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Hosni Mubarak on Trial; Crisis in Syria; India Trafficking Arrest

Aired August 03, 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.

Now, caged up and facing justice, the trial of former Egyptian leader Hosni Mubarak begins in Cairo.

Syrian army tanks roll into the city of Hama as a bloody crackdown continues against protesters across Syria.

And India takes action against human trafficking as a brothel owner is arrested. We continue to follow the story we brought you here first on NEWS STREAM.

A trial once considered unthinkable. Egypt is putting its former president on trial. And this is how Egyptians have seen Hosni Mubarak for most of their lives.

Now, he ruled the country for nearly 30 years before mass protests forced him from office in February. The ex-president, now a prisoner, was wheeled into court on a hospital bed. He has pleaded not guilty to charges of corruption and of conspiracy to kill unarmed protesters.

An estimated 840 people died during the uprising. The Mubarak trial is taking place at Cairo's Police Academy, a building that used to bear Mubarak's name.

Journalist Ian Lee is there. He joins us now on the line from Cairo.

And Ian, when Hosni Mubarak was wheeled into that cage, what was the reaction in the courtroom?

IAN LEE, JOURNALIST: Kristie, the reaction in the courtroom was -- well, outside people were very much in awe, shocked. Outside we have people cheering and screaming because this was a sight that we've never seen. A lot of people have been waiting to see this sight for such a long time, and today it finally came. People finally saw Hosni Mubarak, his sons, and Habib el-Adli, all together behind bars in their prison uniforms.

STOUT: Ian, there were scuffles earlier today between supporters and opponents of the former president near the courtroom. What sparked that? And could this trial be a catalyst for more unrest there in Egypt?

LEE: Well, you're right, Kristie. Earlier today, there was clashes between pro-and-anti-Mubarak supporters. Those were mainly in the morning and really before the trial began. But as the trial progressed, things calmed down. And it looks like the majority of the pro-Mubarak supporters left, leaving the anti-Mubarak protesters here. This is something that we've seen kind of off and on, that there are clashes between anti-Mubarak, people who want to see Mubarak tried and punished, and then those who are pro-Mubarak and support also not just Mubarak, but also the ruling supreme council of the armed forces.

STOUT: Now, Ian, in addition to that remarkable and surreal visual of Hosni Mubarak in a cage in that courtroom that we saw earlier today, were you able to see Mubarak's health and general condition? How did he appear to you?

LEE: Well, you know, he looks definitely like a sick man, like a man who has been struggling, who's been battling illness. But, also, there's been a lot of reports of that's how the defense, his defense, wants to make him come across.

They're looking for sympathy from the general public that this is a man who's almost -- you know, he's at the end of his life. He's one who could die. And so they're looking for sympathy from the general public. And so while he looks very sick, and was on a gurney the whole time, it's unclear exactly what his health is right now.

STOUT: And Ian, tell us more about the atmosphere in and around the court. How many people were there watching proceedings, and what was the security presence like?

LEE: Well, the security presence outside the court, outside the police academy, was very heavy. There's hundreds, if not thousands, of troops here with riot gear.

But it was very interesting, because during the clashes, the police kind of stepped back. And they had a huge presence. The army is even here with armored personnel carriers.

They had a huge presence, but yet they allowed the clashes to somewhat progress. So it's very peculiar to see that, but there's definitely a heavy security presence here.

STOUT: All right.

Ian Lee, joining us live from Cairo.

Thank you for that update.

Now, today's scene, it was a shocking sight, even though cages are common in Egyptian criminal court. Now let's take a closer look.

There is Hosni Mubarak. He's on the far left. He is lying down, pictured here.

His two sons are standing next to him. They are wearing white prison suits.

And also in there is Mubarak's interior minister. And unlike the others, he is dressed in blue. You can just make him out right over there. And reports say that's because he has already been sentenced to prison time.

Now, throughout Egypt's revolution we have heard from several prominent bloggers and activists, and here's what they're saying now on Twitter about this trial.

A graduate student, she wrote this. She made this comment on the court scene that we just showed you, and she writes, "Judge just called on each one of the defendants who used to be some of Egypt's most powerful men as if they were schoolchildren."

And this blogger also posted an additional message. "To all Arab dictators and Zionists, watch well. Your time is near. You will be next."

