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New Day Sunday

Terrorists Hold Hostages Inside Mall; Journalist Witnessed Mall Carnage; First Day of Fall; Tourism in Colorado Takes a Hit

Aired September 22, 2013 - 06:00   ET

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


VICTOR BLACKWELL, CNN ANCHOR: This is NEW DAY SUNDAY.

ANNOUNCER: This is CNN BREAKING NEWS.

BLACKWELL: And this hour, we're starting with breaking news. CNN can now confirm there are between 10 and 15 attackers holed up inside a Kenyan shopping mall. That terror attack has now turned into a hostage crisis this morning as it has been for the last 24 hours. Terrorists are holding about 30 people inside the Westgate mall. That number comes from the Kenyan and western diplomatic sources. The attackers say they will not negotiate.

So let's start from the beginning, when the terrorists ambushed the mall. It was about 24 hours ago. They killed at least 59 people. And Kenyan officials report that five hostages were released overnight and close to 200 people are wounded. Several Americans are among them. CNN's Zain Verjee is on the scene there in Nairobi this morning.

Zain, tell us what is happening now and kind of set the scene, what's happening around it and who's there trying to get these hostages out of the mall.

ZAIN VERJEE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Westgate Mall is a short distance there behind me. The media have been moved a lot further back because they're just concerned for security reasons that we could be potentially in the line of fire, or if we went live, that the hostage takers could actually see what was happening on TV and figure things out.

One interesting thing happened just a few seconds ago. This huge yellow crane just drove by and it's going up toward the mall. So we're not really sure exactly what that's for or whether that will be used in any operation. But that's kind of the discussion going on right now.

But so far we have from local senior Kenyan officials saying 59 people are dead. And from sources adding too, that there could be as many as 30 hostages in Westgate Mall. We don't know their condition.

But, really, when you talk to people here, when you read the newspapers, when I call my friends and family, because it's a small town, Nairobi, and, you know, someone knows someone who knows someone and you just hear stories of horror, of escape, how people were hiding under trolleys. One person hiding in the vault of a bank and just running to find any cover they could. Now, we couldn't believe it, but my aunt was one of them. Listen to what she said.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ZULODIA KAKKAM (ph), WITNESS (voice-over): All of a sudden we heard some shots and people rushing and we realized that we were under attack or something, you know, somebody was holding at the supermarket or something similar. And we rushed to the back trying to hide. And we heard random shots from everywhere, upstairs, downstairs. And then we were there for quite a while. People were petrified, crying, you know, praying. But after half an hour, 40 minutes, we -- I was told that there were some hostages being held so we realized it could be a terrorists attack.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VERJEE: My aunt, Zulodia, was on vacation here in Kenya to visit with my dad and her in-laws from London when this happened. So really a shocking event for so many people here. Kenyans are really reeling from news like this and also really pulling together and to show that we really are resilient and can stand behind the situation here.

But one other things that was really sad, guys, is that it was also a children's cake cooking contest going on and it was for charity that was happening on Saturday morning at Westgate. So that's why you're seeing, in some of the pictures, a lot of children as casualties in this.

BLACKWELL: CNN's Zain Verjee. We're happy that your aunt is OK, and we'll continue to follow this as this continues. Zain, thank you.

Witnesses say that the mall was very crowded, and we know now because of that completion in part, when the gunman attacked. Here is some of them recapping what happened in their own words.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The next thing we know, we heard some shots and people rushing. It sounded like AK-14s.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Down on the floor. I was confused. I was terrified.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And I just talked to somebody and they told me that they are sniping, so 'that's why we have to keep our heads down.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Head down, man.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: And we heard three shots fired. Then I saw people running.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We heard this heavy -- like a (INAUDIBLE), you know somebody was throwing grenades and all that. So wife tells me, please, just -- let's get out because it looks as a terrorist attack.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What's your name? What's your name?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm not -

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What's your name?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Please! Please!

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What's your name?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: There was blood on the floor. I mean not a substantial amount, but drops that looked like someone who had been wounded.

KASSAM (ph): It was just so worrying and, you know, people praying and crying, and it was rather traumatizing for everybody.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Westgate is easily accessible from so many roads. There have been security checks, but obviously today wasn't a day when they came through.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHRISTI PAUL, CNN ANCHOR: It is just so terrifying. And you feel for these people as you're watching some of this newest video, of course it's coming in. But our next guest saw it with his own eyes as well, "New York Times" photojournalist Tyler Hicks, he's with us by phone from Nairobi.

Tyler, we're glad you're OK, first of all. Thank you for joining us. As I understand it, you actually went into the mall and took photographs of the scene. How did you get in and what did you see?

TYLER HICKS, "NEW YORK TIMES" PHOTOJOURNALIST: Well, I happened to be close by to Westgate Mall when the violence broke out yesterday. And as I approached the mall, I could see lots of people running away. And as I got closer, it was clear that there were -- people had been shot. I saw people who had been shot in the stomach and the leg. Dozens of injuries streaming out among just terrified civilians.

I continued to move along, carefully along the front of the mall, where I saw three men who'd been killed just at the front entrance of the mall. One of them still inside the car that he'd been driving. And continued to proceed up a -- into an upper parking garage where I, again, saw more people streaming out. The police and the army who were working there were desperately trying to get people evacuated out of the building.

I saw this as an opportunity to get inside, to go against the flow of the people and into the mall and to see what was going on inside. And that's really where we got a real sense of how bad things were.

PAUL: Tyler, I know that I read that there were people inside the mall running outside. But once they ran outside the mall, there was firing going on there, too, so they ran back inside the mall. Do you have any idea what kind of parameter these attackers might have set up? They were shooting both inside and outside. Were they shooting from one location or were they dispersed throughout the mall? What do you know?

HICKS: It was very confusing inside. And not only for the few photographers in there, but also for the security forces who are trying to contain the situation, trying to evacuate civilians. It became clear within a few minutes of getting inside the mall that no one really knew where the gunmen were. There's a lot of places inside that one can hide. You know, there's a movie theater, a casino, a huge supermarket, all kinds of shops. They really could have been anywhere. And there weren't very many of the police and army in at this - at this time. So it was very difficult for them to move around.

And while we were getting from place to place, you could see that there were people who had been killed, who were laying in different parts of the mall, one next to -- there were three men in a cafe who had fallen next to where they'd had lunch. Another man just outside an ATM machine at a bank. Another at the entrance of the supermarket. So it was clear that it was very serious and no one really knew where they were.

