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Osama's Brother-in-Law Claims No Current Ties to Terror; Entertainment News: Ruben Studdard, Robert Downey Jr., Nirvana; "Alexander" Strives for Historical Accuracy
Aired November 24, 2004 - 14:27 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: A potentially pivotal moment for the former Soviet province of Ukraine. World diplomats, including Secretary of State Colin Powell, are imploring Ukrainian leaders to reconsider today's announcement declaring Prime Minister Viktor Yanukovych the winner of a disputed runoff presidential election. His western-leaning opponent is calling for a general strike now, and his opponent's supporters continue to flood Kiev's streets.
Syria's president is ready to end four years of no dialogue and resume peace talks with Israel. That's according to a U.N. envoy who met with the Syrian leader today. The diplomat says it's a major development in efforts to get Damascus reengaged in the Middle East peace process.
Severe weather has taken a severe toll on a big chunk of the U.S. right now. At least 12 homes were destroy by an apparent tornado that hit this town in central Alabama. Elsewhere in the state, a woman was killed when a tree fell on her mobile home. Violent storms are also blamed for deaths in Texas, Louisiana and Mississippi.
The weather will be a big factor for many travelers this Thanksgiving eve. Major airports are reporting delays, and severe weather could be a factor for many drivers as well, especially in the Southeast.
Now an exclusive report: "Terror in the Family." Osama bin Laden remains the world's most wanted man. And to find out more about the elusive terrorist, CNN's senior international correspondent, Nic Robertson, talked to bin Laden's brother-in-law and former best friend. Here's an excerpt from the exclusive interview.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
NIC ROBERTSON, CNN SR. INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): As the Afghan war against the Soviet occupation raged, he says bin Laden's military commander and others were already selecting recruits for al Qaeda's global campaign. "Bin Laden," he says, "became a figurehead leader."
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He is a wealthy man, he has very good connections. Many people really love Osama.
ROBERTSON: Charismatic, but disorganized, says Khalifa. So much so that while Khalifa believes bin Laden is responsible for the 9/11 attacks, he doesn't think Osama actually organized them. UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He cannot organize anything. I am the one who is leading. I am the one who is leading him in the prayer. I'm the one who is leading if we go for outing, for picnic, for riding horses.
ROBERTSON: Exactly when and where Khalifa chose a different path from Osama bin Laden is open to question.
From the Afghan Jihad, Khalifa moved to the Philippines, setting up another Islamic charity, opening more religious schools, eventually triggering an investigation by Philippine authorities, who believed he was on a mission for bin Laden.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
PHILLIPS: Nic Robertson joins us now live via phone. He's embedded with the 24th Infantry Regiment in Mosul. It's probably interesting, Nic, what the soldiers think about your interview. Maybe I should ask you that later.
But I want to know what is Khalifa doing now in Saudi, and does he still talk to his brother-in-law, Osama bin Laden?
ROBERTSON: He runs a fish restaurant. His family runs a fish restaurant just outside one of the coastal cities in Saudi Arabia.
He says that he doesn't talk to bin Laden, that he hasn't talked to him for many years. He did write Osama bin Laden an open letter in a newspaper recently, telling him to stop the al Qaeda operatives in Saudi Arabia from attacking -- from attacking Westerners, from killing people inside Saudi Arabia. But he claims to have no direct contact with him.
The Philippine investigators who investigated him in the Philippines never were able successfully to Jamal Khalifa to trial and to put him in jail still believe that he was in the Philippines for -- with the aim of recruiting young Jihadi fighters for Osama bin Laden. That's something Khalifa very, very strenuously denies when we interviewed him, Kyra.
PHILLIPS: So obviously, the Saudis are letting him own and operate a restaurant there in Saudi Arabia. But do they trust him? Do they believe he's clean and not associated with terrorism anymore?
And what does he tell you about that? Does he say, "Absolutely not, I have no connection"?
ROBERTSON: That's exactly what he says. He says he has no connection. Indeed, he says he doesn't have any connection with the direction that bin Laden went in the late 1980s.
I mean, he's -- what is interesting when you talk to Khalifa is that here's a man who knew Osama bin Laden very well. He lived with him for ten years, was his best friend, married Osama bin Laden's sister and at Osama bin Laden's suggestion.
But he says that he has no connection with Osama bin Laden now. And he says if any government can prove that he does, then let them go ahead and prove it.
As far as the Saudi government is concerned, security experts close to the Saudi government put it in these terms. They say that they believe Jamal Khalifa does not present any threat to any government around the world at this time.
However, it is interesting that after September the 11th, when Jamal Khalifa was in Malaysia, when he returned to Saudi Arabia, he was arrested immediately by the Saudi authorities, questioned and released.
And while he's able to operate a fish restaurant, he is not able to -- not able to trade with the international companies that he used to trade with and that the Saudi government used to let him trade with.
So his wings, if you will, as far as the Saudis are concerned, are still very clipped, but they say that they don't think he's any threat to any government at this time.
