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Erin Burnett Outfront

Hamas Fires Dozens Of Rockets Into Israel; Israel: "Operation Protective Edge" Is Underway; Mercedes Revived Pullman; Leanna Harris Under Investigation; Two Planes Nearly Collide Caught on Tape; 63 Women Held Captive By Boko Haram Escape

Aired July 07, 2014 - 19:00   ET

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

ERIN BURNETT, CNN HOST: Next breaking news, escalating violence in the Middle East at this hour, dozens of rockets fired from Gaza, tensions rising over an American teen beaten by Israeli police.

Plus two passenger jets nearly collide in a major airport. One of several close calls in just 72 hours. How unsafe are our skies?

And the new million dollar, Mercedes, it is 21 feet of luxury. At that price, shouldn't it drive itself? Let's go OUTFRONT.

Good evening, everyone. I'm Erin Burnett. OUTFRONT tonight, the breaking news, an explosion of violence tonight in the Middle East fears war is imminent. The latest, a barrage of rocket fire from Gaza into Israel. Dozens of rockets fired in just one hour. Israeli officials say 85 total fired by Hamas today alone.

The military wing of that terror group confirms they fired those rockets. Now Israel has given this operation an official name, "Operation Protective Edge." It's now under way tonight. Earlier five Hamas members were killed by Israeli airstrikes in Gaza.

This is the latest in an escalating back and forth between Israelis and Palestinians following the killings of teenagers on both sides and the beating of an American teenager, the cousin of one of the murdered Israeli teens at the hands of the Israeli police. An Israeli official says if those allegations are true, quote, "Israeli police involved will have to pay a price."

Now we are going to talk to the teen's family in just a moment here OUTFRONT. But first, Ben Wedeman is in Jerusalem tonight with the latest. Ben, you know, we talk about war being imminent. That this has been escalating and escalating. Are we nearing a tipping point?

BEN WEDEMAN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: It certainly does. Now that Israel has given a name, Erin, to this operation, "Operation Protective Edge," it definitely means this is not business as usual. The Israeli security cabinet met for three hours today and certainly this barrage out of Gaza, which happened between 8:00 and 9:00 p.m. local time signals that trouble is to come.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) WEDEMAN (voice-over): Funerals, clashes, airstrikes and rocket attacks. Tensions thick and black and growing ever more intense beginning to be reminiscent of the dark and bloody days from more than ten years ago. All this set in motion with the kidnapping last month of three Israeli teenagers and weeks later the discovery of their bodies.

The Israeli government said Hamas is responsible for the murders and named two suspects. As Israelis mourned some lashed out in cold- blooded revenge. Kidnapping and burning to death 16-year-old Palestinian. Sunday, police arrested several Israeli Jews. Some of whom have confessed to the murder, according to Israeli media reports.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has condemned the killing of the teen and expressed his condolences to his father in a phone call. The murder sparked intention clashes between Palestinian youth and Israeli police in Jerusalem during which a 15-year-old Tampa, Florida boy, Tariq Abu Khdeir was brutally assaulted by Israeli police, an assault caught on cell phone cameras. A bruised and battered Tariq was released on bail Sunday.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: How do you feel now that you're out?

TARIQ ABU KHDEIR: I feel way better.

WEDEMAN: But the release isn't the end of Tariq's story, warns his Baltimore born mother.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You will press charges against the police who beat him?

SUHA ABUKHDEIR, MOTHER OF TARIQ ABUKHDEIR: Yes, we will. Definitely.

WEDEMAN: Israeli Justice Ministry has launched a probe into the beating. As Israel smolders, dark clouds gather over Gaza. For weeks now militants have fired rockets into Israel, which in turn has launched dozens of airstrikes on Gaza. Escalation is in the air. A Hamas leader warning that Israel has crossed a red line after killing eight Gaza militants overnight Sunday.

Newly posted video on the website of Hamas' military wing, with music, showing off their long-range rocket. And of course, probably one of those missiles or many were fired on Israel this evening. Most were intercepted by Israel's anti-missile iron dome system. Others fell in open areas, but with each strike, and counter strike the region moves ever closer to all-out war -- Erin.

BURNETT: Ben, thank you very much. Joining me now is Tariq's aunt, Sana Abukhdeir and Tariq's family lawyer, Hassan Shibly. I appreciate both of you taking the time to be with us tonight. Hassan, I know you have a chance to speak with Tariq's parents. And they are with him tonight. How is he doing?

HASSAN SHIBLY, FLORIDA EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, COUNCIL ON AMERICAN-ISLAMIC RELATIONS: He is still in a lot of pain, Erin. Severe headaches. Stitches. His eyes are still blood shot. I think he has a long way to go for recovery. We need him to come home to Tampa, Florida where he can get the treatment he needs after that very severe and unjustifiable beating he received at the hands of those Israeli officers in uniform.

