Return to Transcripts main page

CNN Newsroom

IndyMac Bank Takeover; Pre-teens and Sex; U.S. into Sudan?

Aired July 13, 2008 - 16:00   ET

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

FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: One of the nation's largest banks is now in the hands of Uncle Sam. You are looking at live pictures right now of a meeting room where federal regulators are soon to be announcing what may be next for Indymac Bank. And of course, customers are anxiously awaiting to find out. What happens when the doors officially open again tomorrow.
And peer pressure, sex and so much more. Do you really know what your 11-year-old did this weekend?

And it may seem like a world away, but what happens in the next 24 hours could push the U.S. into Sudan's uncivil war.

Hello everyone, I'm Fredericka Whitfield. You are in the CNN NEWSROOM.

Well, thousands of customers hope to find out in the next few minutes perhaps what happens when Indymac Bank reopens tomorrow. Federal regulators are about to tell us exactly what may take place. A live picture right now from the FDIC news conference location in Pasadena. This is home of Indymac's home base there in California. For those of you just catching up with what is going on, the FDIC took over the California-based lender late Friday after a $1 billion run in the bank left it in financial ruins. We'll bring you this live as it happens.

Well, the government takeover of Indymac has set off the blame game. In fact, bank officials point their finger at Senator Charles Schumer of New York. They claim he basically pulled the trigger. CNN's Ed Henry has more including the New York democrat's response today.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ED HENRY, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Panic after California- based Indymac Bank went under. One of the biggest bank failures ever.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I came to close my account.

HENRY: Senate banking chairman Chris Dodd told CNN he wants answers about why federal regulators didn't sound the alarm bell sooner.

SEN. CHRIS DOD (D), CONNECTICUT: A weak regulation, cops not on the beat and out there you have brokers marketing products that are called liar's loans, deceptively drawing people into mortgages they could never afford.

HENRY: Deposits of up to $100,000 will be covered by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation. But economists are worried about the ripple effect. Consumers already smacked by high gas prices, now fearing the safety of their life savings in dozens of other troubled banks all across the country.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The mattress is looking pretty safe these days in terms of a place to keep your money. And I think that effect on the economy overall is not going to be helped here by one of these institutions coming to this sort of an end.

HENRY (on-camera): But officials here at the FDIC caution against overstating the broader problem. They point out in the '80s and '90s, there were about 200 bank failures a year. This year five, there have only been five banks to collapse, troublesome, but not necessarily a full-scale crisis.

HENRY (voice-over): Regulators point the finger at Senator Chuck Schumer for a June letter raising questions about Indymac's health which allegedly sparked the run. Schumer fired back regulators were asleep at the switch and are deflecting blame.

SCHUMER: Indymac pushed the edge of the envelope just like Countrywide. They did all cons of profit and bad processes and they should have been clamped down on much, much earlier.

HENRY: Schumer added federal officials are now blaming the fire on the guy who dialed 911.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: Ed Henry joins us now from our Washington bureau with much more on this. So, Ed, Senator Schumer leveling a very heavy charge at the White House in fact that they were actually the ones asleep at the switch. So what is the Bush administration saying about all this?

HENRY: Well, publicly, Fred, they don't want to weigh-in but privately they are ripping into Senator Schumer saying he just didn't call 911. They think he shouted fire in a crowded theater and really got his crisis going. But I think when you move beyond just this one bank, the bottom line is while all this finger pointing is going on, a major housing reform bill is still working its way through Congress. You know a lot of people in Washington, both parties pointing fingers. But right now a lot of people are hurting without very much relief coming to them. Fred.

WHITFIELD: All right. Ed Henry, thanks so much. Of course, on the right hand side of your screen now, we want to take you to the Indymac headquarters there in Pasadena, California where the CEO - he's the CEO of Indymac Bank as well as the COO, chief operating officer for FDIC, which by the way has now taken over control of the bank. Let's listen in.