And the very well-known Egyptian activist Wael Ghonim writes, "Once again, Egyptians are making history. Justice must prevail." As you can imagine, the hashtag he uses here, MubarakTrial, has started trending shortly after the trial began.

In Syria, the violence is escalating again, and it's centered around the city of Hama. A witness tells CNN that government tanks have now occupied the city's central square and heavy shelling rang out just hours ago.

Now, the Syrian army has been stationed there since Sunday. And residents say that they're running out of food and other supplies, and their reports, that all communications have been cut off. Witnesses (ph) say that five more people were killed there on Tuesday.

Meanwhile, the U.N. Security Council is expected to resume talks on Syria in just a couple of hours. Earlier, the U.N. secretary-general, Ban Ki- moon, said Syrian president Bashar al-Assad had "lost all sense of humanity."

Now, it is the third straight day of meetings as members struggle to reach an agreement on how to respond to the growing turmoil there. CNN is no longer allowed to report from inside Syria, but our Arwa Damon has been following the escalating violence from neighboring Lebanon. And I must warn you, some of what you're about to see is extremely graphic.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

(SCREAMING)

ARWA DAMON, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): "Lucky you. You have gone to join your father." This woman wails over her dead son's body in the city of Hama. Her husband, killed, according to a voice on the clip.

Residents and activists say that Syrian security forces are indiscriminately firing at homes, hospitals and mosques, part of a renewed crackdown that began on Sunday. A warning, activists say, that the regime will not hesitate to spill blood. Even during the holy month of Ramadan in its bid to rest control.

Forcing residents to set up makeshift barricades and defend themselves however they can. But Syrian state TV offers a very different narrative of events in Hama.

The anchorwoman presented this clip as evidence that armed gangs are responsible for the killing and destruction. The video shows men whose faces are concealed, firing weapons. Their target is unclear.

(on camera): CNN is currently not being allowed back into Syria. We cannot independently verify any of these videos or either account of what is happening inside Hama. But what is indisputable is that the situation in Syria is growing more brutal and complex.

A graphic video that I should warn some viewers may found unsuitable was posted to YouTube, and it illustrates that brutality.

(voice-over): The posting to YouTube claims the video shows Assad thugs cursing as they throw dead bodies off a bridge in Hama. Syrian state TV aired the same clip, but the banner states that it was armed gangs tossing the bodies of martyred security personnel.

One activist questioned the video's authenticity.

RAZAN ZAITOUNEH, ACTIVIST: (INAUDIBLE) has been right for a while. It hasn't been running for a while. So there is a lot of effect about this video, who is behind it, who is really those people who are dumping the killed people in various places (ph).

DAMON: Another prominent Syrian activist told CNN he was 100 percent confident that the video is authentic, this was the river near Hama, and that the dead are Syrian intelligence killed by a local Syrian fundamentalist group that fought in Iraq and takes pride in showing such images. But, he adds, "They are not at all representative of the democracy-seeking demonstrators."

Despite the very different narratives, an indication perhaps that the situation in Syria could be spiraling dangerously out of everyone's control.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

STOUT: And Arwa Damon joins us now live from Beirut.

And Arwa, what is the latest you have heard about the level of violence and unrest in Hama?

DAMON: Kristie, extremely disturbing developments this morning. We managed to (AUDIO GAP) crackdown that they say began at daybreak.

At around 5:00 in the morning, they said communications were cut off. Shortly afterwards, tanks, they say, stormed into Hama. Now, in the past, tanks had only been going in a short distance, 500 to 400 meters. Now they are telling us that the Syrian military has reached central Hama, that main square where, for weeks, we had been seeing massive demonstrations on Friday, now is a Syrian tank military position.

One resident who we spoke to said that as he was fleeing, he saw bodies in the streets, a mosque that had been destroyed. He described indiscriminate gunfire, indiscriminate tank shelling. People saying that some are trapped inside their homes, unable to leave because there are snipers positioned on rooftops.

This, Kristie, is the military offensive that, on the one hand, everybody had been anticipating, warning of, but also fearing. It seems that it has now taken place. This central square in Hama was being compared to Tahrir Square in Egypt.

