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Your World Today

Darfur Atrocities; Iraq Insurgency; Africa Debt Relief

Aired June 08, 2005 - 12:00   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.


ZAIN VERJEE, CNN ANCHOR: U.S. and Iraqi troops pick through the streets of Tal Afar, picking up suspected insurgents in the process.
JIM CLANCY, CNN ANCHOR: The battle over borders and barriers, saving lives and losing livelihoods. No one's on the fence about Israel's controversial construction.

Plus...

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

B.J. HICKMAN, JACKSON SUPPORTER: Michael's innocent! Michael's innocent!

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VERJEE: He says he knows Michael Jackson is no smooth criminal. Introducing the king of pop star's fan fanatics.

CLANCY: It is 9:00 in the morning in Santa Maria, California; 8:00 in the evening in Tal Afar, Iraq. I'm Jim Clancy.

VERJEE: And I'm Zain Verjee. Welcome to our viewers in the United States and throughout the world. This is YOUR WORLD TODAY.

CLANCY: We're going to have more on those stories in just a moment, but we're going to begin with the international effort to lift Africa out of poverty. British Prime Minister Tony Blair says industrialized nations are on the verge of a historic deal to help the continent. Mr. Blair has been focusing on the positives that came out of his meeting with President Bush at the White House on Tuesday.

VERJEE: They did not come to terms, though, on Mr. Blair's ambitious Marshall Plan approach to African relief. The prime minister spoke to the House of Commons just a few hours ago.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TONY BLAIR, BRITISH PRIME MINISTER: What we're trying to do is to put together a comprehensive plan that deals with aid, that deals with debt, that deals with trade and peacekeeping and peace enforcement and conflict resolution, the main killer diseases, but also governance and action against corruption. So it's a comprehensive package. Trade is a very important part of it. And I hope that at the G8 summit we can make progress on that issue as well.

(END VIDEO CLIP) CLANCY: President Bush and Prime Minister Blair are, however, close to a debt reduction deal.

VERJEE: But they fail to agree on Mr. Blair's proposal to double assistance to Africa.

CLANCY: The U.S. did commit $674 million for famine relief.

VERJEE: Mr. Blair's calling for wealthy countries to pledge $25 million over five years, with the amounts increasing after a few years.

The critics of the Bush administration quick to point out that the U.S. contributes far less than what they say is its fair share of aid money to poorer nations.

CLANCY: But those who believe that money alone is going to solve Africa's problems only need to look at western Sudan, or evidence to the contrary.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CLANCY (voice-over): This is Darfur today, burned-out homes, belongings scattered when armed militias raided towns and villages. Fields left untended. Lives interrupted.

The conflict in Darfur has killed more than 200,000 people by violence, disease and hunger. Two million people have been driven from their homes in an area the size of France.

Sprawling camps have been set up, housing an estimate pd 1.4 million internally displaced who are trying to survive. On a recent visit, the head of aid group ACT/Caritas told those assembled their hopes were understood.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We want to be there for you and assist you in taking control over your own life.

CLANCY: Some people are returning home. There used to be about 70,000 people in Labadou (ph). About 17,000 have come back, encouraged by the presence of a small contingent of African Union monitors from Nigeria.

MAJ. OLA OYELADE, AFRICAN UNION MONITOR: The people have a feeling that with our presence at least they are a bit secured. Even though they know, they have come to understand that we are not here to fight either in support of them or against them, but with our presence, they feel a bit more secure. So they are returning.

CLANCY: Respiratory and eye infections are common. And the coming rainy season raises the risk of diseases carried by water or mosquitoes. Aid workers are racing to stockpile food ahead of that rainy season, knowing most roads will soon become impassable.

At the same time, there's an effort to restore self-respect and a livelihood. Basket weaving for women, fence-building for men. And even a tannery operation to fashion raw animal skins into shoes.

For the children, there are schools and basic lessons. Some 1,500 are already attending this one.

The larger lesson learned by those who would help ease the Darfur tragedy is even more fundamental. The food aid, medical attention, and all the rest is nearly worthless without security. Unless that comes in the form of more troops with a tougher mandate, the refugees are not going home, and the crisis in Darfur isn't going away.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CLANCY: Well, all of the money that is being pledged may not solve the problems of Darfur. What is needed, in the view of some, is action. Darfur peace talks are due to resume on Friday after a six- month-long gap.

Well, later this hour, we're going to have more on the Bush-Blair talks. We're going to have an interview with Don McKinnon. He's the Commonwealth secretary-general.

VERJEE: Also in Africa, hospital officials in Ethiopia say security forces opened fire on stone-throwing demonstrators in the capital, Addis Ababa, and at least 24 are dead in a third day of protests over election results. An Associated Press reporter saw 11 bodies at the main hospital, at least four with gunshot wounds to the head. Doctors at two other hospitals say they received 13 bodies and hundreds of injured people.

The government says its security forces were acting to restore order.

CLANCY: The outgoing president of Bolivia is warning his country is on the brink of civil war. Lawmakers in Bolivia expected now to hold an emergency meeting on Thursday following the Bolivian president's offer to resign and his calls for early elections.

That resignation follows weeks of protests by tens of thousands of minors and peasants demanding the nationalization of the country's oil and gas resources. The protest pit Bolivia's impoverished Indian majority against the country's white ruling elite.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

EVO MORALES, BOLIVIAN OPPOSITION LEADER (through translator): Our fight is not over if there is no justice, if there is no way to solve the problem of discrimination, the problem of marginalization, the problem of sacking our natural resources.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CLANCY: This is already Bolivian President Carlos Mesa's second offer to resign this year.

VERJEE: Iraqi police tell CNN a Kurdish member of the national assembly has been gunned down in Baghdad. Earlier, a suicide car bomb killed three civilians in Baquba some 60 kilometers north of Baghdad. The attacks come as U.S. and Iraqi forces try to root out insurgents in the northern city of Tal Afar, near the Syrian border.

Jane Arraf is embedded with U.S. troops there.

(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)

JANE ARRAF, CNN BAGHDAD BUREAU CHIEF (voice-over): This is modern warfare in an ancient city -- U.S. attack helicopters overhead, tanks in the streets. The danger is insurgents lying in wait in the alleys, where these vehicles can't go. With the buildup of U.S. forces along the Syrian border, this was a major show of force by the American and Iraqi Army in Tal Afar.

As they moved into town, gunfire flew. An American officer working with Iraqi soldiers was killed. Three suspected insurgents also died. The Suriya (ph) neighborhood is believed to be a stronghold of insurgents. On the walls of one of the houses was scrolled "Long Live the Mujahedeen."

Some of the raids focused on specific targets. Others were looking for anything suspicious.

(on camera): This is one of the series of houses on this block that U.S. and Iraqi forces have gone through to see if there are insurgents here. They've blown open the doors and gone through the entire house, but they haven't found anyone here or anything in it.

(voice-over): This Iraqi Army lieutenant says the insurgents here have fled. But he promises "We'll find them."

In a nearby house, Iraqi soldiers find what appears to be a manual for explosives and land mines. "These tracts are further proof these are terrorists," this soldier says, but he won't say how. They round up weapons, including rocket propelled grenades and warheads found in a cemetery. They detain at least 28 suspected insurgents, all Iraqi and most of them on their wanted list for launching or organizing attacks.

The U.S. and Iraqi Army commanders try to win over the few civilians they see. This one is an assistant school principal.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Tell him that the Iraqi Army coalition forces are here to rid his neighborhood of terrorists.

