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The Situation Room

Breakthrough in Murder Mystery of JonBenet Ramsey; Lebanese Troops To Deploy in South Lebanon; Woman Aboard Washington-Bound Plane Faces Charges

Aired August 16, 2006 - 19:00   ET

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

WOLF BLITZER, CNN ANCHOR: Thanks very much, Lou. And to our viewers, you're in THE SITUATION ROOM where new pictures and information are arriving all the time. Standing by CNN reporters across the United States and around the world to bring you tonight's top stories.
Happening now, it's 5:00 p.m. in Boulder, Colorado where there's a stunning breakthrough in a 10-year-old murder mystery. A suspect arrested overseas is heading back to face charges in the killing of JonBenet Ramsey.

It's 2:00 a.m. here in the Middle East where Lebanese troops get the go ahead to deploy in south Lebanon just hours from now. In Israel, a new commission will look into the conduct of the war with Hezbollah.

And it's 7:00 p.m. in Boston where fighter planes escort a transatlantic flight diverted after a mid-air struggle. Why a 60- year-old woman faces charges right now.

I'm Wolf Blitzer and you're in THE SITUATION ROOM.

She was beaten. She was strangled. Her lifeless body left lying in her basement one day after Christmas almost 10 years ago. Right now there's breaking news of an arrest in the slaying of 6-year-old JonBenet Ramsey. We have several reports.

Our Mary Snow is in New York. Rusty Dornin is at the CNN Center. Tom Foreman is in Washington, but let's begin with CNN justice correspondent Kelli Arena also in Washington. Kelli, what do we know?

KELLI ARENA, CNN JUSTICE CORRESPONDENT: Wolf, the arrest warrant was issued last night in Bangkok, Thailand. Now the Ramsey family was notified and there is a press conference scheduled for tomorrow afternoon. Here's what we know. Law enforcement officials say that his name is John Mark Karr. He's 41 years old. He's American and was a schoolteacher.

The Boulder, Colorado District Attorney's Office is the lead in this investigation, Wolf, it always has been. In a statement it said that the suspect was arrested on August 16, following several months of a focused and complex investigation. Investigators have told me that Karr is a relatively new name in this investigation.

He is not someone that they looked at before. Karr is expected to be transferred to the U.S. pretty soon under escort by Immigration and Customs enforcements agents. ICE put out a statement also saying that it was pleased to assist in helping locate the suspect. The Department of Justice also says that it helped facilitate the arrest warrant, but remember, Wolf, this is a state case, the D.A.'s office in Boulder not divulging much more at this point.

BLITZER: Kelli Arena, thank you very much. Our Rusty Dornin is at the CNN Center in Atlanta with more on this story -- Rusty.

RUSTY DORNIN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Wolf, we are hearing report that John Mark Karr at one time did live in Conyers, Georgia. We have not confirmed that as of yet. John Ramsey though is speaking to KUSA in Denver, did say that he did not want to comment about the case or about the suspect, but did have some interesting things to say about the fact that his wife did know about the investigation into the suspect before her death.

He said I do not want to say that the investigation of the individual arrested today is in connection with JonBenet's death was discussed with Patsy and me by the Boulder District Attorney's Office prior to Patsy's death in June. So Patsy was aware that authorities were close to making an arrest in the case and had she lived to see this day would no doubt have been as pleased as I am with today's development almost 10 years after our daughter's murder.

Words cannot adequately express my gratitude for the efforts of Boulder District Attorney Mary Lacy and the members of her investigative team. The interesting thing is that is the one agency we have not heard from yet. John Ramsey giving an interview, federal officials commenting that they had a hand in the case, but from what we understand the Boulder District Attorney's Office will not be giving any kind of press conference until some time tomorrow -- Wolf.

BLITZER: All right, Rusty, thank you. CNN's Tom Foreman extensively covered the Ramsey case nearly 10 years ago. He's joining us in Washington with more. Give us some perspective on what you're picking up, Tom.

TOM FOREMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Wolf, if you look at what the D.A.'s office is doing right now, which is playing their cards very close to their chest, it makes a lot of sense. There was much criticism early on in the way the police handled this case, how they handled the Ramsey family, how they handled the evidence involved.

There are questions of whether or not there were any DNA samples, if so, were they big enough or pure enough that they would be useful at this point in connecting it to this man that they picked up now. There are many, many legal questions about the prosecution of this case. The D.A.'s office has to be highly aware of that, no doubt that explains why they're being so careful with how they proceed from this point because for 10 years people have been saying even if somebody is arrested, proving it, getting a conviction could be very, very difficult -- Wolf.

