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Iraqi Constitution Writers Expected to Deliver Draft; Pullout of Final Jewish Settlement in Gaza Peaceful; Rudolph Sentencing

Aired August 22, 2005 - 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: It's two hours to the deadline. Do you know where Iraq's constitution is? We'll get a situation report on the historic document and talk with the U.S. ambassador in Baghdad.
Big and getting bigger. A fact check on football players as we go deep into the short life and mysterious death of an NFL rookie.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's like three gunshots, right.

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PHILLIPS: A day this young hero won't forget, the day he took the bullets that could have killed a friend.

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

It's zero hour in Baghdad, or Z minus two hours, depending on how you're counting. Crunch time, let's say, for the drafters of the postwar, post-Saddam, pluralistic constitution in Iraq. It's due to be delivered to the National Assembly by midnight local time, which is 4:00 p.m. Eastern, two hours from now. But the assembly is due to assemble as we speak, even while the drafters continue to differ on at least one fundamental issue.

CNN's Aneesh Raman is watching and listening.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ANEESH RAMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Now, earlier today, we had reported a deal had been reached between the Shia and Kurd coalition on a constitution, and they have been trying and will try up until the last moment to include the Sunnis into this document.

Joining me now is Saleh Mutlag, a Sunni negotiator in this process.

How concerned are you that we are about to see a draft constitution that does not include the Sunni voice?

DR. SALEH MUTLAG, MEMBER, CONSTITUTIONAL COMMITTEE: This constitution does not only include -- does not include the Sunni voice. It does not include other voices in Iraq. What you believe that these parties (INAUDIBLE) is wrong. The Shia and the Sunnis now is against what is written in this document, in this constitution. Iraqis have shown their wish. Seventy-five percent of the people in different polling, they rejected federalism. And they want to put federalism now in the constitution.

RAMAN: So you're speaking, of course, of federalism, which the Kurds have wanted, being in this draft constitution. If that is the case, do you think this constitution will fail in the referendum?

MUTLAG: I think it will fail not only by three provinces, it will fail in all over Iraq. People will reject it providing that there will be a fair and decent and honest referendum.

RAMAN: Have the Sunnis been involved in this process? Have you been part of the dialogue? And if not, what is the danger in that?

MUTLAG: Well, we've been in the process. We took the risk, the political risk and the physical risk, and we came to join our brothers to work on a constitution which is going to be accepted by most of the Iraqis. But what happened is that they are trying to leave us aside and go to do the constitution by themselves, although we had an agreement with them -- with them and there was a decision from the National Assembly which said that all the decisions would be taken by -- by consensus. If they -- if they pass it without consensus, we believe that this is illegal and should not pass.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PHILLIPS: Well, the world's attention may be on U.S. efforts to bring democracy to Iraq and the rising number of troops dying in combat there. But for American troops fighting in Afghanistan, this year already is the deadliest since the U.S. invasion in 2001.

In the latest action, four American soldiers were killed yesterday by a roadside bomb in the southern part of that country. That raised the death toll for this month to 14. Sixty-five have been killed this year, more than a third of the total of 181 U.S. soldiers who have died in Afghanistan since 2001.

Insurgents in Afghanistan continue to suffer their own battlefield defeats. Officials say that a joint operation of U.S. Marines and Afghan soldiers killed more than 40 insurgents recently in the eastern part of that country.

In Gaza, it's the end of an era, the end of a way of life. The last Israeli residents of the last Gaza settlement to be evacuated walked out of their homes today for the very last time. And unlock -- unlike the violence, rather, that marred the pullout from some other settlements, this one was very peaceful.

CNN's Matthew Chance was on hand when settlers boarded buses for a ride to a new and very uncertain life.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) MATTHEW CHANCE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): A day many Israelis will never forget. The Jewish settlements of Netzarim was Gaza's most controversial and its last to be evacuated. The Torah scrolls removed from its synagogue, a symbolic end to decades of Jewish settlements there.

SHLOMIT ZIV, JEWISH SETTLER: And even though the government of Israel is disattaching (ph) from this part of the land, from a part of their soul, the people of Israel will be back here just as all of the prophets promised us.

