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CNN Wolf Blitzer Reports
U.S. Launches New Military Offensive in Baghdad
Aired November 12, 2003 - 17:00 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.
WOLF BLITZER, HOST: Happening now: fighting back. U.S. military operations underway in Baghdad. The sounds of explosions caught on tape. Stand by for hard news on WOLF BLITZER REPORTS.
Ally attacks. A devastating blow in Iraq.
At the White House, an urgent search for answers.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
AMBASSADOR PAUL BREMER, U.S. ADMINISTRATOR IN IRAQ: We're not going to let them get away with that.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BLITZER: Is there a way to stop it? I'll ask former CIA director James Woolsey.
He survived the war but died a gruesome death at home.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
REMEDIOS DAVIS, MURDER VICTIM'S MOTHER: He would probably have been safer if he stayed in Iraq.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BLITZER: The Rosie O'Donnell case. Is there a winner? The judge decides.
ANNOUNCER: This is WOLF BLITZER REPORTS for Wednesday, November 12, 2003.
BLITZER: Baghdad. Half a year after it fell to American troops, the Iraqi capital tonight once again felt the might of the U.S. military.
Dozens of powerful explosions shook the city, and heavy gunfire was heard. The U.S. Army says it hit a building used for planning attacks and guerrillas who carried them out. The assault followed a horrific attack on a coalition ally in the southern Iraqi city of Nasiriyah.
Bombers blew up the headquarters of Italy's paramilitary police, killing more than two dozen people, most of them Italians.
We have two reports. Our senior Pentagon correspondent, Jamie McIntyre, is standing by live.
But we begin in Baghdad with CNN's Matthew Chance -- Matthew.
MATTHEW CHANCE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Wolf, thank you.
In a possible sign of the U.S. toughening its stance and its policy toward Iraqi insurgents, the U.S. military has carried out two assaults on suspected militant targets in the Iraqi capital, Baghdad, the first on a vehicle traveling through the west of the city.
It was attacked by U.S. Apache helicopter. Apparently, the people inside, both of them were killed, according to coalition officials, are suspected of being involved in firing mortars towards coalition positions.
In the second attack, a powerful AC-130 Specter gunship was deployed to destroy a warehouse that U.S. military officials say was used by Iraqi insurgents to meet and to plan attacks against coalition forces. No word on the casualties from that particular assault.
All this, though, comes at the end of a day of terrible violence elsewhere in Iraq. At least 25 people have been killed in a suspected suicide bomb attack on an Italian police base in the southern Iraqi city of Nasiriyah. At least 15 of the dead are confirmed to have been Italian military personnel. Two Italian civilians and eight Iraqi civilians also died.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CHANCE (voice-over): This is one of the deadliest attacks on coalition troops since major combat was declared over. Eyewitnesses spoke of a truck ramming the gates of the Italian compound moments before the blast.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (through translator): A car came, a fuel tanker. There were two people were in it. The Italians opened fire, then both sides began to shoot. They went inside, and then there was an explosion.
CHANCE: The bomb ripped through the entire front of this three- story building. Soldiers scrambled through the rubble to find survivors.
In this relatively placid area of southern Iraq, it seems coalition forces are now ruthlessly targeted.
How to curb the violence and speed up the political process is the challenge for Paul Bremer. And the need for a plan appears urgent. With the attack on the Italians, more than 50 coalition troops have been killed so far this month, in an insurgency even U.S. officials acknowledge could get worse.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CHANCE: Well, the question is, what the coalition officials are going to do about it. We already talked about this operation that was launched tonight in the Iraqi capital. They're calling it -- the U.S. have dubbed it Operation Iron Hammer.
But the other thing they say they're trying to do is improve and increase the number of security forces of the Iraqis that are on the streets to more effectively gather intelligence, Wolf.
BLITZER: CNN's Matthew Chance in Baghdad. Matthew, thank you very much.
Unleashing firepower rarely seen since the height of the war, the United States military striking back right now against Iraq's insurgents.
Let's go live to our senior Pentagon correspondent, Jamie McIntyre -- Jamie.
JAMIE MCINTYRE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Wolf, we've known for awhile that the ground combat is not over in Iraq. But in recent days we're learning that the air war is back, as well.
Today's air strikes in Baghdad are part of a broader campaign by the U.S. military to turn up the heat on anti-coalition insurgents.
The U.S. Air Force brought in an AC-130 gunship with a powerful side-mounted canon, a 150-millimeter Howitzer to level a warehouse in southern Baghdad tonight. It's the latest example of how the U.S. military is now using precision air strikes to ratchet up the pace and intensity of its counterinsurgency campaign.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
LT. GEN. RICARDO SANCHEZ, U.S. ARMY: We are taking the fight into the safe havens of the enemy and heartland of the country, where we continue to face former regime loyalists, criminals and foreign terrorists who are trying to isolate the coalition from the Iraqi people and trying to break the will of a coalition and the international community.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MCINTYRE: Today's strikes in Baghdad also involved U.S. Apache helicopter gun ships, taking on insurgents on the ground, a combined ground and air operation.
This follows other air strikes on Monday. Two-thousand-pound bombs were dropped near Saddam Hussein's hometown of Tikrit on an empty house after residents were warned to move away. Again, the idea to deny sanctuary by destroying a hideout of suspected insurgents.
And there were similar strikes near Tikrit on Friday and Saturday.
The U.S. military also says that this stepped up activity is, in part, because of better intelligence that they're getting from local Iraqis who support the U.S. coalition -- Wolf.
BLITZER: Jamie McIntyre at the Pentagon. Thanks, Jamie. Coalition forces staged a series of overnight raids near Saddam Hussein's hometown of Tikrit. Three dozen suspects were detained in connection with last week's downing of a Black Hawk helicopter. U.S. military sources say the suspects are all believed to be from the same cell of Fedayeen fighters.
Six Americans died when the Black Hawk went down Friday. The army says it was apparently hit by a rocket-propelled grenade.
Coalition forces today opened fire on a vehicle carrying a member of Iraq's governing council. Council sources say the incident occurred near a heavily guarded area of Baghdad and appeared to stem from a misunderstanding. One person in the car was wounded.
With the United States eager to start handing over power, the head of the Iraqi governing council is optimistic a timetable can, indeed, be met for writing a constitution and scheduling elections. The December 15 deadline for accomplishing those tasks is just a month away. But Jalal Talabani tells CNN, and I'm quoting now, "Everything will be OK."
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JALAL TALABANI, PRESIDENT, IRAQI GOVERNING COUNCIL: I think the governing council of Iraq is now working and doing well its duty. Iraqi governing council was founded in a difficult position, and it faces a lot of problems, but it's starting to work well.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BLITZER: The spiraling violence and the slow-moving transition in Iraq make optimism harder to come by over at the White House, where Paul Bremer, the chief U.S. civil administrator, was summoned for urgent consultations.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BLITZER (voice-over): Ambassador Bremer emerged from high level talks with a firm but gloomy assessment.
BREMER: We're going to have a -- difficult days ahead because the terrorists are determined to deny the Iraqis the right to run their own country. We're not going to let them get away with that.
BLITZER: Until now, President Bush had insisted the U.S.-led coalition would not yield control to a new Iraqi government until a new constitution was in place and democratic elections had occurred. But amid seeming already more organized and more deadly attacks, that stance now appears to be changing.
COLIN POWELL, SECRETARY OF STATE: We're looking at all sorts of ideas, and we do want to accelerate the pace of reform. We want to accelerate work with respect to putting a legal basis under the new Iraqi government.
BLITZER: Among the options Bremer is taking back to Baghdad for consideration of the council, the creation of an interim constitution and an interim leadership, along the lines with what the U.S. did in Afghanistan.
Bremer's talks at the White House, with the president and his top national security advisers, had an urgency, underscored by the latest attack against the Italian troops.
GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: The United States sends our deepest condolences to the families who died, the soldiers and policemen who died. We appreciate their sacrifices.
BLITZER: The CIA's latest assessment points to an increasingly sophisticated insurgency, not only inside the so-called Sunni triangle but beyond.
The Italians were killed in the southern city of Nasiriyah, which had been considered generally safe.
U.S. analysts say the insurgents in recent weeks have selected high value targets, designed to undermine support for the U.S.-led coalition. Friendly foreign forces, the U.N., the Red Cross, and, perhaps, most important, Iraqi police.
