Return to Transcripts main page

CNN Live At Daybreak

Countdown to Handover; Memo Shows Bush Ordered Al Qaeda, Taliban Prisoners be Treated Humanely; Release of British Detainees Could Come Today

Aired June 23, 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: New threats heard on tape this morning. They may be straight from one of the most sought after terrorists in Iraq. It is Wednesday, June 23. This is DAYBREAK.
And good morning to you from the CNN global headquarters in Atlanta. I'm Carol Costello. More on those reported threats in just a minute, but first the latest headlines for you. So here goes.

The eight British sailors and marines being held in Iran could be released some time today. They were arrested after allegedly crossing into Iranian waters. Iranian state media reports they will be released because they crossed the border unintentionally.

Multinational talks get under way today in Beijing over North Korea's nuclear program. Delegates from six nations, including the United States, are set to meet for four days. Two previous rounds of talks have not produced any breakthroughs.

In money news, a sex discrimination lawsuit against Wal-Mart is now a class-action suit. That means more than a million and a half former and current female employees can be included in the pay equity suit.

In culture, an oldie but a goodie. "Somewhere Over the Rainbow" from the 1939's "The Wizard of Oz" has been named the best song from a movie in voting by the entertainment industry. "As Time Goes By" from "Casablanca" is No. 2.

In sports, two-time defending Wimbledon champion Serena Williams breezed through her first-round match. Williams has won 15 straight matches in the grand slam tournament -- Chad.

CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Is it still the first round?

COSTELLO: Yes.

MYERS: Oh, my! This is going to go on until August.

(WEATHER BREAK)

COSTELLO: Thanks, Chad.

Just a week now until the handover of power, and this morning a chilling audiotape. On that tape, a voice supposedly that of Abu Musab al-Zarqawi threatens Iraq's interim prime minister. This audiotape is playing on a Web site, which has aired statements from Zarqawi's terror group.

As you know, al-Zarqawi is blamed for attacks in Iraq, including the assassination of a member of the Iraqi Governing Council. He's also suspected of beheading of American Nicholas Berg. Interestingly enough, that audiotape does not mention the beheading of a South Korean hostage. Zarqawi's group says it's responsible for that, too. We're going to talk more about that later.

But right now, coalition forces are stepping up their attacks on groups linked to Zarqawi's terror networks.

Let's head live to Washington to find out more from CNN's Skip Loescher.

Good morning -- Skip.

SKIP LOESCHER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning to you, Carol.

That wave of violence that's sweeping across Iraq at this hour surprises really no one. It is what the terrorists promised that they would do. But the coalition officials and Iraqi officials say they won't give in.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

LOESCHER (voice over): A week away from Iraqis taking political control of their country and violence continues to escalate. Iraqi officials report an explosion Wednesday morning near a Baghdad hospital, killing at least two people, a woman and a child. West of Baghdad, an explosion leveled part of a Ministry of Agriculture building, at least two dead.

Elsewhere, two U.S. soldiers were killed in an ambush. And U.S. planes went back to Fallujah, hitting what authorities called a safehouse used by the same terrorist group which now claims responsibility for the kidnapping and beheading of a 33-year-old South Korean civilian contractor.

One of the terrorists gave this statement: "The deadline has passed," he says. "We warned you. This is the result of your own doing."

The terrorists had demanded that South Korea gets its troops already there out of Iraq and not send in anymore. South Korea refused.

SHIN BONG-KIL, SOUTH KOREAN FOREIGN MINISTER (through translator): Our military deployment is for reconstruction and humanitarian aid support for Iraq.

LOESCHER: Here at home, demonstrators in Los Angeles met to support the troops.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We must use the means that are available to us to stop the terrorists. They've caused too many deaths.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LOESCHER: Carol, you mentioned the threat from Zarqawi to kill Iraq's new foreign minister -- or make that prime minister. He has had death threats before. He has survived attempts on his life before. But given the climate in Iraq right now, this threat has to be taken seriously.

COSTELLO: Skip Loescher reporting live from Washington, D.C., this morning. Thank you.

The world is hearing from former Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein in the form of a letter and by way of his attorney. One of Saddam's lawyers is in the United States this week, claiming American troops are abusing Saddam.

But in a letter to his family, Saddam writes his spirit and moral are high. A Red Cross report indicates Saddam was in good health and slightly wounded one month after he was captured. His attorney insists, why would the deposed leader be slightly wounded if he wasn't being abused?

You can hear more about what Mohammad Rashdan has to say in just a few hours. He'll be a guest on "AMERICAN MORNING." That will happen in the 8:00 Eastern hour.

In Washington, the Bush administration is releasing a 2-year-old memo to try and set the record straight. The memo shows the president ordered al Qaeda and Taliban prisoners be treated humanely. But instead of quelling the controversy, it seems to be just stirring it up more.

Here's more for you from CNN Suzanne Malveaux.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT (voice over): The Bush administration launched an extraordinary campaign to discredit claims that the White House condoned the torture of detainees.

GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: We do not condone torture. I have never ordered torture. I will never order torture. The values of this country are such that torture is not a part of our soul and our being.

