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Live From...

Westerners Escaping Lebanon; Rockets Rain on Northern Israel

Aired July 18, 2006 - 13:03   ET

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

KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: Hello, everyone. I'm Kyra Phillips at the CNN world headquarters in Atlanta, leaving Lebanon. Choppers carrying U.S. citizens out. Cruise ships chartered in. U.S. warships on the way. Who pays for the evacuations?
Katrina hospital deaths. Were they deliberate? A doctor and two nurses now charged with second degree murder.

Extreme heat for millions of people and no power for some others. Parts of La Guardia Airport go dark. Flights canceled. Travelers stranded.

LIVE FROM starts right now.

People leaving Lebanon by air and sea. Thousands more anxiously awaiting their turns. Here's what we know right now about the crisis in the Middle East.

U.S. helicopters are taking dozens more Americans from Beirut, but U.S. chartered ships still haven't arrived. The Orient Queen is due in Beirut tomorrow.

Meanwhile, hundreds of Europeans and 200 Americans are getting out on a ship hired by Sweden. U.S. warships from the Iwo Jima strike group are on their way.

Israeli forces have pounded Lebanese army barracks again. Eleven soldiers killed in the latest attack. And Hezbollah has fired more rockets into Northern Israel, killing one person in the town of Nahariya.

Now after a week of fighting, more than 180 people are dead in Lebanon, at least 25 dead in Israel.

CNN has reporters all across the region to bring you the latest on the fighting and the evacuations. We've got live reports straight ahead.

CNN's Tony Harris has an eye on the CNN international desk, on the Web and on various Mideast television stations.

Tony, still a pretty active day.

Tony if you can hear me, try flipping on your mic, my friend. We'll come back to you.

Now, no one knows how many westerners want out of Lebanon, nor how long it will take to accommodate them. CNN's Anthony Mills reports on the exodus.

All right, we'll try and get back to Anthony. We apologize for this. It's live television, folks.

Tony Harris, are you good to go, my friend?

TONY HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: I'm good, my apologies. My apologies.

PHILLIPS: That's OK. We've got so much going on, you know. We like to turn it off and turn it back on and...

HARRIS: Turn it back on.

PHILLIPS: You don't want to be like the president where everything is picked up and you don't even know it. So you had your mic off. Now we want to talk to you, my friend.

HARRIS: OK. That's good, Kyra. That's good.

OK. So we're following developments obviously, in the Middle East crisis from the international desk, which as you can see, is right behind me here. We are monitoring a number of Arabic language television stations. We've put together a bit of a four box here where we can show you exactly what we're following right now.

For example if we can put that up, in a moment, you'll see in the upper left-hand corner of the screen, beautiful, there it is, in the upper left portion of your screen, Hezbollah Television, which we remind you is banned in the United States.

In the upper right corner of the screen is Israeli television. In the lower left corner of the screen, it's Al Arabiya. And in the lower right portion of the screen is LBC, Lebanese television, the only Christian-oriented television outlet in Lebanon.

Now in addition, Kyra, our friends over at CNN.com are sorting through thousands of e-mails from people who are caught in the line of fire right now. And we are going to be sharing a lot of those e-mails with you during the course of your hours on LIVE FROM.

In addition to the folks who are actually in the middle of the crisis, we are getting a number of e-mails from people here in the United States who are responding to what they're seeing on their screen at home and also, fearful of the condition of their family members and friends in the line of fire. So we'll be sharing a number of those e-mails with you as well, Kyra.

PHILLIPS: All right, appreciate it.

HARRIS: My apologies. My apologies.

PHILLIPS: Don't be sorry. We're going to talk again, a lot, over the next three hours. Thanks, Tony.

No one knows how many westerners want out of Lebanon nor how long it's going to take to accommodate all of them. CNN's Anthony Mills reports on the exodus.

What's the latest, Anthony?

ANTHONY MILLS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Earlier today, two U.S. helicopters took off from the U.S. embassy north of Beirut, just north of Beirut, with 30 people apiece aboard on a run to Cyprus. And a short while ago, we understand that, a further two U.S. helicopters took off for that reason, again with 30 people aboard. So the process has begun. There's not many people been evacuated so far, but the process is under way.

