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Sharm el-Sheikh Flights to UK to Resume Friday; U.S. Bomb Theory Based on Specific Chatter; Sharm El-Sheikh Airport Security Scrutinized; Putin Mum on Bomb Theory; Does Carson's Story of Violent Past Add up?; Did ISIS Bring Down Flight 9268?; "Spectre" Reviews Lukewarm; WORLD SPORT Highlights. Aired 12-1a ET
Aired November 06, 2015 - 00:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[00:00:10] JOHN VAUSE, CNN ANCHOR: This is CNN NEWSROOM live from Los Angeles.
ISHA SESAY, CNN ANCHOR: Ahead this hour, the U.S. president says it is possible the Russian passenger jet was brought down by a bomb. Moscow and Cairo push back asking, where's the proof?
VAUSE: If it was a bomb, it was most likely smuggled on board at Sharm el-Sheikh airport. We'll take a close look at security there. Has anything changed in the days since the crash?
SESAY: And fact-checking a press narrative. One of the leading Republican candidates for president, Ben Carson, was he really the hot-headed violent young man that he claims to have been?
VAUSE: Hello, everybody. Great to have you with us. We'd like to welcome our viewers all around the world, I'm John Vause.
SESAY: And I'm Isha Sesay. NEWSROOM L.A. starts right now.
VAUSE: U.S. president Barack Obama says he thinks it's certainly possible there was a bomb on board Metrojet Flight 9268 but Egypt and Russia says there's no evidence to support that theory.
SESAY: The plane bound for Russia crashed in Egypt's Sinai Peninsula killing all 224 people on board. The U.S. official says specific Internet chatter around Saturday's crash suggests that ISIS or its affiliates were involved.
VAUSE: Thousands of British tourists stranded in Sharm el-Sheikh could start heading home in the next hours.
Senior international correspondent Ben Wedeman joins us now live from Cairo.
So, Ben, limited flights, they should resume shortly but they will be increased security and no checked luggage. What are the details?
BEN WEDEMAN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, well, there are about 20,000 British tourists currently present in Sharm el- sheikh. Now some flights will resume today. But of course as you mentioned there will be special measures. They can only bring luggage or rather bags on to the flight. They can't check in any luggage. That luggage will be sent separately on Royal Air Force planes back to the U.K.
Now this followed the visit the day before yesterday into yesterday of a delegation of British airport security experts who had a look at these procedures, the security procedures in place at Sharm el-Sheikh International Airport. They were apparently particularly concerned with the baggage loading system. And therefore that explains why all of these bags are now going to go back on special RAF flights -- John.
VAUSE: Ben, there's been a lot of focus there about the security at Sharm el-Sheikh. But what about security at other airports in Egypt?
WEDEMAN: Well, that's a good question. Regarding Sharm el-Sheikh, 10 months ago a British delegation, another one, came to Sharm and had a look at the procedures that were in place there. But by and large, British aviation experts consider the airports in the Middle East generally below the standards of, for instance, the U.S. and the U.K. with the exception of airports in Israel. And apparently their concerns are particularly focused regarding airport security on Egypt, Bahrain and Kuwait -- John.
VAUSE: And in terms of the Egyptian-led investigation, do we know what sort of progress they are making and I guess especially in regard to the flight data recorders?
WEDEMAN: Well, they have been fairly tightlipped about this. And they did put out a statement saying that they will provide information as it becomes available in due course. Now they did recover the cockpit voice recorder and the flight data recorder. The voice recorder was somewhat damaged in the crash. But -- and they are looking at the content, but they have not said anything public about their contents. And we did hear the civil aviation minister saying it could be months before the results are made public -- John.
VAUSE: Ben Wedeman live in Cairo with just half past 7:00 on a Friday morning. Ben, thank you for being with us.
SESAY: Well, British Prime Minister David Cameron says it's, quote, "more than likely than not that a bomb brought down Metrojet Flight 9268."
Diana Magnay is live outside 10 Downing Street for us.
And, Diana, Mr. Cameron met with Egypt's president on Thursday and it was notable that President Sisi did not criticize the British government for recent statements or measures in his public comments at least. Are we now looking at a greater deal of cooperation between the two countries on this matter?
DIANA MAGNAY, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Isha. Well, President Sisi has a lot more to lose from criticizing David Cameron than he would stand to gain. Britain is the largest foreign investor in Egypt. And of course you have nearly a million British tourists going to Egypt and especially to Sharm el-Sheikh every year. So President Sisi was keen to emphasize that there is significant cooperation between the two countries.
