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U.S. Officials Say Russia's Air Strikes Hit Rebel Positions in Syria; Afghan Authorities Say They've Retaken Most of Kunduz from Taliban Fighters. Aired 3:00-4:00 a.m ET

Aired October 01, 2015 - 03:00   ET

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


[03:00:00] (COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ROSEMARY CHURCH, CNN INTERNATIONAL NEWSROOM ANCHOR: Hello and welcome to our viewers here in the United States and all around the world. I'm Rosemary Church.

ERROL BARNETT, CNN INTERNATIONAL NEWSROOM ANCHOR: And I'm Errol Barnett. Thank you for joining us on this second hour of CNN Newsroom.

CHURCH: U.S. and Russian officials are preparing for military talks about airstrikes in Syria, possibly in the coming hours. Russia says Syrian president Bashar al-Assad asked for the country's help in fighting ISIS, so it unleashed a series of strikes on Wednesday.

BARNETT: Opposition groups say it's not the terror group, but civilians who are dying in these bombings. The Syrian national coalition claims 36 people, and all of them civilians, were killed in the airstrikes. A senior U.S. official tells CNN, Russia hit some elements of the free Syrian army in its first day of airstrikes.

Those are the forces fighting against President al-Assad who is Russia's ally. While the U.S. and Russia disagree on exactly who was targeted, they do agree their militaries they need to talk to avoid unintended incidents.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SERGEY LAVROV, RUSSIAN FOREIGN MINISTER: The first instruction to us was to make sure that the military of the United States, the coalition led by the United States on the one hand on the one hand and the military of the Russian Federation, who now engage in some operations in Syria at the request of the Syrian government, get in touch and establish channels of communications to avoid any unintended incidents.

JOHN KERRY, US SECRETARY OF STATE: It is one thing obviously to be targeting ISIL. We're concerned, obviously, if that is not what is happening.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHURCH: U.S. officials say the Russians gave them very little notice of the impending airstrikes in Syria, and that the notice came in unorthodox fashion.

BARNETT: Our Pentagon correspondent, Barbara Starr, asked the U.S. Defense Secretary about that. Listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BARBARA STARR, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: You've been dealing yourself with the Russians for years. So a Russian general shows up this morning at the embassy in Baghdad and apparently reads your people a note, saying the airstrikes are going to begin in one hour.

What do you make of that? Is that -- as secretary of defense, is that acceptable military-to-military relations with you, and where does this leave you if you sit down and talk to the Russian military about a way ahead? Is this not a little bizarre?

ASHTON CARTER, U.S. SECRETARY OF DEFENSE: Well, you're right. I have been dealing with them for a long time, and this is not the kind of behavior that we should expect professionally from the Russian military, professionally, and that's one reason why I think it's a good thing to have an avenue of communication that is less unprofessional than a drop-in.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHURCH: Now, Russia insists the army of Syrian President Bashar al- Assad is the only legitimate fighting force in Syria, and that the U.S.-led coalition is breaking international law. Our Senior International correspondent, Matthew Chance, is following developments from Moscow and joins us live to talk about all of this.

Matthew, it's all happened quite recently and happening quite quickly, but all evidence suggest Russian forces struck rebel-held strongholds and were nowhere near ISIS hot spots in Syria. But the Kremlin's still saying that ISIS are the only enemies in their fight. What's the latest you're hearing from there this morning?

MATTHEW CHANCE, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, that's right. I mean, the Russian Defense Ministry issued a statement late last night saying they struck eight positions of the Islamic state including vehicles and command centers and ammunition dumps, and things like that, even released video of -- sort of nose cone video from airplanes taken as those air strikes were carried out.

So, yeah, there was a big discrepancy in what one side is saying, what the Russians are saying and what the United States and others are saying as well. But I think, you know, just to get to this one issue, there is some question over what Russia's ambitions are in Syria, but he's actually made that quite clear, from my reading of the situation anyway.

[03:05:08] Vladimir Putin saying this at the U.N. General Assembly a couple of days ago, "Look," they're saying, "it was a mistake not to give Bashar al-Assad, the president of Syria, the support that he needed to fight ISIS." That's what Russia is now clearly doing, supporting the government of Bashar al-Assad. And if that means striking ISIS, fine; but it may also involve striking other groups that are fighting Bashar al-Assad.

So their priority appears to be protecting the government of the Syrian leader. It all happened so quickly, though. I mean, it was just yesterday morning that the Russian parliament approved the use of Russian forces abroad, in a combat operation. Within a few hours after that, Russia had formally entered the Syrian civil war.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CHANCE: This is the aftermath of Russia's first airstrike in Syria, and its violent announcement of involvement in this brutal war. The Kremlin says it's targeting ISIS forces, but these chaotic images are from the province of Homs where other rebel groups hold sway. Moscow draws little distinction, it seems, between the enemies of its Syrian government ally.

