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U.S. Envoy Gambari Demands End to Dissident Arrests in Myanmar; Cartoon Makes Swedish Artist Marked for Death

Aired October 15, 2007 - 12:00   ET

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

MICHAEL HOLMES, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: A U.S. enemy loses ground. American commanders point to signs that al Qaeda in Iraq is on the run.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I thought, this is it. My ankle's -- my leg's gone, my ankle's gone. He's going to grab a leg.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COLLEEN MCEDWARDS, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: An amazing escape in Australia. A woman uses a kayak paddle to fight off a Great White shark.

HOLMES: Hunted down by a terrorist group, a Swedish artist faces death threats for his depiction of the Prophet Mohammed.

MCEDWARDS: Battle of the B-boys, break dancing teams head to the British capital to capture some new bragging rights.

HOLMES: Oh, boy, I thought that was over.

5:00 p.m. in London, 7:00 p.m. in Baghdad.

Welcome to our report broadcast right around the globe.

I'm Michael Holmes.

MCEDWARDS: No such luck, right?

From Stockholm to Shanghai, Sydney to Seattle, wherever you're watching, this is YOUR WORLD TODAY.

HOLMES: And welcome.

"The Washington Post" says U.S. generals in Iraq are considering issuing a "declaration of victory" over al Qaeda in Iraq. They cite a number of promising statistics, including a reduction in U.S. casualties -- 22 so far this month -- a sharp drop in suicide bombings from a high of more than 60 in January to less than half that number in July; a reduction in the flow of fighters into Iraq from Syria; and the capture recently of key al Qaeda leaders in Iraq.

Although there is general agreement at the Pentagon that al Qaeda in Iraq has suffered some setbacks since the summer, some U.S. military leaders are reportedly cautioning strongly against issuing any such declaration of victory. They say it is very much premature to do so.

MCEDWARDS: Yes. And this is going to be a debate, as you can imagine. Some outside observers are already saying they have a very different view of the U.S. policies toward al Qaeda in Iraq.

In an article published in the opinion magazine "The New Republic," Peter Bergen is critical of just about every decision the White House has made in what he calls "The war of error."

Earlier, we asked Bergen what he considered the Bush administration's biggest missteps so far.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PETER BERGEN, CNN TERRORISM ANALYST: I think shortchanging Afghanistan. Afghanistan was the peacekeeping effort where the least number of soldiers were put on the ground since World War II. In term of America's efforts in peacekeeping operations before, it was almost the most underfunded, only 6,000 American troops.

We also prevented other countries from patrolling outside Kabul for the first two years. And we basically squandered an opportunity there. We, of course, also let bin Laden go at the battle of Tora Bora and switched our attention to Iraq, which had the counterproductive effect of establishing al Qaeda in Iraq for the first time. After all, al Qaeda in Iraq only came into existence a year after the invasion.

It's also become the cause celeb for jihadists around the world, according to the national intelligence estimate, which is the 16 U.S. intelligence agencies collectively saying that this is a cause celeb. And, in fact, there is empirical evidence to support that.

A colleague of mine at NYU, Paul Cruickshank, and I looked at jihadist terrorist attacks after the invasion of Iraq and the period after the September 11th attacks. We found a sevenfold increase in the rate of jihadist terrorist attacks.

MCEDWARDS: A sevenfold increase?

BERGEN: Yes.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MCEDWARDS: And Peter Bergen there. He's just written an article that's sharply critical of the U.S. war on terror. It is the in the latest issue of "The New Republic".

And, you know, I asked him to comment on the successes that the U.S. military is putting forward in these statements today, and he said he doesn't deny that there are successes. But his point is he feels the U.S. should have been in Iraq in the first place.

HOLMES: That's right. And al Qaeda in Iraq wouldn't have existed had there not been an invasion.

Yes, it was certainly worthy of caution, al Qaeda in Iraq has bounced back before. And we are going to have a report from Iraq just a little later in the program.

Meanwhile, a United Nations envoy is working the diplomatic front to pressure Myanmar to stop its crackdown on anti-government activists and dissidents.

MCEDWARDS: Yes. We are talking about Ibrahim Gambari. And he kicked off a tour of Asian nations in Thailand. And that's where he called on the military junta to stop the arrests immediately.

