. >>> a grim, grim scene in eastern aleppo. civilians reportedly being slaughtered in their homes by syrian forces. can plans for a cease-fire and mass evacuations take hold. this is a dangerous situation. good morning. welcome to "early start." i'm christine romans. >> and i'm george howell, it's wednesday, december 14th, 4:00 a.m. on the east coast. today, with donald trump, his thank you tour, the president-elect on stage with one-i am adversary, the speaker of the house, paul ryan. the rally turned into a lovefest with trump praising ryan, and ryan complimenting trump right back. the exxonmobil chief rex tillerson who may face an uphill battle for the senate confirmati confirmation. cnn's jim acosta has the latest from wisconsin. >> reporter: george and christine, donald trump has taken another victory lap here at the rally here in wisconsin. trump praised tillerson's contacting around the world but he did not mention tillerson's past ties to russian president vladimir putin. trump looked back at the election victory and th

. >>> the assault a heon aleppo. thousands warned to get out or die. >>> welcome back to "early start." i'm george howell. we're following the fighting in syria. government forces there are closer than ever to retaking aleppo. northern 70% of the last rebel stronghold has been recaptured. assad regime is now using massive fire power to either kill or replace thousands of people. cnn's jomana karadsheh is following the story. jomana, we've been talking about the story for a while now. the extreme fighting so intense in parts of aleppo, many parts of that city have simply been leveled. >> and we have seen those images, george, coming out of those neighborhoods that have been claimed by the syrian regime. and what's left of them is large-scale destruction, and pretty much leveled when you look at these neighborhoods. as you mentioned over the past 24 hours, more advances by the syrian regime and their allied forces who have been provided by this air cover. this really powerful air cover, that they have been advancing un

what is the status of the rebels if aleppo falls? if the government is able to retake aleppo, is there another stronghold or is that the last stand for the rebels? >> reporter: that's the big question. what we are going to see happen? it seems eastern aleppo or the enclave is on the verge of falling. rebels are on the verge of complete defeat in eastern aleppo. what are they going to do? will they continue fighting until the last minute or will we see sort of a deal to leave? it is looking unlikely the united states has been working in talks with the russians to try to reach a deal. all indications it is unlikely that any sort of deal will happen to create the safe passage for the rebels to move to the western part of the country to province. it remains to be seen. >> kaucjomana karadsheh, thank . >> we are following the twitter account of a 7-year-old girl in eastern aleppo. tweeted 19 minutes ago. i'm bana. i'm 7 years old. this is my last moment. don't know if i will live or die. >>> still ahead, donald trump is poised to pick exx

. >>> save the aleppo children. thousands take to the streets to show solidarity while the people of aleppo wait to be evacuated. >> let them keep it. u.s. president-elect donald trump says to china. >>> company icy rain makes skating rinks of major u.s. highways. the forecast and how much ice is accumulating. we'll get that from sara maginnis. we're live here and in atlanta. welcome to our viewers around the world and in the united states. welcome to "cnn newsroom." i'm natalie allen. >> we begin with the horror in aleppo. thousands trapped in eastern aleppo. still trapped, hope a new evacuation deal could save their lives. civilians there are starving and afraid. and somehow they're existing in freezing temperatures. reuters is reporting the syrian government has confirmed the evacuation deal but that doesn't mean it will hold. just on friday, the last vac wapgss were suspended. the new deal, well it's more complicated. syria and its ally, iran, want the two towns on the lower left of this map to also be evacuated

fred, the images, the sounds that we're getting from aleppo is just so hard to take. we cannot imagine what these people are going through. what are you hearing about possible evacuations being put back into place? >> reporter: yeah, you're absolutely right, the situation on the ground does appear to be devastating and getting worse by the hour. there are some images we've been seeing of people sleeping on floors, people who are really very cold, haven't eaten in days. of course, a lot of folks who are still wounded and sick and who need that immediate evacuation. now, the latest that we're hearing is that the deal appears to be back on and the evacuations could start within the next couple of hours. it seems as though there's a new agreement whereby the evacuations would resume once again, and in return, there are two villages in rebel-controlled territory with some pro government people in them, and those will be evacuated as well. it's a complex deal, but it is one that many people in east aleppo need because they need to get out of there as fast as possible. let's

they will be taken to the aleppo country side. in conjunction with that we understand some civilians e trapped this neighboring villages that have been under siege, they will be released as well. it's part of a complicated plan. the fact the buses are moving is definitely a good sign. >> the images speak volumes and looking at the faces of these children is horrifying for everyone. here is yus one. another picture just released today of a little boy, a teenage boy holing bag of stuffed animals hiding behind one of the remaining walls in eastern aleppo. when you talk to these people, those who have made it out and those who are still there, have they given up on the international community or do they somehow still hold out hope that frankly the world will do more? >> you know every single person i've talked to including people who have been evacuated from aleppo, they feel like the world has turned their back on them. i don't think they hold out any hope that, for example, western countries will come and support them. they really f

