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CNN Live At Daybreak
The Lioness Team; Image From Iran
Aired July 01, 2005 - 5:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: It is Friday, July 1. Honoring female Marines in Iraq. Straight ahead on DAYBREAK, a wall memorializing those female Marines and others who put their lives on the line every minute, every hour, every day in Iraq.
Plus a tale of two men or one? An expert looks to see if Iran's president-elect took hostages from the U.S. embassy 25 years ago.
And going up in Tokyo. Preparing to give a helping hand to a continent in turmoil.
ANNOUNCER: From the Time Warner Center in New York, this is DAYBREAK with Carol Costello and Chad Myers.
COSTELLO: And good morning to you. We'll have more on the memorial service in just a moment.
Also ahead, a CNN "Security Watch." A high-speed chase through Phoenix ends with shots fired at the airport.
And British Prime Minister Tony Blair, Sir Bob Geldof and MTV, we'll tell you what brings them all together.
But first, "Now in the News."
In the capital of Turkey just two hours ago a suspected suicide bomber was shot to death by police. Police say the man was challenged by guards and was killed when he broke into a run toward the prime minister's office.
President Bush is proposing to double U.S. aid to Africa over the next five years. That would bring the U.S. contribution to more than $8.5 billion.
Reducing the debt of African nations is the focus of the Live 8 concerts Saturday in 10 cities around the globe. The concert's organizer says the goal of $25 billion in aid by 2010 is close to being met.
In southwestern Utah, fire officials report progress in battling wildfires that have scorched thousands of acres. Still, some wildlife in wilderness areas remain threatened.
To Chad now for a look at the weather.
Good morning.
CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Good morning, Carol.
(WEATHER REPORT)
COSTELLO: Hey, it's time for our shameless plug. Are you ready?
MYERS: What's that?
COSTELLO: Remember, you can view CNN reports online. Just visit CNN.com...
MYERS: Right.
COSTELLO: ... click on to "Watch" to check out some of the most popular stories.
MYERS: Love it.
COSTELLO: Now for the news.
We begin this hour with the fight for Iraq. A memorial service was held about two hours ago at the U.S. Marine camp in Falluja for six U.S. service members killed in an attack last week. Five of the victims were Marines. Among the victims, at least three female service members.
The females are known as "The Lioness Team." And like all Marines, they face danger every day.
Jane Arraf has an exclusive look at The Lioness Team.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JANE ARRAF, CNN SR. BAGHDAD CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Marines at Checkpoint One to Falluja, women and men, were back on the job the morning after the deadliest attack on American women in this war. It happened just inside the city.
(on camera): This is just a few hundred meters from one of the main checkpoints into Falluja. It's here that a car packed with explosives veered across the road and slammed straight into a 7-ton truck filled with female marines.
(voice-over): Lance Corporal Olivia Watkins does the same job many of the casualty did: Searching Iraqi women for weapons in a culture where it would be unacceptable for men to search them.
LANCE CPL. OLIVIA WATKINS: We got back on the trucks the next day and came out and -- it's our job, got to keep going. You know, got to honor those who were injured, by coming out and doing our job.
ARRAF: For the most part, these are young women who take for granted the right to serve their country in a war zone. They've come to grips with the danger here.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It was terrible what happened, but any loss in the Marine Corps is just as bad, whether it's a female or male. It sucks either way.
ARRAF: Although women are banned from combat roles, in a battle where the roads are the most dangerous place to be, almost everywhere is the front line. These fingers on the barrel belong to Julianne Sohn, a civil affairs officer. On the way to schools and council meetings, she pulls security like any Marine.
CAPT. JULIANNE SOHN, U.S. MARINES: I just think about getting the job done, because it's about going out into the community and finding ways to help them.
ARRAF: Many of the casualties were from Sergeant Major Nancy Answorth's unit. She joined the Marines 23 years ago when applying makeup was part of the curriculum.
SGT. MAJ. NANCY ANSWORTH, U.S. MARINES: It changed a lot. When I joined the Marine Corps, we didn't even qualify with weapons, females didn't. We couldn't deploy, we couldn't go on a unit deployment.
