Return to Transcripts main page

American Morning

Wave of Murders Sweeps Iraq; Rescue in Atlantic City

Aired May 16, 2005 - 07:00   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.


SOLEDAD O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: A wave of murders sweeps Iraq: 55 bodies found this weekend. We'll bring you a live report from Baghdad on a brutal tactic in the insurgency.
Rescue in Atlantic City after a corporate jet crashes into the bay. We'll talk to an eyewitness.

And "Newsweek" magazine backing away from a story that sparked a deadly fury in Afghanistan. The fallout here and there, on this AMERICAN MORNING.

ANNOUNCER: From the CNN broadcast center in New York, this is AMERICAN MORNING, with Soledad O'Brien and Bill Hemmer.

S. O'BRIEN: Good morning. Welcome everybody. Bill hemmer has got the day off. Miles O'Brien is helping us out. Good morning, Miles.

MILES O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning to you all. Good to be here.

Also ahead, a controversy at Chicago's Lincoln Park Zoo. It's getting even bigger now after three rare monkeys died last week.

S. O'BRIEN: Some pretty shocking numbers of what's happening there. Several other animals, in fact, dying in recent months as well. This morning, we talk about the zoo's vice president about exactly what's going on.

Good morning, Jack.

JACK CAFFERTY, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning, Soledad.

In the wake of that story in "Newsweek" magazine with the desecration of the Koran at the hands of interrogators at Guantanamo Bay, a story now that "Newsweek" magazine says wasn't exactly accurate, there's an interesting poll out on how the public perceives the freedom of the press in this country. We'll take a look.

S. O'BRIEN: I'll bet it's interesting. All right, Jack, thanks.

Let's get right to our top story this morning. Some new developments in Iraq as the death toll escalates with the discovery of at least 55 Iraqis, all apparently killed since Saturday. CNN's Ryan Chilcote in Baghdad this morning.

Ryan, good morning to you. What are Iraqi police saying about these bodies?

RYAN CHILCOTE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Soledad.

Well, they're saying that they've found these bodies, all of them since Saturday, at six different sites. I'm going to walk you through some of these finds. Gruesome details.

We start in -- with eight bodies found in northeastern Baghdad, their hands tied behind their backs. They were blindfolded. All appear to have been shot in the head, then four bodies found in southeastern Baghdad, near a mosque. Police also found two survivors there who told them that they'd been arrested by men wearing uniforms of the Iraqi security forces before they were driven out to this remote location and shot.

Then also in Baghdad, 13 more bodies found at a garbage dump. All of them had been stripped to their underwear and appeared to have been tortured. Then just on the outskirts of Baghdad, 11 bodies found, on the outskirts in an area that is called the Triangle of Death. They were found in two trucks there. Some of them had been beheaded. The drivers of those trucks were arrested.

Then 10 bodies in the Iraqi city of Ramadi, apparently the bodies of Iraqi soldiers.

And finally, just today, nine more bodies found in a place called Medayeen (ph), just south of Baghdad. The police saying they all appear to have been civilians. So all of these bodies found, Soledad, since Saturday, at six separate locations, a total of 55 bodies -- Soledad.

S. O'BRIEN: Completely gruesome, Ryan. How about insurgent attacks so far today. Of course last week, you were talking about numerous attacks.

CHILCOTE: Right. Well, we've had two attacks today. One up in Baqubah, targeting Iraqi security forces, using a roadside bomb. A lot of the attacks we've seen have been using suicide bombers, car bombs, but this was a roadside bomb targeting Iraqi security forces, something we've seen a lot of, killing five of them and wounding seven others. And then just south of Baghdad, again in that triangle of death, an attack on journalists. These journalists working for a Kuwaiti newspaper. Two journalists killed there, as well as their driver. They were attacked while they were on the road, headed north towards Baghdad -- Soledad.

S. O'BRIEN: Ryan Chilcote for us in Baghdad this morning. Ryan, thanks.

Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice arrived in Iraq as many of those bodies, in fact, were being discovered. Her surprise visit on Sunday lent support to the new Iraqi government. She assured its officials that U.S. troops were there to help Iraq defend itself and would leave as soon as Iraq can do that on its own.

M. O'BRIEN: The Army says it wants to reach out to the people of Afghanistan. That is in response to deadly anti-U.S. rioting over a "Newsweek" story. Today, the magazine is apologizing for errors in its report that the U.S. troops desecrated the Koran.

Suzanne Malveaux reports.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Two weeks ago, "Newsweek" magazine reported that U.S. interrogators at the Guantanamo Bay Prison Had flushed the Muslim's holy book, the Koran, down the toilet to rattle terror suspects.

MICHAEL ISIKOFF, "NEWSWEEK" REPORTER: The specific allegations about the desecration of the Koran did surface.

