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CNN Live At Daybreak

Sharon-Abbas Talks; Update on Natalee Holloway Investigation; Saddam's Guards

Aired June 21, 2005 - 05:00   ET

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

KELLY WALLACE, CNN ANCHOR: It is Tuesday, June 21. A historic meeting today between Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas. They agreed to a truce in February, but can they overcome years of tit-for-tat violence? Abbas and Sharon open a summit four hours from now.
Plus, a bombing in Beirut. Is it a message for the anti-Syrian factions?

And into the wilderness. The frantic search for a Boy Scout missing in the mountains of Utah.

ANNOUNCER: From the Time Warner Center in New York, this is DAYBREAK with Carol Costello and Chad Myers.

WALLACE: Good Tuesday morning to you. I'm Kelly Wallace, in today for Carol Costello. Thanks for waking up with us.

We will have more on the Sharon-Abbas summit in a moment. Also ahead, they are still looking for Natalee Holloway. Now a search and rescue team from Texas is heading to Aruba. We'll bring you the latest.

And later, forget about China or India. Vietnam is a hotspot for outsourcing. An update from Hi Chi Minh City.

But first, "Now in the News."

A car bombing in Beirut kills a former communist party official this morning. He was known as a harsh anti-Syria politician. The blast coming a day after an opposition leader's anti-Syrian camp declared victory in Lebanon's parliamentary elections.

In Detroit, a spectacular fire burning six hours now. The building appears to be one of the plants where the Studebaker auto was produced. At one point, the fire threatened the building where the Ford Model T was built.

A sign of the times. Vietnam's prime minister will meet with President Bush at the White House this morning. The visit marks a decade of normalized relations between the one-time enemies.

And the jury in the Mississippi civil rights murders returns for deliberations today. After two hours of talking yesterday, jurors told the judge they were deadlocked. But the judge told them to give it another try. Today is the 41st anniversary of the murders of the three civil rights workers.

And remember, you can view more CNN reports online. Just visit CNN.com and click on "Watch" to check out the most popular stories in a range of categories, like politics, sports and entertainment, and, of course, weather.

To Chad Myers in Atlanta.

Chad, wonderful to see you this morning.

CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Good morning, Kelly. Nice for you to be here with us this morning. I didn't expect it.

WALLACE: Surprise, surprise.

MYERS: But nice to hear your voice. It's like, who's voice is that I'm hearing?

WALLACE: Matching the person with the voice, right?

MYERS: Yes, exactly. Well, I can't see you for some -- like the first couple minutes I can't see you, but now I can.

Hey, good morning, everybody.

(WEATHER REPORT)

WALLACE: All right, Chad. We'll talk to you in a few minutes. Thanks so much.

Now to war and peace in the Middle East. Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon is welcoming Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas to his home in Jerusalem today, but those talks may be overshadowed by new fatal attacks between the two sides.

Live to Jerusalem now, and CNN's Guy Raz.

Guy, what is the mood of both sides going into this summit meeting?

GUY RAZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Kelly, this is a key logistics meeting above anything else. It's not likely that it will herald any major breakthroughs in advancing the U.S.-backed roadmap for peace. These talks will focus primarily on Israel's upcoming withdrawal from the occupied Gaza Strip, the disengagement plan.

Nevertheless, a spate of violent incidents in the occupied territories over the past few days is likely to overshadow today's meeting.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

RAZ (voice-over): This bomb wasn't meant to be safely detonated by an Israeli explosives team. The intended destination: a hospital. A 21-year-old would-be suicide bomber from Gaza planned to set off the explosive inside an Israeli medical center where she was scheduled to receive treatment by Israeli doctors.

Hours before, the blood-stained stretcher carrying the body of 17-year-old Ihab al-Nabayhan (ph) was paraded through the streets of Gaza. The boy was shot dead by Israeli soldiers after he tried to climb the fence in a no-go zone separating Israel and Gaza. Israel says the boy ignored warning shots and orders shouted over a loudspeaker, but his family says al-Nabayhan (ph) was unarmed and tried crossing the fence in hopes of finding work in Israel.