i'm natalie allen. >>> we begin with aleppo. thousands trapped in the eastern city in freezing temperatures. they hope a new deal to evacuate them comes through. reuters is reporting the syrian government has confirmed a deal that it will hold. just on friday, the last evacuations were suspended. the new deal is more complicated. syria and its ally, iran, want the two towns on the lower left of this map also to be evacuated. those towns are near i had lip city and have been besieged by rebels. this is a life or death situation for them. a journalist working with channel 4 news was able to video there before the cease-fire went into effect. reporter matt fry explains the footage is just a glimpse of the absolute hell aleppo has become. this is the aftermath of just one bombing. we warn you, it's graphic. >> tender words for a child that can't find its own. aleppo is a grim stage of an ever diminishing cast of survivors and these are the last of the last. fat ma is the only adult left of three families who was obliterated by a rus

aleppo is now a synonym for hell. as i told the security council three days ago, we have collectively failed the people of syria. >> a synonym for hell. that certainly is a bleak term. our fred pliken has reported from crisis through much of this had conflict. i know you're back in beirut, lebanon, but what are you hearing about this new agreement? >> well, everybody hopes that this new agreement is actually going to be followed through, natalie. what we're get sg from opposition sources who else say that a new agreement has been reached which involves getting people out of aleppo, resuming those evacuation webs but also involves evacuations of two shiite villages in rebel-controlled area that are besieged, as well, where evacuations will start and two further places in other parts of syria. so it's a large and complex deal that has now apparently been hammered out and certainly one that is necessary because yesterday those evacuations were halted for those who needed it and that turned out to be a very dangerous situ

the gunman shouting do not forget aleppo and god is greatest. shot and killed ambassador andrey karlov at an art gallery in ankara. the shooter is identified as a 22-year-old police officer who died in the attack. according to reports from the media organizations. turkey authorities taken in six people in the investigation and in another incident, a man shot in the air in ankara. he yelled, quote i swear to god don't play with us. cnn's nic robertson has the latest for us. ni nic, is there any sense these incidents are connected? >> reporter: the sense is they are connected inasmuch as people showing anger against the government and showing it against the russia and the united states. is there more connection than that? not clear. the government is not providing details information about what they think led the gunman to kill the russian ambassador. the six arrested in the case. his mother, father, sister and two other relatives and a man who shared an apartment with the young policeman. this is standard procedure here in turkey for family membe

, we must remember aleppo, we must not forget syria. he said he vowed essentially to continue to lash out at russians and oppressors as he called them wherever they may be. carol, it's no secret that a lot of muslims across the world and in fact a lot of people have been desperately moved by the endless barrage of images we have seen coming out of eastern aleppo as regime forces backed by russian forces have continued to crack down on the rebel-held opposition there. but i do think the real question now is how did this man gain access to this event. was he part of the ambassador's security detail, as some russian media have suggested. russian foreign ministry said absolutely he was not. but certainly questions how he was able to get in there, carrying a weapon and whether he is connected to a larger jihadist militant group. the russians and turks both presenting a coordinated response. saying this was a deliberate provocation, an attempt to sabotage the warming of the relationship between russia and turkey. both sides seem committed to

a new cease-fire in aleppo is holding, at least for now. let me show you some pictures and tell you you are now looking at something the 50,000 people trapped inside the syrian civil war have prayed for. see these buses? a safe way out. these green buses and ambulance vans today were allowed to carry people out of aleppo, a city where bombs rained down again and again and again. every single day. these pictures showing not only the long line of evacuation buses but the near complete destruction of aleppo. look at that. one of the world's oldest cities, a city that was once a thriving bustling metropolis. these pictures before and after an indication of the scale of ruin the city essentially flattened. but the safe passage out of aleppo is fraught with dangers. one convoy coming under attack by sniper fire and people inside this city are still begging the world to help them. a new video, one of the most heartbreaking yet, a plea from a group of or fphans inside of aleppo. >>> cnn's frederik pleitgen joins me now. he joins me now in syria. fr

i hope you get us out of aleppo. there are 47 children here, and they are all my brothers and sisters. we hope to get out of aleppo and eat and drink. we love tea. we cannot go outside because of the airstrikes and shelling. we can't go outside because of that please get us out of aleppo. oh. more now from cnn's senior international correspondent frederik pleitgen. hi, fred. >> hi, carol. yeah, and one of the things that the international community is now trying to do is trying to get those people who are still holding out in that little rebel enclave in aleppo, trying to get them out, and it seems as though, from the first information that we're getting and from what we're monitoring that at this point in time, it appears to be working. the first convoys have managed to leave eastern aleppo, go through government territory, and then get into other areas that are controlled by the opposition. first and foremost, it's the weakest, it's the people who need the most attention. people who are wounded. people who are seve

