Return to Transcripts main page

CNN Newsroom

Urgent Mission on Mount Hood; Accused Serial Killer Faces Police Questioning

Aired December 18, 2006 - 09:00   ET

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


TONY HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: And good morning, everyone.
You are in the CNN NEWSROOM.

I'm Tony Harris.

HEIDI COLLINS, CNN ANCHOR: And I'm Heidi Collins.

For the next three hours, watch events happen live this Monday on the 18th of December.

Here's what's on the rundown.

Urgent mission on Mount Hood -- two climbers stranded more than a week now, their buddy found dead. Search and recovery today on an Oregon peak.

HARRIS: Suspect arrested -- five women murdered in a small English town today. An accused serial killer faces police questioning.

COLLINS: And she's a star, track and field medalist. But wait, she's no woman. A gender bender in the sports world, in THE NEWSROOM.

Holding out hope after a tragic find. An urgent search resuming this morning for two mountain climbers. They've been stranded on Oregon's Mount Hood for more than a week. A third climber found dead. We should learn his identity today.

Our Chris Lawrence is tracking developments in Hood River, Oregon, now and has the very latest -- good morning to you, Chris.

CHRIS LAWRENCE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Heidi.

Numerous reports are naming that missing climber who was found yesterday, numerous reports are naming him as Kelly James, the oldest of the three hikers, through family sources.

There has been some frustration among some of the rescue teams here because, for a week now, they have known that Kelly James had been hunkered down near the summit on the north side of the mountain. They knew that he had placed a call to his family, saying that the other two hikers had left him to go look for help. And they were able to pinpoint the general location through his cell phone ping.

So for a week they have known a general location of where he was, but because of the bad weather, the high winds, the extreme cold, they were not able to get anywhere near that part of the mountain until just this weekend.

They found the one body in one snow cave. In another snow cave they found clues that are at least giving them a little bit of hope. They found ice axes, a sleeping bag. They found footprints, one leading down into somewhat of an aimless circle; the other set of footprints leading up toward the summit. And they also found a "Y" dug into the snow. That is a signal from climbers that we are here and we need help. Some of these are things they're going to be looking at today as they start to narrow the search, still having some hope of finding those two other climbers alive -- Heidi.

COLLINS: Boy, the frustration, Chris, must be just amazing, knowing that that weather was so -- so perfect for searching and everything yesterday. So everybody's still holding out hope, I know that much.

Chris Lawrence, thanks.

We'll check back later on.

Chad Myers is in the Weather Center now -- you want to give us a better picture, Chad, if you would, of the conditions today and for the next few days to come.

CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Pretty good, really.

(WEATHER REPORT)

COLLINS: And stay in THE NEWSROOM for the latest developments in this drama.

A news conference is scheduled for noon Eastern today. Of course, CNN will carry that live.

HARRIS: Robert Gates has a big challenge ahead of him. Gates' swearing in ceremony as defense secretary taking place in private at the White House today.

This is Gates arriving at the White House about 8:30 this morning. A public ceremony is being held this afternoon at the Pentagon.

Gates' number one priority, of course, Iraq. Gates is former director of the CIA. Before being picked to replace Donald Rumsfeld, he was a member of the Iraq Study Group. That bipartisan panel, in issuing its report earlier this month, called the situation in Iraq -- quoting here -- "grave and deteriorating."

What's next for Iraq?

President Bush not yet ready to reveal what he calls his new way forward. But an idea now from Iraq's government -- more troops.

CNN's Kathleen Koch has that story. (BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)

KATHLEEN KOCH, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The latest call for more U.S. troops in Iraq comes from the country's Sunni vice president.

TARIQ AL-HASHIMI, IRAQI VICE PRESIDENT: You could see, I mean, clearly, in fact, the increasing influence of the militias in Baghdad, which make things rather -- very, very difficult to the innocent people. So what I need, yes, definitely, in fact, I need more troops, in fact, to be in Baghdad.

KOCH: A senior administration official confirms President Bush is considering the option of a temporary troop increase. The top Senate Democrat says he'd support that under one condition.

SEN. HARRY REID (D-NV), INCOMING MAJORITY LEADER: If there were some plan to send in some more troops for a very, very short period of time in an effort to get us out of there by the beginning of 2008, as the Iraq Study Group suggested, then I would go along with it. But 30,000 or 40,000 more troops there is not going to help.