[00:05:12] But of course it comes at a very awkward time. His visit to the U.K. at a time when Britain has stated quite clearly that the security measures at the airport at Sharm el-Sheikh weren't up to scratch and that that is why David Cameron, the British prime minister, decided to suspend flights. Let's take a listen to what he said.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DAVID CAMERON, BRITISH PRIME MINISTER: Of course I cannot be sure, my experts cannot be sure, that it was a terrorist bomb that brought down that Russian plane. But if the intelligence is and the judgment is that that is more likely than not outcome, I think it is right to act in the way that I did.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MAGNAY: More likely than not, the key words there from Britain's prime minister. President Obama also saying last night in an interview that he considers it a possibility that there was a bomb on the airplane.
We don't know where British are getting their intelligence from. But we do understand from U.S. counterterrorism officials talking to CNN that they were monitoring chatter of people associated with ISIS in the Sinai peninsula after the event. Chatter which would suggest some sort of activity, some sort of collusion, chatter, they say from people who have a degree of credibility.
But again, this is open source information on the Internet that they are listening to. The kind of chat that people are having in -- across social media networks. And that is why both the U.S. and the U.K. are keen to say that this is no -- in no way conclusive evidence -- Isha.
SESAY: Inconclusive but yet having very real impact for those who are there in Sharm el-Sheikh right now grounded. Thousands of Brits flying back amid very tight security. Excuse me. Do we have any indication as to how much longer flights to Sharm el-Sheikh will remain suspended?
MAGNAY: Well, Britain's prime minister said that today, as a Friday, empty planes will be flying to Sharm to pick up the 20,000 or so tourists who have been stranded there and start to bring them back home. But we have no indication as of yet when normal flights carrying tourists to and from will resume. Britain has, of course, upped the travel restrictions or its travel warning to the Sinai Peninsula, particularly in the north. It is advised not to travel and further south around Sharm, only essential travel.
And you can expect, and we heard from the British Foreign secretary yesterday, that flights will be disrupted. He said possibly until Christmas. Certainly until officials can be sure that security measures in place at Sharm el-Sheikh and other airports across Egypt match their expectations -- Isha SESAY: All right. Diana Magnay joining us there from London outside
10 Downing Street, Appreciate it, Diana. Thank you.
Well, for security at Sharm el-Sheikh airport has been under intense scrutiny since the Metrojet crashed.
VAUSE: The Egyptians insist the small airport meets international safety standards. Our Erin McLaughlin has an inside look at the airport security measures and she spoke to stranded passengers trying to get home.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ERIN MCLAUGHLIN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Rush hour at Sharm el-Sheikh International Airport. Hundreds of tourists line up for their first security check. Everyone is searched, young and old. They're all waiting for a flight some officials aren't ready to put their citizens on. Thousands of passengers are stranded after their government halted planes in and out of this airport. British authorities have asked for more security.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We feel like it will be probably the safest flight back that we've ever had. So we're glad that the government are putting security measures in place for us.
MCLAUGHLIN: Marion and Claire Foster, two of the British tourists stranded. For them, the trip home will be bittersweet. They stayed at the same hotel as some of the passengers killed on Flight 9268.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: So the night before, we had been watching a little girl dancing and their parents singing and then the next day they weren't there anymore. So it was really, really sad for us.
MCLAUGHLIN: Egyptian authorities want to show the world the tragedy won't happen again. So they took us on a tour of the airport but wouldn't talk on camera. They showed us security for both passengers and employees.
(On camera): Every employee who enters this airport is required to go through the same security screening as passengers. The only difference, they're required to have special IDs.
(Voice-over): They're showing the area where they scan the luggage. They use X-ray machines and equipment that can detect explosives.
[00:10:01] Here is a room where they monitor cameras located throughout the airport. And they say they've taken an extra security step for British passengers.
(On camera): A few years ago, British authorities requested that this machine be used before every flight to the United Kingdom. It's capable of detecting explosives. Egyptian authorities say that this kind of machine is not used on any other flight.
(Voice-over): Officials have promised to increase security, but tell us it's too soon to say what more will be done to reassure everyone that it's safe to go home.
Erin McLaughlin, CNN, Sharm el-Sheikh International Airport.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
SESAY: Well, Russian families have started to lay to rest some of the victims from Flight 9268. The first funeral was on Thursday. Nina Lushchenko, a 60-year-old school cafeteria worker. She and 14 others who died in the crash were from the same region.
VAUSE: So is (INAUDIBLE), he was 31 years old. He actually won the trip to Sharm el-Sheikh as a bonus from his work. More funerals are expected in the coming days or weeks.
Now whether or not there is an ISIS link to the downing of the Russian jet, Russia says it has it carried out dozens of airstrikes in Syria over the past two days.
SESAY: Russia's Defense Ministry says they targeted areas held by ISIS or the Al-Nusra Front and hit more than 250 targets including weapons depots, fortresses and vehicles.
Well, with more on this developing story, let's bring in Daniel Treisman. He is a professor of political science at UCLA and has extensively researched Russian politics and the economy.
Daniel, good to have you back on the show.
DANIEL TREISMAN, PROFESSOR, UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA AT LOS ANGELES: Thank you.
