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The Police Announce 30th Anniversary Reunion Tour; Resolute on Iraq?; North Korea Nuke Talks

Aired February 12, 2007 - 14:00   ET

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

DON LEMON, CNN ANCHOR: All right. Hello, everyone.
Welcome to the CNN NEWSROOM. Lots of news to cover for you.

First, we're going to take you to Los Angeles for a live picture from Los Angeles. We're going to get you to the police.

But the NEWSROOM starts right now.

All right. There we go now, live. Whiskey a Go Go in L.A. cannot wait to see The Police, Kyra, causing all kinds of controversy there and even right here in our NEWSROOM.

We're a little bit flustered. There he is. There's Sting.

One of your favorite, eh?

STING, SINGER: Good morning, everybody.

(APPLAUSE)

STING: Yes, I am certifiably insane. If anybody comes at me with a white -- a white coat, just let them through.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: These are the same people who were here 27 years ago.

STING: It's their children.

Hello, mom.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: That's you. Isn't it? It is. It is.

Three kids now, right?

STING: So we had such a good time last night we thought we'd dig a few songs out of the vault and rehearse them.

Andy?

ANDY SUMMERS, THE POLICE: Yes?

STING: Do you know "Message in a Bottle"?

SUMMERS: What key do you want to do it in?

STING: I want to do it in C sharp minor.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Look at this. We've got the teleprompter and everything like that.

This is for you.

(CROSSTALK)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I can't read that. (INAUDIBLE) ought to get one of those things.

STING: I think we'll start with some drums, dude.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Is that tempo OK for you?

STING: If it's too fast, I'll stop you. You know that.

(MUSIC)

LEMON: I hate to do this to you, but can't listen anymore. That is Sting and The Police, and they are preparing for their 30th anniversary tour. Practicing there at Whiskey a Go Go in Los Angeles.

Our Brooke Anderson of "SHOWBIZ TONIGHT" will have a full report coming up a little bit later on in this newscast. Much, much more on The Police.

KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: Well, sleet and snow and bitter cold. A wintry week in store for a lot of people. CNN's Jacqui Jeras in the weather center, tracking a monumental storm.

(WEATHER REPORT)

LEMON: Well, it's mostly symbolic, but with a solid message, a resolution that wouldn't resolve anything. Still, House Democrats are circulating a non-binding measure disapproving of President Bush's troop buildup in Iraq.

Here's CNN's congressional correspondent, Andrea Koppel.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ANDREA KOPPEL, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT, (voice over): It's expected to be the most intense debate on the war since it began, the House devoting at least three days to Iraq. Democrats say their resolution will send a simple, straightforward and unambiguous message to President Bush to rethink his policy.

REP. TOM LANTOS, (D) CALIFORNIA: You would have thought that the election would have been sufficient to make him feel the need to modify and reverse course, but apparently it wasn't.

KOPPEL: According to California's Tom Lantos and Missouri's Ike Skelton, the resolution's co-sponsors, this non-binding, mostly symbolic measure will have two main points -- an expression of support for U.S. troops, but at the same time disapproval of the troop increase the president wants. Language designed to appeal to almost all Democrats and some Republicans.

REP. IKE SKELTON, (D) MISSOURI: I'm sure we will have some substantial Republican support. It will be a very simple, easy to understand message.

KOPPEL: Republican leaders, who may be allowed to offer an alternative resolution, disagreed.

REP. JOHN BOEHNER, (R) MINORITY LEADER: It's a meaningless, political step. If they want to do something real, well then bring a resolution out onto the floor that either supports the president, stops funding . . .

KOPPEL: Cutting off funds to U.S. troops now in Iraq is a move Democrats do not support, but some, like Pennsylvania's John Murtha, who oversees defense spending, wants to force Bush to begin a withdrawal and Murtha has vowed to tie the Pentagon's latest request for additional money to a guarantee military readiness at home won't suffer.

REP. JOHN MURTHA, (D) PENNSYLVANIA: We would hope we will affect the surge. That's exactly the point.

KOPPEL (on camera): Democrats say this resolution is just a first step of many legislative moves they hope to make in coming weeks to try to force President Bush to change his policy.

Andrea Koppel, CNN, Capitol Hill.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PHILLIPS: All right. Developments in the North Korea six-party talks.

Let's go to John Vause, joining us on the phone now from Beijing.