to the aleppo countryside. we understand the latest estimate is about 3,000 people have been taken to freedom and safety out of eastern aleppo. as part of that, an exchange or transfer where people who are in villages encircled by jihadi militant groups are allowed to leave the villages as well. it is a transfer. one problem with monitoring a transfer is making sure there is monitoring. that is why the united nations security council is allowing a vote to monitor the process. this process and evacuation broke down over the weekend because of rogue elements deciding to take matters into their own hands burning buses that are supposed to take civilians to safety. the hope is that won't happen and many more thousands of people will continue to be evacuated from the besieged villages from besieged eastern aleppo and some point get to a place where they are safe with medical care. >> if aleppo is cleared of refugees, it is the last rebel stronghold. i take it the end of the humanitarian crisis there is nowhere in si

the fall of aleppo. this morning, activists say a cease-fire called to evacuate the last of the rebels. has now been shattered. welcome back to "early start." i'm christine romans. >> good morning, i'm george howell. 30 minutes past the hour. donald trump in the state of wisconsin all part of his thank you tour in the battleground states that helped him win the election. the president-elect on stage, the one-time adversary paul ryan. turning into sorpt of a lovefest on stage with trump praising ryan and ryan complimenting trump right back. the president-elect set the stage also to defend his pick for secretary of state, the exxonmobil chief rex tillerson who may face an uphill battle on confirmation. cnn's jim acosta has the latest from wisconsin. >> reporter: george and christine, donald trump has taken another victory lap here in wisconsin. trump praised tillerson's contact it's around the world but he did not mention tillerson's past ties to russian president vladimir putin. trump also looked back to

. >> the gunman shouted "do not forget aleppo, "and "god is greatest." the attack called a provocation by both turkish and russian leaders. joining us now is cnn's clarissa ward in moscow. clarissa, you've been following so much of this, including the international developments. not much space you say between turkey and russia, but still a lot of questions about the investigation itself, and the man who carried out the attack? >> reporter: absolutely. i think the russians have a lot of questions, as to how it was possible that this young police officer was able to gain access to the event where the ambassador was killed. video shows him standing cooly a few yards behind the ambassador as he began to give his speech. certainly, russians have already sent a contingency of investigators to ankara, working together with turkish investigators, wanting to get more answers. was he a lone wolf really just affected by the situation in aleppo as claimed? possibly a part of a larger ring? a part of a militant jihadist group such as isis? a lot of questions the russ

so the fall of aleppo will not end the war. but it is likely to change the war in a pretty dramatic and decisive fashion. >> quick, one more beat on this. for americans who say, look, i care about isis. i can't -- the united states can't be the world's policeman, we can't fix syria, there are 100 guys like assad out there. i only care about isis. what do you say to them? >> i mean, if we really do care about isis, and there's a contradiction, syria and iraq are like giant petri dishes in which bad governance, empty spaces, sectarian rivalry, create perfect circumstances for the emergence and growth of this kind of insurgency. and the reality is, and this is the conundrum, chris, without addressing the assad problem, how then in essence do you deal with the broader challenge of the islamic state? they're on their heels. i suspect in both raqqah and mosul eventually they will be denied the caliphate but they will continue to project their terror and violence both in the region and beyond. just one additional point, this is not ju

this campaign, this operation for aleppo was waged by russia and iran. assad, although he's the sovereign of all of syria, it's not him that's touring the battlefield, the heads of the kuds force of iran. the symbolism of that will lead to a whole new generation of jihadism. >> a situation to keep a close eye on. thank you both. police in jordan are battling several gunman south of the capital. nine people have been killed since the attack early today near a medieval castle known as a popular tourist spot. a canadian woman and five policeman are among those kids, it appears five gunmen were involved and jordanian security forces stormed the castle where the gunman were holed up and able to free tourists trapped inside. so far no group as claimed responsibility for the attack. as donald trump's relations to russia remains under spotlight, concerns rise, after the break how the leadership strategy could shape/u.s. policy going forward. ♪ everything your family touches sticks with them. make sure the germs they bring home don't stick around. use clorox di

aleppo has backed the syria defense on aleppo. >>> 538 electors casting their votes for president and vice president. donald trump may have lost the overall popular vote but he won where he needed to on november 8 and this is the vote that counts. despite protests, electors are sealing the white house win for trump. i'll be speaking with columnist chris collins. he is a member of trump's transition team, and our analysts and guests have full coverage of today's stories. >>> we begin at the horrific scene at a christmas market in berlin where at least nine people are dead and 50 hurt. i want to go straight to cnn's frederik pleitgen. he's in berlin. what are we learning? >> reporter: we're actually right here at the scene where all this took place three hours ago. i can show you it's a big, gigantic semi that plowed through this christmas market. you can see next to it a christmas tree that was apparently knocked over by this truck. what we're hearing from eyewitnesses, about 8:00 p.m., the truck was going about 45 miles an hour, plowed through this christmas market, took out several m

