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Iraq Official: Zarqawi Wounded; FAA Predicts Longer Delays in Summer; Divers are Restoring the Reefs in Southeast Asia

Aired May 26, 2005 - 15:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.


MILES O'BRIEN, CO-HOST: The Reverend Jesse Jackson and two groups associated with him will pay a total of $250,000 for campaign finance violations in the 2000 election.
The Federal Election Commission says about $450,000 in corporate money was spent for a partisan "Get Out the Vote" effort and a voter registration tour. The money was eventually reimbursed by the Democratic National Committee.

The judge in Michael Jackson's child molestation trial says prosecutors can show a video of the accuser's police interview as part of their rebuttal. The defense says it might call the teenaged accuser and his mother back to the stand if that happens. The defense had rested its case yesterday.

Health experts tell a House committee the so-called bird flu will likely mutate in Asia and then become a pandemic, threatening 20 percent of the world's human beings. If that happens, they say millions could die and entire economies could collapse, because many countries would likely be forced to close their borders.

U.S. and Iraqi forces continue Operation New Market. It's an effort to thwart insurgent activity in and around the Iraqi city of Haditha. Marines say five men have been detained for questioning. At least 10 insurgents and one U.S. Marine killed yesterday, the first day of the operation.

KYRA PHILLIPS, CO-HOST: First this hour, the state of confusion engulfing Iraq over the country's most wanted insurgent. Is he dead or alive? From Baghdad, CNN's Jane Arraf has the latest on the fate of Abu Musab al Zarqawi.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JANE ARRAF, CNN CORRESPONDENT: The fate of most-wanted man in Iraq is still unclear. Iraq's interior minister has told a press conference that he has concrete information that Abu Musab al-Zarqawi is indeed wounded.

Now, when pressed on that he said would not reveal details, did not know how seriously he was wounded and wouldn't say anything else about it, except privately afterwards, told us that we could believe that it was true. He was sure that that was the case.

But shortly after that, Iraq's prime minister, Ibrahim al-Jafari, speaking to reporters, told him that he had no accurate information that Zarqawi had, indeed, been injured. U.S. military officials say they're not sure either.

But some Iraqi government officials say that, whether that report is true or not, it could point to a serious split in the insurgency. They say it could be proof that some insurgents have grown tired of Zarqawi and believed that he and the killing of masses of Iraqi civilians are hurting their cause.

To crack down on that insurgency, Iraqi officials, the interior and the defense minister announced that they would begin a massive operation, starting in Baghdad. This will be the biggest Iraqi security operation since the end of major combat.

According to the officials, 40,000 Iraqi army soldiers and Iraqi police will ring the outskirts of Baghdad, controlling access, do house-to-house searches in some neighborhoods, set up emergency checkpoints in an attempt to quell the insurgency in the capital city and moving out to other areas after that.

Jane Arraf, CNN, reporting from Baghdad.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PHILLIPS: The Pentagon says it cannot confirm the reports that Zarqawi is wounded, and even though the insurgent has a U.S. bounty riding on his head, a Pentagon general warns not to overstate his importance.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GEN. CARTER HAM, U.S. ARMY: Zarqawi certainly is an important character. His organization is bigger than just one guy. And so his demise, whether he be captured, which would be -- which would be preferable or if he's -- if he's killed or wounded, that will not cause al Qaeda in Iraq to cease to function. So it is important, certainly, but if he's killed or captured, it won't cause the organization to necessarily crumble.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: Also today, Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld likened al-Zarqawi to Hitler. In a speech at Fort Bragg, Rumsfeld said that al-Zarqawi has failed and now sees the destruction of everything around him.

O'BRIEN: President Bush says the U.S. will give Palestinians $50 million in direct aid to help improve their quality of life. The president announced the grant during a White House meeting with Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas. The president reiterated his support for a free Palestinian state alongside Israel.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MAHMOUD ABBAS, PALESTINIAN PRESIDENT (through translator): We hope that we ill be able to get something that would reflect the credibility of what we say, and we will be in a position to say to the Palestinian people that the American president is committed, and here is the proof of his commitment.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

O'BRIEN: President Abbas added that he looks forward to the removal of Israeli road blocks, checkpoints and security forces, and he emphasized democracy cannot flourish under occupation.

