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Nuclear Deal; Ukraine Unrest; Relief Flows to Battered Falluja

Aired November 26, 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: Iran's deal, is it a resolution to a possible nuclear crisis? Washington and the world are watching. We're live on that story.
DAVID MATTINGLY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: The Christmas shopping season started with a rush, and it started early. I'm David Mattingly. I'll have that story.

PHILLIPS: Basketball legend Magic Johnson, what went through his mind when he told his wife he was HIV positive? He talks with our Dr. Sanjay Gupta.

And the Babe's bat. Ruth used it to swat his first homerun at Yankee Stadium. Now you can buy it.

From the CNN Center in Atlanta, I'm Kyra Phillips. Miles is off. This hour of CNN's LIVE FROM starts right now.

We start with centrifuges, dropped clauses and a compromise that all amounts to a tentative deal on a plan to freeze Iran's nuclear program. But as always, the devil is in the details. CNN's Matthew Chance joins us now from London with a closer look.

What do you know, Matthew?

MATTHEW CHANCE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Kyra, thanks. Not a great deal.

In fact, the diplomats from the IAEA, the U.N.'s nuclear watchdogs, say they are waiting for this agreement from Iran to drop its demand to keep these 20 centrifuges that it requested be exempt from its uranium enrichment freeze that it has volunteered. It dropped that demand after a number of concessions were made, it seems, by the Europeans and the U.S. and others who have been negotiating with the Iranian delegation on this matter.

But one of the concessions that's been implemented is that they've removed a couple of clauses. One clause saying that Iran no longer is obligated to allow U.N. inspectors to visit any of its sites at any time. They have toned that down considerably.

They've also said that the trigger clause that was inside the IAEA resolution that's being debated in Vienna and Austria right now, the trigger clause that would have referred Iran to the U.N. Security Council if it goes back on its agreement, that has been removed as well. Now, the Iranians have said that, in response to that, offer the record at this stage, that they are prepared to drop that demand for those -- those centrifuges to be used still for research and development. But diplomats of the IAEA still say they are still waiting for that to be written on down on paper before they accept the deal is done -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: Matthew Chance live from London. Thank you so much.

And now to the Ukraine. The two men at the center of the country's political crisis sat down with mediators today. One accusing his rival of an unconstitutional coup, the other is charging fraud. And both are claiming the presidency.

The meeting comes on the fifth straight day of mass street protests in the capital of Kiev. Our Jill Dougherty is there and joins us now by phone -- Jill.

JILL DOUGHERTY, CNN MOSCOW BUREAU CHIEF: Well, here, Kyra, this is really a dramatic meeting that is undergoing right now. The two men, as you mentioned, two men who claim the presidency of Ukraine, Viktor Yanukovych, he is the government-backed candidate, and Viktor Yushchenko, who is the opposition leader, they are sitting now and have been there for two hours at a big roundtable in the presidential palace.

The president of Ukraine is there, Leonid Kuchma, along with other European leaders. In fact, the European Union's Xavier Solana is the man who is leading all of this, trying to bring them together.

These are two men who have very little affection for each other. Each is accusing the other of -- one is accusing the other of fraud, stealing the election. And the other one says that, with all of these street demonstrations, they are trying to bring about a coup.

And Kyra, speaking of the demonstrations, you know, as we drove over here, we went through many areas where these demonstrations are under way. People marching down the streets, all very peaceful, I have to add, but virtually on every street corner in the downtown area you are seeing this.

Finally, one last thing. Audiotapes that the opposition has released tonight, and they say those audiotapes actually prove that there was fraud in the presidential electition in Ukraine -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: As we watch these live pictures, like right now we're seeing there's a lot of musical support, a lot of local musicians. We've seen a lot of speakers. But now being told that the army and the police are siding with the demonstrators.

I'm assuming that's what's keeping the peace in -- down there in the square. It's interesting to see all types of support when it comes to the demonstrators. Does that pretty much demolish any fear of a civil unrest since the army and the police are there?

DOUGHERTY: Well, you know, not all the army and not all the police are there, Kyra. But I'd have to tell you, there are riot police, and they are still on watch. They haven't been mixing much at all with the crowds, but they are definitely there, and there are thousands of them just in case anything happens. And that's the big concern right now, that it remain peaceful.

