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American Morning

Fragging Charge in Iraq; Al Qaeda Commander Arrested; See Ya Bill

Aired June 17, 2005 - 09:30   ET

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

BILL HEMMER, CNN ANCHOR: 30 more minutes of Hemmer time. Good morning, and welcome back. One of al Qaeda's...
SOLEDAD O'BRIEN: Oh, they didn't tell you? Post-tapes only.

HEMMER: Oh, really? Honest?

O'BRIEN: No, I'm joking you.

HEMMER: One of al Qaeda's top commanders in Iraq has been arrested. We talked about that story yesterday.

O'BRIEN: Yes, we did. In fact, we're talking to CNN's senior editor for Arab affairs about that and two more insurgents groups that she says could even be more dangerous in Iraq.

HEMMER: So we'll get to the that story in a moment. First the headlines and back to Carol Costello for those now. Hey, Carol.

CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning. Good morning, everyone. "Now in the News," earthquake-weary Californians ride out another one. A quake registered at about 6.6 came late last night off the coast of Northern California, about 125 miles west of Eureka. Earlier in the day, a smaller quake rattled Southern California. It registered about 4.9, just enough to knock things around. There have been four quakes since Sunday in California.

Police if San Jose, California, are trying to sort out what they call a quote, horrendous case of serial child molestation. 64-year- old Dean Schwartzmiller is being held on bail on two counts of abuses against children under 14. But police say they found information possibly linking him to more than 36,000 suspected molestations. Police are asking people to come forward with information on potential victims.

U.S. Marines say they killed 30 suspected insurgents at a new effort in western Iraq. The mission, dubbed Operation Spear, aims to root out an insurgent stronghold in the town of near the Syrian border. Also this morning, a car bomb explosion outside of a Shiite mosque in Baghdad. At least three people were wounded.

Edgar Ray Killen, back in court this morning in Mississippi. The 80-year-old former Klansman arriving at the courthouse a few minutes ago. Killen was rushed to the hospital in the middle of testimony on Thursday, complaining of chest pains and a headache. He was treated for high blood pressure. Killen is on trial for the 1964 killings of three civil rights workers. And on a much lighter note, in case you haven't heard, Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes, getting married.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TOM CRUISE, ACTOR: ... here in France because it's beautiful and it's romantic and, yes, I proposed to Kate last night.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: He did, indeed. Cruise says he popped the question early this morning, right at the top of the Eiffel Tower. Both are in Paris while he promotes his upcoming movie "War of the Worlds." And his movie's coming out. Her movie is just coming out this weekend. So what an opportune time to announce -- I'm being cynical, but...

O'BRIEN: I'm shocked, Carol! You're being cynical about this. The happy couple...

HEMMER: You know, you can go online and get them a gift for the bridal registry now, if you want.

O'BRIEN: Really?

COSTELLO: Really? I'm going to go right now.

HEMMER: One nice, big, fat toaster.

COSTELLO: I'm sure they'd love that.

HEMMER: Love, Carol. Thanks, Carol. See you later.

32 minutes now past the hour. For the first time during combat in Iraq, an American soldier is now charged with murdering two of his commanding officers. Kathleen Koch's at the Pentagon there. Kathleen, good morning. What do we know about this sergeant and the charges against him?

KATHLEEN KOCH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: The man's name is Alberto Martinez. He's 37 years old. He's a supply specialist from Troy, New York. And he's assigned to the 42nd infantry division in Tikrit. And what military officials in Baghdad tell CNN is that he has been charged with killing not only his commanding officer, but also the operations officer there at their base.

It was last week when authorities say that Captain Phillip Esposito and First Lieutenant Louis Allen were believed to have been killed by a murder round that struck the window -- they thought struck the window of the room that they were in. But then the Army launched a criminal investigation after it studied the blast pattern further and determined that it was inconsistent with a mortar attack. Army officials would not say just what type of weapon they believe the soldiers were killed with, nor would they discuss any possible motive.

