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CNN Live At Daybreak
Car Bombing Kills President of Iraqi Governing Council; Latest Revelations in Iraqi Prisoner Abuse Scandal
Aired May 17, 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: New this morning, a car bomb kills the president of the Iraqi Governing Council.
It is Monday, May 17.
This is DAYBREAK.
And good morning to you.
From the CNN global headquarters in Atlanta, I'm Carol Costello.
Here are the latest headlines for you now.
A little more than three hours ago, the president of the Iraqi Governing Council was killed in a car bombing. Izzadine Saleem is the second member of the Governing Council to be killed.
Across Massachusetts this morning, city clerks are handing out marriage license applications to gay couples. The Bay State is the first in the nation to legalize same sex unions.
In money news this morning, low gas inventories in the United States, a surge in global oil consumption and concerns over the Middle East -- it all adds up to a new record high for crude oil this morning -- $41 a barrel.
In sports, the L.A. Lakers are Western Conference champs. They beat the San Antonio Spurs 88-76.
Up next, Minnesota or Sacramento.
In culture, "Troy" whips on the competition. The movie was tops at the box office this weekend, taking in more than $45.5 million. One Atlanta movie reviewer calls it a pictacular -- Rob.
ROB MARCIANO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I'm not sure what that means, Carol.
Good morning to you.
(WEATHER REPORT)
COSTELLO: This morning's suicide car bomb hits at the very heart of U.S. political efforts in Iraq. It killed the president of Iraq's Governing Council and at least three others. You're looking at pictures just in to CNN this morning. It happened right outside the U.S. headquarters in Iraq, the Coalition Provisional Authority's so- called green zone.
Let's head live to Baghdad now for the latest on this deadly attack.
Our Stephanie Halasz is covering the carnage -- Stephanie, bring us up to date.
STEPHANIE HALASZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Carol, we are getting some new numbers. We're hearing that four to six people were killed in that car suicide bomb. One of them may have been the suicide bomber himself and 16 injured, 16 Iraqi civilians injured.
Now, just to bring us up to date how this happened, around 10:00 this morning, about three hours ago, as you said, a huge bomb went off at Checkpoint 12 on the southwestern side of the so-called Green Zone. That is the secure zone where the CPA, the Coalition Provisional Authority, is sitting. We were actually in the CPA building and could feel it and hear it.
Now, what was happening was a convoy of about five cars, including the car of the Governing Council president, Izzadine Saleem, was heading into the Green Zone and a car blew up close to that convoy there. The road that is leading into the Checkpoint 12 is the road that comes from the Baghdad International Airport. But we do not know whether Izzadine Saleem was on his way from the airport into the Green Zone.
Now, we are hearing from coalition senior authority military sources, that they believe that an alleged Jordanian terrorist, Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, may have been involved in this. They are suspecting this because of three things -- because it was a suicide attack, it was spectacular and it was symbolic. And symbolic, indeed. The head of the Governing -- Iraqi Governing Council, dead, and this underlines the notion that anybody here in Baghdad or, indeed, in the country, who owes his power to the Americans is at danger -- Carol.
COSTELLO: Stephanie, a few questions for you.
How do they know so soon that Zarqawi may be involved?
HALASZ: Well, they are believing that he is operating here in the country. And, of course, he is believed to have been behind and, indeed, identified as being behind that gruesome killing on the videotape that killed that American Nicholas Berg, that we saw a few days ago. He is really somebody that is at the top of their list. And, again, they're identifying those three symbolic gestures or those three characteristics that are sort of in clue with what was happening this morning -- Carol.
COSTELLO: Stephanie, this happened in one of the most secure places within Baghdad, within Iraq. Izzadine Saleem was in a car, just a small car. You would think that he would be riding in a different type of vehicle, perhaps, to protect himself?
HALASZ: Well, it's very difficult to actually decide how you're going to get around Baghdad. It is quite dangerous in this city, to say the least. And you really have to be careful about your choice of vehicles. If you ride in a big car that is perhaps armored, you, of course, draw attention. So to ride in a small car that doesn't -- wouldn't draw a lot of attention to itself, is not unwise.
But, of course, the danger is if you stand still. And there are so many traffic jams in Baghdad because of a lot of roads being blocked off, which is actually a big problem in this city, that at times in the city you do stand still. And, of course, that is when attacks like this could occur -- Carol.
COSTELLO: Stephanie Halasz live in Baghdad this morning.
The U.S. military spokesman in Iraq says attacks such as these will in no way delay the hand over of power to Iraq.
Brigadier General Mark Kimmitt spoke with CNN about the attack a short time ago.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BRIG. GEN. MARK KIMMITT, U.S. BRIGADIER GENERAL: Days like today convince us even more so that this must stay on track. It absolutely affirms that the process of handing over sovereignty to the people of Iraq must happen and days like today, rather than derailing us from that process, actually affirm the wisdom and the prudence of that transfer of authority.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: This morning's attack was symbolic and spectacular.
For more perspective, we turn to our senior international editor, David Clinch -- and, David, tell us about Mr. Saleem.