John, bring us up to date.

JOHN VAUSE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Kyra.

The chief U.S. negotiator here, Christopher Hill, confirmed just a few moments ago that there is, in fact, an agreement at the six- party talks aimed at denuclearizing the North Koreans. Now, all sides at this late stage just going at 10 past 3:00 in the morning here, are now waiting for their home governments to sign off on this deal.

There's a little bit of uncertainty. Pyongyang could still pull out of this at the last minute. But it seems likely that all sides here have now reached an agreement. This is a stunning turnaround in the last 24 hours.

Early Monday morning our time, we heard from Christopher Hill saying that it was very pessimistic, that it appeared that all of us had -- it was heading towards collapse because of some very surprising demands that the North Koreans had made for a massive amount of energy assistance. Both the Japanese and the South Koreans were agreeing with the Americans, saying it was up to the North Koreans to scale back those demands.

They met today. They agreed to continue these meetings into the night. We know that the American delegation and the North Korean delegation haggled one on one for many hours tonight. There was also bilateral meetings between the North Koreans and the Chinese.

And now what we're being told by Christopher Hill, just to confirm, that there is a draft agreement and they are just waiting for their home governments to sign off on it. All this should be confirmed in the coming hours -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: All right. John Vause, appreciate it.

Well, straight ahead, if you're going to make an omelet, you've got to break some eggs, right? And if you're trying to make presidential history, do you have to break some political legs? A tale of two Democrats straight ahead from the NEWSROOM.

LEMON: A beach vacation turns violent. One witness says the crime scene looked like a horror film. Ahead in the NEWSROOM, stunning details of a brutal attack that left two women dead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: Well, if you missed The Police at the Grammies last night, they may be coming to you, or to a giant arena or stadium relatively near you.

Our Broke Anderson is standing by at the Whiskey a Go Go, where the guys are expected to announce a much-anticipated 30th anniversary reunion tour.

We got a little bit of the warm-up, didn't we, Brooke?

BROOKE ANDERSON, CNN ENTERTAINMENT CORRESPONDENT: We did, exactly. A bit of a warm-up last night, and The Police are inside right now. They kicked off the press conference with "Message in a Bottle," and they're jamming right now.

It's a very casual, relaxed atmosphere. They're having fun feeding off the crowd. And I don't know if you can see this, but it is official, The Police, live in concert.

It's going to kick off May 28th in Vancouver. And then it's going to travel the Bonnaroo Festival outside of Nashville in June; Boston's Fenway Park in July. It's going to hit Madison Square Garden early August. Also Seattle, Denver, Las Vegas, Phoenix, Dallas, New Orleans.

A lot of dates planned. And, you know, this isn't just a summer tour. They're going to go worldwide with this thing.

This fall, they're going to head to the U.K. and to Europe. They're also planning additional dates in Mexico, South America, Japan, Australia and New Zealand. And there are different price points set for the North American leg of the tour, with the highest price ticket going for about $225. So it seems that they are really trying to make this accessible for people who do want to see The Police.

A portion of the proceeds are going to go to WaterAid. It's an organization devoted to providing clean, safe water to underdeveloped countries. But right now, I want to take a listen to the announcement when Sting actually made it.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

STING: So, OK, we're going to come -- we're going to come clean. We're actually -- we're going to go on tour.

(APPLAUSE)

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ANDERSON: You know, he made that announcement in between sips of tea. So they are being very nonchalant about this. But the rumors have been out there percolating for a while that they were going to go on tour to celebrate their 30th anniversary.

By the way, it's sponsored -- the tour is sponsored by Best Buy. And there's a rewards program. So members of that program are going to get the first crack at tickets -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: All right, Brooke, right there in front of the Whiskey A Go Go. We'll be staying, of course, on top of everything that the police are doing.

Appreciate it. Thanks, Brooke.

LEMON: Well, first he surrendered to a sweet tooth. Then he surrendered to police. A suspect caught on a candy trail next in the NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: You can't really call it red-handed, but sticky fingered you can call it. Police in Missouri say a trail of candy led them to their suspect.

Reporter Jeff Small of CNN affiliate KSDK has that story for us.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JEFF SMALL, REPORTER, KSDK TV (voice over): This is the scene of a bizarre crime that involves a bold burglar, chocolate, and two shocked residents.

