U.S. Warplanes, Drones Attack 14 ISIS Targets Near Mosul
WHITFIELD: In Iraq, there's a battle raging over the area around the dam in Mosul. U.S. warplanes and drones attacked 14 ISIS targets near Mosul today. This follows nine air strikes led by the U.S. yesterday. Kurdish fighters are now battling hundreds of ISIS militants on the ground in an attempt to retake what is Iraq's largest dam. CNN's Anna Coren is Dohuk, Iraq which is north of Mosul. So Anna, you just got back from being embedded with Kurdish forces. What did you see and witness?</s>ANNA COREN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Fredricka, we just heard that Peshmerga forces are very close to seizing the entire dam. Apparently, they control one side of it. But they haven't controlled the entire complex as of yet. That is word from the head officials of the Kurdish regional government. That they are hoping that in the next few hours they'll be able to confirm they have managed to regain control of it. But of course, they lost it to ISIS militants several weeks ago. A major blow for the Kurds. And also, for the Iraqis that Mosul dam, the largest hydroelectric dam in Iraq providing power for both Mosul and for Baghdad. So today, with the Peshmerga special forces led by the commander who is the son of the president, they were inflicting real pain on the enemy. Heavy artillery, heavy missiles being fired at those enemy lines, with the smoke on the horizon, buildings on fire, certainly a lot of explosions. Several hours later, we were actually allowed down into that area that had been targeted building still on fire. The only problem, Fredricka, is that the militants as they retreated lay land mines. So, one of the trucks that was in our convoy actually got hit and many soldiers were injured. One of the soldiers actually died. So this is going to be a problem for all forces as they make their way to the dam. But we are hearing that they are very close to seizing it.</s>WHITFIELD: All right. Anna Coren, thank you so much. Appreciate that. All right, how crucial is this battle for Mosul in the overall fight against ISIS? Let's bring in "Spider" Marks. He is the CNN military analyst and a former senior army intelligence officer in Iraq. The U.S. has led now 23 air strikes so far. This weekend alone. We're seeing pickup trucks hit, humvees, all of that. Are these strategic strikes or are these, you know, really assisting in advancing the defeat of this group?</s>JAMES "SPIDER" MARKS, CNN MILITARY ANALYST: Fredricka, these are tactical engagements to try to give the Iraqi military in and clearly the Peshmerga and the Kurd forces up north and opportunity to get in a little space increasing amount of time they have to ensure that they can then take the offensive against ISIS. Clearly what you see around the Mosul Dam is extremely important because of its size and its ability to generate hydroelectric power. It has two spillways so you don't really control it until you control both. That allows pressure to be released. And you don't want to have the cataclysmic event where if this dam were to break, you would run the risk of flooding it downstream along the Tigris. But I would think that ISIS wants to retain control of that dam and would want to maintain its integrity because it generates this electric power. And they want to be able to use that as a weapon system to those who are under their control and clearly they set up a form of governance in place in Northern Iraq and you need to increase distance so the military forces both in Iraq and those up north Peshmerga can do something about</s>ISIS. WHITFIELD: You talk about risks. It would seem that there's great risk to take out ISIS and not damage the dam. How do you that?</s>MARKS: Well, you have great support from the United States Air Force and naval forces who are doing these very precise targeting runs against specified targets on the ground that have been identified as belonging to ISIS. So really this is a strategic engagement because you want to try to hold what ISIS has controlled. You are not going to win it back. You might be able to reclaim control of the Mosul Dam, but where ISIS exists, we want to try to help Iraqis hold that in place right now. So that you can then begin the larger strategic operation to try to beat them and push them away. So of course, there's risk involved in any military operation, this not being dissimilar for many others.</s>WHITFIELD: And then comparatively, you know, to what ISIS has going on, how capable are Kurdish fighters?</s>MARKS: The Kurdish Peshmerga are quite capable. Now they've had some engagements with ISIS and they've had some challenges, but they are a very well trained, very capable, and most recently, they've had some great success so the United States certainly stands to gain in a tactical sense by reinforcing the Kurds successes that they've been able to achieve on the ground in Northern Iraq. The long-term challenge is you reinforce Peshmerga at the expense of the other Iraqi security forces and now you've created some distance between both government in Baghdad and government up north in Erbil. What you don't want to have is that type of long-term strategic rift. However, you have to address the immediate concern right now, which is ISIS and their success on the ground so you reinforce success where you see it and that's with Peshmerga.</s>WHITFIELD: All right, James "Spider" Marks, thanks so much.</s>MARKS: Thanks, Fredricka. Appreciate it.</s>WHITFIELD: All right, now to the intensifying battles in Eastern Ukraine. Officials there say pro-Russian militants shot down a Ukrainian fighter jet in the Luhansk region. That's where battles between those separatists and Ukrainian forces are raging. Ukraine says its troops are making significant gains there and officials also report a Russian convoy with three rocket launcher systems crossed into Ukraine from Russia overnight. Now to Liberia where gunmen stormed an Ebola isolation ward today. The attack happened in the capital of Monrovia. AFP news service reports as many as 29 Ebola patients fled as the gunmen looted the quarantine center. They say no one was hurt in the attack. The intent of the gunmen still unclear. Next, we'll get reaction from the family attorney of the unarmed teen killed by police last week. What exactly are they after when it comes to hiring a pathologist? He'll tell us.