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CNN Live Sunday

Death Threats Against Three Turk Hostages in Iraq; Targeting al Zarqawi

Aired June 27, 2004 - 11:00   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.


FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: It's 11 a.m. in Washington, 6 p.m. in Baghdad. Welcome to "CNN LIVE SUNDAY." I'm Fredricka Whitfield.
Ahead this hour, the death threats against three Turk hostages in Iraq. What's being done to rescue them before a deadline for murder.

Also ...

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BRIGADIER GENERAL MARK KIMMITT, U.S. MILITARY SPOKESMAN: The Zarqawi network is not static. We believe it is growing; it is bringing in other groups in this country that probably realize that success breeds success.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: Targeting the most wanted man in Iraq, Abu Musab al Zarqawi, and how U.S. troops are trying to track down the man believed to be behind hundreds of deaths.

And later, a soldier's story of survival. After almost losing a leg in battle and learning to walk again, a young soldier reflects on his duty in Iraq.

But first, here are the headlines.

This breaking story just in to CNN. CNN has confirmed another hostage has been been taken in Iraq. At this point we know the hostage is a Pakistani national working in Iraq. We'll have more on this story as information becomes available.

Also, reports of a U.S. transport plane taking ground fire. The Associated Press reports small arms fire hit an Air Force C-130 leaving Baghdad. An unknown number of people are reportedly wounded. The AP reports the airport returned to the airport and landed safely.

More now from Iraq, where political power returns to the people in only three days. Threatening to stand in the way, militants staging attacks, bombings and the recent kidnappings of three Turks and now a Pakistani national. CNN's Brent Sadler is in Baghdad with details.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) BRENT SADLER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: With death threats hanging over them, the fate of three Turkish hostages hangs in the balance in Iraq as President George W. Bush visits Turkey to attend a summit meeting of NATO. The kidnappers, claiming to be foot soldiers of America's most wanted terror suspect, Abu Musab al Zarqawi, say they will behead their captives unless Turkey stops doing business in Iraq. An ultimatum Turkey says it rejects.

Iraq's interim government meanwhile, is asking NATO to help train and supply its own Iraqi security forces to defeat a spiraling and ever-bloodier insurgency. At least 23 Iraqis were killed and dozens more wounded in Hillah, south of Baghdad, when double car bombs detonated in the largely Shi'a Muslim town. Violence is surging with multiple bomb blasts; ambushes; the beheading of a South Korean hostage last week and coordinated attacks on police stations.

Meanwhile, the head of the outgoing Coalition Provisional Authority, Paul Bremer, made what's thought to be his last visit outside the capital amid exceptionally high security. He visited the site of mass graves at Hillah, close to were the double car bombs exploded overnight.

Ambassador Bremer met families of victims whose remains were found in what's thought to be one of Iraq's largest killing fields, containing the remains of an estimated 300,000 men, women and children: the horrific legacy of almost three decades of tyrannical rule by Saddam Hussein. Now the site of both a memorial and a new center for democracy in Iraq.

Brent Sadler, CNN, Baghdad.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: The U.S. is blaming Abu Musab al Zarqawi for the latest kidnappings in Iraq. Zarqawi is Iraq's most wanted terrorist. The Jordanian-born militant is also believed to be behind other recent kidnappings and attacks. But as CNN's Jane Arraf reports, Zarqawi's capture may not be enough to stop the terrorism in Iraq.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JANE ARRAF, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Another bone-chilling threat: to behead these Turkish hostages unless Turkish companies leave Iraq within three days. The group, linked to Abu Musab al Zarqawi, has carried out such threats before, beheading a South Korean national last week.

Turkey would seem an unlikely target after refusing to allow U.S. troops to use its bases for the war in Iraq, but the death threats coincided with President Bush's arrival in Ankara for a NATO summit. The coalition has made finding Zarqawi a top priority.

An attack on what the U.S. calls a Zarqawi network safehouse in Fallujah Friday may have missed him by just minutes, officials said. The coalition is appealing to Iraqis to help track down the Jordanian- born fugitive whom they say represent as growing danger. KIMMITT: The Zarqawi network is not static. We believe it is growing; it is bringing in other groups in this country that probably realize that success breeds success.