MALVEAUX: The White House released a two-inch stack of documents that showed within the legal community there was rigorous debate over where the U.S. military could legally draw the line.

But White House Counsel Alberto Gonzales said much of the discussion was merely exploring the legal landscape, and never directly impacted the presidential policy or the instructions to the soldiers in the field.

In a presidential memo, dated February 7, 2002, Mr. Bush accepted the Justice Department's recommendation that the Geneva Conventions protecting prisoners of war did not apply to the U.S. conflict with al Qaeda and the Taliban, but he stated: "Our values as a nation, values that we share with many nations in the world, call for us to treat detainees humanely, including those who are not legally entitled to such treatment."

Democrats immediately took to the Senate floor to complain that the White House had released only three of the 23 documents they had been asking for.

SEN. CHARLES SCHUMER (D), NEW YORK: Don't let anyone think that because it's a thick pile here that it really has the nub of the matter. It doesn't.

MALVEAUX: An August, 2002 Justice Department memo that has raised questions and controversy over the issues states that the president, as commander-in-chief, has unlimited power to protect the U.S. from attack, that self defense may justify interrogation methods that are counter and violate U.S. and international law. The Justice Department has since repudiated that memo.

Suzanne Malveaux, CNN, the White House.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COSTELLO: It was all a mistake. That's what Iran's foreign minister says about the alleged entry into Iranian waters by eight British sailors and marines who have been held by Iran since Monday. The crewmen are expected to be released today after he says it was proven they did not intentionally cross into Iran's territorial waters.

Let's head live to London for more and CNN's Matthew Chance.

Hello -- Matthew.

MATTHEW CHANCE, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Carol, hello to you as well.

It's a big relief for many diplomatic officials here. Hopes are now being raised that a potentially very damaging diplomatic crisis between Britain and Iran could be brought to a very early end with the Iranian foreign minister, Kamal Kharazi, saying that he's issued an order for those eight British service personnel to be released; that, after an internal Iranian inquiry found that, as the sailors and the marines said, they had actually entered Iranian territorial waters on Monday completely by accident.

Now, there has been no real reaction at this stage from British officials. They say they have not received confirmation from the Iranians that a release is imminent, and they're still working very hard on a sort of hourly basis to secure it.

But there has been a great deal concern here in Britain, particularly when those eight servicemen appeared on Iranian television, being paraded, one occasion actually blindfolded. Two of those servicemen actually appeared reading prepared statements in which they apologized for, in their words, illegally entering Iranian territorial waters.

There have been mixed signals as well coming from the Iranians. At one stage there was talk of prosecutions being made against the eight. That seems to have now receded, and that will be greeted with a great deal of relief by those in Britain who have been working to secure these releases. But at the same time, nothing is being taken for granted until these eight personnel are back on British soil -- Carol.

COSTELLO: You know, talking about those mixed signals, was Iran just trying to send out a strong message by doing all of this?

CHANCE: Well, it's interesting, because, as I say, there were these mixed signals. People were in Iran talking about keeping these soldiers and -- sorry -- sailors and marines and holding them for prosecution.

There does seem to have been something of an internal power tussle amongst the various centers of power in Iran -- the hardliners, the Revolutionary Guard, who arrested these individuals, perhaps pushing for more stronger measures to be put against them. The moderates in the government, though, in the end coming through and apparently securing approval from the supreme leadership of Iran to have these personnel handed back to British authorities -- Carol.

COSTELLO: Matthew Chance live in London for us this morning. Thank you.

Still to come on DAYBREAK, the violence in Iraq and the Arab community, how is it responding to the brutal acts of violence? We'll hear the Arab voice.

Plus, in-depth analysis of another voice, threats recorded on tape and played around the world this morning.

And then, scientists take a cruise and find the perfect match: luxury and learning.

And one group's effort to counter (AUDIO GAP). Do they have a headliner? This is DAYBREAK for June 23.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: Your news, money, weather and sports. It is 6:13 Eastern. Here's what's all new this morning.

An Iranian official says the government plans to release eight British service members who were arrested for crossing Iran's territorial waters -- or crossing into Iran's territorial waters. That's according to the state-run media. The report says the men will be released some time today.

A White House memo shows President Bush concluded that the Geneva Conventions governing the treatment of prisoners of war did not apply to al Qaeda or Taliban. But he ordered the military to follow the Geneva rules anyway. In money news, the government's war chest is growing. The House of Representatives has passed a $417 billion bill to fund defense programs. It includes $25 billion in interim funds for operations in Iraq and Afghanistan.

In culture, Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O'Connor has been honored for her volunteer work by the American Institute for Public Service. O'Connor is the first woman to serve on the U.S. Supreme Court.

And in sports, a grand slam, take a look. Oh, that's Nomar Garciaparra's first home run of the year, and the Boston Red Sox beat the Minnesota Twins 9-2.

(WEATHER BREAK)

COSTELLO: Those are the latest headlines for you.

It is that time in our program to hear what they are saying. As you know, the South Korean hostage was beheaded by terrorists in Iraq. That's the third hostage to be decapitated in the region in about a month, and, well, this is the understatement of the year. It is a disturbing trend.

Our senior editor for Arab affairs, Octavia Nasr, joins us with how that topic is being played out in the Arab media.

