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Iraq's New Government to Take Over Legal Custody of Saddam, 11 Former Lieutenants, Lackeys

Aired June 29, 2004 - 14:00   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: Self-rule in high gear. Barely a day after taking over power from the U.S. occupation, Iraq's new government plans to take over legal custody of Saddam Hussein and 11 of Saddam's former lieutenants and lackeys. The new leaders also plan a crackdown on near constant insurgent attacks. And on that score there's no time to waste. CNN's Brent Sadler has the latest now from Baghdad.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BRENT SADLER, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The status of Iraq once-untouchable ruler is about to change. Saddam Hussein will be transferred from American to Iraqi legal custody to face charges in an open court this week, though he'll remain under U.S. lock and key.

It won't be the start of a full trial for alleged war crimes, including genocide but the first step. Iraqi authorities here say arrest warrants were issued for the ex-president and eleven of his top officials, including one of the most well known faces from the old regime, former Deputy Prime Minister Tariq Aziz.

AYAD ALLAWI, IRAQI INTERIM PRIME MINISTER (through translator): The judicial process may take some time. Justice will be done, however, and the progress of these cases will be done for all to see.

SADLER: But even as the newly-empowered government finds its feet, U.S. forces came under renewed attack in Baghdad. A roadside bomb targeted an American military convoy killing three U.S. Marines and wounding two others.

Iraqi security forces also came under attack. Police stations in Baghdad were hit by rocket and machine gun fire inflicting light casualties. The oil infrastructure was also targeted again, this time south of Baghdad where saboteurs blew up a pipeline aiming to disrupt exports of crude oil. In response, Iraqi authorities are set to impose tough new security measures to crack down on the militants.

BARHAM SALEH, DEP. IRAQI PRIME MINISTER: It will involve giving the government the ability to, for example, impose curfews and put in place the legal mechanisms by which dangerous people could be detained but we have to do all these things mindful of our moral and legal obligations towards human rights.

SADLER: On the diplomatic front, the United States has restored relations with Iraq broken after the 1990 invasion of Kuwait. The new U.S. Ambassador John Negroponte has been sent to hold the fort in the so-called Green Zone, home of the old occupation authority and the target of recent rocket attacks and car bombs.

(on camera): The interim government is expected to have a limited life of just seven months until elections but, in the meantime, the leadership will try to prove its metal by taking action to confront the insurgents with its new found power.

Brent Sadler, CNN, Baghdad.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PHILLIPS: Missing and presumed kidnapped, the Pentagon still isn't confirming the U.S. Marine who was last seen in Iraq ten days ago is a hostage threatened with death but the family of Corporal Wassef Hassoun (ph) says there's no doubt that he's the man in a video clip aired Sunday on Al-Jazeera TV. That man's captors vowed to kill him unless the U.S. frees Iraqi prisoners. Hassoun's brother spoke today in Beirut.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SAMI HASSOUN, BROTHER OF MISSING MARINE: I would like to call on all the ambassadors in the whole countries around the world and especially around Iraq. Please help us in our case with our brother. He's with the Marines. He was doing his job. We never hurt nobody in our whole life. He's a very innocent person. He was just doing his job like everybody else in his place.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: U.S. officials also can't confirm a soldier missing in Iraq since April 9th has been shot to death. That report and yet another snippet of (UNINTELLIGIBLE) video supposedly of Army Specialist Matt Maupin also come or came rather through Al-Jazeera and it's been a cruel two and a half months for the Maupin family and friends in southwest Ohio.

CNN's Keith Oppenheim is there.

KEITH OPPENHEIM, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, hi Kyra. I've just been keeping my ye on the news conference that is in the process of breaking up behind me. I just popped over there a moment ago to get a gist of what the Army spokespeople were saying. We thought it might be some very significant news.

But they're pretty much just keeping in touch with us letting us know that Matt Maupin's family has decided at this point not to look at this videotape themselves. They are allowing Defense Department experts to examine this tape.

The tape was surfacing yesterday. It was aired in part by the Al-Jazeera Arab language network which reported, they didn't air the execution but they reported that Matt Maupin was executed on this tape and getting their information from a group of militants who had claimed responsibility. The U.S. Army is saying that they do not know that Matt Maupin is the person killed on that tape. They don't even know if it is an American soldier.

In the community there has been a great deal of response and, if you go down the street from where we are, you will see the Maupin home, which is pretty much a reflection of other things you see in the community.