BLITZER: Tom, thank you. Our David Mattingly is in Atlanta and he spoke earlier today with a family spokesperson. What did you pick up, David?

DAVID MATTINGLY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Wolf, we heard just a short time ago from Lin Wood. He's the civil attorney who's represented the Ramseys over the past few years. He gave a brief news conference talking to reporters saying that they've known this day has been coming. They've been hoping this day has been coming, but they still were not emotionally prepared for this and they're still working through those emotions and he had this to say.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

LIN WOOD, RAMSEY FAMILY ATTORNEY: He's managed to survive by never getting too high and probably by never getting too low. I know that he feels some sense of relief. I know that he feels that this is a major step, potentially, in the final resolution of the case. We may be and I say may be, one step closer to a final resolution of the case...

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MATTINGLY: And as you know, Patsy Ramsey died of cancer two months ago. We have been told, however that the Ramseys were aware that an arrest was in the works at that time. The attorney today saying that he learned at Patsy Ramsey's funeral of a federal investigation ongoing into this and that an arrest was coming. So, still, plenty of time to prepare, but nothing, Wolf, would prepare them for the emotions of this day.

BLITZER: What a stunning development today. Thank you very much, David Mattingly reporting. The killing of JonBenet Ramsey was unusual right from the very beginning. CNN's Mary Snow is joining us now live with a look back at the twists and turns of this rather extraordinary case -- Mary.

MARY SNOW, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Wolf, the case captivated the nation. There was a frenzy of media coverage and no shortage of theories about what happened to JonBenet Ramsey.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SNOW (voice-over): The mystery of JonBenet Ramsey's death a decade ago outlived the length of her short life that ended when she was just 6. The child beauty pageant star was strangled with a piece of rope and her skull was fractured. The day after Christmas 1996 mother Patsy reports finding a two and a half page ransom note on a staircase demanding $118,000 in ransom. Eight hours after that, JonBenet's father John reports finding his daughter's body in the basement of the family's Boulder, Colorado home. The family buries their little girl wearing a tiny tiara, then gives an exclusive interview to CNN the following day.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: There is a killer on the loose.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Absolutely.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I don't know who it is. I don't know if it's a he or a she, but if I were a resident of Boulder I would tell my friends to keep -- keep your babies close to you. There's someone out there.

SNOW: The Ramseys' relationship with authorities quickly turned cold when suspicions resolved around the family. JonBenet's adult half- brother, half-sister and 9-year-old brother were officially cleared, but her parents were not.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They do remain under an umbrella of suspicion, but we're not ready to name any suspects.

SNOW: The Ramseys waged a very public fight with scathing criticism of the police. They offered a $100,000 reward for information about JonBenet's killer. By October of 1999 a grand jury investigating the case returned no indictments, with prosecutors citing a lack of sufficient evidence, but it didn't stop the speculation. And JonBenet's mother Patsy Ramsey would not live to see any arrests made. She died of ovarian cancer in June.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

SNOW: Now in 2003 a federal judge dismissed a lawsuit against the Ramseys, blaming both the FBI and the police for bungling the case -- Wolf.

BLITZER: Mary Snow reporting from New York. Thanks very much. We're going to have a lot more coming up on this major development, a possible break in this 10-year-old mystery. Who killed JonBenet Ramsey? That's coming up later in THE SITUATION ROOM.

In the meantime let's check in with Jack Cafferty. He's in New York with "The Cafferty File" -- Jack.

JACK CAFFERTY, CNN ANCHOR: Wolf, lest we forget there's a war going in Iraq and while the news media was obsessed with covering the war in Lebanon for the last month, the war in Iraq was all but ignored. Consider this, though, more than three times as many people died in Iraq in the last month as were killed in Lebanon, almost 3,500 Iraqi civilians.

According to one report, during the first six months of this year the three network evening newscasts spent about 39 minutes a week on the war in Iraq. Once the fighting started, though, between Israel and Hezbollah that number dropped to 13 minutes a week. During the last seven weeks, the networks spent a total of 94 minutes covering Iraq versus 510 minutes covering the war in Lebanon. And during this time, things in Iraq were going from bad to worse.

The rising death toll suggests a civil war is probably well underway by now. It also shows that the new Baghdad security plan, supported by Iraqi and American officials is a complete failure in a place that has come to symbolize failure. So here's the question, in light of the war between Israel and Hezbollah, are the media paying enough attention to Iraq? E-mail your thoughts to CaffertyFile@CNN.com or go to CNN.com/CaffertyFile -- Wolf. BLITZER: Thank you very much, Jack Cafferty reporting for us. Once again, we're following this major development, a break, possible break in the murder mystery of JonBenet Ramsey. A suspect picked up, arrested in Bangkok, Thailand today. We're watching this. We'll have more on this story coming up.