KOCH: President Bush's former secretary of state is skeptical.

COLIN POWELL, FORMER SECRETARY OF STATE: You've got to do a very serious analysis of what mission it is that they are being sent to accomplish and is it something you can do. If the mission is go secure Baghdad, you can't do that. And no amount of American force structure will be able to do that.

KOCH: Two senators visiting Baghdad looking for ways to end the violence are heading to Damascus. Senator Chris Dodd says that beforehand, he asked Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice for a list of specific questions she wanted raised with Syria, though he wouldn't elaborate.

Publicly, the Bush administration has rejected calls to bring Syria and Iran into discussions on Iraq.

As the president decides whether to send more U.S. troops to Iraq, Monday he swears in the man who would be responsible for making that happen, new Defense Secretary Robert Gates.

(on camera): President Bush says he has delayed announcing his strategy in Iraq, in part, to give Gates time to evaluate the situation and give the president "serious and deliberate advice."

Kathleen Koch, CNN, the White House.

(END VIDEO TAPE)

COLLINS: New developments in the Ipswich serial murder case.

Alphonso Van Marsh is there.

HARRIS: A knock-down drag-out between the Knicks and Nuggets -- punches thrown like free throws.

Look at this!

The NBA hits back with its own punishment. That is ahead in THE NEWSROOM.

COLLINS: A big boost -- kids who can't walk get a chance to really spread their wings and fly.

That's coming up in THE NEWSROOM.

HARRIS: You've shopped, you've dropped -- but wait, you've got to ship. FedEx's busy day. Ali Velshi live in THE NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COLLINS: The specter of Jack The Ripper -- a horror as fresh as the morning headlines. British police make an arrest in the murders of five prostitutes. They say the suspected serial killer is 37 years old and lives near the town of Ipswich, where the victims' bodies were dumped.

CNN's Alphonso Van Marsh is joining us now from Ipswich -- good morning to you, Alphonso.

ALPHONSO VAN MARSH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Heidi.

As you mentioned, there have been significant developments in this murder mystery that has really shocked this whole nation.

As you mentioned, Suffolk police here announcing that about seven hours ago, they did arrest a 37-year-old man on suspicion of the murder of five Ipswich area women, all of them suspected prostitutes.

Now, it's important to note that the British police have not confirmed the name of this suspect, but it has been reported in the U.K. press that he's John Stephens -- excuse me, Tom Stephens -- a 37- year-old man who works at a supermarket. Tesco, that national supermarket chain, has put out a statement saying that they can't confirm that this man has been arrested, but that it is a matter between authorities and the individual suspect.

Now, let me tell you a little bit about where we are right now. This is the area where we believe the suspect is living. You'll see there are police and media behind me. Forensic teams are going through that brown brick home, trying to collect evidence.

This is a community, a small community southeast of Ipswich that is truly in shock. Many people believing that something like this always happens somewhere else.

It's important to note, again, that police are not confirming the name of the suspect, but they are trying to get more information. And what makes this also interesting is that the five bodies, the five prostitutes' bodies that were found, all within a 10 mile radius of Ipswich, some of those bodies lead in a trail, if you will, to this small village area.

The world's press is down here. There are helicopters overhead. The police are here trying to get information and evidence that could put some closure, at least move this case forward.

Again, a murder mystery that has got everybody here in shock.

COLLINS: Alphonso Van Marsh, thanks for the update on that. We know you'll stay on top of it for us. Appreciate it.

HARRIS: And still to come this morning, Captain Kirk had the Starship Enterprise and now NASA unveils a business enterprise of its own, pioneering a new frontier and what it means to you -- details ahead in THE NEWSROOM.

COLLINS: Running for glory -- but should she be running with the boys?

Identity crisis rocking the world of track and field. She her or him in THE NEWSROOM.

HARRIS: A knock-down drag-out between the Knickerbockers and the Nuggets. Punches thrown like -- oh, free throws into the front row. But today, the NBA hits back with its own punishment. That's coming up in THE NEWSROOM.

COLLINS: Today and Wednesday two big days for getting those packages to Uncle Doug or Cousin Phil, even if you don't have an Uncle Doug or a Cousin Phil.