SESAY: Let me ask you this, why do you think Russia and Egypt for that matter are pushing back at the theory put out by U.S. and U.K. officials that a bomb probably brought down this jet? Why do you think they're doing this?
TREISMAN: Well, if it was a bomb and if it's a case of terrorism, as it certainly appears, that means that the cost of Putin's involvement in Syria is going to become very clear to the Russian public. So far they've been supportive but there have been casualties and they haven't been in fear that they personally might suffer in a terrorist attack by ISIS and other group.
VAUSE: You know, Putin has got a history of taking this kind of terrorist attacks, Beslan, the Moscow theater siege, to his advantage. He can use it as a crackdown against his domestic opponents, against anyone who, you know, wants to speak out against him, his political opposition. He has a real knack of taking a losing a hand and turning it to his way.
TREISMAN: Right.
VAUSE: Is he going to do the same thing with this?
TREISMAN: So his instinct is going to be to double down.
VAUSE: Yes.
TREISMAN: To get tough. Possibly to crackdown domestically and I think all Putin's domestic critics are now thinking, who is he going to blame for this?
VAUSE: Right.
TREISMAN: How is he going to find a way to pin the blame on somebody at home? But at the same time, he's likely to double down internationally.
VAUSE: Like Syria.
TREISMAN: I wouldn't be surprised if the bombing increases in Syria. Perhaps now he's going to seriously take on ISIS and direct more of the sorties against ISIS itself.
SESAY: Double down in Syria but what does it mean at home in terms of public support?
TREISMAN: In terms of public support, I think in the short run there's bound to be a rally. When the nation feels under attack, they rally behind the leader.
SESAY: Another blow back against Putin for actually getting them involved at this level to begin with.
TREISMAN: I think -- I think that might come later and more gradually. I think the initial reaction is going to be anger at the terrorists if it was caused by terrorists and a strong desire for unity. But over time I think doubts are going to arise about -- doubts are going to emerge about how wise it was for Russia to get involved in the Syrian mess.
VAUSE: Let's take the other side. Let's say it was a bomb. Not a bomb, rather a mechanical problem. Not a bomb. Putin gets away for that as well, doesn't he?
TREISMAN: Right.
VAUSE: Because Russians like to blame their leaders when things go wrong. And Putin has made a point of saying, I'm going to improve their safety in this country.
SESAY: And that I'm your protector.
VAUSE: Yes.
TREISMAN: Right.
VAUSE: So --
TREISMAN: Exactly. So I think even the people who now believe that it was mechanical failure and we should bear in mind that these budget airlines in Russia don't have wonderful safety records. Those who think it is there are going to blame Putin and the government for failing to inspect adequately, to regulate the airlines and to make sure that ordinary citizens just flying on vacation are safe.
VAUSE: But then if you take the point of view that either way it is bad or looks bad, then why not come out and come clean?
SESAY: Yes.
VAUSE: If you believe it was a bomb, if you think it was a bomb -- you know, when the president of the United States comes out and says certainly I think it could be.
TREISMAN: Right.
VAUSE: You have the prime minister of UK, there's a lot of evidence out there. Why not just come out and say it's a bomb? I mean --
(CROSSTALK)
SESAY: Why not come out and say anything?
TREISMAN: He waited two days to even say --
SESAY: Yes.
TREISMAN: To offer condolences. I think they haven't decide. Sometimes it takes them a few days to figure out what their line is going to be. That's also consistent with the fact that the Russian media has been covering this quite extensively. The state-controlled media. And they don't seem to have a clear line on whether it was mechanical failure or a bomb. So I think in the Kremlin they haven't decided. Either way it's bad.
[00:15:01] I think if it's mechanical failure, it's more manageable for Putin. He can fire the head of the air safety board and he can take steps which looks like he's doing something serious. If it's terrorism then he's stuck. He's involved in Syria. There's no easy way out. And he just has to try and rally more support for that.
VAUSE: I guess the state media are waiting for their marching orders to shape public opinion.
TREISMAN: I would think so.
VAUSE: Daniel, thank you for coming in. Great speaking with you.
SESAY: Daniel, thank you. Appreciate it.
TREISMAN: Thank you.
VAUSE: A short break here. When we come back, U.S. presidential candidate Ben Carson says he had a rough and violent youth. CNN asked his childhood friends what they remember about it. The answers are a bit of a surprise.
SESAY: Plus, Daniel Craig is back as James Bond but can ticket sales keep up with the new film's hefty, hefty price tag?
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
VAUSE: Welcome back, everybody. To the race for the U.S. White House. Republican candidate Ben Carson is facing new scrutiny over his claims about a violent past. The soft-spoken Dr. Carson says he once had a pathological temper which led to numerous acts of violence.
SESAY: But some of his childhood friends say that doesn't sound like the person they remember.