Will any more Republicans bolt over Bolton? We should know later today when supporters of John Bolton, President Bush's choice for U.N. ambassador, try to cut off Senate debate and vote on confirmation.

Some Democrats are trying to buy time, but no one's using the f- word. And that is filibuster, folks. For you kids at home.

Live pictures now in the well of the Senate. Lamar Alexander, Republican of Tennessee, making his points on this issue. They want to put off a final vote until the administration, Democrats that is, turn over documents relating to Bolton's work as arms control chief at the State Department.

Critics say he mishandled intelligence, mistreated underlings and misled the foreign relations committee. Supporters say he's a can do, straight talking guy who will further the U.S. agenda.

If Republicans muster 60 votes, and you're familiar with all this by now, a simple majority up-or-down vote will follow. If not, stay tuned. But stay tuned anyway.

PHILLIPS: Elsewhere across America, a standoff atop a construction crane, of all things, continues right here in Atlanta. Live pictures right now as police have already identified the man as Carl Edward Roland, sought by Florida authorities in the murder of his ex-girlfriend.

Roland scaled the crane late yesterday afternoon. He's said to be armed with a knife. Negotiators are trying to get him down.

In Durham, North Carolina, police are on the hunt for whoever has been burning crosses. Three were set ablaze within an hour of each other in different parts of the city. Flyers with KKK sayings were found at one of the sites.

Renewed hope that two missing Idaho children may still be alive. The FBI is finished analyzing the blood found in their home, where their brother and mother were found murdered. Authorities say it is not Shasta or Dylan Groene's blood type.

O'BRIEN: Well, if you're headed to the airport this summer, pack an extra bag of patient. Could be waiting longer than you expect for your flight.

CNN's Kathleen Koch is at Reagan National Airport, gearing up for the traditional start of the summer season -- Kathleen.

KATHLEEN KOCH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Miles, this may come as no surprise to anyone who has traveled lately, but just as air traffic has returned to pre-9/11 levels, well, finally now so have delays.

Two thousand was the benchmark summer, the worst summer for delays on record. And according to the FAA, many cities have now equaled that or even surpassed it.

According to a new report out by the inspector general of the transportation department, delays in the first quarter of 2005 were up 17 percent over last year, affecting more than a quarter of all flights. The length of delays is up, as well, to more than 52 minutes.

The FAA says the outlook is not any better for the summer because of a changing airline policy.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MARION BLAKEY, FAA ADMINISTRATOR: The airlines are indicating that they plan this summer to fly full. What this means is that they anticipate full passenger loads, and they will not cancel flights as they did a lot last summer because of convective weather.

They intend to keep to the schedules, flying later, and opting to incur delays if need be to reach the destinations. It's a good use of the passengers because it means you're not looking at cancellations, but boy, I'll tell you, we could be looking at some real delays.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KOCH: Another problem, the National Weather Service is predicting a rough summer with more thunderstorms than normal. And the FAA says that delays could be particularly bad at six airports: Philadelphia, La Guardia, Newark, Washington-Dulles, Atlanta and Ft. Lauderdale.

The FAA is insisting that it's doing everything it can, developing technology to better use the nation's airspace, also spending some $4.75 billion over the next three years building new runways.

But still, the government admits that as long as prices stay low and demand stays high, that increased traffic and with that increased delays are going to be something the passengers have to learn to live with -- Miles.

O'BRIEN: Kathleen Koch at national airport. Thank you -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: The CIA reveals agents have been playing war games this week. Coming up, the fight against a terror attack on the scale of 9/11 that targets the Internet.

Also, clearing damage from the south Asian tsunami from one of the most beautiful and delicate places on earth, the coral reef, the coast of Thailand.

ANNOUNCER: You're watching LIVE FROM on CNN, the most trusted name in news. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

This week in history, the Golden Gate Bridge opened to pedestrians on May 27, 1937. Cars started crossing the next day. Four years earlier, against public scrutiny and environmental dangers, builder Joseph Strauss began its construction. It remains an engineering marvel to this day.

