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CNN Live Today
Bin Laden Truce Turned Down by European Leaders; Japanese Hostages Released in Iraq
Aired April 15, 2004 - 11:00 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.
DARYN KAGAN, CNN ANCHOR: It is 11 a.m. on the East Coast, 8 a.m. for those of you on the West Coast. From CNN Center in Atlanta, good morning once again. I'm Daryn Kagan.
There is another recording, purportedly from al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden. The voice on this audiotape offers a truce to European nations which, quote, "stop attacking Muslims." The U.S. is excluded from any such deal.
The tape makes reference to the March 11 Madrid train bombings, the 9/11 attacks, as examples of al Qaeda in response, and both actions in response to attacks on Muslims.
The speaker's identity has not been independently confirmed. It also, though, threatens revenge against the U.S. and Israel for the assassination last month of the founder of Hamas.
The last audiotape believed to be from bin Laden came in January. That tape described the U.S. involvement in Iraq as the beginning of an occupation of Persian Gulf states for oil. The last time bin Laden was seen on the videotape was aired in September as he walked with his top deputy, Ayman al-Zawahiri.
As expected, European capitals are quickly rejecting any idea of negotiating with al Qaeda.
Let's go to our Guy Raz, joining us now from London -- Guy.
GUY RAZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Daryn, good morning.
And as you can imagine, reaction in European capitals has been universally condemnatory.
Now we've had word from the French president, Jacques Chirac, that effectively his government will not negotiate with what he described as terrorists. Similar kinds of comments coming from Britain, Italy, Spain and Germany as well.
Now among ordinary Europeans, you're also hearing very similar types of reactions. You're not going to find -- you'd be hard pressed, rather, to find a European in the capital today who would be willing to say something to the effect of, well it seems like a reasonable offer, so we would be willing to negotiate with bin Laden.
So at least initially, it seems like this tactic, if, in fact, it is coming from al Qaeda and bin Laden, is backfiring. KAGAN: And Guy, why the separation between Europe and the U.S. and Israel, besides stating the obvious, of course?
RAZ: Well, it's very clear that Osama bin Laden, if, in fact, this is his voice, is trying -- is making a strategic calculation. He's trying to exacerbate existing divisions between the United States and Europe over several issues.
Look, he understands what has happened in Madrid after the bombings. He has witnessed the ouster of a pro-American government in that country. He's seen massive anti-war demonstrations in European capitals. And he's very much aware that there are divisions over questions like the Israeli/Palestinian conflict between the United States and Europe.
He is effectively trying to speak over the heads of European leaders, directly to the public in European countries.
But again, I should underline that bin Laden is universally regarded as a terrorist. Even though there are divisions between Americans and Europeans on these other issues, there's no question that bin Laden is seen as a terrorist.
KAGAN: Guy Raz in London. Guy, thank you for the report. Appreciate it.
There's been much speculation that Osama bin Laden could be in the area between Afghanistan and Pakistan. Our Nic Roberts standing by in Khowst, Afghanistan, where it is already evening -- Nic.
NIC ROBERTSON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Daryn, I've spent the last three days in the mountains here with U.S. troops, looking for Osama bin Laden, trying to -- trying to create a feeling of security and stability for the Afghans.
And in the hope of doing that, that people would give them the critical intelligence, the critical timely information that might lead to the capture of Osama bin Laden.
What they're trying to do in providing this security is essentially cut off any places that he might be able to, or any of his allies might be able to go to hide.
But when I've talked to troops today about this latest Osama bin Laden message, they were very, very interested to know the details, very interested to hear the timeline, very interested to hear that the message had clearly been sent recently. Very interested to hear that he is trying to divide United States' European allies away from the United States. The troops I talked to didn't seem to think there was a great deal of likelihood in that.
But it did, they say this did tell them how important their job is here. They say that they are already working tremendously hard on their mission of trying to track him down and his deputy, Ayman al- Zawahiri. So they won't be able to make sort of make their efforts any harder or any stronger, if you will, because they're already working very hard. But they were very, very interested to hear this message, very interested to know that he is apparently alive and able to get this sort of very politicized statement out at this time -- Daryn.
KAGAN: Of course, we're still waiting for confirmation from the CIA if the U.S. government believes that this is Osama bin Laden.
But if, indeed, this is and the idea that he is in the area where you are, Nic, how is it believed he makes the audiotapes and gets them out?
ROBERTSON: Well, it's believed that he doesn't have any electronic contacts with the outside world. It's believed that he doesn't use the telephone, local telephones, which in the mountains here don't exist, that he doesn't use satellite telephones, because that would give away his location.
He is believed to use a system of couriers to get written messages out. Now, presumably, if he's able to send out a taped message, he presumably has a tape recorder and presumably sends that audiotape through a series of couriers. Very likely, couriers -- the final courier that would come to his location would very likely be a very trusted person.