BURNETT: Now Hassan, I know, you've mentioned, you want him to come back to the United States where he could get the care that he needed. You've I believed talked before about his family being worried about brain trauma. Has he shown any signs of lasting issues, in terms of communicating with people or anything?

SHIBLY: Certainly not like he was before. His face is still hardly recognizable. I think we'll only know for sure once medical experts examine him and we've had several medical experts examine the footage of his terrible beating where the officers stomped on his head even after he was unconscious. This could cost such severe damage, that could cost hundreds of thousands of dollars simply to treat. So we need to get him medical care as soon as possible.

BURNETT: I see your emotion here as you hearing this about your nephew. Can you believe this happened?

SANAH ABUKHDEIR, AUNT OF PALESTENIAN-AMERICAN TEEN BEATEN, DETAINED IN ISRAEL: Yes. No, I can't believe it happened. Unfortunately, it did happen and it is real. It is a hundred percent real. This is why we're here to cover this. We want the world to know what is going on. We want justice served. At this point, we are very proud to be Americans because without -- without America, I don't think we could have gotten this much media coverage and help to get a story out.

SHIBLY: What is very important here is that justice is served so that these officers cannot do that kind of terrible beating to any other individual. And what we need is to stop this terrible cycle of violence which is taking innocent children, Israelis and Palestinians on both sides and causing a lot of damage.

BURNETT: Hassan, you both talk about justice being served. You know, Israel's ambassador to the United States, Ron Dermer has talked about this and he said, look, nothing excuses the excessive use of force. He was very clear about that. He said that they are investigating, but he also said this about Tariq's case.

I wanted to read it to you and get your reaction. Here is what the ambassador said. He said from what I understand about the facts of the case, this is not just an innocent bystander who was pulled off a school yard. He was with six other people. They were masked. They threw petrol bombs and Molotov cocktails at our police. Three of them had knives. What do you make of that?

ABUKHDEIR: What we have proof of is the police beating him. That doesn't justify the way he was being beat after tied hands and feet. Multiple blows to the head. Multiple blows to the back. No matter what he was throwing or doing, if he was. This is not a justified act of arrest. If he was doing anything wrong, arrest him. That's fine and we can figure it out in the end. But as of now, there's nothing that can justify the way he was beat and there is no proof of him throwing. SHIBLY: Erin, Tariq is just a regular, you know, American kid. He is 15 years old. He like to take selfies, play basketball, and go fishing. He is not a violent individual. He was on his family's land when he got attacked. I spoke to his mother. I said, what happened. She said he was on our land when the police started chasing people who were protesting the brutal murder of his cousin, 16-year-old, Mohammad Khdeir. And when Tariq started running, he didn't know what was going on, so he started running too. That's when the officers tied him up and started beating him.

BURNETT: And Sanah, you had a chance to speak with Tariq, just hours before the beating and I know you had a chance to talk about that, the death of his cousin and your cousin, Mohammed, who died in this violence. You know, apparently a revenge killing for the murders of the three Israeli teens. What happened in that conversation? What did Tariq say?

ABUKHDEIR: Well, first I want to start off by saying there were two Palestinian children who were killed prior to the three Israeli teens who were killed. That's not mentioned. So let's not say revenge. This is -- it is not a back and forth type of game here. I mean, whether Israeli or Palestinian, no child's life should be treated this way. Nobody should have to go through this inhumane act or be beaten while tied up basically. You know what I'm saying? Yes --

BURNETT: I was just going to say, you hear now, I mean, this back and forth, this horrible things that are happening and then you hear the words, you heard our reporter talking about how they are saying, this could be the worse in ten years. You could be going back to the intifada ten years ago. You could be talking about another war in the Middle East. What goes through your head when you hear about that? And know that what's happened to Tariq is now a part of that?

ABUKHEIR: I just want Tariq home. I want him home now on American soil. He is an American teen. Doesn't know what war zone, war crimes, all this. He hasn't had to ever deal with that and speaking to him prior to his beating, he was just afraid for his life since what they did to his cousin. He was with him an hour before his cousin was kidnaped and that just shows that while he was being ambushed and attacked, he was afraid they were going to burn him alive as well. How does he know he wasn't going to be taken and burned alive as well?

SHIBLY: And Erin, Tariq's family has been very clear that they do not want this used against other children. They want the cycle of violence stop. We have seen this strengthen Jewish and Muslim relations as moderate Jewish and Muslim leaders have stood together to call for an end to this violence that is just killing children on both sides unjustifiably.

