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Hezbollah, Pro-Syrian Allies Rally in Beirut; New Person Reported With Radiation Poisoning; Calderon Becomes Mexico's President Amid Turmoil

Aired December 01, 2006 - 12:00   ET

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

HALA GORANI, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: The crowds are thinning in the Lebanese capital a few hours after up to 200,000 opposition demonstrators demanded Prime Minister Fouad Siniora resign.
I'm Hala Gorani, live in Beirut. I'll have a report in a few minutes.

COLLEEN MCEDWARDS, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: And battle royale in Mexico City. Lawmakers trade punches hours before the inauguration of Mexico's new president.

JONATHAN MANN, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: Plus, World AIDS Day 2006. Forty million people live with HIV around the globe, and the disease is still spreading. Can it ever be stopped?

It is 7:00 p.m. in Beirut, 11:00 a.m. in Mexico City.

Hello and welcome to our report broadcast around the globe.

I'm Jonathan Mann.

MCEDWARDS: And I'm Colleen McEdwards.

You're watching YOUR WORLD TODAY.

MANN: Thanks for joining us.

The world today reflects on a disease that has claimed more than 25 million lives in 25 years.

MCEDWARDS: We're going to have extensive coverage of World AIDS Day ahead in the program, but we want to begin with political strife in two countries.

MANN: Political strife and high drama. First, to Lebanon. The crowds there are now thinning, but hundreds of thousands of people filled the streets a short while ago, demanding the western-backed government step down.

MCEDWARDS: Both Hala Gorani and Brent Sadler are covering these mass protests in Beirut for us. They're organized by Hezbollah and its allies.

Let's begin our coverage with Hala.

Hala, go ahead.

GORANI: All right, Colleen.

Well, the crowds, as you mentioned, dispersing right now. Just a few hours ago there were official estimates that up to 200,000 opposition demonstrators poured out on to the streets of the Lebanese capital, demanding that the western and United States-backed government of the prime minister, Fouad Siniora, step aside.

Our Beirut bureau chief, Brent Sadler, has been covering the events all day and he joins me now live from another vantage point -- Brent.

BRENT SADLER, CNN BEIRUT BUREAU CHIEF: Thanks, Hala.

I think what we're seeing here is the beginning of a marathon tug-of-war between two diametrically opposed political camps. One that is associated with Syria and Iran's influence in Lebanon, trying to topple the western-backed government of Fouad Siniora that is generally widely supported by the United States.

That tug-of-war descended into downtown Beirut when this protest reached critical mass. Several hours ago, hundreds of thousands of protesters demanding the immediate resignation of Fouad Siniora.

Fouad Siniora, they say, is leading a government that is illegitimate after six ministers resigned a couple of weeks ago. And what we're seeing continuing here are speeches being given to this crowd, though reducing in numbers. It will, we expect, continue for perhaps days, weeks, or even months to come.

What they've done is to erect a series of tents on the main road leading to the prime ministry complex where Fouad Siniora, the prime minister, is essentially holed up with a number of his ministers, at least eight, I am told, cordoned off by a ring of steel, by at least a dozen armored vehicles, hundreds of combat troops and paramilitary police. This is a very serious development in an already escalating political crisis here in Lebanon -- Hala.

GORANI: Now, these opposition demonstrators, Brent, are demanding that the government step aside. But what do they say they would like to see replace it?

SADLER: OK. The two points of argument are this: the government in power says it was democratically elected after Syrian troops were forced to withdraw under international pressure and the so-called Cedar Revolution. And in parliament today, Siniora's supporters told the majority -- they say they won't give way to effectively what they believe articulate as an attempted coup to topple the parliamentary majority.

On the other hand, Hezbollah emerging, it says, victorious from the war with Israel during the summer. Hezbollah's demanding to have enough ministers in cabinet to have the minority holding a veto power over the government. Those two opposite points of view have now come to a head in a showdown between these two rival camps on the streets of Lebanon right now.

GORANI: All right. Brent Sadler, our Beirut bureau chief, there reporting live as this political earthquake here in Lebanon continues.

Both sides standing firm. One demanding the resignation of the Lebanese prime minister. The other, the cabinet of Prime Minister Fouad Siniora, says there is no way they are stepping down.

