Return to Transcripts main page

CNN Live At Daybreak

An Aide to Muqtada Al-Sadr Now in U.S. Custody; 9/11 Commission Continues to Press Top U.S. Officials

Aired April 13, 2004 - 06:00   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.


CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning to you.
From the CNN global headquarters in Atlanta, I'm Carol Costello.

We're going to take you live to Baghdad in just a minute.

But first, the latest headlines now.

Some of the biggest names in U.S. law enforcement past and present face tough questions from the 9/11 Commission today. The panel wants to know why the FBI was unable to detect the 9/11 plot.

President Bush defends the administration's response to a pre- 9/11 memo warning of al Qaeda's threats. The president will speak about the memo in a televised news conference at 8:30 p.m. Eastern tonight.

Fighting between U.S. forces and Iraqi insurgents flares again in Fallujah. At least two Marines were killed, either others wounded in this latest attack.

Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon arrives in Washington today to prepare for a meeting with President Bush tomorrow. Mr. Sharon hopes to win support for an Israeli plan to withdraw from Gaza.

And suspended University of Colorado football coach Gary Barnett prepares for today's appearance before investigators looking into the athletic department's sex scandal.

To the forecast center now and Chad.

(WEATHER REPORT)

COSTELLO: Captured -- an aide to Muqtada al-Sadr now in U.S. custody. As you well know, al-Sadr and his supporters are responsible for much of the recent violence.

Let's head live to Baghdad to find out more.

And Jane Arraf -- Jane, how important is this for the coalition?

JANE ARRAF, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Carol, it's yet another wrinkle in this ongoing story, where these battles keep popping up, political/military. This one, we'll have to see where this goes. But certainly it is bound to increase tension that they have detained another aide of Muqtada al-Sadr. Now, this man, Hazen al-Aaraji, is the head of the Sadr office in Khadimiya. That's the neighborhood in Baghdad that's home to the holy shrines holy to Shias. He was detained from this hotel complex after meeting with local shaefs (ph). U.S. soldiers took him away. We are told that he's been held for questioning, but it's not clear yet whether he has been formally arrested.

Now, religious leaders who met this morning issued a statement warning that there could be dire consequences if this stand-off between U.S. forces and the Sadr people continue.

U.S. forces now still mobilizing around the holy city of Najaf, where others are trying to negotiate a settlement.

And there's so much else going on, Carol, I don't quite know where to start. But we are tracking reports that there has been a downed helicopter in Fallujah, west of Baghdad. An Associated Press reporter says he has seen a burning helicopter on the ground there. Sporadic firing continues despite a cease-fire, with two Marines killed and eight wounded in a firefight there last night.

We are also tracking reports that there has been an attack on a convoy of U.S. forces heading towards Najaf yesterday, with one soldier killed there.

And finally, Carol, a report still unconfirmed -- we are working on that -- that Russian hostages have been released. This report coming from the official Interfax News Agency in Russia -- Carol.

COSTELLO: Well, we hope that one is true.

Jane Arraf reporting live from Baghdad this morning.

Democratic presidential hopeful John Kerry is pushing forward with a plan to help restore Iraq's leadership. In a commentary published in today's "Washington Post," Kerry appeals to the United Nations to take the lead. Kerry writes, and I quote: "The United Nations, not the United States, should be the primary civilian partner in working with Iraqi leaders to hold elections, restore government services, rebuild the economy and recreate a sense of hope and optimism among the Iraqi people."

Kerry goes on to criticize the government's response to the worsening situation, saying they need to rethink their strategy.

The 9/11 Commission continues to press top U.S. officials, both past and present, for answers on what went wrong. Next on the list for questioning, the FBI.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

COSTELLO (voice-over): In the hot seat today, Attorney General John Ashcroft, former Attorney General Janet Reno and two former FBI directors. At issue, why authorities didn't prevent the attacks and how 70 separate investigations did not uncover the hijacking plot. One key element in today's testimony -- money. There have been suggestions by some that Ashcroft failed to recognize the important of counter-terrorism funding prior to 9/11. Ashcroft's spokesperson Monday flatly denied that charge. One commissioner, who requested anonymity, said that Thomas Pickard, who was the acting FBI director during the summer of 2001, told the panel earlier that Ashcroft had shown little interest in counter-terrorism prior to the attacks. Pickard is scheduled to testify today. When reached by CNN, he did refuse to comment, though, on his planned testimony.

