presses ahead with its military operation against kurdish fighters in northeast syria. torrential rain and tornado—like winds claim at least four lives injapan in what could be the country's worst storm for 60 years. hello and welcome to bbc news. there have been fierce clashes between turkish troops and kurdish forces in northeastern syria. since hostilities began on wednesday, nearly 50 civilians are thought to have died on both sides of the frontier, and more than 100,000 people have fled their homes. much of the latest fighting has been in the border area near ras al ain. the turkish military have entered the strategically important town, but they're facing stiff resistance from the kurdish—led, syrian democratic forces. 0ur correspondent 0rla guerin is on the turkish side of the border. her report contains flashing images. the front line in a conflict that is spreading fast. turning northern syria into a battleground. alarming washington and europe. the smoke is rising from the key town of ras al—ain. and inside the town, this pro—turkish fighter says "we've just arrived". and

edition of cross talk we demystify syria's kurds almost all of the criticism launched against syria policy is not rooted in facts actually that criticism is driven by false narratives and the inability to admit the international proxy war to overthrow the damascus government has failed the sooner all american troops leave syria the better for syria and the region. talking syria i'm joined by my guess omar well coffin u.k. he is founder and director of the good osis a think tank in britain that focuses on syria and the middle east in beirut we have more awesome and she is an academic and journalist and in dublin we cross the mike rather he is coeditor of b s news dot info right across cycles in effect that means you can jump in anytime you want and i always appreciate it let's go to beirut 1st you know i read the reactions very closely to try for a partial withdrawal i mean he tried it before and he failed and now he's done it again in lieu of the another illegal and the invasion of syria this time by turkey i mean i was just aghast on that characterization of what's going on in syri

you taken so far about making peace in syria so hopefully up until the day operation reaches its target or reaches it and point we are going to continue the target is very clear we are going to clear our borders from all the terrorists which is why p.j. are and why k.k. and hopefully when we make the towns those villages into safe zones we are going to spend the refugees in turkey back to their countries this is going to be based on voluntarily voluntary repatriation and so we are going to secure that of course. for a with the operation the. the claims that we are going to change the demographics of eastern syria northern syria this is also disinformation there is absolute truth about this. this by saying on the contrary to this the demographic the demographic demographics of that area has been changed by dippy k.k. they have invaded iraq big towns and villages in there and they invaded and occupied those places these this this is the p.k. k. the terrorist organization who has been financially supported by the usa by the united states so what ruins the demographics in that region

. live coverage now staying on capitol hill for a hearing on u.s. policy towards syria. you're watching live coverage on c-span3. >> walking and leaving everything they knew in a war situation. i don't think most americans, at least i wasn't until i went and had that experience, realized and most americans don't realize the history and delicacy of relationships in the middle east since at least world war i and the whole question of whether the kurds should have had a stay or not. the human aspects of this are getting missed in large part and the demands you had. so tell me what the humanitarian needs and demands were before the incursion and talk a little bit about what's happened since. >> in a sense, the demands are the same. because the fundamental ask from the humanitarian community is that there be a lasting cessation of hostilities that civilian protection be upheld and that humanitarians be given, you know, unfettered access to people in need. i think those are the three sort of big policy asks from the humanitarian community. yesterday, today and tomorrow. the difference is a di

syria may be the clearest example of this and the most disastrous. around two weeks ago, president trump gave turkey's president erdogan the green light to launch a military invasion of northern syria, and that's precisely what turkey did. what followed was a gruesome campaign, slaughtering our syrian kurdish partners who fought alongside the united states against isis. already nearly 200,000 people, including women, children, and families, have been displaced, driven from their ancestral homes, ethnic cleansing at its worst. so the deal we signed with erdogan has led directly to this ethnic cleansing in northern syria's indigenous kurdish region. it's a disgrace. these people fought with us, these people took bullets for us. these people were our loyal and faithful allies. for the united states to turn our backs on them, or to start a series of events, chain of events, which would hurt them, really is a very dark day in our country's history. as the kurds fight to survive this onslaught, they've been forced to abandon their watch over the prison holding thousands of isis fighters, over

secured and made safe 360000 refugees have repatriated voluntarily. at some time in syria and it was always mentioned with terrorist attacks but now it is reaching tranquility and peace. hopefully this will apply to. the northern syria. we have we are we have been hosting. 303000000 and 650000 syrians 350000 of them are kurdish these brothers. these homesick brothers should go back to their countries and we should work on this and not that important step for our operation is to establish this. the area that will be safe with our operation 1st of all we are going to repatriate 1000000 syrians and after that another 1000000 will move back. our plans according to our plans regarding this we have shared our plans with our counterparts hopefully with the support of international community this plan will be carried out in this process with our russian friends will work together. and we are going to made it make agreements on the repatriation plans today which mr putin we have talked about fight against terrorism territorial integrity of syria and political unity of syria we also talked abo

