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Madrid Bombings: Death Toll Climbs; Civilians Targeted in Iraq; Suspect Identified in Ohio Highway Shootings

Aired March 16, 2004 - 12:00   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.


WOLF BLITZER, CNN ANCHOR: First, these developments.
Israeli attack helicopters take aim at a House in Gaza City. CNN crews in Israel say two people are dead, 10 others wounded. The attack comes days after twin suicide attacks in the Israeli port of Ashdod that killed 10 people.

Police in Iraq say explosives were found along a railway used by coalition troops. Bombs along roadsides are common in Iraq, but a spokesman calls this the first known instance of a train line being targeted. The explosives were diffused.

A missing Army soldier has returned to his Florida National Guard unit, but he says he'll go to prison before he returns to Iraq. Staff Sergeant Camillo Mujillo (ph) says he'll seek to become a conscientious objector. He says the last thing in Iraq was a gunfight he witnessed that resulted in the deaths of civilians.

After the bombings in Spain, two European leaders pledge renewed cooperation in the war on terror. In Paris, the French president, Jacques Chirac, hosted the German chancellor, Gerard Schroeder. The French leader called on Europe to use all of its strength to combat terrorism.

Let's begin with the bombings and the political aftermath in Madrid. The death toll has now climbed beyond 200, and police have made another arrest also this hour. CNN has obtained information that indicates that al Qaeda was apparently planning attacks in Spain to try to topple the country's conservative government. The conservatives backed the war in Iraq and were defeated in national elections three days after the bombings.

We'll get to all of that. But let's go over to the White House right away, where President Bush only a little while ago was asked about terrorism. Our White House correspondent, Dana Bash, is over there covering this part of the story for us -- Dana.

DANA BASH, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Well, Wolf, it was a little bit of diplomatic damage control from the president today. His first public comments since his ally in Spain was defeated. And he used these comments to try to make the case that just because an anti- war candidate won, it doesn't mean that terrorists should get the signal that they have won.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Terrorists will kill innocent life in order to try to get the world to cower. I think they're -- these are cold-blooded killers. I mean, they'll kill innocent people to try to shake our will. That's what they want to do.

And they'll never shake the will of the United States. We understand the stakes. And we will work with our friends to bring justice to the terrorists.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BASH: Now, the president made his remarks in the Oval Office next to the prime minister of the Netherlands, another member of the so-called coalition of the willing, in a situation not that different from Jose Maria Aznar of Spain. He sent troops, a very small contingent, to Iraq over the opposition of most of the people in his country. But Mr. Bush did make the appeal to a Dutch reporter and to the people of the Netherlands that they should not press for his leader, for their leader to pull out troops from Iraq because he said it is absolutely necessary for a free Iraq, for the world to become better and make sure they stay in place and do what it takes -- Wolf.

BLITZER: And, Dana, the president had a dual-pronged swipe, challenge, if you will, to the Democratic presidential candidate, John Kerry, both in his remarks over in the Oval Office as well as in a New ad his campaign is releasing. What can you tell us about both of these?

BASH: Well, first of all, on the president's comments, the White House is continuing to try to challenge Senator Kerry about comments that he made a week ago, essentially suggesting that foreign leaders -- although the quote has been changed a little bit -- but the context they say is the same, that foreign leaders want President Bush defeated. Mr. Bush spoke about that for the first time, and he did so from the Oval Office.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BUSH: I think if you're going to make an accusation in the course of a presidential campaign, you ought to back it up with facts.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BASH: Now, that comment is all part of the New Bush strategy, or I should say stepped-up strategy, to continue to challenge Senator Kerry's credibility. Now, a New part of that tactic today is an ad that is starting to air at this hour in West Virginia.

They're following Senator Kerry there. He's going to make comments to veterans there. And the subject of this New ad is on Iraq, and essentially trying to challenge what Senator Kerry has done, essentially voted for the Iraq resolution and then voted against some funding for some key things, they say, like combat gear and also some more money for troops. And what the Bush campaign is saying is that they are going to continue to make this case because they feel that they are making some headway in the polls and attacking Senator Kerry's credibility. And it should not go unnoticed that this New ad is about Iraq. And the White House is trying to make a PR blitz this week during the year anniversary of the war on Iraq -- Wolf.

BLITZER: The president going after terrorists and John Kerry at the same time. A very different context. Dana Bash at the White House, thanks very much.

And as we reported, police in Spain have made another arrest in connection with the attacks last Thursday. CNN's Al Goodman is standing by live from Madrid with the latest developments -- Al.

AL GOODMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hello, Wolf.

We're waiting for those who have been arrested, five on Saturday, another one arrested late Monday. But we didn't find out about it publicly until today, Tuesday. We're waiting for them to go before a judge at the national court.

That's the court that deals with anti-terrorism issues. But the authorities here under Spain's anti-terrorism law, Wolf, can hold these people for up to five days. So the clock is still running before we have the first arraignment and get further details on the charges.

In the meantime, since authorities say they've identified some men who they believe to be the actual bombers who put the bombs on the trains, one is in custody. Others are at large. So the investigation clearly is continuing.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

GOODMAN (voice-over): A Spanish investigator tells CNN police have identified at least six Moroccans who placed bombs on the Madrid commuter trains last Thursday in Spain's deadliest terrorist attack. One suspect, Jamal Zugam (ph), age 30, was arrested Saturday, but others remain at large. Zugam (ph) owned a home here, modest apartments in eastern Madrid.

Spanish court documents say police searched his home in August 2001 just before the September 11th attacks. He was not arrested then, but police said he had the phone numbers of several men who have since been detained as al Qaeda suspects.

(on camera): Since before the September 11th attacks, Spanish investigators have been trying to connect the dots among various suspected Islamic radicals or terrorists. Sometimes, as in the case of the man who lived here, the arrests have come months or years after the individual first came to the attention of the authorities.

(voice-over): Reports say Zugam (ph) was linked to a cell phone found with an unexploded bomb from last Thursday's attacks. A neighbor says he owned a small telephone business. Court documents say Zugam (ph) was a follower of this man, Iman Edin Barkar Yarkis (ph), in custody as the suspected head of al Qaeda in Spain. Moroccan investigators tell CNN Zugam (ph) also has been linked to two brothers who are in custody in connection with the Casablanca bombings last May that killed several dozen people.

At least six men, three Moroccans, two Indians, and an Algerian, are being heeld since the Madrid bombings. The latest arrest, Basque police in the north city of San Sebastian detained an Algerian man. An official told CNN police remembered threats he had made two months ago that there would be deaths in Atocha. Police didn't give it much credence then, but after the bombs struck the Atocha train station, they went looking for him, too.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

GOODMAN: Now, Wolf, the New socialist prime minister-elect elected in that victory on Sunday that was not expected, an upset victory I want to say on Sunday, is busy making his plans, and all of this with that chilling Web site that CNN has had access to, where al Qaeda operatives apparently predicted this scenario.

They were trying to peel Spain away from the coalition. They thought Spain might be vulnerable. And they thought Spain fight fold after two or three blows.

Now, the socialist leader here has said he would bring Spain's 1,300 troops in Iraq home by next June if the United Nations is not running Iraq by then instead of the U.S.-led coalition. And the socialist leader is sitting there trying to make his plans while this Web site has predicted that this kind of scenario would happen -- Wolf.

BLITZER: CNN's Al Goodman reporting with the latest from Madrid. Al, thanks very much for that report.

Iraq is in the midst of a surge of attacks against civilians who have come to the country to try to help rebuild it. And some of the latest victims include four American missionaries. CNN's Jane Arraf is in Baghdad. She's joining us now live with more.

Jane, what do we know?

JANE ARRAF, CNN BAGHDAD BUREAU CHIEF: Wolf, just wanted to tell you first about the latest developments. Central Baghdad has been rocked by several explosions. We heard five of them. Security sources say they appear to be mortars fired towards the Green Zone.

Now, that is the so-called secure area where the coalition is housed. We're going to get back to you with more details on exactly what that might have been and whether it caused any damage. But explosions here in central Baghdad that appear to be mortars fired at the Green Zone.

Now, those attacks on civilians, one Dutch engineer and one German engineer dead after their vehicles were attacked near the city of Karbala, South of Baghdad, today. Now, that follows an attack on American missionaries.

Now, these were five missionaries traveling near the northern city of Mosul. Four of them have been killed. Another attack on them.

Obviously, missionaries here, despite the fact that they're mostly engaged in humanitarian work, are a very controversial subject in a place that is almost exclusively Muslim. Now, they were traveling near the northern city of Mosul, which has a large Christian population, but they are a very volatile subject and a controversial presence here.

Meanwhile, in that bigger picture, Lieutenant General Ricardo Sanchez, the commander of land forces here, oversaw a ceremony where the 4th Infantry Division in Tikrit, best known for catching Saddam Hussein, handed over to the people replacing them. General Sanchez asked about whether this planned pullout of Spanish forces from the coalition would hinder efforts here. They said that they could handle it.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GEN. RICARDO SANCHEZ, U.S. ARMY: I'm not concerned about that at this point in time. But once again, those are national decisions that have to be made. And as a commander on the ground, once a nation makes those decisions, then we'll adapt.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ARRAF: But obviously, Wolf, in a place where the American military and American civilian occupation forces are trying to gain support for the occupation and for the military presence, any pullout of international troops will cause some problems -- Wolf.

