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Egyptian President Shakes Up Military; Syria's War in the Skies; Cuba Shuts Down Street Opera

Aired August 13, 2012 - 12:00   ET

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

SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN ANCHOR: I'm Suzanne Malveaux. Welcome to the NEWSROOM INTERNATIONAL, where we take you around the world in 60 minutes.

Here is what is happening right now:

Fighting for their lives in Syria. The rebels say they shot down one of the government's jets. But how much longer can they actually hold on?

And they've got the torch, but is Rio de Janeiro really ready for the next Summer Olympics?

And then, the Romney campaign is reignited by a fresh young face. We're going to hear what President Obama has to say about his opponent's new running mate? That is live this hour.

First, however, we are taking your, however, to Cairo. Egyptian press is calling this move revolutionary. Now, President Mohamed Morsi, he is shaking things up the country's strong leadership by replacing two key generals, including Field Marshal Mohamed Hussein Tantawi. Now, he is arguably the most powerful man in Egypt.

If you remember, Tantawi, he was defense minister who was in power after the removal of former leader Hosni Mubarak. Well, on Sunday, Tantawi was given a top medal and sent into retirement. That is right.

For more, Ian Lee is joining us live from Cairo.

And, Ian, first of all, tell us, a lot of people look at this and they go, wow, political tsunami, game-changer in Egypt.

So, how does Morsi -- how this guy survive? Is there going to be any backlash when he's got his top military generals out and his own people in?

IAN LEE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Suzanne, he is definitely now the most powerful man in Egypt. Not only does he have presidential power, he has legislative power and enormous sway over the writing of the Constitution.

And people are wondering what will the military's response be? The military has been tight lipped so far, and in the past, we usually don't hear what the military is going to do until they do it. Remembering back during Egypt's revolution, we didn't know that the military was going to take over control of the streets, of the security situation until we saw the tanks rolling down the street. So, they're very much a last minute.

But this does basically cut off the top echelon of the military. But Mohamed Morsi, analysts here say he was smart he promoted lower ranking officer, officers that are just right below these top to positions to help smooth the transition from -- for the military going moving forward from these, the top generals leaving, Suzanne.

MALVEAUX: OK. Ian. Tell us how the Egyptian people are reacting to this, because it is a bold move for this new president to make here. If they see the government is divided and you've got the military against the president of the country, is there a sense of insecurity?

LEE: Well, it's extremely bold move in Cairo, and Egypt is in a state of shock. But last night, we saw people take to the streets. We saw the Muslim Brotherhood call the supporters out into the streets to show support for President Mohamed Morsi's decision. We also people who are against Mohamed Morsi take to the streets last night. People are very strongly divided.

But this is a historical move for Egypt. This is the first time that Egypt has had a civilian elected leader who has more power than the military. So a lot of activists in Cairo praised the move saying that the military is no longer in power, but they are careful, because he does have all of the power now.

MALVEAUX: All right. Ian, thank you so much.

And, of course, the question is how is this move going to affect Egypt's relationship also with the United States?

I want to bring in Michael Holmes, joining us here.

And, Michael, we saw a couple of things happen recently. First of all, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, Defense Secretary Leon Panetta, both of them in the region. They have sit down with this guy, Tantawi, they have a close relationship with the military.

Now that he is out of the picture, how does this throw things off here, especially when you're talking about the Obama administration and their relationship with Egypt?

MICHAEL HOLMES, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR/CORRESPONDENT: Well, I think Mohamed Morsi wanted this to happen at some point. Everybody is surprised that it happened now. A lot of people are thinking it is what happened in the Sinai over the past few days where they had to move in the military to combat the Islam rebels down there, and this gave him the opportunity, because it was seen a bit of a failure, the killing of the policemen there by these rebels down there.

And so, Morsi seized the day, if you'd like, and jumped in, cut off the head of the military.

And Ian is right, this is a huge power grab. You have removed the military from the political landscape for the first time. And it is -- what we don't know is what the military thinks of it. We don't know what the judiciary thinks of it yet.

But a lot of people think that the guys new ahead of time this would happen or they would not have gone that quietly.

Now, the U.S., it's a good point, we give $1.3 billion a year to the Egyptian military, you know, sort of to keep them on the side, trained them and the rest of the stuff.

Now, when the people we are doing business with are moving down the ladder, and those who feared a Islamist government are not going to be reassured by this, because now Morsi has it all.