PHILLIPS: So what happened between Khalifa and Osama bin Laden? You say they were best friends for 10 years. What went wrong?
ROBERTSON: Khalifa -- Khalifa says that he could see people like Dr. Ayman al-Zawahiri influencing bin Laden, pulling him in a different direction to the Jihad against the Soviet occupation in Afghanistan, setting up separate units of just Arab fighters that there was -- that he felt, Jamal Khalifa says that he felt there was a sort of a process by some members of al Qaeda along with Osama bin Laden to go off in a different direction.
He felt that he was questioned at one time about what he thought about global Jihad and things like this. He says that he was not supportive of the global Jihad.
And that's when he said that Osama bin Laden want in a different direction and that he decided to just continue with what he calls his charitable work, setting up Islamic schools and doing work with -- and doing work with the Philippine government and districts in the Philippines.
He is very, very strong in his denial that he has any links with al Qaeda, had any links with al Qaeda. There are those who still have their suspicions that he did.
But as far as Khalifa is concerned, Osama bin Laden went in a completely different direction, he says the wrong direction. And he would like him -- and he will say -- he says it and does say it publicly, that he wants Osama bin Laden to stop these global Jihads, and the killing of people as in September 11 is morally wrong and should come to an end.
PHILLIPS: I want to also know, quickly, does he think the U.S. will be able to catch Osama bin Laden? And then also, please brief us on what's happening in Mosul as you're embedded with the troops there. KHALIFA: You know, Kyra, when I asked Jamal Khalifa if -- if the United States could catch Osama bin Laden, he just smiled at me and said, "Look, when I was in Afghanistan, the Russian, the Soviet army was not able to catch us. We were able to operate with impunity. Afghanistan is a big place." He said he thinks not.
And what we also -- what's going on here in Mosul is there are offensive operations here to destabilize the anti-government forces here, U.S. troops and Iraqi troops on offensive operations to -- what they're trying to do is arrest and detain Iraqis who they believe are trying to undermine the government.
Here as recently -- recently as today, the city's governor, deputy governor was attacked, one of his bodyguards killed, two -- two of his bodyguards injured just 100 meters from -- from the governor's house.
The situation here is unstable. Four-fifths of the Iraqi police force in the city have deserted their posts. And there's a continuing operation to try and -- to try and catch all the anti-government Iraqi forces that are operating in the city. It's a slow process, and it relies on having good accurate intelligence -- Kyra.
PHILLIPS: Nic Robertson, embedded with the 24th Infantry Regiment in Mosul. Thanks, Nic, so much. You can also see Nic's complete, exclusive interview, "Terror in the Family," tonight on "PAULA ZAHN NOW" at 8 p.m. Eastern, 5 Pacific.
Straight ahead, Alexander the Great, have you seen the movie? We're going to talk about it. Fiction, Hollywood, historical? We're going to lay it out with an expert who actually retraced the footsteps of Alexander.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
PHILLIPS: Well, in today's entertainment news, what Martha Stewart is thankful for, have yourself a grungy little Christmas, RDJ (ph) branches out, and Ruben gives it a rest.
Sibila Vargas talks turkey from Tinsel Town.
All kinds of stuff today.
SIBILA VARGAS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: All kinds of stuff, Kyra.
Well, it seems celebrities have been overworked these days. First we heard about Bernie Mac, then Lindsey Lohan and now "American Idol" Ruben Studdard is in the hospital due to exhaustion.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
(MUSIC)
VARGAS: The singer has been forced to cancel promotion for his new album, "I Need An Angel." Studdard had been feeling sick over the last two weeks and decided to check himself into a Birmingham hospital.
His record label says the 26-year-old is expected to remain in the hospital through the end of the week.
Well, from one music man to another, actor Robert Downey Junior is taking the music world by storm.
(MUSIC)
VARGAS: This is the Academy Award winner in the studio during a recording -- and yes, I said recording session. The actor is acting music to his resume and taking his singing career one step further by releasing his debut CD.
We caught up with him yesterday at a CD signing in L.A.
ROBERT DOWNEY JR., ACTOR: The execution of all the things you need to do to put out an album are, you know, one thing and getting over the internal hurdles and going through the myriad of mood swings, which are largely out of self-centered fear, that was the tough stuff.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
VARGAS: And you can get copies of the new disk, "The Futurist" at record stores near you.
And something else you'll find in stores this Thanksgiving is something Nirvana fans have been waiting for a long time. After a three-year delay, the grunge group's boxed set is finally being released
(MUSIC)
VARGAS: "With the Lights Out" features 18 previously unreleased songs. The set begins with a 1987 Led Zeppelin cover and concludes with the solo performance of Kurt Cobain, one that he recorded shortly before his death in 1994.
Kyra, back to you.
PHILLIPS: All right. Why the delay?
VARGAS: Well, Kyra, the hold had a lot to do with the dispute between Kurt Cobain's widow, Courtney Love, and the surviving band mates, but those disputes have since been settled, allowing the project to move forward. So now fans can get all the Nirvana they want.