BLACKWELL: So, Tyler, I read you teamed up with a military team and you were in the mall for a couple of hours. Paint a picture for us, because I think the pictures that you're providing tell part of it, but the writing in your blog tell the other part, of where these people who heard the shots, they were hiding, because it was a meticulous sweep to find the people who were hiding from the shooters.

HICKS: Yes, it was really amazing to see, you know, even after being there an hour, an hour and a half, two hours, people continued to suddenly come out of shops. They had barricaded themselves inside either by locking the doors or by pulling the metal gates down in front of the storefront windows. And that was - you know, every 15 or 20 minutes suddenly it seemed that, you know, 20, 30, 50, 100 people would come out of another place that were just terrified. You know, they -- even though they could hear that there were people outside, they couldn't really tell who - that that was the police or the army, that they were just petrified and staying low, which was really, you know, the right thing to do.

PAUL: All right, and, Tyler, talk to us about, you know, the challenges of this open air mall and even being able to tell the good guys from the bad guys in something like this.

HICKS: Well, I never saw any of the armed militants. However, there was shooting going on, there was exchange of gunfire while we were in the mall. It is a big open air mall, a very modern place that would be to the standard of any western mall, anyplace you'd see in the United States. And also, because of the design, there's a lot of open ground. It's difficult to have cover when there's so many places where the militants could be, including the ground floor parking garage. There are six floors of the Westgate Mall. So, as you can imagine, this is a pretty big area to try and contain.

PAUL: All right, well, Tyler, again, we're so grateful that you're OK. Thank you for giving us that first-hand account and helping us understand what was happening there. Take good care to you and your crew and thank you again for being with us.

HICKS: Thank you very much.

PAUL: Sure.

And isn't it interesting, Victor, all the people you see, all these pictures with their hands up, you think they probably are making them do that to be certain that they've got innocent civilians that they're trying to help and not somebody else.

BLACKWELL: Yes, Kenyan officials said early on while this was happening yesterday that they were making very sure that the people they were rescuing were indeed hostages and not a plant from the attackers.

PAUL: Yes. Yes.

BLACKWELL: Still to come on NEW DAY, this powerful typhoon that's headed for Hong Kong. Massive evacuations right now. Thousands of disaster relief personnel have been deployed. We'll have the latest there.

PAUL: Also, President Obama laying it on the line to House Republicans who are trying to defund Obamacare.

Plus, one prominent Republican says Obamacare cannot be defeated.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLACKWELL: Quarter after the hour now.

This morning, massive evacuations are underway in China as this powerful storm approaches. It's Typhoon Usagi, expected to make landfall within a few hours. It's packing winds above 100 miles per hour.

PAUL: Yes, it's been downgraded, actually, from a super typhoon, which is the equivalent of a category 5 hurricane. But officials still warn, look, this thing is packing a punch. Strong winds, heavy rains and it could cause damage, flooding and landslides.

BLACKWELL: And according to China state news, more than 50,000 disaster relief personnel has been deployed. Some shipping to Taiwan has been halted. And more than 44,000 fishing boats have been ordered to port.

PAUL: This storm's already caused damage in the Philippines, though, knocking down trees and ripping some roofs off of homes there.

BLACKWELL: Well, did you feel it?

PAUL: I love it.

BLACKWELL: The end of summer.

PAUL: Whoo! BLACKWELL: It was 63 degrees on my dashboard this morning.

PAUL: I feel like a wimp, though, because it's not as though Atlanta had this scorching summer that we usually do.

BLACKWELL: Yes, it's true.

PAUL: But I know everybody's waiting for the first of all.

BLACKWELL: Well, today marks the first day of fall. And for a lot of parts of the country, that means that much needed autumn chill. But it's expected to be a wet weekend for some parts of the country too. Alexandra Steele joins us now in the CNN Weather Center.

We're excited about fall and we're starting to feel it.

PAUL: Wahoo!!

ALEXANDRA STEELE, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Absolutely. Hey, I'm from Albany, New York, and I'm certainly excited about fall.

Hi, everyone. Good morning to you. Hope you're having a great start.

All right, officially the first day of fall be coming in this afternoon at about 4:00. But you're going to notice it because we are seeing some rain around and that rain's part of a front, and behind that front, some cooler temperatures. So the difference between yesterday's temperatures and tomorrow's, on the whole, about 10 to 15 degrees from Boston to New York. Pittsburgh, not quite so much, but in Washington, the farther east you go along the coast. So noticeably much cooler air. And here's a look. Here's the front that's moving through. This is the radar satellite composite. You can see where the clouds and the rain are. It is all pushing eastward. Behind it, cooler, dryer air. So certainly that taste of fall is out there.

Boston's still ensconced in the rain and will be toward - till this afternoon. New York getting out of it. The east end of Long Island, still in it. So you can see, it is all pushing eastward. Norfolk, Raleigh, still in it, although the afternoon will see 70 degree temperatures today. And then getting into the mid 80s, believe it or not, by midweek. So we are going to see a warm-up by about 10 to 15 degrees from where we'll be today.

But, Gulf Coast, still some rain around. That front kind of just hangs around there, so not a lot of relief there.

Big picture around the county. There's the cooler air. Sunny around much of the country. Two areas of rain, though, the northwest, some very strong winds and rain, and also in the intermountain west, some scattered showers moving through there as well today on this first day of fall.

Christi, Victor, back to you.

BLACKWELL: All right, thank you, Alexandra Steele. PAUL: Still to come, Hillary Clinton gave this extensive interview to "New York Magazine," so now everybody's wondering, is she going to launch another White House bid?

BLACKWELL: Hmm.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PAUL: Twenty-one minutes past the hour for you right now.

And Hillary Clinton back in the spotlight with a new interview in "New York Magazine." Even though it's two years until the next presidential primary, it has a lot of people talking about, hmm, another Clinton run. CNN's Erin McPike is live in Washington for us this morning.

Good morning, Erin.

ERIN MCPIKE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Christi.

Well, Hillary Clinton keeps doing things that keep us guessing and it's never too early to start speculating about whether or not she will run.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MCPIKE (voice-over): Here's a fun political parlor game, will Hillary Clinton run for president in 2016? Well, here she is laughing it off through the years. In 2011 --

HILLARY CLINTON, FORMER SECRETARY OF STATE: No. No.

MCPIKE: Then 2012 --

H. CLINTON: You know, I've said I really don't believe that that's something I will do again.

MCPIKE: And, finally, this year to CNN.

