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More Suspects Arrested in Madrid Bombings; Bush Thanks Troops at Fort Campbell; Pakistani Forces Surrounding al Qaeda Enclave; Could Police Have Prevented Fresno Murders?

Aired March 18, 2004 - 13:00   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.


MILES O'BRIEN, ANCHOR: Attacks in Iraq. Two car bombs in nearly two days. A series of explosions, all within the past few moments. Are U.S. forces any closer to establishing peace there?
KYRA PHILLIPS, ANCHOR: The Fresno slayings: a man accused of killing nine of his own children says he doesn't need a defender. He's back in court today.

O'BRIEN: An asteroid flyby. NASA says the earth will have a close call with a flying space rock, but before you call me Chicken Little, Kyra, there's no reason to panic.

PHILLIPS: Where's the apple?

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I guarantee you I will give you exactly what you want. The results, physical results. You'll feel great; you'll look great.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: Work up a sweat and lay off the sweets. This personal trainer says getting fit is all about training your mind.

From the CNN Center in Atlanta, I'm Kyra Phillips.

O'BRIEN: And I'm Miles O'Brien. It is Thursday, March 18. CNN's LIVE FROM starts right now.

And just in to CNN, a series of explosions being heard across the Iraqi capital. Let's take a look at some live pictures right now.

Doesn't show you too much except to underscore the point that we are on vigilant watch here at CNN. Those explosions heard within the past few minutes. We're trying to track down the cause.

Just about 24 hours to the hour after that terrible blast in front of the Mount Lebanon Hotel in the Karada district of old Baghdad.

No reports on where these explosions occurred specifically. Our team there in Baghdad is tracking it very closely. As soon as we get some more information, we will bring it to you.

Fighting in Fallujah, meanwhile, bombing in Basra, crime scene investigation in Baghdad.

On the eve of the first anniversary of the U.S.-led invasion, authorities are struggling to keep a lid on what one calls spectacular attacks designed to derail the political process. Perhaps additional attacks that we're seeing at this moment.

Once again, we need to get further detail on all that before we go any farther with that -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: OK. We're going to move on to talk about Madrid now.

One week post-attacks in Madrid, a government's on its way out. Eleven suspects are out of circulation. Five of those were captured just today as investigators follow a presumed connection to a Casablanca bombing a year ago.

Let's get the latest now from CNN Madrid bureau chief Al Goodman -- Al.

AL GOODMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hello, Kyra.

I'm outside the national court, which is the court where -- that investigates terrorism cases here.

Now we're being told by an official at the court that five suspects have been arrested this day, most of them in Madrid, one in northern Spain. And that one in northern Spain is a Spaniard. The other four are described as of Arab descent. We don't have details more on them, but that does bring the total arrested since the bombings last week to 11.

Of course, those bombings killed 201 people and injured 1,500.

Now at this hour, arraignments were due to begin for five other suspects. The most interesting among them for the investigators, a man named Jamal Zougam, a Moroccan, 30 years old.

He is said to be a crossroads figure by investigators who've talked to CNN, a link to other al Qaeda figures here in Spain who, in turn, may be linked to those who had a role in the 9/11 attack.

And in addition, this man, Mr. Zougam, linked to other people who may have had a role in the Casablanca bombings in Morocco last May that killed 31 people.

In addition, the alleged head of the al Qaeda unit in Spain, who's been in jail now for two and a half years, was brought back to court, and he's giving testimony separately this day.

So an intense day of activity here at the national court -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: Al, just after the attack happened, of course, ETA was blamed for that attack. The government came out and blamed it on ETA. What kind of backlash has that created?

GODDMAN: Well, the most immediate backlash is that there was an upset victory in the national elections for prime minister and parliament on Sunday. And the ruling conservative Popular Party was ousted by the voters.

That Popular Party, the prime minister, Aznar, had been a staunch supporter of the U.S.-led war in Iraq, despite overwhelming public opposition.

After the bombings, and what many analysts say here is the -- the way the investigation was handled in the hours after the bombings here last week, all of that added up to a backlash against the government.

Now this day, the government holding a news conference to defend itself, saying it did not lie; it did not manipulate that investigation. It says that ETA was the prime suspect because that's what police and intelligence services were saying.

But a lot of people here apparently didn't believe that when they voted Sunday -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: Al Goodman, LIVE FROM Madrid. Thanks, Al -- Miles.