ERIC DETHLEFSON, CRIME VICTIM: It's weird just knowing somebody was in your house while you're sleeping.

SMALL: That somebody was staying in an apartment just a few doors down. Police say 19-year-old Colt Jolliff went on an early morning crime spree looking for unlocked cars and an unlocked door. DET. MARK BOLES, KIRKWOOD, MO., POLICE: He had been breaking into some cars, carrying a duffel bag around with a bunch of items. Said he had been drinking a little bit. Tried an apartment door, it was unlocked, went inside, thinking that was his apartment.

SMALL: It didn't take long before police say he realized this house was not his home. Instead, police say, he quietly put some sticky fingers to work.

DETHLEFSON: He stole, like, shirts and shoes; his wallet and his camera, and like protein shakes, a just a bunch of random stuff.

SMALL: Including individually wrapped chocolate candies

DETHLEFSON: Actually, like those little, little liqueur candies.

SMALL: The sweet treats made it out of the apartment, but the burglar didn't realize he left a trail of candy leading a few doors down to his place.

DETHLEFSON: I actually noticed the footprints, and just kind of followed them, being nosy. And noticed some of our stuff kind of led up to his apartment.

SMALL: A very visible lead was enough to given a alert Kirkwood police officer everything she needed to find the bold burglar

BOLES: It's pretty unusual. A lot of pieces fell into place here. Yes, literally. We're thankful he had too much stuff, and decided to leave a trail of chocolates to this apartment.

SMALL: Eric Dethlefson is just glad he can smile about the crime now, and consider it a learning lesson.

DETHLEFSON: Yes, we'll definitely keep the door locked from now on.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LEMON: We've been talking a lot about the Dixie Chicks. The Dixie Chicks, well, they wracked up five Grammys, and that prompted us to ask a question, this question: Were those wins politically motivated?

PHILLIPS: Well, a lot of you had some pretty strong opinions on this one.

Steve in Albany, he didn't mince any words. "The Dixie Chicks are an overblown, pretentious, loudmouthed, untalented music monstrosity. Their victory is a demonstration of the pathetic state of music today."

He didn't hold back at all.

LEMON: Oh, yes. But Mike, you know, he sees it differently, Kyra. He writes, "The Dixie Chicks are talented musicians who made a great album and deserve their accolades. Years after Natalie made her comment in London, many more millions of Americans now also share her shame over this president."

I guess that means her same feelings.

PHILLIPS: And Glen in Huntington Beach wrote this: "If the Chicks think they received awards for music, well, they should think again. All they received is a stamp of approval on their Democratic Party vote. The three Chiclets have less talent combined than Christina Aguilera has in her little finger."

LEMON: They don't hold back, do they, these viewers?

And finally, Jim in Las Vegas writes, "The Dixie Chicks didn't need the Grammys to be vindicated for their stance against the war. History has done that for them."

And we'll share more of your e-mails later on right here in the NEWSROOM.

Write us at cnnnewsroom@cnn.com.

PHILLIPS: Well, if you're going to make an omelet, you've got to break some eggs. And if you're trying to make presidential history, you have to break some political legs. The tale of two Democrats straight ahead from the NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: Hello, everyone. I'm Kyra Phillips, live at the CNN world headquarters in Atlanta.

LEMON: And I'm Don Lemon.

We're watching the windup and waiting for winter to throw its next punch at the Midwest. Duck and cover, because you're live right here in the CNN NEWSROOM.

Smoking guns or shots in the dark? The Bush administration says markings on mortar and sophisticated bomb designs reveal the hand of Iran in the war in Iraq.

CNN's Michael Ware has that story for us.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MICHAEL WARE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): In a war meant to confront al Qaeda, the American military says its troops are being killed by Iran. In a background briefing in Baghdad that could not be taped, by three officials who cannot be named, the U.S. escalated its campaign of accusation against Tehran. The U.S. officials laid out what they call a growing body of evidence that a largely covert Iranian special forces unit -- arms, trains and advisers -- Shia insurgents attacking coalition soldiers.

That unit is an element of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps. Its elite Kudz force which, the U.S. officials claim, takes its orders directly from Iranian Supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei himself, insisting the Kuds force is systematically funneling insurgents, a range of arms, from mortars to sniper rifles, grenades to machine guns. The American officials highlighted one weapon in particular they blame the Kuds force for supplying, a roadside bomb pioneered by Lebanese Hezbollah, so powerful it punches through the heaviest American armor with ease.

