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Gruesome Attack in Jerusalem Kills 4 Rabbis; American Woman Charged with Promoting ISIS; Cosby Faces Multiple Accusations of Sexual Assault; NFL Continues Adrian Peterson's Suspension

Aired November 18, 2014 - 10:00   ET

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

CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: The next hour of CNN "NEWSROOM" starts now.

And good morning, I'm Carol Costello, thank you so much for joining me. We begin this hour with new developments out of the Middle East.

Two men armed with knives and axes and machetes storm into a Jerusalem synagogue and hack away at worshippers. Four Israeli rabbis are killed, three of those victims were Israeli-Americans and because of that, the FBI will launch an investigation of its own. We also have new video of the aftermath of that attack and I want to warn you right now, what you are about to see is graphic and it's disturbing. We're going to take you inside that synagogue where the attackers carried out that bloody rampage. In addition to the four rabbis killed, at least six other worshippers were wounded. Both of the Palestinian men were killed. Here are those pictures.

All right, you can see the carnage that went down here. I want to bring in Alan Dershowitz who's well known for his legal expertise. The Harvard law professor is also the author of the "Evil Terror Tunnels: the Case for Israel's Just War against Hamas." Looking at those pictures, they're just so disturbing.

ALAN DERSHOWITZ, HARVARD LAW SCHOOL, EMERITUS PROFESSOR OF LAW: Well, they're essentially ...

COSTELLO: Rabbis and worshippers attacked.

DERSHOWITZ: They're essentially beheadings. I mean they're not different from what ISIS has done. These were people with access coming in and trying to essentially behead rabbis at prayer. People of peace, people who are not part of the political activities in Israel. I knew one of them. I knew the family of one of them. He was a Bostonian and a great peace lover.

COSTELLO: The FBI will launch its own investigation. How might that work?

DERSHOWITZ: It won't be anything more than symbolic. Israeli intelligence is much better equipped to get to the causes of this. The FBI will come in because technically these were American citizens and the FBI has jurisdiction. It will help the Israelis but Israeli intelligence and police will do the vast majority of the work. COSTELLO: Israeli authorities right now believe these two men were

lone wolves, they were Palestinian men, and but they believe they were lone wolves and they say these kinds of attack are happening more often within Israel, especially Jerusalem, and that they're very difficult to prevent.

DERSHOWITZ: They are. But there's no such thing as a lone wolf when it comes to these acts of terrorism. They're incited and inspired, they are inspired by Hamas, by Islamic Jihad and tragically even by Abbas, by Abu Mazen who has talked about defending Jerusalem and using all means to defend Jerusalem. That sends a message to lone wolves and so although they're -- the actual ax is wielded by these individuals, they are listening to voices from the leadership of the Palestinian Authority.

Israel, on the other hand, always condemns attacks by individual radicals such as the ones who burned the Palestinian young man after the three Israelis were kidnapped. So you can't create a moral equivalence. You have individuals on both sides who are bad, but the Israeli government constantly condemns the bad Israelis whereas the leadership of the Palestinian Authority, Hamas particularly, praises them and makes martyrs of them, even the Palestinian Authority names parks after them and athletic fields after them. There's a big difference.

COSTELLO: I understand. Let's go back to the attack itself because it happened in a synagogue and there are those who say that this might spark a religious war. How was this kind of attack more dangerous than others?

DERSHOWITZ: Because when you have religious warfare, you cannot resolve it rationally. Each side thinks that God has spoken to them and they're listening to God's voice. Israel is a secular society for the most part. Its actions are made based on secular military decisions. But Hamas is a religious organization who believes that it is acting in the interest of God. And that's why they won't compromise, that's why they won't recognize Israel, that's why their charter calls for the killing of Jews and destruction of synagogues and the establishment of a caliphate. Hamas is ISIS, but it's on the border of Israel rather than as far away as ISIS is from the United States.

COSTELLO: Alan Dershowitz, thank you for your insight. I appreciate it. Of course, we'll be talking much more about this horrible incident in Jerusalem in the coming hours on CNN.

