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CNN Sunday Morning

Coordinated Suicide Attacks Kill at Least 26, Injure 180 in Jerusalem

Aired December 02, 2001 - 10:02   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.
MARTIN SAVIDGE, CNN ANCHOR: Let's begin with these deadly weekend terrorist attacks in the Middle East. The violence erupted first in the Jerusalem mall. There, a gunman and two suicide bombers unleashed a coordinated strike. The attacks left at least a dozen people dead and 180 others wounded. Twelve hours later, a suicide bomber boarded the city bus in Haifa, and a moment later 14 people were dead putting the fragile peace process teetering on collapse.

CNN's Jerrold Kessel has been up all night following these terrorist attacks, and he joins us now from Jerusalem -- Jerrold.

JERROLD KESSEL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Martin, and the agony which Israelis have been going through since the two suicide bombers struck in the center of Jerusalem last night switching to that northern port town of Haifa on the Mediterranean late this morning when another suicide bomber attacked in a bus.

The man coolly went aboard the bus, paid his fare to the driver, stepped inside and seconds later, apparently, blew himself up along with those powerful explosives that he had strapped to him, apparently, and literally, demolished the bus, not just destroyed it but demolished it. The casualty figures could rise even further, the fatalities, because among the 40 people injured there are many, who doctors say, are fighting for their lives in critical condition.

It was such a powerful explosion that the scene was a devastation, and the eyewitness descriptions are really chilling. One man said he saw bodies being thrown, tossed up into the sky so high it was unimaginable, and the red and white city bus was left with bloodstains, left all over it of what was remained of that bus.

Now, this attack in the port city of Haifa, a lone suicide bomber, it seems, came just 12 hours after the double suicide bombing here in Jerusalem last night. And that was followed as the rescue workers came on to the scene of the explosion of a bomb in a car around the corner and this left mainly 10 young Israelis all young boys or youths between the ages of 14 and 20 dead. A 180 people were treated in hospital, 80 of them are still being treated this morning for wounds sustained in this double suicide bombing followed by the car bomb.

And on the scene this morning, many people who had been there, who were there last night came back almost as they said to reestablish the presence to say, "We are here, and we will not be moved, we will not be frightened." The two of those, whom we caught up with our camera, were two 14-year-old girls who spoke of their ordeal last night when those suicide bombers struck.

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UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I ran into a store. I saw this person full of blood all over. I ran into the store because I was like so scared. I saw all these people crying and screaming. I called up my mother and told her I'm OK.

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UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We were standing over here, right here. Suddenly, we heard this big bomb. So there were two guys with us David and Mada (ph). So they ran here to get help. So she was all hysterical and I put her in the Internet place here, and then I -- we were just here a minute ago, and I knew everybody that was here so I ran here to see what happened.

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KESSEL: And the pressure is being put on Yasser Arafat and his Palestinian Authority not only by the Israelis demanding action but by the United States in particular. Now what we are seeing here is the arrival of Ariel Sharon, Israel's Prime Minister at Andrews Airforce Base outside Washington. The arrival for his meeting at noon, which is scheduled with President Bush.

That meeting had originally been planned to take place only tomorrow. Mr. Sharon saying that he wanted to get back to Israel as quickly as possible had asked the president to bring the meeting up. The president complied yesterday, and this meeting will take place at noon today.

And doubtlessly, Mr. Sharon will be pushing the case which Israeli spokesmen have been pushing all day and saying not just the onus on Yasser Arafat to show he's serious but to see action and action now. It's not only from the Israelis who we have been hearing that, there was General Zinni, the man whom President Bush and Secretary of State Powell sent out to the area only last Monday to begin his mission with the mandate to get a valid and solid cease fire on the ground. He was in Jerusalem last night. He went to that scene of the two suicide bombings this morning. There were some catcalls, there were some chants saying, "Zinni go home."

But above all, General Zinni, as he laid the wreath there, had some very strong words to say. He called it a despicable act, an evil act carried out by the lowest form of humanity. Very strong action. And he reaffirmed that the Untied States was absolutely committed to continue working to get to stop such actions as the terrorist strike yesterday being repeated, but putting the onus very firmly on the Palestinian Authority. And in the last hour we've heard from the Palestinian Authority declaring, Yasser Arafat declaring a state of emergency, and saying he's ordered his security forces to arrest both those who are responsible for sending the suicide bombers and those who are behind the perpetration of such acts. The demand for action creeping up and being solidly put to Yasser Arafat now -- Martin.

SAVIDGE: No doubt going to be echoed at the White House. Thank you very much. Jerrold Kessel reporting to us live from Jerusalem.

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