Return to Transcripts main page
CNN Live At Daybreak
Latest News About Marine Corporal Wassef Ali Hassoun; Controversy Over Israel's Nuclear Weapons
Aired July 08, 2004 - 05:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: The mystery of a missing Marine. This morning, a new development to tell you about.
It is Thursday, July 8.
This is DAYBREAK.
And good morning to you.
From the CNN Global Headquarters in Atlanta, I'm Carol Costello.
Now in the news, the head of the United Nations nuclear watchdog agency has been meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon. Muhammad ElBaradei wants Israel to discuss its alleged nuclear weapons program. He believes that could help reopen Middle East security talks.
Former Enron Chairman Ken Lay says I have done nothing wrong. Lay has been indicted by a federal grand jury. He plans to surrender today and an indictment listing the charges will be unsealed.
CIA Director George Tenet says good-bye to his troops this morning. A gathering at the agency headquarters is planned, even though Tenet does not officially leave office until Sunday. President Bush has not yet named a new director.
Come sunrise in northern Kansas, residents will get a good look at the damage from severe weather, including possible tornadoes. Power has been knocked out in some communities. Keeping you informed, CNN, the most trusted name in news -- Chad.
CHAD MYERS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Carol.
There were 19 tornadoes reported yesterday. Now, this was a typical day in May, not a typical day in July. By July, typically the severe weather is back up into Minnesota, maybe even coming across into parts of southern Canada. But the severe weather was right across here, right across parts of Kansas yesterday. The weather geek that I am, I was sitting at home yesterday about four o'clock in the afternoon watching this monster rotating thunderstorm right through central and northern Kansas, just to the west of Concordia. And clearly a tornado was on the ground with that storm. There was a warning on it, of course. But we didn't see any pictures of it yet. We will keep watching for you. It was at least an F3, if not an F4, on the ground there in parts of Kansas yesterday.
(WEATHER REPORT)
COSTELLO: To that new information on the missing Marine in Iraq. The U.S. embassy in Lebanon says it has what it calls credible evidence that Corporal Wassef Hassoun is in that country this morning. A source close to his family in Utah says he's with family members in the Lebanese capital, or the Lebanese city, rather, of Tripoli.
Let's head their live.
CNN's Alphonso Van Marsh is outside of the apartment building where Hassoun has relatives. He's on the phone lines right now -- Alphonso, what more can you tell us?
ALPHONSO VAN MARSH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, just as you said, the U.S. embassy, or, I should say, embassy officials here, as you mentioned, are confirming that there is credible evidence, as you said, that they're hearing that Mr. Hassoun is in the country. Now, at the same time, there isn't any confirmation as to his exact whereabouts.
The family here is very excited. They say they're in good spirits. This neighborhood where I'm standing, about 60 percent of the people in this neighborhood are all from the same Hassoun family. That's nephews, nieces, brothers, cousins. They're all very concerned. They're feeling very positive. They're actually saying that they expect this to have a good resolution.
It's clear that this story is far from over in terms of how did Wassef get away, where is he now, what will happen next, will he see his family here? That's definitely what people want to know. And they're getting a little bit anxious. They say they want to know soon.
Lastly, I'm going to mention that the foreign minister, the Lebanese foreign minister also says that he talked to the family here to congratulate them that Wassef is free, but the foreign ministry says that they don't know exactly where he is.
COSTELLO: Well, that's so confusing. I mean why doesn't he call his -- why doesn't he call the military and tell them he's OK, or the Defense Department? Why doesn't he show himself if he's OK?
VAN MARSH: Well, from the perspective here in this family neighborhood, the Hassoun family neighborhood, it's important that I mention to you that the family is being very cautious. They're keeping information that they have very close to the vest. They're not talking to reporters. They did talk to us last night just to say that they were feeling very positive.
But in terms of what Wassef may or may not have done, at least the family here isn't disclosing that information, other than to say that they've been in touch, that they've had a sign, some kind of sign that made them feel that he was OK and alive and on his way home. They're expecting to see him soon.
COSTELLO: So you don't believe he's physically with his family, but he's somewhere else in Lebanon?
VAN MARSH: Well, unfortunately, at this point it's not clear. What we can tell you, here in this neighborhood, we've been here for a while now and we haven't seen Wassef come through, let's put it that way. Of course, anything is possible. The embassy is not confirming, the U.S. embassy, I should say, is not confirming his whereabouts. Again, it's understood that he may be in the country. The U.S. embassy isn't saying that. But, you know, there's actually -- the U.S. embassy is saying that it's local press reports. And I'll tell you briefly about that.
The local press here is just going all over the place, saying that he may be sleeping here or there or whatnot.
COSTELLO: Alphonso, I just -- I want to interrupt because I want to ask you one more question, because I know you have to go.
VAN MARSH: Yes, please.
COSTELLO: We've heard so many rumors about this Marine. We've heard that he may have deserted. We've heard that he may have been lured by an Arab woman that he'd fallen in love with and captured. We'd heard that his captors supposedly said he agreed not to go back to the U.S. military.
