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CNN Live At Daybreak
Prisoner Abuse Scandal; Gaza Incursion; Time to Travel; Trans Fat Dangers
Aired May 19, 2004 - 05:30 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.
(WEATHER REPORT)
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: All right. Thank you -- Rob.
ROB MARCIANO, CNN METEOROLOGIST: OK.
COSTELLO: Just a few minutes ago, U.S. Army Specialist Jeremy Sivits plead guilty to three charges in the Iraqi prison abuse scandal. It comes as the Senate Armed Services Committee looks into the matter again this morning. Three Army generals set to appear.
So what is the Senate committee looking for? To help us answer that question, Bill Prasad joins us live from Washington.
Good morning, Bill, what can we expect to hear?
BILL PRASAD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well one of the things senators will be taking a look at is whether there was what is known as top down pressure? Was there pressure from the top, the Pentagon, all the way down to those soldiers doing the interrogations to try to get information using any and all means? That is a very important question. So, Carol, once again, those senators looking at whether there was top down pressure.
COSTELLO: Is this just a one-day affair and will the questioning be rather heated as it has been in the past?
PRASAD: Most likely, Carol. If I dare to predict, based on the other hearings that I have seen, the questions are usually very heated, very pointed. Senators certainly probing very deeply, trying to get to the truth.
COSTELLO: Bill Prasad reporting live from Washington, D.C. this morning.
We want to talk more about Jeremy Sivits pleading guilty in Baghdad. Our senior international editor David Clinch joins us right now to tell us more about this.
So, Jeremy Sivits pleads guilty, but the hearing isn't over yet?
DAVID CLINCH, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL EDITOR: Right. Well there are a few points on Sivits. First of all, as we remember, this is a special court-martial, so it's in front of a judge only, not peers and other officers. Secondly, there were four charges he was facing. He has plead guilty, we are told, so far to the -- to three of those four charges. There are some reports that a fourth charge that relates to the photographing of prisoners, which is obviously what started all of this, maybe still be under discussion, that his defense wants a rewording of that fourth charge to clarify in some way what his role was in taking those photographs or his involvement.
COSTELLO: And of course that might affect the sentencing in the end?
CLINCH: Potentially, but we are still told or are still seeing reports that he would still intend to plead guilty to that. So that would be pleading guilty, as predicted, for Sivits in this court- martial to all four charges that he is facing, again, in a special court-martial in which the sentencing is potentially only up to a year, cut in pay only for six months, I believe, far less prospect of a sentencing than the others. All three who were facing arraignments today on general court-martials have had their pleas deferred. There won't be another hearing for them until June the 21st.
COSTELLO: Before we go on, I want to explain a little bit about the process.
CLINCH: Yes.
COSTELLO: Because most Americans aren't familiar with special court-martials, a senior officer is the presiding judge and there are three jury members and they also come from the military.
CLINCH: Well now in this case, for Sivits, as we understand it, he has chosen, given various options in a special court-martial, to face only the judge. So the judge is the sole adjudicator in this case. And the judge and Sivits and his defense lawyers are now working out the precise wording of all of those charges that he is facing, including that fourth one that he hasn't plead on yet. There's another hour or two to go in that process.
COSTELLO: Right, and I wanted to explain to our viewers what those other hours will entail, because just because he has pleaded guilty, he still has to sort of tell the presiding judge why he is guilty.
CLINCH: Yes, there is a discussion going on in terms of what exactly his involvement was.
Now the key question in the big picture for us is whether today, or at some point in the future, perhaps after he is sentenced, he may give information related to the actions of others, specifically those other six that are facing general court-martial and others. We need to remember this, the military has made no secret there are others under investigation, not charged yet.
But this -- you know we keep hearing people talking about the seven. It's not only the seven, those are the only seven that have faced charges so far. But it's absolutely clear that not only at this stage of the investigation but in the other investigations that are still continuing, particularly those into how high in the hierarchy this went, there are others under investigation. We do not know whether there will be more charges, but that can be expected with other investigations coming.
COSTELLO: The other thing I wanted to ask you about is we know that the audio portion is being listened to by members of the media. Why can't we hear that now?
CLINCH: Well, the simple answer is that the U.S. military has their tradition of not allowing that kind of media coverage. And there was a sort of a false alarm, you'll remember, when General Kimmitt, in announcing the media availability on these court-martials and arraignments, gave the impression that there would be full and total access. He stepped back the day afterwards, I'm not sure exactly why, but just to remind people that while everybody would be allowed to report on this, that there was a tradition that they wanted to uphold of no live TV coverage. In fact, no TV coverage of any kind, except for this closed circuit video and audio.
COSTELLO: But what about the audio portion?