A little bit later in the program I'll be speaking to a sitting pro-Siniora cabinet minister, as well as the editor of Al-Manar, the Hezbollah-funded television, for the points of view from both sides of this massive political divide.

For now, John and Colleen, back to you.

MCEDWARDS: All right, Hala, thanks very much.

For now, though, we want to bring you some new developments on a story that makes spy novels look tame by comparison. Now the mystery surrounding the death of a former Russian spy has taken another dramatic twist.

Our Robin Oakley is following the story for us now -- Robin.

ROBIN OAKLEY, CNN EUROPEAN POLITICAL EDITOR: Well, as you say, Colleen, throw six spy novel writers into a bag and they wouldn't come up with a story as complicated and as bizarre and as constantly twisting and turning as this one. We've had four airliners grounded in Moscow and in London. We've had the British security minister saying that 24 sites across London have been tested for radioactive emissions, and that 12 of them have been found positive.

We've had three pathologists here today at the Royal London Hospital in space-age protective gear, examining the body of Alexander Litvinenko, the former KGB spy who is believed to have died by toxic poisoning, radiation poisoning from Polonium-210.

And now the latest development, the man who had a meal with Alexander Litvinenko on the day he was taken ill, Mario Scaramella, an Italian security expert who met with Mr. Litvinenko to warn him that they were both on the hit list of some not yet identified members, perhaps, of the Russian security forces or renegade members of the renegade security forces. And Mr. Scaramella, of course, did in the course of an interview recently actually explain what it was that Mr. Litvinenko had to eat at that possibly fateful meal for both of them.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MARIO SCARAMELLA, RUSSIAN ACADEMIC: I took (ph) with personally the food from frigobar. It's something like a self-service place. Some things from the frigobar directly, something like soup from people in charge there. And we went downstairs to speak.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

OAKLEY: And now the Health Protection Agency here in London is saying that Mr. Scaramella -- well, they didn't actually name him, but everybody else is naming him. They said somebody close to Mr. Litvinenko had a significant amount of Polonium-210 in his body when he was tested.

So that is where we are now -- Colleen.

MCEDWARDS: Well, we know that Mr. Litvinenko got extremely sick and suffered a long and painful death. How much do we know at this point about the health of Mr. Scaramella and how much exposure he may have had here?

OAKLEY: That's a very curious point, Colleen, because Mr. Scaramella said that he didn't have anything to eat when he met with Mr. Litvinenko. And, indeed, he had tests. He was over in London having tests a few days ago, and he, at one point, said that he had been cleared by the doctors.

So we have no idea at this stage just how much Polonium-210 he may have ingested or how it got into his system. That remains a mystery -- Colleen.

MCEDWARDS: Health officials said you can breathe it in as well.

Lots of questions here. Robin Oakley, thanks so much for sorting some of it out for us. Appreciate it -- John.

MANN: World AIDS Day is under way. But as campaigner around the globe turn a spotlight on the scourge of AIDS, disturbing news for public health authorities and patients alike.

According to a joint report from the U.N. aides and the World Health Organization, the rate of HIV infection is growing, and nearly 40 million people are now believed infected worldwide. There is still no vaccine.

MCEDWARDS: Well, we will have much more on the sweeping political turmoil that is going on in Lebanon right now.

MANN: After the break, we'll go back to Beirut for more on what led to this day of massive opposition protests there.

Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

MCEDWARDS: Welcome back. You're watching YOUR WORLD TODAY.

MANN: Where we bring CNN's international and U.S. viewers up to speed on the most important international stories of the day.

A brawl over the big job in Mexico. Jeers and whistles accompanied his swearing in, but it was an even more chaotic scene earlier when members of the Mexican Congress literally threw punches and chairs in protest.

Felipe Calderon has taken over as Mexico's new president, while the opposition insists still that he stole last July's election.

Harris Whitbeck is in Mexico City and joins us now with more -- Harris.

HARRIS WHITBECK, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hello, Jonathan.

The swearing-in ceremony in which Felipe Calderon was declared Mexico's new president didn't last more than three or four minutes. Calderon surprised everybody, including some of those brawling legislators, when he suddenly appeared on the stage in the Legislative Palace in Mexico City, waved his right arm and took the oath of office, which lasted a very short while.