fact. that. you could have. that we'll. have to. let them go i think syria last. thanksgiving. yes i did want. to move. down the maze of our route for about with him. what a shame. i have. thank you. yeah well you know. closer look i hate to. think about. that. right so. i live you gotta let. me. ask you. if. you would stand like that i'm glad i'm in class when i get one line so what little thing. i want to thank you for. your. time you want the world. is all about this market now from day one. and i can also yes i'm thankful yes i'm slovenly not exactly. that was very nice woman or. no. good. for him he is. in international news her. mother from our. own now. and was gone on about this and i think that. the format of that is that he did not have enough. about a battery. that would barely walk out with. that. much. longer than the wall. so. that now. you know move on back and start having. some value consistently but but barring some amount of junk i was wrong. this will come well you know. young well you know oklahoma pushing. this you know what i think we're jumping. and you got

affairs in syria, it's important to recall the path that brought us here. to begin, the syrian civil war is a complex, multisided conflict that has drawn in russia, iran, the u.s., nato allies, and other entities. over the course of this eight-year-long conflict, syria's brutal dictator, ai bar shal ai said, with the support of russia and iran, has relentlessly bombed cities and towns across syria, resulting in over 500,000 deaths and leaving over 10 million people displaced. we are all aware that many confirmed uses of chemical weapons by the russia-backed assad regime, adding to the humanitarian suffering in violations of international law. the syrian, russian, and iranian regimes now hope to build upon the successful defeat of the defl see cleared islamic caliphate. these are the circumstances we find ourselves in today. beginning in 2011, the islamic state took full advantage in the chaos in syria to gather its strength. the group's ascendence was accompanied with a nearly unprecedented level of cruelty. by 2014, isis gathered enough strength to spill over the syrian border

state of affairs in syria, it's important to recall the path that brought us here. to begin, the syrian civil war is a complex, multisided conflict that has drawn in russia, iran, the u.s. nato allies, and other entities. over the course of this eight-year-long conflict, syria's brutal dictator, ai bar shal ai said, with the support of russia and iran, has relentlessly bombed cities and towns across syria, resulting in over 500,000 deaths and leaving over 10 million people displaced. we are all aware that many confirmed uses of chemical weapons by the russia-backed assad regime, adding to the humanitarian suffering in violations of international law. the syrian, russian, and iranian regimes now hope to build upon the successful defeat of the self declared islamic caliphate. these are the circumstances we find ourselves in today. beginning in 20e11, the islamic state took full advantage in the chaos in syria to gather its strength. the group's ascendence was accompanied with a nearly unprecedented level of cruelty. by 2014, isis gathered enough strength to spill over the syrian bo

situation with syria and turkeyur s. >> the hearing will come to order. welcome perk of the subcommittee is here to get testimony on the findings and recommendations of the final report given the timing of this hearing to discuss the ramifications of recent policy changes in syria that we still are addressing our challenges there so without objection and moved to full put on - - putting the full report into the record i now recognize myself for purposes of an opening statement. thank you very much for testifying today and your work your report is a thoughtful review of this topic that provides how to protect us interest in syria and it is well knownyr president trump does not like to read but if he skimmed the executive story before his recent decision with t not in - - erdogan notes thatat population is a long-term challenge that has not addressed and i've managed to entrench itself in syria russia and iran shows few signs of divergent to underestimate much of the submit on that stability and the turkish incursion never the syria with a major setback with a crisis in the relationship and d

the president's middle east policy really is right now where the syria strategy is there's no question that there are some that do support the president's notion that the united states has been for too long in conflicts it doesn't really belong in the midst of situations and go back centuries without any sort of understanding of the nuances of the conflicts but at the same time there is a sort of universal feeling in washington that the u.s. president has not articulated a strategic and coherent strategy that repeatedly when it comes to syria when it comes to afghanistan that this is been sort of a need jerk impulse of reaction often based on sort of political goals versus more strategic goals and that's been the frustration of not just the state department but also the pentagon but as we look at some of the words from the u.s. president even as recently as about 48 hours ago when he spoke on monday he said that we interject ourselves into conflicts we shouldn't be and we get ourselves in war we shouldn't be in and he reminded the american voter and you have to remember there