DAVID CLINCH, CNN INTERNATIONAL EDITOR: Well, he's a very interesting character. People have been asking me this morning, you know, how significant is he? I think the point is that he, as the current rotating president of the Iraqi Governing Council, is very significant because he is holding that role at the moment and because the Governing Council itself is right at the heart of this major problem that the U.S. and the other coalition members face in creating a meaningful hand over on June the 30th. This does nothing to help that.
COSTELLO: Do you think, though, he was specifically targeted? He's Shiite, right?
CLINCH: Well, that's hard to say. Yes, I mean just more on him. He is what could be called currently a moderate Shiite. His group, his Shia group was more or less in opposition to Saddam Hussein during the time Saddam was in power. He has been supportive of the U.S. military presence there. He is a Shiite, but he's nowhere near the extremes of Muqtada al-Sadr or anybody like that.
He has been at the heart, as have other Governing Council members, of the idea of bringing Iraqi people together -- Shiites, Sunnis and others -- exactly the kind of person that the U.S. and the U.N., for that matter, could imagine being at the heart of a new Iraqi government. So in that sense, also, he is a big loss.
But the other problem, of course, is not just the symbolic, but the logistical. These Governing Council members -- and we have some reports that he was -- they're asking whether he was targeted -- we have some reports that it was a convoy of cars containing him and perhaps other Governing Council members, too. So it could have been worse. And also, of course, it does not necessarily mean that he was targeted. Perhaps the Governing Council members in total, the convoy, were. We still don't know.
But, again, it could have been worse.
COSTELLO: Let's talk about the convoy going through that military checkpoint. So there were a line of cars. They're being stopped at some point by U.S. military personnel before they go -- enter into the Green Zone.
CLINCH: Right. On...
COSTELLO: Which is where the coalition headquarters is.
CLINCH: Right. On their way to a meeting, and an urgent meeting of the Governing Council, to discuss just these issues. But just like everybody else in Baghdad, they face these delays, they face questioning sometimes. They do have guards. They do, some of them, have their own guards. Some of them, as Stephanie was pointing out, travel heavily guarded; others with a slightly lower profile.
The problem is you stand still and you become a potential target. If not embarrassing, certainly very frustrating for the U.S. to face the idea that their own appointed Iraqi Governing Council is vulnerable to an attack like this at an American checkpoint in the Green Zone.
COSTELLO: Hard to stop suicide bombers, though.
CLINCH: It is. And that's the key. We say it again and again and again -- they only have to get it right once, the people who want to do this. If their goal is disruption, it's not that difficult, because they can take the softest targets and hit when they want to hit.
COSTELLO: David Clinch, many thanks to you.
Other headlines out of Iraq we're tracking this Monday morning, the U.S. military taking reporters on another tour of the notorious Abu Ghraib Prison today. The new commander of the detainee operations, Major General Geoffrey Miller, will be there to answer reporters' questions.
Fighting overnight in the southern city of Nasiriyah. Italian troops fought against the militia of radical cleric Muqtada al-Sadr. Two militiamen were killed, 10 Italians wounded, and now one of those Italian soldiers has died of his wounds. Some of the 37,000 U.S. troops now in South Korea should be on the move soon to Iraq. A South Korean government official made the announcement, but gave no figures. But a newspaper in Seoul says 4,000 Americans will be redeployed.
"Newsweek" magazine says White House Counsel Alberto Gonzalez sent President Bush a memo after 9/11 saying the war on terror made interrogation rules for prisoners obsolete. In the meantime, there's another bombshell article in the "New Yorker" by Pulitzer Prize winning journalist Seymour Hersh.
Here's our Kathleen Koch.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
KATHLEEN KOCH, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The "New Yorker" article alleges that Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld expanded to Iraq a clandestine operation used against al Qaeda in Afghanistan. The goal -- get more intelligence about the growing insurgency.
SEYMOUR HERSH, "THE NEW YORKER": The instructions were let's get tougher, let's use much more coercion, let's use sexual intimidation, because it's -- in the Arab world, that's an easy way to make somebody talk.
KOCH: Hersh writes that a former intelligence official told him the rules of the operation were "grab whom you must, do what you want." Pentagon spokesman Lawrence DeRita calls the story outlandish and completely false: "No responsible official of the Department of Defense approved any program that could conceivably have been intended to result in such abuses as witnessed in the recent photos and videos."
Meanwhile, the "New York Times" obtained a sworn statement by PFC Lynndie England, charged in the alleged abuses. We thought it looked funny, so pictures were taken, England told investigators. The soldier repeated previous claims the M.P.s were ordered to do the things they did.
Secretary of State Colin Powell insisted the administration has found no high level condonement of the prison abuses.
COLIN POWELL, SECRETARY OF STATE: I don't see yet any indication that there was a command climate problem higher up.
KOCH: Calls intensified through the weekend for a full congressional investigation.
SEN. JOSEPH LIEBERMAN (D), CONNECTICUT: There has to be a search for the truth and it has to take us as far and as high in the chain of command as it goes.
