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Early Start with John Berman and Zoraida Sambolin
Jerusalem Synagogue Terror Attack; Ferguson State of Emergency; Peter Kassig's Family Seeking Prayers and Privacy; TVs Pushing Live Viewership
Aired November 18, 2014 - 04:30 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN ANCHOR: Breaking overnight: Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu calling the deadly attack at a synagogue cruel murder, bowing Israel will respond harshly to the terror attack. We are live from Jerusalem this morning.
A growing unease. The embattled town of Ferguson unsettled as the state's governor declares a state of emergency. Is this helpful or cause more tension as we wait for a grand jury's decision to indict Officer Mike Wilson in Michael Brown's death.
Prayers and privacy. The parents of the American beheaded in the latest ISIS video begging for time to grieve, as an American woman is identified as another hostage of the militant group. What President Obama wants to do now to save our people from the hands of terrorists?
Welcome back to EARLY START. I'm Christine Romans. Thirty minutes past the hour this Tuesday morning. John Berman has the week off.
There is breaking news this morning: a terror attack in a Jerusalem synagogue, four people killed, six others wounded, as two knife and ax-wielding men break into the temple. The assailants identified as Palestinians. They were shot and killed by Israeli troops.
Joining us now live with the latest on this, CNN's Ben Wedeman in Jerusalem.
Ben, bring us up to speed.
BEN WEDEMAN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Christine, this happened just before 7:00 in the morning local time. That's about four and a half hours ago, when these two assailants entered the synagogue in the Har Nof neighborhood west of the center of the city. They were armed with knives, what Israeli police call axes. But from the pictures, they look like meat cleavers as well as a pistol.
They began to attack the worshippers who were there for morning prayers. Four people, so far, have been reported killed in that attack. Now, the police arrived quickly on the scene as the two attackers who reportedly from the East Jerusalem neighborhood of Jabel Mukaber came out. There was a gun battle on the steps of the synagogue and those two attackers were killed. Now, we heard the Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu saying
that Israel is going to use a strong hand against the attackers. We heard Netanyahu as well as Jerusalem mayor Nir Barkat pointing the finger of blame at Hamas, but also the Palestinian Authority led by Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas. They accuse him and Hamas of incitement against Israel and Israelis, and the wake of these recent tensions around the Temple Mount or Haram al-Sharif as it is known to Muslims.
Now, Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas has condemned the attack, but did call on Israel to stop provocations by Israelis entering the Temple Mount, which, of course, has been a flashpoint here in Jerusalem now for weeks now. The Israeli authorities, security forces have moved against the neighborhood where the perpetrators are reportedly to be from.
We understand from a police spokesperson, there have already been clashes in that area. Nine people have been arrested and security in Jerusalem is obviously higher now than it has been in quite some time. It's been high for quite a while -- Christine.
ROMANS: Is that what the Israelis mean the response will be harsh, that they will -- is that what they're talking about, the police response?
WEDEMAN: Well, I think beyond that, they do -- the Israelis would like to act against someone who they can blame for this. But the problem is that these attackers come from an area East Jerusalem that is under Israeli control. So, they are blaming Hamas and the Palestinian Authority for incitement. But what they can in practical terms do is not all together clear.
Clearly, they're going to come down harshly upon anybody connected with these attacks in East Jerusalem. But they still don't have any idea whether the attackers had any affiliation whatsoever with Hamas or any other Palestinian militant organization -- Christine.
ROMANS: Certainly, the latest escalation of tension there, and, John Kerry, the secretary of state -- the U.S. secretary of state, is in London, where he has said this is an act of pure terror. He is meeting with the British foreign affairs minister, Philip Hammond, this morning.
Ben Wedeman, we'll check in with you again. Thank you for that.
Thirty-four minutes past the hour.
Turning now to the battle against ISIS. The Islamic terror group's beheading of American aid worker Peter Kassig leaves just two known Western hostages. One is British journalist John Cantlie, who has appeared in several ISIS propaganda videos, apparently under duress. The other is a 26-year-old American woman.
CNN's Erin McLaughlin joins us live now from London with more.
We have not seen much from Cantlie in recent days. There had been several videos he had been near Kobani where he was almost acting as a war reporter under duress for ISIS.
