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CNN Live Today
Israel Begins Withdrawing from Gaza; Seven Russian Sailors Alive and Well
Aired August 08, 2005 - 11:30 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
DARYN KAGAN, CNN ANCHOR: In Ohio, the Associated Press reports that the man charged in a series of highway shootings has agreed to drop his insanity defense and plead guilty. Charles McCoy Jr. has already been tried in the shootings that killed one person, but the jury deadlocked and a mistrial was declared. The shootings last year and in 2003 terrorized central Ohio.
In her bid for re-election next year, Senator Hillary Clinton could face a challenge from a high-profile crimefighter. Westchester County district attorney Jeanine Pirro says that she will seek the Republican nomination in the Senate race. Pirro has been praised for her Internet stings of would-be child molesters, worked with battered women and a battle against underage drinking.
Seven men charged in connection with the attempted London transit bombings went before a judge today. Three of those men are charged with attempted murder and conspiracy to murder for allegedly carrying bombs in the subway trains and a double-decker bus. A fourth faces charges related to an unexploded bomb found in northwest London. All four were ordered held until a hearing in November.
In addition, a suspect who was deported to the U.K. from Zambia was ordered to return to court on Thursday. Haroon Rashid Aswat faces extradition to the U.S. as well. He's accused of trying to start a terrorist training camp in Oregon.
A week from today, Israel begins withdrawing from Gaza. Some 9,000 settlers will have to get out or they'll be forced out by Israeli soldiers.
CNN correspondent Guy Raz is one of the main -- he is in one of the main Jewish settlements in Gaza.
Guy, hello.
GUY RAZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hello, Daryn.
In about one month's time, these red roofs behind me will become piles of rubble, along with 20 other settlements in Gaza. This settlement in Deve Dekalim, the largest, will be evacuated beginning the 17th of August. And most of the residents here are still going about life as normal, but simply scratch the surface and you'll find many are very much resigned to their fate and the government's decision to evacuate all Israeli settlers from the Gaza Strip.
Now while most still remain here, some have begun to leave. It is only a trickle, but in other parts of Gaza, that trickle is very rapidly becoming a flood.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
RAZ (voice-over): The sign reads "Elei Sinai," "will not fall," but most of the residents here admit, it's just an empty slogan. In a few weeks, Elei Sinai indeed fall.
DAVID YAMIN, ELEI SINAI SETTLER (through translator): I have accepted that there will be a disengagement.
RAZ: David Yamin and his wife, Esti are not defiant or combative. Inside their home, boxes are piled high, prepared for the movers. I asked David whether he settled here out of ideological reasons?
YAMIN (through translator): I'm here because I love the quality of life. I'm no ideologue and I'm not fanatic, I just like it here.
RAZ: A few streets up from the Yamin family, Anat Sa'adon gathers empty boxes. She, too, accepting the reality that her time in this community is over.
ANAT SA'ADON, ELEI SINAI SETTLER (through translator): We will not argue with the army. There are others here who will stay until the end, but we won't.
RAZ: Elei Sinai stands less than 200 meeters from Israel's border with Gaza. But its land the international community regards as occupied.
(on camera): By the end of September, Israelis will no longer live on this side of the fence. This road will mark a permanent boundary for the first time in 38 years, marking the point at which Israel ends and Gaza begins.
(voice-over): A few miles north of Elei Sinai settlement, inside the recognized boundaries of Israel, a new neighborhood is going up. It's called Nisai (ph), and in a few weeks, this temporary community will house about a third of the evacuated settlers. David and Esti Yamin aren't sure whether they'll go there.
ESTI YAMIN, ELEI SINAI SETTLER (through translator): The government wants me on the other side of the fence, but I'll go as far away as possible, maybe to the middle of the country, to make sure I won't be moved again.
RAZ: And what next for Elei Sinai settlement? Palestinian and Israeli developers are proposing to turn the site into a casino.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
RAZ: Daryn, the narrative differs very much on this pullout, depending on who you talk to. For Palestinians, it's regarded as a very tiny step forward. For Israelis, it's seen as a very painful concession, but what is certain is that Israel's evacuation from Gaza is the most significant change in this conflict in a long, long time -- Daryn.
