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Rice In Beirut; Israeli Helicopter Crash; Syria Wants To Talk; Meeting With Lebanon; Fleeing Lebanon

Aired July 24, 2006 - 10:00   ET

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

SOLEDAD O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: CNN Center, take you through the next couple of hours on CNN LIVE TODAY.
Hey, Daryn, good morning.

DARYN KAGAN, CNN ANCHOR: Soledad, good morning. Thanks for the handoff. Miles is going to keep his running shoes handy because he's going to stay with us to continue our coverage for the next couple of hours. Back to Miles in a moment. First, let's take a look at what we know at this hour.

Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice begins her diplomatic mission to the Middle East with an unannounced stop in Beirut. There a meeting with Lebanon's prime minister. And then on to Israel for meeting with leaders in that country.

Meanwhile, Israeli ground troops are deeper into southern Lebanon. There is word that they're facing heavy fighting from Hezbollah guerrillas.

We have our correspondents spread throughout the region, from Beirut to the Israeli border. Damascus, Syria, to Jerusalem. CNN has correspondents all across the region to bring you the very latest on the fighting and diplomacy and we have many live reports straight ahead.

Before we get to that, I want to show you a shot from London. The Iraqi prime minister, Nuri al-Maliki, is visiting London. He is there with the prime minister, Tony Blair. He is also on his way to the United States. Just a few minutes ago the prime minister, Tony Blair, had this to say.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TONY BLAIR, BRITISH PRIME MINISTER: We are working very hard and have been working hard to put in place a plan that will allow, as I said last week, the immediate cessation of hostilities. Of course, we all want to see this on both sides. It is important that it happens. It's important that it happens because what is occurring at the present time in the Lebanon is a catastrophe. It is damaging that country and its fragile democracy.

But it is also important that we deal with the reasons why this conflict has come about. We deeply regret the loss of innocent civilians in Lebanon and in Israel and there have been, as you would expect over the past few days, enormous diplomatic efforts to get us to the point where I hope at some point within the next few days we can say very clearly what our plan is to bring about such an immediate cessation of hostilities.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KAGAN: And that was British Prime Minister Tony Blair holding a news conversation with Iraq's prime minister, who is on his way here to the U.S. to meet with President Bush.

We do expect to hear from President Bush within the next few minutes, by the way. He'll be speaking live from the Washington area. You'll see those comments here on CNN.

But, meanwhile, let's continue our Middle East coverage and go to my colleague, Miles O'Brien, who is in Haifa, in northern Israel with the latest.

Miles, hello.

MILES O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: Hello, Daryn, from Haifa where today has been a quieter day than yesterday. Yesterday was the beginning of the Israeli work week and a lot of people returned to Haifa hopefully thinking that possibly that rocket fire aimed in this direction, about 15 miles across from Lebanon, would diminish.

But, in fact, it actually was a very deadly day. Two people died. Dozens were hurt. Some of them critically as no less than 14 rockets, many of them believed to be Katyusha rockets, rained down on this area.

Today, so far, perhaps a half dozen rocket firings in this direction. All of them landing harmlessly, not causing any damage or injuries fortunate to report. Meanwhile, north of the border, that Israeli push toward that Hezbollah headquarters or capital in the south of Lebanon continues. Word of casualties there.

And finally, on the diplomatic front, if it's Monday, it must be Beirut. The secretary of state, Condoleezza Rice, is in Beirut meeting with the prime minister of Lebanon, Siniora. That meeting continues now. We didn't know that was going to happen.

It was an unannounced change in the itinerary. Actually the itinerary had it all along, we just didn't know about it. Only a tightly held group of reporters on that airplane in Shannon (ph), Ireland, got the word that they were headed toward Beirut instead of Jerusalem earlier today, flying to Cyprus and then helicoptering in for the meeting with the prime minister. CNN's John King joining us live now from Jerusalem with more on the secretary of state's shuttle diplomacy.

John.

