alison, dave. >> barbara starr, thank you. secretary mattis' decision stunned capitol hill. one who supports this president wondering whether the wheels may be coming off. after reading the resignation letter, we recommend you read it, marco rubio tweeted it is clear we are headed toward a number of grave policy errors. he calls on people who support president trump to persuade him to choose a different direction. >> democrats are shaken. mark warner tweeting this. this is scary. national defense is too important to be subjected to the president's erratic whims. also weighing in is william cohen. >> our remember takes has been called into question. the president can say i made a campaign promise. you can make a campaign promise, but some are made to be broken. the president has taken a wrecking ball to every pillar of stability and security we have erected over the past 60 or 70 years. he systematically is demolishing them. >> the former u.s. commander of forces in afghanistan said the resignation should concern everyone. >>>

barbara starr, cnn, the pentagon. >> barbara, thank you for that. the decision to pull the forces out of syria is leading to another resignation. brett mcgurk. the presidential envoy for the global coalition against isis has decided to step down early. the president decided to withdrawal, he made a crucial phone call to turkish president erdogan. a source said that the president said we're done. it's all yours. no mention of u.s. alliance with the syrian kurds which turkey considers a terror group. >> joining us here is historian julian zelizer. good morning. let's talk about the week last week. i don't think we should be normalized to what kind of a week it was. defense secretary is gone. at odds with the president over the pullout in syria. a government shutdown. no pathway forward. stock market declines. a fed chief under fire. the president asking his aides if he can fire jerome powell. we cannot. the president realizes he cannot fire him. just for a moment, talk to us about what is happening inside that white house. >> this is the definition of

barbara starr, cnn, the pentagon. >>> thank you. the decision to pull the forces out of syria is leading to another resignation. brett mcgurk. he has decided to step down. the president's decision has been turned into a formal directive. the executive order for syria has been signed by james mattis. cnn has learned that days before the president decided to withdrawal, he made a phone call to turkish phone call to recep tayyip erdogan. we have more from istanbul. what do we know? >> reporter: before that decision by trump was announced, we know there was a phone call between trump and his turkish counterpart recep tayyip erdogan. in that phone call, trump asked the turkish president can you handle isis. erdogan responded yes, as long as we have support from you. he said okay, we are done. turkey is going to be taking care of the isis presence in syria. this leaves the u.s. allies on the ground in syria in a lurch. turkey views that fighting force an extension of a territory group. the u.s. is leaving the troops on the ground in a tou

cnn's barbara starr has taken that trip many times. she's reporting from the pentagon. >> reporter: christine and joe, president trump and first lady melania trump made the secret trip to iraq. it had been expected he would visit the war zone, but nobody knew it would happen when it did. the secret service and the u.s. military working together for weeks to, of course, ensure the security of the president and first lady and entire traveling party. they spent three hours on the ground. the president talking to the troops for about 20 minutes. visiting with them and talking about football and talking about how things were going for them and getting a briefing from commanders. the president also very much taking the opportunity to defend his decision to withdrawal u.s. troops from syria. >> they said, sir, can we have six more months. i said yes, you got six more months. then they said again recently could we have more time. i said nope, you can't have any more time. you have had enough time. we knocked them out. it is not fair when the b

cnn's barbara starr has taken that trip many times. she's reporting from the pentagon. >> reporter: christine and joe, president trump and first lady melania trump made the secret trip to iraq. it had been expected he would visit the war zone, but nobody knew it would happen when it did. the secret service and the u.s. military working together for weeks to, of course, ensure the security of the president and first lady and entire traveling party. they spent three hours on the ground. the president talking to the troops for about 20 minutes. visiting with them and talking about football and talking about how things were going for them and getting a briefing from commanders. the president also very much taking the opportunity to defend his decision to withdrawal u.s. troops from syria. >> they said, sir, can we have six more months. i said yes, you got six more months. then they said again recently could we have more time. i said nope, you can't have anymore time. you have had enough time. we knocked them out. it is not fair when the bu

alison, dave. >> great reporting from barbara starr. let's discuss with josh rogin. good morning to you. on a stunning day. nancy pelosi said to read the letter from james mattis. it is stunning. we have a scroll of important reactions to the resignation of james mattis. we want to start, josh, with reaction from william cohen. former secretary of defense under president clinton. listen. >> our reputation has been called into question. the president can say i made a campaign promise. you can make a campaign promise, but some of them are made to be broken. the president has taken a wrecking ball to every pillar of stability and security we've erected over the past 60 or 70 years. he systematically is demolishing them. >> josh, good morning. >> this is a rebuke of president trump's overall world view which is to shift america away from the role of leader and promoter of the international world order since we led since world war ii. there is something political going on here. the relationship with secretary mattis and the white house has been fraying for months. jim mat