MALVEAUX: Yes. And let's talk about that in a little bit, because this a very complicated situation for the Obama administration when you talk about, this is the first time, that you've got a member of the Muslim Brotherhood and Islamists, that they are dealing with. This has been a very tense and tricky relationship in the past. Now, they are forming this new kind of relationship with the Muslim Brotherhood.

How do they -- how do they manage that to make sure that they are on the same side as the United States?

HOLMES: Well, they've got to work the diplomatic angles here. They're going to try to make Morsi think that U.S. interests are also shared by Egypt in the region.

The other people who are worried about this is, of course, Israel, because they have great links with the Egyptian military and that whole thing since the truce was put into place, and the peace deal was put into place with Egypt, they have worked hand in glove, the two militaries between the two.

And when there was an attempt to cross the border from Israel to the Sinai the other day, It was -- they were talking to each other about the whole thing.

So, the U.S. has to work the diplomatic angle here, because if this holds or stays in place now, the military is not the power brokers they once were. It just seems that it is extraordinary that the military would take this lying down, because they have not had the reins of power in some way.

MALVEAUX: So, this might be a difficult question to answer. I mean, for better or worse, right, the United States is dealing with Hosni Mubarak, the late Hosni Mubarak, dictator for more than 30 years or so. But the United States knew who they were dealing with and they knew he could control and suppress the terrorists and al Qaeda and everybody there.

When you see this situation now, does this look like this is something that is very unstable and perhaps very worrisome to the Obama administration what is happening on the ground?

Well, it could be. Now, Morsi is not a guy who is out there supporting the terrorists. I mean, he's an Islamist, but that does not mean he is a bad guy.

MALVEAUX: Sure.

HOLMES: So he is cracking down on those who have been carrying out terror operations in the Sinai and we have seen it in the recent days. So that remains to be seen how that evolves the government, but he's got the parliament back, he's got the presidential powers back. The military had the power to tell the government they could not interfere in my military affairs. That's all gone now, he's got that back as well.

I'm just dying to see what the military reaction will be to this, whether they are going to take this?

But as I say, those who feared an Islamist rule are going to be worried about this. And going forward, it's very is difficult to see what happens.

MALVEAUX: And I also wonder, you've got to wonder if Morsi, himself, is a little worried. If he's not look behind the back to see who is out to get him in light of all of the changes that he's made and the power vacuum.

Michael, thank you. It's an amazing story.

HOLMES: Big and let's remember, too, at the end of the day, this guy was not elected by a majority, so that the street is going to be important. There is a big demonstration on Friday, anti-Muslim Brotherhood demo. It's going to be interesting to see how many people turn out, how vocal it is, because of the splitting of the reformist vote as we discussed when the election happened, you ended up with a guy that was basically voted for by 25 percent of the people. So, you know, you got to look at that, too. It will be interesting to see what the street does as well.

MALVEAUX: It's going to be incredible.

All right. Thank you, Michael. Good to see you.

HOLMES: Good to see you.

MALVEAUX: Imagine a city without men. Well, that's Saudi Arabia's new plan to put women into the workplace without breaking the country's strict rules of gender roles.

So, how is this all going to work? And is it a step forward or backward for the women in the Arab world?

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

MALVEAUX: Civil war in Syria becoming increasingly dangerous and brutal as well. People living in the country's largest city of Aleppo, they are now dodging bullets. They are living in fear. Activists say that at least 57 people, they have been killed across the country today.

Now, this package we want to warn you, it is alarming and can be disturbing for our viewers. Ben Wedeman, he is reporting from inside of the killing zone in Aleppo.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BEN WEDEMAN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: He wasn't a fighter or a revolutionary. He did not live by the gun.

But 45-year-old Hassan (ph), a shopkeeper, died from an unseen sniper's bullet. Neighbors and fighters had to hoist his body over walls between apartment buildings in the back streets of Aleppo's Mashad neighborhood to avoid snipers.

His wife was by his side when the bullet ripped through his head. They'd come to help relatives pinned down by the violence to escape to safer ground.

The line between life and death in Aleppo is perilously thin.

Just one block away, I met Hanadi (ph), who insists she and her family of six will not leave.

(SPEAKING FOREIGN LANGUAGE)

WEDEMAN: I asked her where the front line is, but she brushes off the question saying that she has become accustomed to the shelling.