BURNETT: Both of you have talked about wanting Tariq to come back to the United States, the role of the United States and importance of the U.S. And due process. Let me ask you about this, I know the U.S. government has been involved, Hassan, have they done enough? Are you confident that the U.S. has done enough to bring Tariq, a U.S. citizen, home? SHIBLY: Well, what Tariq's father said, I'm very, very grateful for all the international media attention, we were able to bring to this because only then did the U.S. government really stepped in and meet with Tariq and provide the family with the assistance they need. But remember Tariq is still not facing any criminal charges and he is still under house arrest. Israeli officers really hurt him. We need to see the U.S. government stand firm and that the Israeli government punishes those responsible and provide Tariq the treatment he needs to recuperate.

BURNETT: Hassan, thank you and Sanah, thank you very much. I know this is a difficult time for your family. We appreciate you being with us.

ABUKHDEIR: Thank you.

OUTFRONT next, the father of a toddler who died in a hot care in jail. Tonight, new questions about the mother.

Plus concerns about explosives prompt new airport security measures. What is it like to have a shark bite you in the chest? One man lives to tell the tale. He is OUTFRONT tonight and he will show us that bite.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BURNETT: Breaking news in one of nastiest races in the country. We are talking about the Mississippi Republican senate primary. That is the long time incumbent against the tea party challenger. And tonight, the Republican party has just officially announced that Senator Cochran defeated his challenger, Chris McDaniel in the runoff by 7,667 votes. They have to do a count there to make sure it was accurate from the original vote a couple weeks ago. The McDaniel campaign has already announced its intention to contest these results.

Authorities tonight digging deeper into the death of the Georgia toddler. Now, you no doubt are familiar with that precious little face, Cooper Harris, was strapped into his car seat for seven hours in the sweltering heat before he was found dead. His father, Justin Ross Harris, is in jail and faces charges in connection with Cooper's death.

Search warrants released today seeking medical records, hard drives indicates that authorities are taking a look into the family's finances now as well. And a new twist here. That Cooper's mother hasn't been charged with the crime. But authorities have repeatedly mentioned her actions raising suspicious about her potential involvement.

David Mattingly is out front with more on Leanna Harris.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DAVID MATTINGLY, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): She wasn't at the scene of the crime. She has not been officially identified as a suspect. But because of comments she made, Leanna Harris can't escape suspicious in the death of her toddler in the back seat of her husband's car.

DANNY CEVALLOS, CNN LEGAL ANALYST: While they may not be very powerful evidence that would secure conviction, they certainly are from a public relations standpoint statements that the rest of the public is going to find very odd.

MATTINGLY: A search warrant states Harris told investigators her fear was that her child would be left in a hot vehicle. Reacting to her child missing at day care, Harris allegedly told employees her husband must have left him in the car. And according to detective testimony, she privately questioned her husband about what he said to police asking, well, did you say too much?

R.J. BERNSTEIN, CRIMINAL DEFENSE ATTORNEY: Keeping in mind what she's already said and what we've heard about in the court case, she's done nothing wrong.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The suspicion comes because it is her husband, her child, and her reaction to it after the fact isn't fitting some people's playbill of what it should be. There's been a lot of judgment on her as to how she is reacting to a situation that is shocking.

MATTINGLY: Leanna Harris is a 30-year-old dietitian. She and her husband, Ross, have been married for eight years. At her son's funeral, she said Ross, is, was an will be, if we have more children, a wonderful father.

People who knew them saw signs of problems. Harris later sat quietly in the courtroom as she listened to how her husband sexted with other women while her 22-month-old toddler died in her husband's overheated car.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BURNETT: David, you know, this is just a horrible story. And part of me, over the past a week as we have been hearing about this, I just couldn't believe it and it continue to grow and grow. I mean, what are police now saying about Leanna Harris? And people say it is impossible to comprehend a father doing this, never mind now a mother.

MATTINGLY: Well, late last week all they would tell us was that she was part of the investigation. It was very vague. And today, when we cross for more answers, we got also an also another vague response saying they had interviewed her but they wouldn't go with any further detail than that saying that everything right is very fluid. They are can continuing to look at all of the evidence coming in. Not saying what that evidence is.

That's a pretty run of the mill answer you might expect nor any run of the mill investigation at this point. But this is an ordinary statement in a case that is anything but ordinary at this time -- Erin.

BURNETT: All right, David Mattingly, thank you very much.

And joining me now OUTFRONT to discuss the case, Stacey Honowitz, who prosecute to child abuse's case in Broward County, Florida.

And I appreciate you being with us, Stacey.

