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Rumsfeld Visits Baghdad; Army Trains Future Interrogators

Aired May 13, 2004 - 15:00   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.


KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: And you're watching LIVE FROM. Here are the latest headlines at this hour.
A killer identified. CIA analysts say it most likely was Abu Musab al-Zarqawi behind the hood and the sword when Nicholas Berg was beheaded. Zarqawi is one of the world's most wanted men, the leader of an Islamist terrorist group believed to have close ties to Osama bin Laden.

A rousing reception for a defense secretary on the defensive. Donald Rumsfeld made an unannounced visit to Iraq today, his fifth since the war ended. He also stopped by the prison where some American soldiers are accused of mistreating Iraqi prisoners.

The cost of waging war. Deputy Defense Secretary Paul Wolfowitz told lawmakers it could take more than $50 billion to finance operations in Iraq and Afghanistan next year. That's twice what the Bush administration has requested. The president also wants to control how the money is spent. Some senators argue, that amounts to a blank check.

A change in command in India. Prime Minister Vajpayee has resigned after his ruling coalition lost the parliamentary elections. The Congress Party, headed by Sonia Gandhi, will now lead that government. She's the widow of Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi, assassinated in 1991. His mother, of course, Indira Gandhi.

You know have had a rough week when a day trip to a war zone is a welcome break. But Defense Secretary Don Rumsfeld and Joint Chiefs Chairman Richard Myers today visibly savored their brief and unannounced visit to Baghdad, which included a visit to Abu Ghraib prison.

There, Rumsfeld stood up for truth, justice and the American way.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD RUMSFELD, SECRETARY OF DEFENSE: People are lining up year after year to come to our country from every country on the face of the Earth. Why do they do that? They do that because the United States is the beacon of liberty and of freedom and opportunity. And it's a great country, and the American people are wonderful people. And we'll get through this tough period, let there be no question.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: While Rumsfeld denied that they -- quote -- "to throw fire" -- or water, rather -- "on a fire," but they still made quite a splash.

Isn't that right, Ben Wedeman?

BEN WEDEMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, that's right, Kyra.

Well, most people approach a trip to Baghdad with a certain amount of dread, but Secretary Rumsfeld seemed to relish the experienced, a much changed man from the man we saw in congressional testimony. He came into the mess hall at Abu Ghraib prison and was greeted by hundreds of enthusiastic soldiers. It looked more like a pep rally than anything else.

He did touch on the prisoner abuse scandal, referring to it as a body blow, but then he went on to say that he and General Myers, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, had come here to Iraq to look the soldiers in the eye and tell them how much they admired their work, a noble cause, he described it as.

Now, after his visit to Abu Ghraib, which did include a tour of some of the facilities, we did see him going into the newly constructed visitors center being that's built there for relatives coming to see people on the inside, afterwards he went to an old palace of Saddam Hussein for what it was described or billed as a town meeting. There, it was another rousing speech.

And afterwards, the defense secretary was moved by admiring soldiers. So, Kyra, a very different sort of scene than we saw in Congress just a few days ago.

PHILLIPS: Ben Wedeman, you talk about Rumsfeld and his trip to the prison. And, of course, you see the videotape with all the troops. Were any Iraqis allowed close to the defense secretary? Did they gather at the prison? Any type of reaction to his visit from the Iraqis?

WEDEMAN: Well, the only people who actually got anything close to personal contact that I saw today, and, of course, I was along with the secretary, were some Iraqi journalists who seemed quite happy to meet him and shake his hand and have their pictures taken with him.

On the outside of the prison, though, it was a completely different atmosphere. Every day, hundreds of people wait outside in fairly harsh conditions. It's hot. Today there was a dust storm. They're waiting out there to find out where their relatives are, when they'll get out, maybe if they'll have a chance for a visit. And what was heard from them was nothing more than a denunciation of Mr. Rumsfeld's visit, lots of them saying that they just thought it was a propaganda stunt. They just want to see their relatives released from jail. And that's about it -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: Ben Wedeman, thanks so much.