Around the same time, gunmen from the armed Palestinian militia, Islamic Jihad, opened fire on this Israeli car driving along a West Bank road. Twenty-eight-year-old Yibdeni Rider (ph) was killed instantly. His 15-year-old passenger was hurt. The men were driving to work.

So, in the corridors of power in Israel, and also in the West Bank, both Palestinian and Israeli officials tried to put on a brave face.

NASSER AL-KIDWA, PALESTINIAN FOREIGN MINISTER (through translator): We hope that the latest incidents won't affect the meeting between President Abbas and Prime Minister Sharon.

RAZ: The two leaders are set to hold bilateral talks late on Tuesday, four months since they last met in Egypt. Talks will focus on Israel's upcoming plan to evacuate its settlers and soldiers from the occupied Gaza Strip. A plan U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice called the best hope for re-energizing the U.S.-backed roadmap for peace.

Israel originally intended to pull out from Gaza without consulting the Palestinian Authority. That position has changed, but the Israeli prime minister is already setting conditions for future cooperation with his Palestinian counterparts.

ARIEL SHARON, ISRAELI PRIME MINISTER (through translator): That the Palestinians stop the terror, violence, and incitement, dismantle the terror organizations, collect weapons and implement the needed reforms.

RAZ: It's a tall order for the embattled Palestinian president. For the time being, he wants to coopt militants, unify them under one security apparatus.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

RAZ: And Kelly, Mahmoud Abbas has his own priorities he'd like to discuss with Ariel Sharon. The Palestinian leader wants to make sure that Gaza isn't the last time these two sides come together to negotiate an Israeli withdrawal from occupied areas -- Kelly.

WALLACE: Guy, thanks. We'll be watching your reports throughout the day on CNN. Guy Raz reporting from Jerusalem.

And Islamic Jihad is calling on the Palestinian leader to cancel that summit that we were talking about with Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon. This in response to an overnight raid in which Israeli forces rounded up some 52 suspected members of Islamic Jihad. It was the biggest sweep against wanted militants since Abbas and Sharon declared a truce at their previous meeting four months ago.

Meanwhile, in another development, the State Department is relaxing travel restrictions in the West Bank for U.S. government employees. But their visits are restricted to official operational means only. Personal travel to towns and settlements in the West Bank remain off limits for U.S. government workers and their family members.

Turning now to the search for Alabama teenager Natalee Holloway in Aruba. A Texas company is sending a search and rescue team to Aruba today to help look for Natalee Holloway. The 17-member team will use dogs and sonar equipment in the search. Holloway's family asked the company to help.

Meanwhile, a fourth person detained in connection with Holloway's disappearance has gone before a judge. CNN's Karl Penhaul has more on the investigation.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

KARL PENHAUL, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Suspect Steve Croes covers his face with cuffed hands as police bring him to court. On a judge's orders, he'll be kept in jail for the time being while prosecutors investigate his links, if any, with Natalee Holloway's disappearance.

His ex-wife, Janet Croes, waits with their 3-year-old son, little Steve. She's anxious but convinced he's innocent.

JANET CROES, SUSPECT'S EX-WIFE (through translator): He's a charming person, a very good father and very hard working. I'm 100 percent sure he's not involved in this case.

PENHAUL: Croes was arrested Friday. He's the DJ on this party boat. His boss says he's an able seaman, too, but declined to tell CNN whether the vessel was at sea the night Natalee vanished.

Investigators will not detail how they think Croes may be tied to three other suspects in this case. Chief prosecutor Caren Janssen was keeping mum as she left the court.

CAREN JANSSEN, CHIEF PROSECUTOR: I'm sorry. I can't tell you.

PENHAUL: Seventeen-year-old Joran Van Der Sloot, Satish Kalpoe, 18, and his brother Deepak, 21, have not been charged with anything, but under Dutch law, the prosecutor has accused them of murder one, murder two and kidnapping leading to death, to hold them in jail. They were the last people known to have seen Natalee. There's still no conclusive evidence whether Natalee is alive or dead.

Over the weekend, police questioned Paul Van Der Sloot, a judge and father of suspect Joran Van Der Sloot. Police say they regard him as a possible witness, not a suspect. As he left the police station in downtown Oranjestad, Judge Van Der Sloot was in no mood to talk publicly about what he knows. But Natalee's stepfather, George Twitty, is demanding answers.

