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Libyans Fearing Violence if They Speak Out; Thousands Still Fleeing Libya; Aftershocks Continue in New Zealand
Aired March 01, 2011 - 08:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
KRISTIE LU STOUT, HOST: Welcome to NEWS STREAM, where news and technology meet.
I'm Kristie Lu Stout, in Hong Kong.
A top U.S. official says Moammar Gadhafi is unfit to lead after he says all Libyans are behind him.
One week on, New Zealand pauses to remember those lost in a deadly earthquake.
And falling out of fashion. The racist rant captured on video that could unstitch the career of a top designer.
The fight for Libya is in its third week. Global calls for action are growing louder.
The leader, Moammar Gadhafi, denies protests are even taking place. In a rare interview with a Western journalist, he painted a picture that seems at odds with reality.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MOAMMAR GADHAFI, LIBYAN LEADER: They love me, all my people. They love me, all.
CHRISTIANE AMANPOUR, HOST, "THIS WEEK WITH CHRISTIANE AMANPOUR": But if they do love you --
GADHAFI: They will die to protect me, my people.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
STOUT: Gadhafi's comments have come under sharp criticism from the U.S. Washington's ambassador to the United Nations questioned his state of mind.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SUSAN RICE, U.S. AMB. TO THE U.N.: It sounds just, frankly, delusional. And when he can laugh in talking to an international journalist while he is slaughtering his own people, it only underscores how unfit he is to lead and how disconnected he is from reality.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
STOUT: Libya's ambassador to the United States calls Gadhafi's regime "very cruel" and says some 2,000 people have been killed. Now, that is double the estimate given by the U.N. chief.
Now, in Tripoli, there are few signs of any protests. Many telling CNN that they fear violence if they speak out.
And our Nic Robertson is there.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
NIC ROBERTSON, CNN SR. INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: This is Green Square, in the heart of Tripoli. And if you want to show your support for Moammar Gadhafi, this is where you come. That's why all the people are honking their horns on their cars right now.
And if you look up at the old city ramparts up there, that's where Moammar Gadhafi came to give his most recent public speech. The area over there, filled of his supporters. But what we're seeing in this square, this support for Gadhafi, is only part of the picture of what we're seeing across the capital here.
(voice-over): Outside Tripoli's banks tempers are fraying. A new $400 handout from leader Moammar Gadhafi proving hard to get. No one here shouting his support, none criticizing him either.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We don't need a war. You know? Everybody here in Libya living for peace.
ROBERTSON: On our tour of the capital, government officials ride along. We choose where to go. They get us through the checkpoints, deal with the police, who stop us whenever they see our camera.
After days of violence and empty streets, more traffic, more people. Anti- Gadhafi slogans painted over, a veneer of life before the anti-government protests. Nothing though quite as it seems.
(on camera): I met a man just a few minutes ago on a street corner here. He told me they're too afraid to come out at night and protest now. He said they're living in fear. He was so afraid of talking to me, he told me to turn my microphone off.
He said a week ago, they managed to get to Green Square, the center of Tripoli. He said they thought they had won the protests. Then, after that, he said they realized they hadn't. The heavy crackdown came. He says now the anti-Gadhafi movement in the capital, Tripoli, has lost its momentum.
(voice-over): A glance of the city's cafes seems to reinforce the sense protests are dying down. Widespread violence, receding. Some people feeling safer. But as we found talking to a passing driver who stopped to tell us he supports Gadhafi, the momentum for change is more widespread than it appears.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We need more of freedom, of course. But not like what they're doing now.
ROBERTSON (on camera): With the violence you mean?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes. Yes. We need this.
ROBERTSON (voice-over): Government officials insist they, too, want peace and are talking with the opposition about reforms, including possible changes in the constitution. They say they've invited more than 100 journalists to see for themselves.
MUSA IBRAHIM, LIBYAN GOVERNMENT SPOKESMAN: What is happening here in Libya is very different to what the media and the U.N. are alleging. There are simply no massacres, no bombardments of cities, no reckless violence against civilians.
ROBERTSON: But when we hear of reports of an anti-government protest and ask to go there, our tour comes to an abrupt end.
(on camera): Well, we've just raced back to the hotel in this car. He wouldn't ride fast in the morning, but this afternoon he's raced back to the hotel, and that was just after we asked to go to a neighborhood where we saw a lot of police presence outside the neighborhood, but we heard there might be some kind of anti-government demonstration going on. They brought us back to the hotel.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
STOUT: And our Nic Robertson joins us live from Tripoli.
And Nic, what is happening in Tripoli today?
ROBERTSON: Well, it's a day, Kristie, very much like yesterday. We found out a little bit more about that incident we wanted to go and report on yesterday.
One of the government officials here told us that the army had told them that there were two or three vehicles going through a neighborhood in the east of Tripoli with gunmen in the vehicles, and that they decided they didn't want to let us into that area because they thought it might be dangerous. So we got a little bit more information about that.