[00:20:04] CNN's Joe Johns has the story.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DR. BEN CARSON (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Candidates can come and people --
JOE JOHNS, CNN SENIOR WASHINGTON CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Ben Carson's quiet, dignified approach is a big part of his appeal, but he says his calm demeanor was carved out of a violent past.
CARSON: As a teenager, I would go after people with rocks and bricks and baseball bats and hammers.
JOHNS: Carson wrote in his book about striking a schoolmate in the face with a combination lock, nearly punching his mother, smashing a kid's face with a rock. Carson said he also tried to kill a friend, identified as Bob, in a disagreement over the radio. He describes his temper as pathological, a disease that made him totally irrational.
CARSON: I had a large camping knife and I tried to stab him in the abdomen. And fortunately, under his clothing he had on a large metal belt buckle. And the knife blade struck with such force, that it broke.
JOHNS: It was, he says, a pivotal point in Carson's life, depicted in a TV movie.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Benny, what did you do?
JOHNS: But then an epiphany. Carson says he quelled his anger with prayer.
CARSON: I locked myself in the bathroom and started contemplating my life and realizing that I would never realize my dream of becoming a physician with a temper like that.
JOHNS: From that day forward, Carson says he was a changed man, now on a course from poverty in Detroit to world famous neurosurgeon.
CARSON: I never had another angry outburst since that day.
JOHNS: But that early picture of violence is not recognizable to some who grew up with Carson.
MARIE CHOICE, FORMER NEIGHBOR OF CARSON: I was shocked. I was surprised. Because he was just -- you know, he was quiet and calm. JOHNS: CNN reporters Maeve Reston and Scott Glover tracked down 10
schoolmates and neighbors. None challenged Carson's story directly. Only one said they'd heard vague rumors about one of the incidents but all said this was not the boy they knew.
STEVE CHOICE, FORMER NEIGHBOR OF CARSON: I was really surprised when I read he tried to stab someone. Like, what?
JOHNS (on camera): Does it fit with the guy who you knew, I mean that kind of activity?
S. CHOICE: No.
JOHNS (voice-over): The campaign has refused repeated requests from CNN to help find witnesses or the victims Carson mentions only by first name, telling CNN it was a, quote, "witch hunt". CNN has been unable to locate witnesses or victims.
TIMOTHY MCDANIEL, FRIEND OF CARSON: I associate him with a lot of things but never stooping to the level of a common street thug, so I was a little surprised by it.
JOHNS: Timothy McDaniel says he was one of Carson's closest childhood friends. He says he raised it with Carson after the book came out.
MCDANIEL: I said, man, you hid it from us all those years. He said he was just too embarrassed to even talk about it. I was surprised at some of the things he said. But, you know, he said them honestly and I believed everything he told me.
JOHNS: Joe Johns, CNN, Washington.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
SESAY: Our own Jonathan Mann, host of "POLITICAL MANN" which debuts this Saturday, joins us now.
Jon, welcome to the know. Let me ask you this. What are the political ramifications for Ben Carson from all of this?
JONATHAN MANN, CNN HOST, THE POLITICAL MANN: You know, the funny thing is it cuts two ways. Among Republicans there's so much mistrust of the main stream media that the fact that we and others are now asking questions about Carson's past. Well, it may be a symbol to a lot of Republicans that he's arrived. It's kind of perverse but they distrust us so much that our questions may make him more trustworthy to them.
But our questions do point to one really important aspects of his candidacy. He has no political experience. His credential for the presidency is his life story. It's an extraordinary story. His autobiography tells us that his mother one of 25 children, that she married at the age of 13, and it turned out she was married to a bigamist, a man who had another family, and that's when she decided to raise Ben and his brother on her own. He was living in the inner city. He was not much of a student but he
struggled, he pulled himself up by his boot straps, he got to Yale University where apparently divine intervention got him through first year chemistry.
Those stories have fascinated a lot of Americans. He was a best- selling author even before he was a political candidate. But now what if they're not true? Lying is a sin. Even the evangelicals who are the base of his support will not take kindly to being deceived. So we'll have to see how this plays out. But if all of these stories start raising questions then there will be real trouble.
SESAY: And, Jon, it's not just his temper and these violent episodes that he has much touted that are under scrutiny, he's also made some curious comments, if you will, about the pyramids in Egypt.
MANN: Yes, and what's extraordinary --
SESAY: What has he said?
MANN: It's such a random subject for people to seize on to. But it has a lot of people scratching their heads.
[00:25:03]Once again it goes back like much of Ben Carson's public comments to the bible. In the story of Genesis of Joseph saving Egypt from famine by being foresighted enough to know to store grain. Where? In the pyramids. Here's Ben Carson, nearly two decades ago, explain the theory.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CARSON: My own personal theory is that Joseph built the pyramids in order to store grain. All the archaeologists think that they were made for the pharaohs' graves but, you know, it would have to be something awfully big, when you stop and think about it. I don't think it would just disappear over the course of time to store that much grain. And when you look at the way the pyramids are made with many chambers that are hermetically sealed, they would have to be that way for a reason.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MANN: He's right. Archeologists really don't think that they were for grain and they think that because of records from the sites themselves and because of the way they're constructed that they were, as Egyptians believe, for the pharaohs' tombs but Carson even after 20 years is sticking to the theory. Here's what he said today.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CARSON: I think that's a plausible explanation to how they got built.