Well, Rumsfeld told reporters today that he would be happy to release the Pentagon stash of photos and photo clips about Abu Ghraib, but there are legal complications. One, he said, is the ongoing criminal investigations, another Geneva Conventions prohibition of public shame and ridicule. Some in Congress disagree.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. EDWARD KENNEDY (D), MASSACHUSETTS: I would support them consistent with the code of military conduct, that they ought to be out and they should be released. The more the information gets out, the more extensive these hearings, the more knowledge that we have, the better off we are.

SEN. KAY BAILEY HUTCHISON (R), TEXAS: I think any more of this could harm our troops. Our troops are doing a great job. We're talking about 10 or 12 people here who I think probably went out of control. So I don't know that letting everything out is the best thing for the prosecution of the people who did the wrong things and the incitement that could hurt the security of our troops.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: Lack of training and questions about whether military rules were being followed have become central issues in the Iraqi prisoner abuse scandal.

CNN's Ed Lavandera looks at what the Army is doing now to help prepare future interrogators.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is site uniform, our field training exercise.

ED LAVANDERA, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): In the dusty hills of southeastern Arizona, the newest Army intelligence interrogators are completing their final training exercise. The Army wants the world to know that when these soldiers leave here, they're not equipped with techniques of torture and humiliation.

MAJ. GEN. JAMES MARKS, U.S. ARMY: We train soldiers to do what's right. Our Army is values based. So if a soldier feels like he or she is moving down a path that they are uncomfortable with, we also have a thing called the chain of command. And you go up through the chain of command and get support from them.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: All I'm asking to find out is your chain of command here.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: How do I know I can trust an American?

LAVANDERA: Inside the Fort Wachuka, soldiers are taught the fine points of interrogation; role-playing teaches each soldier how to approach different personalities.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: How else did you set fire to the garbage cans?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Well, we doused the cans with gasoline and lit a match. LAVANDERA: The 16-week training course teaches soldiers to get into a prison area's mind.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: OK, you're not going to let them finish whatever they're asking. Eventually the person is going to want to be heard.

LAVANDERA (on camera): Army officials here up to 90 percent of useful intelligence in Iraq comes from interrogations. But to get that information from a hardened terrorist or a militant fighter can require a tough approach.

MARKS: We don't strip anybody of their dignity, but I want them to be tired. I want them to be afraid of me. I want them when they breathe, I want them to think that the interrogator gave them the right to expand their lungs...

LAVANDERA (voice-over): Officials here say it's done under strict guidelines. No touching, no humiliation. Chief Warrant Officer Lon Castleton just returned from Iraq. He found a kinder, gentler approach is the most effective way of dealing with Iraqi prisoners.

CWO LON CASTLETON, U.S. ARMY: Yes. The things I saw with these people, they expected to be beaten. and that's the way Saddam Hussein used to treat them. In fact, they figured they'd never be seen again. So when you treat them with kindness, they're a lot more open. In fact, in a lot of cases, they're surprised.

LAVANDERA: The need for interrogators is so great that more than 500 soldiers will be put through this course this year.

SPEC. JASON HICKMAN, INTERROGATION TRAINEE: I have a foundation for what it's going to take to do my real job in the real world. But until I actually get out there and do it in the real world, I'm not going to know what it's going to be like.

LAVANDERA: No matter how real the training might appear, soldiers won't know what it will take to be effective, until they come face-to-face with an enemy prisoner.

Ed Lavandera, Fort Wachuka, Arizona.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PHILLIPS: Who killed Nick Berg, the American who was beheaded on videotape? Well, the CIA as analyzed that tape and says there's a high probability that fugitive terrorist Abu Musab al-Zarqawi carried out that killing. U.S. officials believe that Zarqawi is a close associate of Osama bin Laden and they suspect he's behind several terrorist attacks in Iraq. Berg's father says his son was in Iraq to help.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MICHAEL BERG, FATHER OF NICK BERG: My son was never in any trouble. My son never had a fight in his life, to my knowledge. My son didn't drink alcohol, didn't take drugs ever. He didn't gamble. He didn't have any bad habits. His only addiction was high places. He liked to climb high places and I think a little bit of that danger was part of it as well. He only wanted to help people.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: Berg's body arrived in the United States yesterday. A memorial service is planned for tomorrow in Pennsylvania.