syria after the short break. to. let you know. that because. of this connection to last him should ask for the past 70 and seeing and on monday today for the dutch. commission. branches just. no new car so said on the opening much to the mama just back. talk about one of the worst cases of predatory baxter's defrauding and abusing the poor and sick that i've seen in a couple years you know we have entered issue to many instances of bankers preying on folks but this is this is a this is really happening. in the age of trump what has happened to journalistic standards and competence in the media not long ago it was generally agreed that politics was the art of the possible no one news narrative must prevail and all others must be bang. which is a state of affairs serve the public interest. welcome back we go back to our breaking news story this hour turkey has announced the launch of a military offensive in syria as an arab one says it's aimed at the kurdish workers party and islamic state terrorists syrian state television reports that operation peace spring began with turkish fighter j

of syria this time by turkey i mean i was just gassed on that characterization of what's going on in syria right now and western audiences have been given so much to some from ation and false narratives it's very difficult for them to even understand what's going on except for war must go on endless war and i've been a critic of donald trump for many things but this is the right decision it was the right decision a year ago go ahead in beirut. definitely and i'd like to remind the audience that throughout this campaign before he became president he was always talking about pulling out the troops especially from syria were his narrative back then before before he became president was actually in there to of that was different than what we have heard of it was a narrative of who created isis why is isis there to begin with the role of turkey in bringing in isis to syria why should u.s. troops go to syria and the start of all of this he was not supporting this he was actually put this on the shoulders of barack obama being a disastrous u.s. foreign policy what he's doing right now is ac

of northern syria leaving the kurds no watch and some isis prisoners are now free and on the run and today u.s. president trump declared that a victory made possible by his foreign policy tonight u.s. president trump says he's lifting all sanctions against turkey and without mentioning russia and its new power in the middle east he says america is done and that it's time for someone else to fight over those blood stained cena i'm brick off in berlin this is the day. early this morning the government of turkey informed by administration that they would be stopping combat and their offensive in syria and making the ceasefire permanent and it will indeed be permanent this was an outcome created by us the united states and nobody else no other nation 1st of all turkey syria and all forms of the kurds. have been fighting for centuries. we have done them a great service and we've done a great job to let someone else fight over this long blood statement saying and. also coming up tonight a truck loaded with death police in england have arrested the driver of a truck after finding the bodies

. troops from northern syria, a house foreign affairs subcommittee held a hearing on the final report from the syria study group. the group's co-chairs testified on the findings of the republican and how they can be applied to the current situation with syria and turkey. and turkey. this hearing will come to order and we welcome everyone. the subcommittee testimony on the findings and recommendations in the study group's final report. given the timing of the hearing we will have the opportunity to discuss the ramifications of the policy changes in syria and a study group recommendations to still address the challenges that are. for the purpose of an opening statement. >> thank you very much for testifying today and for your work and the final report of the study group. your report as a thoughtful review of the conflict and provides pragmatic recommendations for how policymakers can protect u.s. interests and destabilize syria. now it is well known president trump does not like to read but i wish that he had skimmed over the executive summary before the recent phone call with the turki

afternoon to discuss the situation in syria. let me commend my colleague, senator romney, for his very thoughtful and very timely and very important comments. we all recognize that the situation in syria is highly fluid, but it's important, i think, to state the case with respect to the president's decision to acquiesce to president erdogan's offensive against the kurds. the president's decision is a disaster for our partners in the fight against isis and the united states foreign policy more broadly spoken. while i welcome the temporary cease-fire announced a short time ago and hope that a permanent cease-fire can be achieved, it does not absolve president trump of responsibility for his betrayal of our kurdish partners and his role in unleashing violence and instability in northern syria. it is not clear whether turkey made any concessions as part of the deal struck with the u.s. delegation or whether kurdish forces will comply. if not, i am concerned that additional violence is likely to follow and we'll have little leverage to prevent it. in fact, there is a quote attributed to the

syria at nato headquarters in brussels a struggle to find a common voice and if the united states says it may send tanks and troops back to syria after pulling them out just a week ago also coming up the man who could be argentina's new president left leaning about the fernandez has a huge 25 point lead as the nation prepares to vote on sunday. i'm going off it's good to have you with us tonight nato was struggling to find one voice over its member turkey and turkey's offensive in northern syria nato just ended a 2 day summit in brussels acknowledging different views on the issue at least as what secretary general younes stoltenberg said the behavior of yet another member of the united states that behavior not helping things at all the u.s. pulled its troops from syria earlier this month washington l says it will send them back to syria to prevent so-called islamic state from capturing crucial oil fields in the east. it isn't easy keeping up with america's position in syria after president trump emphatically said u.s. troops will coming home his statement seemed in downs as report

