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Residents Riding Trains Day After Bombings; Mideast 'Act of War'?; Authorities Not Sure Who Is Behind Deadly Mumbai Explosions?

Aired July 12, 2006 - 13:36   ET

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

KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: More strikes, more kidnappings, more demands in what the Israeli prime minister calls an act of war. If Middle East tension was simmering yesterday, it's bubbling over today. Israeli troops, Israeli tanks are now in southern Lebanon. And military leaders say they're prepared to turn back the clock 20 years.
Our John Vause on Israel's border with Lebanon. He joins us by phone.

John, what you can tell us?

JOHN VAUSE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Kyra, the Israeli artillery continues to fire from our position here, at least half a dozen rounds in quick succession in the last few moments. This is all part of Israeli's response to try and free the two Israeli soldiers kidnapped in the early hours of Wednesday morning.

Also in Tel Aviv for the last 30 minutes or so, the Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert calling an urgent cabinet meeting to decide, or rather to approve an escalation of this military offensive. So far, Israeli forces carry out attacks by air, sea and ground. Six Hezbollah bases have been hit, also two regional headquarters for the militant group Hezbollah. Five bridges have also been bombed.

Israeli forces have also been sent across the border on a rescue mission. During one of those operations -- that is the artillery rounds which continue to be fired from our position here. They're shelling the southern part of Lebanon, Kyra.

As I was saying, during one of those operations, an Israeli tank was hit by an explosive device, apparently which had been planted by...

PHILLIPS: John, you still with us? You still with us, John?

VAUSE: Yes, Kyra, can you hear me?

PHILLIPS: Yes, there you go. Now you're back. You're making me a little nervous as we hear the weapons go off and then we lose contact with you. How close are you to all the action?

All right, we lost his connection again. We'll try to connect back with John Vause.

Pretty amazing there as we've been talking about the air strikes and what the Israeli prime minister is calling an act of war. Our John Vause right there on the -- Israel's border with Lebanon. And as you know, still don't know the fate of that Israeli army corporal that was kidnapped. That's pretty much when all of this began and these tensions.

We're going to try to check back in with John Vause as soon as we can make contact with him again. Obviously, right there on the border where all of this is taking place, these airstrikes and back and forth with Israeli troops, Israeli tanks in southern Lebanon.

PHILLIPS: All right, well, the people of Mumbai, India are getting back to their lives and back on the trains, believe it or not, just a day after a near-simultaneous string of bombings on the city's railway city. At least 185 people are known dead.

Here's CNN's Seth Doane with the latest.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SETH DOANE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The worst terrorist attack on Indian soil in more than a decade rocked the port city of Mumbai. Gruesome pictures gave a glimpse of what unfolded.

Under darkness and further hampered by monsoon rains, the rescue effort revealed a bleak picture.

How could this city ever recover from such a disaster?

By midday in this Mumbai train station not far from the blasts, we found riders pushing to get back on the trains, partially out of necessity, partially out of defiance.

"Taking the train is something we have to do every day," he tells me, "and we are not scared."

HARSH, COMMUTER: This is what Bombay is all about. This is the spirit of Bombay. And I would surely want to give a message to the people who think by doing such things they would scare people. I don't really think so.

DOANE (on camera): Almost everyone I've spoken with here at this train station has said the same thing -- why wouldn't I come back to the train stations? Trains are an essential part of life, of getting around Mumbai, and if we don't come, it'll show terrorists that they've won.

But not everyone here in Mumbai is having such an easy time following these attacks.

(voice-over): State-run-hospitals were where many of the first casualties were taken. The wounded still lay dazed.

In the ICU, a ventilator keeps this man alive. His body twitches as doctors try to save him. And outside we meet a man who searched through the night to find his son, only to identify him in the morgue. Mumbai is a city of people who pride themselves on their resilience. But for many here, the bombing disrupted everything that was normal.

Seth Doane, CNN, Mumbai.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PHILLIPS: All right. In just a minute, we're going to talk with Frederic Grare, who you see there. He's a visiting scholar with the Carnegie Endowment and a leading expert on South Asia. We're going to talk to Frederic in just a second, but we just want to go back to John Vause on Israel's border with Lebanon right now. We've got him back on the phone.

John, just wanted to make sure you're OK since we lost contact with you right after we heard the weapons fire.

VAUSE: Yes, we're on the right side, that is outgoing fire, so our position is fairly safe, but there has been a number of Katyusha rockets fired by Hezbollah militants from Lebanon, from southern Lebanon, into Israel. Many of the residents here in the northern part of Israel have been ordered into bomb shelters for their own protection as this military conflict just seems to escalate by the hour, Kyra.