BREMER: Obviously, the terrorists are trying to encourage the Iraqi people to believe that the United States is not going to stay the course.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BLITZER: Here's your turn to weigh in on this story. Our Web question of the day is this: "Is U.S. civilian administrator Paul Bremer doing a good job in Iraq?" You can vote right now at CNN.com/Wolf. We'll have the results later in this broadcast.
While you're there, I'd love to hear directly from you. Send me your comments anytime. I'll try to read some on the air each day at the end of this program. That's also where you can read my daily online column: CNN.com/Wolf.
While the United States is striking back, the insurgents in Iraq have been attacking where and when they seemingly want, staying a step ahead of U.S. troops. A CIA assessment reportedly predicts that things will, indeed, get worse as the United States desperately searches for answers.
What are the various options out there? I'm joined now by the former CIA director, James Woolsey.
Dr. Woolsey, thanks very much for joining us.
JAMES WOOLSEY, FORMER CIA DIRECTOR: Good to be with you.
BLITZER: Your former colleagues at the CIA drew up, apparently this gloomy assessment that things likely to get worse, not only in the Sunni triangle but beyond. WOOLSEY: One of the generals, I think, said yesterday that over 90 percent of the attacks, though, that occurred in the country, including those outside the Sunni triangle, are coming from within that Sunni triangle. It's there that I think they really have to win the war.
And it is a war, and they need to call it that. It's a major insurgency by these defeated Ba'athists and probably some al Qaeda and al Qaeda-related terrorists coming in from outside working with them. We don't know the numbers.
BLITZER: So what must the U.S. and its coalition partners do now that they haven't been doing over these past six months?
WOOLSEY: A couple of things. They need really excellent intelligence, particularly there among the Tikritis, the Ba'athists and the Sunni triangle. They're starting from one down, because they should have trained a lot of Iraqis to go in with them, which the State Department had the money to do, back in -- it was long ago -- it was 1998, but didn't do it. Now, they're having to catch up.
So they need Iraqis going in. They can't do a lot of this themselves. They need information about who is who inside there.
I think, secondly, they do need a structure of some kind, an Iraqi structure that they can turn some sort of authority over to that will improve the...
BLITZER: Beyond the Iraqi governing council?
WOOLSEY: Well, Bernard Lewis, the great expert at Princeton on the Middle East, and I wrote a piece in the "Wall Street Journal" a couple of weeks ago that said why not use the 1925 constitution and appoint the governing council as the senate under the constitution? It's appointed by a constitutional monarch. And there's an elected parliament under it. They can amend the constitution.
So I think they've already got an interim constitution, if they'll use it.
BLITZER: What about the Afghan model that Paul Bremer apparently is looking at right now, even though some say Afghanistan is a very different country than Iraq?
WOOLSEY: It is a very different country. But the nice thing about this 1925 constitution is it's the Afghan model already in existence. The Iraqis didn't decide to give up their 1925 constitution. It was taken from then by military and then Ba'athist coups. They'd have to appoint a temporary constitutional monarch, but that I think could be doable. He wouldn't have to have long-term power.
BLITZER: Where do you stand on this debate whether NATO should take over? Or the U.N., for that matter.
WOOLSEY: Well, NATO couldn't even reinforce Turkey before the war, when they were under threat last spring, because even though they requested it, the French vetoed it. So we can't just wave a wand and say NATO will do such and such.
BLITZER: So General Clark is wrong, Wesley Clark, when he says let NATO take over?
WOOLSEY: Well I -- How does one get past the French veto? I mean, I think that it's good that we're moving and working with the Italians, and our heart goes out to them, all of us, for that loss today. But the Italians, the Poles, the British, the Australians are a number of countries that are helping.
I think that's probably better than relying on an organization that the French can exercise their veto in.
BLITZER: And in recent days, we've now seen U.S. air strikes against targets in Tikrit, Fallujah and now in Baghdad for the first time since April.
WOOLSEY: That's probably good news. That probably means they're starting to get much better intelligence on what to hit. And also that very small but excellent snippet that you had earlier about the arrest of some, I think, 36 people who were then probably involved in shooting down the helicopter from the cell of the Saddam Fedayeen. Those are the kinds of things we really need to see more of.
BLITZER: Where is Saddam Hussein?
WOOLSEY: I don't know. If I had to guess, I'd say in the Sunni triangle.
BLITZER: Why is it so hard to find him?
WOOLSEY: When I was in office, we were trying to find Ibid (ph) in Mogadishu. And we commanded the skies, and we had people in many parts of the city. And we still couldn't find him.
It's hard to find an individual, particularly if he's being protected by a clan, being hidden and the like. They need more Iraqis informing inside there. And it looks like it's beginning to happen.
BLITZER: James Woolsey, thanks as usual for joining us.
WOOLSEY: Good to be with you, Wolf.
BLITZER: The end and, yet, a new beginning for Rosie O'Donnell. Hear what the entertainer had to say after the judge's final decision.
Then this....
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
LANNY DAVIS, MURDER VICTIM'S FATHER: My son was not a coward. He just trusted people too much.
(END VIDEO CLIP) BLITZER: A soldier's family suffers the ultimate loss. Now, their son's death is at the center of a military mystery.
Terror ties. The link between al Qaeda and this deadly scene. We're live from Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BLITZER: Milestones in the trials of the D.C. area sniper suspects. Those stories in today's "Justice Report."
Opening statements are expected tomorrow in the trial of 18-year- old Lee Boyd Malvo. A jury of nine women and seven men, including alternates, was chosen today. Malvo is charged with murder and terrorism.
Meanwhile, lawyers for Malvo's alleged co-conspirator, John Muhammad, have rested their case. The defense called only five witnesses, who testified a total of less than three hours. That followed 14 days of testimony by 146 prosecution witnesses.
The highly publicized courtroom battle between Rosie O'Donnell and the former publishers of her magazine is now over. CNN's Mary Snow is in New York with more on this final day -- Mary.
MARY SNOW, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Wolf, the judge did not make a final decision. But he did come to a conclusion about the money. And big bucks were at state.
Gruner + Jahr sued O'Donnell for $100 million; she countersued for $125 million. The judge saying, besides legal bills, he saw no evidence of damages in this case.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SNOW (voice-over): After seven and a half days of testimony about the fireworks behind the scenes at "Rosie" magazine, the end of the trial took a turn that either side seemed to expect.
Judge Ira Gammerman called publisher Gruner + Jahr's $100 million lawsuit against Rosie O'Donnell ill conceived, saying neither side proved damages beyond legal fees. And he said the magazine wasn't even profitable.
Both sides, he said, seemed to be looking for bragging rights.
Rosie O'Donnell left court saying she's glad it's over.
ROSIE O'DONNELL, ENTERTAINER: The story of this case is not who won or lost but simply how many times peace was offered and war was chosen by the other side. We can have peace in this world. We can have peace with each other. You have to want it, and you have to work for it.
SNOW: the judge's conclusions are not final. He still must decide whether Rosie O'Donnell or Gruner + Jahr breached the contract that led to the demise of "Rosie" magazine. O'Donnell claimed that G&J breached it by seizing editorial control. G&J claims O'Donnell breached it by leaving in what executives called a fit of tantrum.
Rosie's lawyers were careful to stop short of declaring victory.
MATTHEW FISHBEIN, O'DONNELL'S LAWYER: Whenever you're sued for $100 million, and you walk out of the courtroom with the judge basically telling you you're not going to have to pay a penny, it's hard to get any better than that.
SNOW: G&J's lawyer disagree that their lawsuit was ill conceived. They insist they lost $45 million in unfulfilled subscriptions, and they still want some damages.
MARTIN HYMAN, GRUNER + JAHR LAWYER: Gruner + Jahr believes in the inception of the lawsuit and believes that Rosie O'Donnell breached the contract.
Gruner + Jahr did not enter into this joint venture with the expectation to lose money or not make money. And the fact that the judge has expressed doubts has to whether or not "Rosie" magazine ultimately would have made money down the road does not render the lawsuit to be an ill-conceived lawsuit.
SNOW: Rosie O'Donnell says she wants reimbursement for legal fees, $8 million so far, $2 million more than she invested in the magazine in the first place.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
SNOW: And as for Rosie O'Donnell, she's ready to move on to the next chapter in her life. She's planning to open her new Broadway musical, "Taboo," starring Boy George. She invested $10 million of her own money in that play. On the invite list, her attorneys who represented her here.