. >>> the evacuations are back under way in aleppo. the red cross says buses and ambulances carrying 1,000 people in the rebel held areas of the war-torn city. initial efforts to get civilians out of the area as buses were set on fire. now today a plan to monitor evacuations. cnn's muhammad lila is live over the turkish-syrian border. muhammad, how is this likely to move going forward? >> reporter: good morning, miguel. there are still several thousand people in eastern aleppo trapped awaiting evacuation after a very long and disappointing weekend where there was no movement, finally good news to start the week. we understand that about 3,000 people or so have been evacuated from leastern aleppo to the countryside. now this has turned to a swap in exchange for rebels and eastern aleppo allowed to leave, there are towns besieged by militant groups and people in those towns are allowed to leave as well. it is a swap and anytime there is a swap, it gets more complicated on the ground. you need more security guarantees. they have to happen

in aleppo, syria. wherever you're watching from around the world, thanks very much for joining us. >>> up first, president-elect of the united states rallies republicans in louisiana. look at this. live pictures from baltin rur right now, we're we're waiting for the president-elect donald trump to take the stage. attending a get out the vote rally for republican candidate kennedy running for re-election. live, coming by, stand by. coming up soon. >>> earlier met with paul ryan over trump tower in new york city. ryan's leadership crucial for the president-elect to turn his campaign promises into policies. >> very exciting meeting. i really enjoyed coming up here, meeting with the president-elect. had a great meeting talking about our transition, excited about getting to work and hitting the ground running in 2017 to put this country back on track. thanks, guys. >> trump has major openings to fill in his cabinet. among them, secretary of state, secretary of energy. director of national intelligence. secr

now this is a district in the southern part of aleppo. i was on the frontline there just on saturday. we could see literally tens of thousands of people trying to flee that area. all this was happening while fierce fighting going on. there were children who were too weak to walk. there were some almost falling asleep while walking because they were so tired. people we saw malnourished. we saw others walking while wounded. all trying to just escape that fighting that was going on. the syrian military now says it controls 90% of aleppo's city pushing the rebels further back. syrian army losing here in syria and isis is back on the scene. isis militants over the weekend managing to take back the ancient city of palmyra with the ancient roman ruins. that is of grave concern because isis is known to destroy archaeological sites. they attack under cloud and fog cover with a huge surprise offensive. syrian military pushed back. syrian government now says it is trying to muster a force to launch a counter attack. >> fred, thank you. >>> two days

>> we are obviously not happy with where things are with aleppo. i'm not trying to overstate that one way or another. it's clear that diplomatic efforts have not achieved the results that we wanted to achieve. that doesn't mean it's the wrong approach. doesn't moon that through diplomacy we were able to get at times meaningful cessations of hostilities where people can start to live normal lives and things could at least get back to some sense of normalcy. the failure here is not on the leadership of the united states or even on members of the international community. the failure here is on russia and the regime and on iran that have, despite coming to the table and saying they want a peaceful solution in syria and diplomatic way forward, have in fact bolstered assad's brutality and reinforced his military, helped him with targeting, with intelligence, put advisers on the ground that have done nothing but try to prove what they really want is a military solution. the blood's on their hands. the united states, look, again, we are not content with wh

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

. >>> thousands fleeing aleppo. a tenuous truce holding. >>> dylann roof found guilty for the charleston church massacre. >>> good morning. i'm alison kosik. welcome to "early start." >> i'm christine romans. new this morning, president obama vows to take action of the hacking of the u.s. election. with the interview with npr, he directly confronted vladimir putin warning russia of a potential u.s. response. >> i think there is no doubt when any foreign government tries to impact the integrity of our elections that we need to take action and we will at a time and place of our own choosing. >> the president was not specific about the form of u.s. response might take. he said some of it may be explicit and publicized. so may not. this as the u.s. official confirms to cnn that u.s. agencies believed putin ordered cyber attacks. for the latest on that, let's get to jim sciutto. >> reporter: it is believed that the intelligence community since they called russia out for this a month before the election, this hacking oper

in places like aleppo plays a role. in the meantime, the suffering continues. thousands are still trapped in the rebel-held areas. five buses that were supposed to carry wound to do safety were set on fire over the weekend. there is, however, some good news to report. you might remember the heart-wrenching message from an aleppo orphanage. we're told all the children have been evacuated to safety, and the 7-year-old who has been tweeting about aleppo has been evacuated from her town. she and her family can start a new life in turkey. they're the few lucky ones as the people in aleppo are facing a new uncertainty now. a special correspondent for the los angeles times has been writing great stuff from aleppo itself. thank you for joining us. what can you tell us about the evacuations right now? >> reporter: well, the fact that they're still going on, and that's a good thing. that in and of itself is an achievement. that wasn't the case for the last four days now. every time they tried to do this, it just sput ttered and c