ARRAF: Success in this sense, headline-grabbing attacks on Coalition Forces and Iraqi targets, while the country struggles towards sovereignty. The transfer of power is just days away. Although no one has taken responsibility for most of the attacks, the range of targets appears to be widening. In Baqubah, northeast of Baghdad, gunmen stormed the offices of the Supreme Counsel for the Islamic Revolution in Iraq, a mainstream Shi'a group, killing three people. An office of the party of the interim prime minister was also attacked.

In the Kurdish city of Erbil, an ambush wounded the culture minister of the regional government, killed another person and wounded 15 more, including children.

Coalition officials are warning though, that even if they catch Zarqawi, the violence won't completely stop, just as it didn't stop when they caught Saddam Hussein. There is still a wide variety of insurgents, including Iraqis believed to be responsible for much of the violence. But the porous borders and the lack of security seem to have opened the floodgates to foreign groups that are finding no shortage of targets.

Jane Arraf, CNN, Baghdad.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: The Bush administration wants the support of Americans for Iraq's political future. U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell says the democratic steps taken in Iraq were the right move for the nation.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

COLIN POWELL, U.S. SECRETARY OF STATE: I hope that as the Iraqi government takes over, the American people see that they are taking over and they now have sovereignty and they are now in charge of their country and moving their country in the right way.

And as the security situation gets under control, and as the American people see that we are going to have elections, and those elections will bring in a representative government, I think in due course, they will see that we have made the right decision and what we are doing is noble work.

WHITFIELD: You can see that entire interview with Secretary Powell later today on CNN's "LATE EDITION" with Wolf Blitzer. That's at noon Eastern, 9 Pacific.

Well just ahead of the handover of sovereignty in Iraq, President Bush arrives in Istanbul, Turkey for a two-day NATO summit that begins tomorrow officially. The meeting will focus on stabilizing the Middle East and it will help define NATO's role in Iraq. CNN European Political Editor Robin Oakley is in Istanbul and has a preview on what's on the table for the NATO summit.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ROBIN OAKLEY, CNN EUROPEAN POLITICAL EDITOR: Once a defensive alliance confined to Europe, NATO now fights terrorism worldwide. But its first task out of area, peacekeeping in Afghanistan, has raised worries about its ability to put its military assets where its mouth is.

The report card on NATO in Afghanistan is a diplomatic "could do better."

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It is important that we do not allow the progress that has been made there to slip back. I know there is some concern that in some parts of Afghanistan we have not extended the authority of the governing in Kabul as far as effectively as it should be.

NICHOLAS BURNS, U.S. AMBASSADOR TO NATO: I'm sure you will hear a lot of talk about NATO increasing the speed at which we are operating: being more resolute, putting more soldiers in the field.

OAKLEY: But what about NATO's role as an alliance in Iraq? Seventeen NATO nations are already there individually helping the Coalition. But France and Germany insist they won't send troops.

JAAP DE HOOP SCHEFFER, NATO SECRETARY GENERAL: NATO will certainly have the debates and NATO would certainly be ready to see what it could do inside or outside Iraq. Many models are possible.

OAKLEY: With NATO offering Iraq no more than training help, they'll focus on other positives: assigning more assets permanently to NATO, like its AWACS surveillance planes and linking with Arab nations to increase stability in the Middle East.

And the U.S. is keen to show in Istanbul that it has rediscovered its belief in the alliance.

BURNS: Well, I serve a government that believes that NATO is vital and that it should be used as a collective instrument of the will of the countries of Europe and North America, and a government, in my country, that wants NATO to be at the center of things.

OAKLEY: NATO was hurt when the U.S. seemingly spurned its offers of help after 9/11. The U.S. was furious with some NATO members who opposed the war in Iraq. But after a new resolution on Iraq began bridging the gap, diplomats are expecting a continued coming together amid tight security in Turkey.

Robin Oakley, CNN, London.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: Presidential hopeful Ralph Nader did not get the green light from the Green Party. We'll tell you who got the nomination when we come back.

Also, would this ad motivate you to hit the gym? From the familiar beer and babes to the subservient chicken, international advertisers are buzzing about the latest ways to grab viewers' attention. We'll explain.

And a rare day of Sunday play at Wimbledon, but will Mother Nature cooperate?

This is "CNN LIVE SUNDAY."