At a press conference after the trial today, the attorneys for G&J were asked if they were invited. They said that no they weren't and they weren't planning to attend -- Wolf.
BLITZER: All right. Mary Snow, thanks for doing excellent reporting for us.
Striking back. We haven't seen pictures like this in some time. Big blasts in Baghdad. This time, the United States doing the bombing.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
R. DAVIS: I said to myself, well, he would have been -- probably been safer if he'd stayed in Iraq.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BLITZER: Ultimate betrayal. Her son was stabbed multiple times. Were fellow soldiers involved in a murder, cover-up? We're live from Fort Benning with this shocking story.
High profile testimony. Both sides gear up for a long-awaited witness in the Scott Peterson case. We're also live in Modesto.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BLITZER: Now, to the soldier killed just one day after returning from the war in Iraq. CNN's Kris Osborn is over at Fort Benning with a murder mystery.
Kris, tell us what's happening.
KRIS OSBORN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: (AUDIO GAP) You hear about casualties and U.S. soldiers being killed, places like Iraq come to mind. But it was nearby here, at Fort Benning, Georgia, where one U.S. soldier was killed, allegedly by his fellow soldiers, who could potentially face murder charges.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
L. DAVIS: I gave him enough money to go, plus extra money. He said, "I'll pay you back, Dad. And I love you." He hugged me. That was the last time I got to hug him.
OSBORN (voice-over): Lanny Davis remembers the last time he saw his son, Army Specialist Richard Davis. The younger Davis survived not only Operation Iraqi Freedom, but also tours of duty in Bosnia and Kuwait.
DAVIS: He said it was pretty bad. He said he didn't like getting shot at, of course. And we told my wife -- we have two phones, three phones here. And he told her that -- his mom. He said, "Mom, I'm too young to die." He said, "I've got my whole life in front of me."
OSBORN: Davis' death came much closer to home, near his post at Fort Benning, Georgia. He disappeared July 14, one day after returning from Iraq. Police say he went to a strip club with four fellow soldiers and that Davis made a, quote, inappropriate comment to a woman.
Then, Columbus police say, the soldiers were kicked out of the club, fought amongst themselves in the parking lot, then drove to a wooded area. There, the police say Davis was beaten again and stabbed repeatedly. Investigators tell CNN the group set the body on fire and covered it with debris.
Back at Fort Benning, Davis was listed as absent without leave. His parents knew better.
R. DAVIS: I didn't believe that he went AWOL or just booked, you know, because he got his car here waiting for him. And we just had the engine fixed. And he said, "Mom, don't fix everything. Leave some stuff for me to do."
OSBORN: For months his father pestered the Army, but nothing happened until last week when an informant led police to the body in the woods near Fort Benning.
L. DAVIS: I kept saying I know somebody knows something. And knows something happened to my son. Now it turned out that every one of them was from that unit.
OSBORN: Three soldiers who were with Davis that night are now jailed in Columbus, charged with concealing a death.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: All the evidence pointed to the fourth individual, who has not been brought here, as the one that actually did the killing.
OSBORN: The fourth, who police say stabbed Davis, is being held in California, awaiting extradition.
It's cold comfort for a father haunted by thoughts of his son's death.
L. DAVIS: I'm just thinking that maybe at the last moments he might have said, "Help, Momma or Daddy. Help," you know. My son was not a coward. He just trusted people too much.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
OSBORN: Very emotional here, Wolf, for many people particularly family members of those involved.
I can tell you that Columbus police said the investigation is ongoing, and they are awaiting the final autopsy results, which will determine the cause of death, key information they say, in determining whether or not it was the stabbing or the beating that ultimately caused the death of Specialist Davis. That information could wind up being critical in who winds up potentially facing murder charges -- Wolf.
BLITZER: Kris Osborn with a very sad story. Kris, thanks very much for that report.
Engaging the insurgents. The U.S. military strikes back. But will it be enough to quell more attacks? I'll speak live with Retired U.S. Army General David Grange.
Plus, this: al Qaeda claims responsibility for this deadly attack. What made Riyadh a target of terror?
And vanished in Nevada. A mother disappears without a trace. Does her 3-year-old son hold the answer to her disappearance?
Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BLITZER: Welcome back to CNN.
These scenes, reminiscent of the war, U.S.-led attacks in Baghdad. Happening today, a new aggressive operation under way. We'll have details.
First, though, a quick check of the latest headlines.
(NEWSBREAK)
BLITZER: American forces unleashed fierce attacks against insurgents in Baghdad today. U.S. Army officials, calling the attacks Operation Iron Hammer, saying that in one attack in southern Baghdad, an AC-130 gunship destroyed a warehouse used by insurgents for planning attacks against American and coalition forces. In another assault, in western Baghdad, Army Apache helicopters fired on insurgents trying to escape in a van, killing two people. Five others were captured. Officials said guerrillas in that part of the city had fired mortars at American troops.
The attacks came hours after an attack on Italian military headquarters, killing 17 Italians and eight Iraqis in the southern Iraqi city of Nasiriyah.
Joining us now on the phone in Chicago to talk more about this is CNN military analyst, retired U.S. Army Brigadier General David Grange.
General Grange, thanks very much for joining us.
Tell our viewers why the U.S. is doing this now, to parrot the dramatic shift in tactics, launching these air strikes in and around Baghdad.
RET. BRIG. GEN. DAVID GRANGE, U.S. ARMY: Well, Wolf, what's happening is -- say, in May, there was about an average of five attacks on U.S. troops per month. And it's steadily increased until this last October where it was up to 35 attacks per day. And so the only way to handle this is to put the pressure back on this surge.
The insurgents smell blood, especially after the Chinook went down, the Blackhawk went down. They're trying to break the will of the American people to support the war as well as Iraqi people (UNINTELLIGIBLE).
BLITZER: We heard earlier from former CIA director James Woolsey suggesting that these attacks indicate the U.S. is getting better intelligence where these insurgents are. Do you buy that?
GRANGE: I do. And in fact, most of these attacks, because of rules of engagement, because of collateral damage and concern of harming noncombatant, that they have to have a pretty good intelligence to hit the right targets.
Now the one on the southside of Baghdad with the AC-130 gunship, the reason that platform was used is because it's very surgical. You can put a 105-round right into a certain particular 5-foot square piece of a building. The Apaches on the west side, same thing. They can take out a vehicle or stop people again in very accurate fire. So they're using (UNINTELLIGIBLE) types of force, that are surgical in nature. BLITZER: Assuming the air strikes work, General Grange, what -- and -- but they don't completely succeed in knocking out the insurgents -- what's the logical next step?
GRANGE: The logical next step is to maintain -- they have to maintain contact with the enemy. And it's not like an enemy maneuver element. It's pieces, obviously, of insurgents. The cellular structure, these small groups. But they have to maintain contact with them with relentless pursuit and either capture or kill them.
With the other hand they have to show compassion and continue to build the nation-building tasks on the reconstruction of Iraq. You have to be able to do both and balance that. And right now you see a surge, I believe, coming up with both.
BLITZER: There may not be major combat operations, but they are pretty significant, no matter how you describe them.
General Grange, thanks very much for that explanation.
And there's a new report claiming that al Qaeda carried out Saturday's attack in Saudi Arabia, which killed at least 17 people.
Our senior international correspondent Nic Robertson is joining us now live from Riyadh with the latest developments.
Nic, tell us what's happening.
NIC ROBERTSON, CNN SR. INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, Wolf, the what's interesting about this latest claim from al Qaeda is (UNINTELLIGIBLE) that they say that they hit the target that they were intending to hit, that they wanted to hit. They said that it had lot of security outside of it. And to them it meant that (UNINTELLIGIBLE) it was linked with the United States.
They say there were Americans among the injured. They say they killed 87 people, including 30 security officials on the gate of the compound. They say that the Saudi government here is distorting the image of what's happening by saying that it was Muslims that were killed. What we're seeing here is al Qaeda going on the PR offensive, having killed what everyone in the region here views as Muslims and Arabs during the holy month of Ramadan. It has caused a lot of anger here. Al Qaeda now going on a PR offense, saying they hit the right target, but saying their target, again, contained Americans, not the Arabs. And this is what we've been hearing from our sources here in the Saudi government as well -- Wolf.
BLITZER: There have been reports, Nic, that perhaps one American in Saudi Arabia was missing. Do you know anything about that?