What the government have taken journalists who are here in the city to see today is an aid convoy they say that is going to Benghazi, in the rebel- controlled area in the east of the country. They say that the trucks will be there in about 10 or 12 hours, that there were 18 trucks for food aid and other humanitarian aid, medical aid as well.
Hard to imagine how the trucks could drive through what is anti-government areas with the flags on that they were carrying, green flags, showing that they support the government of Moammar Gadhafi. But when I asked the truck drivers about that, they said they wouldn't have any problems and they were trying to help the people in the east of the country. It will be very interesting to see later if in fact they do reach the east of the country.
But in Tripoli, here, it is a day like yesterday. The streets are quite busy. Not all the schools are open by any stretch of the imagination, but there are more people out. And that sort of fear that a lot of people had last week with all the violence on the streets, about wondering what was going to happen, some of that is diminishing. But what's very clear in this city is anyone who wants to take part in an anti-government protest feels far too afraid to do that at the moment -- Kristie.
STOUT: Now, the anti-government protest movement is losing momentum in Tripoli. But what is the situation outside of the capital?
ROBERTSON: Well, we know in Zawiya, just a 40 minutes' drive away, an important oil refining city, that the opposition, armed opposition to the government, still controls the center of the city. We saw a couple of thousand people there a few days ago.
The army hasn't gotten in, despite their fears. The army hasn't been able to go in and rout them. There have been reports of clashes, that the army had tried to go in, but they were repelled by the opposition.
So what appears to be happening there, as in some of the other towns, is a sort of a stalemate, with the opposition controlling some areas. The government describes them as pockets of resistance. And the government not able or not willing at this moment to take them on.
About 160 kilometers to the east of here, in the town of Misurata, we had asked to go there today. There were reports of fighting there yesterday, and reports the town was now controlled by the opposition. We haven't been able to go there and see that for ourselves yet. We've been asking, but so far we've not been able to do that -- Kristie.
STOUT: All right. Nic Robertson, joining us live from Tripoli.
Thank you for that.
Now, Western nations are preparing to send more humanitarian aid to Libya's opposition as they enact broad sanctions against Gadhafi's regime. But this is not the first time Libya's leader has come under international condemnation.
Now, in 1979 -- that's 10 years after Gadhafi took power -- the U.S. designated Libya as a state sponsor of terrorism.
In 1984, Britain severed diplomatic ties after a police officer was shot and killed outside the Libyan Embassy in London.
Two years later, the U.S. cut commercial trade and froze Libyan assets after a disco bombing in Berlin.
Now, in 1988, Libya's standing feel even further after the bombing of Pan Am Flight 103 over Lockerbie, Scotland. It killed 270 people. Libya refused to hand over suspects for trial, so in 1992, the United Nations imposed a ban on travel and arms sales. Now, Tripoli turned the suspects over seven years later.
And in 2003, Libya accepted responsibility for the bombing, and the U.N. lifted its sanctions as a result. Later that year, Libya renounced weapons of mass destruction and opened up to international inspectors.
And then, in 2004, the U.S. and the European Union ended their embargoes against Libya.
By 2008, world leaders were shaking hands with Gadhafi at the G-8. A year later, he was elected the head of the African Union and addressed the U.N. General Assembly for the first time.
Now, it is unclear if the current uprising will force Gadhafi from power. And should he leave, who would take over?
Brian Todd tries to find out.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): We have seen them celebrating on the streets in eastern Libya, jubilant after Moammar Gadhafi's forces left cities like Benghazi. They have started to take control of towns to the west as well and are getting closer to Tripoli. But who are they?
Who is leading these rebels, this opposition that's threatening to drive out a dictator after 42 years?
Observers say there doesn't seem to be one group or person in particular. Ronald Bruce St. John has written seven books on Libya.
RONALD BRUCE ST. JOHN, LIBYA SCHOLAR: So you have got everyone from people in the street, street vendors, people like that, to lawyers, to educators, to judges. And, of course, in the eastern part of the country, we have now seen some military units disaffect from the government and join the protesters. So, it's a wide swath of Libyan society.
TODD: One group in eastern Libya that's begun to fill a void, according to news reports, is the Libyan National Council. It's said to be helping liberated cities coordinate basic functions. Observers say a represented former justice minister, Mustafa Abdel-Jalil, is a de facto leader of this group and could be a key transitional figure. But it's unclear if he's got widespread support outside of eastern Libya.
(on camera): Why do we not see kind of a main opposition figure or an opposition group really emerging right now?
MOHAMED AL MAGARIAF, LIBYAN DISSIDENT: I'm sure that they look upon certain persons as possible leaders, potential leaders for their country, but neither these people or -- nor the -- our people themselves would like to rush to this situation. I think their main concern at the moment is to make sure that Gadhafi's regime is over.
