in iraq and syria. at least 25 fighters were killed. the us blamed the pro—iranian group kata'ib hezbollah for a rocket attack on friday that killed an american civilian in the northern city of kirkuk. donald trump points the finger at neighbouring iran. iran killed an american contractor, he tweeted this morning, we strongly responded and always will. now iran is orchestrating an attack on the us embassy in iraq. they will be held fully responsible. he also warned iraq to do more to protect the embassy. but iraq's government is in a bind. the us is still an ally in the fight against so—called islamic state, but its relationship with iran is much closer. the prime minister condemned america's air strikes at the weekend, but when the crowd moved on the embassy this morning, iraqi security forces did not st

embassy the protesters threw stones and set fire to the outer gates of the embassy the situation appears to be escalating now with hundreds perhaps thousands of members of the popular mobilization forces having the leads to the gates of the u.s. embassy there filming stones their earnings release the trying to climb the wall to reach the u.s. embassy compound and they're chanting anti-american slogans they're demanding the waves roll off american troops from iraq prime minister atal of the mahdi has called on protesters to retreat condemning any attack on embassies but the fact that these crowds have been allowed to reach the embassy gates appears to signal the government's implicit endorsement of the message they're trying to send someone a faulty an al jazeera but that. well for more on this story mike hanna joins us live from washington d.c. mike so president trump pointing the finger directly at iran here where things go at this point you suppose well president trump and senior members of his administration including the secretary of state are places all in the context of the u.s. is

embassy to deliver a stern warning notice. this is a message to trump and to the american embassy and consulate in baghdad. watch out you have touched our soldiers and our brothers they said fires at the outer gates as they try to get inside the embassy grounds the situation appears to be escalating now with hundreds perhaps thousands of members of the popular mobilization for setting the reeds to the close of the u.s. embassy there for throwing stones there burning the trying to climb the wall to reach the u.s. embassy compound and they're chanting anti-american slogans they're demanding the waves roll off american troops from iraq. the action is in response to u.s. airstrikes that killed dozens of fighters from the hezbollah brigades which form part of the popular mobilization of forces it all began as a funeral procession to honor those killed crowds pay their respects as the bodies passed by and vowed to avenge their deaths and the other on their lives over. this cowardly act was carried out by the u.s. and israel they wil

written on the walls of the embassy that weekend. and so we are protesting and we had no visa applicants that day. so i went over i thought this was a good chance to go over and get my diplomatic id card. so i walked across the compound, entered my passport. which meant i wasn't going anywhere without that afterwards. so the ladies now office were very nervous and said why did you come to work today, and i said i was come to work. and they said no but today's the day of the martyrs. and so i went back across the compound and said he should go over there because those ladies were in a bad mood, and he should get his i.t. card to. but if he had gone he would've been in the chancellery at the time to take over. so luckily he didn't listen to me. and we both ended up, in the consulate, and slammed all the doors when we saw that there was a mob outside. people had sticks and bats and things like that. and so after about two hours, there were various activities it came and went, the erisa walked across the compound the regional security of

by attacking this embassy. i think we are going to learn whether this is intended to be a shove back by this group or the prelude to something more sustained. >> michael: let's play some sound and reaction of today. [chanting] >> what you saw was on a rainy backed terrorist group, many individuals who have been designated as terrorists -- we will continue to watch and monitor. it's a difficult place, tough terrain, we continue to take the situation seriously. >> there's no doubt in my mind that iran is behind this, iran has been the biggest foe in my opinion of the united states for a number of years now. any kind of trouble they can make they will do. >> it is flagrant aggression, it is aggression on iraq's sovereignty. it is a violation of norms and values -- this aggression won't pass unpunished. >> michael: your thoughts? >> it's interesting looking at some of these images and remembering what happened in the attack. it's nice to know that the response we are hearing from the u.s. officials seems to be base