And on May 25, 1979, it was a dark day when American Airlines flight 191 crashed, killing all 270 on board and two people on the ground. Destined from L.A. from Chicago's O'Hare International, engine problems caused the aircraft to nosedive. It is the most deadly airline crash in U.S. history.

And that is this week in history.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: Live pictures right now, via our affiliate here in Atlanta, Georgia. This is -- this is our video, apologize. But we have been receiving help from our affiliates.

It's a live picture of -- it's a standoff atop a construction crane that continues here in Atlanta, Georgia. Police have identified this man as Carl Edward Roland. He's sought by Florida authorities in the murder of his ex-girlfriend, we are told.

He got here to Atlanta yesterday afternoon, and the standoff began about 4 p.m. Eastern Time. He's said to be armed with a knife. You can see police officers, actually negotiators there, not far from him, continuing their conversation. Every now and then we see them slowly move back towards authorities and then come back to this spot that he's been since yesterday at 4 in the afternoon.

He's refused food and water, but negotiators said they're going to wait it out until they can get him down. This is the rap sheet, you can see, of Roland since the year 2000. And now, of course, Florida authorities seeking him for murder, alleged murder of his ex- girlfriend.

We're following the story for you. A quick break. We'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

O'BRIEN: "CNN Security Watch" time. Imagine a terror attack just as destructive as 9/11 but far more insidious, and the terrorists wouldn't use bombs or airplanes as weapons but key strokes.

The CIA is wrapping up a three-day cyberwar game in Virginia. The purpose? To find out how the government and other agencies would respond to escalating attacks on the Internet. The imaginary attack takes place five years in the future, carried out by an alliance of anti-globalization hackers and other groups. Well, how safe are the nation's ports. The government says -- investigators for the government say two programs set up after 9/11 may not be keeping dangerous materials from our shores. Today a Senate committee held a hearing on the findings and investigators found only a fraction of shipments deemed high risk or inspect.

Citing a high risk of terror attack, the U.S. is closing its embassy in Indonesia for the time being. In a statement, the State Department warns an attack could happen any time and neighborhoods where westerners live could be targeted, as well. The government says it will look at reopening the embassy once it's safer.

CNN, committed to providing the most reliable coverage of news that affects your security. Stay tuned to CNN for the latest day and night.

PHILLIPS: Rebuilding and recovery continue following the deadly tsunami that hit Southeast Asia five months ago today. Tourism is down sharply across much of the region, including Phuket, Thailand. And officials there are trying to lure back the tourists as volunteers work to restore the area's underwater beauty.

This piece now by CNN's Aneesh Raman.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ANEESH RAMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): A few meters under the Indian Ocean, sights unseen even by the most experienced divers. Nestled in the Thailand's coral reefs are well over a thousand tons of debris. A stark reminder of the vicious destruction that ravaged the region last year.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Oh, my gosh!

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Fifteen, 20 feet tall, easy.

RAMAN: When the Asian tsunami hit, the ferocious waves did not just crash onto shore. They withdrew with enormous force, carrying anything too weak to stay on ground: people, cars, buildings. Their wrath was indiscriminate.

And in the aftermath, from kitchen sinks to televisions, all the amenities of land are occupying the ocean's landscape. Here in Phuket, underwater rehabilitation is as critical as above ground rebuilding.

Maitree Duangsawasdi heads the government's efforts to clean the coral reefs.

MAITREE DUANGSAWASDI, DIRECTOR GENERAL, DMCR: Our department have to rehabilitate this kind of coral reef because it's a place that can make productivity of the marine resources more better. If it is destroyed, it will have no effect.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'll take something big (ph) right now. If you see something big, what you do is tie a rope around it. RAMAN: Within days after the tsunami, the Thai government made it clear that it needed help. It needed volunteer divers to help remove the trash from sites all across Phuket. The response was beyond anyone's expectation, to tourists who felt they need to help every weekend at outings across the island, people are diving for debris.

Dennis Kalsson, a dive master in Phuket, is a regular volunteer.