You know, police allege that the couple told them that they looked up how hot a car needed to be to kill a child. That there have been these internet searches by the mother and by father. But in court last week, the attorney for the father defended these actions and look, they just found out about a state program to try to prevent people from leaving children in cars, that's why they were doing the search. When you hear about the searches, when you hear about the fact that one of the first common, allegedly, that the mother made when she found out was my God, he must have left the child in the car, do you believe her? Do you think they should be looking into her?

STACEY HONOWITZ, PROSECUTOR: Well, absolutely. I mean, they are now widening the investigation. And the reason why they are doing that is because of the comments, these very odd off the chart comments that you wouldn't believe that a mother would say when their child was found dead in the car.

When the first thing that you ask is, did he leave the child in the car? Something is going to arouse your suspicion. So while in the very beginning, while this case is being opened up and investigation was going on, she wasn't being honed in on right now after all these comments. She is going to be part of this investigation. A very big part of the investigation.

BURNETT: And we also of course hear they are looking into, you know, the financial history of the couple whether there were any issues there. When you put all these pieces together, is this something that you could comprehend happening? Because I think the reason people have latched on to this case is because it just seems, it is the worst fear a lot of parent have. That this could happen. And the that it could be done on purpose is something that is truly incomprehensible to everyone watching.

HONOWITZ: I mean, for me, unfortunately, I see horrible things that parent do every single day because of my job and what I do. But to the average person, it is incomprehensible. You can't believe it. But when you put all of these things together, the comments that were made, the insurance policies, the fact that she asked if he said too much, asking if he left the child in the car. You don't know if he has done it in past. What did she know? What did she say then? What did she know afterwards.

So all of these things, while we didn't know them right now, as the discovery and investigation goes on, we are going to hear more and more. And we are going to know if she played any kind of role or she had any knowledge that this was going to happen.

BURNETT: Stacey, thank you.

HONOWITZ: Thank, Erin.

BURNETT: OUTFRONT next, a near miss caught on camera. Two jets, about 404 people could sit on those planes, came dangerously close to colliding. Who is to blame?

Plus, a new Mercedes in the works with bulletproof glass for a million dollars could be yours.

And California man described the moment he came face-to-face with a great white shark and what he saw in his eye.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: That moment, I was, you know, fighting for my life.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BURNETT: OK, for those of you out there with a lot of money and power, or who like to imagine what life would be like if you did have those things, we have for you a car to buy or imagine.

It is a $1 million Mercedes. According to reports, Mercedes is going to be reviving the Pullman brand. That makes me think of, I don't know, like the gilded age of epic proportions. A model -- well, there is real model there too. Anyway, for decades, carried celebrities, world leaders, even the Pope had one. Now, the new version is said to be based on the Mercedes S class. But this is no S class. This is way bigger. After you add in the options like bulletproof glass and armored plating, the price tag could top a million dollars. So when the world ends and there no fuel too buy, you can have this thing in your Mercedes.

OK. Richard Quest is OUTFRONT.

So, what can you tell you us about this thing which they should not call Pullman or whatever. They should call it the beast.

RICHARD QUEST, CNN INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: The old man was the Pullman 600. Elvis Presley, the Pope, Saddam Hussein. Nice company that you kept if you had Pullman 600.

BURNETT: What a grouping.

QUEST: Absolutely.

But that's the famous one. Now, they are trying to relived it with this version. It is going to be called the Pullman. It is part of the S series. And it is going to be 21 feet long which means that you would just about, it is bigger than the u-haul. It is basically, Erin, the size of this studio. From here, right on -- keep going. Keep going. Keep going. About there.

BURNETT: Incredible when you think about it that way.

QUEST: IT is huge. And the million dollars includes the armor plating. There are forwards so we would sit opposite each other like.

BURNETT: OK.

QUEST: There would then be --

BURNETT: In the back seat.

QUEST: Yes. It is a limousine. It was a barrier and there will chauffeur at the front and you and I will be talking like this.

BURNETT: Right. And there will be bulletproof glass in all this for the places in the world where people want those things. OK. So can go for up to a million dollars. But there is the thing that amaze me about this stuff, is actually kind of cheap compared to some other cars out there.

QUEST: It is because the Lamborghini, $4.5 million. Bugatti Veyron, $2.5 million. But remember, both of these are really vast sports performance cars. We are talking here with the Pullman, about the luxury vehicle. More like the Rolls Royce tandem. But this one is times two the cost after Rolls Royce. More.

BURNETT: More.

(CROSSTALK)

BURNETT: When you get all the options.

QUEST: Right.

BURNETT: You are telling me that people are going to pay double for this thing? Why? Is it because they want to say they paid a million dollars for a car?