Also coming up, Lebanese troops preparing to move into south Lebanon. Will Israeli troops continue to move out?

And a scare in a mid air flight, the flight diverted with fighter escort. Was airline security up to the task?

And he's known for being outspoken. Now Iran's president airs his views on the Internet.

Live from Jerusalem, you're in THE SITUATION ROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: We're following the breaking news out of Bangkok, Thailand, where a suspect has been arrested in the case of JonBenet Ramsey, an individual, a U.S. citizen known as John Mark Karr -- K-A- R-R, not C-A-R-R, K-A-R-R, a 41-year-old schoolteacher. We're watching this story. We're going to have much more coming up.

A possible break in the murder mystery surrounding JonBenet Ramsey 10 years, almost 10 years to the day since she died. We're watching the story, we'll get more for you on that this hour, but there's other important news we're following especially here in the Middle East. There are new efforts to protect the very fragile peace between Israel and Hezbollah. The Israeli military now says it has begun handing over captured territory to U.N. peacekeepers.

While in Beirut the Lebanese Cabinet agreed to deploy 15,000 Lebanese army troops south of the Litani River beginning just hours from now. The Cabinet does not require Hezbollah to give up its weapons. Israel's army chief now says his troops won't leave Lebanon completely until a multinational force arrives even if that takes months. And a former Israeli army chief will lead a special inquiry into the handling of the war against Hezbollah.

Brent Sadler is in Beirut. Let's go to Chris Lawrence first, though, he's standing by in northern Israel -- Chris.

CHRIS LAWRENCE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Wolf, the thing about this news that jumps out at me is that it is contingent on two things. That one, that the Lebanese army is able to control that area which is not a given when you consider that an armed Hezbollah will still be a factor in the region. Also, it is also contingent on the fact that the UNIFIL forces are sufficiently reinforced. That depends on countries like France, Italy, Germany that have pledged say two, three, 4,000 troops that they actually send that many and also having to deal with the issue of countries like Malaysia, which has no diplomatic relations with Israel, and Israel has said that if it has no diplomatic relations with the country, it does not want that country to be a part of this multinational force. (BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

(SOUNDS)

LAWRENCE (voice-over): Three days in and the cease-fire holds. But Israel had threatened to stop its pullout from south Lebanon until the Lebanese army agreed to deploy across the Litani River by Thursday. Hezbollah has refused to disarm and reiterated its right to fight Israeli soldiers still in the country.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The question is, is the job finished or not?

LAWRENCE: This injured soldier's eye took the brunt of a Katyusha rocket. He suggests Israel's pullout may have come too soon.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Hezbollah still wants to destroy Israel and so do a lot of our neighbors, so it's not, you know, it's not peace, it's a cease-fire.

LAWRENCE: Israeli Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni said Israel's war with Hezbollah is not over and won't be until U.N. peacekeepers join the Lebanese army along the border as ordered in the U.N. resolution.

TZIPI LIVNI, ISRAELI FOREIGN MINISTER: A full implementation of resolution 1701 can lead to a change in the region in Lebanon and lead to a better future for us all. We must ensure that the end result of the process will be the full and complete disarmament of Hezbollah.

LAWRENCE: While negotiations continue, some Israelis are returning home, but evidence of the war is everywhere, including craters from Katyusha rockets buried in the middle of busy streets.

(on camera): Even the hospital itself took a direct hit. A Katyusha landed right here and injured several of the patients inside.

(voice-over): This woman was hit by a separate rocket just hours before the cease-fire took effect. Dana Bench Shlomo (ph) says the Katyushas damaged more than just her body. They punctured a myth that she and other Israelis were safe from Hezbollah.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translator): They could fire Katyushas any day. The kids are outside playing, it's frightening. It's very hard to go back to a routine.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (SPEAKING FOREIGN LANGUAGE)

LAWRENCE: Doctors across northern Israel say cases of post-traumatic stress are soaring.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LAWRENCE: Here the bombs have stopped falling now, but the families here will be dealing with the fall out from that for quite some time -- Wolf.

BLITZER: Chris thanks very much. Let's go to Beirut. Brent Sadler, our Beirut chief, is there with the latest from that end of the story -- Brent.