DENNIS KALSSON, DIVE MASTER: No, no, this is -- you cannot compare this to anything, I have never seen anything like this before. A strange feeling to be down there.

RAMAN (on camera): How? How?

KALSSON: There is so many stuff that is not supposed to be there. So it's a strange feeling.

RAMAN (voice-over): Each trip down brings with it newfound oddities. Some require crane. Others that are simply too heavy for a diver to move are marked by a buoy for the boats to tow.

(on camera) This effort is truly remarkable, the likes of which the Thai government has never seen before, but that timeline is essential. If they don't meet the deadline, the implications for the environment and the economy could be devastating.

(voice-over) In the myriad of concerns that follow the tsunami, this is but one, perhaps not the most critical, not even the most daunting, but for this industry, and the people who need it to survive, there is no more important struggle.

Aneesh Raman, CNN, Phuket, Thailand.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

O'BRIEN: Beautiful piece. An American icon hitting the big 4-0. Just ahead, he's pudgy. He's middle aged and he's celebrating a birthday. What Pillsbury is doing to honor the dough boy! Stop it.

Later cracking down on stealing from "Star Wars." The feds strike back.

But first a check of this week's mortgage rates.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: Our photos of the day. We start with Sharapova. We move over to the Yankees, but we've got to talk about Reuben "Pop" Franklin as he watches the path of a horseshoe he pitched in Port Orange, Florida, Thursday, May 26, 2005. Franklin and other self- described old-timers get together every Monday and Thursday to play horseshoes. Pop, who's got piercing blue eyes and South Carolina drawl, has been pitching horseshoes most of his life. And at 88 years old, he still gets his share of ringers. There you go, Pop. Still popping fresh after all these years, hard to believe, but Pillsbury's tubby and lovable Pillsbury Dough Boy is no longer a boy. He's turning 40.

It's been four decades since this puffy pitchman erupted into the advertising scene. And he wasn't only a kingpin in the kitchen. He became toy of the year back in 1972, and kids no longer got in trouble for cracking open the biscuit cans in a fruitless search for this little guy.

O'BRIEN: Admit it, you did that. Right?

PHILLIPS: I just want to poke you in your tummy. Can I poke you in your tummy?

O'BRIEN: You know, it's -- Apparently, they were a little concerned he couldn't make it to the party. He had a bad yeast infection.

PHILLIPS: Oh!

O'BRIEN: Anyway, the feds are going after a web site that had...

PHILLIPS: Did he say that out loud?

O'BRIEN: ... the new "Star Wars" movie before it was in theaters.

PHILLIPS: I don't even know what to say. I'm speechless.

O'BRIEN: It's been a problem over the years.

PHILLIPS: Allan Chernoff, sorry about the segue.

(STOCK REPORT)

O'BRIEN: All right. Thank you, Allan Chernoff. And that wraps this edition of CNN's LIVE FROM.

PHILLIPS: Judy Woodruff now with a preview of what's ahead on "INSIDE POLITICS."

Hi, Judy.

JUDY WOODRUFF, HOST, "INSIDE POLITICS": Hi, Kyra. Thanks to you and Miles.

Today I'm joined by Senator Hillary Clinton. I'll ask her about the atmosphere on Capitol Hill after the filibuster deal. We'll also address the situation in Iraq and her own political future.

And there's been a court ruling in Texas that may cause more problems for House Majority Leader Tom DeLay. We'll have the latest reaction to the ruling.

"INSIDE POLITICS" begins in just a moment. (COMMERCIAL BREAK)

O'BRIEN: Here's what's happening now in the news.

High above the streets of Atlanta, the situation no better for a man who climbed a construction crane yesterday, refuses to come down. Live pictures now. It's been almost 24 hours. Police still waiting him out. Authorities know the man's identity. He's wanted in Florida in connection with a woman's death.

And does bad weather have you stuck at the airport? Well, get comfortable. Most airlines this summer plan to delay flights in the face of bad weather instead of canceling them altogether. That comes from the FAA chief, who says the average weather related delay comes out to 52 minutes nowadays.

I'm Miles O'Brien at the CNN Center in Atlanta.