QUEST: It is really crucial for Mercedes is because Mercedes doesn't have an uber luxury brand. BMW has Rolls Royce. Volkswagen has Bugatti, Lamborghini, it has Bentley. Audi has luxury brand. But Mercedes has been desperately trying to get something like that. It is a bargain at 221. The Pullman will be $1 million.

BURNETT: So who will buy this?

QUEST: The same people who may or may not have bought the Maybach, depending on how you choose to pronounce it.

BURNETT: Tomato, tomato.

QUEST: $459,000 was the price of the Maybach. They already sold a couple of thousand. They hoped this was going to be --

BURNETT: But they lock a million dollars on that.

QUEST: Exactly. So what they are now going to do is going to will take this name and put it on other Mercedes vehicles. But the real question is this. If you were going to spend a million bucks on a car, ask Richard Quest, give me your opinion, I can plug myself, if you are going to spend a million bucks on a car, do you want the Maybach? Do you prefer one of the Pullman? Or would you prefer the Rolls Royce phantom.

BURNETT: Or would you want a car that actually could go fast that you could drive yourself? That would be me. But I don't have one.

All right, thank you.

All right, OUTFRONT next, if you thought getting liquids past airport security was hard. But our cell phones next.

Plus a new development on a women and girls being held captive by Boko Haram, a major, major development today on a dramatic escape.

And an Italian cyclist celebrates a win at Tour De France. So why did the woman on the podium totally give him a (INAUDIBLE).

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BURNETT: Two huge planes that seat more than 400 people almost collided. This time, it was actually captured on video. So, we're going to show it to you now.

This is what you're looking at. A flight headed for a Barcelona runway, had to abort seconds before landing. You could see it almost just hover there on certainly, as it was trying to gain altitude again. I mean, that would have been a horrific collision. We're just going to watch it again.

You can hear the engine screaming there as it tries to get that altitude. This is just one of several close calls in just the past few days.

Tom Foreman is OUTFRONT.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CROWD: Whoa!

TOM FOREMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: A Turkish F-16 screaming just feet above spectators at a British air show as it comes in for a landing. The video is a sensation on YouTube and no rules appears to have been broken. But ending could have been tragic according to aviation analyst like Steve Cowell.

STEVE COWELL, AVIATION SAFETY ANALYST: All it takes one slight move of that control stick, that airplane's into the crowd.

FOREMAN: And that's just one of several red flags raised about aviation safety in recent days. In Houston, authority are looking at a Singapore airlines flight that took off, reached 4,000 feet as planned, then kept climbing into space held by a Delta flight, triggering a fast warning from the tower.

CONTROLLER: Traffic alert, 2:00, five miles, 5,800. It's Boeing 777. Do you (INAUDIBLE)

DELTA PILOT: OK, we need to deviate. CONTROLLER: Do what you need to do, sir.

DELTA PILOT: We are descending, Delta 2344.

CONTROLLER: Singapore 61 heavy, you are not authorized to climb.

FOREMAN: The same airport had another close call back in May.

CONTROLLER: You all basically crossed directly over the top of each other.

FOREMAN: Around the same time, two jets crowded each other above JFK Airport in New York, and two others did the same thing at Newark.

PILOT: Yes, we were putting the nose down and yes, he is real close.

FOREMAN: And near Hawaii, another case of too close for comfort forced one plane to quickly change altitude, flinging passengers and bags.

KEVIN TOWNSEND, PASSENGER: There's hundreds of people in front of me. People start screaming. I thought, like oh, God, this is it?

FOREMAN: To top off the latest spate of closed calls, in Barcelona, a camera captured a Russian jet coming into land only to find a plane from Argentina crossing the runway. The Russians accelerated, climbed and avoided a possible collision.

COWELL: That is exactly the way it is supposed to work. It is a perfect example of everything going right when something is wrong for the landing aircraft.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BURNETT: Tom, I'm just watching all of those graphics, I mean, and you've got to think about that jet in Barcelona. If the people on the jet on the ground on the right side of the plane had just looked, just the fear that they would have had. I mean, just imagine, you look out the window and this is what you see, as you said, just over the past few days, rush of these reports. So, are the skies getting more dangerous? Is there another reason this is happening?

FOREMAN: Well, you know, that's a big question, Erin. And honestly, we don't have an answer in this country right now. What's happened is federal authority started recalculating what they consider to be a close call and how they -- how they add these things up. So, all we really have are numbers from 2012. And they have to updated numbers before we can see if there's any trend. But we do know this, even though many of these accidents may still be some distance apart, a mile, two miles, something like that, at the speed these planes are moving, that distance can be closed very, very quickly.