ARRAF: The man says he hasn't seen any terrorists. Iraqi General Mohsen Dosek (ph) tells him there are people in the neighborhood helping the insurgents. He says the neighborhood has to help the Iraqi Army fight them. At the same time, the army is trying to separate friend from foe.

Jane Arraf, CNN, Tal Afar, Iraq.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CLANCY: Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter now calling for the closing of the U.S. military prison camp at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. That follows a storm of controversy over allegations of mistreatment of prisoners at that camp. Mr. Carter says the reports of abuse have damaged Americans' human rights reputation.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JAMES CARTER, FMR. PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I think at this point it would not be possible, as I said in my remarks, to close down Guantanamo immediately. It would have to be phased out over a period of time.

There have been a lot of people there. And now there are about 520 people at Guantanamo. And I think that all of them should be given a trial. As a matter of fact, one thing that concerns me is the secretary of defense has publicly announced that if these people are tried and found innocent, they will not be released. This is not the way to treat people.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CLANCY: Mr. Carter says many countries, including the United States, have used the fight against terror to restrict freedoms and silence human rights activists.

VERJEE: As we wait for a verdict in the Michael Jackson molestation trial, one fan is squarely in the singer's corner.

CLANCY: When YOUR WORLD TODAY returns, we're going to introduce you to the man who changed his life to support Michael Jackson?

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

CLANCY: British Prime Minister Tony Blair back home now following his summit with U.S. President George Bush, where he pushed for full debt relief for some African countries and took up the issue of global warming.

For more on the Bush-Blair talks, and some other issues, let's go over to Don McKinnon. He's the Commonwealth secretary-general. Now, the 53 members of the Commonwealth make up a quarter of the world's nations.

Great to have you with us. What's your take on this meeting? So much was made by what was owed by President Bush, did Tony Blair get enough. But really, where was the progress made?

DON MCKINNON, COMMONWEALTH SECRETARY-GENERAL: Well, I think the fact that there is agreement on more debt write-off, that's very important, because the big thing is economic opportunity. If people in Africa have real economic opportunity, that is, if the debt levels can be much lower, if the aid can continue to be increased, but more importantly, if what they do best at and make best of and grow best at, so they can sell it anywhere in the world, that is real economic opportunity. So trade access to me is still very important.

CLANCY: We'll get to more on that in a moment, but I want to talk a little bit about debt relief. And that is -- I think a lot of people have a hard time understanding that some African nations, fully half of their gross domestic product, has to go to servicing the debts.

MCKINNON: That's dead right. And some of that debt was probably very questionable in the first place, or it is debt that has just accumulated, interest upon interest upon interest, and is right out of kilter with what the original debt was all about. So there's got to be a spirit of generosity, but also an attitude of expectation that there will be internal governance improvements in many cases.

CLANCY: You know, "The New York Times: today had an opinion piece called "Crumbs for Africa." And I'm afraid that it raise the specter that money somehow can solve all the problems of this continent. And that would not seem to be the truth in places like Darfur, in western Sudan, in places like Zimbabwe.

MCKINNON: Well, that's right. And here you are dealing with two very major problems which are due to governance more than they're due to a lack of capital or a lack of infrastructure or a lack of opportunity.

If the governance in a country is not right -- and clearly, what's been happening in Zimbabwe recently is not good for the Zimbabwe people. The attempt by the AU, the African Union, to involve themselves in peacekeeping in Darfur is commendable, but they do need a lot of logistics support. Having soldiers who don't often get paid is not very conducive to good peacekeeping.

CLANCY: Well, as people batter the Bush administration, it has been pointed out that they are actually giving billions of dollars of aid one or another to Africa. And at the same time, also pushing trade, particularly lowering, you know, those tariffs, or eliminating those tariffs on textiles.

MCKINNON: Well, that is a big factor. But you've got to look at, what do the African countries produce best? And that is agriculture, raw commodities, in many cases. And that is still where the highest tariff barriers are from.

They are not producing motor vehicles. They're not producing microwave ovens or television sets. They are producing raw agriculture materials.

Give them an opportunity. Give the cotton growers in Ghana a real opportunity to sell -- sell cotton at a world price and they will do very well. But they cannot do it under the pressure of subsidized cotton from the United States.

CLANCY: It is perhaps everyone's goal to see an improvement in the lives of millions of people in Africa. But people say, where do you start?

You can talk about mosquito nets, you can talk about AIDS drugs. You can talk about so many other things. What has to be fixed in what order? MCKINNON: I'm not sure we'll ever get the order right. I would prefer to say, let's look at it country by country.

Is the country really prepared to get the government's mechanisms right, the democratic institutions right? If they've got them right, are they -- do they have the right macro-micro economic policies?

If they get all those right, you know, you can legitimately write off debt and know there will be a positive response. You can certainly increase aid and know it will be going to the right places. So it's getting to quite (ph), you know, all the ducks in a row on a country-by-country basis.

CLANCY: Don McKinnon, secretary-general of the Commonwealth. I want to thank you very much for be with us here on YOUR WORLD TODAY.

MCKINNON: Thank you, Jim.

VERJEE: Tense times for Michael Jackson. With the jury in his molestation trial deliberating for another day, guilty or innocent, Jackson has at least one fan squarely in his corner. This devotee moved all the way across the United States to show his support.

Here's CNN's Ted Rowlands.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

TED ROWLANDS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Of all the fanatical voices at the Michael Jackson trial, there is one that stands out.

HICKMAN: Michael's innocent! Michael's innocent! Michael's innocent!

ROWLANDS: B.J. Hickman has been here since January, leaving his home in Knoxville, Tennessee, to support Michael Jackson. He says he was here back when Michael Jackson danced on the SUV.

CROWD: Michael!

ROWLANDS: In February, he was here with others standing in the rain at 5:00 in the morning, trying to get a seat in the courtroom, and during jury selection, when Michael Jackson went to the hospital with the flu, B.J. followed.

HICKMAN: Because Michael was waving at us. He was looking out the window giving us the peace symbol.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: He was standing up.

ROWLANDS: While understanding B.J.'s excitement at simply seeing Michael Jackson is a bit difficult to comprehend...

HICKMAN: He waved at me!

ROWLANDS: ... he is not alone. Every day when the pop star walks in and out of court, people from around the world who have traveled here are pressed up against the fence. Some are only able to see Jackson's umbrella. Still, most say it's worth it.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'm really glad I could be here. I feel really good among all these fans from all around the world.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I only got a few hours of sleep, but it's worth -- worth it for Michael.

ROWLANDS: In the beginning, the crowds were huge. As the trial progressed, the numbers fell off. Some days just a handful of fans. Now that the trial is nearing in end, the fans are back in force.

HICKMAN: Michael's innocent!

ROWLANDS: But rain or shine, B.J. has been here. He is living at the local Holiday Inn, he has a job at the local mall, flexible hours to allow him to come see Jackson at the courthouse.

(on camera): Why? You know, that's a question a lot of people...

HICKMAN: I just said because I'm standing up for something I believe in. I'm standing up for innocence.

ROWLANDS (voice-over): B.J. has apparently caught the attention of Michael Jackson. And several weeks ago, B.J. says he was able to meet him.

HICKMAN: I was at Neverland Ranch. He let me inside of his car. It was really cool. And I got autographs and stuff.