JOHN BOVENZI, FDIC, CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER: ...Friday the bank was taken to protect depositors. Our objective is to preserve the bank's value and return it to the private sector which we plan to do in the upcoming months. Indymac Federal Bank now has the complete support of the FDIC. It is a strong and a safe institution. Come Monday morning, it will be business as usual for all insured customers. 265,000 customers of Indymac with $18 billion are fully insured. In the 75-year history of the FDIC no insured depositor has ever lost a single penny.

Over the weekend, Indymac customers had uninterrupted access to their funds by ATM, debit cards and by writing checks. Although depositors had no access to online and phone banking services over the weekend, these services will be operational again tomorrow. Loan customers need to continue making their loan payments as usual. It's important to keep in mind the small percentage of uninsured are still covered for their insured amounts and will have immediate access to 50 percent of their uninsured balances. As assets of Indymac are sold they may receive even more. I want to emphasize that customers should know that their insured money is safe. And that the process over the weekend has been orderly.

Customers are welcome to call our toll free number at 1-866-806-5919 with any questions. We also have a website www.fdic.gov. All branches of the bank will reopen on Monday as a full-service organization. Customers should just view this as a change in ownership. You'll see many of the same familiar faces behind the teller windows that they're used to seeing. Over the upcoming months, Indymac Federal Bank looks forward to working with our customers and the community as we seek to return the institution to the private sector.

WHITFIELD: All right. You have been listening to the COO of FDIC as well as now he has been named the CEO of Indymac now called Federal Bank. John Bovenzi trying to offer some comfort to the many customers there who are wondering about their insured as well as their uninsured money that has been held at that bank. It reopens on Monday. Ali Velshi has been following all the developments involving Indymac now Federal Bank. And so Ali, help us understand what does it mean that your insured money is safe but perhaps those who have uninsured money might not be. What makes your money uninsured?

VOICE OF ALI VELSHI, CNN, SENIOR BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: Let me tell you, the FDIC, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation was formed 75 years ago after a big run on the banks during the depression to take care of your money if you deposit it. So, you are insured for up to $100,000 in an account that you've opened or $250,000 if you have cash in an I.R.A., an investment account, retirement account. That is your insured amount. If you have $150,000 in a deposit account you are insured for $100,000. And that money is available immediately. Then what the new CEO said is that they will make half of the uninsured balance available to you. Again, you take that same 150,000, you're insured for $100,000, they will also give you half of the $50,000 you are not insured for, $125,000, and he said you may get more if the federal government gets money when they sell Indymac. They're hoping to do that within the next three months or so. So, that what it means.

WHITFIELD: OK. So, Ali, if there is some blame game on there was a run on the bank after hearing that this bank may be in trouble. I would imagine now a lot of people who have their money in that bank after hearing this, even though the new CEO may have offered some comforting words that there is yet another run on the bank. Why wouldn't customers flood those banks starting tomorrow and say, I just want my money out?

VELSHI: It doesn't matter at this point, Indymac is now in the hands of the federal government. That money is insured. The federal government does have the money. The FDIC has $53 billion. We're talking about a whole lot less money than that here. So, that doesn't matter. There is nothing more now that people can do to Indymac to make the situation any worse. So, you really shouldn't have more than $100,000 in any account at any bank. You should be diversifying that. So, that's not a problem. The problem of course is there are 90 banks on the FDIC on what they call a problem list. Now, they point out that is not an unusual amount, a little higher than normal, but it's not unusual and just because they're on the problem list it doesn't mean that they are going to fail and by the way, most of them are not anywhere in the size of Indymac. They're smaller. So, let's amount there as we have been talking about for a couple of days, just look at your account and make sure you don't have more than $100,000 in one account at one institution.

WHITFIELD: All right. Still the mystery. The other names on this problem list, those 90 banks. Ali Velshi, thanks so much for breaking it down. Appreciate it.

And there's going to be much more on Indymac and other banks coming up. Rick Sanchez will try to get some more answers for consumers. Perhaps, if you actually have your money in Indymac or you're just simply concerned about the banking industry as a whole. The man you saw on the press conference, John Bovenzi, the new CEO of Indymac. Well, he'll be joining Rick Sanchez later on this evening at 10:00 Eastern. You don't want to miss that.