What are they saying?

OCTAVIA NASR, CNN SENIOR EDITOR ARAB AFFAIRS: They're saying there's a pattern, definitely a pattern here now. The hostage is taken. The hostage is shown on a TV, given the chance to give a statement. And then there is a deadline and there is a threat. And when the deadline passes, there is execution. And these guys obviously like to put it on tape, and they like to give it to different networks. There is another statement and then the actual beheading on the tape.

COSTELLO: The interesting thing about this is Arab television showed Nicholas Berg being beheaded on videotape, but they did not show the South Korean.

NASR: Not really. They didn't show the actual beheading, and no one chose to show the actual beheading.

COSTELLO: But they showed more of the American than they did the South Korean.

NASR: Well, the thing is -- I mean, it's a debatable issue, obviously. I mean, well, I monitor these networks all the time, and there's a huge difference between networks and local TV stations. Local TV stations, they do one thing sometimes that big networks don't. The networks are a bit more responsible. I guess just like it is in this country and elsewhere around the world.

But what they did show from this tape -- and actually this tape in particular, only Al-Jazeera has the tape even to this point. The tape is not even available on the Internet like the other tapes. Al- Jazeera is the only one that ran it. Let's take a look at how they handled it.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

NASR (voice over): "We warned you," says this militant. "Now the deadline has passed."

The news of the execution of Kin Sun-il was first obtained by Al- Jazeera, the Arab satellite news channel.

The anchor woman in full Muslim cover, the hijab, stressing how barbaric the act is and questioning a guest, this one specializing in Islamist groups: "How can these acts be justified in anybody's mind?"

"Iraq is an occupied country," he answers. "South Koreans are there in support of the U.S. They are seen by the militants as legitimate targets."

Al-Jazeera received the tape of the actual beheading, but chose not to air it. It reported on the grief of Kim Sun-il's family back in Seoul, then aired the report examining what is fast becoming a trend in Iraq and has even spread to Saudi Arabia: the execution of hostages. The report concluding that perhaps the worse is yet to come.

And in Baghdad, talk among foreigners about leaving Iraq for fear of being targeted. This Muslim cleric says firmly that this spate of kidnapping and killing is not acceptable. And he warns, hurting foreigners has to stop. Experts think that's very unlikely.

For Al-Jazeera, another day, both reporting and being part of the news.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

NASR: So a trend, and people sounds like they're not pessimistic, but they are frustrated with what's going on right now.

COSTELLO: Didn't clerics within Iraq come out strongly against such acts? And if they did, why aren't their words being followed?

NASR: You're absolutely right, Carol. They did come out strong, as we saw in this report here. And this is where the frustration stems from. People feel that no matter what these clerics are saying, no matter what the authorities in the Muslim faith are saying, these people have their own world. They live in their own world. They have their own views on Islam and the Koran, and there's nothing that's stopping them.

And not just that, but they're also getting sophisticated. They're using the Internet in a very smart way. Unfortunately, they were able to catch our attention and the world's attention. Now we all monitor these sites, and we wait for news. They're driving the news in many, many ways.

COSTELLO: Which creates quite a dilemma for us as well.

NASR: Absolutely. It's very tough. Do you want to report on these people or not? And unfortunately, in a case like this, when you get the news about the fate of a hostage or people, you have to go to these sites to get the video, not just the information. In the past, it was statements and claims of responsibility. Now they have the actual video. They're showing it to you. They're saying the hostage is dead. They're the ones announcing it to the world. We have to follow.

COSTELLO: Octavia Nasr, thank you for joining DAYBREAK this morning.

NASR: Thank you.

COSTELLO: CNN takes the pulse of the world this week as the countdown to the handover of Iraq nears. Join us at 1:00 p.m. Eastern tomorrow to find out the European view, and you can get a check of the American pulse on Friday, same time, 1:00 p.m. Eastern.

Coming up on DAYBREAK, fighting the war on terror on the streets where you live. See who is keeping an eye out for you close to home.

And science at sea. We'll show you how one group of experts turned a cruise liner into their very own ocean laboratory. This is DAYBREAK.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: Here are some stories making news across America this Wednesday.

The next stop for Dr. Jack Kevorkian may be the Supreme Court. A U.S. Court of Appeals rejected a petition for a new trial on behalf of the assisted-suicide advocate. The 76-year-old Kevorkian was found guilty of second-degree murder in 1999. He could be eligible for parole in 2007.

New York City is teaching its doormen how to slam the door on terror. The police department has begun antiterrorism training with doormen and building superintendents. The plan includes training for 28,000 building employees over the next year and a half.

The family of New York Yankees pitcher Jose Contreras made it to Miami aboard a suspected smuggler's boat. His wife and two daughters arrived on Monday, and they were released by immigration officials. Contreras defected from Cuba two years ago, and he had long complained that the Cuban government was punishing him by not letting his family immigrate.

All right, we have a little science and vacation all rolled into one. Chad and Daniel has that for us this morning.

DANIEL SIEBERG, CNN TECHNOLOGY CORRESPONDENT: Vacation? Hey, what do you mean? Come on, we are working here. COSTELLO: I'm sorry.