embassy. which when it is worth a look clearly there are you know many levels of complicity here people who have not just moved out and decided to attack an embassy clearly there is. an alliance there's complicity between the horizon and its allies in iraq clearly this is related. been said to the attacks earlier in the week and clearly this has to do with the overall proxy conflict between to herat in washington in iraq so all in all it is basically irking washington on the cheap we've seen that happen before and anyone who you know read history understands that an attack for example on the u.s. embassy in tehran or several years ago and i tacked on the u.s. embassy in tripoli have generated an international crises and has washington even humiliated american presidents because of it so iran and its allies have played the smart game today in retaliation to the u.s. attack the last few days it was a couple of questions doesn't it raises the question of hell the u.s. will respond to this and the

embassy has been stormed by iraqi michelle. this is in response to airstrikes that happened on sunday. rob: bye-bye. ♪ griff: breaking right now angry protesters are inside the compound in iraq. >> standing guard as chaos erupts. >> trey yingst is live in jerusalem with what sparked the protests. trey? >> dean, rachel, griff, good morning. hundreds of iraqi demonstrators have stormed the u.s. embassy in baghdad. all of this in response to u.s. airstrikes on sunday that killed at least 25 militants of the iranian backed iraqi she a militia group hezbollah. this is very concerning to american forces in the region. there is more than 5,000 right now who are working along iraqi security forces to push back

embassy. and the garden of the embassy. were able to be seen from outside starting the fire. iraqi forces were standing -- doing nothing. then intervene and created a buffer between the people who are the militant supporters and the u.s. embassy. after they burned the -- now those people are setting up tents. many times around the embassy, surrounding the compound on each side an not going to leave. the iraqi forces sent -- as people who are the americans -- in order to control the situation. the people are now inside the tents but it's hard to control them. they're angry and there are thousands of of them. >> so it's a little bit difficult to hear what you're saying, mustafa but i could make out they're there, in tents surrounding the embassy and angry and the security forces are saying that it might be difficult to contain them given that anger. ali, you have been following this from london. you're normally based in teheran. there's people out there looking at this and they're thinking this

troops that are part of the dog this embassy has proved its conspires against iraq this is the embassy where they spy on iraq and where they lead to destruction of iraq this is where the saboteurs are supported for months iraqi security forces have guarded the green zone against anti-government protests but this time they appear to have orders to stand down allowing the crowds to cast a checkpoint leading to the u.s. embassy the protesters threw stones and set fire to the outer gates of the embassy the situation appears to be escalating now with hundreds perhaps thousands of members of the popular. mobilization forces having to reach to the gates of the u.s. embassy there are rolling stones there for the trying to climb the wall to reach the u.s. embassy compound and they're chanting anti-american slogans they're demanding the wave troll of american troops from iraq prime minister atal of the mahdi has called on protesters to retreat condemning any attack on embassies but the fact that these crowds have been allowed to reach the embassy gates appears to signal the government's implicit

embassy in baghdad. this is "outnumbered overtime" and i am heather childress in for harris faulkner. protesters storming the embassy in baghdad today, smashing windows, setting fire following u.s. air strikes that killed 25 iranian backed militia fighters in iraq and syria. u.s. troops firing tear gas in response to the violent protests. president trump putting the blame squarely on iran, tweeting "iran killed an american contractor, wounding many. we strongly responded and always will. now iran is orchestrating an attack on the u.s. embassy in iraq. they will be held fully responsible. in addition, we expect iraq to use its forces to protect the embassy and so notified." trey yingst's life for us in jerusalem with the very latest. what do we know? >> good afternoon. hundreds of iraqis stormed the usmc in baghdad, prompting iraqi security forces to intervene. protesters set fire, smashing windows, and reports indicate the abc is on lockdown. the ambassador is out of town. embassy security forces were se

you're in it embassy here in iran and. you can't launch an attack which the attack faith but they knew what that this might be as it might serve as an ex used to. be but i think they're not they're pretty sure that the americans will not attack directly right because they not that donald trump doesn't want doesn't want to get in a direct war with iran or any other country as of now so that if they've been doing that the americans will retaliate we will probably bomb strike on our there are there iranian interests in syria are in iraq but there i think the pretty sure that the americans will not. crush thanks very much very high in that are interesting on their faces very as well the sign was great there across thanks very much crushed lawyer middle east expert speaking from tehran i just wanted to say it's a very dangerous moment absolutely thanks for having our i'm going to cross countries thank you. all right 2 more world news now a big story we're closely following as well wiki leaks founder julian assange claims he's s