MALVEAUX: The article, by "Newsweek's" reporters Michael Isikoff and John Berry, was quickly picked up in newspapers in Pakistan and Afghanistan.

Rage and riots erupted throughout the Middle East, leaving 15 dead in Afghanistan and scores injured.

U.S. officials, already tarnished by the Abu Ghraib Prison abuse scandal, pledged to get to the bottom of it.

CONDOLEEZZA RICE, SECY. OF STATE: I want to speak directly to Muslims in America and throughout the world. Disrespect for the holy Koran is not now, nor has it ever been, nor will it ever be tolerated by the United States.

SCOTT MCCLELLAN, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECY.: The detainees at this base are treated humanely.

MALVEAUX: Pentagon officials said there was no corroboration of "Newsweek's" report that the Koran was being desecrated.

GEN. RICHARD MYERS, CHMN. JOINT CHIEFS OF STAFF: There are several log entries that show that the Koran may have been moved to -- and detainees became irritated about it, but never an incident where it was thrown in the toilet.

MALVEAUX: Now it turns out the Pentagon was right, and "Newsweek" was wrong.

DANIEL KLAIDMAN, "NEWSWEEK" WASHINGTON BUREAU CHIEF: This was an honest mistake. We are obviously not very happy about it.

MALVEAUX: In this week's issue, the magazine writes how it happened, explaining on Saturday Isikoff spoke with his original source, the senior government official, who said that he clearly recalled reading investigative reports about mishandling the Koran, including a toilet incident. But the official, still speaking anonymously, could no longer be sure that these concerns had surfaced in a Southern Command report.

Told of what the "Newsweek" source said, Defense Department spokesman Larry DiRita exploded: "People are dead because of what this son of a b said. How could he be credible now?"

Dirita confirmed to CNN his quote in "Newsweek" and separately said to CNN, "People are dying. They are burning American flags. Our forces are in dangers because of this."

"Newsweek's" Washington bureau chief offered a public apology.

KLAIDMAN: We extend our sympathies to the victims here, and we think it's terribly unfortunate. .

MALVEAUX (on camera): National Security Adviser Steve Hadley, who at the time not aware of "Newsweek's" admission, said on CNN's "LATE EDITION," the political damage is already done.

Suzanne Malveaux, CNN, the White House.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

M. O'BRIEN: The Pentagon is calling "Newsweek's" apology, and we quote now, "tepid and qualified," and added, "They owe us a lot more accountability than they took."

S. O'BRIEN: Top Russian leaders are being placed in the middle of an Iraqi oil scandal. A U.S. Senate report out today names ultranationalist Vladimir Zhirinovsky as one of those who took oil from Saddam Hussein. Former Iraqi officials say the oil was a payoff to get Russia's support in lifting U.N. sanctions. It also says the American company, Bayoil, acted as a middleman for the Russians. An adviser to Russian president Vladimir Putin is also said to have received $16 million in oil payments. Last week, there were similar charges against British and French government officials.

M. O'BRIEN: An investigation under way this morning into the crash of a corporate jet caught on tape by amateur video. The pilot tried to land at Atlantic City's Bader Field Sunday after apparently having some mechanical difficulties. The plane skidded off the runway, as you can see there, plunged into the bay. One engine briefly spewed flames while it was there. All four aboard were hospitalized. However, only minor injuries.

Ken Yasenchock saw the whole thing. He joins us now right beside the field there.

Mr. Yasenchock, good to have you with us.

KEN YASENCHOCK, CRASH EYEWITNESS: Good morning.

M. O'BRIEN: Tell us what you saw initially.

YASENCHOCK: Actually I was behind -- right in front of us is Atlantic City skating rink. I was on the way there for my son's hockey game, and overhead I saw this jet circling, coming down for a few years (ph). I know that there's no jets at this airport.

The runway structure of this airport is basically, say a capital L. He came in on the first on a small part of the small runway first, and he ended up going around. As he was going around, I noticed the flaps and everything were down on the plane. He was in a landing mode. I came up and I drove up to the airport. This is a small single plane, single-engine airport, and I lost sight of the plane and I figured that he was on his way to Atlantic City International Airport, which is five miles up the road from here, where he probably should have been going.

Then out of the corner of my eye, my son was in the van, and he said, dad, the plane's trying to land. The plane came across this runway, straight down behind us, OK? At a very high rate of speed. Couldn't stop. At the end of the runway, there was this little mound of dirt they use for stopping the planes. He hit that and bounced up into the air and went into the creek.

M. O'BRIEN: When you saw him coming down, did you have the sense that was going to happen? That is a pretty small runway, only about 2,500 feet long.