HOLMES: Yes. Matthew Chance has that.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MATTHEW CHANCE, CNN SR. INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice over): After weeks of unrest, the latest images to emerge from Myanmar show how completely the military authorities seem to have imposed calm. A daily curfew has been lifted and monks at the forefront of anti- government protests last month are pictured back at their pagodas.

But word from inside Myanmar, also talks of growing concern for the fate of at least 1,000 detainees, and there are reports of more arrests. It makes the return to the region of the United Nations special envoy all the more urgent.

Ibrahim Gambari is on a mission to stiffen Asian resolve towards Myanmar. But the tensions, he says, must immediately stop.

IBRAHIM GAMBARI, U.N. ENVOY TO MYANMAR: The reports of arrests (INAUDIBLE) leaders, interrogations and acts of intimidation are extremely disturbing, and were (INAUDIBLE) with the spirit of mutual engagement between United Nations and Myanmar.

CHANCE: This is how Myanmar's military authorities cracked down on the anti-government protests that plunged the nation into chaos. The authorities say 10 people were killed. But human rights groups and diplomats say the real figure is much higher.

A visit to Myanmar soon after produced limited results -- meetings with the military leadership and with the detained opposition figure, Aung San Suu Kyi. She was given a rare mention on Myanmar's state television. But the U.N. acknowledges more concrete results will only be achieved if Myanmar's Asian neighbors apply pressure by threatening suspension of Myanmar from ASEAN, the Association of South East Asian Nations.

There are economic levers, too. Cells of energy like natural gas are crucial to Myanmar's economy. The country is a major supplier of hardwoods like teak, and of precious stones such as rubies and jade. Ninety percent of Myanmar's trade is with its Asian neighbors.

GAMBARI: The sustained and active support of the region through the strong voice and engagement of regional partners has to be there in order for Myanmar to move forward.

CHANCE: The coming days of diplomacy may decide Myanmar's direction.

(on camera): Ibrahim Gambari is taking his message across Asia, including to China and to India before planning a return trip to Myanmar next month. But in the past, Myanmar's neighbors have been reluctant to confront it. It may take a giant feat of diplomacy to change that this time.

Matthew Chance, CNN, Bangkok.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

MCEDWARDS: All right. Well, let's check some of the other stories in the news this hour.

(NEWSBREAK)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

MCEDWARDS: Welcome back to CNN International and YOUR WORLD TODAY.

HOLMES: Yes, seen live around the world, including this hour in the United States.

Let's turn now to an artist who says that no religion is above reproach. His work certainly reflect that attitude, and one in particular has made him a marked man.

Paula Newton visits Lars Vilks' hometown in Sweden to learn more about the controversy. She talked with him and a woman who wants him dead.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

PAULA NEWTON, CNN INTERNATIONAL SECURITY CORRESPONDENT (voice- over): Lars Vilks says he wanted to take a stand for artistic freedom. Now, because of that, police are telling him to lie low and check his car for booby-traps and bombs.

Why? Al Qaeda says Vilks is a marked man. They want him executed for sketching this: a cartoon depicting the Prophet Mohammed as a dog.

(on camera): You set out deliberately to provoke and insult Muslims?

LARS VILKS, ARTIST: Well, you have to understand the art world in this small place in Sweden.

NEWTON: Yes, but look what happened. It didn't turn into a small thing.

VILKS: No. But I don't think it should be a problem to insult a religion, because it should be possible to insult all religions. And it could be a -- in a democratic way out there, if you insult one, then you should also insult the other ones.

NEWTON (voice-over): This eccentric Swedish artist and sculptor says he's an equal opportunity offender, even depicting Jesus as a pedophile. CNN has chosen not to show details of his religious works. All of this now playing out in a menacing video.

(CLIP FROM AL QAEDA VIDEO)

NEWTON (on camera): There you are again.

VILKS: Yes. Yes. It's being shown, yes.

NEWTON (voice-over): Al Qaeda offers Muslims $150,000 to murder Vilks.

VILKS: "If I have the occasion, I should, inshallah, slaughter you."