There are yellow ribbons around their house, all signs pointing to hopes for Matt Maupin's safe return. And many of the people we spoke to locally identified with the family's plight at this time.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Even for those of us who don't know Matt personally or the family that it's just caused a feeling of camaraderie here in the community that everybody has been supportive since he was taken hostage.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'd be scared to death just like the family. I have a 20-year-old -- 22-year-old daughter and a 20-year-old son and I think it's a shame that families got to go through this but I think at this particular time all we can do is wait and really see what comes out of this. I don't think anybody has really confirmed whether or not he is alive or dead, although it doesn't really ease the family's frustrations. I'm sure they're terrified at this particular point.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

OPPENHEIM: And in terms of the family's emotions those are some of the things that the Army spokespeople are talking to the media about right now. I don't know if you can see in the middle of that pack there that there are a couple of gentlemen wearing black berets.

They are the U.S. Army public information officers that are acting as liaisons between the media, which is parked at Matt Maupin's old elementary school and just about a quarter mile down the road is their home. Police are protecting the Maupin family. They don't want to talk to the media right now and the community in general is being pretty protective of them as well -- Kyra, back to you.

PHILLIPS: All right, Keith Oppenheim we'll check back in with you once we find out what the Army has to say there. Thank you so much.

And it might be easier to hunt down these militants if they were all members of the same terrorist group. Unfortunately, though, that doesn't appear to be the case.

CNN's Kathleen Koch has been looking into that.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

KATHLEEN KOCH, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The kidnappers of a young man in Marine fatigues, whose family identifies him as Corporal Wassef Ali Hassoun, call themselves the Islamic Response.

KEN POLLACK, CNN ANALYST: This is the first time that I have heard of this group and I think that this is a pattern that we're seeing in Iraq. There are any number of tiny little groups of people who are coming together for particular operations. The only thing that they seem to have in common is they hate Americans and they have a desire to harm as many as they possibly can.

KOCH: It's not clear whether or not the group is linked to Abu Musab al-Zarqawi. American Nicholas Berg and South Korean Kim Sun-Il were beheaded in killings blamed on a group led by the Islamic militant leader.

Since April, more than 40 people have been abducted in Iraq by insurgents. U.S. officials believe they represent different groups with varying ideologies, some foreign fighters but not all. The question now will the turn over of power impact their activities?

DONALD RUMSFELD, DEFENSE SECRETARY: How it's going to affect the counter insurgency, that is to say the efforts to stop the terrorists from conducting the killing and beheadings and activity they're engaged in, I personally don't -- can't say that I can answer the question with certainty.

KOCH (on camera): But for the immediate future, the expectation is more kidnappings from more shadowy groups all bent on destabilizing the new government and driving foreigners from Iraq.

Kathleen Koch, CNN, the Pentagon.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PHILLIPS: First war and then expelled, two security guards at the Iranian mission to the U.N. have been kicked out of the U.S. They were caught videotaping transportation systems in New York, something outside the scope of their duties.

Our Richard Roth is tracking down the details for us at the United Nations -- Richard.

RICHARD ROTH, CNN SR. UNITED NATIONS CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Kyra. U.S. officials say what the Iranians are doing are incompatible with their status, code word for spying or espionage.

They were seen by the U.S., according to the U.S., taking pictures, photographs of New York City landmarks, such as tunnels, subway stations and the like, specific locations not revealed yet. The State Department spokesman announced that the two Iranian security guards at the Iranian mission in New York have been expelled.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ADAM ERELI, STATE DEPARTMENT SPOKESMAN: This is the third time the United States has required departure of Iranian security guards for this kind of activity, which is inconsistent with their official duties. What happened in this latest incident is that two Iranian security guards from the Iranian mission to the United Nations in New York departed over the weekend at the request of the United States. They had been observed by the FBI videotaping various locations from New York deemed to be sensitive.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROTH: As for the Iranians, they deny the accusations. They say they weren't involved in any sort of espionage activity and, in fact, they condemn what the United States has done.

These guards are separate from two other pairs who were also required to leave. Their stay really only lasts four or five months, Kyra. This team now left several days ago -- back to you.

PHILLIPS: Richard Roth live from the U.N., thanks Richard.

A new development now for the detainees being held at Gitmo, more on that and the bigger legal questions still surrounding their imprisonment.

A day in the ER, it's not a new reality show but a very real look at the every day battles inside an Iraqi emergency room. That's just ahead.

