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CNN Live At Daybreak
Car Bomb Hits Green Zone
Aired May 24, 2004 - 06:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Pain at the pump, but this morning crude prices are falling, if only by a drop.
This is DAYBREAK for Monday, May 24.
And good morning to you.
From the CNN global headquarters in Atlanta, I'm Carol Costello.
Let me bring you up to date with what's happening right now.
Once the showcase of Paris' Charles DeGaulle Airport, this morning the scene of an accident investigation. A terminal roof collapse kills at least four people. That's down from the original death toll of five.
Going into effect this morning, new security rules for passenger rail service across the nation. Systems must meet several new requirements, including removing or replacing station trash cans and using search dogs to look for explosives.
In money news, is there hope at the pump? Saudi Arabia says it'll increase oil output by 28 percent starting in June. The average price for a gallon has risen $0.14 in two weeks.
In sports, the Minnesota Timberwolves beat the L.A. Lakers 89-71 in game two of the Western Conference finals. The series now even at one game apiece.
In culture, film industry observers say Michael Moore's "Fahrenheit 911" could be a box office hit after winning the top prize at the Cannes Film Festival. The White House calls the film outrageously false.
To the forecast center and Rob, to talk about these tornadoes that really, oh, really hit Nebraska. In fact, Hallam, Nebraska, it virtually wiped out that whole town and a 73-year-old was killed there -- Rob.
ROB MARCIANO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: And obviously incredible video coming out of that part of the world over the weekend. Most of the tornadoes, Carol, came on Saturday. There were over 80, but a total of over 100 for the weekend itself. Yesterday, a little bit more quiet, but today could be another day like Saturday was, as we get a little bit more action going in this part of the country, eastern Nebraska and Des Moines, almost to about Kansas City.
(WEATHER REPORT)
COSTELLO: A bit of breaking news to tell you about right now.
There's been a huge explosion near the Green Zone in Baghdad and, of course, inside the Green Zone is where the coalition forces' headquarters are and also the Iraqi Governing Council based there. Apparently this was a car bomb and it was so strong that it sent the car into the air. We have no word of casualties at this point, but, again, a loud explosion near the Green Zone compound in Baghdad.
As we get more information, we'll pass it along to you.
Well, here is some news worth waking up for this morning. It may lessen your pain at the pump. U.S. crude oil prices dropped one percent this morning, to $39 a barrel, on the news that Saudi Arabia will, indeed, boost its oil production. Cheaper crude oil would mean it'll cost less to fill up and drivers across the country say oh, it's about time.
Over the past two weeks, the national average has risen $0.14, to $2.07 per gallon. Here's what some of you are saying.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's pretty expensive. It makes me feel like we can't go on vacation in the summertime. We're going to have to think about that twice.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I do think that the Bush administration is benefiting from this, yes. But I don't think that they are directly impacting the prices.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: If this is going to be the norm, they need to do something, because this is just way too high for gas.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I don't think it's going to change any time soon. I think it's got something to do with world stuff.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: The group of seven top economic powers met over the weekend and urged oil producers to pump more crude. In fact, they're still meeting now and Saudi Arabia is pledging to hike its output. But its fellow OPEC members aren't as eager. As I said, OPEC ministers in Amsterdam this morning, so let's head live there now.
Jim Boulden is there -- tell us more.
JIM BOULDEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, good morning, Carol.
The U.S. secretary of energy, Spencer Abraham, came here to Amsterdam because they wanted to hear Saudi Arabia say that it will open the taps further. And, indeed, that's what Saudi Arabia said, that the taps will be opening immediately and that they will put more crude oil on the market. And that was very good news for the Americans here in Amsterdam. (BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BOULDEN (voice-over): Smiles for the cameras, but beyond the diplomatic niceties, a recognition that the price of oil is bad for the world economy. U.S. Energy Secretary Spencer Abraham says OPEC countries should open the taps, as they did last year during the if we could.
SPENCER ABRAHAM, ENERGY SECRETARY: They are prepared to do that. They can do that. I think the same kind of, you know, strong actions are required right now. The big difference from last year to this year is not a huge reduction in U.S. refinery capacity, it's a huge increase in world demand.
BOULDEN: Secretary Abraham met Saudi's oil minister Sunday. Abraham said Saudi Arabia pledged to pump a lot more oil starting in June and said Saudi Arabia could pump even more if needed, though the Saudi Arabian oil minister was giving little away in front of cameras.
QUESTION: Are you happy with what you've heard from other ministers so far?
BOULDEN: Saudi Arabia wants lower prices to consumers don't turn to alternatives to oil. Iraq is supporting Saudi Arabia's call for OPEC to raise its production by around eight percent.
IBRAHIM ALOLOM, IRAQI OIL MINISTER: We do encourage and support any proposal to increase the production ceiling level.
BOULDEN: But Libya says it's a mistake for Saudi Arabia to raise production without OPEC consensus and Venezuela says existing supplies are adequate. "It's simplistic to say the current oil price is due to current production levels," says Venezuela's oil minister. And he says the market is sufficiently supplied with oil.
OPEC's president told CNN that the cartel will hash out a compromise.
