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Obama: U.S. Strikes Destroyed ISIS Weapons; Cease-Fire Over, More Fighting Erupts; Ebola an "International Health Crisis"; Court: OK to Pay College Athletes; Man Listed as "Dark Negro" in Police Report

Aired August 09, 2014 - 12:00   ET

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

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: Hello again, everyone. I'm Fredricka Whitfield. You're in the CNN NEWSROOM. Our top story, President Barack Obama said this morning, the U.S. military will take action in Iraq to protect Americans and Iraqis running for their lives.

He said a series of strikes against the militant group, ISIS, were successful yesterday and more could be coming if needed.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: So far, these strikes have successfully destroyed arms and equipment that ISIL terrorists could have used against Erbil. Meanwhile, Kurdish forces on the ground continue to defend the city.

The United States and Iraqi government have stepped up our military assistance to Kurdish forces as they wage their fight. We will protect our American citizens in Iraq, whether they are diplomats, civilians or military. If these terrorists threaten our facilities or our personnel, we will take action to protect our people.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: The president also said the U.S. is dropping food and water to people, who have fled to Mount Sinjar to escape ISIS. The U.K. and France have pledged their humanitarian support.

And new video from a Kurdish television station reveals extraordinary images showing just how much of those supplies are needed. Look at the thousands of people there, who have fled for safety and now, they need help.

A lot of these people swarmed a helicopter that had supplies on it and we've heard reports of people actually dying from dehydration there in that mountainous region as the temperatures soar above 100 degrees. Some managed to escape by getting on to the helicopter.

All right, leaders in the Kurdish region say the American strikes are a huge help in slowing down ISIS. Kurdish fighters were struggling to fight the militant group. Ivan Watson has been in the city of Erbil and has more now on how the people are coping.

IVAN WATSON, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Some of these American air strikes are hitting suspected ISIS targets located only about 20 minute drive, maybe 20 miles west of Erbil, the city where I'm standing now, this Kurdish controlled city.

The Kurdish leadership is greatly relieved, delighted to see this assistance when the ISIS militants were coming quite close to the gates of this city, which has been a safe haven for hundreds of thousands of desperate Iraqis fleeing the ISIS onslaught.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

HOSHYWAR ZEBARI, FORMER IRAQI FOREIGN MINISTER: That's why we are most grateful and express our gratitude and deep, deep appreciation for President Obama and the U.S. administration, for their courageous U.S. army and airmen who are now patrolling the skies of Iraq and Iraqi Kurdistan.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WATSON: Fredricka, here's why the Kurds are so worried. They say that when they shoot bullets at the armored Humvees, currently being employed by the ISIS militants, those bullets quite literally bounce off those vehicles, which were supplied by the U.S. government to the Iraqi army, which folded last June and those vehicles have been captured by the ISIS militants and are now being used against the Kurdish front lines.

That's why the Kurds say they need this U.S. air power to help protect them and this city that I'm in right now is full of desperate, newly homeless Iraqis coming from the Iraqi-Christian minority, from the ethnic Turkmen Kurdish, Shiite minorities as well.

They have all fled as the ISIS militants have advanced. These people are living in churches, in schools, community centers, in unfinished construction sites in very hot temperatures in the summer. And there is no way that the authorities here can even begin to feed all these people, provide them shelter and water.

They say they desperately need international help to deal with not only with the humanitarian crisis that's unfolding as we speak, but also with the conflict that is ranging on front lines only about 30 miles away from where I'm standing -- Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: Extraordinary, thank you so much, Ivan Watson.

So, when much of the U.S. army and combat troops left Iraq nearly three years ago, a large contingent of operatives stayed behind. Much of the CIA station is housed in the huge embassy in Baghdad and is one of the largest facilities outside of the U.S.

Agents have been working with U.S. military advisers and Iraqi security forces and as the U.S. begins its new air strikes mission to beat back ISIS militants, the CIA's role becomes even more relevant. Bob Baer is CNN's intelligence and security analyst and a former CIA officer, who worked in the Middle East for years and knows the lay of the land, so Bob, good to see you. What role is the CIA playing, particularly in these air strikes underway right now?