TODD: Mohamed Yusuf Al Magariaf's been waiting for that moment. He resigned as Libya's ambassador to India more than 30 years ago, went into exile and, as a leader of a key opposition group, says he has survived multiple assassination attempts. He got emotional when I asked him one key question.
(on camera): Would you go back to assume a leadership role?
AL MAGARIAF: I will go back to -- first of all, to my country to -- to meet my family, rest of my family, and to congratulate my -- our people for the glorious job they did. And I will offer myself to participate in the rebuilding of Libya.
TODD (on camera): Al Magariaf and others say whoever fills this void after Gadhafi, it likely won't be just one person. They say the country was destroyed by one-man rule and likely won't have the appetite to go back to it.
Brian Todd, CNN, Washington.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
STOUT: Well, thousands of people are fleeing Libya. CNN's Tim Lister is at the Tunisian/Libyan border with this developing story.
And Tim, what are you seeing? What are you hearing?
TIM LISTER, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Kristie, it's just a tide of humanity trying to come across this border now.
Yesterday, 14,000 came across. Today, probably even more will come across, according to U.N. and Tunisian officials here.
The scene at the border gate -- I'm 20 yards from the border gate -- is one of real chaos. There's only a handful of Tunisian soldiers trying to process people coming through.
Some have been taken from the crowd either crushed, or have passed out because of the sheer volume of people stuck in no man's land between Libya. I can see the Libyan flag is just 100 yards away. There's not much faith here at no man's land, and there are 6,000, 7,000 people crushed into this tiny space. The Tunisians are doing what they can to get them through, but the scale of the problem is beginning to escape their management -- Kristie.
STOUT: Is this turning into a humanitarian crisis?
LISTER: I spoke to a U.N. official here just a little while ago who said it is now a humanitarian crisis, and within days it will be a humanitarian catastrophe unless the international community steps up. The U.N. is desperate for help. It put up 700 tents here yesterday, and they were filled immediately. There were still 2,500, 3,000 people on the ground -- and it's very cold here at night -- sleeping out under blankets.
The problem is you're at the very end of a long supply chain here, and to get people away from this area, on buses down a very poor road, to places where they can be evacuated to their homeland, is an incredibly difficult process -- Kristie.
STOUT: The statistics are simply staggering. The images that we're looking at are very gut-wrenching, indeed. These images coming to us from yesterday.
The United Nations has told us that some 100,000 people have fled the unrest in Libya. Are there enough resources at the border even to serve just a fraction of these people?
LISTER: Absolutely not. And the relief officials will tell you that quite plainly and blankly, "We don't have enough to cope with. We're behind the curve on this. This is a crisis that began four days ago. We're just beginning to catch up with it now."
They're digging huge latrines. Tunisians are coming here by the hundreds as volunteers with bread and water trying to help out as best they can. Almost heroic effort by the Tunisians, but they're always behind the curve on this problem.
The numbers keep on rising. Seventy thousand now through this border point alone in the last week, and another 14,000, 15,000 perhaps today. There is no way they can accommodate these people.
Many of them have had everything stolen. They have no money, they have no cell phones. They can't communicate with their families. They had everything stolen from them on the way out. All they have is a couple of blankets.
It's a truly desperate situation -- Kristie.
STOUT: Tim Lister, reporting from the Libyan/Tunisian border, reporting on a humanitarian crisis there, as tens of thousands, if not 100,000-plus Libyans, make that crossing. And not enough resources there to support them.
Now, still to come here on NEWS STREAM, there's a moment of silence in New Zealand. The whole country paused to remember at 12:51 p.m., exactly one week after the earthquake that devastated Christchurch.
And this man, Anwar al-Awlaki, said to have received vital information from a British Airways employee plotting to blow up an airline. Now, we look at what we now know about his role in al Qaeda.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
STOUT: New Zealand pauses to honor victims of last week's earthquake. A two-minute moment of silence was observed at 12:51 p.m. local time on Tuesday. That marked the exact time seven days ago the 6.3 magnitude earthquake struck near Christchurch. One hundred and fifty-five people are confirmed dead, but officials expect that number to rise.
New Zealand's civil defense minister says a national state of emergency will probably stay in place for several weeks to come.
New Zealanders are still feeling the effects of the quake as dozens of aftershocks continue to hit Christchurch and the surrounding areas every day. With much of the area unstable, it could take just one of those tremors to cause yet more catastrophic damage.
Michael Parkin reports.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MICHAEL PARKIN, REPORTER, ONE NEWS (voice-over): From the air, it's hard to imagine why anyone would want to stay. But today, police had to evacuate around 200 homes on and around Sumner's Clifton Hill.
MALCOLM JOHNSTON, SOUTHERN AREA COMMANDER: Our GO (ph) tech here discovered a number of cracks. They discovered that overnight. These have raised some concerns with them.
PARKIN: Born on September 4, the day of the last Canterbury quake, baby Deanthi Rose's (ph) family quickly moved the nursery to the shoreline.