The mountains here are tremendously remote, tremendously inaccessible. It's possible, and I was talking with one officer about this today, it's very easy for a family in the mountains here to allow somebody like Osama bin Laden to live in the house at a very remote location, and possibly nobody would stumble upon that house without knowing the specific information that he was there.
So whatever he does, however he gets these messages out, the utmost priority will be, as we have seen, or apparently seen over the last few years, is to limit the number of people that know he's there. So likely, a lot of, perhaps, backstops made to make sure that only a very trusted person knows exactly where that tape came from -- Daryn.
KAGAN: Nic Robertson joining us from Khowst, Afghanistan.
On to Iraq now, where today there is freedom for three hostages. But at the same time, a diplomat has been gunned down on the streets of Baghdad. We are tracking several developments in the fight for Iraq.
Our Baghdad bureau chief, Jane Arraf, brings us up to date -- Jane.
JANE ARRAF, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Daryn, three obviously very relieved people. Two Japanese aid workers and a freelance journalist were released into the care of an Islamic committee group at a major Sunni mosque in Baghdad.
Now, as you can see from the video, they are apparently unhurt. Thanking their hosts, people who they were received into the arms of, in gratitude.
Now, an Italian captive was not so lucky. Gunned down, he was shot, execution-style after being held captive.
The Japanese journalists, there had been fears for their safety, because after they were captured video was released with threats to burn them alive if the Japanese did not pull out.
Obviously, a lot of fear among foreign groups here. And fear, too, among the diplomatic community. An Iranian diplomat, as you mentioned, gunned down in front of the very heavily guarded Iranian embassy in central Baghdad. This was said to be the first secretary at the Iranian embassy here.
At the same time, an Iranian envoy and a delegation from the Iranian foreign ministry has gone to Najaf to try to negotiate an end to that standoff between U.S. forces and a radical Shia leader.
The U.S. chairman of the joint chiefs of staff, General Richard Myers, in a surprise visit to Baghdad referred to that standoff, saying that the U.S. was prepared to use force if necessary.
And he indicated that troops will be here for some time to come. Not just the ones who thought they'd be going home and will have to stay another three months, but General Myers said that he was planning on two more rotations -- Daryn.
KAGAN: Jane, with this random taking of hostages, how has this affected the daily lives of anyone who could be considered not just American but western, how you go about your business in Baghdad?
ARRAF: It's certainly made people more cautious. And we're seeing an exodus, for instance, of Russian contract workers. The Russian foreign ministry has sent planes to get them out of here after some were kidnapped when their house was taken over by armed guards.
But other people are taking comfort in the fact that these hostages, many of them are being released, including journalists. Obviously, journalists are being more careful. But those who have been kidnapped, they have been released unharmed so far.
It just certainly is a very difficult thing to deal with. The FBI is here working on it. Very difficult thing for the coalition. They're used to warfare. They can do that. They can do major combat operations. This one is tougher -- Daryn.
KAGAN: Jane Arraf in Baghdad.
More now on the Italian hostage. Italy has confirmed that one of its citizens taken hostage in Iraq has been executed. Iraqi insurgents are threatening to kill the other three Italian hostages if their demands are not met.
Italy sent a delegation to Baghdad trying to win the release of the remaining captives. The Arab network Al Jazeera said it received a videotape of one hostage being killed. Insurgents blame the killing on the Italian premier for refusing to pull his troops out of Iraq.
A French journalist who was kidnapped in Iraq and then released is speaking out about his ordeal. In an interview on CNN's "DAYBREAK," he said the groups behind the abductions are united by their opposition to the U.S. presence in Iraq.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ALEXANDRE JOURDANOV, FORMER HOSTAGE: It's very confusing in their eyes. I believe that the Iraqi people for, at this point, very united, at least in the provincial cities.
Whether it's the Moqtada al-Sadr people or the former Saddam army people or the Islamic party people, they're all interconnected. They all know each other. They don't share the same political views, but they have one common enemy, and it's the American occupation.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KAGAN: Jourdanov says that he was blindfolded and shuffled between various groups to ten different locations.
We'll have much more on the situation in Iraq coming up a bit later. As the battle against insurgents continues, there is word that U.S. commanders will get additional troops. Our Barbara Starr will have more on that.
But first, the latest purported bin Laden tape offers a truce to European nations. Should governments negotiate with terrorists?
And later, confessions of a taxman.
This is CNN LIVE TODAY.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(STOCK REPORT)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KAGAN: The CIA is trying to determine today whether the speaker on a new audiotape is, indeed, Osama bin Laden. The voice on the tape offers Europe a truce if it stops attacking Muslim nations.