Also, in Beirut port, a boat, a Norwegian boat, which we understand is expected to take 150 Americans out of Lebanon and to the safety of Cyprus.

Doctors well in Beirut, a British boat, the HMS Gloucester, not clear at this stage whether that ship is going to be taking U.S. citizens, but it's perfectly conceivable.

And not yet arrived, the Orient Queen cruise ship. That's the cruise ship that's going to be taking a lot more Americans out of Lebanon to safety. We understand that's been delayed; not entirely clear when it's going to arrive here. But as soon as it does, the process will step up a notch.

Back to you.

PHILLIPS: Now, Anthony, we've been talking so much about these various citizens getting out of there. But do we know where they're going? Are they going to family, friends? Do some of them, not even really knowing where they're going to end up?

MILLS: This has been a process fraught with frustrations. This was entirely unexpected for most people who were here on holiday, visiting friends, here in Lebanon. It came out of the blue and within days escalated dangerously and, for many, terrifyingly.

The whole process of approaching the embassy or gaining information from the embassy was oft complicated. People weren't able to get through to talk to actually people at the other end of the line, and they weren't sure when they were going to be evacuated, by what means, where they were going to go to. And, indeed, who they were going to meet up with.

Of course, the only fairly safe way out of Lebanon is by sea. The roads out of here, the roads north and east to Syria, they're fraught with danger. The country's been bombed from north to south and east to west, and those roads have been damaged. And of course the airport remains closed after all three of its runways were damaged.

So yes, a process full of uncertainties. But I imagine that the people who have left and who are about to leave and who will be leaving in the coming days will be so thankful at having got out of this place that they won't really mind at that stage where it is they end up. PHILLIPS: Anthony Mills, thanks so much.

The air bridge is busy, but the sea assets are still taking shape. Let's get to CNN's Jamie McIntyre at the Pentagon for latest on the U.S. military mission in Lebanon. A number of ships headed that way.

JAMIE MCINTYRE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's right, U.S. military is moving a number of ships there, including the USS Iwo Jima. That's an amphibious assault ship that looks like a small aircraft carrier. It's basically a helicopter. It has 16 helicopters on board, including four of those CH-53s that we've seen making runs into Lebanon.

In fact, some of those we saw may have come from the Iwo Jima itself. It also has some -- some of those smaller CH-46 helicopters, the dual rotor helicopters that look kind of like the Army Chinook helicopter.

But the Iwo Jima and five other ships will be there by the end of the week. One of the ships, the USS Nashville, basically got a head start through the Suez Canal and will probably be there tonight.

These ships could be used to move American citizens, but the Pentagon and State Department say the preferred method is to use those chartered cruise ships like the Orient Queen. That was the first one chartered by the U.S. government.

That ship, however, although we're told it's close to the port of Beirut, has not been able to get in yet, partly because of the traffic in the area and also coordinating with the Israeli naval blockade.

The U.S. government is also moving to charter additional ships. We're told four or five ships. They believe this is the fastest, safest, most efficient way to move Americans out, is to put them on passenger ships that are equipped to carry large number of passengers with some of the comforts and conveniences you would expect for a sea voyage, even one that's a relatively short voyage, we're told, five or six hours from Lebanon to Beirut.

We should see the evacuation really step up in the coming days so that by the end of the week a substantial number of Americans, certainly in the thousands, may have made it out by that time -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: All right, you mentioned the USS Iwo Jima. Jamie McIntyre, thank you so much.

We now have the commodore of that ship on the line with us, Captain Sinclair Harris.

Captain, can you hear me OK?

CAPT. SINCLAIR HARRIS, COMMODORE, USS IWO JIMA: Yes, ma'am. I can, Kyra. How are you doing?

PHILLIPS: Great, great. Thanks so much for joining me. I appreciate it. It's great to have you with us.

A bit of a different mission for you, Captain. Why don't you tell me about your crew? How close are you to being in place and what will be your first point of action once you get there?