And what goes down must come up, why you shouldn't get used to lower gas prices just yet.

ANNOUNCER: You're watching LIVE FROM on CNN, the most trusted name in news.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: Checking some stories from across America now. In Washington, the Child Online Pornography Act is void again. For the third time, the U.S. Supreme Court has frustrated Congress' efforts to shield minors from Internet porn.

In a 5-4 decision, the high court found the test for deciding what is indecent overly broad and vague. They ordered both sides to reconsider the issue in a lower court trial.

In Santa Ana, California, prosecutors are deciding whether to retry three teens accused of raping a 16-year-old girl. A judge declared a mistrial yesterday after jurors deadlocked on every count. One of the defendants had recorded the incident on videotape.

New legal steps at Guantanamo Bay, the Pentagon has set up a five member military tribunal to try three terrorism suspects held at the U.S. naval base. The move comes a day after the Supreme Court ruled hundreds of detainees have the right to appeal their detentions.

Our Brian Todd takes a closer look at the Gitmo factor.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Nearly 600 men, officially called enemy combatants, captured from the battlefields of Afghanistan in the war on terror, the first wave arrived at Guantanamo Bay Naval Base on January 11, 2002.

In February of this year, a top Pentagon official alluded to how lethal and well connected some of these men were.

PAUL BUTLER, DEP. ASST. DEFENSE SECY.: There's an individual who served as a bodyguard for Osama bin Laden and escorted him to Tora Bora, Afghanistan following the fall of Jalalabad.

TODD: We contacted an official at Guantanamo to see if that person is still there. He wouldn't tell us but he did say 146 detainees have been released from Guantanamo, 12 of them to continue detention in their home countries, 134 released outright.

According to the official, of those still there one section, Camp Delta, houses two types. The more dangerous live in single cells separated by mesh wiring. The more cooperative get to live in open rooms, several beds to a room, and get to play sports on occasion. All detainees have small arrows painted on the floors of their quarters pointing toward Mecca.

There is also Camp Echo, housing less than a dozen detainees, who are going before military commissions. These men have, according to a military official at Guantanamo, already been able to meet with attorneys. U.S. officials have at various times hailed the intelligence they've gotten from inside the barbed wire.

RUMSFELD: They've provided information on al Qaeda front companies and on bank accounts, on surface-to-air missiles, improvised explosive devices and tactics that are used by terrorist elements.

TODD (on camera): But one senior defense official tells CNN many detainees have said nothing or given false information. Those considered the top level al Qaeda figures in U.S. custody, like Khalid Sheikh Mohammed and Abu Zubaydah, are held by the CIA at separate undisclosed locations.

(voice-over): As for this location, these detainees are a metaphor for a place that's always been in limbo. Treated in accordance with the Geneva Convention, says the Pentagon, but not considered POWs, they inhabit a section of land that's isolated but strategically vital.

GEN. GEORGE JOULWAN, FMR. NATO SUPREME ALLIED COMMANDER: Because I think it's significant with our presence in this hemisphere and particularly in Latin America and to a degree next to a communist regime in Cuba.

TODD: Captured by U.S. forces during the Spanish-American War in 1898, the property at Guantanamo has been leased for more than a century. The Cuban government still gets $340 a month from the U.S. Navy. It's been a fortress since the U.S. cut off diplomatic relations following the rise of Fidel Castro and has been used to house large waves of Haitian and Cuban refugees. Now these men, seemingly with new legal rights, may still not leave this island within an island anytime soon.

Brian Todd, CNN, the Pentagon.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PHILLIPS: They're coming down after record highs but will gas prices continue to fall? We're checking out the pumps ahead on LIVE FROM.

RHONDA SCHAFFLER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I'm Rhonda Schaffler live from the New York Stock Exchange where interest rates are in the spotlight, while the threat of rising rates make some people nervous, some investors are very excited about it. I'll tell you why when LIVE FROM rolls on after this break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: Once again imagine this, mega anticipation for tonight's drawing of the Mega Millions lottery. Heavy ticket sales have pushed the jackpot to $220 million. The game is played in 12 states. Its top prize has gone unclaimed since May 7th rolling over 14 straight times. Here's one sobering stat though for those gripped by the Lotto fever, the odds of winning the jackpot are about one in 135 million. Good luck.

And now something completely different, I don't know if this is lucky or not. Imagine finding this in your rental car. Well, a Wisconsin motorist got a shock when this python stuck its head out between his legs. The driver was able to avoid an accident thank goodness and the snake is waiting for a new home, one preferable without four wheels.