YASENCHOCK: Yes, well when he went around the first time, I thought that he might have came in, because the markings on the plane were not from the United States. The plane came from overseas. And I said this guy probably got lost. It sounds weird, but probably got lost, because Atlantic City International, where he should have been, is right up the road. I lost sight of the plane, so I figured that he must have went over to the right airport. And then all of a sudden, out of the corner of my eye, he comes barreling in and he goes down, and I'm just like, this guy's in trouble. I just picked up the phone, dialed 911 and I drove right across the infield, right to the plane. By the time I got there, the plane, thank God, didn't flip and nosedive. It landed back on its belly.

M. O'BRIEN: I suppose the passengers were pretty lucky on this. What did you do at this point?

YASENCHOCK: Yes, I ended up -- actually, I was still on the phone with 911. They were brining -- the said the police was on the way. Right across the Internoka (ph) Coastal Waterway, two little boats came out, and actually one of them was a friend of mine, and they had to pull the four people out of the plane.

And actually, this is an incident -- actually, within the last two years, there's also been another incident here, too, where another plane went into the waterway.

M. O'BRIEN: And did it overshoot as well, similar situation, or was there something else?

YASENCHOCK: Yes, I believe it overshot, and it went...

M. O'BRIEN: Well, as you say, that's a short runway, really not designed ideally for a Cessna Citation (ph). Probably could squeeze in there, but why bother when five miles away, you've got a 10,000- foot runway.

YASENCHOCK: Correct. And you know, as many years as I've been coming down here, I think once or twice I've seen a twin-propeller plane. That's the largest plane here ever. I mean, so when we saw a jet come in, you knew that this obviously, the guy shouldn't have been here.

M. O'BRIEN: Did you think at that point when you saw that some people might have died in that crash? Were you surprised everybody walked away?

YASENCHOCK: Yes. Actually when I was standing here by the gate, when it originally went down, I was actually in a state of shock and looking at my son. Because when you see something like that as an eyewitness, you kind of sit there and say, is this really happening? Because as it went over the mound of dirt, you saw the whole plane flex, the wings were flexing, and you know, you're going to think the worst. When I got there, the plane was actually just floating in the water. And like, you know, thank God it didn't turn over or actually catch on fire and blow up at that time.

M. O'BRIEN: All right, you don't want to gamble on a short runway in Atlantic City.

Ken Yasenchock, witness for Sunday's plane crash. Thanks for being with us. Appreciate it.

YASENCHOCK: Thank you. Have a nice day.

M. O'BRIEN: You, too.

(WEATHER REPORT)

M. O'BRIEN: Still to come on the program, the mysterious deaths of some animals, quite a few animals actually at a Chicago Zoo. We'll go there for a live report on the latest on that investigation.

S. O'BRIEN: And two young sailors about to be deployed to Iraq. You're not going to believe what they just learned about each other.

M. O'BRIEN: Plus, why comedian Dave Chappelle walked away from his $50 million gig. His reasons may surprise you. That's ahead on AMERICAN MORNING.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

S. O'BRIEN: Chicago's famed Lincoln Park Zoo is under investigation now after the death of three rare monkeys last week. They are the latest in a series of animal deaths there, and they brought protesters out in force.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CROWD: How many animals die today?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

S. O'BRIEN: About 150 animal-rights activists demonstrated on Sunday. Steve Thompson, the zoo's vice president of conservation and science, joins us from Chicago this morning. Mr. Thompson, thanks for joining us.

STEVE THOMPSON, LINCOLN PARK ZOO: Good morning.

S. O'BRIEN: When you look at the numbers over the last eight months, it's pretty shocking. Nine animals have died -- three monkeys, three elephants, two gorillas, one camel. Any idea why all the animals have died?

THOMPSON: Well, it's not really unusual to see this many deaths. We have 1,200 animals on grounds, and about 200 species representing -- represented by those 1,200 animals. And the probability of dying for every animal here at the zoo is 100 percent, just like it is for all of us involved in this news broadcast. Everybody's going to die, and all living things die. With 1,200 animals, there are actually lots of births and deaths each year. It's just part of the natural process.

So although there actually have been a little clump of deaths, it's not unusual, and again, no more would it be unusual if we went 10, or 12 or 13 months without any deaths. In fact, either one of those would not be unusual.

S. O'BRIEN: So three of the elephants dying, and then three out of the four monkeys dying, you don't think that's unusual? The protesters have said that this number of deaths is unheard of. You say that's not accurate?

THOMPSON: Well, it really isn't accurate. Again, everything dies and so the real question is, is there any pattern here? The elephants, as best we know, each elephant died of a different cause. Several of these animals died of old age. Several of them were in sort of middle age, or upper-middle age. We know that the probability of dying changes with age. That's what our actuarial tables are built on for our insurance rates. You know, young animals are much more susceptible to disease and have a higher probability of dying. And then as we creep into middle age, our probability of dying, whether we're human, or an elephant or a gorilla, starts to increase. And by the time we get to be elderly, you know, we have a very high probability of dying. So it's nothing particularly shocking.