HARRIS: I'm the commander for the group of ships, which include the Nashville, which has already proceeded us, and she has been directed -- and she is in the Mediterranean right now.

The Iwo Jima, who I'm talking to you from, also, the Island and the Trenton. Those are the ships that are part of the group.

And the mission is pretty straight forward. It's complex, but straight forward. Complex in that, of course, you're dealing with a hostile environment that is going on right now in Lebanon, as you well know. You've got the emotions of the people that you're taking from one place to the other. But straightforward in that it's a fairly short distance between the areas in Lebanon and Cyprus.

PHILLIPS: Now, captain, I want to get to the evacuations in a minute. But as you mentioned, you are definitely entering hostile territory. So why don't you tell me what you're rules of engagement are?

Because your ship in addition to the other ships, working together, could have incredible capabilities with regard to defending any type of assets that might be threatened in that area.

Tell me what your rules of engagement are, if, indeed, things do get hostile for you.

HARRIS: Well, Kyra, I'm afraid the rules of engagement are classified, and those cannot be discussed. The ships will defend themselves if attacked, obviously, and is quite capable of defending themselves. We train to operate in the area of the world we call the literal (ph), which is close to the shore.

So we've got defensive systems on board. We've got disciplined crews that know how to operate those systems. So we'll be able to do that. In fact, we've got -- regardless, already up there, providing escort for, I believe, some of the ferries that should be bringing some of our American citizens to safety.

PHILLIPS: Captain Sinclair Harris, commodore of the Iwo Jima. They're obviously talking to us about a two-fold mission, if they do get, indeed, involved in a hostile environment, are they able to hit rocket launchers on the ground, if necessary. But the most important part of that message, as you heard from the captain, is getting the evacuees out of the dangerous areas.

Captain Sinclair Harris, appreciate your time. We'll be talking to you, of course, more throughout the mission.

And if you heard that salty comment from President Bush yesterday, well, you know that the U.S. and Israel and many of their allies hold Syria accountable for Hezbollah. So what can or might Damascus do to end the current crisis? CNN's Aneesh Raman is there.

Hi, Aneesh.

ANEESH RAMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Kyra, good afternoon.

A key player in all of this is, of course, the head of Hezbollah, Hassan Nasrallah, and aside from the Syrian government, who has downplayed the connection with Hezbollah and has remained fairly quiet within Damascus, waiting to see how this all plays out.

We came here, just outside one of the oldest mosques in all of Syria, where people are gathering for evening prayer, set to begin in just about an hour. Across from that is the biggest market in all of Damascus, the capital of Syria.

We came to ask people about Hassan Nasrallah. First, we were struck by the number of posters. He's literally everywhere within that market. There's a huge banner supporting Hassan Nasrallah, in what they say is resistance fight against an occupying force. There are also posters that we're told for the first time feature the Syrian president and Hassan Nasrallah, that are being handed out by free at some shops, Hezbollah flags, as well.

And even some music, Lebanese nationalist music, has started coming into the CD shops as early as yesterday. So they're giving those out, as well.

We spoke to people who, where there may have been shades of gray before, at least here, when it come to Hezbollah and Nasrallah, it's really now becoming black and white, and his support, according to one man, is growing in the Muslim world.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: If you are Arab (ph), you like Nasrallah, like president, by example. You see one photo, and you can see photo for Hassan Nasrallah. You can see photo for Hassan Nasrallah. Here, you see everybody you like for him because president from Arab jealous for him. You see the photo everywhere. If you ask, for years, I like it. If you ask in Syria people, yes, I like it (ph).

(END VIDEO CLIP)

RAMAN: And so that is the sense we got here, at least, that throughout that part of the world that he's speaking of, there is growing support for Hezbollah, especially for Hassan Nasrallah. He is emerging as a leading voice for a large amount of disenfranchised people who feel that this just highlights an ongoing struggle that has happened within this region.

And so it does seem, at least where we are and where we stand, Kyra, that support for Hezbollah is rallying amid this escalating crisis -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: Aneesh Raman from Damascus, Syria. We'll be talking more with you, obviously, throughout the day. Thank you so much. We're also waiting to hear from Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice. We're going to bring that to you live when it happens.