And the skies are getting more crowded, especially around the biggest airports in the world. So, as they step up technology to deal with all of this, they're going to need it because that space is filling up with planes. BURNETT: All right. Tom, thank you very much.

I want it bring in now our aviation analyst Miles O'Brien, safety analyst David Soucie, and CNN counterterrorism analyst Philip Mudd.

Let me start with you, Miles.

I mean, you heard, you know, Tom's reporting. But when we look at that video in Barcelona, I mean, as we just talk about how these things could happen and you see the plane on the ground that's crossing over, if you're the pilot of that plane, do you not look before you cross? Forget what air traffic control may or may not have done wrong. How could -- human error there on the ground, they didn't look like they looked right.

MILES O'BRIEN, CNN AVIATION ANALYST: I think it was my first flying lesson, Erin, when they told me, when you go to a runway, whether you know it's active or not, you look both ways. I mean, it's pretty basic.

And that is complacency on the part of that crew. I'm told that particular runway in Barcelona is seldom used. And so, maybe that particular flight crew thought oh, this is just runway 2. We'll taxi around and we're not going to pay much attention.

The system is absolutely at capacity. There's not enough concrete on the planet to handle all of the plans going in and out. And we just can't -- we can't afford any complacency. Fortunately, the crew on short final could see what was happening.

BURNETT: And they were able -- I mean, at that last second, I imagine there is a point where you are so close to the ground that there isn't you can do at that point.

I mean, David, you know, Miles raises the point of how crowded skies are. You know, we actually took the liberty of putting together a live flight tracker. These are all of the planes in the air at this particular instance, this is over the United States. This is a pretty scary picture to look at.

You know, I know that you had the opportunity to talk to the president of the Civil Aviation Organization, told you, look, it's going to be twice as crowded as this in 20 years when you look around the world. So, how do you prevent some of these horrific crashes from happening? Or do we just need to just accept that there will be some midair collisions?

DAVID SOUCIE, CNN SAFETY ANALYST: Anything is not acceptable adds far as midair collisions. Nor is it acceptable to have these close calls.

Now, Miles brings up a great point, the fact that system worked, that there was something wrong and that other crew noticed it and moved ahead. There was another crew that made a mistake, the Argentina crew that did go across.

But this is not the problem. To me, the problem is much bigger than that. If you listen to civil authorities in response to this, they're saying, oh, basically, it wasn't a big deal because there was plenty of separation. The air crews did what they are supposed to.

But that in itself is concerning to me, that there is complacency at a much higher level. People who are supposed to do something about this don't seem to think it's a big deal. And to me, that is the biggest deal of all.

BURNETT: I mean, Miles, are you worried that one of these times, because we have been doing so many of the segments. Now, part of the reason is, no doubt that we are finding out about them, right? Someone actually had a cell phone and actually video of that. So, maybe we wouldn't have been aware of this a few years ago.

So, part of this could be aware of this. I'm aware of that. But do you think this is inevitable?

O'BRIEN: I'm afraid it is, Erin, unfortunately. I think what we had is a system with amazing depth of safety, layer upon layer of safety, including the flight crew looking down the runway and seeing the aircraft. That is what saved us. This is the last resort and it worked.

But as we push the system further, and we're going to have 1.5 to two times more aircraft in the air over the next 20 years, we're not building a corresponding amount of runways or flying planes closer to each other, relying on technology, we are going to be relying on these crews to be much more on their toes. And eventually, statistic will tell you, our number will be up.

BURNETT: That's a pretty terrifying thing, David. Would you agree with that? I mean, especially because you talk about, as Tom Foreman pointed out, you are going at incredibly high speeds. So, the separation may sound far apart to all of us but it is just second when you are talking about crews that are exhausted, that are working long hours. Somebody is going to mess up.

SOUCIE: Yes. For the last 20 years, when I was with the FAA, we talked a lot about the doubling of the number of aircraft in the air. And yet, nothing's been done about it. Now, we have a program called Next Gen, which is designed to reduce the separation between the airplanes. It sound scarier but it's actually better, because it allows the aircraft to perform. It's a performance based thing. It's not where the aircraft had to travel all over the place to get where they're going to go.

So, with the Next Gen system in place, it would be much better. But Congress has stopped the funding on that. They said no, we're going to hold off on the funding on this, which has put us back another, who could be another 15 years before we get there and we will almost be at double by 15 years.

So, I'm very concerned about the facts that things that we are doing on a systemic nature to try to make this safer are being delayed.

BURNETT: That's terrifying. And speaking to use that word, Phil, there's another concern for air

travelers tonight. And that's new security measure going into effect, which is supposedly screeners at overseas airports, going to -- they could ask U.S.-bound passengers to turn on their electronic devices to prove they work, that they're not explosive devices.