JOHN KING, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Miles, the secretary of state making a dramatic first stop for this high-profile trip. But there are low expectations from Washington's standpoint, especially when you consider that so many around the world have called on the United States to exert its unique influence over Israel and to bring about an immediate cease-fire. Well, the secretary of state says she has no plans to do that.

The first stop, as you noted, in Beirut. The secretary of state planned to go there all along U.S. officials tell us. They simply didn't put it on the public schedule because of concerns about the security at a time when, obviously, Israel is engaged in a conflict with Hezbollah. There have been some Israeli bombing raids in the Beirut area and in the Beirut suburbs. But the secretary making the stop there she says so that she could show her support for the Lebanese democracy. A fragile democracy and a young democracy. She says her goal here is to, one, try to get more humanitarian aid into Lebanon and, two, to try to find out just how we could create a sustainable, as she put it, cease-fire.

But U.S. officials say they think it is a week, 10 days, perhaps two weeks or more before you can have a framework in place for such a cease-fire. So conversations with the prime minister in Lebanon. Also conversations with other political leaders in Lebanon, again designed to say that the United States stands with the Lebanese government.

However, we should point out, the number one thing the Lebanese government is asking for is a cease-fire. And again, the Bush administration says it is not prepared to demand that of Israel right now.

Secretary Rice will come here to Jerusalem tonight. Dinner with the foreign minister. Conversations with the prime minister here tomorrow. And then on to Rome for perhaps the most difficult diplomacy, trying to come up with other allies, including Lebanese officials, European officials, moderate Arab nation on some plans for a cease-fire that most likely would include some plan for an international force to go into southern Lebanon.

But there are more questions than answers right now as to what the force would look like. Perhaps the French, perhaps the Turks would take the lead. That is still being discussed. Perhaps as many as 10,000 troops.

But again, many more questions than answers. The United States asserting itself, some say waiting two longs, 13 days into this conflict. It will be interesting to see what Secretary Rice says her publicly in Israel.

But the Bush administration message is that there can be no cease-fire until Hezbollah pulls back and that Israel has every right to do what it is doing. The administration being criticized by many around the world for that position. But, Miles, the administration says it believe that is the right position and it will stick to it. So while you have this high profile U.S. diplomacy, there is no end to the hostilities in sight.

O'BRIEN: You know, you mention that international force, John King. There's been an international force there. United Nations force in southern Lebanon since the Israelis pulled out in 2000. That has not been a particularly effective peace keeping operation, has it?

KING: It has not been. That force essentially does not have the authority, nor does it have the wherewithal, nor does it have the desire, frankly, to do anything but simply watch and report on what the conditions are at the border.

One of the interesting developments is, over the weekend, Israel said for the first time it would be open to an international force in southern Lebanon. But again, what would that force do?

What the United States is saying is that that force would only be meaningful if it had the right to confront and deal with Hezbollah militia if it encountered Hezbollah militia. If Hezbollah violated the terms of the cease-fire, could the international force engage? That is something over years the United Nations has been reluctant to do. Generally its peace keeping or it's monitoring forces go in after conditions have calmed down so to watch and provide a buffer zone between the two parties.

So exactly who would make up this force? What would the rules of engagement would be? What does Hezbollah have to do first before a force would go in? What would Israel have to do first before a force would go in?

All of those are questions, Miles, that have to be worked out. And because those questions are so difficult to resolve. That is why U.S. officials and others involved in these talks others say, don't be surprised if this takes a week, two, perhaps even more to figure out.

O'BRIEN: All right, CNN's John King in Jerusalem, thank you very much.

In the meantime, while the diplomatic activity ratchets up and Condoleezza Rice begins her shuttle diplomacy in the region, although John King points out it's going to be quite some time perhaps before we see any sort of semblance of a cease-fire.

And as if to underscore the point, the Israelis moved even farther into southern Lebanon today. Bint Jbeil is their target as we speak. Heavy fighting in and around this town. Not to far from Maroun al-Ras, the high city that -- city sitting on a hill, which considered a Hezbollah stronghold, previously captured by Israeli defense forces.