More LIVE FROM coming up next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: And we are waiting for Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice to step up to the mic. She's in meeting with the leaders from Egypt today, and we're hoping that she's going to talk about what the State Department is doing with regard to evacuations and plans. And also if she's -- when she's going to be headed to the region to try, and try and map out some kind of negotiation or peace plan in the Middle East.

Larnaca is quickly becoming the port in the storm for people trying to get out of Lebanon. CNN's Chris Burns is there.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CHRIS BURNS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Here in Larnaca, Cyprus, the wait for more ships to arrive here in the port. Of course, a lot of Americans pinned down in Beirut, just across the water over here are expressing frustration that the American government is not fast enough to move them out.

The effort has been stepped up. U.S. helicopters, military helicopters, have been flying over to Beirut by an increasing number, to move them over here.

Also there is the effort to bring over here about 200 students from the American University. They're being boarded on a ship that could arrive sometime tonight or tomorrow.

The main effort is with the Orient Queen. That's a Greek ship that is being escorted by the U.S. destroyer, the USS Gonzalez. That is being held up for certain reasons that are not being told to us, but it's being held up off the waters of Beirut. They're hoping that they can move ahead with that soon, perhaps the next few hours, or tomorrow. That ship expected to bring back, perhaps, 750 or 800 civilians.

Now, the other countries have been in on the act. The Italian, the destroyer arrived last night with some 400 people. The French have commissioned a Greek ferry that brought back here almost 1,000 expatriates, mostly French, but also other nationalities, including, also, Americans. That effort is going to continue on Wednesday and Friday, the French say. Another, two more ferry trips.

Many of those evacuees are children, and medical crews, psychological crews are here to deal with that. Here's what one of those workers had to say.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: People are really desperate. They are sick. They have been traveling a long time. And they've been under extremely unsecure (sic) -- extremely unsecure (sic) environment, trying to go through with taxis, through bombings all around them.

BURNS: So more ships are expected to arrive. A Norwegian charter is to arrive sometime tonight or tomorrow. On Thursday, the U.N. is expected to send a ship from Beirut back over to here, as well. So this seaborne evacuation is expanding as we speak.

Chris Burns, CNN, Larnaca, Cyprus.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PHILLIPS: Northern Israel is still getting pounded by Hezbollah rockets. CNN's Paula Hancocks is in Haifa.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

PAULA HANCOCKS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: The Israeli military say that more than 750 rockets have been falling on Northern Israeli towns since Thursday, 6 a.m., since this escalation in violence.

Now, we understand that many have been falling on Haifa this Tuesday. This is the third largest city in Israel. And also late afternoon, a barrage of rockets fell on many different northern Israeli towns.

In Nahariya, medical sources tell us, one person was killed after a rocket hit directly that person's house. Also, around about 12 rockets fell at the same time in that particular town. That's an increase of what we usually see in a barrage.

Also, Safed, several were wounded. That's about 10 miles south of the border. Haifa, Carmiel, Akko, Hudsel (ph), all these northern Israeli towns were hit at the same time.

But at the same time as these rockets are hitting, we are hearing that diplomatic routes are being discovered, as the foreign minister, Tzipi Livni, has met a special U.S. envoy team.

Now, she said they both decided that Hezbollah does bear the responsibility of this escalation in violence. But she also said that any diplomatic talk she was have -- she was having would be in parallel with the military operations that were ongoing. She said it does not close the window for the military operations.

Now we've been hearing from the Israeli military that they want anything between a week and three weeks to continue their operations. They want to make sure that they get as many Hezbollah targets as they can.

And we've also heard from politicians, most notably, the prime minister, Ehud Olmert, that the conditions for a cease fire are very rigid. He wants the two soldiers that have been kidnapped last Wednesday to be released. He wants Hezbollah off the Northern Israel/Southern Lebanon border. He wants Hezbollah also to be disarmed, as was agreed in a U.N. Security Council resolution which was passed two years ago but not implemented yet.