He was accompanied by former president Vicente Fox. There was some doubt as to whether he would be at the ceremony, given the controversy surrounding Calderon's election.

Meanwhile, supporters of his former opponent, Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, attempted to march to the Legislative Palace to protest and to, in their words, prevent him from taking office. They were not allowed near, due to the heavy security.

The challenge Calderon now faces is in trying to govern this country, which is so divided along political lines, and in working with a Congress that is also very divided in terms of its support -- Jonathan.

MANN: Why is this election victory so disputed?

WHITBECK: Well, Calderon won the election, was declared the victor by a very, very small percentage. The results of the election were very, very close. And it took the electoral tribunals several weeks to, in fact, declare that Calderon had won.

There were partial recounts in some cases. And again, there was just a very, very, very tight race. And the result of that tight race is seen today in the fact that congress itself is very divided as for support for Calderon.

MANN: Harris Whitbeck in Mexico City -- Colleen.

MCEDWARDS: All right. We want to continue our coverage now of our top story, the protest in Lebanon, where the government there is in a very fragile state.

Hala Gorani joins us now again from Beirut with more -- Hala.

GORANI: Well, this could lead to a very difficult political landscape here in Lebanon. You have on the one hand the U.S. and western-backed government of Fouad Siniora. You have on the other hand opposition demonstrators and parties that include, but are not limited to, Hezbollah.

There's also the Shiite party, Amal. There is also the ex-army general in Lebanon here, Michel Aoun, and his followers. They poured into the streets of the Lebanese capital this day demanding the immediate resignation of the prime minister, Fouad Siniora. The crisis really began a few weeks ago.

Let's bring our viewers up to date on the background of what led to this day here in Lebanon.

Well, the prime minister, Fouad Siniora, yesterday, Thursday, told his nation there will be no coup and the only way to peace is through national unity. Now, trouble within Mr. Siniora's government went from bad to worse. That was last month.

Five pro-Syrian Shiite ministers and one Christian quit the cabinet. That came ahead of cabinet approval of an international tribunal to investigate the February 2005 assassination of former prime minister Rafik Hariri.

A U.N. report linked Syrian officials to Hariri's killing, but Damascus denied it played any role in it or any other political assassination, because there's been a string of them in this country. The latest, cabinet minister Pierre Gemayel gunned down in Beirut in broad daylight. After his funeral, anti-Syrian allies took to the streets, declaring that they, not Hezbollah, represent the country's majority.

Now, as we've been saying, these -- these protests have been cross-sectarian, if you will. There are the Shiites, but also some Christian followers.

We'll have a lot more from Beirut. For now, though, back to John.

MANN: Hala, from a distance, it looks like the Siniora government is trying to ignore this protest. Where's the prime minister today?

GORANI: The prime minister is really a few hundred yards or meters behind me in the prime minister's residence, called the Grand Serail here in downtown Beirut, behind a massive security force. And some observers are saying unprecedented security protecting the prime minister, but also several ministers who have been sleeping and eating there and living there in the last week since the assassination of that Christian cabinet minister, Pierre Gemayel.

There are hundreds of police. You can see it there on your screen. Army troops, armored personnel carriers, barbed wire protecting the compound where the prime minister is.

He is standing firm, John. He is saying that this is not a democratic way of asking for a government to step down. The only way his government will step down and step away from power is if there is a no-confidence vote from parliament.

However, we just spoke to the editor of Al-Manar television, Ibrahim Moussawi (ph), who said that this sit-in that you're definitely hearing behind me, I'm sure, will continue, that these protests are open-ended until the government and the cabinet of Prime Minister Fouad Siniora resigns -- John.

MANN: Hala Gorani in Beirut.

We'll be back to you soon.

One of the loudest anti-government voices comes from the Christian leader, Michel Aoun. He's allied himself with the Shia group Hezbollah. And while it may seem like an odd match, his supporters say (INAUDIBLE) on national unity.

Our Brent Sadler has more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SADLER (voice over): One maverick Christian leader, General Michel Aoun, claims he is already trying to do just that, by embracing Hezbollah's leader, Hassan Nasrallah, rocking the political establishment here by crossing the sectarian line. A bid, claim supporters among his Free Patriotic Movement, to diffuse tension.