It took Russia's parliament less than half an hour to rubber stamp the use of military force, albeit temporary, and limited to air power. The Russian officials justify it as legal under international law unlike the air strikes, they say, carried out by the United States and its allies.

LAVROV (THROUGH TRANSLATOR): I want to inform you the president of the Syrian Arab republic addressed the leadership of our country with a request for military assistance. So we can state that it is necessary to fight terrorism. International efforts should be united, but complying with the norms of international law is preferable.

CHANCE: But few expected to see Russian military action so soon despite emerging evidence over the past month of a Russian military build-up. Moscow has good reason to support its Syrian ally, including military and economic interest in Syria, and a genuine concern about the spread of radical Islamic groups like ISIS.

But the Kremlin also seems driven by a desire to re-assert its power, and to show that Russia remains a global force to be reckoned with. It was a message delivered by Vladimir Putin so forcefully at the U.N. General Assembly earlier this week. Western policy on Syria and elsewhere, he said, had failed, leaving chaos in its wake.

LAVROV (THROUGH TRANSLATOR): I'm urged to ask those who created this situation, do you at least realize now what you've done? But I'm afraid that this question will remain unanswered because they have never abandoned their policy, which is based on arrogance, exceptionally and impunity.

BARNETT: But now it seems Russia is offering its own answers. These are the first images from the Russian defense ministry of these airstrikes. Military equipments, communication centers and motor vehicles were among the target's attack, it says. And this is just day one of what could be Russia's open-ended Syrian war.

(END VIDEO CLIP) CHANCE: Errol, when I started day two within the past few hours, there's been a statement from the Russian Foreign Minister, Sergey Lavrov, after meeting with the U.S. Secretary of State. He said essentially, "those rumors," as he called them, "that targets other than Islamic state had been struck by Russian warplanes, are totally unfounded." He also said that he had no data on the reports, but there have been civilian casualties already as a result of the Russian airstrikes.

BARNETT: And we'll see what happens in the next few days. Matthew Chance, live in Moscow for us. Eight minutes past 10 in the morning there. Matthew, thanks.

CHURCH: CNN military analyst, Lieutenant Colonel Rick Francona, joins me now to talk more about what's going on in Syria right now. So colonel, from what you have been able to ascertain, what were the targets that Russia likely hit in these airstrikes in Syria?

LIEUTENANT COLONEL RICK FRANCONA, CNN MILITARY ANALYST: Yes, it looks like they were going after anti-regime rebels. I know their talk about going after ISIS was probably just that. The areas that they struck in Hama and Homs, there's very few ISIS targets in that area. And all of the videos that we've seen coming out after the strikes, don't show any ISIS involvement.

CHURCH: So it begs the question, what is Russia's intent here in Syria, do you think? And wouldn't it have been a wiser move for Russia to go after ISIS targets first, no matter what its intentions are?

FRANCONA: Yes, I would think that -- I thought they would go after ISIS first and kind of establish that as their baseline.

[03:05:00] FRANCONA: Much as the Turks did. The Turks went after ISIS first and then they devoted their attention to he PKK targets. I thought the Russians might do the same. So it looks like their intent is solely to prop up the Assad regime. They want to maintain access to those bases in the future, and if Assad falls, they may lose that.

CHURCH: And they seem to be pretty open about that, certainly by actions here, if they're not saying it. And of course these Russian airstrikes come just a few days after that very frosty meeting between President Obama and Putin at the UNGA on how to coordinate military action in Syria.

So given that, how should the United States respond to Russia's actions, and how dangerous is this new phase of U.S.-Russian relations?

FRANCONA: Yes, right. You know, the way the Russians went about this today, marching into the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad and demanding that we remove our aircraft from Syrian airspace and we're going to begin bombing in one hour, that's not how you act to people you're supposed to be coordinating with.

This is going to get very dangerous. Right now, you've got the aircraft from Syrian Air Force, the Russian Air Force and the U.S.-led coalition operating in a very confined area. These are high performance aircraft, lots of weapons, lots of, you know, people on edge when they're flying these missions.

Any misjudgment could result in an incident that will lead to fatalities on somebody's side. The deconfliction has to be worked out. But there's going to be a confrontation between the United States and Russia, over who controls that airspace, and right now we're seeing the gauntlet laid down, and I think we're going to see what each side is made of.

CHURCH: Lieutenant Colonel Rick Francona, a very delicate situation, thank you so much for your analysis, keeping an eye on what is perhaps occurring on the ground here in Syria. Many thanks to you.

FRANCONA: Good to be with you, Rose.

BARNETT: Now some new information into CNN this past hour. Iraq's prime minister says the Russian airstrikes in Syria are beneficial, and he would welcome them in his country as well as long as they were to fight ISIS. That is, if Moscow joins the U.S.-led coalition.

Haider al-Abadi made these comments during an interview on Wednesday. He also said he met with Russia's president and urged him to join the fight against Isis. Let's hear a bit more analysis on all of this now and bring in Igor Sutyagin who is a senior research fellow in Russian studies at the Royal United Services Institute. He joins us this morning from London.