>> thanks to barbara starr at the pentagon. >>> the u.s.-led coalition against isis in syria says coordinated air strikes have killed or wounded several hundred fighters. the air strikes dealt a significant blow to isis' ability to finance terrorist activities. the statement comes after president trump's declaration last week that isis has been defeated. >>> thousands of people who visited a northern new jersey surgical center in september are being urged to get their blood test. we'll tell you why. today is the day you're going to get motivated... get stronger... get closer. start listening today to the world's largest selection of audiobooks on audible. and now, get more. for just $14.95 a month, you'll get a credit a month good for any audiobook, plus two audible originals exclusive titles you can't find anywhere else. if you don't like a book, you can exchange it any time, no questions asked. automatically roll your credits over to the next month if you don't use them. with the free audible app, you can listen anytime, and anywhere. plu

with our barbara. starr at the gate but they. feel all of those things. if not the. death of the. kid. you know. nothing. like. you. know if i was on the run. oh. if you go into. a lot of the. i'm a doing the show this is part of my life i lived in these streets and these people are my friends discussed keeping them out some of them may be lying under the rubble of the shooting. and. yet. you think they're going to be of. help if. one hundred have been given the company of. all the economists of this mother of this whole even it's and that's. modern day event in the flood from. yeah yeah but it's i guess the from before it's young. and his presidency i mean i'm from new york in the. us the us is to say i guess there's no clothing if i can do to survive we can. talk about me was somehow you modeled lymphocyte bargello a circuit on this exhibition brings back the activist in me who had a goal to kind of have i mean she come to head to. me. basically. you know. it's. a the down with one. of them. no no. no need to hide it. from the. oh. i'm you know i me my dick. is that i'm not goin

barbara starr brings up a good point, mattis wanted to stick around to go to the nato minute sterile. secretary mattis was a calming influence and he would tell them what was going to happen after the president would normally sweep through at some of the big seminars. yeah, both u.s. military that had an overwhelming approval rating of secretary mattis, you never see that in a civilian secretary, but he had something like 84% approval rating, and allies around the world are concerned about this. >> colonel, the president's envoy to isis was in iraq taking meetings on isis when he suddenly heard about the president's change of policy via tweet. the president, on the other hand, doesn't seem to know who he is, tweeting over the weekend after mctkpwurg put in his resignation. he said brett mcgurk, who i do not know, was appointed by president obama in 2015. what has been your experience with mr. mcgurk and how much of a loss is this? >> john, it's a significant loss. he is one of the most influential and astute diplomats out there. he has not only led the diplomatic fight against isis bu

hello i'm barbara starr you're watching live from london also coming up on the program. the. fighting continues into the night in the afghan capital where an attack on a government compound has killed dozens u.s. stocks have had their worst recorded christmas eve president blames the federal reserve while others blamed him and the talking of christmas eve we're live in bethlehem's manger square as the crowds gather for midnight and. thank you for joining us experts say more deadly tsunamis could hit indonesia in the coming days this as the death toll continues to mount from the latest one at least three hundred seventy three people have died and thousands more injured when huge waves struck without warning late on saturday and to thomas province which was worst hit by the tsunami. listen carefully over the noise of the waves a regular allowed to boobs. that's not wind hidden in the gloom forty seven kilometers out to sea and krakatoa volcano is still erupting it has been for months but on sunday the eruptions triggered an underwater landslide that caused the tsunami that led

barbara starr at the pentagon, thanks very much. i'm joined by former deputy national security adviser and former deputy secretary of state, tony blinken, along with david sanger. tony, just want to ask you, you served inside government in a number of levels in national security. does the u.s. today have a national security decision making process where the commander in chief consults his commanders in the field, other senior national security staff, or as we saw last week, makes summary decisions and issues proclamations by tweet? >> jim, as far as i can tell, the answer is no. that's deeply troubling and concerning. by the way, susan rice lays it out effectively in an op-ed in "the new york times" yesterday. in my years in government, people, policy, you want a process, and you want it to result in a policy everyone can follow. what we're seeing now is the goingrogation. the piece people are gone or going, starting with jim mattis. there apparently is no process. the president just decides things arbitrarily, and people think ther

let's go right to our pentagon correspondent barbara starr. barbara, first of all, what are you learning about james mattis' decision to step down? >> wolf, the letter speaks for itself as we have talked about for the last several minutes. mattis writing a two-page letter to the president of the united states and the headline here is the secretary of defense says because you have the right to have a secretary of defense whose views are better aligned with yours. he goes on to say i believe it is right for me to step down from my position. mattis talks throughout the letter about the need to respect allies, about the need for alliances, and to support alliances. something that the president has turned away from into an isolationist national security policy. the move to take troops out of syria and leave the kurdish fighters that the u.s. had promised to support to a possible blood bath by isis and the turks and the syrian regime. the potentially imminent decision