MYERS: You are not working. OK. You're thinking about scientists in the field, atop of Mount Kilimanjaro, atop of Katu (ph), in a little, tiny boat up in...

SIEBERG: Suffering. Suffering for science (UNINTELLIGIBLE) think of.

MYERS: The Royal Caribbean...

SIEBERG: Chad, by the way, I have to present (UNINTELLIGIBLE) ceremonial short straw for not being able to do this assignment. I'm sorry. I drew the bigger straw. That's just the way it goes sometimes.

MYERS: Hooray!

SIEBERG: We did manage to spend some time with some scientists out on a ship that is anything but roughing it as they go out there and gather their research.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SIEBERG (voice-over): A typical oceanographic research vessel, not a day at the beach. A far cry from this.

What started out a simple conversation about the high cost of ocean research between the University of Miami and Royal Caribbean Cruise Lines turned into a symbiotic partnership, putting scientists and labs on a cruise ship. Federal agencies, like the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, soon jumped on board.

PETER ORTNER, NOAA: From my perspective, as a government laboratory, this is an incredibly financially-efficient way of doing it. It's saving the taxpayer a lot of money in getting data we really couldn't get any other way.

SIEBERG (on camera): It's another relatively calm and sunny day here in the Caribbean. In fact, we're in the port of San Juan in Puerto Rico, but all that calm weather can change in a big hurry. Other changes, though, occur gradually over time, and they could affect everything from hurricanes, to marine life, to the upper atmosphere.

(voice-over): There are censors and instruments in every part of the Explorer of the Seas, carefully integrated, of course, so the passengers don't trip over any wires on their way to the bar. During our cruise, we saw scientists who focused on measuring levels of carbon dioxide in the ocean.

RIK WANNINKHOF, NOAA OCEANOGRAPHER: So, what we are trying to do on this ship and on a lot of other ships is to try to monitor the seasonal patterns and the patterns from year to year.

SIEBERG: Taking critical measurements of sea surface temperatures and almost daily weather balloon launches.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Another wild and woolly launch.

SIEBERG: All of the weather-related data is shared with other agencies. Last year the ship provided some critical wind speed data to the National Hurricane Center during hurricane Claudette.

Still, many of the passengers have no idea that work like this is being done as they lounge by the pool.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It was very interesting. I had no idea they did this kind of research.

CLODAGH O'CONNOR, CRUISE DIRECTOR EXPLORER OF THE SEAS: We make as a company a lot of announcements at the start of the voyage about saving the waves and how important that is to us as a company. So, I think it ties in wonderfully with just what we are doing onboard.

SIEBERG: And it sure beats bouncing around in freezing or dangerous environments. And don't think their academic colleagues don't give them a hard time about it.

PETER MINNETT, UNIVERSITY OF MIAMI: To begin with, people think, oh, you cannot possibly be serious. How can you do good science on a ship like this? As soon as we show them the data, show them what we are doing, then, of course, they are often convinced.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

SIEBERG: Well, obviously it is a cruise ship, so the scientists do find time for a few distractions. And perhaps not surprisingly the waiting list for scientists who want to conduct research on board the Explorer of the Seas is five months long. They're all waiting to get on board.

MYERS: And (UNINTELLIGIBLE) the guy seems strangely skinny for having all you can eat for five months.

SIEBERG: And probably has gone to the buffet 10 times like everybody else on board, yes.

MYERS: So, why are we doing -- why are they doing this? What's that about?

SIEBERG: Well, it is an amazing group of oceanographers and marine researchers out there. And part of the reason they're doing it is because this cruise ship takes the same path, the same route week after week. So, all of this data can be compared over a long period of time over a very specific area, and with most research ships you just can't do that. It's very expensive to keep going out to the same place every time, week after week.

MYERS: What are they doing? I mean, the ocean part, what are they doing with it? Just (UNINTELLIGIBLE)?

SIEBERG: They're testing the temperature. They're looking at the salinity, the currents of the ocean. They're bringing this water in and looking at the carbon dioxide levels. It's a number of different things. They've got an ocean-level lab, plus this atmospheric lab as well, so they can get data from the air and from the ocean. They bring in water, dozens of liters per minute. Some of it gets discharged, of course. But they can look at all of these samples and go back. It's been going on for a few years now. This is the first time the media got to go on board and see what they're up to. And they can share all of this data in real time, which is pretty amazing.

MYERS: And you didn't bring a fishing rod with you. You never thought about that.

SIEBERG: And if it looks like I have a tan, that's from another vacation. I (UNINTELLIGIBLE) tan.

MYERS: All right.

COSTELLO: I thought you were going to say it's makeup.

SIEBERG: Right, and makeup as well. Thanks, Carol.

MYERS: Thanks, Daniel.

COSTELLO: Thank you. That was really great.

MYERS: That was fun. Thanks, Daniel.

COSTELLO: Thanks to both of you.

Here's what's all new in the next half hour of DAYBREAK.

In-depth analysis of that new audiotape that's supposedly from one of the most hunted terrorists in Iraq.

And using music as a weapon in the presidential campaign. Will the boss play?

