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Arrest Warrant Awaits John Mark Karr's Arrival in Boulder; Tehran Finally Responds To U.N.'s Demands; Most Vulnerable Falling Victim to Dangers Hiding in Lebanon; U.S. Marine Corps Authorized Recall of Thousands of Marines to Active Duty in Iraq and Afghanistan; Fighting flares in Congo Ahead Of Presidential Run-Off.

Aired August 22, 2006 - 13:59   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 headquarters in Atlanta.
John Mark Karr, guilty or just crazy? This hour, Nancy Grace's -- Nancy Grace, rather, takes on the ransom note, the evidence, and the bizarre lifestyle that Karr led.

Nancy Grace live at the second hour of LIVE FROM starts right now.

John Mark Karr is Boulder bound in the next week or so, but what happens when he gets there? And what's in that arrest warrant that awaits his arrival?

CNN's Ed Lavandera is feeling the anticipation -- Ed.

ED LAVANDERA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, we understand that officials here are preparing for the arrival of John Karr. Just a short while ago, after a 15-hour plane flight from Bangkok after his arrest last week, the statements that he made before the cameras and everything, a much different John Karr, at least in public. In fact, just a short while ago, one of the attorneys who had been talking to him over the last couple of days described him as just a different person.

So, right now, officials here in Colorado anticipating the arrival of John Karr, which we were -- are told will happen some time later today. There's -- as far as we understand, John Karr is yet to leave the courthouse there in Los Angeles where he made his appearance this morning, waiving his right to extradition, paving the way, if you will, for him to be returned here to Colorado. And, of course, there are still a lot of details left to be answered in this case as prosecutors build their case against him.

He's being brought back here and suspected of being the main suspect in the murder of JonBenet Ramsey, killed 10 years ago, which has garnered so much attention over the last 10 years and has reignited another frenzy of stories and media attention here in the last week or so. So, very a different appearing John Karr, much calmer, not saying as much clearly as what he did a week ago, and he could be here in Colorado within the next few hours -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: All right. Ed Lavandera, we'll keep talking. Thanks. Want to get straight to the newsroom. Tony Harris has new details on a developing story -- Tony.

TONY HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: Yes, Kyra, just a few moments ago, just to pick up on what you were talking about with Ed, attorney Jamie -- Jamie Harmon, one of two attorneys who met with John Mark Karr yesterday, answered a few questions after the extradition hearing.

Here's what she had to say.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JAMIE HARMON, ATTORNEY: Mr. Karr is -- has been portrayed by the media as of late as being mentally unstable, attention seeking, unwell. Mentally unwell. And he is none of those things. And he is anxious to have an opportunity to address the allegations against him to be portrayed in a more accurate and more complete way. He is very anxious to do that.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HARRIS: And Kyra, a couple of other comments from Jamie Harmon in that little gaggle there. Harmon described Karr as very intelligent, a different person, very engaging, articulate, and a man who is aware of what's going on with him right now.

Just some additional notes from that conversation that might be interesting for your conversation with Nancy Grace a little bit, Harmon says that in the press, "You guys" -- referring to us -- "want easy answers, but that Karr is not a man of easy answers. He is an unusual man. He's someone who marches to the beat of a different drummer."

This different drummer is on his way to Boulder, Colorado -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: We'll be talking about that different beat, no doubt, with Nancy Grace.

HARRIS: Yes. Sure.

PHILLIPS: Thanks, Tony.

HARRIS: OK, Kyra.

PHILLIPS: Well, could his penmanship earn him a stretch in the pen? We're going to compare a yearbook entry written by John Mark Karr to the ransom note found at the home of JonBenet Ramsey.

As Tony mentioned, Nancy Grace of CNN Headline News and Court TV joins us to check out the evidence in just a little bit.

Now, resolutions, pleas, demands all laid down by the U.N. and its long-running nuclear standoff with Iran. Today, Tehran finally sent a response.

Let's get straight to our senior U.N. correspondent, Richard Roth.

What do you think, Richard?

RICHARD ROTH, CNN SR. U.N. CORRESPONDENT: Well, some diplomats may have seen the Iranian response, but there's been no official reaction so far. A European Union top negotiators saying the Iranian response and the reaction to it will need a careful and detailed analysis. Iran had until the end of the month to say it was going to freeze its uranium enrichment program, which President Bush yesterday warned could be leading to a nuclear weapon in the possession of the authorities in Tehran.

