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Early Start with John Berman and Zoraida Sambolin
Searching Scene Of Paris Terror Raid; Two Dead, Eight Arrested In Saint-Denis Raid; ISIS Video Threatens Attack On New York; Obama Threatens To Veto GOP Syrian Refugee Bill. Aired 5:30-6a ET
Aired November 19, 2015 - 05:30 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
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[05:30:37] CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN ANCHOR: Is the ring leader of the Paris terrorist attacks alive or on the run or dead? DNA testing this morning and an intense investigation happening right now in France.
New raids related to those attacks happening now in Belgium as a new ISIS video threatens an attack on New York City. A lot of developments this morning.
Welcome back to EARLY START. I'm Christine Romans in New York where it is 5:32 in the east.
JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR: I'm John Berman in Paris. We want to welcome our viewers in the United States and all around the world. There is breaking news right now from Belgium. A series of raids across that country centered around people believed to be connected with some of the suicide attackers here on Friday. We will get to that in just a moment.
Also this morning, police digging through the rubble of an apartment in the Paris suburb of Saint-Denis this morning. They are looking to connect the body parts found inside that apartment with perhaps the ringleader of Friday's attacks, Abdelhamid Abaaoud.
Was he inside that apartment when they raided? More than 100 officers went in yesterday with guns blazing and 5,000 rounds fired, eight suspects taken into custody, Abaaoud not among them.
But they believe at least two people were killed, one believed to be a woman, believed to be Abaaoud's cousin. The other they are trying to determine the identity this morning. Was it Abaaoud? That is the key question.
Officials say they moved into that apartment because they were listening to wiretaps and phone conversations connecting to Abaaoud's cousin, that female, as we said she is now dead. Authorities tell us they believe they did get there just in time to stop what could have been another attack.
I'm joined this morning by CNN senior international correspondent, Frederik Pleitgen. Fred, you were in Saint-Denis yesterday. You saw the aftermath of this raid. Help us understand why it is taking so long to match or find the DNA of Abaaoud inside that apartment? FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: I think finding is the keyword here because they are literally trying to find little parts of the bodies in there. There was so much fire power that was used on both sides.
The officers said they got there and initially a firefight when they went into the first apartment. They found a second apartment where terrorists tried to go in there and they met some very stiff resistance.
There was the female suicide bomber who blew herself up obviously causing a lot of damage to the apartment. When they encountered that fire power, they shot back with some pretty heavy weaponry as well, caused a floor in that house to collapse, obviously causing major damage.
I was there until late last night and they were still setting off controlled detonations in that neighborhood because there was an unexploded ordinance inside that building. It was difficult for them to work through that destruction anyway.
[05:35:01]And then to still have unexploded grenades and bombs in there is certainly something that makes it a lot more difficult. It was interesting. In the night, people were coming back out and then all of a sudden, you hear a whistle and controlled detonation in the neighborhood and people went running for cover again.
BERMAN: Remind us how they ended up there in the first place. What intelligence led them to these apartments?
PLEITGEN: It was a mix of intelligence. They apparently got some tips from the Belgians, but also there were intercepts, but a cell phone found in a garbage can near one of the places at the site of the attacks here on Friday.
That tipped them off to the fact that there was the apartment in Saint-Denis. The time that they spent observing that apartment was short. It was only about 24 hours. They understood they needed to move fast.
That is why they are saying we believe that we might have thwarted something that could have been big as well. When you look at the amount of people involved, eight people in custody, two people killed, ten people in the cell, that is the same size as the cell that was operating here on Friday night.
BERMAN: Any sense of who these eight people in custody? The only thing we do know about the eight people is that Abdelhamid Abaaoud is not among them.
PLEITGEN: The other thing that we know is that also Salah Abdeslam, the man who is being sought the international warrant and the manhunt going on in France and Belgium is not among those arrested either.