The offer was not extended to the U.S. Instead, the speaker vowed revenge on the U.S. for Israel's assassination of Hamas leader Sheikh Ahmed Yassin.
The audiotape has been screen by CNN experts. Among them, CNN terrorism analyst Peter Bergen, one of the few western journalists to sit down for an interview with Osama bin Laden. We've tracked him down in Washington. Sometimes finding Peter is as hard as finding Osama bin Laden. But we have him here with us this morning. Peter, good morning.
PETER BERGEN, CNN TERRORISM ANALYST: Good morning.
KAGAN: When you listen to the tape, what do you hear?
BERGEN: Well, first of all, I think most importantly, Daryn, it's a proof of life. Bin Laden is alive, very recently. The assassination of Sheikh Yassin that you just mentioned was March 22. So this tape was made very recently. That's point one.
Point two, bin Laden is still trying to influence the global Jihad that he set in motion with the 9/11 attacks. The last time we heard from him doing a sort of similar thing, we had a tape from him in October, 2003, in which he called for attacks on Spain, Italy and Britain.
Shortly thereafter, there were attacks on Spanish, Italian, British targets, culminating in the attacks in Madrid last month. And Bin Laden is hoping to build on the strategic success that he felt coming out of Madrid, which is the Spanish have announced that they'll withdraw their forces from Iraq, which was related to the bombing attack that we're seeing on the screen.
So if you can get the Spanish out of the coalition in Iraq, perhaps you can get the Italians is the thinking behind this audiotape. Will that be successful? I mean, probably not. The Italian government has indicated they have no intention of withdrawing or negotiating with bin Laden, as has the British government.
KAGAN: So Peter, let me just ask you, with this wording, talking the way the wording addresses the European nations, offering a truce, do you see any difference in a change of tone from Osama bin Laden in that kind of language?
BERGEN: I think so. I think this is the first time that he's offered a sort of truce to anybody. And, you know, it implies that he's got sort of political strategic goals which he thinks might be realizable and particularly in the light of what happened with Madrid and the Spanish, the announcement of the Spanish pullout of Iraq, which is yet to happen, by the way.
So, you know, maybe he feels that there is something that he can do here in terms of influencing European public opinion. After all, the war in Iraq is incredibly unpopular in Europe in general. Eighty- five to 90 percent of Spaniards were against the war in Iraq. The numbers are not quite so high in England and Italy.
But you're still looking at the war is not popular in Iraq. It's obviously not going well. Some Europeans may feel, well, you know, this is just one further indicator that maybe this is not our fight.
But at the end of the day, I don't think that -- you know, what's really going to influence public opinion in other countries in Europe is if a bomb goes off in London or a bomb goes off in Milan. Then I think Italians or British people may say, hey, maybe this just isn't really worth it.
KAGAN: But not a big surprise that he wouldn't mention the United States in that same offer of a truce?
BERGEN: Not a big surprise, Daryn, I don't think. I mean, clearly, he says specifically the United States and Israel are not part of the offer of a truce.
But this whole offer is, in a sense, sort of pretty ludicrous. After all, the notion of negotiating with bin Laden is, you know, improbable at best. Sort of a mass murderer who's on the run.
But I think that it does show he's trying to influence the scope and targeting of the global Jihad.
And it's basically a sort of a thumbing the nose to the U.S. government. I mean, here's bin Laden two and a half years after 9/11, the author of 9/11, still out there influencing this Jihad, along with Ayman al-Zawahiri, who we're seeing here in this videotape, who also is releasing audiotapes.
Recently, Ayman al-Zawahiri released a videotape calling for attacks on President General Musharraf in Pakistan. Shortly after those -- that tape was released, there were two serious assassination attempts in December against Musharraf.
So the fact that these two people are out there releasing these audiotapes is unfortunately, problematic, because the most reliable guide to al Qaeda's actions is what bin Laden says or what Ayman al Zawahiri says. And when they say we're going to take revenge for Sheikh Yassin's death or, you know, we're announcing some kind of a truce with Europe, perhaps, I mean, these are, I think, serious statements with outcomes that we should pay attention to.
KAGAN: And yet there tends to be a pattern of when a tape like this comes out, there tends to be some type of action that's taken?
BERGEN: Often that is the case. I mean, right. I look back and since 9/11, we've seen maybe eight audiotapes from bin Laden, maybe two from Ayman al-Zawahiri, and there is, you know, sometimes a connection between the audiotapes and then attacks. Sometimes not. It's not really clear.
KAGAN: Peter Bergen in Washington. Peter, thank you for your insight today.
BERGEN: Thank you.
KAGAN: On the ground and in the line of fire, but for a paycheck, not as a soldier. Many contract security workers in Iraq, for them the pay is no longer worth the risk. We'll have their story straight ahead.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Warren Buffett, the billionaire nicknamed the oracle of Omaha is also money for folksy style and love of Coca-Cola.
