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American Morning

Expanding Israeli Military Offensive in Lebanon; Castro's Condition

Aired August 02, 2006 - 07:30   ET

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

SOLEDAD O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: Welcome back, everybody. I'm Soledad O'Brien in New York.
Miles is on vacation. Rick is filling in for him. He is in Miami today. We're going get to him in just a moment.

First, though, the expanding Israeli military offensive in Lebanon to tell you about. For the first time Israeli troops are pushing deep into that country, and Israel special operations offensive strikes at a suspected Hezbollah logistics base where some of the leaders live. Let's get right to CNN's Ben Wedeman. He's in Tyre, Lebanon today.

Ben, good morning.

BEN WEDEMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Soledad.

Yes, that expanded offensive certainly is apparent here in Tyre. We've been watching fairly steady bombardment to the south and the east of the city. I can hear distant thumps of what sound like artillery bombardment. There's also been airstrikes, as well.

We've also seen, Soledad, several volleys of Katyusha rockets being launched from here into northern Israel. Meanwhile, here in Tyre today, the third time in three weeks, a mass burial of people killed during the airstrikes since early July. This is basically what they're doing is they're putting these bodies in a mass grave. They will be dug up later when peace returns to this area so they can be given a proper burial.

The conditions, of course, in the hospitals increasingly difficult. The morgues simply don't have capacity to hold the people, so oftentimes they're kept in a refrigerator truck. I was at the last mass burial. The refrigerator truck was not working. The stench of decomposing bodies was overpowering.

Meanwhile, we've seen since over the last 72 hours a flood of people coming out of South Lebanon. Yesterday we were, in fact, in a town not far from the Israeli border that had been cut off for three weeks, almost three weeks that people had been hiding out in cramped and difficult conditions in bomb shelters there. We were the first people to arrive. Basically they mobbed us. We did what we could do. We're humans as well as journalists. We took 20 people back with us to Tyre, handed them over to the Red Cross.

But at this point, many of those who could get out over the last 48 hours from South Lebanon have, but some people are remaining. They say they're going to stay no matter what -- Soledad.

O'BRIEN: Ben Wedeman for us this morning. Ben, thanks. He's in Tyre, Lebanon.

Lets take you back to Little Havana in Miami. That's where we find Rick Sanchez.

Good morning, Rick.

RICK SANCHEZ, CNN ANCHOR: Hey, good morning, Soledad.

There has been skepticism. There has been speculation this morning about Fidel Castro's condition. There was a statement that was read on state TV in Cuba. It was yesterday sometime around 6:30 p.m. -- that's Eastern Time, of course -- on a show called "The Round Table," "(INAUDIBLE)." It essentially said that the longtime leader is in good spirits and in stable condition.

However, they said it was a statement written by Fidel Castro. There's no proof of that, obviously. There have been no pictures of Fidel Castro. We haven't heard his voice. In fact, we have no pictures at this point of Raul Castro either, which seems somewhat perplexing at this point.

Exiles here in South Florida have been taking that report and all of the information, in fact, coming from Cuba at this point, with a grain of salt and almost a sense of mystery. The Cuban exile group Brothers to the Rescue, for example. They have been known for rescuing thousands and thousands Cuban refugees over the years.

Joining me now, in fact, is one of the co-founders of Brothers to the Rescue, Bill Shuss, who's good enough to see us.

A lot of people remember, Mr. Schuss, the Maribel (ph) exodus, and during the Clinton administration the thousands of reactors (ph) that took to the streets in a migration from Cuba. And a lot of people in the United States wonder if there's a possibility that might soon happen again.

BILL SCHUSS, "BROTHERS TO THE RESCUE": I think there's a great possibility that this could happen again. People right now, they're restrained, like everybody is, because nobody knows, have any news, nobody knows what's going on. If the people in Cuba would sense that there is no power and that the government is weakening, this could happen.

SANCHEZ: Why hasn't it happened thus far? Why haven't we seen almost any reaction?