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: Days of rain have made a mess of the Wimbledon tennis tournament. The rains have delayed dozens of scheduled matches, leaving fans waiting for hours in the stands. The gray skies and endless hours of rain have had one positive effect, a rare Sunday day of play now. Well, this is only the third time in Wimbledon history that Sunday has been used for matches. The matches could be back on schedule, if Wimbledon gets a couple of days of dry weather for play.

Well, let's check in with Rob Marciano and see what the skies are saying across this country.

(WEATHER REPORT)

WHITFIELD: All right. Thanks a lot, Rob.

Well now a look at some stories making headlines across America.

The Green Party has picked a presidential nominee and it's not Ralph Nader. At their convention in Milwaukee delegates chose Texas lawyer, David Cob, rejecting Nader's bid for the party's official endorsement. The Green Party's nomination would have put Nader on the ballot in 22 states and the District of Columbia, where the party has automatic ballot access. Well, Nader, who's now an Independent, was the party's nominee four years ago.

Los Angeles Police Chief William Bratton says he will review the policy that allows officers to use flashlights as weapons. That decision after an officer used his flashlight to beat a suspected car thief. Wednesday's beating has inflamed tensions in Los Angeles and drawn comparisons to the 1991 beating of Rodney King.

In Arizona, the U.S. Border Patrol is now using unmanned drones in an effort to stop illegal immigration. The drones use thermal and night vision to help agents spot immigrants trying to sneak across the border from Mexico.

In New Jersey, a slain American expatriate is remembered. A private memorial service was held for Paul Johnson, the engineer kidnapped and later beheaded by captors in Saudi Arabia. As CNN's Alina Cho reports, loved ones paid their respects.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ALINA CHAO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: They came in song and in prayer.

REVEREND GENE HUBER, PASTOR: Sometimes, the guilt of the guilty tortures the innocent.

CHO: Most of all, they came to support a family locked in grief over the death of Paul Johnson, a man kidnapped by terrorists in Saudi Arabia June 12 and beheaded by his captors a week later.

HUBER: We will stand with you for all the time that God gives us together in this life.

CHO: In place of a coffin, there was a single photo of Johnson and his wife; a floral arrangement she sent because she's still overseas, and tiny white pillows from Johnson's grandchildren. There was also a makeshift flag and a yellow ribbon. Everywhere, signs this community that calls itself "Small Town America," is united in grief. This man lived on the same block as Johnson growing up.

DENNIS SEELEY, JR., FRIEND OF PAUL JOHNSON: We always pulled together, and, you know, we always pray together and we always try to help our neighbors the best we can.

CHO: Then there were those who didn't know Johnson and his family, like this woman.

NATALIE SWAG, CHURCH MEMBER: For the right reasons, we wanted to come and I'm glad we did. It was beautiful. Beautiful sermon and music and comforting, I hope, to the family.

CHO: Family members didn't speak during the service, but their grief was evident, especially when Johnson's mother was given an American flag. Afterward, there was a closing hymn. And a statement on behalf of the family from the pastor, who spoke of Johnson's work in Saudi Arabia as an Apache helicopter specialist for Lockheed Martin.

HUBER: When history is written on the war on terrorism, let Paul's death be the catalyst that leads to thousands more Westerners working in harmony with people in the Middle East.

CHO: Johnson's family also urged the Saudi government to do everything it can to find and return Johnson's remains. And to those who have asked how they can help, the family said by ensuring Johnson's sacrifice is not forgotten.

Alina Cho, CNN, Egg Harbor Township, New Jersey.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: And "CNN LIVE SUNDAY" continues in a moment.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: Time now for our hero story of the week.

Today, we spotlight the inspiring story of Specialist Karl Covington. His courage, humor and faith are helping him put his life back together after a bomb in Iraq almost destroyed it.

CNN's Lisa Sylvester has that story from Walnut Creek, California.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

LISA SYLVESTER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Karl Covington was a certified lifeguard when he joined the army right out of high school just three years ago. Now, he's swimming for therapy, trying to build back the muscles in legs that were shattered by an explosion in Iraq. The blast happened as his unit was setting up a highway checkpoint.

KARL COVINGTON, IRAQ EXPLOSION SURVIVOR: We felt like we were the biggest targets, standing out in the middle of the road for 12 hours in a war zone. We thought we were going to get attacked from the sky. We didn't know what was going on.

