Return to Transcripts main page

Live From...

USS Ronald Reagan Heads Home; Security Ratcheting Up in Boston; Kerry Returns to Birthplace; Tapes Reveal Truth Behind 9/11 Flight; U.S. Bombs Suspected Terror House

Aired July 23, 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.


KYRA PHILLIPS, ANCHOR: We'll begin this hour with a larger than life legacy. A nuclear powered namesake home porting for the first time. It's USS Ronald Reagan, and it's steaming into San Diego Bay with the late president's widow among the VIPs on board.
That list also includes CNN's Miguel Marquez. He joins us now ship to shore by phone. What a great shot, hey, Miguel.

MIGUEL MARQUEZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: This is the most fantastic day. And you know, we're doing this, but every single sailor who's walking up there who has family down there doing the exact same thing saying, "Can you see me? I'm up here waving papers" or something.

The USS Ronald Reagan, home porting after a few months at sea from Newport, Virginia. It was built in Newport News. Nancy Reagan is on board. She flew in a short time ago.

This is the ninth aircraft, Nimitz class aircraft carrier for the United States Navy. There is one more being built, and that will be it.

The changes to this aircraft carrier are significant according to the skipper. The commander of this ship says that the island that we are on right now is somewhat bigger. It allows for a better view of both directions of the flight deck so they have -- they can run operations.

One of the biggest changes on it though, is that they can both land planes or capture planes and take off at the -- at the exact same time, which is something new for these aircraft carriers.

It is going to be here in San Diego for a few months. Talking to the sailors overnight the last couple of days here, or the last couple of days here, a lot of them have just moved here to San Diego. So they are starting brand new on this side of the coast. A lot of these guys are from the East Coast.

And a lot of excited people on this ship to -- to see their families that are here and to start new lives in San Diego. The C.O., commanding officer of the ship telling me that a ship like this coming into San Diego will mean over the months it's here probably hundreds of millions to the economy here in San Diego. But right now, it's a lot of happy people and a very, very big celebration -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: Miguel, you've talked about some of the differences between USS Ronald Reagan and other Nimitz class carriers. You mentioned some of the systems there. What about when will this ship get its first air wing? When are we going to start seeing workups, crews and jets launching off the deck?

MIGUEL: Yes, we saw actually several F-18s yesterday take off from the 14th Air -- the 14th Air Wing. They believe that the 11th may be the air wing that's assigned to this ship eventually. It's not entirely clear yet. They're still working all the logistics out because of the situation in Iraq.

And everything is sort of a moving parts right now in the U.S. military. They still don't have a permanent air wing assigned, but they expect that that will be fairly soon -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: All right. Miguel Marquez aboard USS Ronald Reagan, just another tool, another carrier that's going to take part in the war on terrorism. Thanks, Miguel.

MILES O'BRIEN, ANCHOR: Moving from coast to coast now making waves in Boston this hour, FBI warnings of potential violence at next week's Democratic convention with particular, though unconfirmed, threats to the media.

CNN's Bob Franken outside the FleetCenter with the latest on that.

Hello, Bob.

O'BRIEN: Well, it won't be the first time somebody's been mad at us, Miles, but yes, we have to underline the fact that they are unconfirmed, uncorroborated, to use another word that is contained in the advisory, but considered credible threats that some domestic groups, not international, might be planning some sort of incendiary bomb attack.

By which I mean something like a Molotov cocktail against the media trailer camp or some other semblance of media presence that is here in Boston.

There's certainly a heavy media presence, but probably the largest presence here right now is the security presence, visible and invisible. The place is just really hunkered down. The highway in back of me, 93 which is the main artery now into the city.

Well around the convention, that is to say the hours before, during, and after the convention, it will be shut down. The noise of the siren that you're hearing right now, which is about to obliterate everything we're saying, well, you're going to hear a lot of that as people move here, trying to prevent trouble.

And all this, of course, the accumulation of concerns that there's going to be some sort of terrorist attack between now and the election and that this will be a highly visible attempt, as would be the New York convention next month.

So the security is going to mean that the place is shut down. It's going to mean heavy security. Demonstrators are being seriously inhibited, and where they can do their protesting, media are going to be challenged. The delegates are going to be challenged.