O'BRIEN: As we've been telling you, nine civilians were killed in fresh violence in Iraq, today, on this day after that hotel bombing in the heart of central Baghdad.

And we just told you about some reports within the past ten minutes of a series of explosions in and around the Iraqi capital.

Joining us live now with more on all this is CNN producer Margo Ortegas in Baghdad.

Margo Ortegas, can you hear us?

All right. We're going -- we apologize for the audio problems there. We're going to try to raise Margo. We're going to go for a break. We'll be back with more in just a moment.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(WEATHER REPORT)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: President Bush at Fort Campbell, Kentucky, saluting the troops who helped transform Iraq. CNN White House correspondent Dana Bash is there also.

Dana, how did it go?

DANA BASH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Kyra, the president just finished his remarks. And he came on to the stage through a sea of troops to the tune of commander in chief. And a good example of the fact that sometimes in a presidential election it's good to be the incumbent.

He came to say thank you for what he called a job well done, to the 20,000 members of the 101st Airborne Division, most of whom have just returned from a year duty in Iraq.

And the president's message was really to thank them, to say that there was -- there were a lot of positive things that they have done in Iraq. Talked about the fact that Saddam Hussein obviously is no longer, about the fact that democracy, he believes, is taking hold in that country.

But his message was also one of resolve in the face of terrorism. Speaking specifically, also, about the bombing yesterday in Baghdad.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: We saw again, yesterday, the terrorists are fighting desperately to undermine Iraq's progress toward freedom. That attack showed, once again, the cruelty of our enemies.

The terrorists and Ba'athist holdouts know that a free and stable Iraq will be a major defeat to the cause of hatred and terror.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BASH: Now, while the president did not mention Senator John Kerry, his Democratic opponent, by name, he certainly took a jab at him by thanking all the members of the House and Senate who voted for an $87 million spending bill to support the war in Iraq.

Senator Kerry was not one of those people. He voted against it.

But the president, responding essentially to attacks from Senator Kerry yesterday that the president has really hurt the military by not giving them enough in terms of what they need financially and services here at home.

The president said that he actually has done those things. Really, trying to counter attacks from Senator Kerry on his support for the United States military.

Now, at this hour, the president is having lunch with the troops and later today, he and Mrs. Bush are going to spend some time with family of troops who did not come home. Sixty were killed in Iraq from this base, more than any other base -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: Dana Bash, live from Fort Campbell, thank you.

O'BRIEN: All right. As we've been telling you, we'll show you some live pictures coming in from Baghdad right now. We have reports of several explosions that were heard all throughout the Iraqi capital.

And there are sirens going off in the housing -- in the U.S.-led coalition headquarters, the so-called Green Zone.

CNN's Margo Ortega is in the area. She's not far from the Green Zone, at the Palestine Hotel. She joins us with more on this -- Margo. MARGO ORTEGA, CNN PRODUCER: Yes, the sirens in the Green Zone, however, have gone silent in the last five minutes.

We have gotten clarification from police sources that the attacks that we heard in the last half hour -- there have been quite a few -- seem to have been aimed at three different areas.

One rocket attack seemed to have been aimed at the ministry of oil. One at another hotel in the very busy Karada district, where we had yesterday's car bomb, and another one on the just as busy Rashid Street, just north of the hotel where we are at at the moment.

Again, we have gotten no confirmation that any of these rocket attacks were launched at the Green Zone. We did hear initial fires from that area. But those sirens have since gone silent and everything at CPA headquarters seems to be functioning as normal.

We will give you more details on the other three locations that we mentioned as we get them from Iraqi police sources.

And as we said yesterday, the car bomb blast that left seven people -- seven people is now the firm figure that coalition officials and Iraqi police have come to, with a total of at least 40 wounded. Ten of those wounded have been able to go home, accord to ministry officials and are in the peak of health.

And as investigations are under way, Brigadier -- rather, Major General Martin Dempsey of the 1st A.D., which commands Baghdad, had said that the selection of the target of this attack seems to indicate one terror organization over another.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MAJ. GEN. MARTIN DEMPSEY, 1ST ARMORED DIVISION: Groups like Ansar al Islam, their signature target seems to us to be those institutions and those establishments that -- that acknowledge and, in some cases, welcome the presence of westerners.

The Zarqawi target of choice seems to us to be any evidence of progress among the Iraqi people, whether it's their police, their political institutions, their religious freedoms.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ORTEGAS: Earlier today, down in the southern city of Basra, which has remained relatively quiet, again, another car explosion, leaving three people dead.