SYLVESTER: A bomb hit the vehicle Covington was riding in. A large piece of metal sliced through his left leg, severing arteries and leaving a gash a foot long.

K. COVINGTON: I knew I was hurt, I just didn't know how bad.

SYLVESTER: Fellow soldiers applied tourniquets to stop Covington from bleeding to death and medevaced him to the nearest hospital. As doctors went to work, suddenly the pain was the worst he'd ever felt.

K. COVINGTON: OK! What else is going to happen? Am I going to see the light? It's like what else? I was ready to go. And then the chaplain comes in, and says, "Are you a man of God? Do you believe in god?" "I'm like oh, Jesus. I'm not going to make it. I'm not going to make it!"

SYLVESTER: It's taken 17 surgeries to save Covington's legs. Almost three months later, he's learning to walk again.

LINDA COVINGTON, MOTHER OF KARL COVINGTON: The way he has healed from gaping wounds, things that are unimaginable to us, it's a miracle. Through faith and his determination, he's healing himself.

SYLVESTER: With the support of his family and community, Karl Covington is optimistic for the future.

K. COVINGTON: I'm going to deal with this injury, but my personality hasn't changed, and that's the one thing that I always want to keep is the way I am.

SYLVESTER: And he's looking forward to going to college to become an architect.

Lisa Sylvester, CNN, reporting.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: Still much more ahead this hour. On "RELIABLE SOURCES" from a former president to the controversy involving the vice president, Howard Kurtz has a preview now.

HOWARD KURTZ, CNN ANCHOR, "RELIABLE SOURCES": Coming up, the Bill Clinton book blitz. Why is the press still wallowing in the Monica Lewinsky story? What about the rest of the Clinton presidency? And are interviewers letting him rewrite history?

Also, Michael Moore rips the media as well as President Bush in his new movie. And should journalists being using the word that Dick Cheney used? All next on "RELIABLE SOURCES."

WHITFIELD: It's an Internet version of "Simon Says" and it's one of the hottest ad campaigns going. Meet the subservient chicken. We'll tell you what it's pitching when we come right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: It's a weekend of raucous revelry and gay pride marches all over the world. Openly gay mayors led festivities in both Berlin and Paris. Berlin is home to one of Europe's largest gay pride marches. Police say about 200,000 people took part, commemorating the founding of the gay rights movement in New York, back in 1969.

Well, it's the other Cannes Film Festival, but it's about keeping couch potatoes glued to their seat. The world's best TV commercials were shown in Cannes, France, at the International Advertising Festival. Well, some will make you laugh and some will make you say, "Ew."

CNN's Jason Bellini reports.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JASON BELLINI, CNN CORRESPONDENT: A Brazilian ad for a gym doesn't need a single word to get its point across. The connection between beer and babes is apparently universal as well.

The world's best commercials, it seems, are those that have you wondering, "What's this ad for?"

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Connect, yes!

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: English girl you're so pale and so lovely.

BELLINI: This is a British ad for Pot Noodle.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Secretly, he's bored with you. He wants it filthy and dirty and more rude.

BELLINI: Much of the buzz this year at Cannes concerns the cyber ad category.

JONAH BLOOM, EDITOR, ADVERTISING AGE: There was a lot of press comment around subservientchicken.com. A man dressed in a chicken suit on a web cam.

BELLINI: Burger King's chicken won a bronze medal and perhaps new customers.

BLOOM: It gives Burger King a little bit of an edge.

BELLINI: Other universal themes?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: So, how do I look?

BELLINI: The sexy -- and the absurd.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Today, we salute you, Mr. Giant Taco Salad inventor.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Mr. Giant Taco Salad inventor.

BELLINI: Help solve a global challenge of the 21st century: capturing people's attention.

Jason Bellini, CNN, New York.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: Ew is right.

Well, there's so much more ahead on "CNN SUNDAY." In a few minutes, "RELIABLE SOURCES." Today, looking at the media blitz over the Bill Clinton book.

At noon Eastern, it's "LATE EDITION" with Wolf Blitzer. Among Wolf's guests, U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell talking about the imminent handover of power in Iraq and what it means to American troops.

And at 2:00 p.m. Eastern, "PEOPLE IN THE NEWS" today profiling filmmaker Michael Moore and his controversial movie, Fahrenheit 9/11.