u.s. plans for syria donald trump is facing criticism for his decision to withdraw from the northeast paving the way for a take a ship and see if what are the risks of a military operation and what to do with eisel fight is in kurdish prisons this is inside story. the and welcome to the program fully back to pull the white house is sending mixed messages about the future of america's role in syria president donald trump announced on monday that u.s. soldiers would pull out of northeastern syria allowing turkey to launch a military operation against kurdish fighters turkey's defense minister says its forces are ready to enter and clear what he calls terrorists syrian kurds america's close on eye in the fight against eisel call trumps decision a stab in the back and after widespread criticism at home the president is not threatening to destroy turkey's economy if it does anything he considers to be off limits but a white house official says u.s. soldiers are only being moved within syria rather than fully withdrawn contradicting the president earlier tweet that the u.s. would

. withdrawal from syria with james jeffrey, who serves as the state department special representative. he joined secretary of state matthew palmer and how the u.s. withdrawal could impact efforts to combat isis. >> committee will come to order. without objection all members will have five days to submit statements, material, and questions for the record. all members will have five days to submit statements, material, and questions for the record. there is subject to the length, limitation, and rules. we meet today to discuss president trump's decision to withdraw from northern syria clearing the way for turkey to attack kurdish partners. the decision i view as disastrous. to our witnesses, welcome to the foreign affairs committee, welcome to the members of the public and the press. welcome to our friends from c-span who are broadcasting this important proceeding. i recognize myself for an opening statement. this committee has a long tradition of bipartisanship. we work on that every day. i think we are the most bipartisan committee in congress. the main reason is that members on both side

sears and a to the president's remarks yesterday aboutar the quote great out, that he achieved in syria. >> his remarks were remarkable in terms of sort of creating this phantom victory of accomplishment where it's really anything but. i rarely agree with mitch mcconnell but i think here i will certainly adopt his characterization, which is this is been a great strategic mistake on the part of president trump withdrawing troops, u.s. troops, a small footprint from northern syria. and it leaves a lot of unanswered questions and increase risk for america, isis, the possible reemergence of isis. isis. yesterday we did note po hear mh about how we're going to counter that. we didn't hear anything yesterday about what steps will be taken to prevent ethnic cleansing as turkey has promised to return press up to 3 million arab syrians to that region and what that will meet in terms of potential clashes with the syrian kurds. i think it left this one for a lot of answers. >> host: what was the alternative, to keep u.s. troops in syria indefinitely, to keep troops in between what was becoming a s

geneva the. top diplomats from russia turkey and iran meet in geneva the peace talks on syria before the launch of a constitutional committee for the war torn country peace talks on syria before the launch of a constitutional committee for the war torn country. friends again says it is not ready to release video of. friends again says it is not ready to release video evidence to prove that it killed in leader of islamic state in syria we look at taliban evidence to prove that to kill bin leader of islamic state in syria we look at how the world's most wanted terrorist avoided detection for so long. the world's most wanted terrorist avoided detection for so long. u.k. is heading for a general election as palm and approves parts u.k. is heading for a general election as palm and approves parts johnson's bill seeking a december 12th vote to break the brakes an impasse johnson's bill seeking a december 12th votes to break the brakes an impasse. knife from our moscow studio you're watching r.t. internat. knife from our moscow studio you're watching r.t. international i'm rosanna lockwood

beginning of the armed struggle in syria. the boy who started the syrian war on al-jazeera. russia and turkey reach a deal to allow kurdish backed fighters to withdraw from north east and syria. hello i'm the star of the attack and this is al jazeera live from doha also coming up another delay for bars johnson's bid to fast track his role as they leave the e.u. is rejected by britain's parliament. the top u.s. diplomat to ukraine testifies in an impeachment inquiry and explains how the president tried to pressure kiev to discredit his political rival. an apology and a planned chill as president announces new economic measures aimed at stopping violent protests. now turkey and russia have reached a deal to clear out backed fighters from within syria and launched an offensive in that area last week but suspended that operation following a u.s. brokered cease fire a step back and has more from sochi and russia. with only i was left of the u.s. brokered cease fire in syria russia stopped did president putin offer to help to remove and this. was at the turkish syrian border to go with syria