You know, Richard Quest actually who was just on the show, was in London, flew here to New York, wasn't asked to do that today. Now, maybe they are picking people out at random, I don't know exactly how it's supposed to be implemented, but obviously, he saw no evidence of it.

Is this new measure going to do anything?

PHILIP MUDD, CNN COUNTERTERRORISM ANALYST: I think it will. You have to think of a cell phone, not as an electronic device, but just a receptacle. They can carry something like a liquid or a paste.

Remember in the summer of 2006, when I was back at FBI, we were facing a major plot out of Britain where terrorists were trying to alter energy drinks to make new energy drinks, to fill them up with material that they could then turn into bombs in an airplane restroom. Now, people are starting to realize, hey, there's other devices that could be altered to bring liquids or paste on an airplane, that would be a laptop and a cell phone.

So, it's not just a detonator, it's something you carry on and mix with another liquid to make a bomb.

BURNETT: But -- I mean, it just seems whenever the conversations happen, how would you know? When you think about, OK, that's something you can turn on or off, what about chargers themselves and batteries themselves, right? You can't -- there is no on or off switch on those things.

MUDD: That's right. I think what you're seeing 13 years after 911, from TSA, transportation security and others, is more risk-base analysis. You notice in the past few years, there is more passengers who can go through a line and say, hey, I'm a secure passenger. I've gone through a process with TSA to get on a plane without taking my shoes off. There is a lot of risk benefit going on, that we didn't --

(CROSSTALK)

MUDD: That's correct. We didn't do that 10 years ago. We're starting to balance, should we check a cell phone saying there are secure passengers and they can bring a cell phone on the plane? I think that's the wave of the future -- this balance between security and allowing people to travel freely.

BURNETT: And, Miles, before we go -- it's not just this on/off items that they're now possibly going to ask people to screen. There are also reports of additional security measures out of Paris.

Why do you think all of this is happening right now? O'BRIEN: Well, I mean, I think rising tensions particularly in Iraq,

obviously. There is probably some intelligence. And, of course, out of Yemen, there are reports of devices which might be created. But I think, you know, the idea we are now -- you know, there's a lot of discussion in aviation circles about why don't we just go to profiling?

Well, we have. We have voluntarily profiling. That's what TSA pre- check is. It's profiling. It's not racial profiling, but that's what we're doing.

BURNETT: All right. Thank you very much. And, of course, the profiling really at the core of all of that. Thanks to you three.

Now, OUTFRONT next, the man comes eye to eye with a great white shark attack. But the man survived and he's OUTFRONT, next.

And dozens of women and girls kidnapped by a terrorist group made a break for freedom from a terrorist group. Their dramatic story tonight.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BURNETT: Surviving a great white attack. Steven Robles was swimming off Manhattan Beach in California this weekend when he found himself in the jaws of a shark.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

(EXPLETIVE DELETED)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He got bit.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: That's not very cool.

(EXPLETIVE DELETED)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He got bit.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BURNETT: Luckily for him, surfers were there in the area and they were able to get Robles to shore. He was treated for a bite on the side of his rib cage. He thought he was going to die.

Steven Robles is OUTFRONT tonight.

Let me just ask first. How are you feeling?

STEVE ROBLES, SHARK ATTACK SURVIVOR: Thank you, Erin. I'm a lot better. Much better than two days ago. I'm very blessed that I'm here today to be able to share my story.

BURNETT: I mean, your story is terrifying and incredible. I know just a couple moments ago, you are showing us your wound. I'm going to show the viewers now so they can see it. I mean, how deep is it? ROBLES: Erin, I was very fortunate, when the shark bit me, the

puncture went into the -- through the skin and the fat layer that's beneath the skin. But it didn't puncture my organs, my lungs, and did not penetrate the rib cage.

So, it looks nasty and it is pretty ugly to look at, but it's -- you know, I'm going to make it. I'm going to be all right.

BURNETT: Now, you said right before the attack, with you were staring eye ball to eye ball with the shark. That's the moment when I hear this and think, you get sort of a -- you just feel terror even hearing that. What did you think at that moment?

ROBLES: I -- it was petrifying. It was the worst nightmare you could ever imagine. What happened was when -- the way this all started, I was swimming with a group of friends of mine. Every Saturday morning, we'd get together and we'd get out and do a 2-mile swim. We start at the south end of Hermosa Pier and swim all the way to Manhattan Pier.

I got about 200 yards until we were just about finished. And this -- as I'm swimming along, this shark all of a sudden, surfaces from underneath me and comes right up to the top of the water. And I see the full length of the shark.

