US democratic candidates gather for 1st debate on CNN

The United States Democratic presidential candidates appear on CNN for the first debate among the party members for the 2016 election.

The five candidates gathered in the iconic high-rise of Wynn Las Vegas, Nevada, for the debate Tuesday.

The party members will get together again in Des Moines, Iowa, on November 14 for their next debate to be aired on CBS.

The panel in this round of the debate consists of former US Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton, Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders, former Maryland Governor Martin Joseph O'Malley, former Virginia Senator Jim Webb, and former Rhode Island Governor Lincoln Davenport Chafee.

Here are some of the points the candidates discussed:

Middle East

Among other issues, the candidates made comments on the situation in Syria with Clinton repeating calls for a no-fly zone there "which would of course be part of a coalition."

"I worry about what will happen with ISIS gaining more territory and... posing a threat to our friends and neighbors in the region and far beyond," she said.

With Russia already launching airstrikes against Daesh Takfiris, O'Malley and Sanders disagreed with the idea, arguing it would escalate the situation.

"I think it's important that the US makes it very clear to [Russian President Vladimir] Putin that it's not acceptable to be in Syria creating more chaos," Clinton said.

Sanders slammed the US invasion of Iraq which he said led to this situation.

"Much of what I thought would happen with the destabilization of Iraq did happen," Sanders said. "I will do everything I can to make sure we don’t get involved in another quagmire, like Iraq,"

Apart from Clinton, all the other candidates seemed to agree that the Iraq war was a mistake.

Immigration

Clinton pointed out at the stance adopted by the Republican party over the issue of immigration, saying, they have "demonized and insulted hard-working immigrants."

O'Malley further called for exhaustive immigration reform, saying,"Our country is made stronger in every generation by the arrival of new immigrants.”

Sanders also voiced support for immigrants, stressing on his plans for a citizenship path and the "need to take people out of the shadows."

Surveillance

In response to the question “Is Edward Snowden a whistleblower or a traitor?”, Clinton said he has broken the law and should not be allowed to return.

Sanders, however, said former NSA contractor "played a very important role in educating the American people to the degree in which our civil liberties and constitutional freedoms are being undermined."

Sanders also slammed the US National Security Agency’s mass collection of emails and phone records.

"Bring him home," Chafee said.

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