And of course, we'll continue to watch your money, the markets, tomorrow and all this week. Your job, your savings, all of that part of "Issue number one," the economy, every weekday at noon Eastern we do this, only on CNN.

Well, first fires. Now the potential for flooding in burned out parts of southern and central California. Heavy rainfall expected in some areas today. And flash flood watches have been posted. And mudslides, too, are now a real threat. In northern California crews are still battling scores of wildfires. And calmer winds and higher humidity are helping just a bit. The fires have destroyed about 100 homes and killed at least one person. Let's check in with Jacqui Jeras way out west particularly in that state. If it's not the banking that has rattled nerves now we are talking about fires, too.

JACQUI JERAS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Yes, definitely. You know, I put both of these together on a map for you to kind of help spell it out a little bit better, Fredricka. In the green is where we have the flash flood watches in effect and most of the active burning fires are up here in northern California but you can see one or two in this area. It's mostly the old burned areas.

And if you remember the Butler fire we talked about so much from last year, the real concern about the kind of area below that burn area for the potential for debris flows and some mudslides as well. We got a lot of rain out there. Look at how things have just blossomed, really popped up here and into parts of southern California. And these tend to be real slow movers and there can be real heavy rain makers. And the ground is so dry and it's just been stripped of all the vegetation. So it doesn't take much to get those flows going. We got a lot of rain and thunderstorms across parts of the east today as well. A lot of thunderstorms in parts of the northeast.

Keep this in mind for you tomorrow, Boston, New York City, down towards D.C., this is really going to be a real rough go for it for travel tomorrow not to mention with what you are dealing with today. A lot of lightning associated with these. And we have just had downpours in the Atlanta metro areas. In fact, I even heard thunder just a second ago, Fredricka, outside of our studio. I don't know if you heard that. A lot of rain also into parts of Florida so really tough as you are trying to travel. A lot of people have those holiday vacations and summer vacations still going on. Look at this, over 3 1/2 hours in Atlanta. We got ground stops in effect across parts of the north. So, make sure your patience. Got a couple of tropical systems too Fredricka but nothing really new with them. So still kind of churning out there and not bothering -

WHITFIELD: Just spinning. OK. As long as it is out there, right?

JERAS: Exactly.

WHITFIELD: All right. Thanks a lot, Jacqui. I'll check back with you.

And soon we will be taking you overseas, even though it seems like a world away, it's information you needed to know from the comfort of your own home. The uncivil war that continues to rage on in Darfur. Rapes, beatings, killings in the street, it's been a way of life and a way of death for years now. Now word that justice just might be coming.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: And we continue to watch that press conference taking place at Pasadena right now. You're looking at the CEO of what was the Indymac Bank. And now it has been renamed after it has been taken under federal control. It's called the Indymac Federal Bank. Now, we're going to continue to monitor the developments there. They insist that the bank will be reopening tomorrow to the comfort of many customers and that most of their money, all of their money that is insured is safe.

Meantime, this next story, if you are parent or you're thinking about becoming a parent this just might knock you off your seat. A survey has just found that many preteens consider sex a normal part of dating. But that wasn't the only eye opener, our Kate Bolduan has more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

KATE BOLDUAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): They're not yet teens and far from adults but a newly released survey shows tweens are growing up faster than ever. The survey commissioned by Advocates Against Teen Dating Abuse shows nearly half of 11 to 14 year olds say they've dated. One in four say sex is part of relationships. And of the tweens who say that they're sexually active, 69 percent they've faced some type of verbal or physical abuse.

Dr. Kay Abrams is a clinical psychologist who works with tweens.

DR. JAY ABRAMS, CLINICAL PSYCHOLOGIST: They want to belong. I'll get young girls in my office who are eighth or ninth grade who are dating an older boy and they weren't ready and they want to please.

BOLDUAN: To find out more we went directly to tweens themselves. The people that you hear having sex, do you think they are too young? Do you think they're mature enough.

ANDREW RUSSO, 14 YEARS OLD: When you're in a serious relationship, it gets harder and harder to do because a lot of temptation and people are saying you should try it.