Is all of this playing into this mystery surrounding him this morning?
VAN MARSH: Yes. In the local newspapers here, all the things that you have just mentioned, in one element or the other, in all the local press. It's what people are talking about in this particular neighborhood. But the family says that what's most important to them is that he's alive and they want him to come home soon and they'll worry about those other details later on.
COSTELLO: Alphonso Van Marsh reporting live from Tripoli in Lebanon this morning.
The Bush administration is reportedly pushing Pakistan to deliver Osama bin Laden before Americans go to the polls. That's what the "New Republic" magazine alleges. Washington is coupling military enticements for Pakistan with implicit threats.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
PETER BEINART, "THE NEW REPUBLIC": Our story, by Spencer Ackerman and John Judas and a Pakistani journalist named Massoud Ansari, quotes four Pakistani officials, all people in a position to know, saying that they have been receiving pressure from Bush administration officials to deliver Osama bin Laden or another high value al Qaeda target like his deputy, Ayman el-Zawahiri, before the November election. And one of those sources, a very senior person, says that they have been specifically said that they want those -- they want that capture during -- in the last days of July, during the Democratic convention.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: In the "New Republic" article, National Security Council Spokesman Sean McCormack denies the allegations, saying: "Our attitude and actions have been the same since September 11 in terms of getting high value targets off the street and that doesn't change because of an election."
Bin Laden and his top lieutenants are believed to be hiding in the lawless tribal areas of Pakistan.
In Israel this morning, Prime Minister Ariel Sharon and Muhammad ElBaradei, the head of the U.N.'s nuclear watchdog agency, have just wrapped up a meeting.
We want to talk about that with our Alessio Vinci.
He's in Jerusalem.
But first, Alessio, you have news on an ongoing Israeli military operation that we understand has left 10 Palestinians dead.
Tell us more about that, too.
ALESSIO VINCI, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That is correct, Carol. There's been violent clashes overnight and into the early morning here actually in Gaza, where, according to Palestinians doctors, 10 people have been killed, 10 Palestinians have been killed and as many as 15 others have been wounded. According to Palestinian doctors, among those wounded are a 34 -- a 35-year-old woman, mother of 10. And according to Palestinian security forces, among the 10 dead, there are six militants, six Palestinian militants, including a senior Hamas official.
According to Israeli Defense Forces, one Israeli soldier was seriously wounded as a result of those attacks. These clashes took place in the Beit Hanun area in northern Gaza. This is where there's been an ongoing military operation by Israeli forces after 10 days ago, actually, 11 days ago. Palestinian militants fired Hassam rockets into Israeli villages, killing a 3-year-old boy and a 49-year- old man, and therefore, ever since then, Israeli forces have moved into that area with bulldozers as well as tanks. And ever since then there's been sporadic clashes between the two sides; and, indeed, this morning, violent clashes between the two sides, leaving at least 10 people dead -- Carol.
COSTELLO: And now to the subject of Mr. Dr. ElBaradei and why he's in Israel meeting there with officials this morning.
VINCI: That is correct. Dr. ElBaradei has just ended a meeting with Prime Minister Ariel Sharon of Israel. Basically, Dr. ElBaradei is hoping that Israel will begin to shift its longstanding policy of not admitting nor denying that it has nuclear weapons. And, indeed, Mr. ElBaradei is hoping that Israel will change that strategy.
For decades, Israel has had this sort of position of nuclear ambiguity. And the Dr. ElBaradei hopes that as a result of these talks, Israel will begin talking seriously about a nuclear free Middle East. But Israeli officials, while not admitting nor denying that they have weapons of mass destruction or any nuclear weapon, are saying that there is -- there can be no talk of disarmament while there are still a prevailing hostility toward Israel, including coming from Iran, Israel and the United States, by the way, accusing Iran of pursuing a weapon of mass destruction, a nuclear weapon, and therefore Israeli officials telling Dr. ElBaradei that there can be no talk of disarmament for as long as Iran, for example, and other countries in the region threaten its existence here -- back to you, Carol.
COSTELLO: Well, you say no talk of disarmament, but Israel isn't even admitting it has nuclear weapons.
Does anyone know for sure it does?
VINCI: Well, according to some scientists and some officials who have long, from the IAEA, have long studied the matter, according to how much plutonium Israel has produced in the last decades, it is believed, at least, that Israel could have as many as 100, if not 200, nuclear warheads.
But the policy of Israel has been so far never admitting, never denying that it has them, especially, also, keeping a very low profile. Israel has never, never used a threat of using those nuclear weapons, including when it was attacked, you may remember, during the first Gulf War, when Saddam Hussein launched missiles at Israel. Israel never even considered launching a nuclear warhead, although they went on to full nuclear danger -- back to you.
COSTELLO: Alessio Vinci live in Jerusalem.
Thank you.
President Bush is spending the day in Washington. He's meeting with the king of Morocco in the Oval Office this morning. Later he'll do some stumping via satellite with a remote address to Hispanic voters. The League of United Latin American Citizens Convention is the nation's largest Hispanic organization.
