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CNN Live At Daybreak
Explosion at Pakistani Mosque; Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld's Testimony on Capitol Hill
Aired May 07, 2004 - 05:00 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: This morning, Donald Rumsfeld defends himself on Capitol Hill.
It is Friday, May 7.
This is DAYBREAK.
And good morning to you.
From the CNN global headquarters in Atlanta, I'm Carol Costello.
Let me bring you up to date right now.
A bomb explodes at a mosque in the Pakistani city of Karachi. It happened just a short time ago during Friday prayers. At least five worshipers are dead, dozens wounded. We'll have more for you on this breaking news story in just a minute.
Tough questions ahead -- Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld testifies today before the congressional committees looking into the Iraq prisoner abuse scandal.
In defiance of U.S. troops, anti-American cleric Muqtada al-Sadr leads prayers today in Kufa, near the Muslim holy city of Najaf. Kufa has been the scene of recent fighting between U.S. soldiers and the cleric's Mahdi militia.
A 37-year-old Portland, Oregon lawyer, Brandon Mayfield, is in custody this morning. The FBI calls him a material witness in connection with the March train bombings in Madrid that killed 190 people.
Overnight in Paris, a simulated bomb attack on the city's underground transportation system. It's the latest test of the city's emergency response to a terrorist attack.
To the forecast center now and Chad -- good morning.
CHAD MYERS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Carol.
(WEATHER REPORT)
COSTELLO: We want to tell you more on this news just into CNN. There's been a huge bomb explosion in Karachi, Pakistan.
Our senior international editor Eli Flournoy joins us now to tell us more about this.
There were some people killed.
ELI FLOURNOY, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL EDITOR: That's right. We have reports in that as many as five people were killed, possibly more. This is what's being described as a very powerful bomb explosion in the southern Pakistani port city of Karachi at a mosque. This is at the time of Friday prayers that this happened, so there would have been a lot of people in there.
Witnesses describing to CNN a scene that includes body parts, many people injured. We're just getting the reports here.
COSTELLO: And this also took place not only at a mosque, but there was a religious school nearby and that was destroyed, as well?
FLOURNOY: That is the initial report, yes, that there's a religious school nearby and we're still getting reports about the damage to the area and how many people were involved with that.
COSTELLO: Of course, we don't know who's responsible yet, but this isn't the first time that this kind of thing has happened in Karachi.
FLOURNOY: That is true. Just a couple months ago there was Shiite-Sunni violence which led -- at a mosque -- which led to the death of many people in a mosque in Karachi. That was about two months ago. So there is a precedent for conflict between Shia and Sunni Muslim religious groups in Karachi and in Pakistan in general.
But, again, we don't have confirmation that that is, in fact, what's happened here. But, again, this is in a mosque during Friday prayers, so this would have been a time when many people would have been in the mosque.
COSTELLO: All right, so five people killed, at least 35 injured, and you're going to get us more information.
FLOURNOY: That's right.
COSTELLO: Eli, thanks very much.
You can say with some certainty this is not going to be Donald Rumsfeld's best day. The defense secretary can expect to be grilled when he testifies before two congressional committees. Some Democrats on Capitol Hill are calling for his resignation over the Iraqi prisoner abuse scandal. And this morning, the "New York Times" editorial says it is time for Rumsfeld to go.
Elaine Quijano has more for you.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ELAINE QUIJANO, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): When Defense Secretary Rumsfeld heads to Capitol Hill, he'll bring with him a vote of confidence from President Bush. GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Secretary Rumsfeld is a really good secretary of defense.
QUIJANO: Democratic calls for Rumsfeld to resign increased after more pictures of alleged prisoner abuse surfaced Thursday. But one key senator, who said it might be necessary for Rumsfeld to resign, now says law makers should move on.
SEN. JOSEPH BIDEN (D-DW), FOREIGN RELATIONS COMMITTEE: We should not focus on the issue of whose scalp should be delivered. We should be talking about what are we going to do.
QUIJANO: Rumsfeld is set to face off with law makers not by himself, but with Joint Chiefs Chairman General Richard Myers and a handful of other top defense officials. To better prepare, the secretary canceled a planned speech Thursday in Philadelphia, instead, dispatching Deputy Defense Secretary Paul Wolfowitz in his place. A Pentagon official said Rumsfeld spent the day working with staff members by going over time lines and nuances.
Law makers want details about how the military investigated the alleged prisoner abuses by Americans at Iraq's Abu Ghraib Prison, cases the secretary insisted earlier this week defense officials have handled properly.
DONALD RUMSFELD, SECRETARY OF DEFENSE: And the fact of the matter is that this is a serious problem and it's something that the department is addressing. The system works. The system works.