ARRAF: With the sheer number of casualties in what's considered a relatively safe city compared to others in central Iraq, last week's attack has had a resounding impact.
SGT. TRENT PADMORE, U.S. MARINES: This is the farewell wall that we pay respect to all our Marines and most recently, last Thursday, all these Marines here, that worked with us, were wounded or killed.
ARRAF: Sergeant Trent Padmore was in the convoy.
PADMORE: We think of them every day and we keep them with us.
ARRAF: Padmore worked with several of the casualties at the checkpoint to an assistant center for Iraqis. He pulled some of them to safety from the car bomb. The VBIED, burning his hand in the secondary explosions. For him, there's no question about whether women should be out here.
PADMORE: I personally know that we need them here. And I'm glad that they are here. I've personally been in fire fights with at least three of them. And I was at the VBIED with another 18 of them and they all conducted themselves professionally. They're Marines. The bottom line: They're Marines. I really wish people would stop calling them female Marines, because they're Marines, that's what they are.
ARRAF: In this war zone, everyone is facing the same dangers.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ARRAF: And this morning, the Marines here held a ceremony, a memorial for the six who had died. A very moving ceremony, as they go larger than most.
The victims ranged from the 43-year-old petty officer who was going to retire next year and take a drive along the coast with her son, to two 21-year-olds. One of the corporals from El Salvador, actually, was killed as he was rendering aid.
This is a terrible attack. After the explosion, there was small arms fire.
A lot of anger there, a lot of grief. But among the Marines who came to mourn their comrades was a determination to keep this mission going so they wouldn't have died in vain -- Carol.
COSTELLO: Jane Arraf, reporting live from Falluja this morning.
In Afghanistan, the bodies of 16 U.S. service members killed when their chopper was shot down have been recovered. These are the mountains near Pakistan where the chopper crashed apparently after being hit by a rocket-propelled grenade.
The service members were being flown to support U.S. forces battling insurgents on Tuesday. It is the worst single-day death toll for U.S. forces since the Afghan war began nearly four years ago.
Did the president-elect of Iran take an active role in the 1979 embassy takeover in Iran? Some former U.S. hostages say he did, but others are unsure. We asked our Brian Todd to look into the mystery.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): One look at Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and some former hostages were sure this man, Iran's president-elect, was among their captors a quarter century ago.
DAN SHARER, FMR. HOSTAGE: As soon as I saw the face, it rang a lot of bells to me.
TODD: It may ring bells to Dan Sharer, but what do experts say? We spoke to Peter Smerick, former FBI special agent. For a decade, one of the bureaus premiere photography experts.
We showed Smerick several current still photos of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, a picture of the president-elect when he was a student in 1979, and pictures of one hostage-taker who Ahmadinejad is being compared to.
(on camera): The two pictures that we seem to be comparing most are this picture of a hostage-taker with a hostage from 1979, this picture from about the same time period of Mr. Ahmadinejad in his student days.
What are the fundamental similarities and differences that you can tell me from those two photos?
PETER SMERICK, FORMER FBI PHOTO EXPERT: What I observed in the year book photograph is what appears to be a large space between the eyebrows. Where in the photograph of the hostage holder, I see a very, very small space between the eyebrow hairs.
TODD: What about the nose comparison? SMERICK: Now, the noses appear to be similar, but this might be considered more or less a class characteristic. In other words, there is nothing in these photographs that tell me it is a unique nose to one person.
TODD: Smerick also points out differences in the moustache and beard. But says time, camera angle and shadows could account for that. So, we showed him two pieces of videotape frozen next to each other, a recent image of Ahmadinejad on the left, on right, a hostage- taker from 1979.
SMERICK: In this particular instance, the earlobe of the individual photographed in 1979 appears to be squared off at the base. Where the ear lobe of the current president of Iran seems to be more rounded and like a peninsula coming down to a little bit of a point.
The nose was of interest to me, because in this image, there appears to be a hook type of nose. Where over here, even though the image is very, very poor, it appears to be more angular.