According to activists, hundreds of thousands of people were demonstrating there every single Friday. They were really holding it up as a beacon of this Syrian uprising and an example of how many people could take to the streets if in fact the Syrian security forces was not present. It was a very contested city, and now it seems the Syrian military has taken that decisive step, gone in, and has now fully reasserted its own control on Hama -- Kristie.

STOUT: So we have snipers, we have government tanks in the center of Hama. International condemnation is growing. The U.N. Security Council will discuss Syria again today. But Arab leaders seem to be largely silent on the issue. And why is that? Are they weary of President Assad?

DAMON: Well, Kristie, it's for a number of reasons. Not only are they necessarily weary of President Assad, but Syria is also in a very unique regional position.

This is not a situation where you have a country like Libya, that has already been relatively isolated from the rest of the Arab world. Syria is in a fairly powerful regional position. It has a very close alliance with a regional powerhouse in Iran. It shares a sensitive border with Israel.

And a lot of Arab countries have been incredibly hesitant, if not entirely silent, about what is taking place in Syria, not just because of Syria's powerful position, but also because of concerns of what could happen next. That still remains unclear.

Should the Syrian regime fall, there are great concerns of perhaps a civil war inside Syria, of more unrest inside the country itself, which would have a spillover effect into the rest of the region. And that could have grave consequences for a number of countries. But this silence by the part of Arab nations is something that activists have been gravely condemning.

On one YouTube clip, we heard it put very simply: "A repeat of Hama in 1982 is taking place," one activist said, "And the Arab world is standing by silently watching." That reference, Kristie, is to a massacre that was carried out in 1982 by the current president's father in the city of Hama.

STOUT: And we're seeing a repeat.

Arwa Damon, on this story for us, live from Lebanon.

Thank you, Arwa.

Now, you are watching NEWS STREAM. And still to come, the CNN Freedom Project takes us to New Delhi, where Indian police have made a significant human trafficking arrest.

Plus, fighting and famine in Somalia. The country's prime minister tells CNN the world needs to do more on both fronts.

And new details of the end of Osama bin Laden's life, as U.S. forces raided his hideout in Pakistan.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

STOUT: In a special yearlong initiative, CNN is using its global reach to shine a spotlight on modern-day slavery and how awareness of the problem can translate into action. Indian police have shown us how that can be done. And we have gotten word that the suspected manager of a New Delhi brothel has been arrested and charged with kidnap, rape, and forcing girls into prostitution.

Now, police raided that brothel in the city's red light district just a few weeks ago after a tip from the charity Rescue Foundation. And of the nine girls rescued, one was just 10 years old.

Mallika Kapur has been following this case very closely for the CNN Freedom Project. Tuesday, she brought us interviews with the officers behind the raid, and now she joins us live with the latest details on the arrests.

And Mallika, what have you learned?

MALLIKA KAPUR, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, Kristie, we have got a few more details about the brothel manager who was arrested. We know that it is a woman, that she is an Indian citizen.

She is 38 years old and a prostitute herself. In fact, it's very common that the brothel managers were former prostitutes or are still in the trade. Very often they come brought in as teenagers or in their 20s. By the time they're in their 30s, 40s, they have no choice, but they get (INAUDIBLE) manager. And that was the case with this particular woman as well.

According to Indian law, we are not allowed to reveal her name, or we cannot release any photographs. Her identity has to be protected.

She is currently in jail in New Delhi. She has been jailed under India's Immoral Traffic Prevention Act. She's been charged with five counts: with kidnapping, kidnapping of minors, forced prostitution, rape, and running her brothel. And authorities have 90 days to present their case to the court -- 90 days. But at the moment, the brothel manager is in jail -- Kristie.

STOUT: Now, how significant is it that this brothel manager was arrested? And will she go to jail?

KAPUR: Well, (INAUDIBLE) spoken to have said that while it's not unusual for a brothel manager to be arrested, it is significant. And what's significant about this case is the determination with which the police seem to be going after the people involved.

There is a huge chain of people involved when it comes to human trafficking and bringing these minor underage girls from their hometowns (INAUDIBLE) brothels in New Delhi. So there seems to be a real fierce determination in this case. And they seem very focused on not only -- not ending with arresting the brothel manager, but the next step is to go after the brothel owner, and that is significant.