H. CLINTON: I have absolutely no plans to run.

MCPIKE: Of course, plans change. Not everyone believes these denials and she's crushing the competition in polls, including a CNN poll released earlier this week that shows 65 percent of Democratic voters would pick her to be the party's next presidential nominee. Even her husband says he doesn't know her plans.

BILL CLINTON, FORMER U.S. PRESIDENT: These polls don't mean much. Now, we're a long way ahead. I think she'd be the first to tell you that there's no such thing as a done deal ever.

H. CLINTON: It would be a - probably a good idea to just find out how tired I am.

MCPIKE: That was right as she was leaving the State Department after decades of public service and circling the globe. But that down- time didn't last long.

H. CLINTON: I reject that. I think they are, in effect, propping up the regime at a time when we should be working on a political transition.

Thank you, all.

MCPIKE: There's no question she's keeping the guessing game alive. Here she is granting her first interview since stepping down as secretary of state to "New York Magazine."

STU ROTHENBERG, ROTHENBERG POLITICAL REPORT: I think there's no reason or her to call attention to her mulling over a presidential run. I think most of us who do this for a living figured she was doing that and there's no need to go on the record.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

MCPIKE: So, obviously, we will all be waiting with bated breath until 9:00 this morning when that "New York Magazine" story and interview with Hillary Clinton is live on their site. And, Christi, the author of that piece will be on CNN's "State of the Union" later today. And then, of course, on Wednesday, we will get to see Hillary Clinton again in New York when she speaks for the Clinton Global Initiative up there Wednesday.

Christi.

PAUL: All right, CNN's Erin McPike, thank you so much. We appreciate it.

Victor, I just -- I find it so funny that Bill Clinton comes out and says, I don't know what her plans are. Yes, you do.

BLACKWELL: Yes, you do.

PAUL: You just can't share it. And we respect that. And that's fine. But I'm married. My husband knows my plans.

BLACKWELL: Yes, at some point -- and I'm not married, but at some point don't you just kind of lean over and say, hey, you running for president?

PAUL: Ask you about it.

BLACKWELL: No. No.

PAUL: Yes. Yes.

BLACKWELL: So we'll continue that, of course, look for the report at 9:00.

PAUL: We will, yes.

BLACKWELL: But we're going to continue to follow the breaking news in Kenya this morning. We'll have an update. Terrorists strike at a Nairobi mall that's still inside this morning with shoppers as hostages. We're going to push forward on this.

Plus, could an attack happen here at home? Coming up, we're going to take a look at mall security in the U.S.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PAUL: Well, if you're just waking up, it's half past the hour and we are grateful to have your company. I'm Christi Paul.

BLACKWELL: I'm Victor Blackwell.

Here are five things you need to know for your new day.

The State Department says that four Americans are among the wounded in that terror attack on a mall in Kenya. And CNN confirms one of them is this woman. Her name is Elaine Dang. She's from San Diego but she works as the general manager of a restaurant inside the Westgate Mall there in Nairobi. Her employer tweeted this photo of Dang this morning and says she is recovering well.

PAUL: Number two, the remains of a baby found in New York's Mohawk River have been identified as this little guy, Jevon Wameling. It's still not known who's responsible for this, but the medical examiner was not able to rule on the cause of death yet.

BLACKWELL: More tragic news out, number three. Three U.S. troops were killed in Afghanistan. Officials say the attacker wore an Afghan army uniform. It's the latest in the so-called green on blue attacks. It happened during a training exercise and the gunman was killed by forces there on the scene.

PAUL: Number four, President Obama will be speaking at a memorial today for the victims of last week's Navy Yard shooting. The service is going to be held at the U.S. Marine barracks in Washington, D.C., to honor, of course, what happened - the people, what happened on Monday, the 12 people who were killed after a former Navy reservist just began shooting at random inside that Navy Yard.

BLACKWELL: Number five, 1.3 tons of pure cocaine. That's what French officials found hidden inside of 30 suitcases traveling from Venezuela to France. Street value, about $270 million. Now, this catch was made on September 11th, but authorities didn't publicize their find until this weekend.

Now, that mall massacre in Kenya has a lot of people asking could this happen here at home, at the mall where I shop every Saturday, or Sunday? Now, 22 hours after terrorists stormed an upscale mall in Nairobi, 59 people are dead.

PAUL: More than 200 were hurt, some still hospitalized at this hour. So, how do you secure these soft targets, and, you know, everybody is wondering, as you said, can it happen here? I want to bring in Margaret Conley who is with us from New York. You know, Margaret, I think a lot of people do wonder -- when they go, especially, it's Sunday, a lot of people are going to be in the mall today. BLACKWELL: Yes.

PAUL: How vulnerable is this? What do you say to that? What have you learned?

MARGARET CONLEY: Christi, we've seen these violent attacks over season, Madrid in '04, in London in '05. In this case, in Kenya, there were Americans involved that were in that mall in Kenya and it just raises concerns about security here at home.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CONLEY: It may be more than 7,000 miles from Nairobi, Kenya to the United States, but the mall massacre halfway around the world couldn't bring a tragedy any closer to home. Washington D.C. resident Sara Head was inside the mall when shots were fired. She kept hidden in the stairwell with dozens of others as the chaos unfolded.

SARA HEAD, WITNESS: So, we just waited in the stairwell for about an hour and a half, there were two individuals with me who had superficial gunshot wounds, well, individuals in the stairwell with me, they were not with me, but there was about probably -- I don't know, 60 of us. There were a few floors worth of people.

CONLEY: The attack on this so-called soft targets raises the question about mall security on U.S. soil. Could what happened overseas, happen here?

LT. COL. RICK FRANCONA, CNN MILITARY ANALYST: Soft targets are always attractive to terrorists because they are usually not defended. It's very effective way of causing lot of panic, a lot of damage very quickly and achieving objective of terrorizing people.

CONLEY: Back in this country, one more that puts its security front and center, is Minnesota's Mall of America. One of the largest enclosed shopping centers in the country visited by 42 million people a year.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I think that if you are looking for 100 percent safety, you should probably wrap yourself in bubble wrap and never leave home.

CONLEY: It even has something many government facilities do not.

ANNOUNCER: This is a drill. Mall of America is now going into lockdown.

CONLEY: Twice a month without fail its tenants and its customers participate in a lockdown drill, practicing how to shelter in backrooms of stores to try to prevent casualties in an attack.

DOUG REYNOLDS, MALL OF AMERICA: Yes, if something bad should happen here, we don't want our response to start with -- and law enforcement will be here and they will protect you. We want to know what can be done until law enforcement gets here.