SEN. LINDSEY GRAHAM (R), SOUTH CAROLINA: I've never believed this was just a few rogue M.P.s, but I'm not willing to indict everybody in the system until I have more evidence. KOCH (on camera): It's unclear how the new allegations will impact the cases against the seven soldiers charged in the alleged abuses. Court-martial proceedings against three of them begin this week.
Kathleen Koch, CNN, the Pentagon.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COSTELLO: Hear what the attorneys for Private England are saying about the latest accusations. They will be on CNN's "American Morning" with Bill and Soledad. Of course, that comes your way at 7:00 Eastern. That interview will take place at 7:15.
Secretary of State Colin Powell is now expressing regret over some of his weapons of mass destruction statements in the run up to the war. You'll remember Powell made the case for the Iraq war in a major speech before the United Nations. In that speech, he cited mobile weapons labs and other alleged evidence. Now Powell says the CIA was misled.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
POWELL: At the time that I made the presentation, it reflected the collective judgment, the sound judgment of the intelligence community. But it turned out that the sourcing was inaccurate and wrong, and, in some cases, deliberately misleading. And for that I am disappointed and I regret it.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: An official close to Powell says, "He doesn't want a legacy as the man who made up stories to provide the president with cover to go to war.
Today marks a turning point in race relations in this country. It will be an emotional ceremony at a historic site in Topeka, Kansas.
Colin Powell says Iraqi prisoner abuse and the horrible fate of Nick Berg are not one and the same.
And when it comes to re-electing police stations, Bill Schneider says approval ratings aren't everything.
And going down to the sea in ships, or, in this case, Jeanne Moos and a day at the races.
We'll be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COSTELLO: Your news, money, weather and sports.
It is 16 minutes after the hour.
Here's what's all new this morning. Just a few hours ago, the head of the Iraqi Governing Council was killed by a suicide bomber. Izzadine Saleem was near the coalition's green zone when the attack occurred.
The first same-sex marriages in Massachusetts are expected to get under way this morning. City hall in Cambridge began issuing licenses to same sex couples at the stroke of midnight. The marriages are legal beginning today.
In money news, fresh food delivered to your door -- once again, Internet grocery stores are gaining ground and customers. But unlike the failures of the late '90s, analysts say this batch of cyber stores should succeed.
In sports, Marty Jones one step closer to the Triple Crown after winning the Preakness over the weekend. The third and final race is the Belmont on June 5.
In culture, one popular sitcom is not saying good-bye. CBS is set to announce that "Everybody Loves Raymond" will return for a ninth and final farewell season -- Rob.
(WEATHER REPORT)
COSTELLO: Those are the latest headlines for you.
At the stroke of midnight, Massachusetts became the first state in the country to legalize gay marriage. In Cambridge, couples wanted outside city hall for hours to apply for marriage licenses.
CNN's Maria Hinojosa was there.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MARIA HINOJOSA, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): There is a tremendous amount of excitement here on Sunday night as the first gay and lesbian couples here in Cambridge, Massachusetts -- this is the first city hall that is opening up its doors to begin the paperwork processing so that these gay and lesbian couples can get their marriage licenses.
The crowds here have been pretty much amassing since 24 hours ago, huge crowds of people. Many of them have come out to show their support for what will be the first legally recognized gay and lesbian marriages in the State of Massachusetts and recognized, really, even though you have seen other gay and lesbian couples going into other city halls, this is the first state where you're actually going to have these marriages recognized.
(on camera): Now, one of the people who's going to be processing her marriage, not today, but soon, is Eleni Carr.
Eleni, why is it important for you to have the right to be able to marry your partner?
ELENI CARR, SEEKING MARRIAGE TO PARTNER: Primarily so that I can protect my family, so that if anything were to happen to me and I were hospitalized, I would know that Harra (ph) could come into the hospital room, she could make medical decisions on my behalf. And the way it stands right now, if we're not married, they don't have to even give her the right to come into my room. Can you imagine? The person I'm sharing my life with couldn't come into my room.
HINOJOSA: And what's going on for you, as you're seeing what's happening right now here in Cambridge?
CARR: This is one of the most patriotic events I think I've ever attended in my entire life. When straight people, gay people, black people, white people can come together and celebrate a step towards equality, that is what America is about. I'm happy tonight to be an American.
HINOJOSA: Thank you very much.
Eleni Carr and her family.
CARR: Thank you.
HINOJOSA: They will be getting their marriage license back in -- coming up in August. On the morn -- on Monday morning, you're going to be seeing this scene repeating in Boston, where people have to usually wait for three days to get their marriage license. In fact, they will be asking for a waiver so that they can get their marriage licenses. We will be seeing the first gay and lesbian couples married perhaps by the end of Monday.
Maria Hinojosa, CNN, Cambridge, Massachusetts.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COSTELLO: And here are some headlines on gay marriages from around the country.
New York's attorney general says his state will recognize same- sex marriage performed in Massachusetts. But the governor of Massachusetts, fearing a run on the state, has said Massachusetts will not marry same sex couples from other states with laws forbidding marriages between gays.