British military sources in Basra tell us that they are still unclear as to whether this was a car laden with explosives or whether the car had the misfortunate to have driven past an IED, just as a British military convoy was passing by, as well.

Back to you.

O'BRIEN: Margo, just to bring folks up to date once again on what's happened within the past 20 minutes or so. You say these are rocket attacks. Are we fairly well certain of that?

ORTEGAS: Yes, we are. Police have told us that they believe there to have been rocket attacks. We are still not sure if these were rocket-propelled grenades. They will just say rockets were launched at the three different locations in the last half hour.

And we will bring you more details as we get them.

O'BRIEN: But the apparent targets inside the Green Zone, you think?

ORTEGAS: No, not inside the Green Zone. The first one is, again, another hotel in the Karada district, which is close to where the car bomb went off last night.

The second location seems to be close to the ministry of oil. And the third one is down Rashid Street, which is where the central bank of Iraq is located.

O'BRIEN: CNN's producer, Margo Ortegas, in Baghdad, thank you very much.

From Pakistan this hour, we have word from the president himself that Pakistani forces may have surrounded a so-called high value target.

On the line with us, CNN's Aaron Brown, who just completed an interview with President Musharraf and has more for us -- Aaron.

AARON BROWN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Miles, here's the situation. There has been a fierce, and I mean fierce -- artillery, helicopter, gun ships -- fierce fight going on in this mountainous region between Afghanistan and Pakistan where the president says his forces, after having a very tough couple of days, by the way, have surrounded a group of al Qaeda fighters.

Now, why do they believe they may have a high value target in there? This has more to do with deductive reasoning than intelligence. This is the way President Musharraf described his thinking.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PERVEZ MUSHARRAF, PAKISTANI PRESIDENT: The resistance that is being offered by the people there, we feel that there may be a high value target. I can't say who.

But they are giving fierce battle at the moment. They're not come out in spite of the fact that we've pounded them with artillery. I spoke with the corps commander just now. I knew you were going to ask me this question. So I spoke with the commander.

The net is there. They are there. They see very strong dug-in positions. The houses actually there are almost forts. They have -- they are mud forts. All these forts are occupied. And they are dug in, and they are giving fierce resistance. So he's reasonably sure there's a high value target there.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BROWN: So that is how they think of it. It is not something they know. And so we have to balance and we have to, I think, take literally what the president is saying here. It is not that they are certain they have something, it's that they suspect they might have something.

I asked him immediately after that, I said, when Americans hear the term high-value target, you know exactly, Mr. President, what they're going to think. And he acknowledged we're talking about one, two, three, or four people that would come to mind of the Americans, including bin Laden and Zawahiri.

But there's no -- I don't want any of us to go too far ahead here. We just don't know if any of those people is there -- are there. And we don't know, in fact, in anyone is there.

We do know for the last several days in an area that intelligence believes is -- American intelligence believes -- is rich with both al Qaeda and Taliban forces, an area that has literally existed outside of the control of any government for centuries, is backward in an almost feudal way, and where everyone is armed and no one is thrilled with any government, there is a major fight going on.

I'd add one other thing, Miles, and that is, the president -- and this took me somewhat by surprise -- acknowledged that when this fight started, the Pakistani army, which he used to formally head and probably still does in many respects, miscalculated.

And he says, "We were careless," were his words, that they went in with too little and they were routed in the early days. They're not, in his view, being routed now as he said, pounding them with both artillery. They're using helicopter gun ships to go in.

But you're talking about a wide area, a lot of land. It's very remote. There are places to run and hide. It's that sort of Tora Bora kind of like situation up there, and it will play out over a series of days.

O'BRIEN: Aaron, you point out something which is worth reminding of our audience. This is largely lawless country.

And heretofore, the Pakistanis have been reluctant, as you said Musharraf -- that's a pretty big statement from the president to say they went in without a lot of force. But perhaps for good reason, because of the nature of this part of the world.

I guess it's worth described -- it's hard to overstate how lawless it has been.

BROWN: Well, it is -- it is a -- I wouldn't want to call it a country unto itself. It's really a series of tribes unto themselves. It's been this way for hundreds and hundreds of years. And this -- if you're the government of Pakistan, or if you were the British colonists before, you might, on principle, want to go in there and own it.