Martinez' friends in New York were stunned to learn of the charges. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BARBARA PREBOSS, FAMILY FRIEND: It's a sad situation. I'm just in awe. What could ever cause a young man to want to take the lives of two of his comrades? It's -- I hope it isn't so.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KOCH: Martinez joined the New York National Guard in December 1990. He was deployed to Iraq with his unit in May of 2004. Right now, Bill, he's being held in a military confinement facility in Kuwait.

HEMMER: Kathleen, thanks for that. Kathleen Koch at the Pentagon -- Soledad.

O'BRIEN: Well, as U.S. forces step up operations against insurgents in Iraq, the military is announcing the capture of the key insurgent commander. His name is Abu Talha and he's described as the leader of al Qaeda in the northern city of Mosul. He's also described as a key associate of terror mastermind Abu Musab al Zarqawi.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BRIG. GEN. DONALD ALSTON, MULTINATIONAL FORCE: Talha has been one of Abu Musab al Zarqawi's most trusted operations agents in Iraq. This is a major defeat for the al Qaeda terrorist organization in Iraq. Zarqawi's leader in Mosul is out of business.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

O'BRIEN: CNN senior editor for Arab affairs, Octavia Nasr, is at the CNN Center in Atlanta this morning. Octavia, thanks for talking with us. You know, you hear, it seems, about the arrest of these top Zarqawi deputies almost all the time, or pretty frequently. You almost need like a deck of cards like they had for Saddam's honchos. Give me a sense of the hierarchy of all of these arrests?

OCTAVIA NASR, CNN SR. EDITOR, ARAB AFFAIRS: Well, it's very interesting, because this Talha person we never heard of before. You know, we monitor these Web sites, these Islamist Web sites, all the time. There are claims of responsibility from al Qaeda in Iraq. There are also statements almost on a daily basis of certain attacks that they carried out all over Iraq. We've never have heard of this man before.

Now, the al Qaeda in Iraq group, the Zarqawi group, has issued a statement back on the 27th of last month. Basically, if you remember, that's when there were rumors about Zarqawi having been injured, maybe killed, and so forth.

But basically, this is what the statement said. It said, "The Americans keep making stories up about arresting Zarqawi's deputies and lieutenants. Anyone's who followed our news and our statements knows that the Sheikh Abu Musab has always had only had one deputy and his name is Abu Haad Dirachned el Arati (ph)." So basically they're saying that only when this person is arrested do we know that a deputy was arrested or when Zarqawi himself is arrested.

Now, the other side of the story is that Mosul is not necessarily a hub for the al Qaeda in Iraq group. When you look at their statements, their claims of responsibility, their cities are elsewhere, Ramadi, Falluja and elsewhere, not Mosul.

O'BRIEN: Octavia -- sorry, we had a little audio glitch there. Question for you. You said that there are other insurgents groups as well. The two that are even more dangerous. Is it they're more dangerous because they're more organized?

NASR: Yes, more organized and especially when we talk about Mosul, for example. There's this group called Jaysh Alsar al Sunna (ph). This is a group that seems to be operating in the northern part of Iraq. Terror experts tell us that this is the old group that was called Ansar al Islam. You may remember when the war began in Iraq, the U.S. bombed a terror camp, a training camp, in the north, and it was the Ansar al Islam camp. And basically they were dispersed. Some believed that they went to Iran, regrouped, then came back into Iraq under the name of Jaysh Alsar al Sunna. (ph).

Now this is a group that has a Web site. They have a magazine. They're very organized in the sense that they document all their attacks, not just with dates and times and details, but also video. They've taken hostages, they've beheaded hostages, they've released hostages. They are in the business of insurgency, big time.

Another group is Jaysh -- el Jaysh Islami (ph) in Iraq, the Islamic army in Iraq. And basically this is another known group that's taken hostages. They're very exposed. They're out there. They have video of their own, with their logos and so forth. When you compare these two groups to al Qaeda and Iraq, al Qaeda in Iraq doesn't even measure up when it comes to the media campaign, the propaganda and so forth - Soledad.