PURNOMO YUSGIANTORO, OPEC PRESIDENT: I will see that we're going to have a good decision, you know, the best we can, you know, to assure the market that we have a good position to stabilize the oil price.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BOULDEN: Now, Carol, that official decision will come on June 3 in Beirut when OPEC as a group meets officially and we'll hear how much more oil the whole group will be pumping out. But I have to say, some OPEC ministers are hot happy that Saudi Arabia seems to have done what the U.S. wants immediately, without any consultation without the other OPEC members -- Carol.
COSTELLO: OK, so most Americans are into instant gratification, so if Saudi Arabia does increase oil production, when might we see the effects at the pump? BOULDEN: Well, we saw the effects in the markets, in the futures markets, on Friday, and, of course, we've seen it this morning, as well. And you saw how quickly prices went up in the U.S. Prices could come down quite quickly, as well.
But OPEC is talking about raising its band of prices to about $30, $35 a barrel. So we're probably not going to see prices going back to where they were just a few months ago, because it looks like OPEC might just say oil prices are going to remain a bit higher, at least for the next couple of months.
COSTELLO: Jim Boulden live in Amsterdam this morning.
Go to cnn.com for more information on gas prices from the Lundberg study. And while you're there, cast your vote on this question -- at what point do you think average gas prices will peak? Cnn.com.
Thirty-seven days till that transfer of sovereignty, or partial sovereignty, to the Iraqis. And President Bush is expected to concentrate on that in what's billed as a major address at the Army's War College.
President Bush speaks at 8:00 Eastern, 5:00 Pacific, and CNN will carry his remarks live on a special edition of "Paula Zahn Now."
The Associated Press Television News Service says it has obtained home video of what locals say was a wedding hit by a U.S. military attack in Iraq last week. We just got these pictures in this morning. As many as 45 people were killed in that attack that we've been telling you about for a week now.
The video shows -- this video, I should say -- shows a bride arriving, people dancing and a man playing piano at the event. APTN crews shot video following the attack and one victim appears to be the man that was playing a piano.
The U.S. military says the attack targeted a high risk meeting of high level anti-coalition forces, that passports, weapons and other items found at the scene support this, and say they found no evidence of a wedding. CNN is unable to ascertain when and where the home video was shot and there is no way to be certain whether the event shown may have been attended by militants or foreign fighters.
And I hope you could follow all of that. We got those new pictures in of that wedding video.
We have a -- I told you we had breaking news out of Iraq, apparently some sort of explosion outside of the Green Zone in Baghdad.
Guy Raz on the phone for us now live from that part of the world with more -- good morning.
What's happened?
GUY RAZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning.
From what we can see here, there were two explosions. They were Toyota Land Cruisers, it appears, from where we're standing. There was a simultaneous explosion, we understand. There are conflicting reports about how many casualties there were. We understand so far casualties were light. But it's possible that four people were killed and it's possible they may have been suicide bombers.
Now, this attack took place just outside of what's called Assassin's Gate. That's one of the main entry points into the Green Zone. That's the Coalition Provisional Authority's headquarters here in Baghdad. So it's possible that that may have been a target of this explosion.
But so far, again, I should reiterate, we cannot confirm whether there have been any deaths in this attack.
COSTELLO: Guy, a question for you. A member of the Iraqi Governing Council was killed at a checkpoint into the Green Zone not long ago.
Is this the same checkpoint?
RAZ: This is a different checkpoint. It's not too far from the checkpoint that killed Izzadine Saleem. At the time, as you'll recall, he was rotating president of the Governing Council.
These areas are very vulnerable. There are constantly lines of cars, vehicles, journalists, Iraqis trying to get in. Security checks are very tight. So immediately outside the walls, there is always a possibility for some kind of attack. And it's probably why many of these insurgents have targeted these areas.
COSTELLO: And looking -- we just got these pictures in and our viewers, this is video of this most recent attack. This was a particularly strong explosion, Guy.
Tell us about the impact.
RAZ: The explosion was strong, indeed. We were about a mile and a half away from it. We could hear it. You could see smoke rising across the city. But not strong enough, evidently, from our vantage point here -- and we're about 100 yards away from it -- that would suggest there were many civilian casualties. In fact, there are no emergency vehicles at the scene, with the exception of police and U.S. military.
COSTELLO: Weren't the suicide bombers -- I would take it that somebody was in those -- some person was in those vehicles, or persons?
RAZ: Yes, well, that's what we understand right now, that there were four people who may have been the suicide bombers who were killed in this attack. But, again, I would reiterate that we haven't been able to confirm that independently yet. We haven't seen the bodies of those alleged bombers. But we do understand that this was most likely a suicide attack.
COSTELLO: All right, Guy Raz on the phone for us live from Baghdad.
Again, a huge explosion near the Green Zone in Baghdad.
As we get more information, we will pass it along to you.
Still to come on DAYBREAK, the search for two sisters starts again this morning, missing since one of them fell into a rushing river. We'll hear from their community.
Plus, safety for the surf -- could you get out of a rip current?
And are you flying to your vacation destination? Check out a new tool that could help you get the best seat on the plane. That's ahead in our business buzz.
