Bestarmed, most dangerous terrorist group in the world has lost its biggest city, the selfdeclared caliphate, the socalled Islamic State is no more. Isis still holds some territory including the city of raqqah in syria, but that is not a state. And raqqah is now surrounded on all sides. Defeating the Islamic State is perhaps the biggest accomplishment of American Foreign policy in years. But there were no big announcements from the white house, no Mission Accomplished moment. If you watched our reports from here, you already know that iraqi troops did most of the ground fighting. The same iraqi army that once fled from isis stood up, fought hard, and won. But make no mistake. That only happened because american troops were deeply involved in this battle at every stage. As we will show you tonight, american fire power cleared the path for iraqi soldiers, and the americans provided a constant stream of intelligence, logistics, and planning. It wouldnt have happened without us. The question we will try to answer tonight is whether the end of isis in mosul brings us any closer to ending our commitment here or will it draw us deeper into a failed state . We left iraq once before. In 2012 when u. S. Troops pulled out, the American People were promised that the iraqi army and police, the ones we spent blood and treasure to train, were ready to hold this country together on their own. It took less than two years for that promise to be broken. Isis first rolled into mosul in the summer of 2014, a few hundred fighters armed with little more than rifles and a terrifying reputation. That was enough. Almost without a fight, 30,000 iraqi soldiers and 30,000 more Police Officers trained and armed by the u. S. Turned tail and ran, leaving behind their powerful americanmade weapons. Isis was suddenly the bestarmed terrorist group in history. Its fighters rolled from city to city in american humvees, picking up recruits, some of them young children, along the way. They crossed the border into syria, effectively creating a new state of their own, which they called the Islamic State. Their leader, abu backer al baghdadi stepped up to the pulpit of the grand al nuri moss, in mosul and declared himself the emir of the socalled caliphate. They swore that mosul would be theirs forever. There has been a massive wave of people fleeing their homes. The fear here is that this is just the beginning. In response, american troops were sent to iraq again with a new mission that sounded a lot like the old one to train, equip, and get the iraqi army back on its feet and put american fire power behind it. Late last year, the iraqi army started moving on mosul. They quickly raced through the open ground around the city. Isis fought hard for every inch of ground. We climbed into one of the Iraqi Special forces old american humvees. Its battleworn, shot up, and the driver said damaged by an isis suicide bomber today. Then it was on foot, quickly because rounds whizzed by. But it was in the city itself that the fighting got ugly. Iraqi forces backed by american fire power took the city street by street, house by house. Isis had years to prepare for this and was willing to use every dirty trick, human shields, booby traps, grenade carrying drones and many suicide bombers to try to hold on. By late june, isis fighters were in full retreat. They chose to blow up the nuri mosque along with the black flag that once hung from it. The battle had come down to this tiny piece of mosul, the old city where isis fighters decided to make their last stand. When we came back to mosul a couple of weeks ago, the city was almost unrecognizable. Isis militants were and still are fighting to the death for each and every house. We expected that, and we knew that there was no way the iraqi army backed by the might of american firepower was going to lose the battle. What we werent prepared for was the price the people of mosul would have to pay. This is what victory in mosul looks like. A city the size of philadelphia reduced to rubble, its people dead, injured, or displaced. And this is the old city where the last remnants of the isis fighters holed up. The colonel from the 82nd Airborne Division is the ranking officer. At this point, they really have their heel on the throat of isis and theyre about to finish them off in the next several days. Whats the fight been like from your Vantage Point . Its extraordinarily violent. Never in my lifetime have i seen close combat like this. 20 meter gun fights, hand grenade range all the time and its extraordinarily complex. But work generally sees the battle from far above the fray, on feeds fed into control centers in the rear, where his men order up artillery strikes, air strikes, and close support. This time around, the battle on the ground is left to the iraqi soldiers. So to see the fight up close, we joined a unit from the 16th division of the iraqi army inside the old city. Their commander gave us a quick briefing about what we could expect up ahead. They had hostages