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Permission to Fight ISIS; Kayla Mueller's Death; UNC Students Killed

Aired February 11, 2015 - 14:00   ET

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

BROOKE BALDWIN, CNN ANCHOR: Hi there. I'm Brooke Baldwin. You're watching CNN.

President Obama is getting ready to speak about ISIS after asking Congress to authorize a war. Something that has not been done in 13 years. The authorization for the use of military force, otherwise known as AUMF, has now officially been sent to lawmakers on Capitol Hill. And I know you might be thinking, hang on a second, why isn't he already dropping bombs on ISIS? We've been doing this for months and months, six months to be precise. But you have to think about it this way, the president has the ability to start using military force, which he has been doing in both Syria and Iraq. But the president cannot keep using that military force indefinitely without getting the OK from members of Congress, which he has been asking for, for months.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I have the authority to address the threat from ISIL, but I believe we are strongest as a nation when the president and Congress work together.

I'm going to begin engaging Congress over a new authorization to use military force against ISIL.

And tonight I call on this Congress to show the world that we are united in this mission by passing a resolution to authorize the use of force against ISIL. We need that authority.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: But before authorizing anything, Congress wants three key questions answered, how long will this war take? The president now says three years. Geographically, where will this war happen? Unsure. But the battlefield will not be restricted to Iraq and Syria. And finally, what exactly is the scope of the U.S. involvement? No boots on the ground. Well, specifically no enduring offensive ground combat operations. Jim Acosta, CNN's senior White House correspondent, is with me now.

And, Jim, will that be enough for Congress?

JIM ACOSTA, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: No, I don't think so, Brooke. It's not going to be enough for Congress. And, you know, you would think that the battle for this White House ahead is convincing Republicans, but Democrats are already saying that this language is too fuzzy. That phrase, "enduring offensive combat operations" that is specified in this AUMF, you have Democrats scratching their heads and asking, well, what does this mean? And when I asked the press secretary, Josh Earnest, at the White House briefing earlier this afternoon, what does that mean, what is this language and I asked, you know, is this fuzzy? And Josh Earnest replied very candidly, this language is intentionally fuzzy.

And so the White House is saying here that the reason why it is fuzzy is because they want to give the president the latitude to conduct this campaign against ISIS the way he sees fit. But as you mention, in that AUMF, there are limitations and that's what the White House is trying to convey to Democrats, there are limitations. The three year sunset that is built into the language. That sort of ties the hands of a future president, Clinton or whoever, that that person would have to go back to Congress and re-up this authorization three years from now. So the Democrats are trying to say that as well.

One thing we do want to point out, as you mentioned, Brooke, there is no specification in this AUMF about geographic limitations and the White House says that's because the president wants to be able to pursue ISIS wherever they are. But it is very clear in this language and this authorization of the use of military force that this campaign will go on beyond President Obama's time in office, Brooke.

BALDWIN: OK. Well, we'll listen in if there is any specificity in the fuzziness next hour when we hear from him. Jim Acosta at the White House, thank you, sir. We'll talk again.

We now know that the United States has attempted to rescue 26-year-old aid worker Kayla Mueller, but President Obama says they probably missed her by a day or two. That's it, he says, a day or two.

We're also getting more details about Mueller's cruel death and just remarkable life. Her death confirmed in a disgusting private message sent to her family. A photograph showing what we now know was Kayla's body wrapped in Muslim garb and traditional burial shroud.

We are also now hearing Kayla Mueller may have been forced into relations with a male ISIS fighter at some point in time during her captivity in Syria. This is actually coming specifically to us from the intelligence community who say she may have been given to this terrorist as some sort of bride. It is a sickening thought, of course, for the family, who spoke just yesterday about their beloved Kayla.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ERYN STREET, CHILDHOOD FRIEND OF KAYLA: I'm not yet sure how to live in a world without Kayla, but I do know that we're all living in a better world because of her. So I'm going to end on a quote that reminds me of her. "Peace is not something you wish for. It's something you make. It's something you do. It's something you are. And it's something you give away."