In the nation's capital, African-American pastors from around the country will hold a news conference today to oppose the move by judges in Massachusetts to allow same-sex marriages.
In Connecticut, about 700 gay couples and their supporters turned out in Hartford to rally in favor of recognizing same-sex marriage in that state. Connecticut's attorney general plans to release an opinion on the matter later today.
And in Oklahoma, a lesbian couple from Tulsa obtained an application for marriage from the clerk's office of the Cherokee Indian Nation. A day after the application was issued, a tribal judge issued a moratorium on same-sex marriage applications while officials work to clarify their marriage laws. It's Monday, May 17.
DAYBREAK will be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COSTELLO: Today marks a turning point in race relations in this country. It is the 50th anniversary of the landmark "Brown v. The Board of Education" decision. The Supreme Court ruling declared segregation in public schools was inherently unequal and unconstitutional.
President Bush will mark the anniversary by traveling to Topeka, Kansas. He'll attend the opening of a national historic site at the former Monroe Elementary School. The school was the centerpiece of the Supreme Court case that ended segregation.
CNN's Dan Lothian looks back at the history of this case.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DAN LOTHIAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): This could be any schoolyard in any city in America. Fifty years ago, the scene was much different. White children went to one school while black children went to another. Segregation had been the law of the land since the "Plessey v. Ferguson" ruling of 1896 cemented the separate but equal doctrine.
After WWII ended, cracks began appearing in the rigid color lines that divided Americans. President Harry Truman desegregated the armed services. Jackie Robinson became the first African-American to play major league baseball. And a young attorney named Thurgood Marshall was gathering steam for the NAACP's new challenge to the separate but equal doctrine.
JUAN WILLIAMS, MARSHALL BIOGRAPHER: He was a man who believed in democracy. He believed with all his heart in the constitution.
LOTHIAN: Seven-year-old Linda Brown became the reluctant icon for a landmark Supreme Court ruling. She had to travel dozens of blocks to a black elementary school, but her home was just seven blocks away from Sumner Elementary, an all white school.
LINDA BROWN THOMPSON, FATHER BROUGHT LANDMARK CASE: I had Spanish-American playmates, I had Native American playmates, I had white playmates and we played together on a daily basis. But when school started, they went one way and I went another way.
DAN LOTHIAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Her father sued the board of education of Topeka, Kansas for denying her admission. His case joined four others, representing 200 plaintiffs in the NAACP's class action lawsuit that would forever bear his name.
Marshall argued the case before the Supreme Court.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP FROM "WITH ALL DELIBERATE SPEED," COURTESY DISCOVERY DOCUMENTS)
THURGOOD MARSHALL, FORMER SUPREME COURT JUSTICE: This is a part of the group of lawyers from all sections of the country who are here in the Supreme Court for the purpose of arguing the school segregation cases.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LOTHIAN: On May 17, 1954, Chief Justice Earl Warren handed down the unanimous decision that separate educational facilities are inherently unequal. The ruling struck down the legal basis for segregation in Kansas and 20 other states.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is Little Rock's central high school.
LOTHIAN: It didn't bring an immediate end to segregation, but it marked the start of an uneasy transition in education reform across the country. It also laid the bedrock for the modern civil rights movement and ultimately forever changed race relations in America.
(on camera): Now there's a museum here in Topeka at Monroe Elementary School, one of four segregated black schools where Linda Brown attended. It focuses on more than just the "Brown" case, and looks at the fight for civil rights across the country.
Dan Lothian, CNN, Topeka.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COSTELLO: It's been a half century since the Supreme Court struck down segregation in public schools. A new Gallup poll suggests Americans believe things have improved since then. The poll found 92 percent of whites and 77 percent of African-Americans think black children have better educational opportunities than 50 years ago. However, it's a very different story when asked if they have equal opportunities. Sixty-three percent of whites say yes and 68 percent of blacks say no.
CNN plans live coverage of President Bush's address from Topeka, Kansas. That's set for 1:15 p.m. Eastern.
And here's what's all new in the next half hour of DAYBREAK.
New polls show President Bush's job approval rating is sinking. But does that really signal danger for his reelection bid? We'll crunch the numbers and tell you why Democrats may be worried.
And a deadly car bomber strikes on the outskirts of Baghdad, but will it derail the political process? We'll get you the latest live from Baghdad.
This is DAYBREAK for Monday.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JIM MCDONALD, CHAIRMAN, PRESIDENT & CEO, SCIENTIFIC-ATLANTA: I've actually been in the technology industry now for 41 years and I think as you get further along, you learn to talk less and listen more.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Jim McDonald channels that philosophy as the top executive at Scientific Atlanta, a leading supplier of digital content distribution systems and transmission networks and digital interactive set top boxes. Under his leadership, the company has delivered solid performances. Fiscal third quarter sales were $437 million, a 14 percent increase from the same period last year.