CONLEY: Even with heightened security an awareness of your surroundings may end up being your best defense.

TOM FUENTES, LAW ENFORCEMENT ANALYST: For the average American citizen, you go to the grocery store, you go to the gas station, and you go to the shopping mall, and you go to a movie theater, you take walks in your neighborhood, anyone of those situations could make you vulnerable if other people or another person is out there determined to conduct an attack.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CONLEY: Now, Tom Fuentes continued that and he said you could just be in the wrong place at the wrong time. Now, another security analyst that we spoke with said that as a public, the only thing that we can do is strengthen our resolve and not let these terrorists attacks take hold over this country.

BLACKWELL: All right, Margaret Conley there for us in New York. Thank you.

PAUL: OK. So, let's see the latest on that shooting on the ground in Kenya there as we wanted to share some of the latest numbers with you. CNN has confirmed ten to 15 gunmen involved in this assault, around 30 hostages still being held according to Kenyan and Western diplomatic sources.

BLACKWELL: CNN's Zain Verjee joins us now on the phone. Zain, you had a conversation with the spokesperson for the state house there, in Kenya. What did he add to the conversation this morning?

VERJEE: He said that it was not clear what the condition of the hostages actually was, but that they were isolated along with the gunman in a particular area. He wouldn't give any more information. I asked him anything he could say that was specific enough, but not such a compromise there ongoing operation about the military inside. And he just said that they continued to battle with the militants, and they are trying to figure out a way forward. It's really a tough situation right now. The whole mall is still under siege. It has been surrounded, so there is really no way out for any of the al- Shabab terrorists to go. They've insisted on twitter repeatedly, which is interesting, because they are contacting their guys outside here that are putting out that they will not negotiate, that that is not an option. So as Kenyan security forces are collaborating with British, American and Israelis that are experts in this kind of situation, they are trying to figure out and move ahead, but it's really tense, and the situation is ongoing. It looks kind of like a war zone on the road up to my house with paramilitary forces known as the General Service Unit, the police patrol cars, a fire engine went by. A crane went in towards the mall, we're not really sure why that (inaudible).

PAUL: Zain, one of the -- well, interesting points we have learned this morning is that -- a report that there may have been a white female who may be one of the attackers. Have you heard anything more of that?

VERJEE: Yes, this is a white woman that is suspected to be among the hostage takers. We asked a spokesperson here about that, and he said to us, just a while ago that they did have reports of a white woman among that group, and Kenyan intelligence were analyzing this report. Now we asked if the white woman was known as the white widow, her name is Samantha Lewswaite, and we were told nothing is being rolled out. That's a name to keep an eye on, if it comes to anything, because it should be a huge deal if she was in that mall, OK? Because her husband was one of the seven-seven bombers in London. She has been wanted for an alleged role as an al Shabab, al Qaeda woman and kind of operating like a financier. She was spotted in Mombasa, and it was that Kenyan police raid that she got away. But they found in the room when she got away -- - (inaudible) loaded ammunition, a fake passport, all these explosives that had similar fingerprints to the seven-seven bombings. So, she's kind of like a big deal ring leader, and people the Kenyans Interpol, international agencies that have been trying to get her. So this would be a big deal if she was sitting at Westgate Mall, but it's unclear whether that's true or even whether the white woman spotting is real, but we did ask the spokesperson and he said they are not ruling anything out and they are analyzing everything.

PAUL: All right. CNN's Zain Verjee, Zain, stay safe here and thank you so much for the update, we appreciate it. We are going to check in with you obviously, all morning long. So, keep it right here.

BLACKWELL: Yeah.

PAUL: And still to come on "NEW DAY", we have a preview of what's starting out to be a pretty big weekend entertainment, the start of a new season of "Glee", of course.

BLACKWELL: Yes, it's pretty big. And the end of "Breaking Bad." I know so many people love that show. Stick around.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLACKWELL: It is a beautiful day, partly because fall starts today. My favorite season. A live look here at the White House. You know, there are eight days, just eight days left until the possible government shutdown. Negotiations have been continuing or starting. The president said he will not negotiate, but often that is part of the negotiations. (inaudible) the dome of the Capitol to see -- lights on there, lights on at the White House.

PAUL: Yeah. Lights on here.

(LAUGHTER)

PAUL: We are watching -- we're going to keep you posted, obviously, all morning, too, as we have that situation that is ongoing, hostages still being held, obviously, in that mall in Nairobi. And I'm wondering the ten to 15 hostage takers that are in there, if they suspect those ten to 15 are all still in the mall. Or if some of them have been able to make it out somewhere, so we're going to keep you posted, but it -- isn't it interesting that they are on twitter? All of the players, all of the players, the Nairobi -- the Kenyan government and the hostage takers themselves ...

BLACKWELL: Kenyan Red Cross, we're getting updates from them through twitter.

PAUL: From the twitter.

BLACKWELL: And this is from what we understand, they are some who say, it's not a sophisticated group, but if they bring in $70 to $100 million a year, as we know about al Shabab ...

PAUL: Yeah.

BLACKWELL: ... and they have what we know is something like slick stylized television that they used to promote, they've got a magazine, they are tweeting, quite sophisticated, indeed.

PAUL: In that way.

BLACKWELL: We're going to continue having that conversation and learn more about al Shabab. A term, a group that a lot of people, I'm sure, are hearing about for the first time.

PAUL: Yeah, but they are linked to al Qaeda ...

BLACKWELL: Yes.

PAUL: ... and based in Somalia, we know, so and they do not like Westerners and the fact that this mall was targeted most likely because it is a place where Westerners do frequent there.

BLACKWELL: So, we will continue that conversation. And we'll take a quick break, we'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PAUL: Good morning, so that you what is happening around the world. So, let's get right to it. First of all, we want to go to Beijing. Everybody there is watching the trial of Bo Xilai. Once, obviously, a famous politician, now he's been sentenced to life in prison. I want to go to David McKenzie who is there right now. Hey, David.

DAVID MCKENZIE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: They called it China's trial of the century, it's the most politically sensitive one in decades. And now, Bo Xilai has learned his fate, getting a life sentence for bribery embezzlement and abuse of power charges. Bo was a high-flying Communist Party official, almost untouchable, but because of the scandal that has rocked China, he is being brought down by both the law and by politics. He can appeal in ten days, and the way that he's fought these charges, he probably will. Christi?

