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CNN Live At Daybreak

Prisoner Release; Beirut Protests; 'War Room'; Home Again; Selling Painkillers

Aired February 21, 2005 - 05:30   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.


CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning to you, welcome to the second half-hour of DAYBREAK. From the Time Warner Center in New York, I'm Carol Costello, along with Chad Myers.
"Now in the News."

Day one of President Bush's European tour, the president in Brussels where he met this morning with Belgium's king and prime minister. He is now at the U.S. Embassy meeting with NATO's secretary-general. Tonight he'll host a dinner for French President Jacques Chirac.

A video that surfaced today in Iraq appears to show the release of two Indonesian journalists abducted last week. CNN cannot confirm this tape is authentic. It's believed the two TV journalists were kidnapped in Ramadi.

Former President's George Bush and Bill Clinton visited a fishing village in Sri Lanka today, one severely damaged by the tsunami last December. The ex-presidents talked with children in the village and saw temporary homes built with U.S. government aid.

California's latest series of storms has turned deadly. A landslide on a hillside in Orange County destroyed a store and a house last night. One person inside the house was killed.

To the Forecast Center now and, Chad, good morning.

CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Good morning, Carol.

That ground has been saturated now for a couple of months, it seems like, and now it's raining again. And that storm, it's a big upper level low just doesn't want to move. I'll show you the radar in just a second here.

(WEATHER REPORT)

COSTELLO: All right, thank you -- Chad.

MYERS: You're welcome.

COSTELLO: Israel has freed 500 Palestinian prisoners. That happened earlier this morning. It is the latest step toward a difficult peace.

Let's go live to the West Bank town of Tulkarem and CNN's John Vause.

Hello -- John.

JOHN VAUSE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hello, Carol.

At five checkpoints, like this one at Tulkarem, across the West Bank in Gaza, hundreds of Palestinian prisoners were released, part of a confidence-building measure agreed to by the Israeli and Palestinian leaders earlier this month.

At the moment, about 7,000 Palestinian prisoners are being held in Israeli jails. Many Palestinians are demanding that all of them be released before there can be a lasting peace with Israel. Israel says that release just simply won't happen. However, another 400 prisoners will be free in the next three months.

And this comes just a day after the Israeli Cabinet overwhelmingly supported an historic decision to begin dismantling 21 settlements in the Gaza Strip and another four in the West Bank.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

VAUSE (voice-over): At this Israeli Cabinet meeting, overwhelming support for an end to almost 38 years of Israeli occupation of the Gaza strip.

ARIEL SHARON, ISRAELI PRIME MINISTER (through translator): It's not an easy day. It's not a happy day.

VAUSE: Seventeen ministers in favor, five opposed, giving Prime Minister Ariel Sharon authority to issue evacuation notices to almost 8,000 Jewish settlers in Gaza and 1,000 more in four West Bank settlements.

SHARON: It is the correct step to take as we aim to better our economy, strengthen our security and improve our international standing. This isn't game we're playing (ph) that gives the Israeli people hope for a better future, hope for a better (UNINTELLIGIBLE).

ITZHAK HERZOG, HOUSING MINISTER: It's a painful resolution, but it will change the course of the region.

VAUSE: The pullout will begin in July, take about eight weeks and faces nationwide protests by settlers and their supporters.

ARI SHAVIT, POLITICAL ANALYST: Today marks the end of the political battle, but it marks the beginning of the battle over implementation.

VAUSE: At the same time, the Israeli Cabinet approved the southern and final section of the separation barrier from Jerusalem to the south. Two major settlement blocks will be included on the Israeli side with the new route confiscating about 6 percent of the West Bank. The old route took more than 15 percent. Palestinians, though, want an end to construction, especially after both sides declared a truce. The barrier, they say, preempts a final peace deal. SAEB ERAKAT, CHIEF PALESTINIAN NEGOTIATOR: This is dictation and not negotiations. We called upon the Israeli government to rejoin us in the negotiating table to deal with issues of permanent status, Jerusalem settlement borders and (INAUDIBLE).

(END VIDEOTAPE)

VAUSE: Now the Israeli government has insisted all along that the barrier is for security only, saying it could be torn down quite easily once there is a lasting peace. But for many Palestinians, and also Israelis, there is now a belief that this is part of a much bigger strategy, a retreat from Gaza while holding on to those major settlements in the West Bank -- Carol.

