special envoy for syria. when we come back, we will go to istanbul, turkey to speak with yassin al-haj saleh, syrian writer, dissident, and former political prisoner in syria. stay with us. ♪ [music break] amy: joan baez, has just been inducted to the rock 'n roll hall of fame. this is democracy now!, democracynow.o.org, the war and peace report. i'm amy goodman with nermeen shaikh. in syria, the evacuation of r rebels and cicivilians from e eastern alepo have r resumed. after r thousands were left randnded on wedndnesday amid hey snowfall and freezing temperatures. syrian government forces said they expxpected the lalast of te evacuees to board buses within the coming hours. leaving syria's army to take control of the city, which has been devastated by months of heavy bombing and warfare. amy: to talk more about syria, we are joined by yassin al-haj saleh. he is a syrian writer, dissident and former political prisoner. his forthcoming book is titled, "the impossible revolution: mamaking sense of the syrian

syria, what does syria mean for me, actually, family, you know? hopefully this will be, like, a bad dream, maybe, and to have a better life, so... accent. before the war, he, his sister and brother all played in the syrian national 0rchestra for arabic music. issam took over the orchestra in 2003 and conducted them for ten years, touring europe and the middle east. when he left, he didn't know if he would ever lead them again. but that could be about to change. international organisers are trying to bring the orchestra to europe for a one—off tour that would reunite musicians from inside syria and those now living abroad, like issam. this is ourdream, actually, my dream. his friends are helping him prepare. issam wrote this piece for the orchestra while he was still living in damascus. but the tour hangs in the balance. since the outbreak of war, it is almost impossible to get visas for syrians to leave the country. he is very stressed, because he was so busy lately writing all this stuff and worried about the music, the visa. so, yeah, you can

then he goes back to syria. what surprises me is a man who represents human rights, one o f which is frfreedom of speech, or as roosevelt would say, freedom feaear of freedom of speech, tt we should stop this. let me finish. he has kind of mangled it. i did not say that anybody who says something bad about putin is the target of this neil mccarthyism. i i t anyone who dissents from the orthodox account of how we ended up in this new cold war, if mr. roth things it is not a new cold war he is welcome to peopleought, it is the who speak out for being called apologists for putin. amy: we have 30 seconds. >> we're in the most dangerous confrontation with russia since the cuban missile crisis. it needs to be discussed. at the moment, it cannot be discussed because of these charges that everybody is a client of putin who disagrees with the mainstream opinion. it is coming from the senate, from "the new york times" and coming from -- i wish we had a second to say what the motives are. one motive is to keep trump from g

russia and syria have had... russia and turkey have had differences on syria, primarily because president erdogan called for the removal of al—assad early on. one thing the russians and turks agree on is the territorial sovereignty and integrity of syria, they don't want it broken up and if that means that assad must be at the helm of it, then the turks are going to be ok with that. that would be a very important strategic, potential change, wouldn't it? if the turks actually now turn around and say that al—assad can stay because they've wanted him to go. that big change, the policy was last year, and one of the key reasons you started to see ankara starting to warm up to russia. i think here you have a couple of things going on. domestically, president erdogan would like to bolster his position at home, he was to change turkey's and dilution from being parliamentary to being where the power lies within the presidency. having an anti—western stance and aligning himself with russia actually feeds into that.

whats in syria, david petraeus has a great line, syria doesn't play by las vegas rules. what happens in syria doesn't stay in syria. >> you see the aftereffects around the world. zakaria, it's piece. enjoyed reading it. >> thank you. >>> after all of these months, all indications the fed is about to raise interest rates. what it means more the economy and your bottom line, coming up. whoa, whoa, i got this. just gotta get the check. almost there. i can't reach it. if you have alligator arms, you avoid picking up the check. what? it's what you do. i got this. thanks, dennis! if you want to save fifteen percent or more on car insurance, you switch to geico. growwwlph. it's what you do. oh that is good crispy duck. >>> you're getting ready to buy a car or home or if you have a credit card or savings account pay close attention to this. the federal reserve is expected to raise a key interest rate today. cnn "money" correspondent alison kosik is joins us from the new york stock exchange. tell us what this could mean. everyone should have their eye on this, alison? >> looking