i mean,s specially in east aleppo. there's no electricity for more than 85 days over there and 3g only very few people have. i was with people with the united nations and i was with people from bbc and everywhere and you cannot send a tweet when you're in the front lines -- >> how was bana able to tweet then, do you think? >> i don't think -- i'm so sorry to tell you this, but i was in aleppo. i don't think she was in aleppo. and i understand this whole thing. i want to see real footage. show me real footage when she's being taken out. and i would believe it. you know, but -- >> why would she -- why would she be like about that? or not telling the truth about where she was located? >> you know, there are 47 groups, like i'm telling you. i was myself -- there was a lot of attempts, and i i have -- i was kidnapped twice. and they make you fearful. and there's a lot -- i mean, fearful, and there's a lot of families, as well, that are -- you either do this or you say this or we're going to kill. you're talking about people

in aleppo, syria, 2:00 a.m., friday, in beijing. wherever you're watching from around the world, thanks very much for joining us. up first, like the fox guarding the henhouse. that's how critics are describing one of president-elect's donald trump's latest cabinet picks. trump is charging oklahoma attorney general scott pruitt for administrator of the environmental protection agency. pruitt is a critic of climate change science and has sued the very agency he's been picked to run. trump has chosen a third general for a key position. retired u.s. marine corps general john kelly is his pick to lead the department of homeland security. and a vote by the way expected in the house this hour could help trump's choice for defense secretary, general james mattis needs a waiver from both chambers to be eligible for the position. so far, president-elect trump has filled more than half of his cabinet and top level positions. today, he's on the road once again. he continues what's called his thank you tour with a rally later tonight in des moin

secretary general says aleppo is a synonym for hell. ahead, the fate of thousands of civilians trapped inside that city. your insurance company won't replace the full value of your totaled new car. the guy says you picked the wrong insurance plan. no, i picked the wrong insurance company. with liberty mutual new car replacement™, you won't have to worry about replacing your car because you'll get the full value back including depreciation. and if you have more than one liberty mutual policy, you qualify for a multi-policy discount, saving you money on your car and home coverage. call for a free quote today. liberty stands with you™. liberty mutual insurance. >>> the on again, off again cease-fire in aleppo, syria is back on again. there have been multiple attempts at a cease-fire this week. if it holds this time, it would allow civilians to flee aleppo as syrian troops move in. hundreds of children are trapped in the area and face certain death if not rescued. the out going secretary of the united nations, ban canbanki mos it is not

in aleppo, syria. 9:00 p.m. in mosul, iraq. wherever you're watching from around the world, thanks very much for joining us. >> announcer: this is cnn breaking news. >>> we're following two major stories this hour. breaking news out of syria first. artillery shells are raining down on aleppo as regime forces are on the brink of taking the city. buses are waiting outside the evacuation point to carry civilians, men, women and children, to safety, but the cease-fire to allow them to be eva eevacuated collapsed. an estimated 50,000 people are believed trapped in one of the last rebel-held areas, according to the united nations, regime forces are executing men, women and children. the white house weighing in as well on the worst in a situation, the humanitarian crisis. listen to what the white house press secretary said just moments ago. >> the idea that you would target a playground and bomb kids hoping that you would then convince people to give up, because you would kill their kids? what kind of a sick mind comes up with a strat

frederick has the latest from the front lines inside aleppo. fred? >> yeah, it really looks as though the rebels are crumbling in eastern aleppo, aliysn. i was in a neighborhood taken by the syrian military just last night where rebels were treated and thousands of civilians fleeing from that area. i could barely describe what we actually saw there. people who were malnourished and elderly people who are being carried out and a lot of babies. a lot as young as 7 days old. you can feel the momentum that the syrian government has on its side and that's also what we saw as we visited some of these areas in recent aleppo that were recently a retaken by the regime. here's what we saw. this is aleppo 24/7. shelling and air strikes raining down mostly on rebel-held areas. near the front line, it's not just syrian troops, russians and iranians battling on the government side, we meet these syrian palestinian fighters who show us what they claim was a former field hospital they found when they advanced into this area. every injured rebel would be taken here,

tens of thousands have already fled eastern aleppo. many with only a few belongings they were able to grab trying to get out of the crossfire. now left with almost nothing. these are the blankets they gave us, this woman says, but we're ten people. do you really think that one blanket per person will be enough? these could be the rebels final days in aleppo as the syrian army continues to hit them hard. bringing more weapons like tanks and artillery into position. a senior general telling cnn he believes his forces could take the entire city soon. it won't be long until we get it back, he says. it might be a matter of weeks, but not more than that. as the international community continues to try to broker a troous for truce for aleppo, the reality on the ground shows an increase in the fighting. the syrian army, so close to achieving their goal, unwilling to back down. >>> turning now for the american involvement in syria a, the u.s. says it will now deploy about 200 more troops to syria to help local forces in the fight against isis.

