Return to Transcripts main page

CNN Live Saturday

Ohio Authorities Confirm Gehring Children's Bodies Find; Nagin Holds Townhall Meeting in Atlanta

Aired December 03, 2005 - 18:00   ET

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

CAROL LIN, CNN ANCHOR: From the CNN Center in Atlanta, I'm Carol Lin To our top story in just a moment, but first these are the stories making news right now.
Dental records are being used to identify two bodies found in Ohio. They might be the brother and sister murdered by their father two years ago. The father killed himself in prison. We are expecting two news conferences this hour, one from the police department in Ohio and one from the mother of the missing children, 14-year-old Sarah and 11-year-old Phillip.

Iraq's largest Sunni Muslim party calls for the release of four children peace activists taken hostage last week. Al Jazeera broadcast new video that appears to show the hostages.

And one more senior al Qaeda operative is dead, that's according to a growing number of sources in Pakistan, among them, the president of that country who confirmed it today, that Abu Hamza Rabia was among five men killed in a house explosion near the Afghan border. Witness accounts of some sort of missile strike could not be verified by CNN. It is a development, no doubt, welcomed by the White House. CNN's Elaine Quijano reports.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ELAINE QUIJANO, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): U.S. Intelligence officials are celebrating what they see as a major blow to Al Qaeda, the death of Abu Hamza Rabia, the head of operations for the terrorist groups. His death was confirmed by U.S. and Pakistani officials

There was reports about the killing of head of Al Qaeda operations, Hamza Rabia. Can you confirm that?

PERVEZ MUSHARRAF, PAKISTANI PRESIDENT: Yes, indeed, 200 percent confirmed.

QUIJANO: CNN obtained this photo showing Pakistani tribesmen purportedly holding a piece of a missile, pulled from the debris at a possible Al Qaeda safe house that was destroyed. CNN has not independently verified the authenticity of the photo, but a close-up does show words in English. Yet what is not clear how Rabia died.

MAJOR GEN. SHAUKAT SULTAN, SPOKESMAN, PAKISTANI ARMED FORCES: That is information that we have that probably it was an accidental explosion that resulted in his death.

QUIJANO: Pakistan's information minister says he was killed in an accident as he worked with explosives at a house in Pakistan's northern Waziristan tribal area. But some media reports suggests that the blast was a deliberate strike by a hellfire missile like this one launched from an unmanned CIA a Predator drone.

Former acting CIA director, John McLaughlin, says Rabia was a major figure in Al Qaeda's organization.

JOHN MCLAUGHLIN, FMR. ACTING CIA DIRECTOR: Rabia is someone who would be well known to bin Laden, who would be involved in any plotting against the United States or our allies, and very directly involved in recruiting people to carrying out those plots. So this guy was a very big fish.

QUIJANO: U.S. intelligence officials are not commenting on U.S. involvement and no comment from the White House when President Bush, Saturday, met with top advisers in the Oval Office before leaving for Camp David. The president did receive his usual briefing, but it's not known whether that included details on Rabia's death.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

QUIJANO: And one former analyst says that the reports of a missile strike are plausible, adding that if true, it's likely that the strike would have to have been authorized by President Bush himself -- Carol.

LIN: All right, thank you very much. Elaine Quijano, live at the White House.

Now take you to Ohio and the latest on the murdered children and whether their bodies have been found.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: ...Cause of death, multiple gun shot wounds, manor of death is homicide. Thank you.

JEFF STRELZIN, NEW HAMPSHIRE ATTORNEY GENERAL'S OFFICE: Good evening. My name is Jeff Strelzin. I work for the New Hampshire Attorney General's Office. That's s-t-r-e-l-z-i-n.

We've notified Jim and Teri Knight about this. They asked me to express their gratitude for everyone involved. Obviously this is a great day for them. They've also asked me to let you know that they plan to address the media back home in New Hampshire at the end of this press conference. This day would not have come about but for the cooperation of the people that you see in room. And this is just a small representation of the amount who have worked on this case from start. And it's because of that cooperation that we were able to get out the information that was required to help locate Phillip and Sarah and hopefully soon bring them home. So, on behalf of everyone involved in this case...

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: ...office making the confirmation and we will have much more for you, of course, tonight at 10:00, we have two crews...

LIN: All right, that is our affiliate reporter out there covering the story. As we just heard confirmation that these two kids, a 14-year-old girl and 11-year-old boy, their bodies were found, Sarah and Phillip. Their father's name was Manuel Gehring and confessed to killing them back in 2000, I believe it was about three years ago. He did describe that he had buried the bodies with homemade crosses made out of sticks and taped with gaffer's tape. That is how they found the bodies. A woman was taking a walk and came across the remains.