KAMEL YAZIGI, FREE PATRIOTIC MOVEMENT: Because if you corner any group, Hezbollah in particular, you risk trouble. So by keeping a balance, you're ultimately safeguarding the unity of the country.

SADLER: A dramatic move that seems to defy the 70-year-old general's past. Back in the late 1980s, General Aoun led a breakaway faction within the army, and launched a hopeless battle of liberation to drive Syrian troops from Lebanon. He lost, and went into exile. The former Aoun aide, now a horticulturist, retired from politics, recalls Aoun's popularity among Christians blossomed when he defied Syria.

ROGER AZZAM, FMR. AOUN ADVISER: They were looking for a leader, for a savior, if we can say. And now they are missing the savior.

SADLER: Azzam split with the general long before Aoun returned home to a heroes welcome some 18 months ago, and he pours scorn on the general's new political ties.

AZZAM: Michael Aoun is not the Michael Aoun with you, his way is against, you know, the minimum of interest stuff for Lebanon, you know?

SADLER (on camera): Still, Aoun remains one of the popular Maronite Christians in the country. With enough parliamentary clout, backed by Hezbollah, to challenge the government here.

(voice-over): It's 16 years since General Aoun surrendered the bomb-blasted presidential palace overlooking Beirut to the Syrians. Now he's hoping to become president, with the help of an old enemy and the newly influential Hezbollah.

Brent Sadler, CNN, Beirut.

(END VIDEOTAPE) MCEDWARDS: All right. We are going to take a short break here now on YOUR WORLD TODAY. For our viewers in the United States, your top stories are coming up next.

MANN: Viewers everywhere, stay with us. More of YOUR WORLD TODAY after this.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

T.J. HOLMES, CNN ANCHOR: Hello, everybody. I'm T.J. Holmes at the CNN Center in Atlanta.

We've got a wintry storm -- a wintry storm to tell you about here, plunging into the Midwest and the Plains. They're in a deep freeze right now.

The first major snowstorm of the season making road conditions dangerous from Texas to Missouri to Michigan. A blizzard warning was posted for parts of Oklahoma, and the governor of Kansas declared a disaster emergency for 27 counties.

The storm has grounded hundreds of flights. More than 400 were canceled at Chicago's O'Hare airport today. Flights were also grounded at the St. Louis and Dallas-Ft. Worth airports.

We'll update travel delays on right side of your screen, as you see there. And there are plenty of them, as we've been hearing and talking about with our Reynolds Wolf.

(WEATHER REPORT)

HOLMES: Well, ceremony, services and the sound of bells, part of World AIDS Day observances.

In Washington, groups involved in the fight against AIDS gathered as church bells rang every five seconds. The bells represented a new HIV infection or AIDS death every five seconds. Services and demonstration being held around the world.

President Bush says HIV and AIDS can be defeated and the U.S. is willing to take the lead in the fight. And he spoke at the White House this morning. The president has pledged $15 billion over five years. Part of the global emergency plan for AIDS relief.

Some details from the Iraq Study Group are coming out. Sources close to the group say the panel wants to put the Iraq government on notice that U.S. troop commitment is not open-ended. The panel favoring troop reductions beginning relatively early next year. It also says to favor pulling out U.S. troops on the front lines.

And this morning "The Washington Post" reporting the panel will recommend most troops be out by 2008.

Early Thursday, the top enlisted adviser to Joint Chiefs Chairman Peter Pace talked about the morale of U.S. troops in Iraq and Afghanistan. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SGT. MAJ. WILLIAM GAINEY, U.S. ARMY: The biggest concern, ma'am, while I was there was that the citizens of the United States realize that we are at war and they need your support. You know, we give them equipment. We've got the best equipment in the world. But they need your support. It affects morale directly when we at home do not support our troops.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HOLMES: And one Pentagon general suggesting a 2008 pullout may be too optimistic.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MAJ. GEN. BENJAMIN MIXON, U.S. ARMY: I can certainly see great opportunity to reduce the amount of combat forces on the ground in a multinational division north and turn more responsibility over to Iraqi security forces. I think we have to keep this in perspective.

