israel channel 2. >> mr. president, may i ask you about syria, a practical question and a moral one. for the last two years, tens of thousands of innocent civilians are being massacred. no one in the united states is doing anything to stop it immediately. on a practical level, you have said today and also in the past that the use of chemical weapons would be a crossing of a red line. it seems like this line was crossed yesterday. what specifically do you intend to do about it? >> i'll answer the question in reverse order if you don't mind. i'll talk about the chemical weapons first and then the larger question. with respect to chemical weapons, we intend to investigate thoroughly exactly what happened. obviously in syria right now you have a war zone. you have information filtered out, but we have to make sure we know exactly what happened, what was the nature of the incident, what can we document, what can we prove? so i've instructed my teams to work closely with all of the countries in the region and inter

plus, president obama's trip to israel hits a speed bump. the real reason his limo needed a tow today is next. >>> and there's a growing trend of super skyscrapers, i don't think is a better word to describe some of these guys, being built around the world. who's is biggest? bny mellon has the vision and experience to help. we look at the full picture... to uncover risk, find opportunities, and create a plan that's best suited for you. bny mellon. both of us actually. our pharmacist recommended it. and that makes me feel pretty good about it. and then i heard about a study looking at multivitamins and the long term health benefits. and what do you know? they used centrum silver in the study. makes me feel even better, that's what i take. sorry, we take. [ male announcer ] centrum. the most recommended. most preferred. most studied. centrum, always your most complete. a hairline fracture to the mandible and contusions to the metacarpus. what do you see? um, i see a duck. be more specific. i see the aflac duck. i see the aflac duck out of work

israel's not going anywhere. israel has the wisdom to see the world as it is, but this is in your nature. israel also has the courage to see the world as it should be. you know, it was once said, in israel, in order to be a realist, you must believe in miracles. sometimes the greatest miracle is recognizing that the world can change. that's a lesson that the world has learned from the jewish people. and that brings me to the final area that i'll focus on. prosperity and israel's broader role in the world. i know that all the talk about security and peace can sometimes seem to dominate the headlines, but that's not where people live. and every day, even amidst the threats that you face, israelis are defining themselves by the opportunities that you're creating. through talent and hard work. israelis have put this small country at the forefront of the global economy. israelis understand the value of education and have produced ten nobel laureates. israeli's understand the power of invention and your universities ed

sent to israel by the truck load. now israel won't allow it. the price of hate, he says. but he says hamas shares the blame. 150 workers here before hamas came to power in gaza. just 20 now. a border once busy with trade now a no man's land under the watchful gaze of israeli surveillance balloons. of the 100 factories and warehouses near the border, all but five locked and shuttered. it's the price of hate, mistrust, and violence. wolf, it is like going back in time. i cannot tell you how depressing it is. you see these wonderful, beautiful palestinian children in gaza, hope in their eyes, then you walk the streets and see the devastation. the gentleman at the furniture factory perhaps a minority but not alone. when we were there several people after looking around a little nervously said, yes. they blame it most on israel but many also said as long as hamas will not acknowledge israel's right to exist they see no hope for peace and that means no hope for jobs. >> let's hope the president's visit can revive that peace

but, again, keep in mind, israel is our ally. important to keep in mind. >> good point. >> the president did condemn the overnight rocket attacks from gaza and two rockets apparently hit a southern town. the president did condemn those attacks. i want to bring in george mitchell, former senator, and special envoy to the middle east. the president seemed to lay down parameters for how the sides might get back to the table. he said discussions were possible, but would be difficult, but then continued to say that he hoped both sides don't want to have all issues settled before they sit down. >> that's been a consistent position by the united states. we have for many decades opposed settlement construction. every american president has taken that position, but at the same time, have encouraged negotiations to resolve that issue along with all of the others. i think the president was strong and consistent in that. that's the only way this will ever get done. when both sides recognize that although it will be painful politically for ea