CHANCE: This was an evacuation without violence, settlers and soldiers praying together and crying together at what had to be done.

Elsewhere in Gaza, Israeli bulldozers have already begun demolishing empty homes. But in Netzarim, one family continued to build, hoping against hope the divide intervention to save their community, a miracle that never came.

These were the scenes last week at the settlements of Kfar Darom, an ugly confrontation between hard-line protesters and police. They were evacuated all the same, but these are traumatic images many Israelis fear could divide them. And as attention shifts from Gaza to the evacuation of four Jewish settlements on the West Bank, Israeli security forces say they're bracing for worst to come.

(on camera): This has been a traumatic period for many Israelis, but one that has passed smoother and quicker than anyone dared hope. More than 8,500 people have now been evacuated from the Gaza Strip. The era of Jewish settlements here is at an end.

Matthew Chance, CNN, Netzarim, Gaza.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PHILLIPS: In Jordan, a new developments in the rocket attacks on U.S. and Israeli targets last week. Jordanian officials have found the launcher that allegedly fired three rockets. Four other armed rockets also were discovered and diffused.

On Friday, one rocket narrowly missed a U.S. naval ship docked at the Jordanian port of Aqaba. No Americans were injured. And another rocket hit a Jordanian military warehouse, killing a Jordanian soldier. A third landed in a neighboring Israeli city.

An al Qaeda-linked group has claimed responsibility for those attacks. Several suspects are now under arrest.

Sentenced and sorry. The Olympic park bomber speaks out in court today.

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UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You pray about it, and you release it, meaning that he seems lost and that I've cried enough for her, I've cried enough for me. And now I will cry for him. (END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: Not all the victims have found closure. The latest details next.

And a CNN exclusive. Eric Rudolph's mother talks to our Rick Sanchez. You won't want to miss it.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: Back here live in B control. A day of high emotion and a strong sense of justice being served here in Atlanta. Just a short while ago, Eric Rudolph was sentenced to life in prison with no chance of parole for the deadly 1996 Olympic park bombing and two other bombings in the Atlanta area.

CNN's Tony Harris has the latest for us.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

TONY HARRIS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It has been a day of anger and contempt expressed toward one man, confessed serial bomber Eric Robert Rudolph. Now, this morning, during his sentencing hearing here at the Russell Federal Building in downtown Atlanta, victims of Rudolph's three Atlanta-area bombings had their opportunity to speak directly to Eric Rudolph, and they held nothing back. And then it was time for Rudolph to speak, and he apologized -- apologized to the victims of his Centennial Olympic Park bombing, and only to those victims.

He said he wished he could take back that night. That night he was referring to is that July evening in 1996.

Eric Robert Rudolph is now on his way to a Supermax federal prison facility in Florence, Colorado, where he will spend the rest of his days.

Tony Harris, CNN, downtown Atlanta.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PHILLIPS: Well, the one person who perhaps knows Rudolph the best is speaking out now. Rudolph's mother Pat talked about her son, his crimes, and hiding out in the North Carolina mountains in an exclusive interview with CNN's Rick Sanchez.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

RICK SANCHEZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It's in these North Carolina mountains where Eric Rudolph eluded authorities for more than five years. Now, through letters and conversations shared with his mother and revealed to CNN, we are able to retrace his steps.

(on-camera): Were you as fascinated as the rest of us to hear how Eric was able to survive in the mountains for such a long period of time? PAT RUDOLPH, ERIC RUDOLPH'S MOTHER: Yes, it's very interesting, you know, that he knew how to do all this. And I'm sure a lot of it, he didn't know. He just improvised as he went along.

SANCHEZ (voice-over): Rudolph survived, in large measure, from skills he learned in the military, his firsthand knowledge of the area where he had grown up, and in several cases, just dumb luck. In one letter, he describes to his mother how he stole a car, then ran out of gas in the middle of the road and, suddenly, was face-to-face with what he feared the most: the law.

RUDOLPH: It was in the middle of the night and a police officer came by and asked him what was wrong. He told him. And he said, "Oh, don't worry about it. I have gas in my car for when I run out and you can have that." So he gave it to him.