Now, let's turn to the terror group ISIS and its alarming talent to successfully recruit newcomers, including those from the West. Today a Virginia woman is charged with lying about her ties to the terror group and her social media postings promoting ISIS. CNN's Deborah Feyerick is chasing down details. She joins me now with more. Good morning.

DEBORAH FEYERICK, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Carol. Well, about a half dozen Facebook accounts suggest that this woman was becoming more and more radicalized and supportive of ISIS, posting images of the "virtues" and of "Mujahedeen" and claiming "I love ISIS." She was upset that her account kept getting deleted because of her views and her postings.

The woman is 29-year-old Heather Coffman, she's accused of working as an ISIS recruiter, someone who could help others get to Syria, join the blood thirsty terror group. According to an FBI criminal complaint, she tried to recruit two people, including an undercover FBI agent. Now, in the first case, a man she claimed to be her husband but whom it appears she'd never met, she allegedly set him up with brothers who gave him contacts into Turkey. The man ultimately was in Macedonia, he changed his mind, he stayed there. But after FBI agents executed a search warrant on her Facebook site, an undercover agent posing as a wannabe jihadi met with the woman saying that he, too, was interested in ISIS jihad. She said that she could find a legitimate facilitator to get him to Syria.

At least one of the meetings was recorded with Coffman creating a code language effectively to avoid detection. She was confronted at her office by FBI agents. She denied her activities. Coffman was charged with essentially lying to federal investigators, making false statements, promoting international domestic terrorism. We have reached out to her lawyer. There are a few personal details right now, but according to the FBI this is a woman who actually talked her own sister into believing in the benefits of ISIS and jihad, Carol.

COSTELLO: Deborah Feyerick reporting live for us this morning. Thank you.

With more Americans being abducted by terrorists overseas, President Obama has now ordered a review of hostage policy. That review was revealed the day after the execution of Peter Kassig, the third American killed by ISIS. Kassig's mother spoke of his aid work in Syria.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PAULA KASSIG, PETER KASSIG'S MOTHER: Peter's life is evidence that he has been right all along -- one person makes a difference. Our hearts are battered, but they will mend. The world is broken, but it will be healed in the end.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: The hostage policy review could lead to changes in how the government responds to families. Previously, families have criticized the Obama administration saying it didn't follow leads or threaten criminal prosecution if ransoms were paid. CNN's Joe Johns is at the White House with more. Good morning.

JOE JOHNS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning. Your heart really goes out to these families, especially on that issue of ransom. The United States doesn't pay it, although some European countries do. So there's the rub. This review is expected to look at how the government deals with the families as well as what the intelligence community is doing, what the diplomatic community is doing. The president ordered this review over the summer and it was badly needed because these families do feel sort of caught in the middle between their concerns about their loved ones and what the government is telling them. And sometimes those messages are very much conflicting.

Information about this review was first disclosed after an exchange of letters between Congressman Duncan Hunter of California and the government. The National Security Council went ahead and confirmed that the review is going on, although it did say they cannot disclose all the details about what the government does to try to free these hostages once they are taken captive. Carol?

COSTELLO: All right, Joe Johns reporting live from the White House this morning.

Still to come in the "NEWSROOM," harsh words from a new woman - well, from another woman, I should say, who says Bill Cosby sexually assaulted her.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOAN TARSHIS, ALLEGES BILL COSBY RAPED HER IN 1969: He's a serial rapist, actually. I mean, when you rape at least 16 women, that's serial, that's a serial rapist ...

Um: Yeah.

TARSHIS: in my opinion.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: Her name is Joan Tarshis, she's speaking out about what she said happened 45 years ago. Here more, next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: A serial rapist, that's what another accuser is calling Bill Cosby as she describes a series of sexual assaults she says happened at the hands of Cosby. Joan Tarshis is her name, she says the attacks took place 45 years ago when she was a 19-year-old comedy writer. She says one assault happened at Cosby's home and another in a hotel room.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOAN TARSHIS: The only evidence I have is that where he stayed in the hotel, the drinks, the fact that I told this to people 20 years afterwards before anybody else had come out. Nobody else knew that he was doing this and I told friends of mine finally. I didn't go to the press, I didn't go anywhere, I didn't - I just told friends. So I finally got it off my chest. So, I don't really see how that's really getting me anything.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: Tarshis also told CNN's Don Lemon why it's taken her so long to come forward.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TARSHIS: It's the guilt and the shame of the victim. You know intellectually that it's not your fault, but your emotions have no intelligence and your intelligence has no emotions, and sometimes they don't connect with each other and my emotions won at this point. I felt a lot of shame, I felt a lot of guilt, I felt a lot of "shoulds," I should have known there was something wrong with this man. I should have felt something was off with him and I was angry at myself that I didn't and blamed myself.