COSTELLO: John Vause, reporting live for us from the West Bank this morning, thank you.

We have a bit of breaking news over in Beirut, Lebanon, apparently thousands and thousands of people are demonstrating in the streets, protesting Syria's military presence.

Our Ben Wedeman is in the midst of all of this.

Ben, what can you tell us?

BEN WEDEMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Carol, I'm watching as hundreds of people converge on a crowd that has been gathering here for the last few hours in the heart of Beirut, just up the street from where Rafik Hariri, the former Lebanese prime minister, was assassinated.

Now this demonstration was calmed just a few days ago, and the outset, it looks like there's a significant outpouring of people. They're calling for the government to resign. They're calling for the Syrians to pull out of Lebanon immediately.

It's this sort of thing that not only disturbs the Syrians but sends waves of worry throughout the regime of the Arab world. The last thing they would like to see is this sort of popular movement that is coming out with such frank demands from their government.

And so far, Carol, it's been fairly peaceful. There is a modest security presence, even though we've been told that Lebanese police and army have set up checkpoints around the city trying to prevent people from coming in, but it doesn't seem like they've been very successful.

And what we're seeing in the crowd is a fairly representative cross section of the Lebanese population. There are Maronite Christians, Sunni Muslims, Druids, women, men, children, people coming out, businessmen and businesswomen on their lunch break. It is a huge crowd. And this sends a serious message, not only to the pro Syrian- Lebanese government, but to the Syrian government as well -- Carol.

COSTELLO: So bring us up to date on the situation with the Syria's military troops in Lebanon. Is there a good chance when we see demonstrations like this that the Syria's military people will be out?

WEDEMAN: Well there are approximately 14,000 Syrian troops in Lebanon at the moment. They are not in Beirut itself, but to the east of the capital. Now it's a good question whether Syria will be willing to pull out. It's under intense, a local and international pressure.

But we have to keep in mind that Syria, since 1976, has essentially milked this country, taking advantage of its relative wealth. There are hundreds of thousands of Syrian workers in this country who depend on this country for their income.

If those workers are sent home, if the Syrian's intelligence officers, who have made probably billions of dollars through smuggling, are sent home, this could seriously destabilize the Syrian government. So most expectations are that despite the pressure, the Syrians are going to hold on, and it may turn nasty -- Carol.

COSTELLO: We hope not. Ben Wedeman reporting live from Beirut this morning.

On the terrorism front, al Qaeda's No. 2 man, Ayman al-Zawahiri, is out with a new videotape. It was shown Sunday on Al Jazeera. Al- Zawahiri scoffs at President Bush's goal to spread democracy around the world. He warns this will -- as he puts it -- "end with our defeat, the killing of your sons and the destruction of your economy."

Stay tuned to CNN all day and all night for the most reliable news about your security.

U.S. and Iraqi military forces have launched Operation River Blitz in Ramadi, targeting the Sunni insurgency in the area. Among other things, a nighttime curfew has been imposed on Ramadi, the capital of Al Anbar Province west of Baghdad.

And "TIME" magazine is reporting exclusively that U.S. officials have joined back-channel communications with Sunni insurgents in Iraq and they are talking about ending the insurgency. The report says there is no authorized dialogue, but U.S. diplomats and intelligence officers are in secret contact with insurgent leaders. Early reaction to this report is that it's too early for optimism.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. CHUCK HAGEL (R), NEBRASKA: You are going to have to develop some relationships and networks, and this is one of those ways. But I don't think anyone believes that you've got a new set of Jeffersonian Democrats out there that you can talk to. You've got some elements of this insurgency that want to see Iraq in constant turmoil and revolution.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: President Bush overseas, he's sounding a note of unity and trying to drown out wartime divisions. Plus -- actually, we're going to go to "The War Room" now. And I apologize for that. We're going to talk to our international editor David Clinch. He's live in Atlanta.

We're going to talk more about this "TIME" magazine article...

DAVID CLINCH, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL EDITOR: Sure.

COSTELLO: ... about the insurgency in Iraq and that there are secret talks going on between insurgent leaders and the American military.

CLINCH: Right. Well let's pull this apart bit by bit. "TIME" magazine's Michael Ware (ph) doing a very good job with a very dramatic story inside these negotiations between U.S. military officials and insurgents. At the same time, of course, as we're reporting, the U.S. military launching a new offensive against insurgents.