GEORGE TWITTY, NATALEE HOLLOWAY'S STEPFATHER: I've met him. I met him the night I got here. I got here, you know, 12 hours after it happened, and the guy's -- he's sickening to me.

He's a chicken. You can tell -- why is he running this morning on TV? If he has nothing to hide, why's he running to his car? He's -- he makes my stomach turn.

PENHAUL: It's three weeks since Natalee disappeared, and her parents say they will not leave Aruba until they find out what happened to their daughter.

Karl Penhaul, CNN, Palm Beach, Aruba.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WALLACE: News "Across America" now.

Amazing pictures of that huge fire in Detroit. It's a building close to 100 years old and one of the original plants where the Studebaker auto was produced. At one point, that fire threatening the plant where Henry Ford began building the Model T. The building takes up a city block in the Motor City.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TYRONE SCOTT, DETROIT FIRE COMMISSIONER: We do have it under control. It's not spreading, but there's a considerable amount of rubble from the collapsed portions of the building that we're going to have to work on for I would suspect several days.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WALLACE: And that fire drew so many spectators that police had to put up roadblocks around the area.

Police shot and killed a man carrying a hand grenade at the federal courthouse in Seattle. The bomb squad later determined that the grenade was a dummy. The unidentified man was also carrying a living will. Local reports say the man was already under investigation by the FBI for making threats against a judge.

More strife between Terri Schiavo's husband and her parents. Michael Schiavo had his wife's ashes buried in a Clearwater, Florida, cemetery. Terri's parents did not attend because they say they weren't notified in advance. Michael Schiavo had the words "I kept my promise" inscribed on the grave marker. The marker also says she "departed this Earth" in 1990 when she suffered massive brain damage.

And a settlement has been reached over the death of NASCAR legend Dale Earnhardt. His race team had sued Omaha Life Insurance Company after they refused -- the company refusing -- to pay out a $3.7 million life insurance policy. The insurance company said Earnhardt didn't take the required physical before his death more than four years ago.

Well, here's an issue for you. If you flew on a commercial airliner last June, the government may have collected personal data on you. TSA says it used data brokers to gather and store detailed personal information on passengers. Officials say the material was used to test a new screening program called Secure Flight.

Under the program, the TSA compared passengers names with terrorist watch lists. TSA insists the data collected did not compromise passenger privacy, but privacy advocates are crying foul.

Chad, you can imagine this is an issue that is going to stir a lot of passions on this day.

MYERS: It is. And I want you to do me a favor out there. I want you to go to CNN.com/travel and click on "More News." And right there you'll find the entire story.

I want you to read the whole story, and I want you to give me your opinion. Secure Flight, invasion of privacy, or is it just protection from terrorists? Where and how far can they all go to keep us safe? I want to know.

Go to DAYBREAK@CNN.com and email us your opinions this morning -- Kelly.

WALLACE: It's important, Chad, to have them read it, because it is complicated.

MYERS: It is very complicated.

WALLACE: And they need to understand exactly what the government is trying to do here.

MYERS: I went to three different Web sites this morning trying to get the real story, trying to get the whole story. And it's just so convoluted. It's black and it's white and it's this and it's that.

So you've got to kind of come down the middle and find the gray area, find the reality, and tell me what you think.

WALLACE: All right. Looking forward to those emails. Thanks, Chad.

MYERS: You bet.

WALLACE: Still to come here on DAYBREAK, the guards watching Saddam Hussein are sharing details of the former dictator's life behind bars. Things like how neat he likes his surroundings and what his favorite junk food is. That's right. More coming up.

And a little later, Vietnam is positioning itself to become the next hotspot for outsourcing. We'll look at why.

And a unique perspective on Tom Cruise's red carpet squirt as told by CNN's Jeanne Moos.

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

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WALLACE: And now a brief look at the markets. The international markets are in positive territory this morning.

Japan's Nikkei closing up five points. Britain's FTSE is up almost 17 points. And the German DAX is up nearly 24 points.

Your news, money, weather and sports. It's just about 18 minutes after the hour, and here's what's all new this morning.