And if you love ice cream but don't love the symptoms that you get when you eat it, our nutrition expert will show you some ways to enjoy that sweet treat.

This is DAYBREAK.

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 June 23, 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: New threats heard on tape this morning. They may be straight from one of the most sought after terrorists in Iraq. It is Wednesday, June 23. This is DAYBREAK.
And good morning to you from the CNN global headquarters in Atlanta. I'm Carol Costello. More on those reported threats in just a minute, but first the latest headlines for you. So here goes.

The eight British sailors and marines being held in Iran could be released some time today. They were arrested after allegedly crossing into Iranian waters. Iranian state media reports they will be released because they crossed the border unintentionally.

Multinational talks get under way today in Beijing over North Korea's nuclear program. Delegates from six nations, including the United States, are set to meet for four days. Two previous rounds of talks have not produced any breakthroughs.

In money news, a sex discrimination lawsuit against Wal-Mart is now a class-action suit. That means more than a million and a half former and current female employees can be included in the pay equity suit.

In culture, an oldie but a goodie. "Somewhere Over the Rainbow" from the 1939's "The Wizard of Oz" has been named the best song from a movie in voting by the entertainment industry. "As Time Goes By" from "Casablanca" is No. 2.

In sports, two-time defending Wimbledon champion Serena Williams breezed through her first-round match. Williams has won 15 straight matches in the grand slam tournament -- Chad.

CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Is it still the first round?

COSTELLO: Yes.

MYERS: Oh, my! This is going to go on until August.

(WEATHER BREAK)

COSTELLO: Thanks, Chad.

Just a week now until the handover of power, and this morning a chilling audiotape. On that tape, a voice supposedly that of Abu Musab al-Zarqawi threatens Iraq's interim prime minister. This audiotape is playing on a Web site, which has aired statements from Zarqawi's terror group.

As you know, al-Zarqawi is blamed for attacks in Iraq, including the assassination of a member of the Iraqi Governing Council. He's also suspected of beheading of American Nicholas Berg. Interestingly enough, that audiotape does not mention the beheading of a South Korean hostage. Zarqawi's group says it's responsible for that, too. We're going to talk more about that later.

But right now, coalition forces are stepping up their attacks on groups linked to Zarqawi's terror networks.

Let's head live to Washington to find out more from CNN's Skip Loescher.

Good morning -- Skip.

SKIP LOESCHER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning to you, Carol.

That wave of violence that's sweeping across Iraq at this hour surprises really no one. It is what the terrorists promised that they would do. But the coalition officials and Iraqi officials say they won't give in.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

LOESCHER (voice over): A week away from Iraqis taking political control of their country and violence continues to escalate. Iraqi officials report an explosion Wednesday morning near a Baghdad hospital, killing at least two people, a woman and a child. West of Baghdad, an explosion leveled part of a Ministry of Agriculture building, at least two dead.

Elsewhere, two U.S. soldiers were killed in an ambush. And U.S. planes went back to Fallujah, hitting what authorities called a safehouse used by the same terrorist group which now claims responsibility for the kidnapping and beheading of a 33-year-old South Korean civilian contractor.

One of the terrorists gave this statement: "The deadline has passed," he says. "We warned you. This is the result of your own doing."

The terrorists had demanded that South Korea gets its troops already there out of Iraq and not send in anymore. South Korea refused.

SHIN BONG-KIL, SOUTH KOREAN FOREIGN MINISTER (through translator): Our military deployment is for reconstruction and humanitarian aid support for Iraq.

LOESCHER: Here at home, demonstrators in Los Angeles met to support the troops.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We must use the means that are available to us to stop the terrorists. They've caused too many deaths.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LOESCHER: Carol, you mentioned the threat from Zarqawi to kill Iraq's new foreign minister -- or make that prime minister. He has had death threats before. He has survived attempts on his life before. But given the climate in Iraq right now, this threat has to be taken seriously.

COSTELLO: Skip Loescher reporting live from Washington, D.C., this morning. Thank you.

The world is hearing from former Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein in the form of a letter and by way of his attorney. One of Saddam's lawyers is in the United States this week, claiming American troops are abusing Saddam.

But in a letter to his family, Saddam writes his spirit and moral are high. A Red Cross report indicates Saddam was in good health and slightly wounded one month after he was captured. His attorney insists, why would the deposed leader be slightly wounded if he wasn't being abused?

You can hear more about what Mohammad Rashdan has to say in just a few hours. He'll be a guest on "AMERICAN MORNING." That will happen in the 8:00 Eastern hour.

In Washington, the Bush administration is releasing a 2-year-old memo to try and set the record straight. The memo shows the president ordered al Qaeda and Taliban prisoners be treated humanely. But instead of quelling the controversy, it seems to be just stirring it up more.

Here's more for you from CNN Suzanne Malveaux.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT (voice over): The Bush administration launched an extraordinary campaign to discredit claims that the White House condoned the torture of detainees.

GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: We do not condone torture. I have never ordered torture. I will never order torture. The values of this country are such that torture is not a part of our soul and our being.

MALVEAUX: The White House released a two-inch stack of documents that showed within the legal community there was rigorous debate over where the U.S. military could legally draw the line.