MARUSCHKE BARNARD, TUAWERA RESIDENT: They told us to get out, and we were still sleeping, so we ripped out of bed. So, yes, we were just stressed and just grabbed baby stuff and started running and going down the street.
PARKIN (on camera): Many of these million-dollar homes on Clifton Hill actually look fine, but the concern is with all the land underneath them, there are now serious fears all of it could slip down towards the sea in a good aftershock.
(voice-over): Today's big aftershock also saw Sumner cut off. The army standing guard as rocks began littering the hill roads to Littleton and Christchurch. Residents were allowed to leave, but with no guarantee they could come back.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I didn't want to go out because I'm actually looking after quite a few rescue workers' dogs. And if I can't come back, then these dogs are stuck on the property.
PARKIN: An impromptu town meeting was held for people to try and figure out, what next?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: OK? Swimming, washing?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: On TV this morning, Bob Parker put out a press release this morning they're pumping raw sewage through the New Brighton (INAUDIBLE). He cannot make any apologies for that. It's dire straits.
PARKIN: Police say they're unsure when residents will be able to return to their homes, but a few of them appear to have abandoned these sites.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Oh, we'll stay here. Yes, we love the area. It's a really nice area, and it's just one of these things that happens.
PARKIN: Spectacular Sumner homes now facing a common Christchurch problem.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
STOUT: Now, the U.S. Geological Survey has said that the quake that rocked Christchurch one week ago was part of a series of aftershocks from an earlier and bigger quake on September the 4th. And hundreds of struck the area.
(WEATHER REPORT)
STOUT: You're watching NEWS STREAM. We'll be back right after this.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
STOUT: Coming to you live from Hong Kong, you are back watching NEWS STREAM.
The actor Charlie Sheen's CBS sitcom future may be in serious doubt, but he is on every other network. Sheen is calling his media blitz "an operation to right some terrible wrongs."
Now, he's appeared on TMZ, NBC, ABC and CNN in the weeks since CBS and Warner Brothers Television discontinued production on his show, "Two and a Half Men." Now, Warner Brothers TV is owned by Time Warner, the parent company of CNN. And Sheen tells CNN's Piers Morgan that he is not an addict, just someone who lives life to the fullest.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
PIERS MORGAN, HOST, "PIERS MORGAN TONIGHT": The premise of their argument with you is that you're in some kind of denial about this. And actually, you never really stopped and thought, I've got to sort myself out properly. That if you do follow their programs, they can't work, and lots of people would be watching and saying it worked for me.
CHARLIE SHEEN, ACTOR: And then I can have a life like theirs? I'm going to pass.
MORGAN: Really? Why?
SHEEN: Why? Because I'm a winner, and their lives look like they're, you know, ruled by losers, just to put it in black and white terms.
I don't want their lives, and they want mine. They want to criticize the hell out of me. You know?
And now they've run the gamut from, like, OK, he's not loaded. Now what? Oh, he's manic. I don't even know what that means. I guess that would imply that there's going to be a crash.
Don't know when that's coming. But maybe you can cover it when it does.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
STOUT: Now, Sheen says he has tested clean in multiple drug tests, and told NBC's "Today Show" that he has "tiger blood and Adonis DNA." I'm not making this up.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SHEEN: I'm tired of pretending like I'm not special. I'm tired of pretending like I'm not (EXPLETIVE DELETED) rock star from Mars. And people can't figure me out, they can't process me.
I don't expect them to. You can't process me with a normal brain.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
STOUT: And people seem to agree that Charlie Sheen is special. His rants are getting an enormous amount of attention online.
In fact, this CNN.com story on Sheen's tell-alls has been recommended on Facebook more than 17,000 times already. It has generated nearly 4,000 comments.
Now, here is how Hollywood is responding to the Charlie Sheen media bonanza.
Now, Steve Martin, he's tweeting. He's been watching the coverage on CNN, and he said this: "Piers Morgan to Charlie Sheen: 'You were taking Cocaine.' Charlie Sheen: 'I wasn't taking it. I had to pay for it.'"
Now, Neil Patrick Harris, he was a bit more direct, saying this: "Charlie Sheen's done lost his crackers."
And then there's this self-described teen idol, John Stamos, who says, "Contrary to the rumors, I am not replacing Charlie Sheen on 'Two and a Half Men.' However, Martin Sheen has asked me to be his son."
Now, up next here on NEWS STREAM, we're going to return to the hard news stories.
The world is weighing its options as the unrest continues in Libya. Our CNN Pentagon correspondent tells us what the U.S. military may be considering.
And this man, Anwar al-Awlaki, is said to have received vital information from a British Airways employee plotting to blow up an airline. And we look at what we now know about his role as one of al Qaeda's leaders.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
STOUT: I'm Kristie Lu Stout in Hong Kong. You're watching NEWS STREAM. And these are your world headlines.