But those police that you saw on the stage, it's interesting. They are police cadets, young kids who are going to become policemen. And they left their classes today, several hundred of them, and went over to the side of the opposition.

In fact, they marched down the street, went up to the riot police and said, "Hey, come and join us. You should be with the people."

So this is another potent symbol that the opposition is using. They put those -- those police cadets on the stage to show that there is more and more support, they would argue, for their side.

PHILLIPS: Interesting. Jill Dougherty, live from Kiev. Thank you so much.

Now the latest from Iraq, where some key participants want to hit the brakes on democratic elections. Eight Iraqi political groups have petitioned the interim government to delay elections now set for January 30.

The petitioners include a group led by former interim presidential candidate Adnan Pachachi. At issue, the way the candidates are to be presented to voters.

U.S. military officials confirm that materials found yesterday in a Falluja lab included instructions for making anthrax, and formulas and ingredients for making explosives and chemical blood agents. The officials say that there's no indication that chemical weapons were being produced, but the lab was making explosives.

Also from Falluja, news that two Marines with the 1st Marine Expeditionary Force were killed yesterday while conducting house-to- house searches for insurgents.

A car bomb detonated near a military convoy in Baquba today, reportedly wounding two U.S. soldiers and two Iraqis.

Also today in Iraq, relief began flowing to battered Falluja. CNN producer Kianne Sadeq traveled to the city in an Iraqi aid convoy. She joins us now live from Baghdad to tell us what she saw.

Kianne, let's talk about the red Crescent. It was not able to get into Falluja when the offensive was taking place. Now they are in. Tell us what they are distributing and how it's going.

KIANNE SADEQ, CNN PRODUCER: Well, yes, Kyra, the Red Crescent has -- now has an agreement with the military and the Iraqi forces to distribute their aid. So we entered the city today. And as we zigzagged through the final checkpoint into the city, all we could see from all sides was destruction. And we entered some homes where we saw some families. And the first home we entered, we saw a family creeping out slowly, very nervous. And they mentioned to us that they just wanted to leave.

The Iraqi Red Crescent was there to show them support, to encourage them to come over to their center where they are supplying them with food, water, blankets and medicine. And trying to encourage these families who are remaining in Falluja to come over to their center so that they can help them -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: Have there been any threats, any threats against the Red Crescent? We saw what has happened to aid workers in Iraq, U.S. and from other countries. But what about the Iraqi Red Crescent? Do they feel that their security is at stake?

SADEQ: No, not necessarily. I've spoken to the Red Crescent about their security and about how they feel about this.

They say that it's very important to them. But the Red Crescent now has the support of the military, and so going into the city was very smooth because the military was very helpful and escorted the convoy through the various parts that were more difficult to get through. As well as inside Falluja, the military has complete control. The Iraqi forces or U.S. military have complete control over the city and are surrounding all areas, including where their center is based -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: Now, Kianne, when you talked to the family members, when you had a chance to talk to civilians there in Iraq that stayed in Falluja during the gunfights, what did they tell you about the insurgents? Did the insurgents come into their homes? Did the insurgents threaten them?

SADEQ: I asked the families about the insurgents. I asked them what they felt the real problem with Falluja was.

And when I spoke to them, when they answered me back, they said they didn't feel that there was a problem. They said the only problem was if there were people in Falluja working with the Americans, that's when a masked man would come up to them and either take them away, threaten them, or even cut off their heads, as the people were saying to me.

So they felt pretty safe. These people who I spoke to felt pretty safe because they said they weren't working with the Americans. But they said that other people were, and that's what was -- that's what was angering the insurgents.

PHILLIPS: So how -- how do you define working with the Americans? I mean, families that give U.S. troops intelligence? I mean, how would insurgents know if these families were cooperating or not? And what's their definition of cooperation?

SADEQ: Well, there are several -- there are several people in Iraq right now who are working with Americans, as well as foreign companies in general who are here as translators, as guides, as fixer- types. Not necessarily as intelligence or spies, but they might be considered as spies or intelligence by insurgents, and that just comes from suspicion.

But there are several people in the city. Because there are several foreigners in the city right now, Americans and other companies, they need to have a guide here. They need to have eyes and ears. So therefore, there might have been people in Falluja who are helping the Americans, who are helping them as translators and such, and they were blamed for that.

PHILLIPS: How does the city look now? How do the homes look? How are families adapting? Are they staying there? Are they leaving?