Called an explosively-formed penetrator or EFP, the officials say the device has killed at least 170 soldiers since it first emerged on the Iraqi battlefield in 2004. But like much of the declassified information released during the briefing, it's a claim U.S. officials have made many times before, insisting one of the bombs' key components needs fine machine tooling that can be traced back to Iran. As can markings on mortars and explosives found inside Iraq which show they were manufactured by Tehran.

All part, the U.S. officials claim, of a wide-ranging Iranian program to target Americans being carried out by Kuds force officers of the kind American troops detained in Baghdad and the northern city of Irbil, including one as senior as the Kuds' forces operations chief.

While admitting there is no smoking gun of Iranian complicity, a Defense Department intelligence analyst says this is a sophisticated Iranian campaign being fought through a host of surrogate groups, maximizing Iran's deniability. If so, it's precisely the same kind of proxy war techniques America's CIA used so successfully with Islamic allies against the Soviet Union's occupation of Afghanistan in the 1980s.

Though the much-anticipated briefing was full of old allegations, there was a sprinkling of the new, including this -- according to the U.S. military, the Iraqi government has confirmed a political faction within its ranks has indeed received arms from Iran. But only for its own protection. Something the military rejects, stating mortars and sniper rifles are weapons used for attack, not defense.

Either way, outlining Iranian involvement is one thing. Stopping it is another.

Michael Ware, CNN, Baghdad.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PHILLIPS: Well, in central Baghdad, a bloody anniversary marked with more bloodshed. A string of bombings at a busy market and other commercial areas today killed at least 90 people and wounded more than 190. Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki heard the blast. He was calling for unity at the very moment in a speech marking the Golden Mosque bombing in Samarra. Today is the Muslim calendar's one-year anniversary of the attack blamed for sparking the religious fighting that has ravaged Iraq ever since. And two years and change of venue later, the trial of convicted sex offender John Couey finally gets under way. He's accused of kidnapping and killing a nine year-old neighbor, Jessica Lunsford, in 2005. The highly-publicized case was moved 300 miles to Miami from Lake County in hopes of seating an impartial jury.

Reporter Susan Castro (ph) of CNN affiliate WFTS has more on the case in this community and one man in particular that they can never forget.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: OK. Our next juror would be 180.

SUSAN CASTRO, WAFTS CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Judge Rick Howard is determined that confessed John Couey will stand trial before an unbiased panel of his peers. The judge tossed out the entire jury pool in Lake County last year following intense pre-trial media coverage.

SHERIFF JEFF DAWSY, CITRUS COUNTY, FLORIDA: We just want to find closure for Mark and the family and for us.

CASTRO: Citrus Country Sheriff Jeff Dawsy was at the center of the massive manhunt for Jessie, who was last seen February 23, 2005 when her grandmother tucked her into bed in her home. The third grader was found less than a month later in a grave just 150 yards from her home and directly behind the home where John Couey was living.

Dawsy still remains a source of strength for Jessie's grieving family. Very close.

DAWSY: ... al very close. Probably crossed the barrier, which you're not supposed to. But, you know, Jessie's grandfather are really the parents, are the -- we've become very good friends. I think, you know, as he put it, and probably better stance is that my heart was broken. And that's truly what happened. I couldn't phrase it but they did.

CASTRO: Sheriff Dawsy says Jessie has forced this entire community to be more vigilant in protecting their children, including his own.

DAWSY: I think it's something that changes you. My family has lived it. My now 11 year-old, who was one day difference in Jessie, you know, he lived it. He's lived this thing all the way through.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PHILLIPS: If convicted of kidnapping and killing Jessica Lunsford, John Couey could be sentenced to death.

We want to take you live now to the White House. President Bush and a lot of high-profile file black leaders in our community celebrating Black History Month. Let's listen in. GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: ... Southeastern Football League -- Southeastern Conference. He was picked because he's a strong leader and a fine man. And I thank you for blazing trails. I'm proud to be here with...

(APPLAUSE)

BUSH: ... Condoleezza Rice, secretary of state.