hello i'm barbara starr in london these of the top stories on al-jazeera the u.s. says all its troops will be withdrawn from syria within sixty to one hundred days about two thousand troops are currently stationed there many of them special operations forces working with critics fighters to defeat eisel fighting on twitter president donald trump appeared to declare victory against the armed group saying we have defeated isis in syria my only reason for being there during the trunk presidency well defense secretary jim mattis had previously advocated for u.s. soldiers to remain to ensure that i suppose there's no reemerge and several prominent republican senators of called the mistake in recent days turkey's president typepad the highness threaten the new offensive against kurdish forces the united states is supporting in the country's north and the u.s. has just announced it's approved the sale of three point five billion dollars of missiles to turkey article has more now from washington d.c. well you know the timing is somewhat surprising especially look at domest

cnn's barbara starr joins us. barbara, what do we know about shanahan, and do his policy viewpoints align with mattis'? >> reporter: he deals with things like business practices, budget, acquisition reform, developing the space form that mr. trump wants, all of which go to his experience as an executive at boeing, working on commercial and military programs. but he doesn't have any foreign policy, national security, or military experience. so far he hasn't had to say no to mr. trump. he's been lucky enough to be involved in the issues that trump relates to. now he will be, shanahan will be on the world stage, having to deal with allies and adversaries. and that will present him some very significant new challenges, manu. >> barbara starr at the pentagon, thanks. >>> a new trump tweet. saudi arabia has now agreed to spend the necessary money to help rebuild syria instead of the united states. see, isn't it nice when immensely wealthy countries have rebuild their neighbors rather than a great country, the u.s., that

let's bring in pentagon correspondent barbara starr. barbara, not the only message to troops deployed these holidays. >> reporter: that's right, he sent out a worldwide cable to the troops thanking them for their service, telling them to hold the line, keep safe. when he sent that cable out, there was a pretty good chance james mattis knew what would come in the coming hours. officials are indicating that, you know, it really was the president's decision to precipitously withdraw troops from syria that led the secretary to come to the final conclusion after months of thinking about it, trying to deal with the white house, that he would have to retire, that he would have to resign, essentially, and go. so, you know, now we know that the deputy secretary of state, patrick shanahan, who will becoming acting on january 1st, cutting his holiday short, coming back to washington to at least try and have a few days of transition with secretary mattis, jim. >> now, i understand your sources have been telling you mattis had very strongly-held vie

in the for example at the barbara starr series or near a neck of the shoulder months. you. are going to balado would. be good as well as what will probably. get in your board. well. you know. the court who thought it didn't matter but let me set the record really i'm too long gone loveland i'm going to move i'm going on because i'm using my name i'm jolly i'm off the job. i get it. i need to fill my limbs polluting with. this was just awful. yeah and if you are with us who is who is right with the t.v. on the. ship i think. it's. so all are the same so who would go along. the way that. i did that i didn't. say that all. shook up now that i think of the. women. i'm much money management you're. letting them but they. you know so. oh. but. if she could do. that if she. said. that. had. nothing to do that i can't say to him no it's not possible it's too much. of the not my family had to pay to get me out of prison they don't know. yet as i know this deadly feeling of waiting for someone's help from the saw. them live for them. the one who learns the little turkish officials di

barbara starr explains. >> reporter: uncertainty for u.s. troops in northern syria near the turkish border. syrian president assad's force are on the move heading to where u.s. forces have been in control and keep local forces from erupting into all-out war. syrian troops are now just outside the city, poised to inter. >> they are so scared, they are worried about the future. >> reporter: this is one of the contested areas u.s. trooped will be pulling out of as part of president trump's withdrawal order. for now troops are staying put. but one defense official says the situation could change on a moment's notice. the concern? u.s. troops will be face to face with assad's russian-backed forces and no one can predict what could happen. these images alleged lay showing the sear yng army already hoisting the flag. >> translator: the general command of the army and armed forces announces movement and raising the syrian arab republican flag in it. >> reporter: the u.s.-led coalition tweeting everything is just fine. there is no indication syrian f

yeah and the for example the barbara starr series are near a neck of the shoulder mom. calls. you. get. because. no one will probably have more thought if you go. get a new phone. i want you to. become who thought i didn't matter but let me set the record straight i'm going long gone love london i'm going to move i'm glad because i was you there my name i'm jolly i'm off the job. i get. you i need to feel my limbs. off. yeah if you will this will sure i can with the t.v. on yes but. should i do. that. so all are the same so who would come along. the way that. i've been. saying that all the. trouble of the now that i've come to be a. great mentor you know how much money money money you're. letting him in a. you know sort. dish it is. that if she. has that. kind of. thing. nothing in there that i can say to him no it's not possible it's too much. of my family had to pay to get me out of prison no one and. yet there's a i know this deadly feeling of waiting for someone's help to solve. them in the yard. the one who learns salut turkish officials discovered the fake i.d.'s so. that the