QUIJANO (on camera): Aides to Secretary Rumsfeld say he is upbeat and anxious to tell his story. One Republican senator who met with Secretary Rumsfeld on Thursday says the secretary believes there is a rational explanation for the way the matter was handled.
Elaine Quijano, CNN, the Pentagon.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COSTELLO: Rumsfeld goes before the Senate Armed Services Committee at 11:45 Eastern this morning. CNN, of course, will bring you this testimony live.
And as you might expect, John Kerry is critical of the way President Bush is handling this scandal. During a campaign stop in California, he said if he were president he would, and I'm quoting here, "not be the last to k." He also repeated his call for Rumsfeld's resignation.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. JOHN KERRY (D-MA), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: The entire, you know, way in which they rushed the nation to war on these assumptions that he was making, which were incorrect, is a huge historic miscalculation. And I thought he should resign then, period.
(END VIDEO CLIP) COSTELLO: You may remember Kerry said last September Rumsfeld should resign for underestimating the demands of the war in Iraq.
That's the stateside view on all of this.
Let's get the story overseas now.
Ben Wedeman in Baghdad to talk about what the Iraqis know about Rumsfeld and his position in all of this and Walter Rodgers is live in London with the British angle on this story.
We start with Ben.
First of all, do Iraqis even know who Donald Rumsfeld is? BEN WEDEMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Oh, they're well aware of who Donald Rumsfeld is. Iraqis, even under Saddam Hussein's regime, were avid consumers of the news, listening to things like the BBC World Service in Arabic. So they know who he is and they have been watching very closely how this story has unfolded in the United States.
Now, we went out on the streets this morning to see what people thought, how they regarded Mr. Bush's apology. An interesting mix of opinion. We spoke to one religious leader who said he's going to take this apology at face value. But he's waiting to see whether this apology and the promises of improving conditions for prisoners at Abu Ghraib, of opening the prison up, are going to be carried out. And he says that's going to be where the true value of his apology comes from.
Another man who said, we spoke with said that he didn't regard this apology as very significant. He said that Mr. Bush has made many promises to the Iraqi people over the last year, promises that he would turn Iraq into a model democracy, that he would make the country prosper. This man said those promises were never carried out and he didn't seem to think much of whatever Mr. Bush had to say -- Carol.
COSTELLO: So, Ben, realistically, can anything be done to win the trust of the Iraqi people?
WEDEMAN: Well, it's a bit late in the day for that, given that really a year has passed and it's been a very difficult and disappointing year for many Iraqis. As I said, they -- many greeted the Americans. They were happy to see Saddam Hussein go. But they feel that from the beginning, the U.S. forces and the coalition in general never really got control of the situation. If you recall those incredible pictures of chaos that followed the fall of the regime, the looting. Almost every ministry in Baghdad was stripped clean by looters.
And for the last year there's been -- it's become a very unsafe country. People are afraid to go out. The economy is not in very good shape. Unemployment is very high. So it's a difficult situation and it's hard to say how the United States is going to remedy its credibility problem at this point -- Carol.
COSTELLO: Ben Wedeman live in Baghdad for us this morning. Let's head live now to London and Walter Rodgers with details on reports of possible abuse by British soldiers.
Tell us more about this -- Walt.
WALTER RODGERS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Carol, of course, the British soldiers have also been accused by one newspaper here and the only evidence they've seen so far is that the newspaper had some photos. But there is a strong suspicion some of those photos that allegedly document abuse by British soldiers are actually faked.
Still, there's a major government investigation going on here, nothing nearly as heavy as what we're seeing in the United States and in the context of American soldiers in Iraq -- Carol.
COSTELLO: But what about this British soldier who has come forward to tell tales of alleged abuse? Can you tell us more about that?
RODGERS: Well, yes. He's told tales of alleged abuse and a newspaper here has published pictures of the alleged abuse. The difficulty with all of this is there are many flaws in those pictures, little details like the rifles which the unit was supposed to have carried are not the rifles which were issued to the unit. And the British soldier who stepped forward, there's some question as to whether he's talking about an incident that occurred 10 months ago that has already been well publicized and documented.
So the case against the British is not nearly the case that you have against the U.S. soldiers at the Abu Ghraib Prison and the reason being there's nowhere near the documentation that you have against the Americans. There's still plenty to suspect that there have been abuses by British soldiers, but, again, nothing of the magnitude that the American soldiers are accused of -- Carol.
COSTELLO: Well, Walter, why would someone present fake pictures? I mean who would be behind something like this?
RODGERS: Well, that's a matter of conjecture, and that's not my job to sit here and speculate on that. But what I should tell you is that there is a very strong anti-war sentiment in Britain. So that whether these pictures are real or not, they do play to -- they have a certain resonance to the British audience.