President Bush is vowing to continue the fight in Iraq, despite the actions of terrorists. But with polls showing that Americans are growing increasingly concerned by the war, the president is showing a softer side on the campaign trail.

Senior White House correspondent John King has that.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JOHN KING, CNN SR. WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Outside the White House a forceful condemnation.

GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: There is no justification for the brutal execution of Nicholas Berg, no justification whatsoever.

KING: And a familiar refrain.

BUSH: We will complete our mission. We will complete our task.

KING: At one end of the helicopter ride, the commander-in-chief voicing resolve in the face of another setback in Iraq. At the other end, a candidate for reelection seeking to soften his image and remind voters war is not his only focus.

BUSH: We believe every child can read.

KING: New ads revive the compassionate conservative theme of the last campaign.

NARRATOR: As president, he signed the most significant education reforms in 35 years.

KING: And, on the Internet, enlisting the first lady as part of the image makeover.

LAURA BUSH, FIRST LADY: The president is so committed to education reform because he looks at schools as a parent looks at schools.

KING: For a wartime president there is no refuge from events like the prisoner abuse scandal or the execution of an American citizen and the Bush campaign has actively encouraged the commander- in-chief theme. But a majority of Americans now disapprove of how Mr. Bush is handling Iraq. His overall job approval rating is at its lowest point and Democrat John Kerry gets higher marks on handling the economy.

STU ROTHENBERG, ROTHENBERG POLITICAL REPORT: When there's so much war news it's hard for the president to show a complete range of who he is as a president. He's going to have to do that over the next five months.

KING: The Bush campaign knows Iraq is dominating national headlines but the ads, daily campaign events and more up close and personal campaigning are all designed to make war at least a bit less of the picture by election day.

ROTHENBERG: A likable guy, a decent approachable person, that's an important asset to have if you're running for reelection, particularly if you're running against a Democrat who does not have an image as particularly approachable, soft and likable.

KING (on camera): It is at times a difficult balance, day-to-day management of an increasingly controversial Iraq policy and the longer-term campaign imperative to try, amid the daily images and challenges of war, to soften the president's image a bit.

John King, CNN, the White House.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PHILLIPS: Other news across America now.

Cast and all, it's a one-hop strike in Houston from former American hostage Thomas Hamill. He was honored by the hometown Astros 11 days after escaping his captors back in Iraq.

More strong storms on tap today for parts of Kansas, Oklahoma, Missouri, and Texas. This massive twister yesterday damaged several homes in the Kansas town yesterday of Attica. A total of nine tornadoes were spotted in a single Kansas county.

Also a milestone today in the race to make space a tourist destination. A piloted module sets a new civilian record by reaching altitude of 40 miles high and then returning to the California desert. The module was launched by a high-flying aircraft as part of a competition to develop space for tourists.

A theme park ride may be the closest many people come to something like that space flight. Well, ahead, how crowded will this amusement park be this summer?

Iraqi sports fans are one step closer to the Olympic gold.

First, a war story the world isn't paying attention to. CNN's Christiane Amanpour is, though. She goes to western Sudan. Some say it's the worst refugee crisis in the world.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: In Washington, it's known as the worst humanitarian crisis anywhere in the world, thousands of Sudanese refugees driven from their homes by force, by rebels and their own government.

CNN's Christiane Amanpour reports on that tragedy from the Sudanese border with neighboring Chad.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CHRISTIANE AMANPOUR, CNN CHIEF INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Bahai is so poor, it can barely sustain itself. But for more than a year, it has been sharing its meager resources with 15,000 refugees. The U.N. and other international agencies only turned up a few months ago and they still haven't managed to set up camps this far north. Now they're in a race against time to keep all these people alive.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The rainy season is coming at the end of May, beginning of June. All this area will be completely flooded.

