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CNN Live At Daybreak

Saudi Arabia's King Fahd Dies; Nation in Crisis; London Terror Probe

Aired August 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 Monday, August, 1. One of the world's most influential rulers has died. Roller coaster oil prices, terror tensions, and a love-hate relationship with the United States, Saudi Arabia's King Fahd saw it all. We'll take a look back on his life.
Also, a nation on the brink of starvation and desperate for help. The U.N. doubles its efforts in Niger.

And think your Monday morning commute is tough? Try heading to work hundreds of miles out into space.

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 death of King Fahd in just a minute.

Also ahead, will President Bush bypass Congress and install John Bolton as U.S. ambassador? We'll take a look.

And former President Jimmy Carter takes a swipe at leaders of the Southern Baptist. We'll tell you what he had to say later.

But first, "Now in the News," we are following breaking news this morning. Saudi Arabia's King Fahd is Dead. He had been in failing health over the past few years. His half brother, Crown Prince Abdullah, now takes over. We'll bring you a live report straight ahead.

A judge in Rome questions a London terror suspect today before deciding whether to approve charges against him. In the meantime, suspect Hussain Osman plans to fight extradition to Britain. He's accused in the failed transit bombings of July 21.

This morning, the Iraqis are pledging to stick to their deadline to finish their draft constitution by August 15. At first, they said they needed more time, but the United States has been pressuring them to finish on schedule.

And they're back outside. You're looking at live pictures of the Shuttle Discovery astronauts taking they second space walk of their mission. In the meantime, they're also dealing with some serious safety concerns. We'll bring you details of that in just a few minutes.

And specifically, what they're doing here is they're replacing a gyroscope -- Chad.

CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Right.

COSTELLO: So it has nothing to do with tiles.

MYERS: No, they were down to two gyroscopes up there in the space station, not working on the shuttle at all. They're actually working on the space station, putting the number two back in and getting it working this morning. They got the number one working the other day.

COSTELLO: So there you go.

MYERS: So then the thing's not wobbling back and forth and it doesn't lose its altitude and lose where it's all supposed to be.

COSTELLO: Which would be a bad thing.

MYERS: That would not be good. That's why -- that's why they're fixing those.

(WEATHER REPORT)

COSTELLO: Thank you, Chad.

MYERS: You're welcome.

COSTELLO: Our top story this morning, breaking news. Saudi Arabia is now marking the end of an era with the death of King Fahd. His two-decade-plus reign over the world's biggest oil reserves made him one of the most powerful men on Earth.

For more, let's go to CNN.com Arabic editor Caroline Faraj. She's in Amman, Jordan, this morning.

Good morning, Caroline.

CAROLINE FARAJ, CNN.COM ARABIC EDITOR: Good morning, Carol.

COSTELLO: What happens now?

FARAJ: Well, as you just mentioned -- sorry. As you just mentioned right now, that Saudi Arabia now is going through a mourning period after announcing the death of King Fahd. Basically, the announcement took place about three hours ago officially. That was made on the state-owned television by the information minister of Saudi Arabia.

He announced the death of King Fahd, and he also announced at the same time that the ruling family, the members of the ruling family, they all gathered together, and they paid -- paid their allegiance to the (INAUDIBLE) conference who became a king. Now the king, King Abdullah bin Abdul Aziz, he is now the new king. They also announced at the conference now, the new one is Prince Sultan Abdul Aziz, who was basically the defense minister of Saudi Arabia. This announcement was shown on television, and immediately they went back to the (INAUDIBLE), which is a sign in the Islamic world that there's a big issue that took place in their country, and mainly it's a mourning period. So this was basically the announcement that took place on the state-owned television, as well as all -- all over the Arab and the Muslim world. They're announcing a three-day period of mourning, and they also -- all of the television and the (INAUDIBLE) television, they announced the procedures as well, Carol.

As you know...

COSTELLO: Caroline -- let me interrupt you for just a second, Caroline.

