Return to Transcripts main page

American Morning

Interview with Ephraim Sneh

Aired July 05, 2002 - 07:09   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.
LEON HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: Let's get more on that deadly shooting at LAX Airport near the ticket counter of Israel's El Al Airline. The FBI and city officials are saying that it appears the gunman acted alone.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MAYOR JAMES HAHN, LOS ANGELES: We have no information that indicates that this incident is connected to any terrorist event or anything else, but the matter is under investigation right now and will continue to be so under FBI.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HARRIS: Israel's Transport Minister Ephraim Sneh has drawn his own conclusion about the airport shooting, however, and he is with us now from Tel Aviv. We thank you very much for your time, sir.

And now yesterday you were quoted as saying that this definitely was a terrorist attack. U.S. officials have not gone to that conclusion now. Are you still saying the same thing this morning?

EPHRAIM SNEH, ISRAELI TRANSPORTATION MINISTER: I don't say definitely, but we presume that when El Al passengers are attacked by a gunman at an international airport we believe this is a terrorist attack. You know that we are under offensive terrorism for 20 months and there are clear intentions of various terror organizations to attack Israeli and Jewish targets all over the world. El Al, the Israeli airline, for 34 years is under repeated attempts to hit its airplanes, its passengers, its crews.

So there is all the logic basis to assess that till proved otherwise, till proved otherwise, this is an act of terror.

HARRIS: Well, if it is an act of terror, do you know or do you have any evidence that this man who did the shooting may have been linked to any other terror group? Do you know that to be a fact?

SNEH: The question is not if he is affiliated to a network of global terror. His motivation and maybe his affiliation is the indication and that's exactly what is right now under investigation.

HARRIS: OK, so you're not sure at this point exactly what his motivation was just yet then? SNEH: We are not sure, but we, unfortunately we have all the background to presume that this is an act of terror till proved otherwise.

HARRIS: Let me ask you something else about another quote that was in the reports this morning. This is from an Israeli foreign ministry spokesperson who says that July the Fourth was specifically picked out as a date for this attack to send out a message. What kind of message would shooting an Israeli on an American holiday send?

SNEH: If it is, as we presume, a terrorist act, maybe the organizations who are, were behind it, wanted to make a linkage between Israel and the United States. And we know that the extreme Islamist organizations link very closely Israel and the United States and define them as a common enemy or as the autocratic. The theocratic regime in Tehran defines Israel as the small Satan and the United States as a great Satan. This is the link that the terrorists are trying to make.

HARRIS: Now, the security measures undertaken by El Al are recognized worldwide as being perhaps the stiffest in any airport around the world. But is there anything in retrospect of here, is there anything that El Al or the airport officials at lax or perhaps U.S. security officials could have done differently to keep the carnage down in this instance?

SNEH: Well, our security officers acted very quickly, very professionally, very effectively and in 40 seconds they succeeded to neutralize the person who opened the fire. If they didn't act so good, the results, were by far, by far, more tragic. So as far as our security team is concerned, their action and their performance was flawless.

There is another question, how an armed person succeeded to enter the terminal building, but this is outside our jurisdiction and I prefer not to refer to it.

HARRIS: Finally, sir -- we have to move on -- but quickly, I'd like to ask you about the condition of the guard who actually did shoot this shooter yesterday. I understand he was stabbed in the process of putting him down. Do you know his condition this morning?

SNEH: He was slightly wounded by the person who committed this attack. He had a handgun and a knife and he stabbed him with the knife and he was slightly wounded.

HARRIS: Ephraim Sneh, Israel's transport minister. We thank you very much for your time this morning.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com