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: Scientifically possible?
CARSON: It's a plausible explanation. It's a personal belief because I happen to believe a lot of things that you might not believe because I believe in the bible.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MANN: Now the pyramid's explanation is not really in the bible. It's Ben Carson's reading of the bible. But once again, a lot of people are just impressed to hear a political candidate in this day and age speak so openly of the bible.
Ben Carson is a remarkable candidate, a phenomenon really, but he's also a man who really does put his faith in the bible. Doesn't believe in evolution, even though he is really, really celebrated neurosurgeon. He's really charting a very unusual course in the campaign but as we've seen in the polls, Isha, it's working.
SESAY: It certainly is. We'll see how far the road takes him.
Jonathan Mann, host of "POLITICAL MANN," joining us there from CNN headquarters in Atlanta.
Jonathan, always great to speak to you. Thank you.
From the candidates' platforms to the political missteps, "POLITICAL MANN" with Jon Mann returns with a new look, a new set and of course many, many new stories. Don't miss the premier weekend of "POLITICAL MANN" in London. The show is Saturday, November 7th at 11:300 p.m.
And it's really remarkable for Carson.
VAUSE: It is. And we should note, Ben Carson would not talk to be us about his past.
SESAY: Yes.
VAUSE: He did talk to FOX News a few hours ago, he said that our report was all part of a smear campaign and the names in the book, the names that he cited, he said he made those names up to protect the identity and the privacy of all his friends but there's no mention of the fact that these are fake names to protect the innocent.
SESAY: And Maeve Reston who actually did the investigation for CNN also told us, speaking to us a short time ago, that he also added that if anyone has come forward and if these people whose names have been changed, want to come forward that they are free to. But he was doing his part to protect them.
VAUSE: Their identity of course because he says he knows what the media will do to him.
SESAY: Once again, the media, isn't it?
VAUSE: The media's fault.
SESAY: The media's fault.
VAUSE: With that, we'll take a short break. Still to come here, with speculation growing that Flight 9268 was brought down by a bomb, CNN has an inside look at the evolution of the militants' bomb-making technology.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[00:30:00]
(MUSIC PLAYING)
VAUSE: Welcome back, everybody. Thanks for staying with us. You're watching CNN NEWSROOM, live from Los Angeles. I'm John Vause.
SESAY (voice-over): And I'm Isha Sesay. The headlines this hour.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SESAY (voice-over): Authorities from both Russia and Egypt say there's no evidence yet to support the theory that a bomb brought down Metrojet Flight 9268. U.S. President Obama and British Prime Minister David Cameron said intelligence suggests there was a bomb on the plane.
VAUSE (voice-over): Thousands of tourists could fly home from Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt, in the next few hours. The U.K. suspended flights in and out of the airport on Wednesday because of security concerns after the Metrojet crashed. Passengers will be allowed only carry-on bags. Their luggage will be flown home separately.
SESAY (voice-over): Funerals for the victims of the flight 9268 have started to take place in Russia. At least two people were laid to rest on Thursday in separate services. One was a 60-year-old cafeteria worker and the other was a 31-year old, who won the trip as a bonus from his employer.
VAUSE (voice-over): Russian defense ministry says they have carried out dozens of airstrikes in Syria over the past few days. ISIS and the Al-Nusra targets were reportedly hit. Russia says some of its air raids hit weapons depots, fortified installations and vehicles.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VAUSE: If ISIS did bring down Metrojet Flight 9268, it would mark a significant leap forward in the terror group's capabilities.
SESAY: The idea of a bomb causing the disaster has drawn comparisons to tactics previously attempted by Al Qaeda. International diplomatic editor Nic Robertson has more.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
NIC ROBERTSON, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): In 2009 I asked explosive experts Sidney Alford to show me what Al Qaeda's top bomb maker was capable of.
SIDNEY ALFORD, EXPLOSIVES EXPERT: This is what six grams of what PETN does to something that's twice as thick as an aircraft fuselage.
ROBERTSON (voice-over): He'd mastered the powerful white powder explosive, PENT; the Al Qaeda bomb maker made this, the underpants bomb, targeting a U.S. passenger jet Christmas 2009.
ROBERTSON: Here in Russia, the rising question is likely to become who made the bomb that brought down Metrojet 9268?
Was it ISIS, an ISIS affiliate, another radical Islamist group or Al Qaeda?
What we do know is after the underpants bombs, Al Qaeda's bombs became even more sophisticated.
ROBERTSON (voice-over): 2010, printer bombs hidden in cargo on two planes. Fortunately, they were intercepted.