S. O'BRIEN: One of the elephants, I understand, died of mycobacterium, and I know that you're doing tests on some of the other animals as well. Is there any indication that a virus or a bacteria was transmitted between any of these animals? .

THOMPSON: No, there's really no evidence that anything was transmitted between any of these animals. Although, again, I can't speculate too much more on that, because we still are awaiting tests. And some of those tests are very expensive -- extensive, and they take a long time to run, as long as 12 weeks, maybe even longer. So it's a long and arduous process.

And you know, this is all very difficult for us here. The staff here is exceptionally well trained. We have a lot of experience taking care of elephants, gorillas, everything here at the zoo. I mean, we really are the people who know how to do that, and we have one of the largest scientific staffs of a zoo in the country. We have nine Phd's and 15 researchers here whose entire job is to improve and help with animal care. So we really do take each one of these on a case-by-case basis. And thus far, we really don't see a pattern.

S. O'BRIEN: The USDA, as you well know, is investigating, as well as the American Zoological Association. If they find something wrong, they could shut down the zoo. How concerned are you that that could happen?

THOMPSON: Well, really, Soledad, I don't think that they're going to find anything wrong here. Again, this is part of the natural process. And it's common -- not common, but it's not unusual for us to see animals dying. And we're fairly confident that our processes are as rigorous, if not more rigorous, than any other institution. So we asked the American Zoo and Aquarium Association, and USDA, to investigate because of all of the attention that this has been getting. But we really wanted to do that to validate our processes and to show that what we do is the best animal care possible in the country.

S. O'BRIEN: Steve Thompson, the vice president of conservation and science at the Lincoln Park Zoo, thanks for talking with us this morning.

THOMPSON: Good morning.

S. O'BRIEN: Ahead this morning, airfares could be going down. Andy's got a look at that as he minds your business, coming up next on AMERICAN MORNING.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

O'BRIEN: Welcome back, everybody. Two airlines are in merger talks. And airfares going up. Andy Serwer is "Minding Your Business" this morning.

Good morning.

ANDY SERWER, "FORTUNE" MAGAZINE: Good morning.

Just a little bit, and we'll get to that in a second. First of all, the big news, according to published reports, bankrupt U.S. Airways is close to merging with America West. We've been talking about this for the past week or so, but it appears to be really heating up. That would combine the number seven and number eight airline in the United States. That would be good news for customers, because it would keep fares low in the long run. We'll talk about the short-term increase in fares in one second.

For employees, though, probably not a great thing at other airlines, because it means there are too many airlines flying and too many planes in the sky. U.S. Air, 28,000 employees and America West, 13,000 employees. Airlines did manage to increase fares over the weekend, but just a bit, up $10 to $20 round trip. You can see here, the carriers who were able to pull it off. They've been trying to do it all year, but it stuck, which means one airline raised prices and the others followed suit. They didn't chicken out.

But here's -- that's really just a blip, and here's the big picture. Since 1991, adjusted for inflation, air prices for tickets up -- down, excuse me, down 25 percent. And since the airlines have been deregulated, in 1978, average ticket price is down 45 percent. Economists would say that's called excess capacity, too many planes in the sky, and that's because -- that means that the airlines would be unable to raise ticket prices, which means their financial woes will likely continue.

S. O'BRIEN: That's interesting, those numbers, I didn't know that.

SERWER: Yes, that's right.

O'BRIEN: Andy, thanks.

SEWRER: You're welcome.

M. O'BRIEN: And Jack's here with the Question of the Day.

CAFFERTY: Thank you, Miles.

Major screwup: "Newsweek" magazine furiously backpedaling on a story that caused riots and deaths in Afghanistan. "Newsweek" reported interrogators at Guantanamo Bay flushed a copy of the Koran down the toilet while interrogating terror suspects. "Newsweek" now says its report may have been wrong. "Newsweek" reporters used a single unnamed source for that story.

Coincidentally, a survey out today finds that 50 percent of the American public thinks the media should not publish stories using unnamed sources. The survey, by the University of Connecticut Department of Public Policy, also found 40 percent of the public think the media do a good job on accuracy, but 60 percent think the media show bias in their reporting. Twenty-two percent say the government should be allowed to censor the press. There's a great idea.

The question is this, does the press have too much freedom? AM@CNN.com.

S. O'BRIEN: Interesting question.

M. O'BRIEN: Where do you draw the line?

CAFFERTY: I don't.

SERWER: It's very competitive. That's the thing. Everybody is trying to break stories and be first, and get, you know, incredibly salacious stuff, and a lot of times that leads to problem when you're under deadline.

S. O'BRIEN: All right, Jack, good question. Thanks.

Much more AMERICAN MORNING still to come.

Ahead on "90-Second Pop," Dave Chappelle explains why he walked away from his hit TV show and a $50 million deal.