ROBERTSON: Wolf, there was -- there were reports people were not accounted for, people who were in the country who were perhaps out and about in Riyadh or elsewhere at the time, that they hadn't been accounted for. All of those were cleared up on the night. There were no serious casualties for any U.S. citizens that's been announced so far. It doesn't appear we're about to hear about any yet either -- Wolf.
BLITZER: CNN's Nic Robertson for us in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Thank Nic very much.
The case against Scott Peterson. Prosecutors fighting to use evidence they call key. We're live from Modesto.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's dark when it's nighttime, when it's cold. And I start wondering where she's at and if she's okay.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BLITZER: A missing mother mystery. Why her 3-year-old son may hold the key to finding her.
And the battle over God and country in Alabama. A chief justice on trial over his devotion to the ten commandments. All that coming up.
First, a quick look at some other news making headlines around the world.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BLITZER (voice-over): Plea for peace talks. The Palestinian legislature approved the cabinet of Prime Minister Ahmed Qorei. Qorei called for an immediate cease fire with Israel and a return to peace talks. S senior adviser to Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon says Israel is willing to give Qorei a chance to do what is right.
Koreans on strike. Tens of thousands of South Korean workers are striking against government labor policies. The protest stopped production at the nation's largest car maker, Hyundai. Company officials estimate losses of $21 million.
Royal scandal. Britain's Prince Charles embroiled in an alleged sex scandal makes his first public appearance since returning home from Oman Sunday. He greeted pensioners at a hospital. Charles denies any involvement in the alleged incident made by a former royal valet.
Finger talking. Researchers in Japan hope to make calling home as easy as the click of your fingers. They have come up with a way of transmitting sound from phones into human bones via tiny vibrations from a device on a wrist band. Still in the experimental stage, researchers say it's the natural next step in cell phone technology.
Crocodile buster. Hong Kong is calling on the services of an Australian to capture a crocodile who has eluded local hunters with tranquilizer darts, nets and traps. The expert from down under owns his own crocodile zoo.
If the fugitive is apprehended, he or she will be escorted to a new home, the Hong Kong Zoo, after being on the run for more than a week.
And that's our look around the world.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BLITZER: Testimony has resumed in Scott Peterson's preliminary hearing with his former mistress Amber Frey expected to testify this week. But today's proceedings focused on DNA evidence. CNN's Mike brooks is covering the case for us. He's in Modesto, California. Mike, first of all, tell us about the new evidence involving surveillance video that's been released.
MIKE BROOKS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Wolf, after one of the breaks today, defense attorney Mark Geragos asked about a subpoena that he had served on the FBI. He said the FBI was basically blowing him off, as he said, and refused to answer the subpoena.
The prosecution said that they did find in fact that they had three videotapes each about an hour long that they were going to turn over to the defense team. Mark Geragos called it a shell game. He said, the prosecution at first said they didn't have any, now he said they did.
Apparently the videotapes come from a pole, a surveillance camera on a pole, that was installed across the street from the Peterson house on January 3. It was just taken down last week.
What is on these videotapes, we don't know. The prosecution said, they were basically surveillance tapes looking at Scott when he would leave the house and someone would follow him. Geragos was adamant about wanting to see these before he interviewed -- before any other witnesses for the prosecution testified.
Also today on the stand was Dr. Bruce Budowle. He's the senior scientist from the FBI lab in Quantico, Virginia. He was the rebuttal witness for the prosecution talking about the midochondrial DNA techniques that they were using to identify that single strand of hair found on pliers on Scott Peterson's boat -- Wolf.
BLITZER: CNN's Mike Brooks joining us from Modesto, covering this this trial -- this preliminary hearing I should say. Thanks, Mike, very much.
And we should find out, perhaps by tomorrow, what will become of the suspended Alabama chief justice Roy Moore. The so-called "ten commandments judge." The state's court of judiciary heard his case today and is deliberating.
Moore shot to national prominence when he refused to obey a federal court order to remove a ten commandments monument from the judicial building. Moore could be removed from office, reprimanded or exonerated. A decision is expected tomorrow at noon Eastern. And of course CNN will bring it to you live once it happens.
Here in Washington members of the United States Senate hauled in cots as they prepare for a 30 hour debate over judicial nominees. Irate Republican Senators are protesting filibusters blocking three of President Bush's judicial nominees.
The talk-a-thon set to start at the top of the hour is expected to keep them on the floor through the night and all day tomorrow. Democrats must hang around to object at every moment otherwise, the Republicans will break the filibusters and confirm the nominees.
Buoyed by endorsements today from two big labor unions with a total of some 3 million members, Democratic presidential frontrunner Howard Dean says he considered General Wesley Clark and other rivals for the ticket. I spoke with the former Vermont governor earlier today.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
HOWARD DEAN, (D) PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Well, he would be, certainly, on anybody's short list. He certainly has the ability to do that. I think he needs to clear up questions about where he stood on the war. He claims vigorously now that he opposed the war, but the fact is he said that he had said last -- previous October advising a congressional candidate, advised her to support it. Wrote favorably about -- that we needed to go in. He needs to square those statements with the American people. But he's certainly capable. He has an excellent resume. And we'll see how he does in the primaries.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BLITZER: And you can see my full interview tonight with Howard Dean on "NEWSNIGHT." That's at 10:00 p.m. Eastern, 7:00 p.m. Pacific. I will be filling in tonight for Aaron Brown.
Mystery in Nevada. A mother disappears. Her toddler found miles from home bruised and bleeding. I will talk live with the sheriff leading the search.
And happy homecoming, an unexpected lesson in love and life for one Mississippi school boy.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BLITZER: A tough and very sad case for police in Carson City, Nevada. They're looking for a missing woman, and their only witness is her 3-year-old son who says he saw his mother murdered. Investigators say 33-year-old Bertha Anguiano (ph) say dropped an older son off at school Monday morning. Her younger son who was with her was found 90 minutes later in front of a grocery store bleeding from his head. He told investigators they were taken by three men who killed his mother and hit him on the head and then pushed him out of the car. For more on this very disturbing case we're joined on the phone by the Carson City Sheriff Ken Furlong.
Sheriff thanks very much for joining us.
What's the latest on this case?
KEN FURLONG, SHERIFF: We are continuing to pursue leads on the mater. We have, because of the media publicity, been able to get folks to call in and give us contact information, things we need to trace down. We're not a whole lot closer to finding her location, but the story 's involving. We do have, as of this morning, some students at the school who said they witnessed a man in the parks lot with Bertha on the morning she disappeared.
BLITZER: How credible is what you've heard from this 3-year-old boy?
FURLONG: That's the most difficult thing we have to deal with right now. The 3-year-old seems very, very intelligent. He has an amazing personality, pleasure to be around, everyone who's had contact with him. The problem is, he's 3-years-old. Virtually every word he says requires a definition.
BLITZER: Are there any suspecting, any hard leads at this point?
FURLONG: None that we can really latch our fingers on to. We're left with an incredible amount of no evidence. She disappeared from a parking lot, and her son appeared 12 miles away. It has left us very frustrated in searching for her whereabouts.
BLITZER: Sheriff, good luck to you. It is a heart-wrenching story. We hope you get to the bottom of it quickly. Thank you very much for joining us.
Sweet surprise. A special gift for one young boy and a school day he'll never forget.
Plus the hot web "Question of the Day" is this, is U.S. Civilian Administrator L. Paul Bremer doing a good job in Iraq? You can still vote right now, cnn.com/wolf. The results for you when we come back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BLITZER: A Veteran's Day surprise one boy will never forget, it's our picture of the day. Mississippi first grader John Daren Mauro (ph) thought TV news crews were in his classroom for reports. But they were really there to capture his surprise reunion with his farther, Army National Guardsman Charles Mauro (ph), home on R&R after seven months in Iraq.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's wonderful. I mean, it's just a feeling, that you know, I just didn't know when I would have for a long time. I've been -- you know, it's been a long time. I've been waiting on it. The only thing I regret, you know, is I have to go back in 15 days.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: 15 days. I wish he could stay more.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BLITZER: Happy moment for that family. Happy moment for all of us to watch it.
Here's your chance to see how you're weighing in on the web "Question of the Day."
Is U.S. Civilian Administrator L. Paul Bremer doing a good job in Iraq. Look at this, 34 percent of you say, yes, 66 percent of you say, no.
As always we remind you, this is not, repeat not a scientific poll.
A reminder we're on weekdays 5:00 p.m. Eastern, also noon Eastern. I'll be back tonight 10 p.m. Eastern filling in for Aaron Brown. Until then thanks very much for watching.