BLITZER: I know, Jane, there are always sensitive issues involving Christian missionaries working in largely Muslim countries. Do the missionaries, the American missionaries who now work in Iraq, some of whom, as you point out, have been killed, do they have the blessing, the authority of the coalition authority, Paul Bremer and company, to go about and do what they do?

ARRAF: The coalition would quite likely be horrified at the thought of many Americans coming here at this point. As much as they like to say that things are improving, that security is improving, that crime is down, no one would really pretend, Wolf, that there is an open invitation out for people to come here and do the kind of work that might place them in jeopardy. And that certainly is a line of work that would be controversial here.

Now, again, most of these groups are engaged in aid projects. And there aren't a lot of them. That has to be said. But it is one of the most volatile points here.

The backdrop of this, of course, is that many people are convinced that this war was fought for religious reasons so the West and Christianity could dominate the Muslim world. So when you add this to the mix, the presence of missionaries, that doesn't go down very well in a lot of communities -- Wolf.

BLITZER: All right. Jane Arraf with the latest on this. Thanks, Jane, very much.

Pakistani officials, meanwhile, reporting they have killed 24 suspected terrorists in a battle along the border with Afghanistan. Our Ash-har Quraishi is joining us now live via videophone from Islamabad with the latest details.

Ash-har, tell us what you know.

ASH-HAR QURAISHI, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Wolf, this operation was launched early in the morning here in Pakistan, following a tip- off received by Pakistani paramilitary troops. Now, this operation was launched in an area known as South Waziristan, in the tribal areas of northwest Pakistan.

Now, first, tribal elders were called in to try to get the suspects to surrender who were holed up in a compound there. A gunfight ensued in which eight Pakistani paramilitary troops were killed. Now, this operation has finally concluded this evening. And according to Pakistani military officials, they say that they have killed 24 suspects and they also have apprehended another 18.

Now, intelligence sources are telling us that the majority of these 24 people who were killed are believed to be foreign suspects. They say possibly al Qaeda. And this is part of an ongoing operation that Pakistan has been carrying out in the tribal areas in the northwest, particularly in South Waziristan, to root out what they say is more than -- hundreds, rather, of suspected al Qaeda terrorists that are taking refuge in the tribal areas of northwest Pakistan -- Wolf.

BLITZER: Ash-har, how unusual is this battle that you've been reporting about and a large number of suspected terrorists killed in this operation? Is this an unusual event, or is this going on without a whole lot of public attention being focused on it?

QURAISHI: Well, officials earlier today were describing it as routine search operations that have been conducted by the paramilitary forces and the Pakistani army as well. They have enlisted the helps of the local tribes as well in the last few weeks and months. And they have been brought in basically to try and help the tribesmen surrender, the ones who may be harboring these suspected terrorists, try and come out in some sort of peaceful way.

But these operations are launched, as they say, on a needed basis, when they get information of any suspects hiding in any particular area that they're interested in apprehending, Wolf. So this is something we've been seeing and will be seeing over the next few months.

BLITZER: All right. Ash-har Quraishi reporting for us from Islamabad. Thanks very much.

Let's go to Gaza right now. There are developments unfolding there involving Israelis and Palestinians. Our Chris Burns is in Gaza. He's joining us on the phone with the latest.

Chris, what do we know there?

CHRIS BURNS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Wolf, violence spiraling once again here. Two people killed, at least, plus 13 wounded in an Israeli -- what the Palestinians are calling an Israeli Apache helicopter attack, firing three missiles into what was a vacant house.

The Israelis say that there were Islamic jihad members inside. It is now confirmed, according to Palestinian sources, that the two dead were Islamic jihad members. And Israel says one of those who they killed was involved in a jeep attack on a border crossing here about a week to 10 days ago.

This also comes as Gaza residents are seeing Israeli forces build up along the border between Gaza and Israel. And there are fears here among the Palestinians that there could be yet another incursion inside Gaza perhaps this evening.

The worry that there are two suicide bombers who attacked Israel just two days ago, the Ashdod port, killing some 10 Israelis. And what Gazans fear is that the Israelis could move in and destroy the two houses of the two suicide bomber's families as Israel has done in the past.

This comes also as today it was widely expected there would be a meeting between the Palestinian and Israeli prime ministers. That meeting has been put off by the Israelis because of the suicide attacks in Ashdod just two days ago -- Wolf.

BLITZER: All right. Chris Burns in Gaza. We'll get back to you. Chris, thanks very much.

We're following other stories, including the lessons learned, the obstacles faced from a year ago in Iraq. Still to come, we'll take a closer look back at the war in Iraq. And we'll go behind the scenes of how it all unfolded over at the Pentagon.

Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: A year ago this coming Friday, President Bush gave the order, attack Iraq. The war was coordinated, of course, from the Pentagon. And right in the middle of all of it was Victoria Clarke. She was then the chief Pentagon spokeswoman. She's behind the scenes -- going to take us a little bit behind the scenes of those intense times right now.

Tory, thanks very much for joining us.

VICTORIA CLARKE, FMR. PENTAGON SPOKESWOMAN: Thank you, Wolf.

BLITZER: It is hard to believe it is almost a year. What goes through your mind as you look back on that time one year ago? CLARKE: You know what I was thinking of this morning when I was headed over here? I remember thinking right up to days before the start of the war, I still thought that maybe it wouldn't happen.

I thought maybe the international pressure that had built up, and clearly the overwhelming superiority of the coalition forces, I thought all that pressure might convince Saddam Hussein to say, you know what, it is not worth it, and for him to give up. So right up until a few days before it actually started, I thought we might not have the war.

BLITZER: I was in Kuwait getting ready to cover the war.

CLARKE: Right.

BLITZER: And all of the journalists, all of the troops who were there, all of us had protective gear, chemical and biological protective equipment, gas masks. We fully expected that there would be weapons of mass destruction used.

CLARKE: Sure.

BLITZER: Obviously none were used. Were you convinced going into the war that you had absolutely no doubt whatsoever that Saddam Hussein had significant stockpiles of chemical and biological weapons?

CLARKE: Well, I don't know about words like "significant," but if you go back and look at what the world believed it knew back then, we thought the French, the Germans, the Russians, the British, the U.N., all fully thought that Saddam Hussein had weapons of mass destruction. If you go back and look at the preamble to all those U.N. resolutions, they say knowing the dangers, the Iraqi regime's weapons of mass destruction posed to the world, we therefore resolve. And it went into all the things that Saddam Hussein should have done but never did in terms of disarming.

So back then the debate was not over whether or not he had weapons of mass destruction. Everyone truly believed he had them. He had used them in the past. It was what we should do about it. So we all went in there with the expectations that you would find weapons of mass destruction.

BLITZER: Had you known then that there were no weapons of mass destruction -- we don't know that 100 percent right now because they're still searching. They theoretically might still find some. But had you known then, do you think the country would have been ready to go to war?

CLARKE: Well, it's a huge hypothetical, Wolf. It's an interesting question, but could you then have had absolute ironclad certainty that they had no weapons of mass destruction? I don't know about that.

I don't know if you could have had that kind of certainty. But you look at what we knew. You know, it is great to do these hypotheticals, but it is more relevant to talk about let's talk about the decision we had -- the decision we made based on the information we in the world had at the time.

He had used chemical weapons, weapons of mass destruction on his own people and his neighbor. He had invaded his neighbor. He had fired ballistic missiles at his neighbors. He had consorted with terrorists of all sizes and shapes.

Clearly, this guy was a threat to the region and the world. So it was the right thing to do. I still believe it was the right thing to do.

BLITZER: In your capacity at that time as the assistant secretary of Defense for Public Affairs, among other things, you had to work out all the details involving the embedding of journalists with the troops moving into Iraq.

CLARKE: Right.

BLITZER: You worked very closely with all the news organizations, the major Washington bureau chiefs. Did the system, did the process work the way you wanted it to?

CLARKE: Wow. It exceeded everybody's expectations. I'm sure it exceeded all of our expectations. I think it exceeded the expectations of most of the news organizations. And I decided that expression "success has a thousand fathers" has New meaning, because nothing important gets done without the inputs of hundreds and thousands of people.

And to your point, the news organizations worked just as hard as we did at building a working relationship and guidelines and policies by which we all could live to bring something home to the American people and publics around the world. Because remember, there were lots of foreign media embedded as well to bring something home in terms of coverage, of combat operations that they had never seen before.

BLITZER: Were there any issues, any incidents that you can remember because journalists were there and privy to sensitive information where national security was significantly compromised or even modestly compromised?

CLARKE: I'd say modestly compromised. And it was literally under a handful of incidents. And they were not journalists that were embedded with forces.