we begin this morning in israel. rockets fly, a cease-fire wobbles and president obama's visit highlights the enormous challenges of trying to broker a peace deal. president obama wrapped up the meeting with mahmoud abbas, president of the palestinian authority. and the palestinians blamed for the latest tension. two rockets fired from gaza scratch into southern israel. no injuries, but still dealing a below to obama's push for israeli, palestinian peace talks. sara sidener in ramallah where this morning's meeting was held. tell us more about it, sara. >> reporter: let's be clear, when you say palestinians are responsible for the latest break, we are talking about gaza as opposed to the west bank. we need to be very clear about that. the palestinian authority is in control here, in the west bank. hamas in control in gaza. and that is where those rockets came from. no one has claimed responsibility, although we're hearing from officials it is likely an outside group. not hamas that fired those rockets, but a fringe gr

and his products not too long ago were sent to israel by the truckloads and now israel won't allow it. the price of hate he says. hamas shares the blame. 150 workers here before hamas came to power in gaza. just 20 now. a border once busy with trade now a no-man's land. under the watchful gaze of israeli surveillance balloons. of the 100 factories and warehouses near the border, all but five locked and shuttered. the price of hate, mistrust and violence. and that is one of the huge questions you hear the president trying to lift both the palestinians and the israelis. the political leaders and the citizens, to look at north star if you will, to look at the possibility and promise that would come from a two-state solution, but fred and michael, already so many questions. can he get the israelis to stop bitd u building settlements? can he get to figure out own internal struggle and hamas to give the palestinian president some room and peace negotiations to have that room hamas would have to acknowledge israel's right to exist. >> hope for more optimism in the future. there isn't much at

that somehow he's anti-israel. even among members of his own party, so i think he wants to clear that issue away to create a new relationship not only with netanyahu if he can but with the israeli public. and then there's some serious issues, not only syria, but the reality is if barack obama doesn't want to be the american president on whose watch iran gets a nuclear weapon and on whose watch the two-state solution to the israeli-palestinian problem expires, he's going to have to find a way to work with netanyahu. and by the way, vice versa, because the prime minister bears a lot of responsibility for the soap opera that has been the u.s./israeli relationship. >> let's talk about iran and nuclear weapons. there's these stringent like terrible sanctions now placed on iran but that doesn't seem to be stopping the country from developing a nuclear weapon, so what can israel or the united states do now? i mean what will the -- if we could be a fly on the wall, what are they discussing as an option? >> look, i think th

that's why israel was found, originally. so they have a very different -- many jews here have a very different orientation to that very question. but the president will be here, both talking about iran and security and also making a number of symbolic gestures to the jewish people here, acknowledging his belief that the jewish people have a claim to israel, that goes back many thousands of years, not many hundreds of years. this is on a different issue, but he once suggested that perhaps the claim went back only hundreds of years. in jews were offended by that, so he'll be correcting that suggestion. that's another big piece of his trip, ashleigh. >> any time you're in that part of the world, you better know your history, a.d. and b.c., because everyone quotes chapter and verse, to try to bolster their claims. chief white house correspondent, jessica yellin, thank you, and also senior international correspondent, sara sidner for us in jerusalem, thank as well. we'll continue to watch the developments in israel and watch for

the president will be arriving in israel wednesday, meeting with leaders of israel, prime minister netanyahu, and president perez. he is also going to be, wolf, delivering messages according to white house officials that are directly related to what is going on and conflict between the israelis and palestinians. he is going to urge, white house officials say, the israelis to show more of a change of approach when it comes to reaching peace in that region. but getting back to the issue of iran and developing nuclear weapons, they say the president will be very clear during his trip to israel that the united states will not allow iran to build a nuclear weapon. >> he was clear on that with israel television, too. jim acosta, thanks very much. let's dig deeper into what's going on in washington. our chief political correspondent candy crowley, host of cnn's state of the union and also gloria borger, political analyst. what did this accomplish? my dad used to say can't hurt to talk. >> can't hurt to talk and didn't hurt to talk. the president was applauded by many republicans as well as democrat

know america will always have israel's back when it comes to israel's security. >>> here's more of what we're working on this hour for "around the world." every day we're learning something new about pope francis. >> we are, aren't we? in fact, back when he was a cardinal he supported civil unions for same sex couples. now, what this could mean for the future of the catholic church we will discuss that. >> plus, british prime minister david cameron wants to give money to working parents to help with child care. sounds great, but stay at home moms are furious over the way his spokesperson explained it. >> yes. it was all in the words. >>> also, if you see an asteroid heading your way, nasa's advice there's really nothing you can do. head to the park and have a good time. [ male announcer ] this is kevin. to prove to you that aleve is the better choice for him, he's agreed to give it up. that's today? [ male announcer ] we'll be with him all day as he goes back to taking tylenol. i was okay, but after lunch my knee started to hurt again. and now i've got to take more pills. ♪ yup. anoth

