Islamic militants who demand they convert or die. We know that president obama has called saudi Arabias King Abdullah as he and his closest white house advisers strategize about what comes next. I want to bring in andrea mitchell. What can you tell us about this effort to communicate with International Partners about this operation . The call was to King Abdullah in jordan. And that is a key player right on the border with iraq. Weve yet to hear from the saudis and other Coalition Partners and there is a lot of reporting that they have been so dissatisfied with the president s response a year ago to syria and all this while as acise was metastasizing that they are reluctant to get involved militarily. Turkey did drop some aid in and is helping, and there has been more cooperation than weve ever seen before between baghdad and kirkuk and the leaders from erbil, the kurdish leaders in that peshmerga were routed by isis. That was the shocker saturday night. Since then there has been Cooperation Among the iraqi ethnic groups which there had not been before. Andrea, what about nato partners . It seems somewhat surprising the president initially announced this as a solo operation. Are there efforts to bring in other parties to this . The british say theyll only support humanitarian capacity. It is a toxic political issue in the uk. And so David Cameron was certainly not stepping up to the plate here. He would not have his cabinet, to say nothing of his parliament, the house of commons behind him here. So there was no reaction there. And interestingly, Frances Hollande today put out a statement saying they would help with humanitarian aid but they did not offer military support. So we have yet to see anything coming out of nato partners other than turkey, which is, of course, right there on the border. Andrea, thank you. Well have more an the International Dimension on this coming up. First, joining us from the pentagon is chief pentagon correspondent jim miklaszewski. Hes got the latest an the air strikes themselves. What do we know at this point . Ronan, some military officials are describing this as a target of opportunity. When two u. S. Navy fa18s off the Aircraft Carrier george h. W. Bush there in the persian gulf zeroed in on an isis artillery operation or piece that had been firing, according to the u. S. Military officials, randomly toward peshmerga forces. Were told that peshmerga had tried to attempt to take it out but werent in a position to do that. So the fa18s came in, dropped two 500pound bombs and instantly took it out. So how was that a threat to u. S. Personnel in erbil . According to u. S. Officials, the embassy and u. S. Personnel were within range of that artillery piece. So if it was firing randomly there was always the possibility that american personnel could have been in danger and that gave green light to the military to take that artillery piece out. Nick, were looking at live images of these two briefings at the white house and state department coming up any minute now. What do we expect from those . I think what you are going to expect, theres a lot of tough questions, both at the state department and the white house as okay, weve dropped. Weve made a humanitarian drop. I see you have a briefing beginning if you want to go there. Youve had this humanitarian drop. Youve had one air strike now against the isis forces. Whats next . Where does it go from here . And how committed is the u. S. . Jim, it does look like theyre starting that briefing. Lets listen in live. I dont have any announcements at the top. So well go right to questions. Darlene, would you like to get us started . To follow up on iraq and the air strike out of erbil earlier today, do you expect that there will be Additional Air strikes today or over the weekend . Can you give a sense of how long the they expect this campaign will last for . Im glad you described it that way. The president s the authorization the president has been given for military action or has given for military action is very limited in scope. And clearly described in his remarks last night. I dont have any updates in terms of additional military action. The department of defense did confirm a military strike was carried out in iraq. And the additional updates will come from them. The department of defense has significant capability and will be provided to update that in terms of the goals the president articulated last night. What is your best definition of limited . Well, there are two specific ways in which the president described. Let me say, i would describe them in three separate ways. The first is first and foremost is the protection of american personnel. There are American Military and diplomatic officials in erbil. The artillery position that was maintained by isil that was struck by the American Military earlier thus morning east coast time was focused on targets that were defending erbil. And that is why that struck that military strike was authorized and that is why it occurred. So the protection of american personnel in iraq is a top priority. And one that merits the use of military force. But the second is related to this urgent humanitarian situation that exists at sinjar mountain. Theres a religious and ethnic minority. A population. Thousands of men, women and children stranded at the top of this mountain. Isil forces are marshalled at the base of the mountain vowing to kill those who descend. Thats an urgent humanitarian situation. And the United States military last night mon the authorization of the president carried out successfully an air drop of supplies, food and water and some basic medical supplies to those individuals who were stranded on the mountain to try to provide some humanitarian relief. The