So what's going on? Well, post election in Iraq there's a perception, we're told by U.S. military, that there may be some kind of a split emerging between the al Qaeda Zarqawi hard element of the insurgency who is not talking to anybody and the insurgents who are described as Ba'athists, pro Saddam, Saddam loyalists. They are the ones to whom the U.S. military is talking.

Even then, we're told, CNN is told by the U.S. military, that, for the most part, these negotiations are with people who are representatives, who may have influence, who are negotiators, not necessarily with somebody who has blood on their hands directly. So a certain level of plausible deniability there, but certainly an effort to see if that split exists and to see if these Sunni insurgents do in fact want to talk.

And in fact on both sides, both the insurgent side and the U.S. side, there are two things which are influencing this and why it's happening right now. I call it hurry and worry. One, the hurry is there's about to be a new Iraqi government which will most likely be led by Shiites. Both the U.S. military and the Sunni element of the insurgency are concerned that they don't know what influence they'll have, they don't know what role they'll have when that Shiite government takes power.

And the worry, of course, for the U.S. side, is the insurgency is not going away. Despite all of their efforts, despite the election, deadly attacks every day, and new tactics, hitting at oil, gas. All of these infrastructure things are costing millions, maybe billions, as they try to rebuild Iraq.

So interesting stuff, part of an ongoing process. But the distinction talking to one side of the insurgency, not talking to Zarqawi, al Qaeda and the people with blood directly on their hands, as far as we hear.

COSTELLO: As far as we know. David Clinch, reporting live from Atlanta this morning, thank you. Back home from battle and adjusting to civilian life. We'll meet a National Guard member struggling to leave behind the things he saw in Iraq.

But first, here's a look at what else is making news this Monday morning.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: Returning home from Iraq takes some adjustments for U.S. troops.

CNN's Alina Cho reports on one of New York's finest back from the front lines.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ALINA CHO, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Shawn (ph) Goodrich is getting up close and personal with his fellow New York City firefighters for the first time in 15 months. At a Valentine's Day banquet, he's doing double duty, reconnecting with old coworkers and taking his wife, Millie (ph), out on a date. She hasn't seen him much lately either, because Goodrich has spent the past year in Iraq.

As a member of the 108th Infantry Division, a unit of the New York National Guard, Sergeant Goodrich was stationed in the Sunni Triangle and saw some of the worst of the worst while he was there.

SHAWN GOODRICH, NATIONAL GUARD: We saw our fair share. I would say we saw our fair share.

CHO: Goodrich and his unit returned home last month. Today, the 36-year-old father of four is still getting used to being out of a war zone.

GOODRICH: It's great seeing the block. Getting off, and it was kind of dusk when I got here, and the lights were on, and it's like...

CHO (on camera): But it looked different.

GOODRICH: ... different styles (ph). Yes, it looked different. It looked very much different.

CHO (voice-over): So is he. Everything from his phone conversations, to the way he carries himself are extensions of his tour of duty.

GOODRICH: You don't know who is who and you have to keep an eye out. So you're constantly, your head is constantly moving around and looking, checking roof tops, checking everything.

CHO (on camera): So now that you are back, you find yourself doing that?

GOODRICH: I still find myself doing it. CHO (voice-over): Goodrich will take time off before going back to fire fighting. He worked at Ground Zero on September 11 and says being a soldier in Iraq has been an honor.

GOODRICH: In a way, it was sort of, brought me like full circle. That was an event that actually started this entire war on terrorism and everything. So I thought that me going over there, it's kind of given me a little bit of peace inside.

CHO: Alina Cho, CNN, New York.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COSTELLO: Your news, money weather and sports. It's 5:48 Eastern. Here's what's all new this morning.

President Bush speaks to Belgium leaders this morning. He'll call on Europeans to put bad feelings over the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq behind them and help Iraq's fledgling democracy.

Pope John Paul II addresses the faithful Sunday. Actually, he addressed it Sunday. It was his second appearance at St. Peter's Square since being released from the hospital 11 days ago.

In money news, Switzerland's Novartis is about to become the world's top maker of copycat drugs. The company announced plans to buy German generic's maker Hexal and the majority of the U.S. firm Eon Labs for more than $7 billion.

In culture, Patty Bouvier is gay. "The Simpsons" may have broken new ground when their fictional hometown of Springfield legalized gay marriage to boost tourism. Patty, who is one of Marge's older sisters, planned to take part in the same-sex wedding ceremony on the animated show until she found out her intended she was really a he.