In addition to Pickard, former Director Louis Freeh will testify. He'll likely be asked about the Bureau's failure to share information and its antiquated system of passing on possible leads to other divisions. One commissioner told CNN, "Everyone shares some blame for failing to stop 9/11," and he believes the final report, due in July, should name names.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COSTELLO: And by now, we all know about the presidential daily briefing of August 6, 2001. But what about the senior executive intelligence brief sent out a day later? There is criticism about omissions in the document, which went to senior government peacemakers. According to the Associated Press, the second memo did not mention the 70 FBI investigations into al Qaeda activities nor the May 2001 threat of a U.S.-based attack nor FBI concerns over surveillance of New York City buildings. Bush administration officials say memos to senior executives typically don't include the sensitive information found in the president's briefings.

And, by the way, 9/11 panel chairman and the vice chairman will be guests on CNN's "American Morning." Of course, that begins at 7:00 a.m. Eastern.

We are now getting word -- you heard from Jane Arraf -- we have now been getting word that the eight kidnapped workers from a Russian company have been freed in Iraq.

Let's head to Moscow to see what Ryan Chilcote has found out for us -- have they been released?

RYAN CHILCOTE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Indeed. Employees from the company that they work for, called the Inter Anerga Service (ph), or IES by its abbreviation, are confirming that all eight of the employees, all eight employees of this Russian company that were abducted yesterday afternoon in Baghdad have been released. We understand they're in good condition.

It's just been about 17, 18 hours since they were abducted initially -- Carol.

COSTELLO: How did their release come about? Do we know -- Ryan.

CHILCOTE: Very few details. In fact, I was just at IES' headquarters here in Moscow. The director of IES, the executive director, Alexander Rybinsky, telling me that ever since these eight men were driven off in an unknown direction, there'd been absolutely no contact whatsoever with the hostage takers. No demands had been made. Really, a very desperate and very confusing situation for the employees of this company.

At the same time, we do know that the Russian embassy and the Russian foreign ministry and the Ukrainian foreign ministry, as far as we understand it -- because five of these eight employees were Ukrainian nationals, three Russian nationals -- were working very hard to win their release. The Russian government making it very clear that it put no hope in the Iraqi police and that if necessary, it was prepared to act unilaterally to try and free these eight employees -- Carol.

COSTELLO: How many Russian and Ukrainian workers are in Iraq -- Ryan.

CHILCOTE: Well, that's a very good question. What we know is that this one company, IES, which repairs power stations and was at the time of this abduction repairing three power stations in the Baghdad area, has approximately 350 employees, most of which are Russian or Ukrainian nationals.

Now, there are more companies, more Russian companies working in Baghdad. But exactly how many Russian and Ukrainian nationals are in the country is unknown.

It is an important question, however, because the Russian foreign ministry, as we speak, says it is looking at a plan to evacuate at least some Russian nationals from that country. Earlier, they were talking about evacuating some of the employees of this company that had some of its employees abducted, also, from another company.

So that is a very important question. The Russian government saying that the situation in Iraq is simply too chaotic and they have to take some kind of action -- Carol.

COSTELLO: Ryan Chilcote reporting live from Moscow this morning.

Vice President Dick Cheney is in China this morning. It is the second stop on his tour of Asia and it comes amidst rising tensions over the surge of violence in Iraq.

Dana Bash is traveling with the vice president.

She joins us now live by phone from Beijing -- good morning, Dana.

DANA BASH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Carol.

And the vice president just arrived here almost two hours ago. And, as you said, this whole issue of the spike in violence in Iraq and the way it is reverberating, even in the countries that the vice president is visiting in Asia, has really sort of been following him around. Obviously, these hostages, three hostages from Japan, really overshadowed his stop there.

Now that we're in China, this is obviously a country that's got seven hostages taken, but they, of course, have been released.

However, senior officials do say he's got some high level meetings starting tomorrow with the Chinese leaders and he's going to focus on what he came to do, which is some touchy, thorny issues on the economy, trade and the currency, and also the biggie, which is North Korea and its nuclear ambitions. China is really the linchpin for those talks.

COSTELLO: Dana Bash reporting live from Beijing this morning.

And now it is time to...

CHAD MYERS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: To give away a mug.

COSTELLO: Good. I'm glad.

MYERS: Where is it? Over there.

COSTELLO: Here's the mug.

MYERS: We have a potpourri of colors, as well. We're not just going to give away all yellow mugs.

COSTELLO: Oh, no.

MYERS: They look like Easter colors, actually. They're very pastelish.

COSTELLO: They're very "in" this year.

MYERS: Well, good. I'm glad pastel is back in.

The governor of what state is set to sign a bill Monday -- yesterday, obviously -- that would make it a crime to host an underage drinking party. And in Josie Burke's report about the golfer who made his last appearance at the Masters, name him.

The winner from Paris, Tennessee, Juan Carlos Ramos.

Good morning.

COSTELLO: Ooh, you're not going to give the answers to the questions? New Hampshire was the first one...

MYERS: New Hampshire was the first one, of course. And I thought these were pretty simple because we just did them on the air. And, of course, Jack Nicklaus. So...