ROWLANDS: Since then, B.J. says he has been back to Neverland and has even met Jackson's children, which a Jackson's spokesperson confirms. B.J. has also caught the attention of police. He spends a lot of time heckling prosecutors and certain members of the media.

HICKMAN: You nasty she-devil racists!

ROWLANDS: B.J. is no longer allowed in the courtroom. He tried talking to Jackson, which is against the rules. How would he handle a guilty verdict? B.J. says he doesn't think it's possible.

HICKMAN: He's innocent. And that's what the verdict will be.

You've got to keep fighting this Michael! We know you're innocent. Mike, we've (ph) got to keep fighting!

ROWLANDS: Ted Rowlands, CNN, Santa Maria, California.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CLANCY: Let's check some of the other stories that are making news around the U.S. right now.

Four people arrested in northern California in a federal counterterrorism investigation. Two of the suspects are a father and son accused of lying about the son's training at an al Qaeda camp in Pakistan. The others are leaders in a local Muslim community. They were arrested after meeting with the father and son over the weekend.

A judge in Aruba has ruled there's enough evidence to hold over two suspects in the disappearance of an American tourist. Eighteen- year-old Natalee Holloway has been missing since May 30. The defense lawyer says he's seen no forensic evidence linking his client and the other suspect to that case.

And an Alabama woman has given birth after undergoing the first known successful ovary transplant in the U.S. Twenty-five-year-old Stephanie Yarber gave birth to a baby girl on Monday night. Last year, a doctor transplanted ovarian tissue from the women's sifter to make her fertile.

VERJEE: Still ahead here on YOUR WORLD TODAY, the little search engine that could has officially turned into a media powerhouse.

CLANCY: Google knocks a giant off its pedestal. We'll have details ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

VERJEE: Time for a check on what's moving the markets in the United States. For that, to New York and to Valerie Morris.

(STOCK MARKET REPORT)

CLANCY: We're going to have a roundup of the main stories in just a moment.

VERJEE: Also ahead, a barrier of bitterness. We'll be looking at Palestinian resentment of Israel's West Bank war. This is CNN.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

VERJEE: Hello and welcome back to YOUR WORLD TODAY. I'm Zain Verjee.

CLANCY: I'm Jim Clancy.

And these are some of the stories making headlines around the world. U.S. and Iraqi forces trying to capture or kill insurgents in the northern city of Tal Afar, near the Syrian border. At least one U.S. soldier and three insurgents have died in this operation.

In the meantime, in Baghdad, police say a Kurdish member of the Iraq National Assembly and two of his bodyguards were killed in a drive-by shooting.

VERJEE: With anxious fans waiting in the wings, the jury in the Michael Jackson trial has moved into its third full day, trying to hash out a verdict on child molestation charges. Jackson has secluded himself at his Neverland Ranch to await the jury's decision. British Prime Minister Tony Blair back from a summit on Africa and global warming in the United States, says he will pursue his agenda further at the G-8 meeting in Scotland next month. Mr. Blair and President Bush announced plans to write off a big chunk of African debt, but Mr. Bush did not agree to double the U.S. contribution to African famine relief. Prime Minister Blair is spearheading a Marshall Plan to develop Africa.

The World Bank's new president, Paul Wolfowitz, is welcoming the initiative. He says Africa is going to be the bank's number-one priority. To that end, he is planning his trip to the continent as the institution's president.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PAUL WOLFOWITZ, WORLD BANK PRESIDENT: I think one of the reasons for thinking it may be a hopeful situation is that there is a growing recognition on the part of everyone, and particularly African governments, that a great deal of the solution lies with them, that for development assistance and other forms of assistance to be effective, governments have to be accountable. They have to be transparent. Corruption has to be curbed.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CLANCY: The formal World Bank head James Wolfensohn now navigating the Middle East. Wolfensohn is serving as international envoy to the Middle East on Gaza. Wolfensohn met with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas. He also held talks with Palestinian Authority President Ahmed Qorei. The importance of his talks underscored by reports of Israeli Army Radio, Israel could launch a major military strike against the militant group Hamas in Gaza before the pullout.

VERJEE: Palestinian witnesses say an Israeli aircraft fired a missile at a group of Hamas militants near Gaza City. Israel says the attack was against mortars and launching pads, not people. No injuries were reported.

British Foreign Secretary Jack Straw ruled out any talks with the militant group Hamas, as long as it remained committed to violence. During his visit to the region, Straw pledged British support for the disengagement process.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JACK STRAW, BRITISH FOREIGN SECY.: And the pledge which I give you, Mr. Prime minister, is that we will do everything that we can as the United Kingdom, and with those presidencies to back the joint efforts of the Palestinian Authority and the Israeli government to make a success of this disengagement, because it is crucial to your people in the Gaza, and crucial to the future of the whole of this area.

(END VIDEO CLIP) CLANCY: As Israel strives to reduce the threat from terrorism, Palestinians are seeking help to bring down Israel's West Bank barrier. Israel says the long structure, partly a wall, partly a fence, is only for security.

But ordinary Palestinians say this barrier is a burden.

Guy Raz explains.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

GUY RAZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Farmer Abed Rahim trundles down a path he used to walk to get to his greenhouse.

ABED RAHIM, FARMER (through translator): It used to take me only five minutes to walk from my home to the greenhouse.

RAZ: Now it takes 45 minutes. Rahim lives on one side of what Israel calls it's security barrier. His greenhouse is on the other. To get to it, he has to travel five miles to this crossing, and drive another frustrating five miles to his farmland. The barrier snakes over hills, and past valleys. Israel says it's to stop suicide bombers. Evidence suggests it's working.

In places where the barrier is complete, suicide bombings have stopped. But the International Court has described it as illegal, a severe violation of human rights. Specifically for Palestinians like Rahim who live alongside it.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Some of the people are suffering right now, there's no question about it. But when we have a dilemma, between the root, the topography, if we're to construct the fence, to protect the people, and that some Palestinians unfortunately will have to suffer, you know, you can not bring back somebody who died, but you can make a life easier for Palestinians who have to cultivate this land.

RAZ: But Israeli lawyer Limor Yehuda, who's fighting against the barrier in Israel's highest court, argues that security is a false pretense. The root, she says, is a simple land grab.

LIMOR YEHUDA, ISRAELI LAWYER: But you can see is that the root of the wall had been decided in order to include the settlements, or most of the settlements, in the west side of the wall, in the Israeli side of the wall.

RAZ: Settlements that sit on occupied West Bank land Palestinians claim for their future state. Current projections show once completed, the barrier will include about 9 percent of the West Bank on the Israeli side, indicated by the red line. The green lean on this map marks the boundary that separated Israel from the West Bank before 1967.

(on camera): Are we talking about something permanent?

YEHUDA: It seems like a permanent, yes.

RAZ (voice-over): In other words, she says, the future border of Israel. And by default, the eventual independent Palestinian state.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It is not a border.

RAZ: Government officials isn't that despite the appearance of permanence, the barrier can and will be rerouted, once Israel can be sure suicide bombings will end.

(on camera): Is the fence permanent?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Absolutely not.

RAZ (on camera): But it's hard to imagine these massive concrete slabs, which account for about 3 percent of the barrier, coming down, any time soon.

(voice-over): Palestinians who now live with the reality of the barrier don't care much about politicians, or policy.

RAHIM (through translator): It's like being stabbed in the chest. When I see my greenhouse on the other side of this fence, I feel only bitterness.