barbara starr is at the pentagon with more this morning. good morning, barbara. >> good morning, erica. this is james mattis' last day on the job, and at midnight tonight, there will be mr. mattis on the line and shanahan, the deputy secretary who will become the acting secretary of defense at midnight, and there will be that transfer of power because the secretary of defense is a command position, and it's a mark of respect and a little bit of a ceremony but it's necessary. they will then notify the white house at midnight that mr. shanahan has all the authorities of the achieve the goals of the president. >> senator graham seeming to suggest the president is rethinking a rapid withdrawal of 2,000 forces from syria, and it's really not clear what will happen next. >> you are right, barbara, it's not clear on many levels what will happen next, but thank you for all that background. here with us now to discuss it, we have cnn global affairs analyst, and a cnn military analyst, happy new year to both of you. general hertling, lindsay graham's

barbara starr at the pentagon. barbara, defense secretary mattis, he has aren't let the past weeks' events and months because we know there's been disagreement with him if are some time and the message for u.s. troops deployed arc broad this season. >> that's right. it's important to remember jim mat sis mattis is a veteran. he is a marine of many decades of service and has seen combat, and a lot worse has happened to james mattis and the troops he's led than washington politics and that would very much be his view. he will be just fine, but in addition to his written message to the troops he recorded a message it's not at all clear yet. it has been broadcast, but it is out there, and many of the troops are listening. listen to part of it. >> since washington crossed the delaware at christmas in 1776 american troops have missed holidays at home to dfrd or experiment in democrat see. to all you lads and lasses holding the line in 2018 on land, at sea or in the air, thanks for keeping the faith. merry christmas and m

barbara starr is there. there was a marine commander traveling around, visiting deployed marines when they asked him what to expect. they said they don't know. is that something you're hearing across the board? >> it is, jim. we don't really know what the reaction is going to be at the end of the day. at least for now there's a lot of uncertainty about this. marine corps commandant traveling to wish the troops happy holidays and getting a lot of questions about the uncertainty they feel about what will happen with them, when they're coming out of the war zone, what will happen to the combat zones they are leaving behind. secretary mattis will be gone january 1st. the president upset, it is said, about the resignation letter, upset about all the news coverage. now deputy defense secretary patrick shanahan, number two, a long-time boeing executive, will take the helm as acting secretary. he will have to go, presumably, to an upcoming nato summit. he will have to testify on capitol hill. no foreign policy exper

barbara starr standing by with the latest on this breaking news. significant, the president making his first trip to a war zone since taking office. >> reporter: absolutely correct. there are now pictures showing he has landed at the ala assad air base. it avoids him landing in baghdad and helicopter to the green zone. that would be potentially a very difficult maneuver to have any president of the united states make. some pictures are beginning to emerge. we have some of them there of the president meeting troops. they are working on trying to help get iraqi forces completely trained up. that has been going on for some time. there are also u.s. forces there engaged in counterterrorism missions, still going after the remnants of isis and the other 2,600 troops in addition to the 5,000 across the border in syria. those are the ones that the president has ordered to come home. i think it's very important to say while this comes at a very unique time for the president, this trip would have been in the planning stages for some time. it would be for any

. >> barbara starr at the pentagon. let's now go to sarah westwood. usually these trips bip preside presidents are feel-good missions but president trump has gone there and defended himself from a political position and he's also talking about the government shutdown. give us the view there from the white house. >> reporter: that's right, ryan. it's certainly an interesting backdrop for the president to be defending his decision to withdraw the troops from syria. i recall that during the 2016 campaign went after his former predecessor, president barack obama, claiming because of his decision to withdraw troops, he was the founder of isis. nonetheless, the president is defending his decision to remove those troops to syria saying anything that needs to be done in syria could perhaps be done from the bases in iraq. this is an unconventional preds, as you know, but this has unfolded in a scheduled way. and even when they did do so, it was unwraps until they arrived, just a trump's trip was. back home the president has a lot going on but this going to cha

joining us with details are barbara starr and nick paton walsh. barbara, what do you know about th this announcement? >> we were learning that president trump wanted a withdrawal, the pentagon engaging in thein

of our barbara. starr at the v.a. but i. feel so out of the. it's not the. death of. a shock a good. value. nothing. zero. zero. zero. still if it wasn't for the. oh i. love the fact that a. lot of the. i'm a doing the show this is part of my life i lived in these streets and these people are my friends just keep going the mouse some of them may be lying under the rubble . oh. yes. it's it's. going to be up. here. behind me give me a knuckle under all the clean myths of a small unsolved even send us. modern of the event to make their flight from folks feel yeah yeah that's all i ask of him before it's young. and this has been something i'm involved in the. first loss is there's a house a gift and you know they're having. a good chance of picking. up the family was somehow you modeled mom for such a little as working on this exhibition brings back the activist in me who had a goal to kind of have had i mean she come to head to. me. let me know. if you think. you know much. of him. that's known or. stony so why do you. think. you might have. i mean you're in the body. a

