no deaths or injuries have been reported. how about that one? new video showing iraqi forces fighting to retake the city of tikrit from isis. the city is the hometown of former iraqi dictator saddam hussein. on now to syria. government air strikes there have reportedly killed the senior leader of the al qaeda affiliate al nusra front. a source tells cnn as many as 13 of the group s leaders were killed. harrison ford, his son says his dad is battered but okay. after a single engine plane he was piloting crashed thursday afternoon. we re told very close to home, but that s where he put it down. fire officials say ford suffered
cleansing down the road in iraq. the tense between shiites and shoe knees s and the kurds. i have spoken to u.s. army officers who are concerned about the same issue. tikrit is going to be which is where the action is happening now, is a test case. the shia militia outside tikrit could go in and could interpret any sunnis still there as people basically supporting isis. if we see ethnic cleansing in tikrit that would be an indicator that there will be cleansing in mosul, which is a bigger story. are the shiite militias they are helping the iraqi military. there are advisors from the iranian national guard. but are they loyal iraqis? i think they would listen to the iraqi leadership the clerical leadership. the iraqi shia. the shia have been trained in iran. they have close relationships
unfortunately, says this spokesman, we ve seen no effort by the international coalition and that really doesn t reflect well on them. the iraqi government has said it didn t request assistance from the coalition. if this operation is successful these fighters and iran will take credit. ben wedeman, cnn outside tikrit. iran s foreign minister says his country is helping with the fight against isis but in a very limited way. he spoke to cnn s christiane amanpour. we ve been assisting the iraqi people.
now the focus of iraq s biggest yet offensive against isis. the group overran the city last june. there are no signs of life there. many civilians have already fled, as well as some isis fighters, according to the soldiers here. we re at a base just two miles or 3.2 kilometers from tikrit. isis is just on the other side. that was an outgoing round. our visit was organized by a shia paramilitary force, created when the iraqi army nearly collapsed during last summer s isis onslaught. increasingly they re playing a central role in the fight against isis. one of the commanders has learned a lot over the last few months about isis tactics. their basic strategy he tells me is to avoid face-to-face
shia paramilitary force created when the iraqi army nearly collapsed during last summer s isis onslaught. increasingly, he s playing a central role in the fight against isis. one of the commanders has learned a lot over the last few months about isis tactics. their basic strategy, he tells me, is to avoid face-to-face confrontations. they depend on improvised explosive devices and snipers. the forces received training, ammunition, weapons and battlefield advice from iran. our tour included a stop at this mosque east of tikrit. until just a few days ago, it was deep inside isis controlled territory. iraqi parliament members see him visiting the troops and was quick to praise iran for its backing in the fight against