KAGAN: Guy, so this area becomes Gaza, but how do they decide who actually owns the land? You were talking about developers maybe putting up a casino. Who decides who gets to develop that?
RAZ: Well, ultimately the Palestinian authority will claim all of this land, about 97, 98 percent of it will essentially fall under the Palestinian Authority's control. About two percent of it will be returned to Palestinians, who were the original owners of some of that land. Now the Palestinian Authority plans to develop high-rise buildings in this area. There are about 1.3 million Palestinians that live in Gaza, so ultimately, these small single family homes are simply impractical to house so many Palestinians. And ultimately, those decisions will be made by the elected Palestinian government -- Daryn.
KAGAN: Guy Raz, live from Gaza, thank you.
Seven Russian sailors are alive and well this morning after a British naval vessel recovered their mini-submarine on Sunday. The crew spent three days trapped undersea with a dwindling oxygen supply that dredged up memories of the Kursk submarine sinking five years ago.
Our Matthew Chance is live now. He is in Moscow now with this happier conclusion to this submarine crisis.
Hello.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MATTHEW CHANCE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): They endured frigid temperatures and darkness for three long days, trapped deep in the Russian Pacific. Back on dry land, the seven crew of the stranded mini-submarine have been undergoing medical checks. "It was cold, very cold," said the seaman.
This was the moment few Russians had dared hope for. The stranded vessel cut free after intensive work by a British rescue team. Russian television broadcast these images, then the reactions of family members anxiously waiting for news.
ELENA MILASHEVSKAYA, WIFE OF RESCUED SAILER (THROUGH TRANSLATOR): I was ready to dance. I was crying. I was so glad, so happy to hear they're fine.
CHANCE: And for Russian officials, a major success too. Their early call for international assistance off this remote and military sensitive far eastern seaboard now vindicated.
SERGEI IVANOV, RUSSIAN DEFENSE MINISTER (THROUGH TRANSLATOR): I want to thank you all very much. I've already spoken to my colleagues, the British defense secretary as well as my Japanese counterpart, and have thanked them for their assistance, for their helping hand. Now we all know what the solidarity of the sea means. Not just in words, but in deeds. CHANCE: It was Thursday morning the Russian craft became tangled in abandoned fishing nets and a mesh of deep-sea antennae off the remote Kamchatka peninsula. British specialists, arriving ahead of teams from the United States and Japan, launched an undersea robot to cut the mini-submarine free, an intensive operation that took 3 1/2 hours.
Underwater footage shows how the British submersible was maneuvered, using cameras and lights, by specialist operators on the surface, its powerful cutting equipment severing debris to free the Russian sub.
IAN RICHES, BRITISH COMMANDER: Elated. I think that's an understatement at the moment, with the team over the moon that we have got these guys out alive. And we just want to meet them.
CHANCE: These have been tense days in Russia, the crisis renewing bitter memories of the Kursk tragedy five years ago. 118 Russian sailors died on board a nuclear submarine marooned in the freezing waters of the Arctic. Back then, the Russian military refused outside help until it was too late.
The dramatic and happy events of recent days, showing, with a little help, the best of outcomes can be achieved.
(on camera): This crisis underlines once again the dilapidated state of the once-mighty Russian Navy. So cash-strapped it doesn't even possess the essential rescue vehicles to operate...
(END VIDEOTAPE)
KAGAN: And we want to show you videotape coming from Waco, Texas. President Bush making comments on the death of Peter Jennings.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Laura and I were saddened to learn about the death of Peter Jennings.
Peter Jennings had a long and distinguished career as a news journalist. He covered many important events, events that helped define the world as we know it today.
A lot of Americans relied upon Peter Jennings for their news. He became a part of the life of a lot of our fellow citizens, and he will be missed.
May God bless his soul.
Thank you.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
KAGAN: President Bush making those brief comments before he heads to Albuquerque, New Mexico. He's going sign the Energy Bill into law today. As you heard, the president talking about Peter Jennings -- 67 years old when he died yesterday from lung cancer. A lot of remembrances and tributes coming out to the longtime ABC anchorman all this morning and well into today.