Of course, for the Democrats, the hope is that there's nothing outside which obscures what goes on inside the convention, which is the Democrats getting their national ticket out and running for the election this November -- Miles.

O'BRIEN: Bob, we've been talking so much about all the security there and some stories about how maybe it's over the top. In this case, with this added threat, is there anything they can do to ratchet up security from what it already is?

FRANKEN: Well, the security people can always find ways to do that, and one of the things about security is that those who are not involved always do feel like it's over the top.

But let us put this added threat in perspective. It is not, by any means, the most major thing that they're dealing with here. It is just officials saying that one of the things that they've heard is that somebody may decide to make an attack on the media in a way of making a statement.

But quite frankly, it is someone of the smaller fish that they're going to fry here with some huge, huge concerns they have. That's just one that's added to the list.

O'BRIEN: Bob Franken, right in front of the FleetCenter. Thank you very much.

The soon to be Democratic nominee back where it all began today, for him anyway, Fitzsimmons Army Hospital, Aurora, Colorado. It's a labor of, well, politics, leading up to a triumphant entrance in the candidate's adopted hometown next week.

CNN's Elaine Quijano is standing by in Denver on the campaign trail.

Hello, Elaine.

ELAINE QUIJANO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi there, miles. Good afternoon.

Yes, where it all began, Senator John Kerry's birthplace, as you mentioned, in nearby Aurora, Colorado. The Denver area set to be here, the first stop kicking off a multi-state pre-convention push. The goal? To introduce senator John Kerry to the American people.

Now preparations here began early this morning outside the Fillmore Auditorium. This kickoff rally, by the way, is expected to draw several thousand people, many of whom are lined up already.

Aides say that Senator Kerry will emphasize the idea of service and will propose a multimillion-dollar grant program to encourage people to start new service initiatives. Also, the backdrop meant to tie into Kerry's own service in the country. He was born at an Army hospital outside of Denver, as we said, which he will tour later today. His father served as a military pilot.

But the senator's own military service will be in the spotlight. His running mate, John Edwards, is expected to focus on John Kerry's service during the Vietnam War, his actions there resulting in three Purple Hearts, as well as a bronze and silver star.

Now, today's appearance is expected to last about an hour here in Denver. We are told that both senators' families will be on hand for the event. And then the two senators will part ways and go in different directions. Senator Kerry going onto the state of Iowa and Senator Edwards moving onto a fund-raiser in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, later tonight.

We should also mention, we understand that both senators will actually be participating in television satellite interviews with local TV stations, and we are told that they will be in states in the Midwest that the senators plan to visit both going into and coming out of the convention -- Miles.

O'BRIEN: CNN's Elaine Quijano in Denver, thanks -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: "Shall we put it down?" Long after the quote "Let's roll" was burned into the nation's mind and heart, more quotes today from the final moments of United Flight 93. These primarily from the hijackers, and they've put to rest much it not all of the mystery that lingered long after September 11, 2001.

The information comes from the final report of the 9/11 Commission. CNN's David Mattingly joins us now with the details and the drama. It's pretty chilling when you listen to what the hijackers said.

DAVID MATTINGLY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's right, Kyra.

We've known for sometime now what Flight 93 was actually doing in the air that day when the hijackers took control of the flight over Eastern Ohio and turned it around, headed back toward Washington, D.C.

What the 9/11 Commission report does for us is provide some clarity on who was in control of the plane when it crashed outside Shanksville, Pennsylvania. And we're able to understand this through a series of recorded comments from the hijackers themselves.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: United 93.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (UNINTELLIGIBLE) unreasonable. It sounded like someone said they have a bomb on board.

MATTINGLY (voice-over): Over the skies of western Pennsylvania just minutes away from a violent end at the abandoned strip mine outside Shanksville Pennsylvania...

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We can hear that yelling, too.

MATTINGLY: ... the sounds of what the 9/11 Commission report describes "as a sustained assault can be heard from inside the cockpit as Flight 93 passengers fought back against their hijackers."

At the controls, Ziad Jarrah tried to throw the passengers off balance by pitching the plane to the left and right, then up and down. But to no avail.

Eight seconds after 10 a.m., Jarrah could be heard saying, "Is that it? Shall we finish it off?"

Another hijacker replied, "No, not yet. When they all come, we finish it off."

Eighteen seconds later, a passenger said, "In the cockpit. If we don't, we'll die!

