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CNN Live Sunday
Suicide Bombings Rock Tel-Aviv
Aired January 05, 2003 - 16:01 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.
ANDERSON COOPER, CNN ANCHOR: We begin our coverage today in the Middle East, where violent explosions rocked the seaside city of Tel Aviv on the Israeli coast, bringing death and destruction to a crowded pedestrian mall.
CNN's Kelly Wallace is in Tel Aviv with the latest on the deadly blast.
KELLY WALLACE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Anderson, the latest information, Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon has called an emergency cabinet meeting. That meeting will get under way 30 minutes from now. The prime minister meeting with his top advisers to assess the situation.
The situation behind me, something that has become all too familiar here in Israel, workers have quickly cleared away the debris and the destruction. This after simultaneously -- simultaneous suicide bombings.
This was the scene here just hours earlier. Many of the people here, laborers from other countries who live or work nearby, at least 19 people believed to be killed. Israeli officials expect the death toll to climb, because more than 100 people were injured.
Witnesses say the blast really happened just about a minute apart. Two suicide bombers attacking at this pedestrian mall shattering, really, what has been a relative period of quiet in Tel Aviv and in Jerusalem. The last suicide bombing more than a month ago at the end of November in Jerusalem.
Now, the Israeli government has condemned the attacks, and is blaming the Palestinian Authority, saying it has not done enough to crack down on terror. The Palestinian Authority, for its part, is condemning the attacks and blaming the Israeli military operations in the West Bank and in the Gaza Strip for fueling the violence.
The Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigade, that is the armed off-shoot of Yasser Arafat's group, the Fatah Movement, has claimed responsibility and has said that the two suicide bombers were from Nablus.
At this point in time, Israeli officials expect the death toll to rise. Again, 19 at this point in time dead. More than 100 injured.
And Anderson, many of the people injured fled the scene and did not go to the hospital. Israeli officials believe they are afraid to go to the hospital, because many of these people don't have the proper papers to be here in Israel. So the message from the Israeli government on this night is for anyone who has been injured to go to the hospital, to get medical care. And that they won't be deported from Israel -- Anderson.
COOPER: Kelly, I think for a lot of viewers it's confusing. On the one hand the Palestinian Authority say they condemn this attack, and yet the Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigade has claimed responsibility for this attack.
And as you point out, they are linked to Yasser Arafat's Fatah movement.
WALLACE: It is. It is an armed off-shoot of Yasser Arafat's Fatah movement. And so you have Palestinian Authority officials, Saeb Erekat, one of the chief Palestinian negotiators on CNN's air earlier today, condemning the attacks. And again, saying the Palestinian Authority, in his words, is trying to do what it can.
But the Palestinians are saying that the Israeli military operations, the occupation in many West Bank towns, and in towns in the Gaza Strip, according to Palestinian officials, is fueling the violence and is not allowing the Palestinian Authority to do enough to crack down on these terror groups.
Again, Israeli officials see this entirely differently. And they are placing the blame directly on Yasser Arafat -- Anderson.
COOPER: And Kelly, as you mentioned, Prime Minister Ariel Sharon is meeting in about half an hour. We'll obviously be following that and maybe hear back from you later on in the program.
Thanks very much, Kelly Wallace. Appreciate it.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
Aired January 5, 2003 - 16:01 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
ANDERSON COOPER, CNN ANCHOR: We begin our coverage today in the Middle East, where violent explosions rocked the seaside city of Tel Aviv on the Israeli coast, bringing death and destruction to a crowded pedestrian mall.
CNN's Kelly Wallace is in Tel Aviv with the latest on the deadly blast.
KELLY WALLACE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Anderson, the latest information, Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon has called an emergency cabinet meeting. That meeting will get under way 30 minutes from now. The prime minister meeting with his top advisers to assess the situation.
The situation behind me, something that has become all too familiar here in Israel, workers have quickly cleared away the debris and the destruction. This after simultaneously -- simultaneous suicide bombings.
This was the scene here just hours earlier. Many of the people here, laborers from other countries who live or work nearby, at least 19 people believed to be killed. Israeli officials expect the death toll to climb, because more than 100 people were injured.
Witnesses say the blast really happened just about a minute apart. Two suicide bombers attacking at this pedestrian mall shattering, really, what has been a relative period of quiet in Tel Aviv and in Jerusalem. The last suicide bombing more than a month ago at the end of November in Jerusalem.
Now, the Israeli government has condemned the attacks, and is blaming the Palestinian Authority, saying it has not done enough to crack down on terror. The Palestinian Authority, for its part, is condemning the attacks and blaming the Israeli military operations in the West Bank and in the Gaza Strip for fueling the violence.
The Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigade, that is the armed off-shoot of Yasser Arafat's group, the Fatah Movement, has claimed responsibility and has said that the two suicide bombers were from Nablus.
At this point in time, Israeli officials expect the death toll to rise. Again, 19 at this point in time dead. More than 100 injured.
And Anderson, many of the people injured fled the scene and did not go to the hospital. Israeli officials believe they are afraid to go to the hospital, because many of these people don't have the proper papers to be here in Israel. So the message from the Israeli government on this night is for anyone who has been injured to go to the hospital, to get medical care. And that they won't be deported from Israel -- Anderson.
COOPER: Kelly, I think for a lot of viewers it's confusing. On the one hand the Palestinian Authority say they condemn this attack, and yet the Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigade has claimed responsibility for this attack.
And as you point out, they are linked to Yasser Arafat's Fatah movement.
WALLACE: It is. It is an armed off-shoot of Yasser Arafat's Fatah movement. And so you have Palestinian Authority officials, Saeb Erekat, one of the chief Palestinian negotiators on CNN's air earlier today, condemning the attacks. And again, saying the Palestinian Authority, in his words, is trying to do what it can.
But the Palestinians are saying that the Israeli military operations, the occupation in many West Bank towns, and in towns in the Gaza Strip, according to Palestinian officials, is fueling the violence and is not allowing the Palestinian Authority to do enough to crack down on these terror groups.
Again, Israeli officials see this entirely differently. And they are placing the blame directly on Yasser Arafat -- Anderson.
COOPER: And Kelly, as you mentioned, Prime Minister Ariel Sharon is meeting in about half an hour. We'll obviously be following that and maybe hear back from you later on in the program.
Thanks very much, Kelly Wallace. Appreciate it.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