FARAJ: Sure.

COSTELLO: King Fahd had been ill for quite some time. Prince Abdullah was effectively leading Saudi Arabia, wasn't he?

FARAJ: That's indeed correct, Carol. The former king had been sick for several years, and his half-brother, Prince Abdullah, who is now King Abdullah, been leading the government for almost -- almost about like five to six years, at least. Especially -- especially the last year.

It was then that we can see any picture, any real picture of King Fahd, actually, appearing on the screen at all. Most of the shots that were basically shown were archived, and they were only showing the king entering on a wheelchair and the members of the cabinet, or the rulers, basically coming and kissing his hand as a sign of respect. That was the only shot that we've seen for King Fahd recently. However, back to your question, yes, the country had been run for almost five to six years by his half-brother, who is now the king of Saudi Arabia -- Carol.

COSTELLO: So policy towards the United States is unlikely to change?

FARAJ: Exactly. It's not -- it's not expected to have any many changes in the -- in the foreign policy, because king -- now the new king, King Abdullah, was known as well as a close ally as well for the U.S. So it's nothing major expected in terms of the foreign policy, especially towards the U.S. -- Carol.

COSTELLO: Caroline Faraj, reporting live for us from Amman, Jordan, this morning.

King Fahd's influence was felt all over the world, though. He was the custodian of two mosques in Islam's holiest cities. He also supported Afghanistan's mujahedeen fighters against the Soviet Union during the 1980s. And he allowed the United States to establish a base in Saudi Arabia during the 1991 Persian Gulf War.

Aid is trickling into famine-ridden Niger this morning, but is it too little too late? Food is finally reaching remotes part of the west African nation eight months after the first pleas for help. In the meantime, the United Nations has more than doubled the number of people it plans to feed. It's now trying to get emergency aid to 2.5 million people, many of them children.

As more people scrounge for food and water, many are trying to feed on their faith to stay alive. Along with pleas for more aid, they're also pleading with a higher power.

CNN's Jeff Koinange has more from Maradi, in southern Niger.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JEFF KOINANGE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Praying for a miracle in a land where devastating famine has killed thousands and threatens millions more. Christians make up a small percentage of Niger's nearly 12 million people, but that's not stopping them from seeking answers to the country's crisis from a higher authority.

Father Jose Collado knows a thing or two about survival. He's lived and worked in Niger for nearly four decades, and says he sees no end in sight to the suffering.

"This year has been very difficult," he says. "Many have died and many more are dying nearly every day, especially in the countryside."

Islam is the dominant religion here, and signs of the faithful performing their daily rituals are everywhere. Here, the faithful too admit these are tough times in any language or religion.

"This famine has made us completely useless as a people," he says. "Our dignity, our pride, everything is destroyed."

Despite the bruised egos, some here say they aren't too proud to ask for a helping hand.

"The situation is catastrophic," says policeman Musa Jibu. "We urge the international community to help the people of Niger out of their misery. Please help us."

A short drive outside the main towns, and it's evident the famine is taking its toll. Man and animal find themselves competing for precious resources. Sometimes, the razor-thin herds of cattle get priority.

Other times, humans find themselves having to dig a little deeper. Dry riverbeds like this can only mean more doom and gloom for the people of Niger. And in village after village, it's the same story. Hunger has a way of making people turn to prayer in search of an elusive miracle.

"Our children are dying. Our elderly are dying. Look at us. We're all dying. We need help," he pleads.

As an entire nation prays for more rain, a group of nomadic women performs a rain dance, but even they know that a country cannot survive on hope alone. Jeff Koinange, CNN, Maradi, in southern Niger.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COSTELLO: Relief agencies are asking for your help as they struggle to feed the people of Niger. UNICEF, CARE, the U.N.'s World Food Program all accepting donations. You can call them at the numbers on your screen or log onto their Web sites.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ANDERSON COOPER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Even though the soil is really dry, there's not a drought right now in Niger. In fact, it's the rainy season. But the problem is, because of last year's drought and the locusts, farmers don't have enough grains and corn stored up.