president has authorized military strikes that could be used to address that situation at the mountain. There are Kurdish Security forces that are seeking to dislodge that siege there at sinjar mountain. If American Military assets can be helpful in supporting Kurdish Forces, then air strikes could be carried out in pursuit of that goal. The third is slightly broader, but is related to our belief and commitment to supporting integrated iraqi Security Forces and Kurdish Security forces as they unite the country to repel the threat that is posed by the isil advance. What will be required is an integrated, inclusive Political Leadership in iraq. And it is why this country stands ready to support the formation of an inclusive government in iraq. There have been significant there has been significant progress on that front in the last few weeks. There has been the appointment of a president , a speaker and two deputy speakers that reflect the diversity of iraqs population. The prime machine ster has not yet been selected. That will be the responsibility of the iraqi people. Once that government has formed, we would anticipate and certainly be continuing to urge that government to pursue an inclusive governing agenda so they can unite the country to confront the threat posed by isil. And the United States stands ready to support the formation of that government and the governments efforts to repel the advance of isil and that includes, where necessary, the deployment of military force. It will not include, however, the additional american combat troops being deployed to iraq. The humanitarian situation, is there a plan to get those people off of the mountain and would there be a role for the u. S. In any such operation . What is being the strategy right now is to try to meet the basic and immediate humanitarian needs of those who are trapped in these pretty terrible conditions. That is what prompted the air drop of supplies that occurred overnight. The second prong in that strategy as the president described it in his remarks last night is the possibility of targeted military strikes that could dislodge the isil forces that are carrying out the siege of that mountain. That would be in support of Kurdish Security forces that are also trying to disrupt that siege. So we will be acting in support of Kurdish Forces who are trying to trying to free those who are trapped at the top of the mo mountain. Ago again, what is not contemplated is american troops in a combat role to alleviate this situation. Can you give us a sense of what the president s involvement has been on this today . We know about the phone call with King Abdullah. Is he in contact with other leaders trying to get allies to join this campaign . Im not in a position to read out any other additional president ial phone calls right now. If the president places additional phone calls we can read out, well try to do that in a timely fashion. The president has met with members of his National Security team to get an overnight update about this situation in iraq. He was, of course, as you would expect, briefed on the military strike that was carried out this morning east coast time. And the president will stay in close touch with his National Security team over the course of the day so that he can be updated as necessary. Okay. Mark . Thanks, josh. As weve seen the isis or isil make gains in recent weeks, the United States has sent military advisers and the president last night took the action that he took. You and he have said theres no military solution to this, and that the United States should not get dragged into a war. What is to stop that from happening, and what is to stop the islamist state forces from advancing further into iraq . Well, let me try and take that you asked a couple different questions. Let my try and take those individually. The first one, and this is in some ways the most important thing for the American People to understand. And the president said this very clearly in his remarks last night. In fact, i have them here. Let me if youll indulge me. As commander in chief, the president said, i will not allow the United States to be dragged into fighting another war in iraq. And so even as we support iraqis as they take the fight to these terrorists, american combat troops will not be returning to fight in iraq. So that as a pretty clear expression from the commander in chief about what our intentions are and what the limit of any sort of military action would be. And that is a clear enunciation of the kind of principle at stake here which is this belief that there are many challenges facing the people of iraq right now. And its the view of the president that the those challenges cannot be solved by the American Military. They can only be solved through an inclusive government of the people of iraq. And theyve made progress in trying to form that government and we are hopeful that once that government is formed, that they will pursue the kind of inclusive governing agenda thats required to unite that country in the face of a threat that they that exists in that country right now. If there is a role for the American Military to play in supporting the iraqi people and that inclusive government and an integrated Security Force that is capable of defending the country, then well then well use that American Military prowess in pursuit of that goal as well. It is, after all in the clear National Security interest of the United States for there to be a stable Iraqi Government that can preside over a stauble iraq and a Security Force that has the necessary capablity to address the security situation in that country. These are all difficult challenges, and i dont mean to minimize them, but, you know, we have a very clear point of