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 November 12, 2003 - 17:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
WOLF BLITZER, HOST: Happening now: fighting back. U.S. military operations underway in Baghdad. The sounds of explosions caught on tape. Stand by for hard news on WOLF BLITZER REPORTS.
Ally attacks. A devastating blow in Iraq.
At the White House, an urgent search for answers.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
AMBASSADOR PAUL BREMER, U.S. ADMINISTRATOR IN IRAQ: We're not going to let them get away with that.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BLITZER: Is there a way to stop it? I'll ask former CIA director James Woolsey.
He survived the war but died a gruesome death at home.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
REMEDIOS DAVIS, MURDER VICTIM'S MOTHER: He would probably have been safer if he stayed in Iraq.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BLITZER: The Rosie O'Donnell case. Is there a winner? The judge decides.
ANNOUNCER: This is WOLF BLITZER REPORTS for Wednesday, November 12, 2003.
BLITZER: Baghdad. Half a year after it fell to American troops, the Iraqi capital tonight once again felt the might of the U.S. military.
Dozens of powerful explosions shook the city, and heavy gunfire was heard. The U.S. Army says it hit a building used for planning attacks and guerrillas who carried them out. The assault followed a horrific attack on a coalition ally in the southern Iraqi city of Nasiriyah.
Bombers blew up the headquarters of Italy's paramilitary police, killing more than two dozen people, most of them Italians.
We have two reports. Our senior Pentagon correspondent, Jamie McIntyre, is standing by live.
But we begin in Baghdad with CNN's Matthew Chance -- Matthew.
MATTHEW CHANCE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Wolf, thank you.
In a possible sign of the U.S. toughening its stance and its policy toward Iraqi insurgents, the U.S. military has carried out two assaults on suspected militant targets in the Iraqi capital, Baghdad, the first on a vehicle traveling through the west of the city.
It was attacked by U.S. Apache helicopter. Apparently, the people inside, both of them were killed, according to coalition officials, are suspected of being involved in firing mortars towards coalition positions.
In the second attack, a powerful AC-130 Specter gunship was deployed to destroy a warehouse that U.S. military officials say was used by Iraqi insurgents to meet and to plan attacks against coalition forces. No word on the casualties from that particular assault.
All this, though, comes at the end of a day of terrible violence elsewhere in Iraq. At least 25 people have been killed in a suspected suicide bomb attack on an Italian police base in the southern Iraqi city of Nasiriyah. At least 15 of the dead are confirmed to have been Italian military personnel. Two Italian civilians and eight Iraqi civilians also died.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CHANCE (voice-over): This is one of the deadliest attacks on coalition troops since major combat was declared over. Eyewitnesses spoke of a truck ramming the gates of the Italian compound moments before the blast.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (through translator): A car came, a fuel tanker. There were two people were in it. The Italians opened fire, then both sides began to shoot. They went inside, and then there was an explosion.
CHANCE: The bomb ripped through the entire front of this three- story building. Soldiers scrambled through the rubble to find survivors.
In this relatively placid area of southern Iraq, it seems coalition forces are now ruthlessly targeted.
How to curb the violence and speed up the political process is the challenge for Paul Bremer. And the need for a plan appears urgent. With the attack on the Italians, more than 50 coalition troops have been killed so far this month, in an insurgency even U.S. officials acknowledge could get worse.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CHANCE: Well, the question is, what the coalition officials are going to do about it. We already talked about this operation that was launched tonight in the Iraqi capital. They're calling it -- the U.S. have dubbed it Operation Iron Hammer.
But the other thing they say they're trying to do is improve and increase the number of security forces of the Iraqis that are on the streets to more effectively gather intelligence, Wolf.
BLITZER: CNN's Matthew Chance in Baghdad. Matthew, thank you very much.
Unleashing firepower rarely seen since the height of the war, the United States military striking back right now against Iraq's insurgents.
Let's go live to our senior Pentagon correspondent, Jamie McIntyre -- Jamie.
JAMIE MCINTYRE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Wolf, we've known for awhile that the ground combat is not over in Iraq. But in recent days we're learning that the air war is back, as well.
Today's air strikes in Baghdad are part of a broader campaign by the U.S. military to turn up the heat on anti-coalition insurgents.
The U.S. Air Force brought in an AC-130 gunship with a powerful side-mounted canon, a 150-millimeter Howitzer to level a warehouse in southern Baghdad tonight. It's the latest example of how the U.S. military is now using precision air strikes to ratchet up the pace and intensity of its counterinsurgency campaign.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
LT. GEN. RICARDO SANCHEZ, U.S. ARMY: We are taking the fight into the safe havens of the enemy and heartland of the country, where we continue to face former regime loyalists, criminals and foreign terrorists who are trying to isolate the coalition from the Iraqi people and trying to break the will of a coalition and the international community.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MCINTYRE: Today's strikes in Baghdad also involved U.S. Apache helicopter gun ships, taking on insurgents on the ground, a combined ground and air operation.
This follows other air strikes on Monday. Two-thousand-pound bombs were dropped near Saddam Hussein's hometown of Tikrit on an empty house after residents were warned to move away. Again, the idea to deny sanctuary by destroying a hideout of suspected insurgents.
And there were similar strikes near Tikrit on Friday and Saturday.
The U.S. military also says that this stepped up activity is, in part, because of better intelligence that they're getting from local Iraqis who support the U.S. coalition -- Wolf.
BLITZER: Jamie McIntyre at the Pentagon. Thanks, Jamie. Coalition forces staged a series of overnight raids near Saddam Hussein's hometown of Tikrit. Three dozen suspects were detained in connection with last week's downing of a Black Hawk helicopter. U.S. military sources say the suspects are all believed to be from the same cell of Fedayeen fighters.
Six Americans died when the Black Hawk went down Friday. The army says it was apparently hit by a rocket-propelled grenade.
Coalition forces today opened fire on a vehicle carrying a member of Iraq's governing council. Council sources say the incident occurred near a heavily guarded area of Baghdad and appeared to stem from a misunderstanding. One person in the car was wounded.
With the United States eager to start handing over power, the head of the Iraqi governing council is optimistic a timetable can, indeed, be met for writing a constitution and scheduling elections. The December 15 deadline for accomplishing those tasks is just a month away. But Jalal Talabani tells CNN, and I'm quoting now, "Everything will be OK."
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JALAL TALABANI, PRESIDENT, IRAQI GOVERNING COUNCIL: I think the governing council of Iraq is now working and doing well its duty. Iraqi governing council was founded in a difficult position, and it faces a lot of problems, but it's starting to work well.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BLITZER: The spiraling violence and the slow-moving transition in Iraq make optimism harder to come by over at the White House, where Paul Bremer, the chief U.S. civil administrator, was summoned for urgent consultations.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BLITZER (voice-over): Ambassador Bremer emerged from high level talks with a firm but gloomy assessment.
BREMER: We're going to have a -- difficult days ahead because the terrorists are determined to deny the Iraqis the right to run their own country. We're not going to let them get away with that.
BLITZER: Until now, President Bush had insisted the U.S.-led coalition would not yield control to a new Iraqi government until a new constitution was in place and democratic elections had occurred. But amid seeming already more organized and more deadly attacks, that stance now appears to be changing.
COLIN POWELL, SECRETARY OF STATE: We're looking at all sorts of ideas, and we do want to accelerate the pace of reform. We want to accelerate work with respect to putting a legal basis under the new Iraqi government.
BLITZER: Among the options Bremer is taking back to Baghdad for consideration of the council, the creation of an interim constitution and an interim leadership, along the lines with what the U.S. did in Afghanistan.
Bremer's talks at the White House, with the president and his top national security advisers, had an urgency, underscored by the latest attack against the Italian troops.
GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: The United States sends our deepest condolences to the families who died, the soldiers and policemen who died. We appreciate their sacrifices.
BLITZER: The CIA's latest assessment points to an increasingly sophisticated insurgency, not only inside the so-called Sunni triangle but beyond.
The Italians were killed in the southern city of Nasiriyah, which had been considered generally safe.
U.S. analysts say the insurgents in recent weeks have selected high value targets, designed to undermine support for the U.S.-led coalition. Friendly foreign forces, the U.N., the Red Cross, and, perhaps, most important, Iraqi police.