in the house. This is the way the fighting generally works. Very narrow streets. Theres some isis bodies up ahead. What theyve been doing is Holding Hostages in their houses, using them as human shields and fighting as the iraqi soldiers approach. We saw some of those human shields emerge like ghosts from the rubble. Injured, terrified, but alive. And finally free to escape. Overcome by the stench of death, we followed the soldiers right to their front line and into a house. Soon a gun battle erupted. We rushed upstairs to find the iraqi soldiers engaged in a firefight. The private explained that the enemy was just next door in a house full of civilians. Were on this rooftop here. They say theyre putting down some suppressive fire so that the Ground Forces can advance further on them. But the iraqis werent even trying to aim. They were just laying down fire. So when finally the gun battle died down, we assumed there could be no survivors. [ baby crying ] but there were. The soldiers helped them out of the house theyd been trapped in for weeks, lifting them to safety and treating them with kindness, but also with caution. Men were searched and questioned. There is no easy to way to tell injure se insurgents from civilians. We were just about to go into the next house when a grenade exploded. The private and three others came back injured, one very seriously. This is what makes this battle so difficult. The soldiers are under attack by some of the very people theyre fighting to rescue. When we got back to the command center, a meeting was under way. The senior iraqi general was telling his commanders that the fight was going too slowly, demanding that they push harder. Colonel work sat and listened quietly, respectfully letting the iraqi commander discipline his officers. How are you . Holy cow. Outside, he told me the meeting was pretty intense. Youre in the final days of this final push against isis. They fought their ass for 8 1 2 months now to get to this point, and theyre not pleased with the tempo with which the attack is happening right now in these final several days. What are you going to do . Are you going to go harder, faster . What happens now . Really its what they choose to do. Its all their for them. What did they choose to do . Its all there for them. As we climbed into his cramped armored vehicle, i asked colonel work about the challenges the iraqi soldiers are facing, telling good guys from bad on the battlefield. Isis has had a very deliberate campaign to put humans as obstacles between the advancing Security Forces just by creating uncertainty amongst the army, amongst the police, amongst the commandos that these civilians were attempt itting to rescue may present a threat to use because youve embedded a bomber in them. That creates some advantages for isis. What possible benefit, military benefit could isis get by attacking a bunch of women and children in their own town . I suspect that isis really has very little regard for anybody who doesnt share their deformed world view. So anybody who is attempting to escape is not one of them. Therefore, their life is meaningless. And civilians have been used as cover. Recent reports have suggested that american air strikes indiscriminately killed civilians, but colonel work kept calling it precision fire. When you walk around the old city, it looks like the place was carpet bombed. How can you have so much precision fire and yet so much devastation . Because the Islamic State fighters who occupied those buildings took someones home, took someones school, and turned it into a fighting position. Thats how that happens. It was precise. The strike hit exactly where it was supposed to. Precision or not, the fact of the matter is that large parts of this city have been flattened by american munitions. We will never know how many people were killed by air strikes or iraqi soldiers or how many isis killed with explosives. What we do know is that this fight was not just about territory. It was a race to save lives. When we rejoin the major and his men on the front lines the next day, the major says that four isis gunmen are holed up in a mosque around the corner. Theyre holding civilians hostage, he says, to protect themselves, shooting at them when they try to escape. With his men firing over their heads, the residents start to escape. They walk, dazed, into the arms of their rescuers. Some of these children have never experienced anything but war and siege, like 6monthold ahmed, malnourished and dehydrated in the 120degree heat. He doesnt know it yet, but hes an orphan now. Even the battlescarred soldiers are overwhelmed. These people are free now, but theyve lost everything. In the chaos, one of the soldiers grabs two men and accuses them of being isis members. Theyre dragged into a house for interrogation. How do you know them, i asked the soldier. Theyre my neighbors, he says. The old one preached the isis message, and this one is his son. They killed my friend. These soldiers clearly want