What do we know about these two who were still in ISIS hands?
ERIN MCLAUGHLIN, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: That is right, Christine.
We don't have an update on their condition. This latest ISIS video which features the beheadings of Syrian prisoners, as well as the announced beheading of American aid worker Peter Kassig is markedly different from videos past, and that it doesn't feature a next victim. Even though as you say, we do know that ISIS currently has at least two Western hostages. John Cantlie, the British journalist, who as you mentioned, was featured in several propaganda videos, as well as a 26-year-old female American aid worker who, according to media reports, was taken hostage in August of 2013.
CNN is not naming her which is a request of her family. Meanwhile, as for the identities of the ISIS fighters which brazenly appear unmasked in the video, while French authorities believe it is possible that as many as two French citizens were featured in that video. One of which is highly probable, authorities there are saying, is a 21-year-old French citizen by the name of Maxime Hauchard who they say -- they believe was self radicalized.
Take a listen to what the French prosecutor had to say in a press conference yesterday.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
FRANCOIS MOLINS, FRENCH PUBLIC PROSECUTOR (through translator): In July of 2014, he gave Skype interview by Raqqah on a channel where he explained he had been self radicalized on the Web and talked about his army training and his life in barracks together with 40 other people. And in August of 2014, as a candidate of jihad, he asked others to join him in Syria and in Iraq.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MCLAUGHLIN: Authorities are trying to identify the other ISIS fighters featured in the video. It appears they may come from countries around the world. As for the man known by the British press as Jihadi John, the masked executioner with the apparent British accent -- well, there had been media reports he had been injured in an American air strike. U.S. intelligence sources are now saying that they have no evidence that that is the case -- Christine.
ROMANS: All right. Erin McLaughlin for us this morning in London with those developments -- thank you, Erin.
The president -- President Obama has ordered a top-to-bottom review of the government response when Americans are taken hostage by terrorist overseas. This order was revealed in a Pentagon letter to California Congressman Duncan Hunter who has advocated for a tougher response to terrorist captors.
Three Americans have been killed by ISIS militants. It's not known if the government's strict no-ransom policy will be part of this review.
Protesters in Ferguson, Missouri are angry this morning at Missouri Governor Jay Nixon for declaring a state of emergency before the grand jury has announced whether it will indict a white police officer in the fatal shooting of an unarmed black teenager. In fact, announcing state of emergency before anything has happened at all. The governor is saying he's doing this as a precaution.
CNN's Sara Sidner is in Ferguson with more.
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SARA SIDNER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: There are certainly a lot of folks talking about what has happened over the past 24 hours. Governor Nixon declaring a state of emergency and then saying that he has activated the National Guard in preparation for the grand jury deciding whether or not to indict Officer Darren Wilson in the killing of unarmed black teenager Michael Brown.
The protesters are pretty upset about what he has done, saying that basically it is painting them as violent, and they have been protesting for more than 100 days. Many of them showing up and are not violent at all, though they are very, very loud, and they do a lot of chants and they come at police with very strong words. But they say for the most part, they have been peaceful. And this paints them all as violent.
However, the governor has said before that he wants to make sure that the community is prepared, that businesses and residents are protected, and that he will do whatever it is in his power to make sure that happens. So, he has gone ahead and put forward the state of emergency.
We do know that there are folks who do appreciate that, including the mayor of St. Louis who supported the governor's decision, saying that preparations are necessary and it is not that easy to simply call up the National Guard and have them be ready. So, he has done that in advance, also saying that the National Guard will be in the background, that it will be the police departments who are front and center, namely the St. Louis county police department and the Missouri Highway Patrol.
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ROMANS: All right. Sara Sidner for us this morning in Ferguson, Missouri.
The Senate is expected to vote tonight on the Keystone XL oil pipeline. Louisiana's Democratic Senator Mary Landrieu telling reporters she is comfortable she has the 60 votes needed to authorize the construction of the project, even though only 59 senators are publicly supporting it. If the bill does pass, it will set up a showdown with the president. He wants the State Department to determine the pipeline fate.