today to address the current situation in syria. first i welcome the vice president his announcement of a cease-fire.he which will prevent further loss of live. i have the agreement is honored. let the heart ofis this matter,s the center question of why these terms and assurances we're not negotiated before the president consented to a withdrawal of our troops. let me briefly about what's happened in the last seven days. since the u.s. announced our withdrawal. the curse suffering loss of live andri property have allied with the solids. russia has the same control of our previous military positions. in the u.s. has been forced in monday cases to bond to their own facilities to prevent their appropriation by russia and turkey. the announcement today is being portrayed is a victory. it is far from a victory. serious questions remain about how the decision was reached precipitously with syria and why the decision was reached. given the initial details of the cease-fire agreement, the administration must also explain what americans future role will be the region. what happens in and out

from syria, so i'm encouraged by press reports his administration is considering retaining a military presence in that country to keep the pressure on isis. since september 11, our nation has learned cephal key lessons -- several key lessons about the fight against radical islamic terrorism. the terrorist threat cannot be wished away. the terrorists mean us harm. and we cannot allow them to establish safe havens and solidify their networks. when they do, the bloodshed ends up right here on our shores. american leadership is essential. we've seen our partners and allies step up and take on important roles. in fact, as we speak, france is playing a leading role in the african. but just about every place that president trump tried to lead from behind provides reminders that there are certain kinds of leadership only america can contribute. but unfortunately, we're not in this alone. the huge progress we have won in recent years against isis and the taliban has come by partnering with local forces. with senator from a broad international coalition. america has only provided limit

know that he gave him some hala greenlight in order to go inside syria and then he has he has had to change his mind many many times actually because he's coming under pressure from both inside his. administration and also from his allies in the region and we have another america which is that establishment the foreign policy establishment including the state department have been going on also you have the congress who are very much against and you as well from from syria and against the british and against the see the democratic forces that establishment in america believes that the united states actually by betraying. actually is giving a very bad message to its allies in the region and this is something not but what i mean a couple us i mean don't forget the united states if it withdraws from syria it will not be party to this conflict anymore it will not have any leverage and the syrian conflict and some actually also see that russia is winning in this case because america is actually pulling out so that something of the gun is actually dealing with 2 different americas this is a

. president, i rise today to address the current situation in syria. first, i welcome the vice president's announcement of a cease-fire which will prevent further loss of life. i hope the agreement is honored. but at the heart of this matter is a central question of why these terms and assurances were not negotiated before the president consented to withdraw our troops. let me briefly recount what's happened in the past seven days since the u.s. announced our withdrawal. the kurds suffering loss of life and property have alied with assad. russia has assumed control of our previous military positions and the u.s. has been forced in many cases to bomb, of our own facilities. the announcement today is being portrayed as a victory. it is far from a victory. serious questions remain about how the decision was reached precipitously to withdraw from syria and why that decision was reached. given the initial details of the cease-fire agreement, the administration must also explain what america's future role will be in the region. what happens now to the kurds and why turkey will face no apparent c

examine the trump and ministrations decision to draw u.s. forces in northern syria and abandon our kurdish allies. as everyone knows how little more than two weeks ago president trump had a phone call turkish president or the one we don't know exactly what that transcript of that revealed but we do know the white house released the following statement about the call and i quote it here. turkey will soon be moving forward with its long planned operations into northern syria. the united states armed forces will not support or be involved in the operation and united states forces having defeated the isis territorial caliphate we will no longer be needed - excuse me, will will no longer be in the immediate area. nowhere in that statement is there any indication that he tried to delay presidents plan of operation and indeed i think it could be interpreted as the statement facilitated that incursion. nowhere in the statement to the white house condemned turkish invasion and the destabilizing effects it would have and no where do the same and warned about the hundreds of thousands of civi

into northern syria tens of thousands of people have fled the area since when say. and u.s. democrats pushing for impeachment against president trump a visit subpoenas the 2 businessmen linked to his lawyer rudy giuliani they're accused of violating campaign finance rules. because former president jacob zuma is expected to find out shortly if a corruption case against him will be thrown out now former president zuma is accused of taking bribes from a french weapons company in exchange for 180000000 dollar government contracts this dating back to the late 1990 s. . his lawyers have argued the case is politically motivated and have requested it be dismissed and later today a high court in pietermaritzburg the trial will make its decision well there at the court is a correspondent for media miller and for me. there is a bewildering a ray of accusations and allegations against former president jacob zuma what do these specific these specific charges amount to if indeed they are dismissed or otherwise. fall in this case zuma is facing charges of racketeering and corruption as you said rela