This is DAYBREAK for Monday, May 24.
COMMERCIAL
COSTELLO: And just an update on that breaking news we've been telling you about this morning at the Green Zone in Baghdad, where coalition forces' headquarters is located; also, the Iraqi Governing Council. It's believed that maybe at least four suicide bombers and two SUVs at a checkpoint there -- a very huge, powerful explosion. The good news, we don't have reports of any deaths and very few casualties.
Of course, as we get those numbers in, we'll pass them along to you.
Your news, money, weather and sports.
It is 6:15 Eastern.
Here's what's all new this morning.
The search will resume this morning for a 6-year-old Wisconsin girl who was swept away by a rushing river. Also missing, the girl's 12-year-old sister, who jumped in to save her. Neither girl knows how to swim.
Today is the final day of a planned four day walkout by SBC Communications employees. The phone company and union officials say they have made some progress on a new contract. One hundred thousand workers are striking over health care and job security issues.
In money news, an eleventh hour contract agreement for Boeing and its workers. More than 2,000 machinists and aerospace workers had voted to strike if a new contract was not approved.
In sports, Tom Glavin of the Mets came awfully close to tossing the team's first ever no hitter. But Glavin fell four out short of history after the Rockies' Kit Pellow doubled in the eighth inning. In culture, cartoonist Gary Trudeau is apologizing for his Sunday "Doonesbury" strip that included a man's head on a plate. Several newspapers chose not to run the strip. Trudeau explains the piece was written several weeks before the beheading of Nicholas Berg in Iraq.
To the forecast center now and Rob.
(WEATHER REPORT)
COSTELLO: Those are the latest headlines for you.
President Bush will go prime time tonight. He'll lay out his strategy for handing over power to the Iraqis on June 30. And that is our hot talker of the morning.
We have tuned the radio dial to libertarian talker Chip Franklin of WBAL Radio in Baltimore.
Good morning, Chip.
CHIP FRANKLIN, WBAL RADIO HOST: Good morning, Carol.
Who would have thought -- who would have known that Karl Rove wasn't an "Everybody Loves Raymond" fan?
COSTELLO: You're kidding? He's not?
FRANKLIN: You know, it is, it does bother me that we televised the 9/11 Commission, we have scenes from Iraq complete with crying babies and we have the Abu Ghraib photos and now the season finales from ABC, NBC and CBS, but the networks blew off the president of the United States during a war talk, during a war.
What am I missing?
COSTELLO: Do you mean they're not showing the telecast tonight of the president's speech?
FRANKLIN: Yes. Right. Exactly. And, you know, the argument, I guess, could be it's a political speech. Well, I say give Kerry a five minute response and between the two of them, America could get some well needed sleep.
COSTELLO: Oh, Chip, Chip, Chip, Chip, Chip.
FRANKLIN: No, no, no, come on...
COSTELLO: Well, but the president's speech will be aired in its entirety right here on CNN. So we hope people will tune us in.
FRANKLIN: Well, yes, I know, but...
COSTELLO: But let's talk about this speech itself.
Cynics out there say this is the start of President Bush's P.R. campaign to draw the public's attention away from the bloodshed in Iraq.
How will your listeners see this speech?
FRANKLIN: I don't know how you're going to do that with the networks pounding it day in and day out. I mean who are we going to hand the war off to, Ahmad Chalabi? We might as well give the whole thing to Iran.
COSTELLO: You mean Ahmad Chalabi?
FRANKLIN: Yes, whatever.
COSTELLO: He's out of it. He's out of the picture now.
FRANKLIN: Of course. But that's my point. We don't -- we have no idea. We might as well give the whole thing to -- let Starbucks handle the reconstruction. They built 10 in my neighborhood last night while I was sleeping. It costs tens of millions every day, but every headline in the United States today is what? About the pennies of gas going up each week.
The president deserves prime time. They should put him on. He's the president of the United States. I just don't get the networks.
COSTELLO: Well, as a journalist, I would agree with you that it's much more important to see the president's speech over "Everybody Loves Raymond."
But getting back to the speech itself, the president plans a speech every week up until that June 30 handover of power. No names are being bandied about.
What do you think the president will say about the plan tonight?
FRANKLIN: Every other word will be reelect me, reelect me. It's political, I think. I think that, look, they -- right now the war has gone so horribly wrong for this administration and for this country that what -- right now it's damage control. I mean do you really think they have a plan to lay out?
COSTELLO: Well, the president says he does and tonight America may know what that plan is.
FRANKLIN: I don't -- the only thing I can imagine is, is talking about some sort of peacekeeping mission, either that or you're going to do what many have said, is bring more American troops over there. I mean that's really the only thing you could do to make it safer. But that's politically dangerous.
COSTELLO: Well, you should have a very interesting talk radio show today, this afternoon.
Chip Franklin join us live from Baltimore from WBAL.
Time for a little business buzz now.
We saw Continental Airlines add a fuel surcharge to tickets last week. Are many airlines following suit?
Carrie Lee is live at the NASDAQ market site to tell us, and I bet the answer is yes.