plus, president obama's trip to israel hits a speed bump. the real reason his limo needed a tow today is next. >>> and there's a growing trend of super skyscrapers, i don't think is a better word to describe some of these guys, being built around the world. who's is biggest? at od, whatever business you're in, that's the business we're in with premium service like one of the best on-time delivery records and a low claims ratio, we do whatever it takes to make your business our business. od. helping the world keep promises. to prove to you that aleve is the better choice for him, he's agreed to give it up. that's today? [ male announcer ] we'll be with him all day as he goes back to taking tylenol. i was okay, but after lunch my knee started to hurt again. and now i've got to take more pills. ♪ yup. another pill stop. can i get my aleve back yet? ♪ for my pain, i want my aleve. ♪ [ male announcer ] look for the easy-open red arthritis cap. [ female announcer ] from meeting customer needs... to meeting patient needs... ♪ wireless is li

rise up to your government and said, we want a new israel, different israel. don, we could talk an hour about the obstacles of peace, but nudge your side to move forward, hopefully young palestinians will nudge their side. might say the president trying a new grassroots approach here in israel. >> i want you to listen to this, john, again. he spoke of a meeting he had with palestinian youth. >> talking to them, they weren't that different from my daughters. they weren't that different from your daughters. or sons. i honestly believe that if any israeli parent sat down with those kids, they'd say, i want these kids to succeed. i want them to prosper. i want them to have opportunities. >> john king, that's all well and good, lovely words, but let's talk about actions, specifically this. iraq has fired at israel today during the president's visit. fired, in fact, from gaza, whose palestinian leaders refuse to accept israel's right to exist. despite the applause the president got, his new offensive, as you said, new approach is use offensive. a lot of israelis wil

plus, president obama's trip to israel hits a speed bump. the real reason his limo needed a tow today is next. >>> and there's a growing trend of super skyscrapers, i don't think is a better word to describe some of these guys, being built around the world. who's is biggest? my wife takecentrum silver. i' been on the fence abo it. then i read an artie about study that oked at the long term health benefits of taking multivitamins. hey used centr silver f t study... so i guess my wife was right. male anner ] centrum. ways your mostomplet i took something for my sinuses, but i still have this cough. [ male announcer ] a lot of sinus products don't treat cough. they don't? [ male announcer ] nope, but alka seltzer plus severe sinus does it treats your worst sinus symptoms, plus that annoying cough. [ breathes deeply ] ♪ oh, what a relief it is [ angry gibberish ] [ female announcer ] from meeting customer needs... to meeting patient needs... ♪ wireless is limitless. [ female announcer ] from finding the best way... ♪ to finding the best ca

. >>> plus, president obama and israel. with tensions rising throughout the region, is iran now the greatest threat? >> our policy is to prevent iran from acquiring a nuclear weapon. >> will syria's civil war spill over? >> assad's regime must understand they will be held accountable for the use of chemical weapons or their transfer to terrorists. >> i'll ask the president's one-time middle east peacemaker, george mitchell, is now the time to kiss and make up? this is "piers morgan live." you know i'm passionate about the issue of guns in america. you've heard a lot of heated debate on this show on both sides. well, tonight, i'm going to talk to five men who probably know more than most of us about guns and in particular the aftermath of the acrossty of newtown. they're police chiefs in and around newtown. all of them having experience and trauma of that terrible day at sandy hook elementary school. sadly, the toll of guns doesn't end there. colorado's prison chief tom clements was gunned down in the doorway of his home las