BOB BAER, CNN INTELLIGENCE AND SECURITY ANALYST: What they'll be doing now is backing up the Kurdish forces. The Peshmerga with for instance, satellite photography. Intercepts, picking up chatter from ISIS, which will be very important to see where they're going next.

The Kurds can't do this on their own. I worked with them for years. They don't have the sophisticated intelligence service. So the CIA is really going to be able to back them up in all sorts of ways and in background, the same thing backing up Maliki's government.

The problem though, Fredricka, is the Sunni part of Iraq, Anbar Province, Mosul, simply because we're blind there especially ISIS having taken over. So, that's going to be a really tough assignment to figure out what ISIS is doing next.

WHITFIELD: Because one of the obstacles, I mean, clearly, you know, CIA operatives on the ground there would have to develop alliances, trust with people and people are afraid for they their lives to talk, say anything about is. What they identify, what kind of movements, so is that one of the big obstacles as to why the operatives might have a hard time being able to track ISIS?

BAER: Well, Fredricka, let me give you a personal story. Some of the Sunni leaders are friends of mine in Anbar and I tried to get them to come to Washington, talk to the State Department. They're too scared. Their families would be killed by ISIS.

They're afraid to take them on. Their tribal areas have been overrun as well, too, so they are deferring to ISIS and in some cases, the second generation Sunni tribal members are working with ISIS.

So you see a divided Sunni community and if I were in the CIA right now, I'd find a way to draw a wedge between ISIS and the other Sunnis in Anbar and really exploit it.

WHITFIELD: Do you think that's the root as to how ISIS has been able to, you know, gain ground there in -- in a very secretive manner because of the fear because people are afraid to say what they hear and they know that if they say anything, their lives or their family lives will be taken.

BAER: You know, it's certainly fear plays a big part in it, but also, former Saddam officers, combat trained, experienced, joined ISIS in this attack on Mosul and now, the attack on the Kurdish enclave. So you have military expertise and the fact that ISIS overran Camp Spiker and got very sophisticated weapons, armored personnel carriers, night vision goggles.

So, they're better armed than the Kurds and in some cases, better armed than Maliki's army. So, it's a combination of problems. What it means it's a very potent force which could go in any direction. The president has called in air strikes to protect Erbil. There are thousands of Americans there. We couldn't let this happen.

WHITFIELD: So, intelligence has clearly played a role in air strikes. In what other way do you see intelligence on the ground assisting whatever next military action there might be? Even though the president says this is not going to be solved, diplomacy is going to be the key, but until that happens, the U.S. does have a certain commitment there.

BAER: I think we do. What we should do, frankly, is arm the Kurds to defend themselves. They need antitank weapons. They need helicopters. And whether this is done covertly by the CIA or directly by the U.S. military is a political decision.

But either way, we have to let the Kurds defend themselves. Right now, they don't have enough weapons because Maliki refused to give them to them the last four, five years. We have to change the balance of power. We don't want to do this with our own troops. It would take a million of them for 100 years to fix Iraq. So let the Kurds defend themselves.

WHITFIELD: Bob Baer, thanks so much. Good to see you.

A tense quiet for now between Israel and Hamas. Can the two sides reach another cease-fire agreement that might hold? Plus --

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I am declaring the current out broke of Ebola virus disease a public health emergency of international concern.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: The deadly Ebola virus continues to spread. Today, Guinea closes it borders in an effort to contain the outbreak. We're live in West Africa, next.

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WHITFIELD: Back to the Middle East where there's been more fighting after the collapse of a cease-fire between Israel and Hamas. It's been a full day since this latest truce fell apart. Several more deaths are reported in Gaza. Israel says it struck 70 Gaza targets yesterday and another 20 overnight.

Israel also says more than 60 rockets were fired from Gaza toward Israel with most of those hitting open ground. One Israeli civilian has been wounded and one soldier received minor wounds.

I want to bring in two members of our team on the ground covering this latest escalation intentions, Jake Tapper from Jerusalem, Martin Savidge in Gaza City. First to you, Jake. It has been very busy since the collapse of the cease-fire, but has anything let up? Any signs of some progress, some peace?

JAKE TAPPER, CNN HOST, "THE LEAD": Well, there are a few signs of potential progress. One is that the Palestinian delegation has not yet left Cairo, where the Egyptians as you recall, were trying to hold an organized cease-fire negotiations. The Palestinians still there so they have not walked away from the table.