O'BRIEN: So all of these groups, outside of the fact that they all hate the U.S. and all hate Americans, are they linked?

NASR: Well, the Sunni, for one. They are -- they say that they're fighting the occupier in Iraq. They want the occupation to end in Iraq. Linked in this sense, as you said, their hatred for American, everything American. They believe that they are fighting the right -- the rightful fight.

Other than that, they have nothing in common, really. And it's interesting because, again, terror experts tell us that the insurgency has become a business in Iraq. So when you say how many insurgent groups, for example, there are hundreds, literally. We monitor them on a daily basis through the Internet, through their activities.

And some of them have been in the business of just taking hostages and asking for ransom, to release them. Others are in the business of just planting bombs here and there. When you look at the names, they're just names. They're faceless names of insurgency. The only group that has a name attached to it seems to be this Zarqawi group. O'BRIEN: CNN senior editor for Arab affairs, Octavia Nasr, joining us. Thanks, Octavia. Appreciate it -- Bill.

HEMMER: 21 minutes before the hour.

Breaking news on this developing story out of Aruba. CNN now confirming authorities in that island country now have arrested a fourth male, a fourth male in connection with the disappearance of Natalee Holloway, the missing Alabama teenager who turned up missing back on the 30th of May.

No identification given for this man, but apparently this individual was born. We have his birth date, July 21, 1978, but nothing outside of that. Again, a fourth arrest has been made in the case of missing teenager Natalee Holloway. More from Aruba when we get it on this story.

Also, believe it or not, it is snowing in California. On the calendar, it is June 17th. One inch has fallen and it's still counting.

Naj Alikhan from our affiliate WKMAX is in Donner Summit, just east of Sacramento. What's happening out there? Good morning.

NAJ ALIKHAN, WKMAX REPORTER: Yes. Good morning to you, Bill.

It is an absolutely miserable day in the middle of June, where it looks a lot more like Christmas out here. I'm going to have my partner Dave McCain (ph) move the camera around to just show you a little bit about what we're dealing with here.

About an inch of snow is on the ground. Most of it fell last night and into early this morning. We are dealing with at this point mostly sleet that is falling, as well some very strong winds, between 15 and 20 miles an hour, that's making it a little bit difficult for us to be able it deal with these outdoor conditions. We will tell you the good news is that the Caltran transportation crews have been able to keep the roads fairly clear, because most of this snow is actually melting the second it hits the ground. So good driving conditions at this point. No chain requirements in this area.

But, yes, this is something unbelievable that people in California don't see, and that is snow in the middle of June. Now, we've had a lot of snow throughout the winter and into the early spring, one of best ski seasons ever. But middle of June? Again, it looks a lot more like Christmas out here than it is the middle of June.

Live this morning at Donner Summit, California, I'm Naj Alikhan.

Back to you.

HEMMER: Hey, Naj, what's the altitude at Donner Pass there?

ALIKHAN: Sorry? go ahead?

HEMMER: What's the altitude where you are?

ALIKHAN: I'm sorry, Bill. We're losing...

HEMMER: All right, no problem.

(WEATHER REPORT)

HEMMER: Back in a moment here on AMERICAN MORNING.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

O'BRIEN: Remember all of the fanfare earlier in the year about delta airlines cutting fares? Well, guess what? All bets are off. With that story, plus a check of Wall Street this morning, Gerri Willis in for Andy Serwer. She's "Minding Your Business."

Good morning.

GERRI WILLIS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Soledad.

Let's start with those markets. It's looking pretty good this morning, I got to tell you. We are up 47 on the Dow right now, as you can see here. And if this continue today, Soledad, we'll have seven days in a row of positive finishes. So that's good news for a sultry summer.

O'BRIEN: Yes, sure is. OK, what other news do you have? Delta?