Remember, unlike the United States, the British public has never in any majority, never reached 50 percent support of the war in Iraq. And Tony Blair is in rather sad shape politically here. His opposition, the Tory Party, has now come up to and polled even with him. So there just isn't public support for the war here. There's never been public support for the war here. And if somebody can come up with photos, genuine or doctored, there's a sympathetic audience out there -- Carol.
COSTELLO: Walter Rodgers live in London this morning.
We want to know what you think, about Donald Rumsfeld, that is. Should Donald Rumsfeld resign? E-mail us, daybreak@cnn.com, daybreak@cnn.com.
Israel and Hezbollah are battling it out again. Cross border fighting broke out this morning. You're looking at new pictures from those attacks. We're going to take you live to the region later this hour.
Plus, a possible U.S. connection to the terrorist bombings in Madrid. A Portland lawyer may be on the wrong side of the law.
Also ahead, is Hamill heading home? We'll take you live to Germany for the latest on the former hostage who escaped his Iraqi captors.
And mothers who opt out of the workforce to concentrate all of their efforts on their little ones -- here's to you this Mother's Day weekend.
It's all ahead in this hour of DAYBREAK.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COSTELLO: Your news, money, weather and sports.
It is 5:15 Eastern.
Here's what's all new this morning.
Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld goes before Congress today to testify on the Iraqi prisoner abuse scandal. Rumsfeld is expected to announce plans to form an independent panel to look into the Pentagon's handling of the investigation.
In Iraq, anti-American Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr is in Kufa near the holy city of Najaf to lead Friday prayers. This is in defiance of U.S. troops massed nearby who have vowed to arrest him.
In money news, April's unemployment report is due out in about three hours. Already there is encouraging news. The number of people filing for unemployment benefits dropped last week to their lowest level in more than three years.
In sports, "Spiderman" ads on bases did not fly with baseball fans. A day after announcing the "Spiderman 2" promotion deal, major league baseball changed its mind and will keep "Spiderman" off the bases.
In culture, TV's most popular comedy, "Friends," ended its 10 year run with an emotional finale. The show ended where it began, with Ross and Rachel united as a couple -- Chad.
(WEATHER REPORT)
COSTELLO: Those are the latest headlines for you.
Time now to get a pulse on the overseas markets.
As usual, for that we head live to London and Jim Boulden -- good morning, Jim.
JIM BOULDEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Carol.
Yes, we don't get that last episode of "Friends" for a couple more weeks and I can't believe you just gave it away to me.
COSTELLO: Oh, no. I'm sorry.
BOULDEN: But I will keep that quiet, because it's -- there's only been two stories in Europe today. One is waiting for those non- farm payroll numbers out of the U.S., which we're going to get in a couple of hours, and the "Friends" story. But I will keep my mouth shut.
Now, you see here a very mixed bag here. There's been no action at all, and that's because of the non-farm payroll numbers coming out of the U.S. They want to see how many jobs were created in April, just like you all want to see how many jobs were created, so we know what's going to happen with U.S. interest rates.
We had an interest rate rise here in the U.K. yesterday. Now, we knew that was going to come. But after that, the Bank of England gave some very aggressive statements and the thought was well, interest rates are going to rise here a lot more than we thought and a lot quicker.
So a bit of money coming into here. You see dollar -- the dollar/pound, more money coming into the pound. The dollar weakening a bit this morning. Also, the dollar back up over 120 with the euro. So one euro worth over $1.20.
So the euro is also strengthening against the dollar, not that there's going to be interest rate rises in the euro, but people really want to see where to put their money and they're waiting to hear about those markets.
A quick look at this one. This is Pinewood Studios. Now, they've gone public this morning for the first time. You get yourself a bit of -- a slice of this company if you're interested in Harry Potter, where the aliens were made, where they made a lot of other films. This, these very, very historic London studios are now public on the stock market and it's doing very well, up almost to two pounds.
That's it -- Carol, back to you.
COSTELLO: OK, I won't tell you what happens with Chandler and Monica's baby, either.
Sorry, Jim.
BOULDEN: Thank you very much.
COSTELLO: Thanks.
Next on DAYBREAK, ruling overturned -- after years of court battles, the husband of a brain damaged woman gets a victory in court. Also, a terror bombing in Spain might have an American connection.
And in light of the prisoner abuse scandal in Iraq, do you think Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld should resign? E-mail us. The address, daybreak@cnn.com.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BUSH: Secretary Rumsfeld has served our nation well. Secretary Rumsfeld has been the secretary during two wars and he is -- he's an important part of my cabinet and he'll stay in my cabinet.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: President Bush standing by Donald Rumsfeld.
We've been asking for your opinions this morning. Should Donald Rumsfeld resign?
And, boy, have we been getting response from you, and we do appreciate it.
We want to read some of your e-mails right now.
Chad joins me for help in that.