In 2003 "Forbes" magazine named him the second richest man in the world, and through his company, Berkshire Hathaway, he controls one of the most liquid sources of capital on earth.
But his approach is simple. Some even call it quaint.
WARREN BUFFETT, CHAIRMAN, BERKSHIRE HATHAWAY: If I find a business that I understand that's selling for less than it's worth, I'll buy it.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: In the late '80s, critics said he was losing his touch when he stayed away from technology stocks, but when the dot com bubble burst, Buffett was still standing.
This year, Buffett entered the political arena, serving as Arnold Schwarzenegger's economic advisor in the California governor's race.
And at 73, the man dubbed greatest investor of all time isn't slowing down. He's still looking for his next lucrative deal and doing things in his own unique way.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(WEATHER REPORT)
KAGAN: Different type of poll ahead for you. When it comes to one particular voting block, John Kerry may have a ten-point lead over the president. Doesn't have anything to do with party affiliation. We'll have that story straight ahead.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KAGAN: I'm Daryn Kagan at CNN Center in Atlanta. Let's check the headlines at this hour.
CIA experts are going over an audio recording said to be from Osama bin Laden. They may know soon whether the voice is the al Qaeda leader. On the tape, the speaker offers Europe a truce and makes new threats against the U.S.
Yasser Arafat vowed today that Palestinians will never give up the right of return to what he called their lands. In a switch, the White House is now backing the Israeli position on that issue. President Bush now agrees that refugees who left the land that became Israel should be resettled in a future Palestinian state.
Three Japanese hostages were freed today in Baghdad. That ends their weeklong ordeal. Iraqi militants had threatened to burn the captives alive if Japan did not withdraw troops from Iraq.
And the Army is clearing the record against Captain James Yee. The Muslim chaplain was jailed on accusations of espionage at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. Those allegations were abandoned early on. The Army eventually reprimanded Yee for adultery and pornography. Now that reprimand has been overturned.
A U.S. civilian contractor who was killed in Iraq has now been identified. A spokeswoman for Halliburton says that Steven Fisher, of Virginia Beach, Virginia, is a truck driver who was reported killed last Friday. Fisher worked for Halliburton subsidiary Kellogg Brown and Root.
Civilian contractors in Iraq can earn high salaries tax-free, but now some are wondering whether the money is worth the dangers they face. More on that now from our CNN correspondent, Barbara Starr.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BARBARA STARR, CNN CORRSPONDENT (voice-over): Outside Najaf, suspected insurgents are on the lookout for a vulnerable convoy. Armed with rocket-propelled grenades and rifles, they prepare to attack their target.
Security is now a top concern, not just for thousands of military personnel, but also for private contractors from around the world working in Iraq.
MARK LEFTLY, "BUILDING" MAGAZINE: In terms of British contractors, several of them have been quite badly injured. One who worked for a company called Mark McDonald had his upper left arm actually basically destroyed by an explosive device near a road that also killed the local Iraqi engineer.
STARR: Some contractors are getting out. Russia plans to evacuate more than 800 of its citizens working in Iraq after eight contractors were kidnapped and then released. France and Japan are urging their citizens to leave. China, Italy, the Philippines, Romania, Ukraine, Pakistan, Turkey, India and Nepal all expressing concern.
BRIG. GEN. MARK KIMMITT, U.S. MILITARY SPOKESMAN: I think every individual and every country has to make an individual security determination in terms of ongoing operations here in Iraq.
STARR: Truck drivers from Kellogg, Brown & Root are back home after their convoy was attacked. Now they wonder if the good-paying job was enough to risk their lives.
STEPHEN HEERING, HALLIBURTON DRIVER: Now, people are getting hurt. People are dying. You know, it's not worth it as a civilian, I feel.
STARR: Military officials say they are trying to improve the overall security situation in Iraq, and that many contractors are staying in place.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
STARR: So, Daryn, the military says it is putting more security, more patrols on the most dangerous roads, but no one knows how long all of this is going to last -- Daryn. KAGAN: So we're focusing there on the contract workers. What about the troops? A lot of focus on how many are going to be there and how long the troops that are there right now will have to stay, Barbara.
STARR: Well, Daryn, we do expect to hear from Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld here later this afternoon, announcing that he has approved formally the plan to keep something around 20,000 troops in Iraq for an extra 90 days.
Those are troops that were scheduled to come home. They will now stay in place, work on this issue of the insurgency.
The question, of course, is whether this is a long-term requirement for a plus-up, if you will, in troop strength. Do those extra 20,00 troops -- do they need that much manpower for some time to come?
If they do, they'll make a decision in the next several weeks about who will replace them so they can come home. Not clear yet whether this is a permanent plus-up in troop strength in Iraq.