PAUL: All right. David McKenzie, David, thank you so much. We appreciate it. I want to take you now to New York and the United Nations. Syria, as you know, has met its first deadline in its deal to turn over chemical weapons, but CNN's Ivan Watson is there, and he has more for us. Good morning, Ivan. IVAN WATSON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: The Syrian government appears to have met its first deadline. The Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons says it received a report from Damascus on Saturday that is supposed to include an inventory of all of Syria's massive arsenal of chemical weapons. A senior U.S. administration official tells CNN that the White House is both surprised and encouraged by the level of detail there. There is still a great deal of diplomacy to be done before we can ever see the possibility of the United Nations' inspectors down on the ground in Syria, in the midst of the civil war trying to dispose of this deadly arsenal. Back to you, Christi.

PAUL: Ivan, thank you so much. We appreciate it. And now, to Germany where people are heading to the polls this morning for the country's presidential election there. CNN's Frederick Pleitgen has more for us. He's there. Hi, Fred.

FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: More than 50 million people are eligible to vote here in Germany, this election is also important for America because Germany is the fourth largest economy in the world. Think of brands like Porsche, Mercedes, BMW, VW, and Audi, all of them come from Germany. It's also the country that is leading the charge to get Europe out of its economic difficulties. Chancellor Angela Merkel is well ahead in the polls, but the big question is here whether her junior coalition partner will make it back into parliament. Back to you, Christi.

PAUL: All right. And thank you so much. We appreciate it. And I want to send you over to Victor now who is going to take you to Iran, so to speak.

BLACKWELL: Thank you, Christi. Everything is possible in the world of politics, that's the tweet from the new president of Iran who seems to be offering an olive branch of sorts to the United States. Now, Hassan Rouhani, that's his name, is now saying that he has not ruled out meeting with the president -- President Obama at the upcoming General Assembly in New York. And this week, in the pages of "The Washington Post," Rouhani made a pledge to, quote, "engage in constructive interaction with the world." End quote. CNN editorial producer Nadia Bilchik joins us now for a look at Rouhani, someone that people are really meeting for the first time.

When was the last time that the leader of the U.S. and the leader of Iran have done as little as even shook hands with one another.

NADIA BILCHIK, CNN PRODUCER: Well, not for 36 years. So, in 1977, President Carter met with then Shah of Iran, Reza Pahlavi, and it's interesting, Victor, will they meet, I spoke to some Iranian expert yesterday, he said, there's a good chance they'll meet next week, but it may be very private.

BLACKWELL: Yeah the president and the White House have said that there is no meeting planned, but as Rouhani says, anything is possible in the world of politics.

Give us an idea, the differences between Rouhani and Ahmadinejad, because Ahmadinejad was someone who was always in front of a camera, always making some incendiary statements, we have not heard a lot from the new president.

BILCHIK: And as you said earlier, the tone is so different. That's the biggest difference, and also, Ahmadinejad, wasn't considered (ph) as treatable with the West. Here you have a president who's saying, let's engage with the U.S., let's engage with the West, already in his short time in office, less than ten -- less than two weeks -- he's released 11 high profile political prisoners, as far as the Internet goes, he says we don't need firewalls, we don't want to live behind high walls, he's even wished via Twitter Jewish Iranians and Iranians around the world happy Rosh Hashanah, and the happy new year, which is unprecedented. But let's hear Ann Curry talking to Rouhani earlier this week.

BLACKWELL: OK>

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ANN CURRY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: So, let me ask you -- President Ahmadinejad said the Holocaust is a myth. Do you agree?

HASSAN ROUHANI, PRESIDENT, IRAN (through translator): I am not a historian. I am a politician. What is important for us, is that the countries of the region and the people of the world grow closer to each other and that they are able to prevent aggression and injustice.

CURRY: So, if I might ask you one more time -- do you want to decry those statements?

ROUHANI: We are not seeking and looking for war with any nation. We are seeking peace and the stability among all nations in the region.

(EEND VIDEOTAPE)

BILCHIK: He is speaking Farsi there. But in fact, he speaks very good English, he got Ph.D. in constitutional law from the University of Glasgow in Scotland, so he understands English perfectly, speaks it well, so again, compared to Ahmadinejad, just so much more educated or comes across as so much more educated.

BLACKWELL: What else can you tell? We know he's 65 years old, what else can you tell us about him, and the affect this is having on the people of Iran?

BILCHIK: So enormous. The Iranians for the first time in a long time are very optimistic. And what shows that that's a big event (ph) -- money.

BLACKWELL: The commerce there, yeah.

BILCHIK: The Iranian ...

BLACKWELL: The economy ...

BILCHIK: ... currency, the toman, has gone up 25 percent in the less than two weeks that he has been in office. BLACKWELL: Wow.

BILCHIK: But again, nothing can change without the supreme leader, and the authority of the Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Khamenei who in the end is the person who will decide what actually happens, so certainly he's saying he's going to make changes, whether he can and whether he will, remains to be seen.

BLACKWELL: And we'll see if we start with even a handshake or a conversation there at the General Assembly meeting of the U.N. next week. Nadia Bilchik, thank you very much.

BILCHIK: Thank you.

BLACKWELL: Former President Clinton will be on CNN later this morning. The president sat down with our Fareed Zakaria to talk about, among other things, Syria.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

FAREED ZAKARIA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: President Clinton, you have seen the agreement that the United States and Russia have reached on Syria, you've heard some of the criticisms. What do you think of it?

BILL CLINTON: First of all, I think if it is implemented, a big "if," it is a good thing, and I agree with the president and Secretary Kerry and everybody else who has been involved in this, the United States needs to stand strong against chemical weapons, against the proliferation and use of them. Now, there are some who say well, you know, this gives the initiative to Putin. And who cares how it came up?

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BLACKWELL: You can hear more from President Clinton coming up on Fareed Zakaria "GPS" at this morning at 10:00 A.M. Eastern. Christi, over to you.

PAUL: Already. I know we have talked about a lot of dire news today, so we wanted to at least give you a little bit of a chuckle with these thousands of daredevils who turned out this weekend for a national competition that challenges teams to fly using some homemade creations. What the heck did they come up with and did any of them work? We'll show you more.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLACKWELL: Good morning, Atlanta. Isn't that a beautiful shot?

PAUL: It is.

BLACKWELL: Looks like fall.

PAUL: Feels like fall.

BLACKWELL: It sure does. And (inaudible) this morning, and good music, too. So, we're going to have great temperatures. It looks like it's going to be a nicer day today than yesterday rainy. Nonstop here yesterday.