Sixteen seconds later, a passenger yelled, "Roll it." The passengers possibly trying to use a beverage cart to ram their way into the cockpit.

About 30 seconds later, Jarrah, still at the controls says, "Allah is the greatest. Allah is the greatest," and he asks another hijacker, "Is that it? I mean, shall we put it down."

The other replied yes, "Put it in it and pull it down."

The passengers continued their assault for the next minute and 23 seconds. A hijacker shouts, "Pull it down; pull it down!" As the plane went into a dive, the hijacker again shouts, "Allah is the greatest. Allah is the greatest."

(END VIDEOTAPE)

MATTINGLY: After those words, the 9/11 Commission report says you could still hear the sounds of passengers fighting back and concludes they must have been close to gaining entry to the cockpit. That's why the hijackers crashed the plane.

The report, however, stops short, Kyra, of actually saying whether or not the hijackers actually made it into the cockpit. Family members I've talked to are today a little puzzled by that. They say they have listened to these tapes, and they fully believe that their loved ones made it inside that cockpit and were struggling with the hijackers.

PHILLIPS: Well, let's talk about -- You talked with family members today. We've talked a lot about the phrase, "Let's roll." I remember it on the jets during Operation Iraqi Freedom, and President Bush used it as a rallying cry.

Now, there was some misinterpretation between the "Roll it," using the cart as a battering ram. That was caught on tape. But Todd Beamer did say, "Let's roll."

MATTINGLY: This was according to a supervisor, a Verizon supervisor, who was listening to that last phone conversation that Todd Beamer was having. He said -- he said, "Are you guys ready? Let's roll."

It was at that point that the passenger revolt was believed to have started. If you look at the timeline, the revolt started at 9:57. That line you heard during the flight of "roll it" actually occurred about four minutes later.

And again, that term "roll it" during the fight is possibly when the passengers decided to start using one of those heavy, heavy beverage carts to try and smash their way through that door.

PHILLIPS: It's just amazing how the passengers responded.

Now, also the pilot knew something was up that was flying that plane, right, because something came across, a text message came across his computer that said, "Two planes just went into the World Trade Center. Something's up."

MATTINGLY: Yes. We've known for awhile that the pilot was alerted to be aware of any sort of cockpit intrusion, that something was going on across the country. The pilot was aware of this, and he actually radioed back to get some clarification on that.

But a short time after that, that's when the worst happened and there was an intrusion into that cockpit.

MATTINGLY: You were there when it happened. You covered it; you had this relationship with a number of the family members. So you talked to them today.

When they read this article, when they heard these quotes, how did it -- how did it move them emotionally? Did it make things worse? Did it make them feel better in any way? Give them -- How did it affect them?

MATTINGLY: Well, again, they're a little bit puzzled. They listened to these tapes, and they were very sure that their loved ones breached the cockpit, were actually struggling with those hijackers at the end.

The commission report makes no mention of this, and so again, they're a little puzzled by this and perhaps a little bit hurt, if you want to get into the emotions of it.

PHILLIPS: Sure. Well, those passengers were heroes either way you look at it.

MATTINGLY: That is one thing that no one is arguing about. In fact, the commission clearly says that the actions of these passengers brought this plane down, and it was their actions that prevented it from reaching Washington, D.C.

PHILLIPS: David Mattingly, thanks so much.

O'BRIEN: News from around the world now.

Speeding towards disaster. Turkey's transportation minister is telling CNN a high-speed train was going too fast yesterday, and that caused it to crash. Thirty-six killed, the government still investigating.

Terror suspect in court. An extradition hearing in London begins for a radical Muslim cleric. The U.S. says Abu Hamza al-Masri worked to set up a terrorist training camp in Oregon and took part in a deadly kidnapping in Yemen. The hearing was put on hold to give the defense more time.

And it's being called a new era in the history of Bosnia- Herzegovina. Britain's Prince Charles among those celebrating the opening of the rebuilt Old Bridge in Mostar. For centuries that bridge was a symbol of the city's ethnic diversity until it was blasted to bits during the civil war 11 years ago.

PHILLIPS: Suicide bombers, soldiers firing at boys, throwing rocks. The Mideast tragedy transformed into television comedy. A lot of viewers are laughing. That's ahead.