They were journalists that were unilateral, as they were called, or some that had sort of gone from being unilateralists to sort of tagging along with the unit. But again, so much preparation, so much thought and so much responsibility went into how people behaved at the time, both the journalists and the military, that it work out beyond our wildest expectations.

BLITZER: Will there be any turning back the clock? Do you anticipate if there's another major war down the road, journalists will be barred from going in with U.S. military personnel? CLARKE: Boy, I sure hope not. You can't predict for certainty, because every conflict is different, and every circumstance is different. But I think so many people who were doubters and disbeliveers going into that operation became believers having seen what they saw and saw where the positive things shown through.

When the bad things happened, which they always happen in wars, and that's why you always try to avoid them, the bad things got accurate. Comprehensive coverage put in context. I think so many people realized the significance and the positives that I hope that kind of philosophy and approach carries forward.

BLITZER: Victoria Clarke joining us from the Pentagon, her old stomping ground. Thanks very much, Tory, for that.

CLARKE: Thank you, Wolf. Bye.

BLITZER: We'll have more coverage coming up on this first anniversary of the war in Iraq this week. Still to come, I'll speak with retired U.S. Air Force Major General Don Shepherd and CNN security and terror analyst Kelly McCann. We'll get to all of that.

First, this.

SEAN CALLEBS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I'm Sean Callebs in Columbus, Ohio. Coming up, a report on an intensive manhunt for a suspect who could be behind a series of highway shootings that have terrorized parts of this capital city.

BLITZER: All right. Sean, we'll get to you and a little bit of snow out there.

Let's first take a look at how the markets are doing this afternoon. The Dow Jones industrials up a little bit more than 40 points. We're watching Wall Street, we're watching the news.

We'll be back from New York in a moment.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: On the lookout, police across the country are keeping their eyes peeled for Charles McCoy Jr. Ohio authorities believe he may be the person who has been shooting at motorists along Interstate 270.

Sean Callebs is monitoring the manhunt and he's joining us now live from Columbus with more.

Sean, what's going on?

CALLEBS: Well, Wolf, we can tell you we got our hands on a handful of legal documents and court records surrounding 28-year-old Charles McCoy, including an arrest warrant that was issued just yesterday for felonious assault. Now, in it, accuses McCoy of firing a 9-millimeter handgun, two rounds, into an occupied house with the intent to harm someone. Now, ballistic information from two of the bullets retrieved from that house apparently also match fragments retrieved from at least eight of the shooting sites in and around the southern Columbus area. And that is significant.

Now, authorities are also saying they have launched an intensive manhunt for McCoy. They had him under surveillance. He was last seen on Friday. They say he should be considered armed and dangerous.

They're also saying that McCoy is someone who is mentally unstable. They say that he is possibly suicidal, with the potential -- with potentially homicidal tendencies.

Now, authorities had him under surveillance. They say he is 5'7", 185 pounds. He was last seen driving a 1999 green Geo Metro.

He also lived with his mother. And this is significant because that house was basically right in the heart of the I-270 area where many of the shootings took place. There have been 24 separate shootings since May of last year.

We also know that McCoy -- and this is going to be troubling to a lot of people in the area if indeed he is connected to these shootings -- that he received two speeding tickets since May of 2003, since the time that the shootings took place. He paid both of those tickets.

Now, in all of those shootings, of course, there was one fatality. That happened back on November 25th at 9:00, killing a 62- year-old woman in this area.

That's the very latest information from Columbus, Wolf. Back to you.

BLITZER: Sean, do they suspect he was involved as an individual, a sole shooter, their suspicion, in all 24 of these shootings?

CALLEBS: It's very difficult to say, Wolf, because this is an investigation that's really been characterized by authorities as being very tight-lipped. They say they only went public last night because they simply had no idea where the suspect is.

They had him under surveillance. And they're trying to get some information. All they're saying is that he has been charged with felonious assault in connection with that one shooting. And apparently, the ballistic information can be traced to some of those other shootings.

Other than that, we know the search warrants on the house have been sealed, all the other documents have been sealed. So they are really keeping all the information very close to the vest at this time.

BLITZER: Sean Callebs reporting from Columbus. Sean, thanks very much for that report.

And still to come, what's next for U.S. troops and the people of Iraq? After the break, we'll be back with retired U.S. Air Force Major Don Shepherd to talk about the future of the war-torn country.

Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: It's been a year, almost a year, at least Friday it will be a year since the start of the war in Iraq. But there's still no exit date for U.S. troops stationed there. Will a transfer of power to the Iraqis lay the groundwork for an eventual U.S. withdrawal?

Joining us now from Tel Aviv to talk about that and more, CNN military analyst retired U.S. Air Force Major General Don Shepperd.

General Shepperd, thanks very much for joining us. What's the biggest lesson the U.S. military has learned from the war in Iraq?

MAJ. GEN. DON SHEPPERD (RET.), CNN MILITARY ANALYST: Well, I'm not sure it is a new lesson, Wolf. But what we've learned is, running a country, owning a country, is a heck of a lot tougher than fighting the war. The aftermath of the war is enormously difficult as we try to spread security.

And be careful what you wish for. You may get it. We wished for democracy in the Middle East in a country, and we're getting it with all the imperfections and difficulties of democracy, Wolf.

BLITZER: The military went in with a clear game plan to overthrow Saddam Hussein, and it was done by all accounts brilliantly. But was the military prepared for the aftermath of the fall of Saddam Hussein's regime?

SHEPPERD: You know, Wolf, we were prepared for the aftermath. But you always have a plan. Then you have to react to what really happens on the ground.

I think everyone thought that the stabilization process after Saddam was gone would be much easier than it has been. The idea of keeping a civil war from taking place between the Sunni and the Shia and the Kurds is a very, very difficult task that we're at. Also, spreading security over the country is much more difficult than we thought.

So you always have a plan, and then you have to react to what really happens on the ground. It has just been much more difficult, I think, than anyone envisioned. And we're going to be there a while the make it come out right.

BLITZER: I've been getting a lot of conflicting assessments from military experts, retired and current military personnel, who suggest that there may not necessarily be enough U.S. forces on the ground in Iraq right now to effectively get the job done. I know you've studied this matter. You were there not that long ago, spoke with commanders. What do you say about this?

SHEPPERD: Yes. Well, here's my take on that right now. When we were in Iraq a short while ago, we asked every one of those commanders, come on, tell us the truth. Do you really have enough troops or not.?

They all said to a man, look, we have enough troops to do what we are being asked to do right now. On the other hand, if the mission changes, we may need more.

Now, the mission is changing a little bit. And the way it's changing is we're being tasked with stopping infiltration from Syria. That's a long border. It takes a lot more troops. And again, the security situation is much more difficult.

So it may be that we need more troops, but they don't necessarily have to be United States troops. I'm sure we're going to try to get troops from NATO and other nations through the U.N. It will be difficult, but it may be that we need more troops for a longer period of time than we thought, Wolf.

BLITZER: Are the troops who are there, more than 100,000, maybe 110,000, 120,00 U.S. troops who are there, do they have all the equipment they need to protect themselves, specifically the body armor that's so important with these kinds of roadside explosives going on and snipers going after them, not only with rifles but with mortar fire?

SHEPPERD: In a short word, no. They don't have everything they need. We're short of armored vehicles, which is the heavily armored Humvees to take out on patrols that can resist the blast and the fire that's directed at them from RPGs and that type of thing. We're also short on the proper type, the new type of body armor.

But on the other hand, the tactical commanders on the ground, as people go out on patrols and that type of thing, they're ensuring that they're in the right type of vehicles and have the right body armor. They're not putting people in harm's way. And I think we're managing that situation OK, but we've been short on it for quite a while and really are still short on it, Wolf.

BLITZER: I know we only have a few seconds left. I know you're in Tel Aviv right now, General Shepperd. Give us a little flavor of -- you've only been there, I guess, for a little while. We understand there's a lot of military activity going on in Gaza right now. What do you hear from your vantage point?

SHEPPERD: First of all, the attack on Ashdod is very concerning to the Israelis because they don't know how they got into Ashdod, across the fence, if you will. As you know, there have been targeted operations against terrorist activities in Gaza. That's very difficult because of the population there.

One thing that surprises me, there is no sense of real uptight and nervousness among the Israeli population. They have come to live with a certain level of terrorism and realize that they can't prevent it all. They can prevent hopefully the big ones, but they'll have to live with a certain level. There's a certain aura of reality setting in on the population here. But it is going to be busy. And again, it's going to be a long war on terror here, around the world, and in Iraq for us, Wolf.

BLITZER: Retired U.S. Air Force Major General Don Shepherd joining us from Tel Aviv today.

General Shepperd, have a safe trip. We'll see you back here soon. Thanks very much for joining us.

And it's a hazardous and potentially fatal job patrolling the streets of Baghdad. Coming up next, security and terror expert Kelly McCann joins us to discuss the problems of policing in a war zone.