John Kerry and his new running mate are in Florida today. Kerry and John Edwards are attending a campaign rally in Fort Lauderdale later this morning. They're in the middle of a four day barnstormer, hitting three more states before ending Saturday in North Carolina, which is, of course, Edwards' home state.
Also, John Kerry and his wife Teresa Heinz Kerry will make a pit stop right here tonight with Larry King. CNN's "Larry King Live" is at 9:00 p.m. Eastern.
Senator Kerry calls himself and Edwards a dream ticket.
Our Joe Johns takes us back to Edwards' early days, before he was anywhere near that ticket.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) JOE JOHNS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Before he was a running mate, a senator or even a candidate, John Edwards was an enormously successful trial lawyer. Michael Dayton spent years tracking his work.
MICHAEL DAYTON, EDITOR, "NORTH CAROLINA LAWYERS WEEKLY": In a typical year, he would have four or five verdicts or settlements over a million dollars. In another year he might have eight.
JOHNS: The best known Edwards case, little Valerie Lakey of Raleigh. Five years old at the time, she won $31 million for catastrophic intentional injuries when she sat down on a swimming pool drain with a defective cover. The Griffins of Charlotte got $23 million after their daughter Bailey was born with severe brain damage.
In the '90s, Edwards reported 42 verdicts and settlements totaling $174.6 million for people claiming medical malpractice, personal injury, malfunctioning product. The Edwards key -- endless preparation, often horrific facts and a way with words.
DAYTON: He had an incredible skill to personalize the case to make you understand what were we talking here...
JOHNS: Edwards is proud of his trial lawyer days and argues he was looking out for the little guy.
SEN. JOHN EDWARDS (D-NC), VICE PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I beat 'em, and then I beat 'em again, and I beat 'em again and I beat 'em again and I'm proud of those fights, proud of winning those fights on behalf of you and families just like yours.
JOHNS: But his critics, like Republican North Carolina gubernatorial candidate Bill Cobey, say it's about frivolous lawsuits, not the little guy.
BILL COBEY (R), NORTH CAROLINA GOVERNOR CANDIDATE: Nothing could be further from the truth. He's looking out for his pocketbook and he's made millions upon millions upon millions of dollars. And this is a case of where you've got to follow the money.
JOHNS: And more than a third of Edwards' campaign contributions have come from lawyers.
President Bush has argued for years that too many lawsuits, or the threat of them, drive companies out of business and drive up the cost of insurance.
GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: That what we want is quality health care, not rich trial lawyers.
JOHNS: One of the most potent charges against trial lawyers is how much they get paid. On a contingency basis, 35 to 40 percent of the award. But many argue it's not about the money.
RUFUS EDMISTEN, FORMER NORTH CAROLINA ATTORNEY GENERAL: I've never met a plaintiff yet who lost an arm or who had a horrible injury that wouldn't go back and trade all they got for having a healthy body.
JOHNS (on camera): The war over trial lawyers has been going on for years here in North Carolina and across the country. Now, with the highest stakes in politics, Edwards will have to argue another case.
Joe Johns, CNN, Raleigh, North Carolina.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COSTELLO: You don't want to miss what lies ahead. Prosecutors finally have the indictment they wanted against Ken Lay. Now we'll find out just what charges the former Enron chief is facing.
And when it comes to health care, the nation's number one drug maker comes to the rescue of uninsured Americans.
And why you might think only athletes get into trouble abusing steroids. You would be wrong. Steroid abuse might be going on right in your own home.
This is DAYBREAK for Thursday, July 8.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COSTELLO: Your news, money, weather and sports.
It is 5:17 Eastern.
Here's what's all new this morning.
Over the next several days, the Pentagon will hold status hearings in all 595 detainees at Guantanamo Bay. The hearings are meant to determine if the detainees meet the criteria to be called enemy combatants.
The Philippines has instituted a travel ban for workers heading to Iraq after a militant group claimed to have taken a Filipino contractor hostage. One hundred twenty workers on their way to Iraq were stopped at the Manila airport this morning.
In money news, Ford is recalling more than 170,000 vehicles due to problems ranging from wheels to power seats. The biggest problem comes with their 2003 Super Duty trucks and Excursion SUVs, which may catch fire because of problems with the battery cables.
In culture, an anonymous bidder paid big bucks for a Vermeer original. The painting by the Dutch master fetched more than $30 million at auction. Young Woman Seated At the Virginals was the first Vermeer painting sold at auction since 1921.
In sports, Lance Armstrong and his postal service team dominated the team time trials at the Tour de France. Say that three times real fast. The win puts the yellow jersey back on Armstrong. He now has a 10 second lead over his closest competitor -- Chad.
MYERS: See, now all things are right in the world, Carol.
COSTELLO: He took off that green jersey.
MYERS: With him not wearing a yellow jersey, it just didn't make sense. Well, finally, he put the post office jersey on. Yesterday he had the blue one on. It's like OK, now that's a little bit closer. But now he's wearing the yellow jersey and now he's going to the Alps and look out below.