SANCHEZ: The police officer didn't know that he was helping a fugitive who was on the lamb?

RUDOLPH: Right. SANCHEZ (voice-over): Finally, in 2003, a rookie cop in Murphy, North Carolina, apprehended Rudolph. At the time, Pat Rudolph did not believe her son was guilty or even capable of such horrible crimes. Now, after hearing it from his own lips, she does.

RUDOLPH: It was quite a shock.

SANCHEZ: Eric Rudolph has admitted to, but not apologized, for two murders from four bombings that also injured more than a hundred people. Pat Rudolph says she doesn't agree or condone with what her son did, but had this to say to those who call him a monster.

RUDOLPH: I don't see him as a monster. I don't think I could.

SANCHEZ: Pat Rudolph says she will not attend her son's sentencing.

(on-camera): You're not going to go to the sentencing?

RUDOLPH: No.

SANCHEZ (voice-over): Rick Sanchez, CNN, Murphy, North Carolina.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PHILLIPS: And for more of Rick Sanchez's exclusive interview with Eric Rudolph's mother, be sure to tune into CNN's "ANDERSON COOPER 360" tonight, starting at 7:00 p.m. Eastern, 4:00 p.m. Pacific.

Straight ahead on LIVE FROM, Iraq is the focus. We're going to talk live with the U.S. ambassador there and find out what Saddam Hussein's latest letter from prison really means to his political brothers inside Iraq, Syria and Jordan.

Also ahead, what killed this 28-year-old football player? We're going to take a closer look at the life and death of Thomas Herrion. SUSAN LISOVICZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I'm Susan Lisovicz at the New York Stock Exchange. Up next, does overtime make you sick? I'll tell you about the possible link between long working hours and illness coming up on LIVE FROM.

Stay tuned.

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PHILLIPS: Well, brace yourself. Gas prices keep going higher and are not expected to change direction anytime soon. The American Automobile Association report says it's up to $2.61 a gallon on average for unleaded self-serve regular. Those of you driving in Cheyenne, Wyoming, though, are paying about 20 cents less, while folks filling up in San Diego and Chicago are having to shell out 21 cents more.

A new study says that people who work long hours may face an increased risk of sickness or injury. Susan Lisovicz has the details from the New York Stock Exchange -- Susan.

(STOCK MARKET REPORT)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: Scientists at Harvard say that new research may show promise for creating stem cells without having to create and destroy human embryos. But it could be 10 years before the technology could actually work in people. The process involves fusing adult skin cells with embryonic stem cells. The hybrid cells could theoretically be used to produce embryonic stem cell lines.

The U.S. Coast Guard is searching for 31 Cubans in the Florida Straits right now. They were believed to have been on board a boat that sank. Officials learned of their fate from three Cubans who were rescued at sea. The Coast Guard found a capsized boat, but it's unclear if it's the one that those Cubans were on.

The U.S. Supreme Court refuses to reconsider a heavily-criticized ruling. The court today turned down a request to revisit a ruling that gives local governments more power to seize people's homes for economic development. The 5-4 ruling in June spurred widespread criticism. Legislatures in 25 states are considering changing laws now to soften that impact.

Former Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein, defiant as ever, vows to give his life for the Arab cause. In a letter published yesterday in Jordan, Hussein also calls on other Arabs to follow his example. Quoting now, he says, "My soul and my existence is to be sacrificed for our precious Palestine and our beloved, patient and suffering Iraq."

The letter was delivered to a Jordanian friend by the International red Cross. Hussein, of course, is in prison, awaiting trial this fall and possible execution for the massacre of fellow Muslims. Joining us now with her take on the letter, CNN Senior Editor for Arab Affairs Octavia Nasr.

In another part of this letter that was released, "It is not too much for a man to answer the call of his nation with all that he possesses, and with his soul" -- Saddam Hussein.

Taking a look at those quotes, reading that letter, why do this? Is it his last cry for martyrdom? Does he want to annoy the U.S. troops? What is it?

OCTAVIA NASR, CNN SR. EDITOR, ARAB AFFAIRS: According to some Arab experts, this is not as innocent as some people might think. They tell us that this letter was sent to the Ba'ath Party, who, coincidentally, was having a conference in Amman, Jordan, over the weekend.

