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American Morning

Security Lockdown in Jordan after Terrorist Bombings; 34 killed at Crowded Restaurant in Baghdad

Aired November 10, 2005 - 08:00   ET

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

MILES O'BRIEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: A security lockdown today in Jordan after the deadliest terrorist bombings ever in that country. Carnage in three hotels, 56 dead. We're live with details on the investigation this morning.
A similar scene overnight in Baghdad. One of the deadliest bombings there in months -- 34 killed at a crowded restaurant.

Abu Musab al-Zarqawi -- his terror network claiming responsibility for all those attacks today. Is the U.S. any closer to bringing this terrorist to justice? That story from the Pentagon on this AMERICAN MORNING.

ANNOUNCER: From the CNN broadcast center in New York, this is AMERICAN MORNING with Soledad O'Brien and Miles O'Brien.

SOLEDAD O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning.

Welcome, everybody.

You saw the shot there right outside of our building here at Time Warner Center. Today, I think it's fair to say that people are very much on the alert. Whenever you hear about a big international story, certainly a bombing, whether you're talking about the ones in Baghdad or in Amman, Jordan. Back here in New York we look very closely at maybe our risks and our vulnerabilities, too.

M. O'BRIEN: The post-9/11 world here and the thought of soft targets being used by terrorists to perpetrate their -- whatever they want to perpetrate -- is a concern this morning here in New York, and, really, all over the world.

Let's talk about what happened, first of all.

The country is Jordan. Jordan is sandwiched between Israel and Iraq and Saudi Arabia, as well. It's considered by many Westerners to be, you know, a gateway to Baghdad. Most of our people, before they head into Baghdad and Iraq fly to Amman, spend a day or so there and on they go.

Let's show you exactly what happened. It happened in this order, nearly simultaneously, right around the 9:00 p.m. hour local time -- the Radisson, Hyatt and then Day's Inn -- these are all, obviously, American properties. Fifty-six are dead, 93 others injured. And Abu Musab al-Zarqawi is taking responsibility for it. Now, Zarqawi, of course, is head of this group called al Qaeda in Iraq. While considered a separate group from al Qaeda, the Osama bin Laden al Qaeda, it nevertheless sympathizes with the tactics and the philosophy of that organization.

CNN's Brent Sadler is in Amman, Jordan this morning, where an investigation is underway and where it is a tense city -- good morning, Brent.

BRENT SADLER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Miles.

Indeed, it has been tense here threat the hours of darkness in the immediate aftermath of those three bomb blasts.

Let me just set the scene here, first of all.

You can hear a lot of vehicles in this area blaring with their honkers. This is an outpouring that's just broken out in the past hour or so of protests by Jordanians with cars jamming the streets of the Jordanian capital as a gut reaction to the attacks on their capital. People are carrying flags. They're angry. They're carrying posters of the king and queen of Jordan. And this has been their response, to immediately hit back at the attacks that have been committed against them and show they're standing unified in the face of terror.

Let me just show you briefly behind me, the Radisson Hotel. This is where the first of those three suicide blasts took place. You can see behind the rails there, some windows broken. The actual lobby of the hotel sustained the impact of the blast itself, but a wedding banquet in a side hall packed by revelers taking part in festivities were targeted by the suicide bomber that attacked the Radisson here, the first of the three hotels hit. And that impact of that bomb had a devastating impact on those who were celebrating what should have been a happy wedding celebration -- Miles.

M. O'BRIEN: Brent, we should tell our viewers, we expect to hear from the deputy prime minister of Jordan very shortly. We hope to bring you some information on that in just a little bit.

But in the meantime, a question for u. You go in and out of those hotels all the time.

What sorts of security was present before and how has, perhaps, security changed this morning?

SADLER: Well, I've looked at Jordanian security in terms of the hotels over the past 20 years. This has been, despite attacks by sympathizers or cells connected to Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, that Jordanian terrorist connected to al Qaeda, although there have been no attacks of this scale in recent memory, the hotels here have been pretty easy to get into. No -- unlike the Gulf States, where I also visit -- no metal detectors on the doors, no overt security.

There have been an increase in some areas in the hotel's diplomatic area where there was more police presence. But in terms of searching people that might be carrying luggage or wheeling luggage in or carrying knapsacks that could be used as suicide bomb devices, well, simply, the security here in these hotels wasn't geared up for that in the same way that it is nowadays in places like Saudi Arabia, which does keep vehicles and people, check people before they enter the hotels -- Miles.

M. O'BRIEN: Brent, one more question for you.

We heard all those horns blaring, indicating unification against terror.

Is there, however, a lot of sympathy for the al Qaeda cause there?

SADLER: In terms of what we're seeing on the streets here, no sympathy whatsoever. In terms of groups inside this country, doubtless there are sympathizers with the al Qaeda style of indiscriminate terror that we've seen today.

