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Latest on Efforts to Meet Deadline for Writing New Iraqi Constitution; King Fahd Dead; Kofi Annan Speaks

Aired August 01, 2005 - 10:31   ET

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

DARYN KAGAN, CNN ANCHOR: Welcome back to our next half hour. I'm Daryn Kagan. Here's a look at what's happening Now in the News.
Just minutes ago, President Bush bypassed the Senate and installed his embattled nominee John Bolton as the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations. The recess appointment, carried out while the Congress is on, break will annoy him to serve without Senate approval. One Senate critic, Democrat Ted Kennedy already calling this a devious -- a quote from Senator Kennedy, quote, a devious maneuver that damages Bolton's credibility.

Diplomats around the world today expect little change in Saudi Arabia following the death of King Fahd, ruler of the world's most oil-rich nation. Saudi officials say oil experts and diplomatic policies will be unaffected. King Fahd has been succeeded by a half brother, Crown Prince Abdullah. He's essentially ruled the country since the king suffered a devastating stroke 10 years ago.

Rioting has broke out in the capital of Sudan upon word that a helicopter crash killed the country's vice president. Some southern Sudanese say their former rebel leader dies under suspicious circumstances and some accused the government of being behind the crash. John Garang helped broker a deal between mostly Arab and Muslim government, and the mainly Christian in the south.

And a popular diet plan goes belly up. Atkins Nutritionals, promoters of the low-carb Atkins Diet, has filed for bankruptcy. Dieters apparently lost interest in Atkins popular meal plan.

See what's happening in Washington. The Bush administration has a lot riding on two historic events slated for August. The outcome in both cases could have a major impact on Middle East stability. First to August 17th. That's when Israel plans to begin pulling out troops and relocating thousands of Jewish set letters in Gaza. The pullout would leave Gaza in Palestinian hands after more than 40 years under Israeli control.

And you might want to mark August 15th on your calendar as well, if you're following world events. That is the deadline for Iraqi leaders to finish fashioning the country's new constitution.

We have live reports from Israel and Iraq. Let's go ahead and start with Baghdad, where CNN's Aneesh Raman has the latest on efforts to meet the deadline for writing the new Iraqi constitution.

How's that deadline going, Aneesh?

ANEESH RAMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Daryn, good morning.

A unanimous rejection today by Iraq's constitutional committee to push that deadline of August 15th any further. They had to decide that by today, and they're now locked into that date to have this document done. There are a number of issues that are still outstanding. We were told on Friday leaders of the main political groups will meet and try to hammer out the remaining issues. But we've been told all along, Daryn, that some 75 percent of this document is written. Only 25 percent remains. But that 25 percent includes the most critical issues facing Iraq. The issue of Islam, how important a role will it play in the drafting of legislation. Will it be a source, or the source? The implications for that, of course, exist in civil legislation, in terms of inheritance, divorce, rights of women. Will that fall under Sharia Islamic law, or under secular Islamic law?

And also the issue of federalism in Iraq: how powerful will the provinces be and how powerful will the central government be? That has implications, for example, in terms of oil revenue. The areas of Iraq with the oil, do they keep the money, or does it all come through a central government to then be broken up throughout the entirety of Iraq? So all of these issues remain outstanding.

What we're likely to see, though, as we get closer to the August 15th deadline, which they now have no option of pushing, is a question as to whether they will sideline these issues, leave them as amendments to be brought up by a five-year government that could be voted by as early as this year, or whether they will tackle these issues with specificity and try and get it done by the 15th? That seems incredibly difficult. There will be intense negotiations. They are under immense pressure from the U.S., as well as the entire international community and Iraqis, to make sure this process goes through. So now, Daryn, what we're looking for are those key issues and whether they get resolved before the deadline, or whether they get pushed aside and dealt with next year -- Daryn.

KAGAN: Aneesh Raman, live from Baghdad. Aneesh, thank you for that.

Now we want to go ahead and look at that second deadline, August 17th. As we told you, that is the day that Israel is scheduled to begin its historic withdrawal of settlers from Gaza.

CNN's Paula Hancocks is in Jerusalem.

Paula, hello.

PAULA HANCOCKS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hello, Daryn.

Well, as the Israeli government is planning for that disengagement and the pullout of the settlers from Gaza, the anti- pullout activists and demonstrators are planning their own demonstration on Tuesday. Now we're expecting tens of thousands of anti-pullout demonstrators to go to Sturat (ph), which is a small town just outside Gaza. It's very close to the border. They're expected to try and march on Gaza itself, to try and demonstrate that they do not believe these settlements should be pulled out. And also trying to disrupt the plans by the security forces ahead of that pullout itself.

Now we had a similar demonstration two weeks ago in a small farming community, and police and security forces, the military, managed to cordon them off so they couldn't march to Gaza itself. But this time around, they picked a town which is much harder to block off. The police have said this will be an illegal protest, unless the organizers decide they will not try and march into Gaza itself, which has been a zone you can not get into for the last two weeks, unless you are a resident itself. Security forces are worried that many people who are anti-pullout, who are trying to make trouble when the pullout goes ahead are trying to get into Guskateef (ph) and other settlement blocks at the moment.