view thats based an our recent experience about the limits of american involvement in that kind of endeavor. And what that means is this is a situation that is a very difficult challenge. But its not a challenge that can be solved by the American Military. There is support that can be provided by the American Military. But this is a situation that will only be solved by the iraqi people and a government that reflects the views of iraqs diverse population. The president s belief or hope that the actions that he authorized yesterday effectively will buy time so that the iraqis will be able to organize their government and Defense Forces to repel isis . Well, i dont think i would describe it that way. I dont think the president did either. What i would do is the primary goal of the mission was the protection of american personnel in iraq. The president authorized military action to try to address an urgent, even dire humanitarian situation on sinjar mountain. And more generally, a willingness on the part of the American People to continue to stand with the people of iraq as they pursue a future that is reflective of the diverse population of the nation of iraq. And that future is under grave threat by isil extremists who are making advances across that country. And our desire and it is in the clear interest of american National Security for us to support the iraqi people as they confront that threat. But again, this is a threat that we cannot confront for them. It is a threat that can only be met and defeated by a unified iraq in support of an integrated, capable iraq Security Force. If that requires the support of the American Military, that is support that were ready to offer. But well not offer it in the form of a prolonged military conflict that involves the United States of america and it will not involve american troops returning to iraq in a combat role. A question about immigration as well. Border patrol data show a declun in t decline in the number of children being apprehended crossing the border illegally and adults as well. How does that data factor into the president s thinking, his urgency and acting unilaterally to address the immigration situation. Let me say a few things about the data. The first thing about the data is we have seen a downward trend over the last four to six weeks. Of the rate at which unaccompanied children are being apprehended at the border. However, its important to understand that compared to a year ago or even two years ago, there still is there are still apprehensions taking place at an elevated rate. While theyve come down from the peak we all saw earlier this summer, the rate is still high when you compare it to broader historical trends. The second thing, the second point i wanted to make on this that historical trends also indicate that as the weather cools and as we enter the fall and winter season, traditionally, the rates of apprehension, the rates of those who attempt to illegally enter the country, go back up. And the volatility in these numbers is something that the Administration Remains concerned about. And it is why we have taken some steps within the executive branch to reprogram some funds and to devote Additional Resources to the border. Even though weve seen a decline in the rate, we want to make sure that resources are necessary if and when volatility is reintroduced into that situation and the numbers start to go back up. We want to make sure that we are ahead of the curve on that. That was josh earnest at the white house outlining u. S. Objectives saying the main priority is the protection of u. S. Personnel in iraq and emphasizing there will be no more boots on the ground. Thats a point he made repeatedly. First gleets to lulets go to l. What do you take away from this briefing . Well, josh earnest right there sort of gave us an idea as to why exactly the u. S. Moved forward on these air strikes. He said three specific reasons. Number one was an effort to protect u. S. Personnel who are on the ground in iraq who could be involved around those areas where isis are beginning to move forward. Number two, he said, was to alleviate the humanitarian crisis. Weve heard about the religious minorities trapped on a mountain in iraq by isis. An effort by the u. S. To brung them supplies. And number three was this idea to back up the Kurdish Forces and try to integrate them with the iraqi Security Forces in a push against isis. Essentially trying to say, hey, the u. S. Will give the kurds some air support. Well give the Iraqi Military some air support. We want them to join up and move forward on isis. What was the point we heard at least said 15 different times in that briefing. No combat troops in iraq. This is not going to be an elongated struggle in iraq with american combat forces an the ground in any capacity. The president is doing this simply to offer security to iraqi people any way moving forward in iraq will not have the u. S. Military. So president obama once again very, very cautious in how he intervenes militarily in iraq, not wanting to do anything that would go against the 2008 Campaign Pledge of ending the war and go against what weve seen of drawing don tdown the war. No update on if there will be more strikes. No update if this is the only one and no uch date on essentially where this ends. You also mentioned earlier no, update on support of our allies for military support. Simply more on the humanitarian side. So the u. S. Once again going it alone in iraq to a degree. Thank you for breaking it down for us, luke. There are, of course, still expectations that the president will go on vacation tomorrow. Do you see that plan changing . So far right now, its expected he will go on vacation. And the idea is hed come back to