And they're gorgeous and sexy and too skinny. Are Hollywood's hottest starlets starving themselves for fame? That's ahead on AMERICAN MORNING.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

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 May 16, 2005 - 07:00   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
SOLEDAD O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: A wave of murders sweeps Iraq: 55 bodies found this weekend. We'll bring you a live report from Baghdad on a brutal tactic in the insurgency.
Rescue in Atlantic City after a corporate jet crashes into the bay. We'll talk to an eyewitness.

And "Newsweek" magazine backing away from a story that sparked a deadly fury in Afghanistan. The fallout here and there, on this AMERICAN MORNING.

ANNOUNCER: From the CNN broadcast center in New York, this is AMERICAN MORNING, with Soledad O'Brien and Bill Hemmer.

S. O'BRIEN: Good morning. Welcome everybody. Bill hemmer has got the day off. Miles O'Brien is helping us out. Good morning, Miles.

MILES O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning to you all. Good to be here.

Also ahead, a controversy at Chicago's Lincoln Park Zoo. It's getting even bigger now after three rare monkeys died last week.

S. O'BRIEN: Some pretty shocking numbers of what's happening there. Several other animals, in fact, dying in recent months as well. This morning, we talk about the zoo's vice president about exactly what's going on.

Good morning, Jack.

JACK CAFFERTY, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning, Soledad.

In the wake of that story in "Newsweek" magazine with the desecration of the Koran at the hands of interrogators at Guantanamo Bay, a story now that "Newsweek" magazine says wasn't exactly accurate, there's an interesting poll out on how the public perceives the freedom of the press in this country. We'll take a look.

S. O'BRIEN: I'll bet it's interesting. All right, Jack, thanks.

Let's get right to our top story this morning. Some new developments in Iraq as the death toll escalates with the discovery of at least 55 Iraqis, all apparently killed since Saturday. CNN's Ryan Chilcote in Baghdad this morning.

Ryan, good morning to you. What are Iraqi police saying about these bodies?

RYAN CHILCOTE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Soledad.

Well, they're saying that they've found these bodies, all of them since Saturday, at six different sites. I'm going to walk you through some of these finds. Gruesome details.

We start in -- with eight bodies found in northeastern Baghdad, their hands tied behind their backs. They were blindfolded. All appear to have been shot in the head, then four bodies found in southeastern Baghdad, near a mosque. Police also found two survivors there who told them that they'd been arrested by men wearing uniforms of the Iraqi security forces before they were driven out to this remote location and shot.

Then also in Baghdad, 13 more bodies found at a garbage dump. All of them had been stripped to their underwear and appeared to have been tortured. Then just on the outskirts of Baghdad, 11 bodies found, on the outskirts in an area that is called the Triangle of Death. They were found in two trucks there. Some of them had been beheaded. The drivers of those trucks were arrested.

Then 10 bodies in the Iraqi city of Ramadi, apparently the bodies of Iraqi soldiers.

And finally, just today, nine more bodies found in a place called Medayeen (ph), just south of Baghdad. The police saying they all appear to have been civilians. So all of these bodies found, Soledad, since Saturday, at six separate locations, a total of 55 bodies -- Soledad.

S. O'BRIEN: Completely gruesome, Ryan. How about insurgent attacks so far today. Of course last week, you were talking about numerous attacks.

CHILCOTE: Right. Well, we've had two attacks today. One up in Baqubah, targeting Iraqi security forces, using a roadside bomb. A lot of the attacks we've seen have been using suicide bombers, car bombs, but this was a roadside bomb targeting Iraqi security forces, something we've seen a lot of, killing five of them and wounding seven others. And then just south of Baghdad, again in that triangle of death, an attack on journalists. These journalists working for a Kuwaiti newspaper. Two journalists killed there, as well as their driver. They were attacked while they were on the road, headed north towards Baghdad -- Soledad.

S. O'BRIEN: Ryan Chilcote for us in Baghdad this morning. Ryan, thanks.

Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice arrived in Iraq as many of those bodies, in fact, were being discovered. Her surprise visit on Sunday lent support to the new Iraqi government. She assured its officials that U.S. troops were there to help Iraq defend itself and would leave as soon as Iraq can do that on its own.

M. O'BRIEN: The Army says it wants to reach out to the people of Afghanistan. That is in response to deadly anti-U.S. rioting over a "Newsweek" story. Today, the magazine is apologizing for errors in its report that the U.S. troops desecrated the Koran.

Suzanne Malveaux reports.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Two weeks ago, "Newsweek" magazine reported that U.S. interrogators at the Guantanamo Bay Prison Had flushed the Muslim's holy book, the Koran, down the toilet to rattle terror suspects.

MICHAEL ISIKOFF, "NEWSWEEK" REPORTER: The specific allegations about the desecration of the Koran did surface.

MALVEAUX: The article, by "Newsweek's" reporters Michael Isikoff and John Berry, was quickly picked up in newspapers in Pakistan and Afghanistan.