Igor, thanks for coming into CNN today. President Putin appears to be going all in and gambling big here, in his words, "to protect the al- Assad regime." In your view, why did Russia take such fast and obvious actions that hurt rebel-held populations and not ISIS strongholds, because not just undermines the argument Putin's been making?

IGOR SUTYAGIN, ROYAL UNITED SERVICES INSTITUTE SENIOR RESEARCH FELLOW IN RUSSIAN STUDIES: Well, the problem is that domestically, the Kremlin is extremely successful in cheating its own population, and it seems that the Kremlin got the feeling that it can cheat everybody because it's very difficult to locate where actually a bomb is falling.

So that is the belief. They probably hope that they can cheat. And the additional problem is that, actually it seems to me that actually the goal of the Kremlin does not have anything common with fighting ISIS or maybe even defending her, it's just side effect.

It seems that the main goal now is just to get sanctions which are imposed against the Kremlin after Ukraine, to get the sanctions lifted. And that is probably the Kremlin's calculation. It would be very, very difficult to extend sanctions in December against your ally in supposedly fighting world terrorism.

BARNETT: However, if they continue, as you say, even if they're trying to lie or cheat, the video, the reports are obvious that these are rebel-held areas being hit. What do you make of the goals then with this short-term, because if you're hitting rebels, you're helping ISIS because those rebels are fighting ISIS. And if you look at the positioning of Russian assets, they're not really placed or poised to attack ISIS if you look at where they are. So, what do you think they are trying to accomplish in these next few months before believing that they may get sanctions lifted?

SUTYAGIN: Well, it seems to me that they will adjust their actions and they will start hitting ISIS targets because it is quite possible for aviation to fly overhead of asset opponents and then to hit behind their lines somewhere on the territory controlled by ISIS. I do think that they will do that but still will keep doing their own business, defending Assad, which is still a sort of side effect of their policy.

BARNETT: And what fascinates me, you know, watching this behavior is that it's done despite the many risks of taking such action. You've noted that ISIS only has two declared enemies, the U.S. and Russia.

[03:10:02] Back home, the Russian economy is on fumes, that's because of low oil prices and sanctions as we talked about but could this intervention invite an ISIS attack on Russia?

SUTYAGIN: Yes, it can and I am afraid that it will because well, there is the branch of ISIS, we can discuss how effective and powerful, but there is a formal branch of ISIS on the Russian territory. And so they can launch terrorist attacks on the Russian territory.

But that is another example of the short-sided nature of the Kremlin's politics now because they -- it seems that they use as the universal rule, let's solve problems as they come to us, and there's no ISIS attacks right now, so we can be calm and keep carrying what we are doing. So, it seems to me that it is worse than crime. It is the mistake, potentially very, very serious mistake by the Kremlin.

BARNETT: Igor Sutyagin, saying there -- essentially saying this is a mistake for Russia and the nation is misleading all of us. So we appreciate your insight with us from the Royal United Services Institute and joining us from London. Appreciate it.

CHURCH: After a humiliating defeat and days of fierce fighting, Afghan officials say government forces are back in control of most of Kunduz.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BARNETT: Some of the recent footage out of the city. A local police spokesman, though said soldiers were clearing out Taliban fighters early Thursday, but two of the key city's six districts are still under the militant's control. Now, online Taliban statement says, government forces were pushed back.

CHURCH: The United Nations has heard reports that up to 6,000 civilians have fled the city.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

And with more from Kabul, Sune Engel Rasmussen joins us now. He is a reporter with "The Guardian" newspaper in the U.K. So, Sune, any celebration, of course, of Afghan control over Kunduz appears a little premature right now with Taliban still evident in some districts there, too, as we mentioned there, but can Afghan forces hold on to the city and keep the Taliban out long-term once they do clear those remaining areas?

SUNE ENGEL RASMUSSEN, REPORTER, THE GUARDIAN NEWSPAPER, U.K.: That's a good question, Rosemary, and I think that's what a lot of people in Kunduz ask themselves as well. I think keeping Kunduz City effectively is going -- is definitely going to be possible for the Afghan Security Forces, but Kunduz as a province has long seen that public unrest since the invasion in 2001 actually.

And part of the reason for that is that the government forces rely to a large extent on public relations -- for example, that they are known for human rights abuses and for not having a lot of support among the people. So even if the Taliban are now pushed out of Kunduz City, they'll still be present in the districts and the security forces of the government will still have to work on long-term solutions to create stability in the city.

And as we speak now, there's still fighting in some areas of the city for example, around the police headquarters, but also in districts of -- in parts of districts that the government actually now declared under government control.

There's still (inaudible) which was captured last night by the Taliban, the government forces say they have a control over that but I hear that from locals there, approximately 50 percent, 60 percent of the district is still in Taliban hands. So, it's still a long way to go for the government to report.