Senate Democrats have blocked John Bolton's confirmation as U.N. ambassador for a second time. The Senate fell six votes shy of the number needed to cut off debate on his nomination. Democrats say they won't budge until the White House provides documents that they have requested.

American Indians have offered to settle a lawsuit against the government for $27.5 billion. A group sued the Interior Department in 1996, accusing it of mismanaging oil, timber and other royalties from Indian land for more than a century. A federal judge has scolded the government for not determining what the Indians are owed.

In money, the founder of Adelphia Communications is sentenced to 15 years in prison. His son sentenced to 20. Both were convicted almost a year ago of fraud and conspiracy. The fraud led to the collapse of the cable company.

In culture, an auction of John Lennon memorabilia will take place in London next month. Among the items up for bid will be a bedspread from Lennon's famous bed-in for peace with his wife, Yoko Ono. Organizers expect to raise about $2 million.

In sports, Wimbledon is under way. Yippee. We are happy about that.

Top seed Roger Federer easily won his first round match in straight sets. The same can be said for number three seed, Lleyton Hewitt. Hewitt and Federer have combined to win the last three Wimbledon titles.

Chad, I always love this time of year.

MYERS: Yes. I can't believe they play on grass. That's something else, you know? My grass is so bumpy you couldn't get a true bounce.

(WEATHER REPORT)

MYERS: Thanks, Chad. Talk to you in a few minutes.

Well, turning now to Saddam Hussein. For decades, the Iraqi dictator was a feared man, a dictator, a man who tortured his own people. Well, now we're getting a glimpse of what life is like in prison for the former Iraqi president.

Some Pennsylvania National Guardsmen assigned to watch his every move are telling an incredible story. CNN's Paula Zahn spoke with one of them about how Saddam Hussein reacted to them.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JONATHAN PACO REESE, PENNSYLVANIA ARMY NATIONAL GUARD: He was really, really nice about it. You know, it's kind of hard to believe that here's this man who gassed his own people, as you said, and here he is, you know, shaking your hand, saying, "It's nice to meet you," hand over his heart.

And he would do that also when you were leaving. He showed a lot of respect. And it was just kind of hard to believe.

Just, here we have this image in our minds before we met him that he's this evil man. You're thinking, OK, this guy is just going to like be totally, totally arrogant, but he really wasn't.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WALLACE: The former Iraqi president is a clean freak and worries a lot about germs. They say he loves Doritos and Cheetos, hates Froot Loops. And likes to give advice, especially about girls.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SPEC. SEAN O'SHEA, PENNSYLVANIA NATIONAL GUARDSMAN: He asked me if I was married. And I said, "No."

And he said, "Well, here's what you have to do." He said, "You have to find a woman," he said, "not too smart, not too dumb." He said, "In the middle." He said, "One that can cook and clean for you," and like -- and that's about it.

But it was so funny just like hearing like a 67-year-old evil dictator giving me advice on women.

PAULA ZAHN, "PAULA ZAHN NOW": So are you going to take his advice?

O'SHEA: I don't think so. I think I'll be all right on my own.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WALLACE: And you can hear more of this incredible story from the two Guardsmen on CNN's "AMERICAN MORNING" beginning at 7:00 a.m. Eastern.

Americans becoming increasingly opposed to the war in Iraq. A new CNN-"USA Today"-Gallup poll shows close to 60 percent say they are against the war. That is up from 47 percent back in March. The poll indicates nearly 40 percent of Americans favor the war in Iraq. That is down eight percentage points from March and down 32 percent from 2003, when the war started.

Well, still to come on this Tuesday morning, the search for a missing Cub Scout loses steam. And authorities begin a new approach in hopes of uncovering clues. The latest developments just ahead.

You are watching DAYBREAK for Tuesday, June 21. Don't go away.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

MYERS: Our "Question of the Day," Secure Flight, do you know what it is? Go to CNN.com/travel on "More News." It's all about the TSA getting some information on you.

Was it an invasion of privacy or protection from terrorists? We want to know what you think. Got a couple of great emails so far. We'll read them in a few minutes.

Kelly, this is going to be a good one for the rest of the day, I think.

WALLACE: I know. When I saw that story and our colleagues decided to make this a question, we knew we were going to get some heated responses.