BRENT SADLER, CNN BEIRUT BUREAU CHIEF: Wolf, Lebanese army troops are at this hour preparing to cross the Litani River, that's 18 miles north of the Israeli border. We do have eyes on the ground that report that they are building bridges, the army's building temporary bridges over the Litani to replace crossings that were smashed by Israeli air strikes during the war, but when the Lebanese army deploys, that by no means is going to be the end of the problem and may create further difficulties ahead.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SADLER (voice-over): Lebanese army troops may have been assigned an impossible mission, to take control of battle-scarred territory in south Lebanon where Hezbollah guerillas have roamed freely for six years. Under a complex military plan as Israeli troops vacate positions under a phased withdrawal, United Nations forces will take over. The U.N. would then hand over responsibility to Lebanese troops, a process that could take weeks or months. Lebanon's Cabinet decided to go ahead with the plan after days of uncertainty because of Hezbollah objections, especially to U.N. demands that Hezbollah's fighters give up their weapons and disappear from the battle zones.

FOUAD SINIORA, LEBANESE PRIME MINISTER: There won't be any weapons other than weapons of the central government.

SADLER: But in its final decision the Lebanese Cabinet ministers including two from Hezbollah avoided a definition of what would happen to Hezbollah fighters and their weapons now or in the future.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (INAUDIBLE)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: OK.

SADLER: Lebanese President Emile Lahoud made this clear.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (SPEAKING FOREIGN LANGUAGE)

SADLER: Hezbollah resistance weapons are the only weapons (INAUDIBLE) he said. Be assured no one can disarm the resistance by force. Most experts expect that Hezbollah fighters will mix in with the local population and hide their weapons as Lebanese and U.N. troops arrive. A vague compromise that may undermine international efforts to reinforce some 2,000 U.N. troops already in south Lebanon with a stronger, better equipped force, a key Israeli condition under the U.N. cease-fire resolution.

LIVNI: I think that this is a moment of truth for the international community. A full implementation of resolution 1701 can lead to a change in the region in Lebanon and lead to a better future for us all.

SADLER: Turkey could also be a key troop contributor, but involved nations like these may have second thoughts about sending troops to a war zone where a low profile, but still armed Hezbollah is a threat.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

SADLER: Wolf, Israel says it's still at war with Hezbollah. A war that can't possibly begin to end until there's full compliance with that U.N. cease-fire resolution or until Hezbollah returns those two soldiers whose abductions sparked the latest Middle East conflict -- Wolf.

BLITZER: Brent Sadler reporting in Beirut. Thank you. And still to come tonight in THE SITUATION ROOM authorities make an arrest in a very cold case, the 10-year-old killing of young JonBenet Ramsey. We'll have more details coming up.

And an airliner diverted with a fighter escort after a security scare. Would the U.S. military ever shoot down a civilian airliner?

Live from Jerusalem, you're in THE SITUATION ROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: Once again, there's been an arrest in the 10-year-old murder mystery involving JonBenet Ramsey, details coming up. Let's check in though with Zain Verjee. She's taking a closer look at some other stories making news -- Zain.

ZAIN VERJEE, CNN ANCHOR: Wolf, hi. The Associated Press is now reporting that Scotland Yard has released one person that was arrested in the foiled airline terror plot. In a statement according to The Associated Press, British police are saying that suspect has been released without charge. The suspect had been arrested on Monday. As you know, Wolf, the alleged plot was essentially to blow up U.S.-bound airlines in mid air and it involved the smuggling of liquids, apparently as explosives and disguised as drinks. As you know as well, it triggered a massive security situation as well as travel chaos, but that's what we're learning just now from The Associated Press. We'll bring you more details when we have them.

Investigators say they found no evidence of explosives in a shipping container at the Port of Seattle. The port's terminal 18 was evacuated because of an alert triggered by bomb-sniffing dogs this afternoon. The incident originated when a terminal operator became suspicious about two containers from Pakistan. Port police, Customs agents, the Coast Guard and Seattle police, as well as fire officials were all involved.

Reputed Mexican drug lord Javier Arellano-Felix is in U.S. custody. U.S. authorities say the notorious international fugitive was nabbed by the Coast Guard from a fishing vessel 15 miles off Mexico's coast, several other companions were also detained. He's believed to be the mastermind behind an intricate network of tunnels between the California-Mexico border. The tunnels were only recently discovered -- Wolf.

BLITZER: Zain, thank you. And just ahead, more on the breaking news we're following, the arrest in the killing of JonBenet Ramsey. We're standing by for more details and another story we're following. A scare onboard a transatlantic flight to the United States. Why were fighter jets scrambled?

Live from Jerusalem, you're in THE SITUATION ROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: To our viewers, you're in THE SITUATION ROOM where new pictures and information are arriving all the time. Happening now, a cold case cracked. A suspect arrested abroad is being brought back to Colorado to face charges in the 10-year-old JonBenet Ramsey murder.