Let's start with Bob from San Angelo, Texas. He says: "About the question should Donald Rumsfeld resign, my question to you is why ask? President Bush says that he supports him and that should be the end of the debate."
MYERS: And from Sean in Phoenix -- and I was just putting these up as randomly as I could -- "His late knowledge of the abuse incidents and then keeping it from the president, however, is inexcusable and he should try to do at least one humble thing in his career and just step aside."
COSTELLO: From Pete in Seattle. He says, "Of course Rumsfeld should resign. From overruling then firing General Shinseki over the number of troops needed, to alienating Europe with the "old Europe" comment, to failing to secure Iraq after the war, to the sado-sexual abuse of prisoners, he has failed the president and the nation utterly. Rumsfeld must go now."
MYERS: Yes, and from Dana: "He should be fired, not allowed to resign. How can the puppet cut the strings to the puppeteer?"
COSTELLO: OK, we're going to read more of your e-mails later.
MYERS: All right.
COSTELLO: We're just grabbing them off the machine at random.
MYERS: Yes, that's right.
COSTELLO: We'll get to many more later.
Stories across America this Friday, two Air Force pilots parachuted to safety just before their F15-E fighter jet crashed in southwestern Virginia. Neither pilot was hurt in this training mission crash.
A judge has ruled the Florida law which keeps Terri Schiavo alive is unconstitutional. But a feeding and hydration tube will stay connected to the brain damaged woman for now due to an appeal by Governor Jeb Bush. The judge says "Terri's Law" violates Schiavo's right to privacy.
An evacuation orders have been lifted in Riverside County, California. That means residents can return to see what the wildfires have done to their property. Two fires burned more than 25,000 acres and damaged or destroyed dozens of structures. Cooler weather has helped firefighters control those wildfires.
To Oregon now and the investigation into the terrorist attacks in Spain that is leading to a suspect right here in the United States.
Here's our justice correspondent, Kelli Arena.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
KELLI ARENA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Sources tell CNN there may be a U.S. connection to the March 11th bombings in Madrid. FBI agents took into custody a Portland, Oregon lawyer based on information from Spanish authorities that he may have been involved in that attack. Law enforcement sources say that Brandon Mayfield is being held as a material witness, which basically means he can be held secretly and not charged.
Now, according to those sources, Mayfield's fingerprint was found on a plastic bag with bomb related material connected to the Madrid attack. Sources describe him as a Muslim convert and say that he'd been under 24-7 surveillance.
Now, he just happened to represent one of the chief defendants in the so-called Portland 7 terror case in a prior custody battle. Members of the alleged Portland cell pled guilty last year of plotting to fight for the Taliban against the United States in Afghanistan. But there's no suggestion at this point that there is any relation between that group and what happened in Spain.
Kelli Arena, CNN, Washington.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COSTELLO: And here's what's all new in the next half hour of DAYBREAK.
Fierce fighting this morning along Israel's border with Lebanon, as Israeli forces and the Hezbollah militia exchange fire. And a humble homecoming for Thomas Hamill. Why the former hostage is shying away from the spotlight.
And mothers making the ultimate sacrifice. We'll tell you why -- we'll tell you what they're giving up for the sake of their children.
We'll be right back.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
GERRI WILLIS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Despite the recent rise in the stock market, one important financial signal continues to drop -- the value of the U.S. dollar. Over the last year, the dollar has hit record lows against global currencies like the euro. For overseas travelers, that means trips to the Eiffel Tower are more expensive.
Yet it's not all bad news. The dollar's decline means U.S. products sold overseas are much cheaper, which translates into higher exports.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COSTELLO: Friday prayers take a deadly turn as a powerful bomb takes its toll in a Karachi, Pakistan mosque. These pictures just into us at CNN.
It's Friday, May 7.
This is DAYBREAK.
And good morning to you.
Welcome to the second half hour of DAYBREAK.
From the CNN global headquarters in Atlanta, I'm Carol Costello.
Let me bring you up to date now.
A powerful bomb rips through a mosque in Karachi, Pakistan during midday prayers. At least five are dead, 35 others wounded.
It may be from the frying pan into the fire today for Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld. He faces grilling from two congressional committees over the Iraqi prisoner abuse scandal. Some Democratic law makers have called for Rumsfeld's resignation.
Muqtada al-Sadr is leading prayers in Kufa, Iraq, not far from U.S. troops who are under orders to arrest him. At least 40 insurgents linked to the radical Shiite cleric were killed in a battle around Kufa on Thursday.
A British soldier has now told military authorities about the alleged abuse of Iraqi prisoners by British troops. The soldier had previously gone to the "Daily Mirror," which broke the story. And cross border fighting in the Middle East. Hezbollah militia and Israeli forces exchanged fire early today. Hezbollah shelled outposts in northern Israel and Israel Air Force and artillery returned fire in Lebanon.
Now to Chad.