to take revenge on these prisoners, but with our camera around, they dont. Wed seen them detain another prisoner, and after they told us to stop filming, heard his anguished cries. Other iraqi units have done far worse. We obtained a disturbing cell phone video showing soldiers from another unit beating prisoners. The video ends with two of them thrown off a cliff and shot to death. The marriajor spent very littlee interrogating prisoners. He had bigger things to worry about. His men were still exchanging fire with the isis fighters in the mosque. So he deployed the most powerful weapon he has, the radio. He called in an air strike. A few miles away in a control center, american and iraqi officers were watching the live feed from an overhead drone. They checked the coordinates the strike is southeast. Deconflicted the airspace, and approved the attack. An aircraft delivered the payload on the mosque just 50 yards from our position. The major and his men moved a few steps forward. On the battlefield as mosul, that counted as a good day. Are they going to be able to point to the debris of mosul and say, look what the americans and the shia government did to this sunni city and use it as a rallying cry . Oh, absolutely because isis continued to take every single home and turn it into a fighting position. Dont forget isis is to blame. Isis came in and hijacked the pen people of mosul. I cant imagine any reasonable argument that anybody but isis is responsible for the vast destruction of mosul at this point. We applaud and we congratulate the iraqi Security Forces for coming back and returning mosul to the people. The iraqi Prime Minister was quick to come to mosul, wearing a militarystyle uniform and proudly announcing that from the heart of a free and liberated city, we announce absolute victory. But to call this a free and liberated city is an insult to the people of mosul, who have lost their lives and their homes. And the absolute victory was achieved with a massive amount of support from 1,600 american servicemen who risked their lives clearing bombs ahead of advancing iraqi forces, calling in air strikes, nearly 9,000 of them, and providing a constant stream of intelligence, support, and encouragement. It still wouldnt have been able to complete this mission without a lot of american help. No, we did this together. This is a coalition of many. The important part about this coalition is the first member of the coalition is the iraqi Security Forces. They what happens if the americans, American Military, stops helping them . Do they fall apart again in. Were not going to stop helping them. Were going to continue. Im fully confident were going to follow the operation and help the iraqis dominate. For how long . I dont know. Do you have to stay with them forever . I dont know how long its going to take. Its iraq. Its complicated. But were going to be here to help them because our common enemy is isis and were going to continue to help them attack isis. When does the United States commitment to iraq finally end . I dont want to take a stab at American Foreign policy. What i will say is were fighting a common enemy here. We cant do it without them. They certainly cant do it without us. Isis lost mosul but where is its leader . The simple answer is we dont know. There have been repeated rumors hes been killed. Some say the russians killed him in syria. Others that a u. S. Air strike in mosul got him. At this point we cant confirm any of these rumors. Most likely theyre a combination of Wishful Thinking and a crude attempt to get him to step out of the shadows. U. S. Officials dont think hes in mosul, but one source told me there are teams on stand by watching closely just in case. Next up, Andrea Mitchell looks back at the way american president s, three so far, managed the war in iraq and asks some of the key architects of the american strategy when and if the mission will ever truly be accomplished. Plus treating the injured in mosul. An american medic and an iraqi doctor. Their extraordinary work to save lives. En a swing set standoff. And we covered it, july first, twentyfifteen. Talk to farmers. We know a thing or two because weve seen a thing or two. We are farmers. Bumpadum, bumbumbumbum choicehotels. Com. Badda book. Thats it . He means book direct at choicehotels. Com for the lowest price on our rooms guaranteed. Plus earn free nights and instant rewards at checkin. Yeah. Like i said. Book now at choicehotels. Com in our house, we go through a lot of mom et paper. So we switched to new charmin super mega roll. Get six regular rolls in one with charmin super mega roll our longest lasting roll. Guaranteed to fit. Enjoy the go with charmin. Welcome back. What does victory look like in iraq, and how do we get there . Its a question that has vexed american Decision Makers for many years, and nbcs Andrea Mitchell has covered every twist and turn along the way right from the beginning. Andrea . Good evening, richard. It has been 15 years of blood, sweat, and