HARRIS: Tom, Norma.

COLLINS: CNN's Ali Velshi is at the FedEx facility in Memphis this morning, and it's a rocking place there -- Ali.

ALI VELSHI, CNN CORRESPONDENT: You just got me in time, because I'm about to take my deliveries out. This is the most busiest day of the year, at least for FedEx. When I come back, I'm going to tell you about the 10 million packages that are going to move through this operation today and for the rest of the week.

Stay with us. I'll have that for you in THE NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARRIS: Tragedy on Mount Hood -- reports are indicating that the dead climber has now been identified as 48-year-old Kelly James. But crews are not ready to give up in their search for two other men on the mountain.

More now from John Capell of CNN affiliate KATU.

(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)

JOHN CAPELL, KATU CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): After a week of being beaten back by below zero temperatures and hurricane force blizzards, the hopeful word. First spotted here in these photographs helicopter crews were able to snap when the weather cleared Saturday and reconfirmed Sunday morning -- just 300 feet below the summit.

There are footprints, a coiled rope and an ice ax, and the large "Y" scraped into the crusted snow -- climber shorthand for yes, we are here.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Father, we thank you for these men who are risking their lives for our loved ones.

CAPELL: Family members take a moment to lay their hands on the search helicopters and officer a prayer. Then cheers and applause, as para-rescuers and climbers lift off in a Chinook helicopter. Family members' hands clasp in the air in a gesture of hope.

But when rescuers are lowered to the mountain, hopes begin to sink.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And what was down in the cave was two ice axes, a sleeping bag and some rope.

CAPELL: The climbers are gone. Then, as rescuers prepare to leave, they discover a second snow cave nearby and what they did not want to find -- one of the climbers dead inside.

CAPT. MIKE BRAIBISH, OREGON NATIONAL GUARD: Our hearts are going out to the families right now. The searchers are putting their heart and soul into this. We still keep that common focus that we all have. There is a common focus. We continue to search. We continue to look. We remain optimistic. We remain hopeful.

(END VIDEO TAPE)

HARRIS: And we invite you to stay in THE NEWSROOM for the latest developments in this unfolding drama. A news conference is scheduled for noon Eastern today and CNN will, of course, carry it live for you.

COLLINS: We want to update you this morning on South Dakota Senator Tim Johnson. The Democrat improving after last week's brain surgery. That according to Senate Democratic leader Harry Reid. A spokesman from Johnson's office says the senator remains critical, but stable.

Johnson collapsed last week from a brain hemorrhage. His illness set off speculation about Democratic control of the Senate.

HARRIS: Decades ago, NASA sent chimpanzees into space. Your computer mouse may be the next pioneer. Later today, NASA is expected to announce a new partnership with the Internet giant Google. Now, according to reports, the deal will make it easier for all of us to access NASA's vast library of images and data. Details expected a few hours from now.

COLLINS: Meanwhile, controversy in the world of track and field. This time it's not about steroids, either.

HARRIS: Well, it's actually more about what's missing.

Confused?

Well, I am. You're not alone.

CNN's Satinder Bindra unravels the mystery.

SATINDER BINDRA, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Indian runner Santhi Soudarajan finished second in the women's 800-meter race at the Asian Games on Doha earlier this month. But someone -- and no one is saying who -- filed a complaint and demanded Soudarajan take a gender test.

Soudarajan was examined by a group of doctors and the Olympic Council of Asia told CNN the test showed she was not a woman.

The story is front page news in India.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I feel it's shameful for the country. It's disgraceful for the country and the nation overall.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This shouldn't happen in the future. At least now they can -- they should learn from this. Maybe this is the first mistake they have made. Now they should learn no such thing should be repeated again.

BINDRA: Soudarajan won gold at South Asian Games earlier this year and a number of other medals in international races. The 25- year-old runner comes from a very poor family. Her parents are manual laborers. Despite the controversy, her home state of Tamilandu in southern India presented Soudarajan a check for $33,000.

Also coming to her defense, one of India's best known female athletes, a former runner himself, who is blaming officials that managed the country's athletes.

"I don't want to blame Santhi Soudarajan," she says. "It's not her mistake. We should do tests before and then go, so we should not blame our country."