you don't have that in syria. people still don't know if they should have two syria or one syria. even on that extent, no clear strategy, hence the fighting will carry forward. >> the effort to destroy isis in syria, destroy their caliphate headquarters they call it, in raqqah, there's really nobody that's going to go in and do it on the ground? >> no. there are people, but the key issue is the scale of the challenge that is bigger. the partnership you have in iraqi army, you don't have it with the syrian army. more political concern. iran, syria, hezbollah, others and none of that in iraq. so you have two different rules of engagement, two different scenarios or two different battlefields, unfortunately. >> one very final question before i let you go, mr. ambassador. what's the reaction in iraq, and you're obviously iraqi, former iraqi ambassador to the united states, to the election of donald trump? what do you expect a trump administration to do as opposed to the obama administration? >> i think it's, you have to have a longer view of this, the fight against terrorism. it needs

that does not exist for syria. katty: do you think president of side is right, the end is getting nearer? >> it is more of a signal. with the defeat of the rebels and aleppo, northern syria for all purposes will be in his hands and the hands of the kurdish forces that have been somewhat allied with him. there are pockets of resistance in the south and east, but he somewhat doesn't care about that. this corridor from damascus, aleppo, to the mediterranean coast, what he has turned the useful syria -- termed the useful syria is in his hands. that puts him in a strong position to negotiate an end to the war. katty: what happens to syria when he has the corridor? >> effectively, that would be a large part of syria under his control. the rest of syria would end up in a no man's land, or you might have a quasi-government allied with him, or it might look like a rock today here in the south you have a she had government in control, and the rest is in no man's land that periodically the military goes to fight, but it is le

influence, certainly in syria, and the end result? i imagine, in syria? >> absolutely. it mean as reduction in american influence in syria. not that american influence in syria ever was very big, but now we have a new, permanent russian air base in syria that wasn't there two years ago. they've upgraded their navy base in syria, and so the russians are much stronger in this area. kind of peculiar. same time, the u.s. military is conducting military operations in eastern syria against the islamic state, but that counts for little. it gives little leverage in the broader conflict between syrian president assad and the syrian opposition. >> you've been critical, ex-. seely critical of the obama administration handling of this and left your post saying you could no longer defend america's policy. we're here, 21 days away from the end of the obama administration, how much of a black mark on his foreign policy legacy is the syria war? >> well i think president obama will leave office with some genuine achievements, even in the middle east, such as the iranian nuclear deal, bu

to show at russia or syria. it's been laid out. the youngstown speech by president-elect donald trump is the most explicit expression of his national security policy. you heard it yesterday in hersh hershey, pennsylvania. you've heard it again and again. safe zones. there's going to be a place where the refugee wills be protected. we'll send aid to them but we're not going to deploy the air unit. what we did, which is nothing, invading and taking over syria. that's absurd. that's a true man argument. the idea that there's nothing in the middle. donald trump, the master of the deal will use the smart moves in between doing nothing and invading. >> dr. gorka, always appreciate it. any chance you work in the administration? i know you've been over to trump tower a few times. >> i'm waiting to hear. they asked and i said i would be delighted. >> that would be awesome. good to see you, sir. merry christmas. >>> coming up next tonight on the busy news night right here on "hannity." >> see now we're feeling what not having hope feels like

russia has drawn a clear line in the sand in syria. putin has invested in blood and treasure and saying that he's not going to let the regime fall. made that very clear by directly attacking rebel groups that the united states is backing. so at that point, what can we expect to accomplish in terms of supporting rebels that are attacking the regime without leading to a larger scale conflict with russia? and in a broader scale, do you see russia's momentum gaining given that after crimea, ukraine and now their success in syria, and given trump's kind of statements that he's going to be drawn back, do you see russia expanding in this area or in other areas? >> okay. let me just beg off on your comment about the new administration here. i don't think it's appropriate for me to comment on that. but let me just say this. i think we concerned about what russia is doing. it's always been a little bit of a mystery for me exactly what they are trying to accomplish here. i take your note on the fact they inadvertently struck one of the groups we

we are going to build syria again. there is a hope for everything. >> this woman has become like a second mother to him, she brings him to school each day. his real mother is stuck in syria, where she lives with her sister and niece. authorities in jordan will not let her join her son. his father died in a bomb attack. people here that have known him for a while say he was a different person when he first came out of the hospital. he would not let anyone come to close and could not bear to look in mirrors. at school, the boy is supported by a psychologist. he is doing better, thanks to the family, taking them under the wing. swimming professionally is not his only dream. >> i really like school, and i am learning new languages and all sorts of other things. i want to go to college later. >> his courage seems to know no bounds. when it comes down to it, he is like any other 10-year-old and loves to play. at the moment, he is into climbing and jumping. >> i am doing well. look at me bounce. i just brushed against that th