joining us with details are barbara starr and nick paton walsh. barbara, what do you know about th this announcement? >> we were learning that president trump wanted a withdrawal, the pentagon engaging in the planning to try to make it happen. there is no indication there is an effort to try to get the president to change his mind about this despite the rapidly forming opposition about the decision. the 2,000 u.s. ground troops in syria will come out as soon as the pentagon can finalize plans for that. this does not necessarily mean no involvement by the u.s. in syria in fighting isis. one can suppose the u.s. may launch artillery strikes from across the border in iraq or that air strikes could happen. is isis really defeated as the president says? i think you would be hard pressed to find anybody at the pentagon willing to sign up to that. there are any number of estimates from hundreds if not thousands of isis fighters and loyalists still in eastern syria. the pentagon had planned very much on continuing operations there and staying to some exte

also with us, pentagon correspondent, barbara starr. barbara, the president is withdrawing all u.s. troops from syria, despite isis still mounting attacks in the country. so is this really mission accomplished? >> i think you would be hard pressed to find someone at the pentagon saying that it is. the mission had been to defeat isis. tough as that may be, given that isis is essentially an ideology. officials will tell you, there are still thousands of isis operatives and loyalists, especially in syria, where the u.s. has been trying to push back against them, and trying to push back to a large extent by training local forces. and this is now one of the major questions. what will happen to the thousands of local forces that have been trained once those 6,000 u.s. troops on the ground are withdrawn. are they simply going to be abandoned, will they be isolated? what will happen as the syrian forces potentially move into these areas and operate against them? what if isis resurges on the ground, as is well expected they might? all of these questions tonight, but certainly one common thre

let's go to our pentagon correspondent barbara starr. barbara, lots of confusion about how all of this will play out. >> indeed, wolf. now, the president says that isis has been defeated, that the u.s. has won. i think one would be hard-pressed to find a top military commander that publicly will agree with him on this. devastation and ruin for miles in eastern syria, seen in exclusive video obtained by cnn as isis fighters make their stand. still, despite the reality on the ground, president trump says isis is defeated and ordered the surprise withdrawal of all 2,000 u.s. ground troops stationed mainly in eastern syria where isis still controls territory, leaving the pentagon, which does not believe isis has been completely defeated, scrambling to devise a way to safely get troops and their equipment out of harm's way. and a suddenly reshaped middle east. >> this clearly sends a message both to moscow and tehran that syria and, frankly, bigger parts of the middle east are yours. >> reporter: there is confusion on all fronts. several alli

hello i'm barbara starr in london these are the top stories on al-jazeera sudan's president omar al bashir has this miss protesters rallying against him in the capital khartoum as traitors and foreign agents. earlier riot police fired tear gas to disperse the crowds of thousands who were marching towards the presidential palace the demonstrators want al bashir to step down and blame his government for economic mismanagement and rising food prices official government figures say that at least twelve people have died since the unrest began a week ago but after initially promising economic reform on monday addressing a group of supporters the president remains the find appealing you should. thank you for hosting me thank you for your support and enthusiasm which is a response to every foreign and traitor and destructive person you are the ones responding to them right now from here you are responding to all the traces of foreign agents i support you and with your support i would be back here next year well just morgan ventured into the thick of the protests and here is what she saw. people in

pentagon correspondent barbara starr is joining us now. what do we know about patrick shanahan? and is the inference here the president didn't authorithorougd the letter from mattis? >> he may not have, actually, fred. what we know is this. there is a new tweet at this hour from the defense department where secretary mattis pledges that he will work with patrick shanahan, his deputy, his number two, who will now become acting secretary of defense on january 1st to ensure a smooth transition. that transition was supposed to be a lot longer than january 1st. my colleague, elise labbot, has learned that mike pompeo called mattis and told him the proposed end february date to leave the pentagon wouldn't work. the president wanted him out by january 1st. the more public reason is that the white house felt such a long transition period would leave mattis as a lame duck. reality is that the president had, indeed, become irritated with the extensive news coverage about mattis' departure. the big question now, who is patrick shanahan, who will work as acting secretary of defense? a 30-ye

let's get straight to cnn's barbara starr at the pentagon and also bring in cnn global affairs analyst, aaron david miller. barbara, let's start with you and what you're hearing from your sources in the pentagon now about decision and the concerns about fact that there's not going to be very much overlap between mattis and even his acting -- obviously, none, with whomever will be nominated. >> well, at this point, patrick shanahan, who has been tagged to be the acting secretary of defense, is on his way back to washington, we understand. we've been out of town for the holiday, on vocatiacation, and clearly, this catching him unawares. he is now heading back to washington. madison and shanahan from worked together since the beginning. but it's important to understand, they really have two different jobs. as deputy, shanahan very involved in the business affairs of the pentagon, working on budget planning, acquisition, innovation, that kind of thing. mattis much more out there on the global stage. and it is that global stage that shanahan is now going to have to step on to, with no forei