Top Senate Democrats are urging President Obama to use executive powers to overhaul the nation's immigration system, a decision could be imminent. The president has been calling on Republicans to pass comprehensive immigration legislation. He has threatened to bypass Congress by the end of the year if they don't.
New Jersey Governor Chris Christie warning fellow Republicans not to shut down the government even if the president does take action on immigration. In a close door meeting, Christie told House GOP leaders that without a clear end game, they would find themselves in a rerun of 2013. That government shutdown lasted more than two weeks and damaged the GOP politically.
Republican contender for the 2016 race taking a little bit of a jab at Hillary Clinton. Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker says he feels no pressure at the age of 47 to make a bid for the White House now. That's because he says a certain political rival of his is still toying with the idea well into her 60s.
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GOV. SCOTT WALKER (R), WISCONSIN: Whether it's two years, six years or 20 years from now, because at 47, I mean, I think about Hillary Clinton, I could run 20 years from now for president and still be about the same age as the former secretary of state is right now.
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ROMANS: Walker says the closer he gets to deciding to run, the more he realizes, quote, "you have to be crazy to run for president."
ROMANS: New details about the aggressive search for a suspect who pushed the man in front of a New York subway train, as the man's wife looked on in horror. Police are looking for this man, this heavy set balding man last seen Sunday wearing dark jeans, white sneakers, and a black leather jacket. People who were at the station were stunned.
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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The conductor told me it was a tragedy.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Everybody is panicking because the MTA workers, the people that are supposed to be trained for this, they were panicking. You know what I mean? We heard little whispering, you know what I mean? The conductors were crying.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROMANS: The train operator said he could only close his eyes as the D-train hit 61-year-old Wai Kuen Kwok. Then he says he broke down and cried.
People at risk for heart attacks and strokes may have another weapon in their arsenal. A large-scale six-year study compared people who took statin alone with those who took a combination of a statin with another drug Ezetimibe. Both say their bad cholesterol or LDL levels go down considerably. Statins lower LDL by preventing it from being produced. The other drug lowers LDL by preventing cholesterol from being absorbed.
Forty-two minutes past the hour. Let's get an early on your money.
European stocks higher right now, ahead of news about the health of the German economy. Asian shares are mixed. Japan's benchmark climbing back after yesterday's news that Japan is in recession. There is hope the prime minister will postpone a sales tax hike in Japan.
Here in the U.S., futures are barely budging, even a slightest uptick, though, could mean another record day. Yesterday, the S&P gained less than two points. Hey, but it was enough for a record close. The 42nd record high this year.
For the year, the S&P 500 up more than 10 percent. Now, some are warning of a pullback in the future. The legendary investor Carl Icahn says he expects a major correction in the next three to five years. Remember, we have not had a true correction of 10 percent or more since 2011. A lot of people saying things look good for now, but at some point, all good things must come to an end.
Forty-three minutes past the hour.
Family and friends of Peter Kassig mourning their loss and remembering the man brutally killed while helping others. Next, you're going to hear from Kassig's parents.
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ROMANS: Welcome back.
Breaking news in the war on ISIS. Fighters from the terrorist group retreating from an oil refinery in northern Iraq after surrounding it last month. We are told Iraqi security forces have now entered the Baji refinery. That's the largest refinery in Iraq, critical piece of infrastructure.
If the Iraqis have regained control of the strategic refinery, it would represent their biggest victory against ISIS to date. We'll keep you posted on those developments this morning.
The parents of the ISIS' latest victim seeking prayers and privacy this morning. Ed and Paula Kassig spoke briefly to reporters in Indianapolis on Monday after the Islamic terror group released a video the brutal beheading of their son, Peter. The Kassigs asked he'd be remembered as someone who risked his life to help others.
CNN's Alexandra Field is in Indianapolis with more for us.
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ALEXANDRA FIELD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Ed and Paula Kassig bravely speaking out about the loss of their son Peter Kassig, also known as Abdul-Rahman Kassig.
The family asking now for some privacy. They say they need some space and some time to grieve and mourn the loss of their son. They hope to one day forgive and finally to heal.
They spoke very briefly, just a minute or two, reading prepared remarks.
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.