>>> syria's president calls it an historic event comparable to the birth of christ. government forces retake aleppo and the evacuation of the battered and broken survivors begins. the u.s. meantime calls it a massacre. this is "special report." good evening, welcome to washington. it's a watershed moment in the syrian civil war. the government of syrian president assad is once again in control of the rebellion's most important strong hold. hundreds of thousands of civilians have been killed since the beginning of the war in syria. the u.s. ambassador to the united nations says russia, iran and syria should be ashamed for carrying out war crimes on civilians with barrel bombs, mortars and air strikes. tonight, tens of thousands of syrian await evacuation from aleppo and an uncertain future. john huddy has the latest. >> reporter: the convoy of buses and ambulances carried the first wave of men, women and children from eastern aleppo today leaving with some hope of life amid so much death. u.n. officials say the sick and wounded were evacuated first followed by vulnera

do not forget syria. do not forget aleppo. do not forget syria. obviously, russia intimately involved what is happening inside syria flight and turkey as well and there are forces inside syria, inside turkey not at all in line with what's going on. so, again, we do not know exactly the identity of who carried out this attack. that person said to be neutralized. whether he was shot and killed or in custody, we do not know that either. what we do know, the russian ambassador to turkey, andrey karlov is dead after being shot at that art gallery. clarissa ward, stand by. back to you in a bit. more on our special breaking news coverage, next. . almost there. i can't reach it. if you have alligator arms, you avoid picking up the check. what? it's what you do. i got this. thanks, dennis! if you want to save fifteen percent or more on car insurance, you switch to geico. growwwlph. it's what you do. oh that is good crispy duck. all finished.umm... you wouldn't want your painter to quit part way. i think you missed a spot. so when it comes to pain relievers

you say deploying 100,000 troops to syria or even 50,000 troops to syria was not necessarily a realistic option. what could the president have done after he issued the ultimatum, crossing the red line, they used chemical weapons. what were the options before the president, short deploying u.s. troops? >> well, i'm not going to get into the middle of that on the air, the national security meetings and what the exact options were. but again i will say there was never any really serious conversation about putting 50,000 troops in syria. nobody was for that, by the way, no one. but there were other options that were significant that, in fact, we had agreed on to go forward with -- >> so what should the u.s. do now? >> well, i think the reality is, you're not going to unwind what's just happened. leave it to the historians on who was right, who was wrong and how it day out. but now with a new president, a new administration coming into power in 35 days, we've got to figure out some ways how we, the united states, can play some kind of a role here in trying to stop the suffering and the slaugh

it undermines almost every attempt at a ceasefire in syria. well, i know you know syria and the assad government quite well. what do you think, will it hold, will they go through with it? it is a very good question. i think it will hold in some places and in other places it won't. it has the benefit of buy—in from turkey and the russians as well. the question is, to what end? the regime and opposition forces that will be sitting at the table do not agree on almost anything and i don't think either one of them really are ready to give up. the question is, are the regional powers, and the international powers, going to pressure their different clients towards some sort of peace agreement at the table? at the very least it seems a very clear sign of some kind of new world order, doesn't it, the us pretty much excluded and turkish strategic interests very much to the fore? absolutely, this is another sign of american retreat on the middle east. from the middle east. taking itself out of the equation, which is a shame, especially after all this e

this is a chaotic situation, particularly in syria. but their ability to replenish their resources is significantly degraded. whenever we find where they are extracting oil, we eliminate that. >> some of the concerns seem that fighters were able to escape and you're discounting that. you think sort of our allies were able to sort of fully encapsulate -- >> we don't get into numbers but we think we eliminated quite the vast majority in cert. if they try to regroup, i'm sure we'll find a way to deal with that. >> mark. >> the relationship with the turks, it's been really strained on the diplomatic level. obviously the president -- the whole question of cooperation with the coup and the allegations and the request for the return of who they think is involved in the coup. has that been reflected in the cooperation on the counter-isil campaign? >> obviously it's a complex relationship. i was in ankara about four or five days ago. very good, very detailed meetings about the overall situation. and, you know, the turks have done an awful lot o

this is about the heartland of syria. aleppo is or was until this campaign oh of extermination, syria's most populous city. and now people are trapped and there's another cease fire being put into effect -- >> i want to talk about the cease fire. you just got back, and i wonder if you can answer this question. michael reported last night, again, what you were saying about the rapes and suicides, but also that a cease fire would collapse, and it collapsed less than a day into the cease fire. who is responsible for this collapse? >> the syrian forces. i actually believe that what the refugees have been telling us. asaads militia, not only his army, his -- anybody that would carry weapons, they allowed him to carry weapons and basically carry mass execution, and exterminate whoever is not allied, whoever is not for a ree re jetstream. what we are seeing, don, and i hope the world is aware of what we are witnessing and seeing. this is a total meltdown of humanity taking place. there's nowhere to be safe for any syrian civilia