EMILY FORGO, 11 YEARS OLD: Parents say you're too young to date but they tell us it's the kids fault. Because they will go ahead anyway thinking that they can handle it when they really can't.

BOLDUAN: This group ranging from 11 to 15 years old said they know kids having sex and have even seen kids being abuse in relationships.

LLOYD BERG, 13 YEARS OLD: It's verbal and it's physical too. Like they'll slap each other. They'll push each other.

BOLDUAN: So, what's going on? The peer pressure is great and the influences are everywhere. Television for one.

JABARI DOUGLAS, 15 YEARS OLD: I also think it's that like the music that people listen to.

BERG: I think you can get anything on the internet. I think it's more destructive and more influential.

BOLDUAN: When it comes to protecting youth, Dr. Abrams say it's a simple formula of a watchful eye and an open dialogue.

ABRAMS: Stay mindful, yes. Be concerned, yes. Give children more time to be safe and innocent, to learn to be respectful and to learn when to turn to adults.

BOLDUAN: And maybe take some advice from a fellow tween.

FORGO: You're a kid. Be a kid. You won't be it forever.

BOLDUAN: Kate Bolduan, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: Well, how sobering. Meantime, this is very sad. Friends and colleagues are paying tribute to Tony Snow this weekend. The former White House spokesman being remembered as a witty & a courageous man. Today, President Bush shared his thoughts. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PRES. GEORGE W. BUSH, UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: I came to know Tony as a very smart and capable man. He had good values. He's an honest guy. You know, he had a wonderful sense of humor. He loved to laugh. He loved his country and he loved his family.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: Snow served 17 months at the White House as the spokesperson there, stepping down amid his second battle with colon cancer. Well, this spring he joins CNN as a conservative commentator. Tony Snow died early yesterday in Washington. He was just 53.

And nine American soldiers were killed today in a major attack in Afghanistan. NATO officials say insurgents targeted a small remote base with machine guns, rocket propelled grenades and mortars. It happened in Kunar province near the northern border with Pakistan. This is the deadliest attack on American troops in Afghanistan, we understand, in three years.

And now to Darfur's uncivil war. The International Criminal Court could seek an arrest warrant for Sudan's president as early as tomorrow. The charge: genocide for a five-year campaign of violence. CNN's Zain Verjee sets the stage.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ZAIN VERJEE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Sudan's president has defied the world and it's coming back to haunt him. As a campaign of mass murder goes on in the Darfur region of his country, hundreds of thousands killed, more than three million displaced. The International Criminal Court is expected to issue an arrest warrant for Omar al-Bashir for genocide and crimes against humanity. But Sudan is still defiant.

ABDALMAHMOOD ABDALHALEEM MOHAMMAD, SUDANESE AMBASSADOR TO THE U.N.: This is very serious. All options are open for our reactions.

VOICE OF CNN'S JIM CLANCY, ANCHOR "YOUR WORLD TODAY": Would those reactions include taking some of the peacekeepers hostage?

MOHAMMAD: All options are open, I tell you.

VERJEE: Seven peacekeepers were ambushed and killed.

BAN-KI MOON, U.N. SECRETARY GENERAL: I condemn such a violence in the strongest possible term.

VERJEE: The United States is warning Sudan against revenge attacks.

SEAN MCCORMACK, STATE DEPARTMENT SPOKESMAN: Violence serves the purpose of no party.

VERJEE: It's unknown whether we'll Bashir in a courtroom as in the case of Serbian Slobodan Milosevic. The U.S. is staying on the sidelines of this fight. The U.S. no longer recognizes the court because it fears U.S. officials or military members could be prosecuted in politically motivated cases. The United States also works with Sudan on counter-terrorism. Real action may be up to the U.N. Security Council but it's divided with Olympic host China squarely in Sudan's camp.

JERRY FOWLER, SAVE DARFUR COALITION: It would be a huge mistake for the Security Council to stop the course of justice and accountability.