MCDONALD: The way you remain successful is you work on your two largest constituents, which are your shareholders and your employees, and see if you can't make it work for both of them.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
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Aired May 17, 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: New this morning, a car bomb kills the president of the Iraqi Governing Council.
It is Monday, May 17.
This is DAYBREAK.
And good morning to you.
From the CNN global headquarters in Atlanta, I'm Carol Costello.
Here are the latest headlines for you now.
A little more than three hours ago, the president of the Iraqi Governing Council was killed in a car bombing. Izzadine Saleem is the second member of the Governing Council to be killed.
Across Massachusetts this morning, city clerks are handing out marriage license applications to gay couples. The Bay State is the first in the nation to legalize same sex unions.
In money news this morning, low gas inventories in the United States, a surge in global oil consumption and concerns over the Middle East -- it all adds up to a new record high for crude oil this morning -- $41 a barrel.
In sports, the L.A. Lakers are Western Conference champs. They beat the San Antonio Spurs 88-76.
Up next, Minnesota or Sacramento.
In culture, "Troy" whips on the competition. The movie was tops at the box office this weekend, taking in more than $45.5 million. One Atlanta movie reviewer calls it a pictacular -- Rob.
ROB MARCIANO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I'm not sure what that means, Carol.
Good morning to you.
(WEATHER REPORT)
COSTELLO: This morning's suicide car bomb hits at the very heart of U.S. political efforts in Iraq. It killed the president of Iraq's Governing Council and at least three others. You're looking at pictures just in to CNN this morning. It happened right outside the U.S. headquarters in Iraq, the Coalition Provisional Authority's so- called green zone.
Let's head live to Baghdad now for the latest on this deadly attack.
Our Stephanie Halasz is covering the carnage -- Stephanie, bring us up to date.
STEPHANIE HALASZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Carol, we are getting some new numbers. We're hearing that four to six people were killed in that car suicide bomb. One of them may have been the suicide bomber himself and 16 injured, 16 Iraqi civilians injured.
Now, just to bring us up to date how this happened, around 10:00 this morning, about three hours ago, as you said, a huge bomb went off at Checkpoint 12 on the southwestern side of the so-called Green Zone. That is the secure zone where the CPA, the Coalition Provisional Authority, is sitting. We were actually in the CPA building and could feel it and hear it.
Now, what was happening was a convoy of about five cars, including the car of the Governing Council president, Izzadine Saleem, was heading into the Green Zone and a car blew up close to that convoy there. The road that is leading into the Checkpoint 12 is the road that comes from the Baghdad International Airport. But we do not know whether Izzadine Saleem was on his way from the airport into the Green Zone.
Now, we are hearing from coalition senior authority military sources, that they believe that an alleged Jordanian terrorist, Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, may have been involved in this. They are suspecting this because of three things -- because it was a suicide attack, it was spectacular and it was symbolic. And symbolic, indeed. The head of the Governing -- Iraqi Governing Council, dead, and this underlines the notion that anybody here in Baghdad or, indeed, in the country, who owes his power to the Americans is at danger -- Carol.
COSTELLO: Stephanie, a few questions for you.
How do they know so soon that Zarqawi may be involved?
HALASZ: Well, they are believing that he is operating here in the country. And, of course, he is believed to have been behind and, indeed, identified as being behind that gruesome killing on the videotape that killed that American Nicholas Berg, that we saw a few days ago. He is really somebody that is at the top of their list. And, again, they're identifying those three symbolic gestures or those three characteristics that are sort of in clue with what was happening this morning -- Carol.
COSTELLO: Stephanie, this happened in one of the most secure places within Baghdad, within Iraq. Izzadine Saleem was in a car, just a small car. You would think that he would be riding in a different type of vehicle, perhaps, to protect himself?
HALASZ: Well, it's very difficult to actually decide how you're going to get around Baghdad. It is quite dangerous in this city, to say the least. And you really have to be careful about your choice of vehicles. If you ride in a big car that is perhaps armored, you, of course, draw attention. So to ride in a small car that doesn't -- wouldn't draw a lot of attention to itself, is not unwise.
But, of course, the danger is if you stand still. And there are so many traffic jams in Baghdad because of a lot of roads being blocked off, which is actually a big problem in this city, that at times in the city you do stand still. And, of course, that is when attacks like this could occur -- Carol.
COSTELLO: Stephanie Halasz live in Baghdad this morning.
The U.S. military spokesman in Iraq says attacks such as these will in no way delay the hand over of power to Iraq.
Brigadier General Mark Kimmitt spoke with CNN about the attack a short time ago.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BRIG. GEN. MARK KIMMITT, U.S. BRIGADIER GENERAL: Days like today convince us even more so that this must stay on track. It absolutely affirms that the process of handing over sovereignty to the people of Iraq must happen and days like today, rather than derailing us from that process, actually affirm the wisdom and the prudence of that transfer of authority.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: This morning's attack was symbolic and spectacular.
For more perspective, we turn to our senior international editor, David Clinch -- and, David, tell us about Mr. Saleem.