The Israelis are not, but right now, the big face off is over what needs to happen for a cease-fire to resume. The Israelis demand that the rockets stop before they'll come to any sort of table, meet with the Egyptians about the Palestinian view.

The Palestinians are for now, in public, unified, arguing that the blockade of Gaza, which makes the lives of so many Palestinians miserable, which is Israelis say they need to do for security reasons. That needs to be lifted before there's any conversation.

Today, there were casualties, five Palestinians were killed and two alleged militants on a motorcycle. The spokesman for the Israel Defense Forces talked about that strike earlier today.

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LT. COL. PETER LERNER, ISRAELI DEFENSE FORCES: Just before I came on and we did strike a group of terrorists on a motorcycle in Southern Gaza Strip, something we carried out a targeted strike. I know that happened. What happened since the cease-fire broke down, when Hamas decided that the cease-fire is no longer good for them is that the Israel Defense Forces was forced into responding to that aggression.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

TAPPER: Three other individuals actually were killed when the Israeli Defense Forces struck a mosque. Israel says it only strikes mosques if they are being used to hide weapons. We have no independent confirmation there were weapons in that mosque.

WHITFIELD: And let's check in with Martin Savidge now in Gaza city. So Martin, you know, what are you seeing and hearing there? Is it consistent with what is being experienced in Jerusalem?

TAPPER: Well, similar I guess not the intensity of the conflict so much, Jerusalem not feeling it quite the same way as they do here, but I would say the description is pretty accurate. It's sunset here, so this tends to be the time you see increased activity.

Both when it comes to rockets being fired towards Israel, then the retaliatory strikes that come and Israel's been fairly busy today. It seems most of the retaliation, unlike before the cease-fire is being conducted by air strikes, can be more accurate.

There's been about 50 of them according to the IDF that had taken place today and there have been about 26 rockets that have gone on, so it is a lower level intensity of conflict. Of course, it doesn't mean anything if it's your house or street that strikes where the bomb falls.

The other unusual aspect about this, the lower death toll, which of course is welcomed, but still horrible because we're at almost 1,900 people killed overall, but the noise behind us, I mean, it's just another weekend night here. People are out on the streets. The stores are open.

They're in the parks, strolling with their families and yet on a regular basis, you get these very loud blasts. You get huge columns of gray and black smoke going into the air to indicate that there's been another significant air strike.

We were having breakfast this morning and you're sitting there by the water, the F-16 rolls in, it's Israeli, then wham, the drop of the bomb. People have grown almost accustomed to this, which is a problem if you hope either side is going to go back to the negotiating table.

WHITFIELD: Jake, the latest round of cease-fire talks were in Cairo involving various delegations. This cease-fire did not hold and that there is this you know, status quo going on with rockets being fired on both ends, what is the latest commitment to more talks, whether it be in Cairo or elsewhere, about trying to come about another truce and what would be different this go around?

TAPPER: Well, the Israeli government says that they are willing to participate in those talks. They're still going on in Cairo, but the Palestinians in Gaza need to stop firing rockets. That's the condition and absent that, they are not going to participate.

The Palestinians as I mentioned, are demanding that the blockade be lifted. So, right now, they're in a holding pattern and I have to say, it's not difficult to imagine this holding pattern remaining in perpetuity because there is a history in this region of what is called a war of attrition.

There was one from 1967 to 1970 between Israel and Egypt. Just a low level with fits and starts of high intensity, military action, because neither side sees any advantage to making any compromises. Neither side feels like they have to do with what the other one is demanding.

In some ways in this part of the world, it's hard to escape the conclusion that for many of the leaders here, it's easier to fight than to try to make peace -- Ashleigh.

WHITFIELD: All right. It's Fredricka, but thanks so much, Jake Tapper. We're all in the same family. It's all right.

TAPPER: I haven't slept in a week.

WHITFIELD: I forgive. It's all right. Ashleigh is my friend as she is yours, it's OK. You all be safe. Thanks so much.

Parts of Hawaii are socked with at least a foot of rain and rushing flood waters in the wake of Tropical Storm Iselle and a hurricane is right behind that. What threat does that pose?