We spent about 10 years in Bosnia-Herzegovina setting the stage for those elements to be successful. We need to allow the Iraqis the same time to get their security forces on the ground, to get their government working, and then have a gradual withdrawal of American security forces but continue to partner with them over the long term.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HOLMES: Well, the show must go on. Kasatka, the killer whale, back in the tank, thrilling crowds at SeaWorld in San Diego. Her human partner still nursing a broken foot.

It was injured Wednesday when the whale dragged him under water. It's not the first time the two have tangled, actually. Back in '99, Kasatka tried to bite that very same trainer.

It's been 15 years since Irvin "Magic" Johnson told the world that he had HIV. The disease forced hem out of the NBA, but it hasn't slowed down the rest of his life.

Next hour, Magic will join us to talk about living with HIV. That's coming up in the "NEWSROOM" Kyra Phillips and Don Lemon at the top of the hour.

Meantime, YOUR WORLD TODAY continues after a quick break.

I'm T.J. Holmes.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

MANN: Welcome back to YOUR WORLD TODAY. I'm Jonathan Mann. Throngs in Beirut rallied Friday against the western-backed government of Prime Minister Fouad Siniora. Estimates of the crowd ranging from 200,000 to 800,000. Christian opposition leader Michel Anoun called on Mr. Siniora to resign. Hezbollah, which organized the rally, wants more Shiites in the Lebanese cabinet, enough essentially, for veto power.

It is sweeping the world like a firestorm, killing people of all ages in its path. The words of former U.S. President Bill Clinton. He's talking about AIDS. As the world marks AIDS Day, we focus now on the fight against the epidemic. Colleen McEdwards has more on that.

MCEDWARDS: Hey Jonathan, thanks very much. World Aids Day is being marked around the globe by somber religious services, demonstrations, and warnings as well that far more needs to be done to fight this killer.

In Thailand, for example, a street parade in Bangkok marked the day. The country has reduced the number of new infections by promoting condom use among prostitutes. Now rallies were also held in India, Indonesia, and other parts of Asia as well.

Now, in Germany, hundreds attends a memorial march for AIDS victims. Many more wore white masks and carried the white balloons. You can see them there in the shadows. There were prayer services in Russia and concerts in London as well.

This year's event comes with some sobering news, though. The number of people living with the HIV virus that causes AIDS has actually gone up. The virus continues to cut a deadly path across the globe. There are nearly 40 million people around the world who are now living with HIV. This year alone, more than 4 million were infected. Two-thirds of them in sub-Saharan Africa.

Africa continues to be the hardest hit, that's for sure. There are nearly 25 million people living with HIV on the continent. India has the second highest population in the world, but the highest number of people infected with HIV/AIDS. The most striking increases in infection rates have occurred in eastern Europe, though and central Asia.

Even in the United States, the epidemic has not been contained. About 1 million people are infected with HIV and a quarter of them don't even know it. African-Americans account for half of all new infections in the United States.

Well, the first case of AIDS was discovered 25 years ago in the U.S. since then, 25 million people have died. And even though billions of dollars have been poured into research, there is neither a cure, nor a vaccine. CNN's Dr. Sanjay Gupta profiles one woman in Nairobi who, despite being exposed to AIDS, beat the odds.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN SENIOR MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Nancy Ndegwa's life has been filled with the unexpected.

GUPTA (on camera): You don't have HIV? Do you think that that's a miracle? Are you surprised by that?

NANCY NDEGWA, FORMER PROSTITUTE: I was surprised. It's a miracle from God. I could not have expected that. GUPTA (voice-over): This past January, her husband died of AIDS. For more than two decades, she worked as a prostitute to support her family. By her own admission, she has been exposed to the virus thousands of times through unprotected sex. Yet, somehow, she never got infected.

GUPTA (on camera): You started in 1981 doing this sort of work. How many women from back then are still alive?

NDEGWA: The women who we started -- they are not there. All of them have died.

GUPTA (voice-over): Nancy should have also died years ago. But she, along with over 100 other prostitutes in this Nairobi slum, are not only living but are, experts say, resistant to HIV, the virus that causes AIDS.

DR. CHARLES WACHIHI, KENYA AIDS CONTROL PROJECT: People like Nancy show us there's a way in which we can protect the immune system, the body from infection by the virus. We just have to learn from Nancy how the body does it, through that, design a vaccine that will simulate a response in the general population.