so president obama arrived in israel today. he had interesting comments for prime minister netanyahu on the tarmac. he said it's good to get away from congress. netanyahu laughed and said, believe me, i know. any reaction? >> so much for the charm offensive. >> but does that comment like that actually have any impact do you think? >> no, not really. you know, the president's meeting with the president of israel, you know, he's got his legislative issues. the president's got his. comes with the territory. >> comes with the territory. >> i'd rather be heckled than ignored or is that like to say, you only tease the ones you love? >> so, white house chief of staff mcdonough was on our show yesterday and he said if syria is using chemical weapons, it's a game changer and we will act accordingly. i know that you were not happy with the kind of consultation that congressional leaders were given before the u.s. acted in libya. are you similarly concerned about potential action in syria? >> well, i do think that the threat that syria us

commitment to israel's security, and to speak directly to the people of israel and to your neighbors. we stand together because we share a common story, patriots determined to be a free people in our land. pioneers who forged a nation. heroes who sacrificed to preserve our freedom. and immigrants from every corner of the world who renew constantly our diverse society. >> today the president will meet with israeli prime minister benjamin netanyahu at about noon eastern. his trip will also include the west bank, and jordan. >>> the marines have now widened the ban on ammunition related to monday's deadly training explosion in nevada. it happened at hawthorne army depot. seven marines were killed. and several others were injured. officials say the cause of the blast was a 60 millimeter round that detonated inside a mortar tube. in a statement, the marines said, quote, a blanket suspension of the 60 millimeter mortars and associated tubes is now in effect until this review is complete. >>> in a bizarre and highly offensive scene in an ohio courtroom as a judge handed 18-year-old t.j. lan

they did happen while the president is in israel. a lot of people at first might find that a little bit alarming. is something like that in and of itself enough to send a bit of shockwaves through this diplomacy? >> not really. this is a tough neighborhood and i think both parties are used to seeing these kinds of things. it's a reminder, though, of the fact that gaza is controlled, of course, by hamas and today the president's meeting -- hamas, the president is meeting president abbas in ramallah. there has been a rivalry between these factions on the palestinian side. there could be internal palestinian dynamics at play here. they will be looking, the israelis, of course, will be looking for some sort of statement, some sort of recognition by president abbas that this is obviously not to be tolerated. >> there's a diplomatic term we here, deliverables, meaning you will leave this trip, this journey with some kind of concrete statement, some kind of thing to hang your hat on saying we achieved this. the white house has made clear in

has been israel's biggest friend. that doesn't mean that there haven't been a lot of bumps along the road. and there have been again particularly for these two men and it's been around iran. i know one of the reasons that the president took this trip and one of the things he wants to emphasize here is to assure the israelis, not just benjamin netanyahu, but the israelis at large that the u.s. will not let iran acquire a nuclear weapon. there's still probably going to be a difference of opinion about when one might say, hey, too late, we've got to move. nonetheless it's important that they have the same goals. they don't always see eye-to-eye on how to get there. >> candy crowley, host of "state of the union," thanks so much. >> all right. >>> michele bachmann pulled a fast move to avoid questions from one of our reporters. our dana bash tried to ask bachmann about allegations of spending of the family. here's what she said at the cpac gathering. >> now we're finding out that there are five shifts on air force one. the

some of that fighting spilled over into israel. so definitely a very high concern, something that will be talked about between the president and prime minister netanyahu. >> probably just moves up on the agenda. do we expect president obama to move forward in the movement in the israeli-palestinian peace process as well? >> reporter: that is the issue that is causing controversy. a lot of people are not expecting. they have low expectations when it comes to whether or not a peace process plan will be put in place. but we are now hearing that there is possibly going to be some movement because we're hearing that kerry is coming back here on saturday to sit with netanyahu to see how they can push forward this peace process between israel and the palestinians. the palestinians looking at this saying, look, we don't think anything is going to move forward. they really hope that something will happen. but there hasn't been any high expectations here. >> sarah sidener, thank you. >>> and now syria. the assad regime and rebel forces are a

and israel could start down a path with peace talks with israel and the arab states. the president said this is the first step, listening is the first step, and that's what the president plans to do when he visits the head of the palestinian authority tomorrow. even made a joke saying, his mother caught him, you never start a process without listening to the parties involved first. that's what he plans to do when he visits the west bank. >> thanks, jessica. while there's no -- been no confirmation of a chemical weapons attack in syria, the chairs of the house and senate intelligence committees say they believe it's a strong possibility. they broke that news right here in "the situation room" when wolf and i interviewed congressman mike rogers and senator dieann feinstein yesterday. >> do you believe chemical weapons were used by the syrian military? >> i have a high probability to believe that chemical weapons were used. we need the final verification. >> the white house has to make some decisions in this. i think the days are becoming more desperate. the regime is mo