tears. And if the history of this war teaches us anything, it is that military victories can be temporary without a political strategy to pull together iraqs bitterly divided ethnic groups. What started 14 years ago with shock and awe and the march on baghdad led to a hard fought but deceptively straightforward victory. Since then, iraqis and americans have been living with the results of tragic miscalculations starting with that banner declaring Mission Accomplished. In the battle of iraq, the United States and our allies have prevailed. It was the first of many times americans would be told the war is over. It wasnt. But the pentagons decision to disband the iraqi army created a ready supply of highly trained insurge insurgents. For three long years, u. S. Troops won every battle but were clearly losing the war until 2007 when general David Petraeus returned with a new strategy, new troops coupled with outreach to sunni war lords. At first it seemed to work. Here he is in 2008 showing the baghdad neighborhoods for the most part peaceful. Mingle with the people, buy some dinner perhaps. We have waited for years for a sovereign Iraqi Government to make tough decisions, and thats exactly what is taking place now. But once again it was an illusion of peace. Iraqis elected a shia Prime Minister with close ties to iran. He cut off funds to petraeuss sunni arab partners, threw their leaders in jail, and refused to grant immunity so u. S. Troops could remain. Defense secretary leon panetta argued that thousands of u. S. Troops should stay behind anyway, but president obama eagerly announced a complete withdrawal. Another u. S. Leader declaring the iraq war was over. So tonight i am announcing that the american combat mission in iraq has ended. Operation iraqi freedom is over. The last convoy of u. S. Troops pulled out. In the vacuum, remnants of al qaeda in iraq rose again, transforming into the conquering army of the Islamic State, isis. By mid2014, isis controlled nearly a third of the country, threatening kirkuk in the north and the capital city, baghdad. Only three years after he had pulled out all u. S. Troops, president obama started sending americans back in. We dont have a strategy at all. Were basically sort of playing this day to day. Supported by u. S. Troops, weapons, and training, the iraqi army gradually stopped the isis advance and now has forced it out of the major cities it once held. I caught up with David Petraeus to ask what went wrong with his grand strategy. Did we withdraw too soon . What created the fertile fields for the planting of the seeds of extremism once again in iraq was the Prime Ministers actions to go after the senior sunni arab politicians and essentially undo the efforts of reconciliation that he and we had done together during the surge. Now mosul has been taken. Its on to raqqah. Can mosul hold . The question is not can you defeat the Islamic State. Its can you then achieve governance that avoids reestablishment of fields that are fertile for the planting of the seeds of extremism and the rise of isis 3. 0. Leon panetta says iraq is still not ready to go it alone. Are we going to continue to play whackamole in iraq in. The thing i worry about the most is we will again repeat the same mistakes weve made in the past by virtue of saying somehow, you know, weve now cleared mosul. Its up to the iraqis to try to deal with their own problems and try to provide security. I think that would be a terrible mistake. If we walk away again, then we will inherit the whirlwind again. A third american president now appears willing to commit american troops for the long term. We should never, ever have left. The vacuum was created, and we will figure something out. Our main thrust is we have to get rid of isis. Panetta who tried but failed to stop obama mr. Withdrawing combat troop argues today the u. S. Must stay indefinitely. I know people say why should we have that responsibility. The reason we have that responsibility is because we spilled a hell of a lot of blood in iraq and afghanistan, and it is our responsibility to make sure that ultimately those countries are stable and can govern themselves. Unlike his predecessors, President Trump is delegating most military decisions to his generals, including future deployments. Is there a risk that the president is now placing too much power in the hands of the generals and not enough leadership from the oval office . In the end, its the president of the United States that has to make the decision whether to do it or not because the American People elected donald trump as commander in chief, and he has that responsibility. Richard, the strategy is really not a strategy. Its basically a goal. Its the goal to try to rely on the generals, let them decide how many troops are needed, to delegate authority to the battlefield commanders. As you saw yourself in mosul, they are calling in air strikes. The iraqis are calling in air strikes. This has led to a much faster pace. The president s