And later, a unique picture of Iraq, literally. Photos worth more than a thousand words.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: Improving security, that's the number one concern of Iraqis, according to a new nationwide poll conducted by ABC News and other news organizations. CNN contributor and security analyst Kelly McCann is joining us now live from Washington to talk about the successes and the hurdles.

Security, a huge problem, obviously, in Iraq. Let's talk about the U.S. military (UNINTELLIGIBLE) right now and how to deal with it. These roadside explosives, mortar fire, are they doing everything they need to do? Is this simply the price of this continuing occupation that they're paying?

KELLY MCCANN, CNN SECURITY ANALYST: It's the shift, Wolf, from combat operations which were aggressive and typified by maneuverability and motion forward to being fixed in place at fixed- point locations where routine can be observed, et cetera. At that point, it is much easier for a maneuverable enemy to hit you. So they are doing what they can.

Now, we are entering about the next four to six months this very tenuous period of the Iraqi Governing Council taking over and, more importantly, the U.S. Army's withdraw and the Marine Corps' movement into the country. There will be a tremendous amount of air assets overland, there will be a lot of overland convoy movements which creates a much greater opportunity for targeting. So there is great concern right now.

BLITZER: You're a retired U.S. Marine special operations officer. Do the Marines have different rules that they use in these kinds of situations than the U.S. Army? The soldiers doing things differently than the Marines would do?

MCCANN: The Marines are typically expeditious. They're not a standing army. So they don't occupy for great periods of time.

There is a basic difference in philosophy. Now, that's not a thing that the Marine Corps says the Army did anything wrong. But they made some drastic movements here.

They changed uniforms. There will be a different uniform on the Marines over there, which, at the ground level, will make a difference. They'll be seen to be different.

The commanding general that commands the division that will be going in there has said, we can be your best friend or we can be your worst enemy. You decide.

They're going in with this kind of cap platoon mentality which is to live among the people, small elements, so they can develop better intelligence and get their feelers out to have a higher visibility patrolling rate. They'll be on foot patrols, as opposed to all mechanized.

There will be some different things. But I think people should look at it as an evolution rather than a right-wrong situation, Wolf.

BLITZER: When you say the Marines will have different uniforms, they'll have different uniforms than the soldiers? Is that what you're saying?

MCCANN: That's correct. They will actually visibly look differently.

The Marine Corps has a proprietary uniform that only they have. And it appears differently. It is a different kind of camouflage. So that will make some grassroots difference. In fact, some intelligence officials said it might be the absolute stroke of this.

BLITZER: I've heard some experts suggest that one of the problems that the soldiers have had is they're going in these convoys on these patrols. They're in vehicles. And you correctly point out, Marines like to walk.

Actually, walking in a patrol is safer than being in a vehicle. Is that right?

MCCANN: It is, because you're out. There's positions of cover. You can basically not present a mass target. You can disperse quickly. Individuals can find cover.

I'll give you one good example. It was said to me that the Army had one particular area in Baghdad they called IED Alley, or improvised explosive device alley. Some of the Marines that I've spoken to have said, we're going to call that sniper alley, because what we're going to do is step off by so many thousands of meters or hundreds of meters and actually be able to control that area as bombers come in to place bombs to engage those people. So it is a different mentality.

BLITZER: What was the major lesson that the Marines learned from the horrible mass killing in Beirut in 1983? I think 241 U.S. Marines were killed in that location. They were there for peacekeeping purposes. What's the lesson they learned, the Marine Corps learned from that incident that they'll apply now as they go in bigger numbers into Iraq?

MCCANN: That's a great question. And that actually -- those lessons have played out in places like Haiti. During 1994, there was an incident where the Marines actually engaged some Haitians that came around basically brandishing weapons and threatening.

In Somalia, the same way. The FAST platoons, the Fleet Anti Terrorist Security teams, actually engaged a lot of the technicals which basically prevented greater injury and greater attacks.

I think that the philosophy now is the promotion of, we will fight -- the Marines are all saying, we will engage you. Don't make that mistake that was made in Beirut, where weapons were not loaded, where it was very, very passive. Again, be your best friend or your worst enemy, Wolf.

BLITZER: CNN security analyst Kelly McCann. Kelly, thanks very much for joining us.

MCCANN: Pleasure, Wolf.

BLITZER: It's a revealing view from the front lines. Each shot captured in a split second. Coming up next, the celebrated photojournalist shares her special work from the war in Iraq.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: Photojournalists captured some of the most memorable images from the war in Iraq. They had unprecedented access as embedded photographers with the U.S. troops.

Cheryl Diaz Meyer is a senior staff photographer at The Dallas Morning News. Her new work is featured in the documentary entitled "Eyewitness in Iraq." It airs tonight 10:00 p.m. Eastern on the "History Channel."

Cheryl, good work. Thanks very much for joining us.

We have a whole bunch of your pictures that you shot with the troops. Let's put some of them up on the screen right now. You see this first one we're seeing right there. What exactly are we seeing?

CHERYL DIAZ MEYER, THE DALLAS MORNING NEWS: That is the result of an accident where a minibus tried to run a checkpoint about 50 feet from where the command center was with the 2nd Tank Battalion 1st Marine Division. And sandwiched between two vehicles, they ran the checkpoint, and the driver and a number of civilians were killed.

BLITZER: All right. Let's put another picture up and get your thoughts. Obviously, a U.S. soldier. What happened? Give us the context of what was going on here.

MEYER: This was the exact same intersection south of Baghdad. It was the day after we had sustained a number of attacks in the camp. And these men were holding the checkpoint.

BLITZER: And you were right there. All right. Let's get to the next one. You see this soldier here. Do you remember this photo?

MEYER: Yes, absolutely. That is one of the medics that I was riding in the vehicle with, and the day after the biggest battle day for the 2nd Tank Battalion. So this was April 5th. There were four dead, I think, and 17 injured, and a good number of civilians injured as well. And he was cleaning up the cots of all the blood.

BLITZER: Speaking of civilians, look at this one. Clearly a very moving photo. What was the context?

MEYER: This, again, is surrounding the same situation. These were survivors from the minibus, and other people who were trying to cross the checkpoint area and were being held by the Marines. This woman...

BLITZER: Cheryl, when you were embedded with the troops, did you see civilians getting killed?

MEYER: Yes. Yes, absolutely.

BLITZER: So you remember those images very clearly in your mind. What is this photo?

MEYER: Actually, I'm sorry, but that is not one of mine.

BLITZER: This one was not?

MEYER: No.

BLITZER: All right. Well, it's U.S. soldiers seem to be helping a man. This was a close-up shot of someone who looks like he's taking aim.

MEYER: I am sorry, but that is also not my photo.

BLITZER: All right. Well there are other photographers who have been highlighted in this documentary tonight as well. I think we have a few more. Was this one of your pictures?

MEYER: No. There's a photo of a man removing a fuel bladder (ph), which is mine.

BLITZER: It looked like it was a dust storm that was going on, something not unusual during those early days of the war, as many of us remember. As you look back, Cheryl, now, on that experience, being an embedded photojournalist the U.S. troops going in, what stands out in your mind? What do you want to share with our viewers on this one- year anniversary?

MEYER: I think that, you know, what our original intent was in going into Iraq is not fully clear, but in the meanwhile, U.S. military and the civilians of Iraq have suffered so many casualties. And for all of that, I just hope that something good comes of this. That in the end, Iraq will be a better country because of it.

BLITZER: Did you at the time when you were there embedded with the troops, did you get the kind of access you really wanted, looking back on that experience?

MEYER: Yes. Actually, surprisingly so.

I had a lot of fears that once we were embedded that we would be controlled by the particular military group that we would be embedded with. But, as a matter of fact, I was embed with the 2nd Tank Battalion, as I said earlier, and Lieutenant Colonel Michael Oll (ph) was a very, very generous and good man. And he welcomed us with a lot of hospitality, and he let us do our work with the understanding that certain things could endanger the mission and that we should be respectful of that.

BLITZER: Cheryl Diaz Meters, a senior staff photographer with The Dallas Morning News. Good work, Cheryl. Thanks very much for joining us.

MEYER: Thanks for having me, Wolf.

BLITZER: And I'll be back later today, every weekday, 5:00 p.m. Eastern, for "WOLF BLITZER REPORTS." Joining me later today, Richard Holbrooke, the former U.S. ambassador to the United Nations. Among other things, we'll discuss the 2004 presidential elections.

Also, Republican Congressman Chris Cox will join us as well.

Until then, thanks very much for watching. I'm Wolf Blitzer in New York.

"LIVE FROM" with Kyra Phillips is up next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: The war on terror: arrests in the Spanish train explosions. What is this investigation revealing about global terror tactics?

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I went to Iraq and I was an instrument of violence. And now I have decided to become an instrument of peace.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: Dereliction of duty? A soldier refuses to go back to Iraq. He says it's a matter of conscience.

CALLEBS: In Columbus, Ohio, a possible break in the case of the highway shootings that have terrorized parts of this city for more than 10 months.

(WEATHER REPORT)

PHILLIPS: From the CNN Center in Atlanta, I'm Kyra Phillips...





