let's bring in becky anderson. first, help us understand why there's been a passionate response to the execution, not the of all 47 but mainly -- >> yes, nim al-nimr, as you've been pointing out, was an outspoken critic of the sunni monarchy with a sizable support base. fiery sermons from that cleric on a fairly regular basis until he was arrested but little evidence to suggest he was active in taking bombs against the saudi state. i think this is the real crux of things. by executing him along with 46 other, what the saudis would call convicted terrorists belonging to groups like al qaeda. the kingdom sending a message it will not tolerate any form. you clearly have iranian sympathy for a shiite cleric in saudi. they have made that very clear during his arrest and the possibility of his execution. this clearly inflaming tensions both between saudi and iran and in countries which have a shiite population around this region, and it's got to be said into southeast asia. let's do the iran saudi story and we can get wi

let's bring in becky anderson. why is this causing among the 47 people who were executed, so much backlash. >> reporter: victor, this is a disturbi ining development that could have wide ranging ramification for this region and beyond, in fact. >>> al nimr was outspoken shiite cleric and in the shia dominated eastern region. we have video to show that there is little evidence to suggest that he was actually active in taking out arms against the saudi state. by grouping him with convicted terrorists, the other 46, belonging to groups like al qaeda, saudi arabia, it seems, is sending a message that it will not tolerate any form of d dissent. we are seeing evidence of inflamed relations between riyadh. they ransacked the saudi embassy you are showing on saturday. there are more protests expected today. in turn, riyadh has asked the iran ambassador to leave the country. so you can see already between the two tensions rising. >> let's talk with the response from the united states. the state department released this stat

becky anderson, cnn, abu dhabi. >> let's talk more about this. joined by bobby gauche, a cnn global affairs analyst. good to see you. this latest news now that saudi arabia is severing ties with iran and telling the iranians in saudi arabia that they have 48 hours in which to get out of the country, how do you dissect that information? >> well, i think that was coming after the attack on the saudi embassy yesterday. it was almost inevitable that this would follow. especially since the response from iran completely unexpectedly was full of rage and iran's supreme leader essentially summoned the wrath of god against saudi arabia. so i think you're going to see a period of very harsh rhetoric and cuttinging of diplomatic ties. it comes at a very bad time. only a few months ago it seemed like there was a possibility that ties between the two countries could have been on the mend. the saudi ambassador was sent to iran after a long break. it looked like there was just a little glimmer of hope that the two countries, although they are traditionally oppo

our becky anderson joins us live in abu dhabi. what more are you hearing about reaction to the execution of al nimr and the other 46 who shared his fate? >> george, you've just been expressing there or reporting on some of the expression from the region. this is a multilayered with wide ranging ramifications as you mentioned. he was an outspoken critic of the monarchy with a sizable support base in the kingdom's shia dominated eastern region. while he was known for fiery sermons, there is very little evidence to suggest that he was active and actually taking up arms or encouraging that against the saudis. by grouping him with convicted terrorists like al qaeda in these executions, saudi arabia very much sending a message. it will not tolerate any form of radical jihadists associated with al qaeda or shia activists. but it is on the regional level that this story will have the most impact. you're reporting on that already. it has intensified the bloody rivalry between iran and saudi arabia. iran's supreme leader says saudi's leader

becky anderson, cnn, aub dau by. >>> isis has released a new propaganda video threatening the united kingdom. it showed a masked english speaking militant along with five men in orange jump suits. isis claims they are uk spies. >> at one point the militant points a gun at the camera and threatens the prime minister and the uk. the accused men are later shown being shot to death. >>> now in iraq, there's much more work to do after the brutal and prolonged fight for ramadi. >> iraqi troops are combing through the newly liberated city carefully avoiding booby traps and bombs isis left behind. we are there and filed an exclusive report. >> reporter: ramadi, after months of isis rule, this is what remains. isis's occupation of the city leaving its mark both above and below ground. these are the houses that the militants were hiding inside of. you can see what they were doing is they were digging up tunnels so they were able to move from house to house without being seen by the coalition planes. and so that this wasn't spotted from the air, they were hiding the dirt they were digging up an

becky anderson reports. ((closed captioning will resume shortly)) (cnn) -- firefighters battled a blaze that engulfed a luxury hotel in dubai thursday night while a spectacular new year's fireworks display lit up the night sky nearby. a large section of the high-end address hotel soon after the fire started around 9:30 p.m. (12:30 p.m. et). witnesses said they heard explosions as the fire raged. despite that huge the flames didn't fireworks from going off. just blocks away from the scene, crowds of onlookers enjoyed what was billed as one of the largest firework displays in the world. it's going to be a mostly sunny start to the new year. . but don't expect that to last too long. the first full week of 2016 promises to bring two rounds of rain. we'll start to cloud up as early as sunday, with chances for scattered showers (with little or no accumulation) sunday night through monday, and possibly lingering into tuesday. look for the best chances for stronger rain throughout wednesday and thursday. it's a down

becky anderson, cnn. >> you're watching "cnn newsroom." still ahead, the epic winter storm that turned new york city into a winter wonderland. the question, did it bring record snowfall. find out next. >> we'll size up the damage of one of the states hit hardest by the storm. a very warm welcome back to our viewers here in the united states and around the world. you're watching "cnn newsroom." i'm george howell. >> i'm natalie allen. we're live in atlanta for you. here's an update on our top stories. a strong winter storm has parts of the eastern u.s. in a deep freeze. i think that explains it right there. air, road and rail traffic still at a standstill. 11 governors from georgia to new york have declared states of emergency. so far, the weather has caused at least 14 deaths. >> that blowing snow that hurts your face when it hits your face. norway has temporarily suspended the deportation of asylum seekers back to rush. that decision followed a request from russian officials. norwegian activists russia is not a safe country for migrants.

. >>> let's bring in cnn's becky anderson live for us from dubai. so how's it going there and what's the investigation leading up to right now? >> reporter: well, fredricka, smoke still billowing from what is a luxury hotel in dubai after it was involved in a massive fire on new year's eve. as you pointed out, firefighters continue the process of colding down a smoldering building. the fire at the address downtown started at around 9:30 local time and sent flames shooting out of the 163-floor building. all this as revelers gathered close by to watch what was a spectacular firework display on the world's tallest building. s burj khalifa. firefighters battled the blaze well into the early hours. the government here in dubai says everyone was safely evac wapted from the hotel and's only 16 people, they say, were treated for minor injuries and smoke inhalation. investigators now clearly working to determine the cause of the fire. the second major fire to engulf a dubai high-rise in 2015. the deputy head of dubai police tweeting just in the past couple o