raqqa is basically a major headquarters for isis in syria. and so the u.s., of course, shifting its focus there. ash carter's statement talked about special forces being sent there. for those of us that covered special forces, we know typically they're on the front lines. whether you call these advisers or trainers. so the u.s. is raising its commitment now that the battle of aleppo seems to be finished to focus on raqqa in syria. >> we've been continuing to monitor these pictures coming to you. looking to find some sort of a pause in the fighting, what more can you tell us about these meetings taking place in france and also switzerland? >> yeah. george, it feels like they've been having meeting after meeting with no results, no conclusion. they've been talking about the cease-fire for the longest time. b but there finally seems to be an indication that there may be some sort of cease-fire or evacuation plan worked out today. that's simply because both sides have been pessimistic, but we have indications this week from u.s. secretary of stat

his nephew had gone to fight in syria in 2013. the two of them agreed that hoque would supply him with cash. the nephew wanted to buy a weapon in syria to take part in the fighting. hoquejoined an aid convoy injuly 2013 and took that cash with the aid convoy. it was a huge convoy and within that were £3,000 that he took for his nephew. after delivering the cash, he agreed to send an extra £1,500 on the second convoy which went in december 2013. so these were serious allegations he faces and was convicted of today. commander dean hayden is the head of counterterrorism at scotland yard. this was what he had to say. i welcome the court verdict today. what happened in this case undermines the genuine work done by members of the public to help those involved in the syrian crisis. aid convoys were infiltrated and the goodwill of charities was abused by taking money and goods from the uk to syria to help terrorists. that second tranche of cash which went out in december 2013 was taken with the help of a second man, mashoud miah, from e

he's on the syria/turkish border. you are looking at pictures coming in from cnn turk of this attack on the russian ambassador to turkey. he has been shot at an art exhibition. we need some answers as to who is responsible for this. it is an incredibly, incredibly tense location in this war with a lot at stake. we will find out details and get back to you. stay with us. so, mr. harris, we have your fingerprints on the safe. a photo of you opening the safe. a post using the hashtag "#justrobbedthesafe" so, what are we supposed to think? switching to geico could save you a bunch of money on car insurance. excellent point. case dismissed. geico. because saving fifteen percent or more on car insurance woo! because saving fifteen percent or more on car insurance is always a great answer. >>> our breaking news comes out of the turkish capital ankara. you are looking at live pictures from that city where the russian ambassador to turkey, andrey karlov, was just shot apparently while attending an art exhibition. we believe at

he went to syria in one of the convoys abused by the guilty men. pervez rafiq, cleared today of funding terrorism, was on that same convoy. he publicly appealed for mr hanning's life. we beg you to tread the path ofjustice and show him the compassion that allah has placed in the hearts of the believers. under pressure from the government and the police, the aid convoys came to an end after mr henning's kidnap. dominic casciani, bbc news. in an unprecedented move and a strong rebuke tonight, the united states has abstained on a un resolution which criticises israel. traditionally, the us has always used its veto to stop such resolutions against its close ally. it condemns israeli settlement building on occupied palestinian territory and passed with 14 votes in favour. 0ur correspondent barbara plett usher is in washington for us tonight. this has caused a diplomatic storm. what more can you tell us? well, i think the resolution shows a strong international consensus that israeli settlement building in occupied palestinian territories is illegal and

it's expected to focus on syria. on monday, the un security council unamimously adopted a resolution calling for un officials to monitor the mass evacuations from rebel—held east aleppo. thousands more people have been brought out, although the un and red cross say thousands remain. here's our middle east editorjeremy bowen. chanting noisy demonstrations in turkey at the weekend condemned russia's support of the assad regime. throughout the war, turkey has been on the other side, backing the rebels. the protests were organised, but it could be that the man who killed the russian ambassador acted alone. he seems, though, to have been part of a sense of national and religious humiliation among some turks after russia's decisive action. turkey shot down a russian warplane it said had violated its airspace not long after russia's intervention just over a year ago. but since then turkey and russia have tried to avoid clashes. too much is at stake. both say the assassination won't change their warmer relationship. these