I've just returned from the National Institute for Forensic Science here, where all the bodies, 52 of them so far, have been identified. The death toll is higher than that. But in the morbid scenes of families identifying their loved ones, it was mostly Arabs that have sustained the brunt of these three bomb blasts. And most of those Jordanians. Westerners largely escaped injuries from these terror attacks -- Miles.

M. O'BRIEN: Brent Sadler in Amman, Jordan.

Thank you very much -- Soledad.

S. O'BRIEN: As we have reported, al Qaeda in Iraq is claiming responsibility for the hotel bombings. Its leader, Abu Musab al- Zarqawi, may specifically, in fact, be going after Jordan.

Barbara Starr live for us at the Pentagon this morning -- Barbara, good morning to you.

What's going on, in fact, in the hunt for Zarqawi?

BARBARA STARR, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Soledad, officials are now saying that within the last three months or so, once again there had, in fact, been intelligence reports that Western targets inside Jordan were being targeted, possibly by Abu Musab al-Zarqawi. But, again, there had been no specifics, no time, date and place, nothing that anybody could really go after.

It is clear to officials here, however, that Zarqawi had been targeting Jordan. In fact, we have learned that at least one hostage being held in Iraq, when he was released, then when debriefed said that his kidnappers had talked about attacking inside Jordan.

Over in Iraq, the hunt for Zarqawi goes on by U.S. military and Iraqi officials. They have been looking for him, of course, for months now. The belief at this time is that he's keeping a very low public profile, obviously; that he is surrounded by trusted aides. There is a $25 million bounty on his head. The U.S. has captured many people they believe to be his lieutenants, but so far he has eluded any capture -- Soledad.

S. O'BRIEN: And let's talk a little bit more, Barbara, about the relationship between the U.S. and Jordan and the U.S. military and Jordanian military.

STARR: Well, it is an extraordinary close relationship; first and foremost, because of King Abdullah of Jordan. And it all dates back even to his father, the late King Hussein. King Abdullah a longstanding member of the highest levels of the Jordanian military. He and his brothers have very direct, close personal relationships at the highest levels of the U.S. military. The Jordanian military and secret services had taken on the job of training Iraqi police. They have been very supportive in the global war on terror.

U.S. Navy ships call, of course, at Jordanian ports. They had been attacked there. U.S. military special forces and Jordanian special forces train together regularly.

So that is a relationship that has been extraordinary close for many, many decades.

But I want to underscore one thing that Brent Sadler was talking about, this outpouring of support by the people of Jordan this morning on the streets of Amman. Even last night, at the highest levels of the official circles in Amman, this attack was being viewed as an attack on the people of Jordan, we are told. Although these were Western hotels, Western targets, this is something that really has impacted the Jordanian middle class, if you will.

For example, tourism in Jordan, one of the greatest sources of revenue for this country that doesn't do so well economically, had fallen after the war in Iraq. It was just coming back, tourism. There's a lot of concern that this attack really will impact the people there.

So these demonstrations this morning of no surprise in official circles in Jordan -- Soledad.

S. O'BRIEN: Yes, I think that's a very valid concern this morning.

Barbara Starr at the Pentagon for us.

Barbara, thanks.

Another deadly attack to tell you about.

Carol Costello has a look at that story and other stories making news this morning -- Carol, good morning again.

CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: And good morning.

Abu Musab al-Zarqawi may be behind this one, too. A man wearing an explosive vest blew himself up in a Baghdad restaurant this morning. The explosion so massive it killed 34 people and injured 25 others. It's one of the biggest attacks in Baghdad and it comes a day after suicide bombers struck three hotels in Jordan.

In the meantime, in Tikrit, a suicide bomber blew himself up outside of a medical center, killing at least four Army recruits.

Day 14 of violence in France. Despite a state of emergency and a curfew, rioters clashed with police for another night. There is a drop in violence, but hundreds of vehicles were torched again throughout the country. Curfews are in effect in nearly 40 French towns, including the Riviera resorts of Cannes and Nice. Also this. France will deport any foreigners involved in the violence.

Here in the United States, there was bluster and indignation but in the end it wasn't even a slap on the wrist for top oil execs. Five top oil company executives faced our legislature. California Senator Barbara Boxer was among those looking into possible price gouging, especially in light of executives being paid multi-million dollar bonuses at a time when Americans were paying close to $4 per gallon.

One oil company exec made more than $1,200 per second -- every single second in July, August and September he made that amount of money.

M. O'BRIEN: Wow!

COSTELLO: But oil executives say it's all due to the market supply and demand. You know, it's the American way.

A new combination of prenatal screening could allow expectant mothers to know sooner if their baby is at risk for Down's Syndrome or other genetic disorders. New research suggests blood tests and ultrasounds done within the first trimesters are more accurate at predicting Down's Syndrome. Critics say the information may lead to more parents deciding to terminate the pregnancy. Details appear in today's "New England Journal of Medicine."

