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CNN Live Today

Balkans Most Wanted; Blood Battle

Aired March 13, 2006 - 11:31   ET

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

TONY HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: Slobodan Milosevic's son plans to claim his father's body at The Hague. Preliminary autopsy results show Milosevic died of a heart attack. He was found dead in his cell at The Hague Saturday, where he was being tried on war crimes charges. His son Marco Milosevic hopes to take the body to Belgrade for burial. He, as well as Milosevic's widow, face arrest in Serbia. Mrs. Milosevic will ask Belgrade to lift warrants out of respect. Those who have been described as Milosevic's top henchmen have been on the run for 10 years now.
Senior international correspondent Nic Robertson looks at Balkan's most wanted.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN SR. INTL. CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): It was in Bosnia, Slobodan Milosevic's Serbian nationalism brought the greatest carnage. Between 1992 and 1995, of four million people, half were forced to flee their homes. More than one in 20 were killed. Milosevic's biggest ally in that, the third of the four Balkan wars he instigated, was former poet and psychologist, Bosnian Serb Radovan Karadzic. With support from Milosevic's Serbia, Karadzic oversaw the three-year siege at the capital Sarajevo, and the countrywide effort to ethnically cleanse huge swathes of Bosnia, with its Muslim population.

When finally forced to the negotiating table in Dayton, Ohio, it was Milosevic who made the recalcitrant Karadzic sign. But the Bosnian Serb, known for his bouffant hairstyle, has been on the run since, evading an international war crimes tribunal warrant for his arrest.

Karadzic's wartime general was Radko Mladic, who was on Milosevic's government's payroll until after Milosevic was sent to The Hague.

Both Karadzic and Mladic are wanted on counts of genocide and crimes against humanity.

Mladic is accused of overseeing Europe's bloodiest massacre, since the Second World War, the killing of more than 7,000 Bosnian Muslim men and boys in the Bosnian town of Srebrenica in 1995. Karadzic has evaded several NATO efforts to capture him in Bosnia in the past 10 years.

Mladic is holed up in Serbia, where the country's many nationalists still consider him a wartime hero. European ministers are demanding Serbia hand Mladic over soon, or face delayed entry into the European Union. But Milosevic's nationalist legacy still dogged Serbian politics.

When horrific wartime video linking his regime directly to killings in Bosnia was first broadcast last year, many Serbs hoped their government would use it as an opportunity to move beyond the Milosevic era, force Mladic and Karadzic to The Hague. That didn't happen. Milosevic's two old allies, Bosnia's most wanted war criminals, are still on the loose.

Nic Robertson, CNN, Amman, Jordan.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HARRIS: And time now for our daily dose of health news. Public health experts reportedly say the U.S. is woefully unprepared should there be a human pandemic of bird flu. Aside from vaccines, "The New York Times" quotes expert as saying that hospitals across the country will not have enough ventilators to pump oxygen into sick patients' lungs. The "Times" reports there are 105,000 ventilators in the United States, and it says government national preparedness plan indicates the country would need more than 740,000.

Concerns over mad cow disease are rippling from the White House to capitals overseas. The U.S. Department of Agriculture is conducting more tests on a cow at a lab in Ames, Iowa after an earlier test from the disease came back with inconclusive results. The Bush administration is trying to reassure Japan and other countries that import U.S. beef that there is no cause for concern.

Here's a question for you, your gravely ill, perhaps bleeding to death, how would you feel about being given artificial blood without your consent? It is happening all around the country with governmental approval, but one senator is demanding answers.

Gary Nurenberg report.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JAN DALTON, POLYHEME PATIENT: Thank you.

GARY NURENBERG, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Even with an amputated leg, Jan Dalton feels lucky to have survived the accident and blood loss that left her unconscious at her Pennsylvania home.

DALTON: Every second that went by counted.

NURENBERG: Medics found her in shock and gave her the blood substitute PolyHeme. They didn't ask her for her permission to use the experimental product and she says that's OK.

DALTON: I mean, if there was any chance at all that it was going to help save my life, of course I was going say yes.

NURENBERG: The chairman of the Senate Finance Committee sees it differently. SEN. CHARLES GRASSLEY (R), IOWA: People are being asked to be a guinea pig for a new product without their knowledge. That's outrageous.

NURENBERG: But that is what's happening to some patients in 18 states where medical centers are taking part in a government-approved study of PolyHeme. Trauma victims can be given the substitute unless they're wearing a bracelet specifically saying they don't want it.

GRASSLEY: If you want to put your life on the line for medical research, you should know about it.

NURENBERG (on camera): Grassley said Friday the federal government's Office of Human Research Protections has, quote, "urgent ethical concerns about the consent policy." Neither the Department of Health and Human Services nor the Food and Drug Administration provided on-camera spokespersons but the FDA issued a statement staying, "the applicable regulations provide for medical, legal and ethical safeguards for this kind of research."

DR. CHRISTOPHER MICHETTI, TRAUMA SURGEON: It does seem that it provides a benefit to survival.

NURENBERG (voice-over): Dr. Christopher Michetti is a Virginia trauma surgeon who says getting consent from trauma patients is difficult.