syria. is syria unraveling the world? there is no way to know what would have happened if president obama and the west decided to be more aggressive and intervened more directly and gotten rid of assad. we could have a different set of circumstances we are staring at. no matter how you slice it, syria is a giant mess. president obama struggled to address it and so have western leaders. soon that mess will be on donald trump's desk. let's get out to the field for the latest. richard engle is in istanbul and the nbc correspondent bradley is in berlin. matt, i understand there is still a manhunt and they had somebody in custody and since released. are they any closer to finding either the cell or the individual that was behind this? >> chuck, so much has changed in this investigation in just the last several hours. i am no expert, but the police are back to square one. the suspect they arrest side pakistani who arrived in germany about a year ago almost to the day and tried to apply for asylum. he was release and now there a

not only in syria, but yemen and other places. the main corporate's are the syrian regime, iran, and their allies. there is more responsibility lacking. when was the last time barack obama mentioned aleppo? aleppo will haunt him forever. what we have seen in aleppo, the monumental carnage is unique that never before -- we have seen it streamlined live, heard killed on youtube, their cries, and there is incredible indifference. katty: use at a level haunt the obama administration, and it should haunt everybody, what happens to the rebels trapped in that city? does the fall of aleppo push them further into the arms of extremists? that webody believes were abandoned. there is a sense of abandonment. and thedonment of jews, city of aleppo. aleppo, in our collective memories as arabs, is one of the great cities. damascus, cairo, aleppo. it is like athens, rome, london. it is part of my collective memory as an air of growing up. i see the city being pulverized. in aleppo, you see one layer of civilization above the other. jews, arabs, c

clearct that we have a dialogue in syria is very helpful. look for problems with israel or the united states. issues.e many other they are well powers, they have interest of their own. any dissolutions. can't resolve all the problems with russia. we need to find an agreement between russia and united states. mainly on syria and other issues. >> we have another question here. >> thank you for joining us again this evening mr. lieberman. one new development that i'm of,'re aware i wonder given your exposure to it. your position of defense minister, i wonder if you think they can play a useful role when it comes to helping to resolve the conflict with the palestinians? the arab quartet recently intervened in an effort to try stop the palestinians. what role do you see them playing in trying to resolve that conflict? lieberman: they are the ones who pay the lipservice. it is a huge territory. hundreds of millions of people are there. it is possible for many years. what happened between 48 and 67? all the territory of today is -- it is under egyp

and syria. it's had always been able to replace its ranks, moving people across the turkish border into syria. but no more. >> isis now has no access to international border and this has significantly impacted the overall campaign because they are now a very isolated entity. >> estimates from nearly 17,000 coalition strike, the u.s. believes 50,000 isis fighters in total have been killed over the last two years. its ranks slashed nearly 75%. the top coalition commander says that is only part of the story. >> we've taken back over half of the land that iraq, for example lost to isil in 2014. i think that is a measure of the progress. >> reporter: now the top priority, get isis out of its self-declared capital in raqqah, syria. >> we also know they are plotting attacks on the west. and we know that central to external operations plotting is the city of raqqah. and that is why we need to get down there and isolate that city as fast as we can. >> u.s. special operations forces watch raqqah rarnd the

a terrible situation in syria. i want to use this opportunity to renew the calls i made for an urgent and concerted effort to put an end to violence and the you and lead cease-fire. the creation of you and brokered humanitarian core doors and the advanced warning of attacks to the civilian population and urgent talks with the un to achieve a negotiated political government. it is clear the rules of war have been broken on all sides. long condemned attacks on civilian targets on all sides including those by russian and pro-syrian government forces in aleppo for which there can be no excuse. i know the issue of cyprus and unification raised at the council meeting. could the prime minister give us an update to what was said on this issue? britain is, after all, a guarantor of independence from the 1960 treaty. >> there is a lot to do in 2017. a lot of important decisions to be made. to represent all sides whether they voted to leave or remain. not just the party but everyone in this country. >> prime minister. >> than

under way, syria's most populist city. there's another cease-fire being put into effect that -- >> i want to talk about that cease-fire because rula, again, you just got back. i wonder if you can answer this question. michael reported what you were saying about the rapes and the suicides but also that a cease-fire could collapse and it collapsed less than a day into the cease-fire. what is responsible for this collapse? >> absolutely the syrian forces. i actually believe that what the refugees have been telling us, ith the shabiha that assad assembled, anybody that would carry weapons they allow them to carry weapons and basically carry mass execution and exterminate whoever is not al white, whoever is not pro regime. what we are seeing, don, and i hope the world is aware. there's nowhere to be safe for any syrian civilian. if you're in aleppo according to the regime you are pro-terrorist. isis and al qaeda in syria has been members of isis al qaeda in 2011 when i went there for the first tame and covered the war, it was a