But for any practical reason, there was no reason to. It's not like there's a lot of resources there. You're not going to get much out of it. And you're going to find significant resistance as you go.

What Musharraf has tried to do, one of the many juggling acts that this man is faced with, is make contact with these people, to draw them in to Pakistan -- the broader Pakistani society.

He talks in the interview that will air on "NEWSNIGHT" tonight about his meetings with the tribal leaders and how he's attempting to gain their confidence now.

What he doesn't say -- but what we also know is true -- is that there is a stick to the carrot. The military has said it will go in there -- unless these warlords or tribal chieftains cooperate, they'll level houses, they'll do plenty of damage. So it's so not all sweetness and light up there.

It's a tough area, and it's being managed by a tough guy, the president of Pakistan.

O'BRIEN: And just quickly, Aaron, to what extent are U.S. forces aiding?

BROWN: Well, I'll give you a very simple answer: I have no idea. We, we -- and I don't mean that in any way flip. Certainly, no one on the record, on either side, would ever say that U.S. forces are operating in Pakistan. To say that is to -- would be to sabotage a hugely important ally of the United States in President Musharraf.

Now, does that mean that there isn't intelligence help being given? It doesn't mean that, but I'm not suggesting it is.

Could there be drones flying above? Sure, there could be. But I don't know that that's true.

But I guarantee you that on the record no one in the U.S. government and no one in the Pakistani government will say that the Americans -- American military in any way, shape, or form, are involved in anything on the Pakistani side of the border.

O'BRIEN: CNN's Aaron Brown, reporting to us from Islamabad. And you can see that entire interview with President Musharraf tonight on "NEWSNIGHT." That's at 10 p.m. Eastern Time -- Kyra.

KYRA PHILLIPS, ANCHOR: Well, straight ahead back here in the United States, the man accused of killing nine of his family members is back in court. We'll give you the story as soon as we come back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

... Absolutely. They believe they were just responding on a routine custody issue over some of the children.

Now he said, interestingly, even if they had heard that shots had been fired, they wouldn't necessarily have stormed in there. He said that, he believed could have escalated the situation, which is exactly what they didn't want to do.

They also had SWAT team members and negotiators. He also told me there would be no investigation or probe of any kind into how they acted. He also said he spoke with all of his team; nobody heard any gunshots.

Fifty-seven-year-old Marcus Wesson, as you may recall, is the main suspect of the brutal murder of nine of his own children. Wesson was arrested after he surrendered with blood on his very own hands.

Wesson believed to have had incestuous relationships with at least two of the victims.

Wesson will be arraigned today. This, of course, after yesterday's rather emotional situation in the courtroom. Marcus Wesson waived his right to have a public defender, saying he in fact wanted to find his own attorney.

His son, Marcus Wesson Jr., was in the courtroom. And when the judge asked if anybody was there on behalf of Marcus Wesson, his son, Marcus Wesson Jr., raised his hand and said, "I love you, Dad. I love you, Dad."

He was escorted outside and was heard breaking down into sobs in the hallway.

That arraignment has been rescheduled to today at 1:30. No word yet as to whether Mr. Wesson has made a call to a private attorney. The judge has said, though, if he doesn't have one, one will be provided for him.

Marcus Wesson is facing nine individual counts of capital murder.

Reporting live from Fresno, Kimberly Osias. Back to you, Kyra.

PHILLIPS: Kimberly, thank you -- Miles.

O'BRIEN: News across America now.

A clean bill of health for a toxic nightmare. Environmental regulators say they finished cleaning Love Canal, and they'd like it taken off the superfund list.

The Niagara Falls neighborhood was built on a toxic waste dump, and of course, it gained notoriety about 26 years ago, after hundred of families were evacuated and entire streets were bulldozed.

The Tyco trial goes to the jury. Deliberations began just a little while ago. Former executive Dennis Kozlowski and Mark Swartz are accused of taking $600 million in company loans and inflated stock and then using the money to pay for lavish lifestyles. And singer Courtney Love's rap sheet getting a little longer. After -- you'll see it here. Flashing David Letterman. Don't worry, we don't -- There you go; we pixilated it. Flashing him during a taping of "The Late Show."

She went on to give an impromptu performance at a New York nightclub, and at which she threw a microphone stand into the audience, hitting a man on the head. She was charged with assault and endangerment and released from custody this morning.

That's entertainment, huh?

PHILLIPS: Oh boy.