people have been burned alive in east aleppo. i've heard, credibly, from numerous sources, that women in east aleppo are so fearful of being raped by assad's death squads -- not just assad's death squads, mind you, don, iranian-built shi'a militias, iraqi shi'a militias that are now technically part of the iraqi government -- they're so fearful of being raped that they're committing suicide. so you talk to syria -- >> but that's a lot of loose talk coming out of there. we don't know that. part of the twitter revolution is we get all kinds of rumors. that's not been confirmed. >> the united nations has confirmed that 80 people were killed, including women and children who as the united nations put it was shot where they stood. >> michael -- there's also -- >> that's not loose talk. >> jonathan, before you respond -- >> there's no united nations talk about women committing suicide. >> jonathan, i want you to respond but let me say this and i will give you time to respond. the u.n. high commissioner for human rights reported today t

all of this happening in eastern aleppo. and that's where 7-year-old bana and her family have been hiding out. bana's twitter feed highlighting the toll the war is taking on syria's children. her last tweet, ten hours ago. quote, my name is bana. i'm 7 years old. i am talking to the world now live from east aleppo. this is my last moment to either live or die. bana. cnn's frederik pleitgen live in beirut with more, hi, fred. >> hi, carol, you know, it really just shows how horrible the situation is on the ground there in aleppo and also how it changes really from moment to moment. at this point, it's really unclear what the situation for instance bana and her family is and what it will be in the coming hours. the syrian government is saying they're in the final stages of clearing out those final pockets the rebels hold there in eastern aleppo. again, it's unclear whether or not these atrocities took place, that you were mentioning before. the u.n. says it has reports they believe could be credible. it's unclear how many peop

he owns aleppo. this is as much a part of his legacy as obamacare. >> does he have a good national security team getting ready to take charge? >> i think so. i like general flynn. but to destroy isil, you have to hold the territory. shia militia are not going to hold mosul. kurdish fighters are not going to hold raqqah. we need more arabs in the fight inside of syria and security fier forces less sectarian. >> do you believe all these numbers, that 75% of the isis fighters in iraq and syria have been killed? >> nobody knows. we have patriots out there on the battlefield giving us the best picture they know, but it's one thing to estimate the number of isil fighters, but we know what the russians are doing inside toward our election and throughout the world. the intelligence community are patriots. they got it right when it comes to russia interfering with our election. in syria, if you leave assad in power, the arab also never accept him, the syrian war never ends because the syrian people will not a

we'll take you to the front line in aleppo straight ahead. my name is yasmin belo-osagie and i produce programs... ...and online content for african women as they try... ...to build their businesses and careers. this windows 10 device, you can configure it in so many... ...different ways it feels like a much more robust... ...computer than the old mac that i used to use. >>> staying with the top story tonight, the tragic fire in oakland, california, that's left at least 30 people dead. we are waiting for a news conference of officials in oakland. it is expected to be really any moment. so we'll bring it to you live as soon as it begins. again, 30 people dead at least in this oakland warehouse fire. much more of that ahead. >>> meantime, in syria, syrian regime forces pounding bombarding aleppo 24 hours in a bid to drive out rebel forces and gain control of the city. air strikes and mortar rounds pounding eastern aleppo nonstop reducing buildings to rubble, sending some 30,000 people in just days out of the city. all while international leader

evacuations are finally under way from eastern aleppo. what is supposed to be a new cease-fire for aleppo is barely holding as activists say regime forces fired upon ambulance convoys trying to evacuate trapped civilians. fred pleitgen is tracking the latest for us from beirut. what is the latest, fred? >> alisyn, monitoring that very closely and there are buses lining up at checkpoint cross between eastern and western aleppo to get some of those people out and bring them to safety. the first batch of 200 people that are going to be evacuatered the ones who are the most vulnerable. people who are wounded and people who are severely ill. people who need immediate medical attention. and, you're right, all of this comes after a cease-fire collapsed yesterday that now appears to be back on. all of that made very many people very afraid as bombs kept raining down on their heads. harrowing pictures of an orphanage in eastern aleppo with a lot of children inside who were subjected to that violence, as well. some people so afraid, alisyn, they po

do not forget aleppo or 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 pay for it. >> reporter: turkish authorities said the attacker was "neutralized." russian president vladamir putin reacting to the assassination. >> translator: the only response we should offer to this murderer is stepping up our fight against terror. and the criminals will feel the heat. >> reporter: turkey's interior minister said the gunman was a law enforcement officer, a 22-year-old member of the riot police who was born in turkey. the state department condemned the attack. >> we stand ready to offer any assistance that may be required to russia and turkey as they investigate this despicable attack, which was, as the secretary noted, also an assault on the right of all diplomats to advance and represent their nations around the world. >> reporter: a journal istook these stunning photographs after the carnage began. turkish security forces then swarmed the area. it is not clear wha