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WHITFIELD: Hawaii residents are cleaning up from tropical storm and bracing for a brush with a hurricane. Tropical Storm Iselle caused major flooding sending rivers over their banks and pounding some areas with more than a foot of rain. The storm also downed several trees and forced residents and tourists to find shelter.

Next in line is Hurricane Julio, which is expected to pass just north of the Hawaiian Islands. With more on that, meteorologist, Jennifer Gray. Don't really hear Hawaii and hurricanes together.

JENNIFER GRAY, AMS METEOROLOGIST: This is unprecedented. They've never had a direct hit. The big island. Hawaii's had three direct hits. Big island, never and so this is unprecedented. We are going to see a very close call with Julio, but it is going to pass just to the north.

So really we are going to see a close brush, but it's not going to see a direct impact. We are going to get maybe some very high surf, high waves, things like that, but nothing more, 100 mile per hour winds, gusts up to 120. Moving to the west northwest at about 16 miles per an hour.

It is a Category 2, but it is expected to weaken considerably in the coming days. Decreasing to a Category 1 and then on to a tropical storm. So, we are going to see say a flood watch or warning, advisories in effect. We don't have any tropical storm watches or warnings. No hurricane watches or warnings, things like that.

So it is going to get close, but we are not going to see anything like we saw with Iselle as far as Hawaii is concerned. Closer to the lower 48, we are going to see scattered showers and storms this afternoon. We have that stationary front in place.

It is going to cause some showers to the southeast and I do want to mention before I toss it back to you, all of the folks close to home, you love gazing at the skies, keep in mind tonight that supermoon is going to be out.

If you have a cloud free conditions tonight, 14 percent larger in appearance, 30 percent brighter. The moon is going to look amazing. So make sure you get out and check it out.

WHITFIELD: So given I'm here in Atlanta as are you, do we feel there's going to be a clear view? Kind of overcast.

GRAY: It's going to be a maybe here in Atlanta. It's clearing out this afternoon. Hopefully it will stay that way.

WHITFIELD: I am looking forward to it. I'm so glad you reminded me just as I was told last night. Thanks.

The discovery being called a miracle from God. A girl thought to be dead, swept away nearly a decade away from the Indian Ocean tsunami, remember that? Guess what? Has been found alive.

According to a German newspaper, the then 4-year-old girl was rescued by a fishermen during the tsunami and then raised by one of his relatives. Her long lost brother spotted her on the street in June. The now 14-year-old is back with her biological family. Amazing.

All right, could ISIS be a threat to the U.S. homeland? I'll tell you why U.S. intelligence is concerned about that very possibility.

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WHITFIELD: Welcome back. Beyond the threat to Iraqis, the U.S. military and intelligence fear ISIS fighters from the west could work their way back to the U.S. and conduct terror operations. This is a key part of the Obama administration's rationale to intervene in Northern Iraq.

Jim Sciutto looks at how significant this threat is to the U.S.

JIM SCIUTTO, CNN CHIEF NATIONAL SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: This is Iraqi ISIS positions just from the middle of June and in the six weeks since then, their territory has grown and U.S. officials tell me that the Iraqi military really has no ability to gain back that territory.

The only question now, can they keep ISIS from advancing and they haven't been able to do that. That's an open question for the administration. How do they help the Iraqi military not just to stop ISIS advances, but to gain some of this territory back?

That's a threat not only to Iraq, Syria, to the region, but also to the U.S. I speak to U.S. intelligence officials who say a grave concern is this. There are many foreign fighters fighting with ISIS. More than 100 of them American.

It is believed they're being trained and encouraged to carry out terror attacks when they return home including the Americans. That's the threat going forward. ISIS not just a threat here in the region, but also to the American homeland.

WHITFIELD: All right, so, how do we assess the full threat that ISIS presents? Let me bring in General Spider Marks. He is CNN's military analyst and a former senior intelligence officer in the U.S. Army.

So far, the U.S. has struck at ISIS convoys, artillery units. President Obama saying earlier, the air strikes were successful and so was the humanitarian effort and all that continues as long as there is a threat, particularly to Americans there on the ground and humanitarian need is there.