Keeping the peace, Israeli troops begin handing over captured territory to U.N. forces and the Lebanese army is also due to begin moving south in the hours ahead.

And a passenger plane is diverted after a mid air confrontation over the Atlantic. A 60-year-old woman faces charges.

I'm Wolf Blitzer. You're in THE SITUATION ROOM.

More now on that breaking news we've been following, the arrest that some are hoping will finally crack a very cold case. A man is now under arrest in the killing of 6-year-old JonBenet Ramsey who was strangled and whose body was left lying in her basement one day after Christmas almost 10 years ago.

Joining us now from Los Angeles, the famed criminal defense attorney Robert Shapiro, our CNN senior legal analyst Jeff Toobin is joining us on the phone, and in Washington CNN's Tom Foreman, who spent years covering this story.

Let me start with you, Tom. John Mark Karr, K-A-R-R, 41 years old, described as a former teacher, picked up in Bangkok, Thailand under suspicion in the murder of JonBenet Ramsey. You covered this on a day by day basis 10 years ago. How much of a surprise is this?

FOREMAN: This is a huge surprise, Wolf. Many of us who covered this case felt there would never, ever be an arrest and this is a name we've never, ever heard before. There were many people who came up early on who had some connection to the family but because of the intimate nature of the crime. The fact that it was committed in the home with no sign of forced entry, on Christmas Night, the body was left there, the ransom note when it appeared to be a kidnapping contained intimate details about the family and it was written on a pad of paper from the house.

All of this early on is suggested that if it was an outsider who did it, it was an outsider with unusual knowledge of the family and unusual access to commit such an extraordinary crime. This is a huge surprise to everybody involved. Frankly, I think this is a huge surprise to some of the people who investigated it early on, Wolf?

BLITZER: Jeff Toobin, you covered this case, the JonBenet Ramsey case 10 years ago as well. Same question to you, how surprised are you by this arrest?

JEFFREY TOOBIN, CNN LEGAL ANALYST: Flabbergasted, stunned. Shocked. I would have bet anything that this would have been -- this crime would never have been solved.

However, I think there has been one development in the case in the quiet years of this investigation, in 2003 when JonBenet's underwear was tested for DNA using new, more sophisticated tests, was there the identified DNA of an unidentified male. That has never been tied to anyone.

It pretty much excluded any family member as a suspect because the DNA was not tied to a family member, but that piece of evidence -- again, this is speculation, but it could have led to a cold hit against, this Karr fellow, it could have led to a piece of evidence that led to him or it could have had nothing to do with it, but that just showed that the investigation, even though all these years had passed, had not completely stopped and an important piece of evidence came out seven years after she died.

BLITZER: Robert Shapiro, this individual, this John Mark Karr, 41 years old, picked up, arrested in Bangkok, Thailand. If they want to get DNA from him, maybe they already did get DNA maybe there is a DNA match, maybe not, but what would be the normal procedure to pick up a guy like this, question him, get DNA and see if there's a match to that underwear?

ROBERT SHAPIRO, ATTORNEY: Well, the normal procedure, Wolf would be for the arresting authorities to get a search warrant just for a swab of the mouth, but there's many, many ways to get DNA. They can get it from a hair sample, from any type of bodily fluid whatsoever.

So that is not going to be a challenge for the investigating officers in the prosecution. The challenge is going to be to be able to link up evidence 10 years later and the speculation is that it's going to be some type of forensic evidence, but additionally, there may have been some communications either by e-mail or otherwise that were intercepted by law enforcement that have led for them to focus suspicion on and have enough probable cause to make this arrest.

BLITZER: There's some suspicion already, Robert Shapiro, that this individual might be talking, our affiliate KUSA says that apparently in some of the conversations he's had out in Bangkok, Thailand. I'm not exactly sure with whom, whether Thai authorities or U.S. authorities, he was providing details about this case that were not made public, that were not well known. What do you make of that?

SHAPIRO: Well, that is always something that's going to be very, very favorable for the prosecution if in fact they can get a suspect to begin to talk and talk himself into some aspects of the case that will prove to be significant and prove to link him eventually to this horrendous murder.

BLITZER: And you know, Tom Foreman, you covered this case almost from day one when you were out there in Denver. The family, the parents, Patsy Ramsey who tragically died only in July after a bout with ovarian cancer. John Ramsey, the father, as you know and remind our viewers there was always a cloud hanging over them.

FOREMAN: There always was and I think until there is some decision on this there still will be simply because of what I was talking about before. The nature of the crime was so unusual. The details in the ransom note, the details of how this person did or did not get into the house. The hiding of the body within the house. The fact that the body was found ultimately by John Ramsey after the police had searched the home and could not find it, all of that raised this enormous cloud of suspicion which has been there all along and many of us said long before today, either the Ramseys were involved and they've been suspected all these years and they were not involved and they lost a child and the killer was not caught all these years.

