Wolf Blitzer delivers the most important breaking news and political, international, and national security stories of the day. Tune to The Situation Room weekdays 5-7pm ET on CNN.
She was Harvard educated, nine months pregnant, and spending a quiet Saturday afternoon with her husband at a mall in Nairobi– when together, they were gunned down by Somali terrorists. A brilliant vaccines researcher with the Clinton Global Initiative, Elif Yavuz is now being mourned by family, friends, and her boss, former Pres. Bill Clinton.
CNN's Chris Lawrence profiles the woman friends remember as "amazing," "wonderful," and "beautiful."
It's one week after Aaron Alexis opened fire at the Navy Yard in Washington, DC, and we are finally getting some answers to the question, "Why?" At a press conference today, the FBI released chilling new video of Alexis and discussed what may have led to his attack– the voices he heard, the markings on his weapons, and the electromagnetic waves that he claims were controlling him.
CNN's Joe Johns reports on the "delusional" man and tries to piece together a motive.
Sen. Ted Cruz tells CNN he feels terrific following his 21-hour speech on the Senate floor, in which he attacked Obamacare and protested a Senate vote to avoid a government shutdown. CNN's Dana Bash reports on Cruz's marathon speech, the reaction it received from the rest of the GOP, and what comes next for a continuing resolution.
Ted Cruz has taken the debate over Obamacare and a government shutdown and turned the spotlight on himself. Whether you love his "fight for freedom" or denounce his "political stunt," chances are you're talking about the freshman senator from Texas who is only nine months into his first term.
CNN's Jessica Yellin takes a look at the career of Sen. Cruz and his meteoric rise within the GOP and Washington.
In his address to the United Nations General Assembly, Pres. Obama covered a wide range of topics, including some strong words for Egypt. The Egyptian military helped to depose former Pres. Mohamed Morsy and the Muslim Brotherhood after mass protests filled the streets and led to violence that claimed hundreds of lives. Pres. Obama said of Mr. Morsy and the administration that followed him, "The interim government that replaced him responded to the desires of millions of Egyptians who believed the revolution had taken a wrong turn. But it, too, has made decisions inconsistent with inclusive democracy through an emergency law and restrictions on the press and civil society and opposition parties."
Wolf Blitzer interviews the new Egyptian Foreign Minister Nabil Fahmy about the ouster of Mr. Morsy and the state of democracy in Egypt.
More than 40 Somali Americans have been recruited by the al Qaeda-affiliated terrorist group Al-Shabaab, according to a Congressional hearing in 2011. The problem dates back to as early as 2008, and at least three young American men are believed to have carried out suicide bombings in Somalia over the last couple of years. Although Somali American communities like Minneapolis's are "100% against terror," analysts say there is a trend of young men fighting for the organization overseas.
But why? Who would give up a comfortable life in America to fight a jihad thousands of miles away in eastern Africa? CNN's Brian Todd explores how Al-Shabaab has successfully recruited so many young men.
CNN's Arwa Damon talks to eyewitnesses from inside the brutal attack on a mall in Nairobi, Kenya.
Al-Shabaab, the terrorist group claiming responsibility for Saturday's attack on a mall in Nairobi, is based in Somalia. But the organization has a history of trying to recruit in the West, and some alleged that two or three Americans were among the gunmen in this weekend's assault.
Brian Todd reports from Minneapolis, Minnesota, a major recruiting ground for the group, on how they have been so successful in recruiting young Somali American men.
CNN's Dana Bash interviews Sen. Ted Cruz, who wants fellow Republican senators to join him in his effort to fight against cloture and to filibuster a resolution that would fund the government and Obamacare.