PAUL: I loved it.

BLACKWELL: You did?

PAUL: Sorry, I did.

BLACKWELL: You must have stayed in the house.

PAUL: Sometimes you just need -- you just need a rainy day to stay at home.

BLACKWELL: OK.

PAUL: I know, you a lot of people watching us and you are still in bed, and good for you.

BLACKWELL: I was out in it. Unfortunately, I was out in it yesterday, but today, 80 degrees and partly sunny. A better day. Speaking of a better day, hopefully some of the competitors in the flugtog (ph) had a better day than they did yesterday. Thousands of daredevils turned out for this national Red Bull competition Saturday. Look at this.

PAUL: That one is going all right.

BLACKWELL: That one wasn't too bad. This one?

PAUL: Look at that. What is that?

BLACKWELL: Why would you ever think that would fly? There were five competitions across the country, held simultaneously, one in D.C., Miami, Dallas Ft. Worth, others.

PAUL: It basically challenges competitors to take flight off of a platform. All the things you are watching there, all of those machines, dare I call them that, are homemade. Which is the whole creativity part of it is they are judged on that and showmanship and how far they fly.

BLACKWELL: This is a good one.

PAUL: This looks like the only one that really kept going, and I am wondering if it won. 29 teams participated in Long Beach and one of them flew a record 230 some feet.

(CROSSTALK)

BLACWELL: Was that a burger? Just fell off the side?

PAUL: It looked like a hut and a roof fell off. I don't know.

(CROSSTALK)

PAUL: He's hungry.

BLACKWELL: I am.

PAUL: Thank you so much for starting your morning with us.

BLACKWELL: We got a lot more coming up. The next hour of "New Day" starts now.

PAUL: If you are just tuning in, we are still grateful to have your company on this Sunday. I hope you are waking up to some sunshine wherever you are. I am Christi Paul.

BLACKWELL: I am Victor Blackwell. 7:00 here on the East Coast, 4:00 on the West Coast. This is "New Day Sunday."

ANNOUNCER: This is CNN breaking news.

PAUL: All righty. And we want to get you up to date on something we have been watching overnight, and something that you've probably saw a little bit of yesterday, but we have all kinds of new information for you on that terror attack at a shopping mall.

CNN can now confirm 59 people are dead at Westgate Mall in Nairobi, Kenya. We can also tell you, 10 to 15 terrorists are holed up inside that building at this hour they believe. They are holding around 30 people hostage. This is according to Kenyan and Western diplomatic forces there.

But I want to bring in CNN's Zain Verjee. She's behind police lines outside the mall. She's from -- this is her home.

So, Zain, first of all, give us the latest. Have you heard anything new?

VERJEE: A short while ago, we spoke to a government spokesperson here that basically said that the hostages are in an isolated area, along with the gunmen, and he wouldn't give any more specifics.

We get conflicting information about what levels of the mall the people are in or not in, the paramilitary forces and other military of Kenya's armed defense forces there as well. So, the situation is very intense, it's fluid, it's changing. The objective really of the spokesperson was to get as many people out as possible. Ever since the siege started about 24 hours, about 1,000 people have been able to come out. But as you said, 59 people have been killed and many injured really badly.

You know, it's so difficult to look at these numbers and then realize that this is actually a mall I go to all the time and the people and the faces and people that I know, or my parents know or friends know, everyone is kind of e-mailing each other and going, you know, do you know so-and-so, or let's go and find out how such and such person is. So, it's actually really personal, even though the numbers are hard numbers going up.

PAUL: Yes, Zain, that's a great reminder that we say these numbers but this is not about statistics, this is about people. And I'm sorry that you are feeling it on such a personal level, too. May I also ask you, we know that earlier, five hostages were released, do we know why, in particular, were released and what authorities learned from those five?

VERJEE: We don't have any information on why them. There is an area over at another section where the Red Cross is set up, and then, also the hostages coming out are getting debriefed there, as well as another mall across from me that's called Sarat (ph) center. So, they are trying to get as much information as possible, but right now, we don't have that information from them, except the drama of the bullets and the blood and the chaos and having a cup of coffee and seeing someone get gunned down and hiding in a bank vault or hiding under a trolley of grocery.

The president of the country's own nephew was killed. His sister was there with the family having coffee at the cafe. Just listen to what the president said.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PRES. UHURU KENYATTA, KENYA: We have overcome terrorist attacks before. In fact, we have fought courageously and defeated them within and outside our borders. We will defeat them again. Terrorism in and of itself is the philosophy of cowards. The way we lead our lives in freedom, openness, unity and consideration for each other represents our victory over those who wish us ill.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VERJEE: We think they are cowards, they think they are heroes. Al-Shabaab back at Westgate Mall behind me is communicating with their contacts outside of Kenya, who are putting stuff on Twitter, basically saying this is a revenge attack for Kenyan forces that have been present in Somalia, and that this is something that the fragile nation of Kenya can't bear. And they've also made it clear that no matter how many times the Kenyan government wants to ask for negotiations there is not going to be a negotiation.

PAUL: Yes. You know, something that raised eyebrows in the last hour was this report, learning that one of the hostage takers may be a white female, and it may be a white female we understand that authorities have been looking for, for quite some time. What do you know about that?

VERJEE: We asked the government spokesperson about this report and he did indicate that they've heard that as well, and Kenyan intelligence was shifting through that information.

The name of this individual would be Samantha Lewthwaite. And this is really significant character if, in fact, Samantha Lewthwaite is running around Nairobi, or in fact at Westgate Mall. This is someone that is connected with al-Shabaab and al Qaeda, a financier. And this has really played a significant role.

She is the wife of a 7/7 bomber, and the Kenyan police, the Interpol, and the international security forces have been looking for her as a critical player in global terrorism. She may or may not be here, we don't know. But this is some of the questions being asked in Nairobi this morning.

PAUL: All righty. CNN's Zain Verjee, outside Westgate Mall there in Nairobi -- Zain, thank you so much for giving us the update. We're going to be checking in with her all morning.