They planted new crops, like this one, but it won't be ready for at least another month. And their children are hungry now.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: And that is Anderson Cooper. He's also in Maradi, Niger. And tonight on "ANDERSON COOPER 360," a special report on famine. That's at 7:00 p.m. Eastern, 4:00 p.m. on the West Coast.

All right. Now let's go to space to see what the Discovery astronauts are up to -- or is it out to? Two of the astronauts are back outside the shuttle this morning.

The objective of the planned space walk is to replace a defective gyroscope on the International Space Station, something Chad knows about, because, man, you know a lot about everything, Mr. Chad Myers.

MYERS: If it moves, I probably know about it. If it grows on the ground or if it's a vegetable, I probably have never heard of it.

Yes, the gyroscope is actually a little spinning mechanism. You remember, maybe you had them as a kid. But you just pulled the string and the gyroscope stayed up. It's kind of like a top, but it's a little more sophisticated than that.

And it knows that -- and the gyroscope itself has a momentum, or has a little bit of a force to it to keep the space station from wiggling back and forth or wobbling. And there are a number of backups. This is not an emergency situation here. But they want to have a couple of backups in case one or two goes down. And that's happened in the past, so that's what they're doing right now -- Carol.

COSTELLO: Yes. And they haven't made any decision yet on whether to, like, file down those two gap fillers that are jutting from the belly of the Space Shuttle Discovery.

MYERS: Yes. Think of it like if your car is driving down the road, but then you've got between your fender and your front door, you've got some piece of metal sticking out. Well, obviously that's going to create more drag. And if you're flying through the atmosphere, trying to make reentry, that extra little drag is actually going to heat up.

And this happens all the time. They've had these before. And they think that the heat made -- it's about 20 to 30 percent more than it should be. They don't know whether they're actually going to take that gap filler out or just leave it alone.

COSTELLO: Yes. And if they do decide to repair those gap fillers, that will be like the first time in history they've made actual repairs to the space shuttle prior to landing. So we'll keep you posted on that.

MYERS: Yes. Cool shots this morning.

COSTELLO: Oh, I know. These are not live pictures, but we just got them moments ago, because I think the crew's wakeup call was sometime around 11:00 p.m. Eastern. So they've been up a while.

MYERS: Yes.

COSTELLO: Preparing for the space walk.

MYERS: Miles O'Brien knows lots more than me, and he'll be up a little bit later.

COSTELLO: He certainly will. You can keep track of the shuttle mission by logging onto CNN.com as well. Our special "Return to flight" page has up-to-the-minute information about what the astronauts are doing and why the heck they're doing it. So log on and watch at CNN.com.

One more thing about the far reaches of space: is anybody out there? NASA's chief administrator says he thinks there's got to be intelligent life beyond Earth, and the shuttle crew agrees. Discovery's commander says it's just a matter of time before we find out.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

EILEEN COLLINS, SHUTTLE COMMANDER: I think it would be kind of unimaginable that, you know, we would really be alone in this universe. I think that, you know, probably not our generation, but future generations of people on Earth will find intelligent life.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: She's not talking about little green men, either.

MYERS: Could be.

COSTELLO: Could be. You never know, I guess. So...

MYERS: They could be any color. We don't know.

COSTELLO: That's true. But the astronauts do not believe in UFOs that supposedly people have spotted here on Earth, but they do think there's intelligent life out there somewhere, which brings us to our email question of the morning.

MYERS: What do you think? Any proof?

I Googled. I put "hieroglyphics" and "spaceships" in a Google search, and it came back with 1,100 Web pages.

So what do you think? Do you think there's intelligent life that exists beyond this Earth? Go to DAYBREAK@CNN.com. I'd be interested to see what you think.

COSTELLO: Oh, yes. Exactly.