U.S. ambassador to the U.N., John Bolton, even before Iran had given the response, said that no matter what happens, Iran knows that sanctions could lie in wait for the regime.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BOLTON: We've made it clear in the Security Council resolution, 1696, that Iran has a choice. They can either take up the very generous offer that the five permanent members and Germany have extended to them, and if they do, there's a possibility of a different relationship with the United States and others. But if they don't, we've also made it clear that their unwillingness to give up their pursuit of nuclear weapons will result in our efforts in the Security Council to obtain economic sanctions against them.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROTH: A deputy Iranian official from the Iranian mission here at the United Nations met briefly with Russia's U.N. ambassador, we believe, or someone from the Russian delegation a short time ago, but there's been no official reaction here. And Secretary-General Annan has also been waiting to hear from the Iranians before responding.

When Iran says it wants serious negotiations, this will, no doubt, confuse some, anger others, annoy some, but also maybe good news to China and Russia, which think that diplomacy is the course to take and not imposing sanctions -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: Richard Roth, thanks so much.

Well, Iran is making its point not just with words, but also with missiles, helicopters, tanks and troops.

CNN's Aneesh Raman is the only U.S. television network reporter working right now in Tehran. He just filed this report for us.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ANEESH RAMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): These images broadcast on Iranian TV send a simple message: If any military force tries to enter Iranian air space, this is what will happen. It was the latest in a series of war games launched across the country set to last five weeks and set to showcase what Iran calls its new defensive military doctrine. UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): We have designed and manufactured systems that can make Iran's air territory insecure for enemies in different magnitudes.

RAMAN: On display to Iranian TV cameras and nobody else, a readiness for war. A readiness to protect nuclear sites against a potential strike by the West.

To reinforce the message of defiance, a TV appearance by the country's top official, the supreme leader, Ayatollah Khamenei. He announced Iran would continue to pursue nuclear energy despite a U.N. deadline to stop by the end of the month.

Combined with these scenes, it's all men the to reinforce this is a government intent on pursuing a nuclear program and ready to defend against any military attack to prevent that. But do Iranians feel the same way?

At one of Iran's war memorials, a solemn arch reminds of a brutal past of the eight-year battle between Iran and Iraq. We came to see if people were worried that their country's pursuit of a nuclear program could lead to an international conflict. Nobody here questioned the government's claim that its program is strictly for producing energy. It's their right, they say, whatever the consequences.

"It is useless," Ali told us, "to worry about an attack when a basic need of the people like nuclear energy is being threatened. We will pursue that right against everything."

"People who believe in god," said Gorbani (ph), "are not afraid of sanctions or attacks by the United States."

Not afraid. And as Iran's military proclaimed, ready for whatever may come.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PHILLIPS: Well, that was CNN's Aneesh Raman, the only U.S. television network reporter in Tehran.

Now moving on.

Well, a new phase of war. Even though the fighting in Lebanon has stopped for the most part, the pain and suffering have not. Each day the most vulnerable and curious are falling victim to dangers hiding in plain sight.

CNN's Jim Clancy takes a closer look.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JIM CLANCY, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): "I want my mother." Twelve-year-old Sicna Miri (ph) is the face of pain, a victim of an unexploded cluster bomblet. Her cousin, 10-year-old Hassan, lies in a bed next to her. As a monitor tracks his heartbeat, Hassan remembers the gruesome details of almost being killed.

"It was her and my cousin, and Sicna picked up the bomb. It was shaped like a ball. There was an explosion" he says. "My insides fell out. I held them and I started running and screaming."

For a time, doctors weren't sure they would survive, but both have stabilized. They're the lucky ones. Outside the hospital room, a nurse tells us this is the new phase of the war.

(on camera): Inside the homes and gardens across south Lebanon, there are troops on the front lines in this phase of the war. They are the unexploded ordinance teams who search out and destroy the bomblets that are scattered in their tens of thousands across this country.

(voice-over): This is the only way to get rid of those bomblets. Before the blasts, some were taped to secure the triggers, but others had already armed themselves and couldn't be touched.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We have to check everywhere we step. OK. One is here.

CLANCY: Frederick Grah (ph) is with the Mine Advisory Group. They're working with the U.N. and the Lebanese. Time and time again, Frederick will check to see if a cluster bomblet has armed or not.

JIHAD SAMHAT, MINE ADVISORY GROUP: OK, we have the second one to do. It spread everywhere. On the roofs, we have to check the roof to see if there is something up. OK, it is good for here.

CLANCY: Anxious villagers south of Tyre have reported hundreds of sightings. They're welcoming Frederick and his team with Arabic coffee, but there isn't time. Cluster bombs have smashed through windows and now lie inside homes. Some of their deadly cargo may be underneath or anywhere up to a kilometer away.

We keep warning the children, says an exacerbated mother. We keep telling them. Her children have been gathering up metal to sell. Including the shell of this cluster bomb.

Cluster bomblets are meant to explode when they hit the ground, but there's always about a 10 percent failure rate. Because these are so old, they may have a failure rate of around 40 percent.