Iraq; Suspect Identified in Ohio Highway Shootings>


Aired March 16, 2004 - 12:00   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
WOLF BLITZER, CNN ANCHOR: First, these developments.
Israeli attack helicopters take aim at a House in Gaza City. CNN crews in Israel say two people are dead, 10 others wounded. The attack comes days after twin suicide attacks in the Israeli port of Ashdod that killed 10 people.

Police in Iraq say explosives were found along a railway used by coalition troops. Bombs along roadsides are common in Iraq, but a spokesman calls this the first known instance of a train line being targeted. The explosives were diffused.

A missing Army soldier has returned to his Florida National Guard unit, but he says he'll go to prison before he returns to Iraq. Staff Sergeant Camillo Mujillo (ph) says he'll seek to become a conscientious objector. He says the last thing in Iraq was a gunfight he witnessed that resulted in the deaths of civilians.

After the bombings in Spain, two European leaders pledge renewed cooperation in the war on terror. In Paris, the French president, Jacques Chirac, hosted the German chancellor, Gerard Schroeder. The French leader called on Europe to use all of its strength to combat terrorism.

Let's begin with the bombings and the political aftermath in Madrid. The death toll has now climbed beyond 200, and police have made another arrest also this hour. CNN has obtained information that indicates that al Qaeda was apparently planning attacks in Spain to try to topple the country's conservative government. The conservatives backed the war in Iraq and were defeated in national elections three days after the bombings.

We'll get to all of that. But let's go over to the White House right away, where President Bush only a little while ago was asked about terrorism. Our White House correspondent, Dana Bash, is over there covering this part of the story for us -- Dana.

DANA BASH, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Well, Wolf, it was a little bit of diplomatic damage control from the president today. His first public comments since his ally in Spain was defeated. And he used these comments to try to make the case that just because an anti- war candidate won, it doesn't mean that terrorists should get the signal that they have won.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Terrorists will kill innocent life in order to try to get the world to cower. I think they're -- these are cold-blooded killers. I mean, they'll kill innocent people to try to shake our will. That's what they want to do.

And they'll never shake the will of the United States. We understand the stakes. And we will work with our friends to bring justice to the terrorists.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BASH: Now, the president made his remarks in the Oval Office next to the prime minister of the Netherlands, another member of the so-called coalition of the willing, in a situation not that different from Jose Maria Aznar of Spain. He sent troops, a very small contingent, to Iraq over the opposition of most of the people in his country. But Mr. Bush did make the appeal to a Dutch reporter and to the people of the Netherlands that they should not press for his leader, for their leader to pull out troops from Iraq because he said it is absolutely necessary for a free Iraq, for the world to become better and make sure they stay in place and do what it takes -- Wolf.

BLITZER: And, Dana, the president had a dual-pronged swipe, challenge, if you will, to the Democratic presidential candidate, John Kerry, both in his remarks over in the Oval Office as well as in a New ad his campaign is releasing. What can you tell us about both of these?

BASH: Well, first of all, on the president's comments, the White House is continuing to try to challenge Senator Kerry about comments that he made a week ago, essentially suggesting that foreign leaders -- although the quote has been changed a little bit -- but the context they say is the same, that foreign leaders want President Bush defeated. Mr. Bush spoke about that for the first time, and he did so from the Oval Office.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BUSH: I think if you're going to make an accusation in the course of a presidential campaign, you ought to back it up with facts.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BASH: Now, that comment is all part of the New Bush strategy, or I should say stepped-up strategy, to continue to challenge Senator Kerry's credibility. Now, a New part of that tactic today is an ad that is starting to air at this hour in West Virginia.

They're following Senator Kerry there. He's going to make comments to veterans there. And the subject of this New ad is on Iraq, and essentially trying to challenge what Senator Kerry has done, essentially voted for the Iraq resolution and then voted against some funding for some key things, they say, like combat gear and also some more money for troops. And what the Bush campaign is saying is that they are going to continue to make this case because they feel that they are making some headway in the polls and attacking Senator Kerry's credibility. And it should not go unnoticed that this New ad is about Iraq. And the White House is trying to make a PR blitz this week during the year anniversary of the war on Iraq -- Wolf.

BLITZER: The president going after terrorists and John Kerry at the same time. A very different context. Dana Bash at the White House, thanks very much.

And as we reported, police in Spain have made another arrest in connection with the attacks last Thursday. CNN's Al Goodman is standing by live from Madrid with the latest developments -- Al.

AL GOODMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hello, Wolf.

We're waiting for those who have been arrested, five on Saturday, another one arrested late Monday. But we didn't find out about it publicly until today, Tuesday. We're waiting for them to go before a judge at the national court.

That's the court that deals with anti-terrorism issues. But the authorities here under Spain's anti-terrorism law, Wolf, can hold these people for up to five days. So the clock is still running before we have the first arraignment and get further details on the charges.

In the meantime, since authorities say they've identified some men who they believe to be the actual bombers who put the bombs on the trains, one is in custody. Others are at large. So the investigation clearly is continuing.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

GOODMAN (voice-over): A Spanish investigator tells CNN police have identified at least six Moroccans who placed bombs on the Madrid commuter trains last Thursday in Spain's deadliest terrorist attack. One suspect, Jamal Zugam (ph), age 30, was arrested Saturday, but others remain at large. Zugam (ph) owned a home here, modest apartments in eastern Madrid.

Spanish court documents say police searched his home in August 2001 just before the September 11th attacks. He was not arrested then, but police said he had the phone numbers of several men who have since been detained as al Qaeda suspects.

(on camera): Since before the September 11th attacks, Spanish investigators have been trying to connect the dots among various suspected Islamic radicals or terrorists. Sometimes, as in the case of the man who lived here, the arrests have come months or years after the individual first came to the attention of the authorities.

(voice-over): Reports say Zugam (ph) was linked to a cell phone found with an unexploded bomb from last Thursday's attacks. A neighbor says he owned a small telephone business. Court documents say Zugam (ph) was a follower of this man, Iman Edin Barkar Yarkis (ph), in custody as the suspected head of al Qaeda in Spain. Moroccan investigators tell CNN Zugam (ph) also has been linked to two brothers who are in custody in connection with the Casablanca bombings last May that killed several dozen people.

At least six men, three Moroccans, two Indians, and an Algerian, are being heeld since the Madrid bombings. The latest arrest, Basque police in the north city of San Sebastian detained an Algerian man. An official told CNN police remembered threats he had made two months ago that there would be deaths in Atocha. Police didn't give it much credence then, but after the bombs struck the Atocha train station, they went looking for him, too.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

GOODMAN: Now, Wolf, the New socialist prime minister-elect elected in that victory on Sunday that was not expected, an upset victory I want to say on Sunday, is busy making his plans, and all of this with that chilling Web site that CNN has had access to, where al Qaeda operatives apparently predicted this scenario.

They were trying to peel Spain away from the coalition. They thought Spain might be vulnerable. And they thought Spain fight fold after two or three blows.

Now, the socialist leader here has said he would bring Spain's 1,300 troops in Iraq home by next June if the United Nations is not running Iraq by then instead of the U.S.-led coalition. And the socialist leader is sitting there trying to make his plans while this Web site has predicted that this kind of scenario would happen -- Wolf.

BLITZER: CNN's Al Goodman reporting with the latest from Madrid. Al, thanks very much for that report.

Iraq is in the midst of a surge of attacks against civilians who have come to the country to try to help rebuild it. And some of the latest victims include four American missionaries. CNN's Jane Arraf is in Baghdad. She's joining us now live with more.

Jane, what do we know?

JANE ARRAF, CNN BAGHDAD BUREAU CHIEF: Wolf, just wanted to tell you first about the latest developments. Central Baghdad has been rocked by several explosions. We heard five of them. Security sources say they appear to be mortars fired towards the Green Zone.

Now, that is the so-called secure area where the coalition is housed. We're going to get back to you with more details on exactly what that might have been and whether it caused any damage. But explosions here in central Baghdad that appear to be mortars fired at the Green Zone.

Now, those attacks on civilians, one Dutch engineer and one German engineer dead after their vehicles were attacked near the city of Karbala, South of Baghdad, today. Now, that follows an attack on American missionaries.

Now, these were five missionaries traveling near the northern city of Mosul. Four of them have been killed. Another attack on them.

Obviously, missionaries here, despite the fact that they're mostly engaged in humanitarian work, are a very controversial subject in a place that is almost exclusively Muslim. Now, they were traveling near the northern city of Mosul, which has a large Christian population, but they are a very volatile subject and a controversial presence here.

Meanwhile, in that bigger picture, Lieutenant General Ricardo Sanchez, the commander of land forces here, oversaw a ceremony where the 4th Infantry Division in Tikrit, best known for catching Saddam Hussein, handed over to the people replacing them. General Sanchez asked about whether this planned pullout of Spanish forces from the coalition would hinder efforts here. They said that they could handle it.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GEN. RICARDO SANCHEZ, U.S. ARMY: I'm not concerned about that at this point in time. But once again, those are national decisions that have to be made. And as a commander on the ground, once a nation makes those decisions, then we'll adapt.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ARRAF: But obviously, Wolf, in a place where the American military and American civilian occupation forces are trying to gain support for the occupation and for the military presence, any pullout of international troops will cause some problems -- Wolf.

