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CNN Live At Daybreak

Apparently There Are Some Gaps in U.S. Government Translation of Bin Laden Tapes; New Aviation Security Measures Supposed to Kick in Next Month

Aired December 21, 2001 - 05:30   ET

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

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CATHERINE CALLAWAY, CNN ANCHOR: Well there are apparently some gaps in the U.S. government translation of the bin Laden tapes that were released last week. As CNN's David Ensor tells us, the missing pieces include more evidence of a bin Laden link to the September 11th attacks.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DAVID ENSOR, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The tape is by now famous for showing Osama bin Laden bragging about the attacks of September 11th (INAUDIBLE) says and an independent translator hired by CNN confirms is that the U.S. government left some significant parts of what bin Laden said out of its official translation into English.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The translators missed a lot of things on the tape. They missed the name of the hijackers -- two of them mentioned by full names.

ENSOR (voice-over): Bin Laden names two additional hijackers, the brothers Nawafl Hasmi (ph) and Salama Hasmi (ph). Later he said that four of the hijackers were from the al-Ghandi (ph) tribe and the name of two others (INAUDIBLE) he names a total of nine of the hijackers, not just Mohamed Atta as in the original transcript.

Secondly on the tape, the visiting man thought to be the crippled Saudi fighter (INAUDIBLE) talks of fotwahs (ph) (INAUDIBLE) from some Saudi clerics backing the September 11th attacks. He names Shaykh Abdul Ra Man Albarach (ph), a Saudi official as issuing one of them. U.S. translators used the name of al Barani (ph), which is not a name used by Saudis in the majority Suni (ph) Muslim sect.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (INAUDIBLE) you know if you want to use a (INAUDIBLE) they didn't want to (INAUDIBLE) the Saudi government because Al Barak (ph) is a Saudi senior Saudi official and he gave the (INAUDIBLE).

ENSOR (voice-over): One more striking example - precisely what bin Laden said to others just before hearing the first radio announcement that an attack he had planned had succeeded. When you hear a breaking news announcement on the radio, he says he told followers, kneel immediately. And that means they have hit the World Trade Center. UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Again, the second plane hit, he knelt again to the ground and paid, you know, tributes to God for this. And they don't - you don't see that here. It's very important I think.

ENSOR (voice-over): The information missed in the English translation does not change the overall image the tape presents of bin Laden, admitting with pride his role in the attacks.

(VIDEOTAPE): (INAUDIBLE)

ENSOR (voice-over): That message, say Saudi officials is crystal clear to native Arabic speakers.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The tapes is very clear. It stands on its own. It's much more powerful in the Arabic language than it is in English because there's no translation - there - you get the (INAUDIBLE) of it. You get the sheer horror of it.

ENSOR (on camera): The additional details paint, if anything, a still more damaging picture of bin Laden identifying nine of the hijackers and telling followers beforehand to get ready for the World Trade Center to be hit.

David Ensor, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CALLAWAY: A national terror alert has now been extended through January 2nd. The Office of Homeland Security says that the December 3rd warning is continuing because the threats still exist. The threat is described as credible, but non-specific. And Homeland Security spokesman Gordon John Rowe (ph) says that because of the confluence of holidays this time of year including Ramadan, Hanukkah, Christmas, and New Year's, we want to make sure that everyone stays vigilant.

New aviation security measures are supposed to kick in next month, but both the government and the aviation industry expressed some doubt that the goals can be met. Here's CNN's Kathleen Koch from Capitol Hill.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

KATHLEEN KOCH, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): One hundred percent screening of all checked baggage is required by mid January. Senators livid about the transportation secretary's November statement that it couldn't be done in time came to a hearing demanding answers.

ERNEST HOLLINGS, (D), SC: He can't get the equipment. He can't do this. He can't do that. And we want to know what can be done.

JOHN MCCAIN, (R), AZ: If the Department of Transportation can not meet the guidelines laid down in the legislation that was passed, then they must answer as to why they didn't speak up at the time that the legislation was being written since they were in the room ...

KOCH (voice-over): But the president's choice to head the new transportation security administration that will oversee the reforms was conciliatory.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We must meet those deadlines and we will make every effort to meet them.