Soudarajan says she knows nothing about her case. The Olympic Council of Asia is asking India to return the silver medal she won earlier this month.

(on camera): India's Olympic Association has also set up an inquiry, headed by medical experts. They have been given seven days to prepare a final report into what many here are calling one of the saddest and most bizarre chapters in Indian sports.

Satinder Bindra, CNN, New Delhi.

(END VIDEO TAPE)

COLLINS: Is there hope for drinkers who've suffered damaged brain cells?

Some answers ahead in today's Daily Dose.

HARRIS: A big boost -- kids who can't walk get a chance to really spread their wings and fly.

That's next in THE NEWSROOM.

COLLINS: From life on the streets to images on their TV sets, Iraqis cannot escape the bloodshed. We'll have that story coming up right here in THE NEWSROOM.

Ali Velshi standing...

VELSHI: I'm Ali Velshi in Memphis -- oh, hey.

COLLINS: Go for it, Ali.

VELSHI: Yes, I'm kind of like -- you wouldn't know it by looking at me, but I am about the last man standing here at one of FedEx's busiest hubs in Memphis, Tennessee, because this is the busiest day of the year.

I'll have that story, the story about how some of the packages that you are sending to your loved ones are going to get to their destinations.

Stay with me.

I'll have that in THE NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARRIS: Robert Gates has a big challenge ahead of him. Gates' swearing in ceremony as defense secretary taking place in private at the White House today. This is Gates arriving at the White House about 8:30 this morning.

A public ceremony is being held this afternoon at the Pentagon.

Gates' number one priority, of course, Iraq. Gates is former director of the CIA. Before being picked to replace Donald Rumsfeld, he was a member of the Iraq Study Group. That bipartisan panel, in issuing its report earlier this month, called the situation in Iraq, quoting here now, "grave and deteriorating."

COLLINS: Iraq consumed by violence. Even the youngest are trapped in the cycle of fear and chaos.

CNN's Nic Robertson reports.

(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Turn on the TV in Iraq and this is what you can see -- insurgent videos showing in minute detail mortar attacks, rockets and roadside bombs, even sniper fire aimed at U.S. soldiers. The station that shows them, Zawra, was banned by the Iraqi government last month, but within days it was back on air. Zawra has become part of Iraq's inescapable tapestry of decline. Violence is the wallpaper of life here. No one escapes, not even the children.

Just ask these youngsters at school in Fallujah.

"There is no security," he says. "When we go home to sleep, we don't know what's going to happen."

They know kids outside Iraq are having better lives.

"I envy their peaceful life. We have no peace here," he says. "They have no Americans. We have killing here."

The hope of a better future amid the chaos of Saddam Hussein's overthrow three years ago is long gone. In the Baghdad of today, religious identity -- Sunni or Shia -- divides communities. Militias control neighborhoods by day. Gun-toting vigilantes patrol streets at night.

(on camera): A new normal is being imposed. For now, someone like me to visit many of Baghdad's neighborhoods requires permission from whichever armed gang controls it. And even then, there are no guarantees a rival faction won't grab you. Kidnapping is big business for Sunni insurgents and Shia militias alike.

(voice-over): For Iraqis living in these increasingly divided and isolated communities, life is far worse. Religious extremists on both sides are in the ascendancy and women suffer twice over.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I cannot take my kids to visit friends or to visit my family. I cannot go. I cannot go. Even if there's a private car. Even in my car, I cannot, because nowadays, even they (UNINTELLIGIBLE) -- the women who are driving.

ROBERTSON: Walking in Baghdad is almost too dangerous for many women. They fear kidnapping and rape. The only way to minimize the risk is to wear the all shrouding black chador, a symbol of subservience to religious edicts.

Hundreds of thousands of better off, better educated, more progressive Iraqis are leaving. Iraq's creaking health care system strains under the twin burdens of sectarian bloodshed and the flight of its doctors. Iraq is hemorrhaging its wealth and talent. And when you turn on the TV, the impotence of its leaders to stop the bleeding is magnified. As they bicker and plot, the insurgents parade their latest exploits on the TV channel no one seems able to close down.

Nic Robertson, CNN, Baghdad.

(END VIDEO TAPE)

HARRIS: Tragedy on the mountain -- hope mixes with fear for two missing climbers still missing.