washington perhaps in the middle of the week, but im sure the schedule is fluid. There are more strikes, who knows, it could obviously change. With the Transportation Options available to him, he could get back here quite quickly. Luke russert, thanks again. Were waiting an a state Department Briefing on this same subject. Well dip into it as soon as it begins. Lets drill down on this military question. What exactly are troops confronting here . Isis has become an evermore significant military threat. We just heard in that briefing that they are a great threat to the future of iraq. Theyve been sweeping through Iraqi Kurdistan in recent days. Before today, president obama resisted using military power against them. Now we are engaged. With these strikes and with 800 military personnel on the ground in iraq. So what are they up against . Lets ask two iraq war veterans. Zach is here in the studio. And also with us is rye barkat author of it happened on though way to war. President obama authorized these targeted strikes. When they say limited in scope, what does that mean in real tactical terms . Well, what it really means, ronan, is were not going to be putting any soldiers that are referred to as combat forces. The types of units that zach and i deployed with, infantry units on the ground. Well be in an advisory capacity. My biggest concern about that position and this is not a popular position to take but is the capability of the iraqi army and the Kurdish Forces themselves to defend against this growing and very serious threat from isis. And zach, clearly weve just heard again and again no boots on the ground in a combat capacity. What about support operations . What is required to give the government the intel they needed for these targeted strikes. Theres essentially two different strikes that can exist when talking about air power. Im sure the u. S. Government or military personnel an the ground in iraq or at the pentagon are working up target lists for Strategic Air strikes through targets theyve established through drones, other ways of gathering information about whats going on. However, when you are talking about troops in contact, and that could be peshmerga Kurdish Forces, Iraqi Military yurnts fighting isis in that case you really doth in ne need someone ground controlling those fires coming from aircraft or you are coming into a very dangerous situation where you are mixing, you know, fire from aircraft, military units maneuvering on the ground along with enemy forces. And rye, for those troops that are on the ground and the people an the ground in an advisory capacity, what are the risks they are facing right now . Well, they are holed up into isolated parts of the country. The greatest risk is simply the lack of reinforcements. The lack of abilities within the iraqi army and the Kurdish Forces to really provide a defense. And the uncertainty that is just ever present in a situation like this where you have a limited presence and very few people who are actually were looking at how complex it is. The division of these different ethnic groups. The Current Operations right there in the north. Well keep an eye on this. Thank you for helping us. Zach iscol and rye. Were covering this breaking news throughout the hour. U. S. Air strikes in iraq and a lot of questions about whats next. When we come back, who are the yazidi people under such threat. Well example why isis is so bent on destroying this minority sect. An on the ground view from iraq. Thats right after the break. When it comes to good nutrition. Im no expert. That would be my daughter hi dad. Shes a dietitian. And back when i wasnt eating right, she got me drinking boost. Its got a great taste, and it helps give me the nutrition i was missing. 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Plus, now you get up to a 100 prepaid card when you purchase any new Verizon Wireless smartphone or tablet from comcast. Visit comcast. Com wireless to learn more my motheits delicious. Toffee in the world. So now weve turned her toffee into a business. My goal was to take an idea and make it happen. Im janet long and i formed my Toffee Company through legalzoom. I never really thought i would make money doing what i love. We created legalzoom to help people start their business and launch their dreams. Go to legalzoom. Com today and make your business dream a reality. At legalzoom. Com we put the law on your side. The protection of american personnel in iraq is one that merits the use of military force. Josh earnest just moments ago. Were back with more breaking news at this hour on the u. S. Operation in iraq. An operation focused on saving tens of thousands of refugees trapped on a mountain top with a stark dilemma. Leave and face slaughter or stay and die of thirst. President obamas authorized targeted air strikes against the islamic militants threatening them. Will it come quickly enough . Thats the only parliamentarian from this little known yazidi Minority Group dying on top of that mountain top. She says children are already dying there. Joining me from erbil is julia tuma, the yoon seve spokesperson there. Thank you so much. You are calling in there. Its a difficult area to get reception. Were awaiting the state Department Briefing. Well bring it to the audience live when that happens. But tell us exactly what the conditions are there in iraq. Well, because you spoke about children dying, we do know that at least 56 children from the yazidi minority have died. These are the children who are in the area suddenjar that was taken over by isis. And i think it was an underestimation of the number of children who died. The situation up on the mountain for what we estimate is 25,000 children stranded on these mountains is quite dire. They need humanitarian assistance as soon as possible, including water because its very, very hot up on the mountain. And they need food. But as much as this is very important, the humanitarian assistance, its also equally important to get the children out of these mountains into safety. 