LORI LYON, KAYLA MUELLER'S AUNT: My daughter said to me things that were important to Kayla are finally getting the attention that they deserve. Kayla has touched the heart of the world. The world grieves with us. The world mourns with us. The world wants to be more like Kayla. And if that is her legacy and the footprint that she leaves on the world, then that is a wonderful thing.

In Kayla's letter to Marsha and Carl she wrote, "I have come to see there is good in every situation. Sometimes we just have to look for it." And right now that's what we're all trying to do.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: After watching that news conference yesterday, it's hard to not be thinking of Kayla Mueller constantly and her strength, her resilience. Someone who met her is Janine di Giovanni, Middle East editor for "Newsweek."

Janine, welcome.

JANINE DI GIOVANNI, AWARD-WINNING CORRESPONDENT/AUTHOR: Thank you.

BALDWIN: I know you met Kayla in 2013 before she even entered Syria. And I want to get to those moments, your reflections on her. But first, you know, she was made a prisoner and likely, let's just be real about this, forced into relations with this ISIS fighter. This is the reporting we're hearing. Which to me begs the question, if she was seen as this prized prisoner, why kill her and then why show her family her young body dressed in this shroud?

DI GIOVANNI: I don't think we know how she was killed yet, so I'm not sure whether she was killed in the bombing, in the air strike, or if she was killed by them. I don't think that, at the moment, is really the issue.

I think the issue at hand is the fact that while she was incredibly well meaning and well intentioned, her death really points out how dangerous it is working inside Syria for aid workers, for journalists, for any humanitarians that are trying to help the Syrian people. And her fate and this tragedy is really an illustration of that.

BALDWIN: I guess -- I hear you. I guess my point, when I heard that she was, you know, in this burial, this Muslim shroud, it made me think that has - and I don't know and you can't climb in the minds of ISIS, but I have to think so much of this is for propaganda and it's staged.

DI GIOVANNI: Absolutely. I mean so much of the way that ISIS works is propaganda. This is now a propaganda war. A lot of it is -- we know that the horrific video of the Jordanian pilot was made in such a - in a sense such an astute way to try to be used as a recruitment video and as a way of promoting themselves. They're masters of propaganda. Everything they do is very intentionally thought out.

Her death, however, we don't yet know. I mean I think it's more important to focus on what she was doing there, the kind of person she was, and the risk that humanitarian aid workers --

BALDWIN: Let's focus on that. DI GIOVANNI: Yes, that's - let's more, I think, because there's so

much we don't know.

BALDWIN: Let's focus on that. You met Kayla -

DI GIOVANNI: I did.

BALDWIN: You met Kayla at the Syrian/Turkish border. What were your initial impressions of her, Janine?

DI GIOVANNI: I thought she was incredibly young, incredibly naive, very inexperienced. I thought she was passionate and warm and well- meaning and well-intentioned. But to be honest, I left from meeting her incredibly worried. I thought, this is someone that's going to get into trouble.

I've been working in war zones for more than 20 years and so my intuitions about when it's right to cross into borders, when it's not, are pretty well honed. That doesn't prevent me from getting into trouble either. It's just, I was very surprised at how naive she was, at how almost excited to be going into Syria.

I was with another colleague and she was with her Syrian friend, who's also a friend of mine, an activist. And while it's really touching to see people that are that devoted to a cause, as her mother said, peace and to try to bring peace to the world, I think it also has to be pointed out that war in places like Syria are not the place to go when you are very inexperienced, if you don't have hostile environment training, if you've never been in war zones before.

She had worked in Palestine and India and places like that, but she -- my real impression was how naive she was about the political situation in Syria, about the on the ground situation, and I just hope that this doesn't, in many ways, glamorize what it is to work in these places because there are an awful lot of young journalists, young humanitarians who come without proper backing, without knowing what they're doing on the ground and it's terrible. And her death has deeply, deeply saddened me.