BLITZER: I know, Jane, there are always sensitive issues involving Christian missionaries working in largely Muslim countries. Do the missionaries, the American missionaries who now work in Iraq, some of whom, as you point out, have been killed, do they have the blessing, the authority of the coalition authority, Paul Bremer and company, to go about and do what they do?

ARRAF: The coalition would quite likely be horrified at the thought of many Americans coming here at this point. As much as they like to say that things are improving, that security is improving, that crime is down, no one would really pretend, Wolf, that there is an open invitation out for people to come here and do the kind of work that might place them in jeopardy. And that certainly is a line of work that would be controversial here.

Now, again, most of these groups are engaged in aid projects. And there aren't a lot of them. That has to be said. But it is one of the most volatile points here.

The backdrop of this, of course, is that many people are convinced that this war was fought for religious reasons so the West and Christianity could dominate the Muslim world. So when you add this to the mix, the presence of missionaries, that doesn't go down very well in a lot of communities -- Wolf.

BLITZER: All right. Jane Arraf with the latest on this. Thanks, Jane, very much.

Pakistani officials, meanwhile, reporting they have killed 24 suspected terrorists in a battle along the border with Afghanistan. Our Ash-har Quraishi is joining us now live via videophone from Islamabad with the latest details.

Ash-har, tell us what you know.

ASH-HAR QURAISHI, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Wolf, this operation was launched early in the morning here in Pakistan, following a tip- off received by Pakistani paramilitary troops. Now, this operation was launched in an area known as South Waziristan, in the tribal areas of northwest Pakistan.

Now, first, tribal elders were called in to try to get the suspects to surrender who were holed up in a compound there. A gunfight ensued in which eight Pakistani paramilitary troops were killed. Now, this operation has finally concluded this evening. And according to Pakistani military officials, they say that they have killed 24 suspects and they also have apprehended another 18.

Now, intelligence sources are telling us that the majority of these 24 people who were killed are believed to be foreign suspects. They say possibly al Qaeda. And this is part of an ongoing operation that Pakistan has been carrying out in the tribal areas in the northwest, particularly in South Waziristan, to root out what they say is more than -- hundreds, rather, of suspected al Qaeda terrorists that are taking refuge in the tribal areas of northwest Pakistan -- Wolf.

BLITZER: Ash-har, how unusual is this battle that you've been reporting about and a large number of suspected terrorists killed in this operation? Is this an unusual event, or is this going on without a whole lot of public attention being focused on it?

QURAISHI: Well, officials earlier today were describing it as routine search operations that have been conducted by the paramilitary forces and the Pakistani army as well. They have enlisted the helps of the local tribes as well in the last few weeks and months. And they have been brought in basically to try and help the tribesmen surrender, the ones who may be harboring these suspected terrorists, try and come out in some sort of peaceful way.

But these operations are launched, as they say, on a needed basis, when they get information of any suspects hiding in any particular area that they're interested in apprehending, Wolf. So this is something we've been seeing and will be seeing over the next few months.

BLITZER: All right. Ash-har Quraishi reporting for us from Islamabad. Thanks very much.

Let's go to Gaza right now. There are developments unfolding there involving Israelis and Palestinians. Our Chris Burns is in Gaza. He's joining us on the phone with the latest.

Chris, what do we know there?

CHRIS BURNS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Wolf, violence spiraling once again here. Two people killed, at least, plus 13 wounded in an Israeli -- what the Palestinians are calling an Israeli Apache helicopter attack, firing three missiles into what was a vacant house.

The Israelis say that there were Islamic jihad members inside. It is now confirmed, according to Palestinian sources, that the two dead were Islamic jihad members. And Israel says one of those who they killed was involved in a jeep attack on a border crossing here about a week to 10 days ago.

This also comes as Gaza residents are seeing Israeli forces build up along the border between Gaza and Israel. And there are fears here among the Palestinians that there could be yet another incursion inside Gaza perhaps this evening.

The worry that there are two suicide bombers who attacked Israel just two days ago, the Ashdod port, killing some 10 Israelis. And what Gazans fear is that the Israelis could move in and destroy the two houses of the two suicide bomber's families as Israel has done in the past.

This comes also as today it was widely expected there would be a meeting between the Palestinian and Israeli prime ministers. That meeting has been put off by the Israelis because of the suicide attacks in Ashdod just two days ago -- Wolf.

BLITZER: All right. Chris Burns in Gaza. We'll get back to you. Chris, thanks very much.

We're following other stories, including the lessons learned, the obstacles faced from a year ago in Iraq. Still to come, we'll take a closer look back at the war in Iraq. And we'll go behind the scenes of how it all unfolded over at the Pentagon.

Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: A year ago this coming Friday, President Bush gave the order, attack Iraq. The war was coordinated, of course, from the Pentagon. And right in the middle of all of it was Victoria Clarke. She was then the chief Pentagon spokeswoman. She's behind the scenes -- going to take us a little bit behind the scenes of those intense times right now.

Tory, thanks very much for joining us.

VICTORIA CLARKE, FMR. PENTAGON SPOKESWOMAN: Thank you, Wolf.

BLITZER: It is hard to believe it is almost a year. What goes through your mind as you look back on that time one year ago? CLARKE: You know what I was thinking of this morning when I was headed over here? I remember thinking right up to days before the start of the war, I still thought that maybe it wouldn't happen.

I thought maybe the international pressure that had built up, and clearly the overwhelming superiority of the coalition forces, I thought all that pressure might convince Saddam Hussein to say, you know what, it is not worth it, and for him to give up. So right up until a few days before it actually started, I thought we might not have the war.

BLITZER: I was in Kuwait getting ready to cover the war.

CLARKE: Right.

BLITZER: And all of the journalists, all of the troops who were there, all of us had protective gear, chemical and biological protective equipment, gas masks. We fully expected that there would be weapons of mass destruction used.

CLARKE: Sure.

BLITZER: Obviously none were used. Were you convinced going into the war that you had absolutely no doubt whatsoever that Saddam Hussein had significant stockpiles of chemical and biological weapons?

CLARKE: Well, I don't know about words like "significant," but if you go back and look at what the world believed it knew back then, we thought the French, the Germans, the Russians, the British, the U.N., all fully thought that Saddam Hussein had weapons of mass destruction. If you go back and look at the preamble to all those U.N. resolutions, they say knowing the dangers, the Iraqi regime's weapons of mass destruction posed to the world, we therefore resolve. And it went into all the things that Saddam Hussein should have done but never did in terms of disarming.

So back then the debate was not over whether or not he had weapons of mass destruction. Everyone truly believed he had them. He had used them in the past. It was what we should do about it. So we all went in there with the expectations that you would find weapons of mass destruction.

BLITZER: Had you known then that there were no weapons of mass destruction -- we don't know that 100 percent right now because they're still searching. They theoretically might still find some. But had you known then, do you think the country would have been ready to go to war?

CLARKE: Well, it's a huge hypothetical, Wolf. It's an interesting question, but could you then have had absolute ironclad certainty that they had no weapons of mass destruction? I don't know about that.

I don't know if you could have had that kind of certainty. But you look at what we knew. You know, it is great to do these hypotheticals, but it is more relevant to talk about let's talk about the decision we had -- the decision we made based on the information we in the world had at the time.

He had used chemical weapons, weapons of mass destruction on his own people and his neighbor. He had invaded his neighbor. He had fired ballistic missiles at his neighbors. He had consorted with terrorists of all sizes and shapes.

Clearly, this guy was a threat to the region and the world. So it was the right thing to do. I still believe it was the right thing to do.

BLITZER: In your capacity at that time as the assistant secretary of Defense for Public Affairs, among other things, you had to work out all the details involving the embedding of journalists with the troops moving into Iraq.

CLARKE: Right.

BLITZER: You worked very closely with all the news organizations, the major Washington bureau chiefs. Did the system, did the process work the way you wanted it to?

CLARKE: Wow. It exceeded everybody's expectations. I'm sure it exceeded all of our expectations. I think it exceeded the expectations of most of the news organizations. And I decided that expression "success has a thousand fathers" has New meaning, because nothing important gets done without the inputs of hundreds and thousands of people.

And to your point, the news organizations worked just as hard as we did at building a working relationship and guidelines and policies by which we all could live to bring something home to the American people and publics around the world. Because remember, there were lots of foreign media embedded as well to bring something home in terms of coverage, of combat operations that they had never seen before.

BLITZER: Were there any issues, any incidents that you can remember because journalists were there and privy to sensitive information where national security was significantly compromised or even modestly compromised?

CLARKE: I'd say modestly compromised. And it was literally under a handful of incidents. And they were not journalists that were embedded with forces.