Coming up, we'll have more on the life and death of this -- of Saudi Arabia's King Fahd, including a look at his close relationship with the United States that lasted through decades, despite the 9/11 terrorist links to his country.

Plus, we'll take you live to London and Rome for the latest in the London bombing investigation. Authorities now questioning several more suspects.

And find out what President Bush said to try to lift the spirits of the nation's Boy Scouts after a traumatic week of deaths and illnesses.

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

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: International markets beginning this week in a positive territory. Tokyo's Nikkei is up more than 47 points. The London FTSE up 14. The German DAX up nearly 20 points.

Your news, money, weather and sports. It's 5:17 Eastern. Here's what's all new this morning.

Developing news out of Saudi Arabia this morning. King Fahd, ruler of the desert kingdom since 1982, has died. His exact age is not known, but it's somewhere between 82 and 84. His half-brother, former Crown Prince Abdullah, is now the new Saudi King.

Nice day for a walk, especially when you're more than 220 miles above Earth. Two astronauts have been outside Shuttle Discovery just about 30 minutes now. They're replacing a gyroscope used to steer the International Space Station.

In money news, Hewlett-Packard tells iPod, we're out of here. It will no longer resell the popular portable music players made by Apple. Hewlett-Packard isn't saying exactly why it's leaving that relationship.

In culture, Gore TV, as in Al Gore, is on the air. Actually, today's the debut of the former vice president's television network called "Current TV." Gore and the other investors see "Current" as a sounding board for young people. In sports, Vijay Singh holds off a Tiger. Singh won the Buick Open by four strokes. Tiger Woods had tied for second, with six birdies and an eagle, but could not close on Singh. He and Zach Johnson tied for second -- Chad.

MYERS: Tiger made a run at him, I'll tell you what. But if I could play out of the sand like Vijay can play out of sand, I can be under par, because I'm always on the beach. But this guy just puts it within two feet.

It was an amazing round yesterday by Vijay. Not that far under par, but just scrambled for all of those pars that he got yesterday.

(WEATHER REPORT)

COSTELLO: I'm just looking at our email box, Chad. You know, most of the answers -- you know, we're asking the question, is there intelligent life somewhere out there, like in the universe?

MYERS: Yes. Yes.

COSTELLO: Most of them said, "Before we find intelligent life in space, we have to find it here on Earth."

MYERS: Bada bing.

COSTELLO: Bada bing.

Keep them coming. DAYBREAK@CNN.com.

Still to come this morning, the Boy Scouts have something to cheer about at their troubled jamboree. We'll hear what the president had to say later on DAYBREAK.

And remember, once again, the email "Question of the Day," do you think intelligent life exists beyond Earth? Some astronauts do. And we do want to hear from you, as I said, DAYBREAK@CNN.com.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: In Britain and in Italy, police are pressing the investigations of the London bombings. Twenty-one people now in custody, most of them being held in London, where our Chris Burns is covering the story. CNN's Jennifer Eccleston is in Rome. That's where one of the four suspects in the botched July 21 bombing was arrested on Friday.

Let's start with Jennifer from Rome.

JENNIFER ECCLESTON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's right, Carol. Well, Hussain Osman continues to be questioned at a Rome prison. Now, the case for keeping him in jail until a decision on whether or not he'll be extradited to the U.K. was upheld yesterday. And a judge will decide today whether there is enough evidence for him to be charged with international terrorism charges. Now, Italian law allows for suspects to be held for a few days without charges until judges can review the evidence.

Now, Rome's chief anti-terrorism officer, the man in charge of the arrest of Osman, is expected to provide further details of that Friday arrest of the 27-year-old suspected London bomber, and the arrest of his brother, who was detained for holding false documents.

Now, we're also expecting some more information on the extent, if any, of Osman's role in any terror activities here in Italy. It will be the first time Italian authorities publicly discuss the Rome raids.

Now, this, of course, follows Sunday's arrest of Osman's older brother in northern Italy. He was detained for destroying or hiding documents sought by the investigation.