SCHUSS: As you know, there's a lot of repression in Cuba. And even the most notorious dissidents have been targeted. And if you show a presence or you change your the way of life because you think what could happen or is going to happen in the future, you're going to be put in jail.

SANCHEZ: So they're cautious? SCHUSS: Very cautious.

SANCHEZ: A follow-up question for that would be, is there a possibility, do you feel, and you've been watching this for many, many years that this could lead to some type of violent outcome in Cuba, that we could see some type of bloodshed in Cuba?

SCHUSS: Well, you cannot rule that out. However, in the last few years, the training (ph) in Cuba from the dissidents is peaceful resistance, nonviolent confrontation.

SANCHEZ: We talked a while ago about the CDR, the Committee in Defense and Revolution. That's in every block. And some of the opinions that there might be a sense of resentment in Cuba, that people might be angry at their neighbors for essentially spying on them. Do you expect that we'll be seeing some of that vengeance perhaps?

SCHUSS: Well, there are going to be some cases somewhere.

SANCHEZ: But you don't believe it will be widespread?

SCHUSS: Because these people are helping some of the neighbors, and they've been buying in the black market and helping, and requesting the dissidents for help from the U.S., that they receive from the States.

SANCHEZ: Speaking of the United States, should the United States deal with Raul Castro? Should we seek to normalize relations if indeed he takes over for Fidel Castro?

SCHUSS: I don't think so.

SANCHEZ: Why not?

SCHUSS: I think it will be a big mistake. I remember many years ago in an interview Raul Castro said you better deal with my brother now, which I interpreted that he's going to be harder.

SANCHEZ: You think he'll be more strident?

SCHUSS: He might make cosmetic changes to fight (ph) to the U.S. to help him.

SANCHEZ: It's important to know what is going on in Cuba, but very difficult to know because obviously things are controlled somewhat, as far as message is concerned. What do you think from what you have been able to see? What to your years of experience tell you?

SCHUSS: It tells me that everyone is cautious, like I said before, and nobody wants to do the first move, but everybody is posed.

SANCHEZ: But what's Castro's situation from what you gleaned?

SCHUSS: OK, I don't believe that Castro is dead right now physically. I believe that his mind is not well. SANCHEZ: Why?

SCHUSS: Because they have not shown him in television. Like, for example, you remember when he had a speech and...

SANCHEZ: And he fainted at the podium.

SCHUSS: He fainted at the podium, and everybody gathered around him, and they sit him in a chair. And after a while he started cracking jokes. The same thing happened when he fell.

SANCHEZ: So you're wondering why that hasn't happened this time.

SCHUSS: So, I wonder -- right. The only conclusion that I can arrive is that he's not ready yet. For what reasons, we don't know.

SANCHEZ: You believe he's incapacitated?

SCHUSS: Yes, yes, I do. I don't think he's going to come back to power.

SANCHEZ: Thank you, sir...

SCHUSS: You're welcome.

SANCHEZ: ... for taking the time to talk to us. And good luck to you.

SCHUSS: You're welcome. Thank you.

SANCHEZ: We appreciate that. We'll certainly talk to a lot of prominent Cuban-Americans here who will be sharing some of their information with us, as we also, Soledad, seek to try to get the very latest information as it comes, and dribs and dabs out of Havana as well, and as we do that, we'll be sharing it that with you here from Miami.

Soledad, back over to you.

O'BRIEN: In Miami, and also here in the New York and Jersey area, Rick, Cuban communities are watching all of those signs very closely, reading them a little differently, though. Take a look.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

O'BRIEN (voice-over): These are the images we're used to seeing, the streets of Miami erupting at news of an ailing Fidel Castro. But this is the scene 1,500 miles away, in Union City, New Jersey. Look closely. You'll still find Cuban-Americans, one of the largest concentrations in the country, in fact, about 10,000 of them. But what you won't find is celebration, not yet.