the people of israel, wherefor uncommitted to israel's security, absolutely committed. the palestinians, we want a palestinian state, a two-state solution. and others in the region, friend and foe alike, that the united states is in the region to stay, and we're not pulling out any time soon. >> john king, the one thing we didn't hear about today was settlements. why is that, and is that going to be discussed over the next couple of days? >> reporter: well, it will be discussed in the morning. you can be syrian, piers, when president obama goes to see mahmud abbas, his top complaint, i'm not coming back to the bargaining table until israel stops building settlements in the west bank. and i'm interested in senator mitchell's views on this. i was in two israeli settlements. there is construction on both settlements right now. not major expansions but new subdivisions. and the israeli government is debating whether to have the green light for a major new settlement on a parcel called e-1. and president obama did not mention settlements. there are a couple opportunities tod

rather than to constantly be thwarted by israel, right now he's talking about israeli security, he's talking about iran, he's talking about syria and then they might talk about the peace with the palestinians. if that's the case, then that would be a disaster not just for palestine, israel but also for the region. >> and, sara, also being underscored in this trip will be the relationship or lack thereof perhaps between netanyahu and obama. some have kind of described it as being very cool. the president says however it's not as tense as some people might think. how much pressure is there to show, i guess, these two appearing to be partners. >> reporter: i don't know if there's a lot of pressure when it comes to that because i think people's minds especially here are pretty much set on that very issue. they do believe these two men personally speaking don't like one another. however, as the president said in that interview last night he said look, whether or not we have differences, which we do have differences, our policy with israel has been very strong. and we have made that point

israel had up a blockade because of military disagreements with gaza, hamas and gaza. this has been long running feud between two leaders. their pride getting in the way of a resolution. the president helped broker it. the turks say we got what we want, apology, compensation for the victims. from the u.s. perspective, incredibly important. look at a map. this is his first trip to the region since the arab spring. syria, iran, questions about palestinian process, hamas launching rockets from gaza, egypt is a question mark, libya, who does the united states tres, israel and turkey. both sides of syria. traditionally governments the united states wants to trust, when there are difficult things, you need help from the region, it is usually turkey and syria. to have it back on a better track, not completely there, but on a better track is better for the region, israel and turkey, huge assist for the united states. >> and he pushed bb netanyahu, a stubborn man sometimes to do this. a real accomplishment for the president who set low expectations, so he exceeded low expectati

and also a peace partner with israel. they have a peace treaty. and this country would be a crucial partner in any peace negotiations between israel and the palestinian state. so a very important partner for the u.s. as well. that's one reason the president was certain to make a stop here while he was in the area before returning home. michael. >> and a lot bubbling along underneath. a tough neighborhood. jessica, good to see you there, jessica yellin. >> thanks. >>> this young lady we're about to tell you about, she's a beauty queen with such a very unique story. so much so that president obama wanted to meet her in person in israel. >> yeah. we're going to hear from the first ethiopian born miss israel coming up. e's nothing better than salon color, full of beautiful highlights and lowlights. that's why nice'n easy builds dimension into every shade. so here's a challenge: love the gorgeous dimension of nice'n easy or we'll pay for a salon color. take the salon challenge, from nice'n easy. ♪ 'cause germs don't stick on me ♪ [ female announcer

and israel are not on the same page. but the president is saying he has to choose, you know, one of those options. what options are on the table? israel said, look, it's virtually now as in this spring. that's when it's going to get too late to do anything. the president though today in that interview with israel, too, said something very different. >> we think that it would take over a year or so for iran to actually develop a nuclear weapon. but obviously we don't want to cut it too close. >> congresswoman, are you aware, the president has always talked about a window, as you said. it's not indefinite. there is a window for diplomacy. he'll act when he needs to. we can't recall a time when he has come out and given us specific date. >> one thing is clear is we do not have a policy of containment. so the president has been very clear that allowing iran to achieve a nuclear weapon based on the intelligence information that we have and our, like i said, very close cooperation with israel on that assessment, i mean really,