Her son, one and a half year-old Abdul Rani (ph) seems confused and squeezes my hand tightly.

A two-minute walk down the street, an apartment building was hit in an air strike.

(on camera): This building, or rather what is left of this building which is not much is in an area where the civilians are still living. And, of course, among the ruins we found a French book, and somebody's studying English -- the life of William Shakespeare.

(voice-over): Residents say that two bodies remain buried inside.

Rahi (ph), the self-described unarmed activist says regime forces don't care if they kill 100 or 200 or 1,000 or 2,000 civilians if they destroy two or three or four buildings.

A rocket slammed into another building in the nearby Sikari district, wounding two, raining rubble into the street.

All the while, government helicopters hover menacingly overhead and jets drop bombs on rebel-controlled neighborhoods.

The trappings of daily life in this city under siege have disappeared. Even the simple act of crossing the street requires a strong heart and fast feet. The sniper's bullet is a crack away.

Ben Wedeman, CNN, Aleppo, Syria.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

MALVEAUX: All right. So we just saw Ben Wedeman talking about the air war which is part of the conflict. Now Syrian jets, they are dropping bombs on neighborhoods that are held by the rebels.

But I want you to take a look at this -- this is video that is now shot by the rebels apparently, and they say that it show shows them shooting down a Syrian military jet. Now, the Syrian government they deny that. They say that this jet crashed, because of some sort of technical failure.

I want to bring in Hala Gorani -- because, Hala, this could be a significant turning point as you have talked about before and as you have studied this video, because tell us what that means. If you the rebels on the ground who potentially are shooting down the military jets that are in the air?

HALA GORANI, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR/CORRESPONDENT: Well, it has been a very uneven battle between the rebels who are poorly armed compared to the Syrian regime. Of course, but if now, and it is the case that they have shot down a MiG 23 Syrian air force fighter jet out of the sky, this is extremely significant, because it means that they have either acquired surface-to-air missiles or defecting soldiers have the kind of weaponry that they might have taken with them when they defected, Suzanne, to take out this particular fighter jet.

There is video out there on the YouTube as well from one of the rebel groups, Suzanne, showing a man that rebels say is the pilot of that downed MiG 23 fighter jet. Now, over the last several weeks, fighter jets have taken place in the Syrian regime's assault on the rebel's strongholds. It wasn't the case for the first 16 months of the uprising, but it is the case now.

MALVEAUX: Hala, do we know you're talking about this video, and hope we'll able to turn the video quickly, but do we know if the pilot is alive or talking or anything about the potential of this pilot in the video?

GORANI: Rebels are claiming that it was a three-man crew and at least one of them died and they captured another one. So we are going to have to wait and see. It's very difficult for us to confirm if we can at all whether or not this is indeed the pilot of that Russian jet, the MiG 23.

What's interesting, though, Suzanne, if we could run the video again, if you listen to the sound of the weaponry that rebels say took out that plane. Listen.

You hear it. It is the rattle of cannon fire. Now, this is not -- this would mean that it's not a shoulder-fired missile. That would have been a single shot or two rather than the continuous crackle of what appears to be more of a sort of a cannon fire that took out that plane.

If it is case that it was an extremely lucky shot for the rebels indeed.

Now, we have by the way, Suzanne -- this is the first time I'm seeing it with you, this is the man rebels say was the pilot of that downed jet. If we could listen a little bit to it so we get a sense off what is being said.

(VIDEO CLIP PLAYS)

GORANI: There you have the rebels saying that this is the pilot of the fighter jet, and we are going to have to wait and see. Let me tell you something that is interesting is that the Syrian government is saying, is acknowledging that a plane went down. But they are saying it is mechanical failure and that this jet was on a routine training mission.

MALVEAUX: I want to also if we can, I mean, this seems significant because, you says if they can't, because if you say they have high powered weapons to bring down planes, then this is certainly evens the fight, if you will, and gives the rebels a little bit more of a fighting chance.

You know, we talk a lot about these rebel groups and sometimes we don't know a lot about who these people are, and whether or not they are even aligned. There is a lot of talk about the fact that some of the groups don't even like each other, and that they are fighting each other.

We have video as well of what appears to be rebels who are actually throwing bodies over a building here. Very, very disturbing.

GORANI: Very graphic.

MALVEAUX: Very graphic as well.

What does this say to you, Hala, when you see this video and this kind of activity, allegedly happening by the rebels, themselves, and who are these people?