CLINCH: Well that's a question. I mean we have continued to ask the military whether they will allow, at some point, for us to get more access to the audio and video portions that are being covered by the military themselves. At the moment, they say it's the information that's available to us and that for, again, the tradition of protecting the privacy of the procedure itself, and of course those facing the charges, that they won't allow TV and audio coverage. So at this point they are saying no.
They are giving us full access to the information. We're getting that to you as it comes. But you're right, there is a sort of a sense of why don't we want -- why aren't we being allowed to see more? We're getting these court sketches, not that different from any court case here in which a judge had refused video coverage.
COSTELLO: Well I know we have someone inside the courtroom. Will we be hearing from that person soon as to what exactly is being said in that hearing now?
CLINCH: Yes, but even our reporter, Harris Whitbeck, who is in Baghdad, is able to see that on the closed circuit. So we are getting a sense of it. And yes, we have somebody inside the courtroom. So as much as possible, we'll give you a sense of the mood and the scene in the court itself.
COSTELLO: Yes, and we'll take you live back to Baghdad soon, too.
CLINCH: OK.
COSTELLO: Thank you, David.
In the next hour, we'll be talking with our legal analyst, Kendall Coffey, about the proceedings involving Specialist Sivits and the three soldiers arraigned today in Baghdad.
And you can hear more about these military legal proceedings on "AMERICAN MORNING" with Bill and Soledad. Their guest, Brigadier General Mark Kimmitt, the U.S. military spokesman in Iraq. That's coming your way at 7:00 Eastern.
Fighting in Karbala between U.S. forces and fighters loyal to anti-American cleric Muqtada al-Sadr tops our look at the 'Iraq Situation Report' this hour. The fighting near a shrine in the city broke out when U.S. forces approached a militia checkpoint. The militia is loyal to cleric Muqtada al-Sadr.
A Marine with the First Marine Expeditionary Force has been killed west of Baghdad near An-Unbar Province (ph). That brings the U.S. troop deaths to 790.
About 3,600 U.S. Army troops from South Korea will be heading to Iraq by mid summer. The troops will replace those whose tours of duty were extended during recent fighting.
The trials, the ambushes, the dangers of Iraq, keep up with the latest on our Web site. The address, CNN.com.
The U.N. -- the U.N. Security Council may vote on a resolution today that condemns and calls for an end to Israel's destruction of Palestinian homes. Israel is carrying out its biggest incursion in the Gaza Strip in years, targeting what it says are suspected militant positions. As many as 20 Palestinians have been killed.
CNN's John Vause joins us live from Jerusalem with more.
Good morning.
JOHN VAUSE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Carol.
The oddly named Operation Rainbow is now well into its second day. And as you say, there has been widespread international criticism of Israel. Nonetheless, Israel says it's determined to push on with this military operation, which some here say is the biggest in the Gaza Strip since the 1967 Six-Day War.
The death toll among Palestinians stands at 20, among those killed, three children. Witnesses say two of those children, brother and sister, were killed when they were bringing laundry in from the rooftop of their home. The Israeli Army reported that they were killed by an explosive device likely meant for Israeli troops. So far, though, there have been no Israeli casualties.
Israeli troops, backed by tanks and air support, today have been going door to door searching for wanted militant. And also, for the entrances of tunnels, which Israel claims are being used to smuggle in weapons from Egypt.
But this operation is bigger, much bigger than anything before in Gaza, and that's because Israel says it has intelligence that serious weapons, like RPGs and shoulder-fired serviceware (ph) and missiles and Katusha rockets are now waiting on the Egyptian side of the Gaza border. They have been put there by Hezbollah and Iran, according to Israel, waiting to be smuggled into Gaza through those tunnels.
Now those rockets, Israel says, are capable of reaching Israeli towns and cities. That's why this operation is so large, it says.
Now the Palestinians are calling to international intervention to stop what it describes as Israeli war crimes. Now the U.N. estimates that about 1,600 people have been left homeless and almost 100 homes destroyed since the weekend -- Carol.
COSTELLO: John Vause reporting live for us from Jerusalem this morning.
In stories 'Across America' this Wednesday, in Oregon, an openly gay Supreme Court justice got more than 60 percent of the vote to retain his seat on the bench. Justice Rives Kistler had been targeted for defeat by the Oregon Christian Coalition. Kistler is believed to be the only openly gay Supreme Court justice in any state.
Five million pounds of raw almonds are being recalled after reports of food poisoning. Los Angeles based Paramount Farms says the nuts may contain salmonella which can cause food poisoning. The almonds are sold under the brand names Kirkland Signature, Sunkist and Trader Joe's.