But first, a look at the top stories.

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 27, 2004 - 11:00   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: It's 11 a.m. in Washington, 6 p.m. in Baghdad. Welcome to "CNN LIVE SUNDAY." I'm Fredricka Whitfield.
Ahead this hour, the death threats against three Turk hostages in Iraq. What's being done to rescue them before a deadline for murder.

Also ...

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BRIGADIER GENERAL MARK KIMMITT, U.S. MILITARY SPOKESMAN: The Zarqawi network is not static. We believe it is growing; it is bringing in other groups in this country that probably realize that success breeds success.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: Targeting the most wanted man in Iraq, Abu Musab al Zarqawi, and how U.S. troops are trying to track down the man believed to be behind hundreds of deaths.

And later, a soldier's story of survival. After almost losing a leg in battle and learning to walk again, a young soldier reflects on his duty in Iraq.

But first, here are the headlines.

This breaking story just in to CNN. CNN has confirmed another hostage has been been taken in Iraq. At this point we know the hostage is a Pakistani national working in Iraq. We'll have more on this story as information becomes available.

Also, reports of a U.S. transport plane taking ground fire. The Associated Press reports small arms fire hit an Air Force C-130 leaving Baghdad. An unknown number of people are reportedly wounded. The AP reports the airport returned to the airport and landed safely.

More now from Iraq, where political power returns to the people in only three days. Threatening to stand in the way, militants staging attacks, bombings and the recent kidnappings of three Turks and now a Pakistani national. CNN's Brent Sadler is in Baghdad with details.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) BRENT SADLER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: With death threats hanging over them, the fate of three Turkish hostages hangs in the balance in Iraq as President George W. Bush visits Turkey to attend a summit meeting of NATO. The kidnappers, claiming to be foot soldiers of America's most wanted terror suspect, Abu Musab al Zarqawi, say they will behead their captives unless Turkey stops doing business in Iraq. An ultimatum Turkey says it rejects.

Iraq's interim government meanwhile, is asking NATO to help train and supply its own Iraqi security forces to defeat a spiraling and ever-bloodier insurgency. At least 23 Iraqis were killed and dozens more wounded in Hillah, south of Baghdad, when double car bombs detonated in the largely Shi'a Muslim town. Violence is surging with multiple bomb blasts; ambushes; the beheading of a South Korean hostage last week and coordinated attacks on police stations.

Meanwhile, the head of the outgoing Coalition Provisional Authority, Paul Bremer, made what's thought to be his last visit outside the capital amid exceptionally high security. He visited the site of mass graves at Hillah, close to were the double car bombs exploded overnight.

Ambassador Bremer met families of victims whose remains were found in what's thought to be one of Iraq's largest killing fields, containing the remains of an estimated 300,000 men, women and children: the horrific legacy of almost three decades of tyrannical rule by Saddam Hussein. Now the site of both a memorial and a new center for democracy in Iraq.

Brent Sadler, CNN, Baghdad.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: The U.S. is blaming Abu Musab al Zarqawi for the latest kidnappings in Iraq. Zarqawi is Iraq's most wanted terrorist. The Jordanian-born militant is also believed to be behind other recent kidnappings and attacks. But as CNN's Jane Arraf reports, Zarqawi's capture may not be enough to stop the terrorism in Iraq.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JANE ARRAF, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Another bone-chilling threat: to behead these Turkish hostages unless Turkish companies leave Iraq within three days. The group, linked to Abu Musab al Zarqawi, has carried out such threats before, beheading a South Korean national last week.

Turkey would seem an unlikely target after refusing to allow U.S. troops to use its bases for the war in Iraq, but the death threats coincided with President Bush's arrival in Ankara for a NATO summit. The coalition has made finding Zarqawi a top priority.

An attack on what the U.S. calls a Zarqawi network safehouse in Fallujah Friday may have missed him by just minutes, officials said. The coalition is appealing to Iraqis to help track down the Jordanian- born fugitive whom they say represent as growing danger. KIMMITT: The Zarqawi network is not static. We believe it is growing; it is bringing in other groups in this country that probably realize that success breeds success.