GORANI: Well, the rebels, if this is indeed genuine and the rebels are throwing regime supporters off of the rooftops of the buildings. They are adopting the tactics of the regime they are fighting. I mean, that's as simple as that.

Human rights groups say they should be held accountable, and rebel groups as well, and opposition groups are saying they should be held accountable.

A lot of these communications, and a lot of these are coming out on Facebook and Twitter, and you will hear from the opposition activists that these people do not represent me, but it signals a spiraling downward of this terrible civil conflict where you have groups who are adopt in adopting the inhumane techniques of the regime they say they want to bring down. And then those groups who are saying, no, this must, and we must respect the rules of war.

And you member last week when the members of the family of the buried family in Aleppo accused of being Shabiha, were executed as well based on video that we saw circulating online.

MALVEAUX: It's certainly is a concern from the administration's point of view. I know we saw Secretary of State Hillary Clinton meeting with her Turkish counter, part and met with some of the students and activists inside of Syria, because it's pretty clear, those groups, they don't get along, they don't like each other. And now you we saw these kinds of tactics it gives you pause. And there's a lot of concern about what's happening.

GORANI: Well, it is not just the political factions that aren't united, the political position and the military component of the anti- regime forces are not communicating either.

So, I mean, they have a long way to go before they present a unified front against the regime of Bashar al Assad.

MALVEAUX: Hala, thank you much, and thank you for bringing that new video to o9ur attention. That was first time that anybody has actually seen that and trying to digest what is taking place on the ground. Thank you, Hala. I appreciate it.

GORANI: Thank you.

MALVEAUX: The athletes, the fans, they are on the way home, but the Olympic Park is still standing. What happens now with London after the games?

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

MALVEAUX: Welcome back to NEWSROOM INTERNATIONAL, where we take you around the world in 60 minutes.

Take a look at what is popular in Brazil right now.

(MUSIC)

MALVEAUX: Nice and mellow.

That was Marie Monte (ph), singing her hit song, which translates to "What do you want to know of truth." That is in her native Portuguese.

Monte sang in the closing ceremonies last night as the torch was handed to Brazil for the 2016 Olympic Games.

No security issues, no major scandals, not even the traffic as bad as everybody worried about. So, London is chalking this up as a pretty big, successful Olympic victory.

So, what's up in London now? Richard Quest, as you guys like to say, no controversy, right? Controversy, everything is back to normal?

RICHARD QUEST, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: And that is one of the interesting things, Suzanne. As I went about my business today and just even here in central Londo.

Here's the question, are things actually more muted and a little bit quieter or is it just because we actually know that the Olympics are over? And I couldn't really decide that. On the Tube, on the streets, there are still just as many people, but it as if the temperature has been turned down. You know, there's lights and there's real set (ph) that you had -- the dimmers and it is as if everything has gone a couple of notches lower.

Now, we still got the Paralympic Games to come in a couple of weeks.

But for the moment, it seems everybody here is just simply, you know, there was a great quote that I have seen, and that is that the everybody is not saying, "Woo, didn't we do well in London, but everybody is saying phoof, we did it."

(LAUGHTER)

MALVEAUX: Thank God, it's over. You wrote a great article in CNN.com, and you talked about the Olympics and you are getting flack, but London says they brought the games back home, and a lot of people, saying, hey, that happened in Athens.

What do you mean?

QUEST: Yes. You know, really, like I don't know that. I mean, you know, give me a break. Of course, I know that the original Olympics of the modern era in Athens and I know all about that and this and the other.

But that's not what I meant. What I was talking about is the way in which the U.K. and London put on the games. They were expensive, but they weren't bank-breaking.

They were organized in one of the most complicated cities in the world. Just think of all the tube lines, the sewerage, everything that is underneath us in the complicated city, but we managed to do it and the traffic did not snarl up.

Budgetary on course, and organizational organizationally, flawless. Where some like in Beijing had very flashy, obviously, spectacular -- we were modest, but we brought the fun and the soul.

And finally -- legacy -- that was the key. So, when Jacques Rogge, the president of the IOC, says and it's his words as well, "The home of the modern sport." I add to that, yep, what London also did was add a touch of reality. The Olympics are doable, and they have been done in a major city.

MALVEAUX: Not like you are biased or anything like that, Richard Quest.