We also heard from Osman's lawyer yesterday, who confirmed that her client will fight extradition to the United Kingdom. Antonietta Sonnessa also said that Osman told investigators he was involved in the July 21 failed attacks, but he said the strike was meant to grab attention and not meant to kill anyone -- Carol.

COSTELLO: Yes, Jennifer, I'm reading some comments from this man, Osman. He says, "I am against war. I've marched in peace rallies and nobody listened to me. I never thought of killing people."

What else did he say?

ECCLESTON: Well, we talked to a source yesterday very close to the investigation who said that part of the reason for this strike, part of the reason that the five bombers -- he announced yesterday -- we heard that there were five bombers included in the failed strikes on July 21 -- part of the reason was doing so was a protest against the war in Iraq. He said that every image that he watched on television of Iraqi women being humiliated by coalition soldiers, coalition forces, American and British soldiers, prompted him and the rest of the bombers to take this sort of action. An action which of course he described as not meant to kill anybody, but to show that there are people out there who oppose the Iraq war, and while nobody is listening to them, this is the way that they'll get people's attention -- Carol.

COSTELLO: Jennifer Eccleston, live in Rome.

Three other suspects in those failed July 21 bombings also being questioned in London. Let's get the latest on that part of the probe. CNN's Chris Burns outside of Scotland Yard this morning.

Do we know what those other bombers, alleged bombers, are saying to investigators there?

CHRIS BURNS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Carol, authorities here at Scotland Yard are playing their cards pretty close to their chest. But what we are hearing in the headlines here, take a look at this. Just the kind of thing you want to wake up on Monday morning and see.

Just when you thought that last Friday and those dramatic arrests, that people were perhaps a bit safer here, authorities are saying that there could be yet another terrorist cell going after, perhaps, another attack, possible of Pakistani origin. And that's why they're questioning these three people.

Now, under British law, these three suspects, plus 15 others that have been arrested since Friday and since last week, can only be held for 14 days. So the clock is ticking. They have to find enough evidence to charge them or to hold them further. And that's what authorities are trying to get to the bottom of.

Something else we're also hearing is from news reports quoting Scotland Yard officials, is that what Hussain Osman is saying through what we're hearing out of Rome about that he didn't intend to kill anybody, these weren't really bombs that intended to hurt and kill, they're not buying that. They're saying that these bombs, these were true bombs. In fact, there was another bomb that was found in the park near the -- near the site of some of the bombings that show that there were razor blades in it, that there were -- it was definitely an anti-person (ph) bomb aimed and killing and maiming -- Carol.

COSTELLO: And you showed us the headline there, "London is in a Lockdown." What does that mean?

BURNS: Well, according to these reports, they're saying that there are police sharp shooters. I haven't seen any -- any sharp shooters yet on roost. But they're saying that the police presence is very high.

That is quite true. And they are spending some 500,000 pounds -- that's probably closer to $1 million a day -- in their investigation and in trying to boost security here in London. So you are seeing a great presence here. And, of course, they're also looking ahead to Thursday, which the last two attacks, the deadly one on July 7, and on July 21, were both on Thursday. So they are bracing for that day as another possible attack day -- Carol.

COSTELLO: So when you say lockdown, that means -- that does not mean the subways are closed down or the airport's closed down. People can still get in and out of the city?

BURNS: Oh, absolutely. People are taking the subway, people are taking buses. Lots of people on the streets.

It is a bit of a misleading headline, but it is pointing to a possible attack by a third cell, possibly of Pakistani origin. We can't confirm that ourselves, but that is what we're hearing from news reports coming out here from the British media. And, of course, in any case, when Londoners see that in the headlines, it sure isn't any comfort.

COSTELLO: No, not at all. Chris Burns live in London this morning.

In the next half-hour of DAYBREAK, we'll bring you much more on the life and the death of Saudi Arabia's King Fahd.

DAYBREAK will be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

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