SADEQ: Kyra, the city is destroyed. And the homes in Falluja are -- actually seem to be very well built. And these, you know, homes were destroyed, and there's -- it's a ghost town right now.

There's completely quiet. People are very scared to come out of their homes.

We went through several alleyways this morning, and people would just creep out slowly. Many of them carrying white flags, many of them having even white flags hanging out of their homes. And this is just a fear.

Other than that, you see nothing in the streets. You hear mortars. You hear gunfire, more than you would in the city of Baghdad, let's say.

But as -- you know, for driving through, in and out of the city, all you see is military surrounding the area, surrounding the alleyways. And it's quiet. It's a ghost town. And lots of destruction.

PHILLIPS: Kianne Sadeq, she actually traveled into the city there of Falluja with an Iraqi aid convoy. Interesting angle today, the other side of the story. Thank you very much, Kianne.

Well, there could be some changes in the Palestinian leadership as it enters a potentially crucial period with Israel. The ruling fatah party has scheduled its first elections in 16 years for August. This appears to be in response to a power struggle between younger members and those from Yasser Arafat's generation.

Meantime, within the past hour, we've learned that imprisoned Palestinian leader Marwan Barghouti does not intend to run for the Palestinian presidency in January. Barghouti threw his support behind the current president, Mahmoud Abbas.

Shoppers are packing credit cards, gift ideas and maybe a bit more confidence in their economy this year. The National Retail Federation says that the average consumer will shell out more than $700 this holiday season. That's an increase of about 4.5 percent over last year.

A big chunk of that money will be spent today. This is known as Black Friday, if you didn't know, traditionally one of the busiest shopping days of the season. A lot of folks have been at it since dawn, taking advantage of longer hours and holiday bargains.

CNN's David Mattingly is at a Wal-Mart in suburban Atlanta checking out the scene.

We all know how popular that can be at this time of year -- David.

MATTINGLY: That's right, Kyra. And what we're seeing today is that people are taking their time. They are looking around for sales and trying to be careful with how they spend their money.

We've heard sort of a mixed economic outlook from shoppers today. Some of them say that they have more money to spend this year. But at the same time, they are worried about what rising prices, like for gasoline in the future, and for heating this winter might be doing to their bottom lines.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And this will probably get 35 miles to a gallon. It bites. You know, it hurts.

MATTINGLY: How is that affecting you today?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Well, you know, I can't get as much as I want to get. I mean -- and I'm lucky, my kids are older. So a lot of them want the (UNINTELLIGIBLE). They don't like what dad gets them sometimes. What are you going to do?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Last year I wasn't making as much money as I am now. So now I have more options as far as I don't have to look so much at prices, but what my friends want. So I'm able to look at more what people want rather than what's cheapest.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

MATTINGLY: And earlier this morning, we saw people here lining up at 4:00 in the morning, getting in line for those bargains that they had set out. They were allowed to get in here at 6:00 this morning.

It was a big rush at the time. What we saw was actually power shopping at its finest.

What people were doing, they were coming here, they were standing in line. They were hitting this store as quickly as they could to look for those items that they saw advertised.

They shopped as quickly as they could. Then they moved on to other stores. And that's what store owners and store managers are telling us that they are seeing, an increasing trend that people will come. They will do a big hard round of power shipping on this day.

But today, this Black Friday, as it's called, is not necessarily the big economic indicator that it used to be because more people are shopping online and more people are wait until later in the shopping season to make their final purchases -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: Yes, I don't blame them after seeing those long lines. David Mattingly, thanks so much.

Well, they are cleaning up the mess after a rocky Thanksgiving holiday. Details on digging out from a pretty messy situation just ahead.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

LANCE CPL. NICK ULLOA, U.S. MARINE CORPS: I'm missing a lot of bones. Some of it is just gone. A lot of dead bone.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: Wounded in Falluja, a Marine makes it home just in time for the holiday. And he tells us his story just ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(WEATHER REPORT)

PHILLIPS: News from "Across America" now.

They may not be moving mountains, but they are moving some pretty big boulders in Glenwood Springs, Colorado, after a Thanksgiving Day rockslide. Snow is delaying repairs along Interstate 70, a stretch of which is shut down due to that slide. Officials hope to reopen at least one lane in each direction today.