Well, listen, I never -- don't you start! Don't you -- and I never claimed anything but the proof is in the pudding.

MALVEAUX: What are going to recommend for Rio here, real quick, because they're going to be faced with these in four years?

QUEST: Very simple -- don't less let the grass grow under your feet, get on with it. The thing that U.K. did and London did from day one, got on with it. The secret of the Olympics is organization, organization, organization. If you have not got that right, you are in trouble from day one. You dare not let the grass grow under your feet.

MALVEAUX: All right. No grass growing under the feet there. Richard I loved the Olympics. I love watching it. It was a lot of fun watching them. So congratulations to all of you.

Back in the United States --

QUEST: On behalf of everybody, thank you.

(LAUGHTER)

MALVEAUX: Fight to the White House just got a whole lot more interesting. You're going to hear what President Obama has to say in his first live event since Mitt Romney announced his running mate.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

MALVEAUX: There are hundreds of medals awarded at the London games; handful of records broken as well. It was fantastic. But one of the most notable moments had nothing to do with winning a medal. Runner Sarah Attar, she's seen here, also a competitor in judo, seen there. They became the first Saudi women ever to take part in the Olympics.

Now, because of the Islamic strict rules and laws, Saudi Arabia restricts women from participating in many sports and also segregates them when they do. Women are restricted in many other public activities as well. Well now (INAUDIBLE) is trying to change the lives of Saudi women. What is it doing? It is creating a city for women only. Nic Robertson explains.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: So, what Saudi officials are trying to do here is put more women in the workplace. The project that this government agency is funding in Hoofuh (ph) in the east of Saudi Arabia they say is valued at $130 million, and it could create as many as 5,000 jobs for women, something they hope to replicate in as many as 40 other cities across the country. Why are they doing this? Why are they creating women-only environments? Well, they say that the strictures of Shia law, Islamic law in the country, mean that men and women cannot work side by side. So, until now, the many female graduates of the country that the country has been producing have been going into the education sector. What the government is trying to do here is to open up other business sectors: textiles, food processing and such like.

Also, Saudi Arabia realizes it is falling behind the region in the number of women or the percentage of women in their country employed in Saudi Arabia; it's only about 15 percent of women represented in the workforce in a country like United Arab Emirates. Here, it is as much as - or close to 60 percent of the women in the workforce. So, the differences and discrepancies there, very large.

Saudi Arabia has been criticized heavily in past for not getting women in the workplace, for not allowing women to drive for example. And this perhaps some people would argue, and certainly officials in Saudi Arabia would say, this is a sign of progression. That they are committed to getting more women into the workplace. They can't move too fast, because of the conservatives within the country. And they would argue that by putting women in the workplace in this way, it will empower them in the future to have a stronger voice and perhaps bring about more changes for women in country.

But right now, Saudi Arabia loses some of the educated female population who go and work abroad. Right now, 95 percent of women's jobs who are in the government sector. Very small percentage in the private sector. Eighty-five percent of those jobs in the government sector are in education. And there are too many women, more than 80 percent of the unemployed women in Saudi Arabia are university graduates. Those who cannot find jobs are leaving the country to find them elsewhere.

So, the government is trying to address many, many, many problems here and some people would say this is a move too late and too short. Officials would say this is finally a move in the right direction.

Nic Robertson, CNN, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

MALVEUAX: All right. President Obama is taking on Mitt Romney's new running mate in farm country. You're seeing pictures there live. It's the president on the campaign swing through Iowa. Of course, one of the key battleground states. And he is expected to go after Paul Ryan. And he is likely going to talk about the fact that the congressman is standing in the way of a bill to help farmers and rancheres. Let's listen in. This is Council Bluffs, Iowa.

(JOINED IN PROGRESS)

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: And Mayor Tom Hennifan (ph).

(APPLAUSE) OBAMA: You see the sun is coming out?

(APPLAUSE)

OBAMA: I love being back in Iowa. Now, we're starting here in Council Bluff, but we are going to be heading east, and I think that I will end at the state fair. Michelle has told me that I cannot have a fried Twinky.

(LAUGHTER)

OBAMA: But I will be checking out the butter cow, and I understand that this year there is a chocolate moose. So, I am going to have to take a look at that if I can. The last time I went to the state fair, secret service let me do the bumper cars. But they said this year -- I wasn't president yet, so I could not do that -- but not this time.