she fled syria three years ago. the only way she could do it was by being carried across the border. lovely to meet you. how did you do it without a wheelchair? ragda's disability made her life home difficult. ragda's disability made her life back home difficult. she had no wheelchair and very little support. and that was before the war. do you hope to one day go back home? no, why not? you prefer it here? why? it's only since arriving in zaatari that ragda started to get regular physiotherapy to help with her cerebral palsy. but what's really made a difference to her life is the fact she's now got a wheelchair from handicapped international. ragda's parents died back in syria. she's now completely dependent on the charity. do you feel looked after here? i heard in there "perfect". ragda, it's been a pleasure meeting you because i can't imagine how you get around but you're what we call in the uk a tough cookie. that's what you are — a tough cookie. # don't be shy. # just let your feelings roll on by. even with he

he was initially talking about syria. do we want to listen in on this? can you follow -- back to the geneva, i assume -- >> talking about were that's where the first round of talks. >> the geneva understanding back in 2012. so i assume he's talking about that. what i want to -- if when you talk about a political process, and united syria, if the regime -- al-assad chooses to be part of the process and run a fair and transparent election and so on, would he be allowed to? you have committed yourself in the past to the fact he lost the legitimacy to govern. >> well, think we still believe that. as we said before, thissing exactly the sorts of issues that need to be hammered out in political talks, what this transition looks like and what an election looks like. that's why it's so important to get the regime and the opposition together to talk. >> i understand -- >> we're note going into this -- laying out what it all has to look like before they've had a chance to talk. >> it is obvious that the regime, not necessarily al-assad presents a good portion of t

of the old syria, i think that is unlikely. russia will assure -- russia will in sure that assad stays in power. what happens in the east, where isis still predominates over most of the city is an open question. and an extremely, one because in that situation, the issue is going to be a regional one, which talks to the relationships between sunni and shia population in the whole region. what is going to happen in eastern syria is an open question. basharis unlikely that al-assad will have the power to throw back insurgent groups in that area. i have no doubt that the u.s. will want to have a significant say in what occurs. genie: we are seeing that already, this move into aleppo by the syrian army, opening up opportunities. the syrian regime has admitted that it has taken it back. what needs to be done to get a handle on the islamic state group in syria? -- it decisive fight moves very interestingly. there are two major fights, aleppo and mosul. aleppo is essentially finished and done as far as we can tell. we now move to the f

do not forget aleppo, do not forget syria. do not forget aleppo, do not forget syria. get back, get back. only death will remove me from here. everyone who has taken part in this oppression, will one by one bay for it. >> turkish authorities say the attacker was neutralized. vladimir putin reacting to the assassination. >> the only response we should offer to this murder is stepping up our fight against terror, and the criminals will feel the heat. >> the gunman was a law enfor enforcement officer. a 22-year-old member of the riot police born in turkey. the state department condemned the attack. >> we stand ready to offer any assistance that may be required as they investigate this despicable attack. >> after the attack as the ambassador was quickly taken to the hospital, turkish security forces swarmed the area. it is not clear what impact the killing may have now on turkey's sometimes fragile relations with russia, which hit an all time low after turkish forces shot down a russian warplane near the syrian border in november 2015. russia also is widely blamed by many

what is the latest on the ground in syria? cnn's ian lee has more on the ground from syria. good morning, ian. >> reporter: good morning, alison. we have been talking to people on the ground in syria. so far the cease-fire is holding. there have been reports of sporadic fighting, but by and large, it is quiet. the cease-fire is three parts. cessation of hostilities with allies with russia and syria. the second pardon part is credit ta creating a dialogue. the third part is negotiation. they hope to go to the negoti e negotiating table and hash out a peace deal and put an end to the war that killed hundreds of thousands of people. missing from this is isis and the al qaeda affiliate formally known as al nusra and the rpg. the forced backed by the united states. >> ian, president assad made news yesterday. he talked about president-elect donald trump saying there is optimism of a trump presidency. >> reporter: let me read you the statement. part of the optimism could be related to the better relations with united states and russia. if there is better relations, most of the wor

they are meeting with the syrian opposition and the government of syria. so far they have said no thank you, but that may change. think russia and turkey see an end game in syria as we see aleppo practically have fallen to the syrian government? amb. grossman: the russians may see an and again, the turks are probably trying to figure out what is the game is good for them. that is why this relationship will continue. blame they are keen to supporters -- is that bringing washington into it? amb. grossman: not only is it and attack on the russian ambassador, it is on the pharmacy. you will see the russian ambassador try to stand back other than offering help where they can. laura: why is turkey's to pin the assassination on supporters? does it have to do with the failed coup? amb. grossman: there is a focus since the middle of july in turkey on why was this can? -- this coup? how did it happen? it was a shock to their system. mr. erdogan has taken the position that one group was behind it. he has used the time since then to continue focus on that group. laura