One of the most beloved residents of the San Francisco Zoo has died. Twenty-nine-year old Kubi, a western lowland gorilla, died less than two weeks after becoming the first gorilla to have a diseased lung removed. Kubi is survived by three children he fathered at the zoo.
Vacation season is just about here and more and more of us are expected to hit the highways and the skyways, even though the price of getting there is going up.
CNN's Julie Vallese takes a look at summer travel for you.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JULIE VALLESE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Never mind gas prices are at record highs, the travel forecast for this Memorial Day and throughout the summer, crowded.
SUZANNE COOK, TRAVEL INDUSTRY ASSOCIATION OF AMERICA: This summer we forecast that leisure travel will continue to be strong, increasing an even greater 3.2 percent during June, July and August to total 334.5 million person trips.
VALLESE: A record number of Americans plan to hit the highways over the Memorial Day weekend, almost 31 million, according to AAA. Lines at airports will likely be longer, 4.1 million vacationers plan to fly.
SANDRA HUGHES, VICE PRESIDENT, AAA TRAVEL: A AAA survey of airfares for the top 40 city fares shows that they are up almost 7 percent from a year ago.
VALLESE: The average price for a gallon of gasoline is hovering around $2. And as demand increases, AAA says so will the price.
While consumers aren't happy...
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I am not thrilled with the gas prices at all.
VALLESE: ... they are not fuming.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: At a certain level it will get -- it will be ridiculous. But I think -- I think we have a ways to go before I hit that level.
VALLESE: And maybe here is why, some simple math.
(on camera): If we use what AAA found is the longest expected trips, 800 miles, fill up the average minivan, 40 gallons needed to get there at 20 miles per gallon, it's an increase of about $20 over last year.
(voice-over): And, at the moment, that is easily made up in hotel prices, which are down about $10 a night from 2003. But because more people plan to travel this year, deals will be harder to come by. And if vacations aren't booked soon, it could cost you more than the price of gas.
Julie Vallese, CNN, Washington.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COSTELLO: A guilty plea in Baghdad this morning. We have heard all the whoopla, but why are these proceedings, these courts-martial so important. We'll have analysis just ahead.
And in the next hour of DAYBREAK, hometown support for Jeremy Sivits. We'll get the latest in a live report.
This is DAYBREAK for Wednesday.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COSTELLO: Welcome back to DAYBREAK.
This news just in to CNN a short time ago. The court-martial, the special court-martial of Army Specialist Jeremy Sivits, well, he pleaded guilty. He is the first soldier to be tried for alleged abuses at Abu Ghraib Prison. We'll bring you to Baghdad in just a second.
Political turmoil in the world's largest democracy, you're looking at new pictures just in this morning from India. The nation's Congress Party leadership resigned a short time ago to pressure Sonia Gandhi to accept the nomination for prime minister. Also new this morning, these pictures of the fighting under way in the Iraqi city of Karbala. U.S. troops there are again battling militia members loyal to Muslim cleric Muqtada al-Sadr.
In money news, President Bush nominates Alan Greenspan to another four-year term as chairman of the Federal Reserve and Greenspan accepts.
In sports, will the Montreal Expos be moving to Washington? Many people in the know are making that call, but Major League Baseball's Relocation Committee is not expected to vote on it at today's meeting.
In culture, hip hop star Eminem wants to take a bite out of the Apple Computer Company. A judge has ruled the rapper can move forward with his lawsuit against Apple for using his lyrics in an Apple commercial.
To the Forecast Center now and Rob.
MARCIANO: Hi, Carol, does that mean we have to take Eminem off the iPod?
(WEATHER REPORT)
COSTELLO: All right, thank you, Rob.
Those are the latest headlines for you this morning.
Human rights organizations will be closely watching the courts- martial in Iraq. The first trial under way right now and Specialist Jeremy Sivits has entered a guilty plea. He entered that guilty plea just a short time ago.
Joining us live from London, Peter Carter, who is chair of the Human Rights Council.
Good morning. Why are these courts-martial so significant?
PETER CARTER, CHAIRMAN, HUMAN RIGHTS COUNCIL: Well, first of all, it's a recognition that what went on in Abu Ghraib Prison is contrary to law and the U.S. administration recognizes that it's contrary to law and feels the need to make that public.
COSTELLO: International law says commanders are responsible for what happens on their watch. Is there some sentiment out there as to who was to blame at Abu Ghraib?
CARTER: Well I think that's a big question that hasn't properly been answered yet. It seems to me unlikely, given the nature of the photographs and the kind of humiliation practiced upon the prisoners, that it was an idea dreamed up by those few individual soldiers.