And the upscale mall, by the way, is popular with Westerners who live there in Nairobi, and for that reason, U.S. officials had warned Westgate, specifically, would be an easy target for terrorists.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We were warned about two years ago when al- Shabaab said that -- there was intelligence that al-Shabaab was going to target areas that are international community. There was heightened security in the like, when -- in the entrances. But, of course, at times the security has not been as high as it was, and maybe two years ago, I thought the government would say that a terrorist attack of this level is not something that they could have anticipated, but it looks like probably they did respond speedily and they did respond hard.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLACKWELL: Al-Shabaab is a group that maybe you haven't heard a lot about, but it's linked to al Qaeda, a group you probably have heard a lot about over the last decade or so. CNN military analyst Rick Francona told CNN's Martin Savidge the two groups don't always see eye to eye.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

RICK FRANCONA, CNN MILITARY ANALYST: They self-affiliated of the al Qaeda they formed back in the mid-2000s, and then al Qaeda decided to recognize them. So they have a bond there. But it ebbs and flows. They agree with al Qaeda on something. They don't on others. And there has been a lot of infighting in the group.

This is a very disorganized group, and that makes them very dangerous. They don't normally go for the global jihad, and in going after this attack in Kenya, they're really going after the interests in Somalia, because Kenya is on the forefront of going after al- Shabaab. They are helping the Somali government. They are taking matters in their own hands. The Kenyan Army and the Kenyan Air Force is mounting attacks against al-Shabaab. So, al-Shabaab is striking back.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLACKWELL: So, the major question here now is, is al-Shabaab a threat to the U.S.? Joining us now to answer that question from Washington, CNN national security analyst Peter Bergen.

Peter, the views of this group, as has the U.S. as an enemy, have they ever tried to attack U.S. interests here or abroad? Kind of just paint the picture for people who don't know a lot about al-Shabaab?

PETER BERGEN, CNN NATIONAL SECURITY ANALYST: Victor, the short answer is not yet. They have recruited a number of Americans, the House Homeland Security Committee did a report in 2011 pointing out they recruited 40 Americans, 24 of them from Minnesota. So, certainly, they've recruited Americans. A number of those Americans have been killed or even acted as suicide bombers.

They have attacked, tried to attack in the West before. They tried to kill a Danish cartoonist that had drawn a cartoon of the Prophet Muhammad that was deemed defensive by many Muslims back in 2005. Five years later, a Somali man affiliated with al-Shabaab tried to kill this Danish cartoonist.

Generally, Victor, they have not tried to attack outside of Somalia, but they have not tried to attack outside Somalia, but they have mounted significant operations in neighboring African countries, for instance, Uganda, where they killed some 70 people in 2010. A group -- people watching a World Cup soccer match really for the same reason that they are attacking in Kenya right now, which is that Uganda or Kenya have both provided armed forces to go into Somalia to help fight against al-Shabaab.

BLACKWELL: Peter, I think what a lot of people, certainly I found pretty astonishing yesterday, is that the group was tweeting real time during this attack in Nairobi. What can you tell us about the sophistication of the group?

BERGEN: Well, they are on Twitter all the time. And, in fact, I mean, I think it's partly related to the fact that they have a lot of -- they've been able to recruit a number of Westerners in particular, somebody that is fairly well known, as a guy called Omar Hammami, who grew up in Daphne, Alabama, a Baptist converted to Islam. He is constantly been on Twitter, and he was likely killed earlier this month.

But the fact that the group has been communicating on Twitter may be surprising to many viewers, but, in fact, if you are following it, they have, that's the way they communicate.

BLACKWELL: So when we first started talking about this group, it was released they were on Somali origin, and the mind's eye envisions, when you say 10 to 15 people of Somali origin, one type of person. We've learned from sources in Kenya that quite possibly, there is a white female who's one of the hostage takers -- possibly this white widow, Samantha Lewthwaite.

Tell us about Ms. Lewthwaite.

BERGEN: Yes. I think it would be quite surprising if that's true. We don't know for a fact. Typically, these groups are, you know, they're misogynist, let's start with that. I mean, they don't tend to recruit women to do actual operations. You know, their view of woman, they should be in a home and shrouded in a body veil.

So, you know, that often, you get very, you know, confusing reports at the beginning of these kinds of operations. It would be very unusual for a woman to be actually involved in one of these operations. What this operation reminds me of is the Mumbai attacks in 2008, very similar modus operandi where you recruit 10 gunmen willing to die.

They know they are going to the fight with the strong likelihood that they will die. They conduct the operation over several days, as we're seeing, in order to maximize media coverage, which they are getting, and the fact that they are not negotiating speaks for itself. They don't -- they want to kill as many people, and they want to make this operation go on for as long as possible to generate as much media coverage as is feasible, Victor.

BLACKWELL: We're beyond 24 hours since this started on Saturday.

Peter joining us from Washington -- thank you for that.

There was a blog posting that Ms. Lewthwaite, Samantha Lewthwaite, the white widow, as she was called, she wrote and talked about the misogyny of group. She writes, "Yes, I am a woman, but I am a woman that believes in jihad and supremacy of Islam." So, quite possibly, was she involved in this? Is she now involved? Was she used because she would not have been detected as being somebody that was thrown in the group?

PAUL: Right. She certainly would have thrown people off in the mall if they were looking for, as you said, a certain type of person.

BLACKWELL: Yes, still questions we have and we're worth to get answers to, as we continue to cover the breaking news.

Also still to come on NEW DAY, the flooding in Colorado. It ruined homes. It ruined roads, entire towns. Some people would say it ruined some lives. Now, people there are dealing with another problem: the lack of tourists.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLACKWELL: A quarter after the hour now. Thanks for joining us on this NEW DAY SUNDAY.

Let's go to Colorado now. And those devastating floods have really destroyed some homes, washed out roadways. Again, as I said before we went to break, some people would say ruined some lives because they've got to start over now.

PAUL: They do. And there is no clear timetable in terms of when they were going to be able to get all of this cleaned up completely from that flood-ravaged area there, and it's really tough for people there who own not just property but own stores, because the tourism industry has been hit so hard. You know, store owners just don't get back on their feet.

So, let's get out to CNN's Dan Simon. He's live in Estes Park, Colorado.

Dan, I know it's still dark -- not a lot going on right now. But, gosh, is there a lot going on at all?

DAN SIMON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, good morning, Christi and Victor.

You know, we are in Estes Park, as you said. And this is one of the biggest tourists areas in the state. Millions come through here each year. But two of the roadways to get here are gone. I mean, they are totally destroyed. That's going to make any kind of economic recovery difficult.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JULIE PIEPER, OWNER, POPPY'S PIZZA AND GRILL: We have lost a lot of drywall --

SIMON (voice-over): Julie Pieper and her staff are working furiously to get her restaurant re-opened.

PIEPER: It hurts. This is a good time of year.

