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More Children Dying in Gaza; Political Flight Ban; Recalls Cost GM $1.3 Billion So Far; More Flight 17 Victims Arrive in Netherlands

Aired July 24, 2014 - 09:30   ET

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

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning. I'm Carol Costello. Thank you so much for joining me.

The FAA has lifted a ban on flights into and out of Ben Gurion Airport in Tel Aviv. Three domestic carriers that fly into Israel -- Delta, U.S. Airways and United -- will decide when to resume flights. Actually, a late update for you, United has decided to resume flights into Israel.

In the meantime, though, there is no letting up in the conflict between Israel and Hamas now well into the third week of fighting. More than 700 Palestinians have been killed in the fighting, 4,600 wounded, along with 35 Israeli deaths, 32 of them soldiers according to the Gaza Health Ministry. U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry is back in Cairo trying to broker a truce between the two sides.

And a German astronaut gave us a unique perspective of the conflict between Israel and Hamas. Take a look at this. This is a tweet from the International Space Station. You can see the rocket fire even from space.

And as the war between Israel and Hamas continues, the casualties of the young and innocent in Gaza are paying a high price. Children have been dying at a rate of at least one per hour, far more than Hamas fighters, that's according to the United Nations. CNN's Paula Hancocks has more for you.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

PAULA HANCOCKS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): More children than Hamas fighters have been killed so far in Gaza according to the United Nations. Innocent victims of a conflict they were born into.

KYUNG-WHA KANG, ASST. SECY. GEN. FOR HUMANITARIAN AFFAIRS: One child has been killed each hour in Gaza over the past two days. Each of these children had a name and a future and a life that was cut horribly short.

HANCOCKS: They went to the beach to play football. It cost them their lives. Four children age nine to 11 killed by Israeli fire. Another father loses a son. Small bodies carried through the streets of Gaza, grief over lives barely begun yet already over.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Hifa Delfit Ahmad Abaguma (ph), age five -- age nine.

HANCOCKS: Names of young victims were read out Tuesday at the U.N. by Palestinian observer Riyad Mansour. Children are often the biggest casualties in Gaza, and surprising as almost half of the population is under the age of 14. In the midst of one of the most densely populated territories on earth, there are few places for the young to run and hide.

Of more than 600 Palestinians killed, 161 are children as of Wednesday morning. Of 3,500 injured, a third are under the age of 18.

Even though without physical scars bear the invisible battle wounds of trauma. Losing parents or homes, or simply listening to the macabre soundtrack of a battle fought nearby. With such a large young population unable to leave Gaza, no one doubts that more small graves will be dug and filled before this fighting ends.

Paula Hancocks, CNN, New York.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COSTELLO: We'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: If you are wondering why it is now safe for planes to fly into and out of Israel today and it wasn't so safe two days ago, so are we. Many wonder if the decision to ban flights was political. Republican Senator Ted Cruz certainly thought it was, sending out this statement slamming the president. Cruz said, quote, "the facts suggest that President Obama has just used a federal regulatory agency to launch an economic boycott of Israel in order to try to force our ally to comply with his foreign policy demands."

Well, the State Department fired back, calling Cruz's accusations, quote, "ridiculous" and "offensive," which is pretty much what Michael Bloomberg told Wolf Blitzer in a testy exchange last night.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

WOLF BLITZER, ANCHOR, CNN'S "THE SITUATION ROOM": I'm just asking you if you thought that there was some political motive behind the travel advisory or the FAA decision.

MICHAEL BLOOMBERG, FORMER NEW YORK MAYOR: Number one - number one, I wouldn't know.

BLITZER: Because a lot of people in Israel do, you know.

BLOOMBERG: I don't know, you don't know and the other people don't know. But just the - the tone of the question of trying to create dissension, it's insulting to America.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: And it went downhill from there. To talk about this I want to bring in CNN political commentator and

Democratic strategist Maria Cardona, and CNN political commentator and columnist for "The Blaze" Will Cain.

Welcome to both of you.

MARIA CARDONA, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: Thank you, Carol. Good morning.

WILL CAIN, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: Thank you, Carol.

COSTELLO: Thanks for being here.

So, Will, why do you think Bloomberg got to defensive with Wolf?

CAIN: I don't know why he was so testy and defensive. I think he gave the right answer. When Wolf Blitzer asked if there's political motive, something you can't possibly know unless you're inside the room with the Obama administration and possibly even inside the head of John Kerry or Barack Obama, your answer inevitably must be, I don't know.