We know that one of the people inside there and maybe the one who blew herself up is the cousin of Abaaoud. Other than that, the police are trying to find out who these people are.
Some have been pretty badly wounded. They have not been interrogated yet, but they do hope to find out more about them and then hopefully about the size of the operation and the cells and who the people behind this are.
BERMAN: It is unusual to get people directly involved or close to carrying out an attack in custody. It could be an important source of intelligence. Fred Pleitgen, thank you so much.
As we just said, there is more breaking news right now. Anti-terror raids under way in Belgium, believed to be connected to one of the individuals involved in the attacks here in Paris on Friday, of course, Belgium directly connected to what happened here.
The ringleader, Abdelhamid Abaaoud, he was from Belgium. Salah Abdeslam, the man that Fred was just talking about, also from Belgium. These raids apparently connected to another individual who died in the attacks.
Joining us now live from Belgium at the site, I believe, of one of these raids is senior international correspondent, Ivan Watson. Ivan, give us a sense of where you are and what is happening?
IVAN WATSON, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: John, we're in the neighborhood of Molenbeek here. It looks like an ordinary street. The Belgian authorities were clever. They announced they carried out a half dozen raids around the city, but long after the operation at least at this location was over.
The locals we talked to say the police came and they blocked off the streets and searched the building. They did this before dawn and then announced it hours later.
Now the authorities say that they were looking for the family and entourage of Bilal Hadfi. He was one of the terrorists in the attacks Friday night. He is believed to be 19 or 20 years old, a resident of Brussels.
He is one of at least three residents of the city who were key suspects in the Paris attacks. The Belgian authorities say they detained one person so far for questioning in connection with the Paris attacks.
The Belgian connection to the Paris raids, it is very important, of course, Abdelhamid Abaaoud, who is the suspected organizer of the attacks is a Belgian citizen. He is perhaps Belgian most notorious jihadists.
In 2011, Salah Abdeslam was arrested, spent a month in prison alongside Abaaoud for theft. They were convicted together. They were quite literally partners in crime in 2011.
And four years later, key suspects in the attacks in Paris. Salah Abdeslam is still at large and also a resident of this very neighborhood -- John. BERMAN: The links between these terrorists so interesting, Ivan. So many have spent time in prison together and so many spent time in Syria together. Ivan Watson in Belgium, thanks. Christine, big news in New York as well, let's go back to you.
ROMANS: We do, John. We have a new ISIS video claiming New York City could be the next terror target. This video shows scenes of Manhattan's Times Square and Harold Square and then also shows a video of a suicide bomber zipping up a jacket over an explosive vest, preparing for an attack.
[05:40:07] New York's mayor flanged by officials assuring citizens there are no specific credible threats. The NYPD initiated a new critical response command of 500 officers dedicated solely to anti- terrorism activities.
Five Syrian nationals are trying to reach the United States using stolen Greek passports. They have been arrested in the Bahamas. These men were arrested late Tuesday night after flying into the airport in the Honduran capital.
They will face a judge later today. Authorities claimed these suspects were planning to make their way into the U.S. by land, by crossing Guatemala and Mexico.
ISIS fears keeping France on edge, state of emergency could be extended. Our live team coverage next.
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BERMAN: Tensions running high across France this morning. Right now in the French parliament, they are debating whether to extend the current state of emergency for another three months. They've already decided to extend the ban on public gatherings and demonstrations for an additional week until the end of November.
That comes at a cost in France. People like to gather. There is the climate change summit coming in about two weeks, this as we wait to hear whether the suspected ringleader of the Paris attacks on Friday, whether he was killed.
Was he inside one of those apartments that was raided yesterday in the suburb of Saint-Denis? DNA tests under way right now to determine if Abdelhamid Abaaoud is dead.
Joining me now is CNN international anchor, Hala Gorani. Hala, we are just waiting on scientist right now. It is such a big question and very important, too, because either this man is dead, the ringleader who planned the attacks on Friday, who has planned other attempted terrorist attacks over the last year or he could be on the run planning more.