COSTELLO: Exactly.
(WEATHER REPORT)
COSTELLO: Those are the latest headlines.
Thank you, Chad.
Stocks on Wall Street opened slightly higher this morning.
Let's see what's going on among European traders.
For that, we head live to London and Todd Benjamin -- good morning, Todd.
TODD BENJAMIN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Carol.
A down day in Europe, not surprising considering Yahoo! met expectations with its earnings, $0.08 a share, but the market was looking for another blowout quarter like the first quarter. They didn't blow the numbers away. The forward guidance, they raised it a little for the financial year, but, again, they didn't blow the numbers away. And so the stock fell almost 12 percent in after hours trading, and that is weighing heavily on the futures market.
Right now, the Nasdaq futures are off sharply, some 17 points, and the S&P futures also down. So expect a lower open on Wall Street.
In terms of what's going on here, the FTSE is off a half percent.
The DAX is off almost one percent in Frankfurt.
The CAC's off about a third of one percent.
Oil is up after being down yesterday. Oil is up $0.22, at $39.30.
And I just want you to know, Carol, that Vermeer auction was in London, but I'm not the buyer -- back to you.
COSTELLO: Oh, you're kidding? I thought you were. You have such an extensive art collection. BENJAMIN: Yes, a cool $30 million, I'll tell you, that's all.
COSTELLO: Yes.
Todd Benjamin live from London. Thank you.
Former Enron Chairman Ken Lay is expected to turn himself in this morning to face charges stemming from the collapse of his company. A grand jury in Houston has now indicted him.
CNN's Jen Rogers takes a look at the case against Lay.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JEN ROGERS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The indictment against Lay comes after a two and a half year investigation into Enron's collapse. In classic prosecutorial fashion, the Enron task force has worked its way up the corporate ladder. Starting small and cutting deals with lower level executives, the government then moved in to the executive suite, charging former CFO Andrew Fastow, who has pled guilty and is cooperating with the government; next, one time CEO Jeffrey Skilling, who has pled not guilty. Now, the man at the top of what was once the nation's largest company is finally on deck for the government.
TOM AJEMME, SECURITIES LAWYER: The strategy right now is to finally make use of all of the good witnesses that the government has cut deals with, from Andy Fastow on down. These people have pledged their cooperation to the government and now the government's going to use these people to come in and turn the evidence over on Ken Lay.
ROGERS: Ken Lay, who was once one of the most powerful executives in corporate America, with key political connections, has always maintained he did nothing illegal. In a statement late Wednesday, released through a spokeswoman, Lay said simply: "I have been advised that I have been indicted. I will surrender in the morning. I have done nothing wrong and the indictment is not justified."
The Justice Department had no comment Wednesday. The exact charges Lay faces are not yet known. The indictment, which remains under seal, is expected to be made public on Thursday, when Lay himself will appear at federal court in Houston.
Jen Rogers, CNN Financial News, Houston.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COSTELLO: Key evidence -- the prosecution in the Scott Peterson trial unveiled some key and very graphic details in the murders of Laci Peterson and her unborn son.
This is DAYBREAK for Thursday.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COSTELLO: Time for our DAYBREAK Eye-Opener.
The Pythons are coming to Broadway. Some big stars have signed on to take part in a Broadway musical based on the classic comedy film, "Monty Python and the Holy Grail." David Hyde Pierce and Tim Curry have signed on for Spamalot. The production will be directed by Oscar winner Mike Nichols. No word yet on who will be playing the knights who say "nay." That was a hilarious movie.
Ads featuring Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen wearing milk mustaches have been shelved. Sponsors say the twins' version of the got milk campaign won't run out of sensitivity to Mary-Kate's current health issues. She's reportedly in treatment for anorexia.
Little T-T-40 is back in the wild. T-T-40 is an endangered Hawaiian monk seal that was found a month ago with a big fish hook stuck in his throat. A team of veterinarians took six hours to remove it. Now they just need to come up with a better name than T-T-40 for the seal.
Here's what's all new in the next half hour of DAYBREAK.
Election protection -- remember Florida -- of course you do -- during the 2000 presidential election. One group wants to make sure that fiasco does not happen there or anywhere else again. We'll have more on that story ahead.
Plus, why the family of Laci Peterson opted to skip part of the high profile murder trial.
And why the Pentagon is ordering hearings for hundreds of Guantanamo detainees.
This is DAYBREAK.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COSTELLO: The legal hurdles for detainees at Guantanamo Bay -- their military lawyer calls it mission impossible.
It is Thursday, July 8.
This is DAYBREAK.
And good morning to you.
Welcome to the second half hour of DAYBREAK.
From the CNN Global Headquarters in Atlanta, I'm Carol Costello.
Now in the news, the U.S. embassy in Lebanon says it has credible information that a U.S. Marine is safe in his native Lebanon, but adds it cannot confirm it. Corporal Wassef Ali Hassoun went missing in Iraq last month.
Gun battles in Gaza. Israeli troops have killed 10 Palestinians and wounded 15 others in heavy fighting in the town of Beit Hanun. Palestinian sources say those killed include five Palestinian militants, one of them a leader of Hamas.