PHILLIPS: Courtney Love, she's got a number of other disputes going on. That's a whole other story, Sibila.
VARGAS: A little diva.
PHILLIPS: Yes. Just a little. Happy Thanksgiving. Thanks, Sibila. All right. Today is one of the busiest travel days of the year, and we've been asking for your e-mails from the airports. So coming up, what travelers are saying about the problems and the good parts of the holiday travel. We'll hear what you have to say.
In business, why buying a book at the airport may be the best deal available to save you money.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
PHILLIPS: The new movie "Alexander" is out to conquer the box office. It's the story of Alexander the Great, who conquered most of the known world by the age of 25. The movie relies heavily on history.
And CNN's Beth Nissen reports.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BETH NISSEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): His is one of the most famous lives in all history. Yet, there is no full account of it. Of the 20 books on Alexander written by his contemporaries, not one survives.
ROBIN LANE FOX, AUTHOR, "ALEXANDER THE GREAT": What we have for Alexander is a framework of dates, where he went, whom he conquered, what he is said to have said and his relations with others.
NISSEN: Oxford University scholar Robin Lane Fox is author of the closest thing there is to a biography to Alexander. He was chief historical consultant on the new film.
FOX: Great pains were taken to make it an epic drama with unusual reference to history.
NISSEN: Example? The battle of Gaugamela, fought in 331 B.C. near what is now the city of Mosul in Iraq. The battle was a turning point in the young Alexander's campaign to conquer Persia, the greatest empire in the world at the time.
FOX: Alexander, age 25, would knock it out in one fantastic victory.
NISSEN: His tactic? A draw play that pulled thousands of Persian forces to one side of the battlefield.
FOX: A gap opens in the center, and this is genius. He concentrates his force, swings the horses round, very difficult to do, and leads them back in a cutting move into the Persian center. It is supreme boldness, brilliant horsemanship, and he had a nerve of steel.
NISSEN: No enemy weapon could stymie Alexander: not the war elephants in India, not the Persian's dreaded scythed chariots, which could cut the legs off cavalry and infantry alike.
FOX: Troops part ranks and let the chariots come blinding through, kill the drivers with javelins, and it worked.
NISSEN: It is harder to reveal the man behind the shield, although Fox says the film tries, captures Alexander's legendary capacity for drink, his thunderbolt temper and his passion for his wife Roxana, and for his lifelong male companion, Hephaiston.
FOX: Alexander lives in a pre-Christian age. It is widely accepted in the culture that you might have love or sex relations with a man as well as with a woman.
NISSEN: Alexander's ardent, brilliant, ruthless life came to an inglorious end in Babylon.
FOX: At a drinking party, he's said by some to have drunk to much and then to have slumped forwards in pain. Nearly 14 days later, he dies. Did he have a seizure, a heart attack? We don't know.
NISSEN: In just over a decade, Alexander conquered lands from Greece to Persia to Egypt to India, 90 percent of the known world. He had laid the groundwork for the Roman Empire, the spread of Christianity, all by the age of 32. A singular fact for those who find in ancient stories reminders of what is still true.
FOX: You're never too young to dream a vast great dream and act on it. That's a great story.
NISSEN: Beth Nissen, CNN, New York.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
PHILLIPS: He was a renowned conqueror and a self-destructive man. Alexander the great trekked across Asia in to quest -- in a quest, rather, to rule the world from Pakistan to Iran.
We've all studied the history and, obviously, now we can see the movie, "Alexander," but is it more historic fact or Hollywood fiction?
Author John Prevas has an opinion. He saw the movie, but better yet, he journeyed through some of the most remote and dangerous places in central Asia, just to trace the footsteps of Alexander the great. He writes about his adventures in his new book, "Envy of the Gods." John joins us now live from Tampa, Florida.
Hi, John.
JOHN PREVAS, AUTHOR, "ENVY OF THE GODS": Good afternoon.
PHILLIPS: So why did you do it?
PREVAS: Well, I did it first of all because I was just totally enthralled with the story of Alexander. I'm a classical -- I'm a classicist, and the story of Alexander has always interested me.
And I've done been doing a series of books over the last few years called "Great Commanders from the Ancient World." And I wanted to take a look at Alexander and I decided to retrace his route through Afghanistan, through Iran, through Afghanistan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan and Pakistan, also to do it within the context of the very -- many of the -- the developments, modern day developments.
It's a very -- certainly a very troubled area of the world. And as I went through there, I was always amazed at how much or how little, I should say, history changes.
PHILLIPS: I want to talk about -- I want to retrace your steps. But first of all, I know you saw the movie today. Your quick reaction to the film and then we'll get into your trip.
You're laughing.
PREVAS: I just walked out of the film not 20 minutes ago with my wife. My wife and I went to see it. My reaction to the film is that it was a very large undertaking for Oliver Stone.
I think that chronologically, it suffers from many, many problems. Robin Lane Fox, whom you interviewed earlier, is certainly one of the most renowned Alexander scholars. His works are legendary.