CARRIE LEE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, they were initially last week, Carol, but good news here for travelers. American, Continental and others are now dropping that fare increase of as much as $40 per round trip after Northwest Airlines, once again, refused to match the higher prices. Northwest did add the fuel surcharges on some of its flights, not across-the-board, though. Remember, Continental initiated this hike last week because of high fuel costs. Now it looks like once again this spring those fuel costs are coming back, at least in terms of what the passengers have to pay.
This is one of the airlines' biggest costs, Carol. For every one cent per gallon increase in jet fuel, that means another $180 million in costs for the airlines.
So at least for now those hikes we were hearing about last week have been repealed.
COSTELLO: OK, well, let's talk about something really positive, a good way to get a good seat on your next flight.
LEE: There's a Web site out there now, it's called seatguru.com, and it has not only the maps for the different flight and plane configurations for 17 airlines, but also comments solicited from people who are traveling. Basically, the bottom line here, if you want to get a good seat, if you want to find out which airline has better seats and what the good seats are within a plane, you can go to this site and get more information, kind of a grassroots idea. And they're not affiliated with any airline so we'll see how many people use the site. Obviously, this is one of those business models the more people who come in, the more people who comment, the more service oriented and better the site is.
COSTELLO: Seatguru.com, right?
LEE: Yes, that's right.
COSTELLO: All right.
Carrie Lee live from the NASDAQ market site.
We have more -- we have another update on breaking news out of Baghdad. There was an explosion near the Green Zone there.
Guy Raz is nearby.
He joins us live on the phone with more -- tell us.
RAZ: Yes, and we understand now that there were two vehicles that exploded here in Baghdad, just about 15 minutes ago, just outside the main gate of the Coalition Provisional Authority's headquarters, known as the Green Zone. Now, we cannot yet confirm whether there were any deaths. We do have some conflicting reports of four deaths, possibly suicide bombers, inside of those Nissan type sport utility vehicles.
Now, as you know, very well know, these explosions are commonplace in Baghdad. They occur once, twice, almost daily. And I can tell you that in this particular explosion, I cannot see any of the telltale signs that would indicate there were a massive number of casualties -- no emergency vehicles, no emergency helicopters.
There are U.S. forces here. There are special forces and Iraqi police. They've formed a cordon around the area and they are keeping journalists and onlookers about 100 yards away from these smoldering vehicles.
COSTELLO: Guy, there were two vehicles and possibly four suicide bombers. It just seems kind of odd to me.
RAZ: It does seem odd, as well, and, of course, again, I should reiterate, these are conflicting accounts that we're getting. As you know, in the past week alone, there was another suicide attack not too far from here. That attack targeted Izzadine Saleem, who, at the time, was the president of the Iraqi Governing Council.
These attacks often take place near the Green Zone, at the perimeter of the Green Zone. It's a very vulnerable area outside the Green Zone; often long lines of cars, long lines of people trying to get in, trying to go through security checks and terror groups have often used that opportunity to detonate explosive devices and kill many, many people.
COSTELLO: All right, we'll get back to you when you have more.
Is that sound taking place live or from these pictures? I can't tell.
Guy?
RAZ: Can you repeat that question please?
COSTELLO: Oh, I just heard a police siren. I wondered if that was taking place live or if it was on the taped video feed that we have playing right now?
RAZ: That's on -- that was a live vehicle that was passing by here. As I mentioned, there are many, many security vehicles here, including U.S. forces who are keeping onlookers and journalists back about 100 yards from the scene right now.
COSTELLO: All right, Guy Raz on the phone from Baghdad.
When you have more, we'll get back to you.
We're going to take a break.
We'll be back with much more on DAYBREAK.
COMMERCIAL
COSTELLO: In Milwaukee, a desperate search is to begin any time now for sisters swept away in the Milwaukee River.
John Mercure of CNN affiliate WTMJ in Milwaukee has more for you.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JOHN MERCURE, WTMJ CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): As the Coast Guard searched for two sisters, their loved ones searched for answers.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The two girls are my nieces and I do love them. I mean I know they doing what they can do to find them, but they ain't found them. And so it's just hard.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Ask god that you could take over now.
MERCURE: Prayers for 12-year-old Temisha and her 6-year-old sister Tia, who disappeared into the Milwaukee River and were swallowed up by the quick current.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Oh, it's, man, I'm feeling their pain right now. And I can imagine how they feeling.
MERCURE: As the rain fell, so did the tears.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I mean it's just, it's devastating. I understand, I feel their pain because I have a child myself. And I really do feel how they're feeling
MERCURE: A light for two lost little girls.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'm hurt because them kids used to live with me and, you know, I helped the mother. We was a big family and close. And so it's just, it's hard.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COSTELLO: John Mercure of CNN affiliate WTMJ in Milwaukee.
Swollen rivers, speeding tornadoes and don't forget the tides. Coming up, another danger Mother Nature poses to people this time of year and how you can survive rip currents.
A car bomb in Baghdad on the day President Bush is to give the first of several weekly speeches. The focus? The future of Iraq and U.S. strategy. We'll discuss the importance of the message and the countdown to the handover.