25,000 children at risk. Has unicef been able to get any resources to them . Not yet. Not yet. But what weve done is we have asked for access. We do not have access to the mountain. The area is surrounded by militants. I spoke to someone on the mountains. He told me that isis could be as close as five kilometers away from somewhere. They are in a state of fear on top of all the physical needs, theres a state of fear. People are very, very worried for their own personal safety. The person i was speaking to was worried for his own children. And he asked to be to get out of the area. So what we need right now is to find the best way to get people who are stranded on the mountains out into safety. Tell us about the yazidi people. You work with them. What are they like and why are they under attack right now . Its a minority. Its an ancient minority here in iraq. In this particular case, we are talking about the yazidi minority. But the big picture here is civilians. Civilians from different sects, from different groups who are being chased out of their homes, who are chased out of safety with a lot of fear in their hearts. Fear for tomorrow. Unpredictability and not being able to know whether you are going to be alive or dead tomorrow. Not knowing whether your children are going to be alive or dead tomorrow. So its a pretty grim situation. The story in the past two days has been about the yazidi minority, but the story is much, much bigger. And its a story about iraqi people suffering. Its wrenching, juliet. We all appreciate the work unicef is doing out there to save lives. These u. S. Strikes, how are they being received of an the grown and do humanitarian workers like yourself welcome them . Im not in a position to comment on the air strikes. What i am concerned about is the delivery of aid to the people in need. And we are talking right now about hundreds of thousands of people here in mainly Northern Iraq who are in need of assistance. And this is what we want to do. We want to help everyone who is in need. We want to help children who are in need regardless of where they are in Northern Iraq. And that work is desperately needed. Juliet touma, appreciate your taking the time. Stay safe. Thank you, ronan. Recapping what we know, two u. S. Navy fa18s dropped 500pound laser guided bombs an isis artillery units early this morning near Iraqi Kurdistans capital of erbil in the north. This as u. S. Military planes also air dropped Emergency Relief Supplies to help those 40,000 yazidi civilians stranded on that mountain top. Fleeing islamic militants. Whats striking is the u. S. Is, as of now, going this alone. This morning, brn said itain sa will assist but only in a humanitarian and assist capacity. Were offering aid of our own, which we hope to drop over the next couple of days in support of the American Relief effort. Particularly to help the plight of those who are trapped on the mountain. So where is the rest of the world as this operation plays out . Here with me now, eli lake, National Security reporter for the daily beast and reuters Investigative Reporter david. Thank you for being here. Britain is staying hands off momentarily. Who else in the International Community could lend a military support role . The french have said they want to act against isis but they are not doing much. Theres talk of maybe turkey helping the u. S. But theyve got a difficult relationship with the kurds and they dont want to be strengthening the kurds too much. The kurdish, for separatism, obviously which could involve parts of turkey seceding from the country. Its a good question. But youre right. The u. S. Is going alone. Its very unusual for the brits in particular to not work with the u. S. Particularly uncharacteristic for this administration which has worked so hard not to get into this exact situation. The British Parliament voted against strikes in syria mooted by t. Is there any reason to believe intervention would be different now . Its hard to predict that. But one of the obstacles for the u. S. To try to get other countries involved has been the fact that the iraqis themselves are forming a new government. There are a number of regional players as well as people in europe and really all over the world that think of Prime Minister maliki as a failed leader. And the hope is that a new government will be more inclusive and not be prone to the sort of sectarianism that fueled, i think, many people to not necessarily talk about the rise of isis but to at least allow and permit in some cases join this, what has become a much larger sunni insurgency. When the iraqis get their own government together, the United States will make a broader push to have a multilateral effort against isis in the region. Eli mentioned those regional partners. Lets look at those david. A lot of reports of isis receiving critical Financial Support from the gulf states, especially from kuwait, qatar, saudi arabia. How do you see some of those countries reacting . I think saudi arabia will hopefully stop this flow of money. This is a double game theyve played for years where they are spreading virulent form of islam and then saying they oppose these terrorist groups. It is, to me, fascinating. We need l help but the president is following a minimalist approach in the middle east. Most americans would support that. Then hes laying out these grand goals to achieve. We want to secure oil supplies, stop iran from developing Nuclear Weapon