Gasoline prices finally coming down after a record spiral but experts warn they may go up again later in the summer. Reporters in Washington heard the oil industry's take on the ebb and flow of gas prices.

CNN's Sean Callebs has details from our D.C. bureau, rev it up Sean.

SEAN CALLEBS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Revving up indeed, Kyra. For those of you interested in a little driving holiday this July 4th, a hint of good news from the American Petroleum Institute.

The organization says in a year characterized by fluctuating prices officials hope the price of gas peaked in early June at close to $2.10 a gallon and is now slowly moving south. Right now the Petroleum Institute says the average price for a gallon of gas is about $1.98.

Even though member nations of OPEC have promised to increase oil production this summer, the institute says that won't necessarily translate into lower prices at the pump.

Violence in the Middle East, unrest in other major oil-producing nations, tight gasoline markets and rapidly growing world demand, especially from China and India, are fueling uncertainty and forcing producers to keep inventory elevated. The American Petroleum Institute also says there's no conspiracy by U.S. refineries to push the price of gas up.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOHN FELMY, CHIEF ECONOMIST, AMERICAN PETROLEUM INSTITUTE: Some of our industry opponents have argued, oh, you're keeping your inventory levels down so that you can somehow increase prices. That simply is not true. We're running as hard as we can with the current refinery situation, with the current environmental regulations.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CALLEBS: The United States is the largest consumer of crude oil using an estimated 25 percent of the world's oil. An overwhelming amount of that goes into our vehicles. U.S. refineries are operating at about 96 percent capacity.

The American Petroleum Institute says oil refineries have pumped tens of millions of dollars into their facilities in recent years. The institute says rather than funding expansion or maintenance, a lion's share of that money is paying for environmental upgrades of factories -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: All right, Sean, whipping out the old skateboard, getting to work that way?

CALLEBS: Of course, a little sketching (ph) is that what it's called when you hang on the back of the car?

PHILLIPS: Exactly. There you go where you don't have to do anything at all. Sean Callebs thanks a lot.

(MARKET UPDATE)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: The political handover in Iraq isn't likely to end the cycle of violence, at least not right away. Many of those caught in the crossfire are civilians.

Anderson Cooper paid a visit to one emergency room where beds are full and supplies are critically low.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ANDERSON COOPER, CNN ANCHOR (voice-over): After a year of U.S. occupation, Dr. Jamal Taha (ph) never thought his emergency room would look like this.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is a bullet injury, yes. (UNINTELLIGIBLE)

COOPER: Gunshot wounds, traffic accidents, victims of explosions every day at Yarmouk Hospital, one of Baghdad's largest. Dr. Taha sees it all.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We see this is the bullet.

COOPER: Their x-rays are primitive, supplies short, their medical equipment nearly 30 years old.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: That's the only microscope here.

COOPER: This is the only microscope?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The only microscope here.

COOPER: The coalition authority say they've delivered 30,000 tons of pharmaceuticals and medical supplies throughout Iraq and spending on health care has increased by nearly $1 billion, but according to Dr. Taha here little of that seems to be trickling down.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Me, I respect the USA. I love the USA because they are the most developed country in the world but they do nothing for us.

COOPER: Dr. Taha may love the United States but he doesn't like the U.S. occupation though he hopes American troops remain here for a long time to come. He worries about what he's seeing in his fellow Iraqis.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The behavior of Iraqis, the behavior (UNINTELLIGIBLE). They are aggressive. You can't talk with any one of them. They are ready to fight. They are ready to kill.

COOPER: Gun toting guards and police walk the dingy halls of the hospital. The police are more trouble than they're worth, says Dr. Taha. Two weeks ago a policeman accidentally fired his gun in the emergency room.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They were fighting and joking with each other and a bullet shot here behind your place hitting the wall and injured a patient sitting here and waiting and almost to kill a doctor (UNINTELLIGIBLE).

COOPER: Wow, that was caused from one of the policemen?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: From the policemen, yes.

COOPER: You can find the problems of the new Iraq in the rundown rooms of this hospital but you can also find the possibilities. Eighteen-year-old Mustafa (ph) lies on a bed with no sheets recovering from a suicide car bomb explosion. Thirty-six Iraqis were killed in the blast, all men wanting to join the new Iraqi army.

Though a terrorist nearly killed him, he still plans to join the army. "It's an honor" he says, "a hope for the new Iraq."