VERJEE (on-camera): An arrest warrant could come as early as Monday. Zain Verjee, CNN at the State Department.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: And we're taking an in-depth look at Darfur in about a few minutes. Senior international correspondent Nic Robertson joins us. He has been in Darfur for the last month. Also joining us is Derek Hayango, he is senior field coordinator for the relief agency, CARE, and knows very intimately the entire continent of Africa.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: Well, democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama stumping today in the state with the most electoral votes, California. This morning he spoke via satellite to a teacher's convention meeting in Chicago. The senator promising education will be a priority in his administration. And just a short time ago at an appearance before a Latino convention Senator Obama took on his republican rival, John McCain for his current stand on immigration reform.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. BARACK OBAMA (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I know. I know Senator McCain used to buck his party on immigration by fighting for comprehensive reform. And I admired him for it and joined him in it. But when he was running for his party's nomination he abandoned that courageous stance. And said he wouldn't even support his own legislation if it came up for a vote. I don't know about you, but I think it's time for a president who won't walk away from something as important as comprehensive reform just because it becomes politically unpopular.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: Meantime, Senator McCain will get his chance with the group tomorrow. It is the third time in two weeks that McCain and Obama have addressed Latino groups, a key voting bloc. Today, Senator McCain is off the campaign trail, spending some down time in his home state of Arizona.

Well, even at this late date the presidential field is getting more crowded. Former Congresswoman Cynthia McKinney has just been chosen as the Green Party candidate. She won the nod yesterday at the eco factions convention in Chicago. Green Party leaders expect McKinney will be on the ballot in 36 states. The former Georgia democrat failed to win a seventh house term after a run-in with a Capitol policeman in 2006.

And check out more stories from our political ticker at cnnpolitics.com. Your source for all things political.

Crimes against women and children. Their among the innocent victims of Sudan's uncivil war. But a Sudanese government officials refuse to accept that rape and torture are actually happening at all in Darfur.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: Happening right now, federal regulators get ready to reopen IndyMac banks tomorrow. The FDIC took it over. It is among the biggest bank failures in U.S. history and could prove to be the costliest.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOHN BOVENZI, FDIC CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER: IndyMac Federal Bank now has the complete support of the FDIC. It is a strong and a safe institution. Come Monday morning it will be business as usual for all insured customers.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: The chairman of the FDIC also issued this statement, the banking system in this country remains on a solid footing through the guarantees provided by FDIC Insurance.

The Federal Reserve could weigh-in to the on going mortgage mess overall. The Feb is expected to approve new home lending rules tomorrow to tighten up lending.

The long standing crises in Darfur region of Sudan threatens to explode. There was defines on the streets of Sudan today. People there expecting the International Criminal Court to indict Sudan's president as early as tomorrow, the charges genocide and crimes against humanity. It could bring a backlash from Sudan's government one that could put international aide workers in harm's way and bring more suffering to the people of Darfur.

Someone who has been keeping a close eye on the situation in Darfur is our own international correspondent Nic Robertson; he joins us live now from London. Nic, just so folks can understand some of that chanting. That was chanting in support of Omar Bashir, the president of Sudan. Many of them saying down, down USA. Why this?

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Why? Because the rumors that the International Criminal Court may call for charges against the present President Omar Bashir, charges of genocide in Darfur, it is the expectation that that could be a possibility and they are coming out to show their support for the president, show that they believe this is a western conspiracy. This is what we hear a lot from the Sudanese officials. They think that the west tries to interfere in what is happening in Darfur.

But we were in Darfur recently, we asked officials there about what is happening in the camps, why the food is being cut in those camps. One issue we asked in particular about is about rapes in the camps. They say it is manifestation, something that has been created by the west, part of their reasons to interfere with the camps. When we talked to aide officials there in Darfur about the rapes in the camps they say gender-based violence affects almost every single woman and children. The people we talked to say children as young as 4 and 5 are being raped. Some of the victims raped multiple times in the same day.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ROBERTSON (voice over): UN peacekeepers are educating Darfur's woman about rape.

AJAYI FUNMI, UNAMID POLICE: We have been lecturing that the girl should always be accompanied by a male.

ROBERTSON: Few survivors want to come forward. When they do their tales are shocking, even these experienced police officers.