COSTELLO: Congratulations Juan Carlos Ramos.

MYERS: Arnold Palmer. Arnold Palmer.

COSTELLO: Oh, Chad.

MYERS: That's what I meant. That's what I meant.

COSTELLO: Jack Nicklaus, Arnold Palmer.

MYERS: Yes, they're the same era. Arnold Palmer.

COSTELLO: All right, congratulations to Juan from -- where's he from?

MYERS: Paris, Tennessee.

COSTELLO: Paris, Tennessee. Congratulations. And, of course, we'll have more DAYBREAK questions for you and a chance to win the mug at 6:50 Eastern time.

MYERS: Right.

COSTELLO: Delays, deployment and disappointment -- what is next for U.S. forces serving in Iraq and why the changes? We're live at the Pentagon with some answers for you.

Plus, one family's test of emotional endurance. Twin daughters serving in Iraq -- mixed emotions on the home front.

And prepare to pay if you want to drink up that gallon of two percent milk. We'll explain the upward trend in the milk market.

And what we can learn from this little mouse.

This is DAYBREAK for April 13.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: Time for a little business buzz now. It has been said that milk does the body good. But the healthy habit will cost you.

Carrie Lee has more, live from the NASDAQ market site.

Ooh, what's a gallon of milk up to?

CARRIE LEE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, it's going to go up to about $3 a gallon starting April 1. Well, we're past April, but beginning this month, starting in the next month, consumers can soon expect to pay $0.50 more for a gallon of milk. So about $3 now, going up a little bit more from there.

A couple of reasons here. First of all, there was a program last year designed to help farmers raise their income, paying farmers who agreed to reduce their milk production. Also, we're seeing higher feed and beef prices, part of the reason, remember that mad cow scare we had a couple of months ago? Well, that put a curb on imports, basically making U.S. cattle more valuable. So a lot of farmers sold their beef instead of using their cows for milk.

So all of this putting pressure on milk prices, pressure upward. And overall, the Agriculture Department is predicting that the increased raw milk prices will mean a four to six percent increase in retail prices for all dairy products this year. So the average was about $2.85 on March 1. It went up to about $3 this month and we could see increases even a little bit higher than that -- Carol.

COSTELLO: Wow.

LEE: So, yes, it's kind of interesting, because you think of milk as sort of being a commodity, prices not really changing that much. But last year they hit a 25-year low. This year expecting to see quite a bit of an increase from that.

COSTELLO: Carrie Lee live from the NASDAQ market site.

Your news, money, weather and sports.

It is 6:16 Eastern.

Here's what's all new this morning.

U.S. forces detain a top aide to the Shiite cleric believed to be behind much of the recent violence in Iraq. The aide was taken into custody after meeting with tribal sheikhs in Baghdad. He is now being questioned.

It will be a tough day for law enforcement at the 9/11 Commission hearings. Today, Attorney General John Ashcroft and former Attorney General Janet Reno are among those scheduled to appear.

In money news, many of the nation's top companies are set to reveal their first quarter earnings this week. Analysts believe the numbers will point towards a robust economy.

And in sports, Barry Bonds finally belted home run number 660. The blast into McCovey's Cove ties him with his godfather, Willie Mays, for the third most home runs of all time. Mays gave Bonds a torch they both carried before the last Olympics.

In culture, Shandi Finnessey hit a home run of her own, at least with the judges. The reigning Miss. Missouri has been crowned Miss. USA. She is the first Miss. USA to hail from the Shoney State.

(WEATHER REPORT)

COSTELLO: All right, those are the latest headlines for you.

The new surge in violence in Iraq comes just as the U.S. was planning to rotate troops out. Now the top commander tells the Pentagon he needs 10,000 more troops. Where will they come from?

CNN Pentagon correspondent Barbara Starr joins us live on the phone with some answers -- good morning, Barbara.

BARBARA STARR, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning to you, Carol.

COSTELLO: So, where will they come from? STARR: Well, they're going to come from right inside Iraq, it appears at this point. Right now, it's a very interesting math calculation. There's about 135,000 troops in Iraq. It was scheduled to reduce down to about 115,000 over the next several weeks, as some of those troops from the 1st Armored Division and others units were scheduled to return to their home bases. But it now looks like they will hold onto about 10,000.

What General Abizaid had said is he needs the combat strength of about two additional brigades. That's about 10,000 troops. They'll leave those people in place and start working now on a new rotation plan to replace them so they can come home.

COSTELLO: If the violence continues the way it is, Barbara, won't they need even more troops in the future? And how soon might they need them?

STARR: Well, at the moment, General Abizaid says with this additional two brigade strength, about 10,000 troops, he believes he can handle things. Clearly, one of the wild cards in all of this that has emerged over the last several days is the Iraqi security forces. General Abizaid told reporters yesterday that while some of those security forces had performed well, he was very disappointed some of them had not. Some units of the Iraqi Army did not show up to fight as scheduled. There were some defections from the Iraqi police. The Iraqi Civil Defense Corps had a mixed record.

