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CNN Live At Daybreak
U.S., Pakistan Press Forward To Find Daniel Pearl's Killers
Aired February 22, 2002 - 05:01 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.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: And the body of Daniel Pearl has not been recovered yet. Authorities in Pakistan received a videotape last night showing scenes of his killing by kidnappers. It is not known when the "Wall Street Journal" reporter was killed. Pearl was abducted on January 23 while on his way to an interview.
So, before the search was for Pearl's captors. And now with the death of Pearl, the United States and Pakistan are pressing forward to find his killers.
And as CNN's Andrea Koppel reports, there are more unanswered questions in this case.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ANDREA KOPPEL, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): The proof of Daniel Pearl's death, U.S. and Pakistani officials say, was a videotape which two Pakistani men handed over Thursday to someone they thought was a journalist but was, in fact, an undercover FBI agent.
The recorded video contained scenes showing Mr. Daniel Pearl in captivity and scenes of his murder by the kidnappers, the Pakistani interior ministry told reporters. U.S. officials say they haven't recovered Pearl's body and don't know when he was killed.
PAUL STEIGER, MANAGING EDITOR, "WALL STREET JOURNAL": We're heartbroken at his death. Danny was an outstanding colleague, a great reporter and a dear friend of many at the "Journal."
KOPPEL: From the "Wall Street Journal," Pearl's employer the last 12 years, there were expressions of grief as well as anger.
STEIGER: His murder is an act of barbarism. It makes a mockery of everything that Danny's kidnappers claim to believe in. They claim to be Pakistani nationalists, but their actions must surely bring shame to all true Pakistani patriots.
KOPPEL: In exchange for Pearl's release, his kidnappers had demanded the release of all Pakistani prisoners held by the U.S. in Guantanamo, Cuba, as well as the repatriation of the former Taliban ambassador to Pakistan, demands the Bush Administration immediately dismissed as unrealistic.
The State Department said Pearl's murder was ``an outrage" and "we condemn it.'' It went on to say, the U.S. and Pakistan remained ``committed to identifying the kidnappers and bringing them to justice.'' Small consolation to Pearl's wife, now seven months pregnant with their first child, or to Pearl's family.
GARY FOSTER, PEARL FAMILY SPOKESMAN: Danny's senseless murder lies beyond our comprehension. Danny was a beloved son, a brother, an uncle, a husband and a father to a child who will never known him, a musician, a writer, a storyteller and a bridge builder. Danny was a walking sunshine of truth, humor, friendship and compassion. We grieve with the many who have known him in his life, and we weep for a world that must reckon with his death.
KOPPEL (on camera): Right up until the very end, just about everyone held out hope that Danny Pearl's life would be spared. Pearl was, after all, an American journalist, not a spy, as his kidnappers claimed. His senseless murder, then, leaves one important question unanswered -- why?
Andrea Koppel, CNN, at the State Department.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COSTELLO: Well, let's turn our attention to the investigation.
With the latest on the investigation into the Daniel Pearl killing we turn to CNN's Chris Burns, who is in Karachi, Pakistan this morning.
CHRIS BURNS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: After weeks of hopes raised and dashed repeatedly, finally there is indisputable evidence that Daniel Pearl is, indeed, dead. A videotape that was passed to officials, the videotape, officials say, was recorded containing scenes showing Daniel Pearl in captivity and scenes of his murder by the kidnappers. The tape, according to officials here, appears to be correct.
This comes in the wake of a month long dragnet nationwide where authorities have arrested and detained dozens of people, including family members of some of the suspects, which tracked people including Sheikh Omar Saeed, who was the man believed to have been the man behind, the mastermind behind this kidnapping, who actually lured Daniel Pearl to what he had promised to be an interview with someone, a leader of one of these militant organizations that Daniel Pearl was looking into that may have had links with the alleged shoe bomber, Richard Reid.
Also, the investigation tracked down Fahad Naseem. Fahad Naseem was, has admitted to a judge the day before today that he had actually sent the e-mails showing the pictures of Daniel Pearl in captivity and the demands that the United States release Pakistanis held at Guantanamo Bay.
The one man that the authorities are continuing to look for is Imtia Sudiqi (ph), the man they believe had been holding Daniel Pearl in captivity. Of course, the investigation will also focus on finding the body of Daniel Pearl and this investigation, perhaps the tack may change now that the captive is no longer alive. It could be a more intense, perhaps an even more violent, investigation and a search for those who have taken captive Daniel Pearl.
Chris Burns, CNN, Karachi, Pakistan.
COSTELLO: You know, Terry Anderson knows what it's like to be kidnapped by an extremist group overseas. The former Beirut bureau chief for the Associated Press was held hostage in Lebanon for nearly seven years. He's now an honorary co-chair of the Committee To Protect Journalists. Anderson had this to say after learning of Daniel Pearl's death.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TERRY ANDERSON: Anybody who kidnaps a reporter or any civilian for political purposes is committing truly a terrorist act and they need to be caught and prosecuted and punished to the fullest extent of the law. And we call, the Committee To Protect Journalists calls on the Pakistani government to do exactly that, to use all of their resources to catch the people who kidnapped and murdered Danny Pearl and hold them to account.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: Anderson says Pearl's fate is something journalists worry about. Says Anderson, "We take risks, we try to take reasonable risks, but there are risks."