PHILLIPS: And, John, just real quickly, do we know the fate of that Israeli army corporal that was kidnapped a number of weeks ago? We've been talking a little bit about it today, but want to know if there's any developments with regard to Hezbollah claiming to take that Israeli soldier, in addition to another one.

VAUSE: Yes, what we know right now is that as far as Israeli Corporal Gilad Shalit being held in Gaza by the military wing of Hamas, is that he is still alive, still being held somewhere in Gaza. But the Israeli government now has this huge dilemma to deal with, two kidnapped Israeli soldiers being held somewhere in Lebanon, another Israeli soldier being held in Gaza, and forces being stretched to try and rescue all three of them, Kyra.

PHILLIPS: So just to get it right, it's three? Is that three have been kidnapped now, John?

VAUSE: Well, we have two in Lebanon, kidnapped by Hezbollah today. And then the third who was kidnapped two-and-a-half weeks ago by Hamas is still being held in Gaza.

PHILLIPS: That's right.

VAUSE: The fate of the two in Lebanon at this stage is unknown. We've heard from the leader of Hezbollah, saying that they're in a safe and secure location and will only be released in exchange for prisoners being held by Israel -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: Got it, Hamas and Hezbollah. OK, I've got it straight. Thanks so much. John Vause, we'll continue to check in with you.

VAUSE: OK.

PHILLIPS: Well, the India bombings -- we were just talking about that a minute ago -- might have disrupted much more than daily life. Namely, peace efforts in one of the most volatile regions on the planet. Let's get some insight now from Frederic Grare. He's a visiting scholar with the Carnegie endowment and a leading expert on South Asia.

Great to have you with us, Frederic. What we wanted to do is, yesterday we were able to push this story forward and talk about the two terrorist groups that may be behind these explosions, sort of help our viewers here in the United States understand that this wasn't necessarily an anti-American attack, but more anti-Hindu.

And it seems to have been narrowed down to two extremist groups. Why don't we start with SIMI, the Students Islamic Movement of India, and what you can tell me about this organization?

FREDERIC GRARE, CARNEGIE ENDOWMENT: Well, this is a fundamentalist -- mostly fundamentalist student organization which has been active in India for quite sometime now, and which was banned in 2002 under the Prevention of Terrorism Act.

But so far, we have no evidence that they are behind it and neither do we have any real evidence that the other group that the press was speaking about yesterday such as Lashkar-e-Tayyiba, the Army of the Pure, or even the Hizbul Mujahideen are really the culprit. So I think that we are very -- to be very cautious not to jump at conclusions too quickly at this stage.

PHILLIPS: All right, I want to talk about the Lashkar group in just a second, but back to SIMI. Where does the anger initially come from? I mean, these are young Muslims that never thought the police protected them or took care of them, and it even goes as far back as destroying a sacred mosque, the Babri Masjid. I mean, this is anger that has stemmed for years and years, right?

GRARE: Yes, but, I mean, you do have an ideological project, which is to convert all of India, and making the Muslim countries to start with. And, of course, you do have the anger which has been generated by ill thought-out policies such as the one that you mentioned.

And, obviously, in the conduct of day-to-day life in India, people may find some reason to be frustrated, to be unsatisfied. I think that the present government is being extremely careful not to reproduce that sort of behavior precisely to avoid a resumption of communal violence in India.

PHILLIPS: All right, this other organization, the Lashkar, the Army of the Pure, I understand, is what it means. This is the one that has been connected to Osama bin Laden and al Qaeda, correct?

GRARE: Well, the Lashkar-e-Tayyiba has been connected to a number of organizations. This is an organization which is based in Pakistan but which has many international ramifications. They have trained in Afghanistan, they've been present in Chechnya, they've been present in Bosnia, they've been present in other parts of the world as well.

Now, they've probably been in contact with people of Osama bin Laden in Afghanistan, in training camps. That doesn't make them a branch of al Qaeda. So far, again, they have denied any responsibility in the event so far. And this is difficult to say whether yes or no they are the one behind it.

PHILLIPS: But do you think either one of these organizations could have orchestrated seven explosions, all within 11 minutes? Because these organizations have been tied to other terrorist attacks in India.

GRARE: I mean, whether they would have been capable of doing so, yes, obviously, I think so. Because the Lashkar-e-Tayyiba was also mentioned in the Delhi bomb blast of October. Whether they have been is a different story. Now, I mean, coordinated bomb blasts is not necessarily proof of connection with al Qaeda.

Obviously, what comes to mind immediately is the comparison with the Madrid bomb blast of a couple of years ago. And, inevitably, that would lead to the al Qaeda tie, but so far, I'm surprised to see that no one has really mentioned al Qaeda in this story.