We'll be right back.
COMMERCIAL
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Aired May 24, 2004 - 06:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Pain at the pump, but this morning crude prices are falling, if only by a drop.
This is DAYBREAK for Monday, May 24.
And good morning to you.
From the CNN global headquarters in Atlanta, I'm Carol Costello.
Let me bring you up to date with what's happening right now.
Once the showcase of Paris' Charles DeGaulle Airport, this morning the scene of an accident investigation. A terminal roof collapse kills at least four people. That's down from the original death toll of five.
Going into effect this morning, new security rules for passenger rail service across the nation. Systems must meet several new requirements, including removing or replacing station trash cans and using search dogs to look for explosives.
In money news, is there hope at the pump? Saudi Arabia says it'll increase oil output by 28 percent starting in June. The average price for a gallon has risen $0.14 in two weeks.
In sports, the Minnesota Timberwolves beat the L.A. Lakers 89-71 in game two of the Western Conference finals. The series now even at one game apiece.
In culture, film industry observers say Michael Moore's "Fahrenheit 911" could be a box office hit after winning the top prize at the Cannes Film Festival. The White House calls the film outrageously false.
To the forecast center and Rob, to talk about these tornadoes that really, oh, really hit Nebraska. In fact, Hallam, Nebraska, it virtually wiped out that whole town and a 73-year-old was killed there -- Rob.
ROB MARCIANO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: And obviously incredible video coming out of that part of the world over the weekend. Most of the tornadoes, Carol, came on Saturday. There were over 80, but a total of over 100 for the weekend itself. Yesterday, a little bit more quiet, but today could be another day like Saturday was, as we get a little bit more action going in this part of the country, eastern Nebraska and Des Moines, almost to about Kansas City.
(WEATHER REPORT)
COSTELLO: A bit of breaking news to tell you about right now.
There's been a huge explosion near the Green Zone in Baghdad and, of course, inside the Green Zone is where the coalition forces' headquarters are and also the Iraqi Governing Council based there. Apparently this was a car bomb and it was so strong that it sent the car into the air. We have no word of casualties at this point, but, again, a loud explosion near the Green Zone compound in Baghdad.
As we get more information, we'll pass it along to you.
Well, here is some news worth waking up for this morning. It may lessen your pain at the pump. U.S. crude oil prices dropped one percent this morning, to $39 a barrel, on the news that Saudi Arabia will, indeed, boost its oil production. Cheaper crude oil would mean it'll cost less to fill up and drivers across the country say oh, it's about time.
Over the past two weeks, the national average has risen $0.14, to $2.07 per gallon. Here's what some of you are saying.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's pretty expensive. It makes me feel like we can't go on vacation in the summertime. We're going to have to think about that twice.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I do think that the Bush administration is benefiting from this, yes. But I don't think that they are directly impacting the prices.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: If this is going to be the norm, they need to do something, because this is just way too high for gas.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I don't think it's going to change any time soon. I think it's got something to do with world stuff.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: The group of seven top economic powers met over the weekend and urged oil producers to pump more crude. In fact, they're still meeting now and Saudi Arabia is pledging to hike its output. But its fellow OPEC members aren't as eager. As I said, OPEC ministers in Amsterdam this morning, so let's head live there now.
Jim Boulden is there -- tell us more.
JIM BOULDEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, good morning, Carol.
The U.S. secretary of energy, Spencer Abraham, came here to Amsterdam because they wanted to hear Saudi Arabia say that it will open the taps further. And, indeed, that's what Saudi Arabia said, that the taps will be opening immediately and that they will put more crude oil on the market. And that was very good news for the Americans here in Amsterdam. (BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BOULDEN (voice-over): Smiles for the cameras, but beyond the diplomatic niceties, a recognition that the price of oil is bad for the world economy. U.S. Energy Secretary Spencer Abraham says OPEC countries should open the taps, as they did last year during the if we could.
SPENCER ABRAHAM, ENERGY SECRETARY: They are prepared to do that. They can do that. I think the same kind of, you know, strong actions are required right now. The big difference from last year to this year is not a huge reduction in U.S. refinery capacity, it's a huge increase in world demand.
BOULDEN: Secretary Abraham met Saudi's oil minister Sunday. Abraham said Saudi Arabia pledged to pump a lot more oil starting in June and said Saudi Arabia could pump even more if needed, though the Saudi Arabian oil minister was giving little away in front of cameras.
QUESTION: Are you happy with what you've heard from other ministers so far?
BOULDEN: Saudi Arabia wants lower prices to consumers don't turn to alternatives to oil. Iraq is supporting Saudi Arabia's call for OPEC to raise its production by around eight percent.
IBRAHIM ALOLOM, IRAQI OIL MINISTER: We do encourage and support any proposal to increase the production ceiling level.
BOULDEN: But Libya says it's a mistake for Saudi Arabia to raise production without OPEC consensus and Venezuela says existing supplies are adequate. "It's simplistic to say the current oil price is due to current production levels," says Venezuela's oil minister. And he says the market is sufficiently supplied with oil.
OPEC's president told CNN that the cartel will hash out a compromise.