Well, it is graphic and it is disturbing. Al Jazeera has aired video purportedly shot by insurgents in Iraq about an attack against what appears to be a U.S. Marine unit on patrol. And we want to warn you right now, as we show you this video, it is difficult to watch. As you can see there, a group calling itself the "Islamic Army in Iraq" claimed that 10 American troops were killed in this attack which happened near Fallujah. It appears to show U.S. Marines on patrol. There you go, there's the explosion. They were on foot and also a Humvee when they come under attack. Now, we have no way to verify what the video seems to show, or even where or when it was made. The U.S. military though, did confirm this week that 10 U.S. Marines were killed in a roadside bomb outside Fallujah.

And violence north of Baghdad today, as well. Insurgents ambushed Iraqi soldiers with bombs and small arms. At least 11 Iraqi troops died. No word on how many, if any insurgents were killed or captured.

It's the same the Department of Defense released the names of 10 U.S. Marines killed in a roadside bombing this week in Fallujah. The Marines were all in their teens or 20s. The Pentagon says that attack was the deadliest against American troops in four months.

And violence is spiking across Iraq and the civilian and military casualty tolls are both rising sharply. Many analysts blame the upcoming election, less than two weeks away for the upsurge. And now a familiar and controversial face is back selling himself as unifying leader. CNN's Nic Robertson is in Baghdad.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): "Man of the hour. Man of the future." That's how former Prime Minister Ayad Allawi is selling himself to voters in a slick new TV campaign.

AYAD ALLAWI, FMR. IRAQI PRIME MINISTER: I think this means that, you know, we have the vision of what needs to be done in Iraq. We have the strength to do it.

ROBERTSON: Allawi, a secular Shia is all about projecting his strength. An image garnered from nine months in office last year. After the U.S. administration in Iraq hand picked him to lead the transitional government, now he's in a battle that will put the winners in power for the next four years. ALLAWI: My slate is ready to focus and expose the problems of the security in Iraq.

ROBERTSON: His particular appeal is secular; reaching across the sectarian divide to Sunnis fearful that the religious Shia dominated government is lashing out against their community. Failure by the current government are the staple of Allawi's TV promo.

They promise they would provide jobs, hospitals, schools that they would make electricity work, improve the quality of life, the actors say. But Allawi's time in office was less than perfect. He failed to resolve the same problems his ad campaign implies he can now fix. More damaging, he fell from favor and power amid allegations of corruption in his government. A charge he vigorously challenges.

ALLAWI: When these evidence were presented to me, immediately I took action and asked the deputy prime minister and the minister of finance to investigate.

ROBERTSON: In the run-up to the elections now, Allawi has more pressing issues. One of his party's candidates has just been assassinated. As political and sectarian killings mount, Allawi says his group is all the more important.

ALLAWI: I think what we represent, the country deserves, really. It deserves unity, it deserves (INAUDIBLE) nonsectarian government and this is what our state represent.

ROBERTSON: Allawi knows running on that slate may cost him his life, too. In the past two years, he's survived multiple assignation attempts.

(on camera): The stakes of these elections are high. If Allawi's brand of muscular secularism proves not to be as popular as he hopes, he could find himself struggling for political significance in a landscape that would then likely be dominated by the big Shia religious political block.

Nic Robertson, CNN, Baghdad.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LIN: The panel charged with gauging anti-terror readiness says the government was way behind acting too slowly in protecting the country from attack. The so-called 9/11 Commission will issue a full report on Monday, but some members are speaking out. They say terror groups are evolving and U.S. government agencies are not.

Well, a federal judge in New York says random bag searches on subways are constructional. The New York Civil Liberties Union had challenged the policy. The judge ruled that random bag searches are an effective deterrent to terrorism.

And you'll see some security changes at the airport. The TSA will be allowed to bring a few previously banned items onboard. For example, small scissors, and select small tools. But, be aware, random passenger screening will increase. Those changes go into effect December 22, right before Christmas travel.

Well, CNN is your network for the most reliable news about your security.

New Orleans' Mayor Ray Nagin is on tour. Today's stop is Atlanta where he spoke to displaced New Orleans residents he hopes will come home. Earlier this week, Nagin made stops in Texas and Tennessee. CNN's Renay San Miguel attended today's meeting and he joins me now to talk a lot more about it.

I don't know how much fire he got in Texas and in other places, but...