But those are cold, hard numbers, and this is real pain. But for Hassan and Sicna there may be weeks in the hospital. For others, there will be no going home at all.

Jim Clancy, CNN, Tyre, Lebanon.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PHILLIPS: Italy in the lead. Italian Prime Minister Romano Prodi is offering to command that new and broader force of U.N. peacekeepers in southern Lebanon. The United Nations wants a multinational force of 15,000 troops to keep the peace between Israel and Hezbollah.

Well, we still don't know who kidnapped two FOX journalists in Gaza or why, or where they are now. It's been a week since anyone has seen or heard from reporter Steve Centanni and photographer Olaf Wiig. Their families have pleaded on TV for their release, but so far their captors haven't been seen nor heard from either.

The Palestinian prime minister has condemned the kidnapping and promised to try and help.

Tuesday or doomsday? It's August 22nd, and so far all is well. But straight ahead on LIVE FROM we're going to tell you why some people believe that today is the beginning of the end.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: Right to the newsroom. Tony Harris working details on a developing story out of the Pentagon -- Tony.

HARRIS: That's right, Kyra. The U.S. Marine Corps, CNN has just learned, has authorized the recall of thousands of Marines to active duty because of a shortage of volunteers for duty in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Our Pentagon correspondent, Jamie McIntyre has more on the story -- Jamie.

JAMIE MCINTYRE, CNN SR. PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: Well, Tony, a lot of members of the U.S. military got a rude awakening when they thought they had completed their obligation for service only to discover they're being recalled. It's happened before in the Army to about 14,000 people.

Now in the Marine Corps some 2,500 are getting notices that under the IRR, the Individual Ready Reserve, they will be recalled to active duty to serve both in Iraq and Afghanistan. Obviously, it's because of the pressures that these continuing deployments have put on the U.S. military, including the inability to reduce the number of forces in Iraq because of the continuing violence there.

So, the U.S. military personnel pretty aware now that they're still on the hook, even after they leave active duty, under the Individual Ready Reserve requirements. And again, some 2,500 Marines will be getting the notice that, not so fast, your country still needs you. And they're going to have to return to duty for an assignment in either Iraq or Afghanistan -- Tony.

HARRIS: OK, Jamie. I'm sure you'll continue to follow this for us. Appreciate it.

Jamie McIntyre at the Pentagon.

Kyra, back to you. PHILLIPS: Tony, Jamie, thanks so much.

Well, an election in turmoil, chaos in the streets in Congo. Another day of gun battles, confusion and calls for a cease-fire.

CNN Africa Correspondent Jeff Koinange has been covering what had been a relatively smooth exercise in democracy. He joins us on the phone from Johannesburg.

Jeff, what happened to those diplomats that were being held -- were they being held hostage?

JEFF KOINANGE, CNN AFRICA CORRESPONDENT: Yes. Well, they weren't being held hostage. They went to try and discuss the way forward with one of the opposition candidates, the guy who came in second in the first round, Jean-Pierre Bemba. And there was a -- there was a shootout in the compound that lasted several hours. That's until the United Nations had to send in a whole contingent, as did the European forces that were underground.

So, I'll tell you, it was pretty hairy for a while. But in the end they were rescued. They were finally taken to their residences. But all day long there's been intermittent fighting in the streets of the capital, Kinshasa.

In fact, I just spoke to a journalist friend of mine there right now. He told me they can't even venture outside, because what the military is doing, they are shooting anything they see. It's pretty scary, he says, out there right now.

We've heard late word that there are negotiations between the two camps. The president, the incumbent who got most of the votes in the first round, Joseph Kabila, and this millionaire businessman, Jean- Pierre Bemba, their two factions, apparently they are speaking some time this evening, and there may be at truce. But, for now, lots and lots of tension in the streets of Kinshasa --Kyra.

PHILLIPS: And we're seeing that. We're seeing the troops patrolling the streets. From what you've told us, these politicians are besieged in their homes.

So what happens next? And who's starting the fighting? I moan, is it coming from Kabila's people or Bemba's people?

KOINANGE: Very good question, and, again, it depends on who you ask. But I think you put it best yesterday, Kyra. It's a tough war.

Just because one group didn't get as many votes as they thought, now they think, well, let's take it out into the streets, which is not the way it should be. The election period was such a good process. Western diplomats were hailing this as a giant leap for democracy. And now look.

Like a Western diplomat told me today, "This is Murphy's Law," what can go wrong is going wrong, and it was too good to be true. Cooler heads have to prevail. That's the bottom line, Kyra. And they should go into this second round and see who will be the eventual winner. That will be at the end of October -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: Well, we'll keep following it with you.

Jeff Koinange, thanks so much.

