but still, there is growing optimism. while these air strikes intensify, i think many believe isis will be certainly shaken inside that city. does this then lead to something more substantial on the ground? there is talk of it here but also recognition that that's an extraordinarily difficult task in and of itself, anderson. >> nick paton walsh, be careful. this is really a war on many fronts with the added risk of isis focussing more attention on acts of global terror. the harder it gets hidden out ground and the caliphate. prospective from mark hurtling and james spider marks and both cnn analysts and with us is michael weiss, co-author of "isis inside the army of terror." you heard his report from syria, nightly air strikes on raqqah. wouldn't key members of isis be long gone having anticipated retaliation? >> possibly. they might be moving around in