constant refrain as you saw in the piece is he wants to deliver on that Campaign Promise of defeating isis. And he seems committed to it, leaving the strategy, as i say, completely up to the generals, up to mattis and up to mcmaster, the National Security adviser. Richard . So hes delegating responsibility to the generals and im sure the generals are happy with that. It can be faster and more efficient. But does he have a larger vision . Does he have a bigger strategy beyond that, or is it just give the generals the authority they need, let them fight isis, and not worry about it . It seems to be we dont know what the larger strategy is. We havent heard enough from this president about it, and this delegation of authority does mean that theyre committed to stay, but we dont know what the mission is. What are they really trying to accomplish . The commanding general said this week that there will be an enduring u. S. Presence there because they do expect, as general petraeus said, that guerrilla groups will pop up. The Islamic State have lost the territory, but they have not disappeared. Theyre going to move on in iraq, trying to regain town and city after city as you will see yourself after mosul. But isis is not disappearing, and its moving on to raqqah. As youve seen, the americans already there. What they really need are leaders, and this does not mean a body because he has not shown that yet. Leaders Strong Enough in iraq to effectively govern and to control these rival ethnic factions equitably. Bottom line, that has not happened and there is no exit strategy. Richard . It sounds like a mission without an end. Exactly. Suddenly we have an enduring presence in iraq while everyones been focused on the russian skacandal, weve been committed to a forever war. Thanks, andrea. You dont run into too Many Americans working anywhere near the front lines in mosul, especially wearing civilian clothes. So when we came across one, we had to find out what he was doing there. Take cover. Take cover. Pete reed has had some very close calls in mosul, and hes not here on orders. He just showed up and started treating injured iraqis on the front lines. Why . Because no one else was doing it. How many patients have you treated . Between 7,010,000. A former marine from new jersey saving lives in the middle of a war zone. That story is coming up next. Stay with us. Here you go little guy. A cockroach can survive submerged underwater for 30 minutes. Wow. Yeah. Not getting in today. Terminix. Defenders of home. You. Smells fine, but yourin your passengers smell this bell dinging new febreze car with Odorclear Technology cleans away odors. For up to 30 days smells nice. Breathe happy, with new febreze. Not necessarily after 3 toddlers with boundless energy. But lower back pain wont stop him from keeping up. Because at a dr. Scholls kiosk he got a recommendation for our best custom fit orthotic to relieve his foot, knee, or lower back pain, from being on his feet. By reducing shock and stress on his body with every step. So look out world, dads taking charge. Dr. Scholls. Born to move. Welcome back. Imagine being in mosul, trapped in your house with isis gunmen preventing you from leaving because they think having civilians around means the americans are less likely to bomb. Then imagine everything around you is blowing up. Its 120 degrees out, and you have little or no food and water. And if you manage to escape, you find out that most of the hospitals are damaged or destroyed. This is what its been like for thousands of people in mosul. We met one american who decided to risk everything to try to help. The offensive on mosul triggered a human exodus as the iraqi forces drove out isis, civilians searched for safer ground. Many were in bad shape. The walking wounded. And those who could no longer walk. Thousands have suffered severe injuries but so close to the battle, theres just a handful of people to help them. Tell him to calm down. Pete reed is one of them. The 28yearold from new jersey used to be a u. S. Marine. Now hes back on the front lines, but this time in mosul, working as a medic. We find him and a team working on a group of iraqi soldiers, isis militants hiding in the rubble just threw a grenade at them. Hold pressure. And theyre not just treating soldiers. Half of their patients are civilians. Some of the most harrowing cases hes seen involve children. The mom stepped on an ied, and she was killed, and the kid was split open. A 2yearold. The kid was this big. Thats one of the cases that will stick with you. Thats one of the ones that will stick with me. We first met reed in november just after the mosul offensive began. He and a friend came to iraq to fight as volunteers, but they ended up doing first aid. I still have some fight left in me. I can use my medical for good. How many frontline medical posts like this are there in mosul right now . Youre standing in it. But working on the front line comes with certain risks, and reed has had some close calls. Take