barbara starr with the breaking news at the pentagon. let's continue the conversation with cnn's arwa damon. you've been on the ground. is isis defeated? is it fine and dandy for u.s. troops to get out? >> it is so risky at this stage. we just need to look at the history of isis' previous incarnations to see what happens following a premature u.s. withdrawal when you have no force on the ground to handle the security situation. there is still very fierce fighting taking place in the east carried out by the u.s. backed kurdish forces, the sdf and the province where i was just last month where commanders, local commanders on the ground there are very concerned about isis sleeper cells who they may will capitalize on any sort of opportunity to reemerge and remanipulate the population in their own support. it's incredibly risky and no one can make sense of it at this stage. syria or a certain degree, outside. >> let me take the president's position for a minute. even if he understands that, say, okay, it's risky but it's risky for the last t

hello i'm barbara starr in london these are the top stories on al-jazeera we begin with some breaking news from france the french fire department says at least one person has died in a shooting in strasburg at least three people have been injured police say gunshots were heard in the center of the city which is close to the german border the reuters news agency says it took place near strasburg's christmas market france's interior ministry has called on the public to remain indoors calling it a serious security event we're going to bring you more on that as we get it here on al-jazeera. the saudi writer jamal khashoggi is among the murdered or imprisoned journalists to be named time magazine's person of the year i showed you was killed in saudi arabia's consulate in istanbul in october he has been honored by the magazine for speaking out against the brutality of the saudi regime rosalyn jordan has more. the naming of jamal khashoggi the saudi journalist who was critical of his home country's government is certain to add more pressure on the trumpet ministration as it tries to deal wit

cnn's barbara starr has more. >> reporter: u.s. defense officials say this is the real deal. russia test-firing its new high speed hyper sonic missile, a missile that the u.s. military currently cannot defend against. russian president vladimir putin pulling no punches on his intent. >> translator: the new avant-garde missile system is invincible against today's and future air and missile defense systems of the potential enemy. this is a big success. and a great achievement. >> if the weapons work as advertised, there is no current defense against them. >> reporter: the russian missile has captured the attention of patrick shanahan, the deputy defense secretary, who will take over as acting pentagon chief when secretary james mattis leaves next week. >> we have a number of options going on with hypersonic missiles. >> shanahan warns the u.s. needs to be able to detect the fast-flying missile, much further away than current radar systems can handle. the u.s. has to detect it thousand, not hundreds of miles away, because of its high speed approach. the pentagon may spend more t

barbara starr joins us now from the pentagon with details. barbara, this is the kinds of trip that will requires really weeks of preparation because of the very real security risks on the ground. doesn't happen overnight. tell us what you knew about the run-up to this? >> the secret service and the u.s. military, jim, know how to do this. they did it for president george w. bush, president obama when there was much heavier combat going on in iraq. but it does take weeks of planning. none of this is at the last minute. you cannot assume this was because of some political agenda that just emerged this week. the secret service, would with the military. they work on locking down air space when air force one is approaching, when it's on the ground and as it's leaving. they work on gathering any intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance they may need to keep an eye on potential adversaries in the region, satellites are watching, communications intercepts are going full blast. they're scooping up everything they can. you know, it's a very differ

barbara starr is at the pentagon. and barbara, two things going on here. obviously, deciding the u.s. should no longer be in syria, that's a debate to have, a discussion to have, an opinion to have. but the president's own military experts are saying that his claim that isis is defeated and that the job is done, they're saying that's just false. >> you would be hard-pressed to find anyone at the pentagon in a senior position that says isis is defeated. in fact, u.s. military policy had been to stay on the job, defeat isis and help stabilize iraq. now this very sudden reversal of that policy. devastation and ruin for miles in eastern syria seen in exclusive video obtained by cnn as isis fighters make their stand. still, despite the reality on the ground, president trump says isis is defeated, and ordered the surprise with dradrawal of 2,000 u.s. ground troops where isis still controls territory. leaving the pentagon, which does not believe isis has been completely defeated, scrambling to did evise a way to get them of harm's way. >> this clearly sends a mes

cnn's pentagon correspondent barbara starr has this report. >> reporter: u.s. defense officials say this is the real deal. russia test firing its new high-speed hypersonic missile, a missile that the u.s. military currently cannot defend against. russian president vladimir putin pulling no punches on his intent. >> translator: the new avann guard is defensible against today's and future air systems of the potential enemy. this is a big success and great achievement. >> if the weapons work as advertised, there is no current defense against them. >> reporter: the russian missile has captured the attention of patrick shanahan, the deputy defense secretary who will take over as acting pentagon chief when secretary james mattis leaves next week. >> we have a number of options going on with hypersonic missiles. >> reporter: shanahan warns the u.s. needs to be able to detect the fast-flying missile much further away than current radar systems can handle. the u.s. has to detect it thousands, not hundreds of miles away because of its high-speed approach. the pentagon ma