CHURCH: Interesting. Authority is certainly painting a rosier picture than what is apparently happening on the ground there. So where are the Taliban who took over Kunduz on Monday? Where are most of them now? And are they simply regrouping, ready to return en masse again?

SUTYAGIN: They don't seem to be regrouping in significant numbers, but some of them left prior to the operation last night. I went to a district called Char Dara, where they brought vehicles and they brought weapons that they seized during this past four days when they were in control of Kunduz.

Others simply just fled to the suburbs, you know, districts around Kunduz, and some of them apparently are hiding in civilian houses. We get reports that there is fighting going on with Taliban shooting from civilian houses against security forces in some areas of Kunduz City. So it's a little bit spread out, some in other districts regrouping and some of them just hiding inside Kunduz.

CHURCH: All right. Hearing the latest today from Sune Engel Rasmussen with "The Guardian", and reporting there for us from Kabul. Many thanks to you.

BARNETT: All right, many more big stories we're following for you. Hurricane Joaquin could make a landfall in the States in the coming days. We're going to get you the latest information from the CNN Weather Center.

[03:14:58] CHURCH: Plus Palestinian Prime Minister Mahmoud Abbas drops what he calls a bombshell at the United Nations. Details just ahead here on CNN Newsroom.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KATE RILEY, CNN SPORTS ANCHOR: I'm Kate Riley with your CNN World Sport Headlines.

It's been a better night for the English clubs in the Champions League with both Manchester United and City coming from behind to win. City fought back to claim a crucial 2-1 win and then goal leveled the match, and then City were given a further lifeline, a penalty in the last minute as Sergio Aguero won the game.

And in Manchester, United also triumphed 2-1. Wolfsburg went ahead early, but then their goalscorer, Caligiuri, handed Juan Mata's cross in the box. Mata stepped up to equalize. The Spaniard then (inaudible) for Chris Smalling to give the Premier League leader victory.

Elsewhere, it was a memorable night for former Man United star, Cristiano Ronaldo. Real Madrid's main man scored his 500th and 501st goals for Madrid in their 2-0 away win to Malmo. It means that Ronaldo has now tied Madrid legend, Raul, with 323 goals for the club.

And Chelsea manager, Jose Mourinho, has been cleared of using discriminatory language against club doctor, Eva Carneiro. Mourinho won't face any disciplinary action by the F.A. Carneiro was removed from match day duties last month and has since left the club. At her time of departure, she was said to be considering legal action.

That's a look at all your sports headlines. I'm Kate Riley.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

CHURCH: We have this story just into CNN. A series of bombs have exploded in southern China in Liuzhou City. Xinhua News Agency reports the latest came Thursday morning, although there are no reports of casualties in that blast. The string of bombings has killed at least seven people over the past day.

BARNETT: You can just see the wreckage that we're getting a glimpse of for the first time here. Investigators say 17 parcel bombs have exploded across the town. They say a suspect paid couriers to deliver the letter bombs throughout the area. Police have identified another 60 suspicious packages which they say are being disposed of. We'll keep watching this developing story for you.

Hurricane Joaquin is picking up strength and quickly.

CHURCH: Yes. It is now a category 3 hurricane, as it lashes the Bahamas. Forecasters think it may veer toward the United States and could make landfall on the North Carolina Coast as early as Sunday. [03:24:56] BARNETT: Now, the northeastern region of the U.S. is already dealing with heavy rains and could expect more flooding. Virginia has issued a state of emergency just in preparation for Joaquin. Considering how serious this is, let's bring in our meteorologist Pedram Javaheri for the latest on Joaquin. It could soak a place. It's already wet.

PEDRAM JAVAHERI, CNN INTERNATIONAL METEOROLOGIST: Absolutely. And, you know, because of the amount of people in the path, I'm going to choose a big story because we're -- we're calculating somewhere around 80 million people will be in the path of the storm across the eastern seaboard. About 320 million people in the United States last census says, that's 1 in every 4 people could be impacted by this.

This is -- it's a big story and of course at this time of year the trees have a lot of foliage on them, that's a large surface area you put rainfall on this and get the trees to weigh down, the wind, of course, with the leaves on them as well will impact these trees coming down so, you know, millions could be seen power outages if the storm system tracks its way towards the northeast.

So, that's why there's a lot of elements to be seen if this track does take it in towards the most densely populated corner of the U.S. So, this is what we're watching right now. We know the moisture is certainly plentiful across the environment in this region.

So the area is indicated with 80 million people, we're saying this for people to be making the preparations, essentially getting your hurricane kits in line, getting yourself ready for food and water, necessities for a several-day period ahead of the storm system if the models take the storm in that very direction, of course flash flooding, your power outages, travel the waves, something that you would expect with a storm system.