ALFORD: He is at the clever end of the scale. There's no doubt about this. This is an ingenious way of doing it.
ROBERTSON (voice-over): Alford deconstructed, remade the bombs, explained Al Qaeda's deadly cunning.
ALFORD: Three, two, one.
ROBERTSON (voice-over): In 2014, a few years later, I came to see Alford again.
ROBERTSON: So that is a T-shirt, dipped in explosives that is just blown -- and dried, blown up and that would bring down a plane.
ROBERTSON (voice-over): American sources, fearing the next terrorist bomb could be a clothing bomb.
[00:35:00]
ROBERTSON (voice-over): He shows me how easily it can be done, leaving out some key details.
ROBERTSON: This is where the T-shirt bomb was sitting on the steel plate, thick steel plate. Imagine if that was the skin of an aircraft, thin aluminum. It would have blown a hole right through it.
ROBERTSON (voice-over): The underpants bomb, the printer bomb made by Al Qaeda's top bomb maker in Yemen. His expertise has been taught to others. The question now, does ISIS have these skills or could they use more rudimentary bombs with conventional explosives stolen from military stores?
Nic Robertson, CNN, St. Petersburg, Russia.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
SESAY: Well, the new chapter of the James Bond series hits the U.S. on Friday but the reviews may not be all that encouraging for the moviegoers.
(MUSIC PLAYING)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK) (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
(MUSIC PLAYING)
SESAY (voice-over): Well, the James Bond series is one of cinema's longest running and richest franchises for more than a half a century now. But the newest chapter isn't exactly getting rave reviews.
VAUSE: Yes, one reviewer says "Spectre" is not a game-changer. It's now like two steps forward, one step back.
Another says Daniel Craig feels stale in the role of Bond. Maybe because that's he's probably bored doing and complaining about getting paid millions of dollars to play the same part over, "Oh, I don't want to do another Bond movie."
(CROSSTALK)
SESAY: "Spectre" opens Friday in the U.S.
Have you got it off your chest?
VAUSE: Yes.
SESAY: OK.
And the review site Rotten Tomatoes only gives it 62 percent.
VAUSE: Very generous.
(CROSSTALK)
SESAY: -- positive professional reviews written about the film, 62 percent.
[00:40:00]
VAUSE: Yes. OK. Which --
(LAUGHTER)
VAUSE: -- he's the editor-in-chief --
SESAY: -- who can explain --
VAUSE: -- 62 percent. So that's not good.
(CROSSTALK)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Well, we call it fresh. So that's two-thirds of the critics do like the movie. It started out at a higher score when just the British press had weighed in. It is their hometown boy. Of course, they are going to like it but this movie is suffering in comparison to "Skyfall." I think that if this was the first Bond movie we got after "Quantum of Solace," the score would be higher.
But people look at "Skyfall," which is arguably one of the most emotionally moving Bond movies that we have ever seen.
Who would expect that out of a Bond film?
They are looking at this one and saying, OK, this one is kind of a throw back to the more fun, kind of a little bit goofier, a little bit little wink to this one. So I think there is a little bit of disappointment, based on the fact really that it is not "Skyfall," it's not as engaging as far as the emotions. But the action is great in this. I liked it a lot.
SESAY: Is Craig up to -- the past performances or do you get a sense he is getting tired of it?
Tell the truth.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I thought he was good. But a lot of critics say they feel like he is phoning it in. He is looking a little slower. He's not jumping from building to building quite as much as he was in the first three films that he did. He goes up against David Bautista and, boy, it takes its toll on him.
VAUSE: I thought this was interesting. This is what "The New York Times" said, much of the perfect as the enemy of the good originality is often the enemy of the global box office. And it goes on to say that this is essentially the same Bond movie we have seen, it's the antihero, it's all of this dark stuff coming out of --
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VAUSE: No, we don't. Not Bond. We don't want all this dark brooding stuff.
(CROSSTALK)
SESAY: -- formulaic or do you want it to be formulaic? Is that important to you?
Or do you want it to be perfectly executed?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You know, when done right, there's a certain amount you expect from a Bond film. You want the classic theme, you want the car with gadgets. You want him to be a crack shot. So there are certain elements you expect to see every time.
On a certain level the challenge for a Bond film maker is how do you top what you have just done, how do you top the last movie?
This is the kind of a greatest hits. This one has elements that we've seen in a lot of different places. It puts them together in what I thought was a pretty good way; I liked this movie I think more than lot of critics did.
VAUSE: Do you think we are getting to the end of the life with Daniel Craig?
He certainly made it clear he doesn't want to do it again. And then that opens the question, like who should be the next bond?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: My vote goes to Idris Elba --
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VAUSE: Yay, all of us, we're all in agreement.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I would love to see that. I know Daniel Craig is contracted to do one more. So this may be just a negotiating tactic. I think we're going to get at least one.