HALA GORANI, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: We do know he is not in custody, which means he is either dead or still on the loose. DNA tests don't take -- it's not like a television show where you have a result within a few minutes.
The added challenge is that in this apartment in Saint-Denis, it is essentially body parts. There were explosions. It is very difficult to conduct these tests and forensic combing of the scene.
Also because the structure itself is not necessarily sound. We understand from the prosecutor that the door was reinforced. They had to blow it open. Then you have the female suicide bomber who blew herself up.
Then you had the other individual inside the apartment who was killed as well. So you have a very complicated scene. We should get hopefully information either today or in the coming days and it will finally answer that question, is the suspected ringleader among the people who died in the apartment?
BERMAN: There was concern that he was planning other attacks, perhaps launching another attack very soon. That information is very crucial. We know as you said he is not among those in custody.
Also not in custody, Salah Abdeslam, the surviving brother believed to have been the eighth attacker Friday night who slipped through the fingers of police there.
The fact that there are eight people in custody right now, that is fascinating. It is unusual to have suspected terrorists who may have been on the verge of an attack alive and under arrest.
GORANI: In all the other cases, the suspected terrorist, not suspected, the terrorists who were killed in the case of the "Charlie Hebdo" attackers, the two Korachi brothers who were on the run. It was a very dramatic sort of police chase for several days, they ended both dead.
The man who took several people hostage in the supermarket killed individuals there as well. He ended up dead as well. In this particular instance, we have suspected terrorists connected to the attacks on Friday who are alive and in custody.
We saw some video on French television of them being arrested. They were completely stripped of their clothes because you don't want to take risks with people who are in the habit of exploding suicide vests.
They were basically in their tiny little underwear being bundled up and put into police vans practically naked. That is what they have to do in dealing with these individuals.
BERMAN: You know that intelligence officials here and around Europe were pulling on the threads to try to stop what could be more attacks. Just this morning, over the last few minutes, we saw raids in Belgium connected to one of the dead attackers on Friday.
GORANI: That's correct. Belgium has been a part of this investigation from the beginning. We had cars rented there and driven across the border into France, the suspected mastermind of these attacks, a Belgian citizen.
Others who were suspected of having spent time in a Brussels suburb where some of these raids are taking place today so really intense police activity across Belgium and France over the last several days, hundreds of raids.
BERMAN: All right, Hala Gorani, great to have you here with us. Thank you so much.
All right, President Obama facing questions about how the United States will handle refugees. That debate raging in Congress and beyond, that just ahead from us.
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[05:53:50]
ROMANS: Welcome back to EARLY START. ISIS is claiming it has killed two hostages, one from China another from Norway. The terror organization publishing photos of the men in its English language magazine both apparently shot to death.
The caption below the pictures reads executed after being abandoned by the infidel nations. The men are identified as 48-year-old (inaudible) and 50-year-old (inaudible). ISIS claims ransom demands for the men were refused.
The fight over Syrian refugees coming to America hits the House floor today. Lawmakers set to vote on a Republican-backed bill that would effectively suspend the refugee resettlement program.
President Obama has promised a veto. He is blasting Congress for jumping on the refugee issue trying to in his words of solve the threat of widows and orphans fleeing a war-torn land.
CNN's Michelle Kosinski is traveling with the president overseas this morning. she joins us from the Philippines -- Michelle.
MICHELLE KOSINSKI, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: We have heard a lot from the president in the last two days on this issue, in fact, more than we expected. He used some pretty strong language to blast not only the plan to stop refugees from coming in from Syria but also the rhetoric.
[05:55:07]That is really what he latched on to calling it offensive, irresponsible, saying that it is not who we are and that it needs to stop. Today, he said, you know, are you really going to stop this program but let in the millions of tourists that come in every year.