Well, today is just Tuesday for most of us, but it's a religious milestone for millions of other people, and something much worse for others, or so they thought.

It's August 22nd, and so far the world has not ended. Reason enough to spend a few moments with CNN Senior Arab Affairs Editor Octavia Nasr.

All right. You've got a lot of people that are knocking this down and a lot of people that are hyping it up, the date of August 22nd.

There's been a lot of stuff on the blogs about this. The Iranian president came forward and said the world is going to change on October (sic) 22nd.

Give us the background of this date.

OCTAVIA NASR, CNN SR. ARAB AFFAIRS EDITOR: You know, it all started -- let's talk a little bit about why we thought that the world was going to end. It started with a rumor. And actually, it started with a comment by the Iranian president, Ahmadinejad, when he said he will give his country's answer to the U.N. request on his nuclear ambitions on August 22nd.

That got many, many people, especially here in this country, looking into this date and saying, what is August 22nd? What does it do? Why does he give this date?

Well, it so happens that August 22nd happens to be the 27th of Rajab in the Islamic calendar, and basically this is the night that Muslims around the world will commemorate the miraculous flight that the Prophet Mohammed took from Mecca to the Al Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem. Basically, history -- Islamic history tells us that the prophet road on his miraculous winged horse to the Al Aqsa Mosque and from there he ascended to heaven and then came back to basically spread the message of god that Muslims should be praying five times a day.

So, it is a very significant day for Muslims, but every Muslim I spoke with said that there's no reference there to any end of the world or any end of anything. It's just a religious celebration for them and, basically, some people, especially in the West, took it one step further and tried to analyze it a little bit too much into Ahmadinejad's comments.

PHILLIPS: Sure, like, is it -- well, and that created the talk of, OK, is this a target date for terrorists? NASR: Perhaps, yes. Some people said that that alleged plot that was foiled in London, that perhaps the date, August 22nd, was going to be the date that it was supposed to be carried out. Of course, that was not knocked down already by British authorities. The date has no significance in that alleged plot.

There are also rumors in Islam. Just like -- I mean, anecdotes, not rumors -- just like in other religions, such as Christianity or Judaism, that there will be a second coming of an imam. This one is the hidden imam.

There is no specific date for his return. But just like you say the return of Jesus Christ or the coming of the messiah, this hidden imam supposedly lives on. It is believed that he is close to his 40s, and according to legend it is around 40 or 41 that he will come back and he will indicate -- his coming back will indicate the end of the world for Muslims.

But, also, there are other anecdotal details about this. They say that in the month of Ramadan, the beginning of the month, will be a lunar eclipse. In the middle of the month, a solar eclipse. That will be another indication. So, just like any other apocalyptic anecdote that we know of, Islam has its own anecdotes, as well.

But, again, going back to August 22nd, it all start with Ahmadinejad saying that he will give his answer on this date. People didn't understand.

The initial date from the U.N. was the end of August. He insisted he wants to give his answer on August 22nd. It started this whole rumor.

Actually, people I called to ask about August 22nd, Muslims and references that I called, that they had to scratch their head a little bit and say, "Wait a minute, August 22nd?"

PHILLIPS: What exactly -- what it means.

NASR: Really. They had to think about it.

PHILLIPS: So by the Iranian president bringing this up, it got everybody talking about history, really.

NASR: Really.

PHILLIPS: The significance of this date.

NASR: Really. And this date is not like a big date. It's not like when Muslims celebrate, for example, the birth of the prophet. That is a big holiday -- or Adha, the feast of sacrifice.

And so, there are much bigger holidays. But this one has emotional significance because of that miraculous flight.

PHILLIPS: And we're talking about nuclear facilities, will Iran keep them going, will they negotiate to not use it for anything else but energy.

NASR: Right. And also, some people said that this is the difference between Shiite Islam and Sunni Islam. And, of course, Ahmadinejad belongs to the Shiite sect, which is a minority in the world.

The Shiites are only found in Iran and Iraq and Lebanon and Bahrain, for example. But the rest of the world is a majority Sunni. And these people are just celebrating that miraculous flight of the prophet. They have nothing to do with the nuclear ambitions of Ahmadinejad and they have nothing to do with August 22nd.

PHILLIPS: All right. Octavia, thanks.

Well, could his penmanship earn him a stretch in the pen? We're going to compare a yearbook entry written by John Mark Karr to the ransom note found at the home of JonBenet Ramsey.

Nancy grace of CNN Headline News and Court TV joins us to check the evidence straight ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: Well, YouTube has become one of the most popular destinations on the Internet, and now it's including a different kind of video clip on its home page.

Susan Lisovicz live from the New York Stock Exchange with that story.

(BUSINESS REPORT)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

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