RAZ: A wall of bitterness that stands between Palestinians and Israelis, and the search for peace.

Guy Raz, CNN, in the West Bank village of Vacetera (ph).

(END VIDEOTAPE)

VERJEE: Let's check now on some other stories making news around the United States. The Senate is expected to vote in a few hours on one of President Bush's controversial judicial nominees. Democrats have held up the appointment of Janice Rogers Brown for almost two years, saying she would use her seat on a federal appeals court to advance a conservative political agenda. The bipartisan deal broke the deadlock and Brown is expected to be confirmed.

A U.S. government audit says the Federal Aviation Administration must do more to improve safety and inspection procedures. It says the FAA isn't keeping up with rapid changes in the way airlines operate and maintain planes. The FAA rejects the findings, saying the U.S. is, quote, "in the safest period in airline history for the past three years."

And theaters on Broadway dim their lights tonight in memory of one of America's greatest actresses. Anne Bancroft died on Monday of cancer at the age of 73. She was one oft few performers to win an Oscar, Tony and Emmy Awards. Bancroft is perhaps best remembered for the role of "Mrs. Robinson" in the graduate.

CLANCY: Up next, we're going to be taking a look back at the massacre in Rwanda in 1994, and we're going to be talking to a survivor who managed to escape the horror, but not the terrifying memories.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) CLANCY: In 1994, Rwanda was hell on earth. Almost one million people slaughtered because they belonged to an ethnic group called Tutsis or they sympathized with them and wanted to see them share power.

VERJEE: And moderate Hutus were also targeted for killing. The international community did nothing to stop it. One woman lost her entire family in the genocide, but she managed to escape.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

HENRIETTE MUTEGWARABA, RWANDA SURVIVOR: It's a very bad story and a very bad story. Sometimes I don't like to talk about it because I can remember everything. Bad things.

VERJEE (voice-over): When Henriette is able to tell her story, she tells of how the Hutus methodically hacked her family to death, one by one, 16 members in all.

MUTEGWARABA: Everyone wanted to die at that time because there was no hope to live. It was a miracle to live. Because everyone wanted to kill you.

VERJEE: When the killers turned to attack Henriette, she was raped repeatedly. Exhausted from the brutal acts, they paused to rest. Henriette seized the moment and escaped.

MUTEGWARABA: I'm not like I was before. I had no hope, no joy. But on this day, I'm very happy. I feel I'm OK. I'm like other people.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

VERJEE: Henriette Mutegwaraba spoke to us about what happened to her and how she's tried to heal.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MUTEGWARABA: After genocide it was so difficult for me to forgive people, but I was always thinking what they did for me. So it was like I would make myself suffer. I was killing myself. Then I decided to forgive the people who did bad things...

VERJEE: How were you able to do that?

MUTEGWARABA: ... to me. Yes, I did. I tried. I did my best. And it happened. Now I forgive them.

VERJEE: You have children. You have a child of your own. You've adopted other children. How do you view what they have brought to you. How do you view life through them?

MUTEGWARABA: You know, after genocide, everyone was, you know, for survivors, especially. Everyone wanted to help, you know, orphans, people -- children or they had no one took care of them, you know. Especially some of my family, like my aunt. She dead (INAUDIBLE) nine months and then other people, they are, you know, children without no one to help them. I decided to help them because I was a teenager, you know. I was older than them. I decided to help other people.

VERJEE: Even though you found it in your heart to forgive, are you bitter? Are you angry at the international community for failing to come to the rescue of Rwanda, to you, to what happened to you?

MUTEGWARABA: Yes, I think the international community, they felt their role of peacekeeping. They knew it before. You know, before genocide happened, U.N. peacekeepers were in our country. And they knew everything. People warned them. They knew it before, but they did nothing. Nothing to help our people.

VERJEE: Do you think that you will tell your children what happened to you?

MUTEGWARABA: Yes, I will.

VERJEE: Why?

MUTEGWARABA: Because, you know, it's our history. And it's a very important for us to remember. It's very important for everyone, every Rwandan, to know what's happened in the past there, so that in the future we do not do this mistake again. I think it's very good for us for everyone to know what's happened. What was our person -- you know, our history.

VERJEE: How is it that you've been through all of this, and yet, you still have the will to live, to smile, to want to do normal things, ordinary thing, when you've led such an extraordinary life?

MUTEGWARABA: You know, after genocide for me, I decided to give my life to Jesus. I said, oh my God, you know. I said let me seek the lord. That's -- I think that was the first thing that helped me to have the life I'm living today, you know, smiling and having joy. That was from God. I believe that's from God.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

VERJEE: Henriette added that the international community must act now to decisively -- and to save the people in Darfur in western Sudan.

CLANCY: Well, tomorrow at this time, we are going to hear from someone who survived the attacks on the World Trade Center in September, 2001.

VERJEE: He made a random decision to get his glasses fixed that morning. And that decision saved his life. We'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

VERJEE: Time for a look at sports, and news from football in which fans in Thailand had to be pretty creative to watch North Korea's latest World Cup qualifier with Japan. CLANCY: North Korea in play. Terry Baddoo in play as well with the latest.

TERRY BADDOO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Thank you so much.

Crowd and player violence in an early game in Pyongyang prompted FIFA to sentence North Korea play their latest home guard in the World Cup qualifiers away from home on Wednesday.

What's more, FIFA also decided the match was to be played in an empty stadium, which made the game in Bangkok pretty lackluster, until the 73rd minute when some poor defending let in Gangasalia (ph), who made it 1-0 Japan. Eighty-eight minutes, the Japanese double their lead. A good stealing in midfield sets up Mashashi Agoro (ph). He rounds the keeper like he wasn't there. That's 2-0 Japan. In stoppage time, things got a bit testy. North Korea's Kim Yong Tsu (ph) player picked up a red card for kicking Japan's Nakamokoto (ph). After all the argy-bargy (ph), it remained 2-0 Japan.

Some of the Japanese fans who traveled to Bangkok for the game cheered their side from a ballroom of the hotel across the street, from the venue, while a small group of fans also lent their support from outside the stadium gates, doing their best to conjure up some atmosphere. And while cheers were not heard by the players, the good karma maybe had an influence, as the victory put Japan into next year's World Cup finals in Germany.

Japan's group B rivals, Iran, could also make the final Wednesday by claiming at least a draw at home to Bahrain, and they did one better than that. A second-half goal earning them a one-nil win in Tehran and a ticket to the finals.

Finally to baseball, and a rematch of last year's World Series, which saw the Boston Red Sox score a historic victory over the St. Louis Cardinals. Tuesday night they met in a regular season game in St. Louis, which was equally competitive, if a bit wild. Larry walker getting hit from the pitch by John Halema (ph) before Jason Varitek took one for the team after an Al Reyes pitch. So it continued. Mark Grugelama (ph) taking a whack from the pitch by Matt Metai (ph). And for some reason, Cards manager Tony La Russa decided that warranted a souvenir. The final score came in the bottom of the seventh, when Larry Walker was hit again, this time by Metai, for which the Sox picture was ejected. For the record, 9-2 Cards. It ended. And that's the sport for now.

CLANCY: It would appear they had a little trouble controlling the ball.

BADDOO: Indeed they did.

CLANCY: Terry Baddoo, thank you for that.

VERJEE: Thank you.

(WEATHER REPORT)

VERJEE: More news straight ahead. I'm Zain Verjee.