I cannot understand how he would have allowed some of these chronological errors to have manifested themselves into the film, unless Oliver Stone certainly -- probably took the artistic direction of the film, and history mattered less than entertainment.
PHILLIPS: Interesting. OK. So now taking to heart your opinion about the film, let's talk about the fact that you actually went into the foot steps of Alexander the Great and you went overseas.
Let's talk about Persepolis. I had a unique chance; my husband just got back from there and was telling me all about Alexander the Great. I had no idea how he conquered the Persian Empire.
Tell us what you learned and what you saw and maybe what the movie misses when it comes to that.
PREVAS: Well, Persepolis is one of the most magnificent historical sites in the world today. It was the seat of the Persian Empire. It was, certainly, for the Persians what Mecca is for the Muslims is today and perhaps what Jerusalem is for the Jews today. It was a religious center. It was historical. It was the embodiment of their history.
Alexander took the city. He took its treasury, which made him the richest man in the ancient world. He had achieved everything he need to achieve. And then he burned the city, at the instigation of a -- of an Athenian courtesan, Thais. His ego inflamed, too much alcohol and he burned the city.
And I was most disappointed to see that Oliver Stone completely ignored that episode, certainly one of the most significant in the history of Alexander.
PHILLIPS: Interesting. Now, Babylon, the film obviously touches on this, the place where he finally died. What was it like to go back to these ruins and what's so funny is, or unique, or ironic, I guess, not funny at all, the ruins of Babylon actually close to this death -- Triangle of Death we've been talking about in Iraq, being here we are in this middle of this war on terror, and this is all the same ground that Alexander came through and conquered.
PREVAS: Well, this morning, I was watching CNN, and you reported on American forces who now have moved south of Babylon and are moving in on a city called Istankadia (ph). And I couldn't help but think to myself, Istankadia (ph), the ancient name for Alexander the Great, the ancient Persian name.
So again, that area is still certainly alive with the history from Alexander's time.
But getting back to your question on Babylon, I thought Oliver Stone did a magnificent job of re-creating Babylon for the modern day viewer. The scenes of Babylon in that film are truly, for me, were very, very impressionable. And I think he really captured the essence of what the Bible called the mother of all whores and Earth's abominations.
PHILLIPS: John, I want to ask you this quickly and that is the issue of was he bisexual, was he gay? There's been a little bit of controversy on whether this should have even come out or not, yet I know young kids that learn about it in their history class. Should we care? Does it matter? Is it something that needs to be talked about?
PREVAS: Well, my impression of the film is the film is almost entirely devoted to the issue of Alexander's gayness. I mean, it is essentially a film that it is OK to be gay, that you can be gay and masculine.
I didn't see -- I think there was one very brutal love scene between Alexander and Roxanne, and there were a number of not love scenes between Alexander and his male companions, but certainly insinuated that.
So it's certainly, I would say, the dominant theme from what I saw of this film, is Alexander's gayness.
PHILLIPS: Well, it's an amazing trip that you took, and the book is extremely interesting, "Envy of the Gods." John Prevas, thank you so much. I hope you tell us about your next exciting trip.
PREVAS: Thank you. And thank you for having me.
PHILLIPS: A pleasure, John.
Well, we asked the question and now you e-mailed us about how your travels have been going this holiday. Here's just a sample of what a few of you had to say.
Peter from Miami, Florida, sent a message on his Blackberry, "Live from Miami, home to crying babies, dirty restrooms, delayed flights and a woman with a barking dog in a small bag. Life is good."
Hang in there, Peter.
Karl sends an e-mail to us: "Buffalo is not too bad today. Screeners are doing an excellent job at security. Many more are traveling into Buffalo than going out. Weather is rainy and windy here, too. Happy Thanksgiving, everyone."
Thanks, Karl.
Christine from her Blackberry says, "8:30 a.m. flight from New Mexico to Chicago was OK. But 1 p.m. flight from Chicago to Philly is delayed three hours. Get me to the turkey."
And this one coming from Seattle, Tacoma Airport: "Hello there. While things may be crazy elsewhere, the security employees here at the airport are doing great. We arrived super early due to the proposed rush. We made record time through security checks to the gates. They're making this trip considerably less stressful for all of us. Happy holidays from SPW."
And then Michael writes, "I just arrived back in Chicago and was very surprised that there was not a large crowd on hand. Many of the parking garage levels were totally open for parking. Generally, they're totally full by now. So it was pretty good for both -- for everybody involved."
Finally, this last one from Gene, and he sends this from his Blackberry, "Sitting in US Airways club at national airport in Washington, D.C., my 178th flight this year. Security was better and quicker than normal. Indicates we could routinely be more efficient. Lots of hype about air travel not supported by reality. Happy Thanksgiving, though."
Thanks, Gene.