We take a break. I'm back after this.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
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Again, find it all online at CNNmoney.com/summer. From the Dot.Com Newsdesk, I'm Veronica de la Cruz.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KAGAN: Well, let's look at some medical news now. An encouraging development in the effort to prevent an outbreak of the deadly bird flu in humans. Scientists say they've come up with an effective vaccine against Avian Flu. Health officials are trying to ward off a global pandemic.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DR. ANTHONY FAUCI, INFECTIOUS DISEASE EXPERT: The thing that we're concerned about is if this virus develops the capability of efficiently spreading in a sustained manner from person to person, which it has not yet developed that capability. It spreads relatively inefficiently from chickens to human, and in a very rare case, from human to human.
Once a virus like this, an influenza virus, does -- and we hope it never does -- but once it does develop that capability of spread efficiently from human to human, it's inevitable that it will get to the United States with the jet travel and the global nature of all of our interacting societies.
(END VIDEO CLIP) KAGAN: The flu strain has killed millions of birds in Asia. Cases of person-to-person transmission have been few, but 57 people of the 112 people known to have been infected with the virus have died.
A pregnant woman is eating for two, so she can eat twice as much, right? Maybe not so much. Author Heidi Murkoff separates wisdom from old wives' tales about pregnancy and nutrition. Her latest book is called "Eating Well When You're Expecting." And she's with us now for our "Daily Dose" of health news.
Hello.
HEIDI MURKOFF, AUTHOR: Good morning.
KAGAN: What about this thing, you're eating for two? Does that mean you can eat twice as much?
(Laughter)
MURKOFF: Yes, you wish. Well, you are eating for two, but it help to keep in mind that one of the two of you is very, very small. You know, to put it in a little perspective, in the first trimester, smaller than a grain of rice. And I'm not talking long-grain rice.
KAGAN: Exactly.
MURKOFF: So clearly, it doesn't mean taking everything you normally eat and doubling it. The average pregnant woman needs to add about 300 extra calories a day. That's it. You want to focus on quality as opposed to quantity.
KAGAN: What about the opposite pressure these days? You're hearing about this pressure of all you're supposed to have happen when you get pregnant is just to have a little bump, and not let all the other stuff happen. I mean, women really being concerned about being thin when they're pregnant.
MURKOFF: Yes, well that -- you should never diet to lose weight when you're pregnant.
KAGAN: Right.
MURKOFF: And you should gain between 25 and 35 pounds. Definitely not less than that, unless you're seriously overweight to begin with.
KAGAN: Let's talk about cravings. They happen.
MURKOFF: Cravings happen.
KAGAN: Is it really your body telling you what you need to eat?
MURKOFF: Well, that depends what you're craving. Probably long ago, before we departed so far from the food chain, cravings were nature's way of making sure that a pregnant woman was well fed. So when a pregnant cavewoman craved something sweep, it was her body's way of sending her a memo that she needed Vitamin C. So she'd go out. She'd forage for berries, which were sweet and rich in Vitamin C, and she and her body had communicated well.
But of course, these days, when we crave something sweet, not so likely to go foraging for berries.
KAGAN: Right. So you should you listen to your cravings?
MURKOFF: It depends what you're craving.
KAGAN: Okay.
MURKOFF: I mean, if you're body's sending you to the fridge for an all-you-can-eat mango binge or you can't get enough brown rice and grilled chicken...
KAGAN: Knock yourself out.
MURKOFF: ...yes, go crazy with it. But realistically, most of us are going to crave things that are not quite as healthy. And it's fine to give in every once in a while. But more often, try to find foods that satisfy the craving and at the same time, a nutritional requirement.
KAGAN: Ah, moderation. That's what we keep hearing.
MURKOFF: Yes, that's the word.
KAGAN: Your book lists some six pregnancy superfoods. So let's talk about some of them and why they're good. Walnuts.
MURKOFF: Yes, walnuts are a fabulous source of a fabulous fat -- those Omega-3 fatty acids. It's fat you should not fear, because it's great for baby's brain development, especially in the third trimester. And actually women who get enough DHA in the third trimester are less likely to deliver prematurely. They're less likely to suffer from post-partum depression and from pregnancy depression, maybe those crazy pregancy mood swings that we're all so well known for. And as a perk, Moms who get enough DHA, which you can get from walnuts, are less likely -- are more likely to have babies with better sleep patterns, which is something every parent can appreciate.
KAGAN: Oh, well then sign everybody up right there.