and we want to sort of maintain our alliance with israel. Can you do it . Can you have this minimalist approach in the middle east and will it work . Will a minimalist mission in iraq work against isis . And one of the complications is turkey. Eli, i want to go to you on that question. Theyve offered humanitarian aid. Erdogan wont publicly condemn isis. What kind of a role do you see turkey playing Going Forward . Its true that theres a lot of history of bad blood between the kurds and turks. In recent years the turks have done a tremendous amount of investment in the northern part of iraq, sometimes called kurdistan, and the relationship between at least the kurdish leaders in iraq and the turkish government has really never been better. So i would expect that there would be some overlap there. But the other problem is that erdogan has played a dangerous game in terms of supporting some of the extremist players an the sunni side in syria and iraq. When in that respect i do think theres a choice for erdogan. He also has his own elections coming up right now. He might be free to make decisions if he wins those elections after the turks vote themselves. David, given the complications with turkey, where else can kurdish leadership and the autonomous kurdish region as a whole look for support in the region. Its really basically the United States. Maybe iran would if they trust the u. S. Has fallen way short of what the kurds have asked for in terms of support. Two months ago, mosul fell. Theres growing criticism there were four former u. S. Ambassadors to iraq calling for these strikes yesterday before they happened. So time has gone by and the kurds have been begging for more weapons and ammunition. Some people are saying maybe they arent fighting as hard here to intentionally draw in the u. S. There is no other outside walker helping them. Thank you both of you. Fascinating. A lot changing for fast. Well keep track of this International Picture as we look at the regional reaction and the turmoil its causing. That may be a subject that comes up in the upcoming state Department Briefing. First, up next, we look at the power of a single word. Does president obamas choice of the word genocide and the particular way he used it pull the u. S. Deeper into this struggle in iraq . Thats next. The summer. The summer of this. The summer that summers from here on will be compared to. Where memories will be forged into the sand. And then hung on a wall for years to come. Get out there, with over 50,000 hotels at 150 dollars or less. Expedia. Find yours. Your studied day and night for her drivers test. Secretly inside, you hoped she wouldnt pass. 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We have every reason to believe that acts of genocide have occurred. How many acts of genocide does it take to make genocide . Thats just not a question that im in a position to answer. Is it true that you have the specific guidance not to use the word genocide in isolation but always to preface it with this word acts of. I have guidance which to which i try to use it as best as i can. Yes, the language being used by the president right now was the euphemism of choice for a Clinton Administration contorting itself not to use the g word. Fearing it would legally obligate them to act in rwanda. That administration did little but watch the slaughter of 800,000 people in that african nation. Samantha power, a member of our current president s cabinet, once railed against the moral failure of using that acts of genocide euphemism. A, quote, semantic dance, she said, revealing the Clinton Administrations hopelessly muddied instructions. So theres a big difference here. Then the euphemism was used to justify inaction. Here its being used to justify action. But the evasive indecisive language explains a lot for those charging that this administration is wavering, waiting, offering too little, too late in this crisis. Joining me is white house correspondence Josh Gerstein and michael crowley. Thank you both for being here. John kerry yesterday, ben rhodes today echoed this almost but not really use of the term genocide. What is that cautious appending of phrases of acts of tell us about this administration . Well, you know, i can understand the criticism particularly when you think back to the terrible historical memory of our inaction in rwanda. But, you know, to the extent this euphemism is being used, i guess it would be out of a concern of a trip wire in the legal language of the what ill call the genocide prevention. It has a more formal name, Genocide Convention of 1948. But that doesnt have a clear, specific Binding Legal mechanism. Its not really clear what it would obligate us to do. So i think the bottom line is people ought to give the president credit for acting here in the face of a humanitarian disaster. And for using really strong language. I think the story here is not one so much of wavering and wobbling, at least when it comes to the plight of the yazidi but the administration stepping up to the plate and being willing to act to solve a humanitarian crisis, whatever language its using. You certainly dont want the perfect to be the enemy of the good. And for people who wanted more action earlier, this should be a moment of celebration. But it is revealing that this language is being used. Probably unnecessarily as the legal tripwire is so ambiguous in the first place. Josh, especially since the administration isution this language to justify action, not inaction, why the cautious legalese in the first place . Well, i think that its probably has to do with the president s concerns about being pulled into other events. But i do agree with michael that, at this point, i think they are trying to distinguish