(STOCK REPORT)

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Troops at Fort Campbell; Pakistani Forces Surrounding al Qaeda Enclave; Could Police Have Prevented Fresno Murders?>


Aired March 18, 2004 - 13:00   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
MILES O'BRIEN, ANCHOR: Attacks in Iraq. Two car bombs in nearly two days. A series of explosions, all within the past few moments. Are U.S. forces any closer to establishing peace there?
KYRA PHILLIPS, ANCHOR: The Fresno slayings: a man accused of killing nine of his own children says he doesn't need a defender. He's back in court today.

O'BRIEN: An asteroid flyby. NASA says the earth will have a close call with a flying space rock, but before you call me Chicken Little, Kyra, there's no reason to panic.

PHILLIPS: Where's the apple?

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I guarantee you I will give you exactly what you want. The results, physical results. You'll feel great; you'll look great.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: Work up a sweat and lay off the sweets. This personal trainer says getting fit is all about training your mind.

From the CNN Center in Atlanta, I'm Kyra Phillips.

O'BRIEN: And I'm Miles O'Brien. It is Thursday, March 18. CNN's LIVE FROM starts right now.

And just in to CNN, a series of explosions being heard across the Iraqi capital. Let's take a look at some live pictures right now.

Doesn't show you too much except to underscore the point that we are on vigilant watch here at CNN. Those explosions heard within the past few minutes. We're trying to track down the cause.

Just about 24 hours to the hour after that terrible blast in front of the Mount Lebanon Hotel in the Karada district of old Baghdad.

No reports on where these explosions occurred specifically. Our team there in Baghdad is tracking it very closely. As soon as we get some more information, we will bring it to you.

Fighting in Fallujah, meanwhile, bombing in Basra, crime scene investigation in Baghdad.

On the eve of the first anniversary of the U.S.-led invasion, authorities are struggling to keep a lid on what one calls spectacular attacks designed to derail the political process. Perhaps additional attacks that we're seeing at this moment.

Once again, we need to get further detail on all that before we go any farther with that -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: OK. We're going to move on to talk about Madrid now.

One week post-attacks in Madrid, a government's on its way out. Eleven suspects are out of circulation. Five of those were captured just today as investigators follow a presumed connection to a Casablanca bombing a year ago.

Let's get the latest now from CNN Madrid bureau chief Al Goodman -- Al.

AL GOODMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hello, Kyra.

I'm outside the national court, which is the court where -- that investigates terrorism cases here.

Now we're being told by an official at the court that five suspects have been arrested this day, most of them in Madrid, one in northern Spain. And that one in northern Spain is a Spaniard. The other four are described as of Arab descent. We don't have details more on them, but that does bring the total arrested since the bombings last week to 11.

Of course, those bombings killed 201 people and injured 1,500.

Now at this hour, arraignments were due to begin for five other suspects. The most interesting among them for the investigators, a man named Jamal Zougam, a Moroccan, 30 years old.

He is said to be a crossroads figure by investigators who've talked to CNN, a link to other al Qaeda figures here in Spain who, in turn, may be linked to those who had a role in the 9/11 attack.

And in addition, this man, Mr. Zougam, linked to other people who may have had a role in the Casablanca bombings in Morocco last May that killed 31 people.

In addition, the alleged head of the al Qaeda unit in Spain, who's been in jail now for two and a half years, was brought back to court, and he's giving testimony separately this day.

So an intense day of activity here at the national court -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: Al, just after the attack happened, of course, ETA was blamed for that attack. The government came out and blamed it on ETA. What kind of backlash has that created?

GODDMAN: Well, the most immediate backlash is that there was an upset victory in the national elections for prime minister and parliament on Sunday. And the ruling conservative Popular Party was ousted by the voters.

That Popular Party, the prime minister, Aznar, had been a staunch supporter of the U.S.-led war in Iraq, despite overwhelming public opposition.

After the bombings, and what many analysts say here is the -- the way the investigation was handled in the hours after the bombings here last week, all of that added up to a backlash against the government.

Now this day, the government holding a news conference to defend itself, saying it did not lie; it did not manipulate that investigation. It says that ETA was the prime suspect because that's what police and intelligence services were saying.

But a lot of people here apparently didn't believe that when they voted Sunday -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: Al Goodman, LIVE FROM Madrid. Thanks, Al -- Miles.

O'BRIEN: As we've been telling you, nine civilians were killed in fresh violence in Iraq, today, on this day after that hotel bombing in the heart of central Baghdad.