And some folks in Alabama are dealing with what's left of their homes. They are spending the holiday week cleaning up from a deadly string of tornadoes on Thanksgiving eve.

The first of six funerals for the Wisconsin deer hunters killed on Sunday is being held today. Two other people were wounded in what police say was a confrontation over land. A Minnesota hunter is now in jail.

"I messed up and I got shot," those were the words of a young Marine wounded in Iraq who is having mixed feelings this Thanksgiving week. Nineteen-year-old Lance Corporal Sam Crist says that he's glad to be back home in Louisiana, but he regrets leaving his friends behind to continue fighting the insurgents. Crist was shot while crossing a highway in Falluja earlier this month.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

LANCE CPL. SAM CRIST, WOUNDED IN IRAQ: Made it most of the way, and then got hit in the leg. I started crawling, and then I got hit in the arm. And I was laying face down.

I couldn't really move. Couldn't crawl anymore. My arm and leg were both down. And that's when someone came and grabbed me. (END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: CNN's Miguel Marquez talked with another young man just back from Falluja who says that, despite his injuries, his duty may not be over.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ULLOA: I'm missing a lot of bones. Some of it's just gone. A lot of dead bone.

MIGUEL MARQUEZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Nick Ulloa is just 20 years old. He's been in Iraq for 5 1/2 months. He's been injured twice.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm the point man for my squad. And I walk into a house, and I just happened to be in the wrong house.

MARQUEZ: Last Wednesday, Ulloa, like these Marines, was going house to house in Falluja, looking for insurgents. Ulloa led the way into a house and found himself between a locked door and a dark hallway.

ULLOA: When I went in the hallway, the next thing I know is I see a bunch of muzzle flashes, and kind of hazy from there.

MARQUEZ: Ulloa, who weighs in at just 130 pounds, was hit by four bullets and a piece of shrapnel from a grenade. One of the AK-47 rounds and the shrapnel are now keepsakes.

ROSE ULLOA, MOTHER: This is the best Thanksgiving I could have. He's alive.

MARQUEZ: Ulloa is now recovering at Camp Pendleton. His family is visiting from Illinois.

JOSE ULLOA, FATHER: We worry so much since he went to Iraq, and now I know how all the parents feel about it.

MARQUEZ: His older brother is in the Army and headed to Afghanistan next year.

JOE ULLOA, U.S. ARMY: It's a real wake-up call, you know, what to look out for, but that's our job.

MARQUEZ: Ulloa says his injuries may affect his ability to run, but he hopes to return to full duty in the next eight months.

(on camera) Will you go back to Iraq?

R. ULLOA: I can't really answer that question. It's certainly not a place I want to be, but it's where my calling is. Where my -- where my country wants me to go, I'll go.

MARQUEZ: Miguel Marquez, CNN, Camp Pendleton, California.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PHILLIPS: Well, it's one of the best jam sessions we've ever heard.

(MUSIC)

PHILLIPS: Oh, yes, and best of all, it's free. One woman's musical mission turns her tiny Harlem apartment into a concert hall every Sunday. Her story later on LIVE FROM.

It ranks the best at being the worst. Find out why this TV show -- you know it -- "Baywatch," is bouncing to the top of the British list just ahead of LIVE FROM, of course.

JENNIFER WESTHOVEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: The holiday shopping season officially kicks off today. But how about shopping for some stocks? I'll tell you why right now might be a good time to invest. That's coming up on LIVE FROM. So don't go away.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: News "Around the World" now.

Chinese school massacre. A man armed with a knife has killed eight students at a school in China's central Hunan province. Four others were killed. Officials say that the man broke into a dormitory at the school and attacked the students while they were sleeping. Police are searching for that man now.

A taste of freedom. U.S. Army deserter Charles Jenkins is expected to be released tomorrow. He's serving a 30-day sentence for abandoning his unit in 1965 and defecting to North Korea. Officials say that he will move to his wife's hometown in northern Japan.

A dire warning on Asia's bird flu from the World Health Organization. The U.N. agency is meeting in Thailand for talks on that disease. Officials say the bird flu could develop into the world's next pandemic and kill as many as seven million people.

Right now might be the time to buy, and we're not just talking about holiday gifts. Jennifer Westhoven joins us now from New York to explain.

Hi, Jen.

WESTHOVEN: Hey. Thanks, Kyra.