AMANPOUR: Children are now dying of preventable diseases like diarrhea for lack of water and health care. Helen Court (ph) tries to give this little girl rehydration salts. Her mother then tries to drip feed her with a syringe. But she won't take the liquid.

Dr. Camilo Valderama (ph) works for the International Rescue Committee. His job is to try to plug the health care hole. Chad has exactly 271 doctors for a population estimated at over nine million.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Here in the Port (UNINTELLIGIBLE) area, there is one technical agent who has basic, basic training for 30,000 people almost.

AMANPOUR (on camera): One for 30,000 people?

(voice-over): The babies are the most vulnerable. This little boy is 22 days old, his parents say. And yet he's not growing. His hands are shriveled, his face that of an old man. Severe malnutrition, says Dr. Camilo.

These people say they had a decent life in Darfur until the Sudanese government, which is Arab, went to war against Darfur's indigenous African people, a war for power and resources. The refugees told us about the attacks.

"They send in aircraft to bomb our villages," says Ahmed Salah (ph). "And then the militias come on horseback and burn down our houses and take all our possessions." Adam Suleman (ph) told us they killed the men and brutally attacked the women and young girls.

(on camera): So they're raping old women and young women?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes.

AMANPOUR (voice-over): So just at this border point alone, the refugees keep coming.

(on camera): Every week, about 300 new refugees are crossing this riverbed, which forms the border between the Darfur region of Sudan and Chad. They're fleeing what amounts to a campaign of ethnic cleansing, conducted by the Sudanese Army and its marauding militia called the janjaweed. According to American and other human rights officials, thousands of Sudanese villagers have been killed. About a million are displaced within Darfur itself. And another 125,000 have had to flee to exile here in Chad.

(voice-over): With great difficulty, the U.N. and Human Rights Watch gained access to Darfur and paint a picture of appalling human rights abuses, including crimes against humanity that match the testimony of survivors. The U.S. and Europe have brokered a fragile cease-fire. Yet they say the militias continue their reign of terror.

Back across the border in Chad, the IRC is burning the refugees' only wealth, the carcasses of their animals which are dying of exhaustion and lack of food and water.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The goat, the sheep are food. And the donkeys are transport. So without their animals, they really have no resources left.

AMANPOUR: Further north, in Carfur (ph), the U.N. is making its first food delivery since these refugees arrived months ago. What they're getting today will only last two weeks.

Christiane Amanpour, CNN, on the Chad-Sudan border.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(WEATHER UPDATE)

PHILLIPS: Iraq's futbol team -- we call it soccer -- is headed to the Olympics. In a stunning upset victory, the Iraqi national football team defeated Saudi to earn a trip to the Summer Olympic Games in Athens. This is such a great story. It's the first time in Iraq's history that its futbol team will compete in the Olympics. They deserve it so.

(FINANCIAL UPDATE)

PHILLIPS: Checking entertainment headlines this Thursday, just call her the Betsy Ross of "Baywatch." Pamela Anderson was sworn in yesterday as a U.S. citizen, but will also maintain her status as a citizen of Canada. Wonder if she was what Thomas Jefferson had in mind when he wrote the words endowed by their creator.

It may not have caused the same kind of media ruckus as the end of "Friends," but "Frasier" fans are no doubt lamenting tonight's end of TV's most celebrated sitcom. In its 11 seasons, "Fraiser" won 31 Emmy Awards, to set a series records.

Speaking of records, fans of LaToya London are hoping a record deal is still in the cards for the sultry singer. Oh, look at Paula and Randy. Well, she was voted off "American Idol" last night amid a loud chorus of boos a torrent of tears from fellow contestants and judge Paula Abdul.

And finally today, when we say the programmers of VH-1 are birdbrained, it's not a criticism.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALES AND FEMALES (singing): ... the song that we're singing. Come on, get happy.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: And is that a flashback. The cable channel is holding open casting calls this summer for a new reality show to recreate a famous family flock. Shirley Jones, David Cassidy, and Danny Bonaduce will appear in a show called "In Search of the Partridge Family."

And that brings us to the end of today's LIVE FROM.