SIMON: But getting the repairs done is only part of the challenge for her and other small businesses in the town of Estes Park, Colorado. The worry, according to the town administrator, is how long it will take for customers to return.

(on camera): You an event like this, what does it do to the town?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Well, we've never had an event like this. This is the biggest event Colorado has ever had.

SIMON: The town sits at the foot of Rocky Mountain National Park, elk graze out in the open. It is a tourist mecca. The sidewalks normally bustling on the weekend are virtually empty.

CHARLEY DICKEY, BUSINESS OWNER: This is a shot in the solar plexus and it takes the air out of you.

SIMON: And it may be a while until merchants like this are busy again. To understand why, you need to take a drive.

(on camera): But this right here is the biggest problem. Roads like this one had completely caved in. I mean, just look at the chunks of concrete in there. This is a major artery, and it's preventing folks from getting into the town and spending money and it could be like this for many months.

(voice-over): There is no timetable for the major highway repairs. An alternative route exists, but it's not as convenient and it's not yet known how many people will use it.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Some of the marginal businesses, this might be enough to push them over the edge.

SIMON: Despite the hardship, Julie says there is no place she'd rather live. PIEPER: A lot of people can say they live someplace beautiful, and a lot of people can say they live in a wonderful community, and the people know that they have both.

SIMON: A community that will come back, the question, though, is when.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

SIMON: Well, the key, of course, is getting those roads repaired. Business owners know it's going to be slow going. You have more than 40 percent of the jobs directly related to tourism, so there is concern about the immediate future -- Victor, Christi.

BLACKWELL: So much work to do.

PAUL: Yes, I know.

Dan Simon, we're so grateful that you keep us up-to-date there. Thank you much, in Estes Park, Colorado, live for us this morning.

BLACKWELL: All right. Still to come, it's time for the biggest night in TV. The Emmys.

PAUL: Yes, there is a ton of buzz around actress like Kerry Washington. Is she going to grab the gold tonight? We'll have more for you after this.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PAUL: Welcome back.

All righty. So, tonight, Hollywood is honoring the best of the best at the Annual Emmy Awards, and Kerry Washington the one to watch.

BLACKWELL: Yes, one of my favorites. I love "Scandal".

(CROSSTALK)

BLACKWELL: I love "Scandal."

Hey, she is the first African-American actress in 16 years to be nominated in the lead drama category. But let me say, and we discussed this, the idea that the actress that plays the first lady and the vice president and Cyrus Beene, the actor, they weren't nominated. It hurts.

PAUL: Does it hurt you? I'm sorry.

BLACKWELL: Because I love the show so much.

PAUL: But you love her, so still --

BLACKWELL: Yes, yes.

(CROSSTALK) PAUL: He could be redeemed by the end of tonight. Let's take a look.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

KERRY WASHINGTON, ACTRESS: Are you seriously going to stand here and suggest that divorcing your wife and moving me into the White House in the midst of an election is not a tiny bit of a problem in.

NISCHELLE TURNER, CNN ENTERTAINMENT CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): It's those jaw-dropping moments that have made "Scandal" one of the most buzzed about series on television --

(SHOUTING)

TURNER: -- and made star Kerry Washington one of the most in demand women in Hollywood.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I feel like watching her have this moment right now is so exciting. She's so deserving of it.

WASHINGTON: Governor.

TURNER: The actress is up for her very first Emmy for playing high- powered D.C. fixer and presidential mistress, Olivia Pope --

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Kerry Washington, "Scandal."

TURNER: -- marking the first time an African-American has been nominated for the lead actress in a drama series Emmy in 18 years.

MAGGIE FURLONG, WEST COAST EDITOR, HUFFPOST TV: It's really such a landmark to have an African-American female lead be acknowledges in this category. It has not happened in decades. This is a huge, huge milestone.

TURNER: The last contender was Cicely Tyson in 1995 for the short- lived "Sweet Justice."

CICELY TYSON, ACTRESS: What I really want to know is how --

(CROSSTALK)

TURNER: And if Washington wins, this will mark the first time a black female has won this award. Other celebrities are acknowledging what this means for diversity on TV.

PAULA PATTON, ACTRESS: It's a huge achievement. That means we're moving forward. Now, it may not be as fast as we all would like, but at least there's a forward movement.

SHONDA RHIMES, CREATOR/EXECUTIVE PRODUCER: It's disturbing. Isn't it? It feels really odd it's been that long.

TAYE DIGGS, ACTOR: You're caught between rejoicing and celebrating for the acknowledgment, but then being reminded. One of the reasons we're so happy is it hasn't happened in so long.

TURNER: A scandalous oversight Washington is helping to change.

Will the star snag Emmy gold? Tune in Sunday to catch the ending to this cliffhanger.

WASHINGTON: Run and win.

TURNER: Nischelle Turner, CNN, Hollywood.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLACKWELL: All right. Latest now on the breaking news.

(VIDEO CLIP PLAYS)

BLACKWELL: CNN can now confirm 59 people dead at the Westgate Mall in Nairobi, Kenya.

PAUL: And we can also tell you, 10 to 15 terrorists are involved and there are around 30 hostages. All of that information coming to us from Kenyan and Western diplomatic.

BLACKWELL: Also, close to 200 people are wounded, including this woman. She is an American. Elaine Dang is her name. She's from San Diego.

She is living in Nairobi. She works as a general manager of a restaurant in the mall. Her employer tweeted this morning that Dang is doing well.

PAUL: And "The New York Times" photo journalist, Tyler Hicks, was near the mall when the terrorists stormed the mall on Saturday, yesterday. And we talked with him earlier this morning on NEW DAY as he described the stream of shoppers who are racing out of that mall. Listen to this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TYLER HICKS, NEW YORK TIMES PHOTOJOURNALIST (via telephone): It was really amazing to see, you know, even after being there an hour, an hour and a half, two hours, people continued to suddenly come out of shops. They have barricaded themselves inside either by locking the doors or by pulling the metal gates down in front of the storefront windows.

And that was -- every 15 or 20 minutes, suddenly, you know, 20, 30, 50, 100 people would come out of another place that were just terrified. You know, even though they could hear that there were people outside, they couldn't really tell who -- if that was the police or the army. They were just petrified and staying low, which is the right thing to do.

I never saw any of the armed militants, but there was shooting going on. There was exchange of gunfire going on while we were in the mall.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLACKWELL: Again, 59 people killed in that terror attack.

PAUL: We'll see you back here at the top of the hour.

BLACKWELL: "SANJAY GUPTA, M.D." starts now.