RENAY SAN MIGUEL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: You know, and that's a good point because I talking to a reporter for a major newspaper who had covered a lot of the town hall meetings in Louisiana, in the home state.

LIN: Right.

SAN MIGUEL: And she said that she -- this one rivaled those for the amount of emotion and anger (INAUDIBLE).

LIN: People are angry.

SAN MIGUEL: It's estimated that there are some 42,000 New Orleans residents now living in the Atlanta area. Fire marshals said that 2,200 of them showed up Morehouse College today for the town hall meeting.

When he first came out, he got a -- Mayor Ray Nagin got a very enthusiastic response. He got a standing ovation from about half the crowd and then he gave a 20-minute update on the status of reconstruction and recovery in New Orleans. He said he expected all neighborhoods to have all essential services by January, that's water, that's sewer, that's electricity, that's phone service, that's 911 emergency service in all neighborhoods. And that's why he says folks need to help bring New Orleans back and they need to come back to New Orleans to help with that reconstruction.

But, when the question and answer session started, one of the first people to go to the microphone was a women who was from east New Orleans, she said she still did not have any water. She questioned the mayor on whether or not she did have a plan to rebuild that city. Here's what she had to say:

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We want to come home, don't we?

(APPLAUSE)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We want to come home, but we can't come home. There's nowhere to live, there's nowhere to stay, there's no water. Not in my residence. There's no electric. So tell me, how can I come home? I want to come home. My family wants to come home. (END VIDEO CLIP)

SAN MIGUEL: That's just some of the emotion that was vented toward Mayor Ray Nagin. For his part, he had a chance to vent some of his own frustration with FEMA and the federal government saying that they are taking too long to get money to New Orleans to help the recovery. He wants the levees in New Orleans rebuild to withstand a Category 3 hurricane by next June, this is when the next hurricane season begins. And he says that's just -- it's just taking too long, you know the more that they drag their feet, the more they're going to miss that deadline. And he is promising some action on his part in the form of political protests. Here's his comments on that:

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MAYOR RAY NAGIN, NEW ORLEANS: We're going pick a date -- we're going to pick a date.

(APPLAUSE)

NAGIN: We're going to pick a date and we're going to hire buses and we're going to come pick folks up and we're going to go build a levee system -- you know, councilman Oliver Thomas, said this (INAUDIBLE), we're going to build a levee around the White House.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SAN MIGUEL: Some of that video you're seeing, are folks being signed in to actually get some help from FEMA. And one of the people that I kind of felt sorry for was a gentleman named Paul Faye, he is with the FEMA Atlanta office's response and recovery, had absolutely nothing do with the New Orleans situation, but because this is in Atlanta, and there is a FEMA regional office here, he came out to help answer the questions, but he got an awful lot of that anger in response in terms of the slowness of getting the funds out, the red tape that people are saying that they have to go through just to be able to talk to somebody. Once they get somebody from FEMA on the phone, they say that there's a major runaround and you know, just a lot of dissatisfaction with how the process is going.

LIN: Did he have any answers for them?

SAN MIGUEL: He didn't -- all he could say -- and this was really all he could say was we will take your name and we will take your number, we will try to get somebody with you. But, you know, maybe here's a part of the process you didn't understand or maybe that we need to help understand.

LIN: Right.

SAN MIGUEL: Doing everything he could, being as nice as he could, but there were a lot of people there that were just too angry. And you know, this is three months now. They were chased out of New Orleans by Katrina before Labor Day, we're coming up on Christmas now and they're not going to be able to be at home for the holidays.

LIN: Right, and the mayor now saying January, but maybe more...

SAN MIGUEL: Maybe.

LIN: Before they get power and water.

SAN MIGUEL: Exactly.

LIN: All right, I feel for these people. Renay, thank you.

SAN MIGUEL: Thank you.

LIN: Well, the mayor won't have to worry about a political challenger for a while. The state has postponed New Orleans's city elections for eight months. Now, they were supposed to be held February 4. Can you imagine that?

Well, what you heard -- you've heard what the mayor has had to say about progress in New Orleans. But straight ahead, find out why this woman says small signs of progress, well, they don't mean a thing.

But we're going to show you the first published picture of the woman who received a partial face transplant.

And later, art, but with LSD? They curator hopes these drug laced exhibits stimulate euphoric experiences. But would you take your children to see them? Nope. We're gong to take a closer look, still.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LIN: Well, even the polls show that most Americans support the death penalty, capital punishment is being used less and less in this country. Next week, the Supreme Court will hear the first of several death penalty cases. CNN's Gary Nurenberg on the evolving debate over capital punishment.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Jay Scott. Juan Raul Garza.