KOCH (voice-over): Lawmakers say it's now the airlines who claim bag screening can't be done in time. Aviation industry has been selectively lobbying Congress asking for another 60 days to meet the deadline. Airlines also want to block the use of 100-percent bag matching to fulfill the screening requirement. Bag matching is making certain a suitcase doesn't go on a plane unless the person who brought it is on board -- that to prevent terrorists from planting a bomb like the one that brought down Pan Am Flight 103 in 1998. But airlines have opposed bag matching on domestic flights, arguing that unloading luggage if a passenger didn't board would cause lengthy delays and to not improve security.

CAROL HALLETT (ph): It would be really tragic to make the American people think they were safe because we were doing 100-percent bag match, when in fact it will do nothing to identify a threat.

KOCH (voice-over): The Air Transport Association that represents the airlines refused interviews on the subject, but says they - quote - "have every intention of meeting screening requirements".

KOCH (on camera): And after already handing airlines a $50- billion bailout, Congress appears in no mood to hand them extra time.

Kathleen Koch, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CALLAWAY: Well the monumental task of rebuilding Afghanistan has begun. We're going to go now to CNN's Harris Whitbeck who's in Kabul with the latest on what's going on there. Hello Harris.

HARRIS WHITBECK, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi Catherine. Now the task of rebuilding Afghanistan was taken on by actually some New York City firefighters and police officers. The delegation from New York arrived at Bagram Air Base this morning. There were four firefighters, among them Joe Higgins (ph), who lost five members of his company and also his younger brother in the World Trade Center disaster of September 11th.

They brought with them 90,000 pounds of cooking supplies - mostly cooking oil, rice, and also blankets, supplies for the cold winter. Those supplies will be distributed by the World Food Program. They also brought with them toys and candy to distribute to some orphanages here in Kabul. One of their main missions, however, took place at Bagram Air Base. They had with them some chunks of concrete and a piece of one of the airplanes that hit one of the towers at the World Trade Center.

And they - and they buried those artifacts at the Bagram Air Base. They said they wanted pieces of that rubble to be in Afghan soil. They said they wanted their rubble to melt with the rubble of the disaster that - disasters that have occurred here in Afghanistan, as one way of symbolizing the unity that should prevail among both the citizens of the United States and Afghanistan - as many of them tried to come out of the tragedies that many people have endured here.

Officer fireman Joe Higgins, who I mentioned before, also buried a memorial bracelet that had the name of his brother engraved on it. As I said, his brother Timothy was one of the firefighters who died at the World Trade Center. He said that doing that and being in Afghanistan has helped him deal with the loss that he has felt, and he feels that this act will help many who lost loved ones in the United States - will also feel a sense of closure - Catherine.

CALLAWAY: Harris, these firefighters, these police officers have seen and been through so very much. This had to be an emotional journey for them.

WHITBECK: It certainly was. I spent a lot of time with them this morning just, you know, talking and it was a beautiful morning over at Bagram Air Base. The sun was up; the sky was blue in the mountains behind (INAUDIBLE); and just to watch them take in the magnitude of the beauty of this country and also the magnitude of the terrible tragedy that it has engulfed, it was really quite a thing to watch.

I spoke to the chaplain of the fire department who was with them, and I asked him if this was going to help, again, help him deal with some of the tragedy that he's had to live with over the last three months, and he said that he felt it would. He said that being able to reach out and help other people is one way of dealing with grief and the fact that they were over here helping Afghans who did not have anything to do with September 11th disaster was - made it even more meaningful.

CALLAWAY: Harris, I would think that they would almost have a sense of brotherhood - these policemen, these firemen - with the troops there in Afghanistan - the U.S. and British troops.

WHITBECK: There was that sense too Catherine. It was almost - you know the firemen said they consider the troops that are here heroes. The troops here turn around and told the firemen they considered them heroes. The firemen thanked the troops for doing what they did. In fact, one of them gave one soldier a chunk of one of the airplanes that hit the World Trade Center. He said you carry that in your pocket to remember why you're here.

CALLAWAY: Oh wow. Now when do they plan on leaving? I know they're going to the orphanage today.

WHITBECK: That's right. In fact at this hour they're probably already on their way back towards New York. They spent about six hours in the country. As you said, they visited an orphanage where they distributed some toys and candy. They were going to head back to Bagram and then get on that cargo plane that brought them over here - head back towards Turkey where they'll catch a commercial flight and go back to New York.

CALLAWAY: All right, CNN's Harris Whitbeck. Thank you Harris. TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com