OK. There's much more in the next half hour of CNN's LIVE HOUR, the latest on the major impact that the weather is having on holiday travel plans for millions of you travelers. Also, live on where the delays at the airports are and much more. LIVE FROM at the top of the hour. Don't go away.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
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Aired November 24, 2004 - 14:27 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: A potentially pivotal moment for the former Soviet province of Ukraine. World diplomats, including Secretary of State Colin Powell, are imploring Ukrainian leaders to reconsider today's announcement declaring Prime Minister Viktor Yanukovych the winner of a disputed runoff presidential election. His western-leaning opponent is calling for a general strike now, and his opponent's supporters continue to flood Kiev's streets.
Syria's president is ready to end four years of no dialogue and resume peace talks with Israel. That's according to a U.N. envoy who met with the Syrian leader today. The diplomat says it's a major development in efforts to get Damascus reengaged in the Middle East peace process.
Severe weather has taken a severe toll on a big chunk of the U.S. right now. At least 12 homes were destroy by an apparent tornado that hit this town in central Alabama. Elsewhere in the state, a woman was killed when a tree fell on her mobile home. Violent storms are also blamed for deaths in Texas, Louisiana and Mississippi.
The weather will be a big factor for many travelers this Thanksgiving eve. Major airports are reporting delays, and severe weather could be a factor for many drivers as well, especially in the Southeast.
Now an exclusive report: "Terror in the Family." Osama bin Laden remains the world's most wanted man. And to find out more about the elusive terrorist, CNN's senior international correspondent, Nic Robertson, talked to bin Laden's brother-in-law and former best friend. Here's an excerpt from the exclusive interview.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
NIC ROBERTSON, CNN SR. INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): As the Afghan war against the Soviet occupation raged, he says bin Laden's military commander and others were already selecting recruits for al Qaeda's global campaign. "Bin Laden," he says, "became a figurehead leader."
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He is a wealthy man, he has very good connections. Many people really love Osama.
ROBERTSON: Charismatic, but disorganized, says Khalifa. So much so that while Khalifa believes bin Laden is responsible for the 9/11 attacks, he doesn't think Osama actually organized them. UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He cannot organize anything. I am the one who is leading. I am the one who is leading him in the prayer. I'm the one who is leading if we go for outing, for picnic, for riding horses.
ROBERTSON: Exactly when and where Khalifa chose a different path from Osama bin Laden is open to question.
From the Afghan Jihad, Khalifa moved to the Philippines, setting up another Islamic charity, opening more religious schools, eventually triggering an investigation by Philippine authorities, who believed he was on a mission for bin Laden.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
PHILLIPS: Nic Robertson joins us now live via phone. He's embedded with the 24th Infantry Regiment in Mosul. It's probably interesting, Nic, what the soldiers think about your interview. Maybe I should ask you that later.
But I want to know what is Khalifa doing now in Saudi, and does he still talk to his brother-in-law, Osama bin Laden?
ROBERTSON: He runs a fish restaurant. His family runs a fish restaurant just outside one of the coastal cities in Saudi Arabia.
He says that he doesn't talk to bin Laden, that he hasn't talked to him for many years. He did write Osama bin Laden an open letter in a newspaper recently, telling him to stop the al Qaeda operatives in Saudi Arabia from attacking -- from attacking Westerners, from killing people inside Saudi Arabia. But he claims to have no direct contact with him.
The Philippine investigators who investigated him in the Philippines never were able successfully to Jamal Khalifa to trial and to put him in jail still believe that he was in the Philippines for -- with the aim of recruiting young Jihadi fighters for Osama bin Laden. That's something Khalifa very, very strenuously denies when we interviewed him, Kyra.
PHILLIPS: So obviously, the Saudis are letting him own and operate a restaurant there in Saudi Arabia. But do they trust him? Do they believe he's clean and not associated with terrorism anymore?
And what does he tell you about that? Does he say, "Absolutely not, I have no connection"?
ROBERTSON: That's exactly what he says. He says he has no connection. Indeed, he says he doesn't have any connection with the direction that bin Laden went in the late 1980s.
I mean, he's -- what is interesting when you talk to Khalifa is that here's a man who knew Osama bin Laden very well. He lived with him for ten years, was his best friend, married Osama bin Laden's sister and at Osama bin Laden's suggestion.
But he says that he has no connection with Osama bin Laden now. And he says if any government can prove that he does, then let them go ahead and prove it.
As far as the Saudi government is concerned, security experts close to the Saudi government put it in these terms. They say that they believe Jamal Khalifa does not present any threat to any government around the world at this time.
However, it is interesting that after September the 11th, when Jamal Khalifa was in Malaysia, when he returned to Saudi Arabia, he was arrested immediately by the Saudi authorities, questioned and released.
And while he's able to operate a fish restaurant, he is not able to -- not able to trade with the international companies that he used to trade with and that the Saudi government used to let him trade with.
So his wings, if you will, as far as the Saudis are concerned, are still very clipped, but they say that they don't think he's any threat to any government at this time.
PHILLIPS: So what happened between Khalifa and Osama bin Laden? You say they were best friends for 10 years. What went wrong?