GARY NURENBERG, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The North Carolina execution, Friday, of convicted killer Kenneth Boyd, is the 1,000th in the United States since the death penalty was reinstated 29 years ago.

It's an historic event and most gruesome.

The most recent CNN/Gallops poll says Americans favor the death penalty for murder by more than two to one.

MICHAEL PARANZINO, PRES. THROW AWAY THE KEY: We're targeting the worst of the worst.

NURENBERG: But it is being used less often. RICHARD DIETER, DEATH PENALTY INFORMATION CTR.: We're already down 40 percent in executions from 1999, so the death penalty is not going away, but it is eroding in terms of its use.

NURENBERG: Demonstrators rallied in California, Saturday on an attempt to convince the governor to commute the death sentence of gang founder, Stanley "Tookie" Williams convicted to murdering four people in 1979. Williams has been nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize because of his anti-gang writings.

JAMIE FOXX, ACTOR: Governor Schwarzenegger, we're not trying to push you into a corner.

NURENBERG: And has celebrities arguing he is a changed man who should be saved.

GOV. ARNOLD SCHWARZENEGGER (R), CALIFORNIA: I want to make sure I make the right decision because we're dealing here with a persons' life.

NURENBERG: In Texas, officials are looking at the 1993 execution of Rubin Cantu.

GERALD GOLDSTEIN, DEFENSE ATTORNEY: The entire system failed from beginning to end, from left to right, nothing worked.

NURENBERG: Two witnesses against Cantu have changed their stories and a state legislator wants an investigation to see if Texas executed an innocent man.

DIETER: There's been 122 people who've been exonerated and freed since the death penalty was reinstated. I think it's inevitable that we are also are executing innocent people.

NURENBERG: Death penalty proponents say look at a simple fact.

PARAZINO: They have not found a single person of those 1,000 we've executed who is innocent.

NURENBERG: New DNA techniques have cleared more than 100 death row inmates of the crimes for which they were convicted.

(on camera): But, laws of putting lime limits on death penalty appeals have kept some of that DNA evidence out of court. The Supreme Court has agreed to hear five death penalty cases, and some of them, including one next week, asks whether those limits on DNA evidence are constitutional.

TOM GOLDSTEIN, DEFENSE ATTORNEY: Procedurally, the Supreme Court is concerned with limiting the number for repetitive appeals that drag out the death penalty processes. On the other hand, substantively they are concerned that innocent people not be executed, and they really haven't figure out how to resolve that dilemma.

NURENBERG (voice-over): But in accepting multiple cases this term, the court is indicating it will try. Gary Nurenberg, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LIN: Other headlines now making news across America. Some tense moments aboard a JetBlue flight bound for New York. It had to return to Long Beach, California after a warning light indicated a problem. The crews later determined the warning light malfunctioned.

Ready to watch this tower come down? Countdown to demolition. Woops, see, it stopped. Now, that was not supposed to happen. It's going to take a bit more muscle to bring down the Sioux Falls, South Dakota's tallest building. The leaning tower of Sioux Falls it the talk of the town today. It just got stuck leaning like that. But, get a good look while you can because city workers are going to finish the job on Monday.

Well, in st. Petersburg, Florida, thieves are targeting Salvation Army bell ringers. Four kettles were snacked this week. Two of the incidents were captured on surveillance video. But, no one's been arrested just yet.

So, how is the patient doing? You heard about this woman who received the first partial face transplant. Well we're going to show you how it was done and show you the first post-surgery picture.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: And, we are broke and we will be homeless again in three weeks. No, we are not OK.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LIN: A very direct letter about what it's like to be a Katrina survivor when we go on the "Frontlines."

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LIN: Every week we like to bring you the more personal story from the frontlines and today a cry from help from someone who is still fighting the effects of Hurricane Katrina. Cecile Tebo is coordinator of the New Orleans Police Department's crisis unit. Here's her story in her own words:

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CECILE TEBO, NEW ORLEANS POLICE DEPT.: "So my friend calls me from North Carolina and says, 'Wow, I was just watching the news and it looks as though the city is doing great. The French Quarter looks wonderful, and I see that the zoo is back. You must be so much better'

My response, 'No, we're not better at all. We have received no assistance from either our homeowner's or flood insurance despite that we met with adjusters in September. The home we are renting will no longer be available in three weeks. A trailer has not arrived, we have never met with a FEMA adjustor. We are broke and we will be homeless again in three weeks. No, we are not OK.'

