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Climbing Kilimanjaro; Middle East Mission

Aired August 24, 2006 - 13:31   ET

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

KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: Regular viewers of LIVE FROM are accustomed to seeing him in trendy glasses and pinstripes, ringing out the closing bell. Well, today Ali Velshi join us not from New York, but a much higher altitude, the summit of Mt. Kilimanjaro, and he calls this a vacation.
Ali, tell us where you are.

ALI VELSHI, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I am about 15,000 feet one of the camps that you use to summit Kilimanjaro. I just actually came back today. I summited -- and let Reynolds know, I've got a thermometer in my tent, in my sleeping bag, in tent, and my reading says 32 degrees. Let me know whether there's any rain coming or anything like that. That would be important information for me.

PHILLIPS: OK, I will keep you plugged in. I will talk with Reynolds, no problem. Now, explain to our viewers why you, our money guy, our dollars-and-cents guy, everything else to do with the economy, is taking on this adventure.

VELSHI: Well, first of all, as you know, Kyra, I'm like a 6- year-old kid, I'm just fascinated with stuff in general. Every year, I sort of do one big adventure type of trip. It tends to be in Africa. And I have been fascinated with the idea of mountains, particularly with Kilimanjaro, for some years, tried this last year and had to abort it after three days. I really, really wanted to do this trip and get to the top of Kilimanjaro, particularly because that ice cap is disappearing. Those glaciers are disappearing, and they'll be gone possibly within 10 years. I wanted to do this, and I finally did it. We got -- we left last night about 11:00 p.m., our time -- we're seven hours ahead of you -- and about eight hours later we were at the top of Kilimanjaro. And it was one cold, cold night. But we're down, and it's sort of a thrill of a lifetime for me.

PHILLIPS: What kind of training did you have to do?

VELSHI: Well, you know, Kilimanjaro claims victims. You can be really fit and in really good shape and not make it, and you can be a smoker, 80 years old and make it. I did the normal stuff at the gym, cardio. I actually have a treadmill in my bedroom now. So I was getting my heart rate up and lifting weights.

I can't say I was fully prepared for it. Last night was one cold, tough night, you know, by the midnight sky, really, really cold. But I did it, and I feel a lot better for it now. I think this is the fittest i've ever been. But as soon as I get off this mountain tomorrow, I'll start fattening up for Thanksgiving. PHILLIPS: All right, Ali, we've got you connected to Reynolds Wolf. What's your question to Reynolds.

VELSHI: Reynolds, it's 32 degrees in my tent at 15,000 feet on Mount Kilimanjaro. Do you have any sense of whether it's going to be clear, you know, on my way down tomorrow?

REYNOLDS WOLF, CNN METEOROLOGIST: I don't know if this is good or bad; I don't if you're going to want to laugh or cry about this. We're looking at partly cloudy skies with a chance of snow showers during the evening hours for you. Temperatures are also not going to get a whole lot warmer for you. So I hope you have a nice...

VELSHI: Oh, thanks...

WOLF: Hey, we do what we can to make you happy, big guy.

VELSHI: Well, Reynolds, the only thing I can tell you, because you're the only other guy on CNN like me who wears a vest, I actually have an insulating vest on right now.

WOLF: A man after my own heart. I hear you. Stay warm.

PHILLIPS: Thanks, Reynolds.

VELSHI: Good to talk to you, my friend.

PHILLIPS: Ali Velshi, we're going to follow your travels. You're always getting into something adventurous. Keep us posted. Keep calling in.

VELSHI: A real pleasure to talk to you, Kyra. I'll see you when I get back. Say hi to everybody on the show.

PHILLIPS: I sure will. Thanks, Ali. Ali Velshi.

Well, two journalists that were kidnapped -- of course, this has been one of our top stories throughout the week. We're talking about a very familiar face who's getting into the game here. He's headed to the Middle East to try to win their release. We're going to talk to Jesse Jackson coming up next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: Journalists held hostage. Government held to their principles. No negotiations with kidnappers. Enter Jesse Jackson, who's had some success in this field in the past. In 1990, he helped win the release of more than 700 non-Iraqis being held as human shields before the Gulf War. Nine years later, Jackson persuaded Yugoslav President Slobodan Milosevic to free three Americans he was holding prisoner. Tomorrow Jackson leads a delegation to the Middle East. Today he fills us in on his plans.

Reverend Jackson, thanks for being with us.

REV. JESSE JACKSON, RAINBOW/PUSH COALITION: Good to see you. PHILLIPS: Tell me, when it comes to the release of these two Fox journalists, what is your first move when it comes down to that part of the mission? Who is the first person you're going to talk to?

JACKSON: Well, first, ours is a humanitarian mission. We're going as guests of the Middle Eastern Council of Churches. As we go to Syria, and Lebanon and Israel, we reach out to whoever we suspect may have these two journalists held captive, and the same is true with the three Israeli soldiers who are held captive as well.