KAGAN: Barbara Starr at the Pentagon.
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Aired April 15, 2004 - 11:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
DARYN KAGAN, CNN ANCHOR: It is 11 a.m. on the East Coast, 8 a.m. for those of you on the West Coast. From CNN Center in Atlanta, good morning once again. I'm Daryn Kagan.
There is another recording, purportedly from al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden. The voice on this audiotape offers a truce to European nations which, quote, "stop attacking Muslims." The U.S. is excluded from any such deal.
The tape makes reference to the March 11 Madrid train bombings, the 9/11 attacks, as examples of al Qaeda in response, and both actions in response to attacks on Muslims.
The speaker's identity has not been independently confirmed. It also, though, threatens revenge against the U.S. and Israel for the assassination last month of the founder of Hamas.
The last audiotape believed to be from bin Laden came in January. That tape described the U.S. involvement in Iraq as the beginning of an occupation of Persian Gulf states for oil. The last time bin Laden was seen on the videotape was aired in September as he walked with his top deputy, Ayman al-Zawahiri.
As expected, European capitals are quickly rejecting any idea of negotiating with al Qaeda.
Let's go to our Guy Raz, joining us now from London -- Guy.
GUY RAZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Daryn, good morning.
And as you can imagine, reaction in European capitals has been universally condemnatory.
Now we've had word from the French president, Jacques Chirac, that effectively his government will not negotiate with what he described as terrorists. Similar kinds of comments coming from Britain, Italy, Spain and Germany as well.
Now among ordinary Europeans, you're also hearing very similar types of reactions. You're not going to find -- you'd be hard pressed, rather, to find a European in the capital today who would be willing to say something to the effect of, well it seems like a reasonable offer, so we would be willing to negotiate with bin Laden.
So at least initially, it seems like this tactic, if, in fact, it is coming from al Qaeda and bin Laden, is backfiring. KAGAN: And Guy, why the separation between Europe and the U.S. and Israel, besides stating the obvious, of course?
RAZ: Well, it's very clear that Osama bin Laden, if, in fact, this is his voice, is trying -- is making a strategic calculation. He's trying to exacerbate existing divisions between the United States and Europe over several issues.
Look, he understands what has happened in Madrid after the bombings. He has witnessed the ouster of a pro-American government in that country. He's seen massive anti-war demonstrations in European capitals. And he's very much aware that there are divisions over questions like the Israeli/Palestinian conflict between the United States and Europe.
He is effectively trying to speak over the heads of European leaders, directly to the public in European countries.
But again, I should underline that bin Laden is universally regarded as a terrorist. Even though there are divisions between Americans and Europeans on these other issues, there's no question that bin Laden is seen as a terrorist.
KAGAN: Guy Raz in London. Guy, thank you for the report. Appreciate it.
There's been much speculation that Osama bin Laden could be in the area between Afghanistan and Pakistan. Our Nic Roberts standing by in Khowst, Afghanistan, where it is already evening -- Nic.
NIC ROBERTSON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Daryn, I've spent the last three days in the mountains here with U.S. troops, looking for Osama bin Laden, trying to -- trying to create a feeling of security and stability for the Afghans.
And in the hope of doing that, that people would give them the critical intelligence, the critical timely information that might lead to the capture of Osama bin Laden.
What they're trying to do in providing this security is essentially cut off any places that he might be able to, or any of his allies might be able to go to hide.
But when I've talked to troops today about this latest Osama bin Laden message, they were very, very interested to know the details, very interested to hear the timeline, very interested to hear that the message had clearly been sent recently. Very interested to hear that he is trying to divide United States' European allies away from the United States. The troops I talked to didn't seem to think there was a great deal of likelihood in that.
But it did, they say this did tell them how important their job is here. They say that they are already working tremendously hard on their mission of trying to track him down and his deputy, Ayman al- Zawahiri. So they won't be able to make sort of make their efforts any harder or any stronger, if you will, because they're already working very hard. But they were very, very interested to hear this message, very interested to know that he is apparently alive and able to get this sort of very politicized statement out at this time -- Daryn.
KAGAN: Of course, we're still waiting for confirmation from the CIA if the U.S. government believes that this is Osama bin Laden.
But if, indeed, this is and the idea that he is in the area where you are, Nic, how is it believed he makes the audiotapes and gets them out?
ROBERTSON: Well, it's believed that he doesn't have any electronic contacts with the outside world. It's believed that he doesn't use the telephone, local telephones, which in the mountains here don't exist, that he doesn't use satellite telephones, because that would give away his location.
He is believed to use a system of couriers to get written messages out. Now, presumably, if he's able to send out a taped message, he presumably has a tape recorder and presumably sends that audiotape through a series of couriers. Very likely, couriers -- the final courier that would come to his location would very likely be a very trusted person.
