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Hackers Hit Firms that Built Iron Dome; Deadliest Outbreak of Ebola Ever; Palestinian-American Talks of Beating by Israeli Soldiers

Aired July 30, 2014 - 14:30   ET

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

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BROOKE BALDWIN, CNN ANCHOR: Just past the bottom of the hour. You're watching CNN. I'm Brooke Baldwin.

The Ebola outbreak getting worse in West Africa. Officials fear it could make its way to other countries, including the United States. Reason being -- and look at this with me -- an American who caught this fatal virus in Liberia, one of three countries plagued by Ebola, was able to board a plane while infected. Dr. Patrick Sawyer started showing symptoms during a flight headed to Nigeria on July 20th. When the plane landed, the 40-year-old fell to the ground. He died five days later, becoming the first American killed by the Ebola virus. He was trying to get home to Minnesota to celebrate his daughter's birthday.

Earlier today, his wife talked to CNN's Michaela Pereira and she says he may have unknowingly caught the disease caring for his sister.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DECONTEE SAWYER, WIFE OF DR. PATRICK SAWYER: He was visiting his sister. She was ill. And he helped care for her. And so he contracted it that way. Didn't know it was Ebola. Because Ebola displays other symptoms, like malaria symptoms. So they thought she may have malaria, so he was helping. Had he known, he would have definitely taken better precautions.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: Sawyer is not the only person who recently died from the virus. A doctor leading the charge to fight the outbreak died just yesterday from this. Also two American health workers got infected with Ebola in Africa. They're being treated currently.

But just to give a bigger picture, bigger perspective, the World Health Organization says at least 672 people have died from Ebola. Now the virus has spread across, as we mentioned, these three West African nations, Guinea, Sierra Leone and Liberia, and 1,200 cases confirmed since March. Symptoms: a fever, headache, muscle aches, weakness, diarrhea and vomiting.

I want to bring in psychologist, Ane Fjeldsaeter, joining me live from London. And Ane was just recently in Sierra Leone as recent as two weeks ago, providing counseling and support for these patients and their families.

And, Ane, first, this is risky work, what you do. Tell me why you do it.

ANE FJELDSAETER, NORWEGIAN PSYCHOLOGIST: Why I do it, it's also very rewarding work. And when we know that this is going on, I think for -- as a health professional, I feel as if I should do as much as I can to help.

BALDWIN: We are grateful there are people like you in the world. Let me say that. But to quote you in this piece I read, you said, "I was expecting the Ebola epidemic to be quite gruesome and unlike anything I had seen before want but I didn't expect its magnitude. This outbreak is enormous."

What does it look like?

FJELDSAETER: It's very fast-moving. And it's very terrifying. And it's tearing families apart.

So for me, I think that's -- that's what's hardest to put behind me after I got home, I still think a lot about the children that are being abandoned by their parents who can't go in and be caretakers in the hospital. And I think about the parents who die and leave behind orphaned children. And our patients who are very many -- we have very many lonely patients, because people are afraid to visit.

BALDWIN: There is a stigma, right?

FJELDSAETER: Absolutely. There is a lot of stigma connected, because-- well, even for me, as a health worker, sometimes now, after I got home, people are a bit scared of maybe giving me a hug, because they know that I'm still on my 21 days of quarantine after coming back.

BALDWIN: What do you tell them?

FJELDSAETER: I tell them that I'm not contagious.

BALDWIN: That you're not contagious. And it's also important, as we talk about the deaths, especially this death of this American doctor, you have seen people beat it. You have seen people come out of these isolation rooms and survive.

FJELDSAETER: Yeah. It's true. And we are discharging more and more survivors. It's very encouraging. Our case management center has brought down the morality from 90 percent to now it's around 60. So it's still -- means that most of the cases that we see there are not coming to -- they are not going to be discharged alive. But it's still a very -- like, a good -- it's oh -- our case management is improving.

BALDWIN: Ane Fjeldsaeter, thank you so much for joining me. And thank you for all the work you do for these people, who so, so need it. I appreciate it. Coming up next, the murders of three Israeli teenagers and the beating

of a Palestinian-American teen, essentially, triggering the current battle between Hamas and Israel. I'm about to talk live with that teenager who is back in the United States, sitting alongside his mother for us, in Washington. Do not miss this live interview, coming up.

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BALDWIN: Just a warning, what we're about to show you and talk about is pretty graphic and disturbing. So let me just pause if you have little ones in the room, get them out right now, because I want to show you this picture.

The picture is of a bloodied and beaten face of this 15-year-old Palestinian-American. It marked the beginning really of this conflict that has since killed more than 1,300 people.

Tariq Khdeir was visiting family in Jerusalem, including his cousin, when the unthinkable occurred. During this trip, his cousin was brutally murdered, burned alive, a revenge killing by Jewish extremists over the deaths of those three Israeli teenagers. A deadly tit for tat that led to protests. Khdeir was watching one of the protests when he was attacked by Israeli police. And here it is. His beating was captured on this cell phone video. Soon after, the rockets began to fly.

So I'd like to bring in Tariq Abdul Khdeir and his mother, Suha, and their attorney, Hussein Shivley (ph), all joining me from Washington, D.C.

So, just welcome to all of you.

And I am sorry for the loss of your cousin, Tariq.