ARRAF: Success in this sense, headline-grabbing attacks on Coalition Forces and Iraqi targets, while the country struggles towards sovereignty. The transfer of power is just days away. Although no one has taken responsibility for most of the attacks, the range of targets appears to be widening. In Baqubah, northeast of Baghdad, gunmen stormed the offices of the Supreme Counsel for the Islamic Revolution in Iraq, a mainstream Shi'a group, killing three people. An office of the party of the interim prime minister was also attacked.

In the Kurdish city of Erbil, an ambush wounded the culture minister of the regional government, killed another person and wounded 15 more, including children.

Coalition officials are warning though, that even if they catch Zarqawi, the violence won't completely stop, just as it didn't stop when they caught Saddam Hussein. There is still a wide variety of insurgents, including Iraqis believed to be responsible for much of the violence. But the porous borders and the lack of security seem to have opened the floodgates to foreign groups that are finding no shortage of targets.

Jane Arraf, CNN, Baghdad.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: The Bush administration wants the support of Americans for Iraq's political future. U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell says the democratic steps taken in Iraq were the right move for the nation.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

COLIN POWELL, U.S. SECRETARY OF STATE: I hope that as the Iraqi government takes over, the American people see that they are taking over and they now have sovereignty and they are now in charge of their country and moving their country in the right way.

And as the security situation gets under control, and as the American people see that we are going to have elections, and those elections will bring in a representative government, I think in due course, they will see that we have made the right decision and what we are doing is noble work.

WHITFIELD: You can see that entire interview with Secretary Powell later today on CNN's "LATE EDITION" with Wolf Blitzer. That's at noon Eastern, 9 Pacific.

Well just ahead of the handover of sovereignty in Iraq, President Bush arrives in Istanbul, Turkey for a two-day NATO summit that begins tomorrow officially. The meeting will focus on stabilizing the Middle East and it will help define NATO's role in Iraq. CNN European Political Editor Robin Oakley is in Istanbul and has a preview on what's on the table for the NATO summit.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ROBIN OAKLEY, CNN EUROPEAN POLITICAL EDITOR: Once a defensive alliance confined to Europe, NATO now fights terrorism worldwide. But its first task out of area, peacekeeping in Afghanistan, has raised worries about its ability to put its military assets where its mouth is.

The report card on NATO in Afghanistan is a diplomatic "could do better."

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It is important that we do not allow the progress that has been made there to slip back. I know there is some concern that in some parts of Afghanistan we have not extended the authority of the governing in Kabul as far as effectively as it should be.

NICHOLAS BURNS, U.S. AMBASSADOR TO NATO: I'm sure you will hear a lot of talk about NATO increasing the speed at which we are operating: being more resolute, putting more soldiers in the field.

OAKLEY: But what about NATO's role as an alliance in Iraq? Seventeen NATO nations are already there individually helping the Coalition. But France and Germany insist they won't send troops.

JAAP DE HOOP SCHEFFER, NATO SECRETARY GENERAL: NATO will certainly have the debates and NATO would certainly be ready to see what it could do inside or outside Iraq. Many models are possible.

OAKLEY: With NATO offering Iraq no more than training help, they'll focus on other positives: assigning more assets permanently to NATO, like its AWACS surveillance planes and linking with Arab nations to increase stability in the Middle East.

And the U.S. is keen to show in Istanbul that it has rediscovered its belief in the alliance.

BURNS: Well, I serve a government that believes that NATO is vital and that it should be used as a collective instrument of the will of the countries of Europe and North America, and a government, in my country, that wants NATO to be at the center of things.

OAKLEY: NATO was hurt when the U.S. seemingly spurned its offers of help after 9/11. The U.S. was furious with some NATO members who opposed the war in Iraq. But after a new resolution on Iraq began bridging the gap, diplomats are expecting a continued coming together amid tight security in Turkey.

Robin Oakley, CNN, London.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: Presidential hopeful Ralph Nader did not get the green light from the Green Party. We'll tell you who got the nomination when we come back.

Also, would this ad motivate you to hit the gym? From the familiar beer and babes to the subservient chicken, international advertisers are buzzing about the latest ways to grab viewers' attention. We'll explain.

And a rare day of Sunday play at Wimbledon, but will Mother Nature cooperate?

This is "CNN LIVE SUNDAY."