these two countries supported opposite sides of theive issal war in syria. russia, instrumental in president bashar al assad bsh'sh to include syria and aleppo. just yesterday, talks held on syria and the united states left out of the conversation. a spokesman for the kremlin says that nearly all dialogue between russia and the u.s. has been "frozen." we do not talk to each other. let's talk about the u.s. and russia's tense relationship now with christopher hill, the former ambassador to iraq. he was also the assistant secretary of state for east asian and pacific affairs and now is the dean of the joseph korbel school, university of denver. thank you so much, ambassador, for being with us. we appreciate it. i want to get your read on something. let's talk about a statement, response, we got from the state department spokesman john kirby who says it's difficult to know exactly what is known about this comment of being "frozen." this continues across a white range of issues. significant differences with moscow on some issues well known but not a break in dia

it is clear they have different positions in syria. that's effective -- two countries have been speaking, to find a solution. i think both capitals right now want to preserve that. >> how does this impact the personal standing with vladimir putin? >> we will see. but the first signals are it won't be bad. this time, he called suiten and he said, obviously, we have smog to do with this. we'rer have sorry. and putin seems to agree. i would not see this as a reason for fallout between russia and turkey. >> thanks for being with us. we appreciate it. >>> we're are following a separate incident in ankara. turkish police arrested a man who fired shots out of the u.s. embassy. officers led him away. this what happened in the same day the ambassador has killed. >>> china has return to underwater troen, days after it seriesed the advice. the transfer was xlocompleted. >>> donald trump is condemning attacks in europe. saying the violence is only getting worse. we'll have more from the u.s. president-elect after the break. testinhuh?sting! is thi

the fight for syria creates an crisis. the assassination in turkey is the latest, and there is still no coherent international desire to bring peace any closer. laura: jeremy bowen reporting there. from syria to brexit to the u.s. presidential election, 2016 has been a year like no other. just a short time ago, donald trump surpassed 270 votes needed in the electoral college to clinch the presidency. it has been a campaign and your with talk about fake news and post truth politics. here is our special correspondent alan little. alan: how does america get its news? how does it know who or what to trust? traditionally news has come from places like this. it still rolls off the machinery of the predigital age. you find conflicting opinions in its pages, diversity of news. it offers its readers a shared public reality come within which they can disagree, dispute, and challenge each other. but does that guiding journalistic purpose also now belong to a fading predigital age? >> i think of the mission here as both chronicle the

not in syria at large. you mentioned idlib, how strong are the rebels in that pa rt how strong are the rebels in that part of syria and is the syrian government indicating it will turn its military power towards idlib instead of aleppo? they certainly are. the rebel alliance in idlib is mostly dominated by some of the more extreme elements of the rebel community in syria. 0ne extreme elements of the rebel community in syria. one group is linked to al-qaeda which is one of the main groups and another one which is a huge fighting force in syria which is not designated a terrorist organisation but extreme nonetheless. it is fair to say the colour of the syrian opposition has over time shifted somewhat, as the government has made a concerted effort to hit the most moderate rebels first, in order to make this claim that it is only terrorists in syria they are fighting. today in a statement the rebels say they want to continue to reclaim every span of the homeland so that would suggest thatis the homeland so that

syria's war has killed hundreds of thousands. it's just had another deadly impact. whojoins me now from boston. thank you for your time. how much of what happened across europe, there we re what happened across europe, there were a number of violent incidents. how much could they be attributed to the fallout from the war in syria? well, i think they are different. the situation in berlin with the presumably pakistani driver, we don't really know much about the motive. we are not even that confident about the perpetrator. so we really just need confident about the perpetrator. so we reallyjust need to wait. with respect to the one in turkey, though, that attack clearly seems related to syria, because the attacker said that after killing the ambassador, don't forget aleppo, don't forget syria. furthermore, when you think about it, that makes a lot of sense. turkey is very much interested in the rebels in syria in a way that pakistanis really are not. so i would really only make one of them directly to syria at this point. it hasjus

more complicate syria, folks. you've got saudi arabia, iran. you've got israel and hezbollah, turk versus -- turk versus kurd, kurd versus kurd, sunni shia, oppositionists against assad. you've got -- i mean, it's extraordinarily complicated in the proxyism. so you've got turkey with its interest. its own islamic and other interests. you've got the differences between egypt and kuwait and emirates versus saudi, qatari and turk. i do believe in it. i know the cost. this has been a topic of conversation here, of the president's decision when he decided not to enforce the red line through the bombing. but in fact, that's greatly misinterpreted. it had an impact. people have interpreted it as his decision not to, when, in fact, he never made the decision not to bomb. he made the decision to bomb. he severally decided he had to go to congress because tony blair -- not tony blair but david cameron lost the vote in the parliament on thursday. on friday president obama felt hearing from congress, oh, you've got to come to