it from other kinds of situations like the situation in syria which clearly is horrific and is involved thousands, tens of thousands of civilian deaths, but i dont know if its exactly genocide. N then theres also been a number of situations in africa where the administration hasnt acted as forcefully maybe as it did yesterday with respect to the plight of these yazidis. One thing ive been wondering about is whether this is truly a universal humanitarian obligation on the part of the United States and the view of this administration or if theres Something Special about iraq that gives us some sort of heightened obligation. The white house hasnt really clarified that too much at this pount. This is the problem with this term. It triggers such diverse reactions and so little clarity about what exactly it should trigger. Michael, you unearthed a 2007 quote from at the time candidate barack obama saying genocide was not a reason to stay in iraq. Whats different now . Well, its fascinating. So the president , of course, campaigned in the 08 race. He had a campaign built on giting america out of iraq and ending the war. Almost nothing would shake him. All these questions about facts an the ground and would you slow it under this circumstance or another and a reporter said how about if genocide was breaking out. And obama said no, we have to leave and it wasnt just that we have to leave but he also implied we cant be going around the world solving humanitarian crises everywhere. Whats changed is obviously our army is out of iraq. Air lifting supplies to some people stranded on a mountain and a few air strikes is completely different from slowing our withdrawal from iraq. But its interesting because what the argument has changed somewhat. In what the president was saying back in 2007 seemed to be, we cant be the humanitarian cop all over the world and so we cant do it in iraq. He almost seemed to be suggesting we cant do it anywhere. What he said last night was more the effect of, we can do it here. That doesnt mean we can and will do it everywhere. In a place where you have a targeted narrow mission with low risk to american forces, no boots an the ground, yes well do it. So thats whats changed. Its interesting because all of this seems to stem from the president genuinely caring about dealing with mass atrocities. Were seeing some of the numbers here that may be triggering that instinct. Josh, youve been covering how the actual body in the white house, which was started in this past administration, the atrocities prevention board, is being tested by this situation and indeed the criticism of it in general at this point. People saying its, quote, less impactful and even superfluous. Why is that . Well, this was started with some fanfare to those who followed these issues in 2012, an Interagency Committee to escalate issues that have to deal with humanitarian crises, atrocities or genocides. One of the catch22s in connection with this is that panel is probably most successful in situations more lycra waike rwanda, potential e cleansing, ethnic strife in situations not at the top of the front page on a regular basis than it is in, say, a situation like syria or iraq. Because of the security concerns in syria and iraq, those situations get escalated to the National Security council very quickly and all the way to the president. In which case this body is somewhat superfluous. I say this as someone who admired its creation a great deal. It tends to be purely talk. It can raise awareness but its not a body that can trigger action and certainly hasnt done. Appreciate your reporting on it. Appreciate both of your joining me here. Thanks, ronan. Up next, taking a look back at the historical relationship between our president s and iraq. We dig into the past in forming the president , up next. We are following breaking news about the operations in iraq. Deputy spoex american at the state department is doing a briefing right now. Lets listen. Obviously its something we constantly monitor, but were focused on irbil operationally. But there have been isil bombings in baghdad for years. But we look at the threat and the picture. We saw here both a humanitarian situation where the u. S. Military had unique capabilities to bring to bear that could be brought very quickly to bear in a very urgent crisis. Also, a situation where you had isil advancing on irbil, where we have military capabilities we can use. The iraqis have been taking strikes of their own. Weve been working very close coordination with them out of our joint Operations Center in irbil and the one in baghdad as well. Ill go back to the humanitarian situation in a second. First a couple quick questions. How Many American citizens are at the consulate in irbil absent the military presence right now. We dont give exact numbers. Let me give a quick update. I know there are a lot of questions about the status of our consulate there. Its operating normally. There has been no change. We continue to monitor the security situation. Well take appropriate steps to mitigate the risk to our colleagues. We do this on a continuing basis. We dont comment on specific numbers. Were always reviewing Staffing Levels in light of the security posture. But i would note that one of the reasons, obviously not just to protect irbil, but that we want to keep our people there so they can keep working in this joint Operation Center to help the iraqis fight this threat. We dont want to have to pull them out. Were constantly reevaluating the security. I understand the reluctance to talk about specific numbers. Its not a reluctance. We just never do it. We know there are about 5,000 people in the u. S. Mission in iraq right now. The vast majority of them are in baghdad. So