embassy. you can see them there. that of course a response to this. we should note that u.s. diplomatic staff have been evacuated for their safety. lets get to arwa damon live in istanbul with the breaking details. arwa, you spent a lot of time on the ground in iraq. you look at these images as echoes of 40 years ago in tehran when the u.s. embassy was taken over there. tell us what you're seeing and what we're hearing from iraqi officials. >> reporter: that most certainly would presumably be the fear at this stage, but the situation has not quite come close to escalating to that just yet. the iraqi prime minister under his title as commander in chief put out a statement saying while the demonstrators had a right to mourn the victims of those u.s. strikes, they should most certainly not be engaging in t acts of violence against the u.s. embassy, saying that would be in defiance of iraqi law. at least there we have an attempt to try to calm down the situation, and these protesters, look, are no

the embassy and so. iran is directly responsible for orchestrating the storming of the u.s. embassy in iraq and must be held accountable for it and the safety of every american serving there now we also have the state department special representative for iran brian hoke emphasizing that sunday's air strike was just a defensive action take a listen one of the things that we want to emphasize is that this was a defensive action that was designed to protect american forces and american citizens in iraq we're also working on the mission set off restoring to terence against iranian aggression now in terms of a response from the u.s. press we have the washington post bureau chief for iraq to syria and lebanon explained to her readers that the embassy had been stormed not by the iraqi people but by cut to eat. hezbollah supporters and we also had c.n.n. anchor jake tapper retreat an analysis by former national security advisor to the top administration john bolton in which he declared the demonstrations as a s

embassy in baghdad. today's violence growing more intense after hundreds of pro-iranian protesters marched through what's normally a restricted part of the iraqi capital. some can be seen setting fires, smashing embassy windows and trying to break down doors. and the backlash you're seeing set off by sunday's u.s. air strikes against an iranian backed militia the us blames for killing an american contractor last week. the sudden escalation between the u.s. and that group now fueling calls for american forces to leave the country. meanwhile, president trump is tweeting about the violence in baghdad saying in part, quote, iran is orchestrating an attack on the u.s. embassy in iraq. they will be held fully responsible. we have team coverage of these violent protests. cnn international correspondent arwa damon is in istanbul, and jeremy diamond in west palm beach. lets start with you. what more are you learning about these protests? >> reporter: well, ryan, based on live images that we're seeing broadcast, i

i called the embassy and got an answer switchboard -- from the switchboard embassy occupied. but i remembered i had a direct extension, so i called bruce langdon's office and anne swift answered the phone and she said oh, kate, it's bad. she said gelt ahold of the guys in the communication center and find out what's going on from them. because they're still in touch with state. so i called again using this extension, called them and they were shredding material and taking care of classified stuff. and they said call state. so they gave me the number of state to call at the operations center, so that they had another link. and so i and my staff -- and some of my staff were helping me do this. god bless them. they were taking a chance. but they were monitoring what was being said on radio and television, taking notes, transcribing it. we were feeding that back to washington to the ops center, but also linking to the communications center until they said oh, we're going to have to go out and state says, well, tell them they've done a good job and we'll say good bye. the next thi

because the embassy is very well fortified and protected. on the other hand, any time you see violence of this sort, especially violence, it can be tied back to iran, it brings to mind the potential escalatory spiral. and the thing about escalatory spirals is that you don't always get to choose when it escalates and how fast it escalates, and you don't get to choose when it stops escalating. so i would imagine the white house and the state department are concerned that we avoid one of those escalatory spirals. >> we've had word that the president is watching closely and keeping in touch with the national security team. and we're getting word that the u.s. ambassador to iraq was not in the country and was not in the compound at the time. nick, give us some perspective on what the court terrorism experts who are in the government right now and what can they be doing about the situation? >> this group has long been a source of concern to the united states. it's a shia militant group with strong ties to the iranian regime and there's always been