WILLIS: Delta. OK...

O'BRIEN: Now moving in to the bad news.

WILLIS: Remember simple fares. They had this, like, really cute little marketing gimmick going on. Not so much? Call it complicated fares. They're raising some fares in some cities, that's what's going on, after announcing they would cut them by at much as 50 percent. Delta is saying they're not going back on their word. That in fact they never said that it would apply to (INAUDIBLE) fares. So, they are saying that, you know, we're keeping our word, we're doing what we said. But let me tell you, if you're out there looking for a fare, you may be paying more.

O'BRIEN: All right, Gerri, thanks very much -- Bill.

HEMMER: All right, Soledad, checking in with Daryn Kagan right now at the CNN Center.

What you working on there, Daryn? Good morning.

DARYN KAGAN, CNN ANCHOR: Bill, we have quite a bit. At the top of the hour, a financial Father's Day. It's our top five tips on how dads can raise money-savvy kids.

Also, find out why some couples are traveling halfway around the world to have a baby. And then, there's this. Bill...

HEMMER: What year was that?

KAGAN: '97-98.

HEMMER: Oh, my gosh.

KAGAN: Yes. So I just want you to know, you're going to go on and go be some superstar somewhere, but I have the pictures, and I'm going to keep them.

HEMMER: And I clearly needed a haircut. Sweet, Daryn. Thirteen more minutes of me. I'll talk to you later, OK.

KAGAN: Yes, talk to you, too.

HEMMER: In a moment, young doctors get an important education in caring.

KAGAN: It's a little bit overwhelming just to sit there and kind of, you know, think about everything that these parents go through.

HEMMER: Today, meet a mother who does not need a medical degree to make sure that families with chronically ill children get the support they so desperately need. "Extra Effort" is ahead on AMERICAN MORNING.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

O'BRIEN: Welcome back, everybody. We've got some breaking news out of Aruba. There has been a new arrest in the case of the missing teenager, Natalee Holloway.

Let's get right to Karl Penhaul. He is live on the phone for us from Aruba this morning.

Karl, what can you tell us about this fourth person who's now been arrested?

KARL PENHAUL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Soledad, all prosecutors so far have been able to tell us is the initials of the male that has been arrested are SGC. They tell us that his date of birth is July 21, 1978. That makes him 26 years old, and the oldest of the four suspects now in custody in connection with the disappearance of Natalee Holloway -- Soledad.

O'BRIEN: In this case, as you well know, since you've been covering it from the very beginning, we've just getting been little bits of information, and many people say that's because, of course, the legal system in Aruba is very different from what we have here in the U.S. When do we expect to know more about this person whose initial are SGC, and why just release the initials and not go ahead and just tell us who it is?

PENHAUL: SGC, just the initials. That is in accordance with Dutch law. So far, we've been finding out full names of the suspects through defense attorneys once they've bee appointed. So that could be the opportunity to find out a little bit more, when we know who his defense attorney is. Obviously, during the course of the day we will be working to find out when the arrest occurred. We understand it was around 6:25 this morning, but also a little more about what has led police to this fourth suspect -- Soledad.

O'BRIEN: Are prosecutors saying anything about potential links to the three others who are in custody right no?

PENHAUL: No. So far, they've given us no more information about this suspect. One would assume that since the other three suspects have been under intense interrogation more than a week now, this is a name that has come forth in that interrogation.

But right now, this fourth suspect will be under a six-hour custody, and probably later in the day prosecutors will have to make a petition to the court to keep this man in custody for two days, to pursue further interrogations. After which he could face another eight days in custody while those investigations continue -- Soledad.

O'BRIEN: Karl Penhaul for us, reporting live from Aruba. Karl, thanks -- Bill.

HEMMER: News that a child can be sick is devastating and a blow to parents and families. And for those facing chronic illness, the strains can last indefinitely. In this week's "Extra Effort" segment, one family that has turned their own challenges into helping others.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MISSY MILLER, PROJECT DOCC: Dancy dance!