To talk more about those risks on the phone is our own Ben Wedeman. As you may remember, Ben was wounded by gunfire while covering the strife in the Middle East. He's in Dubai this morning -- good morning, Ben.
Are you with us, Ben?
We seem to have some problem with getting Ben on the phone. We'll talk to him a little bit later.
Those who knew Daniel Pearl are remembering him today as a gentle spirit and a loyal friend. Close friend Daniel Gill shared his thoughts on CNN's "LARRY KING LIVE" last night.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
LARRY KING, HOST: Did you keep in touch with Daniel, then, throughout life? Did that friendship continue right through his marriage and everything?
DANIEL GILL, CLOSE FRIEND OF PEARL: Absolutely. Danny is one of my -- I can't believe I have to say was one -- he was one of my best friends in this world. And we would, I would always see him when he came to the States. And we'd always play music together and, you know, drink beer or just hang out. He was, Danny was the best.
KING: Everyone we've talked to said he was not only gentle, but he was not that kind of adventuresome. You wouldn't see him like crawling into foxholes. Is that true? GILL: That's totally true. When people refer to him as a wartime correspondent, I can't believe my ears. That's not what Danny was. Danny was a very unassuming guy, the absent minded professor, go into an interview with papers flying out of his shirt pockets and this just, you know, wonderful, warm, disarming grin. And he was, he just wanted to get a story. He wasn't about, you know, getting into the dangerous places. That wasn't for him. I believe he thought this was a safe assignment.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: Daniel Pearl is the tenth reporter to die while covering the war against terrorism and the family of Daniel Pearl has established a charity to support the causes to which he dedicated his life. You can send any donations in care of the "Wall Street Journal," P.O. Box 300, Princeton, New Jersey 08543.
And we will have much more on Daniel Pearl a little later in this newscast.
Oh, I understand we have Ben Wedeman on the phone right now. He's in Dubai today with his thoughts on the dangers that journalist face in their coverage of the war on terror -- your thoughts this morning, Ben.
BEN WEDEMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Carol, I was deeply shocked last night when I heard about the death of Daniel Pearl. I had been in Karachi three weeks covering that story. I met his wife. We really, you know, our hearts went out to her and the "Wall Street Journal" and Danny's colleagues. And in a sense we shared their agony as we waited for information. And it was very difficult to get information as time went on. There were conflicting reports.
The local media put out all sorts of fairly outlandish claims Danny Pearl was alive, that he was booked on a flight to London. And really when I was...
(AUDIO GAP)
...about three o'clock in the morning local time with the news of Danny's death, it really just hit me hard and I stayed up the rest of the night just thinking about it.
So I speak for, I'm sure, most of us. We are shocked and saddened by this news -- Carol.
COSTELLO: Ben, I know you were wounded by gunfire while covering the strife in the Middle East. Is reporting getting to be too dangerous overseas?
WEDEMAN: Well, it's been dangerous for a while. This, certainly the war in Afghanistan was particularly bloody for journalists and Danny Pearl's kidnapping and subsequent execution has really brought home the message that it is a dangerous profession, that -- and it seems to be getting more so. But the risks have always been there. It's just, I think, with the current campaign against terrorism that it's broadening and journalists are seen in many sense as a symbol of the West and therefore you oftentimes find yourself in a situation where people who are angry and restful and want to take revenge, they see journalists as the most obvious symbol of the source of their unhappiness and we're an easy target, in a sense, because we're not armed. We don't go around with a lot of security. And it's just, it happens that we are, unfortunately, and increasingly the prominent targets.
COSTELLO: So, Ben, tell me why it's worth it.
WEDEMAN: Well, the news has to be told. The truth has to come out and if we don't have people like Danny Pearl out there taking the risks, going that extra mile to get the story, we'll be all the more ignorant as a result. There are risks, but for most journalists, at least, those risks are worth it because we do this job to get the truth, to get the information, to find out firsthand what's really going on -- Carol.
COSTELLO: Are you taking any more security precautions, Ben?
WEDEMAN: Well, basically since the beginning of the Afghan conflict we have taken extraordinary security precautions and certainly following Danny's kidnapping, it just means we're going to have to take more than before. Precisely what we can do to -- you can't ensure your security 100 percent, certainly not in the areas we spend a lot of time in. But you just have to be ever more careful, vigilant. But at the same time you have to balance the need to be safe against the need to do our jobs properly -- Carol.
COSTELLO: You know, I guess a thought that I had was that Daniel Pearl's death might make reporters a little less willing to take chances and to get the story out. Do you think that will happen?
WEDEMAN: By and large I do not think so. I think that journalists are a special breed, in a sense. They do it, some people might say they're a little bit crazy. They go to places where other people are fleeing from. They take risks that others wouldn't normally take. And I don't think that's going to change things. We're all, of course, upset by Danny's death but we have to carry on. And for the most part I think you'll find more than enough people willing to take risks, to put themselves, to a certain extent, in danger just to get that story.
COSTELLO: All right. And I know you're staying where you are. All right, thank you.
Ben Wedeman reporting live from Dubai this morning.
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