Plus a virtual tie. New polls giving both the Bush and Kerry ramps reasons to ramp up their campaigns.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I quit the cigarettes and the pina coladas. So that -- and I'm to the point of age-wise that the women ain't looking that bright anymore anyway, so $4.5 million is not that important to me.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: And no deal. One man's fight to hold onto his little piece of the Everglades.

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

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(WEATHER REPORT)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MICHAEL HOLMES, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): ... to Abu al- Zarqawi, the Jordanian so wanted that he's got a $25 million reward on his head. Now according to multinational forces, the U.S. aircraft dropped this bomb in the courtyard of a house, the damage plain to see. Military not saying whether the attack caused casualties. However, hospital officials are being quoted as saying that five civilians, two adults, three children, were wounded in that attack.

Also, now in Baghdad, an IED or roadside bomb, a bizarre situation. Local residents said they it being planted in the overnight hours, told the police, who then set up roadblocks to keep the area safe.

However, during the early daylight hours, a bus driver drove around the police roadblock and into the area where the bomb was located. It detonated, killing the driver and a 5-year-old girl who was a passenger on the bus.

There was another tragedy in Baghdad today, too. This time, a bizarre traffic accident. U.S. authorities are saying that a minivan passing another vehicle on the road went to the wrong side of the road and collided head-on with a U.S. tank. Nine Iraqi civilians were killed. Ten others were wounded.

Michael Holmes, CNN, Baghdad.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PHILLIPS: Now to another troubled region. There is little to laugh about in the Middle East, but Israelis are finding a way. They're getting some big comic relief on the small screen.

CNN's Alessio Vinci takes a look.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ALESSIO VINCI, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): An Israeli air force helicopter aims its gun at Hamas headquarters in Gaza. Moments before firing a missile, the pilot's cell phone rings.

Distracted, he strikes a Palestinian orphanage instead. As he hangs up the phone, he groans, "Not again."

Gags like this one are a fixture on Israeli television, part of a flourishing industry of satire shows that target just about everything: the conflict with the Palestinians, politics and a troubled economy.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We're trying to show a kind of reflection on the reality in Israel. We're trying to show that the reality here is full of absurd. We see it in a very comic way.

VINCI: Reality may be absurd in Israel, but it is far from being funny. Yet comedians see an opportunity to give growing audiences an alternative look at conflict that has gone on for so long it, it has numbed the public's consciousness.

YAIR NITZANI, COMEDIAN, "BEHIND THE NEWS": Israelis are so -- so tired already, I think, from everything that no news can make them depressed. VINCI: The shows don't take sides. They target both Israelis and Arabs, politicians on the left and right.

NITZANI: We deal with everything. I mean, we don't -- there's no taboos. The only taboo that we have is, you know, maybe the Holocaust.

VINCI: On a recent program a Palestinian couple visits the house a Jewish settler is supposed to evacuate as part of Ariel Sharon's withdrawal plan from Gaza.

She first welcomes them with a machine gun, then suddenly changes her tone, showing them the apartment's features. "We will leave nothing for you here," she promises.

Puzzled, the Palestinian couple wonders where the real estate agent is. An oversized version of Prime Minute Sharon walks in.

Tired and perhaps frustrated after years of conflict, the shows give many here a much-needed laugh.

SIMON SCHECHTER, STUDENT: You have to laugh because if you won't laugh, how will you -- how will you keep on going? As long as we can laugh, we can keep on.

VINCI: Alessio Vinci, CNN, Jerusalem.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

O'BRIEN: The husband of the missing Utah woman is confronted by his father about her disappearance. We'll have a live report and bring you up to date on that story.

Plus, we all know it feels better than a suit and tie, but is casual Friday actually good for your health? Dr. Sanjay Gupta rolls up his sleeves, takes off his tie and reports.

And you look like heaven on a bicycle built for seven? Wonder if Lance Armstrong has ever tried one of these. He could put his entire U.S. postal service team on it. We'll give it a test drive a little later.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

Can John Kerry belt a homer in Boston? At 3:30, "INSIDE POLITICS" is live from Fenway Park. We'll take a closer look at sports and politics.

Plus, a look at last-minute convention preparations and security. Stay with CNN.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

O'BRIEN: Let's check some business news. There's a carmaker who's trying to make an effort to make SUVs a little safer, less likely to roll over. Darby Mullany is live on the New York Stock Exchange with that and more.