BURNETT: Oh, my --

ROBLES: And it makes a -- a quick left, a really sharp left turn, and just lunges right at my chest. And once I felt that crunch going right through my chest, that is like, oh, my God. This is -- this is it. This is --

BURNETT: You thought you were going to die?

ROBLES: This is the real -- this is the real deal. And, you know, at that moment, I was -- you know, I was fighting for my life, and I wasn't about to give up.

Out of a natural -- just out of a -- a reaction, reflex action. I use this hand to grab the nostril part of the shark, and I was pushing it away to get that off my chest. Fortunately, the shark let go. And I was very, very fortunate that that's the way it went.

BURNETT: I mean, it's miraculous.

ROBLES: Once that shark released itself, I got away and, fortunately, three of my friends were about five strokes behind me. I immediately just started screaming and screaming, and the first friend that was next, I said I got bit, I got bit, a shark bit me. And he looked over and saw a big pool of blood and knew that was -- that was it.

I actually was in danger of dying. They got me on top of the paddle board. So, there's about six of these swimmers, surfers all helping getting me on to shore. You know, the weird thing, Erin, is that, you know, one of the paramedics was saying, do you want me to give you a shot of morphine? And at that moment I said, no. And the reason I said, no, was because I wanted -- I wanted to be

cognizant of what was going on around me. I thought this might be my last moments. And I just -- you know, I just wanted to take it all in.

BURNETT: Well, Steven, we're so glad that you are -- that you are safe, that you are going to recover, and thank you so much.

ROBLES: Thanks for your time, Erin. Thank you.

BURNETT: We also have an update tonight on some of the hundreds of women and girls kidnapped by Boko Haram in Nigeria. And this is an uplifting development. A local security force tells CNN, 63 women and girls made a dramatic escape when their captors weren't looking.

Nima Elbagir has more.

NIMA ELBAGIR, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Dozens of women and children made an extraordinary break for freedom in the north of Nigeria, Erin. And the women and girls who had been taken at the end of last month say they saw their opportunity when their Boko Haram captors headed out to stave off a Nigerian government attack. They walked for almost 24 hours before being brought to safety.

This is a different contingent for me. Some 200 Chibok schoolgirls who are still missing, but it does bring a ray of hope to their families. The hope is that perhaps the Nigerian government, military campaign might be finally bringing Boko Haram under some sort of pressure -- Erin.

BURNETT: All right. Nima, thank you.

After so many around the world have forgotten about the story or given up, that incredible breakthrough.

Well, next, a Tour de France win sealed with a kiss. It was, well, frankly, a whole lot more than a diss. Jeanne's next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BURNETT: So, what's worse, you go in for a kiss and you are dissed? Or you just completely missed?

Jeanne Moos has more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JEANNE MOOS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Kissing should be like riding a bike. You never forget how, but instead, it can get so awkward.

Watch where the Italian who won stage two of the Tour de France angles from the traditional kisses from the podium girls. The first one goes fine, but the second girl leaves him hanging, stuck pretending to fix his own collar. It's being analyzed in slow motion, looped in a six- second vine. (on camera): But the cyclist is in good company when it comes to

having his lips left in limbo. Even former presidents end up in puckered up purgatory.

(voice-over): The intended target was Hillary, but Bill ended up kissing air while Hillary wound up being kissed by then-presidential nominee Barack Obama -- who has himself had his share of kissing mishaps, including the time he accidentally kissed his vice president's wife right on the smacker. And the vice president has found himself in a three-way kissing muddle.

Talk about having your kiss dissed, singer Erykah Badu was inexplicably clowning around in a WPIX reporter's live shot and then she tried to kiss him.

REPORTER: And LaBeouf obviously --

MOOS: Badu eventually tweeted, "sorry, Mario" to the reporter. Miley Cyrus' kiss was dissed by none other than Katy Perry when Miley went too far with her tongue. Of course, a lot of kissing confusion can blame on the age-old angle dilemma.

(on camera): A German researcher concluded after spying on 124 couples that 65 percent of people tend to tilt their heads to the right rather than to the left when leaning in for a kiss.

(voice-over): President Obama was in the minority with his left tilt approach to kissing Supreme Court nominee Elena Kagan, but don't blame his left-handedness.

Many famous movie kisses start with a right tilt.

Though Carey Grant plays it both ways in "Notorious."

The German researcher thinks it's a womb thing. Babies in their last few weeks in the womb tend to turn their heads to the right.

When it comes to rejecting affection, U.S. goalkeeper Tim Howard is still blocking, in this case blocking a fan's hug. It's no fun being rejected all puckered up with no place to go.

Jeanne Moos, CNN, New York.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BURNETT: All puckered up with no place to go. Only Jeanne could come up with that.

Thanks for watching. Anderson is next.