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CNN Wolf Blitzer Reports
Bush Means what he Says; War of Words Between Allies; Can Palestinian suicide bombings spread to the United States?; Flight crews get eyes in the sky
Aired April 08, 2002 - 17:00 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 HOST: Now on WOLF BLITZER REPORTS: A war of words between allies. The U.S. calls on Israel to call off its offensive.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I meant what I said, about withdrawal without delay.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BLITZER: But as fighting rages on the West Bank, Israel says the campaign will continue.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ARIEL SHARON, ISRAELI PRIME MINISTER (through translator): Until the mission is completed, until Arafat's terror structure is disassembled.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BLITZER: Can Palestinian suicide bombings spread to the United States? I'll ask former CIA Director, James Woolsey.
Airline security: Worried about a weak link on the ground? Flight crews get eyes in the sky. We are joined by Transportation Secretary Norman Mineta.
Iraq turns off the tap. Will we pay at the pump?
And at age 84, he says it's time to cut back a bit on his workload.
It's Monday, April 8, 2002. I'm Wolf Blitzer in Washington. Topping our news alert, a breaking story: President Bush gets tough with Israel, and within the past hour he may have made some progress.
Just hours after U.S. special Middle East envoy, Anthony Zinni met with the Israeli prime minister, Ariel Sharon, to underscore U.S. demands for an immediate halt to military operations. Israeli state radio announced that troops will be withdrawing from two cities in the northern West Bank. This came as a stern, finger-jabbing President Bush repeated his call for Israel to pull back -- quote -- "without delay."
Seeking to divert Israel's attention from the West Bank, Lebanon's Hezbollah guerrillas today continued their rocket and mortar attacks on Israeli positions in the border area. Israel has responded with artillery and airstrikes and has asked the United States to pressure Syria to rein in the guerrillas.
The anti-terror campaign in Afghanistan has entered a new phase: operation mountain lion. U.S.-led forces are combing caves and other suspected hideouts over a wide area, searching for intelligence and hoping to intercept enemy forces. Nineteen months after the attack on the USS Cole. More U.S. special forces are bringing their anti-terror know how to Yemen, training local troops to move against suspected al Qaeda forces there. Twenty U.S. soldiers are now in Yemen; another 50 will be deployed. An agreement is reportedly close at hand that would allow U.S. warships to once again refuel in Aden.
As the United States steps up the pressure for Israel to end its anti-terror offensive in the West Bank, Prime Minister Sharon may be getting the message. Let's go live to CNN's Bill Hemmer, he is in Jerusalem. He has more on this breaking story. Bill, tell us what is going on.
BILL HEMMER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Wolf, good evening from Jerusalem. A few moments ago Israeli army sources do indicate and confirm with CNN that there will be a pull-out, a military withdrawal from two tanks -- two towns, rather. In the West Bank. The two towns are called Qalqilya (ph) and Tulkarem. Both these towns sit right along the western edge of the West Bank. In some cases less than half kilometer from Israel proper. But we're told, again, Wolf, within hours the Israel military will pull out of these two in specific.
Now it should be pointed out we've not heard a lot of military action taking place inside. Most of activity we've been reporting on has taken place in other towns within the West Bank all of this comes, Wolf, as you mentioned, Anthony Zinni did meet with once again with the Israeli prime minister, Ariel Sharon today. This came after the prime minister was appearing before a special session of Israel's parliament, the Knesset. During that address, to Israel parliament, Ariel Sharon said the operation would continue until terrorist infrastructure is rooted out, he says, in the West Bank. He also mentioned, once again, that the mission would be expedited. He has dropped that word a couple of times over the past weekend. One of the things that is quite interesting to watch, though, he mentioned security zones set up once the military withdraws. And what that means is not clear right now. It has not been defined, possibly in the next couple of days it may.
Meanwhile, the fighting did continue in a couple of hot spots in the West Bank. Let's talk about Nablus right now. This city has been in news for 10 days running. And we do know in the old city, near the casbah, inside of Nablus, the fighting did rage on earlier today. The Israeli Defense Forces, the IDF, do confirm that at least a 100 Palestinian gunmen have given up the fight. They have surrendered in the town of Nablus.
Further up north, right along the Lebanese border, we can confirm that there has been cross-border shelling once again. Some reports saying that Katyusha rockets have hit a northern Israeli town of Keriayshmona (ph). Again, all of this adding to the concern in the region, Wolf, that a widening conflicts could also break out. We have been watching this area for six days running, and we will continue to do it.
Many observers here in the Middle East say that is the place that concerns many of them. But the headline for this hour, there will be an Israeli withdrawal, partial at this point, two towns, Tulkarem and Qalqilya (ph) in the West Bank, that should begin within hours time here -- Wolf.
BLITZER: Bill, is there any indication that that withdrawal, beginning in those two northern West bank towns is the result of Prime Minister Sharon's meeting earlier today with General Zinni, the special U.S. envoy?
HEMMER: Could very well be, Wolf. And if you read between the lines that is quite possible that that is the bottom line there. What is interesting about that, though, is our Israeli sources who have talked pretty much at will with us, over the past 10 or 11 days, would say nothing about the content of that meeting between Ariel Sharon and Anthony Zinni. Again, this meeting taking place right after that stern speech that Sharon gave inside Israel's parliament. We do not know specifics, Wolf, but it is quite likely that the pressure was cranked up once again.
BLITZER: And what are they saying, Bill, in Jerusalem? People close to Ariel Sharon about the pressure, directly coming from President Bush who is well known as a supporter of Israel?