And we just told you about some reports within the past ten minutes of a series of explosions in and around the Iraqi capital.

Joining us live now with more on all this is CNN producer Margo Ortegas in Baghdad.

Margo Ortegas, can you hear us?

All right. We're going -- we apologize for the audio problems there. We're going to try to raise Margo. We're going to go for a break. We'll be back with more in just a moment.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(WEATHER REPORT)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: President Bush at Fort Campbell, Kentucky, saluting the troops who helped transform Iraq. CNN White House correspondent Dana Bash is there also.

Dana, how did it go?

DANA BASH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Kyra, the president just finished his remarks. And he came on to the stage through a sea of troops to the tune of commander in chief. And a good example of the fact that sometimes in a presidential election it's good to be the incumbent.

He came to say thank you for what he called a job well done, to the 20,000 members of the 101st Airborne Division, most of whom have just returned from a year duty in Iraq.

And the president's message was really to thank them, to say that there was -- there were a lot of positive things that they have done in Iraq. Talked about the fact that Saddam Hussein obviously is no longer, about the fact that democracy, he believes, is taking hold in that country.

But his message was also one of resolve in the face of terrorism. Speaking specifically, also, about the bombing yesterday in Baghdad.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: We saw again, yesterday, the terrorists are fighting desperately to undermine Iraq's progress toward freedom. That attack showed, once again, the cruelty of our enemies.

The terrorists and Ba'athist holdouts know that a free and stable Iraq will be a major defeat to the cause of hatred and terror.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BASH: Now, while the president did not mention Senator John Kerry, his Democratic opponent, by name, he certainly took a jab at him by thanking all the members of the House and Senate who voted for an $87 million spending bill to support the war in Iraq.

Senator Kerry was not one of those people. He voted against it.

But the president, responding essentially to attacks from Senator Kerry yesterday that the president has really hurt the military by not giving them enough in terms of what they need financially and services here at home.

The president said that he actually has done those things. Really, trying to counter attacks from Senator Kerry on his support for the United States military.

Now, at this hour, the president is having lunch with the troops and later today, he and Mrs. Bush are going to spend some time with family of troops who did not come home. Sixty were killed in Iraq from this base, more than any other base -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: Dana Bash, live from Fort Campbell, thank you.

O'BRIEN: All right. As we've been telling you, we'll show you some live pictures coming in from Baghdad right now. We have reports of several explosions that were heard all throughout the Iraqi capital.

And there are sirens going off in the housing -- in the U.S.-led coalition headquarters, the so-called Green Zone.

CNN's Margo Ortega is in the area. She's not far from the Green Zone, at the Palestine Hotel. She joins us with more on this -- Margo. MARGO ORTEGA, CNN PRODUCER: Yes, the sirens in the Green Zone, however, have gone silent in the last five minutes.

We have gotten clarification from police sources that the attacks that we heard in the last half hour -- there have been quite a few -- seem to have been aimed at three different areas.

One rocket attack seemed to have been aimed at the ministry of oil. One at another hotel in the very busy Karada district, where we had yesterday's car bomb, and another one on the just as busy Rashid Street, just north of the hotel where we are at at the moment.

Again, we have gotten no confirmation that any of these rocket attacks were launched at the Green Zone. We did hear initial fires from that area. But those sirens have since gone silent and everything at CPA headquarters seems to be functioning as normal.

We will give you more details on the other three locations that we mentioned as we get them from Iraqi police sources.

And as we said yesterday, the car bomb blast that left seven people -- seven people is now the firm figure that coalition officials and Iraqi police have come to, with a total of at least 40 wounded. Ten of those wounded have been able to go home, accord to ministry officials and are in the peak of health.

And as investigations are under way, Brigadier -- rather, Major General Martin Dempsey of the 1st A.D., which commands Baghdad, had said that the selection of the target of this attack seems to indicate one terror organization over another.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MAJ. GEN. MARTIN DEMPSEY, 1ST ARMORED DIVISION: Groups like Ansar al Islam, their signature target seems to us to be those institutions and those establishments that -- that acknowledge and, in some cases, welcome the presence of westerners.

The Zarqawi target of choice seems to us to be any evidence of progress among the Iraqi people, whether it's their police, their political institutions, their religious freedoms.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ORTEGAS: Earlier today, down in the southern city of Basra, which has remained relatively quiet, again, another car explosion, leaving three people dead.