In sports, California storms left Tiger Woods and the rest of the Nissan Open field feeling all wet. They'll try to play again today after Sunday's round was a washout.

To the Forecast Center and -- Chad.

MYERS: That's how I putt. Gets in those two-and-a-half footers.

Good morning, Carol.

(WEATHER REPORT)

Carol, back to you.

COSTELLO: Thank you, Chad.

It is time to read some e-mail. Want to stick around?

MYERS: I'm right here.

COSTELLO: OK. I've been going through them. We're asking the question this morning should New York host the Olympics in 2012? There is a lot of controversy here, because they're trying to build a new stadium and people don't want the stadium here because of all the traffic and there's pollution in some waterways around where they want to build some of the venues for the Olympics. And New Yorkers say do we really need the headaches?

MYERS: Do you really need the security headache?

Hey, I got one from Steve (ph) in California who just returned on a flight from New York City. The traffic is horrendous. "The Sunday Daily Times" news said something about a blaring, awful Saturday night on the city's subways. Didn't see it, but heard about it. Instead of hosting the games, how about using some of that money to fix the schools and the infrastructure?

COSTELLO: And what about the income the Olympics will bring in? It did great things for the city of Atlanta, right?

MYERS: Are you sure it did all that much for Salt Lake City today, though? Ron (ph) from Bossier City, Louisiana says why would a city want to? A city's hosting the Olympics, they lose extreme amounts of money, extreme debt and they never get to recover that original investment. You don't really know about that because hotel rooms and city taxes and all that never really get added into the coffers, but you know.

COSTELLO: True. This is from D.K. (ph). He says, initially I thought no way, it would be utter chaos with the traffic and so many people trying to get to the different venues. However, New York is the best city in the world. It deserves to add this jewel to its crown. And then he adds, enjoy the snow.

I'm not really enjoying the snow, D.K.

MYERS: Summer Olympics, not Winter Olympics.

COSTELLO: Yes.

A recommendation on some popular painkillers is leaving a lot of people confused about just what to keep in their medicine cabinets. We'll sort it all out for you when we come back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: First Vioxx was yanked from the market because the painkiller has been linked to heart attacks and strokes. Well now the manufacturer of Vioxx is considering selling the drug again. This, after an FDA panel concluded the benefits of Vioxx and other drugs in its class outweigh the risks. Confused?

CNN's Elizabeth Cohen tries to take the confusion out of all of this.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ELIZABETH COHEN, CNN MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): It was close, to say the least. Seventeen members of this FDA Advisory Committee voted in support of Vioxx going back on the market if Merck chooses to do so. Fifteen members voted no. That leads the way for Merck to try to put its popular prescription painkiller back on the shelves after pulling it off the shelves last September.

PETER KIM, MERCK RESEARCH LABS: We've heard numerous reports, and you've heard a few today, from patients, including patients with chronic debilitating pain, that Vioxx was the only drug that relieved that pain.

COHEN: In a statement, Merck said, "Merck has appreciated the opportunity to present data at this advisory committee meeting. We look forward to discussions with the FDA."

At Friday's meeting, there were recounts, confusion about who voted which way, prompting the committee chairman to say...

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Where is Katherine Harris now that we need her?

LEE SIMON, PFIZER CLINICAL ADVISER: I don't believe I've ever seen a committee function like this.

COHEN: Pfizer makes Celebrex and Bextra and stands to lose if Vioxx goes back on the market. All three drugs are COX-2 inhibitors, and the FDA committee was very clear that this class of drugs has serious safety concerns.

Panel members agreed unanimously that the painkillers increase the risk of heart attacks and strokes. The committee recommended that the drugs carry so-called black-box warnings, the toughest warnings possible, and that ads to consumers should not be allowed.

But in the end, despite these concerns, the FDA advisers decided that Americans in pain should be allowed to take these medicines.

Elizabeth Cohen, CNN, Atlanta.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COSTELLO: For more on this or any other health story, head to our Web site. The address CNN.com/health.

New on DAYBREAK at 6:00 a.m. Eastern, a "TIME" magazine correspondent, Viveca Novak, reports on career diplomat John Negroponte, the nominee for the nation's first director of national intelligence. Can he unify intelligence into a single enterprise? We'll talk more about that.

Also, writer Marty Smith talks about the riveting final laps of the premiere race the Daytona 500.