CHRISTOPHER IRIZARRI, UNION CITY, N.J. PARKS COMM.: They don't want to jump the gun, and God forbid in two weeks he's feeling better; you know, you're back to square one. REMBERTO PEREZ, V.P., CUBAN-AMERICAN NATL. FDN.: It's a very serious time. It's a time for us to stay alert, to help the people back in Cuba and to keep our eye on the situation.

O'BRIEN: About 15 percent of Union City's population is Cuban- American. They're smaller number and slightly less fervent than their South Florida brethren.

EMILLIO DEL VALLE, FOUNDER, CUBAN DAY PARADE, N.J.: There's more Cubans in Miami. There's a lot of them here. But I know -- I guess The reaction is a little different, because -- not because that they are anticipating, or they're going forward than we are.

O'BRIEN: Exiles here voice the same concerns as those in Miami.

TEO UGARDE, CUBAN IMMIGRANT (through translator): If Fidel dies and Raul stays, it's going to be more of the same.

O'BRIEN: And although this exile community may be less vocal, they want everyone to know that they're no less Cuban.

DEL DALLE: We'll be out there with our cause. We'll be out there celebrating the final death of a tyrant.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

O'BRIEN: So here's the question? Is Fidel Castro still alive? We've heard certainly rumors before, many times before, in fact, way back in 1956 before he overthrew the Cuban government. They declared Castro was dead then. Three years later he would topple those government leaders. 1986, a Cuban nurse spread a rumor that Castro died of heart attack. Other well-publicized rumors include word from the Kremlin back in 1989 that Castro was undergoing lung cancer treatment and planning for death. And then in 1997, Miami radio picked up reports out of Cuba that Castro was dead. Wrong Castro, though. That one was a veteran that fought in Bay of Pigs.

Then just two years ago, Castro took that fall. There you go. See that? Right off the stage after giving a speech. He broke his arm, he broke his knee, but he was up, and they showed pictures of him right out of the hospital within hours. Here's what Castro has said himself of the rumors. He said this last month to a bunch of students in Cuba. He said, "I die just about every day, but it's really a lot of fun for me, and it makes me feel healthier." Strange but true.

Turning to a CNN Security Watch this morning, hundreds of thousands of people cross the borders ever day, and as lawmakers will hear today many of them doing it with fake I.D.s.

Homeland security correspondent Jeanne Meserve live in Washington for us this morning.

Jeanne, good morning.

JEANNE MESERVE, CNN HOMELAND SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Soledad. A government investigation has found startling lapses in border security.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MESERVE (voice-over): They're driver's licenses and other documents were fakes, but undercover investigators were still able to get into the U.S. from Canada and Mexico at nine border crossings, according to testimony from the Government Accountability Office. In three instances, they didn't even show an I.D. In all of the others border agents failed to detect the fraudulent documents.

CLARK KENT ERVIN, CNN SECURITY ANALYST: If government investigators can present fake documents and get their way through our borders, then certainly terrorists can too.

MESERVE: The GAO ran a similar test three years ago.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You can't help but get the view that the door to America is very wide open.

MESERVE: But the new investigation concludes terrorists or criminals can still pass freely into the United States with little or no chance of being detected. The Department of Homeland Security says it has trained border agents to spot fake documents, and more than 75,000 were intercepted last year, but right now 8,000 different kinds of documents are used to enter the country, including easy to forge licenses and birth certificates. Experts say accepting fewer, more reliable documents is crucial.

ERVIN: We need to have tamper-proof documents that are also biometric in nature so that we can confirm that traveler presenting the document is in fact the traveler to whom the document was issued, and that that traveler is not a terrorist.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

MESERVE: A law requiring travelers entering the U.S. to present passports or other security documents is slated to take effect in 2008, but some members of Congress are trying to push that date back even further -- Soledad.

O'BRIEN: Why? Why would they want to push that date back even further?