TODD: Bottom line? Smerick says while there are facial similarities between Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and the 1979 hostage-taker in these pictures. This is one case where he would be non-conclusive. Meanwhile, Iranian officials deny Ahmadinejad took part in the 1979 takeover, and some hostages say he was not among their captors.
Brian Todd, CNN, Washington.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COSTELLO: As you know, Jimmy Carter was president during that hostage crisis. He and a current administration official were asked if they believe the Iranian president-elect was actively involved. Here's what they have to say.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JAMES CARTER, FMR. PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I don't have any way to know if the new president was one of the captors of our hostages, which was a completely illegal and improper and despicable action.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
STEPHEN HADLEY, NATIONAL SECURITY ADVISER: We need to get the facts. These are allegations that have come forward. They are allegations at the present time. They raise, obviously, serious questions among the ones you've raised, obviously.
We need to take a look at those. We need to get the facts. And then we need to see where we are.
(END VIDEO CLIP) COSTELLO: Hadley's boss, President Bush, also commented on this. He told reporters -- quoting here -- "Obviously his involvement raises many questions."
In news "Across America" this morning, the severe beating of an African-American man has led to hate crime charges in New York. Two white men are in custody.
Policy say 23-year-old Glenn Moore was severely beaten with an aluminum baseball bat before his shoes and earring wee stolen. Moore is in critical but stable condition.
A U.S. Navy pilot escaped injury when his plane rammed into a hangar at Buckley Air Force Base in Colorado. A hydraulic problem is being blamed for the crash of the FA-18C Hornet. The pilot had stopped in Colorado to refuel while on his way back to his base in Virginia.
An armada of nearly 30 antique ships has completed a voyage to Tacoma, Washington. They'll be there for a five-day tall ships festival which will include mock cannon battles on the 4th of July. Some of the ships came from as far away as New Zealand.
In Canada, a ferry crash probably ruined a lot of people's weekend. Take a look.
You hear its horn blaring. A 450-foot ferry boat plowed through several boats. Take a look -- Chad, take a look at that.
MYERS: It just proves that boats don't have brakes, Carol. The ship lost power. The captain was obviously on the air horn trying to warn everybody that was in the way that he was coming.
There were 544 people on that ferry and 189 vehicles. And with that kind of momentum and that kind of tonnage, it took a long time for that boat to stop. Fifteen to 20 personal vehicles right there, personal vessels, were, in fact, damaged or destroyed.
They kept the people on that boat a long time, too, as they were searching for anyone that was trapped in the wreckage of those smaller boats. And there was absolutely no injuries in that thing whatsoever, if you can believe that. So probably a good thing...
COSTELLO: Think of the boats.
MYERS: Good thing that didn't happen today or tomorrow, when everybody was actually -- they were on their boats, probably doing some sleeping or drinking, or whatever they're doing on their boats.
COSTELLO: Yes. That was in West Vancouver, by the way.
MYERS: And the good news is, absolutely no injuries. And we want to mention, Carol, that it is Canada Day. Happy Canada Day to all -- to our friends up to the north. We know you watch all the time.
COSTELLO: We have a lot of viewers in Canada.
MYERS: Absolutely.
COSTELLO: And we do appreciate you.
If you've got a TV or an Internet connection, it might be hard not to see a Live 8 concert this weekend.
MYERS: Yes.
COSTELLO: Yes, it is this weekend, Chad. Ten shows, more than 150 bands. Preparations for the Live 8 concerts are under way across the globe. The purpose, of course, to raise money to help Africa.
Unlike other charity concerts, the effort is focused on getting rich nations to pledge aid, rather than relying on your donations. Organizers say they've almost achieved their goal of $25 billion by 2010. They say they've got just $2 billion more to go.
MYERS: So here we go again. You know, the interest in Africa waxes and wanes like it's -- it comes and goes. It seems like every couple years we have focus, then we lose the focus.
So, our "Question of the Day" is, this time, what do you think, will these concerts bring any change to Africa? Is this enough focus?
Did you hear about it enough? Maybe you will over the weekend.
We want to know what you think -- DAYBREAK@CNN.com. Hoping for the best, for sure.