In Iran, opposition supporters are calling for a march today to protest what they call the illegal detention of two of their leaders. Opposition web site says Mirhossein Mousavi and Mehdi Karoubi have been imprisoned. The semi-official FARS (ph) news agency denies the report.
Now thousands of anti-government protesters are again calling for Yemen's president to resign on the streets of the capital Sana'a. A pro-government rally is also being held in the city. Opposition has rejected President Ali Abdullah Saleh's offer to let a unity government take over until elections are held.
The U.S. is promising to keep pressure Libyan leader Moammar Gaddafi until he goes. That is the latest comment from Washington's ambassador to the UN. Now she called Gaddafi delusional after he told western journalists there are no protests and his people love him.
Now many people have been asking what the rest of the world and the U.S. in particular is doing about Libya. As Jill Dougherty reports, from sanctions to humanitarian aid to possible military action, the U.S. has everything on the table.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JILL DOUGHERTY, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: The U.S. calls it a reign of violence by Colonel Moammar Gaddafi and his cohorts and its setting in motion a range of options to stop it.
HILLARY CLINTON, U.S. SECRETARY OF STATE: Nothing is off the table so long as the Libyan government continues to threaten and kill Libyan citizens.
DOUGHERTY: The administration already is taking steps to help the thousands of Libyans fleeing the bloodshed. Refugees are crossing the borders into neighboring countries like Egypt and Tunisia, nations that themselves have just undergone their own revolutions.
P.J. CROWLEY, U.S. STATE DEPARTMENT SPOKESMAN: We are dispatching two expert humanitarian teams to Tunisia and to Egypt.
DOUGHERTY: The U.S. along with other countries is bracing for rescue missions, preparing medical and food supplies, blocking funds that Gaddafi could use to continue his violent crackdown. The Treasury Department has frozen at least $30 billion in Libyan government assets, the largest amount ever blocked, it says, under a sanctions program.
CLINTON: Gaddafi has lost the legitimacy to govern and it is time for him to go without further violence or delay.
DOUGHERTY: The U.S. ambassador is reaching out to opposition groups in Libya, assessing who might lead up a post-Gaddafi government.
But some senators tell CNN the U.S. should help the rebels directly.
SEN. JOE LIEBERMAN, (I) CONNECTICUT: No-fly zones, some recognition of the revolutionary government, the citizen's government and support for them with both humanitarian assistance and I would provide them with arms.
DOUGHERTY: Administration officials say it's way too early to talk about arming the opposition. But they are considering the idea of a no-fly zone. A former State Department legal advisor, however, says that's complicated.
JOHN BELLINGER, FRM. STATE DEPARTMENT LEGAL ADVISORY: Legally there is no authority for the United States or other countries to do that under international law unless authorized by the Security Council. And politically that could be quite problematic as well for the United States of NATO to begin shooting down Libyan aircraft even in the face of the things that Gaddafi is doing against his own nationals.
DOUGHERTY: The Libyan ambassador has now gone over to the opposition. And Colonel Gaddafi has named a new ambassador. But will the U.S. have anything to do with him? After all, Washington considers Colonel Gaddafi's rule illegitimate and that raises the possibility that the U.S. might severe diplomatic relations with Libya.
Jill Dougherty, CNN, The State Department.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
STOUT: And with more on the options the U.S. has and the tough decisions it faces, we go now to our Pentagon correspondent, Chris Lawrence in Washington, D.C. And first, Chris, the Pentagon is repositioning its warships. Give us the details.
CHRIS LAWRENCE, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: That's right. More warships are moving closer to Libya is how they are phrasing it, but they've already got some assets right there in the region. The U.S. has Stout, which is a guided missile destroyer, was already in the Mediterranean Sea. That's been held there in that area. And the U.S. Navy has what they call a command and control ship that can coordinate missions already in port in Italy.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
LAWRENCE: America's military muscle is moving closer to Libya. One destroyer was already in the Mediterranean Sea and the USS Kearsarge with its ability the land marines is now in the Red Sea sailing close to the Suez Canal. Further south and able to move closer is the aircraft carrier Enterprise and its strike group.
The U.S. is considering disrupting communications to prevent Moammar Gaddafi from broadcasting in Libya. But pressure is building on the Obama administration to do more, where Senator John McCain said on CNN's State of the Union.
SEN. JOHN MCCAIN, (R) ARIZONA: Get tough.
LAWRENCE: McCain wants the U.S. to material assistance to Libyans to find Gaddafi. It says the U.S. most stop him from using air power against his own people.
MCCAIN: Libyan pilots aren't going to fly if there's a no-fly zone.
LAWRENCE: But a no-fly zone is no cure-all. In Iraq during the '90's the U.S. could launch jets from nearby bases in Turkey and Saudi Arabia. The no-fly zone over northern Iraq worked in part because the Kurds controlled the ground. But the zone over southern Iraq didn't stop Saddam Hussein from killing Shiite partly because, like Libya, the U.S. didn't have a presence on the ground.