I know that if we do not talk, we cannot effect the change that we seek. So we are very open-minded, we will reach out to whoever we think perhaps has some impact upon the outcome.

PHILLIPS: So do you think you might be able to meet with this Islamic organization, actually meet with these kidnappers?

JACKSON: I do not know. And I'm not sure you just dismiss all them as kidnappers. We do not know who have them. We don't know whether they're dead or alive. Our interest is in their status, a, our interest is in who has them, two, and can we persuade them to not hold them any longer as trophies and, for God's sakes, do not kill them. So we cannot approach them name-calling as if we in fact have the cards when they in fact have our people.

PHILLIPS: How can you not call them kidnappers, though? They're releasing a tape. They're obviously being held captive. The organization has come forward and actually said the name of the organization, so I'm just curious why you wouldn't say kidnappers?

JACKSON: Well, you can call them that, sitting back in the studio back in Atlanta. If I'm in the lion's den trying to appeal to them to release them, I have to use quite a different approach. And I think, unfortunately, there are too many elements that have power in that region, whether it's Syria or Iraq or Hamas or Hezbollah. And they have power that we are not talking with now, but we cannot persuade them to alter their course and, in fact, join coexistence (INAUDIBLE). And so our not talking is not a very productive way of effecting change.

PHILLIPS: So Reverend Jackson, obviously, the key to negotiation is somehow reaching those individuals -- we may call them kidnappers. You're not naming them that specifically. But they'll want to somehow identify with you. How do you plan to do that when you don't know anything about this organization?

JACKSON: Well, the Middle Eastern Council of Churches has ongoing contacts on the ground. The times I've been blessed to bring Americans back home from Syria or Cuba or Iraq or Yugoslavia was always with the help of the religious institutions, which we often underestimate the ongoing power of those institutions. It's amazing what one can do if one, in fact, has -- willing to fast and pray, have faith in God and intelligence, and be willing, in fact, to take the risk. It's amazing what can happen.

PHILLIPS: So Reverend Jackson, let's take a listen to Olaf Wiig, the photographer that, of course, we've seen held captive. His wife came forward, held a news conference. I want to take a listen to this, and I want to know what you think she did that may have been a good move here.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ANITA MCNAUGHT, WIFE OF OLAF WIIG: I do not question that you who are holding them have suffered greatly; as everyone in Gaza, in the Palestinian territories, is suffering. But these two men are not responsible for the injustices that you speak of, and they should not be punished for them.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: Did she do the right thing, Reverend?

JACKSON: She has just the right tone, and she's humble. She has not been arrogant, she has not been threatening. She's been sensitive to their pain. She's making a moral appeal, and that's just the right tone that she should set, and we'll use that same approach when we go to the region this week.

PHILLIPS: You've negotiated with Castro, Milosevic, President Assad of Syria. Do you think that there's any similarities among those leaders, how you negotiated with them, and how you're going to negotiate with an organization that appears to be of an extreme nature? The same type of group...

JACKSON: Well, we thought -- we thought both groups were extreme. That's why we didn't have a talk policy. Whether it was Syria or Cuba or Iraq or Yugoslavia, the one thing in common, A, we did not have a talk policy with them. B, we underestimate the religious leaders in the country. Three, there was abounding poverty and pain that we ignored. And we thought we could ignore them out of existence. It did not happen.

The good thing in those cases, we knew where they were, we knew who had the key to open the door. Now we do not quite know who has these journalists in captivity. We do not quite know where the Israeli soldiers are, nor who is their captor. And so we shall approach them with a degree of sensitivity. Of course, there's concern about those held captive and there's some Lebanese and Palestinians held captive, as well.

So we must -- this is a very delicate piece of this -- expand the cease-fire, A; humanitarian aid, B. But the delicate part -- now, how do we begin to break the ice and break some of the pain of those who are hurting because they're held in captivity?

PHILLIPS: Are you getting support from Palestinian leadership?

JACKSON: Well, we're certainly communicating with them. Once we decided to go and accept the invitation of the Middle East Council, we have talked with the government officials of Syria. We're going to meet with Assad -- Mr. Assad next week, the officials in Lebanon, and officials in Israel. And our government as well. While we do not direct it through the governments, at least they are apprised of our attempt to try to expand the cease-fire, try to grant some relief for those who are suffering from the bombing and the counterbombing. And to make a straight-out moral appeal, please let the captives go. Don't use these men as trophies. Their freedom could, in fact, trigger more positive and good news so all can be winners in this process.

PHILLIPS: Reverend Jesse Jackson, we'll follow your trip. Hope you'll join us when you get back.

JACKSON: Indeed.

PHILLIPS: Thank you.