But also I think it could have been prevented. So it's a horrible illustration of how brutal ISIS are. And she was a lovely, warm person who had a good heart and who wanted to help the Syrian people, but she really was in the wrong place at the wrong time.

BALDWIN: You would know, as you've said. You've been doing this for more than two decades.

Janine, I know that Kayla, she'd actually - she'd moved to Turkey to work with these two refugee organizations. Not officially employed by either. This is according to what family advisers actually told "The New York Times."

DI GIOVANNI: Yes.

BALDWIN: Yet Doctors Without Borders was surprised to see her when she arrived in Syria. Did it seem she went maybe a little off script there?

DI GIOVANNI: Absolutely. I mean operations like Doctors Without Borders, Norwegian Refugee Council, UNHCR (ph), these are very serious organizations. Before you go to work with them, before you get a contract, they train you seriously with hostile - as I said, hostile environment training, with insurance, with preparation. They screen you psychologically. Doctors Without Borders just doesn't take anyone who turns up at the border. It's a difficult thing to get a role like that.

During the Bosnian War, there were a lot of so-called freelance NGO people who showed up and wanted to help. Some of them did a lot of good. Some of them brought goods into the besieged cities, like Sarajevo and Mustar (ph). And some of them, frankly, were nut jobs that were more hazardous on the ground than helpful.

Now, Bosnia, as dangerous as it was, was not like Syria. Syria is anarchy. It's anarchy for people who know what they're doing. And to see someone as innocent and as inexperienced as her there was terribly frightening for me and my colleague and both of us - both of us who worked inside Syria for -- since the beginning and who know it, know the ground, know the geopolitical situation, know the region well, we both said, that girl, it's very worrying. And she went off and she went into Syria and that was the last we heard of her, although we knew that she had been kidnapped and we had heard rumors that she had been sold to ISIS.

Now, I don't want in any way to diminish what she was doing and that she was a wonderful person with a big heart, but I do want to point out to those many people -- and there are many of them that are coming to (INAUDIBLE), to Beirut, to Amman in Jordan, who want to help but who don't have clear intentions and don't have contracts or work established already for them, how dangerous it is. And this really, Brooke, you would be surprised at how many people give up everything and just get on a flight and try to come to these places to help. And in the end, it's just much more dangerous than they think.

BALDWIN: It is a reality check from someone who knows how hard and unglamorous war is. Janine di Giovanni, Middle East editor for "Newsweek," I truly appreciate you coming on and talking to me about that. Thank you so much.

DI GIOVANNI: Thank you, Brooke.

BALDWIN: And for more on Kayla Mueller, let's go to her hometown, Prescott, Arizona. Ana Cabrera is standing by now where, you know, we heard from her best friend and family members yesterday. You've just spoken with one of her friends. What did they tell you?

ANA CABRERA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Brooke, we just spoke with a woman who actually lived in Turkey. A friend that Kayla made while she was doing her work over there with the Syrian refugees. This woman is named Oruba Barakat (ph) and she is a Syrian native and she says Kayla and her became very close. That Kayla was like family, was the same age as her daughter and she was really struck by Kayla's determination to help people there in any way that she could, despite the fact that she didn't have a direct connection, having been, you know, born in the region, like Aruba was.

Now, Aruba tells us that Kayla was with her the night before she left for Syria. The two had dinner together. And she warned Kayla of the dangers of going into Syria. But Kayla was determined. She had to see the devastation firsthand. Wanted to help those people who couldn't get out of Syria and wanted to find a way to be able to take them medicine or take them food or water or money. And she tells us that Kayla went into Syria with three other people, three people who are Syrians, including a photographer, a man named Omar, who she believed was a boyfriend, as well as a driver and another person, and all four were captured. Listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: They were in a car. They stopped them. They wanted to know what they are going to do, what are they doing in Syria and in that dangerous area and next to Aleppo. Actually Kayla sent us a audio maybe 10, 15 second audio asking for help and her voice was really very sick and sad, you know?