. >>> plus a cease-fire agreement in effect in syria. and this time diplomats and analysts are optimistic it just may last. >> that would be very important. we are obviously monitoring live from cnn headquarters here in atlanta welcome to our viewers here in the united states and around the world. i'm george howell. >> i'm natalie allen. this is cnn newsroom. >>> russia is at the center of two major stories here in the waning days of 2016. >> it is presently 10:00 a.m. in moscow. we are still monitoring for any new reaction. this of course after the united states slapped russia with unprecedented new sanctions, punishment for its alleged interference in the 2016 election. >> in syria, it's 9:00 a.m., and we are keeping a close eye on a nationwide cease-fire. russia and turkey brokered the truce. is he far it appears to be holding. more on that in a moment. >> first let's talk about the u.s. president barack obama, who did promise that he would sfon to russia about this alleged hacking in the u.s. election. he has done that, unveiling a r

there isa the armed opposition in syria. there is a document on measures to help control areas covered by this ceasefire and an agreement on the start of peace talks. stars pay tribute to hollywood actress, debbie reynolds, who's died, aged 84, just a day after the death of her daughter, carrie fisher. family doctors warn that patients might have to wait a month before seeing their gp over the busy winter period . devon and cornwall police investigate the discovery of the bodies of two men at a flat in st austell. detectives are treating the deaths as unexplained. also — the birds migrating earlier as global temperatures rise. a study finds some species are missing out on vital resources — such as food and nesting places — as a result. and the first pictures of a rare giraffe born at chester zoo — discovered by staff when they arrived on boxing day morning. good evening and welcome to bbc news. the russian president, vladimir putin, says the syrian army and opposition have agreed to a nationwide ceasefire which will

laura, the images out of syria are painful. orphans pleading for their lives. >> someone who visited a lot of orphan anl ages and seeing the children, i think charles is right. it will go down as without a doubt i think one of the biggest humanitarian crises, war crimes obviously committed in syria. the narrative on -- you can read on facebook and videos released of mothers who are asking priests if they can kill their children so they don't have to see them tortured. we have to remember years ago when i think the public polling came out on this, remember, there was no public support for going into syria. we also all have to remember that. obama was seeing the polls. it's hard because after iraq, the nation was incredible weary. we lost thousands of men, more than a trillion dollars. the public just -- what are we going to gain here? that was the sentiment. but this is the outcome of what's happening. >> how much of this and the situation we're in with syria was about the obama administration and the president concerned about t

the fight for syria creates an export prices. the assassination in turkey is the latest and there is still no coherent international desire to bring peace any closer. studio: jeremy is with me. an important summit clandon moscow tomorrow involving turkey, russia and iran. —— planned in. how will today's events affect it? it will overshadow it. but there is growing tension between turkey and iran. that might between turkey and iran. that might be put on the back burner. interesting that mark lowen said that the turks and russians are using the same language to describe this, a provocation. but the fact remains that they are on different sides in a bloody war and they are talking to each other because they have a wider interests, but there is a built in propensity for trouble because of that very fact. and that's what we have been seeing. there is also something to think about in the way the syrian war works. it's desperately unpredictable because of its complexity. we have seen another example of that in the assassination toni

the fight for syria creates and exports crises. the assassination in turkey is the latest, and there is still no coherent international desire to bring peace any closer. stay with us on bbc news. still to come: signed, sealed, and delivered. the electoral college confirms donald trump's victory as president of the united states. we saw this enormous tidal wave approaching the beach, and people started to run, and suddenly it was complete chaos. united states troops have been trying to overthrow the dictatorship of general manuel noriega. the pentagon said the operation had been 90% successful, but it's failed in its principal objective, to capture general noriega and take him to the united states to face drugs charges. the hammer and sickle was hastily taken away. the russian flag was hoisted over what is now no longer the soviet union, but the commonwealth of independent states. day broke slowly over lockerbie, over the cockpit of the pan—am's maid of the seas, nose—down in the soft earth. you could see what happens when a pla