But the mere sight of American fighter jets over Libya could send a powerful message to Colonel Gaddafi.
THOMAS DONNELLY, AMERICAN ENTERPRISE INSTITUTE: Even if we just buzzed the palace and didn't release any ordinance the symbolic action -- or the psychological effect could be enough to bring the war to a quick conclusion.
LAWRENCE: Defense analyst Tom Donnelly says Gaddafi will fall and the protesters will win and when they do they'll ask.
DONNELLY: Where was the United States, where were the Europeans when we fought for our freedom? Were they with us, against us, or did they just watch?
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LAWRENCE: At the very least, U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton says there will be a need for some sort of rescue mission. The U.S.'s Kearsarge in particular also is a huge floating hospital bay. It's got six operating rooms. It's got the ability to care for up to 600 patients which come -- could come in very handy if a humanitarian crisis develops there -- Kristie.
STOUT: Yeah, and that seems to be happening. About half an hour ago we heard live from our Tim Lister there at the border between Tunisia and Libya. He said humanitarian crisis is underway. They desperately need help. Unfortunately we're going to have to leave it there, but thank you so much. Chris Lawrence joining us live from the Pentagon there.
Now happening right now, the British Prime Minister and his acting counterpart, they are meeting at 10 Downing Street. He is talking about Libya right now. Let's listen in to David Cameron.
DAVID CAMERON, BRITISH PRIME MINISTER: ...the plan and look at plans for a no-fly zone. And that's why I've asked the chief of the defense staff to do that. And yes, we should also be making contact with, getting a greater understanding of, of the opposition forces that are now in Benghazi and in control of quite a lot of the country. Now we're trying to step up our contact with them so we can get to know them better and what their intentions are. And I don't think we should go beyond that for now. But clearly, you know, we hope that this will come to an end more quickly.
But I think our job is to try and look around the corner and plan for every eventuality. And I know that other allies in NATO and the U.S. are doing exactly the same thing and that is right. And I think what I'm going to be doing today and tomorrow and the future is making sure we're doing everything we can to get the international community to think ahead about what might be necessary to try and bring this to an end as quickly as possible.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: In Iraq after the first Gulf war, the Kurds rose up, the marsh Arabs rose up and ultimately we left them to their fate. I just want to be really clear today, are you saying that that is not going to happen in Libya?
CAMERON: I think we mustn't let that happen in Libya or I think there are some very immediate dangers of what Colonel Gaddafi could do to his own people. So as I say we should be planning now to think well what can we do to try and help stop that?
Now, there are all sorts of -- and I said in the House of Commons yesterday there are sorts of difficulties with doing -- legal difficulties, political difficulties, difficulties of resources and all the rest of it, but that shouldn't stop the process of thinking around the corner and planning ahead and saying what are we able to do as an international community to try and -- as I say, first of all isolate, pressurize, really put the pressure on this regime. Make sure that we're saying to the people on the outskirts of this regime, you may not yet be troubled by a (inaudible) ban or an asset freeze, but go on like this and you will be. Step up the pressure. Keep that regime as isolated as it can be. Hope that will bring to an end, but be prepared for what might lie ahead. That seems to me the task of prime ministers, presidents and all the rest of it as we try and think ahead about how we can get what should be a good outcome for the people of Libya.
Just as we should see the whole of what is happening in North Africa and the Middle East, we should see it as an opportunity. We had a national security council meeting here this morning to discuss what more we can do with allies to actually make sure this is a democratic awakening and not a time of risk and difficulty. And I think that is the task, as I say, of the prime ministers and presidents have to apply themselves to right now.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Welcome, Mr. Prime Minister. The purpose of the surge of troops of Afghanistan was to bring stability and to facilitate the path to reconciliation and peace...
STOUT: OK. You were just listening to a live press conference there. The Afghan president alongside his British counterpart, the British Prime Minister David Cameron who is taking some questions just now about Libya. And just then Mr. Cameron said that his focus is on planning ahead to see what we can do as an international community to put the pressure on the Libyan regime and to keep it as isolated as possible. Now David Cameron also mentioned, but we have to be prepared for what could come next. Live remarks there from the British Prime Minister.
Now several entertainers have found themselves in the spotlight when it comes to Libya. Now the singer Nelly Furtado says she got a million dollars to perform a 45 minute show for the Gaddafi clan in Italy four years ago. Now Furtado she told her followers on Twitter she will donate the money to charity.
Now several other celebrities, they have yet to speak out. Beyonce's representative tells CNN that the singer has no comment on her reported performance at a New Year's Eve party for Gaddafi's son in 2009. Also the R&B star Usher was also said to be part of that million dollar personal concert. That information comes from U.S. diplomatic cables posted on WikiLeaks.
And a year earlier, Mariah Carey reportedly sang four songs for one of Gaddafi's sons. She also allegedly snagged one million bucks.