ROBERTSON: Khalifa -- Khalifa says that he could see people like Dr. Ayman al-Zawahiri influencing bin Laden, pulling him in a different direction to the Jihad against the Soviet occupation in Afghanistan, setting up separate units of just Arab fighters that there was -- that he felt, Jamal Khalifa says that he felt there was a sort of a process by some members of al Qaeda along with Osama bin Laden to go off in a different direction.
He felt that he was questioned at one time about what he thought about global Jihad and things like this. He says that he was not supportive of the global Jihad.
And that's when he said that Osama bin Laden want in a different direction and that he decided to just continue with what he calls his charitable work, setting up Islamic schools and doing work with -- and doing work with the Philippine government and districts in the Philippines.
He is very, very strong in his denial that he has any links with al Qaeda, had any links with al Qaeda. There are those who still have their suspicions that he did.
But as far as Khalifa is concerned, Osama bin Laden went in a completely different direction, he says the wrong direction. And he would like him -- and he will say -- he says it and does say it publicly, that he wants Osama bin Laden to stop these global Jihads, and the killing of people as in September 11 is morally wrong and should come to an end.
PHILLIPS: I want to also know, quickly, does he think the U.S. will be able to catch Osama bin Laden? And then also, please brief us on what's happening in Mosul as you're embedded with the troops there. KHALIFA: You know, Kyra, when I asked Jamal Khalifa if -- if the United States could catch Osama bin Laden, he just smiled at me and said, "Look, when I was in Afghanistan, the Russian, the Soviet army was not able to catch us. We were able to operate with impunity. Afghanistan is a big place." He said he thinks not.
And what we also -- what's going on here in Mosul is there are offensive operations here to destabilize the anti-government forces here, U.S. troops and Iraqi troops on offensive operations to -- what they're trying to do is arrest and detain Iraqis who they believe are trying to undermine the government.
Here as recently -- recently as today, the city's governor, deputy governor was attacked, one of his bodyguards killed, two -- two of his bodyguards injured just 100 meters from -- from the governor's house.
The situation here is unstable. Four-fifths of the Iraqi police force in the city have deserted their posts. And there's a continuing operation to try and -- to try and catch all the anti-government Iraqi forces that are operating in the city. It's a slow process, and it relies on having good accurate intelligence -- Kyra.
PHILLIPS: Nic Robertson, embedded with the 24th Infantry Regiment in Mosul. Thanks, Nic, so much. You can also see Nic's complete, exclusive interview, "Terror in the Family," tonight on "PAULA ZAHN NOW" at 8 p.m. Eastern, 5 Pacific.
Straight ahead, Alexander the Great, have you seen the movie? We're going to talk about it. Fiction, Hollywood, historical? We're going to lay it out with an expert who actually retraced the footsteps of Alexander.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
PHILLIPS: Well, in today's entertainment news, what Martha Stewart is thankful for, have yourself a grungy little Christmas, RDJ (ph) branches out, and Ruben gives it a rest.
Sibila Vargas talks turkey from Tinsel Town.
All kinds of stuff today.
SIBILA VARGAS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: All kinds of stuff, Kyra.
Well, it seems celebrities have been overworked these days. First we heard about Bernie Mac, then Lindsey Lohan and now "American Idol" Ruben Studdard is in the hospital due to exhaustion.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
(MUSIC)
VARGAS: The singer has been forced to cancel promotion for his new album, "I Need An Angel." Studdard had been feeling sick over the last two weeks and decided to check himself into a Birmingham hospital.
His record label says the 26-year-old is expected to remain in the hospital through the end of the week.
Well, from one music man to another, actor Robert Downey Junior is taking the music world by storm.
(MUSIC)
VARGAS: This is the Academy Award winner in the studio during a recording -- and yes, I said recording session. The actor is acting music to his resume and taking his singing career one step further by releasing his debut CD.
We caught up with him yesterday at a CD signing in L.A.
ROBERT DOWNEY JR., ACTOR: The execution of all the things you need to do to put out an album are, you know, one thing and getting over the internal hurdles and going through the myriad of mood swings, which are largely out of self-centered fear, that was the tough stuff.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
VARGAS: And you can get copies of the new disk, "The Futurist" at record stores near you.
And something else you'll find in stores this Thanksgiving is something Nirvana fans have been waiting for a long time. After a three-year delay, the grunge group's boxed set is finally being released
(MUSIC)
VARGAS: "With the Lights Out" features 18 previously unreleased songs. The set begins with a 1987 Led Zeppelin cover and concludes with the solo performance of Kurt Cobain, one that he recorded shortly before his death in 1994.
Kyra, back to you.
PHILLIPS: All right. Why the delay?
VARGAS: Well, Kyra, the hold had a lot to do with the dispute between Kurt Cobain's widow, Courtney Love, and the surviving band mates, but those disputes have since been settled, allowing the project to move forward. So now fans can get all the Nirvana they want.
PHILLIPS: Courtney Love, she's got a number of other disputes going on. That's a whole other story, Sibila.