BREMER: Obviously, the terrorists are trying to encourage the Iraqi people to believe that the United States is not going to stay the course.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BLITZER: Here's your turn to weigh in on this story. Our Web question of the day is this: "Is U.S. civilian administrator Paul Bremer doing a good job in Iraq?" You can vote right now at CNN.com/Wolf. We'll have the results later in this broadcast.
While you're there, I'd love to hear directly from you. Send me your comments anytime. I'll try to read some on the air each day at the end of this program. That's also where you can read my daily online column: CNN.com/Wolf.
While the United States is striking back, the insurgents in Iraq have been attacking where and when they seemingly want, staying a step ahead of U.S. troops. A CIA assessment reportedly predicts that things will, indeed, get worse as the United States desperately searches for answers.
What are the various options out there? I'm joined now by the former CIA director, James Woolsey.
Dr. Woolsey, thanks very much for joining us.
JAMES WOOLSEY, FORMER CIA DIRECTOR: Good to be with you.
BLITZER: Your former colleagues at the CIA drew up, apparently this gloomy assessment that things likely to get worse, not only in the Sunni triangle but beyond. WOOLSEY: One of the generals, I think, said yesterday that over 90 percent of the attacks, though, that occurred in the country, including those outside the Sunni triangle, are coming from within that Sunni triangle. It's there that I think they really have to win the war.
And it is a war, and they need to call it that. It's a major insurgency by these defeated Ba'athists and probably some al Qaeda and al Qaeda-related terrorists coming in from outside working with them. We don't know the numbers.
BLITZER: So what must the U.S. and its coalition partners do now that they haven't been doing over these past six months?
WOOLSEY: A couple of things. They need really excellent intelligence, particularly there among the Tikritis, the Ba'athists and the Sunni triangle. They're starting from one down, because they should have trained a lot of Iraqis to go in with them, which the State Department had the money to do, back in -- it was long ago -- it was 1998, but didn't do it. Now, they're having to catch up.
So they need Iraqis going in. They can't do a lot of this themselves. They need information about who is who inside there.
I think, secondly, they do need a structure of some kind, an Iraqi structure that they can turn some sort of authority over to that will improve the...
BLITZER: Beyond the Iraqi governing council?
WOOLSEY: Well, Bernard Lewis, the great expert at Princeton on the Middle East, and I wrote a piece in the "Wall Street Journal" a couple of weeks ago that said why not use the 1925 constitution and appoint the governing council as the senate under the constitution? It's appointed by a constitutional monarch. And there's an elected parliament under it. They can amend the constitution.
So I think they've already got an interim constitution, if they'll use it.
BLITZER: What about the Afghan model that Paul Bremer apparently is looking at right now, even though some say Afghanistan is a very different country than Iraq?
WOOLSEY: It is a very different country. But the nice thing about this 1925 constitution is it's the Afghan model already in existence. The Iraqis didn't decide to give up their 1925 constitution. It was taken from then by military and then Ba'athist coups. They'd have to appoint a temporary constitutional monarch, but that I think could be doable. He wouldn't have to have long-term power.
BLITZER: Where do you stand on this debate whether NATO should take over? Or the U.N., for that matter.
WOOLSEY: Well, NATO couldn't even reinforce Turkey before the war, when they were under threat last spring, because even though they requested it, the French vetoed it. So we can't just wave a wand and say NATO will do such and such.
BLITZER: So General Clark is wrong, Wesley Clark, when he says let NATO take over?
WOOLSEY: Well I -- How does one get past the French veto? I mean, I think that it's good that we're moving and working with the Italians, and our heart goes out to them, all of us, for that loss today. But the Italians, the Poles, the British, the Australians are a number of countries that are helping.
I think that's probably better than relying on an organization that the French can exercise their veto in.
BLITZER: And in recent days, we've now seen U.S. air strikes against targets in Tikrit, Fallujah and now in Baghdad for the first time since April.
WOOLSEY: That's probably good news. That probably means they're starting to get much better intelligence on what to hit. And also that very small but excellent snippet that you had earlier about the arrest of some, I think, 36 people who were then probably involved in shooting down the helicopter from the cell of the Saddam Fedayeen. Those are the kinds of things we really need to see more of.
BLITZER: Where is Saddam Hussein?
WOOLSEY: I don't know. If I had to guess, I'd say in the Sunni triangle.
BLITZER: Why is it so hard to find him?
WOOLSEY: When I was in office, we were trying to find Ibid (ph) in Mogadishu. And we commanded the skies, and we had people in many parts of the city. And we still couldn't find him.
It's hard to find an individual, particularly if he's being protected by a clan, being hidden and the like. They need more Iraqis informing inside there. And it looks like it's beginning to happen.
BLITZER: James Woolsey, thanks as usual for joining us.
WOOLSEY: Good to be with you, Wolf.
BLITZER: The end and, yet, a new beginning for Rosie O'Donnell. Hear what the entertainer had to say after the judge's final decision.
Then this....
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
LANNY DAVIS, MURDER VICTIM'S FATHER: My son was not a coward. He just trusted people too much.
(END VIDEO CLIP) BLITZER: A soldier's family suffers the ultimate loss. Now, their son's death is at the center of a military mystery.
Terror ties. The link between al Qaeda and this deadly scene. We're live from Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BLITZER: Milestones in the trials of the D.C. area sniper suspects. Those stories in today's "Justice Report."
Opening statements are expected tomorrow in the trial of 18-year- old Lee Boyd Malvo. A jury of nine women and seven men, including alternates, was chosen today. Malvo is charged with murder and terrorism.
Meanwhile, lawyers for Malvo's alleged co-conspirator, John Muhammad, have rested their case. The defense called only five witnesses, who testified a total of less than three hours. That followed 14 days of testimony by 146 prosecution witnesses.
The highly publicized courtroom battle between Rosie O'Donnell and the former publishers of her magazine is now over. CNN's Mary Snow is in New York with more on this final day -- Mary.
MARY SNOW, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Wolf, the judge did not make a final decision. But he did come to a conclusion about the money. And big bucks were at state.
Gruner + Jahr sued O'Donnell for $100 million; she countersued for $125 million. The judge saying, besides legal bills, he saw no evidence of damages in this case.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SNOW (voice-over): After seven and a half days of testimony about the fireworks behind the scenes at "Rosie" magazine, the end of the trial took a turn that either side seemed to expect.
Judge Ira Gammerman called publisher Gruner + Jahr's $100 million lawsuit against Rosie O'Donnell ill conceived, saying neither side proved damages beyond legal fees. And he said the magazine wasn't even profitable.
Both sides, he said, seemed to be looking for bragging rights.
Rosie O'Donnell left court saying she's glad it's over.
ROSIE O'DONNELL, ENTERTAINER: The story of this case is not who won or lost but simply how many times peace was offered and war was chosen by the other side. We can have peace in this world. We can have peace with each other. You have to want it, and you have to work for it.
SNOW: the judge's conclusions are not final. He still must decide whether Rosie O'Donnell or Gruner + Jahr breached the contract that led to the demise of "Rosie" magazine. O'Donnell claimed that G&J breached it by seizing editorial control. G&J claims O'Donnell breached it by leaving in what executives called a fit of tantrum.
Rosie's lawyers were careful to stop short of declaring victory.
MATTHEW FISHBEIN, O'DONNELL'S LAWYER: Whenever you're sued for $100 million, and you walk out of the courtroom with the judge basically telling you you're not going to have to pay a penny, it's hard to get any better than that.
SNOW: G&J's lawyer disagree that their lawsuit was ill conceived. They insist they lost $45 million in unfulfilled subscriptions, and they still want some damages.
MARTIN HYMAN, GRUNER + JAHR LAWYER: Gruner + Jahr believes in the inception of the lawsuit and believes that Rosie O'Donnell breached the contract.
Gruner + Jahr did not enter into this joint venture with the expectation to lose money or not make money. And the fact that the judge has expressed doubts has to whether or not "Rosie" magazine ultimately would have made money down the road does not render the lawsuit to be an ill-conceived lawsuit.
SNOW: Rosie O'Donnell says she wants reimbursement for legal fees, $8 million so far, $2 million more than she invested in the magazine in the first place.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
SNOW: And as for Rosie O'Donnell, she's ready to move on to the next chapter in her life. She's planning to open her new Broadway musical, "Taboo," starring Boy George. She invested $10 million of her own money in that play. On the invite list, her attorneys who represented her here.
At a press conference after the trial today, the attorneys for G&J were asked if they were invited. They said that no they weren't and they weren't planning to attend -- Wolf.