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 July 8, 2004 - 05:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: The mystery of a missing Marine. This morning, a new development to tell you about.
It is Thursday, July 8.
This is DAYBREAK.
And good morning to you.
From the CNN Global Headquarters in Atlanta, I'm Carol Costello.
Now in the news, the head of the United Nations nuclear watchdog agency has been meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon. Muhammad ElBaradei wants Israel to discuss its alleged nuclear weapons program. He believes that could help reopen Middle East security talks.
Former Enron Chairman Ken Lay says I have done nothing wrong. Lay has been indicted by a federal grand jury. He plans to surrender today and an indictment listing the charges will be unsealed.
CIA Director George Tenet says good-bye to his troops this morning. A gathering at the agency headquarters is planned, even though Tenet does not officially leave office until Sunday. President Bush has not yet named a new director.
Come sunrise in northern Kansas, residents will get a good look at the damage from severe weather, including possible tornadoes. Power has been knocked out in some communities. Keeping you informed, CNN, the most trusted name in news -- Chad.
CHAD MYERS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Carol.
There were 19 tornadoes reported yesterday. Now, this was a typical day in May, not a typical day in July. By July, typically the severe weather is back up into Minnesota, maybe even coming across into parts of southern Canada. But the severe weather was right across here, right across parts of Kansas yesterday. The weather geek that I am, I was sitting at home yesterday about four o'clock in the afternoon watching this monster rotating thunderstorm right through central and northern Kansas, just to the west of Concordia. And clearly a tornado was on the ground with that storm. There was a warning on it, of course. But we didn't see any pictures of it yet. We will keep watching for you. It was at least an F3, if not an F4, on the ground there in parts of Kansas yesterday.
(WEATHER REPORT)
COSTELLO: To that new information on the missing Marine in Iraq. The U.S. embassy in Lebanon says it has what it calls credible evidence that Corporal Wassef Hassoun is in that country this morning. A source close to his family in Utah says he's with family members in the Lebanese capital, or the Lebanese city, rather, of Tripoli.
Let's head their live.
CNN's Alphonso Van Marsh is outside of the apartment building where Hassoun has relatives. He's on the phone lines right now -- Alphonso, what more can you tell us?
ALPHONSO VAN MARSH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, just as you said, the U.S. embassy, or, I should say, embassy officials here, as you mentioned, are confirming that there is credible evidence, as you said, that they're hearing that Mr. Hassoun is in the country. Now, at the same time, there isn't any confirmation as to his exact whereabouts.
The family here is very excited. They say they're in good spirits. This neighborhood where I'm standing, about 60 percent of the people in this neighborhood are all from the same Hassoun family. That's nephews, nieces, brothers, cousins. They're all very concerned. They're feeling very positive. They're actually saying that they expect this to have a good resolution.
It's clear that this story is far from over in terms of how did Wassef get away, where is he now, what will happen next, will he see his family here? That's definitely what people want to know. And they're getting a little bit anxious. They say they want to know soon.
Lastly, I'm going to mention that the foreign minister, the Lebanese foreign minister also says that he talked to the family here to congratulate them that Wassef is free, but the foreign ministry says that they don't know exactly where he is.
COSTELLO: Well, that's so confusing. I mean why doesn't he call his -- why doesn't he call the military and tell them he's OK, or the Defense Department? Why doesn't he show himself if he's OK?
VAN MARSH: Well, from the perspective here in this family neighborhood, the Hassoun family neighborhood, it's important that I mention to you that the family is being very cautious. They're keeping information that they have very close to the vest. They're not talking to reporters. They did talk to us last night just to say that they were feeling very positive.
But in terms of what Wassef may or may not have done, at least the family here isn't disclosing that information, other than to say that they've been in touch, that they've had a sign, some kind of sign that made them feel that he was OK and alive and on his way home. They're expecting to see him soon.
COSTELLO: So you don't believe he's physically with his family, but he's somewhere else in Lebanon?
VAN MARSH: Well, unfortunately, at this point it's not clear. What we can tell you, here in this neighborhood, we've been here for a while now and we haven't seen Wassef come through, let's put it that way. Of course, anything is possible. The embassy is not confirming, the U.S. embassy, I should say, is not confirming his whereabouts. Again, it's understood that he may be in the country. The U.S. embassy isn't saying that. But, you know, there's actually -- the U.S. embassy is saying that it's local press reports. And I'll tell you briefly about that.
The local press here is just going all over the place, saying that he may be sleeping here or there or whatnot.
COSTELLO: Alphonso, I just -- I want to interrupt because I want to ask you one more question, because I know you have to go.
VAN MARSH: Yes, please.
COSTELLO: We've heard so many rumors about this Marine. We've heard that he may have deserted. We've heard that he may have been lured by an Arab woman that he'd fallen in love with and captured. We'd heard that his captors supposedly said he agreed not to go back to the U.S. military.
Is all of this playing into this mystery surrounding him this morning?