VARGAS: A little diva.
PHILLIPS: Yes. Just a little. Happy Thanksgiving. Thanks, Sibila. All right. Today is one of the busiest travel days of the year, and we've been asking for your e-mails from the airports. So coming up, what travelers are saying about the problems and the good parts of the holiday travel. We'll hear what you have to say.
In business, why buying a book at the airport may be the best deal available to save you money.
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PHILLIPS: The new movie "Alexander" is out to conquer the box office. It's the story of Alexander the Great, who conquered most of the known world by the age of 25. The movie relies heavily on history.
And CNN's Beth Nissen reports.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BETH NISSEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): His is one of the most famous lives in all history. Yet, there is no full account of it. Of the 20 books on Alexander written by his contemporaries, not one survives.
ROBIN LANE FOX, AUTHOR, "ALEXANDER THE GREAT": What we have for Alexander is a framework of dates, where he went, whom he conquered, what he is said to have said and his relations with others.
NISSEN: Oxford University scholar Robin Lane Fox is author of the closest thing there is to a biography to Alexander. He was chief historical consultant on the new film.
FOX: Great pains were taken to make it an epic drama with unusual reference to history.
NISSEN: Example? The battle of Gaugamela, fought in 331 B.C. near what is now the city of Mosul in Iraq. The battle was a turning point in the young Alexander's campaign to conquer Persia, the greatest empire in the world at the time.
FOX: Alexander, age 25, would knock it out in one fantastic victory.
NISSEN: His tactic? A draw play that pulled thousands of Persian forces to one side of the battlefield.
FOX: A gap opens in the center, and this is genius. He concentrates his force, swings the horses round, very difficult to do, and leads them back in a cutting move into the Persian center. It is supreme boldness, brilliant horsemanship, and he had a nerve of steel.
NISSEN: No enemy weapon could stymie Alexander: not the war elephants in India, not the Persian's dreaded scythed chariots, which could cut the legs off cavalry and infantry alike.
FOX: Troops part ranks and let the chariots come blinding through, kill the drivers with javelins, and it worked.
NISSEN: It is harder to reveal the man behind the shield, although Fox says the film tries, captures Alexander's legendary capacity for drink, his thunderbolt temper and his passion for his wife Roxana, and for his lifelong male companion, Hephaiston.
FOX: Alexander lives in a pre-Christian age. It is widely accepted in the culture that you might have love or sex relations with a man as well as with a woman.
NISSEN: Alexander's ardent, brilliant, ruthless life came to an inglorious end in Babylon.
FOX: At a drinking party, he's said by some to have drunk to much and then to have slumped forwards in pain. Nearly 14 days later, he dies. Did he have a seizure, a heart attack? We don't know.
NISSEN: In just over a decade, Alexander conquered lands from Greece to Persia to Egypt to India, 90 percent of the known world. He had laid the groundwork for the Roman Empire, the spread of Christianity, all by the age of 32. A singular fact for those who find in ancient stories reminders of what is still true.
FOX: You're never too young to dream a vast great dream and act on it. That's a great story.
NISSEN: Beth Nissen, CNN, New York.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
PHILLIPS: He was a renowned conqueror and a self-destructive man. Alexander the great trekked across Asia in to quest -- in a quest, rather, to rule the world from Pakistan to Iran.
We've all studied the history and, obviously, now we can see the movie, "Alexander," but is it more historic fact or Hollywood fiction?
Author John Prevas has an opinion. He saw the movie, but better yet, he journeyed through some of the most remote and dangerous places in central Asia, just to trace the footsteps of Alexander the great. He writes about his adventures in his new book, "Envy of the Gods." John joins us now live from Tampa, Florida.
Hi, John.
JOHN PREVAS, AUTHOR, "ENVY OF THE GODS": Good afternoon.
PHILLIPS: So why did you do it?
PREVAS: Well, I did it first of all because I was just totally enthralled with the story of Alexander. I'm a classical -- I'm a classicist, and the story of Alexander has always interested me.
And I've done been doing a series of books over the last few years called "Great Commanders from the Ancient World." And I wanted to take a look at Alexander and I decided to retrace his route through Afghanistan, through Iran, through Afghanistan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan and Pakistan, also to do it within the context of the very -- many of the -- the developments, modern day developments.
It's a very -- certainly a very troubled area of the world. And as I went through there, I was always amazed at how much or how little, I should say, history changes.
PHILLIPS: I want to talk about -- I want to retrace your steps. But first of all, I know you saw the movie today. Your quick reaction to the film and then we'll get into your trip.
You're laughing.
PREVAS: I just walked out of the film not 20 minutes ago with my wife. My wife and I went to see it. My reaction to the film is that it was a very large undertaking for Oliver Stone.
I think that chronologically, it suffers from many, many problems. Robin Lane Fox, whom you interviewed earlier, is certainly one of the most renowned Alexander scholars. His works are legendary.