British military sources in Basra tell us that they are still unclear as to whether this was a car laden with explosives or whether the car had the misfortunate to have driven past an IED, just as a British military convoy was passing by, as well.

Back to you.

O'BRIEN: Margo, just to bring folks up to date once again on what's happened within the past 20 minutes or so. You say these are rocket attacks. Are we fairly well certain of that?

ORTEGAS: Yes, we are. Police have told us that they believe there to have been rocket attacks. We are still not sure if these were rocket-propelled grenades. They will just say rockets were launched at the three different locations in the last half hour.

And we will bring you more details as we get them.

O'BRIEN: But the apparent targets inside the Green Zone, you think?

ORTEGAS: No, not inside the Green Zone. The first one is, again, another hotel in the Karada district, which is close to where the car bomb went off last night.

The second location seems to be close to the ministry of oil. And the third one is down Rashid Street, which is where the central bank of Iraq is located.

O'BRIEN: CNN's producer, Margo Ortegas, in Baghdad, thank you very much.

From Pakistan this hour, we have word from the president himself that Pakistani forces may have surrounded a so-called high value target.

On the line with us, CNN's Aaron Brown, who just completed an interview with President Musharraf and has more for us -- Aaron.

AARON BROWN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Miles, here's the situation. There has been a fierce, and I mean fierce -- artillery, helicopter, gun ships -- fierce fight going on in this mountainous region between Afghanistan and Pakistan where the president says his forces, after having a very tough couple of days, by the way, have surrounded a group of al Qaeda fighters.

Now, why do they believe they may have a high value target in there? This has more to do with deductive reasoning than intelligence. This is the way President Musharraf described his thinking.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PERVEZ MUSHARRAF, PAKISTANI PRESIDENT: The resistance that is being offered by the people there, we feel that there may be a high value target. I can't say who.

But they are giving fierce battle at the moment. They're not come out in spite of the fact that we've pounded them with artillery. I spoke with the corps commander just now. I knew you were going to ask me this question. So I spoke with the commander.

The net is there. They are there. They see very strong dug-in positions. The houses actually there are almost forts. They have -- they are mud forts. All these forts are occupied. And they are dug in, and they are giving fierce resistance. So he's reasonably sure there's a high value target there.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BROWN: So that is how they think of it. It is not something they know. And so we have to balance and we have to, I think, take literally what the president is saying here. It is not that they are certain they have something, it's that they suspect they might have something.

I asked him immediately after that, I said, when Americans hear the term high-value target, you know exactly, Mr. President, what they're going to think. And he acknowledged we're talking about one, two, three, or four people that would come to mind of the Americans, including bin Laden and Zawahiri.

But there's no -- I don't want any of us to go too far ahead here. We just don't know if any of those people is there -- are there. And we don't know, in fact, in anyone is there.

We do know for the last several days in an area that intelligence believes is -- American intelligence believes -- is rich with both al Qaeda and Taliban forces, an area that has literally existed outside of the control of any government for centuries, is backward in an almost feudal way, and where everyone is armed and no one is thrilled with any government, there is a major fight going on.

I'd add one other thing, Miles, and that is, the president -- and this took me somewhat by surprise -- acknowledged that when this fight started, the Pakistani army, which he used to formally head and probably still does in many respects, miscalculated.

And he says, "We were careless," were his words, that they went in with too little and they were routed in the early days. They're not, in his view, being routed now as he said, pounding them with both artillery. They're using helicopter gun ships to go in.

But you're talking about a wide area, a lot of land. It's very remote. There are places to run and hide. It's that sort of Tora Bora kind of like situation up there, and it will play out over a series of days.

O'BRIEN: Aaron, you point out something which is worth reminding of our audience. This is largely lawless country.

And heretofore, the Pakistanis have been reluctant, as you said Musharraf -- that's a pretty big statement from the president to say they went in without a lot of force. But perhaps for good reason, because of the nature of this part of the world.

I guess it's worth described -- it's hard to overstate how lawless it has been.

BROWN: Well, it is -- it is a -- I wouldn't want to call it a country unto itself. It's really a series of tribes unto themselves. It's been this way for hundreds and hundreds of years. And this -- if you're the government of Pakistan, or if you were the British colonists before, you might, on principle, want to go in there and own it.

But for any practical reason, there was no reason to. It's not like there's a lot of resources there. You're not going to get much out of it. And you're going to find significant resistance as you go.