DAVID CLINCH, CNN INTERNATIONAL EDITOR: Well, he's a very interesting character. People have been asking me this morning, you know, how significant is he? I think the point is that he, as the current rotating president of the Iraqi Governing Council, is very significant because he is holding that role at the moment and because the Governing Council itself is right at the heart of this major problem that the U.S. and the other coalition members face in creating a meaningful hand over on June the 30th. This does nothing to help that.
COSTELLO: Do you think, though, he was specifically targeted? He's Shiite, right?
CLINCH: Well, that's hard to say. Yes, I mean just more on him. He is what could be called currently a moderate Shiite. His group, his Shia group was more or less in opposition to Saddam Hussein during the time Saddam was in power. He has been supportive of the U.S. military presence there. He is a Shiite, but he's nowhere near the extremes of Muqtada al-Sadr or anybody like that.
He has been at the heart, as have other Governing Council members, of the idea of bringing Iraqi people together -- Shiites, Sunnis and others -- exactly the kind of person that the U.S. and the U.N., for that matter, could imagine being at the heart of a new Iraqi government. So in that sense, also, he is a big loss.
But the other problem, of course, is not just the symbolic, but the logistical. These Governing Council members -- and we have some reports that he was -- they're asking whether he was targeted -- we have some reports that it was a convoy of cars containing him and perhaps other Governing Council members, too. So it could have been worse. And also, of course, it does not necessarily mean that he was targeted. Perhaps the Governing Council members in total, the convoy, were. We still don't know.
But, again, it could have been worse.
COSTELLO: Let's talk about the convoy going through that military checkpoint. So there were a line of cars. They're being stopped at some point by U.S. military personnel before they go -- enter into the Green Zone.
CLINCH: Right. On...
COSTELLO: Which is where the coalition headquarters is.
CLINCH: Right. On their way to a meeting, and an urgent meeting of the Governing Council, to discuss just these issues. But just like everybody else in Baghdad, they face these delays, they face questioning sometimes. They do have guards. They do, some of them, have their own guards. Some of them, as Stephanie was pointing out, travel heavily guarded; others with a slightly lower profile.
The problem is you stand still and you become a potential target. If not embarrassing, certainly very frustrating for the U.S. to face the idea that their own appointed Iraqi Governing Council is vulnerable to an attack like this at an American checkpoint in the Green Zone.
COSTELLO: Hard to stop suicide bombers, though.
CLINCH: It is. And that's the key. We say it again and again and again -- they only have to get it right once, the people who want to do this. If their goal is disruption, it's not that difficult, because they can take the softest targets and hit when they want to hit.
COSTELLO: David Clinch, many thanks to you.
Other headlines out of Iraq we're tracking this Monday morning, the U.S. military taking reporters on another tour of the notorious Abu Ghraib Prison today. The new commander of the detainee operations, Major General Geoffrey Miller, will be there to answer reporters' questions.
Fighting overnight in the southern city of Nasiriyah. Italian troops fought against the militia of radical cleric Muqtada al-Sadr. Two militiamen were killed, 10 Italians wounded, and now one of those Italian soldiers has died of his wounds. Some of the 37,000 U.S. troops now in South Korea should be on the move soon to Iraq. A South Korean government official made the announcement, but gave no figures. But a newspaper in Seoul says 4,000 Americans will be redeployed.
"Newsweek" magazine says White House Counsel Alberto Gonzalez sent President Bush a memo after 9/11 saying the war on terror made interrogation rules for prisoners obsolete. In the meantime, there's another bombshell article in the "New Yorker" by Pulitzer Prize winning journalist Seymour Hersh.
Here's our Kathleen Koch.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
KATHLEEN KOCH, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The "New Yorker" article alleges that Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld expanded to Iraq a clandestine operation used against al Qaeda in Afghanistan. The goal -- get more intelligence about the growing insurgency.
SEYMOUR HERSH, "THE NEW YORKER": The instructions were let's get tougher, let's use much more coercion, let's use sexual intimidation, because it's -- in the Arab world, that's an easy way to make somebody talk.
KOCH: Hersh writes that a former intelligence official told him the rules of the operation were "grab whom you must, do what you want." Pentagon spokesman Lawrence DeRita calls the story outlandish and completely false: "No responsible official of the Department of Defense approved any program that could conceivably have been intended to result in such abuses as witnessed in the recent photos and videos."
Meanwhile, the "New York Times" obtained a sworn statement by PFC Lynndie England, charged in the alleged abuses. We thought it looked funny, so pictures were taken, England told investigators. The soldier repeated previous claims the M.P.s were ordered to do the things they did.
Secretary of State Colin Powell insisted the administration has found no high level condonement of the prison abuses.
COLIN POWELL, SECRETARY OF STATE: I don't see yet any indication that there was a command climate problem higher up.
KOCH: Calls intensified through the weekend for a full congressional investigation.
SEN. JOSEPH LIEBERMAN (D), CONNECTICUT: There has to be a search for the truth and it has to take us as far and as high in the chain of command as it goes.