Hello, Darby.

(STOCK REPORT)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

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 July 23, 2004 - 13:00   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
KYRA PHILLIPS, ANCHOR: We'll begin this hour with a larger than life legacy. A nuclear powered namesake home porting for the first time. It's USS Ronald Reagan, and it's steaming into San Diego Bay with the late president's widow among the VIPs on board.
That list also includes CNN's Miguel Marquez. He joins us now ship to shore by phone. What a great shot, hey, Miguel.

MIGUEL MARQUEZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: This is the most fantastic day. And you know, we're doing this, but every single sailor who's walking up there who has family down there doing the exact same thing saying, "Can you see me? I'm up here waving papers" or something.

The USS Ronald Reagan, home porting after a few months at sea from Newport, Virginia. It was built in Newport News. Nancy Reagan is on board. She flew in a short time ago.

This is the ninth aircraft, Nimitz class aircraft carrier for the United States Navy. There is one more being built, and that will be it.

The changes to this aircraft carrier are significant according to the skipper. The commander of this ship says that the island that we are on right now is somewhat bigger. It allows for a better view of both directions of the flight deck so they have -- they can run operations.

One of the biggest changes on it though, is that they can both land planes or capture planes and take off at the -- at the exact same time, which is something new for these aircraft carriers.

It is going to be here in San Diego for a few months. Talking to the sailors overnight the last couple of days here, or the last couple of days here, a lot of them have just moved here to San Diego. So they are starting brand new on this side of the coast. A lot of these guys are from the East Coast.

And a lot of excited people on this ship to -- to see their families that are here and to start new lives in San Diego. The C.O., commanding officer of the ship telling me that a ship like this coming into San Diego will mean over the months it's here probably hundreds of millions to the economy here in San Diego. But right now, it's a lot of happy people and a very, very big celebration -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: Miguel, you've talked about some of the differences between USS Ronald Reagan and other Nimitz class carriers. You mentioned some of the systems there. What about when will this ship get its first air wing? When are we going to start seeing workups, crews and jets launching off the deck?

MIGUEL: Yes, we saw actually several F-18s yesterday take off from the 14th Air -- the 14th Air Wing. They believe that the 11th may be the air wing that's assigned to this ship eventually. It's not entirely clear yet. They're still working all the logistics out because of the situation in Iraq.

And everything is sort of a moving parts right now in the U.S. military. They still don't have a permanent air wing assigned, but they expect that that will be fairly soon -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: All right. Miguel Marquez aboard USS Ronald Reagan, just another tool, another carrier that's going to take part in the war on terrorism. Thanks, Miguel.

MILES O'BRIEN, ANCHOR: Moving from coast to coast now making waves in Boston this hour, FBI warnings of potential violence at next week's Democratic convention with particular, though unconfirmed, threats to the media.

CNN's Bob Franken outside the FleetCenter with the latest on that.

Hello, Bob.

O'BRIEN: Well, it won't be the first time somebody's been mad at us, Miles, but yes, we have to underline the fact that they are unconfirmed, uncorroborated, to use another word that is contained in the advisory, but considered credible threats that some domestic groups, not international, might be planning some sort of incendiary bomb attack.

By which I mean something like a Molotov cocktail against the media trailer camp or some other semblance of media presence that is here in Boston.

There's certainly a heavy media presence, but probably the largest presence here right now is the security presence, visible and invisible. The place is just really hunkered down. The highway in back of me, 93 which is the main artery now into the city.

Well around the convention, that is to say the hours before, during, and after the convention, it will be shut down. The noise of the siren that you're hearing right now, which is about to obliterate everything we're saying, well, you're going to hear a lot of that as people move here, trying to prevent trouble.

And all this, of course, the accumulation of concerns that there's going to be some sort of terrorist attack between now and the election and that this will be a highly visible attempt, as would be the New York convention next month.

So the security is going to mean that the place is shut down. It's going to mean heavy security. Demonstrators are being seriously inhibited, and where they can do their protesting, media are going to be challenged. The delegates are going to be challenged.

Of course, for the Democrats, the hope is that there's nothing outside which obscures what goes on inside the convention, which is the Democrats getting their national ticket out and running for the election this November -- Miles.