CHAD MYERS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Carol.
(WEATHER REPORT)
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Aired May 7, 2004 - 05:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: This morning, Donald Rumsfeld defends himself on Capitol Hill.
It is Friday, May 7.
This is DAYBREAK.
And good morning to you.
From the CNN global headquarters in Atlanta, I'm Carol Costello.
Let me bring you up to date right now.
A bomb explodes at a mosque in the Pakistani city of Karachi. It happened just a short time ago during Friday prayers. At least five worshipers are dead, dozens wounded. We'll have more for you on this breaking news story in just a minute.
Tough questions ahead -- Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld testifies today before the congressional committees looking into the Iraq prisoner abuse scandal.
In defiance of U.S. troops, anti-American cleric Muqtada al-Sadr leads prayers today in Kufa, near the Muslim holy city of Najaf. Kufa has been the scene of recent fighting between U.S. soldiers and the cleric's Mahdi militia.
A 37-year-old Portland, Oregon lawyer, Brandon Mayfield, is in custody this morning. The FBI calls him a material witness in connection with the March train bombings in Madrid that killed 190 people.
Overnight in Paris, a simulated bomb attack on the city's underground transportation system. It's the latest test of the city's emergency response to a terrorist attack.
To the forecast center now and Chad -- good morning.
CHAD MYERS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Carol.
(WEATHER REPORT)
COSTELLO: We want to tell you more on this news just into CNN. There's been a huge bomb explosion in Karachi, Pakistan.
Our senior international editor Eli Flournoy joins us now to tell us more about this.
There were some people killed.
ELI FLOURNOY, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL EDITOR: That's right. We have reports in that as many as five people were killed, possibly more. This is what's being described as a very powerful bomb explosion in the southern Pakistani port city of Karachi at a mosque. This is at the time of Friday prayers that this happened, so there would have been a lot of people in there.
Witnesses describing to CNN a scene that includes body parts, many people injured. We're just getting the reports here.
COSTELLO: And this also took place not only at a mosque, but there was a religious school nearby and that was destroyed, as well?
FLOURNOY: That is the initial report, yes, that there's a religious school nearby and we're still getting reports about the damage to the area and how many people were involved with that.
COSTELLO: Of course, we don't know who's responsible yet, but this isn't the first time that this kind of thing has happened in Karachi.
FLOURNOY: That is true. Just a couple months ago there was Shiite-Sunni violence which led -- at a mosque -- which led to the death of many people in a mosque in Karachi. That was about two months ago. So there is a precedent for conflict between Shia and Sunni Muslim religious groups in Karachi and in Pakistan in general.
But, again, we don't have confirmation that that is, in fact, what's happened here. But, again, this is in a mosque during Friday prayers, so this would have been a time when many people would have been in the mosque.
COSTELLO: All right, so five people killed, at least 35 injured, and you're going to get us more information.
FLOURNOY: That's right.
COSTELLO: Eli, thanks very much.
You can say with some certainty this is not going to be Donald Rumsfeld's best day. The defense secretary can expect to be grilled when he testifies before two congressional committees. Some Democrats on Capitol Hill are calling for his resignation over the Iraqi prisoner abuse scandal. And this morning, the "New York Times" editorial says it is time for Rumsfeld to go.
Elaine Quijano has more for you.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ELAINE QUIJANO, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): When Defense Secretary Rumsfeld heads to Capitol Hill, he'll bring with him a vote of confidence from President Bush. GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Secretary Rumsfeld is a really good secretary of defense.
QUIJANO: Democratic calls for Rumsfeld to resign increased after more pictures of alleged prisoner abuse surfaced Thursday. But one key senator, who said it might be necessary for Rumsfeld to resign, now says law makers should move on.
SEN. JOSEPH BIDEN (D-DW), FOREIGN RELATIONS COMMITTEE: We should not focus on the issue of whose scalp should be delivered. We should be talking about what are we going to do.
QUIJANO: Rumsfeld is set to face off with law makers not by himself, but with Joint Chiefs Chairman General Richard Myers and a handful of other top defense officials. To better prepare, the secretary canceled a planned speech Thursday in Philadelphia, instead, dispatching Deputy Defense Secretary Paul Wolfowitz in his place. A Pentagon official said Rumsfeld spent the day working with staff members by going over time lines and nuances.
Law makers want details about how the military investigated the alleged prisoner abuses by Americans at Iraq's Abu Ghraib Prison, cases the secretary insisted earlier this week defense officials have handled properly.
DONALD RUMSFELD, SECRETARY OF DEFENSE: And the fact of the matter is that this is a serious problem and it's something that the department is addressing. The system works. The system works.
QUIJANO (on camera): Aides to Secretary Rumsfeld say he is upbeat and anxious to tell his story. One Republican senator who met with Secretary Rumsfeld on Thursday says the secretary believes there is a rational explanation for the way the matter was handled.