jessica yellin is already in israel. she joins us by phone. jessica, senator feinstein said a short time ago, quote, i think the probabilities are high that we're going into very dark times. i think the white house needs to be prepared. white house seems to be more cautious today. where do they stand on all of this? >> reporter: anderson, white house officials say they are still assessing reports that chemical weapons are used so cautious is the right word. we know that the president has said the use of chemical weapons, as you say, is a red line. he's gone further and said that if assad crosses it there will be, quote, consequences. he has said you will be held accountable. today his chief of staff said on cnn that it would be a game changer if, in fact, chemical weapons were used. now the president has not specified what he means exactly when he says assad or his regime would be held accountable. there have been reports that the u.s. has developed a plan for direct action against syria, but there's no indication the president is pursuant. le

embassy in israel. we found this today and we'll share it with you. it's a rather bizarre video ahead of president obama's trip. we'll show it to you, we promise. [ man ] i got this citi thankyou card and started earning loads of points. we'll leave that there. you got a weather balloon, with points? yes i did. [ man ] points i could use for just about anything. go. ♪ keep on going in this direction. take this bridge over here. there it is! [ man ] so i used mine to get a whole new perspective. [ laughter ] [ male announcer ] earn points with the citi thankyou card and redeem them for just about anything. visit citi.com/thankyoucards to apply. >>> all right. third story "out front." wow, what a day it was in rome. gorgeous day. one of those beautiful, sun lit, no clouds. full of pomp and circumstance for the new pope. the ceremony filled with tradition and pope francis became the 266th leader of the world's 1.2 billion catholics. the inauguration mass in front of a capacity crowd and a lot of world leaders in attendance. under a bright blue roman sk

you were an adviser to the palestinian negotiating team with israel. did president obama strike a chord with people there? >> absolutely not. president obama came in very clearly designed to reach out to the israelis, and he didn't do anything to reach out to the palestinians. in fact, he did the opposite. he backtracked away from u.s. foreign policy. he backtracked away from his own position and in stating that palestinians should head to the negotiates table without a settlement freeze. he made it seem that the united states is somehow a neutral party and as though he doesn't know where the billions of u.s. taxpayer dollars are going to fund more settlements and to militarily finance israel, so he didn't strike a positive chord at all with palestinians. >> did people in general feel like the president backtracked from earlier commitments? >> he absolutely backtracked against his earlier commitments. if you recall in the first term of president obama -- the first obama term what he said very clearly was that israel's settlement activity had to stop. h

he wanted to visit israel itself, an important step. connect and make his case directly with the people of israel, which i think he did very well. second, to try to make the case publically and privately to both israeli and palestinian leaders that it is in their self-interest to sit down and negotiate a peace agreement between them. it's not a gift from one side to the other. it's in the self-interest of both israel to get security for its people. the palestinians to finally get a state of their own. he also reaffirmed the strong friendship and support with jordan's king and he sent a clear message to iran during his visit to the region that the united states will not accept a nuclear weapon in iran's hands. i think overall e he conveyed several messages and did so successfully. and the cap was the reconciliation, or the beginning of reconciliation between israel and turkey, who had been at odds in the last few years. >> and that level was quite remarkable. we're talking about those relations that had been cooled quite a bit after the

he spent a couple days in israel. why do you think it's his second term to go to israel and do you think that was a successful trip for this president? >> well, the president launched his presidency in the first term by going to cairo and reaching out to the arab world. i think he found out that those efforts were not well received and so i am thankful the president went to israel. the white house lowered expectations because i think in their experience they now know that it takes two negotiating partners to make peace in the middle east between israelis and palestinians and palestinians snubbed the white house when they went to the u.n. to get recognition against the united states' wishes because that was a point of negotiation. i applaud the white house for going to israel and not trying to push a peace deal top down from the united states giving their orders about how this is going to happen and try to let this happen organically between the two parties. i'm not a critic of the president on his trip to israel. it w