So basically, these experts are saying this letter was sent to be published, to be released during that conference. And indeed, it was released at that conference. And later on, of course, as you mentioned, in newspapers.

So supports of Saddam Hussein did get that message. And those experts are telling us that this is not an innocent letter to a friend. This is a call for action.

PHILLIPS: All right. Well, let's talk about that. A conference in Jordan for the Ba'ath Party. And was it a donors' conference? Were they trying to raise money for the Ba'ath Party?

NASR: It was like a donors' conference. This is the first time they hold this conference since the fall of Baghdad in 2003.

Remember, the Ba'ath Party expands from Iraq, Jordan, and Syria, and some of it in Lebanon, of course. But after the fall of Baghdad, the party went dormant in Jordan, and this is the first time that they hold a conference since then.

So it was a donors' conference, it was a call for action. Some of the quotes coming out of that conference -- take a look at this one, for example, they say -- and again, we have no way to confirm this, but this is coming to us from an Islamist site that says that attending this conference was a representative of the insurgency in Iraq.

The Sheikh Majeed al-Qaood says, according to this Web site, "We know that every street corner and ally in Jordan stands with us, with the Iraqi resistance, with the leadership of the jailed lion, Saddam Hussein, and the leader on the ground, Izzat al-Douri."

So basically, this is a conference that went on, they discussed ways to fight what they call the occupation. And they had some pretty strong statements along the way.

PHILLIPS: Well, a couple of questions. Izzat al-Douri still hasn't been found, right? NASR: No, he's still at large. Many people believe that he is the one leading the insurgency in Iraq. He's yet to be captured.

There he is. You see him there in the -- in the video. He's still at large. And again, some people believe that he's leading that insurgency.

Some people don't buy into that. They say the insurgency has a soul of its own. But he's definitely still at large.

PHILLIPS: So what does this tell us about the communication among, say, al-Douri, Saddam Hussein, Ba'athist Party leaders, and then happening in Jordan? I mean we should talk about U.S.-Jordanian relationships. Also, Jordan, isn't this where Saddam Hussein's daughters are living?

NASR: Yes, they were living there. Now one of them continues to live in Jordan. The other one moved to Qatar with her mom.

Also, over the weekend, yesterday, on Sunday, the Iraqi government complained. They said that Jordan has been sort of supporting the insurgency by allowing help to come in through Jordan into Iraq. They said also they complained about the fact that the Husseins still live in Jordan. And basically, they claim that they are involved in some political activity.

Now, of course Jordan responded to that and said that, no, they are only for humanitarian reasons because they have no place to go. And basically, they confirmed that they had asked the Husseins not to be involved in any political activities.

But, you know, this is a tense situation, obviously. The Iraqis saying that the Jordanians are responsible for sending supplies into the insurgency. But when you have a conference like this taking place in Amman, Jordan, with this kind of rhetoric, you have to question all that.

PHILLIPS: Well, what is -- and what is King Abdullah saying? I mean, this is someone who meets with the president of the United States on a regular basis, has a good relationship. And now there's a donors' conference taking place there, raising money for the insurgency?

NASR: We don't know for sure that they were raising money for the insurgency. But it's that rhetoric that needs to be looked at closely, obviously. And this is what experts are warning of.

You know, when you allow a conference like this one to take place in Jordan, when you allow these people to meet, even if it's just rhetoric, even if it's just empty words, experts are telling us that this is very dangerous, especially when you put together that letter that was sent from Saddam Hussein that was read to his supporters at that conference. And if you know the Arab world, you know that it will be aroused by these words, these nationalistic words.

Now, it's only fair to say that many people are not buying into this letter. Some Web sites that we checked to see what kind of reaction the ordinary Arabs have to this letter tell you that many people are upset that Saddam Hussein continues to send letters. They call him a coward. They call him a chicken. They say he's the one who surrendered to the U.S. forces and now he's talking about heroism and sacrificing his life. They see no heroism with this name, Saddam Hussein; they see only an act of cowardice coming out of that man at this point.

PHILLIPS: A follow up definitely.

Octavia Nasr, thank you so much.

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