O'BRIEN: Bob, we've been talking so much about all the security there and some stories about how maybe it's over the top. In this case, with this added threat, is there anything they can do to ratchet up security from what it already is?

FRANKEN: Well, the security people can always find ways to do that, and one of the things about security is that those who are not involved always do feel like it's over the top.

But let us put this added threat in perspective. It is not, by any means, the most major thing that they're dealing with here. It is just officials saying that one of the things that they've heard is that somebody may decide to make an attack on the media in a way of making a statement.

But quite frankly, it is someone of the smaller fish that they're going to fry here with some huge, huge concerns they have. That's just one that's added to the list.

O'BRIEN: Bob Franken, right in front of the FleetCenter. Thank you very much.

The soon to be Democratic nominee back where it all began today, for him anyway, Fitzsimmons Army Hospital, Aurora, Colorado. It's a labor of, well, politics, leading up to a triumphant entrance in the candidate's adopted hometown next week.

CNN's Elaine Quijano is standing by in Denver on the campaign trail.

Hello, Elaine.

ELAINE QUIJANO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi there, miles. Good afternoon.

Yes, where it all began, Senator John Kerry's birthplace, as you mentioned, in nearby Aurora, Colorado. The Denver area set to be here, the first stop kicking off a multi-state pre-convention push. The goal? To introduce senator John Kerry to the American people.

Now preparations here began early this morning outside the Fillmore Auditorium. This kickoff rally, by the way, is expected to draw several thousand people, many of whom are lined up already.

Aides say that Senator Kerry will emphasize the idea of service and will propose a multimillion-dollar grant program to encourage people to start new service initiatives. Also, the backdrop meant to tie into Kerry's own service in the country. He was born at an Army hospital outside of Denver, as we said, which he will tour later today. His father served as a military pilot.

But the senator's own military service will be in the spotlight. His running mate, John Edwards, is expected to focus on John Kerry's service during the Vietnam War, his actions there resulting in three Purple Hearts, as well as a bronze and silver star.

Now, today's appearance is expected to last about an hour here in Denver. We are told that both senators' families will be on hand for the event. And then the two senators will part ways and go in different directions. Senator Kerry going onto the state of Iowa and Senator Edwards moving onto a fund-raiser in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, later tonight.

We should also mention, we understand that both senators will actually be participating in television satellite interviews with local TV stations, and we are told that they will be in states in the Midwest that the senators plan to visit both going into and coming out of the convention -- Miles.

O'BRIEN: CNN's Elaine Quijano in Denver, thanks -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: "Shall we put it down?" Long after the quote "Let's roll" was burned into the nation's mind and heart, more quotes today from the final moments of United Flight 93. These primarily from the hijackers, and they've put to rest much it not all of the mystery that lingered long after September 11, 2001.

The information comes from the final report of the 9/11 Commission. CNN's David Mattingly joins us now with the details and the drama. It's pretty chilling when you listen to what the hijackers said.

DAVID MATTINGLY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's right, Kyra.

We've known for sometime now what Flight 93 was actually doing in the air that day when the hijackers took control of the flight over Eastern Ohio and turned it around, headed back toward Washington, D.C.

What the 9/11 Commission report does for us is provide some clarity on who was in control of the plane when it crashed outside Shanksville, Pennsylvania. And we're able to understand this through a series of recorded comments from the hijackers themselves.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: United 93.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (UNINTELLIGIBLE) unreasonable. It sounded like someone said they have a bomb on board.

MATTINGLY (voice-over): Over the skies of western Pennsylvania just minutes away from a violent end at the abandoned strip mine outside Shanksville Pennsylvania...

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We can hear that yelling, too.

MATTINGLY: ... the sounds of what the 9/11 Commission report describes "as a sustained assault can be heard from inside the cockpit as Flight 93 passengers fought back against their hijackers."

At the controls, Ziad Jarrah tried to throw the passengers off balance by pitching the plane to the left and right, then up and down. But to no avail.

Eight seconds after 10 a.m., Jarrah could be heard saying, "Is that it? Shall we finish it off?"

Another hijacker replied, "No, not yet. When they all come, we finish it off."

Eighteen seconds later, a passenger said, "In the cockpit. If we don't, we'll die!

Sixteen seconds later, a passenger yelled, "Roll it." The passengers possibly trying to use a beverage cart to ram their way into the cockpit.