Rage and riots erupted throughout the Middle East, leaving 15 dead in Afghanistan and scores injured.

U.S. officials, already tarnished by the Abu Ghraib Prison abuse scandal, pledged to get to the bottom of it.

CONDOLEEZZA RICE, SECY. OF STATE: I want to speak directly to Muslims in America and throughout the world. Disrespect for the holy Koran is not now, nor has it ever been, nor will it ever be tolerated by the United States.

SCOTT MCCLELLAN, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECY.: The detainees at this base are treated humanely.

MALVEAUX: Pentagon officials said there was no corroboration of "Newsweek's" report that the Koran was being desecrated.

GEN. RICHARD MYERS, CHMN. JOINT CHIEFS OF STAFF: There are several log entries that show that the Koran may have been moved to -- and detainees became irritated about it, but never an incident where it was thrown in the toilet.

MALVEAUX: Now it turns out the Pentagon was right, and "Newsweek" was wrong.

DANIEL KLAIDMAN, "NEWSWEEK" WASHINGTON BUREAU CHIEF: This was an honest mistake. We are obviously not very happy about it.

MALVEAUX: In this week's issue, the magazine writes how it happened, explaining on Saturday Isikoff spoke with his original source, the senior government official, who said that he clearly recalled reading investigative reports about mishandling the Koran, including a toilet incident. But the official, still speaking anonymously, could no longer be sure that these concerns had surfaced in a Southern Command report.

Told of what the "Newsweek" source said, Defense Department spokesman Larry DiRita exploded: "People are dead because of what this son of a b said. How could he be credible now?"

Dirita confirmed to CNN his quote in "Newsweek" and separately said to CNN, "People are dying. They are burning American flags. Our forces are in dangers because of this."

"Newsweek's" Washington bureau chief offered a public apology.

KLAIDMAN: We extend our sympathies to the victims here, and we think it's terribly unfortunate. .

MALVEAUX (on camera): National Security Adviser Steve Hadley, who at the time not aware of "Newsweek's" admission, said on CNN's "LATE EDITION," the political damage is already done.

Suzanne Malveaux, CNN, the White House.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

M. O'BRIEN: The Pentagon is calling "Newsweek's" apology, and we quote now, "tepid and qualified," and added, "They owe us a lot more accountability than they took."

S. O'BRIEN: Top Russian leaders are being placed in the middle of an Iraqi oil scandal. A U.S. Senate report out today names ultranationalist Vladimir Zhirinovsky as one of those who took oil from Saddam Hussein. Former Iraqi officials say the oil was a payoff to get Russia's support in lifting U.N. sanctions. It also says the American company, Bayoil, acted as a middleman for the Russians. An adviser to Russian president Vladimir Putin is also said to have received $16 million in oil payments. Last week, there were similar charges against British and French government officials.

M. O'BRIEN: An investigation under way this morning into the crash of a corporate jet caught on tape by amateur video. The pilot tried to land at Atlantic City's Bader Field Sunday after apparently having some mechanical difficulties. The plane skidded off the runway, as you can see there, plunged into the bay. One engine briefly spewed flames while it was there. All four aboard were hospitalized. However, only minor injuries.

Ken Yasenchock saw the whole thing. He joins us now right beside the field there.

Mr. Yasenchock, good to have you with us.

KEN YASENCHOCK, CRASH EYEWITNESS: Good morning.

M. O'BRIEN: Tell us what you saw initially.

YASENCHOCK: Actually I was behind -- right in front of us is Atlantic City skating rink. I was on the way there for my son's hockey game, and overhead I saw this jet circling, coming down for a few years (ph). I know that there's no jets at this airport.

The runway structure of this airport is basically, say a capital L. He came in on the first on a small part of the small runway first, and he ended up going around. As he was going around, I noticed the flaps and everything were down on the plane. He was in a landing mode. I came up and I drove up to the airport. This is a small single plane, single-engine airport, and I lost sight of the plane and I figured that he was on his way to Atlantic City International Airport, which is five miles up the road from here, where he probably should have been going.

Then out of the corner of my eye, my son was in the van, and he said, dad, the plane's trying to land. The plane came across this runway, straight down behind us, OK? At a very high rate of speed. Couldn't stop. At the end of the runway, there was this little mound of dirt they use for stopping the planes. He hit that and bounced up into the air and went into the creek.

M. O'BRIEN: When you saw him coming down, did you have the sense that was going to happen? That is a pretty small runway, only about 2,500 feet long.

YASENCHOCK: Yes, well when he went around the first time, I thought that he might have came in, because the markings on the plane were not from the United States. The plane came from overseas. And I said this guy probably got lost. It sounds weird, but probably got lost, because Atlantic City International, where he should have been, is right up the road. I lost sight of the plane, so I figured that he must have went over to the right airport. And then all of a sudden, out of the corner of my eye, he comes barreling in and he goes down, and I'm just like, this guy's in trouble. I just picked up the phone, dialed 911 and I drove right across the infield, right to the plane. By the time I got there, the plane, thank God, didn't flip and nosedive. It landed back on its belly.