We'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

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Aired February 21, 2005 - 05:30   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning to you, welcome to the second half-hour of DAYBREAK. From the Time Warner Center in New York, I'm Carol Costello, along with Chad Myers.
"Now in the News."

Day one of President Bush's European tour, the president in Brussels where he met this morning with Belgium's king and prime minister. He is now at the U.S. Embassy meeting with NATO's secretary-general. Tonight he'll host a dinner for French President Jacques Chirac.

A video that surfaced today in Iraq appears to show the release of two Indonesian journalists abducted last week. CNN cannot confirm this tape is authentic. It's believed the two TV journalists were kidnapped in Ramadi.

Former President's George Bush and Bill Clinton visited a fishing village in Sri Lanka today, one severely damaged by the tsunami last December. The ex-presidents talked with children in the village and saw temporary homes built with U.S. government aid.

California's latest series of storms has turned deadly. A landslide on a hillside in Orange County destroyed a store and a house last night. One person inside the house was killed.

To the Forecast Center now and, Chad, good morning.

CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Good morning, Carol.

That ground has been saturated now for a couple of months, it seems like, and now it's raining again. And that storm, it's a big upper level low just doesn't want to move. I'll show you the radar in just a second here.

(WEATHER REPORT)

COSTELLO: All right, thank you -- Chad.

MYERS: You're welcome.

COSTELLO: Israel has freed 500 Palestinian prisoners. That happened earlier this morning. It is the latest step toward a difficult peace.

Let's go live to the West Bank town of Tulkarem and CNN's John Vause.

Hello -- John.

JOHN VAUSE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hello, Carol.

At five checkpoints, like this one at Tulkarem, across the West Bank in Gaza, hundreds of Palestinian prisoners were released, part of a confidence-building measure agreed to by the Israeli and Palestinian leaders earlier this month.

At the moment, about 7,000 Palestinian prisoners are being held in Israeli jails. Many Palestinians are demanding that all of them be released before there can be a lasting peace with Israel. Israel says that release just simply won't happen. However, another 400 prisoners will be free in the next three months.

And this comes just a day after the Israeli Cabinet overwhelmingly supported an historic decision to begin dismantling 21 settlements in the Gaza Strip and another four in the West Bank.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

VAUSE (voice-over): At this Israeli Cabinet meeting, overwhelming support for an end to almost 38 years of Israeli occupation of the Gaza strip.

ARIEL SHARON, ISRAELI PRIME MINISTER (through translator): It's not an easy day. It's not a happy day.

VAUSE: Seventeen ministers in favor, five opposed, giving Prime Minister Ariel Sharon authority to issue evacuation notices to almost 8,000 Jewish settlers in Gaza and 1,000 more in four West Bank settlements.

SHARON: It is the correct step to take as we aim to better our economy, strengthen our security and improve our international standing. This isn't game we're playing (ph) that gives the Israeli people hope for a better future, hope for a better (UNINTELLIGIBLE).

ITZHAK HERZOG, HOUSING MINISTER: It's a painful resolution, but it will change the course of the region.

VAUSE: The pullout will begin in July, take about eight weeks and faces nationwide protests by settlers and their supporters.

ARI SHAVIT, POLITICAL ANALYST: Today marks the end of the political battle, but it marks the beginning of the battle over implementation.

VAUSE: At the same time, the Israeli Cabinet approved the southern and final section of the separation barrier from Jerusalem to the south. Two major settlement blocks will be included on the Israeli side with the new route confiscating about 6 percent of the West Bank. The old route took more than 15 percent. Palestinians, though, want an end to construction, especially after both sides declared a truce. The barrier, they say, preempts a final peace deal. SAEB ERAKAT, CHIEF PALESTINIAN NEGOTIATOR: This is dictation and not negotiations. We called upon the Israeli government to rejoin us in the negotiating table to deal with issues of permanent status, Jerusalem settlement borders and (INAUDIBLE).

(END VIDEOTAPE)

VAUSE: Now the Israeli government has insisted all along that the barrier is for security only, saying it could be torn down quite easily once there is a lasting peace. But for many Palestinians, and also Israelis, there is now a belief that this is part of a much bigger strategy, a retreat from Gaza while holding on to those major settlements in the West Bank -- Carol.

COSTELLO: John Vause, reporting live for us from the West Bank this morning, thank you.