But White House Counsel Alberto Gonzales said much of the discussion was merely exploring the legal landscape, and never directly impacted the presidential policy or the instructions to the soldiers in the field.

In a presidential memo, dated February 7, 2002, Mr. Bush accepted the Justice Department's recommendation that the Geneva Conventions protecting prisoners of war did not apply to the U.S. conflict with al Qaeda and the Taliban, but he stated: "Our values as a nation, values that we share with many nations in the world, call for us to treat detainees humanely, including those who are not legally entitled to such treatment."

Democrats immediately took to the Senate floor to complain that the White House had released only three of the 23 documents they had been asking for.

SEN. CHARLES SCHUMER (D), NEW YORK: Don't let anyone think that because it's a thick pile here that it really has the nub of the matter. It doesn't.

MALVEAUX: An August, 2002 Justice Department memo that has raised questions and controversy over the issues states that the president, as commander-in-chief, has unlimited power to protect the U.S. from attack, that self defense may justify interrogation methods that are counter and violate U.S. and international law. The Justice Department has since repudiated that memo.

Suzanne Malveaux, CNN, the White House.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COSTELLO: It was all a mistake. That's what Iran's foreign minister says about the alleged entry into Iranian waters by eight British sailors and marines who have been held by Iran since Monday. The crewmen are expected to be released today after he says it was proven they did not intentionally cross into Iran's territorial waters.

Let's head live to London for more and CNN's Matthew Chance.

Hello -- Matthew.

MATTHEW CHANCE, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Carol, hello to you as well.

It's a big relief for many diplomatic officials here. Hopes are now being raised that a potentially very damaging diplomatic crisis between Britain and Iran could be brought to a very early end with the Iranian foreign minister, Kamal Kharazi, saying that he's issued an order for those eight British service personnel to be released; that, after an internal Iranian inquiry found that, as the sailors and the marines said, they had actually entered Iranian territorial waters on Monday completely by accident.

Now, there has been no real reaction at this stage from British officials. They say they have not received confirmation from the Iranians that a release is imminent, and they're still working very hard on a sort of hourly basis to secure it.

But there has been a great deal concern here in Britain, particularly when those eight servicemen appeared on Iranian television, being paraded, one occasion actually blindfolded. Two of those servicemen actually appeared reading prepared statements in which they apologized for, in their words, illegally entering Iranian territorial waters.

There have been mixed signals as well coming from the Iranians. At one stage there was talk of prosecutions being made against the eight. That seems to have now receded, and that will be greeted with a great deal of relief by those in Britain who have been working to secure these releases. But at the same time, nothing is being taken for granted until these eight personnel are back on British soil -- Carol.

COSTELLO: You know, talking about those mixed signals, was Iran just trying to send out a strong message by doing all of this?

CHANCE: Well, it's interesting, because, as I say, there were these mixed signals. People were in Iran talking about keeping these soldiers and -- sorry -- sailors and marines and holding them for prosecution.

There does seem to have been something of an internal power tussle amongst the various centers of power in Iran -- the hardliners, the Revolutionary Guard, who arrested these individuals, perhaps pushing for more stronger measures to be put against them. The moderates in the government, though, in the end coming through and apparently securing approval from the supreme leadership of Iran to have these personnel handed back to British authorities -- Carol.

COSTELLO: Matthew Chance live in London for us this morning. Thank you.

Still to come on DAYBREAK, the violence in Iraq and the Arab community, how is it responding to the brutal acts of violence? We'll hear the Arab voice.

Plus, in-depth analysis of another voice, threats recorded on tape and played around the world this morning.

And then, scientists take a cruise and find the perfect match: luxury and learning.

And one group's effort to counter (AUDIO GAP). Do they have a headliner? This is DAYBREAK for June 23.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: Your news, money, weather and sports. It is 6:13 Eastern. Here's what's all new this morning.

An Iranian official says the government plans to release eight British service members who were arrested for crossing Iran's territorial waters -- or crossing into Iran's territorial waters. That's according to the state-run media. The report says the men will be released some time today.

A White House memo shows President Bush concluded that the Geneva Conventions governing the treatment of prisoners of war did not apply to al Qaeda or Taliban. But he ordered the military to follow the Geneva rules anyway. In money news, the government's war chest is growing. The House of Representatives has passed a $417 billion bill to fund defense programs. It includes $25 billion in interim funds for operations in Iraq and Afghanistan.

In culture, Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O'Connor has been honored for her volunteer work by the American Institute for Public Service. O'Connor is the first woman to serve on the U.S. Supreme Court.

And in sports, a grand slam, take a look. Oh, that's Nomar Garciaparra's first home run of the year, and the Boston Red Sox beat the Minnesota Twins 9-2.

(WEATHER BREAK)

COSTELLO: Those are the latest headlines for you.

It is that time in our program to hear what they are saying. As you know, the South Korean hostage was beheaded by terrorists in Iraq. That's the third hostage to be decapitated in the region in about a month, and, well, this is the understatement of the year. It is a disturbing trend.

Our senior editor for Arab affairs, Octavia Nasr, joins us with how that topic is being played out in the Arab media.

What are they saying?