Now, before I get started, I want to say a few words about the drought, because it has such an impact on this state and all across the country. You know, right now folks here in Iowa and across the heartland, we are suffering from one of the worst droughts in 50 years. Farmers, ranchers, depend on a good crop season to pay the bills and put a roof over their heads. And I know that things are tough right now.

The best way to help these states is for the folks in Congress to pass a farm bill that not only helps farmers and ranchers respond to natural disasters, but also makes some necessary reforms and gives farmers and ranchers some long-term certainty. Unfortunately right now, too many members of Congress are blocking the farm bill from becoming law.

(BOOING)

OBAMA: I am told that Governor Romney's new running mate Paul Ryan will be around Iowa in the next few days. He is one of the Congress standing in the way. So if you happen to see Congressman Ryan, tell him how important this farm bill is to Iowa and the rural communities. We've got to put politics aside when it comes to doing the right thing for rural America and for Iowa.

(APPLAUSE)

Now, it is always a problem waiting for Congress. So, in the meantime, I have made sure that my administration led by Tom Vilsack is doing everything that we can to provide relief for those who need it. So, last week we announced $30 million the help ranchers and farmers to get more water to livestock and rehabilitate land affected by drought. And today we're announcing that the federal government will help livestock producers by purchasing over $150 million worth of meat and fish right now while prices are low. We'll freeze it for later. But -- we have a lot of freezers.

(LAUGHTER) OBAMA: That way, that will help ranchers, you know, who are going through the tough times right now. And also over the long term obviously that food is going to be spent by folks at the Pentagon and other places.

America depends on farmers and rancher ranchers to put the food on the table. Depends on farmers and ranchers to feed our families. So, we've got to be there for them. Not just today, but tomorrow and everyday until this drought passes because we are Americans, that is what we do. We take care of each other, and when the tough times strike our neighbors, we give them a hand.

(APPLAUSE)

OBAMA: Now that speaks to the larger idea of why I'm here. You know, the notion that I'm my brother's keeper and I'm my sister's keeper, the idea that we are in this together, that was at the heart of the journey that began here in Iowa five years ago. You know, we spent a lot of time on bus tours like this one. At school gyms and family farms and small businesses across this state. Although I have to say that the bus we had was not as nice as this one.

(LAUGHTER)

OBAMA: We used to get some buses. And you know, that campaign back in 2007 and 2008, it had plenty of ups and downs. But no matter what, you, the people of Iowa, had my back. You had my back.

(APPLAUSE)

OBAMA: When the pundits had written us off, when we were down in the polls, you believed in me, and I believed in you. And it was on your front porches and in your backyards where the movement for change in the country began.

But our journey is not finished. Not yet. I'm going spend the next three days driving the all across this state just like I did in 2007 from Quad - from Council Bluff to the Quad cities, because once more, you face a choice in November. And that choice could not be bigger. It is not just a choice between two candidates or two political parties. More than any other election in recent memory, this is a choice between two fundamentally different visions of this country and the path that we have to take. And the direction that you choose when you walk into the voting booth in November is going to have an impact not just on your lives, but on your children's lives and your grandchildren's lives for decades to come. This one counts. I mean, think -

(AUDIENCE CHANTING "FOUR MORE YEARS")

OBAMA: Think -- think about this, Council Bluff. Four years ago we came together and it was not just Democrats. It was some independents and some Republicans, because we understood that we needed to restore the basic bargain that made this country great. The basic deal that created the greatest middle class and the most prosperous economy that the world has ever known. And it is a simple bargain.. It that says if you work hard, your work should be rewarded. If you act responsibly and you put in enough effort, then you should be able to find a job that pays the bills. Have a home that you can call your own. Count on health care when you get sick. Put away enough to retire with dignity and respect. And most of all, give your kids an education that allows them to dream even bigger than you did and do even better than you did. That is the American promise. That's the American dream.

And the reason we came together was because we had seen a decade in which that dream was being betrayed. We'd gone through a decade where jobs were being shipped overseas. Where you were working harder but making less while the cost of everything from health care to college education kept going up. And it all culminated in the worst financial crisis since the Great Depression.

And so we knew that restoring the basic bargain that made this country was not going to be easy. We knew it would take more than one year, one term, even more than one president. And that was before the crisis hit and we saw friends and neighbors lose their jobs or lose their homes, lose their savings, pushing the American dream even further out of reach for too many working people.