FUNMI: She said they removed their scarves and used them to tie them down and were taking turned raping them. One is 13, one is 16.

ROBERTSON: Rape is one of the biggest UN concerns here now. With the camps surrounded by hostile forces aide workers say most women in the camp have been raped as they go to collect firewood for cooking. Men don't want to go with the women for fear they will be killed.

MICHEAL FRYER, UNAMID POLICE COMMISSIONER: That is one of the big issues in Darfur, the rapes and atrocities of women and children.

ROBERTSON: These Sudanese government officials refuse to accept it is happening.

(UNIDENTIFIED MALE): There is no rape in Darfur as they said. As they said and even these words were being learned to the people of Darfur to say they are completely ignorant.

ROBERTSON: Aide workers say they come face-to-face with it every day. Rape babies abandoned by their mothers.

MOHAMMAD HASSAN AWAD, HUMANITARIAN AID COMMISSIONER: Abandoned babies already - because of the stigma attached to it, there is no detailed report.

ROBERTSON: As many as 20 babies a month in one camp of 22,000. Privately aide workers say they are shocked. Women have been forced to accept rank as their fate. For the humanitarian workers, they say they are powerless to stop it. They say if they do speak out they are afraid the Sudanese government will tell them to leave the country.

The U.N. wants more female police officers so they can better educate against rape. The women we talked to in the camps say they won't feel safe until the U.N. is strong enough to protect them.

(END VIDEO CLIP) WHITFIELD: Nic Robertson back with us now from London. Nic, tell me about the international aide workers, they are there risking their lives to try to protect many of these refugees or victims. Why do they believe that if and when an indictment would come their lives would be put in jeopardy even more?

ROBERTSON: In Darfur the situation is very, very fragile; it is very, very precarious. When we were there in one of the towns of west Darfur where there are over 100 international aide workers, and many thousands of other local Darfur aide workers, they were having vehicles stolen every single day. The U.N. peacekeeping force just outside the town who is armed peacekeepers and have armored vehicles, they were stopped by gunmen on horseback and had their ammunition, their money and even their mobile phones stolen from them.

It is a dangerous situation already. The police don't have full control. The Sudanese army doesn't have full control. Therefore, these lawless elements, with perhaps and this would be the concern of aide workers, that perhaps the government would choose to turn a blind eye and this would allow greater space for these illegal criminal elements to turn on the aide workers. Perhaps not in an organized way, but a greater number of break ins, the greater possibility that they could be threatened with weapons. This is the sort of thing that could happen. It is a very precarious dangerous situation Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: Dangerous to report on. Nick, we know you have been doing a lot of courageous reporting for a long time now. Someone else who knows very intimately about how life is in Africa as whole, but particularly Sudan, Derreck Kayonga is with me now here in Atlanta, he is a field coordinator for the Relief Agency C.A.R.E. You know just seeing these images, and just hearing about what Nic is reporting. The first question that comes to mind is how in the world can human beings resort to this kind of behavior and resist any kind of intervention?

DERRECK KAYONGO, SR. ADVOCACY FIELD COORD. CARE: Oh, my goodness. It's tough. It's tough. What we need to do as a community, a global community is not give up hope. When you give up hope it becomes a hopeless situation that can create bigger problems.

WHITFIELD: Are you close to that as an African and you see this taking place in your homeland and the international community as a whole really is not wrapping its arms around this entire problem. It has been years now and even hearing of an indictment possibly tomorrow maybe that a solution do you worry that all of those who are culpable for this type of activity won't be brought to justice? People will continue to be victimized.

KAYONGO: There is that part of the story. But CARE takes a look at is how do we help people on the ground right now to cope with what you are talking about. Things like clean water. Things like sanitation. We have 1.1 million people that we have to take care of within C.A.R.E.'s programming area. Of which 251,000 of them need water and sanitation, 230,000 of them need health and nutrition.

WHITFIELD: It is extraordinary. KAYONGO: And 343,000 of them need food security. While everybody is worrying about the big picture things, which is important, we need to, as C.A.R.E., need these issues that are why we need safe passage for our staff people on the ground and allow the service to go forward. These are the things we are worried about. We are glad that we have the ability to take care of people.