How long she's going to spend in jail, the brothel manager, it depends. And one of the factors that it depends on is whether the girls who have been rescued, whether the young girls will have the strength, the courage to stand up against a brothel owner and a manager in court. And that can be quite difficult for these girls, to find that strength after all they have been through, as a lawyer from India's supreme court explained.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

APARNA BHAT, ADVOCATE, INDIA SUPREME COURT: They do end up in prison, and subsequently they do get convicted. But the rate of conviction has been low -- but it's increasing a lot nowadays -- has been low because the investigation process depends on these young victims themselves. They have to have the courage to stand up in the court and identify the brothel managers, owners, whoever it is, trafficked girls, whoever they are, and tell the court that these people are the ones who had caused them to be in this situation.

Unfortunately, many of these victims do not have the strength to do that. They lack the courage to do that. So eventually when the case comes to trial, they do not support the prosecution, and that ends up in an acquittal of these people.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KAPUR: And the next step, the police say, is to go after the brothel owner. And if they do get the brothel owner, it will make it much easier for them to shut down the brothel where the girls were rescued from -- Kristie.

STOUT: Well, Mallika, this is an incredible story of abuse and ultimately, I hope, justice.

Thank you very much for your reporting.

Mallika Kapur, joining us live from Mumbai.

Now, India's government is hardening its line against human trafficking, so it has moved up the rankings of the U.S. State Department's annual Trafficking in Persons Report. Now, that report lists nations under four categories.

Tier 1 countries are doing the most to tackle trafficking. Tier 3, the least. And up until this year, India's ranking fell into the Tier 2 watch list category. That means its government did not comply with the Trafficking Victims Protection Act, and there were additional causes for concern. Now, those concerns could have been an increase in the number of victims or a lack of new evidence that the country was making efforts to fight trafficking.

India is making the fight against forced prostitution and labor more of a priority. So, in the 2011 TIP report, it was named a Tier 2 country, while making significant steps toward meeting U.S. standards to protect against trafficking.

Now, in Sydney, Australia, bomb squad officers are working to diffuse an explosive device that they say poses a direct threat to the life of a young woman there. Now, New South Wales police, they got a distress call from the 18-year-old woman just a few hours ago, and they blocked off the area around her home in Sydney's North Shore suburb while they work on the device. They say the situation is extremely serious, but would not confirm whether the device was directly attached to the woman or not.

Australia media are reporting that it is.

Now, an historic trial for Egypt, for the Arab world, and beyond. Ahead, we return to our coverage of the Cairo courtroom where former Egyptian president Hosni Mubarak is facing charges that could bring him the death penalty if convicted.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

STOUT: Coming to you live from Hong Kong, you are back watching NEWS STREAM.

Now, Japan and eastern China are in a typhoon's crosshairs.

(WEATHER REPORT)

STOUT: Now, up next here on NEWS STREAM, the trial of former Egyptian president Hosni Mubarak has held its first session in Cairo. We'll take you inside the courtroom.

And Somalia's prime minister appeals for more aid to fight famine and to fight the militants who stand in the way.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

STOUT: I'm Kristie Lu Stout in Hong Kong. You're watching NEWS STREAM. And these are your world headlines.

Now human rights groups in Syria say government tanks and armored personnel carriers have rolled into the city of Hama. Now people living nearby say that they have heard the sound of tank shelling and land line and wireless communications are said to be cut off.

In Sydney, bomb squad officers are still working to defuse and explosive device at the home of a young woman in the city's North Shore suburb. Now New South Wales police say the situation is extremely serious, but would not confirm whether it was directly attached to the woman as Australian media are reporting.

Now former Egyptian president Hosni Mubarak is scheduled to return to court on August 15th. He has pleaded not guilty to charges of corruption and of conspiracy to kill unarmed protesters. Now the trial in Cairo got off to a slightly chaotic start.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

AHMED REFAAT, JUDGE (through translator): The number of lawyers representing the defendant far exceed the number of the lawyer representing the victims.

Only one at a time. Only one at a time. Only one at a time.

No one should be (inaudible) anyone else. No one is being prevented.

Excuse me. Listen, the judge here, the court, those present, we will allow those who have not been allowed today to attend later. It's over.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

STOUT: And we want to bring you the latest now on the famine in Somalia. Now aid workers have been struggling to reach many of the people who are suffering the most. That extra difficulty is largely due to the presence of al-Shabbab militants who control part of the capital and large parts of the territory where the drought is most severe.