NEWTON: Those chilling words written by this wife and mother, Amatullah (ph), who follows the most conservative tenets of Islam and lives just an hour-and-a-half away from Vilks.

(on camera): You said you would slaughter him like a lamb. Do you mean that?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes. Yes.

NEWTON (voice-over): Amatullah has already been fined for threatening Vilks. Still, she says she won't stop until he's dead.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translator): Call me a terrorist. Call me an Islamist. But I have the right to defend my prophet.

NEWTON: Swedish police, who would not comment on security, say they have warned Vilks al Qaeda sympathizers could be hunting him down here.

(on camera): Did you just get a death threat?

VILKS: "I will kill you, you son of a bitch."

NEWTON: Why aren't you afraid? You just received a death threat.

VILKS: You get use to it.

NEWTON (voice-over): Something else he's getting used to, driving every night to a location near a safe house. Then, we went along on his secret route, climbing walls through back gardens.

(on camera): Boy, this is crazy.

VILKS: Yes, this is crazy. But it's -- I think it's very good.

NEWTON (voice-over): This artist, now in hiding, makes no excuses, his drawing, his right, he says.

VILKS: If you don't like it, don't look at it. And if you want to look at it, don't take it too seriously.

NEWTON: Vilks knows such defiance could get him killed. Still, he claims his art is worth dying for.

VILKS: Good night. Good night -- night-night.

NEWTON: Paula Newton, CNN, Hoganas, Sweden.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HOLMES: What a way to live.

MCEDWARDS: Unbelievable.

Want to turn to the United States now, because oil prices are in uncharted territory. They hit a new record on Friday. Crude is climbing even higher today. I can't understand why with crude prices this high we are not talking about a recession all the time.

HOLMES: Well, that's true.

(BUSINESS REPORT)

HOLMES: OK.

Thirty trucks and a car crash into each other, burst into flames.

MCEDWARDS: Yes, incredible pictures here and a nightmare scenario for motorists. But imagine this happening in a pitch-black tunnel.

HOLMES: Yes. How would you escape?

What safety officials say should be done to make tunnels safe after Friday's fiery crash in California.

MCEDWARDS: Plus, a Vatican official caught in a compromising position. He's got an explanation, though.

HOLMES: He says it's a trap. Details of an explosive new scandal in the Roman Catholic Church still to come on YOUR WORLD TODAY.

(NEWSBREAK)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HOLMES: Welcome back to our viewers joining us from around the globe, including the United States. This is YOUR WORLD TODAY. I'm Michael Holmes.

MCEDWARDS: I'm Colleen McEdwards. We want to recap our top story for you. "The Washington Post" is saying the Pentagon is considering issuing a declaration of victory over Al Qaeda in Iraq. It's citing a number of statistics and saying that the organization has suffered serious setbacks, especially since the summer, but some U.S. military leaders are apparently cautioning against such a move, calling it premature.

HOLMES: U.S. commanders in Iraq are reporting victories these days. Our own Jim Clancy tells us of a recent raid that produced an intelligence bonanza that could lead to future successes in the battle against Al Qaeda in Iraq.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JIM CLANCY, CNN INTL. CORRESPONDENT (voice over): This U.S. military video shows a routine patrol; Iraqi volunteers helping uncover hidden roadside bombs. It's so routine it seems frustrating at times.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We're going down that road right now. I'm not stopping at every freakin' side road.

CLANCY: But the routine in Iraq is seldom routine. Two soldiers with the 4th Brigade, of the 25th Infantry Division, are wounded by Al Qaeda gunfire in a half dozen firefights this day. Across Iraq, the U.S. military sees Al Qaeda fighting to regain a foothold. Sunni tribes, once their allies, have turned against them. Safe havens have been lost. But Al Qaeda isn't just giving up terra firma. It's losing terabytes of intelligence.

MAJ. GEN. KEVIN BERGNER, MULTI-NATL. FORCES, IRAQ: We have found five terabytes of electronic files, 800 names of Al Qaeda terrorists, not just associated with Iraq but the broader Al Qaeda network.

CLANCY: Major General Kevin Bergner says computer files uncovered in a mud brick building in the desert near Syria's border are a treasure trove. They are detailed profiles of almost 150 Al Qaeda volunteers. Names, photos, passport numbers, even details of how Al Qaeda got them into Iraq.