PHILLIPS: Well, we had talked a little bit about it yesterday, but then these two organizations were brought up and, obviously, we were going to investigate that more, seeing a possible tie with Lashkar and al Qaeda. Frederic Grare, thank you so much for your time.

GRARE: Thank you.

PHILLIPS: Well, is your house ready for a bad storm? Up next, we're going to show you just how spending a few bucks on your windows could save thousands of dollars down the road. Stay with CNN, the most trusted name in news.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: Also, our storm season is upon us, but there's still time to protect yourself and your family. Today, stocking up.

CNN's Gerri Willis takes stock of some must-haves with the help of the New Jersey Emergency Management Office.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

GERRI WILLIS, PERSONAL FINANCE EDITOR: So, Kevin, we obviously want a first aid kit, right?

KEVIN J. HAYDEN, NEW JERSEY OFFICE OF EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT: Absolutely. Yes.

WILLIS: What should be in it?

HAYDEN: Well, first of all, you want to talk about water. Everyone in your house should have at least a gallon of water to two gallons of water per person per day.

WILLIS: And meds?

HAYDEN: Meds, yes. You want to make sure that those medications stay updated. You don't want to have medication in there for two years if there's no disaster and then when it's time to use them, they're outdated.

WILLIS: That means I'm going to have to check this kit like at least every year, right, and make sure everything is updated?

HAYDEN: Every six months.

Another thing that's not bad to put in there, believe it or not, is a whistle like this one.

WILLIS: Why would you want a whistle?

HAYDEN: Well, you could be stranded there and you want to alert emergency responders to where you are. And something like a whistle would be able to gain their attention.

WILLIS: That could have helped a lot of people in Katrina.

So, Kevin, what do you have?

HAYDEN: Flashlights.

WILLIS: Four?

HAYDEN: At least four. If you have a family of four, if you have a family of five, then five.

WILLIS: So one per person?

HAYDEN: Sure. You don't know how long you'll be without power and you might need that light.

WILLIS: And you need batteries.

HAYDEN: Plenty of them.

WILLIS: We're going to have to get a lot of batteries, right?

HAYDEN: Yes.

In your kit, you should have a radio because you won't power, and one that runs on batteries.

WILLIS: So, I can imagine that after you've been out of power for a few days, you might be wondering how you're going to eat?

HAYDEN: Correct. Yes.

WILLIS: So what do you do?

HAYDEN: Get a grill. Get a grill and get some charcoal and some lighter fluid. And if not that, a propane grill. Because if you have a natural gas grill...

WILLIS: Yes.

HAYDEN: You might be out of luck or you might lose electricity, if you have an electric stove at home. So a grill is not a bad option.

WILLIS: OK, so we'll be eating well, at the very least.

So, Kevin, I want to get a generator.

HAYDEN: Not a bad idea, but there's some things you should be aware of safety-wise.

WILLIS: Well, like what?

HAYDEN: Well, first of all, I wouldn't attempt to hook up a generator to your entire service, electric service at home. That could be very dangerous and you should only do that with an electrician, a licensed electrician.

WILLIS: Well, any other safety considerations? Because that seems pretty easy to avoid.

HAYDEN: One of the things that we're really concerned about is carbon monoxide poisoning. You should never bring one of these generators into your home.

WILLIS: So, Kevin, I think we've got everything we wanted.

HAYDEN: I think we're set.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PHILLIPS: And you can find the full list of storm supplies on our Web site, CNN.com/openhouse.

Critics call Boston's Big Dig a big boondoggle. Today, there are fears the truth is even worse. Coming up on LIVE FROM, the latest on this week's deadly tunnel collapse.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: Big Dig disasters waiting to happen. Two days after Boston's Big Dig tunnel collapsed, inspectors say they found 60 more questionable spots in the tunnel's ceiling. The tunnel's still shut down. Nobody's saying when it will reopen. Thirty-eight-year Milena Delvalle was killed Monday night. She and her husband were driving to Logan Airport when four ceiling panels weighing 12 tons crushed their car. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MATTHEW AMORELLO, MASS. TURNPIKE AUTHY. CHMN.: Yesterday, I briefly met with the family -- Melinda, of Melinda's family. And I committed to them I would do everything possible to make sure this event that occurred Monday night would not happen again, and we'll do everything possible to ensure that it does not happen again.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: Well, the head of the Massachusetts' Turnpike Authority is ordering a review of the entire Boston highway system. Despite pressure from the governor, Matthew Amorello says that he has no plans to resign.

Searching for answers in Chicago. Investors probe a terrifying train derailment, while the city gets back to business the day after.

LIVE FROM takes you there coming up.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

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