So it's a very interesting time right now. They simply don't know how much of the Iraqi security force group they can really count on. So that'll play into it.

COSTELLO: So what do you do, Barbara? What do you do about them? Do you train them better? Do you not count on them anymore?

STARR: Well, General Abizaid said yesterday that they would take another very hard look at just that question -- training, better training, better equipment. As far as the Iraqi Army goes, one of the things they're now going to do is turn back to some of the Iraqi Army leaders from the old regime, people they hope and feel they can count on who are not, you know, Baathist loyalists, and put them back in positions of command. They have learned over the last several days, apparently, that the command structure in these Iraqi forces is just simply not working and they feel one of the most important things they need to do, put in a strong command structure so that when orders are issued the troops go fight.

COSTELLO: Barbara Starr reporting live for us from the Pentagon this morning.

Still to come on DAYBREAK, the toll a war takes on families. Hear the story of one mother and father with twin daughters serving in Iraq.

And our DAYBREAK Photo of the Day. What is it? We'll tell you, after the break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: Oh, did you guess what it was?

MYERS: Not really. Just kind of a white blob. It looks like Mars without some color. But, in fact, it's Italy. Still snow there in Italy.

COSTELLO: Up in the mountains, right?

MYERS: In the mountains, right. The Formaza Valley (ph) near Ryali in northern Italy, kind of up in the Alps, very, very nice touch.

COSTELLO: Oh, isn't that beautiful?

MYERS: It's two guys trekking through the snow.

COSTELLO: That's gorgeous. It's absolutely gorgeous.

MYERS: If you go there to see it. But it's still snowing. It snowed yesterday in Detroit. They didn't think that was gorgeous.

COSTELLO: No.

MYERS: No.

COSTELLO: No, not at all.

MYERS: No.

COSTELLO: And it probably wasn't gorgeous.

MYERS: Maybe not.

COSTELLO: Because it probably was like a little bit of snow, just enough to mess everything up.

MYERS: Slop. Yes.

COSTELLO: All right, thank you, Chad.

MYERS: You're welcome.

COSTELLO: Military sources tell CNN this morning the Army will likely grant a transfer request from two Wisconsin sisters serving in Iraq. A third Witmer sister, Michelle, was killed during an ambush in Iraq last week and will be buried back home tomorrow. But the Witmers are not the only Wisconsin sisters serving in Iraq.

We get that story from Nick Bohr of CNN affiliate WISN.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

NICK BOHR, WISN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): It was an emotional sendoff last December in Walkershaw (ph) for the 118th Medical Battalion. And among those heading out that day, twin sisters Mandy and Abbey Lubbert of Hartford. They're serving in Iraq with Charity Witmer, the win sister of Michelle Witmer, who was just killed.

MARCIA LUBBERT, MILITARY PARENT: I was just devastated and scared to death for the girls.

BOHR: Mandy and Abbey's parents, Marcia and Larry Lubbert, say they're glued to the all news channels, watching the latest developments in the war and fearing for their daughters' safety.

M. LUBBERT: They're doing OK. In this last week, though, it's been a lot more scary for them and us. They've been treating a lot more serious, seriously wounded people.

BOHR: The nurses should be safer than the military police units. But Larry realizes that's little comfort.

LARRY LUBBERT, MILITARY PARENT: It doesn't make any difference over there this time, you know. Anything could happen in this war. And it's scary. It is.

BOHR: The twins both e-mailed their parents Sunday, writing about Michelle's death.

M. LUBBERT: When Abigail e-mailed, she said, "I wish Mandy wasn't here. I don't know what I'd do without her." And I'm sure Mandy feels the same way.

BOHR: Realizing, their mother says, just how dangerous it is there for each other. Still, the Lubberts say, they don't want the U.S. to retreat.

M. LUBBERT: I feel like if we were to leave now, then Michelle and all the other soldiers who have lost their lives, it's kind of for nothing. It's like well then why did we even bother, you know? I think that we have to stay strong, you know, our soldiers and those of us back home.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COSTELLO: That report was from Nick Bohr of CNN affiliate WISN.

As for the Witmers, the military says the decision on whether to stay in Iraq rests with Rachel and Charity Witmer. In other words, those soldiers need to make the request at the Pentagon and then their request may or may not be granted. The request cannot come from the Witmers' family.

This April has been the bloodiest month in Iraq so far. Is that enough to change public opinion on the war there? All new in the next half hour, America's voice -- the latest Gallup poll results for you.