Either one of which is a terrible thing to contemplate. So I think for a lot of people moving to this step, it's a big important step.

BLITZER: And Jeff Toobin, apparently Patsy Ramsey was informed by authorities even before she died, a few weeks ago, that there was a suspect that was now in the picture. That must have been reassuring to her. We know she died only a few weeks ago.

TOOBIN: It's hard to describe anything coming out of this case as good, but I suppose it is better that she knew that there was a possible break in the case before she died, but just to reiterate what Tom said, here are these people who suffered the incredible tragedy of losing a six-year-old daughter which is a loss that no one could recover from in and of itself, but then to spend all these years as a suspect and to be belittled and insulted and accused in the news media, if not in court, it's just a horrific story for the Ramsey family.

BLITZER: Bob Shapiro. We're told that this suspect is now going to be brought back to Colorado from Bangkok, Thailand. Walk us through the process briefly. What happens next?

SHAPIRO: One of two things. First, he's entitled to an extradition hearing which he can have in the country where he's arrested and probable cause determination would have to be made under the Geneva Convention rules to see whether or not he is a person who can be extradited back to the United States or he can simply waive extradition and agree to come back voluntarily.

BLITZER: What a case. What a story. We'll stay on top of it, Bob Shapiro, thanks very much. Jeff Toobin, Tom Foreman. Thanks to you as well.

Up ahead tonight, we're following other important stories. Were Internet cafes in Britain being used to plot the deaths of innocent air passengers? We are going to have the latest on the alleged plot blow up planes between Britain and the U.S. And with nervous officials and jittery air travelers, any bizarre move by a passenger just might raise an international alarm. It's precisely what happened today. Our Brian Todd is standing by with details on the scare in the air.

Live from Jerusalem, you're in THE SITUATION ROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) BLITZER: In our CNN "Security Watch", the fears and jitters of a post-9/11 world. Right now in Massachusetts a woman is in custody after her actions on a transatlantic flight prompted fighter jets to scramble and for the plane to be diverted. Our Brian Todd has more from Boston. Brian?

BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Wolf, a United Airlines official tells CNN the woman who caused the disturbance onboard Flight 923 had started on an Emirates Airline flight in Dubai. Then on the United flight from London to Washington, law enforcement officials and passengers say she became agitated.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

TODD (voice-over): Passenger Mark Lewis says he was sitting right behind the distraught woman.

MARK LEWIS, PASSENGER: She was acting very, very odd way. Started to get a bit strange with everyone. She seemed to want everybody's attention all of the time including the pilot and co- pilot.

TODD: Lewis says the woman who he claims was American and looked like his grandmother kept trying to pass notes to the crew. A U.S. law enforcement official tells CNN the woman had a note in her possession, the contents not released, along with a lighter and a screwdriver.

U.S. and British security officials say she had hand cream and matches. Some matches are allowed on transatlantic flights, they say, but hand cream is not. After the flight was diverted and fighter jets escorted the plane to Boston's Logan Airport, everyone's possession were laid out on the tarmac. Passengers we spoke to say the woman was eventually subdued. They say the crew handled the incident well and some said at first they didn't realize anything was happen.

ROWAN WILSON, PASSENGER: Within two hours of expected arrival we knew something was going and I started to get a bit nervous.

TODD: Mark Lewis says the woman's location onboard made him nervous.

LEWIS: She was actually sitting next to the emergency exit over the wing and that was very strange because it was a bit unnerving to be near that when she was close to all of the handles. You know? You're at 32,000 feet, you don't want someone to open the door at that height, do you?

(END VIDEOTAPE)

TODD (on camera): The woman was later taken into the custody of U.S. marshals. Officials at the U.S. attorney's office in Boston tells CNN they anticipate filing federal criminal charges, but they say at this time there's no evidence to suggest that this incident was related to terrorism. Wolf? BLITZER: Brian, thank you. And as we reported when the plane signaled it had a problem with the passenger, the U.S. military swung right into action, but to protect Americans would the military have launched a controversial defense tactic? Our pentagon correspondent Barbara Starr has more, Barbara?

BARBARA STARR, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Wolf, what happens when the security measures on the ground don't work? What's the next step once a plane is in the air?

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

STARR (voice-over): When the pilot of United Airlines Flight 923 diverted its plane to Boston's Logan Airport, he had company. The U.S. military. Within minutes, two armed F-15 fighters scrambled, escorting the airliner. Once again, the question, would the U.S. military ever shoot down a civilian airliner even if it meant death and destruction on the ground? Since 9/11, the answer is yes.