What do you worry or expect might be around the corner for the U.S. as it engages in this kind of military involvement?

MAJ. GEN. JAMES "SPIDER" MARKS (RET.), CNN MILITARY ANALYST: That's really the question. You view this on several levels. First of all, on the very tactical level, what we see today is the Iraqi army has the requirement to maintain peace and security in its own country and they have completely failed this that, obviously.

So, you have to give them time to get bolstered and to prepare themselves and to get better so they can maintain their job number one. That is not going to happen in any immediate amount of time. So United States is giving the Iraqi military support in order to do that. So these air strikes have been effective, but this will not be the only requirement that's necessary in order to provide the Iraqis space. At the strategic level, certainly, our lack of strategy in the region has contributed to this. The ISIS forces have demonstrated that they are an incredibly capable, very well trained, and very well equipped military.

They're not a bunch of thugs. This is a well run with a very strong command and control type architecture and they are beginning to own this space they occupy. They're beginning to set up governance. That's the big concern. What we would call ungoverned space, they now are trying to govern.

So the fact there might be U.S. citizens fighting with ISIS is less the issue. Certainly, they could return to the United States. I would hope we would find out who they are before they enter.

But the real issue is that ISIS should not view itself and they don't view themselves as being geographically bounded to achieve this fate they want to achieve. There's no reason why they wouldn't try to strike the United States and try to do that repeatedly. There are multiple levels to your question, Fredricka. That's the big concern.

WHITFIELD: And there has been great concern about ISIS not just its organization as you put it, but also its strategy and earlier in the week had been said they had taken control of this dam in Mosul and now, CNN has just received new images that show a black flag that has been planted at that Mosul dam there presumably by ISIS.

I think we have confirmation of this right now. How concerning is it to you that there is now this kind of confirmation that ISIS has secured this Mosul dam?

MARKS: There are really two ways to look at it. One, if they were to destroy the dam, there might be, might be, and there are estimates on both sides, but some flooding problems to put a number of cities and families at risk.

The other point is that they want to maintain that dam and its power generation capability because they want to generate power. They want to establish government. They want to be able to be able to do what they need to do.

WHITFIELD: Or turn off power -- or turn off power to further intimidate or control people.

MARKS: Use it as a weapon, absolutely, Fredricka. They want to use it to their advantage, disadvantage others, and so they've got to preserve it in order to have that capability.

WHITFIELD: So you had just mentioned that they are very well organized. Was this kind of organization under estimated or is the feeling that the U.S. couldn't have imposed any kind of air strikes or intervene in that way any sooner than it just did on Friday morning.

MARKS: Now, yes, that's the point. Intelligence is the art and the science of persistence, gathering information and then you have to ask the question, what are you going to do about that intelligence. ISIS did not spring out of the ground yesterday. They've been in place for quite some time, but the United States has not had an ability to do anything about it until now.

We've chosen, excuse me, not to do anything about it because its roots took place in Syria and now, the migration over into Iraq and the concern is it's going to continue to move. So the U.S. now is acting and the president is correct to act right now.

I'm disheartened that the president has stated out priority that he's going to take options off the table, i.e., the use of boots on the ground. Whether he does or doesn't, you never tell your enemies what you're not going to do. You want to reserve capabilities.

WHITFIELD: That probably is more of a reassurance to the American people.

MARKS: Absolutely. That's right. It's where, it's how he's wired and he's talking to his constituency. When really, the message should be to his enemies, which is I'm not going to tell you what I'm not going to do, what I'm going to do. I'm going to keep you guessing, man.

WHITFIELD: Interesting. All right, General Spider Marks, thanks so much. Of course, you can read more about the U.S. operations on Iraq on CNN.com, including a great piece by Fareed Zakaria on why the U.S. should intervene to help the Kurds.

It has killed nearly 1,000 people and left many more gravely ill, fighting for their lives, in fact, the Ebola epidemic. Coming up, an American couple working in Liberia just as the disease started spreading in West Africa. They'll tell us how they got out and what they saw along the way.

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WHITFIELD: Several developments this morning in the West African Ebola crisis. Guinea authorities are closing their borders with Sierra Leone and Liberia hoping to halt the spread of the deadly virus. The global health experts have declared the epidemic an international health crisis.