MESERVE: Well, there's a lot of commerce and commuting between the U.S. and Canada, and some lawmakers from those border states fear that these new requirements will create hardships and slow down commerce, so they want a delay.

O'BRIEN: Jeanne Meserve for us this morning. Jeanne, thanks.

MESERVE: You bet.

O'BRIEN: You want to stay tuned to CNN day and night for the most reliable news about your security. (WEATHER REPORT)

O'BRIEN: Still to come this morning, in a world of e-mail and e- cards, we'll tell you how the Internet is actually injecting new life into the U.S. Postal Service.

CNN talks exclusively to a woman who was at that party with Mel Gibson just hours before his arrest. That's coming up next on AMERICAN MORNING. Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

O'BRIEN: We've been talking for days about Mel Gibson's arrest on suspicion for DUI. He issued a second apology for those anti- Semitic remarks that were part of that arrest. An exclusive look now at how Mel Gibson behaved, even before he got behind the wheel. Brooke Anderson talks to one of the women at the party that Gibson visited the night of his arrest.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BROOKE ANDERSON, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The same day Mel Gibson made a plea to the Jewish community asking for forgiveness for the vitriolic and harmful remarks he made during his DUI arrest, CNN obtained a letter written by a Los Angeles rabbi asking Gibson to speak at his temple on Yom Kippur, the Jewish day of atonement. Rabbi David Barron (ph) feels it would be an important time for Gibson to directly express his remorse.

Gibson admits he made anti-Semitic statements to a sheriff's deputy after he was pulled over. Quote: "There is no excuse, nor should there be any tolerance, for anyone who thinks or expresses any kind of anti-Semitic remark." Gibson added, "Please note from my heart that I am not an anti-Semite. I am not a bigot."

Gibson's publicist wouldn't comment on whether Gibson plans to accept the rabbi's invitation.

POUNEH NASSERI, WITNESSED GIBSON BEFORE ARREST: Well, Mel Gibson was there, and he was drunk walking around, talking to everybody, and just having fun.

ANDERSON: Pouneh Nasseri, who was at Malibu's Moon Shadows Restaurant Thursday night, is talking exclusively to CNN about seeing Gibson there before his arrest.

NASSERI: He was talking to a group of my friends, and he stood and said hi to each one of us, and smiling, talking. He wasn't out of control, but he was drunk-happy.

ANDERSON: Photos have surfaced, showing him reveling with a variety of patrons, at times toting what appears to be a beer bottle.

NASSERI: He had a drink in his hand. He seemed a little drunk.

I was surprised that why wouldn't someone like that hire a driver to pick him up.

ANDERSON: Gibson registered a blood alcohol level of .12, above the California legal limit of .08.

(on camera): Gibson isn't the only one suffering a lingering hangover from this incident. This has turned into a huge headache for the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department, as well. A department watchdog group is looking into accusations that authorities tried to cover up Gibson's comments in the initial reports detailing Gibson's arrest.

(voice-over): The sheriff's department is saying there was no cover up. ABC announced it is canceling plans for a Holocaust-themed miniseries that Gibson's company was going to produce. But the network said the decision was unrelated to Gibson's arrest. Gibson also said he's not concentrating on professional matters, while he focuses on a program of recovery.

Brooke Anderson, CNN, Los Angeles.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

O'BRIEN: Some pictures just into CNN. You're looking at a big explosion clearly. This is Tyre, in Lebanon. It's where Ben Wedeman has been reporting for us all morning. As we've been mentioning, troops are heading into Lebanon from Israel, thousands of troops by all reports, and there have been firefights that have continued across the border all day. We continue to monitor the situation and see if we can figure out exactly what's been targeted and what has been hit in Tyre. In Ben's report, he was talking about some very shocking details about what he is seeing as far as the damage and some of the people who are suffering there. We're going to get back to Ben in just a few minutes.

(BUSINESS HEADLINES)

O'BRIEN: We're going to look at the at the day's top stories right after this short break. We're back in a moment.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

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