What Musharraf has tried to do, one of the many juggling acts that this man is faced with, is make contact with these people, to draw them in to Pakistan -- the broader Pakistani society.

He talks in the interview that will air on "NEWSNIGHT" tonight about his meetings with the tribal leaders and how he's attempting to gain their confidence now.

What he doesn't say -- but what we also know is true -- is that there is a stick to the carrot. The military has said it will go in there -- unless these warlords or tribal chieftains cooperate, they'll level houses, they'll do plenty of damage. So it's so not all sweetness and light up there.

It's a tough area, and it's being managed by a tough guy, the president of Pakistan.

O'BRIEN: And just quickly, Aaron, to what extent are U.S. forces aiding?

BROWN: Well, I'll give you a very simple answer: I have no idea. We, we -- and I don't mean that in any way flip. Certainly, no one on the record, on either side, would ever say that U.S. forces are operating in Pakistan. To say that is to -- would be to sabotage a hugely important ally of the United States in President Musharraf.

Now, does that mean that there isn't intelligence help being given? It doesn't mean that, but I'm not suggesting it is.

Could there be drones flying above? Sure, there could be. But I don't know that that's true.

But I guarantee you that on the record no one in the U.S. government and no one in the Pakistani government will say that the Americans -- American military in any way, shape, or form, are involved in anything on the Pakistani side of the border.

O'BRIEN: CNN's Aaron Brown, reporting to us from Islamabad. And you can see that entire interview with President Musharraf tonight on "NEWSNIGHT." That's at 10 p.m. Eastern Time -- Kyra.

KYRA PHILLIPS, ANCHOR: Well, straight ahead back here in the United States, the man accused of killing nine of his family members is back in court. We'll give you the story as soon as we come back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

... Absolutely. They believe they were just responding on a routine custody issue over some of the children.

Now he said, interestingly, even if they had heard that shots had been fired, they wouldn't necessarily have stormed in there. He said that, he believed could have escalated the situation, which is exactly what they didn't want to do.

They also had SWAT team members and negotiators. He also told me there would be no investigation or probe of any kind into how they acted. He also said he spoke with all of his team; nobody heard any gunshots.

Fifty-seven-year-old Marcus Wesson, as you may recall, is the main suspect of the brutal murder of nine of his own children. Wesson was arrested after he surrendered with blood on his very own hands.

Wesson believed to have had incestuous relationships with at least two of the victims.

Wesson will be arraigned today. This, of course, after yesterday's rather emotional situation in the courtroom. Marcus Wesson waived his right to have a public defender, saying he in fact wanted to find his own attorney.

His son, Marcus Wesson Jr., was in the courtroom. And when the judge asked if anybody was there on behalf of Marcus Wesson, his son, Marcus Wesson Jr., raised his hand and said, "I love you, Dad. I love you, Dad."

He was escorted outside and was heard breaking down into sobs in the hallway.

That arraignment has been rescheduled to today at 1:30. No word yet as to whether Mr. Wesson has made a call to a private attorney. The judge has said, though, if he doesn't have one, one will be provided for him.

Marcus Wesson is facing nine individual counts of capital murder.

Reporting live from Fresno, Kimberly Osias. Back to you, Kyra.

PHILLIPS: Kimberly, thank you -- Miles.

O'BRIEN: News across America now.

A clean bill of health for a toxic nightmare. Environmental regulators say they finished cleaning Love Canal, and they'd like it taken off the superfund list.

The Niagara Falls neighborhood was built on a toxic waste dump, and of course, it gained notoriety about 26 years ago, after hundred of families were evacuated and entire streets were bulldozed.

The Tyco trial goes to the jury. Deliberations began just a little while ago. Former executive Dennis Kozlowski and Mark Swartz are accused of taking $600 million in company loans and inflated stock and then using the money to pay for lavish lifestyles. And singer Courtney Love's rap sheet getting a little longer. After -- you'll see it here. Flashing David Letterman. Don't worry, we don't -- There you go; we pixilated it. Flashing him during a taping of "The Late Show."

She went on to give an impromptu performance at a New York nightclub, and at which she threw a microphone stand into the audience, hitting a man on the head. She was charged with assault and endangerment and released from custody this morning.

That's entertainment, huh?

PHILLIPS: Oh boy.

(STOCK REPORT)

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Troops at Fort Campbell; Pakistani Forces Surrounding al Qaeda Enclave; Could Police Have Prevented Fresno Murders?>