M. O'BRIEN: I suppose the passengers were pretty lucky on this. What did you do at this point?

YASENCHOCK: Yes, I ended up -- actually, I was still on the phone with 911. They were brining -- the said the police was on the way. Right across the Internoka (ph) Coastal Waterway, two little boats came out, and actually one of them was a friend of mine, and they had to pull the four people out of the plane.

And actually, this is an incident -- actually, within the last two years, there's also been another incident here, too, where another plane went into the waterway.

M. O'BRIEN: And did it overshoot as well, similar situation, or was there something else?

YASENCHOCK: Yes, I believe it overshot, and it went...

M. O'BRIEN: Well, as you say, that's a short runway, really not designed ideally for a Cessna Citation (ph). Probably could squeeze in there, but why bother when five miles away, you've got a 10,000- foot runway.

YASENCHOCK: Correct. And you know, as many years as I've been coming down here, I think once or twice I've seen a twin-propeller plane. That's the largest plane here ever. I mean, so when we saw a jet come in, you knew that this obviously, the guy shouldn't have been here.

M. O'BRIEN: Did you think at that point when you saw that some people might have died in that crash? Were you surprised everybody walked away?

YASENCHOCK: Yes. Actually when I was standing here by the gate, when it originally went down, I was actually in a state of shock and looking at my son. Because when you see something like that as an eyewitness, you kind of sit there and say, is this really happening? Because as it went over the mound of dirt, you saw the whole plane flex, the wings were flexing, and you know, you're going to think the worst. When I got there, the plane was actually just floating in the water. And like, you know, thank God it didn't turn over or actually catch on fire and blow up at that time.

M. O'BRIEN: All right, you don't want to gamble on a short runway in Atlantic City.

Ken Yasenchock, witness for Sunday's plane crash. Thanks for being with us. Appreciate it.

YASENCHOCK: Thank you. Have a nice day.

M. O'BRIEN: You, too.

(WEATHER REPORT)

M. O'BRIEN: Still to come on the program, the mysterious deaths of some animals, quite a few animals actually at a Chicago Zoo. We'll go there for a live report on the latest on that investigation.

S. O'BRIEN: And two young sailors about to be deployed to Iraq. You're not going to believe what they just learned about each other.

M. O'BRIEN: Plus, why comedian Dave Chappelle walked away from his $50 million gig. His reasons may surprise you. That's ahead on AMERICAN MORNING.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

S. O'BRIEN: Chicago's famed Lincoln Park Zoo is under investigation now after the death of three rare monkeys last week. They are the latest in a series of animal deaths there, and they brought protesters out in force.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CROWD: How many animals die today?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

S. O'BRIEN: About 150 animal-rights activists demonstrated on Sunday. Steve Thompson, the zoo's vice president of conservation and science, joins us from Chicago this morning. Mr. Thompson, thanks for joining us.

STEVE THOMPSON, LINCOLN PARK ZOO: Good morning.

S. O'BRIEN: When you look at the numbers over the last eight months, it's pretty shocking. Nine animals have died -- three monkeys, three elephants, two gorillas, one camel. Any idea why all the animals have died?

THOMPSON: Well, it's not really unusual to see this many deaths. We have 1,200 animals on grounds, and about 200 species representing -- represented by those 1,200 animals. And the probability of dying for every animal here at the zoo is 100 percent, just like it is for all of us involved in this news broadcast. Everybody's going to die, and all living things die. With 1,200 animals, there are actually lots of births and deaths each year. It's just part of the natural process.

So although there actually have been a little clump of deaths, it's not unusual, and again, no more would it be unusual if we went 10, or 12 or 13 months without any deaths. In fact, either one of those would not be unusual.

S. O'BRIEN: So three of the elephants dying, and then three out of the four monkeys dying, you don't think that's unusual? The protesters have said that this number of deaths is unheard of. You say that's not accurate?

THOMPSON: Well, it really isn't accurate. Again, everything dies and so the real question is, is there any pattern here? The elephants, as best we know, each elephant died of a different cause. Several of these animals died of old age. Several of them were in sort of middle age, or upper-middle age. We know that the probability of dying changes with age. That's what our actuarial tables are built on for our insurance rates. You know, young animals are much more susceptible to disease and have a higher probability of dying. And then as we creep into middle age, our probability of dying, whether we're human, or an elephant or a gorilla, starts to increase. And by the time we get to be elderly, you know, we have a very high probability of dying. So it's nothing particularly shocking.

S. O'BRIEN: One of the elephants, I understand, died of mycobacterium, and I know that you're doing tests on some of the other animals as well. Is there any indication that a virus or a bacteria was transmitted between any of these animals? .