(APPLAUSE)

BUSH: So last night on this very stage we celebrated Abraham Lincoln and we welcomed Doris Kearns Goodwin, who wrote a book called "The Team of Rivals". Abraham Lincoln surrounded himself with fine cabinet officers, all of whom wanted one thing -- his job. Not so fast, Madam Secretary.

I appreciate so very much the members of the Congress for joining us. First, the chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee, Charlie Rangel.

(APPLAUSE)

BUSH: That's an achievement. I'm looking forward to working with this achievement to get some things done.

He's a good man, a smart guy. Senator Norm Coleman from Minnesota.

Senator, thank you for coming.

From the U.S. Court of Appeals, D.C. Circuit, one of the most important benches in America, Justice Janice Rogers Brown.

Good to see you, Janice. Thank you.

And Duey (ph).

Good move, Duey.

Duey tried to lead the standing ovation. That was a loyal husband.

I appreciate Dr. Dorothy Height.

Thank you for coming, Dr. Height.

(APPLAUSE)

BUSH: Rosalyn Brock, who's the vice chairman of the Board of Directors of the NAACP.

Rosalyn, it's great to see you. Thank you for coming.

(APPLAUSE)

BUSH: Thanks for taking time.

I am so pleased that the Jackson High School Black History Tour Group from Jackson, Michigan is with us and Director Shirley Pitts (ph). Thanks for coming. Looking forward to hearing you. Proud you're here.

The theme of this year's African-American History Month is "From Slavery to Freedom: Africans in the Americas". For hundreds of years the people of Africa were bought and sold by colonial merchants and transported as cargo to this hemisphere. The journey endured by millions of Africans is one of the largest migrations of history and one of the great crimes of history.

For the men, women and children that survived this journey, life in the New World was a life in chains. They toiled for the bread that others would eat. They were often denied even the comfort of suffering together. Their families were broken up and a spouse or child was sold.

Yet despite these assaults on culture and humanity, the children of Africa persevered. They kept faith that the freedom that God intended for all would one day be theirs.

And across this hemisphere in different places and at different times, that faith would be redeemed. In America their first real hope of freedom came on New Year's Day in 1863, when President Abraham Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation in a room right upstairs.

Heroes of the civil rights movement continued the struggle for freedom. And by their courage they changed laws and opened up the promise for millions of our citizens.

Today, African-Americans are seizing opportunities gained at great price and they're making their mark in this wonderful country in countless ways. We see their character and achievement in the neighborhoods across our nation and we see it right here in this room, right here in the White House.

One of those faces is familiar to us, Wesley Autry. You know, you might remember Wesley from the State of the Union Address. I remember Wesley was, I think, sending a hand signal to you, Mr. Chairman. So was I, by the way. I love you, man.

Yes, not yet, Wesley. I got to tell the story one more time. In case you haven't heard the story, he was waiting at a Harlem subway station. He saw the guy fall into the path of a train. He had seconds to act. He jumped on to the track. He pulled a man into a space between the rails. And he held him as the train went right over him.

And so they said, "You're a hero." He said, "No." Yet, Wesley, I told him, I said, "You're a hero." He said, "No." I said, "Wesley, I disagree as do millions of our fellow citizens."

And so we're proud you're here again. We thank you for your courage. We thank you for your commitment to the life of a stranger. What a wonderful example you've set for young and old, black, white, anybody in the United States of America. Welcome back here.

(APPLAUSE)

BUSH: Yes, sir. Thank you, man.

I want to tell you the story about Bonnie St. John (ph). She grew up in California, which is -- most places in California are not very close to the snow. But she wanted to be a skier. The problem was at age five she lost one of her legs. But she never lost her dream. She says she fell down a lot while learning to ski. But she also learned that the key to success was how fast she got up after the fall. And so she went to Harvard. And she became a Rhodes Scholar. And then she won medals in downhill skiing in the Paralympics. She owns her own small business. She's writing an inspirational book to encourage others. She is the kind of person that you really want to be around and the kind of person that shows that individual courage matters in life.

And so, Bonnie, thanks for coming. God bless.

(APPLAUSE)

PHILLIPS: From athletics to the courts, to politics, the president honoring dozens and dozens of African-Americans there at the White House as he remembers African-American History Month this month. The theme of Black History Month: From Slavery to Freedom. Americans have recognized black history since 1926. It started out as Negro History Week and then moved into Black History Month. It wasn't even until the 20th century that blacks gained a respectable presence in the history books. The president recognizing all types of leaders there at the White House.