We have a bit of breaking news over in Beirut, Lebanon, apparently thousands and thousands of people are demonstrating in the streets, protesting Syria's military presence.

Our Ben Wedeman is in the midst of all of this.

Ben, what can you tell us?

BEN WEDEMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Carol, I'm watching as hundreds of people converge on a crowd that has been gathering here for the last few hours in the heart of Beirut, just up the street from where Rafik Hariri, the former Lebanese prime minister, was assassinated.

Now this demonstration was calmed just a few days ago, and the outset, it looks like there's a significant outpouring of people. They're calling for the government to resign. They're calling for the Syrians to pull out of Lebanon immediately.

It's this sort of thing that not only disturbs the Syrians but sends waves of worry throughout the regime of the Arab world. The last thing they would like to see is this sort of popular movement that is coming out with such frank demands from their government.

And so far, Carol, it's been fairly peaceful. There is a modest security presence, even though we've been told that Lebanese police and army have set up checkpoints around the city trying to prevent people from coming in, but it doesn't seem like they've been very successful.

And what we're seeing in the crowd is a fairly representative cross section of the Lebanese population. There are Maronite Christians, Sunni Muslims, Druids, women, men, children, people coming out, businessmen and businesswomen on their lunch break. It is a huge crowd. And this sends a serious message, not only to the pro Syrian- Lebanese government, but to the Syrian government as well -- Carol.

COSTELLO: So bring us up to date on the situation with the Syria's military troops in Lebanon. Is there a good chance when we see demonstrations like this that the Syria's military people will be out?

WEDEMAN: Well there are approximately 14,000 Syrian troops in Lebanon at the moment. They are not in Beirut itself, but to the east of the capital. Now it's a good question whether Syria will be willing to pull out. It's under intense, a local and international pressure.

But we have to keep in mind that Syria, since 1976, has essentially milked this country, taking advantage of its relative wealth. There are hundreds of thousands of Syrian workers in this country who depend on this country for their income.

If those workers are sent home, if the Syrian's intelligence officers, who have made probably billions of dollars through smuggling, are sent home, this could seriously destabilize the Syrian government. So most expectations are that despite the pressure, the Syrians are going to hold on, and it may turn nasty -- Carol.

COSTELLO: We hope not. Ben Wedeman reporting live from Beirut this morning.

On the terrorism front, al Qaeda's No. 2 man, Ayman al-Zawahiri, is out with a new videotape. It was shown Sunday on Al Jazeera. Al- Zawahiri scoffs at President Bush's goal to spread democracy around the world. He warns this will -- as he puts it -- "end with our defeat, the killing of your sons and the destruction of your economy."

Stay tuned to CNN all day and all night for the most reliable news about your security.

U.S. and Iraqi military forces have launched Operation River Blitz in Ramadi, targeting the Sunni insurgency in the area. Among other things, a nighttime curfew has been imposed on Ramadi, the capital of Al Anbar Province west of Baghdad.

And "TIME" magazine is reporting exclusively that U.S. officials have joined back-channel communications with Sunni insurgents in Iraq and they are talking about ending the insurgency. The report says there is no authorized dialogue, but U.S. diplomats and intelligence officers are in secret contact with insurgent leaders. Early reaction to this report is that it's too early for optimism.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. CHUCK HAGEL (R), NEBRASKA: You are going to have to develop some relationships and networks, and this is one of those ways. But I don't think anyone believes that you've got a new set of Jeffersonian Democrats out there that you can talk to. You've got some elements of this insurgency that want to see Iraq in constant turmoil and revolution.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: President Bush overseas, he's sounding a note of unity and trying to drown out wartime divisions. Plus -- actually, we're going to go to "The War Room" now. And I apologize for that. We're going to talk to our international editor David Clinch. He's live in Atlanta.

We're going to talk more about this "TIME" magazine article...

DAVID CLINCH, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL EDITOR: Sure.

COSTELLO: ... about the insurgency in Iraq and that there are secret talks going on between insurgent leaders and the American military.

CLINCH: Right. Well let's pull this apart bit by bit. "TIME" magazine's Michael Ware (ph) doing a very good job with a very dramatic story inside these negotiations between U.S. military officials and insurgents. At the same time, of course, as we're reporting, the U.S. military launching a new offensive against insurgents.