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the prime minister of israel. benjamin netanyahu is likely to form a coalition and begin a new term as prime minister this month. one of his first big projects will be to welcome president obama to his country. obama will make his first visit to israel as president. what will they discuss? for sure iran and, of course, discuss syria and the unrest across the arab world but "the gatekeepers" is a reminder that the question of what to do about the palestinian territories that israel has now occupied for almost 50 years should also get on the agenda. at least that's the message i got from the last six directors. men who have devoted their lives to defending the state of israel. maybe they know something. >>> when we come back, that nine-letter word that everybody knows but doesn't quite understand. sequester. i've got a great panel to talk about it and europe. [ male announcer ] this is bob, a regular guy with an irregular heartbeat. the usual, bob? not today. [ male announcer ] bob has afib: atrial fibrillation not

jessica yellin is already in israel, she joins us by phone. jessica, you have senator feinstein a short time ago saying "i think the probables are very high and i think the white house needs to be prepared. the white house seems cautious today. where are they standing on this? >> anderson, white house officials say that they're still assessing the reports that chemical weapons were used. we know the president has said that the use of chemical weapons is a red line and that if assad crosses it that there will consequences. he has said you will be held accountable. today, his chief of staff said it would be a game changer if, in fact, chemical weapons were used. now, the president has not specified what he means, exactly, when he said his regime would be held accountable. there have been reports that the u.s. has developed a plan for direct action against syria, but there is no indication that the president would necessarily pursue it. and let's be realistic, it's hard to imagine that the u.s. would take any direct action against syria when the

embassy in israel. we found this today and we'll share it with you. it's a rather bizarre video ahead of president obama's trip. we'll show it to you, we promise. >>> all right. third story "out front." wow, what a day it was in rome. gorgeous day. one of those beautiful, sun lit, no clouds. full of pomp and circumstance for the new pope. the ceremony filled with tradition and pope francis became the 266th leader of the world's 1.2 billion catholics. the inauguration mass in front of a capacity crowd and a lot of world leaders in attendance. under a bright blue roman sky, pope francis entered st. peter's square to the cheers of a crowd estimated at nearly 200,000 people. the new pontiff chose to ride in an open air mercedes. took his time arriving to come close to the devoted catholics who waited so patiently for him. it was face to face and personal. for nearly 20 minutes, pope francis embraced people, shaking hands and kissing babies. he even stopped the car to get out and bless a man who's severely disabled. after bowing in prayer at the tomb of st

obama made stops in israel, the west bank and jordan. cnn's chief national correspondent john king is in amman and joins us live. john, nice to see you. it's pretty low expectations for this trip. the white house careful not to really set a bar very high. any surprises come out of it? >> i think they set that bar so low so they knew they could jump it. there were surprises. the best test is not how high the president feels about improving relationships with netanyahu or giving speech to a people that was well received. first a sober discussion about the syrian refugee crisis and going to petra to visit the ancient ruins. he may feel he's in better standing with the israelis and the prime minister, the question is, every american president in my lifetime has picked up this ball, the middle east peace process and tried to deal with it. bill clinton years on it, george w. bush at the end of his term. we'll see if president obama has success. he came here with a somewhat dysfunctional relationship with the israeli prime minister, benjamin ne

he's going to israel. one of his primary topics is the discussion with the prime minister benjamin netanyahu. they're going to focus, of course, on how to stop iran from developing a nuclear weapon. get right to athena jones this morning. she's live at the white house for us. >> good morning soledad. the white house says that the president has spent more time one-on-one with israeli prime minister netanyahu than with any other leader but that hasn't changed the perception that their relationship is strained as they try to stop iran from developing a nuclear weapon. five years after he visited israel as a candidate, president obama is going there to reassure skeptical israelis about where he stands on iran. >> i have been crystal clear about my position on iran possessing a nuclear weapon. that, that is a red line for us. it's something that would not only be dangerous for israel, but would be dangerous for the world. >> while he says all options are on the table to stop iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon

we have now 20 programs in israel as well. not only around the world but in israel. we've been invited to have the chief rabbi go to the number one mosque in the palestinian territory. abbas made that invitation. so this dialogue with exchanging pulp pulpits, you'd be amazed at sophisticated people, educated, sweet, spiritual people don't trust the other. and when they meet the other they find that, well all they thought about them is wrong. >> you're in atlanta for a very important cause but you are trying to use your own business and sense of entrepreneurship to educate and encourage others. >> yes. >> tell us about that. >> well, my experience is, you know, as an entrepreneur, are ones that i like to share or i can. this green project is one that speaking at it is inspiring to me as it does inspire the people who come to the convention. so i'm happy to do that. that's why i'm here in atlanta. >> okay. >> there is also something else. we'll talk about that some other time we were going to mention just briefly because we mentioned it before the break about the diamo