GUPTA (on camera): Doctors and researchers looked at this Nairobi slum, specifically to the bodies of a few dozen women, searching for clues for the ultimate prevention, a vaccine. Could they find them? Did they find them?

DR. RICHARD LESTER, KACP, UNIVERSITY OF MANITOBA: You would expect that the longer someone had been doing sex work, the more likely they would be to be HIV infected. It's just the opposite, the reverse is true.

GUPTA (voice-over): Lester says if the woman was not infected during the first three years of sex work, they were ten times less likely to ever become infected with HIV. For some reason, repeated exposure to the virus made the immune system stronger.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: A vaccine was possible from the information that we had.

GUPTA: Researchers began testing a vaccine based on what they learn from Nancy and the other Nairobi prostitutes. When HIV was first detected 25 years ago, most everyone thought we'd have a vaccine by now. Yet a vaccine still remains well out of reach.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It is such a stealth virus that it really has figured out how to get around the immune system.

GUPTA: It changes, it mutates. The HIV virus circulating in Asia is different than the one in the U.S., which is different from the one in Africa.

DR. WALTER JAOKO, KENYA AIDS CONTROL PROJECT: We have learned a lot from the time of the beginning of the vaccine trials. But there's still a lot to be learned. GUPTA: And more was learned from Nancy Ndegwa. But still not enough to create that ultimate vaccine. It was less than 30 percent effective. And the science community thought it was too risky and too costly to proceed.

DR. SETH BERKELEY, INTL. AIDS VACCINE INITIATIVE: The issue is can we turn that into a vaccine that is going to be easy to use that is going to protect against all strains and is going to be cost effective? And that's really the challenge for us.

GUPTA: And so the hunt continues.

Do you think they're going to find a vaccine?

NDEGWA: Yes, they can find.

GUPTA: Do you think you, your body, might help them?

NDEGWA: If my body can be of help to people, I can be -- even I can be happy.

GUPTA: Dr. Sanjay Gupta, CNN, Nairobi.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

MCEDWARDS: Well, one of the men who first identified the virus says AIDS is something like having a tsunami every 30 days. If you can imagine this -- it kills some 250,000 people every month.

Robert Gallo is also the developer of the HIV/AIDS blood test. He joins us now from Washington. A very special guest to talk about AIDS on this day. Doctor Gallo, thank you for being here.

I would love to get a glimpse if you can treat us to that, of what it was like for you 25 years ago when you discovered this virus. Did you have any sense then of the terrible course that this virus would take?

DR. ROBERT GALLO, CO-DISCOVERER OF HIV: Well, I can say that we knew from testing anti-bodies in a variety of people in different parts of the world that the virus was definitely spreading far. We could say that even by the spring, early summer, of 1984. So we had a good idea that it was spreading.

We also know the nature of these kinds of viruses, which we call retroviruses. Means that when a person is infected, they're infected for their life. And we also knew from the nature of this kind of virus that it's not just going to hit a population and disappear. It's going to be around very likely until the problem is solved.

Yet we couldn't anticipate the gravity and horror of the situation in places like parts of Africa. And we couldn't quite appreciate the difficulties of developing a preventive vaccine. On the other hand there's also been some good news.

MCEDWARDS: Yes, let's talk about that since you've hit on it already. Do you think there will be a vaccine someday?

GALLO: Yes, I do.

MCEDWARDS: And where will it come about do you think? How will it come about?

GALLO: I believe that -- and I must qualify my words to tell you that you could get different opinions on what I'm saying to you.

MCEDWARDS: Sure.

GALLO: There are scientists who believe that we face a much worse predictions from the current knowledge than we did five years ago. I believe quite the contrary. I think that our understanding over the past five, six, seven years of how HIV enters the cell is giving us, for the first time, glimpses of being able to see a pathway that could really produce an effective vaccine.

Yes, HIV varies a lot, as you already noted on the program. I don't think it's its No. 1 problem. I think the No. 1 problem is the fact that it is this kind of virus, a retrovirus, that when it infects it inserts its genetic information into our chromosomal DNA of the cells it infects, establishing infection for the life of the individual, but also establishing infection right at the immediate time it starts.