cover. Take cover. Theyre running. Its a full retreat. Its a full retreat. Like the time he was chased by an isis car bomb. Despite the dangers, eight months later hes still here. His clinic moving forward with the iraqi advance. Its now in an abandoned butcher shop in the heart of the old city. His team has grown to around 20 people, both foreigners and locals. Among them is dr. Aziz, an iraqi doctor from mosul. While reed changed his life for this war, dr. Aziz had his life changed by it. When isis took over, they forced him into service as one of the main hospitals. So this is the hospital . Yes. Who were you treating . Civilians or isis fighters . Most of them are isis fighters that come here to the emergency department. And what would have happened if you refused . If i refused, they may kill me. Now he treats female pages like this 12yearold who lost both eyes after an air strike. His former masters wouldnt have let him touch her. Their strict islamic rules even stopped him from helping a woman who was bleeding to death. They come and they prevent me, say what do you do . I say to them, i want to save her life because shes bleeding. He told me let her. Let mer dher die. This is not acceptable with them. So theyd rather you die than you touch her, treat her . Yes, and i became very sad to that woman that bleed until died, and i not do anything for her. So i am very sad. And when the father of two tried to run away from isis, they burned his house down. He showed me a photograph of the man he says is responsible. So this is the man who would have killed you . Yes. This is the man who burned down your house . Yes. The militant was once a nurse. Hes now in iraqi custody. Youre back now. Yes. How does that feel . This now is feeling of freedom. But the hospital is still not fully functioning. So for now, the People Living in whats left of mosul are relying heavily on ngos like reeds. He says hes treated between 7,010,000 people already, and even though the battle is now over, hes not stopping yet. At the end of it, they always talk about how many people died. I think thats what kept us here in the beginning is we wanted that number just to be a little bit less. If nothing else, we did that. When you hear a story like the one we heard from dr. Aziz, its easy to wonder what is wrong with iraq . Why has this country been so violent for so long . We look back to history for answers next. Stay with us. This this this this is my body of proof. Proof of less joint pain and clearer skin. This is my body of proof that i can take on Psoriatic Arthritis with humira. Humira works by targeting and helping to block a specific source of inflammation that contributes to both joint and skin symptoms. Its proven to help relieve pain, stop further joint damage, and clear skin in many adults. Humira is the 1 prescribed biologic for Psoriatic Arthritis. 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Getting the body you want without surgery, needles, or downtime . Thats coolsculpting. Coolsculpting is the only fdacleared noninvasive treatment that targets and freezes away stubborn fat cells. Visit coolsculpting. Com today and register for a chance to win a free treatment. Its hard to believe sometimes standing here in iraq that this place was the cradle of civilization. There is little left in this sunbaked, war torn country to remind us of the glories of mesopotamia. Thats because modern history has been particularly unkind to this country. If some of iraqs borders on this map seem rulerstraight, thats because they were drawn with one. Even before world war i was over, the British Foreign secretary mark sykes sat down with his french counterpart to carve up the middle east. The country they drew up, the one we call modern iraq, includes what were previously three separate provinces, a shia arab one in the south, a sunni arab one in the middle, and ethnic kurds in the north. It was never a happy or stable union. It saw coup after coup until saddam hussein, a sunni muslim and a military dictator, came to power. He forced the sects to live together whether they liked it or not. And for years saddam had american support. Washington was happy to let him keep the lid on iraqs fractured melting pot. But that all ended when saddam invaded kuwait in 1990. The first president bush crushed his army. And the second drove him from power and occupied iraq. For the first time in decades, iraqis got to participate in a free election, and the shiites, who are the majority sect, one by a landslide. Backed by the americans, the shiites were now in power for the first time in 1,400 years. The sunnis rose up, and the religious war that followed cost tens of thousands of iraqi lives and around 4,500 american ones. Then the americans left. The shiites kept most government positions but lost control of large parts of the country to isis. Now the americans are back and empowering a third sect the kurds, who have proven themselves to be our most reliable allies. But u. S. Support means the