The tough talking, America-hating, oil-pumping president of Venezuela. Looking to make a big deal in China now. The bottom line, straight ahead on CNN.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: The low oil light is blinking again in northern Alaska. This time, it's a compressor breakdown, curbing production at Prudhoe Bay. The operator, BP, says it will take several days to fix. Prudhoe had been turning out about 400,000 barrels a day until BP found corrosion along a 16-mile stretch of pipeline. With the latest problem, the Alaskan fields are down to about 110,000 barrels a day. So far, at least, none of it has had much impact on prices.

Now the Caracas connection. Big oil and Beijing. Venezuela, the world's fifth bigger oil exporter, agreed to export more of its oil to China.

We'll get the details from CNN's senior international correspondent, Stan Grant.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

STAN GRANT, CNN SR. INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, as President Hugo Chavez is close to Cuba's Fidel Castro and has styled himself as a thorn in the side of the United States, at the same time, the U.S. is Venezuela's biggest oil customer. Well, now Chavez looking further afield. Here in China, the high-level talks with Chinese president Hu Jintao.

Now, this comes at a time when China's thirst for oil is growing. China has already enriched resources deals with so-called rogue states Iran, Syria and Sudan; now ramping up its purchases from Venezuela. In 2004, China imported just over 12,000 barrels a day from Venezuela. At the end of this year, that's expected to be over 200,000 barrels a day.

At the same time, though, China is playing down this visit, keeping it relatively low key. It wants to buy Venezuela's oil, perhaps does not want to broaden that rift with the United States and carry Venezuela's political baggage, as well.

Stan Grant, CNN, Beijing.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PHILLIPS: Sexual assaults at the Citadel. Up next, a military school takes an eye-opening survey. You'll see the results, when LIVE FROM continues.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: Ten years after admitting its first female cadet, The Citadel is still battling to make the ranks safe for all students. The South Carolina military school says almost 20 percent of the female cadets responding to an internal survey report that they've been sexually assaulted.

Reporter Tara Lynn of affiliate WCBD in Charleston has more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

TARA LYNN, WCBD REPORTER (voice-over): Tara Woodside (ph) is a junior at The Citadel. She says her male friends are very protective of her and she feels safe on campus. But The Citadel isn't immune to sexual assault cases.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You hear about harassment cases, you hear about some assault cases. I don't think it happens here anymore than it happens anywhere else, it's just that the spotlight gets put on us automatically because we're seen as -- well, first of all, a military college but also as a leadership laboratory.

LYNN: Only 17 cadets reported a sexual assault case to The Citadel in the last nine years. College president John Rosa says if school leaders don't know about it, they can't help the victim. That's why they conducted this survey.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Help us find young people that have had a bad experience that don't want to come forward to tell us how much out there, how much is actually happening. Again, The Citadel handled every case that came forward. It's just the ones that don't come forward are the ones that concern you the most.

LYNN: Now that officials understand the prevalence of sexual assault and harassment on the campus, they can help prevent it.

(on camera): As part of the new program, these cadets will now have to take special training sessions to learn about sexual assault and how they can keep it from happening on campus.

(voice-over): Cadets will now participate in the "values and respect" program. They'll discuss the importance of respecting themselves, respecting others, and how to handle sexual assault situations. Thomas Pasco (ph) is part of the program training team.

(on camera): When you were in the sessions, what are you going to be telling your fellow cadets?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Look out for your friends. Look out for your classmates. Just remind them that these boys and girls that around campus, these men and women, they're just like your brothers and sisters and your girlfriends and your boyfriends back home. They are people, and you just need to watch out for each other.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: When we do something very positive like this "values and respect" program, we're showing other colleges and universities that steps can be taken to minimize assault.

LYNN (voice-over): The president says his new program is the first step.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PHILLIPS: And some context -- the Justice Department has estimated as many as 25 percent of all female college students could be raped or face attempted rape while in college.

The lone survivor of the Sago Mine disaster wants someone to pay. Randal McCloy says negligence is to blame for his disabling physical injuries and mental impairment. Twelve men died back in January after an explosion in the West Virginia mine. McCloy was trapped for more than 40 hours.

His lawsuit was filed against the mine's owner and other companies. It claims unsafe working conditions and the lack of safety equipment led to that disaster. The suit doesn't specify a dollar amount for those damages.

You saw her on "LARRY KING LIVE" last night. Singer-songwriter Sheryl Crow talking about surviving cancer. She also has some advice for cancer prevention.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SHERYL CROW, SINGER-SONGWRITER: And just little small things, which I feel compelled to educate people about, like not drinking out of a water bottle that's been in your car. If it gets hot, it's emitting byproducts that act as cancer.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: So is that a fact or not? Later on LIVE FROM, a cancer specialist joins us with what you need to know about preventing breast cancer.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

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