About 30 seconds later, Jarrah, still at the controls says, "Allah is the greatest. Allah is the greatest," and he asks another hijacker, "Is that it? I mean, shall we put it down."

The other replied yes, "Put it in it and pull it down."

The passengers continued their assault for the next minute and 23 seconds. A hijacker shouts, "Pull it down; pull it down!" As the plane went into a dive, the hijacker again shouts, "Allah is the greatest. Allah is the greatest."

(END VIDEOTAPE)

MATTINGLY: After those words, the 9/11 Commission report says you could still hear the sounds of passengers fighting back and concludes they must have been close to gaining entry to the cockpit. That's why the hijackers crashed the plane.

The report, however, stops short, Kyra, of actually saying whether or not the hijackers actually made it into the cockpit. Family members I've talked to are today a little puzzled by that. They say they have listened to these tapes, and they fully believe that their loved ones made it inside that cockpit and were struggling with the hijackers.

PHILLIPS: Well, let's talk about -- You talked with family members today. We've talked a lot about the phrase, "Let's roll." I remember it on the jets during Operation Iraqi Freedom, and President Bush used it as a rallying cry.

Now, there was some misinterpretation between the "Roll it," using the cart as a battering ram. That was caught on tape. But Todd Beamer did say, "Let's roll."

MATTINGLY: This was according to a supervisor, a Verizon supervisor, who was listening to that last phone conversation that Todd Beamer was having. He said -- he said, "Are you guys ready? Let's roll."

It was at that point that the passenger revolt was believed to have started. If you look at the timeline, the revolt started at 9:57. That line you heard during the flight of "roll it" actually occurred about four minutes later.

And again, that term "roll it" during the fight is possibly when the passengers decided to start using one of those heavy, heavy beverage carts to try and smash their way through that door.

PHILLIPS: It's just amazing how the passengers responded.

Now, also the pilot knew something was up that was flying that plane, right, because something came across, a text message came across his computer that said, "Two planes just went into the World Trade Center. Something's up."

MATTINGLY: Yes. We've known for awhile that the pilot was alerted to be aware of any sort of cockpit intrusion, that something was going on across the country. The pilot was aware of this, and he actually radioed back to get some clarification on that.

But a short time after that, that's when the worst happened and there was an intrusion into that cockpit.

MATTINGLY: You were there when it happened. You covered it; you had this relationship with a number of the family members. So you talked to them today.

When they read this article, when they heard these quotes, how did it -- how did it move them emotionally? Did it make things worse? Did it make them feel better in any way? Give them -- How did it affect them?

MATTINGLY: Well, again, they're a little bit puzzled. They listened to these tapes, and they were very sure that their loved ones breached the cockpit, were actually struggling with those hijackers at the end.

The commission report makes no mention of this, and so again, they're a little puzzled by this and perhaps a little bit hurt, if you want to get into the emotions of it.

PHILLIPS: Sure. Well, those passengers were heroes either way you look at it.

MATTINGLY: That is one thing that no one is arguing about. In fact, the commission clearly says that the actions of these passengers brought this plane down, and it was their actions that prevented it from reaching Washington, D.C.

PHILLIPS: David Mattingly, thanks so much.

O'BRIEN: News from around the world now.

Speeding towards disaster. Turkey's transportation minister is telling CNN a high-speed train was going too fast yesterday, and that caused it to crash. Thirty-six killed, the government still investigating.

Terror suspect in court. An extradition hearing in London begins for a radical Muslim cleric. The U.S. says Abu Hamza al-Masri worked to set up a terrorist training camp in Oregon and took part in a deadly kidnapping in Yemen. The hearing was put on hold to give the defense more time.

And it's being called a new era in the history of Bosnia- Herzegovina. Britain's Prince Charles among those celebrating the opening of the rebuilt Old Bridge in Mostar. For centuries that bridge was a symbol of the city's ethnic diversity until it was blasted to bits during the civil war 11 years ago.

PHILLIPS: Suicide bombers, soldiers firing at boys, throwing rocks. The Mideast tragedy transformed into television comedy. A lot of viewers are laughing. That's ahead.