This minute a category 3 sitting there with 120-mile-per-hour winds. The Bahamas and portions of the Turks and Caicos is seeing a brunt of the storm right now because it's literally sitting there, moving just about 6 miles per hour. So you can get out and jog past the storm system if you're paralleling it on land.

That's how slow it is moving and this pouring rainfall are across this region, but the complexity of the storm comes in with what we call a negatively tilted trough and essentially a trough that is tilted from the southeast towards the northwest and with this sort of pattern typically tells you a storm has reached full maturity and the storm system approaches the southeastern United States, just offshore, of course.

We would have Hurricane Joaquin parking off in place on Saturday afternoon into Sunday. But typically with view with these troughs they're like the guide storms to the north, they sometimes steer storms toward the United States if the placement is as such over the southeastern United States. Of course, some of the models are saying the storm itself will be guided off to the -- farther east out and would be taken out towards Bermuda with the area of high pressure in place. There are a couple of elements that we're looking at here when it comes to this category 3, see the areas indicated in blue? That means light winds directly above it, light wind shear. The storm system would be expected to strengthen. Beyond that it gets up to a category 4 and encounters the areas indicated in red. That is more unfavorable wind shear, much more stronger winds above the storm shredding it apart. At that point, it could still be a category 2.

Look at the sea surface temperatures, bath-water like working your way up the eastern seaboard, so now we have winds trying to rip the storm apart, the water temperatures are warm. At this point, it looks like even if it weakens, because it could get to category 4, it won't have enough time to weaken past potentially a category 2 that impacts the northeast U.S. on Sunday.

So 10-plus inches of rainfall. On top of some of the rains you guys talked about a few moments ago, would be catastrophic for an area, and as I said with trees and the foliage still on the trees, that impacts how the weight of the trees are distributed when the winds are blowing and the rain is coming down.

BARNETT: So we just don't know which quickly line is accurate?

JAVAHERI: It is as complex as a storm system as we've seen in a very long time. A lot of weather elements, so we're just saying be prepared for worst-case scenario if it veers towards United States.

CHURCH: But people will be ready, and they've had the warnings.

JAVAHERI: Absolutely. At least the warnings are there four, five days in advance.

CHURCH: Absolutely.

BARNETT: We know you'll be watching it closely.

JAVAHERI: Will do.

BARNETT: Thanks a lot, Pedram.

CHURCH: Pedram. Well, there's a new flag outside the United Nations headquarters in New York. That's just ahead. Along with Israel's reaction to a surprising announcement from the Palestinian leader. We're back in a moment.

[03:28:42] (COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BARNETT: Welcome back to those of you watching in the U.S. and tuned in from around the world. This is CNN Newsroom. Your last half hour of the day with both of us. I'm Errol Barnett.

CHURCH: And I'm Rosemary Church. I want to check the headlines for you this hour.

Afghan officials say most of the City of Kunduz is back under government control. A spokesman for the local police said Afghan forces were clearing out Taliban fighters early Thursday, but an online Taliban statement claims government forces were pushed back.

BARNETT: U.S. and Russian military officials could meet as soon as Thursday to talk about how to stay out of each other's way while carrying out air strikes in Syria. Russian fighter jets began bombing targets on Wednesday after giving the U.S. just one hour's notice.

Russia says it's hitting ISIS targets. The U.S. officials say Russia's actually hitting Syrian opposition groups.

CHURCH: And this just in to CNN, Iran's Press TV reports a higher number of Iranian victims from last week's stampede at the Hajj. The report said, 464 Iranians were killed in Mina much higher than previously thought. Saudi Arabia's state-run news agency said, in all at least 769 people died in that stampede.

BARNETT: Now the Palestinian flag is flying outside the United Nations headquarters in New York. Typically, only member states' flags are on display there. The Palestinian authority has non-member observer status at the U.N.

CHURCH: Palestinians see the move as a symbolic step toward cementing their place in the international community.

BARNETT: Earlier in the day, Palestinian authority president Mahmoud Abbas got his chance to speak at the U.N. General Assembly.

CHURCH: He says as long as Israel is not honoring the Peace Agreements, known as the Oslo Accords, his group will not be bound by them either.

Mr. Abbas told the assembly Wednesday, and I'm quoting here, "Palestine is a state under occupation."

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MAHMOUD ABBAS, Palestinian AUTHORITY PRESIDENT: As long as Israel is not committed to the signed agreements and undermines all agreement, we, for our part, are not committed to those agreements and Israel must bear full responsibility for this development and this situation.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHURCH: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will get his chance to address the U.N. General Assembly Thursday.

And for more on what we can expect let's bring in CNN's Oren Liebermann live in Jerusalem. So, Oren, what is Mr. Netanyahu likely to say about the Palestinian flag-raising, Mr. Abbas' comments about the Oslo Accords, and the Iran deal? He has a lot of material to cover there.