On Oregon's Mount Hood, search teams are moving out again this morning. They will also retrieve the body of a third climber. He perished inside a snow cave. The news reports have identified the deceased climber as Kelly James. James, along with Brian Hall and Jerry Cooke have been on the Mount Hood more than a week.

BRAIBISH: The searchers are putting their heart and soul into this. We still keep that common focus that we all have. There is a common focus. We continue to search. We continue to look. We remain optimistic. We remain hopeful. We're going to still collect information and we are going to proceed with this. We continue to proceed with this as a rescue for the two remaining climbers.

HARRIS: We encourage you to stay in THE NEWSROOM for the latest developments in this unfolding drama. A news conference is scheduled for noon Eastern today. CNN will, of course, carry it for you live.

Chad Myers is in the Weather Center now -- and, Chad, I just want to remind folks of what the searchers -- we know that there was a lot of frustration on the part of the searchers right now because they feel like they had a fix on Kelly James and the other climbers, but last week remind folks of what they were up against.

MYERS: Sure.

(WEATHER REPORT)

(MARKET REPORT)

COLLINS: Meanwhile, got your string, your tape, your wrapping paper? The big holiday package rush is on, in case you're not feeling it happens. Federal Express expects to have its busiest day of the year today.

So, Ali Velshi is standing by at the headquarters in Memphis. Ali, it looks like maybe a little bit of a lull in the action.

ALI VELSHI, CNN ANCHOR: Yes, I've to say, I mean, I've been here for a few hours, and if anybody is watching me for the first time right now, they're going to say, well, what's the big deal? there are very few of us left here. But this was a beehive of activity all morning.

You see what happens is packages come in from all over the country, and they fly into FedEx's main hub in Nashville -- in Memphis, I'm sorry, right where I am. And FedEx flies about 670 planes, which makes it the second biggest fleet of airplanes in the world. And then trucks take the containers off those planes and bring them here, to this sorting center which is a few miles away outside of Memphis.

And then from here, they get scanned and then the ones that are going to places local around here get put onto these FedEx trucks, and that's how they get to you. And in many cases, this operation, as you know, happens within a ten or 12-hour period.

Now this is the busiest day of the year for FedEx, 10 million packages. UPS is going to be on Wednesday with its busiest day, more than 20 million packages. Today is the biggest mailing day for the Postal Service. Wednesday will be its biggest delivery day. So this is the week, Heidi.

COLLINS: Don't you wonder how they keep it all straight, Ali?

VELSHI: I'm fascinated. I'm totally fascinated. A number of times -- I'll tell you about this a little later -- but I sent a couple of packages form New York to Houston, one using FedEx, one using UPS. You watch the different routes they took -- yes, it's fascinating to me. And they've got to keep planes, and trucks, and people and couriers. It is really a fascinating look inside, because what we do, Heidi, is we -- maybe we fill out a form, maybe e drop something in a drop box and maybe we get it on the other end. It is -- so much goes on in the middle. And so much of American business depends on these big shippers' ability to deliver things.

And this year, we're looking at a deadline of December 22nd, Friday, your deadlines for so many businesses for you to order your gifts and have them delivered. It's fascinating.

COLLINS: It is fascinating, 10 million packages. You stand in the middle of a lot of them today. All right.

Ali, we'll check in later on, live from Memphis. Thanks a lot.

HARRIS: Hey, still ahead, is there hope for drinkers who suffer damaged brain cells? We certainly hope so. I'm paying close attention. Answers, straight ahead in today's Daily Dose.

And a big boost. Kids who can't walk get a chance to really spread their wings and fly. That story, ahead in the NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARRIS: They may start calling it the punch heard round the league. Basketball poster boy Carmelo Anthony clocking Mardy Collins of the Knicks. Who is Mardy Collins? Carmelo, why throw your career away on Mardy Collins?

COLLINS: ... people always getting you in trouble.

HARRIS: Now you know. The punch landed so squarely you could hear it in the rafters.

COLLINS: Anthony's throw-down came in the middle of this brawl during Saturday night's Knicks-Nuggets game at the arena. Collins with the tackle setting off the brouhaha.

HARRIS: Let's take it to the front row.

COLLINS: Ten players ejected.

HARRIS: So today, the NBA...