And we could soon know if the former Baltimore Orioles slugger Rafael Palmeiro lied under oath when he denied taking steroids. Palmeiro failed a drug test in May, just months after testifying before a House committee that he never, ever, ever, took steroids. The panel is looking into perjury charges. It's set to release its report later this morning. And, of course, we'll tell you what's in that report as soon as we know.

Let's check on the weather now and head down to Atlanta.

Bonnie Schneider at the CNN Center -- good morning.

BONNIE SCHNEIDER, ATS METEOROLOGIST: Good morning, Carol.

(WEATHER REPORT)

M. O'BRIEN: Coming up, more on those deadly bombings in Jordan and the apparent links -- and they're laying claim for it, after all -- Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, his organization. Is this terrorist gaining a new foothold outside of Iraq?

S. O'BRIEN: Also this morning, New Orleans' biggest park home to hundreds of workers who are trying to clean up the city. So why is the park ready to kick them out? We'll tell you their dilemma just ahead.

M. O'BRIEN: And who would forget this, that "60 Minutes" report on President Bush's National Guard service, the allegation, or lack thereof, of course? The producer fired over it is firing back now. She'll join us to talk about her new book just ahead on AMERICAN MORNING.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

M. O'BRIEN: This is the grim scene in Amman, Jordan last night. A trio of suicide bombers attacked U.S. owned hotels simultaneously. Fifty-six are dead, 93 injured.

Sajjan Gohel is director of international security at the Asia Pacific Foundation.

He joins us from London this morning.

Good to have you back with us, Sajjan.

Let's, first of all, talk about the likely suspects here. A lot of talk about Abu Musab al-Zarqawi because of his connections to Jordan and, of course, his recent activity in Iraq.

What are your thoughts on that?

SAJJAN GOHEL, ASIA PACIFIC FOUNDATION: Well, Abu Musab al- Zarqawi is a Jordanian national. He is wanted in the country for planning a number of attacks, include on millennium eve, against Western interests. He was also convicted in absentia for the murder of U.S. diplomat Lawrence Foley. And he's been known for wanting to remove the regime of King Abdullah.

So he is a prime target -- suspect number one.

M. O'BRIEN: Explain for us why Zarqawi would be so interested in upsetting the regime of King Abdullah.

GOHEL: Well, Zarqawi adheres to the al Qaeda school of thinking in that, number one, is to challenge regimes that are pro-Western. We know that King Abdullah has played a leading role in the war on terrorism. His country has provided key intelligence on suspected al Qaeda individuals and has cooperated, also, in the rebuilding of Iraq.

As we know, al-Zarqawi is the number one insurgent there launching attacks against the U.S. coalition and the Iraqi government. And, of course, he wants to undermine countries that have been cooperating.

M. O'BRIEN: Let's talk about al Qaeda for a moment. Zarqawi's name is often in the same sentence as al Qaeda and yet he is perhaps a franchise or perhaps somebody who just indicates sympathy with al Qaeda and its goals. He really isn't directly linked to that organization, is he?

GOHEL: That's a very good question. As we've seen with al Qaeda itself is that it's evolved. From becoming an organization, it's now an ideological movement. You have different groups threat the world that have their own leadership, cell structure, financing, but are bonded by the same goals and ideologies that bin Laden preaches, like the recreation of the Kalifat, the Islamic super state. And al- Zarqawi believes himself to be part of that ideological branch. And he very much is his own man. He operates independently, but he's also an ally of Osama bin Laden, and that is very dangerous.

M. O'BRIEN: A final though here.

A lot of us in the West look for symbolism. If you go by the way that months and days and years are annotated in shorthand, yesterday was the ninth day, the 11th month of 2005, or 9/11.

Do you think there's anything to that?

GOHEL: Well, that's an interesting coincidence. The Madrid train bombings that took place on March the 11th, 2004, were also 911 days after the 9/11 terrorist attacks.

What you find is that transnational terrorists, Islamic terrorists aren't often following symbolic issues, because that's not important to them. It could just be a strange coincidence.

M. O'BRIEN: Sajjan Gohel, thank you very much for that.

S. O'BRIEN: Ahead this morning, a closer look at the rules of interrogation and why the White House would want to fight over a ban on torture. That's up next on AMERICAN MORNING.

Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

S. O'BRIEN: The White House is getting set for a showdown with Congress over a proposed ban on torture. Here's what administration officials are saying.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Any activity we conduct is within the law. We do not torture.

CONDOLEEZZA RICE, NATIONAL SECURITY ADVISER: The president made very clear to everyone that he did not want and would not tolerate torture.