kurds feel Strong Enough to make a land grab and hope to break away from the rest of iraq, potentially tearing apart the old colonially constructed and badly managed country for good. And the kurds plan to make their move soon. Theyre holding a referendum on independence, a vote to leave iraq at the end of september. We were surprised to find that a champion of that cause is one of iraqs most recognizable faces. He spent many years on the International Stage as iraqs foreign minister, championing the cause of a united iraq. Not anymore. I think we have had enough. Our hopes to build a new iraq where all the iraqis could live together peacefully, that is a mirage. Now he and the rest of iraqs kurdish minority are going to try and break away and take with them the oil fields they grabbed while everyone was busy fighting isis. Theres no such thing as a nice divorce. There isnt, but there could be an amicable divorce. Who gets the oil in this divorce . Ey, hey youre not taking those. Whoa, whoa youre not taking that. Come with me. Youre not taking that. Youre not taking that. Youre not taking that. Mom, im taking the subaru. Dont be late. Even when were not there to keep them safe, our Subaru Outback will be. vo love. Its what makes a subaru, a subaru. I love you, basement guest bathroom. Your privacy makes you my number 1 place. To go number 2. I love you, but sometimes you stink. New febreze air effects with Odorclear Technology cleans. Away odors like never before. Because the things you love the most can stink. And try febreze small spaces to clean away odors for up. To 30 days. Breathe happy with new febreze. You can use whipped topping made. But real joyful moments. Are shared over the real cream in reddiwip. Reddiwip. Share the joy. The whole country booking on Choice Hotels. Com. Four words, badda book. Badda boom. Let it sink in. Shouldnt we say we have the lowest price . Nope, badda book. Badda boom. Have you ever stayed with Choice Hotels . Like at a comfort inn . Yep. Free waffles, cant go wrong. I like it. Promote that guy. Get the lowest price on our rooms, guaranteed. When you book direct at choicehotels. Com. Book now. Welcome back to erbil. This city is the beating heart of a unique little area here in Northern Iraq. The kurds who live here have been largely protected from iraqs recent chaos. In fact, this city has prospered in the relative safety while baghdad has become poorer and more violent. For years kurds followed the american plan and participated in the Iraqi Government. Now they say its time to go. I think we have had enough, and we believe that our hopes to build a new Democratic Federal iraq where all the iraqis could live together peacefully, that is a mirage. Hes one of the most recognizable politicians in this part of the world. He represented iraq on the International Stage. First as foreign minister. Then as deputy be Prime Minister. But he has retreated to the large estate in the hills above this city. And says the time has come to bury the dream of a democratic United Nation ever zblierk i spent the last 14 years in my politic life defending this country, its unity, how to reis integrate it into the international kmunlt but ive come to conclusion illustrate not working. Iraq is in a state of chaos next door syria. Seer. Yeah. In a state of chaos two failed states next to each other. Some might say the iraqi kurds are taking advantage of the situation to carve out their own piece. There is no Perfect Timing or conditions anywhere. Isis just broke in country into pieces. Indeed. Are you just finishing the job. No, in fact this has been our foal our right even before isis was born. In fact its been the goal for kurding all along which is why many suspect that the democratic process now under way is merely a rubber stamp for an opportunityistic land grab. In 2014 when they launched a counteroffensive against isis kurdish fighters made a bee line for the big prize, the oil fields. The kurds have a historical claim in the city which they call their jerusalem. But taking it is about more than national pride. It gave the kurds the one thing theyre semi autonous area was missing a stable stream of ref. You do you any scenario in which the iraqi kurd give up the oil fields youve taken by force. Not by force actually. I would say. I was there. Kurdish troops went in and dug a trench around the whole thing. We were there even before. So youre saying you retook an area always yours. Exactly we managed to reverse it. In the middle east there are a lot of conflict. There are conflicts a long time and the same rationale. A lot of conflicts and so on but rights must be right. There is no such thing as a nice divorce. There isnt but there could be an amicable divorce. Who gets the royale oil in this divorce. At the moment the kurds are exporting it. They will keep it. Well i hope so. But that hope is met with combative warnings from the government in baghdad and threats from shiite millisha saying they will not let the kurds break away. Do