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


Aired May 13, 2004 - 15:00   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: And you're watching LIVE FROM. Here are the latest headlines at this hour.
A killer identified. CIA analysts say it most likely was Abu Musab al-Zarqawi behind the hood and the sword when Nicholas Berg was beheaded. Zarqawi is one of the world's most wanted men, the leader of an Islamist terrorist group believed to have close ties to Osama bin Laden.

A rousing reception for a defense secretary on the defensive. Donald Rumsfeld made an unannounced visit to Iraq today, his fifth since the war ended. He also stopped by the prison where some American soldiers are accused of mistreating Iraqi prisoners.

The cost of waging war. Deputy Defense Secretary Paul Wolfowitz told lawmakers it could take more than $50 billion to finance operations in Iraq and Afghanistan next year. That's twice what the Bush administration has requested. The president also wants to control how the money is spent. Some senators argue, that amounts to a blank check.

A change in command in India. Prime Minister Vajpayee has resigned after his ruling coalition lost the parliamentary elections. The Congress Party, headed by Sonia Gandhi, will now lead that government. She's the widow of Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi, assassinated in 1991. His mother, of course, Indira Gandhi.

You know have had a rough week when a day trip to a war zone is a welcome break. But Defense Secretary Don Rumsfeld and Joint Chiefs Chairman Richard Myers today visibly savored their brief and unannounced visit to Baghdad, which included a visit to Abu Ghraib prison.

There, Rumsfeld stood up for truth, justice and the American way.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD RUMSFELD, SECRETARY OF DEFENSE: People are lining up year after year to come to our country from every country on the face of the Earth. Why do they do that? They do that because the United States is the beacon of liberty and of freedom and opportunity. And it's a great country, and the American people are wonderful people. And we'll get through this tough period, let there be no question.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: While Rumsfeld denied that they -- quote -- "to throw fire" -- or water, rather -- "on a fire," but they still made quite a splash.

Isn't that right, Ben Wedeman?

BEN WEDEMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, that's right, Kyra.

Well, most people approach a trip to Baghdad with a certain amount of dread, but Secretary Rumsfeld seemed to relish the experienced, a much changed man from the man we saw in congressional testimony. He came into the mess hall at Abu Ghraib prison and was greeted by hundreds of enthusiastic soldiers. It looked more like a pep rally than anything else.

He did touch on the prisoner abuse scandal, referring to it as a body blow, but then he went on to say that he and General Myers, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, had come here to Iraq to look the soldiers in the eye and tell them how much they admired their work, a noble cause, he described it as.

Now, after his visit to Abu Ghraib, which did include a tour of some of the facilities, we did see him going into the newly constructed visitors center being that's built there for relatives coming to see people on the inside, afterwards he went to an old palace of Saddam Hussein for what it was described or billed as a town meeting. There, it was another rousing speech.

And afterwards, the defense secretary was moved by admiring soldiers. So, Kyra, a very different sort of scene than we saw in Congress just a few days ago.

PHILLIPS: Ben Wedeman, you talk about Rumsfeld and his trip to the prison. And, of course, you see the videotape with all the troops. Were any Iraqis allowed close to the defense secretary? Did they gather at the prison? Any type of reaction to his visit from the Iraqis?

WEDEMAN: Well, the only people who actually got anything close to personal contact that I saw today, and, of course, I was along with the secretary, were some Iraqi journalists who seemed quite happy to meet him and shake his hand and have their pictures taken with him.

On the outside of the prison, though, it was a completely different atmosphere. Every day, hundreds of people wait outside in fairly harsh conditions. It's hot. Today there was a dust storm. They're waiting out there to find out where their relatives are, when they'll get out, maybe if they'll have a chance for a visit. And what was heard from them was nothing more than a denunciation of Mr. Rumsfeld's visit, lots of them saying that they just thought it was a propaganda stunt. They just want to see their relatives released from jail. And that's about it -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: Ben Wedeman, thanks so much.