Nearly 1,000 people have died from Ebola and that number is climbing. CNN's David McKenzie is in Freetown, Sierra Leone. So David, what are the latest measures to try to contain this outbreak?

DAVID MCKENZIE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Fredricka, the latest measures are to create a blockade within these countries and from without. Guinea is saying it's going to close its borders to extend the flow back and forth of this virus with people who might be carrying it without even realizing it to try to stop this out of control outbreak -- Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: And people feel like that is going to be effective or is it too little too late? MCKENZIE: Well, I think that's a good question. Certainly, this outbreak was first announced in March in Guinea and then later, spread to all these countries in West Africa and potentially beyond.

I spoke to the World Health Organization and asked them were they prepared to face this epidemic.

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MCKENZIE: Unprepared for the level of this outbreak?

DR. JACOB MUFUNDA, WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION SIERRA LEONE REPRESENTATIVE: I think one can say we were unprepared for the level of the outbreak. We anticipated we were using best practices in the region. The previous outbreaks have had 200 at most, 300 cases. This one is unprecedented.

MCKENZIE: Could this have been avoided, this situation we're in now?

MUFUNDA: The current situation in terms of the outbreak status, I think could have been contained.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MCKENZIE: Hindsight is 20/20, Fredricka, but now in this situation that this appears to be ahead of the efforts to contain it. Disturbing latest news is that several hospitals here appear to have ground to a halt.

One well-known physician has also contracted the virus here in Freetown and some health workers refusing to check into work because they say they don't have the right equipment.

Doctors Without Borders are boots on the ground and logistics and material support as soon as possible so that this thing can be put out of some control because it's certainly not there right now -- Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: OK, very alarming. All right, thank you so much, David McKenzie. Appreciate that in Freetown, Sierra Leone.

All right, so it's one thing to watch what's happening in West Africa from afar, on television perhaps, but as the Ebola epidemic unfolds, it's quite something else to see it firsthand.

Brant and Anna Nyhart have, they are aid workers who just got back to the U.S. after working with Liberian communities to build an orphanage and a girls' home.

Brant and Anna Nyhart joining me right now from Phoenix. Good to see both of you.

So, Anna, I understand you all knew about the Ebola outbreak as you were making your way to Liberia. So what kind of precautions were you needing to take, what kind of worries did you have? ANNA NYHART, AID WORKER JUST BACK FROM LIBERIA: Well, really wasn't much of a concern because it was really in the neighboring communities there, not anywhere near where we were going to be staying. So we weren't really concerned at all when we were there.

WHITFIELD: But then did that change, Brant, while you were there?

GRANT NYHART, AID WORKER JUST BACK FROM LIBERIA: Yes, I mean, certainly was in the news while we were there and there had been reports about Ebola in the bush, in Liberia, but well removed from Monrovia, where we were. And so certainly it was in the news and people were talking about it at that point. And it game a growing concern and seemed as soon as we returned home, it really exploded.

WHITFIELD: While in your Monrovia, which is the capital of Liberia. Did you interact with anyone? Were there other aid workers that you talked to who talked about their experience being in the villages where Ebola had spread more readily than right there in the capital?

GRANT NYHART: Sure. At that point, we did have not any contact with aid workers who had been in contact with patients, but we did meet Dr. Debbie there from SIM and she's now on the front lines of this fight in Monrovia and really, that's where our heart goes.

I mean, these are no longer numbers for us. We see people's faces. We see the doctor at the local medical clinic. Jeremiah and his efforts to protect the children who he cares for and that's why we're so encouraged by Samaritan's Purse and Doctors Without Borders being on the front lines.

WHITFIELD: Clearly, it has spread, particularly in villages in the more rural areas, where supplies and sanitation are just not accessible, but now, you are learning about the two Americans who were doing the work with Samaritan's Purse as you just mentioned, back in the U.S.

What are you concerns about the people that you interacted with in Liberia who have been left behind, who were there, who have to deal with the spread of this virus and whether you're hoping the treatment of the two Americans will perhaps open the door to possibilities for the treatment of those in Liberia.