The mountains here are tremendously remote, tremendously inaccessible. It's possible, and I was talking with one officer about this today, it's very easy for a family in the mountains here to allow somebody like Osama bin Laden to live in the house at a very remote location, and possibly nobody would stumble upon that house without knowing the specific information that he was there.
So whatever he does, however he gets these messages out, the utmost priority will be, as we have seen, or apparently seen over the last few years, is to limit the number of people that know he's there. So likely, a lot of, perhaps, backstops made to make sure that only a very trusted person knows exactly where that tape came from -- Daryn.
KAGAN: Nic Robertson joining us from Khowst, Afghanistan.
On to Iraq now, where today there is freedom for three hostages. But at the same time, a diplomat has been gunned down on the streets of Baghdad. We are tracking several developments in the fight for Iraq.
Our Baghdad bureau chief, Jane Arraf, brings us up to date -- Jane.
JANE ARRAF, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Daryn, three obviously very relieved people. Two Japanese aid workers and a freelance journalist were released into the care of an Islamic committee group at a major Sunni mosque in Baghdad.
Now, as you can see from the video, they are apparently unhurt. Thanking their hosts, people who they were received into the arms of, in gratitude.
Now, an Italian captive was not so lucky. Gunned down, he was shot, execution-style after being held captive.
The Japanese journalists, there had been fears for their safety, because after they were captured video was released with threats to burn them alive if the Japanese did not pull out.
Obviously, a lot of fear among foreign groups here. And fear, too, among the diplomatic community. An Iranian diplomat, as you mentioned, gunned down in front of the very heavily guarded Iranian embassy in central Baghdad. This was said to be the first secretary at the Iranian embassy here.
At the same time, an Iranian envoy and a delegation from the Iranian foreign ministry has gone to Najaf to try to negotiate an end to that standoff between U.S. forces and a radical Shia leader.
The U.S. chairman of the joint chiefs of staff, General Richard Myers, in a surprise visit to Baghdad referred to that standoff, saying that the U.S. was prepared to use force if necessary.
And he indicated that troops will be here for some time to come. Not just the ones who thought they'd be going home and will have to stay another three months, but General Myers said that he was planning on two more rotations -- Daryn.
KAGAN: Jane, with this random taking of hostages, how has this affected the daily lives of anyone who could be considered not just American but western, how you go about your business in Baghdad?
ARRAF: It's certainly made people more cautious. And we're seeing an exodus, for instance, of Russian contract workers. The Russian foreign ministry has sent planes to get them out of here after some were kidnapped when their house was taken over by armed guards.
But other people are taking comfort in the fact that these hostages, many of them are being released, including journalists. Obviously, journalists are being more careful. But those who have been kidnapped, they have been released unharmed so far.
It just certainly is a very difficult thing to deal with. The FBI is here working on it. Very difficult thing for the coalition. They're used to warfare. They can do that. They can do major combat operations. This one is tougher -- Daryn.
KAGAN: Jane Arraf in Baghdad.
More now on the Italian hostage. Italy has confirmed that one of its citizens taken hostage in Iraq has been executed. Iraqi insurgents are threatening to kill the other three Italian hostages if their demands are not met.
Italy sent a delegation to Baghdad trying to win the release of the remaining captives. The Arab network Al Jazeera said it received a videotape of one hostage being killed. Insurgents blame the killing on the Italian premier for refusing to pull his troops out of Iraq.
A French journalist who was kidnapped in Iraq and then released is speaking out about his ordeal. In an interview on CNN's "DAYBREAK," he said the groups behind the abductions are united by their opposition to the U.S. presence in Iraq.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ALEXANDRE JOURDANOV, FORMER HOSTAGE: It's very confusing in their eyes. I believe that the Iraqi people for, at this point, very united, at least in the provincial cities.
Whether it's the Moqtada al-Sadr people or the former Saddam army people or the Islamic party people, they're all interconnected. They all know each other. They don't share the same political views, but they have one common enemy, and it's the American occupation.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KAGAN: Jourdanov says that he was blindfolded and shuffled between various groups to ten different locations.
We'll have much more on the situation in Iraq coming up a bit later. As the battle against insurgents continues, there is word that U.S. commanders will get additional troops. Our Barbara Starr will have more on that.
But first, the latest purported bin Laden tape offers a truce to European nations. Should governments negotiate with terrorists?
And later, confessions of a taxman.
This is CNN LIVE TODAY.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(STOCK REPORT)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KAGAN: The CIA is trying to determine today whether the speaker on a new audiotape is, indeed, Osama bin Laden. The voice on the tape offers Europe a truce if it stops attacking Muslim nations.
The offer was not extended to the U.S. Instead, the speaker vowed revenge on the U.S. for Israel's assassination of Hamas leader Sheikh Ahmed Yassin.