Well, Rumsfeld told reporters today that he would be happy to release the Pentagon stash of photos and photo clips about Abu Ghraib, but there are legal complications. One, he said, is the ongoing criminal investigations, another Geneva Conventions prohibition of public shame and ridicule. Some in Congress disagree.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. EDWARD KENNEDY (D), MASSACHUSETTS: I would support them consistent with the code of military conduct, that they ought to be out and they should be released. The more the information gets out, the more extensive these hearings, the more knowledge that we have, the better off we are.

SEN. KAY BAILEY HUTCHISON (R), TEXAS: I think any more of this could harm our troops. Our troops are doing a great job. We're talking about 10 or 12 people here who I think probably went out of control. So I don't know that letting everything out is the best thing for the prosecution of the people who did the wrong things and the incitement that could hurt the security of our troops.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: Lack of training and questions about whether military rules were being followed have become central issues in the Iraqi prisoner abuse scandal.

CNN's Ed Lavandera looks at what the Army is doing now to help prepare future interrogators.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is site uniform, our field training exercise.

ED LAVANDERA, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): In the dusty hills of southeastern Arizona, the newest Army intelligence interrogators are completing their final training exercise. The Army wants the world to know that when these soldiers leave here, they're not equipped with techniques of torture and humiliation.

MAJ. GEN. JAMES MARKS, U.S. ARMY: We train soldiers to do what's right. Our Army is values based. So if a soldier feels like he or she is moving down a path that they are uncomfortable with, we also have a thing called the chain of command. And you go up through the chain of command and get support from them.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: All I'm asking to find out is your chain of command here.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: How do I know I can trust an American?

LAVANDERA: Inside the Fort Wachuka, soldiers are taught the fine points of interrogation; role-playing teaches each soldier how to approach different personalities.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: How else did you set fire to the garbage cans?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Well, we doused the cans with gasoline and lit a match. LAVANDERA: The 16-week training course teaches soldiers to get into a prison area's mind.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: OK, you're not going to let them finish whatever they're asking. Eventually the person is going to want to be heard.

LAVANDERA (on camera): Army officials here up to 90 percent of useful intelligence in Iraq comes from interrogations. But to get that information from a hardened terrorist or a militant fighter can require a tough approach.

MARKS: We don't strip anybody of their dignity, but I want them to be tired. I want them to be afraid of me. I want them when they breathe, I want them to think that the interrogator gave them the right to expand their lungs...

LAVANDERA (voice-over): Officials here say it's done under strict guidelines. No touching, no humiliation. Chief Warrant Officer Lon Castleton just returned from Iraq. He found a kinder, gentler approach is the most effective way of dealing with Iraqi prisoners.

CWO LON CASTLETON, U.S. ARMY: Yes. The things I saw with these people, they expected to be beaten. and that's the way Saddam Hussein used to treat them. In fact, they figured they'd never be seen again. So when you treat them with kindness, they're a lot more open. In fact, in a lot of cases, they're surprised.

LAVANDERA: The need for interrogators is so great that more than 500 soldiers will be put through this course this year.

SPEC. JASON HICKMAN, INTERROGATION TRAINEE: I have a foundation for what it's going to take to do my real job in the real world. But until I actually get out there and do it in the real world, I'm not going to know what it's going to be like.

LAVANDERA: No matter how real the training might appear, soldiers won't know what it will take to be effective, until they come face-to-face with an enemy prisoner.

Ed Lavandera, Fort Wachuka, Arizona.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PHILLIPS: Who killed Nick Berg, the American who was beheaded on videotape? Well, the CIA as analyzed that tape and says there's a high probability that fugitive terrorist Abu Musab al-Zarqawi carried out that killing. U.S. officials believe that Zarqawi is a close associate of Osama bin Laden and they suspect he's behind several terrorist attacks in Iraq. Berg's father says his son was in Iraq to help.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MICHAEL BERG, FATHER OF NICK BERG: My son was never in any trouble. My son never had a fight in his life, to my knowledge. My son didn't drink alcohol, didn't take drugs ever. He didn't gamble. He didn't have any bad habits. His only addiction was high places. He liked to climb high places and I think a little bit of that danger was part of it as well. He only wanted to help people.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: Berg's body arrived in the United States yesterday. A memorial service is planned for tomorrow in Pennsylvania.

