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CNN Live At Daybreak

Bloodshed in the Holy Land

Aired June 12, 2003 - 05:31   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: Bloodshed in the Holy Land. It has been a week of violent tit for tat in the Middle East. The latest last night. Three Palestinian militants were killed in an Israeli missile attack in Gaza. And that came after a suicide bomber dressed as an ultra Orthodox Jew blew up a bus in Jerusalem earlier in the day. Sixteen were killed. Hamas says the bomber was one of theirs.
On Tuesday, Israeli forces hit two Hamas targets, killing five people. A Hamas leader who survived one of those attacks said Wednesday's bombing was a retaliatory strike and Israel says the Hamas leader was targeted because he played a major role in coordinating an attack Sunday that killed four Israeli border guards.

It does seem there is no end to the deadly exchange of violence in the Middle East.

Jerrold Kessel is keeping up with all of this, live from Jerusalem.

He joins us now -- good morning, Jerrold.

JERROLD KESSEL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Carol.

And if at this time yesterday we were saying that the prospects for the peace initiative launched by President Bush with such fanfare just a week ago in Aqaba, Jordan looked very bleak, indeed. Today given this vortex of violence, through the vortex of violence, it's difficult to see where there can be any way to salvage that peace initiative.

A lot will depend on three things -- what Palestinian Prime Minister Mahmoud Abbas is able to do in fulfilling his pledge to curb the militants; what Ariel Sharon, Israel's prime minister, plans to do; and what the Hamas is also able to do to carry out its threats to avenge itself and continue its bombing campaign against Israelis in Israeli cities.

Well, if Hamas does that, there will be no peace initiative. That does seem clear. But beyond that, what Mr. Sharon was saying this morning as the Israeli cabinet met to discuss the bleak situation and what some of these ministers were saying throws light on just those possibilities of the -- of that peace initiative remaining alive.

The defense minister said that Israel was in something of a bind because whereas Hamas were continuing its activities, he said, or tried to continue its bombings, Israel, in a way, was bound by the fact that President Bush has said the best way out of this were to try to get the Palestinian prime minister to curb the militants and for Israel not to be acting as it came in there, strictures of President Bush for the initiated Israeli action.

And Prime Minister Ariel Sharon said that the, Israel would, was witnessing a Palestinian prime minister who was fledgling and Israel needed to help him get to the level, the ability when he could take on Hamas. What does it mean help from Ariel Sharon? Does it mean in the interim Israel will go in with its attacks? Or does it mean it will wait, as the president seems to want, until the Palestinian prime minister is able to get into a position to take on the militants?

A very delicate situation for this peace initiative. It doesn't look good, though, at this stage given the degree of violence -- Carol.

COSTELLO: It certainly does not.

Jerrold Kessel live from Jerusalem.

Back in the United States in Washington, words of criticism and a call for isolation from the White House.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: For the people in the world who want to see Middle East peace I strongly urge all of you to fight off terror, to cut off money to organizations such as Hamas, to isolate those who hate so much that they're willing to kill to stop peace from going forward. I strongly condemn the killings.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: In the next hour, we'll talk more about the bloodstains on the road map for peace in the Middle East. We'll hear from a professor of Middle Eastern studies at Sarah Lawrence College, an author of "Islam and the West in the Modern World."

Also in the next hour of DAYBREAK, we'll ask our Senior White House Correspondent John King about the White House response to the Middle East crisis and what's next.

Log onto cnn.com for an in depth report, "Mideast: Land Of Conflict."

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 June 12, 2003 - 05:31   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Bloodshed in the Holy Land. It has been a week of violent tit for tat in the Middle East. The latest last night. Three Palestinian militants were killed in an Israeli missile attack in Gaza. And that came after a suicide bomber dressed as an ultra Orthodox Jew blew up a bus in Jerusalem earlier in the day. Sixteen were killed. Hamas says the bomber was one of theirs.
On Tuesday, Israeli forces hit two Hamas targets, killing five people. A Hamas leader who survived one of those attacks said Wednesday's bombing was a retaliatory strike and Israel says the Hamas leader was targeted because he played a major role in coordinating an attack Sunday that killed four Israeli border guards.

It does seem there is no end to the deadly exchange of violence in the Middle East.

Jerrold Kessel is keeping up with all of this, live from Jerusalem.

He joins us now -- good morning, Jerrold.

JERROLD KESSEL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Carol.

And if at this time yesterday we were saying that the prospects for the peace initiative launched by President Bush with such fanfare just a week ago in Aqaba, Jordan looked very bleak, indeed. Today given this vortex of violence, through the vortex of violence, it's difficult to see where there can be any way to salvage that peace initiative.

A lot will depend on three things -- what Palestinian Prime Minister Mahmoud Abbas is able to do in fulfilling his pledge to curb the militants; what Ariel Sharon, Israel's prime minister, plans to do; and what the Hamas is also able to do to carry out its threats to avenge itself and continue its bombing campaign against Israelis in Israeli cities.

Well, if Hamas does that, there will be no peace initiative. That does seem clear. But beyond that, what Mr. Sharon was saying this morning as the Israeli cabinet met to discuss the bleak situation and what some of these ministers were saying throws light on just those possibilities of the -- of that peace initiative remaining alive.

The defense minister said that Israel was in something of a bind because whereas Hamas were continuing its activities, he said, or tried to continue its bombings, Israel, in a way, was bound by the fact that President Bush has said the best way out of this were to try to get the Palestinian prime minister to curb the militants and for Israel not to be acting as it came in there, strictures of President Bush for the initiated Israeli action.

And Prime Minister Ariel Sharon said that the, Israel would, was witnessing a Palestinian prime minister who was fledgling and Israel needed to help him get to the level, the ability when he could take on Hamas. What does it mean help from Ariel Sharon? Does it mean in the interim Israel will go in with its attacks? Or does it mean it will wait, as the president seems to want, until the Palestinian prime minister is able to get into a position to take on the militants?

A very delicate situation for this peace initiative. It doesn't look good, though, at this stage given the degree of violence -- Carol.

COSTELLO: It certainly does not.

Jerrold Kessel live from Jerusalem.

Back in the United States in Washington, words of criticism and a call for isolation from the White House.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: For the people in the world who want to see Middle East peace I strongly urge all of you to fight off terror, to cut off money to organizations such as Hamas, to isolate those who hate so much that they're willing to kill to stop peace from going forward. I strongly condemn the killings.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: In the next hour, we'll talk more about the bloodstains on the road map for peace in the Middle East. We'll hear from a professor of Middle Eastern studies at Sarah Lawrence College, an author of "Islam and the West in the Modern World."

Also in the next hour of DAYBREAK, we'll ask our Senior White House Correspondent John King about the White House response to the Middle East crisis and what's next.

Log onto cnn.com for an in depth report, "Mideast: Land Of Conflict."

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com