Elaine Quijano, CNN, the Pentagon.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COSTELLO: Rumsfeld goes before the Senate Armed Services Committee at 11:45 Eastern this morning. CNN, of course, will bring you this testimony live.
And as you might expect, John Kerry is critical of the way President Bush is handling this scandal. During a campaign stop in California, he said if he were president he would, and I'm quoting here, "not be the last to k." He also repeated his call for Rumsfeld's resignation.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. JOHN KERRY (D-MA), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: The entire, you know, way in which they rushed the nation to war on these assumptions that he was making, which were incorrect, is a huge historic miscalculation. And I thought he should resign then, period.
(END VIDEO CLIP) COSTELLO: You may remember Kerry said last September Rumsfeld should resign for underestimating the demands of the war in Iraq.
That's the stateside view on all of this.
Let's get the story overseas now.
Ben Wedeman in Baghdad to talk about what the Iraqis know about Rumsfeld and his position in all of this and Walter Rodgers is live in London with the British angle on this story.
We start with Ben.
First of all, do Iraqis even know who Donald Rumsfeld is? BEN WEDEMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Oh, they're well aware of who Donald Rumsfeld is. Iraqis, even under Saddam Hussein's regime, were avid consumers of the news, listening to things like the BBC World Service in Arabic. So they know who he is and they have been watching very closely how this story has unfolded in the United States.
Now, we went out on the streets this morning to see what people thought, how they regarded Mr. Bush's apology. An interesting mix of opinion. We spoke to one religious leader who said he's going to take this apology at face value. But he's waiting to see whether this apology and the promises of improving conditions for prisoners at Abu Ghraib, of opening the prison up, are going to be carried out. And he says that's going to be where the true value of his apology comes from.
Another man who said, we spoke with said that he didn't regard this apology as very significant. He said that Mr. Bush has made many promises to the Iraqi people over the last year, promises that he would turn Iraq into a model democracy, that he would make the country prosper. This man said those promises were never carried out and he didn't seem to think much of whatever Mr. Bush had to say -- Carol.
COSTELLO: So, Ben, realistically, can anything be done to win the trust of the Iraqi people?
WEDEMAN: Well, it's a bit late in the day for that, given that really a year has passed and it's been a very difficult and disappointing year for many Iraqis. As I said, they -- many greeted the Americans. They were happy to see Saddam Hussein go. But they feel that from the beginning, the U.S. forces and the coalition in general never really got control of the situation. If you recall those incredible pictures of chaos that followed the fall of the regime, the looting. Almost every ministry in Baghdad was stripped clean by looters.
And for the last year there's been -- it's become a very unsafe country. People are afraid to go out. The economy is not in very good shape. Unemployment is very high. So it's a difficult situation and it's hard to say how the United States is going to remedy its credibility problem at this point -- Carol.
COSTELLO: Ben Wedeman live in Baghdad for us this morning. Let's head live now to London and Walter Rodgers with details on reports of possible abuse by British soldiers.
Tell us more about this -- Walt.
WALTER RODGERS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Carol, of course, the British soldiers have also been accused by one newspaper here and the only evidence they've seen so far is that the newspaper had some photos. But there is a strong suspicion some of those photos that allegedly document abuse by British soldiers are actually faked.
Still, there's a major government investigation going on here, nothing nearly as heavy as what we're seeing in the United States and in the context of American soldiers in Iraq -- Carol.
COSTELLO: But what about this British soldier who has come forward to tell tales of alleged abuse? Can you tell us more about that?
RODGERS: Well, yes. He's told tales of alleged abuse and a newspaper here has published pictures of the alleged abuse. The difficulty with all of this is there are many flaws in those pictures, little details like the rifles which the unit was supposed to have carried are not the rifles which were issued to the unit. And the British soldier who stepped forward, there's some question as to whether he's talking about an incident that occurred 10 months ago that has already been well publicized and documented.
So the case against the British is not nearly the case that you have against the U.S. soldiers at the Abu Ghraib Prison and the reason being there's nowhere near the documentation that you have against the Americans. There's still plenty to suspect that there have been abuses by British soldiers, but, again, nothing of the magnitude that the American soldiers are accused of -- Carol.
COSTELLO: Well, Walter, why would someone present fake pictures? I mean who would be behind something like this?
RODGERS: Well, that's a matter of conjecture, and that's not my job to sit here and speculate on that. But what I should tell you is that there is a very strong anti-war sentiment in Britain. So that whether these pictures are real or not, they do play to -- they have a certain resonance to the British audience.
Remember, unlike the United States, the British public has never in any majority, never reached 50 percent support of the war in Iraq. And Tony Blair is in rather sad shape politically here. His opposition, the Tory Party, has now come up to and polled even with him. So there just isn't public support for the war here. There's never been public support for the war here. And if somebody can come up with photos, genuine or doctored, there's a sympathetic audience out there -- Carol.