CLANCY: I'm Jim Clancy, and this is CNN.

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


Aired June 8, 2005 - 12:00   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
ZAIN VERJEE, CNN ANCHOR: U.S. and Iraqi troops pick through the streets of Tal Afar, picking up suspected insurgents in the process.
JIM CLANCY, CNN ANCHOR: The battle over borders and barriers, saving lives and losing livelihoods. No one's on the fence about Israel's controversial construction.

Plus...

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

B.J. HICKMAN, JACKSON SUPPORTER: Michael's innocent! Michael's innocent!

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VERJEE: He says he knows Michael Jackson is no smooth criminal. Introducing the king of pop star's fan fanatics.

CLANCY: It is 9:00 in the morning in Santa Maria, California; 8:00 in the evening in Tal Afar, Iraq. I'm Jim Clancy.

VERJEE: And I'm Zain Verjee. Welcome to our viewers in the United States and throughout the world. This is YOUR WORLD TODAY.

CLANCY: We're going to have more on those stories in just a moment, but we're going to begin with the international effort to lift Africa out of poverty. British Prime Minister Tony Blair says industrialized nations are on the verge of a historic deal to help the continent. Mr. Blair has been focusing on the positives that came out of his meeting with President Bush at the White House on Tuesday.

VERJEE: They did not come to terms, though, on Mr. Blair's ambitious Marshall Plan approach to African relief. The prime minister spoke to the House of Commons just a few hours ago.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TONY BLAIR, BRITISH PRIME MINISTER: What we're trying to do is to put together a comprehensive plan that deals with aid, that deals with debt, that deals with trade and peacekeeping and peace enforcement and conflict resolution, the main killer diseases, but also governance and action against corruption. So it's a comprehensive package. Trade is a very important part of it. And I hope that at the G8 summit we can make progress on that issue as well.

(END VIDEO CLIP) CLANCY: President Bush and Prime Minister Blair are, however, close to a debt reduction deal.

VERJEE: But they fail to agree on Mr. Blair's proposal to double assistance to Africa.

CLANCY: The U.S. did commit $674 million for famine relief.

VERJEE: Mr. Blair's calling for wealthy countries to pledge $25 million over five years, with the amounts increasing after a few years.

The critics of the Bush administration quick to point out that the U.S. contributes far less than what they say is its fair share of aid money to poorer nations.

CLANCY: But those who believe that money alone is going to solve Africa's problems only need to look at western Sudan, or evidence to the contrary.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CLANCY (voice-over): This is Darfur today, burned-out homes, belongings scattered when armed militias raided towns and villages. Fields left untended. Lives interrupted.

The conflict in Darfur has killed more than 200,000 people by violence, disease and hunger. Two million people have been driven from their homes in an area the size of France.

Sprawling camps have been set up, housing an estimate pd 1.4 million internally displaced who are trying to survive. On a recent visit, the head of aid group ACT/Caritas told those assembled their hopes were understood.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We want to be there for you and assist you in taking control over your own life.

CLANCY: Some people are returning home. There used to be about 70,000 people in Labadou (ph). About 17,000 have come back, encouraged by the presence of a small contingent of African Union monitors from Nigeria.

MAJ. OLA OYELADE, AFRICAN UNION MONITOR: The people have a feeling that with our presence at least they are a bit secured. Even though they know, they have come to understand that we are not here to fight either in support of them or against them, but with our presence, they feel a bit more secure. So they are returning.

CLANCY: Respiratory and eye infections are common. And the coming rainy season raises the risk of diseases carried by water or mosquitoes. Aid workers are racing to stockpile food ahead of that rainy season, knowing most roads will soon become impassable.

At the same time, there's an effort to restore self-respect and a livelihood. Basket weaving for women, fence-building for men. And even a tannery operation to fashion raw animal skins into shoes.

For the children, there are schools and basic lessons. Some 1,500 are already attending this one.

The larger lesson learned by those who would help ease the Darfur tragedy is even more fundamental. The food aid, medical attention, and all the rest is nearly worthless without security. Unless that comes in the form of more troops with a tougher mandate, the refugees are not going home, and the crisis in Darfur isn't going away.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CLANCY: Well, all of the money that is being pledged may not solve the problems of Darfur. What is needed, in the view of some, is action. Darfur peace talks are due to resume on Friday after a six- month-long gap.

Well, later this hour, we're going to have more on the Bush-Blair talks. We're going to have an interview with Don McKinnon. He's the Commonwealth secretary-general.

VERJEE: Also in Africa, hospital officials in Ethiopia say security forces opened fire on stone-throwing demonstrators in the capital, Addis Ababa, and at least 24 are dead in a third day of protests over election results. An Associated Press reporter saw 11 bodies at the main hospital, at least four with gunshot wounds to the head. Doctors at two other hospitals say they received 13 bodies and hundreds of injured people.

The government says its security forces were acting to restore order.

CLANCY: The outgoing president of Bolivia is warning his country is on the brink of civil war. Lawmakers in Bolivia expected now to hold an emergency meeting on Thursday following the Bolivian president's offer to resign and his calls for early elections.

That resignation follows weeks of protests by tens of thousands of minors and peasants demanding the nationalization of the country's oil and gas resources. The protest pit Bolivia's impoverished Indian majority against the country's white ruling elite.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

EVO MORALES, BOLIVIAN OPPOSITION LEADER (through translator): Our fight is not over if there is no justice, if there is no way to solve the problem of discrimination, the problem of marginalization, the problem of sacking our natural resources.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CLANCY: This is already Bolivian President Carlos Mesa's second offer to resign this year.

VERJEE: Iraqi police tell CNN a Kurdish member of the national assembly has been gunned down in Baghdad. Earlier, a suicide car bomb killed three civilians in Baquba some 60 kilometers north of Baghdad. The attacks come as U.S. and Iraqi forces try to root out insurgents in the northern city of Tal Afar, near the Syrian border.

Jane Arraf is embedded with U.S. troops there.

(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)

JANE ARRAF, CNN BAGHDAD BUREAU CHIEF (voice-over): This is modern warfare in an ancient city -- U.S. attack helicopters overhead, tanks in the streets. The danger is insurgents lying in wait in the alleys, where these vehicles can't go. With the buildup of U.S. forces along the Syrian border, this was a major show of force by the American and Iraqi Army in Tal Afar.

As they moved into town, gunfire flew. An American officer working with Iraqi soldiers was killed. Three suspected insurgents also died. The Suriya (ph) neighborhood is believed to be a stronghold of insurgents. On the walls of one of the houses was scrolled "Long Live the Mujahedeen."

Some of the raids focused on specific targets. Others were looking for anything suspicious.

(on camera): This is one of the series of houses on this block that U.S. and Iraqi forces have gone through to see if there are insurgents here. They've blown open the doors and gone through the entire house, but they haven't found anyone here or anything in it.

(voice-over): This Iraqi Army lieutenant says the insurgents here have fled. But he promises "We'll find them."

In a nearby house, Iraqi soldiers find what appears to be a manual for explosives and land mines. "These tracts are further proof these are terrorists," this soldier says, but he won't say how. They round up weapons, including rocket propelled grenades and warheads found in a cemetery. They detain at least 28 suspected insurgents, all Iraqi and most of them on their wanted list for launching or organizing attacks.

The U.S. and Iraqi Army commanders try to win over the few civilians they see. This one is an assistant school principal.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Tell him that the Iraqi Army coalition forces are here to rid his neighborhood of terrorists.