OCTAVIA NASR, CNN SENIOR EDITOR ARAB AFFAIRS: They're saying there's a pattern, definitely a pattern here now. The hostage is taken. The hostage is shown on a TV, given the chance to give a statement. And then there is a deadline and there is a threat. And when the deadline passes, there is execution. And these guys obviously like to put it on tape, and they like to give it to different networks. There is another statement and then the actual beheading on the tape.

COSTELLO: The interesting thing about this is Arab television showed Nicholas Berg being beheaded on videotape, but they did not show the South Korean.

NASR: Not really. They didn't show the actual beheading, and no one chose to show the actual beheading.

COSTELLO: But they showed more of the American than they did the South Korean.

NASR: Well, the thing is -- I mean, it's a debatable issue, obviously. I mean, well, I monitor these networks all the time, and there's a huge difference between networks and local TV stations. Local TV stations, they do one thing sometimes that big networks don't. The networks are a bit more responsible. I guess just like it is in this country and elsewhere around the world.

But what they did show from this tape -- and actually this tape in particular, only Al-Jazeera has the tape even to this point. The tape is not even available on the Internet like the other tapes. Al- Jazeera is the only one that ran it. Let's take a look at how they handled it.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

NASR (voice over): "We warned you," says this militant. "Now the deadline has passed."

The news of the execution of Kin Sun-il was first obtained by Al- Jazeera, the Arab satellite news channel.

The anchor woman in full Muslim cover, the hijab, stressing how barbaric the act is and questioning a guest, this one specializing in Islamist groups: "How can these acts be justified in anybody's mind?"

"Iraq is an occupied country," he answers. "South Koreans are there in support of the U.S. They are seen by the militants as legitimate targets."

Al-Jazeera received the tape of the actual beheading, but chose not to air it. It reported on the grief of Kim Sun-il's family back in Seoul, then aired the report examining what is fast becoming a trend in Iraq and has even spread to Saudi Arabia: the execution of hostages. The report concluding that perhaps the worse is yet to come.

And in Baghdad, talk among foreigners about leaving Iraq for fear of being targeted. This Muslim cleric says firmly that this spate of kidnapping and killing is not acceptable. And he warns, hurting foreigners has to stop. Experts think that's very unlikely.

For Al-Jazeera, another day, both reporting and being part of the news.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

NASR: So a trend, and people sounds like they're not pessimistic, but they are frustrated with what's going on right now.

COSTELLO: Didn't clerics within Iraq come out strongly against such acts? And if they did, why aren't their words being followed?

NASR: You're absolutely right, Carol. They did come out strong, as we saw in this report here. And this is where the frustration stems from. People feel that no matter what these clerics are saying, no matter what the authorities in the Muslim faith are saying, these people have their own world. They live in their own world. They have their own views on Islam and the Koran, and there's nothing that's stopping them.

And not just that, but they're also getting sophisticated. They're using the Internet in a very smart way. Unfortunately, they were able to catch our attention and the world's attention. Now we all monitor these sites, and we wait for news. They're driving the news in many, many ways.

COSTELLO: Which creates quite a dilemma for us as well.

NASR: Absolutely. It's very tough. Do you want to report on these people or not? And unfortunately, in a case like this, when you get the news about the fate of a hostage or people, you have to go to these sites to get the video, not just the information. In the past, it was statements and claims of responsibility. Now they have the actual video. They're showing it to you. They're saying the hostage is dead. They're the ones announcing it to the world. We have to follow.

COSTELLO: Octavia Nasr, thank you for joining DAYBREAK this morning.

NASR: Thank you.

COSTELLO: CNN takes the pulse of the world this week as the countdown to the handover of Iraq nears. Join us at 1:00 p.m. Eastern tomorrow to find out the European view, and you can get a check of the American pulse on Friday, same time, 1:00 p.m. Eastern.

Coming up on DAYBREAK, fighting the war on terror on the streets where you live. See who is keeping an eye out for you close to home.

And science at sea. We'll show you how one group of experts turned a cruise liner into their very own ocean laboratory. This is DAYBREAK.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: Here are some stories making news across America this Wednesday.

The next stop for Dr. Jack Kevorkian may be the Supreme Court. A U.S. Court of Appeals rejected a petition for a new trial on behalf of the assisted-suicide advocate. The 76-year-old Kevorkian was found guilty of second-degree murder in 1999. He could be eligible for parole in 2007.

New York City is teaching its doormen how to slam the door on terror. The police department has begun antiterrorism training with doormen and building superintendents. The plan includes training for 28,000 building employees over the next year and a half.

The family of New York Yankees pitcher Jose Contreras made it to Miami aboard a suspected smuggler's boat. His wife and two daughters arrived on Monday, and they were released by immigration officials. Contreras defected from Cuba two years ago, and he had long complained that the Cuban government was punishing him by not letting his family immigrate.

All right, we have a little science and vacation all rolled into one. Chad and Daniel has that for us this morning.

DANIEL SIEBERG, CNN TECHNOLOGY CORRESPONDENT: Vacation? Hey, what do you mean? Come on, we are working here. COSTELLO: I'm sorry.

MYERS: You are not working. OK. You're thinking about scientists in the field, atop of Mount Kilimanjaro, atop of Katu (ph), in a little, tiny boat up in...