I cannot understand how he would have allowed some of these chronological errors to have manifested themselves into the film, unless Oliver Stone certainly -- probably took the artistic direction of the film, and history mattered less than entertainment.
PHILLIPS: Interesting. OK. So now taking to heart your opinion about the film, let's talk about the fact that you actually went into the foot steps of Alexander the Great and you went overseas.
Let's talk about Persepolis. I had a unique chance; my husband just got back from there and was telling me all about Alexander the Great. I had no idea how he conquered the Persian Empire.
Tell us what you learned and what you saw and maybe what the movie misses when it comes to that.
PREVAS: Well, Persepolis is one of the most magnificent historical sites in the world today. It was the seat of the Persian Empire. It was, certainly, for the Persians what Mecca is for the Muslims is today and perhaps what Jerusalem is for the Jews today. It was a religious center. It was historical. It was the embodiment of their history.
Alexander took the city. He took its treasury, which made him the richest man in the ancient world. He had achieved everything he need to achieve. And then he burned the city, at the instigation of a -- of an Athenian courtesan, Thais. His ego inflamed, too much alcohol and he burned the city.
And I was most disappointed to see that Oliver Stone completely ignored that episode, certainly one of the most significant in the history of Alexander.
PHILLIPS: Interesting. Now, Babylon, the film obviously touches on this, the place where he finally died. What was it like to go back to these ruins and what's so funny is, or unique, or ironic, I guess, not funny at all, the ruins of Babylon actually close to this death -- Triangle of Death we've been talking about in Iraq, being here we are in this middle of this war on terror, and this is all the same ground that Alexander came through and conquered.
PREVAS: Well, this morning, I was watching CNN, and you reported on American forces who now have moved south of Babylon and are moving in on a city called Istankadia (ph). And I couldn't help but think to myself, Istankadia (ph), the ancient name for Alexander the Great, the ancient Persian name.
So again, that area is still certainly alive with the history from Alexander's time.
But getting back to your question on Babylon, I thought Oliver Stone did a magnificent job of re-creating Babylon for the modern day viewer. The scenes of Babylon in that film are truly, for me, were very, very impressionable. And I think he really captured the essence of what the Bible called the mother of all whores and Earth's abominations.
PHILLIPS: John, I want to ask you this quickly and that is the issue of was he bisexual, was he gay? There's been a little bit of controversy on whether this should have even come out or not, yet I know young kids that learn about it in their history class. Should we care? Does it matter? Is it something that needs to be talked about?
PREVAS: Well, my impression of the film is the film is almost entirely devoted to the issue of Alexander's gayness. I mean, it is essentially a film that it is OK to be gay, that you can be gay and masculine.
I didn't see -- I think there was one very brutal love scene between Alexander and Roxanne, and there were a number of not love scenes between Alexander and his male companions, but certainly insinuated that.
So it's certainly, I would say, the dominant theme from what I saw of this film, is Alexander's gayness.
PHILLIPS: Well, it's an amazing trip that you took, and the book is extremely interesting, "Envy of the Gods." John Prevas, thank you so much. I hope you tell us about your next exciting trip.
PREVAS: Thank you. And thank you for having me.
PHILLIPS: A pleasure, John.
Well, we asked the question and now you e-mailed us about how your travels have been going this holiday. Here's just a sample of what a few of you had to say.
Peter from Miami, Florida, sent a message on his Blackberry, "Live from Miami, home to crying babies, dirty restrooms, delayed flights and a woman with a barking dog in a small bag. Life is good."
Hang in there, Peter.
Karl sends an e-mail to us: "Buffalo is not too bad today. Screeners are doing an excellent job at security. Many more are traveling into Buffalo than going out. Weather is rainy and windy here, too. Happy Thanksgiving, everyone."
Thanks, Karl.
Christine from her Blackberry says, "8:30 a.m. flight from New Mexico to Chicago was OK. But 1 p.m. flight from Chicago to Philly is delayed three hours. Get me to the turkey."
And this one coming from Seattle, Tacoma Airport: "Hello there. While things may be crazy elsewhere, the security employees here at the airport are doing great. We arrived super early due to the proposed rush. We made record time through security checks to the gates. They're making this trip considerably less stressful for all of us. Happy holidays from SPW."
And then Michael writes, "I just arrived back in Chicago and was very surprised that there was not a large crowd on hand. Many of the parking garage levels were totally open for parking. Generally, they're totally full by now. So it was pretty good for both -- for everybody involved."
Finally, this last one from Gene, and he sends this from his Blackberry, "Sitting in US Airways club at national airport in Washington, D.C., my 178th flight this year. Security was better and quicker than normal. Indicates we could routinely be more efficient. Lots of hype about air travel not supported by reality. Happy Thanksgiving, though."
Thanks, Gene.
OK. There's much more in the next half hour of CNN's LIVE HOUR, the latest on the major impact that the weather is having on holiday travel plans for millions of you travelers. Also, live on where the delays at the airports are and much more. LIVE FROM at the top of the hour. Don't go away.
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