Other viruses that we have vaccines to -- like, let's take polio. You get infected, but some weeks can go by, your immune system is recalled and you get rid of the virus. With HIV, it's too late. It will establish the infection within the first day that it meets us.

MCEDWARDS: So we know a lot more now about the virus and how it operates.

GALLO: Yes.

MCEDWARDS: That's clear. But I'm wondering how you feel about where we are in the world in terms of public education, in terms of treatment and in terms of control.

GALLO: I -- every time I think of the past few decades and jump towards the future, I'm always conflicted with opposites. I think, as you're implying, we know an awful lot about HIV, maybe more than we know about any virus. And more about AIDS than we know about any other disease. And we've had some wonderful advances, the two great practical advances -- but notably, they came out of basic research -- have been the blood test, and have been the development of therapy. You know that we have therapy in the industrial nations that is so good for -- which is rare for a viral disease; this is, really, kind of historical -- that some people believe we don't have a problem anymore. It's as if they are cured and they take more risks. But, of course, as you have noted, we can't cure it; we can only contain the virus. I feel that there has been great progress in therapy. Preventive vaccine has been disappointing, but has to be the ultimate answer. There's been great progress in basic research. There's great progress in education. But it has to be maintained, and it has to be extended. And we have to do far more testing.

MCEDWARDS: So what's...

GALLO: And blood tests.

MCEDWARDS: What's the missing ingredient then? Is it more money? More research? What's it going to take?

GALLO: Look, you know this is a field that goes beyond the scientist and the clinician.

MCEDWARDS: Yes.

GALLO: Look how many groups are involved. And there's a reason for that. By the nature of this virus and nature of this disease, we have to deal with issues of poverty, with women's rights. We have to deal with all kinds of social, economic problems that scientists can't get to that is the nature of this beast. How can we deal better with it? We have to do much more testing. Well, that costs money. That requires education. We have education. It's got to be sustained and it's got to be extended. We've got to bring the therapy to developing nations. We've got to have continued new drug therapy because it's lifelong and you get drug resistance and toxicity. So far science keeps on top of that.

A preventive vaccine will come. But requires -- you asked what is it going to take? Still additional money and your patient support. Basic science will solve this problem ultimately.

MCEDWARDS: Understood. Professor Robert Gallo, it's been a pleasure to hear your views and to talk to you. I appreciate it. Thank you.

GALLO: Thank you.

MCEDWARDS: All right, Professor Robert Gallo speaking to us there.

U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan calls the virus the greatest challenge of this generation, and called on every politician of the world to help stop the spread of HIV and AIDS. This year marks the 19th world aids day marked around the world.

And, John, back to you now.

MANN: We'll have more on the protests in Beirut in just a moment. We'll look at the streets and the mood on a day that the Lebanese will be marking history.

You're watching CNN.

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MANN: Welcome back. Seen live in more than 200 countries and territories across the globe, this is YOUR WORLD TODAY on CNN International. It has been peaceful, but in political terms, it is a battle under way on the streets of Beirut. Let's return now to Hala Gorani from the Lebanese capital -- Hala.

GORANI: Well, this could eventually turn into a seismic event in Lebanese politics. On one side, you have the Western-supported government of Prime Minister Fuad Siniora. On the other, opposition demonstrators and parties, including, but not limited to, Hezbollah. There's Hezbollah. There's another Shiite party, Amal. There's also the Christian followers of an ex-army general in the Lebanese army during the civil war, Michel Aoun.

I'm going to step aside for just a few seconds to allow viewers to get a sense what's happening behind me. Night has fallen on the Lebanese capital. Earlier today, we heard from official sources that there were up to 200,000 demonstrator demanding the immediate resignation of the Lebanese Prime Minister Fouad Siniora. There, only a few thousand people, but they are vowing to stay there and continue their civil disobedience and demonstrations, and even resignations from some parliamentary and political offices until they get what they want and what they have been demanding all day long and for the last few weeks, and that is that the prime minister, Fouad Siniora step down.

Now unprecedented security around the prime minister's office as hundreds of police. hundreds of army troops, armored personnel carriers, barbed wire, all guarding the Grand Surayia, as it's called here in Beirut.

That's where we find Anthony Mills for a look at the mood inside the prime minister's offices.