BERGNER: You also can't help but be struck by the organized effort that Al Qaeda is conducting to move Al Qaeda terrorists, and to manage them, and also to route some of them, as we know they're used as -- in many cases as suicide bombers here in Iraq, into Iraq.

CLANCY: The information helped capture or kill some of the 29 senior Al Qaeda operatives shown here, during September. And will be useful to police from Europe to Asia. One dead Al Qaeda emir left his expense report.

BERGNER: It included expenditures for things like food and fuel, and weapons, which you would expect. It included expenditures for sheep. It included mobile phone cards. It even included a category for caring for families of those who were conducting these operations.

CLANCY: It also shows Al Qaeda in Iraq isn't short of funds, with tens of thousands of dollars handed back to be used elsewhere.

Despite the intelligence finds and fewer bombings and deaths, U.S. troops continue to hunt down al Qaeda in the field. Few in Iraq are ready to say the battle is over. There's a sense instead that now is the time to press the fight.

(On camera): U.S. commanders in the field say Al Qaeda is trying to claw its way back, even the top general, David Petraeus, says Al Qaeda is determined and dangerous, especially when it comes to inflicting civilian casualties with horrific suicide attacks.

But it would appear some Al Qaeda operations have been disrupted from its ability to import recruits to its internet media operations and that's not a bad development. Jim Clancy, CNN, Baghdad.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HOLMES: Now some wire services are reporting that Interpol is saying that an alleged pedophile has been identified and is somewhere in Thailand. This man, you'll know, he was shown recently in an explicit video clip posted on the Internet. His face put into a swirl to disguise him. In this video, he is allegedly abusing young boys in Vietnam and Cambodia.

Now, forensic experts in Germany, as we reported last week, used technology to unswirl the face, and reveal this picture. They were -- this and other ones -- were broadcast around the world, also on CNN. The international police organization, Interpol, says people who saw him on those reports have identified him as an English teacher who worked at a school in South Korea. Now, Interpol is asking for the public's help in tracking him down in Thailand.

MCEDWARDS: Well, in the case of suspected domestic terrorism, authorities in New Zealand raided what they called military style training camps, and private homes as well. Police arrested 17 people, and they seized weapons. The suspects were mostly environmental groups. And also Maori activists who were seeking self-determination in their a ancestral lands. The suspects face arms and possible terrorism charges as well.

HOLMES: Meanwhile, the trial of 30 suspected Islamic terrorists charged with plotting to blow up a courthouse in Madrid began today. Prosecutors say the sinister plot, which would have killed, they say, hundreds of people began to take shape a few months after the Madrid train bombings, back in 2004. CNN's Al Goodman is following the case.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

AL GOODMAN, CNN INTL. CORRESPONDENT (voice over): Spanish prosecutors say it was a plot that could have been all too real. The target, the national court, which tries cases of terrorism. Thirty defendants, charged in the plot, went on trial Monday under tight security. The courtroom with bullet-proof glass. The plot was to bring down this courthouse with a powerful truck bomb.

The attack would have killed hundreds of judges, prosecutors, and support staff who work here daily, a prosecution document says. It also meant to blow up the files of cases against other Islamic terror suspects like in the Madrid train bombing case.

(On camera): There are streets on three sides of the courthouse. The main street runs right next to the courthouse.

(Voice over): The court has not said publicly what route the truck bombers would have taken.

(On camera): But before they installed these barriers, it would have been easy, a court source told CNN.

(Voice over): The courthouse has since tightened its security measures. Prosecutors have identified the alleged mastermind of the plot as Moroccan born Abdul Ramani Tahiri (ph). They say he was ready to die in the attack, extradited from Switzerland two years ago, he's facing 66 years if convicted.

This defendant, Mohaad Doass (ph), another potential suicide bomber, the prosecution charges. He faces 42 years in prison if convicted. Prosecutors say these men were also ready to die for their cause, and that many of the defendants were recruited and indoctrinated while in Spanish prisons where they were serving time on other charges.