COSTELLO: Tarshis joins a growing list of women who are accusing Bill Cosby of sexual assault. More than a dozen in the last ten years. All of these claims Bill Cosby denies.

So let's talk a little bit more about this. Michaela Angela Davis is a cultural critic and writer, Mel Robbins is a CNN commentator and legal analyst. Good morning to both of you.

MICHAELA ANGELA DAVIS, CULTURAL CRITIC AND WRITER: Hi, Carol.

COSTELLO: And Michaela, I know we had to - we had to talk you into talking about this because it's so difficult.

DAVIS: Yeah, it's difficult, it's complicated, we're not just looking at America's dad, we're also, you know, as a black American woman what he has put out into the culture and creating in the culture is really profound. He focused on black achievement when so many people were focusing on black plight. He created narratives. He created an imagination for the Obamas through the Cosbys and even when you look at the Cosby family, so many of those major characters are women. So we also gave Claire Huxtable this iconic space. I still have a girl crush on Lisa Bonet's character. So this is - it's layered in why it's so hard to talk about. And then we're also seeing a rise of women's voices who are talking about rape culture who are building the courage, who are having sisterhood and coalitions around these really difficult things. So you have to manage this almost insatual (ph) pain of this, you know, icon that you feel as family but then also as women what it takes to do this. So it's a - it's a ...

COSTELLO: It is interesting, Mel, that, you know, these accusations, they came in waves over the decades, but this time people are really listening. And why is that do you think?

MEL ROBBINS, CNN COMMENTATOR: Well, I want to address something that Michaela said which I think points to a much bigger issue around sexual violence and victims feeling powerless and that is the fact that so many people feel this deep wound and feel completely conflicted over the fact that this is Bill Cosby because of what he did from a cultural standpoint.

This is the guy that won the presidential Medal of Freedom. He won the Kennedy Center Award. He won the Bob Hope Humanitarian Award. And so on the outside he is untouchable and that is exactly what victims tell themselves and why they can justify all this shame and the self-doubt and not coming forward. And what I think is different, Carol, very different, because we're not talking about one person, we're not talking about two people, we're talking about at least five women that have spoken publicly about this and an alleged 13 total women that are claiming that he drugged and raped them when they were young women 20 and 30 years ago.

So this is a chorus of women, not just one accuser and so one of the reasons why I think it's different is because of social media. Because if somebody goes on the "Today" show in 2005, which a woman named Beth did, a woman named Tamara did, when "Newsweek" writes about it in 2005, it only lives for that one segment. When somebody goes out there and talks now, it lives on social media and people can comment about it and more people see it and talk about it. And I also think that because of the high profile cases that we've had from Jerry Sandusky at Penn State to we could go on and on and on, there's becoming more education out there, thank God, that is empowering victims to come forward and finally talk. And I'm sure it's frustrating as a victim to see him.

COSTELLO: And to those who might say, you know, these women have something to gain by coming forward. I'm struggling, what would they have to gain at this point? Especially this latest woman, right?

DAVIS: There's nothing obvious to gain. And she was very clear about she doesn't have a book, she's not looking for money. And to orchestrate across decades these 13 women, disparate women with similar stories is a really far stretch to think that there's some grand conspiracy to take down Bill Cosby to what end?

COSTELLO: And here's the thing, here's what they have to gain. Maybe, just maybe, somebody will finally believe them.

DAVIS: That's what she said.