Paula Hancocks, CNN, Haifa, Israel.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PHILLIPS: Extreme heat for millions of people and no power for a lot more. Parts of La Guardia Airport goes dark. Flights canceled. Travelers are stranded. We're live from La Guardia, coming up next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: Well, the blare of air raid sirens, the center of explosions. Israeli forces and Hezbollah militants trade fire for a seventh day. Here's what we know right now.

Hezbollah fires more rockets into Haifa and other North -- Northern Israeli towns. One landed on a house, killing one person.

Israel has pounded army barracks in Lebanon for a second day. Eleven Lebanese soldiers killed in that strike.

A half dozen U.S. military helicopters are flying dozens of Americans out of Beirut, and several U.S. warships are heading to the region to assist in evacuations by sea. U.S. chartered cruise ships still haven't arrived. The Orient Queen is due in tomorrow.

United Nations and its agencies plan to pull nonessential staff members from Lebanon, but relief workers are staying and more plan to go in.

Now, Cyprus becomes a refugee center already. People getting out of Lebanon are going there by helicopter and cruise ship.

CNN senior Arab affairs editor Octavia Nasr is watching the influx. And Octavia, you were here with us, monitoring, obviously, all the various broadcasts and news organizations overseas. Now you're there. Tell us how it's matching up with what we were seeing via the broadcasts.

OCTAVIA NASR, CNN ARAB AFFAIRS EDITOR: You know, this is a big story. Obviously, not just a humanitarian story, but it is a big story for the media. If you look around, we're not going to turn around to show you, because it's a bit dark. You're not going to see much.

But I can tell you, a dozen cameras standing here waiting for the first incoming groups of refugees, coming from Lebanon, right to this port here behind me.

It is a big story. You watch Arab media, for example. This is the only story that they're covering, almost, you know. It's taken much of the newscasts. They see it as a big humanitarian disaster. Also, an infrastructural disaster for Lebanon.

And you're starting to hear voices now. The leaders...

NASR: ... this is the only story that they're covering, almost. It's taken much of the newscasts. They see it as a big humanitarian disaster. Also, for structure disaster for Lebanon. And you're starting to hear voices now. The leaders are coming out, speaking about it, and basically calling for a resolution. But some experts are saying it's a little bit too late for that -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: Well, Octavia, I know you've been traveling around the clock, so I don't know how much time you've had to really get in touch with the locals there. I know you know a lot of people there. You have family spread out. What kind of personal insights have you been able to get from the people that live there, not just the Americans or the tourists or others that had been there visiting, but for the people from there, living there, give me a sense for how later feeling.

NASR: You know, Kyra, it doesn't take much, really, for you to notice how people are affected by this story. Even on the plane, before I landed here, people were talking about it. As soon as they know where you're from, what you do, they start asking you questions. Everybody is concerned. People see to think that this is like a Third World War. As one passenger on a plane described it to me, then you go to offices, you know, you go to travel agencies, you go to the airport you see all those airline offices full with people, trying to change their reservations, trying to buy new tickets. It is -- the hardship that has resulted from this tragedy that is enormous.

And this is just the beginning. You know, we're talking about people being evacuated from Lebanon. The official evacuation hasn't even started yet. This is all informal at this point. Some countries have evacuated their nationals. Others are in the process of planning the evacuation. And yet, you see the effects here on the ground. You go to the grocery stores. You go to business offices. The hardship is just amazing. People feel that they've gotten hit not just by the bombs and the strikes in Lebanon, but also by how hard it was to leave Lebanon. To get here, for example, Cyprus. Some people were stranded here in Cyprus. They were headed to Lebanon for vacation. Instead they were rerouted to Cyprus here, thinking that this is going to be a matter of day or two and then they'll continue on for vacation, only to find out that they were stranded here, no seats available to send them back home, and then the tragedy continues.

Everywhere you turn, it's not hard to find the people to tell you how hard it has been for them.