WHITFIELD: You are worried that Americans are at home comfortable. They see this and they are thinking that is way over that really doesn't impact me but it does, doesn't it?

KAYONGO: It really does. One of the things I love about this country because I love this country so dearly is the ability of American people to respond beautifully. They've given us a lot of support. When you look at the tsunami, they gave in droves.

WHITFIELD: A lot of Americans want to be there.

KAYONGO: The issues that Americans don't care or not responsive, they need to be told what is going on and how to act and how to respond.

WHITFIELD: Derrick thanks so much. Always good to see you. Your journey is so incredible. By ending up in Kenyeah the refugee and ending up here and giving back to Africa and helping to educate so many Americans.

Thank you very much. Enough cannot be said about the importance of this overall.

Africans are not the only ones in this fight. Arab militias are working for the Sudanese government. And the situation is growing. More violence by the day. We take you to a village that is the perfect example of Darfur's uncivil war.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: The conflict in Darfur is about one ethnic group calling -- fighting another. Our senior international Nic Robertson takes us to one village to show us the tension.

(UNIDENTIFIED MALE): We are about to jump in the vehicles.

ROBERTSON: We're on our way to the border with Chad to a village that is a perfect example of Darfur's problems. It could be dangerous.

(UNIDENTIFIED MALE): To be safe, we take ten armed men.

ROBERTSON: Aide worker Damian Rance tells us what happened to a co- worker on a similar trip.

DAMIAN RANCE, UNHCR: The vehicle was stopped. They were removed from the vehicle and they put her face down on the ground and beat her very hard.

ROBERTSON: As we leave town Arabs on horse and camelback head toward market. Darfur's Africans the majority victims in the fight here, civil war here, fear them as janjaweed. We stop close to the border. Damian explains the ethnic tensions, Arabs on African land.

RANCE: You have three different groups here. You have people living on land that once belonged to the Marsele (ph).

ROBERTSON: Before we go to the Arab village, a word of warning.

RANCE: Just be careful with the camera. We'll ask them if we can film them first because they may be armed. They probably will be armed, in fact. You don't want to annoy them to start with.

ROBERTSON: In Darfur the Arabs are allowed to have weapons. The Africans are not. When we arrive, the chic, the local Arab leader, wants to tell us about their grievances. House care and education are lacking he says. He denies knowing anyone in the Janjaweed. We are affected by the Darfur problem here, but the fighting happened we were driven away from our wells. To show us, he takes us on the half hour walk to the nearest water. They share it with animals.

This water couldn't be much dirtier. There are animal feces around the edge. If you drink it you probably get cholera, Hepatis, and next to the watering hole here is a dead donkey. Would you mind if we ask you a few questions in relation to the dynamics of this area and if we filmed you while we ask those questions? Is that OK?

ROBERTSON: Back at the camp. We tracked down the African Tribesmen who loose to live in Shukary (ph), the African tribesman that have been waiting for the Arabs to leave their village so they can return the African, shake tells me they are powerless to get our land back.

I cannot make any problems he says because our community is poor. Only the government can get these people off our land. So far the government seems to have no interest in moving the Arabs out of the village and they show no signs of wanting to leave. The African tribes say that is effectively ethnic cleansing and they have nowhere to go.

This has been happening in Darfur for the last five years. It is the government supporting the Arab tribes against the African farmers to move those African farmers out of their land. They have had historic differences over land rights. They have always found a way to work those out. But what has happened now, what is different over the last five years is that the government has armed and aided the Arabs as an effort to push those African farmers out. That is typical, 2.5 million people displaced, almost all of them are African farmers.

WHITFIELD: That is fascinating. Nic thanks so much Derrick. We talked about if the removal by way of indictment of Bashir takes place the worry then is the void of leadership and how that country could perhaps become easy pickings for anybody else.