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: Days of rain have made a mess of the Wimbledon tennis tournament. The rains have delayed dozens of scheduled matches, leaving fans waiting for hours in the stands. The gray skies and endless hours of rain have had one positive effect, a rare Sunday day of play now. Well, this is only the third time in Wimbledon history that Sunday has been used for matches. The matches could be back on schedule, if Wimbledon gets a couple of days of dry weather for play.

Well, let's check in with Rob Marciano and see what the skies are saying across this country.

(WEATHER REPORT)

WHITFIELD: All right. Thanks a lot, Rob.

Well now a look at some stories making headlines across America.

The Green Party has picked a presidential nominee and it's not Ralph Nader. At their convention in Milwaukee delegates chose Texas lawyer, David Cob, rejecting Nader's bid for the party's official endorsement. The Green Party's nomination would have put Nader on the ballot in 22 states and the District of Columbia, where the party has automatic ballot access. Well, Nader, who's now an Independent, was the party's nominee four years ago.

Los Angeles Police Chief William Bratton says he will review the policy that allows officers to use flashlights as weapons. That decision after an officer used his flashlight to beat a suspected car thief. Wednesday's beating has inflamed tensions in Los Angeles and drawn comparisons to the 1991 beating of Rodney King.

In Arizona, the U.S. Border Patrol is now using unmanned drones in an effort to stop illegal immigration. The drones use thermal and night vision to help agents spot immigrants trying to sneak across the border from Mexico.

In New Jersey, a slain American expatriate is remembered. A private memorial service was held for Paul Johnson, the engineer kidnapped and later beheaded by captors in Saudi Arabia. As CNN's Alina Cho reports, loved ones paid their respects.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ALINA CHAO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: They came in song and in prayer.

REVEREND GENE HUBER, PASTOR: Sometimes, the guilt of the guilty tortures the innocent.

CHO: Most of all, they came to support a family locked in grief over the death of Paul Johnson, a man kidnapped by terrorists in Saudi Arabia June 12 and beheaded by his captors a week later.

HUBER: We will stand with you for all the time that God gives us together in this life.

CHO: In place of a coffin, there was a single photo of Johnson and his wife; a floral arrangement she sent because she's still overseas, and tiny white pillows from Johnson's grandchildren. There was also a makeshift flag and a yellow ribbon. Everywhere, signs this community that calls itself "Small Town America," is united in grief. This man lived on the same block as Johnson growing up.

DENNIS SEELEY, JR., FRIEND OF PAUL JOHNSON: We always pulled together, and, you know, we always pray together and we always try to help our neighbors the best we can.

CHO: Then there were those who didn't know Johnson and his family, like this woman.

NATALIE SWAG, CHURCH MEMBER: For the right reasons, we wanted to come and I'm glad we did. It was beautiful. Beautiful sermon and music and comforting, I hope, to the family.

CHO: Family members didn't speak during the service, but their grief was evident, especially when Johnson's mother was given an American flag. Afterward, there was a closing hymn. And a statement on behalf of the family from the pastor, who spoke of Johnson's work in Saudi Arabia as an Apache helicopter specialist for Lockheed Martin.

HUBER: When history is written on the war on terrorism, let Paul's death be the catalyst that leads to thousands more Westerners working in harmony with people in the Middle East.

CHO: Johnson's family also urged the Saudi government to do everything it can to find and return Johnson's remains. And to those who have asked how they can help, the family said by ensuring Johnson's sacrifice is not forgotten.

Alina Cho, CNN, Egg Harbor Township, New Jersey.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: And "CNN LIVE SUNDAY" continues in a moment.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: Time now for our hero story of the week.

Today, we spotlight the inspiring story of Specialist Karl Covington. His courage, humor and faith are helping him put his life back together after a bomb in Iraq almost destroyed it.

CNN's Lisa Sylvester has that story from Walnut Creek, California.

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LISA SYLVESTER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Karl Covington was a certified lifeguard when he joined the army right out of high school just three years ago. Now, he's swimming for therapy, trying to build back the muscles in legs that were shattered by an explosion in Iraq. The blast happened as his unit was setting up a highway checkpoint.

KARL COVINGTON, IRAQ EXPLOSION SURVIVOR: We felt like we were the biggest targets, standing out in the middle of the road for 12 hours in a war zone. We thought we were going to get attacked from the sky. We didn't know what was going on.

SYLVESTER: A bomb hit the vehicle Covington was riding in. A large piece of metal sliced through his left leg, severing arteries and leaving a gash a foot long.