Now "JUDY WOODRUFF'S INSIDE POLITICS."

END

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


Aired May 26, 2005 - 15:00   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
MILES O'BRIEN, CO-HOST: The Reverend Jesse Jackson and two groups associated with him will pay a total of $250,000 for campaign finance violations in the 2000 election.
The Federal Election Commission says about $450,000 in corporate money was spent for a partisan "Get Out the Vote" effort and a voter registration tour. The money was eventually reimbursed by the Democratic National Committee.

The judge in Michael Jackson's child molestation trial says prosecutors can show a video of the accuser's police interview as part of their rebuttal. The defense says it might call the teenaged accuser and his mother back to the stand if that happens. The defense had rested its case yesterday.

Health experts tell a House committee the so-called bird flu will likely mutate in Asia and then become a pandemic, threatening 20 percent of the world's human beings. If that happens, they say millions could die and entire economies could collapse, because many countries would likely be forced to close their borders.

U.S. and Iraqi forces continue Operation New Market. It's an effort to thwart insurgent activity in and around the Iraqi city of Haditha. Marines say five men have been detained for questioning. At least 10 insurgents and one U.S. Marine killed yesterday, the first day of the operation.

KYRA PHILLIPS, CO-HOST: First this hour, the state of confusion engulfing Iraq over the country's most wanted insurgent. Is he dead or alive? From Baghdad, CNN's Jane Arraf has the latest on the fate of Abu Musab al Zarqawi.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JANE ARRAF, CNN CORRESPONDENT: The fate of most-wanted man in Iraq is still unclear. Iraq's interior minister has told a press conference that he has concrete information that Abu Musab al-Zarqawi is indeed wounded.

Now, when pressed on that he said would not reveal details, did not know how seriously he was wounded and wouldn't say anything else about it, except privately afterwards, told us that we could believe that it was true. He was sure that that was the case.

But shortly after that, Iraq's prime minister, Ibrahim al-Jafari, speaking to reporters, told him that he had no accurate information that Zarqawi had, indeed, been injured. U.S. military officials say they're not sure either.

But some Iraqi government officials say that, whether that report is true or not, it could point to a serious split in the insurgency. They say it could be proof that some insurgents have grown tired of Zarqawi and believed that he and the killing of masses of Iraqi civilians are hurting their cause.

To crack down on that insurgency, Iraqi officials, the interior and the defense minister announced that they would begin a massive operation, starting in Baghdad. This will be the biggest Iraqi security operation since the end of major combat.

According to the officials, 40,000 Iraqi army soldiers and Iraqi police will ring the outskirts of Baghdad, controlling access, do house-to-house searches in some neighborhoods, set up emergency checkpoints in an attempt to quell the insurgency in the capital city and moving out to other areas after that.

Jane Arraf, CNN, reporting from Baghdad.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PHILLIPS: The Pentagon says it cannot confirm the reports that Zarqawi is wounded, and even though the insurgent has a U.S. bounty riding on his head, a Pentagon general warns not to overstate his importance.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GEN. CARTER HAM, U.S. ARMY: Zarqawi certainly is an important character. His organization is bigger than just one guy. And so his demise, whether he be captured, which would be -- which would be preferable or if he's -- if he's killed or wounded, that will not cause al Qaeda in Iraq to cease to function. So it is important, certainly, but if he's killed or captured, it won't cause the organization to necessarily crumble.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: Also today, Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld likened al-Zarqawi to Hitler. In a speech at Fort Bragg, Rumsfeld said that al-Zarqawi has failed and now sees the destruction of everything around him.

O'BRIEN: President Bush says the U.S. will give Palestinians $50 million in direct aid to help improve their quality of life. The president announced the grant during a White House meeting with Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas. The president reiterated his support for a free Palestinian state alongside Israel.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MAHMOUD ABBAS, PALESTINIAN PRESIDENT (through translator): We hope that we ill be able to get something that would reflect the credibility of what we say, and we will be in a position to say to the Palestinian people that the American president is committed, and here is the proof of his commitment.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

O'BRIEN: President Abbas added that he looks forward to the removal of Israeli road blocks, checkpoints and security forces, and he emphasized democracy cannot flourish under occupation.