Now, however, the U.S. government is granting humanitarian groups some leeway. It is relaxing its terror rules so that charities that unintentionally provide aid to al-Shabbab militants will not be held criminally responsible.

Well, aid workers welcome the change. They still have to venture into dangerous territory to get the relief through. And Somalia's prime minister says the situation is dire. And he is calling on the militants to let aid workers do their job.

Nima Elbagir met with the prime minister in Mogadishu.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

NIMA ELBAGIR, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: There have been a huge mobilization in the international community to get aid here to Somalia. And yet we're still continuing to see the situation deteriorate. What more do you believe needs to be done here?

ABDIWELI MOHAMMED ALI, SOMALI PRIME MINISTER: We need the response to be bigger than it has been so far. We are really grateful for all those who responded already from the international community, but (inaudible) that I can really mention like Kuwait and United Arab Emirates and others. But the issue is the response is good and positive, but the extent of the famine is so huge that it has been considered as the worst for the last 60 years. So we need more aid. And we need it as quickly as possible.

We need international intervention. So -- because the -- what is the point of sending aid whereby the -- it's (inaudible) people.

The problems (inaudible). The problem is the insurgency that are holding people hostage, that are making people captive and not allowing the relief to reach them. So therefore we appeal to them to allow the international relief to reach these people.

The situation is very dire. We cannot allow people to die unassisted anywhere that relief is here and the food is here.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

STOUT: And if you want to help people suffering in the horn of Africa there are plenty of ways to do so. Aid agencies working in the region have made it as easy as texting a few numbers to a mobile telephone number. Find out more, just go to the Impact Your World section on our web site, that's at CNN.com/impact.

Now you're watching NEWS STREAM. And coming up, did U.S. commandos say anything to Osama bin Laden before he was killed in his hideout in Pakistan? Now we have new details about that raid after the break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

STOUT: Welcome back.

And let's return to our top story, the trial of former Egyptian leader Hosni Mubarak in Cairo. Our Frederik Pleitgen was inside the court room for today's proceedings. And Fred, just please underscore the historic nature of this trial, especially what happened today.

Mubarak, he served as president of Egypt for 30 years. We saw him early today in a cage. Just how significant was today's event?

FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Oh, it was hugely significant. I mean, keep in mind, Kristie, that one of the things that a lot of people have been saying before this trial is that it's not only a very important trial in Egyptian history. But it really is a pivotal moment in this country's history, because many people (inaudible) waiting to see whether or not this is going to be a trial that's politically charged as trials often have been here in the past with back room dealings are done and very often the verdict is decided in back rooms or whether or not this is going to be a fair trial that is done according to the law.

And I spoke to some lawyers actually coming out of the court room today and they said they were actually very pleased with the way that things went today. They said the trial seems to be very fair. There's no backroom dealings at this point. It seems to be a very fair thing.

At the same time, a lot of them said that they were absolutely shocked to see the state of that Hosni Mubarak was in, how weak he was. Keep in mind that he did speak very briefly when he was asked whether or not he would comment on the charges. And he said everything that has been said here is not true.

He said this with a very weak voice. It's certainly a lot of people were quite shocked to see the state that he was in. And speaking to these lawyers afterwards, they were (inaudible) that they believe that this is all genuine, that Hosni Mubarak is not trying to only give the appearance of being very weak in hopes of possibly delaying the trial, they believe that this is really a man who is very depressed, is very weak and can only be (inaudible).

But, yes, it was a very, very significant moment, very, very significant court session. It certainly seems some of the lawyers afterward, they really underscored that fact, Kristie.

STOUT: And there was a scuffle outside the court room earlier today between supporters and opponents of Mubarak. Can we read anything into that? Could the violence spread and perhaps unrest return to Tahrir Square?

PLEITGEN: Well, I'm not sure if the violence is going to spread in a major way around Egypt, but certainly it does show the big divisions that still do exist here in this country. And certainly how far these two camps really are at odds at this point in time.

What happened earlier today during these scuffles is that there were pro- Mubarak protesters protesting in front of the courthouse, which of course is ringed by a huge security cordon made up of police and army units. They were protesting there. Anti-Mubarak protesters showed up at the scene. The two got into a scuffle and things turned violent.