FIELD: They talked about their heartbreak over the loss of their son, but they also spoke about their pride in the work that he was doing to help others. Kassig was abducted in 2013 when he travelled into Syria to do humanitarian aid work. The Kassig asked people to pray at sunset for their son and all people being held in Syria and Iraq against their will.
Kassig converted to Islam during his captivity. His parents said the conversion started months before that. But Peter Kassig grew up in a Methodist Church right here in Indianapolis. It's the same place where his parents spoke about the loss of their son. A spokesperson for the family says there will be a joint Muslim-Christian memorial service for Kassig -- Christine.
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ROMANS: Forty-nine minutes past the hour.
A critical vote at the U.N. this morning could lead to criminal prosecutions against the leaders of North Korea. If a U.N. committee approves their solution on Pyongyang's alleged human rights abuses, the entire general assembly will decide in December whether to send the case to the International Criminal Court. That would give North Korea that distinction of becoming the first non-African nation to be referred to the ICC for crimes against humanity.
Confirmation from the Vatican, Pope Francis is coming to Philadelphia to attend the church-sponsored World Meeting of Families next September. It will be his first trip to the U.S. as head of the Catholic Church. Philadelphia's mayor calls the papal visit the largest event in the city's modern history. Francis will be just the fourth reigning pontiff in history to visit the U.S.
Not your average story book wedding. Convicted mass murderer Charles Manson will marry his 26-year-old bride. Why they are rushing to the aisle. That's coming up.
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ROMANS: Wedding bells for Charles Manson. The convicted mass murderer reportedly just got a marriage license and intends to tie the knot. He is 80 years old.
His bride to be, Elaine Burton, is 26 years old. She goes by the name "Star". She moved from the Midwest to California to be near the prison and to work for his release. No date has been but the prison has assigned a wedding planner. The
couple has until February to get married before they had to reapply for a license.
Support for Obamacare appears to be plunging, even though most Americans who enrolled say they like and plan to renew their coverage. Here's the latest Gallup poll, 56 percent of Americans say they disapprove of the Affordable Care Act. That's an all-time high. Only 37 percent approve. That's an all-time low.
Pollsters acknowledge the drubbing suffered by Democrats in the midterm elections may have influenced those numbers. In other polls, some of the disapproval was from progressives or liberals who thought it didn't go far enough.
A billboard that spans the length of a football field is being unveiled today in New York's Time Square. It is said to be the biggest, brightest and most expensive advertising space in North America and it arrives just in time for the holiday shopping season. The digital billboard will occupy an entire city block, eight-storeys high and be on display for four weeks.
One cable channel has come up with a whole new way to get you to watch live. We're going to get an early start on your money, next.
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ROMANS: Time for an early start on your money this morning.
U.S. stock futures barely budging. But you know what? Even the slightest move higher would mean another record high day.
Yesterday, the S&P gained fewer than two points. But it was enough for a record. That's the S&P's 42nd record high this year. It's seven in the last nine trading sessions.
Now, many analysts expect stocks to keep climbing through the end of the year. But a few are starting to warn of a big pullback in the future. Carl Icahn, the billionaire investor says he expects a major correction in the next three to five years, telling that to "Reuters". And JPMorgan just downgraded its view of where U.S. stocks.
Remember, there hasn't been a true connection, a 10 percent pullback in stocks, since 2011. All good things must come to an end at some point, just not quite yet.
Most young workers are participating in company retirement plans. That's good news, but they are not saving enough to take advantage of the company match. According to the survey from Aon Hewitt, about 40 percent of 20 to 29-year-olds are saving too little to get the full 401k match; same for 31 percent of 30 to 39-year-olds. That means those workers are potentially leaving thousands of dollars of free money on the table. When it comes to retirement, time is money. Putting a little more in and taking advantage of the company match can make a huge difference in the long run. Cable channels are bribing viewers to watch live. WE TV is putting a special code into some shows that viewers can redeem to watch prizes. The catch: the code has to be used within three days of the live broadcast. That's because advertisers only pay for views that occur within three days. Other networks are pushing viewers to watch live or risk big spoilers. ABC is using that strategy for this week's "How to Get Away With Murder." It's the winter finale.
Overall, sports programming has the most success attracting a live audience.
EARLY START continues right now.