Will any more Republicans bolt over Bolton? We should know later today when supporters of John Bolton, President Bush's choice for U.N. ambassador, try to cut off Senate debate and vote on confirmation.

Some Democrats are trying to buy time, but no one's using the f- word. And that is filibuster, folks. For you kids at home.

Live pictures now in the well of the Senate. Lamar Alexander, Republican of Tennessee, making his points on this issue. They want to put off a final vote until the administration, Democrats that is, turn over documents relating to Bolton's work as arms control chief at the State Department.

Critics say he mishandled intelligence, mistreated underlings and misled the foreign relations committee. Supporters say he's a can do, straight talking guy who will further the U.S. agenda.

If Republicans muster 60 votes, and you're familiar with all this by now, a simple majority up-or-down vote will follow. If not, stay tuned. But stay tuned anyway.

PHILLIPS: Elsewhere across America, a standoff atop a construction crane, of all things, continues right here in Atlanta. Live pictures right now as police have already identified the man as Carl Edward Roland, sought by Florida authorities in the murder of his ex-girlfriend.

Roland scaled the crane late yesterday afternoon. He's said to be armed with a knife. Negotiators are trying to get him down.

In Durham, North Carolina, police are on the hunt for whoever has been burning crosses. Three were set ablaze within an hour of each other in different parts of the city. Flyers with KKK sayings were found at one of the sites.

Renewed hope that two missing Idaho children may still be alive. The FBI is finished analyzing the blood found in their home, where their brother and mother were found murdered. Authorities say it is not Shasta or Dylan Groene's blood type.

O'BRIEN: Well, if you're headed to the airport this summer, pack an extra bag of patient. Could be waiting longer than you expect for your flight.

CNN's Kathleen Koch is at Reagan National Airport, gearing up for the traditional start of the summer season -- Kathleen.

KATHLEEN KOCH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Miles, this may come as no surprise to anyone who has traveled lately, but just as air traffic has returned to pre-9/11 levels, well, finally now so have delays.

Two thousand was the benchmark summer, the worst summer for delays on record. And according to the FAA, many cities have now equaled that or even surpassed it.

According to a new report out by the inspector general of the transportation department, delays in the first quarter of 2005 were up 17 percent over last year, affecting more than a quarter of all flights. The length of delays is up, as well, to more than 52 minutes.

The FAA says the outlook is not any better for the summer because of a changing airline policy.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MARION BLAKEY, FAA ADMINISTRATOR: The airlines are indicating that they plan this summer to fly full. What this means is that they anticipate full passenger loads, and they will not cancel flights as they did a lot last summer because of convective weather.

They intend to keep to the schedules, flying later, and opting to incur delays if need be to reach the destinations. It's a good use of the passengers because it means you're not looking at cancellations, but boy, I'll tell you, we could be looking at some real delays.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KOCH: Another problem, the National Weather Service is predicting a rough summer with more thunderstorms than normal. And the FAA says that delays could be particularly bad at six airports: Philadelphia, La Guardia, Newark, Washington-Dulles, Atlanta and Ft. Lauderdale.

The FAA is insisting that it's doing everything it can, developing technology to better use the nation's airspace, also spending some $4.75 billion over the next three years building new runways.

But still, the government admits that as long as prices stay low and demand stays high, that increased traffic and with that increased delays are going to be something the passengers have to learn to live with -- Miles.

O'BRIEN: Kathleen Koch at national airport. Thank you -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: The CIA reveals agents have been playing war games this week. Coming up, the fight against a terror attack on the scale of 9/11 that targets the Internet.

Also, clearing damage from the south Asian tsunami from one of the most beautiful and delicate places on earth, the coral reef, the coast of Thailand.

ANNOUNCER: You're watching LIVE FROM on CNN, the most trusted name in news. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

This week in history, the Golden Gate Bridge opened to pedestrians on May 27, 1937. Cars started crossing the next day. Four years earlier, against public scrutiny and environmental dangers, builder Joseph Strauss began its construction. It remains an engineering marvel to this day.