Anderson Cooper CNN, Baghdad.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

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Aired June 29, 2004 - 14:00   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: Self-rule in high gear. Barely a day after taking over power from the U.S. occupation, Iraq's new government plans to take over legal custody of Saddam Hussein and 11 of Saddam's former lieutenants and lackeys. The new leaders also plan a crackdown on near constant insurgent attacks. And on that score there's no time to waste. CNN's Brent Sadler has the latest now from Baghdad.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BRENT SADLER, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The status of Iraq once-untouchable ruler is about to change. Saddam Hussein will be transferred from American to Iraqi legal custody to face charges in an open court this week, though he'll remain under U.S. lock and key.

It won't be the start of a full trial for alleged war crimes, including genocide but the first step. Iraqi authorities here say arrest warrants were issued for the ex-president and eleven of his top officials, including one of the most well known faces from the old regime, former Deputy Prime Minister Tariq Aziz.

AYAD ALLAWI, IRAQI INTERIM PRIME MINISTER (through translator): The judicial process may take some time. Justice will be done, however, and the progress of these cases will be done for all to see.

SADLER: But even as the newly-empowered government finds its feet, U.S. forces came under renewed attack in Baghdad. A roadside bomb targeted an American military convoy killing three U.S. Marines and wounding two others.

Iraqi security forces also came under attack. Police stations in Baghdad were hit by rocket and machine gun fire inflicting light casualties. The oil infrastructure was also targeted again, this time south of Baghdad where saboteurs blew up a pipeline aiming to disrupt exports of crude oil. In response, Iraqi authorities are set to impose tough new security measures to crack down on the militants.

BARHAM SALEH, DEP. IRAQI PRIME MINISTER: It will involve giving the government the ability to, for example, impose curfews and put in place the legal mechanisms by which dangerous people could be detained but we have to do all these things mindful of our moral and legal obligations towards human rights.

SADLER: On the diplomatic front, the United States has restored relations with Iraq broken after the 1990 invasion of Kuwait. The new U.S. Ambassador John Negroponte has been sent to hold the fort in the so-called Green Zone, home of the old occupation authority and the target of recent rocket attacks and car bombs.

(on camera): The interim government is expected to have a limited life of just seven months until elections but, in the meantime, the leadership will try to prove its metal by taking action to confront the insurgents with its new found power.

Brent Sadler, CNN, Baghdad.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PHILLIPS: Missing and presumed kidnapped, the Pentagon still isn't confirming the U.S. Marine who was last seen in Iraq ten days ago is a hostage threatened with death but the family of Corporal Wassef Hassoun (ph) says there's no doubt that he's the man in a video clip aired Sunday on Al-Jazeera TV. That man's captors vowed to kill him unless the U.S. frees Iraqi prisoners. Hassoun's brother spoke today in Beirut.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SAMI HASSOUN, BROTHER OF MISSING MARINE: I would like to call on all the ambassadors in the whole countries around the world and especially around Iraq. Please help us in our case with our brother. He's with the Marines. He was doing his job. We never hurt nobody in our whole life. He's a very innocent person. He was just doing his job like everybody else in his place.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: U.S. officials also can't confirm a soldier missing in Iraq since April 9th has been shot to death. That report and yet another snippet of (UNINTELLIGIBLE) video supposedly of Army Specialist Matt Maupin also come or came rather through Al-Jazeera and it's been a cruel two and a half months for the Maupin family and friends in southwest Ohio.

CNN's Keith Oppenheim is there.

KEITH OPPENHEIM, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, hi Kyra. I've just been keeping my ye on the news conference that is in the process of breaking up behind me. I just popped over there a moment ago to get a gist of what the Army spokespeople were saying. We thought it might be some very significant news.

But they're pretty much just keeping in touch with us letting us know that Matt Maupin's family has decided at this point not to look at this videotape themselves. They are allowing Defense Department experts to examine this tape.

The tape was surfacing yesterday. It was aired in part by the Al-Jazeera Arab language network which reported, they didn't air the execution but they reported that Matt Maupin was executed on this tape and getting their information from a group of militants who had claimed responsibility. The U.S. Army is saying that they do not know that Matt Maupin is the person killed on that tape. They don't even know if it is an American soldier.

In the community there has been a great deal of response and, if you go down the street from where we are, you will see the Maupin home, which is pretty much a reflection of other things you see in the community.