COSTELLO: Well, I think the important -- I think the important distinction here, Chad, is they're not asking for donations from fans.
MYERS: Correct.
COSTELLO: Even "The Washington Post" is writing about it this morning. It says, "Live 8 fans are not expected to donate directly for African relief. Instead, they're supposed to join a larger movement for global economic justice and take action, sign petitions, and make povertyhistory.com, another Web site (INAUDIBLE), email politicians, upload their faces on to a G8 gallery, and eventually vote out the leaders who don't push anti-poverty items to the top of the agenda."
Will concert-goers really do that in the months to come?
MYERS: I don't know. I remember my USA for Africa sweatshirt I had back in 1983, or whatever year it was, '84.
COSTELLO: Well, you probably gave money.
MYERS: I did, $25.
COSTELLO: Because really, exactly, that's easier to do than to, like, you know go into this big political push and vote your Congress people out. So what do you think?
MYERS: So we want to know what you think. Give us your emails.
COSTELLO: DAYBREAK@CNN.com.
Still to come on DAYBREAK, we'll hear about the United Kingdom's role in the Live 8 concerts, and the G8 summit that inspired the shows.
A car chase takes the leap onto runways at one of the nation's busier airports.
And talk about a bogey. Someone was really off course on this round of golf.
But first, here's a look at what else is making news this Friday.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COSTELLO: It is that time for a quick market check.
It has been a good day in international trading. Japan's Nikkei closes up 46 points. Britain's FTSE trading up 36. The German DAX is almost up 20 points.
Your news, money, weather and sports. It's 5:19 Eastern. Here's what's all new this morning.
The Senate gave President Bush a victory by approving a new trade deal with five Central American countries and the Dominican Republic. The president says the deal, called CAFTA, is vital for strengthening democracy. The House still has to vote on the deal.
A launch date has finally been chosen for the Space Shuttle Discovery. NASA set July 13 for its first manned space mission since the Shuttle Columbia disaster in 2003 which killed seven astronauts.
In money news, Bank of America is buying credit card company MBNA in a deal worth $35 billion. That gives Bank of America about 40 million active credit card accounts. The deal is expected to lead to large job cuts between the two companies.
In culture, oh happy day. Ben Affleck finally married a Jennifer. Publicists for Affleck and actress Jennifer Garner confirm the couple did indeed get married this week. The publicists also confirmed that Garner is pregnant with the couple's first child.
In sports, Venus is definitely rising at Wimbledon. Venus William defeated defending champ Maria Sharapova in straight sets. She made it to the Wimbledon finals in five out of the last six years and won two titles.
Not too shabby, Chad.
MYERS: Not at all. Less green on that court again. I keep watching it. By the time of the finals there'll be no grass left on there at all.
Good morning, Carol.
(WEATHER REPORT)
COSTELLO: Chad, I'm just reading something on the wire.
MYERS: Yes, go ahead.
COSTELLO: Live 8, we were talking about the Live 8 concerts...
MYERS: Yes.
COSTELLO: You know, they're trying to raise money for Africa. Well, apparently, organizers plan to shower the celebrities performing with gifts.
MYERS: Yes?
COSTELLO: A Hugo Boss duffel bag worth $3,000. In all, each celebrity taking part in the Live 8 concert will walk away with $12,000 in goods.
Why can't they donate that to charity?
MYERS: Oh, well, I guess you could. What are you going to do? You going to give a duffel bag to Africa? I mean, this duffel bag is already made.
COSTELLO: No, but why can't Hugo Boss give the $12,000 a piece that they're giving to these celebrities to Africa?
MYERS: Because it only made them -- it only cost them $300 to make that stuff.
(LAUGHTER)
COSTELLO: Maybe you're right about that.
MYERS: I'm thinking write off $12,000 now.
COSTELLO: It's disgusting.
MYERS: I know. It's not all Hugo Boss, by the way.
COSTELLO: No, it's other stuff, but, I don't know.
Still to come this morning, would you do this to your face? That's what I'm talking about. That's got to hurt.
MYERS: Oh!
COSTELLO: The story's up next.