CABRERA: Oh, wow, and this was after she was kidnapped?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: (INAUDIBLE). And she begged for help. I called the American embassy. I called many people inside Syria asking them for help if they can convince the ISIS to free her because she is very good girl. She did very good things for the Syrians. But ISIS don't care about Syrians actually.

CABRERA: When did she send you that 15-second audio that you were talking about? Like as she was being kidnapped, do you think?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes, after maybe and after three months or two months and a half to - for me is -- for anyone can help us, you know?

CABRERA: For anyone.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: She begged for help. Yes, please try to help me. Get me out of here. I'm so sick. I'm dying.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CABRERA: You can imagine those last words and how heartbreaking that was for Barakat to hear. She says she tried to reach back out to Kayla to try to send her messages but got no response. She worked behind the scenes with other militia groups inside Syria, working for connections. Nobody had any results trying to reason with ISIS to free Kayla. And she says the other three hostages who were taken with Kayla were eventually released. But again, she says, they were Syrians and she believes they just had no value to ISIS.

Brooke.

BALDWIN: Ana Cabrera in Prescott, Arizona. Ana, thank you.

From one sickening story to the next, tragedy at my alma mater, UNC Chapel Hill, a man accused of killing three young Muslim students. Was this a hate crime? We'll talk to someone who knew the victims.

Plus, who replaces Jon Stewart in late-night TV, and will Brian Williams ever return to network news? We'll discuss both.

And the man accused of killing the American sniper hears opening statements in the murder trial against him. See what happened in court. Stay here. You're watching CNN.

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BALDWIN: You're watching CNN. I'm Brooke Baldwin.

And I have to tell you, I am sickened today. I am sickened to hear about the killing of three young people at my alma mater, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. One father showed up at the crime scene. We don't yet know his name. But you can see the desperation.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Tell me how my son is. What's his situation? If he is dead, tell me he's dead. If he's alive, tell me he's alive. Just tell me straight up.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: Well now we know what happened and these are three names I need you to remember. They are 23-year-old Deah Barakat, his wife, 21- year-old Yusor Mohammad, and her sister, 19-year-old Razan Mohammad Abu-Salha. They were reportedly shot in the head. Senseless.

They are all Muslim. Police say it is not clear though if, at this point, that is why they were attacked. They're investigating. But the father of these two women said this to "The News and Observer" and I want to quote him exactly. He said, "this was not a dispute over a parking space. This was a hate crime. This man had picked on my daughter and her husband a couple of times before and he talked with them with his gun in his belt and they were uncomfortable with him but they did not know he would go this far."

Here is what we do know. Their futures were incredibly bright. Razan was a student at North Carolina State. Her sister was just going to begin dental school at UNC. And her husband, Deah, already studying dentistry there, had plans for the summer. Not a vacation, but a mission for Syrian refugees.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DEAH BARAKAT: Have you ever felt helpless about the situation in Syria and felt like you can't do anything about it? Well, this is your opportunity to help. This summer I'm embarking on a trip to Turkey with 10 dentists to help Syrian refugee students in need of urgent dental care.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: Joining me now, Shafi Khan, one of the founders of United Muslim Relief and a friend of the victims.

Shafi, thank you so much for coming on with me. And I am so sorry for your loss.

SHAFI KHAN, FRIEND OF MUSLIM STUDENTS KILLED: Thank you. It's good to be here. Thank you for inviting me.

BALDWIN: You knew all three of them through your organization. I want to get to their work in just a minute. But first, Shafi, just can you talk to me about their character.

KHAN: You know, we live in a time of intense individualism and consumerism and these three served as shining examples to youth all over the world of the hearts that they have, the importance of serving others. They lived for something greater than themselves.