CLARK KENT ERVIN, CNN SECURITY ANALYST: The procedures have been put in place to make the process of doing that if it proves to be necessary much more smooth than they were on 9/11.

STARR: Procedures are classified that but it is generally understood that in such a dire situation, the shoot down order would have to come directly from the president.

ERVIN: The president can do so, of course, the vice president can do so and the secretary of defense can do so if that proved to be necessary, God forbid.

STARR: A senior general monitoring the situation at the time could also step in and make the call.

A shoot down order against a passenger plane would likely happen after a pilot loses control of the cockpit to a hijacker and measures such as radios, lights and diversionary tactics to get a plane to land had failed. On 9/11, jets were scrambled but didn't reach any of the planes in time, now the FAA and the military had 24/7 communications, so response times are quicker.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

STARR (on camera): Most of the time when military jets scramble it's to warn small planes away from restricted airspace such as happened in May 2005 when military jets scrambled when a small plane flew over Washington, DC, forcing the evacuation of several buildings. Wolf?

BLITZER: Barbara, thanks very much. Coming up, more on the arrest of the suspect and the murder of JonBenet Ramsey. That's coming up. Also an Internet cafe near London becomes the target of an urgent police anti-terror raid. We're going to take you inside. We'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) BLITZER: We're following the breaking news on the arrest of a suspect in Bangkok, Thailand. A U.S. citizen in connection with the murder of JonBenet Ramsey nearly 10 years ago. Our justice correspondent Kelli Arena is picking up some potentially, very significant information, Kelli?

ARENA: Some new details for you, Wolf, John Mark Karr is our suspect and according to law enforcement officials Karr confessed to some of the elements of the crime.

The crime, of course, being the murder of JonBenet Ramsey. Those law enforcement officials say that Karr had been communicating on and off with somebody, an individual in Boulder who was working with law enforcement officials. And investigators tell me that Karr's online communications were a key part of this investigation.

The officials that I spoke to say actually the story is a fascinating one, but they are reluctant to put out details. As you know, Wolf, the Boulder, Colorado, district attorney's office is the lead here and we're waiting to hear more from them at a press conference tomorrow.

BLITZER: Do we have any idea, Kelli, when this suspect will be brought to the United States?

ARENA: We don't know. I'm told that that will happen soon and when he is, he'll be escorted by agents from the Immigration and Customs Enforcement Agency, but we don't know exactly what the timetable will be.

BLITZER: All right, Kelli. Thanks very much. Kelli Arena reporting for us on this latest development. Apparently a partial confession by this suspect. We'll continue to watch this story and get new information for you. There are also some new details emerging in the alleged plot to blow up airplanes from Britain to the United States and as we reported, one person connected to the foiled plot has now been released. Officials say the suspect was let go without being charged.

Let's get some more, though, on the ongoing investigation, CNN's Deborah Feyerick is in London. Deb?

DEBORAH FEYERICK, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Wolf, while they did release one suspect today, 23 others remain in custody, New Scotland Yard and prosecutors presenting enough evidence to a judge to convince that judge to continue to detain the 23 people.

In the meantime, this investigation moving very quickly. We were at an Internet cafe where authorities believe that some of the terror plotters visited.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

FEYERICK (voice-over): Four days after raiding this Internet cafe an hour outside London, British police returned the cafe's six computer hard drives and its main server. Manager Salim But (ph), who runs the Asian Spice Cafe in Redding says police told him they took the equipment as part of the anti-terrorist operation.

This is what they took?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is what they took. They haven't returned my CDs and CD-ROMS, bits and pieces which they collected from the back of the counter. They haven't been returned. I don't know when they'll do that.

FEYERICK: So you're missing your CDs and CD-ROMs, but they returned all of this.

A security source close to the British investigation tell CNN authorities believe some of the terror suspects used these computers to send e-mails to associates at another Internet cafe about 50 miles away.

Roy Ramm who spent years at New Scotland Yard said that's a classic technique for covering tracks.

ROY RAMM, FORMER COMMANDER, NEW SCOTLAND YARD: Whenever you're looking at any kind of organized crime or terrorist network, the intention is to try to put as much distance between yourself and other members of the network as possible, because just one call, one link can build a conspiracy. So what you're trying to do is build distance.

FEYERICK: But says on a normal day, about two dozen people walk in and use his computers. He says he keeps a log of what people wear and how much time they've spent online, but no one signs in. He did not recognize the names of anyone in custody.

(on camera): Did any of the names ring a bell to you at all?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No.