Bint Jbeil is described as a headquarters of sorts for Hezbollah in southern Lebanon. We have reports of casualties in association with this attack on both sides. Prisoners taken by the Israelis. Perhaps as many as nine Israeli defense forces are injured.

And in the midst of all of this, an attack helicopter, having delivered its pay road in Bint Jbeil and in that region, returning back to its base, suffered problems and crashed. CNN's Paula Newton with an update from the border.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) PAULA NEWTON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Military sources tell CNN that the ground offense in southern Lebanon will expand today as they try and push forward into Bint Jbeil. That is, they say, the terror capital of Hezbollah and where they have hidden a lot of their weaponry, their missiles, their rockets, their launchers they're still trying to get at.

The fierce fighting there continues on the hour. There are more reports of soldiers injured coming in off the front line. We were at the hospital. We saw several soldiers come in, in ambulances. And the fighting there, it seem, will continue to go on, which is why the Israeli military has called up even more troops.

In the meantime, all this was going on, they called in for air support. A helicopter went in, fired off a missile. On the way back into Israel, it made an emergency landing, went into an electrical pole and then blew up. And we continue to see a lot of the explosions from our vantage point, ammunition, decoy flares, absolutely burning up. And two soldiers had to be evacuated from their helicopter there. Ambulances were on the scene quite quickly, but the fire, by that time, was quite involved.

What they are trying to get at here in this battle behind us in the hills, in Bint Jbeil, is that stronghold. That Hezbollah stronghold. And when they're working against the clock, the Israeli military will try and get this job finished before diplomacy takes over and a cease-fire is called.

They really don't trust the Lebanese army or even a multinational force to clean this location out for them. They want to be on the ground. They want to seize it. And they want to be able to say that they have hit those launchers, missiles and rockets on their own.

Paula Newton, CNN, on the Israeli-Lebanese border.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

O'BRIEN: One of the key pieces to all this, in many people's view, is the country of Syria, which is, by many accounts, a sponsor of Hezbollah, with the help of the Iranians. Much of the weaponry, which has been raining down here on Haifa, ultimately produced in Iran, coming through Syria to the hands of Hezbollah.

Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice not heading to Damascus. As a matter of fact, after the assassination of the previous Lebanese prime minister, the ambassador to the United States in Damascus was pulled out and has not been replaced. So there isn't any high level diplomatic discussion between the two countries. Condoleezza Rice not changing all of that. The Syrians say they want to participate in negotiations. They say they are a player in all of this.

For more on this we go to CNN's Hala Gorani live now from Damascus.

Hala.

HALA GORANI, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hello, Miles.

What we're hearing from Syrian officials is that they are willing to talk. What they told me today is that they never really closed the door to talks with the United States. But in response to those statements by Condoleezza Rice, they say this is not the way to go about things. That they have not been approached officially and that they would like a relationship with America to be based on, and I quote, "mutual respect." This is according to cabinet minister Ruthana Shaban (ph).

What we also heard from another high-level Syrian official who asked me not to quote her name was that this is perhaps the way for the United States to justify its policy of blaming Syria for being a sponsor of Hezbollah. So, so far what we're hearing from Syria is, yes, they are open to discussion, but they would like to be approached officially. And when Condoleezza Rice stated a bit earlier in Ireland that there are diplomatic relations between the U.S. and Syria, they told me that this -- they do not consider this to be the case because, as you just mentioned, Miles, there is no ambassador to the United States here in Syria.

One of the other interesting things that was said from Syria was yesterday by the information minister and the departure from previous statements that if there is an Israeli ground force invasion that would come close to the Syrian border, that Syria would react, would not sit back with its arms folded. So, in other words, we're hearing a bit of a contradictory message coming out of Syria right now. On the one hand, yes, we're willing to talk to America if they approach us in a way that we find respectful. On the other hand, if this ground invasion happens with Israeli ground troops, then we're going to react.

Miles.

O'BRIEN: Hala Gorani live from Damascus, Syria. Thank you very much, Hala.

Back to you, Daryn.

KAGAN: Miles, thank you.

We have developments on this side of the ocean, as well.