Plus a virtual tie. New polls giving both the Bush and Kerry ramps reasons to ramp up their campaigns.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I quit the cigarettes and the pina coladas. So that -- and I'm to the point of age-wise that the women ain't looking that bright anymore anyway, so $4.5 million is not that important to me.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: And no deal. One man's fight to hold onto his little piece of the Everglades.

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

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(WEATHER REPORT)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MICHAEL HOLMES, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): ... to Abu al- Zarqawi, the Jordanian so wanted that he's got a $25 million reward on his head. Now according to multinational forces, the U.S. aircraft dropped this bomb in the courtyard of a house, the damage plain to see. Military not saying whether the attack caused casualties. However, hospital officials are being quoted as saying that five civilians, two adults, three children, were wounded in that attack.

Also, now in Baghdad, an IED or roadside bomb, a bizarre situation. Local residents said they it being planted in the overnight hours, told the police, who then set up roadblocks to keep the area safe.

However, during the early daylight hours, a bus driver drove around the police roadblock and into the area where the bomb was located. It detonated, killing the driver and a 5-year-old girl who was a passenger on the bus.

There was another tragedy in Baghdad today, too. This time, a bizarre traffic accident. U.S. authorities are saying that a minivan passing another vehicle on the road went to the wrong side of the road and collided head-on with a U.S. tank. Nine Iraqi civilians were killed. Ten others were wounded.

Michael Holmes, CNN, Baghdad.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PHILLIPS: Now to another troubled region. There is little to laugh about in the Middle East, but Israelis are finding a way. They're getting some big comic relief on the small screen.

CNN's Alessio Vinci takes a look.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ALESSIO VINCI, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): An Israeli air force helicopter aims its gun at Hamas headquarters in Gaza. Moments before firing a missile, the pilot's cell phone rings.

Distracted, he strikes a Palestinian orphanage instead. As he hangs up the phone, he groans, "Not again."

Gags like this one are a fixture on Israeli television, part of a flourishing industry of satire shows that target just about everything: the conflict with the Palestinians, politics and a troubled economy.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We're trying to show a kind of reflection on the reality in Israel. We're trying to show that the reality here is full of absurd. We see it in a very comic way.

VINCI: Reality may be absurd in Israel, but it is far from being funny. Yet comedians see an opportunity to give growing audiences an alternative look at conflict that has gone on for so long it, it has numbed the public's consciousness.

YAIR NITZANI, COMEDIAN, "BEHIND THE NEWS": Israelis are so -- so tired already, I think, from everything that no news can make them depressed. VINCI: The shows don't take sides. They target both Israelis and Arabs, politicians on the left and right.

NITZANI: We deal with everything. I mean, we don't -- there's no taboos. The only taboo that we have is, you know, maybe the Holocaust.

VINCI: On a recent program a Palestinian couple visits the house a Jewish settler is supposed to evacuate as part of Ariel Sharon's withdrawal plan from Gaza.

She first welcomes them with a machine gun, then suddenly changes her tone, showing them the apartment's features. "We will leave nothing for you here," she promises.

Puzzled, the Palestinian couple wonders where the real estate agent is. An oversized version of Prime Minute Sharon walks in.

Tired and perhaps frustrated after years of conflict, the shows give many here a much-needed laugh.

SIMON SCHECHTER, STUDENT: You have to laugh because if you won't laugh, how will you -- how will you keep on going? As long as we can laugh, we can keep on.

VINCI: Alessio Vinci, CNN, Jerusalem.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

O'BRIEN: The husband of the missing Utah woman is confronted by his father about her disappearance. We'll have a live report and bring you up to date on that story.

Plus, we all know it feels better than a suit and tie, but is casual Friday actually good for your health? Dr. Sanjay Gupta rolls up his sleeves, takes off his tie and reports.

And you look like heaven on a bicycle built for seven? Wonder if Lance Armstrong has ever tried one of these. He could put his entire U.S. postal service team on it. We'll give it a test drive a little later.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

Can John Kerry belt a homer in Boston? At 3:30, "INSIDE POLITICS" is live from Fenway Park. We'll take a closer look at sports and politics.

Plus, a look at last-minute convention preparations and security. Stay with CNN.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

O'BRIEN: Let's check some business news. There's a carmaker who's trying to make an effort to make SUVs a little safer, less likely to roll over. Darby Mullany is live on the New York Stock Exchange with that and more.

Hello, Darby.

(STOCK REPORT)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

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