COSTELLO: Of course we may be hearing more of that from Specialist Jeremy Sivits who just pleaded guilty. That he pleaded guilty, will that sit well with the world, because I know the world is watching? CARTER: Well no doubt the world would like to hear very much what his own account is, and I suspect we may hear that over the coming days and weeks. But in reality, he had no option, given his role in the humiliation on those prisoners. Because whatever he says, if he does say that he was following orders, that would give him no defense.
COSTELLO: You said -- you said in the past that the commander of Guantanamo Bay was sent to Iraq to oversee the prison situation there and you found that curious. Why?
CARTER: Well because at the time that he was sent there, there were already allegations coming out of Guantanamo Bay about mistreatment of prisoners in Guantanamo Bay. And human rights organizations around the world had severe misgivings about Guantanamo Bay in any event because the president and the secretary of defense had already announced that the people who were interned in Guantanamo Bay were -- to quote their words -- "bad men," despite the fact that many of them have now been released.
And it was also provided by the presidential declaration that these people had absolutely no rights. So if they were tortured, they had no right. If they were subject to humiliating treatment, they had no rights. And one has to ask what kind of message does that give to the people who are put in control of those sort of prisoners.
COSTELLO: But those prisoners at Guantanamo Bay were under a different category, weren't they? They were termed enemy combatants and that means they weren't -- the people watching over them weren't tied to the Geneva Conventions.
CARTER: Well that, of course, is a big issue that the secretary of defense and the president say that was the position. But international lawyers disagree fundamentally with that. They say there is no such thing as a place where the law does not apply. And whatever status these people had, international humanitarian law certainly applies to them and did apply to them and has done throughout.
COSTELLO: A last question for you, how damaged is America's reputation and can it recover after these courts-martials are over?
CARTER: Well I hope it can, because America has a lot to offer the world. And when you have to put this in context that you have to remember that there have been peacekeeping missions and humanitarian missions in the recent past, such as Somalia where there were proven allegations of humanitarian abuse, even by soldiers from countries acting on behalf of the U.N.
And the worrying thing in this case is that it starts off, goes back to Guantanamo Bay with the president and the secretary of defense declaring that certain people have no rights. And the worrying thing is what sort of information, what sort of picture command structure this infiltrates down to the individual officers and soldiers on the ground as a result of that denial of basic rights to people under the control and command of American troops. COSTELLO: Peter Carter, chairman of the Human Rights Council, joining us live from London this morning. We thank you.
Avoiding fatal fat. There are good fats, bad fats and then really bad fats. Coming up, we'll tell you what they are and how you can find them and how you can avoid them.
And in the next hour of DAYBREAK, some cold hard facts about frozen diet food.
This is DAYBREAK for Wednesday.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COSTELLO: Welcome back to DAYBREAK.
A nutrition watchdog group wants the government to ban trans fats from all food. A total ban.
Our Christy Feig tells us about trans fats and why they are not good for you.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CHRISTY FEIG, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): You have heard of saturated fats and unsaturated fats, but what about something called trans fats?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I don't really know what trans fats are.
FEIG: Most people don't. They can be as dangerous as saturated fats, pushing up your bad cholesterol, reducing your good cholesterol. And they are not usually listed on nutrition labels. But if you see the words partially hydrogenated vegetable oils in the list of ingredients, that means trans fats.
CLAUDIA MORRISON, DIETITIAN, WASHINGTON HOSPITAL CENTER: They do lead to clogging of your arteries, clogging of your blood vessels which can lead to heart disease.
FEIG: And that's why the Center for Science in the Public Interest is calling on the FDA to ban trans fats.
MICHAEL JACOBSON, CENTER FOR SCIENCE IN THE PUBLIC INTEREST: It appears that replacing hydrogenated oil in all foods with a more healthful oil would save upwards of 11,000 to 30,000 lives per year.
FEIG: Trans fats are most often found in processed foods and baked goods like cookies, cakes, chips and crackers. Some labels say trans fat free but list partially hydrogenated vegetable oils among the ingredients. That's because if there is less than 0.5 grams of trans fat in each serving, the FDA allows a product to be listed as trans fat free.
(on camera): The National Food Processors Association says banning trans fats isn't the answer. It cites nutrition experts who say people should eat a diet low in trans fats not eliminate them.
(voice-over): The FDA says it will review the CSPI petition. But for now, it is requiring all companies to label the amount of trans fats in food by 2006.
In Washington, I'm Christy Feig.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COSTELLO: For more on this or any other health story, head to our Web site. The address, CNN.com/Health.
The first soldier to face a court-martial pleads guilty. So where do things go from here? We'll take you live back to Baghdad for more answers.
We'll be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COSTELLO: A guilty plea from the first American soldier to face a court-marital in the prisoner abuse scandal.