They were journalists that were unilateral, as they were called, or some that had sort of gone from being unilateralists to sort of tagging along with the unit. But again, so much preparation, so much thought and so much responsibility went into how people behaved at the time, both the journalists and the military, that it work out beyond our wildest expectations.

BLITZER: Will there be any turning back the clock? Do you anticipate if there's another major war down the road, journalists will be barred from going in with U.S. military personnel? CLARKE: Boy, I sure hope not. You can't predict for certainty, because every conflict is different, and every circumstance is different. But I think so many people who were doubters and disbeliveers going into that operation became believers having seen what they saw and saw where the positive things shown through.

When the bad things happened, which they always happen in wars, and that's why you always try to avoid them, the bad things got accurate. Comprehensive coverage put in context. I think so many people realized the significance and the positives that I hope that kind of philosophy and approach carries forward.

BLITZER: Victoria Clarke joining us from the Pentagon, her old stomping ground. Thanks very much, Tory, for that.

CLARKE: Thank you, Wolf. Bye.

BLITZER: We'll have more coverage coming up on this first anniversary of the war in Iraq this week. Still to come, I'll speak with retired U.S. Air Force Major General Don Shepherd and CNN security and terror analyst Kelly McCann. We'll get to all of that.

First, this.

SEAN CALLEBS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I'm Sean Callebs in Columbus, Ohio. Coming up, a report on an intensive manhunt for a suspect who could be behind a series of highway shootings that have terrorized parts of this capital city.

BLITZER: All right. Sean, we'll get to you and a little bit of snow out there.

Let's first take a look at how the markets are doing this afternoon. The Dow Jones industrials up a little bit more than 40 points. We're watching Wall Street, we're watching the news.

We'll be back from New York in a moment.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: On the lookout, police across the country are keeping their eyes peeled for Charles McCoy Jr. Ohio authorities believe he may be the person who has been shooting at motorists along Interstate 270.

Sean Callebs is monitoring the manhunt and he's joining us now live from Columbus with more.

Sean, what's going on?

CALLEBS: Well, Wolf, we can tell you we got our hands on a handful of legal documents and court records surrounding 28-year-old Charles McCoy, including an arrest warrant that was issued just yesterday for felonious assault. Now, in it, accuses McCoy of firing a 9-millimeter handgun, two rounds, into an occupied house with the intent to harm someone. Now, ballistic information from two of the bullets retrieved from that house apparently also match fragments retrieved from at least eight of the shooting sites in and around the southern Columbus area. And that is significant.

Now, authorities are also saying they have launched an intensive manhunt for McCoy. They had him under surveillance. He was last seen on Friday. They say he should be considered armed and dangerous.

They're also saying that McCoy is someone who is mentally unstable. They say that he is possibly suicidal, with the potential -- with potentially homicidal tendencies.

Now, authorities had him under surveillance. They say he is 5'7", 185 pounds. He was last seen driving a 1999 green Geo Metro.

He also lived with his mother. And this is significant because that house was basically right in the heart of the I-270 area where many of the shootings took place. There have been 24 separate shootings since May of last year.

We also know that McCoy -- and this is going to be troubling to a lot of people in the area if indeed he is connected to these shootings -- that he received two speeding tickets since May of 2003, since the time that the shootings took place. He paid both of those tickets.

Now, in all of those shootings, of course, there was one fatality. That happened back on November 25th at 9:00, killing a 62- year-old woman in this area.

That's the very latest information from Columbus, Wolf. Back to you.

BLITZER: Sean, do they suspect he was involved as an individual, a sole shooter, their suspicion, in all 24 of these shootings?

CALLEBS: It's very difficult to say, Wolf, because this is an investigation that's really been characterized by authorities as being very tight-lipped. They say they only went public last night because they simply had no idea where the suspect is.

They had him under surveillance. And they're trying to get some information. All they're saying is that he has been charged with felonious assault in connection with that one shooting. And apparently, the ballistic information can be traced to some of those other shootings.

Other than that, we know the search warrants on the house have been sealed, all the other documents have been sealed. So they are really keeping all the information very close to the vest at this time.

BLITZER: Sean Callebs reporting from Columbus. Sean, thanks very much for that report.

And still to come, what's next for U.S. troops and the people of Iraq? After the break, we'll be back with retired U.S. Air Force Major Don Shepherd to talk about the future of the war-torn country.

Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: It's been a year, almost a year, at least Friday it will be a year since the start of the war in Iraq. But there's still no exit date for U.S. troops stationed there. Will a transfer of power to the Iraqis lay the groundwork for an eventual U.S. withdrawal?

Joining us now from Tel Aviv to talk about that and more, CNN military analyst retired U.S. Air Force Major General Don Shepperd.

General Shepperd, thanks very much for joining us. What's the biggest lesson the U.S. military has learned from the war in Iraq?

MAJ. GEN. DON SHEPPERD (RET.), CNN MILITARY ANALYST: Well, I'm not sure it is a new lesson, Wolf. But what we've learned is, running a country, owning a country, is a heck of a lot tougher than fighting the war. The aftermath of the war is enormously difficult as we try to spread security.

And be careful what you wish for. You may get it. We wished for democracy in the Middle East in a country, and we're getting it with all the imperfections and difficulties of democracy, Wolf.

BLITZER: The military went in with a clear game plan to overthrow Saddam Hussein, and it was done by all accounts brilliantly. But was the military prepared for the aftermath of the fall of Saddam Hussein's regime?

SHEPPERD: You know, Wolf, we were prepared for the aftermath. But you always have a plan. Then you have to react to what really happens on the ground.

I think everyone thought that the stabilization process after Saddam was gone would be much easier than it has been. The idea of keeping a civil war from taking place between the Sunni and the Shia and the Kurds is a very, very difficult task that we're at. Also, spreading security over the country is much more difficult than we thought.

So you always have a plan, and then you have to react to what really happens on the ground. It has just been much more difficult, I think, than anyone envisioned. And we're going to be there a while the make it come out right.

BLITZER: I've been getting a lot of conflicting assessments from military experts, retired and current military personnel, who suggest that there may not necessarily be enough U.S. forces on the ground in Iraq right now to effectively get the job done. I know you've studied this matter. You were there not that long ago, spoke with commanders. What do you say about this?

SHEPPERD: Yes. Well, here's my take on that right now. When we were in Iraq a short while ago, we asked every one of those commanders, come on, tell us the truth. Do you really have enough troops or not.?

They all said to a man, look, we have enough troops to do what we are being asked to do right now. On the other hand, if the mission changes, we may need more.

Now, the mission is changing a little bit. And the way it's changing is we're being tasked with stopping infiltration from Syria. That's a long border. It takes a lot more troops. And again, the security situation is much more difficult.

So it may be that we need more troops, but they don't necessarily have to be United States troops. I'm sure we're going to try to get troops from NATO and other nations through the U.N. It will be difficult, but it may be that we need more troops for a longer period of time than we thought, Wolf.

BLITZER: Are the troops who are there, more than 100,000, maybe 110,000, 120,00 U.S. troops who are there, do they have all the equipment they need to protect themselves, specifically the body armor that's so important with these kinds of roadside explosives going on and snipers going after them, not only with rifles but with mortar fire?

SHEPPERD: In a short word, no. They don't have everything they need. We're short of armored vehicles, which is the heavily armored Humvees to take out on patrols that can resist the blast and the fire that's directed at them from RPGs and that type of thing. We're also short on the proper type, the new type of body armor.

But on the other hand, the tactical commanders on the ground, as people go out on patrols and that type of thing, they're ensuring that they're in the right type of vehicles and have the right body armor. They're not putting people in harm's way. And I think we're managing that situation OK, but we've been short on it for quite a while and really are still short on it, Wolf.

BLITZER: I know we only have a few seconds left. I know you're in Tel Aviv right now, General Shepperd. Give us a little flavor of -- you've only been there, I guess, for a little while. We understand there's a lot of military activity going on in Gaza right now. What do you hear from your vantage point?

SHEPPERD: First of all, the attack on Ashdod is very concerning to the Israelis because they don't know how they got into Ashdod, across the fence, if you will. As you know, there have been targeted operations against terrorist activities in Gaza. That's very difficult because of the population there.

One thing that surprises me, there is no sense of real uptight and nervousness among the Israeli population. They have come to live with a certain level of terrorism and realize that they can't prevent it all. They can prevent hopefully the big ones, but they'll have to live with a certain level. There's a certain aura of reality setting in on the population here. But it is going to be busy. And again, it's going to be a long war on terror here, around the world, and in Iraq for us, Wolf.

BLITZER: Retired U.S. Air Force Major General Don Shepherd joining us from Tel Aviv today.

General Shepperd, have a safe trip. We'll see you back here soon. Thanks very much for joining us.

And it's a hazardous and potentially fatal job patrolling the streets of Baghdad. Coming up next, security and terror expert Kelly McCann joins us to discuss the problems of policing in a war zone.

And later, a unique picture of Iraq, literally. Photos worth more than a thousand words.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: Improving security, that's the number one concern of Iraqis, according to a new nationwide poll conducted by ABC News and other news organizations. CNN contributor and security analyst Kelly McCann is joining us now live from Washington to talk about the successes and the hurdles.