VAN MARSH: Yes. In the local newspapers here, all the things that you have just mentioned, in one element or the other, in all the local press. It's what people are talking about in this particular neighborhood. But the family says that what's most important to them is that he's alive and they want him to come home soon and they'll worry about those other details later on.
COSTELLO: Alphonso Van Marsh reporting live from Tripoli in Lebanon this morning.
The Bush administration is reportedly pushing Pakistan to deliver Osama bin Laden before Americans go to the polls. That's what the "New Republic" magazine alleges. Washington is coupling military enticements for Pakistan with implicit threats.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
PETER BEINART, "THE NEW REPUBLIC": Our story, by Spencer Ackerman and John Judas and a Pakistani journalist named Massoud Ansari, quotes four Pakistani officials, all people in a position to know, saying that they have been receiving pressure from Bush administration officials to deliver Osama bin Laden or another high value al Qaeda target like his deputy, Ayman el-Zawahiri, before the November election. And one of those sources, a very senior person, says that they have been specifically said that they want those -- they want that capture during -- in the last days of July, during the Democratic convention.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: In the "New Republic" article, National Security Council Spokesman Sean McCormack denies the allegations, saying: "Our attitude and actions have been the same since September 11 in terms of getting high value targets off the street and that doesn't change because of an election."
Bin Laden and his top lieutenants are believed to be hiding in the lawless tribal areas of Pakistan.
In Israel this morning, Prime Minister Ariel Sharon and Muhammad ElBaradei, the head of the U.N.'s nuclear watchdog agency, have just wrapped up a meeting.
We want to talk about that with our Alessio Vinci.
He's in Jerusalem.
But first, Alessio, you have news on an ongoing Israeli military operation that we understand has left 10 Palestinians dead.
Tell us more about that, too.
ALESSIO VINCI, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That is correct, Carol. There's been violent clashes overnight and into the early morning here actually in Gaza, where, according to Palestinians doctors, 10 people have been killed, 10 Palestinians have been killed and as many as 15 others have been wounded. According to Palestinian doctors, among those wounded are a 34 -- a 35-year-old woman, mother of 10. And according to Palestinian security forces, among the 10 dead, there are six militants, six Palestinian militants, including a senior Hamas official.
According to Israeli Defense Forces, one Israeli soldier was seriously wounded as a result of those attacks. These clashes took place in the Beit Hanun area in northern Gaza. This is where there's been an ongoing military operation by Israeli forces after 10 days ago, actually, 11 days ago. Palestinian militants fired Hassam rockets into Israeli villages, killing a 3-year-old boy and a 49-year- old man, and therefore, ever since then, Israeli forces have moved into that area with bulldozers as well as tanks. And ever since then there's been sporadic clashes between the two sides; and, indeed, this morning, violent clashes between the two sides, leaving at least 10 people dead -- Carol.
COSTELLO: And now to the subject of Mr. Dr. ElBaradei and why he's in Israel meeting there with officials this morning.
VINCI: That is correct. Dr. ElBaradei has just ended a meeting with Prime Minister Ariel Sharon of Israel. Basically, Dr. ElBaradei is hoping that Israel will begin to shift its longstanding policy of not admitting nor denying that it has nuclear weapons. And, indeed, Mr. ElBaradei is hoping that Israel will change that strategy.
For decades, Israel has had this sort of position of nuclear ambiguity. And the Dr. ElBaradei hopes that as a result of these talks, Israel will begin talking seriously about a nuclear free Middle East. But Israeli officials, while not admitting nor denying that they have weapons of mass destruction or any nuclear weapon, are saying that there is -- there can be no talk of disarmament while there are still a prevailing hostility toward Israel, including coming from Iran, Israel and the United States, by the way, accusing Iran of pursuing a weapon of mass destruction, a nuclear weapon, and therefore Israeli officials telling Dr. ElBaradei that there can be no talk of disarmament for as long as Iran, for example, and other countries in the region threaten its existence here -- back to you, Carol.
COSTELLO: Well, you say no talk of disarmament, but Israel isn't even admitting it has nuclear weapons.
Does anyone know for sure it does?
VINCI: Well, according to some scientists and some officials who have long, from the IAEA, have long studied the matter, according to how much plutonium Israel has produced in the last decades, it is believed, at least, that Israel could have as many as 100, if not 200, nuclear warheads.
But the policy of Israel has been so far never admitting, never denying that it has them, especially, also, keeping a very low profile. Israel has never, never used a threat of using those nuclear weapons, including when it was attacked, you may remember, during the first Gulf War, when Saddam Hussein launched missiles at Israel. Israel never even considered launching a nuclear warhead, although they went on to full nuclear danger -- back to you.
COSTELLO: Alessio Vinci live in Jerusalem.
Thank you.
President Bush is spending the day in Washington. He's meeting with the king of Morocco in the Oval Office this morning. Later he'll do some stumping via satellite with a remote address to Hispanic voters. The League of United Latin American Citizens Convention is the nation's largest Hispanic organization.