So what's going on? Well, post election in Iraq there's a perception, we're told by U.S. military, that there may be some kind of a split emerging between the al Qaeda Zarqawi hard element of the insurgency who is not talking to anybody and the insurgents who are described as Ba'athists, pro Saddam, Saddam loyalists. They are the ones to whom the U.S. military is talking.

Even then, we're told, CNN is told by the U.S. military, that, for the most part, these negotiations are with people who are representatives, who may have influence, who are negotiators, not necessarily with somebody who has blood on their hands directly. So a certain level of plausible deniability there, but certainly an effort to see if that split exists and to see if these Sunni insurgents do in fact want to talk.

And in fact on both sides, both the insurgent side and the U.S. side, there are two things which are influencing this and why it's happening right now. I call it hurry and worry. One, the hurry is there's about to be a new Iraqi government which will most likely be led by Shiites. Both the U.S. military and the Sunni element of the insurgency are concerned that they don't know what influence they'll have, they don't know what role they'll have when that Shiite government takes power.

And the worry, of course, for the U.S. side, is the insurgency is not going away. Despite all of their efforts, despite the election, deadly attacks every day, and new tactics, hitting at oil, gas. All of these infrastructure things are costing millions, maybe billions, as they try to rebuild Iraq.

So interesting stuff, part of an ongoing process. But the distinction talking to one side of the insurgency, not talking to Zarqawi, al Qaeda and the people with blood directly on their hands, as far as we hear.

COSTELLO: As far as we know. David Clinch, reporting live from Atlanta this morning, thank you. Back home from battle and adjusting to civilian life. We'll meet a National Guard member struggling to leave behind the things he saw in Iraq.

But first, here's a look at what else is making news this Monday morning.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: Returning home from Iraq takes some adjustments for U.S. troops.

CNN's Alina Cho reports on one of New York's finest back from the front lines.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ALINA CHO, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Shawn (ph) Goodrich is getting up close and personal with his fellow New York City firefighters for the first time in 15 months. At a Valentine's Day banquet, he's doing double duty, reconnecting with old coworkers and taking his wife, Millie (ph), out on a date. She hasn't seen him much lately either, because Goodrich has spent the past year in Iraq.

As a member of the 108th Infantry Division, a unit of the New York National Guard, Sergeant Goodrich was stationed in the Sunni Triangle and saw some of the worst of the worst while he was there.

SHAWN GOODRICH, NATIONAL GUARD: We saw our fair share. I would say we saw our fair share.

CHO: Goodrich and his unit returned home last month. Today, the 36-year-old father of four is still getting used to being out of a war zone.

GOODRICH: It's great seeing the block. Getting off, and it was kind of dusk when I got here, and the lights were on, and it's like...

CHO (on camera): But it looked different.

GOODRICH: ... different styles (ph). Yes, it looked different. It looked very much different.

CHO (voice-over): So is he. Everything from his phone conversations, to the way he carries himself are extensions of his tour of duty.

GOODRICH: You don't know who is who and you have to keep an eye out. So you're constantly, your head is constantly moving around and looking, checking roof tops, checking everything.

CHO (on camera): So now that you are back, you find yourself doing that?

GOODRICH: I still find myself doing it. CHO (voice-over): Goodrich will take time off before going back to fire fighting. He worked at Ground Zero on September 11 and says being a soldier in Iraq has been an honor.

GOODRICH: In a way, it was sort of, brought me like full circle. That was an event that actually started this entire war on terrorism and everything. So I thought that me going over there, it's kind of given me a little bit of peace inside.

CHO: Alina Cho, CNN, New York.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COSTELLO: Your news, money weather and sports. It's 5:48 Eastern. Here's what's all new this morning.

President Bush speaks to Belgium leaders this morning. He'll call on Europeans to put bad feelings over the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq behind them and help Iraq's fledgling democracy.

Pope John Paul II addresses the faithful Sunday. Actually, he addressed it Sunday. It was his second appearance at St. Peter's Square since being released from the hospital 11 days ago.

In money news, Switzerland's Novartis is about to become the world's top maker of copycat drugs. The company announced plans to buy German generic's maker Hexal and the majority of the U.S. firm Eon Labs for more than $7 billion.

In culture, Patty Bouvier is gay. "The Simpsons" may have broken new ground when their fictional hometown of Springfield legalized gay marriage to boost tourism. Patty, who is one of Marge's older sisters, planned to take part in the same-sex wedding ceremony on the animated show until she found out her intended she was really a he.