But why was that answer not sufficient for Michael Bloomberg is a great question. Why did he need to get so defensive? I think Michael Bloomberg is a believer in government. He separates it into efficient and inefficient, not malignant and benign. So he doesn't want journalists really questioning the motives of government. He's happy to blame the bureaucracy for this, and I think he's probably right. The FAA ban was probably a mistake of bureaucracy. I think the evidence that it's been overturned in 36 hours kind of validates that.

COSTELLO: Really? After Flight 17? I mean shouldn't you err on the side of caution?

CAIN: Well, now, but you're asking me whether or not it was a mistake. First of all, what I'm saying to you is, I think it was a decision that was made within the bureaucratic machine. I don't know if there are political motivations. I imagine the FAA was being extremely cautious after you point out Flight 17 and this flight in Africa that's gone missing as well. That's, of course, after the fact. But I think they're being overly cautious. The question is, was that a mistake? And I think the answer is probably yes, they didn't need to do this.

COSTELLO: But, well here's the thing, Maria, this is what it sort of seems like to me. Lifting the ban was more political than putting the ban into place. Why are we more safe today than we were yesterday when there were two rockets fired toward Israel's airport just this morning?

CARDONA: Well, Carol, part of the situation that's going on in Israel with their fight currently with Gaza is -- or with the Palestinians is that this changes second by second, and neither you nor Will nor I are privy to the conversations that are going on regarding those second by second changes in terms of the situation on the ground. I think the FAA was absolutely right on to ban those flights given that there was a missile that was fired and landed a mile from the airport not too long ago. And, in fact, they were behind the curve because Delta Airlines was the very first one to say, hey, we're not landing there, as is their prerogative. And so the FAA, I think, absolutely did the right thing to halt flights until they could get the exact intelligence of what is going on, on the ground. And they said that they were going to continue to monitor that minute by minute. And as soon as they felt safe for the time being lifting that ban, they did so.

COSTELLO: Right. Right. But here's the thing, Will. The FAA - you know, Delta led the way, and then the FAA acted. Now the FAA is leaving it up to the airlines to decide whether or not they want to fly into Israel. Shouldn't the FAA be leading, you know, in all aspects of this thing? Isn't that the FAA's job to protect us?

CAIN: Yes. And I think they are. You know, you bring up an interesting point, which is the political side, the initial ban or the lifting of the ban? I would suggest to you that would be pretty brazen politics to lift a ban when you had a legitimate risk of a plane being shot down. I don't think any administration would bend politics to that potentiality. So if we're -- if we're guessing which was the mistake, right, which one do they wish they hadn't done, it's the original ban. You heard voice after voice - you heard Wolf Blitzer with the mayor of Jerusalem. You've heard Michael Bloomberg. It's safe. That clearly seems to be the case (ph).

CARDONA: Yes.

COSTELLO: The mayor of Jerusalem's not going to say it's not safe.

CARDONA: Or - or perhaps -

CAIN: What's that?

CARDONA: Or perhaps they don't regret either decision. Why? Because this is exactly their job. They need to take a look at the situation and figure out, what is the best thing with - the number one priority above all being the security of citizens -

CAIN: That may be.

CARDONA: Of aircraft, of everyone who's flying into that area. And so I would say that, you know, Bloomberg, first of all, is very passionate about this issue, but I think the fact that he even said that he doesn't think it's political gives credibility because he didn't think it was a good decision, but he understands that that's the FAA's job and that that's exactly what they did in terms of prioritizing the safety of U.S. citizens.

And by the way, the airlines always have the prerogative, Carol, no matter what the FAA does, to decide -- especially if they think that it's unsafe, the same way that Delta does or is (ph).

COSTELLO: All right, we'll have to leave it there. Maria Cardona, Will Cain, thanks for the discussion.

CAIN: Thanks. CARDONA: Thank you.

COSTELLO: I'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: All right. I want to take you out to the Netherlands right now. The Dutch are suffering through another terrible day. The remains of more victims of Malaysia Flight 17 being taken home. As you know most of the victims on board that flight were Dutch. Of course the remains will come out of these planes in coffins, then they'll be loaded on to hearses, and they will be taken to a laboratory, a short distance away where investigators will try to identify them as quickly as possible, but again another difficult day for the people of the Netherlands.

Other top stories this morning. Norway is on high alert over a possible terror threat. Security officers there say they think Islamist terrorists could strike the country within a few days, but they say they don't know what the plot is or what the target might be.

Security has been increased, though, as airports, train stations, ports, and major intersections. It's believed to be the first time such a warning has been issued by Norwegian officials.

Taiwan is a nation in mourning after a plane crash that killed at least 48 people. The TransAsia twin engine turbo prop went down in heavy rain while trying to land at the airport in Magong. At least 10 people survived the crash. Earlier the flight's takeoff had been delayed because of a typhoon in the area.