COSTELLO: Walter Rodgers live in London this morning.
We want to know what you think, about Donald Rumsfeld, that is. Should Donald Rumsfeld resign? E-mail us, daybreak@cnn.com, daybreak@cnn.com.
Israel and Hezbollah are battling it out again. Cross border fighting broke out this morning. You're looking at new pictures from those attacks. We're going to take you live to the region later this hour.
Plus, a possible U.S. connection to the terrorist bombings in Madrid. A Portland lawyer may be on the wrong side of the law.
Also ahead, is Hamill heading home? We'll take you live to Germany for the latest on the former hostage who escaped his Iraqi captors.
And mothers who opt out of the workforce to concentrate all of their efforts on their little ones -- here's to you this Mother's Day weekend.
It's all ahead in this hour of DAYBREAK.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COSTELLO: Your news, money, weather and sports.
It is 5:15 Eastern.
Here's what's all new this morning.
Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld goes before Congress today to testify on the Iraqi prisoner abuse scandal. Rumsfeld is expected to announce plans to form an independent panel to look into the Pentagon's handling of the investigation.
In Iraq, anti-American Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr is in Kufa near the holy city of Najaf to lead Friday prayers. This is in defiance of U.S. troops massed nearby who have vowed to arrest him.
In money news, April's unemployment report is due out in about three hours. Already there is encouraging news. The number of people filing for unemployment benefits dropped last week to their lowest level in more than three years.
In sports, "Spiderman" ads on bases did not fly with baseball fans. A day after announcing the "Spiderman 2" promotion deal, major league baseball changed its mind and will keep "Spiderman" off the bases.
In culture, TV's most popular comedy, "Friends," ended its 10 year run with an emotional finale. The show ended where it began, with Ross and Rachel united as a couple -- Chad.
(WEATHER REPORT)
COSTELLO: Those are the latest headlines for you.
Time now to get a pulse on the overseas markets.
As usual, for that we head live to London and Jim Boulden -- good morning, Jim.
JIM BOULDEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Carol.
Yes, we don't get that last episode of "Friends" for a couple more weeks and I can't believe you just gave it away to me.
COSTELLO: Oh, no. I'm sorry.
BOULDEN: But I will keep that quiet, because it's -- there's only been two stories in Europe today. One is waiting for those non- farm payroll numbers out of the U.S., which we're going to get in a couple of hours, and the "Friends" story. But I will keep my mouth shut.
Now, you see here a very mixed bag here. There's been no action at all, and that's because of the non-farm payroll numbers coming out of the U.S. They want to see how many jobs were created in April, just like you all want to see how many jobs were created, so we know what's going to happen with U.S. interest rates.
We had an interest rate rise here in the U.K. yesterday. Now, we knew that was going to come. But after that, the Bank of England gave some very aggressive statements and the thought was well, interest rates are going to rise here a lot more than we thought and a lot quicker.
So a bit of money coming into here. You see dollar -- the dollar/pound, more money coming into the pound. The dollar weakening a bit this morning. Also, the dollar back up over 120 with the euro. So one euro worth over $1.20.
So the euro is also strengthening against the dollar, not that there's going to be interest rate rises in the euro, but people really want to see where to put their money and they're waiting to hear about those markets.
A quick look at this one. This is Pinewood Studios. Now, they've gone public this morning for the first time. You get yourself a bit of -- a slice of this company if you're interested in Harry Potter, where the aliens were made, where they made a lot of other films. This, these very, very historic London studios are now public on the stock market and it's doing very well, up almost to two pounds.
That's it -- Carol, back to you.
COSTELLO: OK, I won't tell you what happens with Chandler and Monica's baby, either.
Sorry, Jim.
BOULDEN: Thank you very much.
COSTELLO: Thanks.
Next on DAYBREAK, ruling overturned -- after years of court battles, the husband of a brain damaged woman gets a victory in court. Also, a terror bombing in Spain might have an American connection.
And in light of the prisoner abuse scandal in Iraq, do you think Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld should resign? E-mail us. The address, daybreak@cnn.com.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BUSH: Secretary Rumsfeld has served our nation well. Secretary Rumsfeld has been the secretary during two wars and he is -- he's an important part of my cabinet and he'll stay in my cabinet.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: President Bush standing by Donald Rumsfeld.
We've been asking for your opinions this morning. Should Donald Rumsfeld resign?
And, boy, have we been getting response from you, and we do appreciate it.
We want to read some of your e-mails right now.
Chad joins me for help in that.
Let's start with Bob from San Angelo, Texas. He says: "About the question should Donald Rumsfeld resign, my question to you is why ask? President Bush says that he supports him and that should be the end of the debate."