have announced a new alliance named the army of aleppo. but their fight remains desperate in the face of an offensive that has already cost the opposition much of the territory it held in aleppo for years. fred pleitgen, cnn, damascus. >> the fight there continues. >>> this is "cnn newsroom." ♪ look how beautiful it is... honey, we need to talk. we do? i took the trash out. i know - and thank you so much for that. i think we should get a medicare supplement insurance plan. right now? whether you're new to medicare or not, you may know it only covers about 80% of your part b medical expenses. it's up to you to pay the difference. so think about an aarp medicare supplement insurance plan, insured by unitedhealthcare insurance company. like all standardized medicare supplement insurance plans, they help cover some of what medicare doesn't pay. i did a little research. with a medicare supplement plan, you'll be able to stay with your doctor... oh you know i love that guy. mmmmhmmm. these types of plans let you choose any doctor or hospital t

just some of the money interests involved. >>> a new truce declared in aleppo. will it last long enough to allow people to escape? we have a live report ahead. >>> rebel forces in eastern aleppo announcing a cease-fire agreement reached. civilians evacuations can begin. earlier this week, a cease-fire brokered by turkey with russia sla collapsed in a wave of dpeadly air strikes. an estimated 50,000 residents still trapped without food, water or medicine. cnn's jomana karadsheh is tracking latest developments. she is joining us live now. this is a situation that seems to be changing every hour. are these civilians able to evacuate at this moment to get to a safer place? >> reporter: it really is changing so fast, alison. when we last spoke, we were reporting on the violent incident that delayed the evacuations. according to activists on the ground and other sources. one killed and four wounded when the convoy tried to approach the regime areas as they were evacuating. we are hearing from the international committee of the red cross tweeting out saying the operati

this is what rebel desperation looks like during the aleppo nights. unable to stop them from dropping their deadly load. and this is what the rebels defeat looks like when daylight comes. thousands of civilians fleeing the old town of aleppo only hours after government forces took most of it back. among them, her with her seven children. when we left there was a lot of shelling behind us. a lot of shooting in front of us and the airplanes above us, she says. we barely managed to get out. most seem weak and malnourished. some resting, finally in safety in this former school. the smallest a baby girl azal is only 7 days old, born right as the battles were at their worst. it's really remarkable some of the scenes that we're witnessing here. hundreds of people have already come across the border crossing between eastern and western aleppo and many are taking shelter in buildings like this one carrying own thely take. we see syrian troops evacuating weak and elderly. and rebel barricades showing just how intense the fighting was. just look at all the destr

so we're really concerned about everyone in aleppo. you know, especially the guys in our film. >> and of course some of this bombing is coming at the hands of the syrian regime and bashar al assad. many of the injured children we're seeing in america, bashar al assad says it's all propaganda it's fake including that heartwrenching picture of that little boy covered with dirt and blood after a bombing on his village. not that one but we'll get to that. but, but, how, how does the world -- there's the picture. bashar al assad says it's fake. >> yeah. i mean we have seen, you know, hours and hours of footage in making the documentary, and there are many, many journalists that have done the same. the content that is coming out both from aleppo and from all over syria is myriad and much of it from the white helmets. it's certainly true that the world needs to respond. the world has not done enough as yet to protect civilians, and in particular children, and certainly in this stage now when aleppo is almost fallen, the geneva convention, mor

aleppo, syria. where one leader says we're watching, in his words, the worst humanitarian tragedy of the 21st century. kids, 7 years old. now saying good-bye on social media. putting their final messages out to the world as they come to grips with their brutal situation. the stunning new details coming out in just the last 24 hours. that's ahead. ♪ (woman) one year ago today mom started searching for her words. and my brother ray and i started searching for answers. (vo) when it's time to navigate in-home care, follow that bright star. because brightstar care earns the same accreditation as the best hospitals. and brightstar care means an rn will customize a plan that evolves with mom's changing needs. (woman) because dad made us promise we'd keep mom at home. (vo) call 844-4-brightstar for your free home care planning guide. >>> breaking news. tens of thousands of families, mothers, fathers, sons, daughters, trapped right now in aleppo, syria. in what the united nations is calling a complete melt

. >>> coming up, when we return, syria is calling on civilians to return to east aleppo. and our fred pleitgen goes to the city for a grim homecoming. >>> and donald trump turns up the rhetorical heat on china alleging beijing is manipulating its currency unfairly against the u.s. we'll take a look at that. [ male announcer ] eligible for medicare? that's a good thing, but it doesn't cover everything. only about 80% of your part b medical expenses. the rest is up to you. so consider an aarp medicare supplement insurance plan, insured by unitedhealthcare insurance company. like all standardized medicare supplement insurance plans, they pick up some of what medicare doesn't pay and could save you in out-of-pocket medical costs. call today to request a free decision guide to help you better understand what medicare is all about and which aarp medicare supplement plan works best for you. with these types of plans, you'll be able to visit any doctor or hospital that accepts medicare patients. plus, there are no networks, and virtually no referrals needed. there's a range of pl