But of course, the organizers have said that they do want to try and do this march. So, at the moment, it is an illegal protest. But as they are doing that protest itself, there are settlers that are trying to pullout at the moment, going into temporary housing -- Daryn.

Paula Hancocks, live from Jerusalem, thank you.

KAGAN: On to Saudi Arabia now, funeral services are planned tomorrow for Saudi Arabia's Kind Fahd, the ruler of the world's most oil-rich nation. He is credited with modernizing his country after assuming the throne in 1982.

King Fahd also balanced friendly relations with both Islamic hardliners and the U.S., a volatile goal that was not always achieved. He ruled in name only since suffering a stroke in 1995.

King Fahd is formerly succeeded by his half brother, the former Crown Prince Abdullah, who has essentially ruled the country for the past decade.

Also in the Middle East this morning, several Arab and Muslim nations have announced their own official periods of mourning to pay tribute to Saudi Arabia's King Fahd. For a closer look at the impact of his death and his life, and Saudi Arabia's transition of power, we turn now to CNN's senior editor of Arab affairs, Octavia Nasr.

OCTAVIA NASR, CNN SR. EDITOR OF ARAB AFFAIRS: Good morning to you.

KAGAN: First of all, the man. Fascinating how he kind of lived in two worlds, both Saudi Arabia, during a fascinating time, but also kind of intrigued by the West?

NASR: Right, and created a lot of controversy on the way, along the way. His legacy, it seems like, he's going to leave a legacy that he kept it all together, that kept his country and he kept his family ruling the country. This is a man who led his country during turmoil. Of course, you know, the 9/11 attacks, with so many hijackers coming from Saudi Arabia, being influenced by Saudi Arabia, and King Fahd is known to be a man who supports the Islamic groups inside Saudi Arabia. So he was blamed for that.

And of course his country went through an aisle crisis. The prices -- the revenue from oil was not as high as when he took over, and basically, just the mere fact that he kept it all together, and kept his family rolling is something that will be remembered as his legacy.

KAGAN: Well, let's family, because I look at how the succession works, I don't quite get it. In the West, we're used to the father dies, the son, sometimes the daughter, then takes over. Here we're going to the half brother?

NASR: Right, the Saudi system works, the succession is different. It's the Abdel Aziz, who was the first king of Saudi Arabia, basically the way he set it up is for the sons to succeed him and continue to succeed him until the last one of them, and then the son of that one takes over. Now...

KAGAN: Tell people how many sons we're talking about here.

NASR: We're talking about at least 42 sons.

KAGAN: Forty-two sons. OK, they're not going to go through all of those 42?

NASR: They can not. Obviously, they can no the do that. Not jut that. King Fahd changed that. He changed the rule. He changed the law basically to say that you can skip a generation.

So for people who think this succession of King Abdullah, in this case, is normal, that is not necessarily the case. In theory, they could have picked somebody else. And the way King Fahd changed it, is he put the authority in the hands of the family, the entire family. So that goes to show you the popularity of Crown Prince Abdullah, who was named by the entire family as the succeeding king.

KAGAN: And what does he face, now that he's been in power, really, running the place? But now that he really is in power, what are the challenges ahead?

NASR: Terrorism seems to be his toughest challenge. You listen to experts all the time, that's what they're talking about. Saudi Arabia is fighting its own version of terrorism. They're fighting Al Qaeda. They made arrests, killed some suspects, but Al Qaeda has huge support in Saudi Arabia. And the interesting thing is the support that Al Qaeda gets in Saudi Arabia is because of what King Fahd did by allowing the U.S. and allies to enter Saudi Arabia. So by having Christian, and Jewish and female on the land of Muslims is something that's a no-no for some groups in Saudi Arabia.

KAGAN: That part of it, but also of how the religious institutions were run, that's another part of it, the education and what that was producing? NASR: Right, and he is someone with an education background, King Fahd is. So basically, he was blamed. He was blamed for not being tough enough on these groups, not seeing far enough, and recognizing that this is a threat, and that threat is going to come back and hurt Saudi Arabia before the rest of the world. And sure enough, the Bin Ladens of the world, this is what they want. They wanted something like King Fahd inviting these Westerners in to say, OK, now the target is the Saud family.

KAGAN: Octavia Nasr. Octavia, thank you for your expertise.

NASR: This is a morning where President Bush is making news, a recess appointment. John Bolton headed to the United Nations as the U.S. ambassador. We'll check on that, also check on the market, and business news and weather ahead, after this.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAGAN: Let's take a look at other stories making news coast-to- coast. In Deland, Florida, Just east of Orlando, a sinkhole opened up under railroad tracks. That prompted delays for five Amtrak trains and hundreds of passengers. Some trains were merely re-routed, but others had to be emptied, and then the passengers then bussed several hours to their destination.

In Marcus Hook, Pennsylvania, a pirate's cry, so to speak. This late 17th century house is believed to be the home of Blackbeard's mistress. Archaeologists are combing the ground for any evidence of the famed pirate. Some believe there may be buried treasure underneath.