Security, a huge problem, obviously, in Iraq. Let's talk about the U.S. military (UNINTELLIGIBLE) right now and how to deal with it. These roadside explosives, mortar fire, are they doing everything they need to do? Is this simply the price of this continuing occupation that they're paying?

KELLY MCCANN, CNN SECURITY ANALYST: It's the shift, Wolf, from combat operations which were aggressive and typified by maneuverability and motion forward to being fixed in place at fixed- point locations where routine can be observed, et cetera. At that point, it is much easier for a maneuverable enemy to hit you. So they are doing what they can.

Now, we are entering about the next four to six months this very tenuous period of the Iraqi Governing Council taking over and, more importantly, the U.S. Army's withdraw and the Marine Corps' movement into the country. There will be a tremendous amount of air assets overland, there will be a lot of overland convoy movements which creates a much greater opportunity for targeting. So there is great concern right now.

BLITZER: You're a retired U.S. Marine special operations officer. Do the Marines have different rules that they use in these kinds of situations than the U.S. Army? The soldiers doing things differently than the Marines would do?

MCCANN: The Marines are typically expeditious. They're not a standing army. So they don't occupy for great periods of time.

There is a basic difference in philosophy. Now, that's not a thing that the Marine Corps says the Army did anything wrong. But they made some drastic movements here.

They changed uniforms. There will be a different uniform on the Marines over there, which, at the ground level, will make a difference. They'll be seen to be different.

The commanding general that commands the division that will be going in there has said, we can be your best friend or we can be your worst enemy. You decide.

They're going in with this kind of cap platoon mentality which is to live among the people, small elements, so they can develop better intelligence and get their feelers out to have a higher visibility patrolling rate. They'll be on foot patrols, as opposed to all mechanized.

There will be some different things. But I think people should look at it as an evolution rather than a right-wrong situation, Wolf.

BLITZER: When you say the Marines will have different uniforms, they'll have different uniforms than the soldiers? Is that what you're saying?

MCCANN: That's correct. They will actually visibly look differently.

The Marine Corps has a proprietary uniform that only they have. And it appears differently. It is a different kind of camouflage. So that will make some grassroots difference. In fact, some intelligence officials said it might be the absolute stroke of this.

BLITZER: I've heard some experts suggest that one of the problems that the soldiers have had is they're going in these convoys on these patrols. They're in vehicles. And you correctly point out, Marines like to walk.

Actually, walking in a patrol is safer than being in a vehicle. Is that right?

MCCANN: It is, because you're out. There's positions of cover. You can basically not present a mass target. You can disperse quickly. Individuals can find cover.

I'll give you one good example. It was said to me that the Army had one particular area in Baghdad they called IED Alley, or improvised explosive device alley. Some of the Marines that I've spoken to have said, we're going to call that sniper alley, because what we're going to do is step off by so many thousands of meters or hundreds of meters and actually be able to control that area as bombers come in to place bombs to engage those people. So it is a different mentality.

BLITZER: What was the major lesson that the Marines learned from the horrible mass killing in Beirut in 1983? I think 241 U.S. Marines were killed in that location. They were there for peacekeeping purposes. What's the lesson they learned, the Marine Corps learned from that incident that they'll apply now as they go in bigger numbers into Iraq?

MCCANN: That's a great question. And that actually -- those lessons have played out in places like Haiti. During 1994, there was an incident where the Marines actually engaged some Haitians that came around basically brandishing weapons and threatening.

In Somalia, the same way. The FAST platoons, the Fleet Anti Terrorist Security teams, actually engaged a lot of the technicals which basically prevented greater injury and greater attacks.

I think that the philosophy now is the promotion of, we will fight -- the Marines are all saying, we will engage you. Don't make that mistake that was made in Beirut, where weapons were not loaded, where it was very, very passive. Again, be your best friend or your worst enemy, Wolf.

BLITZER: CNN security analyst Kelly McCann. Kelly, thanks very much for joining us.

MCCANN: Pleasure, Wolf.

BLITZER: It's a revealing view from the front lines. Each shot captured in a split second. Coming up next, the celebrated photojournalist shares her special work from the war in Iraq.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: Photojournalists captured some of the most memorable images from the war in Iraq. They had unprecedented access as embedded photographers with the U.S. troops.

Cheryl Diaz Meyer is a senior staff photographer at The Dallas Morning News. Her new work is featured in the documentary entitled "Eyewitness in Iraq." It airs tonight 10:00 p.m. Eastern on the "History Channel."

Cheryl, good work. Thanks very much for joining us.

We have a whole bunch of your pictures that you shot with the troops. Let's put some of them up on the screen right now. You see this first one we're seeing right there. What exactly are we seeing?

CHERYL DIAZ MEYER, THE DALLAS MORNING NEWS: That is the result of an accident where a minibus tried to run a checkpoint about 50 feet from where the command center was with the 2nd Tank Battalion 1st Marine Division. And sandwiched between two vehicles, they ran the checkpoint, and the driver and a number of civilians were killed.

BLITZER: All right. Let's put another picture up and get your thoughts. Obviously, a U.S. soldier. What happened? Give us the context of what was going on here.

MEYER: This was the exact same intersection south of Baghdad. It was the day after we had sustained a number of attacks in the camp. And these men were holding the checkpoint.

BLITZER: And you were right there. All right. Let's get to the next one. You see this soldier here. Do you remember this photo?

MEYER: Yes, absolutely. That is one of the medics that I was riding in the vehicle with, and the day after the biggest battle day for the 2nd Tank Battalion. So this was April 5th. There were four dead, I think, and 17 injured, and a good number of civilians injured as well. And he was cleaning up the cots of all the blood.

BLITZER: Speaking of civilians, look at this one. Clearly a very moving photo. What was the context?

MEYER: This, again, is surrounding the same situation. These were survivors from the minibus, and other people who were trying to cross the checkpoint area and were being held by the Marines. This woman...

BLITZER: Cheryl, when you were embedded with the troops, did you see civilians getting killed?

MEYER: Yes. Yes, absolutely.

BLITZER: So you remember those images very clearly in your mind. What is this photo?

MEYER: Actually, I'm sorry, but that is not one of mine.

BLITZER: This one was not?

MEYER: No.

BLITZER: All right. Well, it's U.S. soldiers seem to be helping a man. This was a close-up shot of someone who looks like he's taking aim.

MEYER: I am sorry, but that is also not my photo.

BLITZER: All right. Well there are other photographers who have been highlighted in this documentary tonight as well. I think we have a few more. Was this one of your pictures?

MEYER: No. There's a photo of a man removing a fuel bladder (ph), which is mine.

BLITZER: It looked like it was a dust storm that was going on, something not unusual during those early days of the war, as many of us remember. As you look back, Cheryl, now, on that experience, being an embedded photojournalist the U.S. troops going in, what stands out in your mind? What do you want to share with our viewers on this one- year anniversary?

MEYER: I think that, you know, what our original intent was in going into Iraq is not fully clear, but in the meanwhile, U.S. military and the civilians of Iraq have suffered so many casualties. And for all of that, I just hope that something good comes of this. That in the end, Iraq will be a better country because of it.

BLITZER: Did you at the time when you were there embedded with the troops, did you get the kind of access you really wanted, looking back on that experience?

MEYER: Yes. Actually, surprisingly so.

I had a lot of fears that once we were embedded that we would be controlled by the particular military group that we would be embedded with. But, as a matter of fact, I was embed with the 2nd Tank Battalion, as I said earlier, and Lieutenant Colonel Michael Oll (ph) was a very, very generous and good man. And he welcomed us with a lot of hospitality, and he let us do our work with the understanding that certain things could endanger the mission and that we should be respectful of that.

BLITZER: Cheryl Diaz Meters, a senior staff photographer with The Dallas Morning News. Good work, Cheryl. Thanks very much for joining us.

MEYER: Thanks for having me, Wolf.

BLITZER: And I'll be back later today, every weekday, 5:00 p.m. Eastern, for "WOLF BLITZER REPORTS." Joining me later today, Richard Holbrooke, the former U.S. ambassador to the United Nations. Among other things, we'll discuss the 2004 presidential elections.

Also, Republican Congressman Chris Cox will join us as well.

Until then, thanks very much for watching. I'm Wolf Blitzer in New York.

"LIVE FROM" with Kyra Phillips is up next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: The war on terror: arrests in the Spanish train explosions. What is this investigation revealing about global terror tactics?

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I went to Iraq and I was an instrument of violence. And now I have decided to become an instrument of peace.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: Dereliction of duty? A soldier refuses to go back to Iraq. He says it's a matter of conscience.

CALLEBS: In Columbus, Ohio, a possible break in the case of the highway shootings that have terrorized parts of this city for more than 10 months.

(WEATHER REPORT)

PHILLIPS: From the CNN Center in Atlanta, I'm Kyra Phillips...





Iraq; Suspect Identified in Ohio Highway Shootings>