(STOCK MARKET REPORT)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

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Aired November 26, 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: Iran's deal, is it a resolution to a possible nuclear crisis? Washington and the world are watching. We're live on that story.
DAVID MATTINGLY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: The Christmas shopping season started with a rush, and it started early. I'm David Mattingly. I'll have that story.

PHILLIPS: Basketball legend Magic Johnson, what went through his mind when he told his wife he was HIV positive? He talks with our Dr. Sanjay Gupta.

And the Babe's bat. Ruth used it to swat his first homerun at Yankee Stadium. Now you can buy it.

From the CNN Center in Atlanta, I'm Kyra Phillips. Miles is off. This hour of CNN's LIVE FROM starts right now.

We start with centrifuges, dropped clauses and a compromise that all amounts to a tentative deal on a plan to freeze Iran's nuclear program. But as always, the devil is in the details. CNN's Matthew Chance joins us now from London with a closer look.

What do you know, Matthew?

MATTHEW CHANCE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Kyra, thanks. Not a great deal.

In fact, the diplomats from the IAEA, the U.N.'s nuclear watchdogs, say they are waiting for this agreement from Iran to drop its demand to keep these 20 centrifuges that it requested be exempt from its uranium enrichment freeze that it has volunteered. It dropped that demand after a number of concessions were made, it seems, by the Europeans and the U.S. and others who have been negotiating with the Iranian delegation on this matter.

But one of the concessions that's been implemented is that they've removed a couple of clauses. One clause saying that Iran no longer is obligated to allow U.N. inspectors to visit any of its sites at any time. They have toned that down considerably.

They've also said that the trigger clause that was inside the IAEA resolution that's being debated in Vienna and Austria right now, the trigger clause that would have referred Iran to the U.N. Security Council if it goes back on its agreement, that has been removed as well. Now, the Iranians have said that, in response to that, offer the record at this stage, that they are prepared to drop that demand for those -- those centrifuges to be used still for research and development. But diplomats of the IAEA still say they are still waiting for that to be written on down on paper before they accept the deal is done -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: Matthew Chance live from London. Thank you so much.

And now to the Ukraine. The two men at the center of the country's political crisis sat down with mediators today. One accusing his rival of an unconstitutional coup, the other is charging fraud. And both are claiming the presidency.

The meeting comes on the fifth straight day of mass street protests in the capital of Kiev. Our Jill Dougherty is there and joins us now by phone -- Jill.

JILL DOUGHERTY, CNN MOSCOW BUREAU CHIEF: Well, here, Kyra, this is really a dramatic meeting that is undergoing right now. The two men, as you mentioned, two men who claim the presidency of Ukraine, Viktor Yanukovych, he is the government-backed candidate, and Viktor Yushchenko, who is the opposition leader, they are sitting now and have been there for two hours at a big roundtable in the presidential palace.

The president of Ukraine is there, Leonid Kuchma, along with other European leaders. In fact, the European Union's Xavier Solana is the man who is leading all of this, trying to bring them together.

These are two men who have very little affection for each other. Each is accusing the other of -- one is accusing the other of fraud, stealing the election. And the other one says that, with all of these street demonstrations, they are trying to bring about a coup.

And Kyra, speaking of the demonstrations, you know, as we drove over here, we went through many areas where these demonstrations are under way. People marching down the streets, all very peaceful, I have to add, but virtually on every street corner in the downtown area you are seeing this.

Finally, one last thing. Audiotapes that the opposition has released tonight, and they say those audiotapes actually prove that there was fraud in the presidential electition in Ukraine -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: As we watch these live pictures, like right now we're seeing there's a lot of musical support, a lot of local musicians. We've seen a lot of speakers. But now being told that the army and the police are siding with the demonstrators.

I'm assuming that's what's keeping the peace in -- down there in the square. It's interesting to see all types of support when it comes to the demonstrators. Does that pretty much demolish any fear of a civil unrest since the army and the police are there?

DOUGHERTY: Well, you know, not all the army and not all the police are there, Kyra. But I'd have to tell you, there are riot police, and they are still on watch. They haven't been mixing much at all with the crowds, but they are definitely there, and there are thousands of them just in case anything happens. And that's the big concern right now, that it remain peaceful.