COLLINS: Wouldn't you love to have your child there?

HARRIS: Right, right. Today, the NBA gets its turn, expected to Dole out some heavy punishment, but it's a tough call for the league. How long will they suspend one of their biggest stars increasingly? Well, the guy making the decision will be former Knicks head coach Stu Jackson.

And as for Carmelo, he offered this post-fight apology, saying, sorry to "the fans, the Denver Nuggets, the NBA, my mother and my family," but no mention in all of this -- no mention of Mardy Collins or the Knicks organization. There you go.

In our Daily Dose today, an international research team has discovered the brain can actually repair some of the damage caused by drinking alcohol. It's been long established that excessive drinking damages brain cells. Now according to Reuters, researchers say when people stop drinking their brain volume increases by a small percentage. The study's authors warned, though, that drinkers should actually stop as soon as possible. They say the longer people drink in excess, the less likely their brains will be able to regenerate.

COLLINS: Sticking to a low-fat diet can help avoid a recurrence of breast cancer, if that cancer was not caused by hormones. According to the "Journal of the National Cancer Institute," eating a healthier diet can cut the risk of dying by up to 66 percent, but the diet had little impact on patients whose cancers was caused by hormones, and that's the vast majority of breast cancer patients.

HARRIS: New adventures. One Florida group now giving some special kids a chance to reach for the sky. More from David Waters of Central Florida News 13.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DAVID WATERS, NEWS 13 REPORTER (voice-over): 11-year-old Benjamin Carpenter can't walk. Spinal muscular atrophy made that impossible. But he's going to fly. An organization called Challenge Air is showing children with disabilities they can do anything at a place with an appropriate name. Florida's own fantasy of flight in Polk County.

BENJAMIN CARPENTER, DISABLED BOY: This is really awesome.

WATERS: While Benjamin's legs may not work the same as other people, Challenge Air's founders wanted to open his mind to possibilities. So, in a few seconds, Benjamin will take full control of the plane and learn just what he can do.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You just tell me when you're ready to do it and you can do it.

CARPENTER: All right.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Ready?

CARPENTER: Yes.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You got it.

CARPENTER: All right. Wow. WATERS: Benjamin may have never walked but he is now flying and doing it all himself while under the watchful eye of a seasoned pilot. Some volunteer pilots of Challenge Air, like the children, are also disabled. For Benjamin's father, roles are reversed. Normally he's in charge of his son. Right now, his son is in control.

JIM CARPENTER, BENJAMIN'S FATHER: Everyday I find out more and more of what he's capable of and it just astounds me, not from a disability standpoint, but just from the standpoint that just when you think you couldn't be any more proud of the guy, he takes it to the next level.

WATERS (on camera): Challenge Air was founded in 1993 by a Navy airman who was injured and became a paraplegic in an accident. Since then, the organization has flown over 20,000 disabled children. Most of them, like Benjamin have taken the controls

B. CARPENTER: I've actually wanted to fly for quite some time in my life, and knowing that there's an organization that can help with that.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (INAUDIBLE).

WATERS: Time to come down out of the clouds but Benjamin says he is now inspired and knows no limits.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You have officially earned your wings young man.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Oh, cool.

B. CARPENTER: Yes. All right. Cool. Thank you.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You're welcome.

WATERS: Benjamin promises he'll come back to fly once again. In Polk County, David Waters, central Florida News 13.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HARRIS: The cold, the wind, just too much, the body of a Mt. Hood climber identified. We're covering developments in the NEWSROOM.

COLLINS: He was stranded on Mt. Hood 30 years ago and lived to tell about it. We'll talk live to the survivor, ahead in the NEWSROOM.

HARRIS: Breaking links in the terror chain. Fighting the Taliban crucial to combating other terror groups. That story in the NEWSROOM.

COLLINS: And two warring political parties agree to a cease- fire. But will the gunfire in Gaza fall silent? We're covering it in the NEWSROOM right after this.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) COLLINS: Want to get some new information to you we are just learning here at CNN. Betty Nguyen is in the NEWSROOM. A story from Long Boat Key, Florida. Betty what's you got?

BETTY NGUYEN, CNN ANCHOR: Yes, out of Florida , as you mentioned, we understand that about 25 Cubans have landed on the shore there, obviously an investigation is underway. But here's some live pictures right now of the scene.