And if planes were grounded right after 9/11, then how were some foreigners, how were some people from other countries able to make it out of the country? Some explosive allegations in a new book. But will they come up in the 9/11 Commission hearings?

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) 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 April 13, 2004 - 06:00   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning to you.
From the CNN global headquarters in Atlanta, I'm Carol Costello.

We're going to take you live to Baghdad in just a minute.

But first, the latest headlines now.

Some of the biggest names in U.S. law enforcement past and present face tough questions from the 9/11 Commission today. The panel wants to know why the FBI was unable to detect the 9/11 plot.

President Bush defends the administration's response to a pre- 9/11 memo warning of al Qaeda's threats. The president will speak about the memo in a televised news conference at 8:30 p.m. Eastern tonight.

Fighting between U.S. forces and Iraqi insurgents flares again in Fallujah. At least two Marines were killed, either others wounded in this latest attack.

Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon arrives in Washington today to prepare for a meeting with President Bush tomorrow. Mr. Sharon hopes to win support for an Israeli plan to withdraw from Gaza.

And suspended University of Colorado football coach Gary Barnett prepares for today's appearance before investigators looking into the athletic department's sex scandal.

To the forecast center now and Chad.

(WEATHER REPORT)

COSTELLO: Captured -- an aide to Muqtada al-Sadr now in U.S. custody. As you well know, al-Sadr and his supporters are responsible for much of the recent violence.

Let's head live to Baghdad to find out more.

And Jane Arraf -- Jane, how important is this for the coalition?

JANE ARRAF, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Carol, it's yet another wrinkle in this ongoing story, where these battles keep popping up, political/military. This one, we'll have to see where this goes. But certainly it is bound to increase tension that they have detained another aide of Muqtada al-Sadr. Now, this man, Hazen al-Aaraji, is the head of the Sadr office in Khadimiya. That's the neighborhood in Baghdad that's home to the holy shrines holy to Shias. He was detained from this hotel complex after meeting with local shaefs (ph). U.S. soldiers took him away. We are told that he's been held for questioning, but it's not clear yet whether he has been formally arrested.

Now, religious leaders who met this morning issued a statement warning that there could be dire consequences if this stand-off between U.S. forces and the Sadr people continue.

U.S. forces now still mobilizing around the holy city of Najaf, where others are trying to negotiate a settlement.

And there's so much else going on, Carol, I don't quite know where to start. But we are tracking reports that there has been a downed helicopter in Fallujah, west of Baghdad. An Associated Press reporter says he has seen a burning helicopter on the ground there. Sporadic firing continues despite a cease-fire, with two Marines killed and eight wounded in a firefight there last night.

We are also tracking reports that there has been an attack on a convoy of U.S. forces heading towards Najaf yesterday, with one soldier killed there.

And finally, Carol, a report still unconfirmed -- we are working on that -- that Russian hostages have been released. This report coming from the official Interfax News Agency in Russia -- Carol.

COSTELLO: Well, we hope that one is true.

Jane Arraf reporting live from Baghdad this morning.

Democratic presidential hopeful John Kerry is pushing forward with a plan to help restore Iraq's leadership. In a commentary published in today's "Washington Post," Kerry appeals to the United Nations to take the lead. Kerry writes, and I quote: "The United Nations, not the United States, should be the primary civilian partner in working with Iraqi leaders to hold elections, restore government services, rebuild the economy and recreate a sense of hope and optimism among the Iraqi people."

Kerry goes on to criticize the government's response to the worsening situation, saying they need to rethink their strategy.

The 9/11 Commission continues to press top U.S. officials, both past and present, for answers on what went wrong. Next on the list for questioning, the FBI.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

COSTELLO (voice-over): In the hot seat today, Attorney General John Ashcroft, former Attorney General Janet Reno and two former FBI directors. At issue, why authorities didn't prevent the attacks and how 70 separate investigations did not uncover the hijacking plot. One key element in today's testimony -- money. There have been suggestions by some that Ashcroft failed to recognize the important of counter-terrorism funding prior to 9/11. Ashcroft's spokesperson Monday flatly denied that charge. One commissioner, who requested anonymity, said that Thomas Pickard, who was the acting FBI director during the summer of 2001, told the panel earlier that Ashcroft had shown little interest in counter-terrorism prior to the attacks. Pickard is scheduled to testify today. When reached by CNN, he did refuse to comment, though, on his planned testimony.

In addition to Pickard, former Director Louis Freeh will testify. He'll likely be asked about the Bureau's failure to share information and its antiquated system of passing on possible leads to other divisions. One commissioner told CNN, "Everyone shares some blame for failing to stop 9/11," and he believes the final report, due in July, should name names.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COSTELLO: And by now, we all know about the presidential daily briefing of August 6, 2001. But what about the senior executive intelligence brief sent out a day later? There is criticism about omissions in the document, which went to senior government peacemakers. According to the Associated Press, the second memo did not mention the 70 FBI investigations into al Qaeda activities nor the May 2001 threat of a U.S.-based attack nor FBI concerns over surveillance of New York City buildings. Bush administration officials say memos to senior executives typically don't include the sensitive information found in the president's briefings.