BLITZER: All right. Mary Snow, thanks for doing excellent reporting for us.
Striking back. We haven't seen pictures like this in some time. Big blasts in Baghdad. This time, the United States doing the bombing.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
R. DAVIS: I said to myself, well, he would have been -- probably been safer if he'd stayed in Iraq.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BLITZER: Ultimate betrayal. Her son was stabbed multiple times. Were fellow soldiers involved in a murder, cover-up? We're live from Fort Benning with this shocking story.
High profile testimony. Both sides gear up for a long-awaited witness in the Scott Peterson case. We're also live in Modesto.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BLITZER: Now, to the soldier killed just one day after returning from the war in Iraq. CNN's Kris Osborn is over at Fort Benning with a murder mystery.
Kris, tell us what's happening.
KRIS OSBORN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: (AUDIO GAP) You hear about casualties and U.S. soldiers being killed, places like Iraq come to mind. But it was nearby here, at Fort Benning, Georgia, where one U.S. soldier was killed, allegedly by his fellow soldiers, who could potentially face murder charges.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
L. DAVIS: I gave him enough money to go, plus extra money. He said, "I'll pay you back, Dad. And I love you." He hugged me. That was the last time I got to hug him.
OSBORN (voice-over): Lanny Davis remembers the last time he saw his son, Army Specialist Richard Davis. The younger Davis survived not only Operation Iraqi Freedom, but also tours of duty in Bosnia and Kuwait.
DAVIS: He said it was pretty bad. He said he didn't like getting shot at, of course. And we told my wife -- we have two phones, three phones here. And he told her that -- his mom. He said, "Mom, I'm too young to die." He said, "I've got my whole life in front of me."
OSBORN: Davis' death came much closer to home, near his post at Fort Benning, Georgia. He disappeared July 14, one day after returning from Iraq. Police say he went to a strip club with four fellow soldiers and that Davis made a, quote, inappropriate comment to a woman.
Then, Columbus police say, the soldiers were kicked out of the club, fought amongst themselves in the parking lot, then drove to a wooded area. There, the police say Davis was beaten again and stabbed repeatedly. Investigators tell CNN the group set the body on fire and covered it with debris.
Back at Fort Benning, Davis was listed as absent without leave. His parents knew better.
R. DAVIS: I didn't believe that he went AWOL or just booked, you know, because he got his car here waiting for him. And we just had the engine fixed. And he said, "Mom, don't fix everything. Leave some stuff for me to do."
OSBORN: For months his father pestered the Army, but nothing happened until last week when an informant led police to the body in the woods near Fort Benning.
L. DAVIS: I kept saying I know somebody knows something. And knows something happened to my son. Now it turned out that every one of them was from that unit.
OSBORN: Three soldiers who were with Davis that night are now jailed in Columbus, charged with concealing a death.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: All the evidence pointed to the fourth individual, who has not been brought here, as the one that actually did the killing.
OSBORN: The fourth, who police say stabbed Davis, is being held in California, awaiting extradition.
It's cold comfort for a father haunted by thoughts of his son's death.
L. DAVIS: I'm just thinking that maybe at the last moments he might have said, "Help, Momma or Daddy. Help," you know. My son was not a coward. He just trusted people too much.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
OSBORN: Very emotional here, Wolf, for many people particularly family members of those involved.
I can tell you that Columbus police said the investigation is ongoing, and they are awaiting the final autopsy results, which will determine the cause of death, key information they say, in determining whether or not it was the stabbing or the beating that ultimately caused the death of Specialist Davis. That information could wind up being critical in who winds up potentially facing murder charges -- Wolf.
BLITZER: Kris Osborn with a very sad story. Kris, thanks very much for that report.
Engaging the insurgents. The U.S. military strikes back. But will it be enough to quell more attacks? I'll speak live with Retired U.S. Army General David Grange.
Plus, this: al Qaeda claims responsibility for this deadly attack. What made Riyadh a target of terror?
And vanished in Nevada. A mother disappears without a trace. Does her 3-year-old son hold the answer to her disappearance?
Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BLITZER: Welcome back to CNN.
These scenes, reminiscent of the war, U.S.-led attacks in Baghdad. Happening today, a new aggressive operation under way. We'll have details.
First, though, a quick check of the latest headlines.
(NEWSBREAK)
BLITZER: American forces unleashed fierce attacks against insurgents in Baghdad today. U.S. Army officials, calling the attacks Operation Iron Hammer, saying that in one attack in southern Baghdad, an AC-130 gunship destroyed a warehouse used by insurgents for planning attacks against American and coalition forces. In another assault, in western Baghdad, Army Apache helicopters fired on insurgents trying to escape in a van, killing two people. Five others were captured. Officials said guerrillas in that part of the city had fired mortars at American troops.
The attacks came hours after an attack on Italian military headquarters, killing 17 Italians and eight Iraqis in the southern Iraqi city of Nasiriyah.
Joining us now on the phone in Chicago to talk more about this is CNN military analyst, retired U.S. Army Brigadier General David Grange.
General Grange, thanks very much for joining us.
Tell our viewers why the U.S. is doing this now, to parrot the dramatic shift in tactics, launching these air strikes in and around Baghdad.
RET. BRIG. GEN. DAVID GRANGE, U.S. ARMY: Well, Wolf, what's happening is -- say, in May, there was about an average of five attacks on U.S. troops per month. And it's steadily increased until this last October where it was up to 35 attacks per day. And so the only way to handle this is to put the pressure back on this surge.
The insurgents smell blood, especially after the Chinook went down, the Blackhawk went down. They're trying to break the will of the American people to support the war as well as Iraqi people (UNINTELLIGIBLE).
BLITZER: We heard earlier from former CIA director James Woolsey suggesting that these attacks indicate the U.S. is getting better intelligence where these insurgents are. Do you buy that?
GRANGE: I do. And in fact, most of these attacks, because of rules of engagement, because of collateral damage and concern of harming noncombatant, that they have to have a pretty good intelligence to hit the right targets.
Now the one on the southside of Baghdad with the AC-130 gunship, the reason that platform was used is because it's very surgical. You can put a 105-round right into a certain particular 5-foot square piece of a building. The Apaches on the west side, same thing. They can take out a vehicle or stop people again in very accurate fire. So they're using (UNINTELLIGIBLE) types of force, that are surgical in nature. BLITZER: Assuming the air strikes work, General Grange, what -- and -- but they don't completely succeed in knocking out the insurgents -- what's the logical next step?
GRANGE: The logical next step is to maintain -- they have to maintain contact with the enemy. And it's not like an enemy maneuver element. It's pieces, obviously, of insurgents. The cellular structure, these small groups. But they have to maintain contact with them with relentless pursuit and either capture or kill them.
With the other hand they have to show compassion and continue to build the nation-building tasks on the reconstruction of Iraq. You have to be able to do both and balance that. And right now you see a surge, I believe, coming up with both.
BLITZER: There may not be major combat operations, but they are pretty significant, no matter how you describe them.
General Grange, thanks very much for that explanation.
And there's a new report claiming that al Qaeda carried out Saturday's attack in Saudi Arabia, which killed at least 17 people.
Our senior international correspondent Nic Robertson is joining us now live from Riyadh with the latest developments.
Nic, tell us what's happening.
NIC ROBERTSON, CNN SR. INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, Wolf, the what's interesting about this latest claim from al Qaeda is (UNINTELLIGIBLE) that they say that they hit the target that they were intending to hit, that they wanted to hit. They said that it had lot of security outside of it. And to them it meant that (UNINTELLIGIBLE) it was linked with the United States.
They say there were Americans among the injured. They say they killed 87 people, including 30 security officials on the gate of the compound. They say that the Saudi government here is distorting the image of what's happening by saying that it was Muslims that were killed. What we're seeing here is al Qaeda going on the PR offensive, having killed what everyone in the region here views as Muslims and Arabs during the holy month of Ramadan. It has caused a lot of anger here. Al Qaeda now going on a PR offense, saying they hit the right target, but saying their target, again, contained Americans, not the Arabs. And this is what we've been hearing from our sources here in the Saudi government as well -- Wolf.
BLITZER: There have been reports, Nic, that perhaps one American in Saudi Arabia was missing. Do you know anything about that?
ROBERTSON: Wolf, there was -- there were reports people were not accounted for, people who were in the country who were perhaps out and about in Riyadh or elsewhere at the time, that they hadn't been accounted for. All of those were cleared up on the night. There were no serious casualties for any U.S. citizens that's been announced so far. It doesn't appear we're about to hear about any yet either -- Wolf.