But those police that you saw on the stage, it's interesting. They are police cadets, young kids who are going to become policemen. And they left their classes today, several hundred of them, and went over to the side of the opposition.

In fact, they marched down the street, went up to the riot police and said, "Hey, come and join us. You should be with the people."

So this is another potent symbol that the opposition is using. They put those -- those police cadets on the stage to show that there is more and more support, they would argue, for their side.

PHILLIPS: Interesting. Jill Dougherty, live from Kiev. Thank you so much.

Now the latest from Iraq, where some key participants want to hit the brakes on democratic elections. Eight Iraqi political groups have petitioned the interim government to delay elections now set for January 30.

The petitioners include a group led by former interim presidential candidate Adnan Pachachi. At issue, the way the candidates are to be presented to voters.

U.S. military officials confirm that materials found yesterday in a Falluja lab included instructions for making anthrax, and formulas and ingredients for making explosives and chemical blood agents. The officials say that there's no indication that chemical weapons were being produced, but the lab was making explosives.

Also from Falluja, news that two Marines with the 1st Marine Expeditionary Force were killed yesterday while conducting house-to- house searches for insurgents.

A car bomb detonated near a military convoy in Baquba today, reportedly wounding two U.S. soldiers and two Iraqis.

Also today in Iraq, relief began flowing to battered Falluja. CNN producer Kianne Sadeq traveled to the city in an Iraqi aid convoy. She joins us now live from Baghdad to tell us what she saw.

Kianne, let's talk about the red Crescent. It was not able to get into Falluja when the offensive was taking place. Now they are in. Tell us what they are distributing and how it's going.

KIANNE SADEQ, CNN PRODUCER: Well, yes, Kyra, the Red Crescent has -- now has an agreement with the military and the Iraqi forces to distribute their aid. So we entered the city today. And as we zigzagged through the final checkpoint into the city, all we could see from all sides was destruction. And we entered some homes where we saw some families. And the first home we entered, we saw a family creeping out slowly, very nervous. And they mentioned to us that they just wanted to leave.

The Iraqi Red Crescent was there to show them support, to encourage them to come over to their center where they are supplying them with food, water, blankets and medicine. And trying to encourage these families who are remaining in Falluja to come over to their center so that they can help them -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: Have there been any threats, any threats against the Red Crescent? We saw what has happened to aid workers in Iraq, U.S. and from other countries. But what about the Iraqi Red Crescent? Do they feel that their security is at stake?

SADEQ: No, not necessarily. I've spoken to the Red Crescent about their security and about how they feel about this.

They say that it's very important to them. But the Red Crescent now has the support of the military, and so going into the city was very smooth because the military was very helpful and escorted the convoy through the various parts that were more difficult to get through. As well as inside Falluja, the military has complete control. The Iraqi forces or U.S. military have complete control over the city and are surrounding all areas, including where their center is based -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: Now, Kianne, when you talked to the family members, when you had a chance to talk to civilians there in Iraq that stayed in Falluja during the gunfights, what did they tell you about the insurgents? Did the insurgents come into their homes? Did the insurgents threaten them?

SADEQ: I asked the families about the insurgents. I asked them what they felt the real problem with Falluja was.

And when I spoke to them, when they answered me back, they said they didn't feel that there was a problem. They said the only problem was if there were people in Falluja working with the Americans, that's when a masked man would come up to them and either take them away, threaten them, or even cut off their heads, as the people were saying to me.

So they felt pretty safe. These people who I spoke to felt pretty safe because they said they weren't working with the Americans. But they said that other people were, and that's what was -- that's what was angering the insurgents.

PHILLIPS: So how -- how do you define working with the Americans? I mean, families that give U.S. troops intelligence? I mean, how would insurgents know if these families were cooperating or not? And what's their definition of cooperation?

SADEQ: Well, there are several -- there are several people in Iraq right now who are working with Americans, as well as foreign companies in general who are here as translators, as guides, as fixer- types. Not necessarily as intelligence or spies, but they might be considered as spies or intelligence by insurgents, and that just comes from suspicion.

But there are several people in the city. Because there are several foreigners in the city right now, Americans and other companies, they need to have a guide here. They need to have eyes and ears. So therefore, there might have been people in Falluja who are helping the Americans, who are helping them as translators and such, and they were blamed for that.

PHILLIPS: How does the city look now? How do the homes look? How are families adapting? Are they staying there? Are they leaving?