I met Deah many years ago. Him and his wife, Yusor, helped launch the United Muslim Relief Triangle Chapter. The younger sister, Razan, was a current officer in our chapter at the UMR Triangle Chapter in Raleigh/Chapel Hill and Durham. And her job was monthly feedings for the homeless. And she would set up feedings where our students and young volunteers would go out every month and serve the people of Raleigh. And that should tell you everything you need to know about the characters of these people. These were the best of the best. These are the kind of people, characters, the kind of children that every parent dreams for. And it's a tragic, tragic loss for the community.

BALDWIN: I'm so glad you pointed out the monthly homeless feedings. I've seen pictures on the Internet. I mean it's not just that Deah was going to go to Turkey this summer, but this is something they did daily, weekly, monthly. Can you talk to me a little bit more about Deah's trip, though, to Turkey this summer? I mean why was this so important to him?

KHAN: You know, Deah was following in his brother's footsteps also. His brother, Fatis (ph), served with us and served Syrian refugees in Turkey before. This is a family that has inspired many people in the community. It's not just - it wasn't just Deah. It was the brother and the sister. And what Deah was doing was getting together -- help to get dental - meet the dental needs of Syrian refugees. And this is something that no one really discusses or talks about. It's really, really hard to inspire people to get them involved for something like dental relief, but it's something that's so important that we don't realize. And he picked up something that was so tough and went after it and did a great job. And if you - and I really hope this mission continues and it will be fulfilled. And we're going to do our best to hopefully support them and make sure that this is recorded on his good deeds.

BALDWIN: The - I read a quote a moment ago from "The Raleigh News and Observer," from the two women's father saying that he feels absolutely that the three of them were attacked because of their religion, because of their culture. And when you look at the suspect's FaceBook page, and I'm not wasting anyone's time reading any of it, but it's clearly very anti-religion. And I'll just leave it there. I was looking at Deah's Twitter feed and one of the tweets I just

wanted to share it, it's since been re-tweeted many, many times. He said - he wrote last month, "it's so freaking sad to hear people say we should kill Jews or kill Palestinians, as if that's going to solve anything. Shaking my head."

How aware was he of just this sort of sense of maybe feeling discriminated against because of being Muslim in the North Carolina area or in general? Did he ever express any fears like that to you?

KHAN: Well, you know, I'm a North Carolinian too. I grew up in North Carolina. And it's a beautiful state with beautiful people. But our organization, United Muslim Relief, we're a non-political humanitarian organization. But speaking as an American Muslim, I can tell you, we can't deny that there's a sentiment in the community that we feel that we're being targeted for our faith. There is certain sections of the media on political apparatus that are constantly dehumanizing Muslims.

And, you know, I want to take this minute and I want to ask people like Fox News and Bobby Jindal to stop this dehumanization of Muslims. It's really, really starting to take a toll. We had, just last month, an elected official named John Bennett (ph), who is a state senator, said that Islam is a cancer that needs to be cut out of society. And the Republican Party establishment, instead of condemning him, they came out and made a point to say that we stand by him. These people need to reflect sincerely about what they're doing to the social cohesion of this country. Imagine if someone had said that about the Jewish community. And the important point here is that black lives matter, white lives matter and Muslim lives matter, all lives matter. And we have to start putting this point across to the community.

BALDWIN: I don't want to make a blanket statement about Republicans, Democrats. You said you were coming from a non-political perspective. But I understand your frustration and it sounds like perhaps some of these young people did as well. Shafi Khan, thank you.

KHAN: You're welcome.

BALDWIN: Just ahead, the movie captivated the nation and now the real life version of "American Sniper" is unfolding in court. Opening statements are underway. We'll take you inside that courtroom.

Plus, he is suspended for six months without pay, or will it be worse? Our next guest says do not count on Brian Williams returning to that set at all.

Plus, did he actually lobby to replace Jay Leno as a late-night talk show host? Stick around for this. You're watching CNN.

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