SCOTT MCCLELLAN, WHITE HOUSE SPOKESMAN: We are going to do what is necessary to protect the American people. We are also going to do so in a way that adheres to our laws and to our values and we have made that very clear. (END VIDEO CLIP)

S. O'BRIEN: Jane Mayer covers the issue for "The New Yorker."

And she's in Washington this morning.

Jane, nice to talk to you.

Thanks for being with us.

JANE MAYER, "THE NEW YORKER": Great to be here.

S. O'BRIEN: It sort of makes it sound like well why is there a debate? If the president is saying very clearly no torture, we don't condone torture, there won't be torture, then why worry about the loopholes, as we've heard from the vice president?

MAYER: Well, there's kind of a word game going on here in Washington, not for the first time. And what they're really talking about is something just short of torture, which is the White House says it's not torture. Many people who are in the human rights community think it is.

They're talking about something called cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment of prisoners, which, in the eyes of the Bush administration includes being able to water board some of these prisoners, which means sort of giving them treatment that makes them feel like they're drowning, among other things.

So they were talking about the kind of behavior that, if it was done in this country by law enforcement officials would be illegal. But the Bush administration has felt since 9/11 that the CIA should be able to do these things. And it's all been done very quietly and very clandestinely, but it's beginning to surface now and that's what we're debating about here.

S. O'BRIEN: And it's the secret prisons, the news of which we just heard about. Let's go to those in just a moment.

I want to ask you, though, about the Geneva Convention.

I mean what does that -- doesn't that just spell out what can be done and what can't be done?

MAYER: Yes, but after 9/11 the Bush administration pretty much set aside the Geneva Conventions for people who they consider terror suspects. And so when they're -- when they took away the international law and these people were outside of the reach of U.S. law, they kind of fell into a no man's land. And what people are arguing about here are what the rules should be for that kind of treatment of those kinds of suspects.

S. O'BRIEN: Out of the reach of U.S. laws. Really, what kind of brings us to these secret prisons. The allegations are that there are some in Europe. Thailand is another place where it's alleged, as well. It's really revitalized the search for leaks, and not so much of a confirmation of whether these prisons exist or not. It's really extending the prisons outside of the reach of American law, right?

MAYER: Well, it is. I mean what the administration has been arguing is that if you take a prisoner outside of American territory, a foreign prisoner, you can do things to them legally that you could never do to them at home. But that means we need some place to put these people and do these things to them.

So what we've learned in the last week is there are a series of prisons that are secretly sort of stretched from Thailand through Eastern Europe that are being run by the CIA, which is really a new role for the agency.

This is not business as usual for the CIA. They never used to have prisoners. They didn't interrogate very many people.

So this is all kind of a brave new world here for them.

S. O'BRIEN: Is the CIA being held accountable, then, if they're...

MAYER: Well, that's a -- you know, it's a secret agency. It's very hard to know what's going on exactly. But I wrote a story in this week's "New Yorker" about a homicide that took place when a prisoner died in the hands of the CIA while being interrogated. He was, according to medical pathologists, he was literally crucified. And nobody has been held responsible for that death.

And so I think it's fair to say that there's not been a lot of accountability. There have been at least four deaths. There have been eight cases that were referred by the Justice Department -- by the CIA to the Justice Department as possible criminal cases. And there's been only one prosecution out of these.

S. O'BRIEN: Now, the probe to investigate the leak, Congress, as you well know, called off that -- the probe to investigate exactly who leaked the information about these secret CIA prisons to the "Washington Post." And now Congress is going to defer to Justice, which will, supposedly, start investigations.

What do you make of that?

MAYER: Well, I think that, you know, there's an effort to try to put the blame on the press for a story that might be giving the country a black eye when, I mean there's a very interesting editorial in the "New York Times" this morning that suggests if the country is getting a black eye from these activities, maybe it's actually the activities that are giving it the black eye, not the reporting on it.

S. O'BRIEN: The ban, as you know, passed through the Senate, 90- 9.

What do you think is going to happen now? MAYER: You know, I think it's possible that in the House it will die. Vice President Cheney has thrown all of his weight into making sure that the CIA can continue to use cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment of prisoners. And they may win on this. But I actually think that it may be politically a pyrrhic victory. At this point, it's given them such a bad reputation in so many place around the world.

S. O'BRIEN: So you win the battle but you may lose the P.R. war.

MAYER: You might.

S. O'BRIEN: Jane Mayer is with "The New Yorker."

She's got a new article in the new edition of "The New Yorker." It's called "A Deadly Interrogation."

Jane, thanks.

MAYER: Thanks for having me.

S. O'BRIEN: My pleasure -- Miles.

M. O'BRIEN: Still to come, the woman at the center of that CBS memo gate scandal will come out swinging at her old bosses. Former "60 Minutes" producer Mary Mapes with a new book.

She'll join us live ahead on AMERICAN MORNING.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

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