This is DAYBREAK for Wednesday, May 19.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
Aired May 19, 2004 - 05:30 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
(WEATHER REPORT)
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: All right. Thank you -- Rob.
ROB MARCIANO, CNN METEOROLOGIST: OK.
COSTELLO: Just a few minutes ago, U.S. Army Specialist Jeremy Sivits plead guilty to three charges in the Iraqi prison abuse scandal. It comes as the Senate Armed Services Committee looks into the matter again this morning. Three Army generals set to appear.
So what is the Senate committee looking for? To help us answer that question, Bill Prasad joins us live from Washington.
Good morning, Bill, what can we expect to hear?
BILL PRASAD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well one of the things senators will be taking a look at is whether there was what is known as top down pressure? Was there pressure from the top, the Pentagon, all the way down to those soldiers doing the interrogations to try to get information using any and all means? That is a very important question. So, Carol, once again, those senators looking at whether there was top down pressure.
COSTELLO: Is this just a one-day affair and will the questioning be rather heated as it has been in the past?
PRASAD: Most likely, Carol. If I dare to predict, based on the other hearings that I have seen, the questions are usually very heated, very pointed. Senators certainly probing very deeply, trying to get to the truth.
COSTELLO: Bill Prasad reporting live from Washington, D.C. this morning.
We want to talk more about Jeremy Sivits pleading guilty in Baghdad. Our senior international editor David Clinch joins us right now to tell us more about this.
So, Jeremy Sivits pleads guilty, but the hearing isn't over yet?
DAVID CLINCH, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL EDITOR: Right. Well there are a few points on Sivits. First of all, as we remember, this is a special court-martial, so it's in front of a judge only, not peers and other officers. Secondly, there were four charges he was facing. He has plead guilty, we are told, so far to the -- to three of those four charges. There are some reports that a fourth charge that relates to the photographing of prisoners, which is obviously what started all of this, maybe still be under discussion, that his defense wants a rewording of that fourth charge to clarify in some way what his role was in taking those photographs or his involvement.
COSTELLO: And of course that might affect the sentencing in the end?
CLINCH: Potentially, but we are still told or are still seeing reports that he would still intend to plead guilty to that. So that would be pleading guilty, as predicted, for Sivits in this court- martial to all four charges that he is facing, again, in a special court-martial in which the sentencing is potentially only up to a year, cut in pay only for six months, I believe, far less prospect of a sentencing than the others. All three who were facing arraignments today on general court-martials have had their pleas deferred. There won't be another hearing for them until June the 21st.
COSTELLO: Before we go on, I want to explain a little bit about the process.
CLINCH: Yes.
COSTELLO: Because most Americans aren't familiar with special court-martials, a senior officer is the presiding judge and there are three jury members and they also come from the military.
CLINCH: Well now in this case, for Sivits, as we understand it, he has chosen, given various options in a special court-martial, to face only the judge. So the judge is the sole adjudicator in this case. And the judge and Sivits and his defense lawyers are now working out the precise wording of all of those charges that he is facing, including that fourth one that he hasn't plead on yet. There's another hour or two to go in that process.
COSTELLO: Right, and I wanted to explain to our viewers what those other hours will entail, because just because he has pleaded guilty, he still has to sort of tell the presiding judge why he is guilty.
CLINCH: Yes, there is a discussion going on in terms of what exactly his involvement was.
Now the key question in the big picture for us is whether today, or at some point in the future, perhaps after he is sentenced, he may give information related to the actions of others, specifically those other six that are facing general court-martial and others. We need to remember this, the military has made no secret there are others under investigation, not charged yet.
But this -- you know we keep hearing people talking about the seven. It's not only the seven, those are the only seven that have faced charges so far. But it's absolutely clear that not only at this stage of the investigation but in the other investigations that are still continuing, particularly those into how high in the hierarchy this went, there are others under investigation. We do not know whether there will be more charges, but that can be expected with other investigations coming.
COSTELLO: The other thing I wanted to ask you about is we know that the audio portion is being listened to by members of the media. Why can't we hear that now?
CLINCH: Well, the simple answer is that the U.S. military has their tradition of not allowing that kind of media coverage. And there was a sort of a false alarm, you'll remember, when General Kimmitt, in announcing the media availability on these court-martials and arraignments, gave the impression that there would be full and total access. He stepped back the day afterwards, I'm not sure exactly why, but just to remind people that while everybody would be allowed to report on this, that there was a tradition that they wanted to uphold of no live TV coverage. In fact, no TV coverage of any kind, except for this closed circuit video and audio.
COSTELLO: But what about the audio portion?