In sports, California storms left Tiger Woods and the rest of the Nissan Open field feeling all wet. They'll try to play again today after Sunday's round was a washout.

To the Forecast Center and -- Chad.

MYERS: That's how I putt. Gets in those two-and-a-half footers.

Good morning, Carol.

(WEATHER REPORT)

Carol, back to you.

COSTELLO: Thank you, Chad.

It is time to read some e-mail. Want to stick around?

MYERS: I'm right here.

COSTELLO: OK. I've been going through them. We're asking the question this morning should New York host the Olympics in 2012? There is a lot of controversy here, because they're trying to build a new stadium and people don't want the stadium here because of all the traffic and there's pollution in some waterways around where they want to build some of the venues for the Olympics. And New Yorkers say do we really need the headaches?

MYERS: Do you really need the security headache?

Hey, I got one from Steve (ph) in California who just returned on a flight from New York City. The traffic is horrendous. "The Sunday Daily Times" news said something about a blaring, awful Saturday night on the city's subways. Didn't see it, but heard about it. Instead of hosting the games, how about using some of that money to fix the schools and the infrastructure?

COSTELLO: And what about the income the Olympics will bring in? It did great things for the city of Atlanta, right?

MYERS: Are you sure it did all that much for Salt Lake City today, though? Ron (ph) from Bossier City, Louisiana says why would a city want to? A city's hosting the Olympics, they lose extreme amounts of money, extreme debt and they never get to recover that original investment. You don't really know about that because hotel rooms and city taxes and all that never really get added into the coffers, but you know.

COSTELLO: True. This is from D.K. (ph). He says, initially I thought no way, it would be utter chaos with the traffic and so many people trying to get to the different venues. However, New York is the best city in the world. It deserves to add this jewel to its crown. And then he adds, enjoy the snow.

I'm not really enjoying the snow, D.K.

MYERS: Summer Olympics, not Winter Olympics.

COSTELLO: Yes.

A recommendation on some popular painkillers is leaving a lot of people confused about just what to keep in their medicine cabinets. We'll sort it all out for you when we come back.

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COSTELLO: First Vioxx was yanked from the market because the painkiller has been linked to heart attacks and strokes. Well now the manufacturer of Vioxx is considering selling the drug again. This, after an FDA panel concluded the benefits of Vioxx and other drugs in its class outweigh the risks. Confused?

CNN's Elizabeth Cohen tries to take the confusion out of all of this.

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ELIZABETH COHEN, CNN MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): It was close, to say the least. Seventeen members of this FDA Advisory Committee voted in support of Vioxx going back on the market if Merck chooses to do so. Fifteen members voted no. That leads the way for Merck to try to put its popular prescription painkiller back on the shelves after pulling it off the shelves last September.

PETER KIM, MERCK RESEARCH LABS: We've heard numerous reports, and you've heard a few today, from patients, including patients with chronic debilitating pain, that Vioxx was the only drug that relieved that pain.

COHEN: In a statement, Merck said, "Merck has appreciated the opportunity to present data at this advisory committee meeting. We look forward to discussions with the FDA."

At Friday's meeting, there were recounts, confusion about who voted which way, prompting the committee chairman to say...

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Where is Katherine Harris now that we need her?

LEE SIMON, PFIZER CLINICAL ADVISER: I don't believe I've ever seen a committee function like this.

COHEN: Pfizer makes Celebrex and Bextra and stands to lose if Vioxx goes back on the market. All three drugs are COX-2 inhibitors, and the FDA committee was very clear that this class of drugs has serious safety concerns.

Panel members agreed unanimously that the painkillers increase the risk of heart attacks and strokes. The committee recommended that the drugs carry so-called black-box warnings, the toughest warnings possible, and that ads to consumers should not be allowed.

But in the end, despite these concerns, the FDA advisers decided that Americans in pain should be allowed to take these medicines.

Elizabeth Cohen, CNN, Atlanta.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COSTELLO: For more on this or any other health story, head to our Web site. The address CNN.com/health.

New on DAYBREAK at 6:00 a.m. Eastern, a "TIME" magazine correspondent, Viveca Novak, reports on career diplomat John Negroponte, the nominee for the nation's first director of national intelligence. Can he unify intelligence into a single enterprise? We'll talk more about that.

Also, writer Marty Smith talks about the riveting final laps of the premiere race the Daytona 500.

We'll be right back.

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