These are the kind of things that happen quite frequently here in Egypt. It's not clear whether or not this was something that could lead to larger countrywide turmoil, but certainly it's (inaudible) illustrate the deep division that do still exist in this country, especially in light of the fact that many people here in this country are very unhappy at the pace that the revolution is taking. At this point in time they think that they would rather have things like economic stability. They want tourism back. They want jobs back rather than large fundamental political reforms.

Where the people who are -- you could maybe call them hardline revolutionaries or reformers, they want deeper social and economic reforms. They want things like faster prosecution of police officials and just a fundamental change in the political system in this country. And there are certainly a lot of people who feel that Egypt just isn't stable enough at this point for that to happen.

So yes, the divisions are large. And this was certainly one indication of how deep those divisions are. I'm not sure it's really something that would indicate that there might be larger (inaudible).

STOUT: All right. Fred Pleitgen joining us on the line. He was a witness to that historic event earlier today. On the line live from Cairo.

Now let's go back to Syria now where we continue to hear more reports of the violent government crackdown against civilians in the city of Hama.

And I'm joined on the line by a resident there who has asked not to be identified.

Thank you for joining us here on CNN International.

What is your experience of the crackdown in Hama?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yeah. Today, at (inaudible) army forces and security forces and what we call interior Shabiha (ph) have invaded the city almost from all direction. At 5:00 pm, all means of communication were brought down -- cell phones, land phones, internet, everything that can communicate. We can't communicate with others. Everything is a drop.

Electricity is down. No water. And very, very weak (inaudible) or (inaudible) or bombs. Or we couldn't go out -- we couldn't go out to know what the number of dead people or wounded people, because snipers are (inaudible) here and there. So we cannot go outside out homes.

I cannot know what is going on outside my area, because no communication with others, but I know it's from satellite phones with some friends that the army is now in Al Afis (ph) Square. And I -- we don't have an exact information about the situation in other -- in other places in Hama.

In my area, two tanks fall down. They form an open square so no damage in my area, but I don't know in other area what's happened.

STOUT: Because of your situation you're saying that it is difficult to understand the human cost of this raid in Hama which took place earlier today, because communications are down. You don't want to leave your home for very good reason.

Sir, could you tell us, were you able to hear any shots, gunfire, or explosions?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes. We had explosions. Many things that it is the tank missiles. And fire is continuous. It does stops almost (inaudible) always when you hear a fire shot from a tank and what we call a Kalashnikov in (inaudible).

STOUT: And with all this violence that you're witnessing, have you been able to make out if any arrests are being made? Are people being rounded up in Hama?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I don't have an idea. But I can tell you about the human (ph) situation. The human (ph) situation is very bad. Women and child are crying. (inaudible) happening and (inaudible) are very (inaudible) and they are telling us we are witnessing 1982 again.

STOUT: OK. Thank you, sir, for joining us on the line and sharing us -- or sharing with us your account of events there in Hama.

Now the daring cross border raid by U.S. commandos to kill the world's most wanted man, Osama bin Laden, it drew headlines and analysis from around the world. And we know a lot about the logistics of the assault on his Pakistan hideout that took place back in May, but now fascinating new details about the operations have emerged in a new report.

Here's CNN's Brian Todd.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Less than 18 minutes into the 38 minute raid came the crucial moment, Navy SEALs had fought their way through Osama bin Laden's compound, killed his courier, the courier's brother and bin Laden's son, they blasted through cage-like metal gates on the stairways. As a small team of SEALs reach the third floor, one of them turned to his right.

NICHOLAS SCHMIDLE, THE NEW YORKER: He sees this tall individual poking his head out of the door, tall individual with a (inaudible) length beard.

TODD: The SEAL, says Nicholas Schmidle, instantly sensed that was bin Laden.

Schmidle's article in The New Yorker magazine presence nuanced, riveting new details of the bin Laden raid. He bases his reporting on sourced conversations with special operations officers who had intimate knowledge of the raid. Schmidle says he did not speak directly with SEALs who carried out the mission. The SEALs identities are classified.

Some of this detail had already been reported by CNN. Schmidle writes that when the SEALs rushed down the hall and into that room, two of bin Laden's wives had placed themselves between the SEALs and bin Laden.