There are yellow ribbons around their house, all signs pointing to hopes for Matt Maupin's safe return. And many of the people we spoke to locally identified with the family's plight at this time.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Even for those of us who don't know Matt personally or the family that it's just caused a feeling of camaraderie here in the community that everybody has been supportive since he was taken hostage.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'd be scared to death just like the family. I have a 20-year-old -- 22-year-old daughter and a 20-year-old son and I think it's a shame that families got to go through this but I think at this particular time all we can do is wait and really see what comes out of this. I don't think anybody has really confirmed whether or not he is alive or dead, although it doesn't really ease the family's frustrations. I'm sure they're terrified at this particular point.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

OPPENHEIM: And in terms of the family's emotions those are some of the things that the Army spokespeople are talking to the media about right now. I don't know if you can see in the middle of that pack there that there are a couple of gentlemen wearing black berets.

They are the U.S. Army public information officers that are acting as liaisons between the media, which is parked at Matt Maupin's old elementary school and just about a quarter mile down the road is their home. Police are protecting the Maupin family. They don't want to talk to the media right now and the community in general is being pretty protective of them as well -- Kyra, back to you.

PHILLIPS: All right, Keith Oppenheim we'll check back in with you once we find out what the Army has to say there. Thank you so much.

And it might be easier to hunt down these militants if they were all members of the same terrorist group. Unfortunately, though, that doesn't appear to be the case.

CNN's Kathleen Koch has been looking into that.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

KATHLEEN KOCH, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The kidnappers of a young man in Marine fatigues, whose family identifies him as Corporal Wassef Ali Hassoun, call themselves the Islamic Response.

KEN POLLACK, CNN ANALYST: This is the first time that I have heard of this group and I think that this is a pattern that we're seeing in Iraq. There are any number of tiny little groups of people who are coming together for particular operations. The only thing that they seem to have in common is they hate Americans and they have a desire to harm as many as they possibly can.

KOCH: It's not clear whether or not the group is linked to Abu Musab al-Zarqawi. American Nicholas Berg and South Korean Kim Sun-Il were beheaded in killings blamed on a group led by the Islamic militant leader.

Since April, more than 40 people have been abducted in Iraq by insurgents. U.S. officials believe they represent different groups with varying ideologies, some foreign fighters but not all. The question now will the turn over of power impact their activities?

DONALD RUMSFELD, DEFENSE SECRETARY: How it's going to affect the counter insurgency, that is to say the efforts to stop the terrorists from conducting the killing and beheadings and activity they're engaged in, I personally don't -- can't say that I can answer the question with certainty.

KOCH (on camera): But for the immediate future, the expectation is more kidnappings from more shadowy groups all bent on destabilizing the new government and driving foreigners from Iraq.

Kathleen Koch, CNN, the Pentagon.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PHILLIPS: First war and then expelled, two security guards at the Iranian mission to the U.N. have been kicked out of the U.S. They were caught videotaping transportation systems in New York, something outside the scope of their duties.

Our Richard Roth is tracking down the details for us at the United Nations -- Richard.

RICHARD ROTH, CNN SR. UNITED NATIONS CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Kyra. U.S. officials say what the Iranians are doing are incompatible with their status, code word for spying or espionage.

They were seen by the U.S., according to the U.S., taking pictures, photographs of New York City landmarks, such as tunnels, subway stations and the like, specific locations not revealed yet. The State Department spokesman announced that the two Iranian security guards at the Iranian mission in New York have been expelled.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ADAM ERELI, STATE DEPARTMENT SPOKESMAN: This is the third time the United States has required departure of Iranian security guards for this kind of activity, which is inconsistent with their official duties. What happened in this latest incident is that two Iranian security guards from the Iranian mission to the United Nations in New York departed over the weekend at the request of the United States. They had been observed by the FBI videotaping various locations from New York deemed to be sensitive.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROTH: As for the Iranians, they deny the accusations. They say they weren't involved in any sort of espionage activity and, in fact, they condemn what the United States has done.

These guards are separate from two other pairs who were also required to leave. Their stay really only lasts four or five months, Kyra. This team now left several days ago -- back to you.

PHILLIPS: Richard Roth live from the U.N., thanks Richard.

A new development now for the detainees being held at Gitmo, more on that and the bigger legal questions still surrounding their imprisonment.

A day in the ER, it's not a new reality show but a very real look at the every day battles inside an Iraqi emergency room. That's just ahead.

And what goes down must come up, why you shouldn't get used to lower gas prices just yet.