ROBBINS: That's it. Because the truth is the fact that we're still back-pedaling and being like "Oh, well." I know on "The View" I was so angry when I saw those four women, not one of them came out and said, if 13? Obviously the guy's had his hand in the cookie jar and he's gotten away with this for a very long time because he's a man of power. And finally ...

COSTELLO: But when all is said and done, nothing legal can happen to Bill Cosby if these allegations are true anymore.

ROBBINS: Well, something legal already did. He already was accused in civil court and settled out of court.

COSTELLO: Right.

ROBBINS: But for me, look, he's not going to get charged with a crime. He's not going to be convicted in a court of law, but he's been convicted in the court of common sense, as far as I'm concerned.

DAVIS: What I think is interesting is there's the man and there's the work.

COSTELLO: Yes. DAVIS: And what we're going to watch in the culture is can we separate that? The man who may have done really vicious, awful things. But then there's this work. There is "The Cosby Show," there is "Fat Albert," there is, you know, "I spy." There is all this work and we've seen it happen before. Miles Davis was, you know, Pearl Cleage wrote an essay called "Mad at Miles" about him beating his women. We still look at him as a genius, right? We still look at Bill Clinton as a great man who - great work of a man ...

ROBBINS: I look at him as a rapist, honestly. I really do now. I mean ...

DAVIS: But you're looking at the man.

COSTELLO: Bill Cosby, not Bill Clinton.

DAVIS: Bill Cosby, yes.

DAVIS: The challenge is how do we look at the work and how do we look at the individual and are we able to really negotiate that someone can be brilliant and broken at the same time?

ROBBINS: I think there's example after example of that. But I think it's very important at least for me personally to validate these women stories ...

COSTELLO: Absolutely.

ROBBINS: And to basically say they've come forward and that's the most important task.

COSTELLO: We believe you.

ROBBINS: Yes, we believe you.

COSTELLO: Unfortunately I have to leave it here. It's been a fascinating conversation. Michaela and Mel, thank you so much

ROBBINS: Thank you, Carol, very much.

DAVIS: Thank you.

COSTELLO: I'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: The NFL has dealt a huge blow to Adrian Peterson's bid to return to the field. The league announced this morning it is suspending Peterson without pay for the rest of the season. The move comes after Peterson took a plea deal of no contest for disciplining his four-year-old son with a switch. CNN's sports correspondent Laura Rutledge has the latest developments. She has more for you. Good morning.

LAURA RUTLEDGE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Roger Goodell is making a statement here with the focus, of course, on the safety of Adrian Peterson's child. And we all know the NFL has recently been under fire for not handing down punishment considered harsh enough. This started with Ray Rice's two game suspension after the altercation with his then-fiancee. And now Goodell says he will consider Peterson's reinstatement around April 15, 2015, but not before.

And in the meantime, he wants to see Peterson commit to counseling and properly caring for his children. He felt like he didn't see enough of that from Peterson before now. In a letter to Peterson, Goodell told him why he's suspending him. This is a summary. This is what he said. First, the injury was afflicted on a child that was only four years old. Second, the repetitive use of a switch is considered a weapon in this instance. And, third, this is what I found most important out of what Goodell said, you've shown no meaningful remorse for your conduct. When indicted, you acknowledged what you did, but said you would not eliminate "whooping my kids" and defended your conduct in numerous published text messages to the child's mother.

Now, the NFL P.A. says they will immediately appeal this suspension. They have three days to do so. And this would put Peterson back on the exempt list, meaning he would get paid until the appeal is decided upon. The NFL P.A. is also demanding a neutral arbitrator to hear the case similar to what we saw with the Ray Rice case.

But something to keep in mind, we're entering into uncharted territory here with the NFL's new code of conduct policy. So the Adrian Peterson and Ray Rice cases are really the first two we're seeing play out. Another thing that I think we need to focus on, this is a situation that the NFL really knows it's imperative that they get right. Let's not get, you know, unfocused on what's important here in all the back and forth. This is a child who was hurt. And we also have in the Ray Rice case a woman who was abused. I think it's really important that there become more common ground between the NFL and the NFL P.A.

COSTELLO: Al right. Laura Rutledge reporting for us live. Thanks so much. I'm back in a minute.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)