The audiotape has been screen by CNN experts. Among them, CNN terrorism analyst Peter Bergen, one of the few western journalists to sit down for an interview with Osama bin Laden. We've tracked him down in Washington. Sometimes finding Peter is as hard as finding Osama bin Laden. But we have him here with us this morning. Peter, good morning.
PETER BERGEN, CNN TERRORISM ANALYST: Good morning.
KAGAN: When you listen to the tape, what do you hear?
BERGEN: Well, first of all, I think most importantly, Daryn, it's a proof of life. Bin Laden is alive, very recently. The assassination of Sheikh Yassin that you just mentioned was March 22. So this tape was made very recently. That's point one.
Point two, bin Laden is still trying to influence the global Jihad that he set in motion with the 9/11 attacks. The last time we heard from him doing a sort of similar thing, we had a tape from him in October, 2003, in which he called for attacks on Spain, Italy and Britain.
Shortly thereafter, there were attacks on Spanish, Italian, British targets, culminating in the attacks in Madrid last month. And Bin Laden is hoping to build on the strategic success that he felt coming out of Madrid, which is the Spanish have announced that they'll withdraw their forces from Iraq, which was related to the bombing attack that we're seeing on the screen.
So if you can get the Spanish out of the coalition in Iraq, perhaps you can get the Italians is the thinking behind this audiotape. Will that be successful? I mean, probably not. The Italian government has indicated they have no intention of withdrawing or negotiating with bin Laden, as has the British government.
KAGAN: So Peter, let me just ask you, with this wording, talking the way the wording addresses the European nations, offering a truce, do you see any difference in a change of tone from Osama bin Laden in that kind of language?
BERGEN: I think so. I think this is the first time that he's offered a sort of truce to anybody. And, you know, it implies that he's got sort of political strategic goals which he thinks might be realizable and particularly in the light of what happened with Madrid and the Spanish, the announcement of the Spanish pullout of Iraq, which is yet to happen, by the way.
So, you know, maybe he feels that there is something that he can do here in terms of influencing European public opinion. After all, the war in Iraq is incredibly unpopular in Europe in general. Eighty- five to 90 percent of Spaniards were against the war in Iraq. The numbers are not quite so high in England and Italy.
But you're still looking at the war is not popular in Iraq. It's obviously not going well. Some Europeans may feel, well, you know, this is just one further indicator that maybe this is not our fight.
But at the end of the day, I don't think that -- you know, what's really going to influence public opinion in other countries in Europe is if a bomb goes off in London or a bomb goes off in Milan. Then I think Italians or British people may say, hey, maybe this just isn't really worth it.
KAGAN: But not a big surprise that he wouldn't mention the United States in that same offer of a truce?
BERGEN: Not a big surprise, Daryn, I don't think. I mean, clearly, he says specifically the United States and Israel are not part of the offer of a truce.
But this whole offer is, in a sense, sort of pretty ludicrous. After all, the notion of negotiating with bin Laden is, you know, improbable at best. Sort of a mass murderer who's on the run.
But I think that it does show he's trying to influence the scope and targeting of the global Jihad.
And it's basically a sort of a thumbing the nose to the U.S. government. I mean, here's bin Laden two and a half years after 9/11, the author of 9/11, still out there influencing this Jihad, along with Ayman al-Zawahiri, who we're seeing here in this videotape, who also is releasing audiotapes.
Recently, Ayman al-Zawahiri released a videotape calling for attacks on President General Musharraf in Pakistan. Shortly after those -- that tape was released, there were two serious assassination attempts in December against Musharraf.
So the fact that these two people are out there releasing these audiotapes is unfortunately, problematic, because the most reliable guide to al Qaeda's actions is what bin Laden says or what Ayman al Zawahiri says. And when they say we're going to take revenge for Sheikh Yassin's death or, you know, we're announcing some kind of a truce with Europe, perhaps, I mean, these are, I think, serious statements with outcomes that we should pay attention to.
KAGAN: And yet there tends to be a pattern of when a tape like this comes out, there tends to be some type of action that's taken?
BERGEN: Often that is the case. I mean, right. I look back and since 9/11, we've seen maybe eight audiotapes from bin Laden, maybe two from Ayman al-Zawahiri, and there is, you know, sometimes a connection between the audiotapes and then attacks. Sometimes not. It's not really clear.
KAGAN: Peter Bergen in Washington. Peter, thank you for your insight today.
BERGEN: Thank you.
KAGAN: On the ground and in the line of fire, but for a paycheck, not as a soldier. Many contract security workers in Iraq, for them the pay is no longer worth the risk. We'll have their story straight ahead.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Warren Buffett, the billionaire nicknamed the oracle of Omaha is also money for folksy style and love of Coca-Cola.