And, by the way, 9/11 panel chairman and the vice chairman will be guests on CNN's "American Morning." Of course, that begins at 7:00 a.m. Eastern.

We are now getting word -- you heard from Jane Arraf -- we have now been getting word that the eight kidnapped workers from a Russian company have been freed in Iraq.

Let's head to Moscow to see what Ryan Chilcote has found out for us -- have they been released?

RYAN CHILCOTE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Indeed. Employees from the company that they work for, called the Inter Anerga Service (ph), or IES by its abbreviation, are confirming that all eight of the employees, all eight employees of this Russian company that were abducted yesterday afternoon in Baghdad have been released. We understand they're in good condition.

It's just been about 17, 18 hours since they were abducted initially -- Carol.

COSTELLO: How did their release come about? Do we know -- Ryan.

CHILCOTE: Very few details. In fact, I was just at IES' headquarters here in Moscow. The director of IES, the executive director, Alexander Rybinsky, telling me that ever since these eight men were driven off in an unknown direction, there'd been absolutely no contact whatsoever with the hostage takers. No demands had been made. Really, a very desperate and very confusing situation for the employees of this company.

At the same time, we do know that the Russian embassy and the Russian foreign ministry and the Ukrainian foreign ministry, as far as we understand it -- because five of these eight employees were Ukrainian nationals, three Russian nationals -- were working very hard to win their release. The Russian government making it very clear that it put no hope in the Iraqi police and that if necessary, it was prepared to act unilaterally to try and free these eight employees -- Carol.

COSTELLO: How many Russian and Ukrainian workers are in Iraq -- Ryan.

CHILCOTE: Well, that's a very good question. What we know is that this one company, IES, which repairs power stations and was at the time of this abduction repairing three power stations in the Baghdad area, has approximately 350 employees, most of which are Russian or Ukrainian nationals.

Now, there are more companies, more Russian companies working in Baghdad. But exactly how many Russian and Ukrainian nationals are in the country is unknown.

It is an important question, however, because the Russian foreign ministry, as we speak, says it is looking at a plan to evacuate at least some Russian nationals from that country. Earlier, they were talking about evacuating some of the employees of this company that had some of its employees abducted, also, from another company.

So that is a very important question. The Russian government saying that the situation in Iraq is simply too chaotic and they have to take some kind of action -- Carol.

COSTELLO: Ryan Chilcote reporting live from Moscow this morning.

Vice President Dick Cheney is in China this morning. It is the second stop on his tour of Asia and it comes amidst rising tensions over the surge of violence in Iraq.

Dana Bash is traveling with the vice president.

She joins us now live by phone from Beijing -- good morning, Dana.

DANA BASH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Carol.

And the vice president just arrived here almost two hours ago. And, as you said, this whole issue of the spike in violence in Iraq and the way it is reverberating, even in the countries that the vice president is visiting in Asia, has really sort of been following him around. Obviously, these hostages, three hostages from Japan, really overshadowed his stop there.

Now that we're in China, this is obviously a country that's got seven hostages taken, but they, of course, have been released.

However, senior officials do say he's got some high level meetings starting tomorrow with the Chinese leaders and he's going to focus on what he came to do, which is some touchy, thorny issues on the economy, trade and the currency, and also the biggie, which is North Korea and its nuclear ambitions. China is really the linchpin for those talks.

COSTELLO: Dana Bash reporting live from Beijing this morning.

And now it is time to...

CHAD MYERS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: To give away a mug.

COSTELLO: Good. I'm glad.

MYERS: Where is it? Over there.

COSTELLO: Here's the mug.

MYERS: We have a potpourri of colors, as well. We're not just going to give away all yellow mugs.

COSTELLO: Oh, no.

MYERS: They look like Easter colors, actually. They're very pastelish.

COSTELLO: They're very "in" this year.

MYERS: Well, good. I'm glad pastel is back in.

The governor of what state is set to sign a bill Monday -- yesterday, obviously -- that would make it a crime to host an underage drinking party. And in Josie Burke's report about the golfer who made his last appearance at the Masters, name him.

The winner from Paris, Tennessee, Juan Carlos Ramos.

Good morning.

COSTELLO: Ooh, you're not going to give the answers to the questions? New Hampshire was the first one...

MYERS: New Hampshire was the first one, of course. And I thought these were pretty simple because we just did them on the air. And, of course, Jack Nicklaus. So...

COSTELLO: Congratulations Juan Carlos Ramos.

MYERS: Arnold Palmer. Arnold Palmer.