All of the defendants insist they are innocent, according to a court source or their defense lawyers. The Madrid train bombings killed 191 people and wounded 1,800 others in March 2004. That summer, prosecutors say, the truck bomb plotters sought to obtain explosives.

(On camera): And now the trial unfolds in the very courthouse they allegedly plotted to destroy. Al Goodman, CNN, Madrid.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

MCEDWARDS: Well, a U.S. senator caught in an airport bathroom sex sting is making another attempt to clear his name. Idaho Republican Larry Craig filing an appeal, hoping to reverse a judge's refusal to allow him to withdraw his guilty plea to disorderly conduct. Craig says he will keep pursuing his legal options. And he still says he has no plans to resign.

HOLMES: OK, a short break now. When we come back, our special series, "Eye On Korea".

MCEDWARDS: In Seoul, the future is here. The text savvy society keeps up with all the latest trends to bring you the world of tomorrow to your doorstep today.

HOLMES: And the battle of the break dancers spins out of control in an international competition. We'll tell who came out on top, or upside down.

MCEDWARDS: Got to hurt. Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) HOLMES: Welcome back, everyone, you are watching YOUR WORLD TODAY right here on CNN International.

MCEDWARDS: We're seen live in more than 200 countries and territories across the globe.

HOLMES: Now all this week we've got our "Eye On South Korea". The focus on technology and the future.

MCEDWARDS: Yeah, most of the country has ultra-fast broadband. It's also home to some of the major tech firms. They love it there.

HOLMES: They do and that is why big business and big-time gadget lovers head to Seoul.

MCEDWARDS: Kristie Lu Stout went there as well, to get a look into the future for herself.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

KRISTIE LU STOUT, CNN INTL. CORRESPONDENT (voice over): Seoul may not seem like a sci-fi city but it's blazing one very high tech trail. As we're watching live TV on your mobile, as an every day habit, hardcore gamers get paid as professionals, and social networking has been all the buzz for almost a decade.

Welcome to the land of early adopters, consumers all too willing to try the next new thing.

SANG JIN LEE, INFORMATION & COMM. MINISTRY: I think the Korean people has IT, you know, DNA in it. So, that's why Korean government, at the Ministry of Information and Communication, feels some sort of heavy burden to us. We need to match the demand from people.

STOUT: For starters, by setting up the ubiquitous dream hall, a grand vision of the future home.

ROBOT: Welcome home, master. Did you have a good time today?

STOUT: I-Robi checks out the room temperature. I check out the fridge.

HYO BIN LIN, UBIQUITOUS DREAM HALL: Let me check the food list. We can check the food information inside the frig without opening the door.

STOUT: How can you do that?

LIN: Because of the RFID technology. In the future, (UNINTELLIGIBLE) have RFID tech inside the food package and it will communicate with this refrigerator.

STOUT: RFID, radio frequency I.D.?

LIN: Yes.

STOUT: There's a scanner inside the fridge?

LIN: Yes.

STOUT: Also, I know there's a bottle of champagne in there.

LING: Yes.

STOUT (voice over): Such forward thinking has transformed South Korea to one of the poorest countries in Asia to an advanced high-tech economy, home to major tech firms.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Hello.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Oh, hello.

STOUT: And the most comprehensive broadband network in the world. The technology showcased here will go to market in three to five years. But already, middle class families, like the Parks, enjoy the perks of living in one of Seoul's newer high-rises.

Like chatting with the neighbors via wall-mounted video screen, or turning the lights off with their cell phones.

STOUT (on camera): There we go. So, you do this when you are outside, to turn the lights on at night, so it looks like people are at home?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Right, right.

STOUT: So it's for security.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: For security.

STOUT (voice over): Back at the Dream Hall, I encounter a bit of technology I never thought I needed.

LIN: Did you hear something?

STOUT (on camera): Yes, I heard whimpering.

LIN: This is puppy couch. Why don't you press here? You can hear the puppy sound. Press it there, then you can hear the music.

STOUT: So, this -- so, music and puppy sounds.

LIN: Yes. Kids love this.

STOUT: This is a fuzzy dog robot couch.