I know I speak for thousands and thousands of people who have called New Orleans their home. The attention received in early days of this tragedy was relentless. Our pain and suffering touched every home in this country, in this nation on a daily, and sometimes hourly basis. But now, as thousands continue to suffer and drown in grief and despair, the cameras have stopped, the attention has left us to suffer alone in fear and broken promises.

I sat today with hundreds at the FEMA station. The looks in everyone's eyes displayed the heartache and sadness of what has happened to them. The insurance companies have robbed us of future hopes and are responsible for the now ongoing mental anguish of uncertainty, fear, and the inability for us to take a step in the rebuilding process.

My job is to work the streets with our heroic police officers, trying to assist them in response to call of the mental health nature. The calls, these days, are generally from those who have given up. They have lost everything and are completely devastated. A precious, dear friend of mine took his life not long ago. The agony of what lay ahead was simply too great to bear. Others are making the same choice because the agony, hopeless, and helplessness are greater than one's own ability to cope.

Why is the media, who tends to love the horror stories, not sharing this news? We are living the ultimate nightmare.

No, we are not OK and we cry for your help."

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LIN: And Cecile was there helping.

Now, sweeping the clouds away for the kids of Katrina. The puppets go from Sesame Street to Bourbon Street. I am going to talk to Elmo about his recent trip.

Plus, dramatic new pictures into CNN of men rescued from a flooded tunnel. The full story, next.

But first, one of Al Qaeda's top men is killed in Pakistan. I'm going to talk with a former state department analyst who just returned from the region. You're watching CNN LIVE SATURDAY.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LIN: Welcome back. I'm Carol Lin, and here's a quick look at what's happening right now in the news.

The bodies of two children murdered by their father back in 2003 and buried by an Ohio highway have been identified at last. Officials announce this hour Sarah and Phillip Gehring died from multiple gunshot wounds.

And Pakistan confirms a top Al Qaeda leader has died in an explosion near the Afghan border. But Pakistani officials deny reports an American missile killed Abu Hamza Rabia. A live interview with a Pakistan expert coming up.

An insurgent attack on a patrol north of Baghdad has killed ten Iraqi soldier. An 11th Iraqi soldier was kidnapped and found later dead.

And Hurricane Epsilon is showing surprising strength as it churns slowly through the Atlantic. Forecasters had expected it to weaken to a tropical storm by now. Well, the National Hurricane Center says Epsilon poses no threat yet to land.

Now, back to our top story, the widely reported death of a top lieutenant to Osama bin Laden. Witnesses in Pakistan say they saw a missile hit the house where inside Abu Hamza Rabia and four other men were killed. One image from the scene shows a piece of metal that appears to be part of something military, something American, perhaps.

No official comment, though, from Washington, but maybe we are going to get some insight from Marvin Weinbaum. He's a scholar in residence at the Middle East Institute who returned from Afghanistan just yesterday.

Dr. Weinbaum, what do you make of this situation? First of all, have you ever heard of Rabia before?

DR. MARVIN WEINBAUM, MIDDLE EAST INSTITUTE: Yes, he's been known because about a year ago August, he replaced the man Faraj al-Libbi, who was killed. And he was his second in command, and we believe that he took over the international affairs spot, really, as an assistant to the Al Qaeda leadership.

LIN: Why the discrepancy, though, between what the president of Pakistan says, "Oh, he was handling explosives and the house exploded," versus what eyewitnesses on the ground are saying, "No, we saw a missile fired by a drone," and they believe it to be a U.S. missile.

WEINBAUM: Well, I think the answer to that is pretty clear. Pakistan is not anxious to have it known that we may have a drone operating in that area. This is political sensitive. I think it's interesting that the story itself was first reported in a Pakistani newspaper out of Karachi.

Normally, when this has happened in the past, when there's been a high-valued target, that story has been released by the Pakistan government itself. In this case, they obviously had trouble with this. They were pleased to see him out, but on the other hand, they were not anxious to have it reported just how he was taken out.

LIN: Now, Waziristan, the place where the house exploded, where Rabia allegedly died, is an area of high focus by the U.S. military. It is believed at one point that Abu Musab al-Zarqawi or supporters could be in this region.

What does this tell you, though, if it was a U.S. target here, what military operations are going on there, and how well the fight against terror is going inside of Pakistan?

WEINBAUM: Very good cooperation between the Pakistani and American intelligence in this area. And normally, what has happened is that American intelligence has been able to identify possible targets.