ARRAF: The man says he hasn't seen any terrorists. Iraqi General Mohsen Dosek (ph) tells him there are people in the neighborhood helping the insurgents. He says the neighborhood has to help the Iraqi Army fight them. At the same time, the army is trying to separate friend from foe.

Jane Arraf, CNN, Tal Afar, Iraq.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CLANCY: Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter now calling for the closing of the U.S. military prison camp at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. That follows a storm of controversy over allegations of mistreatment of prisoners at that camp. Mr. Carter says the reports of abuse have damaged Americans' human rights reputation.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JAMES CARTER, FMR. PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I think at this point it would not be possible, as I said in my remarks, to close down Guantanamo immediately. It would have to be phased out over a period of time.

There have been a lot of people there. And now there are about 520 people at Guantanamo. And I think that all of them should be given a trial. As a matter of fact, one thing that concerns me is the secretary of defense has publicly announced that if these people are tried and found innocent, they will not be released. This is not the way to treat people.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CLANCY: Mr. Carter says many countries, including the United States, have used the fight against terror to restrict freedoms and silence human rights activists.

VERJEE: As we wait for a verdict in the Michael Jackson molestation trial, one fan is squarely in the singer's corner.

CLANCY: When YOUR WORLD TODAY returns, we're going to introduce you to the man who changed his life to support Michael Jackson?

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

CLANCY: British Prime Minister Tony Blair back home now following his summit with U.S. President George Bush, where he pushed for full debt relief for some African countries and took up the issue of global warming.

For more on the Bush-Blair talks, and some other issues, let's go over to Don McKinnon. He's the Commonwealth secretary-general. Now, the 53 members of the Commonwealth make up a quarter of the world's nations.

Great to have you with us. What's your take on this meeting? So much was made by what was owed by President Bush, did Tony Blair get enough. But really, where was the progress made?

DON MCKINNON, COMMONWEALTH SECRETARY-GENERAL: Well, I think the fact that there is agreement on more debt write-off, that's very important, because the big thing is economic opportunity. If people in Africa have real economic opportunity, that is, if the debt levels can be much lower, if the aid can continue to be increased, but more importantly, if what they do best at and make best of and grow best at, so they can sell it anywhere in the world, that is real economic opportunity. So trade access to me is still very important.

CLANCY: We'll get to more on that in a moment, but I want to talk a little bit about debt relief. And that is -- I think a lot of people have a hard time understanding that some African nations, fully half of their gross domestic product, has to go to servicing the debts.

MCKINNON: That's dead right. And some of that debt was probably very questionable in the first place, or it is debt that has just accumulated, interest upon interest upon interest, and is right out of kilter with what the original debt was all about. So there's got to be a spirit of generosity, but also an attitude of expectation that there will be internal governance improvements in many cases.

CLANCY: You know, "The New York Times: today had an opinion piece called "Crumbs for Africa." And I'm afraid that it raise the specter that money somehow can solve all the problems of this continent. And that would not seem to be the truth in places like Darfur, in western Sudan, in places like Zimbabwe.

MCKINNON: Well, that's right. And here you are dealing with two very major problems which are due to governance more than they're due to a lack of capital or a lack of infrastructure or a lack of opportunity.

If the governance in a country is not right -- and clearly, what's been happening in Zimbabwe recently is not good for the Zimbabwe people. The attempt by the AU, the African Union, to involve themselves in peacekeeping in Darfur is commendable, but they do need a lot of logistics support. Having soldiers who don't often get paid is not very conducive to good peacekeeping.

CLANCY: Well, as people batter the Bush administration, it has been pointed out that they are actually giving billions of dollars of aid one or another to Africa. And at the same time, also pushing trade, particularly lowering, you know, those tariffs, or eliminating those tariffs on textiles.

MCKINNON: Well, that is a big factor. But you've got to look at, what do the African countries produce best? And that is agriculture, raw commodities, in many cases. And that is still where the highest tariff barriers are from.

They are not producing motor vehicles. They're not producing microwave ovens or television sets. They are producing raw agriculture materials.

Give them an opportunity. Give the cotton growers in Ghana a real opportunity to sell -- sell cotton at a world price and they will do very well. But they cannot do it under the pressure of subsidized cotton from the United States.

CLANCY: It is perhaps everyone's goal to see an improvement in the lives of millions of people in Africa. But people say, where do you start?

You can talk about mosquito nets, you can talk about AIDS drugs. You can talk about so many other things. What has to be fixed in what order? MCKINNON: I'm not sure we'll ever get the order right. I would prefer to say, let's look at it country by country.

Is the country really prepared to get the government's mechanisms right, the democratic institutions right? If they've got them right, are they -- do they have the right macro-micro economic policies?

If they get all those right, you know, you can legitimately write off debt and know there will be a positive response. You can certainly increase aid and know it will be going to the right places. So it's getting to quite (ph), you know, all the ducks in a row on a country-by-country basis.

CLANCY: Don McKinnon, secretary-general of the Commonwealth. I want to thank you very much for be with us here on YOUR WORLD TODAY.

MCKINNON: Thank you, Jim.

VERJEE: Tense times for Michael Jackson. With the jury in his molestation trial deliberating for another day, guilty or innocent, Jackson has at least one fan squarely in his corner. This devotee moved all the way across the United States to show his support.

Here's CNN's Ted Rowlands.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

TED ROWLANDS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Of all the fanatical voices at the Michael Jackson trial, there is one that stands out.

HICKMAN: Michael's innocent! Michael's innocent! Michael's innocent!

ROWLANDS: B.J. Hickman has been here since January, leaving his home in Knoxville, Tennessee, to support Michael Jackson. He says he was here back when Michael Jackson danced on the SUV.

CROWD: Michael!

ROWLANDS: In February, he was here with others standing in the rain at 5:00 in the morning, trying to get a seat in the courtroom, and during jury selection, when Michael Jackson went to the hospital with the flu, B.J. followed.

HICKMAN: Because Michael was waving at us. He was looking out the window giving us the peace symbol.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: He was standing up.

ROWLANDS: While understanding B.J.'s excitement at simply seeing Michael Jackson is a bit difficult to comprehend...

HICKMAN: He waved at me!

ROWLANDS: ... he is not alone. Every day when the pop star walks in and out of court, people from around the world who have traveled here are pressed up against the fence. Some are only able to see Jackson's umbrella. Still, most say it's worth it.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'm really glad I could be here. I feel really good among all these fans from all around the world.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I only got a few hours of sleep, but it's worth -- worth it for Michael.

ROWLANDS: In the beginning, the crowds were huge. As the trial progressed, the numbers fell off. Some days just a handful of fans. Now that the trial is nearing in end, the fans are back in force.

HICKMAN: Michael's innocent!

ROWLANDS: But rain or shine, B.J. has been here. He is living at the local Holiday Inn, he has a job at the local mall, flexible hours to allow him to come see Jackson at the courthouse.

(on camera): Why? You know, that's a question a lot of people...

HICKMAN: I just said because I'm standing up for something I believe in. I'm standing up for innocence.

ROWLANDS (voice-over): B.J. has apparently caught the attention of Michael Jackson. And several weeks ago, B.J. says he was able to meet him.

HICKMAN: I was at Neverland Ranch. He let me inside of his car. It was really cool. And I got autographs and stuff.