CLINCH: Well that's a question. I mean we have continued to ask the military whether they will allow, at some point, for us to get more access to the audio and video portions that are being covered by the military themselves. At the moment, they say it's the information that's available to us and that for, again, the tradition of protecting the privacy of the procedure itself, and of course those facing the charges, that they won't allow TV and audio coverage. So at this point they are saying no.
They are giving us full access to the information. We're getting that to you as it comes. But you're right, there is a sort of a sense of why don't we want -- why aren't we being allowed to see more? We're getting these court sketches, not that different from any court case here in which a judge had refused video coverage.
COSTELLO: Well I know we have someone inside the courtroom. Will we be hearing from that person soon as to what exactly is being said in that hearing now?
CLINCH: Yes, but even our reporter, Harris Whitbeck, who is in Baghdad, is able to see that on the closed circuit. So we are getting a sense of it. And yes, we have somebody inside the courtroom. So as much as possible, we'll give you a sense of the mood and the scene in the court itself.
COSTELLO: Yes, and we'll take you live back to Baghdad soon, too.
CLINCH: OK.
COSTELLO: Thank you, David.
In the next hour, we'll be talking with our legal analyst, Kendall Coffey, about the proceedings involving Specialist Sivits and the three soldiers arraigned today in Baghdad.
And you can hear more about these military legal proceedings on "AMERICAN MORNING" with Bill and Soledad. Their guest, Brigadier General Mark Kimmitt, the U.S. military spokesman in Iraq. That's coming your way at 7:00 Eastern.
Fighting in Karbala between U.S. forces and fighters loyal to anti-American cleric Muqtada al-Sadr tops our look at the 'Iraq Situation Report' this hour. The fighting near a shrine in the city broke out when U.S. forces approached a militia checkpoint. The militia is loyal to cleric Muqtada al-Sadr.
A Marine with the First Marine Expeditionary Force has been killed west of Baghdad near An-Unbar Province (ph). That brings the U.S. troop deaths to 790.
About 3,600 U.S. Army troops from South Korea will be heading to Iraq by mid summer. The troops will replace those whose tours of duty were extended during recent fighting.
The trials, the ambushes, the dangers of Iraq, keep up with the latest on our Web site. The address, CNN.com.
The U.N. -- the U.N. Security Council may vote on a resolution today that condemns and calls for an end to Israel's destruction of Palestinian homes. Israel is carrying out its biggest incursion in the Gaza Strip in years, targeting what it says are suspected militant positions. As many as 20 Palestinians have been killed.
CNN's John Vause joins us live from Jerusalem with more.
Good morning.
JOHN VAUSE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Carol.
The oddly named Operation Rainbow is now well into its second day. And as you say, there has been widespread international criticism of Israel. Nonetheless, Israel says it's determined to push on with this military operation, which some here say is the biggest in the Gaza Strip since the 1967 Six-Day War.
The death toll among Palestinians stands at 20, among those killed, three children. Witnesses say two of those children, brother and sister, were killed when they were bringing laundry in from the rooftop of their home. The Israeli Army reported that they were killed by an explosive device likely meant for Israeli troops. So far, though, there have been no Israeli casualties.
Israeli troops, backed by tanks and air support, today have been going door to door searching for wanted militant. And also, for the entrances of tunnels, which Israel claims are being used to smuggle in weapons from Egypt.
But this operation is bigger, much bigger than anything before in Gaza, and that's because Israel says it has intelligence that serious weapons, like RPGs and shoulder-fired serviceware (ph) and missiles and Katusha rockets are now waiting on the Egyptian side of the Gaza border. They have been put there by Hezbollah and Iran, according to Israel, waiting to be smuggled into Gaza through those tunnels.
Now those rockets, Israel says, are capable of reaching Israeli towns and cities. That's why this operation is so large, it says.
Now the Palestinians are calling to international intervention to stop what it describes as Israeli war crimes. Now the U.N. estimates that about 1,600 people have been left homeless and almost 100 homes destroyed since the weekend -- Carol.
COSTELLO: John Vause reporting live for us from Jerusalem this morning.
In stories 'Across America' this Wednesday, in Oregon, an openly gay Supreme Court justice got more than 60 percent of the vote to retain his seat on the bench. Justice Rives Kistler had been targeted for defeat by the Oregon Christian Coalition. Kistler is believed to be the only openly gay Supreme Court justice in any state.
Five million pounds of raw almonds are being recalled after reports of food poisoning. Los Angeles based Paramount Farms says the nuts may contain salmonella which can cause food poisoning. The almonds are sold under the brand names Kirkland Signature, Sunkist and Trader Joe's.
One of the most beloved residents of the San Francisco Zoo has died. Twenty-nine-year old Kubi, a western lowland gorilla, died less than two weeks after becoming the first gorilla to have a diseased lung removed. Kubi is survived by three children he fathered at the zoo.