COSTELLO: Oh, Chad.

MYERS: That's what I meant. That's what I meant.

COSTELLO: Jack Nicklaus, Arnold Palmer.

MYERS: Yes, they're the same era. Arnold Palmer.

COSTELLO: All right, congratulations to Juan from -- where's he from?

MYERS: Paris, Tennessee.

COSTELLO: Paris, Tennessee. Congratulations. And, of course, we'll have more DAYBREAK questions for you and a chance to win the mug at 6:50 Eastern time.

MYERS: Right.

COSTELLO: Delays, deployment and disappointment -- what is next for U.S. forces serving in Iraq and why the changes? We're live at the Pentagon with some answers for you.

Plus, one family's test of emotional endurance. Twin daughters serving in Iraq -- mixed emotions on the home front.

And prepare to pay if you want to drink up that gallon of two percent milk. We'll explain the upward trend in the milk market.

And what we can learn from this little mouse.

This is DAYBREAK for April 13.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: Time for a little business buzz now. It has been said that milk does the body good. But the healthy habit will cost you.

Carrie Lee has more, live from the NASDAQ market site.

Ooh, what's a gallon of milk up to?

CARRIE LEE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, it's going to go up to about $3 a gallon starting April 1. Well, we're past April, but beginning this month, starting in the next month, consumers can soon expect to pay $0.50 more for a gallon of milk. So about $3 now, going up a little bit more from there.

A couple of reasons here. First of all, there was a program last year designed to help farmers raise their income, paying farmers who agreed to reduce their milk production. Also, we're seeing higher feed and beef prices, part of the reason, remember that mad cow scare we had a couple of months ago? Well, that put a curb on imports, basically making U.S. cattle more valuable. So a lot of farmers sold their beef instead of using their cows for milk.

So all of this putting pressure on milk prices, pressure upward. And overall, the Agriculture Department is predicting that the increased raw milk prices will mean a four to six percent increase in retail prices for all dairy products this year. So the average was about $2.85 on March 1. It went up to about $3 this month and we could see increases even a little bit higher than that -- Carol.

COSTELLO: Wow.

LEE: So, yes, it's kind of interesting, because you think of milk as sort of being a commodity, prices not really changing that much. But last year they hit a 25-year low. This year expecting to see quite a bit of an increase from that.

COSTELLO: Carrie Lee live from the NASDAQ market site.

Your news, money, weather and sports.

It is 6:16 Eastern.

Here's what's all new this morning.

U.S. forces detain a top aide to the Shiite cleric believed to be behind much of the recent violence in Iraq. The aide was taken into custody after meeting with tribal sheikhs in Baghdad. He is now being questioned.

It will be a tough day for law enforcement at the 9/11 Commission hearings. Today, Attorney General John Ashcroft and former Attorney General Janet Reno are among those scheduled to appear.

In money news, many of the nation's top companies are set to reveal their first quarter earnings this week. Analysts believe the numbers will point towards a robust economy.

And in sports, Barry Bonds finally belted home run number 660. The blast into McCovey's Cove ties him with his godfather, Willie Mays, for the third most home runs of all time. Mays gave Bonds a torch they both carried before the last Olympics.

In culture, Shandi Finnessey hit a home run of her own, at least with the judges. The reigning Miss. Missouri has been crowned Miss. USA. She is the first Miss. USA to hail from the Shoney State.

(WEATHER REPORT)

COSTELLO: All right, those are the latest headlines for you.

The new surge in violence in Iraq comes just as the U.S. was planning to rotate troops out. Now the top commander tells the Pentagon he needs 10,000 more troops. Where will they come from?

CNN Pentagon correspondent Barbara Starr joins us live on the phone with some answers -- good morning, Barbara.

BARBARA STARR, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning to you, Carol.

COSTELLO: So, where will they come from? STARR: Well, they're going to come from right inside Iraq, it appears at this point. Right now, it's a very interesting math calculation. There's about 135,000 troops in Iraq. It was scheduled to reduce down to about 115,000 over the next several weeks, as some of those troops from the 1st Armored Division and others units were scheduled to return to their home bases. But it now looks like they will hold onto about 10,000.

What General Abizaid had said is he needs the combat strength of about two additional brigades. That's about 10,000 troops. They'll leave those people in place and start working now on a new rotation plan to replace them so they can come home.

COSTELLO: If the violence continues the way it is, Barbara, won't they need even more troops in the future? And how soon might they need them?

STARR: Well, at the moment, General Abizaid says with this additional two brigade strength, about 10,000 troops, he believes he can handle things. Clearly, one of the wild cards in all of this that has emerged over the last several days is the Iraqi security forces. General Abizaid told reporters yesterday that while some of those security forces had performed well, he was very disappointed some of them had not. Some units of the Iraqi Army did not show up to fight as scheduled. There were some defections from the Iraqi police. The Iraqi Civil Defense Corps had a mixed record.