OREN LIEBERMANN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: He does. And I suspect his big topic will be the Iran deal which he's been fighting against from the very beginning. He said he'll keep speaking against it. And telling it world-like he thinks it's a bad idea. [03:35:05] He'll certainly talk about Syria because that's the big

story right now in the news, especially since Russia not only called the U.S. about those Russian strikes, but also called Israel. So, there's some sort of military cooperation there.

And then, perhaps, we very much expect him to address the conflict here. Israeli leadership already opposed the flag-raising ceremony, called it a show and said it won't create a two-state solution, or Palestinian state.

And then Netanyahu after Abbas's speech, called it a deceitful speech. The question, where will it lead and what exactly did Abbas mean? Abbas hedged a little bit there. He didn't come out and say Oslo's canceled, security cooperation is off. Economic cooperation is done.

He said, if Israel refuses to abide by the agreements, then the Palestinians won't either. I think we very much expect almost a similar speech from Netanyahu when he's talking about the conflict. And that, where the Palestinians blame the Israelis, we'll hear the Israelis blaming the Palestinians. Rosemary.

CHURCH: When we look at what Mr. Abbas said, as you say, I mean, he's basically saying, you know, if Israel won't abide by the Peace Agreement, then Palestinians won't either. But what does that mean exactly, and how does that translate to what is happening on the ground, or what might happen on the ground?

LIEBERMANN: That's the million dollar question. That's what we're waiting to see. If he really did call off Oslo and security coordination and all the other agreements, that will lead to very dramatic changes here especially in the relationships between Israelis and Palestinians, and those are changes, if you did cancel them, we would see very quickly.

If they're not statements, we'll also know that in the coming weeks, because it will be essentially more of the same. The situation hasn't changed and the status quo as it stands right now will continue.

So, that's what we're waiting to see. Because what Abbas said was a bit vague, everyone here is waiting to find out what his statements actually meant or if they're just statements.

CHURCH: Indeed. Oren Liebermann reporting there, live from Jerusalem. Thanks for that.

Next, she's considered the female face of ISIS, and she's now labeled a global terrorist. Next, what U.S. and British officials say she's done.

Also ahead, Trump warning, the republican front-runner for the White House takes a hard-line approach on refugees from Syria.

[03:40:00] (COMMERCIAL BREAK)

CHURCH: Welcome back, everyone. There are growing concerns about the role women are playing within the ranks of ISIS. The U.S. Homeland Security Committee says 30 American women have joined or tried to join ISIS.

BARNETT: Brian Todd explains, this all comes as new intelligence emerges on a British woman who's become a prominent member of the terror group.

BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: She reportedly played guitar in a punk band. Had a checkered past in Britain, and analysts say she was eager for adventure.

Now Sally Ann Jones is designated a global terrorist by the State Department. And the British government has asked the U.N. to ban her from traveling, to freeze her money.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I think Sally Jones is the most visible woman in ISIS right now.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

TODD: The searing image of Jones now, she's dressed as a nun, pointing a pistol at the camera.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Her stats that will grow in the global Jihadi community. She is somebody that's been able to build up a significant Twitter following.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

TODD: With postings like this, quote, "You Christians all need beheading with a nice blunt knife and stuck on the railings at Raqqa." "Come here I'll do it for you." Her threats are serious.

U.S. and British officials tell CNN, Jones has encouraged Jihadists to launch attacks in Britain, offered guidance on how to construct home- made bombs. Analysts say this is one of the last people you'd expect to join a misogynistic terror group which practices strict Sharia law.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: In addition to punk rock, she was into black magic. And she was used to be kind of actually a tragic figure.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

TODD: Born in Britain, Jones is said by U.S. and British officials to have traveled to Syria in 2013, to fight alongside her husband Junaid Hussain, a well-known ISIS operative, head of the group's hacking division.

Hussain is believed to have inspired the only ISIS instigated attack so far on U.S. soil. The foiled attempt in May to shoot up a Prophet Muhammad cartoon-drawing contest in Garland, Texas. Hussain and Sally Jones, according to U.S. official tried to get lone

wolves to target American military personnel by publishing their personal information on an online kill list.

Junaid Hussain himself was been killed in a U.S. drone strike in August. Now, in addition to her other activities, U.S. and British officials say Sally Jones uses social media to recruit women to join ISIS.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: In an essence, she's kind of a cougar, because she was 20 years old than Junaid when they started corresponding. So, there is a possibility that there are other women who are converts, who are older, who are basically lost souls that might be drawn to her.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

TODD: A State Department official tells CNN Sally Jones is likely in the ISIS stronghold of Raqqa, Syria. Jones is believed to be the third Western-born woman to take a prominent role in ISIS or other Jihadist groups.

There is Hayat Boumeddiene, widow of the Paris supermarket gunman believed to be with ISIS somewhere in Syria. And Samantha Lewthwaite, the so-called "White Widow," her husband blew himself up in the July 2005 London-train, and bus attacks. She has believed to have run logistics and raise money for terrorist cells in Africa. All three women at large and still very dangerous.