You're watching DAYBREAK for Friday.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
MYERS: Ah, we've been talking about Live 8 this weekend, 150 bands, 10 locations across the world. Will the concerts bring any change to Africa? And maybe, what kind of change do you think? I'll listen to that, too.
DAYBREAK@CNN.com. Our email bag is open -- Carol.
COSTELLO: It certainly is open and waiting for your emails to be deposited into it.
MYERS: Go.
COSTELLO: Time now for our morning chuckle, courtesy of the late night talk shows. Here's David Letterman.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DAVID LETTERMAN, "THE LATE SHOW": Humidity is unbelievable. Muggy, and when things are muggy, it gets sticky. Just sticky. You walk outside and you can feel it.
As a matter of fact, down the street at Flashdancers earlier today they had to peel a girl off the pole. Honestly.
(LAUGHTER)
LETTERMAN: You know people who try to beat the fare by jumping the turnstyle? They're cracking down on turnstyle jumping, which is too bad, because if NBC -- if NBC. It's too bad because of New York City. If New York City had gotten the Olympics, that was going to be an event.
(LAUGHTER)
LETTERMAN: NBC.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: Sometimes it's good to mess up. It makes it funnier.
MYERS: Yes. Well, you know, the people in Tampa are going, "What's he talking about, this turnstyle jumping?" It's the subways, jumping, instead of paying your $1.75, or whatever it is now.
COSTELLO: Thank you, Chad, for explaining that to us.
MYERS: Yes. OK. I'm explaining it to the people down there that have never seen the subway.
COSTELLO: Oh goodness.
Time for our DAYBREAK "Eye Opener."
A woman in Utah has successfully...
MYERS: Like you, Carol.
COSTELLO: ... sold her forehead.
MYERS: Never thought of that.
COSTELLO: This woman sold her forehead, Chad.
MYERS: Yes.
COSTELLO: The winning eBay bidder is an online casino which has had its name permanently tattooed on her head.
MYERS: Oh, those guys are everywhere.
COSTELLO: Well, before you pass judgment, the woman got $10,000 for this. She says she can now afford to send her daughter to private school. And, you know, if she just has bangs, all that's covered.
MYERS: Oh, whatever.
COSTELLO: Maybe it was worth it.
These pictures were shot at a golf course. So I would call this a really bad drive.
Police in Palm Springs think the stolen case was pushed into the golf course lake. It took them about two hours to finally get the car out of the hazard. Sort of like you getting your ball out of the hazard, Chad.
MYERS: They'll find out when I'm (INAUDIBLE) in a couple of weeks. Just wait for it.
COSTELLO: Oh man.
Now let's change gears for a little.
MYERS: OK.
COSTELLO: How's this for a wedding ceremony?
MYERS: Oh.
COSTELLO: Ah. Actually, Lonnie (ph) and Cortel Bradshaw (ph) are renewing their vows to celebrate their 71st anniversary. Cortel (ph) says the key to their relationship has been trust.
MYERS: Saying, "Yes, dear."
COSTELLO: Of course -- yes. Saying, "Yes, dear." And, of course, neither of them can stray too far these days. They just don't have the energy.
Now for another big-time celebration. New Haven, Connecticut, is home to this giant edible American flag.
MYERS: Cupcakes.
COSTELLO: Yes, 3,000 of them, side by side. The 19-foot flag was put together for the city's 4th of July celebration. It's safe to say the cupcakes will not last until Sunday.
MYERS: They didn't put any stars in the blue field.
COSTELLO: Well, maybe they didn't have the right kind of dye.
MYERS: Well, they've got white things for the stripes. They've got to put some, like, cupcakes for stars. Did I miss that?
COSTELLO: I think you're going a little too deep on this story, Chad.
MYERS: Oh, come on.
COSTELLO: Here's what's all new in the next half-hour of DAYBREAK.
Why is this truck speeding through the airport? Here's a hint: it has nothing to do with being late for a flight. But security officials are less concerned with why than they are with how.
Plus, our chief international correspondent, Christiane Amanpour, talks with Tony Blair. We'll hear what the British prime minister has to say about the G8, Live 8 and any other 8 we can think of.
So stay tuned.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
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