You can go to CNN.com/pipeline if you want to continue to watch the ceremony.

LEMON: On to politics now. On the trail of early voters: two top Democrats on the road. And one issue is dominating that discussion. Guess what it is. We'll have the answer for you straight ahead in the CNN NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: On the witness stand today at the Scooter Libby trial, Watergate reporter Bob Woodward. Woodward testified that he learned about the CIA's Valerie Plame not from Libby, but from a former top official at the State Department. Woodward said he interviewed Libby weeks later and Libby never mentioned Valerie Plame.

Libby's attorneys are trying to make a case that the former chief of staff to Vice President Cheney is a scapegoat for administration leaks.

Florida restraint comes to the aid of a troubled astronaut. About 70 people turned out for a fund-raiser at Sylvester's Restaurant in Coco Beach last night. The owner says that Lisa Nowak made a good impression when she dined there last year and Sylvester's wanted to help.

Earlier, parishioners at Nowak's church in Houston prayed for her at Sunday services. And, as you probably know, Nowak is accused of trying to kidnap and murder a woman she considered a rival in an alleged love triangle.

LEMON: We're going to talk about now a dream vacation turned deadly. It's one of our top stories on CNN.com, if we can bring that up. It's one of the most watched stories here. Two women who went on a vacation off the African Coast, they were stoned to death. And if you want to check out the video, just go to our home page here and go to our "Most Popular Video". You can check out the video and you can also read the story.

But it's off of Cape Verde. And they say two local men have confessed to killing the two Italian women.

And our Alfonso Van Marsh has that story from London.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ALPHONSO VAN MARSH, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The African tropical island's known for sunny beaches, Portuguese-influenced seafood and the soulful sounds of Grammy-nominated singer Cesaria Evora, now the focus of a bizarre assault that left two Italian women stoned to death and a third, who survived the attack and who alerted police.

Local news agencies report that police have arrested three men in connection to the crime, Italian television reporting that the women had accepted a dinner invitation from two of the men on Thursday. Police say the three in Cape Verde on holiday were dragged into the woods, pelted with stones and left for dead in a ditch.

An Italian diplomat says the 17 year-old survivor is recovering from fractures to her head and needed 18 stitches. Italian authorities say the women were part of a surfing group vacationing in the cluster of islands off Africa's west coast.

Locals and Italians have been shocked by the alleged crime in the former Portuguese colony. Italian Prime Minister Romano Prodi says he's astonished by the news, saying, quote, "I have never heard of Cape Verde having bad incidents of criminality."

Italy's foreign ministry is sending another diplomat to Cape Verde to monitor the police investigation.

Tourism is vital to this resort area some five hundred kilometers, or three hundred miles, from Senegal. Authorities may need to move quickly to solve the crime and to reassure the public this resort community remains a paradise for beach goers and windsurfers.

Alfonso Van Marsh, CNN, London.

(END VIDEOTAPE) PHILLIPS: When it revs up again in India, the NEWSROOM's making tracks to bring you the latest on a new storm targeting the Midwest.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ANDERSON: I'm in Hollywood. Brooke Anderson in Hollywood, where the police have confirmed that, yes, they're going on a world tour. Those details and how Sting finally made the decision to reunite with the band when CNN NEWSROOM returns.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: Well, if you missed the police at the Grammies last night, they may be coming to you or to a giant arena or stadium relatively near to you.

Our Brooke Anderson is standing by at the Whiskey a Go Go, where the guys have just announced a much-anticipated 30th anniversary reunion tour.

Why do you think they're doing it, Brooke?

ANDERSON: Well, you know what's interesting? Sting, before they wrapped up the press conference, you know, he was the one that was kind of holding out all this time. Stewart Copeland had made it public knowledge that he wanted to do a reunion tour. Andy Summers said, "Sure, I'll do it." But Sting said -- you know, the day before he made the decision to do it he probably would have said, "You're out of your mind. No way."

He said he just woke up one morning and a light bulb went off and he thought, "Yes, let's do this. I'm going to call those guys. It's going to shock them and it's going to shock the world."

And indeed, it has. A lot of people are very excited. And this was a really cool event. They arrived. It was very laid back, very relaxed. They played a number of songs, including -- kicking off the press conference with "Message in a Bottle".

Take a listen to that.