In 2003 "Forbes" magazine named him the second richest man in the world, and through his company, Berkshire Hathaway, he controls one of the most liquid sources of capital on earth.
But his approach is simple. Some even call it quaint.
WARREN BUFFETT, CHAIRMAN, BERKSHIRE HATHAWAY: If I find a business that I understand that's selling for less than it's worth, I'll buy it.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: In the late '80s, critics said he was losing his touch when he stayed away from technology stocks, but when the dot com bubble burst, Buffett was still standing.
This year, Buffett entered the political arena, serving as Arnold Schwarzenegger's economic advisor in the California governor's race.
And at 73, the man dubbed greatest investor of all time isn't slowing down. He's still looking for his next lucrative deal and doing things in his own unique way.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
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(WEATHER REPORT)
KAGAN: Different type of poll ahead for you. When it comes to one particular voting block, John Kerry may have a ten-point lead over the president. Doesn't have anything to do with party affiliation. We'll have that story straight ahead.
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KAGAN: I'm Daryn Kagan at CNN Center in Atlanta. Let's check the headlines at this hour.
CIA experts are going over an audio recording said to be from Osama bin Laden. They may know soon whether the voice is the al Qaeda leader. On the tape, the speaker offers Europe a truce and makes new threats against the U.S.
Yasser Arafat vowed today that Palestinians will never give up the right of return to what he called their lands. In a switch, the White House is now backing the Israeli position on that issue. President Bush now agrees that refugees who left the land that became Israel should be resettled in a future Palestinian state.
Three Japanese hostages were freed today in Baghdad. That ends their weeklong ordeal. Iraqi militants had threatened to burn the captives alive if Japan did not withdraw troops from Iraq.
And the Army is clearing the record against Captain James Yee. The Muslim chaplain was jailed on accusations of espionage at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. Those allegations were abandoned early on. The Army eventually reprimanded Yee for adultery and pornography. Now that reprimand has been overturned.
A U.S. civilian contractor who was killed in Iraq has now been identified. A spokeswoman for Halliburton says that Steven Fisher, of Virginia Beach, Virginia, is a truck driver who was reported killed last Friday. Fisher worked for Halliburton subsidiary Kellogg Brown and Root.
Civilian contractors in Iraq can earn high salaries tax-free, but now some are wondering whether the money is worth the dangers they face. More on that now from our CNN correspondent, Barbara Starr.
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BARBARA STARR, CNN CORRSPONDENT (voice-over): Outside Najaf, suspected insurgents are on the lookout for a vulnerable convoy. Armed with rocket-propelled grenades and rifles, they prepare to attack their target.
Security is now a top concern, not just for thousands of military personnel, but also for private contractors from around the world working in Iraq.
MARK LEFTLY, "BUILDING" MAGAZINE: In terms of British contractors, several of them have been quite badly injured. One who worked for a company called Mark McDonald had his upper left arm actually basically destroyed by an explosive device near a road that also killed the local Iraqi engineer.
STARR: Some contractors are getting out. Russia plans to evacuate more than 800 of its citizens working in Iraq after eight contractors were kidnapped and then released. France and Japan are urging their citizens to leave. China, Italy, the Philippines, Romania, Ukraine, Pakistan, Turkey, India and Nepal all expressing concern.
BRIG. GEN. MARK KIMMITT, U.S. MILITARY SPOKESMAN: I think every individual and every country has to make an individual security determination in terms of ongoing operations here in Iraq.
STARR: Truck drivers from Kellogg, Brown & Root are back home after their convoy was attacked. Now they wonder if the good-paying job was enough to risk their lives.
STEPHEN HEERING, HALLIBURTON DRIVER: Now, people are getting hurt. People are dying. You know, it's not worth it as a civilian, I feel.
STARR: Military officials say they are trying to improve the overall security situation in Iraq, and that many contractors are staying in place.
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STARR: So, Daryn, the military says it is putting more security, more patrols on the most dangerous roads, but no one knows how long all of this is going to last -- Daryn. KAGAN: So we're focusing there on the contract workers. What about the troops? A lot of focus on how many are going to be there and how long the troops that are there right now will have to stay, Barbara.
STARR: Well, Daryn, we do expect to hear from Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld here later this afternoon, announcing that he has approved formally the plan to keep something around 20,000 troops in Iraq for an extra 90 days.
Those are troops that were scheduled to come home. They will now stay in place, work on this issue of the insurgency.
The question, of course, is whether this is a long-term requirement for a plus-up, if you will, in troop strength. Do those extra 20,00 troops -- do they need that much manpower for some time to come?
If they do, they'll make a decision in the next several weeks about who will replace them so they can come home. Not clear yet whether this is a permanent plus-up in troop strength in Iraq.
KAGAN: Barbara Starr at the Pentagon.
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