You talk about DHA and you talk about DHA eggs.
MURKOFF: Yes.
KAGAN: How do I know one egg from another?
MURKOFF: Well, in the market, it will say DHA eggs.
KAGAN: Okay.
MURKOFF: Or Omega-3 eggs. And any egg is a good egg when you're pregnant. Pregnant women don't have to worry about cholesterol, but these are especially good eggs because they're packed with those DHA Omega-3 fatty acids.
KAGAN: You mentioned mangoes before. You say mangoes and red peppers.
MURKOFF: Yes.
KAGAN: Together? Perhaps not.
MURKOFF: Well, if you're craving it.
KAGAN: Yes.
MURKOFF: Because they're loaded with Vitamin A and C. But the best thing about them is they're sweet eatings, so they're a lot easier to get down than those green vegetables, which, however delicious and nutritious under other circumstance, maybe not so much in the first trimester. They turn a lot of women green literally.
KAGAN: Just even thinking about it.
MURKOFF: So those cover the exact same nutritional basis as a green vegetable. So does cantaloupe. So do yellow peaches and nectarines -- all very plentiful this time of year. Carrots and sweet potatoes also great sources the Vitamin A and Vitamin C.
KAGAN: Sounds good. Ginger. I love ginger.
MURKOFF: Ginger is not, strictly speak, a nutritional superfood, but it's a super food for anyone who is queasy, because research has actually shown that it helps minimize the miseries of morning sickness. So grate, shred it into anything you're cooking or stir frying.
KAGAN: Real quickly, we have 10 seconds -- kinwa (ph).
MURKOFF: Kinwa, you pronounced it well. It's a rain that's absolutely packed with protein, so you could use it instead of chicken or fish, or meat, if you have that very common first-trimester version to the flesh foods.
KAGAN: And there's recipes in the back of the book. Heidi Murkoff, "Eating Well When You Are Expecting."
Thank you so much.
MURKOFF: Thank you.
KAGAN: Great tips all of the way around. I'm sure a lot of moms-to-be watching at home.
MURKOFF: Thanks.
KAGAN: Your "Daily Dose" of health news online is waiting for you. Click on our Web site. You'll find the latest medical news, a health library and information on diet and fitness. The address is CNN.com/health. I am back in a moment with more news.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KAGAN: Big day here at CNN. Just hours from now, "THE SITUATION ROOM," anchored by Wolf Blitzer, premieres on CNN. This unique newscast will focus on all the day's stories that are important to you. He's looking at your security, your business, your politics and of course breaking news. Here's Wolf now with a preview.
WOLF BLITZER, CNN ANCHOR: We're here in "THE SITUATION ROOM." We're going to be spending a lot of time here showing our viewers what is going on in Washington, around the United States, around the world. Check out our video wall. We're going to be able to bring in feeds from around the world, showing live images, live pictures of any story that's happening. They're going to be coming in here. Not only video, we're going to have a chance to bring in the data that's coming in from various Internet Web sources. Whether "The New York Times" or time.com, CNN.com, we're going to be focusing in on that as well.
It's an opportunity for us to showcase CNN's incredible news- gathering capabilities and let our viewers see what we see when we see it. We're going to spend a lot of time checking out the news involving security, whether homeland security, national security, security involving your health, economic security, your personal security, much of that during the 3:00 hour.
For all of you political news junkies out there, politics. We'll spend a lot of time on politics during the 4:00 hour. Remember, this is a time, especially along the East Coast, between 3:00 p.m. and 6:00 p.m. Eastern, when news is still in flux, news is still changing. We're going to try to help you understand what's going on when we understand it.
During our third and final hour, we'll try to wrap it all up and show you the news as it's developed, what we know and when we know it. It's an exciting new challenge for all of us. We're excited by it. We think you'll be excited by it as well.
I'm Wolf Blitzer in Washington. You're in "THE SITUATION ROOM."
Good luck with the new show, Wolf. Tune in today for the premiere of "THE SITUATION ROOM" with Wolf. It will be 3:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. Eastern. You'll only see that here on CNN.
(WEATHER REPORT)
KAGAN: That's going to do it for me, Daryn Kagan. International news is up next. Stay tuned for "YOUR WORLD TODAY." I'll see you tomorrow morning.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
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