the key issue is, we've seen it ourselves, they've taken excavators in to cut huge trenches across that main highway. earth berms. it's pretty much impossible now. that's key in escalating pressure against raqqa. we shouldn't get ahead of ourselves, wolf, in all honesty because there's been talk for some time about pressure being ratcheted up against raqqa. we saw air strikes intensified and months ago. the ground forces simply aren't in place for that. the peshmerga prove their effectiveness in large numbers against sinjar. can they duplicate that against mosul and raqqa? tough in the weeks ahead. >> the iraqi military has to step up to the plate. so far they have not. thanks very much. nick paton walsh reporting for us from irbil in northern iraq. let's talk about what's going on, what's next in this entire operation. joining us, cnn national security analyst, former cia operative, bob baer. also joining us, law enforcement analyst, former u.s. marshal art