Return to Transcripts main page
CNN Live At Daybreak
Double Suicide Bombings in Tel Aviv
Aired January 06, 2003 - 05:03 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: First the latest crisis in the Middle East, those double suicide bombings in Tel Aviv and the Israeli response.
Our Jerusalem bureau chief Mike Hanna is watching events unfold.
He joins us live now from Jerusalem -- good morning.
MIKE HANNA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Kelly.
Well, the death toll now fixed at 23 people. More than 50 people are still in hospital receiving treatment. Also killed in the attack, the two Palestinian suicide bombers who detonated explosive devices at the height of the rush hour in downtown Tel Aviv.
The Israeli government convened a meeting shortly after the attacks, Ariel Sharon meeting senior ministers. And sources close to these talks say that a number of measures have been decided on. Israel will restrict the movement of Palestinian VIPs, that is, Palestinian leaders in the West Bank. It will also curtail Palestinian transport in various parts of the West Bank.
In addition, we are told the Israeli authorities are going to close three Palestinian universities or Islamic colleges in the West Bank. Also, the meeting that was supposed to take place later this week of the Palestinian Central Committee to discuss political reform, Israel says it will not allow to go ahead. And importantly, too, Israel says it will not allow a Palestinian delegation to travel to London for talks that were due to take place later in this month.
So a series of Israeli measures and the Palestinian leadership severely criticizing these measures. The Palestinian minister Saeb Erakat saying that they serve only to encourage those intent on using violence to disrupt any attempts to resolve this ongoing conflict.
Meanwhile, Israeli forces continued the operations in the West Bank and in the Gaza Strip. Over 20 people arrested in the West Bank overnight and in the Gaza Strip a number of Israeli strikes at targets in Gaza, which the Israeli Army said were factories producing weapons.
So ongoing violence and clear now that an election due to take place at the end of this month is one that will take place against a backdrop of ongoing conflict -- Carol.
COSTELLO: Mike, the Palestinians want the Americans to intervene, to act as a third party. Is that really possible? HANNA: Well, there has been a lot of to and fro in terms of can there be an honest broker in this situation? Throughout two and a half years of ongoing conflict, various attempts have been tried, particularly through the Americans, trying to play some role of honest broker in this ongoing conflict between Israelis and Palestinians. But all of that appears stalled at this particular stage.
There is a U.S. road map, as it is described, that has been drawn up. But that is not going to be discussed, says Israel, until after the elections take place at the end of this month.
So in terms of any negotiated solution, well that is at a complete halt, in no small part due to the fact that Ariel Sharon insists he will not negotiate with anybody that he believes is behind acts of terror. He believes that Yasser Arafat and the Palestinian Authority are encouraging acts of terror, denied by Arafat and the Authority. But while this position remains, there can be no negotiated solution or even an attempt to negotiate a solution.
COSTELLO: All right, Mike Hanna live from Jerusalem this morning.
And we'll get more on this during AMERICAN MORNING WITH PAULA ZAHN when we're joined by Israeli Consul General Alan Pinkus. That'll be 7:30 Eastern, about two and a half hours from now.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
Aired January 6, 2003 - 05:03 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: First the latest crisis in the Middle East, those double suicide bombings in Tel Aviv and the Israeli response.
Our Jerusalem bureau chief Mike Hanna is watching events unfold.
He joins us live now from Jerusalem -- good morning.
MIKE HANNA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Kelly.
Well, the death toll now fixed at 23 people. More than 50 people are still in hospital receiving treatment. Also killed in the attack, the two Palestinian suicide bombers who detonated explosive devices at the height of the rush hour in downtown Tel Aviv.
The Israeli government convened a meeting shortly after the attacks, Ariel Sharon meeting senior ministers. And sources close to these talks say that a number of measures have been decided on. Israel will restrict the movement of Palestinian VIPs, that is, Palestinian leaders in the West Bank. It will also curtail Palestinian transport in various parts of the West Bank.
In addition, we are told the Israeli authorities are going to close three Palestinian universities or Islamic colleges in the West Bank. Also, the meeting that was supposed to take place later this week of the Palestinian Central Committee to discuss political reform, Israel says it will not allow to go ahead. And importantly, too, Israel says it will not allow a Palestinian delegation to travel to London for talks that were due to take place later in this month.
So a series of Israeli measures and the Palestinian leadership severely criticizing these measures. The Palestinian minister Saeb Erakat saying that they serve only to encourage those intent on using violence to disrupt any attempts to resolve this ongoing conflict.
Meanwhile, Israeli forces continued the operations in the West Bank and in the Gaza Strip. Over 20 people arrested in the West Bank overnight and in the Gaza Strip a number of Israeli strikes at targets in Gaza, which the Israeli Army said were factories producing weapons.
So ongoing violence and clear now that an election due to take place at the end of this month is one that will take place against a backdrop of ongoing conflict -- Carol.
COSTELLO: Mike, the Palestinians want the Americans to intervene, to act as a third party. Is that really possible? HANNA: Well, there has been a lot of to and fro in terms of can there be an honest broker in this situation? Throughout two and a half years of ongoing conflict, various attempts have been tried, particularly through the Americans, trying to play some role of honest broker in this ongoing conflict between Israelis and Palestinians. But all of that appears stalled at this particular stage.
There is a U.S. road map, as it is described, that has been drawn up. But that is not going to be discussed, says Israel, until after the elections take place at the end of this month.
So in terms of any negotiated solution, well that is at a complete halt, in no small part due to the fact that Ariel Sharon insists he will not negotiate with anybody that he believes is behind acts of terror. He believes that Yasser Arafat and the Palestinian Authority are encouraging acts of terror, denied by Arafat and the Authority. But while this position remains, there can be no negotiated solution or even an attempt to negotiate a solution.
COSTELLO: All right, Mike Hanna live from Jerusalem this morning.
And we'll get more on this during AMERICAN MORNING WITH PAULA ZAHN when we're joined by Israeli Consul General Alan Pinkus. That'll be 7:30 Eastern, about two and a half hours from now.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