HEMMER (voice-over): Missy Miller doesn't have a medical degree, but doctors come to her to learn how she cares for her 5-year-old son Oliver.

MILLER: Whoops! You got to breathe, too. When you dance, you have to breathe.

HEMMER: Oliver had a stroke when Missy was seven months pregnant with him. It left Oliver with a host of physical problems and the need for round-the-clock care. It is intensity of Oliver's needs and the impact on the Miller family that Missy shares with these visiting medical residents.

MILLER: He can get up if he wants to. He can fling back if he wants to.

HEMMER: Missy is a member of Project DOCC. That stands for Delivery of Chronic Care. For the past decade, Project DOCC parents have taken precious time away from caring for their own sick children to show young doctors how they live.

MILLER: We were hoping if we could catch them in training, they would be more willing to partner with us and respect our opinion as much as we respect theirs.

HEMMER: The program aims to make doctors better aware of the realities that families face in caring for chronically ill children.

MILLER: It gives them firsthand look into what the life of a child with special health care needs what it's like, true look, not what they see in the hospital.

HEMMER: The residents hear about daily challenges, like finding enough nursing help and critical questions, like when to rush Oliver to the hospital.

DR. HELEN CHEUNG, MEDICAL RESIDENT: It's a little bit overwhelming, just to sit there and kind of, you know, think about everything that these parents go through.

DR. MEREDITH SLUTZAH, MEDICAL RESIDENT: When they're late for an appointment, we're not really annoyed at that. We understand why. It's hard to get them out of the house. We see that there's all this equipment that needs to come with them.

HEMMER: Advances in medicine mean children now have better chances of surviving serious illness, but they require continuous care. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that seven percent of U.S. children, more than five million, have some kind of fit limitation based on a chronic illness. Over the past 11 years, Project DOCC has spread its message to 20 medical institutions.

MAGGIE HOFFMAN, PROJECT DOCC: We want doctors to help families like ours in the community. We want help getting our kids to school. We want to make sure that our children aren't in pain.

HEMMER: Missy Miller says these doctors are getting that message, and that training the next generation of young residents will benefit other children, like her son, Oliver.

MILLER: They can make a huge difference in our lives, and that's what I'm hoping that they see.

Where's your ear? There's your ear! Where's your eyes?

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HEMMER: And we'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BILL HEMMER, CNN ANCHOR: I think viewers will find that it can be somewhat entertaining.

He makes me so nervous.

I'm just so big old ugly guy.

I can't believe this stuff.

Let's start from the beginning. Three, two and one.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And action.

O'BRIEN: I'm Soledad O'Brien.

HEMMER: And I'm Bill Hemmer. Join us for AMERICAN MORNING starting this Monday.

How long do you believe this war will last?

The casualties, frankly, staggering.

Seven people, women and children, were gunned down in Najaf.

The storms will intensify throughout the afternoon.

What was that Iraqi missile aimed at here in Kuwait?

You say when the shark attacked you, how long do you think that lasted?

When do you see that gator?

(SINGING)

O'BRIEN: That's like white-girl-supermodel rap.

HEMMER: Rome officials say five million will pass through the Vatican over this week's time.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's incredible.

The lines are growing thin today, and by tomorrow, Friday, this river of humanity will run dry.

Two very special Americans in St. Peter's. Say good morning to Mr. and Mrs. Hemmer. I call them mom and dad. How are you guy's doing?

Today's presidential state funeral for Ronald Reagan will feature all the ceremonies we've seen that Washington can muster together.

What is the key issue that wins in November.

JOHN KERRY, FMR. PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Security.

HEMMER: You laugh. That's fine. That's fair.

Reverend Al Sharpton is our guest now here.

The former Mayor Rudolph Giuliani.

Say hello to Vanessa and Alex Kerry, along with Kris and Andre Heinz.

You know, you come up to Boston and ...