you think there is going to be a war that youre going to have a fight a war to get. No the goal of the kurdish leadership is really to do this peacefully without war or bloodshed. A big schweicha group has already said there will be a war if you declare independence. Well, if they attack kurd i stand definitely the kurds will defend themselves. The kurds have been called the largest nation without a state. Any form sizable and persecuted minorities in five countries. But zebari is only talking about one, iraq. Im mindful and careful about what im saying. We are specifically talking about iraqi kurd stand but not. This is about kurd stand. Within iraq, thats correct. Thats because this enclaf in Northern Iraq is the only place where kurds achieved in even a degree of autonomy thanks to the shrewd maneuvers of zeshys boss whose family ruled this for decades. Including some kurds ive spoken to said this isnt kurd i stand at all this is your president carving out his own private little state. This is not his project specifically. This is the wish, the dream of every kurd since he is born. U. S. Officials say kurdish independence is probably a matter of when not if process. And that open conflict with baghdad could follow. The kurds have heard all the warnings yet they are determined to go ahead with the vote on independence. We know we dont live in on an island. We live with our neighborhood with geoography history. If you get a new state across the world, the map is going to change. Are you willing to accept the consequences of that . Definitely there will be a change. I mean on the whole middle east is changing. So the map of the middle east is being redrawn. Of course look at syria. We want to have our right of selfdetermination, to have our own state, peacefully. The kurds drive for independence puts the u. S. In a difficult position. The American Military has a Strong Alliance with the kurds. But washington officially supports iraqi unity. At some stage the americans will have to pick a side. More coming up after the break. Stay with us. singsong bud singsong budget meeting. Sweet. If you compare last quarter. Its no wonder everything seems a little better with the creamy taste of philly, made with no artificial preservatives, flavours or dyes. Made with no artificial preservatives, this scarf all thats my left to rememb. Sayonara. What. She washed this like a month ago hows a guy supposed to move on . the long lasting scent of gain. Now available in matching scents across your entire laundry routine. When all is said and done, this is a victory. Isis was driven out of mosul. That in itself is an enormous achievement. Isiss image as an invincible force was buried in city. Equally important was the way the American Military worked hand in glove with an iraqi army that just a few years ago collapsed in disgrace. As weve shone you that victory came at a heavy price. There is no such thing as a free war. Iraqs second largest city lies in ruins. The residents have suffered another round of unimaginable violence. And they will never forget. The children you saw today coming out of the wrecks of homes, injured hungry, 30see, the children will never forget, neither will their parents. We have seen that insurgencies survive the moments. That the resentment that fuels the insurgency continues to simmer under the rubble only to reuprety raert thats whats happened here time and time again. Including in mosul. A city that american troops have libertied twice before whats to stop that from happening again . Will when American MilitaryOfficials Say the Iraqi Government and american officials both say that theyve set up iraq for success. They say that because they argue that life under isis was so bad that iraqis will have no choice but now to pull together and make sure that nothing like this ever happens again. But iraq doesnt seem to work that way. Ive been covering the american war in iraq for 15 years now. And the truth is ive seen more victories than defeats. And yet we are still here. And this is the first time the first time ive been covering iraq and not heard he anyone talk about an exit strategy. There doesnt seem to be a way for us to walk away from all of this. Thank you for joining us tonight. The 11th hour with Brian Williams starts now. Tonight it wasnt just that russian lawyer at that meeting inside trump tower. After insisting all the details were out comes word there was another russian in the meeting with the president s son. Its just the latest version of the story about the meeting where the russians were welcomed into campaign. And now tonight the president has another new lawyer. Tonight while donald trump will always have paris, another trip has been overshadowed by blockbuster news from home as the 11th hour gets under way on a friday night. And good evening once again from our nbc news headquartering here in new york. Day 176 the still young trump administration. They passed the six month mark next week just after donald trump left for fra