Chad, though, time to lighten things up a little bit, right?

MYERS: OK, yes.

WALLACE: You knew the late-night comics were going to talk about Saddam Hussein, right?

MYERS: Of course.

WALLACE: Loving Doritos, hating Froot Loops, giving advice on girls. All right. Take a listen to what was said last night.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DAVID LETTERMAN, "THE LATE SHOW": You know they're getting closer and closer to the trial for Saddam Hussein. And according to his prison guards hanging around Saddam Hussein, they say now that he is hooked on Cheetos and Doritos.

(LAUGHTER)

LETTERMAN: Saddam Hussein. And I'm thinking, well, we don't have to execute the guy. I mean, the cholesterol is going to kill him.

(APPLAUSE)

LETTERMAN: Yes, it's kind of a -- kind of a strange picture sitting around in his underwear eating Doritos, waiting for the day when he can return to power and -- no, wait a minute, that's Al Gore.

(END VIDEO CLIP) (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JAY LENO, "THE TONIGHT SHOW": There's like four earthquakes in a week. You think maybe this is god's way of saying he's not that happy with the Michael Jackson jury either?

(LAUGHTER)

LENO: And tomorrow at the White House, President Bush will meet with the first prime minister from Vietnam to visit the United States in 30 years. You know why he's coming here? It's a lot easier than trying to get Bush to go to Vietnam. We tried that.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WALLACE: They are funny. But I can't get over the Saddam Hussein story, Chad. And you must see this.

The "New York Post" today, "Chip Tator" the headline in the "New York Post," talking about Saddam Hussein's love of Doritos.

MYERS: Does it say what flavor he likes?

WALLACE: Oh, it says here I think it's ranch. I don't know...

MYERS: It looks like the blue -- the Cool Ranch, yes. It does.

WALLACE: I mean, Froot Loops and giving advice...

MYERS: Sitting around watching TV. It sounds like...

WALLACE: Incredible. Hard to believe.

MYERS: ... he's turning American.

WALLACE: Exactly. I like though, that Guardsman, when Paula Zahn asked him, "Are you going to take his advice about women?" He said, "No, no, no. I think I'll follow my own gut there."

MYERS: No. Good for him.

WALLACE: All right, Chad.

Time for our DAYBREAK "Eye Opener."

You are watching a world record in the making. This 95-year-old Japanese man set the 100-meter record for his age group. Look at him go. His time is just a shade over 22 seconds, which is two seconds faster than the previous record.

Chad, when asked about his run, he said he was just concentrating on not falling over.

MYERS: And he did it in the rain. I couldn't do that in the rain.

WALLACE: I couldn't run that fast. So...

MYERS: Good for him.

WALLACE: ... he'd beat me. Exactly. Well, he was probably running like he was being chased by bears, which is a nice segue to the next story.

MYERS: They're in a big place now.

WALLACE: A pair of bears running around. Their new digs in Hungary. After 12 years in cramped quarters, they were set from a small zoo in Cypress to the only bear sanctuary in all of Eastern Europe.

Who knew there was one.

MYERS: It doesn't look much like a sanctuary to me, but OK.

WALLACE: All right. This is a great one. Imagine this morning waking up with a car in your bed.

That's right. That's what happened to one man in Little Rock, Arkansas. The car went airborne after its driver fell asleep at the wheel. It not only plowed through the bedroom wall, but actually landed in the bed.

MYERS: Oh my.

WALLACE: The home owner was injured in the crash, but doctors say his condition is improving. So we don't want to be light about that. Thankfully, that person's OK. But can you imagine you wake up and there's a car in your bed?

MYERS: No.

WALLACE: Honey, honey, there's a car in my bed.

MYERS: That's why you sleep -- best wishes to him. Good luck. Speedy recovery.

WALLACE: All right. Thanks, Chad. Talk to you in a few.

And here is what is all new in the next half-hour.

Forget India or China. The new hotspot for outsourcing in Asia might be Vietnam. We'll show you why.

Plus, Tom Cruise isn't the only one subjected to misbehaving bystanders. Later, we'll look at other celebrities who dodged water and pies and other things along the way as DAYBREAK continues for a Tuesday morning.

We'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

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