And in 2006, the Gaddafi's, they brought the pop star Lionel Ritchie to Libya to perform. The concert marked the 20th anniversary of a U.S. raid on the North African country.
A British Airways employee is found guilty of plotting to blow up an airplane. And coming up next, you'll find out how he is tied to al Qaeda's top brass.
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STOUT: Welcome back.
Now a British Airways employee has been found guilty of four terror related charges including a plot to blow up an airplane. Now prosecutors say Ragib Karim used his position to pass information to Anwar al-Awlaki who is believed to be a key commander for al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula. Now Karim denies this. As Andrew Carey reports, the case has shed new light on al-Awlaki's role in the organization.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ANWAR AL-AWLAKI (through translator): Do not seek any permission when it comes to the killing of the Americans.
ANDREW CAREY, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: His role as a religious leader for an extremist version of Islam has been clear for some time on display in videos like these. And U.S. officials have insisted he's had an operational role too in the failed attempt to bring down a flight on Christmas Day 2009 and in a foiled plot to bring down cargo aircraft last October.
Now, though, for the first time hard evidence made public that Anwar al- Awlaki is indeed more than just a spiritual mouthpiece for the Yemen based al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula. Revealed during the course of a terror trial in Britain, a series of what British prosecutors described as heavily encrypted messages between Awlaki and a Bangladeshi man, Ragib Karim.
Karim, a man prosecutors say was committed to an extreme jihadist cause, was working in Britain as a software engineer for British Airways. Authorities say his brother, not charged in this case, but traveled from Bangladesh to Yemen to seek out Awlaki who was quick to see Karim's potential.
"When your brother mentions to me your profession," he wrote, "I immediately wanted to contact you. You might be able to play a crucial role for the Ummah. What information do you have on the limitations and cracks in present airport security systems?"
In a separate message, Awlaki asks whether Karim or one of his associates who works as a baggage handler at London's Heathrow Airport had any knowledge of x-ray machines. And he went on, "our highest priority is the U.S. Anything there, even on a small scale compared to what we may do in the U.K. would be our choice. So the question is with the people you have is it possible to get a package or a person with a package on board a flight heading to the U.S.?"
PAUL CRUICKSHANK, CNN TERROR ANALYST: This trial has presented Awlaki not only as the charismatic driving force behind al Qaeda on the Arabian Peninsula, but also a key operational player for the group, a guy who is orchestrating plots against the west.
CAREY: And it's clear this British investigation is just one of many that's now put Yemen, where Awlaki is believed to be hiding, right at the top of U.S. terror concerns. Those concerns laid out in a recent congressional hearing.
REP. PETER KING, (R) NEW YORK: Would you say that Awlaki is at least as severe a threat today as bin Laden?
MICHAEL LEITER, DIR. NATIONAL COUNTERTERRORISM CENTER: I actually consider al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula with Awlaki as a leader within that organization probably the most significant risk to the U.S. homeland.
CAREY: The trial of Ragib Karim did not go into details of any specific plot, but there's no doubt his conviction is being seen as important, establishing in a court of law what intelligence officials have been suggesting for some time now.
Andrew Carey, CNN, London.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
STOUT: Fashion house Christian Dior has suspended designer John Galliano for allegedly making anti-Semitic remarks. And now a shocking tape has surfaced that is adding fuel to the fire. Hala Gorani has more.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
HALA GORANI, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: He is one of high fashion's golden boys, British designer John Galliano, he's been called a genius. He's been called an inspiration. But now some are calling him a vile racist.
The head of French label Christian Dior -- Galliano was arrested last week for allegedly hurling racist and anti-Semitic insults at a couple dining at La Paril Brasserie (ph) in Paris. Christian Dior suspended him Friday pending an investigation.
And if it seemed things couldn't get worse for Galliano, Monday they did. Britain's Sun newspaper obtained a video of what it says is another incident at the same cafe in October.
JOHN GALLIANO, FASHION DESIGNER: ...people like you will be dead today. Your mothers, your forefathers would be (EXPLETIVE DELETED) gassed and (EXPLETIVE DELETED) dead.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Oh my god. You have a problem no.
GALLIANO: With you, yeah a problem.
GORANI: In the tiny world of high fashion, allegations of Galliano slurring racist insults spread like wildfire. And at Sunday's Oscar ceremony, best actress winner Natalie Portman, the celebrity face of Ms. Dior perfume, was asked about the controversy.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: As the face of Dior why do you wear Dior? And what are your thoughts on John Galliano's suspension amidst allegations that he made anti-Semitic remarks?
NATALIE PORTMAN, ACTRESS: I don't...
GORANI: But her people didn't let her touch the, quote, couture hot potato.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We're just going to...
PORTMAN: OK.
GORANI: John Galliano's lawyers say they will fight charges of insult and defamation. But for the Dior brand the scandal was damaging and the label's parent company acted quickly.