SIEBERG: Suffering. Suffering for science (UNINTELLIGIBLE) think of.

MYERS: The Royal Caribbean...

SIEBERG: Chad, by the way, I have to present (UNINTELLIGIBLE) ceremonial short straw for not being able to do this assignment. I'm sorry. I drew the bigger straw. That's just the way it goes sometimes.

MYERS: Hooray!

SIEBERG: We did manage to spend some time with some scientists out on a ship that is anything but roughing it as they go out there and gather their research.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SIEBERG (voice-over): A typical oceanographic research vessel, not a day at the beach. A far cry from this.

What started out a simple conversation about the high cost of ocean research between the University of Miami and Royal Caribbean Cruise Lines turned into a symbiotic partnership, putting scientists and labs on a cruise ship. Federal agencies, like the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, soon jumped on board.

PETER ORTNER, NOAA: From my perspective, as a government laboratory, this is an incredibly financially-efficient way of doing it. It's saving the taxpayer a lot of money in getting data we really couldn't get any other way.

SIEBERG (on camera): It's another relatively calm and sunny day here in the Caribbean. In fact, we're in the port of San Juan in Puerto Rico, but all that calm weather can change in a big hurry. Other changes, though, occur gradually over time, and they could affect everything from hurricanes, to marine life, to the upper atmosphere.

(voice-over): There are censors and instruments in every part of the Explorer of the Seas, carefully integrated, of course, so the passengers don't trip over any wires on their way to the bar. During our cruise, we saw scientists who focused on measuring levels of carbon dioxide in the ocean.

RIK WANNINKHOF, NOAA OCEANOGRAPHER: So, what we are trying to do on this ship and on a lot of other ships is to try to monitor the seasonal patterns and the patterns from year to year.

SIEBERG: Taking critical measurements of sea surface temperatures and almost daily weather balloon launches.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Another wild and woolly launch.

SIEBERG: All of the weather-related data is shared with other agencies. Last year the ship provided some critical wind speed data to the National Hurricane Center during hurricane Claudette.

Still, many of the passengers have no idea that work like this is being done as they lounge by the pool.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It was very interesting. I had no idea they did this kind of research.

CLODAGH O'CONNOR, CRUISE DIRECTOR EXPLORER OF THE SEAS: We make as a company a lot of announcements at the start of the voyage about saving the waves and how important that is to us as a company. So, I think it ties in wonderfully with just what we are doing onboard.

SIEBERG: And it sure beats bouncing around in freezing or dangerous environments. And don't think their academic colleagues don't give them a hard time about it.

PETER MINNETT, UNIVERSITY OF MIAMI: To begin with, people think, oh, you cannot possibly be serious. How can you do good science on a ship like this? As soon as we show them the data, show them what we are doing, then, of course, they are often convinced.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

SIEBERG: Well, obviously it is a cruise ship, so the scientists do find time for a few distractions. And perhaps not surprisingly the waiting list for scientists who want to conduct research on board the Explorer of the Seas is five months long. They're all waiting to get on board.

MYERS: And (UNINTELLIGIBLE) the guy seems strangely skinny for having all you can eat for five months.

SIEBERG: And probably has gone to the buffet 10 times like everybody else on board, yes.

MYERS: So, why are we doing -- why are they doing this? What's that about?

SIEBERG: Well, it is an amazing group of oceanographers and marine researchers out there. And part of the reason they're doing it is because this cruise ship takes the same path, the same route week after week. So, all of this data can be compared over a long period of time over a very specific area, and with most research ships you just can't do that. It's very expensive to keep going out to the same place every time, week after week.

MYERS: What are they doing? I mean, the ocean part, what are they doing with it? Just (UNINTELLIGIBLE)?

SIEBERG: They're testing the temperature. They're looking at the salinity, the currents of the ocean. They're bringing this water in and looking at the carbon dioxide levels. It's a number of different things. They've got an ocean-level lab, plus this atmospheric lab as well, so they can get data from the air and from the ocean. They bring in water, dozens of liters per minute. Some of it gets discharged, of course. But they can look at all of these samples and go back. It's been going on for a few years now. This is the first time the media got to go on board and see what they're up to. And they can share all of this data in real time, which is pretty amazing.

MYERS: And you didn't bring a fishing rod with you. You never thought about that.

SIEBERG: And if it looks like I have a tan, that's from another vacation. I (UNINTELLIGIBLE) tan.

MYERS: All right.

COSTELLO: I thought you were going to say it's makeup.

SIEBERG: Right, and makeup as well. Thanks, Carol.

MYERS: Thanks, Daniel.

COSTELLO: Thank you. That was really great.

MYERS: That was fun. Thanks, Daniel.

COSTELLO: Thanks to both of you.

Here's what's all new in the next half hour of DAYBREAK.

In-depth analysis of that new audiotape that's supposedly from one of the most hunted terrorists in Iraq.

And using music as a weapon in the presidential campaign. Will the boss play?

And if you love ice cream but don't love the symptoms that you get when you eat it, our nutrition expert will show you some ways to enjoy that sweet treat.

This is DAYBREAK.

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