effective. as president trump mentioned, we talked about syria. we are deeply concerned with turkey's offensive in the northeastern part of syria. this attack come in a limited number of days, has already caused a number of casualties and tens of thousands of refugees and displaced people. and there are plenty of victims amongst civilians, as well. this is an attack which also has another risk, namely that of offering new space, which was unthinkable a few days ago, to isis. and to its criminal terrorist activities in syria, in the middle east, but not just in the middle east. also in other continents around the world. italy, in line with the e.u. position, condemns the turkish operations which are ongoing. we have also talked about libya. and we talked about this topic, as all of other topics come with the spirit of friendship and in a very tangible way. it's a source of deep concern to us, and we are convinced of the fact that the violence and the military attacks can destabilize all of north africa. it increases the threat of terrorism, and it contributes to creating an environment

bringing in isis to syria why should u.s. troops go to syria and the start of all of this he was not supporting this he was actually put this on the shoulders of barack obama being a disastrous us foreign policy what he's doing right now is actually just going back to his previous as a president to his campaigning days he's keeping promise of pulling out troops from war zones that are not bringing any benefit for the u.s. foreign policy or for troops for that matter and what he's doing is actually brokered a deal with turkey which has been going on for a while now we would just seen the fruits of this deal right now but again you are via the public as is misinformed in the west and this is why they are very much in shock as to why don't trump will put out the troops well in fact trump is doing a great deal of help for. the syrians to begin with for the syrians who have been battered by the war against some of the global war against them it would be great of help for this your government which the liberals and the democrats would not like to hear yeah back in the u.s. but it would def

the headlines on al-jazeera turkey has had kurdish positions in northeast and syria with strikes for a 2nd day sending tens of thousands of people fleeing at least 15 civilians have been killed on both sides including a 9 month old baby. u.s. congressional democrats have issued subpoenas for 2 businessmen charged with campaign finance violations ukrainian their partners the better russian ego for women are associates of president trump's personal noir rudy giuliani they were involved in giuliani's efforts to get ukraine to investigate democratic presidential hopeful joe biden according to the indictment both men funneled foreign money to u.s. political candidates trump is facing an impeachment inquiry into whether he withheld military aid to ukraine for personal political gain at least 5 people have been killed in ecuador following a week of violent protests many are angry at new york stare at him measures introduced by president lenin moreno which led to higher fuel prices says he won't step down. now at tryst tricity has been cut to more than a 1000000 people in california as the s

next 60 minutes turkish forces take more ground in northern syria as the kurds strike a deal with the assad regime for help. and celebrations in tunisia as law professor chi side claims victory in the presidential election. or testers defy a curfew in ecuador's capital as the government holds mediation talks with indigenous groups. some of the most pristine beaches in the northeastern brazil have been covered by crude oil it's been washing up on the beaches nobody knows exactly where this is coming from and gabriel is on doing a logo is brazil that story coming up. on so again in syria where government forces have struck a deal with the kurdish led syrian democratic forces which will see the syrian army deploy along the border with turkey your game comes in the face of a turkish offensive in northern syria that's led to heavy fighting in places the s.d.f. says the deployment of syrian troops will help them liberate areas under the control of turkish forces so they enter northern syria on wednesday and are advancing south turkish forces and their syrian allies have seized control o

growing sense that warts on syria and centering a new phase that could mean new opportunities but also new dangers well the situation on the ground changed dramatically when u.s. president donald trump made the unexpected decision to in large measure at least withdraw american forces from syria in doing so the americans abandon their erstwhile allies the kurds russia and turkey have stepped into the vacuum would flow to meet putin and wretched tie a better one appearing to be the key players in the region it's certainly a volatile situation and we ask old faces new alliances who will win the battle for syria. thanks very much for joining us here on the show and my panel is made up of 3 guests here they are beginning with christine held back a featured mideast analyst with a number of european publications she says with his plan for northeast and syria putin has made both added one and us out happy it's the kurds who are paying the price also what this is all imposing a regular commentator for the berlin based state he developed who argues russia and iran have already won the struggle f

member or with syria, let them fight their own wars. they have been fighting their own wars. the people of south carolina want to see troops come home. i won an election based on that and that is the way it is, whether it is good or bad. if you look at this country, i'd be willing to bet anything that is what the country wants. on wednesday the house approved a resolution the trump administration to withdraw troops from syria. 60 republicans voted against the measure and representatives voted present. next, we show the debate before the vote starting with house whoign affairs committee opened the resolution. will control 20 minutes. the chair recognizes the gentleman from new york, mr. engel. mr. engel: i ask unanimous consent that all members may have five legislative days to evise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material 77.ouse joint resolution the speaker pro tempore: without objection, so ordered. mr. engel: i yield myself such consume.i may the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from new york, mr. engel, is recognized. mr. engel: thank you, mr. speaker. sinc