FEYERICK (voice-over): Police say they'd been watching the alleged jetliner plotters for months, one security source close to investigators tells CNN the alleged plotters avoided meetings, perhaps because some of the suspects may have sensed they were followed. A view Roy Ramm echoes.

RAMM: I think that when people are involved in something, then there is a certain sense of paranoia and they may have thought they ran the surveillance. There's always a chance they could have spotted something but equally they could have spotted something that was completely unconnected from the operation.

FEYERICK: And it's not just computers from Internet cafes.

Security sources tell CNN police have computers from homes of some of the suspects and police are confident that analysis of the computer data will allow investigators to pinpoint the dates the alleged suicide bombers intended to carry out their deadly plan.

(END VIDEOTAPE) FEYERICK (on camera): Security sources tell CNN investigators are close to finalizing their case. There could be charges by the end of next week, Wolf?

BLITZER: Deb Feyerick, thank you.

And in a story first heard here in THE SITUATION ROOM the Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad is trying to spread his message through a new Weblog, but is the site also spreading a new computer virus.

Our Internet team is rest gaiting. Jacki Schechner has the latest. Jacki?

JACKI SCHECHNER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Wolf, we just want to tell you we've confirmed the rumors are not true. There is no virus on the Iranian president's blog. If you go to his Web site, nothing bad will happen to your computer. Here's how this got started. There a list of links in the bottom right hand corner of his blog. I'll zoom in for you so you can see.

And when some people clicked on the top link they would get an alert notice on their computer. It was primarily people in Israel who were talking about this, they thought anybody specifically targeted them. Anyone who as a specific piece of security software on their computer, it's a Norton firewall software, it's made by Symantec would give you that security alert.

Now we talked to Symantec today and again they said there is absolutely nothing to worry about. This is a standard alert because the code on the Web site looks suspiciously like another code they'd seen before that was malicious. But again, there is nothing wrong with this and we just wanted to make you aware of that that you could go and visit that blog if you'd like, Wolf.

BLITZER: Jacki, thank you.

Still ahead as casualties mount so does the concern that the U.S. is fighting a forgotten war. Jack Cafferty asks you this question. In light of the war between Israel and Hezbollah, are the media paying enough attention to Iraq? Jack with your e-mail, that's next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: Let's check in with Jack Cafferty. He's in New York. Hi, Jack.

CAFFERTY: Wolf, the question this hour is in light of the war between Israel and Hezbollah, are the media paying enough attention to Iraq? Thirty-five hundred Iraqi civilians killed in the last month, you wouldn't have known it watching television.

Daniel writes from my hometown, Reno, Nevada. "Sorry to say it, Jack the media haven't had enough coverage of Iraq, with the possible exception of the day Saddam's statue was torn down. I don't know if it's a lack of access or spin control, wanting to avoid covering another Vietnam, but the information has been minimal and carefully selected at best."

Darrell in Seattle, "I had a terrier once that would chase a flashlight beam along the floor for hours. This reminds me of the mainstream media, only it's the Bush administration holding the flashlight. The press will cover exactly what it's told to cover. Good dogs, all."

Wyatt writes, "I'm already convinced the media do not give balanced perspectives on the war in Iraq so less coverage of the Iraq War just makes the news less slanted each week."

Lisa in New Jersey. "Jack, not only aren't the media paying enough attention to Iraq, how about the other forgotten war, the one in Afghanistan."

Mary in Pennsylvania, "I have a son in the army on his second tour of duty in Iraq and I know how bad it is there. The Iraq situation is worsening which makes the administration look bad and we can't have that happening before the November elections. We needed a Hezbollah boogieman to take the focus off the disaster in Iraq."

Jeremy in Grand Forks, North Dakota, "Media not paying enough attention to Iraq? Well, let's see, the Iraq not going well? Hey look over there, there is a war in Lebanon. Hezbollah says they won the war in Lebanon? Hey, look over there, JonBenet Ramsey. What's next? I predict we'll quickly find some gays getting married, flags being burned or perhaps a weeping statue of the Virgin Mary to distract us.

If you didn't see your e-mail here, we invite you to go online, cnn.com/caffertyfile. Where you can read more of these. We post a few of these from each hour that we don't have time to read on the air. Wolf, you need to come home now. THE SITUATION ROOM needs you back in Washington.

BLITZER: I'll be coming home very, very soon, Jack. Thanks very much. And my heart goes out to all those people in Iraq. In July alone, 3,500 people murdered, killed in Iraq. What a story, what a tragic story indeed. Jack, thanks very much. See you tomorrow here in THE SITUATION ROOM. In the meantime, let's go to Paula Zahn. She is in New York. Paula?

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