ANNA NYHART: We are very concerned for the people we love and know back at home because it's a very high risk that they could get this virus. We're very hopeful for this experimental drug, but at the same time, we don't know how fast they're going to be able to give this out to people. And so, I think that we can't really count on that right now as a source of you know, protection or healing for this disease.

GRANT NYHART: Right.

WHITFIELD: OK, Grant and Anna Nyhart, thanks so much for your time.

GRANT NYHART: Thanks so much.

WHITFIELD: All right, do you think college athletes deserve to get paid? A judge has ruled in their favor saying the NCAA has been catching it for years, using their names and likenesses. We'll break it all down for you, next.

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WHITFIELD: All right, we might start seeing college athletes getting paid. That's because a judge says the NCAA violated antitrust laws by forcing schools not to pay athletes. The judge says the players' likenesses, names and images were being used to make money for the schools and the NCAA, and students got no benefits.

Sara Ganim is joining us now from New York. Sarah, what is the NCAA saying about all of this?

SARA GANIM, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good afternoon. Well, the NCAA is almost likely going to appeal. Everyone recognizes this may well change the landscape of college sports. Gone could be the days of the Johnny Manziels of the world gettinging into trouble for selling a few autographs for a little bit of cash.

I talked to the attorneys for the players last night. They are very happy, but I want to show you what the National College Players Association has to say about this.

They said, "This is a big win, the ruling says the NCAA was operating illegally and college athletes to have rights, even if you label them student athletes and want to call amateurism, it doesn't give the NCAA the right to deny them the rights that other Americans deserve.

Now, it's important to state here that this ruling doesn't say that the NCAA or the universities have to pay athletes. The ruling says that they can if they want to. That the NCAA can no longer have a rule against it.

And that could lead to a lot of things because if some universities decide to pay, others don't, will they play each other, will it lead to bidding wars? It's important to know that there is a cap on this.

It's not like we're going to be looking at million dollar contracts in college sports. We're looking at $5,000 per athlete, per year.

WHITFIELD: Wow. That's extraordinary. So, what kind of reaction is coming from some of the colleges, the athletes perhaps?

GANIM: The athletes are absolutely elated. The ones that have been advocating for years and this lawsuit was filed five years ago by former UCLA basketball player, Ed O'Bannon. He was sitting in a friend's living room, the friend's kid was playing a video game and he said, I'm in that game and I don't get a check for that.

I never got paid for that. He ended up suing and this is the result of that. This has been five years going, so this has morphed over time from being just about video games to being about television contracts and jerseys and whether or not the schools can sell playing cards and all sorts of paraphernalia. That's all encompassing in this, but what the judge is saying is, look, you guys make millions off corporate sponsorships, television contracts and when she says you guys, she means the universities and the athletes, they should get a cut of that, too.

WHITFIELD: Are they going to get a cut of that this season?

GANIM: Not starting this season. It takes effect before it begins in 2016. Interesting, I mentioned the appeal. We all know that the NCAA is going to appeal and appeals can take a long time, but the judge specifically said she will not state her ruling in light of an appeal.

So even if they appeal and they are going through that process, they will still begin to get paid if the universities choose to pay them, they can still start to get paid in 2016.

WHITFIELD: That's something for them to look forward to. All right, thanks so much. I still am wincing at the fact I said got no benefits. Sara Ganim, thanks so much. Appreciate it.

A police department describes a suspect as a dark skinned negro. What the police chief says about it might surprise you.

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WHITFIELD: Civil rights activists are outraged that the police department of Lockport, New York. They've just learned police described a shooting suspect as quote, "dark skinned negro."

Next to the line labelled complexion. On an arrest report, the 19- year-old is listed as Negro. It's followed by the letters "da," which means dark. They use a menu to list the suspect's complexion. It has 12 options that include light and dark negro. The police chief said they didn't realize the impact of this.

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CHIEF LARRY EGGERT, LOCKPORT, NEW YORK POLICE: That type of terminology can be offensive to blacks. I didn't know it until I talked to you just now. I don't ever use that term, but I didn't think it was an offensive term regardless.

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WHITFIELD: The chief says he will change the software to change the complexion language. He says the police department, which has never had a black officer on its force, will be receiving diversity training in the next few weeks.

All right, we have much more straight ahead in the NEWSROOM and it all starts right now.