(Voice over): Will the world one day stroke a puppy couch? If South Korea has its way, why not? Kristie Lu Stout, CNN, Seoul.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HOLMES: Switching gears now, the Catholic Church has endured, of course, multiple sex-related scandals in recent years. The latest to emerge from Italy involves a priest and a senior Vatican official. He was caught on videotape making some admissions that stand in stark opposition to church doctrine.

Monsignor Tommaso Stenico was filmed on hidden camera making advances to a young man, admitting his participation in homosexual acts and stating he doesn't think it's a sin. Stenico has been suspended, pending the outcome of an investigation.

MCEDWARDS: Well, whatever the outcome of that investigation is, it is sure to be another headache for the Vatican. For more on this, we are joined by CNN's Vatican analyst, John Allen. He is live in New York for us.

John, how does the monsignor explain this?

JOHN ALLEN, CNN VATICAN ANALYST: Well, what he has claimed is that he is not actually a homosexual, that he was engaging in what he's described as an undercover investigation of his own, trying to unearth what he has described as a plot to harm the Catholic Church by much by playing on the vulnerabilities of gay priests.

Now, this is of course, is an expose post facto justification and it remains to be seen how much merit there is to it.

MCEDWARDS: Sounds like he's taken a page from the latest O.J. news in the United States. I mean, people must be shaking their heads about this. How big of a problem is this for the Vatican?

ALLEN: Well, think it's a major embarrassment. Obviously, it's not news that there are homosexuals in the priesthood. Two years ago the Vatican put out a document saying that homosexuals should not be ordained, which was a response to a perception in many corridors that there is a disproportionate number of homosexuals in the priesthood.

But I think what is remarkable about this story, Colleen, is that this took place inside this monsignor's office, inside the walls of the Vatican itself. I think that is a new level of brazenness that cannot help but be a major black eye for the Vatican in the court of public opinion.

MCEDWARDS: It is so brazen. How did it all come to light? How did they track this down?

ALLEN: Basically, this is an Italian television network, Channel 7 in Italy, that got a young man to pose as a potential date. He went online in gay-oriented chat rooms and websites. And believe it or not, what he did is he looked for user names that had the word priest in them. And then he would contact these guys to sort of play out the string and find out if they were, in fact, really priests. If they were, then he arranged a physical meeting with them, brought along a hidden camera and filmed the exchange.

In the case of Monsignor Stenico, their names were not given, obviously, their faces were disguised, their voices were disguised. But in the case of Monsignor Stenico, the camera actually showed him getting into the elevator of the Vatican. And they showed the exterior of the door to his office. So, it was no great leap of imagination to be able to identify who he was.

MCEDWARDS: Another example of that brazenness you just talked about, to have the word priest actually in your user name. Gosh, if you think about it, long and hard enough, it almost lends credence to his explanation, because it's just -- it's too bizarre.

ALLEN: Well, again, this is hardly the first time we've been down this road. There have been other cases of very senior church officials who were engaging in this kind of conduct and who were exposed. In fact, it's not even the first time this has happened on church property. I think what is so shocking about it is that this happened inside the Vatican, inside this man's own office.

And, of course, the fact that it is coming on the heels of a very public statements by the Church, in Italy and elsewhere, having to do with the Church's moral opposition to homosexuality. Just makes this all the more explosive, and I would say almost surreal.

MCEDWARDS: Yeah, there is an investigation under way, as we've pointed out. But if -- if it is found to be true, what are the likely consequences here?

ALLEN: Well, there are two elements. One is his future as a Vatican official which I would say is not long for this world.

MCEDWARDS: Yeah.

ALLEN: The other is what will happen to him as a priest. He's been suspended as an official of the Vatican and I'm sure his career is at an end. But it will now pertain to his local bishop to investigate whether or not he is actually violated his vows of celibacy and exposed the church to scandal, and if so, whether or not he will be able to continue as a priest.

There I think it's probably premature to speculate about what might happen. But I think you can be sure he's certainly not going to play any public role for the church. I think we should say, Colleen, adding to brazenness here this was not an anonymous Vatican official. I mean, this Monsignor Stenico had a television program on an Italian Catholic TV network. He had a regular radio program, he's published dozens of books. I mean, he was a public figure.

MCEDWARDS: Quite a star really.