THOMPSON: No, there's really no evidence that anything was transmitted between any of these animals. Although, again, I can't speculate too much more on that, because we still are awaiting tests. And some of those tests are very expensive -- extensive, and they take a long time to run, as long as 12 weeks, maybe even longer. So it's a long and arduous process.

And you know, this is all very difficult for us here. The staff here is exceptionally well trained. We have a lot of experience taking care of elephants, gorillas, everything here at the zoo. I mean, we really are the people who know how to do that, and we have one of the largest scientific staffs of a zoo in the country. We have nine Phd's and 15 researchers here whose entire job is to improve and help with animal care. So we really do take each one of these on a case-by-case basis. And thus far, we really don't see a pattern.

S. O'BRIEN: The USDA, as you well know, is investigating, as well as the American Zoological Association. If they find something wrong, they could shut down the zoo. How concerned are you that that could happen?

THOMPSON: Well, really, Soledad, I don't think that they're going to find anything wrong here. Again, this is part of the natural process. And it's common -- not common, but it's not unusual for us to see animals dying. And we're fairly confident that our processes are as rigorous, if not more rigorous, than any other institution. So we asked the American Zoo and Aquarium Association, and USDA, to investigate because of all of the attention that this has been getting. But we really wanted to do that to validate our processes and to show that what we do is the best animal care possible in the country.

S. O'BRIEN: Steve Thompson, the vice president of conservation and science at the Lincoln Park Zoo, thanks for talking with us this morning.

THOMPSON: Good morning.

S. O'BRIEN: Ahead this morning, airfares could be going down. Andy's got a look at that as he minds your business, coming up next on AMERICAN MORNING.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

O'BRIEN: Welcome back, everybody. Two airlines are in merger talks. And airfares going up. Andy Serwer is "Minding Your Business" this morning.

Good morning.

ANDY SERWER, "FORTUNE" MAGAZINE: Good morning.

Just a little bit, and we'll get to that in a second. First of all, the big news, according to published reports, bankrupt U.S. Airways is close to merging with America West. We've been talking about this for the past week or so, but it appears to be really heating up. That would combine the number seven and number eight airline in the United States. That would be good news for customers, because it would keep fares low in the long run. We'll talk about the short-term increase in fares in one second.

For employees, though, probably not a great thing at other airlines, because it means there are too many airlines flying and too many planes in the sky. U.S. Air, 28,000 employees and America West, 13,000 employees. Airlines did manage to increase fares over the weekend, but just a bit, up $10 to $20 round trip. You can see here, the carriers who were able to pull it off. They've been trying to do it all year, but it stuck, which means one airline raised prices and the others followed suit. They didn't chicken out.

But here's -- that's really just a blip, and here's the big picture. Since 1991, adjusted for inflation, air prices for tickets up -- down, excuse me, down 25 percent. And since the airlines have been deregulated, in 1978, average ticket price is down 45 percent. Economists would say that's called excess capacity, too many planes in the sky, and that's because -- that means that the airlines would be unable to raise ticket prices, which means their financial woes will likely continue.

S. O'BRIEN: That's interesting, those numbers, I didn't know that.

SERWER: Yes, that's right.

O'BRIEN: Andy, thanks.

SEWRER: You're welcome.

M. O'BRIEN: And Jack's here with the Question of the Day.

CAFFERTY: Thank you, Miles.

Major screwup: "Newsweek" magazine furiously backpedaling on a story that caused riots and deaths in Afghanistan. "Newsweek" reported interrogators at Guantanamo Bay flushed a copy of the Koran down the toilet while interrogating terror suspects. "Newsweek" now says its report may have been wrong. "Newsweek" reporters used a single unnamed source for that story.

Coincidentally, a survey out today finds that 50 percent of the American public thinks the media should not publish stories using unnamed sources. The survey, by the University of Connecticut Department of Public Policy, also found 40 percent of the public think the media do a good job on accuracy, but 60 percent think the media show bias in their reporting. Twenty-two percent say the government should be allowed to censor the press. There's a great idea.

The question is this, does the press have too much freedom? AM@CNN.com.

S. O'BRIEN: Interesting question.

M. O'BRIEN: Where do you draw the line?

CAFFERTY: I don't.

SERWER: It's very competitive. That's the thing. Everybody is trying to break stories and be first, and get, you know, incredibly salacious stuff, and a lot of times that leads to problem when you're under deadline.

S. O'BRIEN: All right, Jack, good question. Thanks.

Much more AMERICAN MORNING still to come.

Ahead on "90-Second Pop," Dave Chappelle explains why he walked away from his hit TV show and a $50 million deal.

And they're gorgeous and sexy and too skinny. Are Hollywood's hottest starlets starving themselves for fame? That's ahead on AMERICAN MORNING.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

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