And here's another tale from the sea. And Jake is wagging it for a reason. The golden retriever dog paddled the treacherous 1.2 miles from Alcatraz Prison to the San Francisco shoreline. Anyone who's seen this knows it is tough, tough water. The pooch came in 72nd among 500 human swimmers. You go, Jake!

(STOCK MARKET REPORT)

KAGAN: Checking the time right now, 47 minutes past the hour. On the brink of starvation, the nation of Niger is desperate for help. The U.N. doubled its efforts, but will it be enough? A full report, when we come back.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CHRISTINA PARK, CNN CORRESPONDENT: You've heard it before. Mom, dad, I need $20 for CDs and clothes. What do you look like? An ATM? Well, CNNmoney.com/101 shows your kids how to save early on. The sooner you teach your children these key concepts, the better financial managers they'll be as adults. First of all, let's start with allowance. Let's be honest, it's probably been a long time since you had one. We'll have you adjust for inflation to determine how much kids need these days.

Say, you got what seemed like a lousy $2 a week in 1955. Going by the consumer price index, that'd be like giving a kid $12.05 today. Are you listening? There's going to be a test. CNNmoney.com/101 schools you on how much you need to know about kids and money. For example, when a child is old enough to count money, that's when they should receive an allowance. We've got you covered, from how to react when your kids come knocking for more dough, to how to handle it when your kids blow their budget.

Hey, you've been guilty of the same thing. And who can argue with the best savings deal of all -- free. That's why all of these tips and tricks are free at CNN.com/101.

Reporting from the dot-com desk, I'm Christina Park.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAGAN: More world news now.

Right now, the African nation of Niger is ground zero in the battle against hunger. Drought and locust ravaged last October's harvest and now more than three million people are facing a major food shortage. The international community is offering aid, but many in Niger are appealing to a higher power for help.

Here now, CNN's Jeff Koinange.

(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)

(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)

KAGAN: From Jeff's piece, let's go live now to the United Nations. Here's Secretary-General Kofi Annan.

(JOINED IN PROGRESS)

KOFI ANNAN, U.N. SECRETARY-GENERAL: ... it is the president's prerogative and the president has decided to appoint him through this process for him to come and represent him. And from where I stand, we will work with him as the representative of the president and the government.

QUESTION: How concerned are you about the process in Sudan unraveling because of Mr. Garang's death? And is there anything that you can do or the U.N. can do to try and prevent this?

ANNAN: We have offered very close collaboration with the government and SPLM. And, in fact, we have been working with them ever since the crash. It is our plane that is taking the body to New City and also retrieving the other bodies.

So we are on the ground, very actively working with them. And we have made it clear that we will give them all the support necessary, both in the political process and in our efforts to contain the humanitarian situation and settle the process in Darfur.

From my discussions with the president of Sudan, I gained the impression that they are determined to proceed, and there's the same sentiment on the SPLM side. And so I have good hope that this will hold together.

And we should do whatever we can to ensure that it doesn't unravel.

QUESTION: Mr. Secretary General, there have already been reports of rioting in parts of Sudan and that two people -- possibly killed. Would you have any appeals to the Sudanese people?

And also, would you expect that any successor to John Garang would also be immediately installed as first vice president? ANNAN: Let me just say that the first thing in my discussions with the Sudanese, I appealed for calm. They should remain calm. All indications now seem to indicate that it was an accident, and the government and the U.N. and all of us are working to try and sort things out. They should remain calm.

And I think it is essential that SPLM moves ahead very quickly to appoint a new leader. They have two weeks in which to do that. But I hope they will do it as quickly as possible.

And I suspect once they have elected their leader who, presumably, would also be the head of southern Sudan, that individual would become the new first vice president.

(SPEAKING IN FRENCH)

KAGAN: Secretary-General Kofi Annan now taking questions in French, but still taking questions about what happened in Sudan with the vice president, a very popular man of that country, dying in a helicopter crash. Riots taking place in that country. Many people suspicious of the circumstances around that crash. Kofi Annan saying he believes that the crash, indeed, was an accident.

Before that, what we were also interested in is a comment from Kofi Annan on the news of the day. President Bush making a recess appointment of John Bolton, who will now be the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations. What does the Secretary-General think about that?

Let's go to our Richard Roth, who is at the United Nations to tell us more about what the Secretary-General had to say -- Richard?

RICHARD ROTH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Kofi Annan says John Bolton is certainly welcome here. And that would be the attitude would expect, since the U.S. is the biggest player here, and Kofi Annan is certainly under fire for scandals in the last year and a half, some under his watch, others because of the member countries of the United Nations.

This is what Secretary-General Annan said moments ago about the new U.S. ambassador to the U.N.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

... that president has appointed John Bolton as the ambassador, (INAUDIBLE) representative to the U.N. We look forward to working with him, as I do with the other 190 ambassadors, and we will welcome him at a time when we are in the midst of major reform.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROTH: John Bolton has been sent here. President Bush says he's going to insist on results -- Daryn.

KAGAN: Richard Roth at the United Nations. Thank you for that. Much more on this recess appointment and how that works in the next hour, as CNN LIVE TODAY continues. (COMMERCIAL BREAK)

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