So it's a very interesting time right now. They simply don't know how much of the Iraqi security force group they can really count on. So that'll play into it.

COSTELLO: So what do you do, Barbara? What do you do about them? Do you train them better? Do you not count on them anymore?

STARR: Well, General Abizaid said yesterday that they would take another very hard look at just that question -- training, better training, better equipment. As far as the Iraqi Army goes, one of the things they're now going to do is turn back to some of the Iraqi Army leaders from the old regime, people they hope and feel they can count on who are not, you know, Baathist loyalists, and put them back in positions of command. They have learned over the last several days, apparently, that the command structure in these Iraqi forces is just simply not working and they feel one of the most important things they need to do, put in a strong command structure so that when orders are issued the troops go fight.

COSTELLO: Barbara Starr reporting live for us from the Pentagon this morning.

Still to come on DAYBREAK, the toll a war takes on families. Hear the story of one mother and father with twin daughters serving in Iraq.

And our DAYBREAK Photo of the Day. What is it? We'll tell you, after the break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: Oh, did you guess what it was?

MYERS: Not really. Just kind of a white blob. It looks like Mars without some color. But, in fact, it's Italy. Still snow there in Italy.

COSTELLO: Up in the mountains, right?

MYERS: In the mountains, right. The Formaza Valley (ph) near Ryali in northern Italy, kind of up in the Alps, very, very nice touch.

COSTELLO: Oh, isn't that beautiful?

MYERS: It's two guys trekking through the snow.

COSTELLO: That's gorgeous. It's absolutely gorgeous.

MYERS: If you go there to see it. But it's still snowing. It snowed yesterday in Detroit. They didn't think that was gorgeous.

COSTELLO: No.

MYERS: No.

COSTELLO: No, not at all.

MYERS: No.

COSTELLO: And it probably wasn't gorgeous.

MYERS: Maybe not.

COSTELLO: Because it probably was like a little bit of snow, just enough to mess everything up.

MYERS: Slop. Yes.

COSTELLO: All right, thank you, Chad.

MYERS: You're welcome.

COSTELLO: Military sources tell CNN this morning the Army will likely grant a transfer request from two Wisconsin sisters serving in Iraq. A third Witmer sister, Michelle, was killed during an ambush in Iraq last week and will be buried back home tomorrow. But the Witmers are not the only Wisconsin sisters serving in Iraq.

We get that story from Nick Bohr of CNN affiliate WISN.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

NICK BOHR, WISN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): It was an emotional sendoff last December in Walkershaw (ph) for the 118th Medical Battalion. And among those heading out that day, twin sisters Mandy and Abbey Lubbert of Hartford. They're serving in Iraq with Charity Witmer, the win sister of Michelle Witmer, who was just killed.

MARCIA LUBBERT, MILITARY PARENT: I was just devastated and scared to death for the girls.

BOHR: Mandy and Abbey's parents, Marcia and Larry Lubbert, say they're glued to the all news channels, watching the latest developments in the war and fearing for their daughters' safety.

M. LUBBERT: They're doing OK. In this last week, though, it's been a lot more scary for them and us. They've been treating a lot more serious, seriously wounded people.

BOHR: The nurses should be safer than the military police units. But Larry realizes that's little comfort.

LARRY LUBBERT, MILITARY PARENT: It doesn't make any difference over there this time, you know. Anything could happen in this war. And it's scary. It is.

BOHR: The twins both e-mailed their parents Sunday, writing about Michelle's death.

M. LUBBERT: When Abigail e-mailed, she said, "I wish Mandy wasn't here. I don't know what I'd do without her." And I'm sure Mandy feels the same way.

BOHR: Realizing, their mother says, just how dangerous it is there for each other. Still, the Lubberts say, they don't want the U.S. to retreat.

M. LUBBERT: I feel like if we were to leave now, then Michelle and all the other soldiers who have lost their lives, it's kind of for nothing. It's like well then why did we even bother, you know? I think that we have to stay strong, you know, our soldiers and those of us back home.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COSTELLO: That report was from Nick Bohr of CNN affiliate WISN.

As for the Witmers, the military says the decision on whether to stay in Iraq rests with Rachel and Charity Witmer. In other words, those soldiers need to make the request at the Pentagon and then their request may or may not be granted. The request cannot come from the Witmers' family.

This April has been the bloodiest month in Iraq so far. Is that enough to change public opinion on the war there? All new in the next half hour, America's voice -- the latest Gallup poll results for you.

And if planes were grounded right after 9/11, then how were some foreigners, how were some people from other countries able to make it out of the country? Some explosive allegations in a new book. But will they come up in the 9/11 Commission hearings?

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