PURNOMO YUSGIANTORO, OPEC PRESIDENT: I will see that we're going to have a good decision, you know, the best we can, you know, to assure the market that we have a good position to stabilize the oil price.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BOULDEN: Now, Carol, that official decision will come on June 3 in Beirut when OPEC as a group meets officially and we'll hear how much more oil the whole group will be pumping out. But I have to say, some OPEC ministers are hot happy that Saudi Arabia seems to have done what the U.S. wants immediately, without any consultation without the other OPEC members -- Carol.
COSTELLO: OK, so most Americans are into instant gratification, so if Saudi Arabia does increase oil production, when might we see the effects at the pump? BOULDEN: Well, we saw the effects in the markets, in the futures markets, on Friday, and, of course, we've seen it this morning, as well. And you saw how quickly prices went up in the U.S. Prices could come down quite quickly, as well.
But OPEC is talking about raising its band of prices to about $30, $35 a barrel. So we're probably not going to see prices going back to where they were just a few months ago, because it looks like OPEC might just say oil prices are going to remain a bit higher, at least for the next couple of months.
COSTELLO: Jim Boulden live in Amsterdam this morning.
Go to cnn.com for more information on gas prices from the Lundberg study. And while you're there, cast your vote on this question -- at what point do you think average gas prices will peak? Cnn.com.
Thirty-seven days till that transfer of sovereignty, or partial sovereignty, to the Iraqis. And President Bush is expected to concentrate on that in what's billed as a major address at the Army's War College.
President Bush speaks at 8:00 Eastern, 5:00 Pacific, and CNN will carry his remarks live on a special edition of "Paula Zahn Now."
The Associated Press Television News Service says it has obtained home video of what locals say was a wedding hit by a U.S. military attack in Iraq last week. We just got these pictures in this morning. As many as 45 people were killed in that attack that we've been telling you about for a week now.
The video shows -- this video, I should say -- shows a bride arriving, people dancing and a man playing piano at the event. APTN crews shot video following the attack and one victim appears to be the man that was playing a piano.
The U.S. military says the attack targeted a high risk meeting of high level anti-coalition forces, that passports, weapons and other items found at the scene support this, and say they found no evidence of a wedding. CNN is unable to ascertain when and where the home video was shot and there is no way to be certain whether the event shown may have been attended by militants or foreign fighters.
And I hope you could follow all of that. We got those new pictures in of that wedding video.
We have a -- I told you we had breaking news out of Iraq, apparently some sort of explosion outside of the Green Zone in Baghdad.
Guy Raz on the phone for us now live from that part of the world with more -- good morning.
What's happened?
GUY RAZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning.
From what we can see here, there were two explosions. They were Toyota Land Cruisers, it appears, from where we're standing. There was a simultaneous explosion, we understand. There are conflicting reports about how many casualties there were. We understand so far casualties were light. But it's possible that four people were killed and it's possible they may have been suicide bombers.
Now, this attack took place just outside of what's called Assassin's Gate. That's one of the main entry points into the Green Zone. That's the Coalition Provisional Authority's headquarters here in Baghdad. So it's possible that that may have been a target of this explosion.
But so far, again, I should reiterate, we cannot confirm whether there have been any deaths in this attack.
COSTELLO: Guy, a question for you. A member of the Iraqi Governing Council was killed at a checkpoint into the Green Zone not long ago.
Is this the same checkpoint?
RAZ: This is a different checkpoint. It's not too far from the checkpoint that killed Izzadine Saleem. At the time, as you'll recall, he was rotating president of the Governing Council.
These areas are very vulnerable. There are constantly lines of cars, vehicles, journalists, Iraqis trying to get in. Security checks are very tight. So immediately outside the walls, there is always a possibility for some kind of attack. And it's probably why many of these insurgents have targeted these areas.
COSTELLO: And looking -- we just got these pictures in and our viewers, this is video of this most recent attack. This was a particularly strong explosion, Guy.
Tell us about the impact.
RAZ: The explosion was strong, indeed. We were about a mile and a half away from it. We could hear it. You could see smoke rising across the city. But not strong enough, evidently, from our vantage point here -- and we're about 100 yards away from it -- that would suggest there were many civilian casualties. In fact, there are no emergency vehicles at the scene, with the exception of police and U.S. military.
COSTELLO: Weren't the suicide bombers -- I would take it that somebody was in those -- some person was in those vehicles, or persons?
RAZ: Yes, well, that's what we understand right now, that there were four people who may have been the suicide bombers who were killed in this attack. But, again, I would reiterate that we haven't been able to confirm that independently yet. We haven't seen the bodies of those alleged bombers. But we do understand that this was most likely a suicide attack.
COSTELLO: All right, Guy Raz on the phone for us live from Baghdad.
Again, a huge explosion near the Green Zone in Baghdad.
As we get more information, we will pass it along to you.
Still to come on DAYBREAK, the search for two sisters starts again this morning, missing since one of them fell into a rushing river. We'll hear from their community.
Plus, safety for the surf -- could you get out of a rip current?
And are you flying to your vacation destination? Check out a new tool that could help you get the best seat on the plane. That's ahead in our business buzz.