ROWLANDS: Since then, B.J. says he has been back to Neverland and has even met Jackson's children, which a Jackson's spokesperson confirms. B.J. has also caught the attention of police. He spends a lot of time heckling prosecutors and certain members of the media.

HICKMAN: You nasty she-devil racists!

ROWLANDS: B.J. is no longer allowed in the courtroom. He tried talking to Jackson, which is against the rules. How would he handle a guilty verdict? B.J. says he doesn't think it's possible.

HICKMAN: He's innocent. And that's what the verdict will be.

You've got to keep fighting this Michael! We know you're innocent. Mike, we've (ph) got to keep fighting!

ROWLANDS: Ted Rowlands, CNN, Santa Maria, California.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CLANCY: Let's check some of the other stories that are making news around the U.S. right now.

Four people arrested in northern California in a federal counterterrorism investigation. Two of the suspects are a father and son accused of lying about the son's training at an al Qaeda camp in Pakistan. The others are leaders in a local Muslim community. They were arrested after meeting with the father and son over the weekend.

A judge in Aruba has ruled there's enough evidence to hold over two suspects in the disappearance of an American tourist. Eighteen- year-old Natalee Holloway has been missing since May 30. The defense lawyer says he's seen no forensic evidence linking his client and the other suspect to that case.

And an Alabama woman has given birth after undergoing the first known successful ovary transplant in the U.S. Twenty-five-year-old Stephanie Yarber gave birth to a baby girl on Monday night. Last year, a doctor transplanted ovarian tissue from the women's sifter to make her fertile.

VERJEE: Still ahead here on YOUR WORLD TODAY, the little search engine that could has officially turned into a media powerhouse.

CLANCY: Google knocks a giant off its pedestal. We'll have details ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

VERJEE: Time for a check on what's moving the markets in the United States. For that, to New York and to Valerie Morris.

(STOCK MARKET REPORT)

CLANCY: We're going to have a roundup of the main stories in just a moment.

VERJEE: Also ahead, a barrier of bitterness. We'll be looking at Palestinian resentment of Israel's West Bank war. This is CNN.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

VERJEE: Hello and welcome back to YOUR WORLD TODAY. I'm Zain Verjee.

CLANCY: I'm Jim Clancy.

And these are some of the stories making headlines around the world. U.S. and Iraqi forces trying to capture or kill insurgents in the northern city of Tal Afar, near the Syrian border. At least one U.S. soldier and three insurgents have died in this operation.

In the meantime, in Baghdad, police say a Kurdish member of the Iraq National Assembly and two of his bodyguards were killed in a drive-by shooting.

VERJEE: With anxious fans waiting in the wings, the jury in the Michael Jackson trial has moved into its third full day, trying to hash out a verdict on child molestation charges. Jackson has secluded himself at his Neverland Ranch to await the jury's decision. British Prime Minister Tony Blair back from a summit on Africa and global warming in the United States, says he will pursue his agenda further at the G-8 meeting in Scotland next month. Mr. Blair and President Bush announced plans to write off a big chunk of African debt, but Mr. Bush did not agree to double the U.S. contribution to African famine relief. Prime Minister Blair is spearheading a Marshall Plan to develop Africa.

The World Bank's new president, Paul Wolfowitz, is welcoming the initiative. He says Africa is going to be the bank's number-one priority. To that end, he is planning his trip to the continent as the institution's president.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PAUL WOLFOWITZ, WORLD BANK PRESIDENT: I think one of the reasons for thinking it may be a hopeful situation is that there is a growing recognition on the part of everyone, and particularly African governments, that a great deal of the solution lies with them, that for development assistance and other forms of assistance to be effective, governments have to be accountable. They have to be transparent. Corruption has to be curbed.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CLANCY: The formal World Bank head James Wolfensohn now navigating the Middle East. Wolfensohn is serving as international envoy to the Middle East on Gaza. Wolfensohn met with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas. He also held talks with Palestinian Authority President Ahmed Qorei. The importance of his talks underscored by reports of Israeli Army Radio, Israel could launch a major military strike against the militant group Hamas in Gaza before the pullout.

VERJEE: Palestinian witnesses say an Israeli aircraft fired a missile at a group of Hamas militants near Gaza City. Israel says the attack was against mortars and launching pads, not people. No injuries were reported.

British Foreign Secretary Jack Straw ruled out any talks with the militant group Hamas, as long as it remained committed to violence. During his visit to the region, Straw pledged British support for the disengagement process.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JACK STRAW, BRITISH FOREIGN SECY.: And the pledge which I give you, Mr. Prime minister, is that we will do everything that we can as the United Kingdom, and with those presidencies to back the joint efforts of the Palestinian Authority and the Israeli government to make a success of this disengagement, because it is crucial to your people in the Gaza, and crucial to the future of the whole of this area.

(END VIDEO CLIP) CLANCY: As Israel strives to reduce the threat from terrorism, Palestinians are seeking help to bring down Israel's West Bank barrier. Israel says the long structure, partly a wall, partly a fence, is only for security.

But ordinary Palestinians say this barrier is a burden.

Guy Raz explains.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

GUY RAZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Farmer Abed Rahim trundles down a path he used to walk to get to his greenhouse.

ABED RAHIM, FARMER (through translator): It used to take me only five minutes to walk from my home to the greenhouse.

RAZ: Now it takes 45 minutes. Rahim lives on one side of what Israel calls it's security barrier. His greenhouse is on the other. To get to it, he has to travel five miles to this crossing, and drive another frustrating five miles to his farmland. The barrier snakes over hills, and past valleys. Israel says it's to stop suicide bombers. Evidence suggests it's working.

In places where the barrier is complete, suicide bombings have stopped. But the International Court has described it as illegal, a severe violation of human rights. Specifically for Palestinians like Rahim who live alongside it.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Some of the people are suffering right now, there's no question about it. But when we have a dilemma, between the root, the topography, if we're to construct the fence, to protect the people, and that some Palestinians unfortunately will have to suffer, you know, you can not bring back somebody who died, but you can make a life easier for Palestinians who have to cultivate this land.

RAZ: But Israeli lawyer Limor Yehuda, who's fighting against the barrier in Israel's highest court, argues that security is a false pretense. The root, she says, is a simple land grab.

LIMOR YEHUDA, ISRAELI LAWYER: But you can see is that the root of the wall had been decided in order to include the settlements, or most of the settlements, in the west side of the wall, in the Israeli side of the wall.

RAZ: Settlements that sit on occupied West Bank land Palestinians claim for their future state. Current projections show once completed, the barrier will include about 9 percent of the West Bank on the Israeli side, indicated by the red line. The green lean on this map marks the boundary that separated Israel from the West Bank before 1967.

(on camera): Are we talking about something permanent?

YEHUDA: It seems like a permanent, yes.

RAZ (voice-over): In other words, she says, the future border of Israel. And by default, the eventual independent Palestinian state.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It is not a border.

RAZ: Government officials isn't that despite the appearance of permanence, the barrier can and will be rerouted, once Israel can be sure suicide bombings will end.

(on camera): Is the fence permanent?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Absolutely not.

RAZ (on camera): But it's hard to imagine these massive concrete slabs, which account for about 3 percent of the barrier, coming down, any time soon.

(voice-over): Palestinians who now live with the reality of the barrier don't care much about politicians, or policy.

RAHIM (through translator): It's like being stabbed in the chest. When I see my greenhouse on the other side of this fence, I feel only bitterness.

RAZ: A wall of bitterness that stands between Palestinians and Israelis, and the search for peace.