can you give some kind of for example, ive been told somewhere between 200 to 300. Im just not going to give any number ranges for security reasons. I understand the desire to have them. We have a large presence still in baghdad as well. You are correct on that. Could you talk about the capabilities of the peshmerga. Theres a lot of evidence to suggest theyre not particularly armed very well, dont have a lot of uniforms, for lack of a better phrase. Soing you talk about your assessment of their capabilities and to the extent the u. S. Is going to be helping them. Well, first, we have been advising and assisting the iraqi Security Forces and Kurdish Forces that are working to defend these areas broadly against isil. We have continued to have, for example, extensive isr operations over iraq. This is something we ramped up after we saw isil make some initial games some weeks ago as we talked about. And as well as i mentioned, our joint Operation Centers in irbil and baghdad. They are sharing information with commanders right now. So those are very strong relationships. And were in constant consultation with the government of iraq and the krg about how we can best provide this assistance. We are fully supportive and encouraged that today the iraqis had offered to provide air support and ammunition to them. Theyre working together really in an unprecedented way. In a way we havent always seen in the past to count eer this threat today. The Kurdish Forces have played a Critical Role in addressing this threat. We understand their need for additional arms and equipment and are working to provide those as well so theyre reinforced. Were bringing a lot of fire power to bear against this threat. Mainly by helping the iraqis, but as you saw today, with some strikes as well. Okay. And so, regarding the strikes that is the state Department Deputy spokesperson talking about the condition of our personnel in iraq, saying theres no status update as to the safety of consulate personnel in irbil and declining to give specifics on the number of personnel at risk there as well as talking about the kurdish militias and highlighting strong u. S. Support for them. Were going to keep track of that briefing for you. Of course, weve been following breaking news all our on iraq. The United States launching its first significant military action in that country since the withdrawal of forces in 2011. Air strikes against islamist militants mark a major departure for president obama, whose opposition to the iraq car fueled his rise to the white house. The president may have arrived at a real turning point today, not just for iraq, but for his own administration. How did we get to this moment . Well, theres a huge history which im not going to go into extensively. Let me point to two major historical events. One is the history of colonialism, particularly british colonialism, which resulted in the creation of this artificial nation of iraq. Its not an organic nation that arose out of its own history, that as we know merged together three antagonistic groups. The United States recognized this all the way back in 1930. Second big event is, of course, bushs war in iraq. He did not understand you cant fight a war on a deceptive basis and hope to succeed. And he also launched this misguided social engineering project to try to ut you areally remake Iraqi Society in ignorance of what was really going on in that nation. And the result is weve now seen the flareup once again of conflicts that have hundreds upon hundreds of years of history and cannot be resolved by American Military action. I think obama, for a long time, has understood that. That explains his positions on iraq. Against the war, wanting to withdraw the troops. But now he feels hes forced. Hes pressed into a position because of the humanitarian disaster in this area to use military operations. Professor, todays news adds to a long list of presidencies since the Reagan Administration to get tangled up in iraq. How will history look back on this particular beat in that story . Well, i think its unknown at this point how its going to look at this particular one. I think history is going to look at five successive president s in many ways very unwisely and without a lot of knowledge or sensitivity to the history of the region blundering into iraq, causing huge numbers of iraqi deaths, american deaths, wasting resources. The truth is, if the product of iraq was cabbages and not oil, we never would have been involved to this extent. I think theyre probably going to look at this obama intervention as another unwise move. Although, we dont know yet. Very important point. Alan, thank you. Thank you. That wraps things up for today. Thank you all at home for joining me. The reid report picks up our live coverage from here with Jonathan Capehart filling in for joy reid. Stay tuned for that. Hi, everyone. Im Jonathan Capehart in for joy reid. This is the reid report. We begin with break news on american air strikes aimed at isis in iraq. U. S. Forces have dropped two 500pound bombs in iraq. When the lives of american citizens are at risk, we will take action. A targeted air strike against the islamic state. When many thousands of innocent civilians are faced with the danger of being wiped out, we will take action. All the focus for the pentagon was on stopping that isis advance. The United States of america cannot turn a blind eye. This hour, we have all the details of the operation. Well discuss military options, who exactly is isis, and president obamas Foreign Policy as violence in the region erupts. We start our coverage with analysis of the air strikes themselves and what they say about americas role in the ongoing civil war. A short time ago, the president spoke with the