In this case, however, operating in North Waziristan is very difficult. You don't send in armed forces in the same that you were able to take out some of the other high-valued targets in Pakistani cities.

So the way in which you would attack such a target ideally would be with good intelligence and a drone missile. And apparently, that's what happened in this case, although we perhaps don't have all of the facts at this point.

LIN: Dr. Weinbaum, thank you very much.

Now, be sure to join us tonight at 8:00 Eastern for out inside look into the world of terrorism. CNN national security correspondent David Ensor talks to those who have been on the front lines of the terror war years before 9/11. CNN presents "Winning the War on Terror," tonight at 8:00 Eastern right here on CNN.

Well, the Pentagon is defending a controversial propaganda program in Iraq, saying it's part of the effort to get truthful information to the Iraqi public. The U.S. coalition admits it used a third party to plant favorable stories in the Iraqi media. And it admits money traded hands. Here's CNN's Jamie McIntyre.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JAMIE MCINTYRE, CNN SENIOR PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: The Pentagon is not denying the basic charge, that a U.S.-funded public relations firm took news stories written by the American military, translated them in to Arabic, and then paid to get them into Iraqi newspapers.

But Pentagon officials told the chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee in a private meeting that while U.S. commanders in Iraq who approved the stories are still gathering the facts, there was no intent to deceive.

SEN. JOHN WARNER (R), VIRGINIA: You pick up our papers here in America. You'll see a number of articles carried in there, and there's usually that byline, "Paid for and requested by this organization." And that's generally what they've been trying to do. Now, it's been discovered in some areas there's an omission of that reference, that it's been paid for, and they're looking into that.

MCINTYRE: The company in question, Washington-based Lincoln Group, has a $6 million contract to place favorable stories in the Iraqi media. In a statement, the company says, "The Lincoln Group has consistently worked with the Iraqi media to promote truthful reporting across Iraq. We counter the lies, intimidation, and pure evil of terror with factual stories." At issue is the fact that the Pentagon has one standard for routine public relations and another for what it calls information operations.

KEN BACON, FORMER PENTAGON SPOKESMAN: There is a natural tension between the military wanting to use information operations as a weapon in warfare and others who want to protect the press as a channel for accurate, legitimate information.

MCINTYRE: In a press release, the U.S. military in Iraq defended information operations as a powerful and effective tool, and acknowledged that some news articles were published in exchange for buying advertising, which, it said, is a customary practice in Iraq. It also promised to review the appropriateness of the process and take action to correct any improprieties.

Jamie McIntyre, CNN, the Pentagon.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LIN: In our "World Wrap" tonight, Ukraine is taking top steps to combat an outbreak of bird flu. Villages where the potentially lethal H5 strain was found have been quarantined, and preparations are under way to slaughter millions of birds.

Dramatic pictures from France, where firefighters rescued several people from a flooded tunnel. Heavy rains swept across the French Riviera, causing the flood.

And an emotional farewell for British soccer legend George Best. A crowd packed Northern Ireland's parliament building today for funeral services. Best died last week at the age of 59.

Now, doctors in France say the woman who received the world's first partial face transplant is eating and speaking. We are getting the first look at the woman. During the operation, doctors grafted a triangle of tissue, including a nose, lips, and chin. Her face was severely disfigured in a dog attack. CNN's Paula Hancocks has more on the pioneering surgery.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

PAULA HANCOCKS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: This is the woman who has made medical history. Protecting her identity, she walked into hospital with horrific facial injuries from a dog attack. When she eventually walks out of the hospital, she may not recognize herself because half of her face will be new, taken from the face in this box, the face of a brain-dead donor whose family gave consent for it to be used by someone else.

Most of this patient's nose, lips, and chin were missing. Surgeon's spent 15 hours carefully reconnecting muscles, veins, arteries, and nerves to her face.

DR. JEAN MICHEL DUBERNARD, TRANSPLANT SURGEON: We are doctors. We had a patient with a very severe disfigurement related to this dog bite. As doctors, if you have the possibility to improve our patient, that's what we can do.

HANCOCKS: The doctors say her first word when she woke up, "Merci," thank you. She ate strawberries and chocolate.

DR. IAIN HUTCHISON, FACIAL SURGERY FOUNDATION: It's an emotional and psychological breakthrough for society. And the patient who's undergone it, the donor's family, and the surgeons are to applauded for the bravery and going into the unknown.