John Kerry and his new running mate are in Florida today. Kerry and John Edwards are attending a campaign rally in Fort Lauderdale later this morning. They're in the middle of a four day barnstormer, hitting three more states before ending Saturday in North Carolina, which is, of course, Edwards' home state.
Also, John Kerry and his wife Teresa Heinz Kerry will make a pit stop right here tonight with Larry King. CNN's "Larry King Live" is at 9:00 p.m. Eastern.
Senator Kerry calls himself and Edwards a dream ticket.
Our Joe Johns takes us back to Edwards' early days, before he was anywhere near that ticket.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) JOE JOHNS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Before he was a running mate, a senator or even a candidate, John Edwards was an enormously successful trial lawyer. Michael Dayton spent years tracking his work.
MICHAEL DAYTON, EDITOR, "NORTH CAROLINA LAWYERS WEEKLY": In a typical year, he would have four or five verdicts or settlements over a million dollars. In another year he might have eight.
JOHNS: The best known Edwards case, little Valerie Lakey of Raleigh. Five years old at the time, she won $31 million for catastrophic intentional injuries when she sat down on a swimming pool drain with a defective cover. The Griffins of Charlotte got $23 million after their daughter Bailey was born with severe brain damage.
In the '90s, Edwards reported 42 verdicts and settlements totaling $174.6 million for people claiming medical malpractice, personal injury, malfunctioning product. The Edwards key -- endless preparation, often horrific facts and a way with words.
DAYTON: He had an incredible skill to personalize the case to make you understand what were we talking here...
JOHNS: Edwards is proud of his trial lawyer days and argues he was looking out for the little guy.
SEN. JOHN EDWARDS (D-NC), VICE PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I beat 'em, and then I beat 'em again, and I beat 'em again and I beat 'em again and I'm proud of those fights, proud of winning those fights on behalf of you and families just like yours.
JOHNS: But his critics, like Republican North Carolina gubernatorial candidate Bill Cobey, say it's about frivolous lawsuits, not the little guy.
BILL COBEY (R), NORTH CAROLINA GOVERNOR CANDIDATE: Nothing could be further from the truth. He's looking out for his pocketbook and he's made millions upon millions upon millions of dollars. And this is a case of where you've got to follow the money.
JOHNS: And more than a third of Edwards' campaign contributions have come from lawyers.
President Bush has argued for years that too many lawsuits, or the threat of them, drive companies out of business and drive up the cost of insurance.
GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: That what we want is quality health care, not rich trial lawyers.
JOHNS: One of the most potent charges against trial lawyers is how much they get paid. On a contingency basis, 35 to 40 percent of the award. But many argue it's not about the money.
RUFUS EDMISTEN, FORMER NORTH CAROLINA ATTORNEY GENERAL: I've never met a plaintiff yet who lost an arm or who had a horrible injury that wouldn't go back and trade all they got for having a healthy body.
JOHNS (on camera): The war over trial lawyers has been going on for years here in North Carolina and across the country. Now, with the highest stakes in politics, Edwards will have to argue another case.
Joe Johns, CNN, Raleigh, North Carolina.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COSTELLO: You don't want to miss what lies ahead. Prosecutors finally have the indictment they wanted against Ken Lay. Now we'll find out just what charges the former Enron chief is facing.
And when it comes to health care, the nation's number one drug maker comes to the rescue of uninsured Americans.
And why you might think only athletes get into trouble abusing steroids. You would be wrong. Steroid abuse might be going on right in your own home.
This is DAYBREAK for Thursday, July 8.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COSTELLO: Your news, money, weather and sports.
It is 5:17 Eastern.
Here's what's all new this morning.
Over the next several days, the Pentagon will hold status hearings in all 595 detainees at Guantanamo Bay. The hearings are meant to determine if the detainees meet the criteria to be called enemy combatants.
The Philippines has instituted a travel ban for workers heading to Iraq after a militant group claimed to have taken a Filipino contractor hostage. One hundred twenty workers on their way to Iraq were stopped at the Manila airport this morning.
In money news, Ford is recalling more than 170,000 vehicles due to problems ranging from wheels to power seats. The biggest problem comes with their 2003 Super Duty trucks and Excursion SUVs, which may catch fire because of problems with the battery cables.
In culture, an anonymous bidder paid big bucks for a Vermeer original. The painting by the Dutch master fetched more than $30 million at auction. Young Woman Seated At the Virginals was the first Vermeer painting sold at auction since 1921.
In sports, Lance Armstrong and his postal service team dominated the team time trials at the Tour de France. Say that three times real fast. The win puts the yellow jersey back on Armstrong. He now has a 10 second lead over his closest competitor -- Chad.
MYERS: See, now all things are right in the world, Carol.
COSTELLO: He took off that green jersey.
MYERS: With him not wearing a yellow jersey, it just didn't make sense. Well, finally, he put the post office jersey on. Yesterday he had the blue one on. It's like OK, now that's a little bit closer. But now he's wearing the yellow jersey and now he's going to the Alps and look out below.
COSTELLO: Exactly.
(WEATHER REPORT)
COSTELLO: Those are the latest headlines.