And on May 25, 1979, it was a dark day when American Airlines flight 191 crashed, killing all 270 on board and two people on the ground. Destined from L.A. from Chicago's O'Hare International, engine problems caused the aircraft to nosedive. It is the most deadly airline crash in U.S. history.

And that is this week in history.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: Live pictures right now, via our affiliate here in Atlanta, Georgia. This is -- this is our video, apologize. But we have been receiving help from our affiliates.

It's a live picture of -- it's a standoff atop a construction crane that continues here in Atlanta, Georgia. Police have identified this man as Carl Edward Roland. He's sought by Florida authorities in the murder of his ex-girlfriend, we are told.

He got here to Atlanta yesterday afternoon, and the standoff began about 4 p.m. Eastern Time. He's said to be armed with a knife. You can see police officers, actually negotiators there, not far from him, continuing their conversation. Every now and then we see them slowly move back towards authorities and then come back to this spot that he's been since yesterday at 4 in the afternoon.

He's refused food and water, but negotiators said they're going to wait it out until they can get him down. This is the rap sheet, you can see, of Roland since the year 2000. And now, of course, Florida authorities seeking him for murder, alleged murder of his ex- girlfriend.

We're following the story for you. A quick break. We'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

O'BRIEN: "CNN Security Watch" time. Imagine a terror attack just as destructive as 9/11 but far more insidious, and the terrorists wouldn't use bombs or airplanes as weapons but key strokes.

The CIA is wrapping up a three-day cyberwar game in Virginia. The purpose? To find out how the government and other agencies would respond to escalating attacks on the Internet. The imaginary attack takes place five years in the future, carried out by an alliance of anti-globalization hackers and other groups. Well, how safe are the nation's ports. The government says -- investigators for the government say two programs set up after 9/11 may not be keeping dangerous materials from our shores. Today a Senate committee held a hearing on the findings and investigators found only a fraction of shipments deemed high risk or inspect.

Citing a high risk of terror attack, the U.S. is closing its embassy in Indonesia for the time being. In a statement, the State Department warns an attack could happen any time and neighborhoods where westerners live could be targeted, as well. The government says it will look at reopening the embassy once it's safer.

CNN, committed to providing the most reliable coverage of news that affects your security. Stay tuned to CNN for the latest day and night.

PHILLIPS: Rebuilding and recovery continue following the deadly tsunami that hit Southeast Asia five months ago today. Tourism is down sharply across much of the region, including Phuket, Thailand. And officials there are trying to lure back the tourists as volunteers work to restore the area's underwater beauty.

This piece now by CNN's Aneesh Raman.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ANEESH RAMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): A few meters under the Indian Ocean, sights unseen even by the most experienced divers. Nestled in the Thailand's coral reefs are well over a thousand tons of debris. A stark reminder of the vicious destruction that ravaged the region last year.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Oh, my gosh!

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Fifteen, 20 feet tall, easy.

RAMAN: When the Asian tsunami hit, the ferocious waves did not just crash onto shore. They withdrew with enormous force, carrying anything too weak to stay on ground: people, cars, buildings. Their wrath was indiscriminate.

And in the aftermath, from kitchen sinks to televisions, all the amenities of land are occupying the ocean's landscape. Here in Phuket, underwater rehabilitation is as critical as above ground rebuilding.

Maitree Duangsawasdi heads the government's efforts to clean the coral reefs.

MAITREE DUANGSAWASDI, DIRECTOR GENERAL, DMCR: Our department have to rehabilitate this kind of coral reef because it's a place that can make productivity of the marine resources more better. If it is destroyed, it will have no effect.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'll take something big (ph) right now. If you see something big, what you do is tie a rope around it. RAMAN: Within days after the tsunami, the Thai government made it clear that it needed help. It needed volunteer divers to help remove the trash from sites all across Phuket. The response was beyond anyone's expectation, to tourists who felt they need to help every weekend at outings across the island, people are diving for debris.

Dennis Kalsson, a dive master in Phuket, is a regular volunteer.

DENNIS KALSSON, DIVE MASTER: No, no, this is -- you cannot compare this to anything, I have never seen anything like this before. A strange feeling to be down there.