President Bush is vowing to continue the fight in Iraq, despite the actions of terrorists. But with polls showing that Americans are growing increasingly concerned by the war, the president is showing a softer side on the campaign trail.

Senior White House correspondent John King has that.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JOHN KING, CNN SR. WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Outside the White House a forceful condemnation.

GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: There is no justification for the brutal execution of Nicholas Berg, no justification whatsoever.

KING: And a familiar refrain.

BUSH: We will complete our mission. We will complete our task.

KING: At one end of the helicopter ride, the commander-in-chief voicing resolve in the face of another setback in Iraq. At the other end, a candidate for reelection seeking to soften his image and remind voters war is not his only focus.

BUSH: We believe every child can read.

KING: New ads revive the compassionate conservative theme of the last campaign.

NARRATOR: As president, he signed the most significant education reforms in 35 years.

KING: And, on the Internet, enlisting the first lady as part of the image makeover.

LAURA BUSH, FIRST LADY: The president is so committed to education reform because he looks at schools as a parent looks at schools.

KING: For a wartime president there is no refuge from events like the prisoner abuse scandal or the execution of an American citizen and the Bush campaign has actively encouraged the commander- in-chief theme. But a majority of Americans now disapprove of how Mr. Bush is handling Iraq. His overall job approval rating is at its lowest point and Democrat John Kerry gets higher marks on handling the economy.

STU ROTHENBERG, ROTHENBERG POLITICAL REPORT: When there's so much war news it's hard for the president to show a complete range of who he is as a president. He's going to have to do that over the next five months.

KING: The Bush campaign knows Iraq is dominating national headlines but the ads, daily campaign events and more up close and personal campaigning are all designed to make war at least a bit less of the picture by election day.

ROTHENBERG: A likable guy, a decent approachable person, that's an important asset to have if you're running for reelection, particularly if you're running against a Democrat who does not have an image as particularly approachable, soft and likable.

KING (on camera): It is at times a difficult balance, day-to-day management of an increasingly controversial Iraq policy and the longer-term campaign imperative to try, amid the daily images and challenges of war, to soften the president's image a bit.

John King, CNN, the White House.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PHILLIPS: Other news across America now.

Cast and all, it's a one-hop strike in Houston from former American hostage Thomas Hamill. He was honored by the hometown Astros 11 days after escaping his captors back in Iraq.

More strong storms on tap today for parts of Kansas, Oklahoma, Missouri, and Texas. This massive twister yesterday damaged several homes in the Kansas town yesterday of Attica. A total of nine tornadoes were spotted in a single Kansas county.

Also a milestone today in the race to make space a tourist destination. A piloted module sets a new civilian record by reaching altitude of 40 miles high and then returning to the California desert. The module was launched by a high-flying aircraft as part of a competition to develop space for tourists.

A theme park ride may be the closest many people come to something like that space flight. Well, ahead, how crowded will this amusement park be this summer?

Iraqi sports fans are one step closer to the Olympic gold.

First, a war story the world isn't paying attention to. CNN's Christiane Amanpour is, though. She goes to western Sudan. Some say it's the worst refugee crisis in the world.

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PHILLIPS: In Washington, it's known as the worst humanitarian crisis anywhere in the world, thousands of Sudanese refugees driven from their homes by force, by rebels and their own government.

CNN's Christiane Amanpour reports on that tragedy from the Sudanese border with neighboring Chad.

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CHRISTIANE AMANPOUR, CNN CHIEF INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Bahai is so poor, it can barely sustain itself. But for more than a year, it has been sharing its meager resources with 15,000 refugees. The U.N. and other international agencies only turned up a few months ago and they still haven't managed to set up camps this far north. Now they're in a race against time to keep all these people alive.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The rainy season is coming at the end of May, beginning of June. All this area will be completely flooded.