ANNOUNCER: You're watching LIVE FROM on CNN, the most trusted name in news.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: Checking some stories from across America now. In Washington, the Child Online Pornography Act is void again. For the third time, the U.S. Supreme Court has frustrated Congress' efforts to shield minors from Internet porn.

In a 5-4 decision, the high court found the test for deciding what is indecent overly broad and vague. They ordered both sides to reconsider the issue in a lower court trial.

In Santa Ana, California, prosecutors are deciding whether to retry three teens accused of raping a 16-year-old girl. A judge declared a mistrial yesterday after jurors deadlocked on every count. One of the defendants had recorded the incident on videotape.

New legal steps at Guantanamo Bay, the Pentagon has set up a five member military tribunal to try three terrorism suspects held at the U.S. naval base. The move comes a day after the Supreme Court ruled hundreds of detainees have the right to appeal their detentions.

Our Brian Todd takes a closer look at the Gitmo factor.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Nearly 600 men, officially called enemy combatants, captured from the battlefields of Afghanistan in the war on terror, the first wave arrived at Guantanamo Bay Naval Base on January 11, 2002.

In February of this year, a top Pentagon official alluded to how lethal and well connected some of these men were.

PAUL BUTLER, DEP. ASST. DEFENSE SECY.: There's an individual who served as a bodyguard for Osama bin Laden and escorted him to Tora Bora, Afghanistan following the fall of Jalalabad.

TODD: We contacted an official at Guantanamo to see if that person is still there. He wouldn't tell us but he did say 146 detainees have been released from Guantanamo, 12 of them to continue detention in their home countries, 134 released outright.

According to the official, of those still there one section, Camp Delta, houses two types. The more dangerous live in single cells separated by mesh wiring. The more cooperative get to live in open rooms, several beds to a room, and get to play sports on occasion. All detainees have small arrows painted on the floors of their quarters pointing toward Mecca.

There is also Camp Echo, housing less than a dozen detainees, who are going before military commissions. These men have, according to a military official at Guantanamo, already been able to meet with attorneys. U.S. officials have at various times hailed the intelligence they've gotten from inside the barbed wire.

RUMSFELD: They've provided information on al Qaeda front companies and on bank accounts, on surface-to-air missiles, improvised explosive devices and tactics that are used by terrorist elements.

TODD (on camera): But one senior defense official tells CNN many detainees have said nothing or given false information. Those considered the top level al Qaeda figures in U.S. custody, like Khalid Sheikh Mohammed and Abu Zubaydah, are held by the CIA at separate undisclosed locations.

(voice-over): As for this location, these detainees are a metaphor for a place that's always been in limbo. Treated in accordance with the Geneva Convention, says the Pentagon, but not considered POWs, they inhabit a section of land that's isolated but strategically vital.

GEN. GEORGE JOULWAN, FMR. NATO SUPREME ALLIED COMMANDER: Because I think it's significant with our presence in this hemisphere and particularly in Latin America and to a degree next to a communist regime in Cuba.

TODD: Captured by U.S. forces during the Spanish-American War in 1898, the property at Guantanamo has been leased for more than a century. The Cuban government still gets $340 a month from the U.S. Navy. It's been a fortress since the U.S. cut off diplomatic relations following the rise of Fidel Castro and has been used to house large waves of Haitian and Cuban refugees. Now these men, seemingly with new legal rights, may still not leave this island within an island anytime soon.

Brian Todd, CNN, the Pentagon.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PHILLIPS: They're coming down after record highs but will gas prices continue to fall? We're checking out the pumps ahead on LIVE FROM.

RHONDA SCHAFFLER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I'm Rhonda Schaffler live from the New York Stock Exchange where interest rates are in the spotlight, while the threat of rising rates make some people nervous, some investors are very excited about it. I'll tell you why when LIVE FROM rolls on after this break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: Once again imagine this, mega anticipation for tonight's drawing of the Mega Millions lottery. Heavy ticket sales have pushed the jackpot to $220 million. The game is played in 12 states. Its top prize has gone unclaimed since May 7th rolling over 14 straight times. Here's one sobering stat though for those gripped by the Lotto fever, the odds of winning the jackpot are about one in 135 million. Good luck.

And now something completely different, I don't know if this is lucky or not. Imagine finding this in your rental car. Well, a Wisconsin motorist got a shock when this python stuck its head out between his legs. The driver was able to avoid an accident thank goodness and the snake is waiting for a new home, one preferable without four wheels.