leave the area within the timeframe both leaders held the deal. syria should be free from unlawful foreign presence the long term stability of syria can only be achieved by observing the sovereignty and unity in this country mr putin and i concluded the historic agreement to fight terrorism and sure is serious to restore integrity and political unity and return refugees these talks were very tough and you have to remember the turkey initiated the meeting with putin after they launched an offensive against the kurdish forces that ankara sees as terrorists at the turkish syrian border the operation known as peace spring and gird actually many or maybe even too many including damascus moscow washington mr the gun came to me putin sort of showing he lost his patients and he is ready to continue the military operation in syria's north and basically he was threatening at the same time asking a lot including i guess a total control of the so-called safe zone along the turkish border east of the euphrates 30 kilometers deep into syria russia is the massacres of major l. i could not allow t

turkey's offensive in syria as a high level u.s. delegation makes its way to encourage with the goal of ending the conflicts. to. the as. i'm fully back to boyer watching al-jazeera live from my borders in doha also ahead time is running out for a break sit deal as politicians on both sides of the divide try to patch together an agreement it's. cool shouted down by opposition politicians hong kong's chief executive kerry limeys forced to delay her on your policy speech and anger in south korea after its football world cup qualifier in pyongyang is paid to empty stands without live coverage. i am. thank you for joining as turkey's president won insists the military operation in syria will continue until his country's objectives have been achieved speaking to his party members a short while ago otoh on reiterated that he's not against this area and people but against what he calls a violent forces in the region his comments come as u.s. vice president mike pence along with a delegation make their way to ankara they'll be seeking an immediate cease fire in northeast syria as internation

country's military offensive in northern syria. the war looks set to enter a new, dangerous phase, with syrian government forces on the move to help kurdish fighters under attack from turkish forces. protests have erupted in barcelona after spain's supreme court sentenced nine catalan separatist leaders to between nine and 13 years in prison. large crowds of protesters clashed with police at barcelona's international airport. margaret atwood and bernardine evaristo have been named thejoint winners of the 2019 booker prize after the judges broke their rules by declaring a tie. at 79, atwood is the oldest ever winner, while evaristo is the first black woman to win the prize. they each took home about $32,000. now on bbc news, hardtalk. welcome to hardtalk, i'm stephen sackur. donald trump doesn't seem to do regret, but maybe even he will come to rue his abrupt decision to pull us troops out of northern syria. his move prompted a turkish military invasion of territory held by syria's kurds. the kurds are now looking to president assad for military help. the region, once a playground for so

by turkey if they don't withdraw from syria's border. and richelle carey this is al-jazeera life also coming. diplomat helping to put together the pieces of an impeachment puzzle but clearest account yet of the u.s. presidents dealings with ukraine. and the war and yet many civilians die including 2 children in an airstrike led by the saudi u.a.e. coalition. one single pros across the libya disputed election result triggers widespread protests. pressure is warning syrian kurdish fighters will be heavily defeated by turkey if they don't pull back from the border also says the kurds had been betrayed by the u.s. which was encouraging them to stay and fight kurdish fighters have until next tuesday to withdraw that's under a new deal between moscow and ankara and 6 days russian syrian forces will move into a 30 kilometers own along the turkish border we'll go live to charles stratford shortly announce a collie but 1st step in and send us this report from sochi where presidents are to juan and putin finalize this new agreement. with only i was left of the u.s. brokered cease fire in s

jeffrey, the state department special representative on syria testifies before the house foreign affairs committee regarding u.s. troop withdrawal from syria. mr. jeffrey is accompanied by deputy assistant secretary of state for european and eurasian affairs, matthew palmar. president trump announced the u.s. would lift sanctions on turkey. since they agreed to cease combat operations in northern syria. this is 3 hours 15 minutes. >> committee will come to order. without objection, will have five days to submit statements, extraneous material. we meet today to examine president trump's decision to withdrawal from northern syria. clearing the way for turkey to attack america's syrian/kurdish partners. it's a decision i view as zab disastrous. to our witnesses, welcome to the foreign affairs committee. welcome to members of the public and press and thank you to our friends from cspan who are broadcasting this important proceeding. i now recognize myself for an opening statement. this committee has a long tradition of bipartisanship. we work on that every day. i think we're the most biparti