RAMAN (on camera): How? How?

KALSSON: There is so many stuff that is not supposed to be there. So it's a strange feeling.

RAMAN (voice-over): Each trip down brings with it newfound oddities. Some require crane. Others that are simply too heavy for a diver to move are marked by a buoy for the boats to tow.

(on camera) This effort is truly remarkable, the likes of which the Thai government has never seen before, but that timeline is essential. If they don't meet the deadline, the implications for the environment and the economy could be devastating.

(voice-over) In the myriad of concerns that follow the tsunami, this is but one, perhaps not the most critical, not even the most daunting, but for this industry, and the people who need it to survive, there is no more important struggle.

Aneesh Raman, CNN, Phuket, Thailand.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

O'BRIEN: Beautiful piece. An American icon hitting the big 4-0. Just ahead, he's pudgy. He's middle aged and he's celebrating a birthday. What Pillsbury is doing to honor the dough boy! Stop it.

Later cracking down on stealing from "Star Wars." The feds strike back.

But first a check of this week's mortgage rates.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: Our photos of the day. We start with Sharapova. We move over to the Yankees, but we've got to talk about Reuben "Pop" Franklin as he watches the path of a horseshoe he pitched in Port Orange, Florida, Thursday, May 26, 2005. Franklin and other self- described old-timers get together every Monday and Thursday to play horseshoes. Pop, who's got piercing blue eyes and South Carolina drawl, has been pitching horseshoes most of his life. And at 88 years old, he still gets his share of ringers. There you go, Pop. Still popping fresh after all these years, hard to believe, but Pillsbury's tubby and lovable Pillsbury Dough Boy is no longer a boy. He's turning 40.

It's been four decades since this puffy pitchman erupted into the advertising scene. And he wasn't only a kingpin in the kitchen. He became toy of the year back in 1972, and kids no longer got in trouble for cracking open the biscuit cans in a fruitless search for this little guy.

O'BRIEN: Admit it, you did that. Right?

PHILLIPS: I just want to poke you in your tummy. Can I poke you in your tummy?

O'BRIEN: You know, it's -- Apparently, they were a little concerned he couldn't make it to the party. He had a bad yeast infection.

PHILLIPS: Oh!

O'BRIEN: Anyway, the feds are going after a web site that had...

PHILLIPS: Did he say that out loud?

O'BRIEN: ... the new "Star Wars" movie before it was in theaters.

PHILLIPS: I don't even know what to say. I'm speechless.

O'BRIEN: It's been a problem over the years.

PHILLIPS: Allan Chernoff, sorry about the segue.

(STOCK REPORT)

O'BRIEN: All right. Thank you, Allan Chernoff. And that wraps this edition of CNN's LIVE FROM.

PHILLIPS: Judy Woodruff now with a preview of what's ahead on "INSIDE POLITICS."

Hi, Judy.

JUDY WOODRUFF, HOST, "INSIDE POLITICS": Hi, Kyra. Thanks to you and Miles.

Today I'm joined by Senator Hillary Clinton. I'll ask her about the atmosphere on Capitol Hill after the filibuster deal. We'll also address the situation in Iraq and her own political future.

And there's been a court ruling in Texas that may cause more problems for House Majority Leader Tom DeLay. We'll have the latest reaction to the ruling.

"INSIDE POLITICS" begins in just a moment. (COMMERCIAL BREAK)

O'BRIEN: Here's what's happening now in the news.

High above the streets of Atlanta, the situation no better for a man who climbed a construction crane yesterday, refuses to come down. Live pictures now. It's been almost 24 hours. Police still waiting him out. Authorities know the man's identity. He's wanted in Florida in connection with a woman's death.

And does bad weather have you stuck at the airport? Well, get comfortable. Most airlines this summer plan to delay flights in the face of bad weather instead of canceling them altogether. That comes from the FAA chief, who says the average weather related delay comes out to 52 minutes nowadays.

I'm Miles O'Brien at the CNN Center in Atlanta.

Now "JUDY WOODRUFF'S INSIDE POLITICS."

END

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