embassies unable to join us tonight. now please join me in welcoming --. i appreciate the chance to be here and hello to chicago. it's my first time here. thanks for being welcome thanks. my name is emir i'm going to you a survey there has been a joint between at the council on affairs. iranian public opinion for decades after the hostage crisis. -- the year mean in the company focusing on here anyone pulling. the confidence of people here. based in toronto and that's one of our call centers in toronto. boeing scientific opinion from iran have been hoping to be reliable, scientific and as an example in their last presidential election in iran in 2017, when president was selected, he was able to predict a lot of the election to, descendants the economist, they published it one day before the election and it whatever you to see. the petition was accurate within two percentage points out the official results. so he did something that could be but i will use the as depending on how toying of. the pulling out presenting today is used by the exact same methodolo

embassy in baghdad. these demonstrators are supporters of the iranian-backed iraqi she a militia group hezbollah that was attacked by the united states on sunday in both iraq and syria. that group says that at least 25 of its fighters were killed in this response by the united states to rocket fire on friday that left one american contractor dead and four u.s. service members injured. what we know right now about the embassy that is being stormed, there are hundreds outside. and according to reports, u.s. security guards are currently on the roof, firing tear gas, rubber bullets and sound grenades in an effort to push back protesters. other reports from on the ground in baghdad indicate that iraqi security forces are being used right now to try to separate the crowds of people from the u.s. embassy compound. we have also seen video of fires being lit. glass being smashed. and also, people outside in military uniforms. it's unclear right now what military groups these demonstrators are from. likely agains

embassy in baghdad. i'm told of her 100 marines will help bolster security thereafter hundreds of iranian backed militia men break the embassy compound. the u.s. army apache gunship helicopter just flew over the embassy and attempted to disperse the crowd. it's not clear at this time of it was successful. it's past 8:00 p.m. in baghdad, u.s. officials are hoping new year's eve celebrations are a reason for the mob to disper disperse. >> we are obviously concerned by the activities of the iranian regime pursued around the world and in the middle east and we think the trump administration spoke to the iranian regime in a way in which they will understand. >> earlier today, iraq's prime minister issued the following tweet in english. "while we condemn the u.s. air strikes, they acknowledge that the symbolic funeral marches are an act of remembrance. iraqi security forces will respond to any act of aggression or harassment against foreign embassies in iraq and those were responsible will face the full force

secret talks in london in order to help julian assange to flee the embassy that's not true finally. one of the journalists who penned the piece luke harding was behind another controversial article published by the garding that piece also published last year claimed that donald trump's compay manager paul mann of ford had held secret talks with a son in ecuadorian embassy somehow one of the most surveyed places on earth didn't manage to capture any evidence of that alleged high profile visit the guardian didn't attract the story but deep change the headline shift in the responsibility to its sources mr no rise has called the latest corrections he story journalistic fiasco for the guardian for again publishing false information that's not the only article does apart and by the same mouth those that the same author there's a part and they have accused of spying into the embassy they have. several articles which i mentioning in my complaint. as apart from the same journalese which have disgraced the newspaper in his complaint mr not a virus accuses journalists of hiding behind confiden

the embassy there is also telling americans in iraq who need assistance just to stay away from the embassy. make a phone call instead. the government, in fact, has been advising americans just not to travel to iraq in the first place. well before these protests ever happened because of terrorism. kidnapping, and armed conflict. now, back in may, the u.s. government created what's called an order departure for diplomats in iraq. both at the embassy in baghdad and there is a u.s. consulate inne in irbil. all nonessential were required to leave the country because of security concerns. mollie? >> molly: rich edson, thank you very much. as the investigation continues into a hanukkah stabbing attack. we will talk to a man who faced the most deadly assault on jews in u.s. history. the rabbi at the tree of life synagogue in pittsburgh. where a man opened fire killing 11 worshipers. his story about overcoming hate next. but, first,. [cheers] a new decade spreading around the world city by city. this is the scene moments ago in dubai as folks there ring in the new year. an extravagant fireworks dis