Guy Raz, CNN, in the West Bank village of Vacetera (ph).

(END VIDEOTAPE)

VERJEE: Let's check now on some other stories making news around the United States. The Senate is expected to vote in a few hours on one of President Bush's controversial judicial nominees. Democrats have held up the appointment of Janice Rogers Brown for almost two years, saying she would use her seat on a federal appeals court to advance a conservative political agenda. The bipartisan deal broke the deadlock and Brown is expected to be confirmed.

A U.S. government audit says the Federal Aviation Administration must do more to improve safety and inspection procedures. It says the FAA isn't keeping up with rapid changes in the way airlines operate and maintain planes. The FAA rejects the findings, saying the U.S. is, quote, "in the safest period in airline history for the past three years."

And theaters on Broadway dim their lights tonight in memory of one of America's greatest actresses. Anne Bancroft died on Monday of cancer at the age of 73. She was one oft few performers to win an Oscar, Tony and Emmy Awards. Bancroft is perhaps best remembered for the role of "Mrs. Robinson" in the graduate.

CLANCY: Up next, we're going to be taking a look back at the massacre in Rwanda in 1994, and we're going to be talking to a survivor who managed to escape the horror, but not the terrifying memories.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) CLANCY: In 1994, Rwanda was hell on earth. Almost one million people slaughtered because they belonged to an ethnic group called Tutsis or they sympathized with them and wanted to see them share power.

VERJEE: And moderate Hutus were also targeted for killing. The international community did nothing to stop it. One woman lost her entire family in the genocide, but she managed to escape.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

HENRIETTE MUTEGWARABA, RWANDA SURVIVOR: It's a very bad story and a very bad story. Sometimes I don't like to talk about it because I can remember everything. Bad things.

VERJEE (voice-over): When Henriette is able to tell her story, she tells of how the Hutus methodically hacked her family to death, one by one, 16 members in all.

MUTEGWARABA: Everyone wanted to die at that time because there was no hope to live. It was a miracle to live. Because everyone wanted to kill you.

VERJEE: When the killers turned to attack Henriette, she was raped repeatedly. Exhausted from the brutal acts, they paused to rest. Henriette seized the moment and escaped.

MUTEGWARABA: I'm not like I was before. I had no hope, no joy. But on this day, I'm very happy. I feel I'm OK. I'm like other people.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

VERJEE: Henriette Mutegwaraba spoke to us about what happened to her and how she's tried to heal.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MUTEGWARABA: After genocide it was so difficult for me to forgive people, but I was always thinking what they did for me. So it was like I would make myself suffer. I was killing myself. Then I decided to forgive the people who did bad things...

VERJEE: How were you able to do that?

MUTEGWARABA: ... to me. Yes, I did. I tried. I did my best. And it happened. Now I forgive them.

VERJEE: You have children. You have a child of your own. You've adopted other children. How do you view what they have brought to you. How do you view life through them?

MUTEGWARABA: You know, after genocide, everyone was, you know, for survivors, especially. Everyone wanted to help, you know, orphans, people -- children or they had no one took care of them, you know. Especially some of my family, like my aunt. She dead (INAUDIBLE) nine months and then other people, they are, you know, children without no one to help them. I decided to help them because I was a teenager, you know. I was older than them. I decided to help other people.

VERJEE: Even though you found it in your heart to forgive, are you bitter? Are you angry at the international community for failing to come to the rescue of Rwanda, to you, to what happened to you?

MUTEGWARABA: Yes, I think the international community, they felt their role of peacekeeping. They knew it before. You know, before genocide happened, U.N. peacekeepers were in our country. And they knew everything. People warned them. They knew it before, but they did nothing. Nothing to help our people.

VERJEE: Do you think that you will tell your children what happened to you?

MUTEGWARABA: Yes, I will.

VERJEE: Why?

MUTEGWARABA: Because, you know, it's our history. And it's a very important for us to remember. It's very important for everyone, every Rwandan, to know what's happened in the past there, so that in the future we do not do this mistake again. I think it's very good for us for everyone to know what's happened. What was our person -- you know, our history.

VERJEE: How is it that you've been through all of this, and yet, you still have the will to live, to smile, to want to do normal things, ordinary thing, when you've led such an extraordinary life?

MUTEGWARABA: You know, after genocide for me, I decided to give my life to Jesus. I said, oh my God, you know. I said let me seek the lord. That's -- I think that was the first thing that helped me to have the life I'm living today, you know, smiling and having joy. That was from God. I believe that's from God.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

VERJEE: Henriette added that the international community must act now to decisively -- and to save the people in Darfur in western Sudan.

CLANCY: Well, tomorrow at this time, we are going to hear from someone who survived the attacks on the World Trade Center in September, 2001.

VERJEE: He made a random decision to get his glasses fixed that morning. And that decision saved his life. We'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

VERJEE: Time for a look at sports, and news from football in which fans in Thailand had to be pretty creative to watch North Korea's latest World Cup qualifier with Japan. CLANCY: North Korea in play. Terry Baddoo in play as well with the latest.

TERRY BADDOO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Thank you so much.

Crowd and player violence in an early game in Pyongyang prompted FIFA to sentence North Korea play their latest home guard in the World Cup qualifiers away from home on Wednesday.

What's more, FIFA also decided the match was to be played in an empty stadium, which made the game in Bangkok pretty lackluster, until the 73rd minute when some poor defending let in Gangasalia (ph), who made it 1-0 Japan. Eighty-eight minutes, the Japanese double their lead. A good stealing in midfield sets up Mashashi Agoro (ph). He rounds the keeper like he wasn't there. That's 2-0 Japan. In stoppage time, things got a bit testy. North Korea's Kim Yong Tsu (ph) player picked up a red card for kicking Japan's Nakamokoto (ph). After all the argy-bargy (ph), it remained 2-0 Japan.

Some of the Japanese fans who traveled to Bangkok for the game cheered their side from a ballroom of the hotel across the street, from the venue, while a small group of fans also lent their support from outside the stadium gates, doing their best to conjure up some atmosphere. And while cheers were not heard by the players, the good karma maybe had an influence, as the victory put Japan into next year's World Cup finals in Germany.

Japan's group B rivals, Iran, could also make the final Wednesday by claiming at least a draw at home to Bahrain, and they did one better than that. A second-half goal earning them a one-nil win in Tehran and a ticket to the finals.

Finally to baseball, and a rematch of last year's World Series, which saw the Boston Red Sox score a historic victory over the St. Louis Cardinals. Tuesday night they met in a regular season game in St. Louis, which was equally competitive, if a bit wild. Larry walker getting hit from the pitch by John Halema (ph) before Jason Varitek took one for the team after an Al Reyes pitch. So it continued. Mark Grugelama (ph) taking a whack from the pitch by Matt Metai (ph). And for some reason, Cards manager Tony La Russa decided that warranted a souvenir. The final score came in the bottom of the seventh, when Larry Walker was hit again, this time by Metai, for which the Sox picture was ejected. For the record, 9-2 Cards. It ended. And that's the sport for now.

CLANCY: It would appear they had a little trouble controlling the ball.

BADDOO: Indeed they did.

CLANCY: Terry Baddoo, thank you for that.

VERJEE: Thank you.

(WEATHER REPORT)

VERJEE: More news straight ahead. I'm Zain Verjee.

CLANCY: I'm Jim Clancy, and this is CNN.

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