I, for one, would love to see Idris Elba. He might be a little old for the role.
SESAY: I don't know; you can bring a little je ne sais quoi to the role --
(CROSSTALK)
VAUSE: -- exactly young towards the end or (INAUDIBLE) geriatrics running around, seducing teenagers.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes. There's a lot of people -- I remember -- I'm old enough to remember when Clive Owen was in the running, when everybody was talking about --
SESAY: That's true.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: So there's no shortage of great British actors.
Can you imagine a guy like Jude Law in that role? That would be really fun.
SESAY: No. No.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Really?
SESAY: No.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I think so. I think you could see him.
SESAY: No, just not -- and I'm a fan of Jude Law's work but I think doesn't have the presence and the --
(CROSSTALK)
SESAY: -- all the hair which is going rapidly for Jude Law.
VAUSE: It's not a good look.
SESAY: -- but he just doesn't have the menacing presence, which I think someone like an Idris Elba would bring to the role.
VAUSE: But, see, this is the problem. This is what they've done with Daniel Craig, is that they have turned James Bond into this anti-hero, this brooding and you get all this backstory rubbish. And just so slows it all down for me.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You know, I think it is tough to figure out what you will do with Bond in the modern era. That's a character that really exists as part of the Cold War. And the storytellers -- Eon Productions is lucky enough that the Cold War dragged on as long as it did because Bond could go up against the Russians and then as we get to where there's a certain amount of glasnost, you have to pivot and he starts taking on terrorists.
Now in "Spectre," he is taking on this shadowy organization. Then you have to make up your organizations to really give him an enemy because -- politics, right?
True. That's true.
VAUSE: So (INAUDIBLE) --
(CROSSTALK)
SESAY: -- it's confusing, as well, that backstory.
But anyway...
VAUSE: (INAUDIBLE).
SESAY: He just doesn't care. I'm sorry, man.
(LAUGHTER)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I, for one, believe you don't need origin stories for every character.
VAUSE: Thank you very much.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The early Bond films, he comes on fully formed, he's already awesome. You don't need to know where he comes from.
VAUSE: Thanks, Matt.
SESAY: Matt, appreciate it. Thank you.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Thank you.
SESAY: And thank you for watching CNN NEWSROOM live from Los Angeles. I'm Isha Sesay.
VAUSE: I'm John Vause. "WORLD SPORT" is up next. Stay with us.
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PATRICK SNELL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi, there. I'm Patrick Snell with the CNN WORLD SPORT update for you.
Slowly but surely, the new manager of Liverpool Football Club, Jurgen Klopp, has been getting it right. Last week his first winners, red boss, coming in the England League and the English League Cup.
And this past weekend, his first Premier League victory recorded in an impressive fashion, too, at Champions Chelsea. That would be the theory surrounding Jose Mourinho's future that grabbed all the headlines on that occasion.
He went on Thursday with a chance to make it three wins on the bounce coming in the Europa League group, stages as the English team traveling to Russia to face Rubin Kazan, looking for their first victory in the competition this season and they get it, too, thanks to a really nice strike from Jordan Ibe (ph), his first-ever goal for the club, 1-0 Liverpool it would end.
Also in group action on Thursday, see onto Switzerland and Bordeaux, France, playing out to a 1-0 draw. It means the Reds -- look at that -- they are now second in the standings, just two points behind the Swiss team in their quest to make the last 32 of the tournament clock, having a real impact now, undefeated in six matches with three wins as part of that haul.
Elsewhere, Tottenham taking on Andal experts (ph), spearheaded by Harry Kane's (ph) recent return to form. They may be unbeaten in their last 10 in the Premier League but the North Londoners were out for revenge after their defeat of two weeks ago on Belgian soil.
And that man, Kane (ph), would not disappoint the Englishman scoring his fifth goal in three games, making no mistake with a stylish finish into the back of the net. The Belgians would hit back, though, to levels first determined to go on and win this one; they did. Well worth the wait, what a strike for Mousa Dembele (ph), no coming back from that, 2-1 Tottenham it would end.
Here's a look at how that result impacts the Group J standings then, Monaco dropping points on the road on Thursday. It's Spurs who are top dogs right now by a point. And if they can beat last place Azerbaijani club Qarabag later on this month and the Liga team beat undelect (ph) Tottenham will qualify with a game to spare.
Tottenham's London rivals, Chelsea, meantime, in the news today. The Blues manager, Jose Mourinho, has learned his appeal against the suspended one-game stadium ban for the forthcoming Premier League fixture at Stoke City (ph) is being dismissed. The Portuguese head coach landed himself in hot water, just to remind you, after comments made following his team's defeat by Southampton, where he said officials were afraid to award his team a penalty.
The countdown continuing to next year's FIFA presidential election. Seven candidates now confirmed in the race to succeed Sepp Blatter in late February in the wake of the widespread corruption allegations that have rocked football in recent months.