Newly reported by Schmidle, an account of how the first SEAL into the room had to act in a split second when he encountered bin Laden's youngest wife Amal.

SCHMIDLE: Amal is yelling hysterically and begins to approach the first SEAL. And he concern is that they're wearing suicide -- explosive vests. So he shoots Amal once in the calf to disable her and then proceeds to grab Amal and the other woman, wrap them in a bear hug and turn his back to the SEALs and sort of pushed them off to the side.

TODD: And he holds them there. Why does he do that?

SCHMIDLE: If he holds them so that if they explode and they blow up that he'll soak up the impact of that blast and sort of then the mission can then go on behind him.

TODD: He knows he'll die in the process.

SCHMIDLE: Pretty much.

TODD: There were no suicide vests on the women.

Then a second SEAL moved into the room, according to Schmidle, raised him M4 rifle, trained an infrared laser on Osama bin Laden's chest.

Is there anything said at that moment.

SCHMIDLE: There's nothing said. I asked and asked and asked. I kind of wondered whether there was some sort of Dirty Harry moment. And there just simply wasn't. It was all split second. Shoots bin Laden once in the chest and then while he was falling back, he shoots him once above the left eye and bin Laden falls down and he steps up and he says on the radio. You know, "for God and country Geronimo, Geronimo, Geronimo."

TODD: At that moment, back at the White House Schmidle writes, President Obama said to no one in particular "we got him."

Schmidle says a few days later when the president met with the team at Fort Campbell, Kentucky, he spoke with the SEALs and thanked them. But he writes that President Obama never asked which SEAL actually fired the kill shot. And the SEALs never volunteered that information.

Brian Todd, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

STOUT: Now ahead here on NEWS STREAM, a horrific crash, but it did not stop one policeman from doing his job. Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

STOUT: Welcome back.

Now China is known to nearly half a billion internet users. And SINA Weibo, or microblog, rules the roost. It is the country's biggest social media site with sleek functionality compared to both Twitter and Facebook. And the helm, Charles Chao who has worked in China's media industry for 20 years.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CHARLES CHAO, PRESIDENT & CEO SINA CORPORATION: So there's a lot of changes, I think. China becomes much more open, much more transparent. And people has in a lot of way on the web site, they have a lot of freedom to express themselves. And so at SINA Weibo I bring that freedom to the next level so not only they can express they can also distribute their content and opinions with their Weibo account.

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STOUT: I interviewed Chao at CNN.com headquarters in Beijing back in June before the July 23rd train tragedy, which has been called a watershed moment for the site. But even before then, Weibo has actively played host to fierce online debates about corruption and social injustice in China.

Now the SINA CEO is aware of the balancing act he must strike to grow and meet expectations of his audience while not offending Beijing. Now he declines to offer specific numbers about how many employees censor Weibo content, but he did offer this.

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CHAO: Well, I think -- I'm not going to say specific numbers of people we used to have, but I think there is people actually there are people I mean working in the interest of looking at the content itself and looking at the messages. So (inaudible) rumors on microblog itself, a lot of fraud, actually I mean, on microblog. So, I mean, there are a lot of things we need to take care of.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

STOUT: In China, the laws and regulations on the internet are broad and vague in wording. Now banned words and phrases are not specified, but there is a blanket ban on anything that would harm state security and social stability. Charles Chao knows where the line is and doesn't need to be told.

You can hear more of my interview with Charles Chao on Talk Asia at the time shown on your screen.

Now all eyes are on Tiger Woods as he is set to make his return to gold. Alex Thomas is following it all from London -- Alex.

ALEX THOMAS, CNN SPORTS CORRESPONDENT: Yeah, Kristie, it's business as usual was the message from Tiger Woods when he faced the media ahead of his comeback tournament this week the WGC Bridgestone Invitational event in Ohio. The former world number one said his Achilles and knee injuries healed in time for him to resume practicing a couple of weeks ago. And now he's ready to go and focused on trying to win a gold tournament, something Woods hasn't done since 2009.

He's slipped to 28th in the world rankings and is looking for a new caddy after sacking Steve Williams.

The 14-time major winner hasn't played competitively since the Player's Championship in May. And admits that being out of action has been difficult.