General Motors is reporting quarterly losses of $1.3 billion this morning and planned payouts of at least $400 million for victims of an ignition switch defect linked to 13 deaths. The company recalled more than 7,000 additional cars yesterday.

Our chief business correspondent Christine Romans is following that story from New York.

Good morning.

CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN CHIEF BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Carol. And we can see what GM is putting aside for those victims, the victims of its defective cars that may have been hurt or killed and their families. $400 million they set aside in the second quarter. They think they may have to set aside another $200 million down the road. That means you've got a company here that is going to pay and pay dearly for its -- both its defect and the fact that it waited 10 years to recall those cars.

Also a new recall, Carol, to tell you about. 718,000 other recalls, six different kinds of problems from a steering column to a broken screw in the seat that could cause the seat to come lose. 718,000 of those recalls, a couple of -- a couple of accidents and three injuries, the company says. Thirty million cars recalled so far this year. This quarter it had to set aside 1.3 -- paid $1.3 billion, the cost of

those recalls. The cost of having to find the parts, manufacture the parts, bring the cars in, pay the dealers, all of that an astonishing $1.3 billion.

So, Carol, when you look at this year this company basically has not made a profit. All of its profits for what's been a very good year for GM are going to pay the costs of its very bad management over the past 10 years.

When you look at the stock, stock down a little bit today, still up slightly since the recalls began, Carol. It's been a good year for GM in terms of people wanting to buy cars. A very bad year for GM in terms of how it's going to have to pay for its past mistakes -- Carol.

COSTELLO: All right. Christine Romans reporting live for us this morning, thanks so much.

ROMANS: You're welcome.

COSTELLO: I'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ANNOUNCER: This is CNN breaking news.

COSTELLO: All right. More sad news to pass along to you, and I'm really sorry about that. That Air Algerie plane that we told you that went missing after it took off from Algeria, well, we can now say, according to Reuters, that the plane did, indeed, crash. 116 people were aboard that plane. About an hour after the plane took off, it simply disappeared from radar.

We do understand there was some rough weather in the area and that's kind of normal for this part of the world. But again, we can confirm now that that plane did, indeed, crash with 116 people aboard.

Let's head out to the Netherlands right now. Bittersweet emotions and a gut-wrenching sadness are washing over them again today as the Dutch people welcome the return of more victims from the crashed Malaysian airliner.

Just one day after a national outpouring of grief, dozens more coffins are arriving. Most of the 298 people as you know killed in the apparent missile strike were from the Netherlands, although you see those flags flying in honor of the many nationalities that were on board that flight.

Nick Paton Walsh is in Kharkiv, Ukraine where the victims' journey began just a few hours ago.

Good morning.

NICK PATON WALSH, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Carol, thank you. Today is the second time in which military cargo planes, again today, a Dutch C-13 and an Australian D-17, have taken off from Kharkiv with very tragic cargo inside, 74 coffins today. Yesterday, 40.

They will be met today in the Netherlands by hearses that will mark on a very solemn procession towards the military base where forensic testing will begin. But still, here in Ukraine, where there are many Dutch experts, over 60, and Australians, too, all working on this investigation, they're all hoping to get their job done as quickly as possible, hoping that perhaps the last flights can take off tomorrow, and that maybe then all the coffins will be in the Netherlands and identification and forensic testing can occur.

The real problem they face, though, is that they don't quite know what's on that. They've gone through the first three out of four refrigerated ones and are piecing through what's remaining there. A number of body bags yet specified and sometimes more than one body bag goes into a coffin.

They are simply trying to remove the remains as fast as possible and the question will remain until Dutch experts and other forensic experts can get their hands on these coffins and begin the complex, high-tech work of DNA testing, only then can they begin to know quite how many human souls were passed through on that refrigerated train from separatist-held territory to the experts here in Ukraine- controlled territory of Kharkiv two days ago.

An extraordinarily tragic process, relatives still wait to end and I think really this shows you how devastating that blast was that took MH-17 out of the sky and how widespread the wreckage is across that crash site. Many concerns that there will be complications getting further access. There are 50 Australian police officers on their way to London, perhaps on their way to Kiev, then crash site, to try and secure, to try and comb through.

The representative of the Australian prime minister, he wants to get access this afternoon within an area that's an active, live war zone. And many are concerned that even if they do secure the site, it could be complex to have (INAUDIBLE), so to speak, around it, (INAUDIBLE) to have a meaningful effect.

The fear being for many investigators, at the end of the day, no matter how hard they work their results will end up being inconclusive because the site has been tampered with and because of the sheer devastation caused to that flight -- Carol.

COSTELLO: All right. Nick Paton Walsh, many thanks to you.

The next hour of CNN NEWSROOM starts now.