Now one of the seven is South African Tokyo Sexwale, a former political prisoner on Robben Island off Cape Town at the same time as Nelson Mandela. The 62-year old, who's been part of FIFA anti- discrimination task force, has been speaking with CNN WORLD SPORT's Amanda Davies.
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TOKYO SEXWALE, FIFA PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: The people who have been arrested, the people who have been suspended, these are friends. These are people I have known. These are not enemies. These are people who are not written on their foreheads, "I am a crook, I am a trickster."
AMANDA DAVIES, CNN CORRESPONDENT: He is being investigated for criminal mismanagement. If he had been president of any other big business, corporate organization, he wouldn't have been allowed to --
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DAVIES: -- even get to this point.
SEXWALE: I do say that Mr. Blatter as the head of the family, the football, FIFA football family, has got to take responsibility. The investigations that are being conducted also must -- and other people should step forward and not just be called one after the other by the FBI and so on.
DAVIES: If you are somebody who says you want the good of the game, you want football to be transparent and good, these people have pulled the wool over your eyes.
Can you still consider them friends?
SEXWALE: People take off for the hills when somebody is in trouble. I'm not taking that approach. I won't say I didn't know them, I don't know Mr. Blatter, but no, no. We know. I know them. These are friends. These are people that we trusted. And I'm saying, if they were acting underhandedly, their lawyers will take its own cost and they will lose many friends (INAUDIBLE).
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SNELL: Now here Rory McIlroy dropping 10 shots out there on the course is pretty much unheard of. Dropping 10 pounds, though, now that is a totally different story.
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SNELL: Welcome back to CNN WORLD SPORT.
The French international footballer, Karim Benzema, has been placed under formal investigation in connection with a sex tape and blackmailing another player. The Real Madrid striker was held in police custody near Paris overnight. Being under formal investigation does not necessarily mean he will be tried.
But in the meantime, the French national team's boss, Didier Deschamps, has left the 27-year old out of the squad for two friendlies next week. Benzema's lawyer maintaining the player's innocence.
Rory McIlroy is hoping to win the race to become Europe's top golfer for the third time. And after overcoming a bout of food poisoning ahead of this week's HSBC Champions event in Shanghai, which caused him to lose 10 pounds, he has given himself a chance of doing just that.
The four-time Major winner said he never felt so light before. Had a rout the decent first round to a -5, 68 for the Northern Irishman, six birdies on the day, though, one double bogey as well to tell you about.
Also in action this week, World number 2, the young American, Jordan Spieth, here on number eight, as well as a great read for the long putt. That one of six birdies on the day for him as well.
Another American player partaking, Rickie Fowler, nice, elegant swing for him at 7. Fowler also in action in Shanghai. Looks to be in the mood, too, joining McIlroy, Spieth and birdie as well at -4. There are five off the leader right now, the South African player, Branden Grace.
Well, it is official, cricket is coming to the USA along with some of the greatest names who've played the game. The legendary Sachin Tendulkar for one and a former Australian skipper, Ricky Ponting are on board. And so is one of Ponting's compatriots, Shane Warne, one of the greatest spinballers of all time.
But just how do you sell the sport to Americans?
Shane Warne has been speaking with our Kate Riley.
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SHANE WARNE, CRICKET SUPERSTAR: There will be two teams sections, Blasters and my team, the Warriors will play against each other. We have 28 of some of the all-time greatest players coming to play. We've signed them up for three years to 15 games. So this is a start of the cricket all-stars. It's our first three games.
And when you think about some of the greatest players ever to play playing in iconic baseball stadiums on a drop-in pitch in New York, it is pretty amazing. And I think it will be a great experience for everybody.
KATE SNOW, MSNBC CORRESPONDENT: OK, so matches in New York and Houston. And then we've got Los Angeles under the floodlights. Now you've talked about deejays and the music and the fan experience.
What can fans expect? WARNE: I think some -- there's a really good analogy that Sachin
Tendulkar who I'm hosting these games with, said yesterday. He said when he had a lot of his friends came to America in the early '90s they have now become doctors and the like.
And what they did, their American friends they had, took them to educate them about the American sports. Now it is time to reciprocate and for all the cricket loving people here in America to grab their American friends and start to educate them about the game of cricket.
What to expect: pure entertainment. If you like your baseball, you can see one homer in so many innings. You might see basically a homer every over in cricket here at New York, especially here. It is quite a small stadium. So I think there's going to be some big hits, you'll see some athletic fielding. You'll see some of these guys that have been some of the greatest players of all time do their stuff. I've been training pretty hard over the last couple of days. It's been a -- they are not going to be taking it easy. They're going to be super competitive games and I think you will see a lot of fun.
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SNELL: Shane Warne speaking earlier to Kate Riley.
That will do it for this edition of WORLD SPORT. Thank you so much for joining us. I'm Patrick Snell. Do be sure to stay with CNN.
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