Brian Todd, CNN, Washington.

CHURCH: U.S. Republican presidential candidate, Donald Trump says, he has no problem with Russia's military involvement in Syria.

BARNETT: This comes as Moscow claims its targeting ISIS with its latest air strikes. However, U.S. officials won the blast will only aggravate Syria's Civil War.

In interview with CNN, Trump said the U.S. just shouldn't interfere. Listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, (R) U.S. PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Well, number one, they don't respect our president. They really don't respect us anymore. And that's why they're doing this. At the same time, if they want to hit ISIS, that's OK with me. I'm not going to be saying, we have to do it all. You know, we're like the policemen of the world.

DON LEMON, CNN TONIGHT SHOW HOST: But according to U.S. officials, that the areas that are being hit are not ISIS strongholds, there are areas that are propping up Assad.

TRUMP: And I'm hearing that. Right. And I'm hearing that. And I hear they're hitting both. But I'm hearing that and then you say to yourself, Assad, bad guy, killed hundreds of thousands of people. But you wonder what's going to happen with the other people, that we don't even know who they are.

We always give weapons, we give billions of dollars and weapons and then they turn them against us, we have no control. So, we don't know the other people that we're supposed to be backing. We don't even know who we're backing.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHURCH: And Trump is clashing with rival candidate Jeb Bush over how to handle the Syrian refugee crisis.

BARNETT: During dueling Town Hall meetings, Trump took a hardline stance against Syrians seeking asylum in the U.S. While bush said the U.S. is duty-bound to help.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

[03:45:05] TRUMP: I'm putting the people on notice that are coming here from Syria, as part of this mass migration, that if I win, if I win, they're going back. They're going back. I'm telling you. They're going back.

(APPLAUSE)

JEB BUSH, (R) U.S. PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: We have a noble tradition of taking care of refugees. We've done it since the beginning of time. And I think we need to maintain that.

Having said that, we need to make sure we screen people and do all the things that are appropriate to make sure that the people coming here, you know, are legitimate.

But send them all back, to a hell hole? This is the same guy, by the way, that's also advocating exactly what, he's been support for Putin and his emergence in Syria.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHURCH: Donald Trump's lead continues to surge in the republican race for the White House, according to a new poll. The Suffolk University/USA Today poll of almost 400 likely republican primary voters shows Trump has 23 percent support nationally.

BARNETT: As you see, Trump leads rivals Ben Carson and Carly Fiorina, who tied at 13 percent each. Marco Rubio comes in fourth with 9 percent, and there you see Jeb Bush has 8 percent.

CHURCH: And the world has heard a lot from U.S. presidential candidate Donald Trump. But now we're hearing from his wife.

BARNETT: Yes, so far, Melania Trump has only made brief appearances at Trump's campaign events, but we could be seeing much more of her. Randi Kaye reports. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MELANIA TRUMP, DONALD TRUMP;S WIFE: We went to New York 1998.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

RANDI KAYE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: When Donald Trump first laid eyes on his future third bride back in 1998, she refused to give him her number. But Melania Knauss, the former supermodel tells People Magazine, she thought Donald did have, quote, "sparkle." She eventually called him and the rest is history.

People Magazine interviewed Melania at the couple's 66th floor penthouse apartment in Manhattan's Trump Tower. Politics was off the table. "I'm not ready to go political yet. That's his job and I'm supporting him." She also told People, "I'm my own person, I'm not a "yes" person. I tell my opinions."

When asked about giving Donald advice, "Even if you give him advice, he will maybe take it in. But then he will do it the way he wants to do it." This was Melania's first interview since her husband declared his candidacy.

Until this cover story, she's been seen barely, but never heard. Remember, it was Donald's daughter, Ivanka, who introduced him when he announced his run for president.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

IVANKA TRUMP, DONALD TRUMP'S DAUGHTER: My father, Donald J. Trump.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KAYE: Melania attended the recent CNN debate, but her Trump never acknowledge her in his opening remarks.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: I'm Donald Trump, I wrote the "The Art of the Deal."

KAYE: And in a recent 60 Minutes interview with the candidate, Mrs. Trump was also visibly absent. People magazine senior editor, Charlotte Riggs, who wrote the article says, Melania's had a busy summer, traveling with the couple's 9-year-old son, Barron, for whom she is the main caregiver.

"Barron needs somebody as a parent, so I am with him all the time," she told People. That Trump reportedly have a cook but no nanny. Donald talk to People about the challenges.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: Running for office has impacted the family in that I just don't have the time that I would love to have to spend with my children and my wife, but it's something they understand how important it is, what we're doing. (END VIDEO CLIP)

KAYE: Melania is a Slovenian immigrant who became a naturalized citizen in 2006, the year after she married Donald. When asked about becoming a citizen, her response was, "I went through a whole long process, it didn't even cross my mind to just stay here. I think people should follow the law."