He said it just doesn't jive with reality. That's why the administration has threatened to veto this bill. What it would do is be a temporary pause in the program so the administration could certify there would not be a security risk.
The administration is calling that untenable. They said it would not add anything to the security situation in the United States, but only cause unnecessary delays to a program that is safe and is working.
That said, the White House is open as they put it, to making some changes where need. They are open to looking at the program. They are open to working with Congress on this and other related issues. They are clearly not open to stopping the program all together even if that were to be temporary -- Christine.
ROMANS: All right, Michelle Kosinski traveling with the president in the Philippines this morning. Thank you for that.
You know, stopping ISIS and processing or not processing Syrian refugees, a big topic of conversation on the campaign trail. Republican candidates hitting back against President Obama after he accused them of trying to close America's borders.
Some taking it a step further saying in order to defeat ISIS, the U.S. needs to put military troops on the ground in Syria.
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DONALD TRUMP (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: If need be, yes, we have to get rid of ISIS quickly. Not for a long time. Let me tell you what I want to do. I want other people to put troops on the ground. We will back them up 100 percent and bomb the hell out of them.
JEB BUSH (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I would not say no civilian casualties, no one in America wants that. I can't say we won't have combat troops on the ground. I would not put restrictions in place to make it impossible for us to be successful.
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ROMANS: Two other Republican candidates, Ben Carson and Lindsey Graham, are also calling for military presence on the ground in Syria.
It's 57 minutes past the hour. New raids related to the terror attacks in Paris, they are happening right now in Belgium as we wait to learn if the attackers' ringleader has been killed or on the loose. "NEW DAY" picks up our special coverage now.
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UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I just heard the burst of gunfire.
CHRIS CUOMO, CNN ANCHOR: Five thousand rounds fired. At least two terrorists killed, others taken into custody.
BERMAN: The ringleader of the attacks here on Friday, did they get him? Is he dead?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We are going to have to wait for the DNA evidence to see whether or not he was there.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Raids are ongoing in Brussels, Belgium.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: This is what the terror group claims brought down the Russian passenger jet.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Chilling new video from ISIS threatening New York City.
BERMAN: Pictures of someone dressing himself with explosives.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: As soon as a couple of people see this and decided to do it, they are going to launch.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The people of New York City will not be intimidated. We will not submit.
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CUOMO: We want to welcome our viewers in the United States and around the world. This is a special edition of NEW DAY. I'm in Paris. You have Alisyn and Michaela in New York.
There is news of more raids overnight, some still ongoing. The hunt shifting back from Belgium to Paris. The whereabouts of the alleged planner of the attack here Friday still in question.
Authorities actually examining DNA from body parts found in the apartments that were raided Wednesday to see if his remains are among them.
There's also new information linking the threat, the potential plots back to the United States specifically New York City. ISIS making big promising about attacks and saying that they just executed hostages from Norway and China.
Another development today, five Syrian men due in court in Honduras intercepted with three fake passports, reportedly on their way to the United States.
We have all of these stories covered the way only CNN can. Let's begin with senior international correspondent, Fred Pleitgen. Fred, you've been bouncing back between Paris and Belgium. It's not random, they believe the more they learn in the raids this network is bigger than any one country?
PLEITGEN: Absolutely. It was always something where it appeared it involved Belgium, it involved France and people are going back and forth, and certainly that assertion has not changed especially after those raids that happened yesterday in Saint-Denis.
They're trying to get the mastermind of all of this, Abdulhamed Abaaoud. It's still unclear whether or not he was inside that apartment. You said it, they are still trying to analyze the DNA.
He is a Belgian national. He's been going back and forth between Belgium and France for a very long time. He tried to coordinate attacks operating from Belgium. Just a couple months ago, his associate, Salah Abdulsalam, the other man, who is still being sought after --
CUOMO: The eighth attacker.
PLEITGEN: The eighth attacker who is still on the run, but the manhunt is underway, also from Belgium.