barbara starr, thanks very much. >>> to the panel now, again, you heard that reporting. and just another detail from the senior administration official, describing the decision-making that john bolton dispatched senior officials around the region to speak to partners -- to speak to coalition allies in recent weeks to tell them the u.s. is not leaving syria until iran is out of syria. then, of course, the president makes this decision. how jarring is that at home, domestically, for our partners abroad, but just for decision-making process, if it exists, here in washington? >> i think we should all be very worried. and i think that it's okay. a lot has been said about he's the president, and he can do whatever he wants. yes. that is correct. to some extent. but when you follow your instincts, it should be based on some foundation, some ground work of knowledge and experience. there's a reason why the people are doctors. there's a reason we have lawyers. there's a reason we have brokers. sometimes they can follow their instinct. a broker may say i think it's going to go thi

barbara starr at the pentagon. and joining me now is democratic congressman, reuben giago, a member of the armed services committee, also an iraq combat veteran. thank you so much for being with us. >> thank you. >> so we have a lot to discuss. first, that tweet, i saw you raising your eyebrows. what did you think about that? >> i think it's very tacky. power whisperers. we don't need to be acting this way. this is how a small country would act. >> is it the timing of it, making light of something so serious? >> i don't know what they're trying to say. but it's really unprofessional. and whoever did that should really be reprimanded. >> let's talk about the shutdown. democrats are planning to vote on thursday, as you know, on funding bills. from the start of this, they're really going to go nowhere in the end. so what is the end game? where is the next step and the one after that. >> well, our end game is to be the responsible party and keep government open. and that's why we actually struck a deal with the republi

>> barbara starr at the pentagon. >>> the u.s.-led coalition against isis in syria says coordinated air strikes have killed or wounded several hundred fighters. the air strikes dealt a significant blow to isis' ability to finance terrorist activities. the statement comes after president trump's declaration last week that isis has been defeated. >>> next month's women's march in chicago has been canceled. the leadership facing charges of anti-semitism. what reasons did they give for the cancelation? miles on every purchase, every day... not just "airline purchases". think about all the double miles you could be earning... (loud) holy moley that's a lot of miles!!! shhhhh! ♪ what's in your wallet? shhhhh! ♪ cleaning floors with a mop and bucket is a hassle, meaning you probably don't clean as often as you'd like. for a quick and convenient clean, try swiffer wetjet. there's no heavy bucket, or mop to wring out, because the absorb and lock technology traps dirt and liquid inside the pad. it's safe to use on all finished surfaces

cnn's barbara starr joins us now live from the pentagon. barbara, probably not a good sign when the most enthusiastic support for a foreign policy comes from vladimir putin. >> well, think of it this way. no enthusiastic support even 24 hours later from the pentagon. no officials have come out in public and endorsed the president's decision even as the war goes on. new proof emerging today that u.s.-backed syrian fighters are still locked in heated battle with isis, even as president trump has ordered more than 2,000 u.s. ground troops to come home. some gop lawmakers remain furious, including a close trump ally. >> the only reason they are not dancing in the aisles in tehran and isis camps is they just don't believe in dancing. this is a big gift to them, and this is a devastating decision for our allies. >> reporter: one u.s. defense official telling cnn operational commanders are concerned about the future for syrian fighters backed by the u.s. of whom 1,600 have already been killed. if the u.s. pulls out the kurdish fighters face a pote

barbara starr at the pentagon, thank you for bringing us the latest there. back with my panel. all right, so let's break this out, jackie. just last week, you had the white house saying -- calling for this rapid withdrawal of troops from syria. the president tweeting isis is defeated. now it seems not so fast. there's been sort of a shift. what do you make of this conflicting messaging about syria? >> well, this is what happens when you don't let stakeholders know what -- or members of congress or anyone, really, about what your plan is. you know, he also sent the vice president into senate lunches to try to explain this. and vice president mike pence was hit with a lot of angry members of congress. allies weren't informed. because of the random -- seemingly random nature of this, he really found himself getting a lot of blow bacback, frankly, to why and how this was going to happen. >> but normally, you get that before you come out and announce the decision. but the president, he's defending his action, bill. he tweeted, campaigned on getting out of syria and other places, jus

hello i'm barbara starr and this is al jazeera live from london also coming up on the program. the good news from. the last few weeks have very much trouble nation they mixed legitimate demands. but also unacceptable violence i want to say from the start in this violence will benefit them no one we have all seen what and how opportunists try to take advantage of genuine anger we all saw how political leaders all they wanted to do was destabilize france create a maccie you know anger allows. a person to attack a policeman or to destroy a shop with. public furniture i mean when you could do each. each person can express their in their opinions but that doesn't mean that others should be frightened when violence is unleashed on the liberty is lost so it is now it is the time for us as citizens of the republic to be calm and to talk in order. so we have to be able to talk not when we are frightened that peace is being threatened me. at the beginning of this what i want to tell you is that i know there is indignation anger and this indignation a lot of us a lot of french people unde

hello i'm barbara starr in london these are the top stories on al-jazeera sudan's president omar al bashir has this miss protesters rallying against him in the capital khartoum as traitors and foreign agents. earlier riot police fired tear gas to disperse the crowds of thousands who were marching towards the presidential palace the demonstrators want al bashir to step down and blame his government for economic.