(BEGIN AUDIO CLIP)

(MUSIC)

(END AUDIO CLIP)

ANDERSON: I want you to listen now to how Sting actually made the announcement. It was pretty nonchalant in between sips of tea. Listen to this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SING, MUSICIAN: So, OK, we're going to come clean. We're actually going to go on tour.

(APPLAUSE)

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ANDERSON: Now, this tour is going to begin May 28th in Vancouver and then they will play more dates throughout North America. They're going to hit the Bona Route Festival (ph) in June, then they're going to hit Boston's Fenway Park in July. Also two Madison Square Garden appearances in August. Also the cities of Seattle, Denver, Las Vegas, Phoenix, Dallas, New Orleans, St. Louis, more to be announced.

But this just isn't a North American tour. They're going to take this thing worldwide. They are going to hit fall dates in the U.K. and Europe. Also, they're expected to announce additional dates in Mexico, South America, Japan, Australia and New Zealand.

So everyone is anticipating this huge tour from the Police. Now, tickets for the North American leg are set at three different price points, with the most expensive being around $225. So they're trying to make it pretty accessible for those who do want to see it.

Interestingly, the opening act for the North American leg of the tour is a band called Fiction Plane. And the bassist for that band is Joe Sumner. He happens to be the son of Sting. So it is quite a he family affair.

Now, here at the press conference they had no set list, no play list. They were just feeding off the energy of the crowd. As we just heard, they opened with "Message in a Bottle". And they closed with "Roxanne". It just wrapped up. People are making their way out.

Also, a portion of the proceeds will go to Water Aid for the concert tour. It's an organization devoted to providing clean and safe water to underdeveloped countries. And they spoke about how very important that was to them. Best Buy is the sponsor. If you're part of their Rewards Club, you get the first crack at tickets -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: That sounds -- there's a little mini-commercial there.

You know, Brooke, a lot of people know Sting and how successful he has been. But it was Stewart Copeland, who was his drummer, that started the Police back in '77.

ANDERSON: Yes, it was Stewart Copeland and then it was Sting and someone else and eventually Andy Summers jumped on board with them. Huge successes, big Grammy winners. So it was fitting they took the stage last night at the Grammy Awards to kind of, you know, set the tone for this whole thing. The last time we had seen them was a few years ago when they reunited to perform to commemorate their induction into the Rock 'N Roll hall of fame. So, sporadically, we've seen them here and there. But, you know, we're going to see them a lot in the future. The "Roxanne" performance last night at the Grammies -- you know, Kyra, a lot of people are saying it was too short, it should have been longer, all the hype surrounding it. If you want to see more, you're going to have to buy a concert ticket. PHILLIPS: Well, I'll tell you what. We'll let everybody see a little bit more right now as we let the Police take us to break.

Thanks, Brooke.

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LEMON: Well, more than five years after 9/11, the World Trade Center site has yet to see any major construction. But that could soon change.

Susan Lisovicz at the New York Stock Exchange with all the details on that.

This has been the source of much controversy, Susan.

SUSAN LISOVICZ: Much controversy in the past. And I'm sure it's not over yet, Don. We've all seen models of the Freedom Tower, which is the signature skyscraper at Ground Zero. But only the foundation is actually under way. The "Wall Street Journal" now reporting that the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, which is the owner of the World Trade Center, is working to shop the Freedom Tower. The idea? To spur development by attracting private equity or hedge funds into owning all or part of the $3 billion tower.

So far, the project has been dependent on government support and insurance proceedings -- Don.

LEMON: What about the private sector? Because a lot of people say it won't happen unless there's interest there. Is there any interest in the private sector?

LISOVICZ: Yes and no. I mean, this is a project unlike any other. I mean, it goes without saying. The trade center has yet to attract any private sector tenants. But analysts say investors will be interested because of the mere fact that real estate in Manhattan is so desirable. Still, some investors may have trouble getting over the World Trade Center's legacy, not in spite of one terrorist attack, but two, not to mention the Freedom's Tower's potential of a new terrorist target.

The tower's design is meant to withstand attacks. The first 18 stories will be protected by a concrete structure to protect the building from possible truck bombs.

As for potential investors, the Journal says J.P. Morgan-Chase may buy the development rights to Tower Five, another skyscraper to be built on the World Trade Center site, and that could spark private sector in the project.

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