K. COVINGTON: I knew I was hurt, I just didn't know how bad.

SYLVESTER: Fellow soldiers applied tourniquets to stop Covington from bleeding to death and medevaced him to the nearest hospital. As doctors went to work, suddenly the pain was the worst he'd ever felt.

K. COVINGTON: OK! What else is going to happen? Am I going to see the light? It's like what else? I was ready to go. And then the chaplain comes in, and says, "Are you a man of God? Do you believe in god?" "I'm like oh, Jesus. I'm not going to make it. I'm not going to make it!"

SYLVESTER: It's taken 17 surgeries to save Covington's legs. Almost three months later, he's learning to walk again.

LINDA COVINGTON, MOTHER OF KARL COVINGTON: The way he has healed from gaping wounds, things that are unimaginable to us, it's a miracle. Through faith and his determination, he's healing himself.

SYLVESTER: With the support of his family and community, Karl Covington is optimistic for the future.

K. COVINGTON: I'm going to deal with this injury, but my personality hasn't changed, and that's the one thing that I always want to keep is the way I am.

SYLVESTER: And he's looking forward to going to college to become an architect.

Lisa Sylvester, CNN, reporting.

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WHITFIELD: Still much more ahead this hour. On "RELIABLE SOURCES" from a former president to the controversy involving the vice president, Howard Kurtz has a preview now.

HOWARD KURTZ, CNN ANCHOR, "RELIABLE SOURCES": Coming up, the Bill Clinton book blitz. Why is the press still wallowing in the Monica Lewinsky story? What about the rest of the Clinton presidency? And are interviewers letting him rewrite history?

Also, Michael Moore rips the media as well as President Bush in his new movie. And should journalists being using the word that Dick Cheney used? All next on "RELIABLE SOURCES."

WHITFIELD: It's an Internet version of "Simon Says" and it's one of the hottest ad campaigns going. Meet the subservient chicken. We'll tell you what it's pitching when we come right back.

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WHITFIELD: It's a weekend of raucous revelry and gay pride marches all over the world. Openly gay mayors led festivities in both Berlin and Paris. Berlin is home to one of Europe's largest gay pride marches. Police say about 200,000 people took part, commemorating the founding of the gay rights movement in New York, back in 1969.

Well, it's the other Cannes Film Festival, but it's about keeping couch potatoes glued to their seat. The world's best TV commercials were shown in Cannes, France, at the International Advertising Festival. Well, some will make you laugh and some will make you say, "Ew."

CNN's Jason Bellini reports.

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JASON BELLINI, CNN CORRESPONDENT: A Brazilian ad for a gym doesn't need a single word to get its point across. The connection between beer and babes is apparently universal as well.

The world's best commercials, it seems, are those that have you wondering, "What's this ad for?"

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Connect, yes!

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: English girl you're so pale and so lovely.

BELLINI: This is a British ad for Pot Noodle.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Secretly, he's bored with you. He wants it filthy and dirty and more rude.

BELLINI: Much of the buzz this year at Cannes concerns the cyber ad category.

JONAH BLOOM, EDITOR, ADVERTISING AGE: There was a lot of press comment around subservientchicken.com. A man dressed in a chicken suit on a web cam.

BELLINI: Burger King's chicken won a bronze medal and perhaps new customers.

BLOOM: It gives Burger King a little bit of an edge.

BELLINI: Other universal themes?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: So, how do I look?

BELLINI: The sexy -- and the absurd.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Today, we salute you, Mr. Giant Taco Salad inventor.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Mr. Giant Taco Salad inventor.

BELLINI: Help solve a global challenge of the 21st century: capturing people's attention.

Jason Bellini, CNN, New York.

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WHITFIELD: Ew is right.

Well, there's so much more ahead on "CNN SUNDAY." In a few minutes, "RELIABLE SOURCES." Today, looking at the media blitz over the Bill Clinton book.

At noon Eastern, it's "LATE EDITION" with Wolf Blitzer. Among Wolf's guests, U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell talking about the imminent handover of power in Iraq and what it means to American troops.

And at 2:00 p.m. Eastern, "PEOPLE IN THE NEWS" today profiling filmmaker Michael Moore and his controversial movie, Fahrenheit 9/11.

But first, a look at the top stories.

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