MICHETTI: Hemorrhagic shock patients are by nature of the injury, not conscious or have an altered mental status and therefore are unable to consent.

NURENBERG: The manufacturer sees PolyHeme as potentially useful for emergency medical technicians who deal with thousand of cases of blood loss leading to death. PolyHeme, it says, "has the potential to address this critical unmet medical need."

Jan Dalton believes PolyHeme met her critical medical need, but Grassley wants other potential patients to know in advance they're getting a product that has not yet been proven safe. Gary Nurenberg, CNN, Washington.

Gary Nurenberg, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HARRIS: And to get your daily dose of health news online, log on to our Web site. You'll find the latest medical news, a health library and information on diet and fitness. The address, CNN.com/health.

More animal adventures, perhaps misadventures, ahead on LIVE TODAY, including an update on that wayward whippet that launched a massive dog hunt in New York's JFK Airport. That story when LIVE TODAY continues.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) HARRIS: And let's get you the latest on the Moussaoui trial. As you know, it's in recess right now. And we're learning that seven government witnesses that are involved in this huge dust-up at the trial will be in front of a judge hearing the case tomorrow.

Phil Hirschkorn, a CNN producer, is on the line with us right now. And Phil, thanks for your time. What can you tell us?

PHIL HIRSCHKORN, CNN PRODUCER: Well, as always, this case is full of surprises. And today's surprise was simply this. The government has inadvertently committed a violation of a court order in the Moussaoui trial.

There's a very strict court order that says that witnesses cannot talk to each other, read transcripts, compare notes, do anything like that before they testify. What has happened is, an attorney for the TSA, which oversees the FAA, the Federal Aviation Administration, had sent out transcripts to as many as seven potential witnesses in this case. And that's a violation of the judge's order.

So the concern is that those witnesses may be tainted and the judge has put the trial on hold to consider whether or not there should be a mistrial in this case. She's going to have an evidentiary hearing tomorrow to talk to those witnesses and find out what to do next.

HARRIS: And Phil, what would a mistrial mean?

HIRSCHKORN: Well, a mistrial at this point really means whether or not to dismiss the death penalty. That's the only issue here. Moussaoui's pled guilty. This whole trial, with the jury, has been convened to determine his punishment, either an execution or life in prison without the possibility of parole. Moussaoui's attorney said, judge, you need to dismiss this case and just sentence Moussaoui to life in prison. Time will tell whether she will do that.

HARRIS: Well, how was the defense -- defense prosecutors -- how were they explaining getting so close out of line and obviously getting the judge in this case very angry?

HIRSCHKORN: Well, here's the deal. These transcripts are available to anyone who wants to buy them every day. We're buying them as needed. You can get them through court reporter. The government gets them, the defense gets them. The mistake is that you're not supposed to show them, not even opening statements, to any witnesses before they testify. So the government found out just late on Friday that this had happened.

And the problem is not just with government witnesses. Three of these FAA witnesses will talk about -- rather, on behalf of the government. Four of them are supposed to be defense witnesses. What was done in this country regarding aviation security before 9/11 is a very important issue in this case for both sides.

So it's not so simple as the judge could say, OK, government, you can't call your three FAA witnesses. Because the four defense FAA witnesses have the same problem. So she hopes to call all of them in tomorrow, find out what they've been told and if it taints them, and then she's going to decide what to do.

HARRIS: Well, Phil, how embarrassing is this for the government? As Jeffrey Toobin was saying earlier, the government has had four years to put this case together.

HIRSCHKORN: They've been waiting for four years. These three prosecutors who are not at fault here, have been working and preparing. And they know the evidence by heart. Their witnesses have been ready to go. And they've just been at it for one week. This is the start of week two.

It's embarrassing because the government had a slip-up last Thursday, as Jeff Toobin was commenting on earlier. One of the prosecutors was asking an FBI witness, the FBI witness who interrogated Moussaoui before 9/11. And he asked that FBI agent, listen, after Moussaoui told you lies, did he ever later call you from jail and say, hey, I lied, let me fix this? That was a big problem. That was improper, because anybody in this country, whether you're a citizen or a foreign national like Moussaoui, you have a right to remain silent. You don't have to incriminate yourself.

And even though the whole government's case is that Moussaoui's lies contributed to 9/11, that was an improper question. So it's sort of two strikes for the government and we'll see what happens next.

HARRIS: And the jury is essentially dismissed until later in the week?

HIRSCHKORN: The -- it's a sunny day here in Alexandria and the judge told them to go out and enjoy the afternoon. Tomorrow there will be an evidentiary hearing to figure out what the damage is. And she's asked the jury to return Wednesday at 9:30, and we'll see if the trial starts again from there.

HARRIS: CNN producer Phil Hirschkorn with us on the line. Phil, we appreciate it. Thank you.

And we want to show you now some new pictures into CNN. These are pictures of a search that is going on right now, a U.S. Coast Guard search now of the Narragansett Bay. This is a search for three people. The Coast Guard received the call this morning of distress that there were three people out on a rowboat. Some articles of clothing have been found.