the history of barbara starr has been that no ruler in pakistan has had ever been actually ascendance you know prior to him the pakistani politicians have always been going scot free they have always believed they will not be sentenced in any case it is not possible they can exert their influence but this time i think we are living in a different times people of pakistan they are going for you know accountability people are tired of corruption. the security around the court was tight for monday's verdict which shines on uncomfortable light on corruption at the highest levels of government in pakistan dorsett a party al jazeera turkey says is working with several countries to take an investigation into the killing of the saudi journalist jamal khashoggi to the united nations announcement came from the foreign minister at a news conference in tunis he's also demanded riyadh share its findings on the case with the international community to show she was killed inside the saudi consulate in istanbul nearly three months ago simcoe soon has the latest now from istanbul. there were some skep

alone barbara starr you're watching al-jazeera live from london also coming up shifting alliances with the u.s. pulling out of syria kurdish forces are turning to russia but so is there any turkey u.s. stocks suffer a further for president trump blames the federal reserve while others blame him and we're live in bethlehem's manger square where it is now christmas day and mass is under way. hello thank you for joining us rescuers in indonesia are stepping up their efforts to find survivors and recover the bodies of those killed in saturday's tsunami at least three hundred seventy three people have died and thousands more have been injured when huge waves struck without warning late on saturday and experts say that underwater eruptions could trigger yet more tsunamis in the coming days and thomas is in part the klang province. listen carefully over the milly's of. a regular blue. that's not hidden in the gloom forty seven kilometers out to sea and i. mean it's still erupting. for months but on sunday the eruptions triggered an underwater landslide that caused the tsunami that led to this

barbara starr is "outfront" from the pentagon. what more are you hearing about this, how he went to the meeting and obviously the letter was prepared, you know, to be used if he needed it. you're reporting he was livid. why? >> reporter: well, erin, what we know is that early this morning, about 7:30, the secretary here at the pentagon decided he needed to go to the white house later in the day. he had seen some reporting from turkey that the turks were, in fact, planning to move against the u.s. kurdish allies inside syria. this becomes the critical question, the critical red line, perhaps, for jim mattis, because by the president's decision to withdraw u.s. troops from syria, leaves those kurdish fighters that the u.s. had pledged to support, it leaves them abandoned. it leaves them at risk. mattis is a military man of 40 years. you do not leave your friends on the battlefield, and that's the position president trump put him in. so, he met with president trump later in the day about 3:00 we're told at the white house, tried to c

hello i'm barbara starr in london these of the top stories on al-jazeera the u.s. says all its troops will be withdrawn from syria within sixty to one hundred days about two thousand troops are currently stationed there many of them special operations forces working with critics fighters to defeat eisel fighting on twitter president donald trump appeared to declare victory against the armed group saying we have defeated isis and.

thanks. >>> let's get back to barbara starr right now. barbara, you're learning more about this sudden resignation that unfolded today with the secretary of defense. >> wolf, we've spoken to a u.s. usual who's directly associated to the matter. it was approximately 7:30 this morning when secretary mattis decided he needed to go see the president and needed to try to talk to him once again about taking u.s. troops out of syria. and we had a hint of that earlier in the day when senator lindsey graham said he'd spoken to mattis and mattis was very concerned about the kurdish fighters the u.s. would be leaving behind and what might happen in syria if the u.s. left. so we know now that mattis had been very concerned about all this. this morning early he decided he needs to speak to the president. he goes to the white house, meets with him at 3:00 this afternoon, tries to get the president apparently to change his mind. the president did not and that's when mattis decided he needed to resign, that he could no longer serve this president of the

starr review you've been braving the elements for as this evening. what's the verdict. one but how does it go from here you. may want but not comfortably enough the margin nagin server is too high it shows how divided the tory party really is and it shows that what she talks about it just in this little sound bite that we heard is that people are supposed to pull back together she can't even manage to pull her own party back together which shows that turd leadership is not strong enough and in this very difficult time for the country where the citizens the british citizens also deeply divided modeless down the middle plus and minus a few percent this and the other way that they sort of see the same spectacle they experience with and friends and families in the leadership all for their country in government and in the conservative party and so if you look at it from that perspective it is it really is a dire spectacle because trees a mate comes out and talks the strong talk but she cannot deliver on that even though she promises to deliver on the bricks itch she sings is