This is DAYBREAK for Monday, May 24.
COMMERCIAL
COSTELLO: And just an update on that breaking news we've been telling you about this morning at the Green Zone in Baghdad, where coalition forces' headquarters is located; also, the Iraqi Governing Council. It's believed that maybe at least four suicide bombers and two SUVs at a checkpoint there -- a very huge, powerful explosion. The good news, we don't have reports of any deaths and very few casualties.
Of course, as we get those numbers in, we'll pass them along to you.
Your news, money, weather and sports.
It is 6:15 Eastern.
Here's what's all new this morning.
The search will resume this morning for a 6-year-old Wisconsin girl who was swept away by a rushing river. Also missing, the girl's 12-year-old sister, who jumped in to save her. Neither girl knows how to swim.
Today is the final day of a planned four day walkout by SBC Communications employees. The phone company and union officials say they have made some progress on a new contract. One hundred thousand workers are striking over health care and job security issues.
In money news, an eleventh hour contract agreement for Boeing and its workers. More than 2,000 machinists and aerospace workers had voted to strike if a new contract was not approved.
In sports, Tom Glavin of the Mets came awfully close to tossing the team's first ever no hitter. But Glavin fell four out short of history after the Rockies' Kit Pellow doubled in the eighth inning. In culture, cartoonist Gary Trudeau is apologizing for his Sunday "Doonesbury" strip that included a man's head on a plate. Several newspapers chose not to run the strip. Trudeau explains the piece was written several weeks before the beheading of Nicholas Berg in Iraq.
To the forecast center now and Rob.
(WEATHER REPORT)
COSTELLO: Those are the latest headlines for you.
President Bush will go prime time tonight. He'll lay out his strategy for handing over power to the Iraqis on June 30. And that is our hot talker of the morning.
We have tuned the radio dial to libertarian talker Chip Franklin of WBAL Radio in Baltimore.
Good morning, Chip.
CHIP FRANKLIN, WBAL RADIO HOST: Good morning, Carol.
Who would have thought -- who would have known that Karl Rove wasn't an "Everybody Loves Raymond" fan?
COSTELLO: You're kidding? He's not?
FRANKLIN: You know, it is, it does bother me that we televised the 9/11 Commission, we have scenes from Iraq complete with crying babies and we have the Abu Ghraib photos and now the season finales from ABC, NBC and CBS, but the networks blew off the president of the United States during a war talk, during a war.
What am I missing?
COSTELLO: Do you mean they're not showing the telecast tonight of the president's speech?
FRANKLIN: Yes. Right. Exactly. And, you know, the argument, I guess, could be it's a political speech. Well, I say give Kerry a five minute response and between the two of them, America could get some well needed sleep.
COSTELLO: Oh, Chip, Chip, Chip, Chip, Chip.
FRANKLIN: No, no, no, come on...
COSTELLO: Well, but the president's speech will be aired in its entirety right here on CNN. So we hope people will tune us in.
FRANKLIN: Well, yes, I know, but...
COSTELLO: But let's talk about this speech itself.
Cynics out there say this is the start of President Bush's P.R. campaign to draw the public's attention away from the bloodshed in Iraq.
How will your listeners see this speech?
FRANKLIN: I don't know how you're going to do that with the networks pounding it day in and day out. I mean who are we going to hand the war off to, Ahmad Chalabi? We might as well give the whole thing to Iran.
COSTELLO: You mean Ahmad Chalabi?
FRANKLIN: Yes, whatever.
COSTELLO: He's out of it. He's out of the picture now.
FRANKLIN: Of course. But that's my point. We don't -- we have no idea. We might as well give the whole thing to -- let Starbucks handle the reconstruction. They built 10 in my neighborhood last night while I was sleeping. It costs tens of millions every day, but every headline in the United States today is what? About the pennies of gas going up each week.
The president deserves prime time. They should put him on. He's the president of the United States. I just don't get the networks.
COSTELLO: Well, as a journalist, I would agree with you that it's much more important to see the president's speech over "Everybody Loves Raymond."
But getting back to the speech itself, the president plans a speech every week up until that June 30 handover of power. No names are being bandied about.
What do you think the president will say about the plan tonight?
FRANKLIN: Every other word will be reelect me, reelect me. It's political, I think. I think that, look, they -- right now the war has gone so horribly wrong for this administration and for this country that what -- right now it's damage control. I mean do you really think they have a plan to lay out?
COSTELLO: Well, the president says he does and tonight America may know what that plan is.
FRANKLIN: I don't -- the only thing I can imagine is, is talking about some sort of peacekeeping mission, either that or you're going to do what many have said, is bring more American troops over there. I mean that's really the only thing you could do to make it safer. But that's politically dangerous.
COSTELLO: Well, you should have a very interesting talk radio show today, this afternoon.
Chip Franklin join us live from Baltimore from WBAL.
Time for a little business buzz now.
We saw Continental Airlines add a fuel surcharge to tickets last week. Are many airlines following suit?
Carrie Lee is live at the NASDAQ market site to tell us, and I bet the answer is yes.