SEN. LINDSEY GRAHAM (R), SOUTH CAROLINA: I've never believed this was just a few rogue M.P.s, but I'm not willing to indict everybody in the system until I have more evidence. KOCH (on camera): It's unclear how the new allegations will impact the cases against the seven soldiers charged in the alleged abuses. Court-martial proceedings against three of them begin this week.
Kathleen Koch, CNN, the Pentagon.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COSTELLO: Hear what the attorneys for Private England are saying about the latest accusations. They will be on CNN's "American Morning" with Bill and Soledad. Of course, that comes your way at 7:00 Eastern. That interview will take place at 7:15.
Secretary of State Colin Powell is now expressing regret over some of his weapons of mass destruction statements in the run up to the war. You'll remember Powell made the case for the Iraq war in a major speech before the United Nations. In that speech, he cited mobile weapons labs and other alleged evidence. Now Powell says the CIA was misled.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
POWELL: At the time that I made the presentation, it reflected the collective judgment, the sound judgment of the intelligence community. But it turned out that the sourcing was inaccurate and wrong, and, in some cases, deliberately misleading. And for that I am disappointed and I regret it.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: An official close to Powell says, "He doesn't want a legacy as the man who made up stories to provide the president with cover to go to war.
Today marks a turning point in race relations in this country. It will be an emotional ceremony at a historic site in Topeka, Kansas.
Colin Powell says Iraqi prisoner abuse and the horrible fate of Nick Berg are not one and the same.
And when it comes to re-electing police stations, Bill Schneider says approval ratings aren't everything.
And going down to the sea in ships, or, in this case, Jeanne Moos and a day at the races.
We'll be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COSTELLO: Your news, money, weather and sports.
It is 16 minutes after the hour.
Here's what's all new this morning. Just a few hours ago, the head of the Iraqi Governing Council was killed by a suicide bomber. Izzadine Saleem was near the coalition's green zone when the attack occurred.
The first same-sex marriages in Massachusetts are expected to get under way this morning. City hall in Cambridge began issuing licenses to same sex couples at the stroke of midnight. The marriages are legal beginning today.
In money news, fresh food delivered to your door -- once again, Internet grocery stores are gaining ground and customers. But unlike the failures of the late '90s, analysts say this batch of cyber stores should succeed.
In sports, Marty Jones one step closer to the Triple Crown after winning the Preakness over the weekend. The third and final race is the Belmont on June 5.
In culture, one popular sitcom is not saying good-bye. CBS is set to announce that "Everybody Loves Raymond" will return for a ninth and final farewell season -- Rob.
(WEATHER REPORT)
COSTELLO: Those are the latest headlines for you.
At the stroke of midnight, Massachusetts became the first state in the country to legalize gay marriage. In Cambridge, couples wanted outside city hall for hours to apply for marriage licenses.
CNN's Maria Hinojosa was there.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MARIA HINOJOSA, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): There is a tremendous amount of excitement here on Sunday night as the first gay and lesbian couples here in Cambridge, Massachusetts -- this is the first city hall that is opening up its doors to begin the paperwork processing so that these gay and lesbian couples can get their marriage licenses.
The crowds here have been pretty much amassing since 24 hours ago, huge crowds of people. Many of them have come out to show their support for what will be the first legally recognized gay and lesbian marriages in the State of Massachusetts and recognized, really, even though you have seen other gay and lesbian couples going into other city halls, this is the first state where you're actually going to have these marriages recognized.
(on camera): Now, one of the people who's going to be processing her marriage, not today, but soon, is Eleni Carr.
Eleni, why is it important for you to have the right to be able to marry your partner?
ELENI CARR, SEEKING MARRIAGE TO PARTNER: Primarily so that I can protect my family, so that if anything were to happen to me and I were hospitalized, I would know that Harra (ph) could come into the hospital room, she could make medical decisions on my behalf. And the way it stands right now, if we're not married, they don't have to even give her the right to come into my room. Can you imagine? The person I'm sharing my life with couldn't come into my room.
HINOJOSA: And what's going on for you, as you're seeing what's happening right now here in Cambridge?
CARR: This is one of the most patriotic events I think I've ever attended in my entire life. When straight people, gay people, black people, white people can come together and celebrate a step towards equality, that is what America is about. I'm happy tonight to be an American.
HINOJOSA: Thank you very much.
Eleni Carr and her family.
CARR: Thank you.
HINOJOSA: They will be getting their marriage license back in -- coming up in August. On the morn -- on Monday morning, you're going to be seeing this scene repeating in Boston, where people have to usually wait for three days to get their marriage license. In fact, they will be asking for a waiver so that they can get their marriage licenses. We will be seeing the first gay and lesbian couples married perhaps by the end of Monday.
Maria Hinojosa, CNN, Cambridge, Massachusetts.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COSTELLO: And here are some headlines on gay marriages from around the country.
New York's attorney general says his state will recognize same- sex marriage performed in Massachusetts. But the governor of Massachusetts, fearing a run on the state, has said Massachusetts will not marry same sex couples from other states with laws forbidding marriages between gays.