I would like to begin with you. If you can just take me back to that day four or so weeks ago. You were just visiting with your cousin, Mohamed. I understand you were playing board games, you ran an errand to the bakery, you came back, you saw this house surrounded by police. What happened next?

TARIQ KHDEIR, PALESTINIAN-AMERICAN BEATEN IN ISRAEL: Well, what happened was, when it was surrounded by police, everyone was confused. People wanted to know, like, where did Mohamed go? What's going to happen to him? We're losing time.

BALDWIN: Where did Mohamed go? What happened?

TARIQ KHDEIR: Well, he was kidnapped, and he was taken. He was taken somewhere. And we were so -- we were clueless. We didn't know. We didn't have anything -- we didn't have any proof or anything. So at that point, we were all really worried about Mohamed.

BALDWIN: So at this point, when you arrive at the home, how did you learn that your cousin was tortured and killed? TARIQ KHDEIR: Well, I learned that he was tortured and killed from,

like, the police. Because the police actually found out that there was a fire somewhere near Jerusalem and they found out -- they found a body in that fire, and they identified it, and it was Mohamed.

BALDWIN: So in the meantime, as you think you're returning back to Mohamed's house to bring him some baked goods from this errand you have run, you see police. At what point did you run from police, jump the fence and they catch you?

TARIQ KHDEIR: Well, that -- when I was -- when they grabbed me that was later on that day.

BALDWIN: OK.

TARIQ KHDEIR: They -- I was outside watching everything that was happening outside. I wanted to know, what's going to happen to my cousin, is he going to be OK, are they going to bring him back. And I was just out there watching until I saw a couple of guys coming from behind me, screaming. And behind them, I saw soldiers. And then everybody freaked out. And so they started running. And so I started running, too. And some people left the alley and some people jumped the fence that was in front of us. So I jumped the fence, and I fell. And I ran a little farther. They grabbed me and slammed my face into the floor. Then they started kicking me and punching me after they zip-tied my hands together behind my back. So they zip-tied my hands, and I had -- I couldn't move whatsoever. And they kept kicking me and punching me in the face until they made me go unconscious.

BALDWIN: Suha, as a mother, can you describe the first time -- we showed the image a moment ago -- but of your son's face beaten to a pulp. What was that like seeing your child?

SUHA KHDEIR, MOTHER OF TARIQ: I was in shock. I was -- I just didn't know if this was for real or it was a nightmare. Could this be happening? We're on vacation. I never thought something like this could happen. You know, us being free Americans, you know, we never think something like this could happen in America. And then we come on vacation over here to see our family and our friends, and then, you know, this happens. I was in complete shock. But, you know, this happens every day to Palestinians. It was no surprise to my family because the Palestinians go through this every single day.

BALDWIN: But to see your child. And correct me, but you couldn't see him at first. I mean, Tariq was sent to jail. He hasn't hospitalized immediately. And you didn't see him until, when?

SUHA KHDEIR: I didn't see him until later on that night, when after his father had gone to the jail and begged the Israeli police to take him to the hospital. And one of the guards secretly told my husband, your son really needs to go and be seen -- have some medical attention. So finally, they listened to him and sent him to the hospital. And I somehow got to the hospital that night, to give my husband a charger. I didn't even know my son's condition. And my husband took me to the side and he said, listen, your son, don't be surprised and shocked, just, you know, calm down, but you're going to see your son in a state you've never seen him before, he is brutally beaten.

And I just stood there. I could not believe what I was hearing. So even the Israeli police officer that was guarding his hospital room door had told me that I couldn't get near him or touch him or even talk to him. And I was just looking at him, like, I'm his mother, you know? So finally, I looked over at him. It wasn't even -- it was like I wasn't even looking at my son. It was like it was someone else. And he was asleep. I thought he was dead. And that's what I was thinking until I, you know, finally saw him up and sitting and awake.

BALDWIN: Right. You bring up Israeli police. Let me ask all of you to stand by.

I want to continue this story and also on the other side of the break, explain what Israeli police are saying. We'll talk about if this officer has been punished. What kind of charges he faces. And a bigger-picture conversation about what we have been seeing the last couple of weeks.

Stand by. Quick break. We'll be right back.

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BALDWIN: We're back with Tariq Abdul Khdeir; his mother, Suha; the 15-year-old Palestinian-American beaten while he was away on vacation in Jerusalem.

Let me begin with Israeli police. Israeli police suspended one of the officers. We know they're considering criminal charges.

But, Tariq, this is for you. This is the latest we have from Israeli authorities regarding the incident. They say that you were among a group of youth who attacked police during the riots. Police also said you were identified by police as wearing a mask, carrying a sling shot and taking part in the unrest in this neighborhood in Jerusalem where you were visiting.

So I just have to ask, for fairness on the other side, were you masked? Were you attacking police?

TARIQ KHDEIR: No, I was not. I was masked, because of the tear gas. I was using it for the tear gas. But I was not attacking the police in any way. I did not take any part in the protest at all, whatsoever. I was on the side, watching the protests. And I wanted to know what was going on. What is happening in front of me? I want to know, why is this happening?

BALDWIN: We know Israeli police are investigating.

Suha Khdeir, and Tariq, we appreciate you being with me. We know you're testifying on Capitol Hill this Friday. We'll follow up. If there is any sort of legality and anything to come of this, we'll follow it.

I really appreciate both of you for joining me, and your attorney, as well.

Quick break. We'll be right back.

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