saying "remember aleppo" and "remember syria" this comes as aleppo has more or less officially been retaken by government forces, by the assad regime. so the people forced out of alp aleppo have no case in some cases returning home and life going back to normal. it's easy to see how somebody would are very upset and decide to take matters into their own hands. john what we don't know just yet, an official claim of responsibility. that's going to be the next step in the investigation. was this person a lone wolf or was this person part of a much more organized cell, and that's the next step investigators will look at. >> and how this person we saw an camera get so close to the ambassador at this incredibly critical, intense time involving russia, turkey and syria. a few of the questions that need answering in the comes minutes and hours. muhammad lila, thank you for your reporting. >>> much more on the breaking news right after a quick break. lunch is ready! campbell's spider-man soups. made for real, real life. thanks mom weand sustainability goals asool one of our top priorities.me

the evacuation of civilians out of aleppo has stopped. syrian state television says the evacuations were halted because the cease-fire was broken by the rebels. activists are blaming it on shi'ites in aleppo and reports of firing on the convoys of people leaving. cnn's jomana karadsheh joins us live to explain the complex and quick-changing conflict. jomana, what do we know right now? >> reporter: what we do know, christine, these evacuations seem to have been suspended for now. of course, we don't know what prompted this pause in the evacuations. we are getting different versions of what is happening on the ground with so many parties involved in the agreement on the ground. we heard a short time ago from the international committee of the red cross tweeting saying regretfully the operation was put on hold. they want to proceed in the right conditions. first news of this breakdown in at agreement was through syrian state media. the regime state media in which they reported the rebels they described at terrorists violated the agreement. t

coming up next, aleppo syria. on the ground with a raw look at the daily life in war torn aleppo. later we take you to west virginia to see how donald trump won over voters in coal country. imy moderate to severeng crohn's disease. i didn't think there was anything else to talk about. but then i realized there was. so, i finally broke the silence with my doctor about what i was experiencing. he said humira is for people like me who have tried other medications but still experience the symptoms of moderate to severe crohn's disease. in clinical studies, the majority of patients on humira saw significant symptom relief. and many achieved remission. humira can lower your ability to fight infections, including tuberculosis. serious, sometimes fatal infections and cancers, including lymphoma, have happened; as have blood, liver, and nervous system problems, serious allergic reactions, and new or worsening heart failure. before treatment, get tested for tb. tell your doctor if you've been to areas where certain fungal infections are common, and if you've had tb, hepatitis b, are prone t

what happens to eastern aleppo? >> well this is a very good question. the regime has said, and they have said repeatedly, that they intend to retake not just all of eastern aleppo, but, in fact, they intend to retake every inch of the country, so even though the battle for aleppo is now clearly over, it remains to be seen how the war will play out. there's going to be a key meeting tomorrow between the foreign ministers of russia, turkey and iran, we know these are key players on the ground. we just got word that it won't just be the foreign ministers meeting, but the defense ministers meeting as well. this could be a tee meeting. it was supposed to take place next week. they've moved it up to tomorrow. there is a lot of speculation that that meeting could lead to some sort of tenuous cease-fire, at least in aleppo and the major cities, and that could prove to be the building block for eventually putting an end to this conflict. >> reporting live for us this morning. thank you. >>> chinese state media is calling a s

." >>> most of aleppo is now back in the hands of the syrian regime. neighborhoods in the eastern part evof the city have now bee flattened. the remaining opposition forces are proposing a five-day cease-fire. the rebels are begging for a truce according to bashar al assad. cnn's jomana karadsheh has the latest for us. secretary of state kerry and foreign minister lavrov. where do they stand? >> reporter: on wednesday, john, kerry and lavrov met in germany for 45 minutes. they are scheduled to meet again today. it is unlikely we will see a cease-fire coming out of the talks. we heard the russian position on this. we heard the syrian regime's position on this from president assad himself yesterday. the syrian regime and allies are on the verge of recapturing most of aleppo. they won't agree to a truce. what we may see is agreement on the humanitarian on eastern aleppo with medical evacuations and aid. the idea that the united states floated last week that would allow for the safe passage providing that option to the rebels in eastern aleppo to have pass

focus on aleppo for a minute. this is going to be a rallying cry for a whole new generation of sunni jihadis. aleppo was not taken by the assad regime. this is incitement. the shooter in ankara -- >> you think there's an echo effect. >> sure. this almost transcends any particular organization or ideological movement. this is a kind of rallying cry for sunnis who feel like they're besieged, like they're the beleaguered minority sect, even though they're the majority in islam. i've talked to a lot of people, syrians who are secular, syrians who you and i would not consider to be any shade of islamist. they live in the west. many of them were cheering the assassination of the ambassador. this is a gruesome killing in cold blood. why? they consider this guy to be an exponent of state terror given what russia has done in syria. so we're in for a long nightmarish few years here. >> paul, you have new reporting on who was behind the truck attack in berlin. what have you learned? >> alisyn, they have a suspect in custody.