But these are three students from the University of Rhode Island who are missing. And new pictures, live pictures, into us now at CNN of the search, at the moment right now as the Coast Guard tries to find three missing students from the University of Rhode Island.

We will keep you posted on developments in this search.

(MARKET REPORT)

HARRIS: Right after the break, we'll get more details on the deadly storms through the Midwest from our severe weather expert Chad Myers. That's still to come, when LIVE TODAY continues.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARRIS: The Rock 'N' Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony. Even some of the inductees are snubbing the hall, the induction ceremony this year. Joining me to talk about is "Chicago Tribune" music critic Greg Kot.

Hey, Greg, good to talk to you.

GREG KOT, MUSIC CRITIC, "CHICAGO TRIBUNE": Likewise, Tony.

HARRIS: Well, what do you think of the list of inductees this year?

KOT: You know, it's hard to quibble. I mean, some of the people should have been there sooner. I guess that's my only gripe. And I also feel that...

HARRIS: You talking about Black Sabbath in particular, should have been there sooner, maybe?

KOT: Well, you know, the fact that it took so long to induct Black Sabbath I think sort of indicates a bias against heavy metal. I mean, love it or have it, Black Sabbath invented a style of music that's still extremely popular today. And I think it's kind of weird that it took them this long to figure out.

You know, Ditto for the Sex Pistols. You don't have Nirvana, you don't have Green Day if you don't have the Sex Pistols, and they should been inducted right away as well.

HARRIS: You know a bias against hip-hop, the early days of hip- hop.

KOT: Hip-hop just is starting to become eligible based on their 25-year criteria. You know, 25 years since the first album. You know, and hopefully some of these people will be inducted in the coming years. I think there should be a flood of hip-hop artists being inducted in the next two, three, four, years, with people like Run DMC, and the Beastie Boys and Public Enemy becoming eligible.

HARRIS: You know what, Greg, we try to figure this out every year when we ask this question -- what is the Rock 'N' Roll Hall of Fame all about? The people who get in, the inductees, those who are nominated. What's your sense of it now? I don't know how many years we've been doing this dance, but do you have a handle on it.

KOT: Yes, I remember being interviewed by CNN actually when it was -- when they opened the museum in Cleveland, and I looked at the place, and I go, this is like an air-conditioned church for the devil's music. I don't understand. It's just like this collision that isn't supposed to happen. You know, rock 'n' roll is about burning institutions down, not building them. And I always found it kind of odd that you'd have this $2500 a plate dinner for inducting rock 'n' roll people, people who were rebels. They should have it at Cee Bee Gees (ph) and -- you know, the little punk club, the little dive on the bowery there in New York. And people should be throwing glasses against the wall. It shouldn't be about these posh kind of dinner induction ceremonies. So it just seems kind of odd.

HARRIS: Well, Greg, with that in mind, who would you have liked to have seen inducted this year?

KOT: I think long overdue Iggy Pop and the Stooges. I mean, to, you know, the mainstream audience, they may not mean much, but I don't think there would be a lot of rock 'n' roll band that we've seen for the last 20, 30 years without the Stooges. I think they were incredibly important and influential band. And I also think the fact that electronic music, sort of an offshoot of rock 'n' roll, a tributary of rock 'n' roll in the early days, now a full-blown genre unto its own, has really been under-recognized, and specifically this band Kraftwerks from Germany, which a lot of people who have studied this music say they are the electronic music's Beatles. I mean, they should be in the hall of fame. These guys invented a genre, and the fact that these guys aren't in there kind of indicates that they have sort of a narrower vision of that music than a lot of other people.

HARRIS: OK. Well, Greg, good to talk to you. Thanks for your time.

KOT: Sure thing, Tony.

HARRIS: We want to take you now to the Justice Department where U.S. Attorney General Alberto Gonzales is taking questions on the Moussaoui case.

(JOINED IN PROGRESS)

ALBERTO GONZALES, U.S. ATTY. GENERAL: I'm not going to get into that discussion relating to what may -- what -- relating to the Moussaoui trial.

QUESTION: What is your reaction to Senator Feingold's mood to censure the president?

GONZALES: Well, you know, the -- my understanding is that it's premised upon his belief that the president has acted outside the law. It has been the position of the -- of this administration, of the Department of Justice, from the outset that the president does have the authority as commander in chief during a time of war, supplemented under the Constitution, supplemented by the authorization to use military force passed by Congress shortly after the attacks of September 11th. So, obviously, we believe strongly the president does have the authority.

We have provided a lot of information supporting our legal rational, our legal analysis to the Congress. I spent eight hours before the Senate judiciary committee. So we're very, very comfortable with our position.

HARRIS: All right. And there you have Attorney General Alberto Gonzales one question on the Moussaoui trial. As you know, if you've been watching this morning, is in disarray right now. The case -- the trial is actually in recess right now. But no comment on the case brought by the Justice Department, at least from the attorney general at this point in time.

I'm Tony Harris. International news is up next. Stay tuned for YOUR WORLD TODAY. And I'll be back with latest headlines from the U.S. in about 20 minutes.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

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