Vacation season is just about here and more and more of us are expected to hit the highways and the skyways, even though the price of getting there is going up.
CNN's Julie Vallese takes a look at summer travel for you.
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JULIE VALLESE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Never mind gas prices are at record highs, the travel forecast for this Memorial Day and throughout the summer, crowded.
SUZANNE COOK, TRAVEL INDUSTRY ASSOCIATION OF AMERICA: This summer we forecast that leisure travel will continue to be strong, increasing an even greater 3.2 percent during June, July and August to total 334.5 million person trips.
VALLESE: A record number of Americans plan to hit the highways over the Memorial Day weekend, almost 31 million, according to AAA. Lines at airports will likely be longer, 4.1 million vacationers plan to fly.
SANDRA HUGHES, VICE PRESIDENT, AAA TRAVEL: A AAA survey of airfares for the top 40 city fares shows that they are up almost 7 percent from a year ago.
VALLESE: The average price for a gallon of gasoline is hovering around $2. And as demand increases, AAA says so will the price.
While consumers aren't happy...
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I am not thrilled with the gas prices at all.
VALLESE: ... they are not fuming.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: At a certain level it will get -- it will be ridiculous. But I think -- I think we have a ways to go before I hit that level.
VALLESE: And maybe here is why, some simple math.
(on camera): If we use what AAA found is the longest expected trips, 800 miles, fill up the average minivan, 40 gallons needed to get there at 20 miles per gallon, it's an increase of about $20 over last year.
(voice-over): And, at the moment, that is easily made up in hotel prices, which are down about $10 a night from 2003. But because more people plan to travel this year, deals will be harder to come by. And if vacations aren't booked soon, it could cost you more than the price of gas.
Julie Vallese, CNN, Washington.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COSTELLO: A guilty plea in Baghdad this morning. We have heard all the whoopla, but why are these proceedings, these courts-martial so important. We'll have analysis just ahead.
And in the next hour of DAYBREAK, hometown support for Jeremy Sivits. We'll get the latest in a live report.
This is DAYBREAK for Wednesday.
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COSTELLO: Welcome back to DAYBREAK.
This news just in to CNN a short time ago. The court-martial, the special court-martial of Army Specialist Jeremy Sivits, well, he pleaded guilty. He is the first soldier to be tried for alleged abuses at Abu Ghraib Prison. We'll bring you to Baghdad in just a second.
Political turmoil in the world's largest democracy, you're looking at new pictures just in this morning from India. The nation's Congress Party leadership resigned a short time ago to pressure Sonia Gandhi to accept the nomination for prime minister. Also new this morning, these pictures of the fighting under way in the Iraqi city of Karbala. U.S. troops there are again battling militia members loyal to Muslim cleric Muqtada al-Sadr.
In money news, President Bush nominates Alan Greenspan to another four-year term as chairman of the Federal Reserve and Greenspan accepts.
In sports, will the Montreal Expos be moving to Washington? Many people in the know are making that call, but Major League Baseball's Relocation Committee is not expected to vote on it at today's meeting.
In culture, hip hop star Eminem wants to take a bite out of the Apple Computer Company. A judge has ruled the rapper can move forward with his lawsuit against Apple for using his lyrics in an Apple commercial.
To the Forecast Center now and Rob.
MARCIANO: Hi, Carol, does that mean we have to take Eminem off the iPod?
(WEATHER REPORT)
COSTELLO: All right, thank you, Rob.
Those are the latest headlines for you this morning.
Human rights organizations will be closely watching the courts- martial in Iraq. The first trial under way right now and Specialist Jeremy Sivits has entered a guilty plea. He entered that guilty plea just a short time ago.
Joining us live from London, Peter Carter, who is chair of the Human Rights Council.
Good morning. Why are these courts-martial so significant?
PETER CARTER, CHAIRMAN, HUMAN RIGHTS COUNCIL: Well, first of all, it's a recognition that what went on in Abu Ghraib Prison is contrary to law and the U.S. administration recognizes that it's contrary to law and feels the need to make that public.
COSTELLO: International law says commanders are responsible for what happens on their watch. Is there some sentiment out there as to who was to blame at Abu Ghraib?
CARTER: Well I think that's a big question that hasn't properly been answered yet. It seems to me unlikely, given the nature of the photographs and the kind of humiliation practiced upon the prisoners, that it was an idea dreamed up by those few individual soldiers.