But, you know, over the last three-and-a-half years, we have seen America's grit. You folks are tougher than any tough times. When we get knocked down, we stand back up. Some workers lost their jobs, went back to community college and got retrained and now they got a new job. Small businesses kept their doors open by hook or by crook. And so slowly, we have seen 4.5 million new jobs created. Half a million new manufacturing jobs, the most since the Great Depression --

(END LIVE COVERAGE)

MALVEAUX: That is President Obama in Council Bluff, Iowa, where of course it all started when he won the Iowa caucuses. Reminding the folks there, the voters there, that he has more work to be done. That he needs more time. Of course, going back to that key battleground state of Iowa.

And of course, up next, she was the only athlete from Belarus to win the gold. But now she has to give the medal back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

MALVEAUX: Welcome back to NEWSROOM INTERNATIONAL. We take you around the world in 60 minutes.

Disappointment in Belarus. The country's only track and field gold medal winner has been caught doping at the London Olympics. Shot put champion Nadzeya Ostapchuk tested positive for steroids. The gold will now go to New Zealand's Valerie Adams.

In southwestern China right now, thousands of police and soldiers are looking for a man many call the country's most wanted man. Police say he is linked to at least nine deaths, including a woman who was shot at point blank range last week. He is known as "Rambo" because of his elusive and survival skills. In Mexico, the mayor-elect in the central state of San Luis Potosi has been assassinated. Edgar Morales Perez, he was killed, along with his campaign manager, after their car was ambushed on Sunday morning. It comes on the heels of another attack in that area. Now on Thursday, police found an abandoned van with 14 bodies along the highway.

And, it is a big birthday for Fidel Castro not everyone in Cuba is celebrating.

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MALVEAUX: Fidel Castro turns 86 today. The former president led Cuba for almost 50 years until stepping down in 2008, in part because of health problems. He handed power over to his younger brother, Raul. In Havana, one former Fidel Castro fans is having a change of tune about the government. Famed opera singer Ulises Aquino is blasting officials for shutting down his business and putting hundreds out of work. Our Patrick Oppmann has his story.

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PATRICK OPPMANN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): La Opera de La Calle is like nothing else in Cuba. It's theater for the masses. A mix of pop and opera music with a huge cast and budget. And it's a private business. Ulises Aquino is the group's director. He's a famous baritone who has performed around the world, and at home for Fidel Castro.

"I think life obliges you to be a revolutionary," he says. "We looked for ways for our production to reach as many people as possible."

But strong pro government sentiments and connections don't always guarantee success for Cuba's new class of entrepreneurs.

OPPMANN (on camera): This is where the street opera performed. It was one of the largest businesses to be launched in Cuba after the recent lifting on some economic restrictions on private industry. We were going to come here to do a story on the opera when something unexpected took place. The government came here first and closed it.

OPPMANN (voice-over): Now the stage is bear. The drums, silent. And 120 singers and other workers out of a job.

ENRIQUE VIDAL, OPERA SINGER (through translator): They say (INAUDIBLE) is a business. We're going to take that away. But what about the people who lived from that business? What are we supposed to do?

OPPMANN: Why that business was closed is still unclear. Ulises says out of the blue last month government inspectors flooded his club mid-show. Everyone realized something was happening.

"There was a problem," he says. "The orchestra stopped playing. My kids were there. The kitchen was closed down and the audience had to stop eating."

Government documents accuse Ulises of pocketing the opera's cover charge. He and the performers say it was split evenly. He says his real crime may have been running a business that was too high profile.

"This is a test of the times that we are living in," he says. "What happened to us shouldn't happen again and shouldn't be hushed up."

The Cuban government says La Opera de La Calle, which literally means "the street opera," can continue to perform, but in a different venue. Their old club has been ordered shut for the next two years.

Ulises says he has received offers to take the opera to other countries. But in Cuba, at least, it's not clear if his show will go on.

Patrick Oppmann, CNN, Havana.

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MALVEAUX: Joe Biden now knows who he's going to have to face in the vice presidential debate. We're expecting to hear what he thinks of his new competitor live from the campaign trail. That is just moments away.

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MALVEAUX: Several stories caught our attention today, photos as well. Here's our favorite.

Iranian female athletes waving their flags during last night's Olympics closing ceremony. They are wearing the hijab, of course, covers the head, respecting Islamic laws. It was the first Olympics with a female athlete from ever country.

We'll be right back.

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