ALLEN: And that just makes this -- again, the eyebrow-raising factor here is just off the charts.

MCEDWARDS: Unbelievable. CNN's Vatican Analyst John Allen bringing that to us. John, thank you.

ALLEN: You are welcome.

HOLMES: All right. Don't go away. Coming up we will take a break from the serious news and instead break it down with the B-Boys.

MCEDWARDS: We have been waiting for this all hour. (COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HOLMES: Anyone who's a fan of hip-hop and the whole genre there --

MCEDWARDS: As you are.

HOLMES: I am, actually. This is quite stunning news. Well, maybe not stunning, but interesting. Caught in a sting, the American rapper T.I. -- this guy is the biggest selling hip-hop artist in the country at the moment -- arrested this weekend on federal gun charges. Not just any guns, either.

MCEDWARDS: Right. The artist was supposed to have appeared for the taping of a hip-hop awards show on Saturday, but instead was being hauled off by authorities.

HOLMES: Officials say the entertainer was arrested after his bodyguard turned informant, and delivered three machine guns, also silencers, believe it or not, that the hip-hop star, he says, had asked him to purchase.

MCEDWARDS: The rapper was already on probation, which makes matters a lot worse. Police say they found more guns at his home in Atlanta.

HOLMES: He's also a convicted felon, and felons aren't allowed to have a gun anyway, let alone a machine gun in the closet.

MCEDWARDS: No doubt a term of his probation.

HOLMES: Yeah.

MCEDWARDS: There you go.

HOLMES: Absolutely. Amazing.

But I suppose for non-Americans the bizarre thing is that it's not illegal to own a machine gun with a silencer as long as you have the right permit. He didn't have the permit.

MCEDWARDS: Wrap your head around that, and on we go.

HOLMES: He says it's all a big misunderstanding, by the way.

All right. Let's move on to something else now. Feet flying, arms popping, heads rolling on the floor, a weekend worth remembering as world class B-Boys battled it out.

MCEDWARDS: In case you are not hip to pop cull tour, B-Boys are break dancers, and they just faced off in London for some very important bragging rights.

HOLMES: I want to know what it does to your hair when you do that. Emily Chang shows us which team came out on top.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: B-Boy championships, let's get it on!

EMILY CHANG, CNN INTL. CORRESPONDENT (voice over): The battle lines are drawn. After years of practice, preparation and performance, it all comes down to -- this.

(BREAK DANCERS)

DJ HOOCH, PROMOTER: All these kids, 18, 16 years old, whatever, their bones bend, they do incredible stuff, we're just waiting for someone to fly.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: To me, B-Boying is such a lifestyle, it's what they live. It's like a musician, they live to play the piano. We live to dance.

CHANG: B-Boying is also known as break dancing. It was born in New York City in the mid 1970s. It's become the dance of hip-hop culture, and evolved around the world.

HOOCH: We've got kids from China, Korea, from Ukraine, from Russian.

CHANG: All bringing fancy flips, footwork and finesse. Best stuff.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm just trying to bring my best out. It's five rounds so it's going to be who has the most endurance, who has the most moves left, the most character.

CHANG: The format is like a battle, where each contestant, or crew, takes turns.

(On camera): It's as such about the dancers as it is about the audience. One great move and the crowd goes wild. And it's up to the next act to step it up.

(Voice over): In the signature event, crews, or teams of B-Boys from eight different countries compete for the coveted title.

SOUL MAVERICKS, UK CREW: Traveling, dancing internationally, doing battles for the last two years, into Korea, been all around Europe.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We are Pokemon Crew from France, we come back this year to represent France and our crew, you know. We come back to defend champion.

CHANG: A new contender, Russia, dominates the stage, bringing a fresh, more gymnastic approach. Defending champions France are quickly eliminated. But in the end, it's the most original team that prevails, Korea wins the ultimate fight.

CHANG: Now it's all about who's going to bring it next year. Emily Chang, CNN, London.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

MCEDWARDS: So you think you can dance, hmm?

HOLMES: I think I pulled a muscle watching that. All right.

MCEDWARDS: That's it for this hour. I'm Colleen McEdwards.

HOLMES: I'm Michael Holmes. This is CNN.

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