President Bush appearing right now at Walter Reed Medical Center. He is there for a naturalization ceremony. The president having comments. We will listen in and get back to you with any highlights of what the president had to say.

Also coming up after the break, we'll go live to Beirut with the latest from that side of the border. Where bags filled with broken dreams, a family returning to the U.S. after seven years in Beirut. Now there's nothing left. Their story on CNN, the most trusted name in news.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAGAN: We're just past the quarter of the hour. Let's take a look at what we know right now.

Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice begins her diplomatic mission to the Middle East with an unannounced stop in Beirut. Then on to Israel to meet with leaders there.

Israeli ground troops moved deeper into southern Lebanon. There's word that they're facing heavy fighting from Hezbollah guerrillas.

And we have new video to show you from just inside the Israeli border. They are explosions of the town of Kiriat Smono (ph), one of several cities targeted this morning by Hezbollah.

Actually we will be going to Miles in just a moment. But first I want to show you a live picture. This is the United Nations. Any minute now we expect the secretary-general, Kofi Annan, to be speaking. And we will bring you coverage of that in just a bit.

Right now, though, back to northern Israel and Haifa and Miles O'Brien.

Miles.

O'BRIEN: Yes, you mentioned those rocket attacks in Kiriat Smono. That is not too far away from here. A little closer to the border, over to the northeastern side of the country, just north of the Sea of Galilee.

We, of course, are on the Mediterranean. A beautiful coastal seaport which has been living in fear and is virtually a ghost town today in the wake of this series of attacks. This is the third largest city in Israel. And if you just look down there, you see very little traffic passing along what would be bustling thoroughfares. People very much afraid to go out in the city of Haifa now.

Yesterday there was some hope that the worst was over. Many people returned to their homes. Tried to begin their work week. And instead, all of that was punctuate by siren, after siren, after siren, nine of them in all, which heralded the arrival of some 14 missiles or rockets or Katyusha, whatever they may be, causing two deaths and dozens of injuries.

In the meantime, as this escalation continues really on both sides of the border, a diplomatic solution is the goal of the secretary of state. Previously unannounced visit, as Daryn just pointed out, to Beirut, instead of coming straight to Jerusalem. This was on the itinerary internally all along, just not -- we were not notified for obviously security reasons.

She's there now. She's meeting with the Lebanese prime minister. And Anthony Mills is just a couple of hundred yards from that meeting.

Anthony, what can you tell us?

ANTHONY MILLS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, within the last hour, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice has sped out of the prime minister's offices. The offices of Prime Minister Fouad Siniora. They're just up the hill about 200 meters from here. And she sped by behind us amid tight security provided by Lebanese security services and elite police squad with her. And sped off to see the speaker of parliament, Nabih Berri.

He is a Shiite Muslim. He is close to Hezbollah and to Syria. And where speaking to the Lebanese prime minister, Fouad Siniora, she will have discussed aid and ways of stopping the conflict from the Lebanese government's perspective. With Nabih Berri, no doubt, she will be hearing Hezbollah's position and possibly that of Syria as well.

O'BRIEN: Anthony, let me ask you about -- when you say Nabih Berri, that's a name which many people might remember from long ago and 20 years or so ago in Lebanon. A force in politics there. How much sway, if at all, does he have with Hezbollah factions , as least the political component of Hezbollah?

MILLS: He does have a lot of sway. It is true that at one point Amal, which is the Shiite Muslim faction Nabih Berri heads, were rivals of Hezbollah for Shiite dominance in Lebanon. But nonetheless, he does have sway. He does hold sway with Hezbollah because he really is the second Shiite leader in Lebanon. There are two primary leaders of the Shiites in Lebanon, Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah and Nabih Berri. And so, despite the rivalry in the past, because he, too, is close to Syria and a Shiite leader, he holds sway with Hezbollah and certainly would be a preferred medium of communication, if you will, with, for example, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice.

O'BRIEN: So certainly talking to Hezbollah is off the charts not acceptable for the United States secretary of state. Going to Damascus has been ruled out as well. So this might be the intermediary that everyone has been seeking.