CARRIE LEE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, they were initially last week, Carol, but good news here for travelers. American, Continental and others are now dropping that fare increase of as much as $40 per round trip after Northwest Airlines, once again, refused to match the higher prices. Northwest did add the fuel surcharges on some of its flights, not across-the-board, though. Remember, Continental initiated this hike last week because of high fuel costs. Now it looks like once again this spring those fuel costs are coming back, at least in terms of what the passengers have to pay.
This is one of the airlines' biggest costs, Carol. For every one cent per gallon increase in jet fuel, that means another $180 million in costs for the airlines.
So at least for now those hikes we were hearing about last week have been repealed.
COSTELLO: OK, well, let's talk about something really positive, a good way to get a good seat on your next flight.
LEE: There's a Web site out there now, it's called seatguru.com, and it has not only the maps for the different flight and plane configurations for 17 airlines, but also comments solicited from people who are traveling. Basically, the bottom line here, if you want to get a good seat, if you want to find out which airline has better seats and what the good seats are within a plane, you can go to this site and get more information, kind of a grassroots idea. And they're not affiliated with any airline so we'll see how many people use the site. Obviously, this is one of those business models the more people who come in, the more people who comment, the more service oriented and better the site is.
COSTELLO: Seatguru.com, right?
LEE: Yes, that's right.
COSTELLO: All right.
Carrie Lee live from the NASDAQ market site.
We have more -- we have another update on breaking news out of Baghdad. There was an explosion near the Green Zone there.
Guy Raz is nearby.
He joins us live on the phone with more -- tell us.
RAZ: Yes, and we understand now that there were two vehicles that exploded here in Baghdad, just about 15 minutes ago, just outside the main gate of the Coalition Provisional Authority's headquarters, known as the Green Zone. Now, we cannot yet confirm whether there were any deaths. We do have some conflicting reports of four deaths, possibly suicide bombers, inside of those Nissan type sport utility vehicles.
Now, as you know, very well know, these explosions are commonplace in Baghdad. They occur once, twice, almost daily. And I can tell you that in this particular explosion, I cannot see any of the telltale signs that would indicate there were a massive number of casualties -- no emergency vehicles, no emergency helicopters.
There are U.S. forces here. There are special forces and Iraqi police. They've formed a cordon around the area and they are keeping journalists and onlookers about 100 yards away from these smoldering vehicles.
COSTELLO: Guy, there were two vehicles and possibly four suicide bombers. It just seems kind of odd to me.
RAZ: It does seem odd, as well, and, of course, again, I should reiterate, these are conflicting accounts that we're getting. As you know, in the past week alone, there was another suicide attack not too far from here. That attack targeted Izzadine Saleem, who, at the time, was the president of the Iraqi Governing Council.
These attacks often take place near the Green Zone, at the perimeter of the Green Zone. It's a very vulnerable area outside the Green Zone; often long lines of cars, long lines of people trying to get in, trying to go through security checks and terror groups have often used that opportunity to detonate explosive devices and kill many, many people.
COSTELLO: All right, we'll get back to you when you have more.
Is that sound taking place live or from these pictures? I can't tell.
Guy?
RAZ: Can you repeat that question please?
COSTELLO: Oh, I just heard a police siren. I wondered if that was taking place live or if it was on the taped video feed that we have playing right now?
RAZ: That's on -- that was a live vehicle that was passing by here. As I mentioned, there are many, many security vehicles here, including U.S. forces who are keeping onlookers and journalists back about 100 yards from the scene right now.
COSTELLO: All right, Guy Raz on the phone from Baghdad.
When you have more, we'll get back to you.
We're going to take a break.
We'll be back with much more on DAYBREAK.
COMMERCIAL
COSTELLO: In Milwaukee, a desperate search is to begin any time now for sisters swept away in the Milwaukee River.
John Mercure of CNN affiliate WTMJ in Milwaukee has more for you.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JOHN MERCURE, WTMJ CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): As the Coast Guard searched for two sisters, their loved ones searched for answers.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The two girls are my nieces and I do love them. I mean I know they doing what they can do to find them, but they ain't found them. And so it's just hard.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Ask god that you could take over now.
MERCURE: Prayers for 12-year-old Temisha and her 6-year-old sister Tia, who disappeared into the Milwaukee River and were swallowed up by the quick current.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Oh, it's, man, I'm feeling their pain right now. And I can imagine how they feeling.
MERCURE: As the rain fell, so did the tears.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I mean it's just, it's devastating. I understand, I feel their pain because I have a child myself. And I really do feel how they're feeling
MERCURE: A light for two lost little girls.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'm hurt because them kids used to live with me and, you know, I helped the mother. We was a big family and close. And so it's just, it's hard.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COSTELLO: John Mercure of CNN affiliate WTMJ in Milwaukee.
Swollen rivers, speeding tornadoes and don't forget the tides. Coming up, another danger Mother Nature poses to people this time of year and how you can survive rip currents.
A car bomb in Baghdad on the day President Bush is to give the first of several weekly speeches. The focus? The future of Iraq and U.S. strategy. We'll discuss the importance of the message and the countdown to the handover.
We'll be right back.
COMMERCIAL
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