JON STEWART: I'm sorry. I'm sorry. I'm getting a call. Yes, Time-Life Books.

HEMMER: We're heading east into Baghdad right now. See the former Iraqi military factory now used by the Americans.

What is their intention and purpose there in Haiti?

We are only minutes away from getting a better look at Ivan's destruction.

You know, for 67 million years young, she looks pretty good, don't you think?

Why would you advise the president of the United States to fly into what is considered to be probably the most dangerous place on the planet today?

The entire election hinges now on the 25 electoral votes that will come out of Florida.

Let me know where I stand from the stars. I want you. I need you.

(SINGING)

HEMMER: Yeah!

UNIDENTIFIED MALE (singing): Honey's sweet, but it ain't nothing next to baby's treat. If you pardon me, I'd like to stay, we'd do OK, forever in blue jeans. Baby, tonight, baby, tonight, by the fire, all alone, you and I.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HEMMER: Nice touch.

O'BRIEN: Oh, we're going to miss you!

(APPLAUSE)

HEMMER: Very, very touching. Epivas (ph) had a major hand in that. And thanks to Efa (ph) for that. The first time I've seen that, actually.

COSTELLO: That was awesome.

HEMMER: Oh, come on, now. I don't like goodbyes. I prefers see you laters. And there are many wonderful people, so many wonderful people who work at this network, colleagues who have become friends over the years. And I want to thank them for their friendship, and their intelligence, and their sense of humor.

Ten years is a good chunk of anyone's life. And to each and every one of you, thank you for making it so challenging. So enjoyable. If I haven't returned the hundreds of e-mails, the phone calls lately, I apologize. Got a few things going on lately. But know that I appreciate every single word.

I'm a big believer of new beginnings and this is one of them. And I've had a few of these in my time. Thirteen years ago I left my reporter's job in Cincinnati to backpack around the world for a year. I'm not going that far this time. But here's to that new beginning in all of us.

As Bruce Springsteen is so fond of singing "I'll meet you further on up the road." And we will. Until then, see you later.

Thanks to you, guys.

O'BRIEN: We're going to miss you. Oh!

HEMMER: You know, give me a whole box of tissues. I like this. Thanks for being so sweet and so special. I tell you, I'm like a fourth-grader in May.

CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Hey, Bill.

HEMMER: I'm staring out the window, I'm seeing blue skies, Chad, and I see green grass and I can't wait to get out there.

What's up?

MYERS: You know what's happening in September, Bill, right? The hurricane season really gets going. There's a bar in Melbourne, Florida, called On Tap. I owe you a Stella. I'll meet you there, bud.

HEMMER: Nice. I'll take you up on that, Chad.

MYERS: All right.

HEMMER: I'll take you up on that, Chad. Thank you very much. And my best to you as well. Thanks for being such a good pal for so long.

MYERS: It;s been great fun.

O'BRIEN: Want to do the last toss?

HEMMER: Yes, I certainly will.

We've got to go?

O'BRIEN: We got to go.

HEMMER: Really? Come on.

COSTELLO: Hey, we got a party planned for you.

O'BRIEN: Exactly. We've got get to your party. Come on.

HEMMER: Here's Daryn Kagan, also a very good friend for so long, too.

Hey, Daryn, it's all yours.

DARYN KAGAN, CNN ANCHOR: Bill, the one question that has not been answered in 10 years on the air, that I'm going it just -- I'm going to go for it. America wants to know, that is his real hair.

HEMMER: Give it a good tug there, Soledad.

O'BRIEN: I can vouch for that.

HEMMER: And the glasses are real, too.

KAGAN: And the glasses are real too.

HEMMER: I'm thinking lasik real soon.

KAGAN: OK. And the heart is real, too. We'll talk to you soon.

HEMMER: Oh, sweet. See you, Daryn. Thanks.

KAGAN: All right. Thank you, Bill.

HEMMER: Ciao.

KAGAN: Good friend and a really, really good guy.

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