In her free time, Melania tells People she enjoys tennis, Pilates and fashion. She also works with the American Red Cross. Does she imagine herself as First Lady? Maybe not as clearly as her husband does, acknowledging it's a long road, saying that her husband has a lot of people cheering for him, but she takes it day by day.

If they do reach the White House, Melania is sure to request her own space. She told People the secret to a happy marriage is simple, "Have your own bathroom, and your own TV." It's a great relationship, she says. Randi Kaye, CNN, New York.

CHURCH: Own bathroom, own TV. Yes, very good advice.

BARNETT: OK, fellas, now we know. All right. Katy Perry is probably used to fans throwing themselves at her, but one fan got carried away at a recent concert. How the single handled the fanaticism next.

[03:50:00] (COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PEDRAM JAVAHERI, CNN WEATHER WATCH: Good Thursday morning to you. Pedram Javaheri for CNN weather watch and across the United States and much of North America, the big story developing here going to be across the eastern side of the U.S., with strong winds, strong thunderstorms, heavy rainfall, all of them going to be working their way towards the northeast.

But today, we'll keep it cloudy around New York City at 17 degrees. Back around the Western U.S., we've had some showers around via San Francisco Bay area. At this point looks like your Thursday will start off on a foggy note and then get up to about 15 degrees with sunny skies.

But look at the thunderstorms roll on in here with the wet weather that's already in place. We had a storm system that's been very slow to move out of this region. And of course, in addition to the heavy rainfall we're seeing at this hour around much of the northeastern U.S., additional heavy rainfall potentially in the works with an approaching hurricane.

Look at the models indicate a possibility of 300 to 400 millimeters of rainfall for the coast portion of Carolinas, even around the Mid- Atlantic States up into New England, as well. And the primary reason for all of this rainfall will be eventually when the storm system approaches here and adds that tropical moisture towards that region.

So, we're looking at Sunday into Monday. A lot of discrepancies as far as what the storm will do at that time, but it looks like the heavy rainfall certainly is going to in place across the region. But take you close to Central America there, Mexico City, 22 degrees,

will make it up to 24 around Guatemala City and Managua will make it up into the mid 30's.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BARNETT: Welcome back. Prosecutors say they will not charge Caitlyn Jenner for her role in a deadly, multi-car accident, because they can't prove negligence.

Police say Jenner's SUV slammed into a Lexus from behind. This was back in February in Malibu, California, you may remember. The collision said the Lexus crashed into oncoming traffic and its driver died at the scene.

CHURCH: An investigation found Jenner was driving below the speed limit and was braking when the collision happened. Jenner is a transgender advocate and a former Olympic champion once named Bruce.

BARNETT: Now, celebrities are used to having their fans fawn all over them. Just check out Rosemary's Twitter feed, you'll see more evidence of that.

But one Katy Perry fan took things to another level.

CHURCH: At CNN's Jeanne Moos tells us more about this onstage love fest.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KATY PERRY, SINGER: You promise?

MOOS: Katy Perry knows how to pick them.

PERRY: The girl with the smiley face (muted) come on stage right now.

MOOS: At a concert in Brazil, the fan with the smiley face bustier put a smile on our face. She wasn't just hugging Katy.

PERRY: She's kissing my neck. What's your name?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Rayane.

MOOS: She nestled in the Katy's bosom, whispered how to pronounce her name in the singer's ear.

PERRY: Rayane. Hi, Rayane.

[03:55:05] MOOS: The super fan's hands traversed Katy's chest.

PERRY: Hold on!

MOOS: Most folks seem to think Katy handled the handling well?

PERRY: Are you a Katy cat? I think she's rolling. MOOS: The fan told it the MZ, she wasn't high, she was just exhausted.

Adding she couldn't stop hugging and smelling Katy. The star asked for some help speaking Portuguese.

PERRY: How do you say selfie?

MOOS: There was more neck nuzzling. Commenters kept joking about Katy's old hit.

PERRY: I kissed a girl and I liked it.

MOOS: "She was kissed by a girl but she didn't seem to like it," commented someone.

"That's not being kissed by a girl, that's being assaulted by a person," replied another. The entire encounter lasted 3.5 minutes, Katy finally sent her off with a playful slap on the rump and the fan returned the favor. Looks like she could use a little selfie defense.

Jeanne Moos, CNN.

PERRY: OK, OK, OK!

MOOS: New York.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHURCH: I thought she handled it very well, actually.

BARNETT: Could have gone many different ways. That fan has a moment she'll remember for the rest of her life.

CHURCH: Yes, and the world will too.

BARNETT: All right, folks, we're going to head out on our weekend. Thanks for joining us all week here on CNN Newsroom. We appreciate it. I'm Errol Barnett.

CHURCH: And I'm Rosemary Church. Early Start is next for our viewers here in the United States. And for everyone else, stay tuned for CNN Newsroom.

BARNETT: See you.

[04:00:00] (COMMERCIAL BREAK)