HANCOCKS: The operation was carried out at a hospital in Amiens in northeast France. The woman was later flown to Lyon for a long recuperation. Her identity is being kept secret. This is the kind of story that should offer significant hope, but there are significant risks.

What if her body rejects the new face and it has to be removed? The consequences are unknown, as are the side effects of taking tablets to prevent this rejection for the rest of her life. There's no doubt history has been made, but it could take years before we know for sure if it's a success.

They say your face is the mirror to your mind, but this 38-year- old will now have to deal with the psychological trauma of not even seeing her own face in the mirror.

Paula Hancocks, CNN, London.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LIN: Well, it may start looking a lot like Christmas for some of you. We are going to show you where the snowy weather is going to be hitting next.

Plus, art and ecstasy. Dig out your tie-dye t-shirt because we are about to take you inside a new mind-altering museum. But would you want your kids to have the experience? A closer look inside, straight ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LIN: Well, what could be the season's first big snowfall is bearing down on the Northeast. Now, you are looking at -- it doesn't look so wicked there in New York City, but it's going to be. Tomorrow is going to be a bitter 37 degrees. So let's check in with meteorologist Monica McNeal for the very latest on that.

You know, it didn't look so bad, Monica, but 37?

MONICA MCNEAL, CNN METEOROLOGIST: I'll tell you what, you're absolutely right. Right now, it's clear and their temperature is 35. But Carol, let me tell you, a fast-moving area of low pressure is expected to approach the region tonight and they're going to get some snow.

And New York City isn't the only that's going to get snow tomorrow. In the meantime, Syracuse, as you take a look at our radar, they had a record snowfall today, 11.4 inches of snow fell, shattering the old record in 1980 of five inches of snowfall. Now, let's talk about how much snow we're going to see across the Northeast tomorrow. Boston, you're looking at anywhere from two to four inches of snow in your forecast, a temperature of about 36 degrees. So it's going to cold and snowy for you. New York City, your high 37 degrees, and you're going to certainly see some snow your forecast as well -- Carol?

LIN: All right. Get the mittens on.

MCNEIL: That's right.

LIN: Well, the ecstasy of art, or the art of ecstasy. A new exhibit out in sunny Los Angeles at the Museum of Contemporary Art examines the concept of drug-induced art and art that just seems that way. Here's Kareen Wynter.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

KAREEN WYNTER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Get lost in your imagination. This mind-altering museum uses color, collages, and yes, controlled substances to mesmerize visitors. Don't pick up the pills packed with play dough.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: For people with just, like -- they get so kind of enthralled and go look at that, that they would like bump into this and sort of start walking in.

WYNTER: And the water flowing from this crystal fountain? It's off limits. The artists purportedly laced the liquid with LSD, though we're told in amounts that would be virtually undetectable now.

The ground-breaking artistic displays at the Los Angeles Museum of Contemporary Art are part of the new exhibit, entitled "Ecstasy: In and About Altered States," where pharmaceutical and organic drugs are woven in complex frameworks, like this model of a headless human figure.

PAUL SCHIMMEL, L.A. MUSEUM OF CONTEMPORARY ART: You see all of these kind of patterns, and it's kind of a kaleidoscope of the imagination.

WYNTER: Curator Paul Schimmel says these bold perceptual effects stimulate euphoric experiences, but says that's not all on display. Just watch.

SCHIMMEL: There is no magician behind the screen. Everything you see is, you know, right here in front.

WYNTER: What seems like a natural environment is actually an artificial setting. This artist used strobe lights to mimic nature by illuminating rain drops flowing from a home gardening system. So seeing isn't always believing. The exhibition isn't just for adults. This upside-down mushroom, which turns fairy tale into reality is a kids favorite. But should it be?

SCHIMMEL: There was certainly a concern about what impact it would have in terms of young people. And, in fact, school groups and the very age group that might go, "Oh, is this appropriate," have really sort of marveled in it because it's really about perception, isn't it?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The reality is drugs are around us everywhere we look, whether it's in the media, whether it's in shows. At least here, they're trying to deal with, you know, different ways of looking at it.

WYNTER: With such enigmatic art, the interpretations are endless.

Kareen Wynter, CNN, Los Angeles.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LIN: Up next, helping kids cope. The gang from "Sesame Street" has just returned from the Gulf Coast, and Elmo is going to be here to tell me about how it went.

There he is, and there's Luis. We'll talk to you guys in just a moment.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LIN: The youngest survivors of Hurricane Katrina certainly could use a sunny day to sweep the clouds away. And if that phrase rings a bell, you know I'm talking about "Sesame Street." Elmo and Luis from that show were among the characters who visited the Gulf Coast this week to cheer the kids living there.