We believe that these are the folks that landed on American soil this morning. It happened around 4:00 a.m. Eastern. And the Long Boat Key police department is looking into it as well as the Coast Guard. But, according to the Wet Foot-Dry Foot law, as long as Cubans land on American soil they are pretty much good to go.

But, of course, investigation is underway, and another live look there. Actually, I believe this is some tape of the area, the Long Boat Key, Florida, area.

Again, 25 Cubans have landed on shore there. The shore of the Sarasota County. And while we are saying an investigation is under way. According to the U.S. policy on the Wet-Foot-Dry-Foot law, they are good to go here in the U.S. So, we'll stay on top of it for you, Heidi.

COLLINS: Just curious, Betty, what happens when -- if the U.S. coast guard --

NGUYEN: I'm having a hard time hearing you right now, Heidi.

COLLINS: OK. All right. We will check back later. Thanks, Betty.

HARRIS: Well, the United States is extending the hand of nuclear friendship to India. Next hour, President Bush is scheduled to sign a peaceful atomic cooperation agreement with New Delhi.

It allows shipments of civilian nuclear fuel to India, overturning a U.S. policy that's been in place for three decades. In return, India would accept safeguards and inspections at more than a dozen civilian nuclear plants. Weapons plants would still be off limits.

COLLINS: North Korea finally back at the bargaining table over its nuclear weapons program after a year-long North Korean boycott. Six-party talks resume today in Beijing, but they're off to a pretty rough start. CNN's John Vause is in the capital.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JOHN VAUSE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: As far as North Koreans are concerned, after their successful tells test of a nuclear device in October, they're now a nuclear power. And they want all the respect and deference that comes with it.

We have no reason to give up nuclear weapons, the North Korean envoy said this weekend, claiming his country need a deterrence against an aggressive United States. Today in Beijing, an emboldened North Korea returned to the negotiating table more than a year since walking out.

Five nations, led by the U.S., are pressing the North to abandon its nuclear program in return to economic aid and security guarantees. If it all sounds familiar, that's because it is. Just over a year ago, North Korea did agree to just that, but the deal fell apart within days, when the U.S. slapped sanctions on a Macao bank accused of laundering counterfeit U.S. money on behalf of the North Koreans.

Many suspect Kim Jong-Il was just looking for an excuse and never intended to keep his side of the bargain. Even so, those financial sanctions are now up for discussion. Apparently a precondition set by the North to return to the so-called six-party talks

RUSSELL MOSES, POLITICAL ANALYST: The North Korean government has played this very, very savvy way and has essentially ended up exactly where it hoped to be.

VAUSE: There's no deadline here, but U.S. officials have made it clear they're looking for a quick resolve.

CHRISTOPHER HILL, CHIEF U.S. ENVOY: We should be a little less patient and pick up the pace and work a little faster.

VAUSE: But North Korea's Kim Jong-Il could be playing for time, assuming the longer he stalls, the more the world will become used to his country's nuclear status, the more likely he'll get to keep it.

VAUSE (on camera): In the opening session, the North Koreans made what was described as a long list of demands for ending its nuclear program, including lifting of all U.N. and U.S. sanctions and an end to America's so-called hostile policy. Many expected the North to take a tough approach, making a quick breakthrough here unlikely.

John Vause, CNN, Beijing.

HARRIS: Bursts of fighting overnight in Gaza City but with daylight, CNN's Ben Wedeman reports a truce appears to be holding now. And tonight, Hamas and Fatwah leaders plan to meet to cement that truce. The two sides agreed on the ceasefire after gun battles on Sunday. Violence between Palestinians escalated with President Mahmoud Abbas's call for new elections. At least two people were killed Sunday, including a 19-year-old female bystander. Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas for his election plan from British Prime Minister Tony Blair. The two leaders met in Ramallah today. Mr. Blair is calling for the international community to send aid to Mr. Abbas. The Palestinians have suffered under economic sanctions since last January. That's when Hamas won a majority in the legislature, and many Western governments cut off aid. Mr. Abbas says he's determined to push through with election to break the Fatah-Hamas deadlock on a unity government.

COLLINS: Violence in fits and starts today around Gaza. It comes after a day of fierce street battles and a cease-fire between Palestinian political parties.