PHILLIPS: And are they talking about the politics? You know, Octavia, it doesn't seem like it was very long ago we were covering the massive protests in Lebanon, the change in government, the assassination of Rafik Hariri, and the fact that Hezbollah was becoming a legitimate part of this government, that it was a Democratic government, a fledgling Democratic government. I bet people are also talking about politics as well as their livelihood immediately at the moment. NASR: Absolutely. Politics is a very hot subject, and people of the Middle East in general love to talk politics. The Lebanese people have always something to say.

People I've run into basically say that -- you have to understand, people who come to Cyprus are a very specific group of people. Basically, they are the ones who are not going to go to Syria, for example, who have no other option but to come to Cyprus. They are the people who can afford to come to Cyprus, because life here is very expensive.

And again, once you come here, you have to plan on being here for a few days, perhaps a few weeks, before you move on. So these people are saying that perhaps Lebanon is paying the price for those demonstrations that you're talking about, the demonstrations that happened last year, that drove Syria out of Lebanon, and that brought a government down. And many experts here in Cyprus are saying that this is the price that Lebanon is paying for asking for democracy, for asking for freedom, for asking to be free of any occupation.

Now if you watch Arab media, you're not going to hear much on that. People are more comfortable saying it person to person, one on one. They're not very comfortable going on camera and saying these things, for several reasons. No. 1, Lebanon remains the enemy of Israel. These two countries remain enemies. So anyone suggesting, hinting, at a possible disagreement with Hezbollah is going to be understood immediately as support for Israel.

So people are very careful. They won't go on camera or on the record and say these things, but in private conversations, you bet, this is what they talk about, and say this is the price they're paying for basically asking for freedom and wanting it so badly.

PHILLIPS: CNN senior Arab affairs editor Octavia Nasr there in Cyprus, covering this continuing story for us. Thanks so much, Octavia. We appreciate it. We'll stay on top of all angles of the Middle East crisis.

Meanwhile, back here at home, no light, no air-conditioning, plenty of people stranded. Part of New York's La Guardia Airport ground to a halt just a few hours ago when the power went out.

CNN senior correspondent Allan Chernoff is there.

What happened, Allan?

ALLAN CHERNOFF, CNN SR. CORRESPONDENT: Well, Kyra, just have a look. People here are getting by on emergency, battery-powered lights. No light at all here since 8:00. This is actually the food court in the American Airlines section of the main terminal. Most of the restaurants are closed. One actually is still operating right over there, by that battery-powered light.

If we move over here, we have a little daylight coming through the doors here. You can see the terminal pretty much emptied out now. Earlier today, it was much busier, people stranded, but at this point, lots of passengers have already moved on to other airlines to take their flights out of here, or they've actually gone to Newark Airport, La Guardia Airport, anything to try and get their flight.

Of course, some people still stranded. In fact, Katie over here is trying to get to Albuquerque. Doesn't look like she's going to have very much luck, at least today, on American Airlines, because the terminal here is shutdown, at least until 5:00. So American Airlines has had to cancel dozens of flights. Delta Airlines here also had to cancel plenty of its shuttle flights to New York, from New York to Boston, and also to Washington.

The rest of the airport is actually operating. It's fascinating, if you take a walk about two minutes down, you can't quite see it here, but further down, the airport is operating normally. In fact, I was at one bar earlier today, just walking around there. They have 31 televisions running. The bar is packed. You'd never know, but the rest of the airport over here is absolutely deserted.

Now why is this happening? Of course, the extreme heat. It's 94 degrees outside. Add the humidity, it feels like 97 degrees. That certainly got plenty of people running their air-conditioners. And that has put a huge strain on power in this section of the borough of Queens. ConEdison is telling its customers, try not to use your appliances. Don't use washing machines, dryers. They're also saying don't use air-conditioners. I don't think anybody's going to listen to that on a day like this -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: Understandable.

CHERNOFF: Absolutely.

PHILLIPS: All right, Allan, thanks so much.

CHERNOFF: Well, diplomatic efforts under way to end the Mideast conflict. We expect to hear from Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice. She's meeting with the Egyptian foreign minister this hour. We're going to bring you her remarks live.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

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