In the nation's capital, African-American pastors from around the country will hold a news conference today to oppose the move by judges in Massachusetts to allow same-sex marriages.
In Connecticut, about 700 gay couples and their supporters turned out in Hartford to rally in favor of recognizing same-sex marriage in that state. Connecticut's attorney general plans to release an opinion on the matter later today.
And in Oklahoma, a lesbian couple from Tulsa obtained an application for marriage from the clerk's office of the Cherokee Indian Nation. A day after the application was issued, a tribal judge issued a moratorium on same-sex marriage applications while officials work to clarify their marriage laws. It's Monday, May 17.
DAYBREAK will be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COSTELLO: Today marks a turning point in race relations in this country. It is the 50th anniversary of the landmark "Brown v. The Board of Education" decision. The Supreme Court ruling declared segregation in public schools was inherently unequal and unconstitutional.
President Bush will mark the anniversary by traveling to Topeka, Kansas. He'll attend the opening of a national historic site at the former Monroe Elementary School. The school was the centerpiece of the Supreme Court case that ended segregation.
CNN's Dan Lothian looks back at the history of this case.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DAN LOTHIAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): This could be any schoolyard in any city in America. Fifty years ago, the scene was much different. White children went to one school while black children went to another. Segregation had been the law of the land since the "Plessey v. Ferguson" ruling of 1896 cemented the separate but equal doctrine.
After WWII ended, cracks began appearing in the rigid color lines that divided Americans. President Harry Truman desegregated the armed services. Jackie Robinson became the first African-American to play major league baseball. And a young attorney named Thurgood Marshall was gathering steam for the NAACP's new challenge to the separate but equal doctrine.
JUAN WILLIAMS, MARSHALL BIOGRAPHER: He was a man who believed in democracy. He believed with all his heart in the constitution.
LOTHIAN: Seven-year-old Linda Brown became the reluctant icon for a landmark Supreme Court ruling. She had to travel dozens of blocks to a black elementary school, but her home was just seven blocks away from Sumner Elementary, an all white school.
LINDA BROWN THOMPSON, FATHER BROUGHT LANDMARK CASE: I had Spanish-American playmates, I had Native American playmates, I had white playmates and we played together on a daily basis. But when school started, they went one way and I went another way.
DAN LOTHIAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Her father sued the board of education of Topeka, Kansas for denying her admission. His case joined four others, representing 200 plaintiffs in the NAACP's class action lawsuit that would forever bear his name.
Marshall argued the case before the Supreme Court.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP FROM "WITH ALL DELIBERATE SPEED," COURTESY DISCOVERY DOCUMENTS)
THURGOOD MARSHALL, FORMER SUPREME COURT JUSTICE: This is a part of the group of lawyers from all sections of the country who are here in the Supreme Court for the purpose of arguing the school segregation cases.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LOTHIAN: On May 17, 1954, Chief Justice Earl Warren handed down the unanimous decision that separate educational facilities are inherently unequal. The ruling struck down the legal basis for segregation in Kansas and 20 other states.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is Little Rock's central high school.
LOTHIAN: It didn't bring an immediate end to segregation, but it marked the start of an uneasy transition in education reform across the country. It also laid the bedrock for the modern civil rights movement and ultimately forever changed race relations in America.
(on camera): Now there's a museum here in Topeka at Monroe Elementary School, one of four segregated black schools where Linda Brown attended. It focuses on more than just the "Brown" case, and looks at the fight for civil rights across the country.
Dan Lothian, CNN, Topeka.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COSTELLO: It's been a half century since the Supreme Court struck down segregation in public schools. A new Gallup poll suggests Americans believe things have improved since then. The poll found 92 percent of whites and 77 percent of African-Americans think black children have better educational opportunities than 50 years ago. However, it's a very different story when asked if they have equal opportunities. Sixty-three percent of whites say yes and 68 percent of blacks say no.
CNN plans live coverage of President Bush's address from Topeka, Kansas. That's set for 1:15 p.m. Eastern.
And here's what's all new in the next half hour of DAYBREAK.
New polls show President Bush's job approval rating is sinking. But does that really signal danger for his reelection bid? We'll crunch the numbers and tell you why Democrats may be worried.
And a deadly car bomber strikes on the outskirts of Baghdad, but will it derail the political process? We'll get you the latest live from Baghdad.
This is DAYBREAK for Monday.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JIM MCDONALD, CHAIRMAN, PRESIDENT & CEO, SCIENTIFIC-ATLANTA: I've actually been in the technology industry now for 41 years and I think as you get further along, you learn to talk less and listen more.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Jim McDonald channels that philosophy as the top executive at Scientific Atlanta, a leading supplier of digital content distribution systems and transmission networks and digital interactive set top boxes. Under his leadership, the company has delivered solid performances. Fiscal third quarter sales were $437 million, a 14 percent increase from the same period last year.
MCDONALD: The way you remain successful is you work on your two largest constituents, which are your shareholders and your employees, and see if you can't make it work for both of them.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
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