Thank you, Chad.
Stocks on Wall Street opened slightly higher this morning.
Let's see what's going on among European traders.
For that, we head live to London and Todd Benjamin -- good morning, Todd.
TODD BENJAMIN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Carol.
A down day in Europe, not surprising considering Yahoo! met expectations with its earnings, $0.08 a share, but the market was looking for another blowout quarter like the first quarter. They didn't blow the numbers away. The forward guidance, they raised it a little for the financial year, but, again, they didn't blow the numbers away. And so the stock fell almost 12 percent in after hours trading, and that is weighing heavily on the futures market.
Right now, the Nasdaq futures are off sharply, some 17 points, and the S&P futures also down. So expect a lower open on Wall Street.
In terms of what's going on here, the FTSE is off a half percent.
The DAX is off almost one percent in Frankfurt.
The CAC's off about a third of one percent.
Oil is up after being down yesterday. Oil is up $0.22, at $39.30.
And I just want you to know, Carol, that Vermeer auction was in London, but I'm not the buyer -- back to you.
COSTELLO: Oh, you're kidding? I thought you were. You have such an extensive art collection. BENJAMIN: Yes, a cool $30 million, I'll tell you, that's all.
COSTELLO: Yes.
Todd Benjamin live from London. Thank you.
Former Enron Chairman Ken Lay is expected to turn himself in this morning to face charges stemming from the collapse of his company. A grand jury in Houston has now indicted him.
CNN's Jen Rogers takes a look at the case against Lay.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JEN ROGERS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The indictment against Lay comes after a two and a half year investigation into Enron's collapse. In classic prosecutorial fashion, the Enron task force has worked its way up the corporate ladder. Starting small and cutting deals with lower level executives, the government then moved in to the executive suite, charging former CFO Andrew Fastow, who has pled guilty and is cooperating with the government; next, one time CEO Jeffrey Skilling, who has pled not guilty. Now, the man at the top of what was once the nation's largest company is finally on deck for the government.
TOM AJEMME, SECURITIES LAWYER: The strategy right now is to finally make use of all of the good witnesses that the government has cut deals with, from Andy Fastow on down. These people have pledged their cooperation to the government and now the government's going to use these people to come in and turn the evidence over on Ken Lay.
ROGERS: Ken Lay, who was once one of the most powerful executives in corporate America, with key political connections, has always maintained he did nothing illegal. In a statement late Wednesday, released through a spokeswoman, Lay said simply: "I have been advised that I have been indicted. I will surrender in the morning. I have done nothing wrong and the indictment is not justified."
The Justice Department had no comment Wednesday. The exact charges Lay faces are not yet known. The indictment, which remains under seal, is expected to be made public on Thursday, when Lay himself will appear at federal court in Houston.
Jen Rogers, CNN Financial News, Houston.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COSTELLO: Key evidence -- the prosecution in the Scott Peterson trial unveiled some key and very graphic details in the murders of Laci Peterson and her unborn son.
This is DAYBREAK for Thursday.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COSTELLO: Time for our DAYBREAK Eye-Opener.
The Pythons are coming to Broadway. Some big stars have signed on to take part in a Broadway musical based on the classic comedy film, "Monty Python and the Holy Grail." David Hyde Pierce and Tim Curry have signed on for Spamalot. The production will be directed by Oscar winner Mike Nichols. No word yet on who will be playing the knights who say "nay." That was a hilarious movie.
Ads featuring Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen wearing milk mustaches have been shelved. Sponsors say the twins' version of the got milk campaign won't run out of sensitivity to Mary-Kate's current health issues. She's reportedly in treatment for anorexia.
Little T-T-40 is back in the wild. T-T-40 is an endangered Hawaiian monk seal that was found a month ago with a big fish hook stuck in his throat. A team of veterinarians took six hours to remove it. Now they just need to come up with a better name than T-T-40 for the seal.
Here's what's all new in the next half hour of DAYBREAK.
Election protection -- remember Florida -- of course you do -- during the 2000 presidential election. One group wants to make sure that fiasco does not happen there or anywhere else again. We'll have more on that story ahead.
Plus, why the family of Laci Peterson opted to skip part of the high profile murder trial.
And why the Pentagon is ordering hearings for hundreds of Guantanamo detainees.
This is DAYBREAK.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COSTELLO: The legal hurdles for detainees at Guantanamo Bay -- their military lawyer calls it mission impossible.
It is Thursday, July 8.
This is DAYBREAK.
And good morning to you.
Welcome to the second half hour of DAYBREAK.
From the CNN Global Headquarters in Atlanta, I'm Carol Costello.
Now in the news, the U.S. embassy in Lebanon says it has credible information that a U.S. Marine is safe in his native Lebanon, but adds it cannot confirm it. Corporal Wassef Ali Hassoun went missing in Iraq last month.
Gun battles in Gaza. Israeli troops have killed 10 Palestinians and wounded 15 others in heavy fighting in the town of Beit Hanun. Palestinian sources say those killed include five Palestinian militants, one of them a leader of Hamas.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