Hi, guys.

ELMO, "SESAME STREET" CHARACTER: Hello.

LIN: Talk about your trip.

ELMO: Hi, Miss Carol.

LIN: Hi there, Elmo. I am so tickled to be talking to talking to both of you. I'd rather talk to you guys than talk to Tom Cruise. You're real celebrities in my house, all right?

ELMO: Thank you.

LIN: Hey, Elmo, what were you able to tell the kids?

ELMO: That Elmo loves every single one of them, and we all got kisses and hugs.

LUIS, "SESAME STREET" CHARACTER: Lots of hugs.

LIN: Lots of hugs. Luis, you're the wise man on the show -- oh, Elmo, don't laugh. Luis is. Luis, you're the wise man on the program. Were you able to offer any advice or wisdom to these kinds, because it's been such a tough time for them? LUIS: You can imagine, Carol. You know, it's unimaginable the trauma that these kids of gone through. And when we were down there, of course, you know, we were there primarily to at least elevate their spirits and just make them feel a little better after all that they've been through and are still going through at this day at this time.

And, of course, you know, we do what we know best, singing and playing with them. So we went down there and sang some songs, right Elmo?

ELMO: Yes.

LUIS: And we played some games with them. And for the little short time that we were with each group, you know, hopefully I think we did elevate their spirits a little bit.

LIN: Right, right. Because Elmo, you guys weren't even planning on doing a full tour, were you?

ELMO: No, we were just going down to say hello to all of them. And it was wonderful.

LUIS: Yes, it really was. And thanks, of course, to -- you know, this is our second time that we've been down to New Orleans. There was another group that went down earlier -- I think that's what you were seeing on the feed there -- last October.

This time, we went down again, and hopefully, through the generosity of CPB, the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, they're the ones that sponsored us to go down there, hopefully we can get another group and go down and do some more of these.

LIN: That'd be fun.

ELMO: Yes, we would love to go back.

LIN: Hey, Elmo. What was your favorite song that you sang to the kids?

ELMO: Oh, boy. It was "Tu Me Gusta."

LUIS: "Tu Me Gusta" is a beautiful little song.

LIN: I like you.

ELMO: Yes.

LUIS: I like you, yes.

LIN: Elmo, can you hum a few bars?

ELMO: Tu me gustas, that's why I love you.

LUIS: That's right.

LIN: Oh, Luis, you know -- what did the kids tell you after the program?

LUIS: Of course, they were very excited to see some friendly faces. Of course, we're a daily experience for a lot of these on "Sesame Street." And they were just very happy to see, you know, a familiar face, friendly faces that were there, telling them that we were loved and that we wouldn't forget about them.

ELMO: And we were so happy to be there for them.

LIN: You bet. Oh, Elmo, I'm sure they were so excited, and maybe Bert and Ernie. Did they get to go with you?

ELMO: No, not this time, but maybe next time.

LUIS: There were a couple other ones that went with us. But the main thing that we wanted to do is go down there and just let these kids know that we love them, that we're there for them on "Sesame Street." All they have to do is turn on the television and their friends are there for them.

LIN: You bet. And a happy place "Sesame Street" is. Elmo, R is for recovery and L is for love, don't you think?

ELMO: Yes.

LIN: All right, thanks you two.

LUIS: We also wanted to tell them that we would not forget them.

ELMO: No.

LIN: No. Elmo, are you going to be maybe having some of the folks visit "Sesame Street" maybe some time?

ELMO: Elmo hopes so, and Elmo definitely hopes he gets to go down very soon and see them again.

LIN: OK, good deal. Thanks both of you. Great to meet you.

LUIS: You're welcome.

ELMO: Bye.

LIN: Bye, Elmo.

ELMO: Bye, Miss Carol.

LIN: We're coming up next on the story. CNN's Ed Henry looks into the story of a bribe-taking Congressman.

Then, at 8:00 Eastern on "CNN Presents," winning the war on terror. Spies, soldiers, and cops across Europe share mistakes they've made against terrorists and how the U.S. can learn from them.

And at 9:00, "Larry King Live," close friends of Hollywood legend James Dean give us intimate memories of his life 50 years after his death.

And I'll be back at 10:00 Eastern with terrorism expert Ken Robinson. We're going to be talking about how intelligence is gathered so the U.S. can find terrorists like Abu Hamza Rabia.

A check of the hour's headlines and then "ON THE STORY."

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com