MYERS: And from Sean in Phoenix -- and I was just putting these up as randomly as I could -- "His late knowledge of the abuse incidents and then keeping it from the president, however, is inexcusable and he should try to do at least one humble thing in his career and just step aside."
COSTELLO: From Pete in Seattle. He says, "Of course Rumsfeld should resign. From overruling then firing General Shinseki over the number of troops needed, to alienating Europe with the "old Europe" comment, to failing to secure Iraq after the war, to the sado-sexual abuse of prisoners, he has failed the president and the nation utterly. Rumsfeld must go now."
MYERS: Yes, and from Dana: "He should be fired, not allowed to resign. How can the puppet cut the strings to the puppeteer?"
COSTELLO: OK, we're going to read more of your e-mails later.
MYERS: All right.
COSTELLO: We're just grabbing them off the machine at random.
MYERS: Yes, that's right.
COSTELLO: We'll get to many more later.
Stories across America this Friday, two Air Force pilots parachuted to safety just before their F15-E fighter jet crashed in southwestern Virginia. Neither pilot was hurt in this training mission crash.
A judge has ruled the Florida law which keeps Terri Schiavo alive is unconstitutional. But a feeding and hydration tube will stay connected to the brain damaged woman for now due to an appeal by Governor Jeb Bush. The judge says "Terri's Law" violates Schiavo's right to privacy.
An evacuation orders have been lifted in Riverside County, California. That means residents can return to see what the wildfires have done to their property. Two fires burned more than 25,000 acres and damaged or destroyed dozens of structures. Cooler weather has helped firefighters control those wildfires.
To Oregon now and the investigation into the terrorist attacks in Spain that is leading to a suspect right here in the United States.
Here's our justice correspondent, Kelli Arena.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
KELLI ARENA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Sources tell CNN there may be a U.S. connection to the March 11th bombings in Madrid. FBI agents took into custody a Portland, Oregon lawyer based on information from Spanish authorities that he may have been involved in that attack. Law enforcement sources say that Brandon Mayfield is being held as a material witness, which basically means he can be held secretly and not charged.
Now, according to those sources, Mayfield's fingerprint was found on a plastic bag with bomb related material connected to the Madrid attack. Sources describe him as a Muslim convert and say that he'd been under 24-7 surveillance.
Now, he just happened to represent one of the chief defendants in the so-called Portland 7 terror case in a prior custody battle. Members of the alleged Portland cell pled guilty last year of plotting to fight for the Taliban against the United States in Afghanistan. But there's no suggestion at this point that there is any relation between that group and what happened in Spain.
Kelli Arena, CNN, Washington.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COSTELLO: And here's what's all new in the next half hour of DAYBREAK.
Fierce fighting this morning along Israel's border with Lebanon, as Israeli forces and the Hezbollah militia exchange fire. And a humble homecoming for Thomas Hamill. Why the former hostage is shying away from the spotlight.
And mothers making the ultimate sacrifice. We'll tell you why -- we'll tell you what they're giving up for the sake of their children.
We'll be right back.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
GERRI WILLIS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Despite the recent rise in the stock market, one important financial signal continues to drop -- the value of the U.S. dollar. Over the last year, the dollar has hit record lows against global currencies like the euro. For overseas travelers, that means trips to the Eiffel Tower are more expensive.
Yet it's not all bad news. The dollar's decline means U.S. products sold overseas are much cheaper, which translates into higher exports.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COSTELLO: Friday prayers take a deadly turn as a powerful bomb takes its toll in a Karachi, Pakistan mosque. These pictures just into us at CNN.
It's Friday, May 7.
This is DAYBREAK.
And good morning to you.
Welcome to the second half hour of DAYBREAK.
From the CNN global headquarters in Atlanta, I'm Carol Costello.
Let me bring you up to date now.
A powerful bomb rips through a mosque in Karachi, Pakistan during midday prayers. At least five are dead, 35 others wounded.
It may be from the frying pan into the fire today for Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld. He faces grilling from two congressional committees over the Iraqi prisoner abuse scandal. Some Democratic law makers have called for Rumsfeld's resignation.
Muqtada al-Sadr is leading prayers in Kufa, Iraq, not far from U.S. troops who are under orders to arrest him. At least 40 insurgents linked to the radical Shiite cleric were killed in a battle around Kufa on Thursday.
A British soldier has now told military authorities about the alleged abuse of Iraqi prisoners by British troops. The soldier had previously gone to the "Daily Mirror," which broke the story. And cross border fighting in the Middle East. Hezbollah militia and Israeli forces exchanged fire early today. Hezbollah shelled outposts in northern Israel and Israel Air Force and artillery returned fire in Lebanon.
Now to Chad.
CHAD MYERS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Carol.
(WEATHER REPORT)
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