AMANPOUR: Children are now dying of preventable diseases like diarrhea for lack of water and health care. Helen Court (ph) tries to give this little girl rehydration salts. Her mother then tries to drip feed her with a syringe. But she won't take the liquid.

Dr. Camilo Valderama (ph) works for the International Rescue Committee. His job is to try to plug the health care hole. Chad has exactly 271 doctors for a population estimated at over nine million.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Here in the Port (UNINTELLIGIBLE) area, there is one technical agent who has basic, basic training for 30,000 people almost.

AMANPOUR (on camera): One for 30,000 people?

(voice-over): The babies are the most vulnerable. This little boy is 22 days old, his parents say. And yet he's not growing. His hands are shriveled, his face that of an old man. Severe malnutrition, says Dr. Camilo.

These people say they had a decent life in Darfur until the Sudanese government, which is Arab, went to war against Darfur's indigenous African people, a war for power and resources. The refugees told us about the attacks.

"They send in aircraft to bomb our villages," says Ahmed Salah (ph). "And then the militias come on horseback and burn down our houses and take all our possessions." Adam Suleman (ph) told us they killed the men and brutally attacked the women and young girls.

(on camera): So they're raping old women and young women?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes.

AMANPOUR (voice-over): So just at this border point alone, the refugees keep coming.

(on camera): Every week, about 300 new refugees are crossing this riverbed, which forms the border between the Darfur region of Sudan and Chad. They're fleeing what amounts to a campaign of ethnic cleansing, conducted by the Sudanese Army and its marauding militia called the janjaweed. According to American and other human rights officials, thousands of Sudanese villagers have been killed. About a million are displaced within Darfur itself. And another 125,000 have had to flee to exile here in Chad.

(voice-over): With great difficulty, the U.N. and Human Rights Watch gained access to Darfur and paint a picture of appalling human rights abuses, including crimes against humanity that match the testimony of survivors. The U.S. and Europe have brokered a fragile cease-fire. Yet they say the militias continue their reign of terror.

Back across the border in Chad, the IRC is burning the refugees' only wealth, the carcasses of their animals which are dying of exhaustion and lack of food and water.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The goat, the sheep are food. And the donkeys are transport. So without their animals, they really have no resources left.

AMANPOUR: Further north, in Carfur (ph), the U.N. is making its first food delivery since these refugees arrived months ago. What they're getting today will only last two weeks.

Christiane Amanpour, CNN, on the Chad-Sudan border.

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(WEATHER UPDATE)

PHILLIPS: Iraq's futbol team -- we call it soccer -- is headed to the Olympics. In a stunning upset victory, the Iraqi national football team defeated Saudi to earn a trip to the Summer Olympic Games in Athens. This is such a great story. It's the first time in Iraq's history that its futbol team will compete in the Olympics. They deserve it so.

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PHILLIPS: Checking entertainment headlines this Thursday, just call her the Betsy Ross of "Baywatch." Pamela Anderson was sworn in yesterday as a U.S. citizen, but will also maintain her status as a citizen of Canada. Wonder if she was what Thomas Jefferson had in mind when he wrote the words endowed by their creator.

It may not have caused the same kind of media ruckus as the end of "Friends," but "Frasier" fans are no doubt lamenting tonight's end of TV's most celebrated sitcom. In its 11 seasons, "Fraiser" won 31 Emmy Awards, to set a series records.

Speaking of records, fans of LaToya London are hoping a record deal is still in the cards for the sultry singer. Oh, look at Paula and Randy. Well, she was voted off "American Idol" last night amid a loud chorus of boos a torrent of tears from fellow contestants and judge Paula Abdul.

And finally today, when we say the programmers of VH-1 are birdbrained, it's not a criticism.

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UNIDENTIFIED MALES AND FEMALES (singing): ... the song that we're singing. Come on, get happy.

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PHILLIPS: And is that a flashback. The cable channel is holding open casting calls this summer for a new reality show to recreate a famous family flock. Shirley Jones, David Cassidy, and Danny Bonaduce will appear in a show called "In Search of the Partridge Family."

And that brings us to the end of today's LIVE FROM.

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