JOHN FALLON, EDITOR, WOMEN'S WEAR DAILY: I don't think LBMH could afford to wait until six months down the road to see the facts that came out, especially with the bloggers and the tweeters and the internet and all of that as it already has gone crazy with the various accusations.
GORANI: If convicted of those charges in the latest incident, Galliano faces fines and even jail time. But perhaps for one of the most famous and successful designers in fashion history, it is not the loss of his freedom, but of his reputation that will be hardest to recover from.
Hala Gorani, CNN.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
STOUT: Now CNN reached out to Galliano's lawyers and left several messages, but we did not hear back. Meanwhile, his attorneys have filed a countersuit against the couple at the center of last Thursday's incident for defamation, injury and menace.
Now coming up next, it is one of the matches you look for first when the fixture list comes out -- Chelsea versus Manchester United. But for some, this man's antics are overshadowing the big match. We'll tell you why former Gunner, Ashley Cole, has shot into the headlines.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
STOUT: Now there is a heavy weight clash in the English Premier League on Tuesday night. And Kate Giles is live in London to preview the big match - - Kate.
KATE GILES, CNN SPORTS CORRESPONDENT: Yeah, that's right, Kristie. We're just hours away from it now. It's certainly one of the match-ups of this season. It always is in the Barklay's Premier League. Now this is of course later on today as you mentioned before Chelsea hosting Manchester United. Now United for their part are eyeing a record 19th league title this season. They've lost just one match so far this campaign, but Chelsea has traditionally done pretty well in this fixture at Stanford Bridge. United haven't won there since 2002.
Could this be their chance, though? It's certainly a big one. Chelsea right now struggling a little. They're in fifth place. They are 15 points behind United in the league table. And even with a win, challenging for the title, well, it looks to be pretty much out of the question now for Blue. And even Carlo Ancelotti, the manager of Chelsea, seems to admit so. Champion's League he says is really pretty much his only aim.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CARLO ANCELOTTI, CHELSEA MANAGER: I want us to win against Manchester United. When the number didn't -- don't say that we are out, we have to believe. But obviously and objectively we have to be honest and now it's very difficult for us to (inaudible) other games in the Premier League and we want to arrive in the first four place of the table and this is our aim.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GILES: Well at that press conference that you saw him giving there on Monday, Carlo Ancelotti actually had to field more questions about the Chelsea defender Ashley Cole than he did about anything else at all.
Now Cole hit the headlines this week after it emerged that he accidentally shot a student who was working as an intern at the club. The England international said that he didn't know that the air rifle was loaded and he has issued an official apology. He has, though, been accused of letting the club down with unprofessional behavior. And he's also been fined by Chelsea Football Club.
The incident has led to suggestions that Ancelotti seems to have little control over his players.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ANCELOTTI: I think that it was an accident. So the mistake was that the gun was here in Copeland (ph). And we didn't know that the gun was here. He made a mistake. Who didn't make a mistake in his life? Who?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GILES: Who indeed? Well United players, they're not perfect either. Chelsea were probably hoping that Wayne Rooney would rule out for this match, that was after he blatantly elbowed a player in United's match against Wigan in the weekend. Now the referee didn't red card Rooney at the time and simply gave Wigan a free kick. The FA has investigating, but the referee insists that he did see the incident and that he did act appropriately the FA really have their hands tied. They cannot impose any kind of ban on Rooney. They can only use video evidence in incidents which have not been seen by match officials.
All right. And finally, I just have to show you this one. It's just a great, great finish from the NBA. Take a look at this. The game was between the Phoenix Suns and New Jersey Nets. It went right down to the wire. We're going to jump straight to the fourth quarter to Channing Frye putting the Suns 3 up. It's still that way. Time is running out, though. Anthony Morrow just misses, but he is fouled and he'll make all 3 free throws to send the game, then, to over-time.
All right. Now just 10 seconds to play in that overtime Frye knocks down the 3 to put the Suns ahead just by 1. And the Nets now. You're looking at their final chance. Chris Humphries tips it in at the buzzer, but it's ruled no good. The play will be reviewed and the ball was still in Williams' (ph) hand as time expired. So that original call was the right one. It doesn't count. And the Suns win 104-103. And a painful way to lose that one again, Kristie.
STOUT: A fantastic finish indeed. Kate Giles, thank you.
And now we're going to take you over and out there. WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange has applied to trademark his name. Now some reports say that he wants to protect his name for the purpose of public speaking and entertainment services. Meanwhile, Assange is fighting extradition to Sweden where he faces allegations of sexual assault. Now Assange filed the trademark last month and he's not the first to think of it. He joins the former U.S. vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin in the trademarking name game. Now she's also applied to own the rights to her name.
And that is NEWS STREAM. The news continues at CNN. "WORLD BUSINESS TODAY" with Emily Reuben, Maggie Lake and Minisha Tang is next.
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