Anthony, what can you tell us?

ANTHONY MILLS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hala, there is something of a mood of defiance that has been clearly palpable here throughout the afternoon. I've spoken with a number of ministers, even the prime minister himself, Fouad Siniora, who told me that he was convinced that he and government majority, those ministers still in the government, enjoy the confidence of the majority of the country. That of course is a claim also being made by the opposition, notably Hezbollah and the Christian General Michelle Aoun, who's supporters were out in numbers this afternoon, and some of whom remain out till as we speak.

Now at the same time, behind this real perimeter, this major security perimeter, there are fears among the ministers here, at least seven or eight of whom have been living here for a week and a half now, fears of assassination. Let's not forget that a week and a half ago, Pierre Gemayel, industry minister, a well-known anti-Syrian rising political star, was assassinated in broad daylight in a Christian suburb, and so there are fears among ministers gathered here that they, too, could be targeted for assassination, which is why they are staying here.

But as far as the security situation, we're really on the other side of that square. This complex, the prime ministerial complex, is just a few dozen meters from the square, the closest square where demonstrators are still camped out. They've erected tents close to the entrance, close to the coils of barbed wire and the armored personal carriers of the army's special forces, and they're still there. And indeed, we can still hear them from the interior courtyard here -- Hala.

GORANI: All right, Anthony Mills there inside the prime minister's offices building, the grand surayia here in the Lebanese capital. That's it from me for now. We're going to take a short break on YOUR WORLD TODAY. Stay with CNN.

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MCEDWARDS: Welcome back to YOUR WORLD TODAY. We want to bring you more now on this situation in Lebanon, where a government is really teetering on the edge in the face of massive protests organized by Hezbollah.

We are joined now by Ibrahim Moussaoui, he is the editor for al Manar Television and joins us now. Mr. Moussaoui, thanks for being here.

Just start by giving us your perspective on the protests and whether you think this government has got to resign at this point or whether it can withstand this.

IBRAHIM MOUSSAOUI, AL MANAR TELEVISION: Well, yes, absolutely, this is a legitimate government -- the Lebanese people. The government says it's the majority and the Lebanese people who represent the majority, they comprise the (INAUDIBLE), the (INAUDIBLE) movement that comprise -- this is an illegitimate government and it should go. It's illegitimate because the Shia's have walked out of the government and the constitution prescribes that there should be a kind of coalition. And, though the (INAUDIBLE)...

MCEDWARDS: The government, though -- the government says that those cabinet ministers were not forced out, they walked out. They have argued over and over again, Fuad Siniora, on television...

MOUSSAOUI: Absolutely.

MCEDWARDS: ...saying this is a legitimate government, we will not tolerate a state within a state.

MOUSSAOUI: They were not forced out, yes. But the kind of decisions that this government was saying -- this government has betrayed its own people doing the war -- the war by the Israelis. This government is illegitimate, because its prescribed there in the constitution that when the whole community walks out then this is not a legitimate government.

Those people have walked out because of this arrogant, one-sided decision making by the government, by the majority. It means nothing to have numbers of ministers there. They only sign, and they have no say in the decision making. This is the problem actually. And that's why they walked out.

MCEDWARDS: So, if Hezbollah wants more representation in the government, and we know that it does, why go about it in this way?

MOUSSAOUI: It's not that they want more representation in government. We're talking about the movement (INAUDIBLE), of the Christians -- actually, Hezbollah said -- actually have any Hezbollah minister in the government. But what we want to make sure that this government will make only decisions that take into interest the domestic interest of Lebanon, not being dictated by the Americans and the others -- because they are interfering in Lebanese affairs.

MCEDWARDS: Why pursue that this way? Why does a government have to fall before Hezbollah can reach its goals? If it wants to be treated as a legitimate part of the political process?

MOUSSAOUI: Actually, Hezbollah is a legitimate part of the political process. They have ministers in the government. And they have given this government enough time in order to accept this. There have been a lot of...

MCEDWARDS: All right, I have to stop you there, Ibrahim Moussaoui, we're having some audio trouble there. But Ibrahim Moussaoui, with al Manar Television, obviously a pro-Hezbollah position there, as we continue to cover this story on CNN.

We'll be back in just a moment.

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