SADEQ: Kyra, the city is destroyed. And the homes in Falluja are -- actually seem to be very well built. And these, you know, homes were destroyed, and there's -- it's a ghost town right now.

There's completely quiet. People are very scared to come out of their homes.

We went through several alleyways this morning, and people would just creep out slowly. Many of them carrying white flags, many of them having even white flags hanging out of their homes. And this is just a fear.

Other than that, you see nothing in the streets. You hear mortars. You hear gunfire, more than you would in the city of Baghdad, let's say.

But as -- you know, for driving through, in and out of the city, all you see is military surrounding the area, surrounding the alleyways. And it's quiet. It's a ghost town. And lots of destruction.

PHILLIPS: Kianne Sadeq, she actually traveled into the city there of Falluja with an Iraqi aid convoy. Interesting angle today, the other side of the story. Thank you very much, Kianne.

Well, there could be some changes in the Palestinian leadership as it enters a potentially crucial period with Israel. The ruling fatah party has scheduled its first elections in 16 years for August. This appears to be in response to a power struggle between younger members and those from Yasser Arafat's generation.

Meantime, within the past hour, we've learned that imprisoned Palestinian leader Marwan Barghouti does not intend to run for the Palestinian presidency in January. Barghouti threw his support behind the current president, Mahmoud Abbas.

Shoppers are packing credit cards, gift ideas and maybe a bit more confidence in their economy this year. The National Retail Federation says that the average consumer will shell out more than $700 this holiday season. That's an increase of about 4.5 percent over last year.

A big chunk of that money will be spent today. This is known as Black Friday, if you didn't know, traditionally one of the busiest shopping days of the season. A lot of folks have been at it since dawn, taking advantage of longer hours and holiday bargains.

CNN's David Mattingly is at a Wal-Mart in suburban Atlanta checking out the scene.

We all know how popular that can be at this time of year -- David.

MATTINGLY: That's right, Kyra. And what we're seeing today is that people are taking their time. They are looking around for sales and trying to be careful with how they spend their money.

We've heard sort of a mixed economic outlook from shoppers today. Some of them say that they have more money to spend this year. But at the same time, they are worried about what rising prices, like for gasoline in the future, and for heating this winter might be doing to their bottom lines.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And this will probably get 35 miles to a gallon. It bites. You know, it hurts.

MATTINGLY: How is that affecting you today?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Well, you know, I can't get as much as I want to get. I mean -- and I'm lucky, my kids are older. So a lot of them want the (UNINTELLIGIBLE). They don't like what dad gets them sometimes. What are you going to do?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Last year I wasn't making as much money as I am now. So now I have more options as far as I don't have to look so much at prices, but what my friends want. So I'm able to look at more what people want rather than what's cheapest.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

MATTINGLY: And earlier this morning, we saw people here lining up at 4:00 in the morning, getting in line for those bargains that they had set out. They were allowed to get in here at 6:00 this morning.

It was a big rush at the time. What we saw was actually power shopping at its finest.

What people were doing, they were coming here, they were standing in line. They were hitting this store as quickly as they could to look for those items that they saw advertised.

They shopped as quickly as they could. Then they moved on to other stores. And that's what store owners and store managers are telling us that they are seeing, an increasing trend that people will come. They will do a big hard round of power shipping on this day.

But today, this Black Friday, as it's called, is not necessarily the big economic indicator that it used to be because more people are shopping online and more people are wait until later in the shopping season to make their final purchases -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: Yes, I don't blame them after seeing those long lines. David Mattingly, thanks so much.

Well, they are cleaning up the mess after a rocky Thanksgiving holiday. Details on digging out from a pretty messy situation just ahead.

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LANCE CPL. NICK ULLOA, U.S. MARINE CORPS: I'm missing a lot of bones. Some of it is just gone. A lot of dead bone.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: Wounded in Falluja, a Marine makes it home just in time for the holiday. And he tells us his story just ahead.

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PHILLIPS: News from "Across America" now.

They may not be moving mountains, but they are moving some pretty big boulders in Glenwood Springs, Colorado, after a Thanksgiving Day rockslide. Snow is delaying repairs along Interstate 70, a stretch of which is shut down due to that slide. Officials hope to reopen at least one lane in each direction today.