Gasoline prices finally coming down after a record spiral but experts warn they may go up again later in the summer. Reporters in Washington heard the oil industry's take on the ebb and flow of gas prices.

CNN's Sean Callebs has details from our D.C. bureau, rev it up Sean.

SEAN CALLEBS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Revving up indeed, Kyra. For those of you interested in a little driving holiday this July 4th, a hint of good news from the American Petroleum Institute.

The organization says in a year characterized by fluctuating prices officials hope the price of gas peaked in early June at close to $2.10 a gallon and is now slowly moving south. Right now the Petroleum Institute says the average price for a gallon of gas is about $1.98.

Even though member nations of OPEC have promised to increase oil production this summer, the institute says that won't necessarily translate into lower prices at the pump.

Violence in the Middle East, unrest in other major oil-producing nations, tight gasoline markets and rapidly growing world demand, especially from China and India, are fueling uncertainty and forcing producers to keep inventory elevated. The American Petroleum Institute also says there's no conspiracy by U.S. refineries to push the price of gas up.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOHN FELMY, CHIEF ECONOMIST, AMERICAN PETROLEUM INSTITUTE: Some of our industry opponents have argued, oh, you're keeping your inventory levels down so that you can somehow increase prices. That simply is not true. We're running as hard as we can with the current refinery situation, with the current environmental regulations.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CALLEBS: The United States is the largest consumer of crude oil using an estimated 25 percent of the world's oil. An overwhelming amount of that goes into our vehicles. U.S. refineries are operating at about 96 percent capacity.

The American Petroleum Institute says oil refineries have pumped tens of millions of dollars into their facilities in recent years. The institute says rather than funding expansion or maintenance, a lion's share of that money is paying for environmental upgrades of factories -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: All right, Sean, whipping out the old skateboard, getting to work that way?

CALLEBS: Of course, a little sketching (ph) is that what it's called when you hang on the back of the car?

PHILLIPS: Exactly. There you go where you don't have to do anything at all. Sean Callebs thanks a lot.

(MARKET UPDATE)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: The political handover in Iraq isn't likely to end the cycle of violence, at least not right away. Many of those caught in the crossfire are civilians.

Anderson Cooper paid a visit to one emergency room where beds are full and supplies are critically low.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ANDERSON COOPER, CNN ANCHOR (voice-over): After a year of U.S. occupation, Dr. Jamal Taha (ph) never thought his emergency room would look like this.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is a bullet injury, yes. (UNINTELLIGIBLE)

COOPER: Gunshot wounds, traffic accidents, victims of explosions every day at Yarmouk Hospital, one of Baghdad's largest. Dr. Taha sees it all.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We see this is the bullet.

COOPER: Their x-rays are primitive, supplies short, their medical equipment nearly 30 years old.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: That's the only microscope here.

COOPER: This is the only microscope?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The only microscope here.

COOPER: The coalition authority say they've delivered 30,000 tons of pharmaceuticals and medical supplies throughout Iraq and spending on health care has increased by nearly $1 billion, but according to Dr. Taha here little of that seems to be trickling down.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Me, I respect the USA. I love the USA because they are the most developed country in the world but they do nothing for us.

COOPER: Dr. Taha may love the United States but he doesn't like the U.S. occupation though he hopes American troops remain here for a long time to come. He worries about what he's seeing in his fellow Iraqis.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The behavior of Iraqis, the behavior (UNINTELLIGIBLE). They are aggressive. You can't talk with any one of them. They are ready to fight. They are ready to kill.

COOPER: Gun toting guards and police walk the dingy halls of the hospital. The police are more trouble than they're worth, says Dr. Taha. Two weeks ago a policeman accidentally fired his gun in the emergency room.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They were fighting and joking with each other and a bullet shot here behind your place hitting the wall and injured a patient sitting here and waiting and almost to kill a doctor (UNINTELLIGIBLE).

COOPER: Wow, that was caused from one of the policemen?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: From the policemen, yes.

COOPER: You can find the problems of the new Iraq in the rundown rooms of this hospital but you can also find the possibilities. Eighteen-year-old Mustafa (ph) lies on a bed with no sheets recovering from a suicide car bomb explosion. Thirty-six Iraqis were killed in the blast, all men wanting to join the new Iraqi army.

Though a terrorist nearly killed him, he still plans to join the army. "It's an honor" he says, "a hope for the new Iraq."

Anderson Cooper CNN, Baghdad.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

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