>> think about where israel is in the world. egypt is no longer a reliable partner for peace, syria is a mess and getting worse by the day, and the number of weapons systems and jihadists that are flooding syria and have the potential to have those weapons systems throughout the lavant is concerning and oh by the way, have iran threatening to annihilate israel and clearly pursuing a nuclear weapon. the analysts are close. there are some differences and mainly it's this thing called the dash, so everybody agrees that iran is pursuing a nuclear weapons program and the last part of it is, can they take the highly enriched uranium, weaponize it and put it on a missile for use. there is the debate, how long would it take to accomplish the last piece of that. that's where the united states analysts are saying could be a year. i wouldn't be as certain where the president is, and the israelis believe it's going to be sooner than that, and that's why the pressure is mounting for some action, maybe other than sanctions, for iran so they g

lebanon, israel. if we could get that all on the table, it would be a much more protective set of discussions. >> this was a marker. >> this was absolutely a marker and this is a very skilled, seasoned man. the guy i was talking to has been a senior figure in the i n iranian government since the 1979 revolution. >> let me play you a little bit of what joe biden has to say at aip aipac. let's listen. >> the purpose of this pressure is not to punish. it is to convince iran to make good on its international obligations. put simply, we are sharpening a choice that the iranian leadership has to make. they can meet their obligations and give the international community ironclad confidence in a peaceful nature of their program or continue down the path their on to isolate mounting pressure of the world. >> so, that does not sound much like a response. a direct response at least to the iranian ambassador. when the state department hears what was said on fareed's show, what kind of response do you think they n

>> well, the most important thing to come out of this trip was the deal between turkey and israel. turkey is the most powerful muslim country of the 57 nations with strong muslim populations. and this makes a lot of other things possible, whether it's cooperation on syria, whether it gives the blessing to the islamic world dealings with israel, which is widely viewed as kind of an outpost of the west. so it changes the atmosphere in a lot of ways. >> robin, we always talk about the red line if you will when it comes to dealing with iran. it seemed as if at least in this trip the president successfully turned down the volume a little bit in trying to get on the same page with israel and that red line. >> well, this has been the biggest point of tension between president obama and prime minister netanyahu. and it was important that the two of them struck the same tone and time frame in their joint press conference. president obama has talked about a year or so before iran might make a decision or move in important ways on its controversial nuclear program. and president -- prime mini

>> we have a lot on the president in israel. he was in the west bank. we have a lot of analysts, the president of the council on foreign relations is joining us and i invited ari fleischer the former bush white house press secretary. he is very active in the republican jewish coalition and i am curious to see what he thought of the president's speech, what he thought of the president's visit to israel. we have a lot coming up. >> all coming up in "the situation room." dennis rodman, a little advice if you want to stay bff with the leader of a rogue state you might want to keep your mouth shut. a little secret north korea's leader didn't want anyone to know. know. that's our buried lead next. what's going on? carrots...craveable. sabra hummus: dip life to the fullest. ...and we inspected his brakes for free. -free is good. -free is very good. [ male announcer ] now get 50% off brake pads and shoes at meineke.

will have israel's back, quote/unquote. and we do not expect that the president will use new language, but israelis i'm assured will be okay with the language he will use. coming to israel and repeating what he has said recently on iran will be enough. it's not as far as many of the israelis the more conservative israelis themselves stand, where they stand on iran, but enough that he'll come here and repeat where he's been. >> we will see, we know you're covering of course from gentleman reese jerusalem. thank you. >>> now to some of the hottest stories. first up, the pope. he waded through crowds in vatican city for his official inauguration. and not only walking through crowds, there he is on the popemobile, open air popemobile, kissing baby, shaking some hands. while back in his home of buenos aires, his sister had a change of heart after a startling revelation about that last conclave back in 2005 when she prayed her brother wouldn't be elected pope. >> translator: so i would pray he wouldn't get elected. during this co