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TIGER WOODS, GOLFER: It's really not too hard when I really can't play golf at all, that's not so bad. It gets a little more difficult when you get on the cusp and you -- they're start saying, oh well you're pretty close to get going. So, well, I feel really good. So that's when it becomes a little more difficult is when you're itching to go and they're -- you're borderline whether you should go or not. So that's where, you know, where I learned my lesson from the past and not come back too early.

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THOMAS: A.C. Milan football manager Massimiliano Allegri says his team and their local rivals will be the clubs to beat in the race for the Italian title next season. Inter and A.C. go head to head in Italy's Super Cup this weekend. Although the match is actually taking place in China. And hundreds of fans turn up there to watch the Serie A teams practice at Beijing's famous bird's nest stadium on Tuesday.

Surprisingly, this is the first time the Milan giants will face each other in the Super Cup which sees the league champions take on the Copa Italia winners.

It's also the first big test for the new Inter Milan boss Gian Piero Gasperini.

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GIAN PIERO GASPERINI, INTER MILAN MANAGER (through translator): It's a pity that Inter Milan failed to achieve this title in 2009, but we are now here to win the match. A.C. Milan is a much stronger rival. And this also gives us more motivation to get the victory.

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THOMAS: And another famous European football club is also in China. Christiano Ronaldo and his Real Madrid teammates are using a tour of the country to prepare for Spain's version of their own Super Cup. That fixture pits Real against their bitter rivals Barcelona. Before that, the Madrid team face Chinese Super League leaders Guangzhou.

Ronaldo and co. were once again runners up to Barca in last season's Premira Liga. So they're keen to lay down a marker when they face that Catalan side ahead of that new season in Spain.

And for those of you who don't like a lot of flash photography look away now, because we're about to show you some video of the most famous player in football history. So no wonder the cameras are clicking when Brazilian legend Pele was here in London on Tuesday posing for photos with Eric Cantona as the pair promoted Friday night's charity match, a testimonial between the reformed New York Cosmos and Manchester United, all saluting the career of former United and England midfielder Paul Scholes who retired at the end of last season.

And CNN's Connect the World host Becky Anderson got time for a quick chat with Pele and asked the great man if he had a favorite goal from his career.

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PELE, RETIRED FOOTBALL PLAYER: I think, you know, I score 1,283 goals. All was important to me, of course. The -- I think the first World Cup I play against Sweden in the final. I was 17 years old. I make a move to goal I think started my career. This one is more important.

BECKY ANDERSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: And who is going to win the World Cup?

PELE: Brazil, of course. We are there for that.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

THOMAS: He wouldn't have said anything else would he?

That's all the sport for now. Back to you, Kristie.

STOUT: Thank you, Alex.

Now police officers are often forced to risk their lives on the job. But one officer in the UK really has gone above and beyond his call of duty. ITV's Emily Morgan has his story.

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EMILY MORGAN, ITV CORRESPONDENT: What you're about to see is the police front line at its most perilous. PC Pascoe is hurled into the air. He then gives chase after a man in a stolen car smashes through his police road block.

DAN PASCOE, SURREY POLICE OFFICER: I remember hearing a bang, which I think was when he first hit the public. And he hit the public's cars. And I remember thinking this is going to be close. And then all of a sudden all I remember is I'm in the air looking down at the tarmac ground thinking oh dear this hasn't turned out the way it was planned.

MORGAN: Without a second thought to his injuries, he was up and running.

PASCOE: Somehow got back up onto my feet and thinking I'm slightly better off than I thought I was. Sort of went back into police mode rather than sort of normal people mode and decided that it was time to go and arrest someone who had put the public in danger.

MORGAN: At this point the camera pans off, but the drama continues.

PASCOE: He ran down an embankment and tried to climb over a fence. And at that point is when I drew my TASER and tased him in the back.

MORGAN: PC Pascoe then collapses, the pain from his injuries become too great.

PASCOE: I can't believe how lucky I am. Whenever I watch someone watching the video that you -- yeah, you can't understand how anyone can walk away from it, let alone run.

MORGAN: But he did. And with just bruises to prove it.

Emily Morgan, ITV News.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

STOUT: Well, you don't want to mess with him. And he's such a nice guy too.

That is NEWS STREAM. "WORLD BUSINESS TODAY" is next.

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