BLITZER: CNN's Nic Robertson for us in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Thank Nic very much.
The case against Scott Peterson. Prosecutors fighting to use evidence they call key. We're live from Modesto.
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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's dark when it's nighttime, when it's cold. And I start wondering where she's at and if she's okay.
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BLITZER: A missing mother mystery. Why her 3-year-old son may hold the key to finding her.
And the battle over God and country in Alabama. A chief justice on trial over his devotion to the ten commandments. All that coming up.
First, a quick look at some other news making headlines around the world.
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BLITZER (voice-over): Plea for peace talks. The Palestinian legislature approved the cabinet of Prime Minister Ahmed Qorei. Qorei called for an immediate cease fire with Israel and a return to peace talks. S senior adviser to Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon says Israel is willing to give Qorei a chance to do what is right.
Koreans on strike. Tens of thousands of South Korean workers are striking against government labor policies. The protest stopped production at the nation's largest car maker, Hyundai. Company officials estimate losses of $21 million.
Royal scandal. Britain's Prince Charles embroiled in an alleged sex scandal makes his first public appearance since returning home from Oman Sunday. He greeted pensioners at a hospital. Charles denies any involvement in the alleged incident made by a former royal valet.
Finger talking. Researchers in Japan hope to make calling home as easy as the click of your fingers. They have come up with a way of transmitting sound from phones into human bones via tiny vibrations from a device on a wrist band. Still in the experimental stage, researchers say it's the natural next step in cell phone technology.
Crocodile buster. Hong Kong is calling on the services of an Australian to capture a crocodile who has eluded local hunters with tranquilizer darts, nets and traps. The expert from down under owns his own crocodile zoo.
If the fugitive is apprehended, he or she will be escorted to a new home, the Hong Kong Zoo, after being on the run for more than a week.
And that's our look around the world.
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BLITZER: Testimony has resumed in Scott Peterson's preliminary hearing with his former mistress Amber Frey expected to testify this week. But today's proceedings focused on DNA evidence. CNN's Mike brooks is covering the case for us. He's in Modesto, California. Mike, first of all, tell us about the new evidence involving surveillance video that's been released.
MIKE BROOKS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Wolf, after one of the breaks today, defense attorney Mark Geragos asked about a subpoena that he had served on the FBI. He said the FBI was basically blowing him off, as he said, and refused to answer the subpoena.
The prosecution said that they did find in fact that they had three videotapes each about an hour long that they were going to turn over to the defense team. Mark Geragos called it a shell game. He said, the prosecution at first said they didn't have any, now he said they did.
Apparently the videotapes come from a pole, a surveillance camera on a pole, that was installed across the street from the Peterson house on January 3. It was just taken down last week.
What is on these videotapes, we don't know. The prosecution said, they were basically surveillance tapes looking at Scott when he would leave the house and someone would follow him. Geragos was adamant about wanting to see these before he interviewed -- before any other witnesses for the prosecution testified.
Also today on the stand was Dr. Bruce Budowle. He's the senior scientist from the FBI lab in Quantico, Virginia. He was the rebuttal witness for the prosecution talking about the midochondrial DNA techniques that they were using to identify that single strand of hair found on pliers on Scott Peterson's boat -- Wolf.
BLITZER: CNN's Mike Brooks joining us from Modesto, covering this this trial -- this preliminary hearing I should say. Thanks, Mike, very much.
And we should find out, perhaps by tomorrow, what will become of the suspended Alabama chief justice Roy Moore. The so-called "ten commandments judge." The state's court of judiciary heard his case today and is deliberating.
Moore shot to national prominence when he refused to obey a federal court order to remove a ten commandments monument from the judicial building. Moore could be removed from office, reprimanded or exonerated. A decision is expected tomorrow at noon Eastern. And of course CNN will bring it to you live once it happens.
Here in Washington members of the United States Senate hauled in cots as they prepare for a 30 hour debate over judicial nominees. Irate Republican Senators are protesting filibusters blocking three of President Bush's judicial nominees.
The talk-a-thon set to start at the top of the hour is expected to keep them on the floor through the night and all day tomorrow. Democrats must hang around to object at every moment otherwise, the Republicans will break the filibusters and confirm the nominees.
Buoyed by endorsements today from two big labor unions with a total of some 3 million members, Democratic presidential frontrunner Howard Dean says he considered General Wesley Clark and other rivals for the ticket. I spoke with the former Vermont governor earlier today.
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HOWARD DEAN, (D) PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Well, he would be, certainly, on anybody's short list. He certainly has the ability to do that. I think he needs to clear up questions about where he stood on the war. He claims vigorously now that he opposed the war, but the fact is he said that he had said last -- previous October advising a congressional candidate, advised her to support it. Wrote favorably about -- that we needed to go in. He needs to square those statements with the American people. But he's certainly capable. He has an excellent resume. And we'll see how he does in the primaries.
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BLITZER: And you can see my full interview tonight with Howard Dean on "NEWSNIGHT." That's at 10:00 p.m. Eastern, 7:00 p.m. Pacific. I will be filling in tonight for Aaron Brown.
Mystery in Nevada. A mother disappears. Her toddler found miles from home bruised and bleeding. I will talk live with the sheriff leading the search.
And happy homecoming, an unexpected lesson in love and life for one Mississippi school boy.
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BLITZER: A tough and very sad case for police in Carson City, Nevada. They're looking for a missing woman, and their only witness is her 3-year-old son who says he saw his mother murdered. Investigators say 33-year-old Bertha Anguiano (ph) say dropped an older son off at school Monday morning. Her younger son who was with her was found 90 minutes later in front of a grocery store bleeding from his head. He told investigators they were taken by three men who killed his mother and hit him on the head and then pushed him out of the car. For more on this very disturbing case we're joined on the phone by the Carson City Sheriff Ken Furlong.
Sheriff thanks very much for joining us.
What's the latest on this case?
KEN FURLONG, SHERIFF: We are continuing to pursue leads on the mater. We have, because of the media publicity, been able to get folks to call in and give us contact information, things we need to trace down. We're not a whole lot closer to finding her location, but the story 's involving. We do have, as of this morning, some students at the school who said they witnessed a man in the parks lot with Bertha on the morning she disappeared.
BLITZER: How credible is what you've heard from this 3-year-old boy?
FURLONG: That's the most difficult thing we have to deal with right now. The 3-year-old seems very, very intelligent. He has an amazing personality, pleasure to be around, everyone who's had contact with him. The problem is, he's 3-years-old. Virtually every word he says requires a definition.
BLITZER: Are there any suspecting, any hard leads at this point?
FURLONG: None that we can really latch our fingers on to. We're left with an incredible amount of no evidence. She disappeared from a parking lot, and her son appeared 12 miles away. It has left us very frustrated in searching for her whereabouts.
BLITZER: Sheriff, good luck to you. It is a heart-wrenching story. We hope you get to the bottom of it quickly. Thank you very much for joining us.
Sweet surprise. A special gift for one young boy and a school day he'll never forget.
Plus the hot web "Question of the Day" is this, is U.S. Civilian Administrator L. Paul Bremer doing a good job in Iraq? You can still vote right now, cnn.com/wolf. The results for you when we come back.
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BLITZER: A Veteran's Day surprise one boy will never forget, it's our picture of the day. Mississippi first grader John Daren Mauro (ph) thought TV news crews were in his classroom for reports. But they were really there to capture his surprise reunion with his farther, Army National Guardsman Charles Mauro (ph), home on R&R after seven months in Iraq.
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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's wonderful. I mean, it's just a feeling, that you know, I just didn't know when I would have for a long time. I've been -- you know, it's been a long time. I've been waiting on it. The only thing I regret, you know, is I have to go back in 15 days.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: 15 days. I wish he could stay more.
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BLITZER: Happy moment for that family. Happy moment for all of us to watch it.
Here's your chance to see how you're weighing in on the web "Question of the Day."
Is U.S. Civilian Administrator L. Paul Bremer doing a good job in Iraq. Look at this, 34 percent of you say, yes, 66 percent of you say, no.
As always we remind you, this is not, repeat not a scientific poll.
A reminder we're on weekdays 5:00 p.m. Eastern, also noon Eastern. I'll be back tonight 10 p.m. Eastern filling in for Aaron Brown. Until then thanks very much for watching.
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