MILLS: It could well be. I mean there's been talk or suggestion of international intermediary, at least as far as, for example, a prisoner exchange is concerned. And we know that in the past Germany mediated for a prisoner exchange back when Ariel Sharon was prime minister of Israel.

But certainly, yes, in terms of right now, communicating with Hezbollah, it could well be that Nabih Berri, head of the Shiite Amal movement and speaker of Lebanon's parliament, is, in fact, acting as an intermediary between Hezbollah and the United States.

O'BRIEN: All right, very interesting developments. Anthony Mills for us live from Beirut. And we'll be back with you as we get more developments on this diplomatic mission. The shuttle diplomacy well underway.

Daryn.

KAGAN: Miles, thank you for that.

A couple of live events we're watching here from Atlanta. Two events. One, the United Nations in New York City. We expect any minute the secretary-general to be addressing there. And we'll be listening in.

Also you see President Bush on the right side of your screen. He's at Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington. This is a naturalization ceremony that's taking place for three soldiers who were wounded in Iraq. We'll bring you highlights of both of those just ahead.

Also ahead, bags filled with broken dreams. A family returning to the U.S. after seven years in Beirut. Now they have nothing left. Their story on CNN, the most trusted name in news. We're back after this.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAGAN: Let's go ahead and check out the markets. They have been open not quite an hour. Stocks on the rise today significantly on this Monday morning. You can see the Dow is up 106 points. Nasdaq on the move, as well. It is up 17 points.

Back to our Mideast coverage now. A story of building a life in Lebanon. One family's dream has been shattered by the bombs blasting Beirut. Our Chris Burns reports from Cyprus.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CHRIS BURNS, CNN CORRESPONDENT, (voice over): At a crowded beach resort, among the merry vacationers, the Kmeid family is living in their clothes, waiting for a plane. Lebanese Americans, Vera and Fouad, with their children, Semmi (ph) and Vanessa (ph), are on their way to Vera's home town of Niagara Falls with a couple of bags full of broken dreams. They left behind their home, friends, family, and a clothing business they built in the years after Lebanon's civil war.

You went to Beirut with great hopes of building your lives there.

VERA KMEID, EVACUEE: Yes. And we did for seven years. And, you know, the first two years, of course, I missed home a great deal and now I finally -- we were just saying we finally are happy and, you know, in seven years Lebanon has changed so much. There's . . .

FAUAD KMEID, EVACUEE: It's a greater place.

VERA KMEID: It's again so much more organized and more of the things that I missed from back home and from America. And then, boom, it was like someone just sucker punched me and I was really torn to leave or what to do.

BURNS: As the destruction widened, it became clear what they had to do, though it was far from clear how they'd get out.

VERA KMEID: We called the embassy and no one knew what was going on. And they didn't have a plan. And they're making a plan. And it was very frustrating, I'm not going to lie. But once they got it together and we got on, they got us on and we're here. We're safe.

BURNS: Rescued like so many others from the beaches of Beirut. They were put aboard the USS Trenton among nearly 1,800 evacuees.

FAUAD KMEID: And we just picked up two duffel bags and we came over here. We don't have anything else. No clothes, no money.

BURNS: From safe ground, they watched as Israeli bombs fell on Beirut and as Hezbollah rockets crashed into Israel.

FAUAD KMEID: Hezbollah wants Shebal (ph), the territory back and prisoners back from Israel. And Israel wants the two prisoners back. So they both broken. Both did a terrible thing.

BURNS: And the solution?

VERA KMEID: Work has stopped. So cease-fire would be the best way to immediately help things out.

BURNS: Like others, on both sides of the border, these Lebanese Christians also turned to their faith.

VERA KMEID: We're going to pray for everybody that they stay safe and pray for this to be over.

BURNS: Though as they head for the airport, Vera and Fauad wonder when, even if, it will ever really be over.

Chris Burns, CNN, Larnaca, Cyprus.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KAGAN: Fleeing for safety and caught in the crossfire. Another family story is ahead on CNN, the most trusted name in news.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

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