KAYONGO: That's why the rest of us are doing devotement work need to really concentrate on this issue of bringing a sense of normalcy in the community. People still worry about clean water, still worry about where they are going to get their next meal. That is why C.A.R.E. is staying away from that whole saga and concentrating on what we are good at. Bring sustainable development to these communities. Sudan needs that. We do a fantastic job. WHITFIELD: That is why you should care, that is why I should care and that is why everyone should care. The future of that country is significant in what could potentially happen.

KAYONGO: Exactly. It neighbors nine countries in Africa. These are very important countries that depend on the stability of the whole region.

WHITFIELD: If it is unstable and if the rest of the nine countries become unstable so does the rest of the world. Derrick Kayongo thanks so much, appreciate it.

Thanks again to Nic Robertson doing some fine reporting out of London as well.

And of course we made it easy for you to donate to C.A.R.E. or any other relief agency that is helping the people in Darfur. Go to CNN.com and click on impact your world icon.

Also, the three freed American hostages now back at home.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

(UNIDENTIFIED MALE): Please just respect our privacy.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: Held hostage in Colombia now back home on U.S. soil.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: Home at last. American hostages rescued from Colombia after more than five years in captivity. They can finally sleep in their own beds. The three men left a medical center in Texas that day for their homes in Florida. Here is Thomas Howes arriving in Orlando. But before they returned home the three urged people to remember the hostages still held by FARC rebels in Colombia. The defense contractors had been undergoing medical tests and reintegration process while in Texas. Now they are asking for private time with their families.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KEITH STANSELL, FREED AMERICAN HOSTAGE: We're all obviously happy to be home. We would like to say we are going to come out in a little while and we are going to tell our stories. Just understand I have been gone for 5 1/2 years. The moment right now is with my family. Just please respect that. Everyone has been so supportive. You will hear from us, right now it is family time. Thank you I appreciate it.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: Former hostage Marc Gonsalves says they would like to take a month and a half to unwind. While heading home the three talked exclusively however "Headline News" anchors Robin Meade sharing some of their very emotional stories. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KEITH STANSELL, FORMER HOSTAGE: I have two little boys, 5-year-old twins.

ROBIN MEADE, "HEADLINE NEWS" ANCHOR: And you'd never met them.

STANSELL: No. I'm sorry.

MEADE: It's all right.

STANSELL: This is happy. This is happy. This is a good thing for me.

(UNIDENTIFIED MALE): They thought he had one little boy.

(UNIDENTIFIED MALE): We thought one had died.

(UNIDENTIFIED MALE): He said he saw the photo.

STANSELLL: I have two boys I've never seen. These two guys helped me through it. I knew the mother of my children was pregnant with twins and he said, I saw you have one baby. We are in a cage. This is just a deep breath of happiness. I'll tell you here, I hear these two guys on the radio sending messages on the am radio. Marc and I chained together literally you listen to your families and you are a family. I walked in here and the first time is limited, 40 minutes. I come in here with the general, he was more nervous than I was because he was worried how is this going go with the kids. I open the door, now, imagine, you've got these two children, to me, which is -- I hear Pa. Pa. Pa. They hit me like I had never been gone. That is credit to their mother. There is an intensely level. Hey, you are only going to see your family for 40 minutes.

(UNIDENTIFIED MALE): Overload.

STANSELL: Forty minutes is overload.

I did the 40 minutes, they took me out. A few hours later you come back. These people here know how to manage this.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: You can, of course, hear the entire exclusive interview with Robin Meade and the freed American hostages tonight 8:00 Eastern right here on CNN.

So is eight enough for the Brangelina crew? The famous family has grown by two. Mom Angelina Jolie finally delivers.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: Oh, just call them the Brangelina bunch. Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie, now the parents of six, count them. Jolie gave birth to twins last night. The little boy Knox and his little sister Vivienne are all doing well as is mom. The twins join the four other Jolie/Pitt kids. Big family. From Mohammad Ali to the Pope, Yankee Stadium is used for more than just baseball. What will the new stadium be without the new stadium? Or what would New York be without that stadium? You know what I mean. Find out in the next hour of the CNN NEWSROOM which begins right now.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

(UNIDENTIFIED MALE): IndyMac was one of the most poorly run and reckless of all the banks.

(END VIDEO CLIP)