CNN's Ben Wedeman explains.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BEN WEDEMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Gunfire in the streets of Gaza, the latest running battles sparked by Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas' call for Palestinians to go back to the ballot boxes. Abbas wasted no time moving ahead with his call for early elections, meeting with members of the electoral commission.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There are people who want to challenge the victory. There are -- there is a court that can go through the court and so the whole legal framework is available for making the decree and for making the necessary challenges.

WEDEMAN: But sharing the cabinet meeting, Prime Minister Ismael Haniyeh flatly rejected the idea of early elections, saying they're unconstitutional and could, in his words, "cause tension" among Palestinians.

Tension, however, is an understatement. Sunday, Gaza echoed to the sound of gunfire, as Hamas and Fatah militias fought it out. Before dawn, a compound of the presidential guard, loyal to Fatah, came under attack. One of the guards was killed. Fatah blamed Hamas. Hamas denied any involvement.

Later, foreign minister and Hamas leader Mahmoud Zahar (ph) was attacked while driving through Gaza City. Hamas described it as an assassination attempt. In Gaza and the West Bank, two factions held rallies, stoking the anger on both sides of the conflict, spinning rapidly out of control.

Palestinian legislature Moustafa Barghouti tried for months to get Hamas and Fatah to work out their differences peacefully.

MOUSTAFA BARGHOUTI, PALESTINIAN LEGISLATOR: And the only way out of this is to go back negotiations, to formulate a national unity government. Elections will not solve the problem. There can be no elections without national consensus.

WEDEMAN: But nothing could be more elusive at this point than national consensus.

Not long ago, Palestinians were fighting and dying in their conflict with Israel. Now, they're killing one another. Gaza beginning to look like Lebanon at the start of its 15-year civil war. Overnight, Hamas and Fatah agreed to pull their gunmen off the streets of Gaza and take urgent action to reduce tensions between them. Whether this understanding actually holds is anyone's guess.

Ben Wedeman, CNN, Jerusalem.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HARRIS: The cold, the wind, just too much. The body of a Mount Hood climber identified. We're covering developments in the NEWSROOM this morning.

COLLINS: Thirteen days inn side an ice cave on Mount Hood. One man shares his remarkable survival story, coming up. Don't miss it in the NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COLLINS: A situation developing in Long Boat Key, Florida. Betty Nguyen is in the NEWSROOM now to give us more details on all this.

Betty, what are you watching?

BETTY NGUYEN, CNN ANCHOR: Well, we have some more information, in fact. We're watching 25 Cubans who have landed onshore there. And according to the U.S. policy, the wet foot-dry foot policy, as they call it, as long as they land on American soil, they are allowed to stay.

Now, if these 25 Cuban were found at sea, part of the wet foot side of this policy, they would have been sent back to Cuba. But they were found on American soil, this morning around 4:00 a.m. in the Long Boat Key area.

And here is the rub. Here's the question and why an investigation is under way right now, Heidi. No boat has been found as of yet. In fact, the Coast Guard is searching for a boat. The question is, how did these people get here? And if there is no boat, if they did not come on their own means with their own boat, then that leads to the question of whether smugglers were involved, and if that's the case then obviously a larger investigation will happen into determining exactly how they got here.

But the 25 Cubans, as far as we know, are talking to the local officials on the ground. They will then go -- be turned over to Border Patrol and eventually to their families. And according to that U.S. policy on wet foot-dry foot, after a year they are allowed to apply for permanent residency.

Now here are some pictures of the Cubans who landed on U.S. soil. And of course the investigation right now is centering around the fact that no boat has been found, and that being the case leads the question if smugglers were involved. So we'll stay on top of this for you, Heidi?

COLLINS: Any idea what condition the 25 Cubans are in? As we look at the video, it looks to be that they are standing up and talking and so forth. Lots of times when we see situations like this, the situation is not good with regard to the health of those coming into the country.

NGUYEN: Well, and that leads to the question, were smugglers involved. If they were on their own means in some kind of makeshift boat, of course, you would assume that their condition would be a lot worse. But if they were in some kind of a motorized boat, and someone just dropped them off onshore, then we're seeing what we are seeing if that is, indeed, the case.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.voxant.com