living else for shit. it is important that all of us insist on the territorial integrity of syria was insist on the territorial integrity of syria we believe that the territory of syria should be controlled by we believe that the territory of syria should be controlled by the government and the military and on forces of syria and they should be responded to government and military and on forces of syria and they should be responsible for providing security to syria and to the neighbors of seeds for providing security to syria and to the neighbors of syria. if that should be big. issue any would be ready at any threat it again instigate in any way or any of the of the neighbors of syria emanating from syrian soil and that is depositors of syria emanating from syrian soil and that is the position that we have always held but we believe that should be done by deceit in addition that we have always held what we believe that should be done by dissidence. and we are ready to help and cooperate with russia and taken . and we are ready to help and cooperate with russia and turkey in. implemen

push deeper into syria vast numbers from the syrian observatory for human rights the u.n. says more than 70000 people have been displaced pentagon says it strongly encourages turkey to discontinue its offensive. and nato chief un stolberg is calling on turkey to act with restraint in its operation in syria he says nato must find us just a noble solution so i sold prisoners in syria. iran's foreign ministry has confirmed a state owned oil tanker was hit twice during an attack in the red sea off the coast of saudi arabia there has been no immediate response from riyadh. the united arab emirates is trying to silence the al-jazeera news network that's according to a bloomberg reports the u.a.e. is reportedly running a law being campaign in washington d.c. using a law firm to try and influence members of the u.s. congress they've also used twitter accounts hiding their u.a.e. affiliations in an attempt to discredit al-jazeera and qatar the gulf nation where the network is headquartered the u.a.e. has been part of a blockade against qatar alongside other regional powers since june 27th se

battleground states tour. >> russia is working on talks between the leaders of syria and turkey after u.s. withdrawal from syria and turkey's advance into the northern part of the country. brad mcgirk for the coalition to defeat isis and two other mideast policy experts spoke at the foundation for defense of democracies regarding how president trump's decision will impact the region as well as its implications for u.s. national security. mr. mcgirk served in this position under presidents obama and president trump from 2015 to 2018. >> welcome, everyone. i'm jonathan chancer, senior vice president at the foundation for defense of democracies. i am pleased to well in you to today's event marking the release of "shatter the nations. isis and the war for the caliphate." a warm welcome to those tuning in via c-span or live stream. today's program is one of many we host throughout the year. for more information on our work or our areas of focus we encourage you to visit fdd.org. there, you can find out the latest analysis and subscribe to receive information on the latest research, p

we will have the opportunity to discuss the ramifications of the policy changes in syria and a study group recommendations to still address the challenges that are. for the purpose of an opening statement. >> thank you very much for testifying today and for your work and the final report of the study group. your report as a thoughtful review of the conflict and provides pragmatic recommendations for how policymakers can protect u.s. interests and destabilize syria. now it is well known president trump does not like to read but i wish that he had skimmed over the executive summary before the recent phone call with the turkish president. your assessment notes do not eliminate the threat to the united states. it also notes the detainee population is a long-term challenge is not being adequately addressed and iran continues to entrench itself in russia and iran show few signs of divergence. the turkish incursion would represent a major setback at a crisis for the relationship and despite the challenges the united states maintains letters that protects the core u.s. national security inte

president trump's decision to withdraw u.s. troops from syria, so i'm encouraged by press reports his administration is considering retaining a military presence in that country to keep the pressure on isis. since september 11, our nation has learned cephal key lessons -- several key lessons about the fight against radical islamic terrorism. the terrorist threat cannot be wished away. the terrorists mean us harm. the terrorists mean us harm. >> when they do the bloodshed ends up right here on our shore shores. american leadership is essential. we have seen our partners and allies step up with important roles and as we speak france is playing a leading role in the effort but just about every place obama tried to pleave them behind there are certain kinds of leadership , only america can contribute. but we are not in this alone. going up against isys and the television we partnered with local forces. america has only provided limited special ops capabilities to reinforce the local partners to do the heaviest lifting. this approach is sustainable. unfortunately we know exactly what happe

american troops out of northern syria and greenlight erdogan's invasion we are in real trouble. we are in trouble and a whole lot of ways. most importantly we in new york know the small group of bad people can cause terrible terrorism which use -- huge loss of life even when they are 7000 miles away. there are about 70,000 isis prisoners and their families now being guarded by the kurds but because of the presence of actions they will no longer be guarded. when we went to the white house yesterday and asked the president and his military folks what is the plan to prevent these isis would-be terrorists many of them from escaping, they didn't have one. they didn't have one. the kurds have left. the only people who might guard them are the syrians were the turks.ve neither of them have a great interest in stopping isis. in fact i asked the defense asper is there any intelligence that shows that even the syrians or the turks would do a good job guarding the isis prisoners to prevent that from escaping? no, there was no intelligence, o that effect. and so as a result isis prisoners are