COSTELLO: Of course we may be hearing more of that from Specialist Jeremy Sivits who just pleaded guilty. That he pleaded guilty, will that sit well with the world, because I know the world is watching? CARTER: Well no doubt the world would like to hear very much what his own account is, and I suspect we may hear that over the coming days and weeks. But in reality, he had no option, given his role in the humiliation on those prisoners. Because whatever he says, if he does say that he was following orders, that would give him no defense.
COSTELLO: You said -- you said in the past that the commander of Guantanamo Bay was sent to Iraq to oversee the prison situation there and you found that curious. Why?
CARTER: Well because at the time that he was sent there, there were already allegations coming out of Guantanamo Bay about mistreatment of prisoners in Guantanamo Bay. And human rights organizations around the world had severe misgivings about Guantanamo Bay in any event because the president and the secretary of defense had already announced that the people who were interned in Guantanamo Bay were -- to quote their words -- "bad men," despite the fact that many of them have now been released.
And it was also provided by the presidential declaration that these people had absolutely no rights. So if they were tortured, they had no right. If they were subject to humiliating treatment, they had no rights. And one has to ask what kind of message does that give to the people who are put in control of those sort of prisoners.
COSTELLO: But those prisoners at Guantanamo Bay were under a different category, weren't they? They were termed enemy combatants and that means they weren't -- the people watching over them weren't tied to the Geneva Conventions.
CARTER: Well that, of course, is a big issue that the secretary of defense and the president say that was the position. But international lawyers disagree fundamentally with that. They say there is no such thing as a place where the law does not apply. And whatever status these people had, international humanitarian law certainly applies to them and did apply to them and has done throughout.
COSTELLO: A last question for you, how damaged is America's reputation and can it recover after these courts-martials are over?
CARTER: Well I hope it can, because America has a lot to offer the world. And when you have to put this in context that you have to remember that there have been peacekeeping missions and humanitarian missions in the recent past, such as Somalia where there were proven allegations of humanitarian abuse, even by soldiers from countries acting on behalf of the U.N.
And the worrying thing in this case is that it starts off, goes back to Guantanamo Bay with the president and the secretary of defense declaring that certain people have no rights. And the worrying thing is what sort of information, what sort of picture command structure this infiltrates down to the individual officers and soldiers on the ground as a result of that denial of basic rights to people under the control and command of American troops. COSTELLO: Peter Carter, chairman of the Human Rights Council, joining us live from London this morning. We thank you.
Avoiding fatal fat. There are good fats, bad fats and then really bad fats. Coming up, we'll tell you what they are and how you can find them and how you can avoid them.
And in the next hour of DAYBREAK, some cold hard facts about frozen diet food.
This is DAYBREAK for Wednesday.
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COSTELLO: Welcome back to DAYBREAK.
A nutrition watchdog group wants the government to ban trans fats from all food. A total ban.
Our Christy Feig tells us about trans fats and why they are not good for you.
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CHRISTY FEIG, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): You have heard of saturated fats and unsaturated fats, but what about something called trans fats?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I don't really know what trans fats are.
FEIG: Most people don't. They can be as dangerous as saturated fats, pushing up your bad cholesterol, reducing your good cholesterol. And they are not usually listed on nutrition labels. But if you see the words partially hydrogenated vegetable oils in the list of ingredients, that means trans fats.
CLAUDIA MORRISON, DIETITIAN, WASHINGTON HOSPITAL CENTER: They do lead to clogging of your arteries, clogging of your blood vessels which can lead to heart disease.
FEIG: And that's why the Center for Science in the Public Interest is calling on the FDA to ban trans fats.
MICHAEL JACOBSON, CENTER FOR SCIENCE IN THE PUBLIC INTEREST: It appears that replacing hydrogenated oil in all foods with a more healthful oil would save upwards of 11,000 to 30,000 lives per year.
FEIG: Trans fats are most often found in processed foods and baked goods like cookies, cakes, chips and crackers. Some labels say trans fat free but list partially hydrogenated vegetable oils among the ingredients. That's because if there is less than 0.5 grams of trans fat in each serving, the FDA allows a product to be listed as trans fat free.
(on camera): The National Food Processors Association says banning trans fats isn't the answer. It cites nutrition experts who say people should eat a diet low in trans fats not eliminate them.
(voice-over): The FDA says it will review the CSPI petition. But for now, it is requiring all companies to label the amount of trans fats in food by 2006.
In Washington, I'm Christy Feig.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COSTELLO: For more on this or any other health story, head to our Web site. The address, CNN.com/Health.
The first soldier to face a court-martial pleads guilty. So where do things go from here? We'll take you live back to Baghdad for more answers.
We'll be right back.
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COSTELLO: A guilty plea from the first American soldier to face a court-marital in the prisoner abuse scandal.
This is DAYBREAK for Wednesday, May 19.
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