And some folks in Alabama are dealing with what's left of their homes. They are spending the holiday week cleaning up from a deadly string of tornadoes on Thanksgiving eve.

The first of six funerals for the Wisconsin deer hunters killed on Sunday is being held today. Two other people were wounded in what police say was a confrontation over land. A Minnesota hunter is now in jail.

"I messed up and I got shot," those were the words of a young Marine wounded in Iraq who is having mixed feelings this Thanksgiving week. Nineteen-year-old Lance Corporal Sam Crist says that he's glad to be back home in Louisiana, but he regrets leaving his friends behind to continue fighting the insurgents. Crist was shot while crossing a highway in Falluja earlier this month.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

LANCE CPL. SAM CRIST, WOUNDED IN IRAQ: Made it most of the way, and then got hit in the leg. I started crawling, and then I got hit in the arm. And I was laying face down.

I couldn't really move. Couldn't crawl anymore. My arm and leg were both down. And that's when someone came and grabbed me. (END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: CNN's Miguel Marquez talked with another young man just back from Falluja who says that, despite his injuries, his duty may not be over.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ULLOA: I'm missing a lot of bones. Some of it's just gone. A lot of dead bone.

MIGUEL MARQUEZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Nick Ulloa is just 20 years old. He's been in Iraq for 5 1/2 months. He's been injured twice.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm the point man for my squad. And I walk into a house, and I just happened to be in the wrong house.

MARQUEZ: Last Wednesday, Ulloa, like these Marines, was going house to house in Falluja, looking for insurgents. Ulloa led the way into a house and found himself between a locked door and a dark hallway.

ULLOA: When I went in the hallway, the next thing I know is I see a bunch of muzzle flashes, and kind of hazy from there.

MARQUEZ: Ulloa, who weighs in at just 130 pounds, was hit by four bullets and a piece of shrapnel from a grenade. One of the AK-47 rounds and the shrapnel are now keepsakes.

ROSE ULLOA, MOTHER: This is the best Thanksgiving I could have. He's alive.

MARQUEZ: Ulloa is now recovering at Camp Pendleton. His family is visiting from Illinois.

JOSE ULLOA, FATHER: We worry so much since he went to Iraq, and now I know how all the parents feel about it.

MARQUEZ: His older brother is in the Army and headed to Afghanistan next year.

JOE ULLOA, U.S. ARMY: It's a real wake-up call, you know, what to look out for, but that's our job.

MARQUEZ: Ulloa says his injuries may affect his ability to run, but he hopes to return to full duty in the next eight months.

(on camera) Will you go back to Iraq?

R. ULLOA: I can't really answer that question. It's certainly not a place I want to be, but it's where my calling is. Where my -- where my country wants me to go, I'll go.

MARQUEZ: Miguel Marquez, CNN, Camp Pendleton, California.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PHILLIPS: Well, it's one of the best jam sessions we've ever heard.

(MUSIC)

PHILLIPS: Oh, yes, and best of all, it's free. One woman's musical mission turns her tiny Harlem apartment into a concert hall every Sunday. Her story later on LIVE FROM.

It ranks the best at being the worst. Find out why this TV show -- you know it -- "Baywatch," is bouncing to the top of the British list just ahead of LIVE FROM, of course.

JENNIFER WESTHOVEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: The holiday shopping season officially kicks off today. But how about shopping for some stocks? I'll tell you why right now might be a good time to invest. That's coming up on LIVE FROM. So don't go away.

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PHILLIPS: News "Around the World" now.

Chinese school massacre. A man armed with a knife has killed eight students at a school in China's central Hunan province. Four others were killed. Officials say that the man broke into a dormitory at the school and attacked the students while they were sleeping. Police are searching for that man now.

A taste of freedom. U.S. Army deserter Charles Jenkins is expected to be released tomorrow. He's serving a 30-day sentence for abandoning his unit in 1965 and defecting to North Korea. Officials say that he will move to his wife's hometown in northern Japan.

A dire warning on Asia's bird flu from the World Health Organization. The U.N. agency is meeting in Thailand for talks on that disease. Officials say the bird flu could develop into the world's next pandemic and kill as many as seven million people.

Right now might be the time to buy, and we're not just talking about holiday gifts. Jennifer Westhoven joins us now from New York to explain.

Hi, Jen.

WESTHOVEN: Hey. Thanks, Kyra.

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