HEMMER: Israelis will tell you they are -- quote -- "very sensitive to U.S. pressure." They know the stakes here. It appears in the long-term, Wolf, that Ariel Sharon can not afford to continue to rebuff the U.S.; Anthony Zinni, Colin Powell, President Bush. But in short-term it appears that Israel will continue. And part of the reason they will continue is based on the polling numbers here in Israel. Well over 70 percent at the end of last week do support the military action, and the military activity. The Israeli people, frankly Wolf, are behind the Israeli government at this point.
BLITZER: Bill Hemmer reporting live from Jerusalem. Thank you very much.
U.S. officials in the Middle East are, of course, trying to drive home President Bush's call for an immediate end to the Israeli military campaign in Palestinian territories. That, as President Bush, once again repeated his demand today. Our senior White House correspondent, John King, now joins us live. He has now more on what the president wants to see from Israel -- John.
JOHN KING, CNN SR. WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: And, Wolf, senior U.S. officials confirming to us tonight, that the Israeli government has promised that a pull back will begin almost eminently. U.S. official say it remains to be seen how orderly and how quickly that will be done, that is the big question here in White House. But they do view it as a positive development, that a pull back, at least, should begin.
Israeli has promised -- Israel has promised, excuse me, within the next several hours. This at end of a very difficult day of U.S. diplomacy, and at the end of a day in which President Bush, himself, made clear that he thought a key friend and ally, the Israeli prime minister was letting him down.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
(voice-over): Traveling in Tennessee, the president made clear his growing frustration.
BUSH: First of all, I meant what I said to prime minister of Israel. I expect there to be withdraw without delay.
HEMMER: White House envoy Anthony Zinni demanded a Monday meeting with Ariel Sharon to personally deliver word of the president's disappointment. Mr. Bush bluntly told Mr. Sharon in this Saturday phone call that it was imperative that Israel end its military offensive in the Palestinian territories. But three days later no Israeli pull back, complicating Secretary of State Powell's efforts to broker an Israel-Palestinian cease-fire.
But the president's frustration is hardly limited to Prime Minister Sharon. For months the administration have been asking Arab leaders, like Saudi Crown Prince Abdullah to put more pressure on Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat and to publicly condemn attacks on Israeli civilians. But this Saudi Arabian Internet posting talks of Saudi government aide to Palestinian martyrs. And this one highlights a recent Arab summit pledge of $150 million to support the intifada and Al Aqsa, a Palestinian group the State Department recently labeled a terrorist organization.
CONDOLEEZZA RICE, NATIONAL SECURITY ADVISER: The most important in this regard is that the Arab nations around Israel renounce terrorism. Tell suicide bombers, you are not martyrs, you are just murdering people. This is not martyrdom.
KING: Top aides describe the president as increasingly angry and irritated.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
But they are taking some hope again now in this new word from Israel that the pull out will begin from the Palestinian territories over the next several hours. A little late in the White House view, but senior U.S. officials say perhaps still in time to salvage the mission of Secretary of State Colin Powell, his goal, of course, to broker an Israeli-Palestinian cease-fire -- Wolf.
BLITZER: John, do they realistically expect that withdrawal, if it in fact is really getting under way, to be completed by the time the secretary of state arrives in Israel for talks on Friday?
KING: They have been careful in public, Wolf, to set no deadline. But they say it became apparent to them that they needed to reinforce that message to Prime Minister Sharon today. When the president made the phone call on Saturday, White House officials said he fully understood you did not want to do this in a chaotic way. That it would take several days, but the fact that it had not even begun three days later is what caused the White House exasperation.
They certainly know that Secretary Powell is hearing this message as he stops first in the Arab world: Why should we listen to you, Secretary Powell, when you ask to us put pressure on Yasser Arafat when your president's pressure on the Israeli government is producing no results? So they have told the Israeli government they must move quickly. The expectation is that this can be done within a few days. Again, White House officials say they've just received this promise from the Israeli government. They want to see what happens on the ground.
BLITZER: John King at the White House. Thanks for that report.
Meanwhile, the secretary of state, Colin Powell, is making the rounds in the Middle East, looking for ways to get a cease-fire in place. Our state department correspondent, Andrea Koppel, reports from first stop, Casablanca in Morocco.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ANDREA KOPPEL, CNN CORRESPONDENT (on camera): Secretary Powell is now meeting with the Saudi Crown Prince Abdullah here in Casablanca, but he started his day in Agadir, which is a seaside resort here in Morocco. He was kept cooling his heels by the new Moroccan King Mohammed the VI. He was supposed to meet him at one point, kept waiting for two hours. Finally, when he did meet with the king, and all the news media were in the room, at the top of the meeting, the cameras were rolling, and King Mohammed turns to Secretary Powell and says, why didn't you go to Jerusalem first?
The reason, of course, is that King Mohammed, like many other Arab leaders, is under a lot of pressure from his citizens who have been taking to the streets here in massive demonstrations to protest Israel's continued military incursion into West Bank cities. Also, the continued siege of Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat. It a very difficult position for the U.S. secretary of state, who is trying to drum up support from Arab leaders, like King Mohammed and like Crown Prince Abdullah, to put pressure on Yasser Arafat to renounce terrorism publicly in Arabic.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
At the same time, these Arab leaders know that the United States president has been pushing the Israelis to withdraw and they are ignoring him. So this is an extremely difficult mission. If it wasn't difficult before he arrived here, Wolf, it had become that much more complicated. From here, Secretary Powell traveled to Jordan and then to Madrid before going to Jerusalem at the end of the week -- Wolf.
BLITZER: Andrea Koppel in Morocco traveling with the secretary of state. Thank you very much.
And even if Prime Minister Sharon was inclined to go along completely with United States demands, it won't be easy for Israel to extricate its forces, which have moved into towns and villages across the length and breadth of the West Bank. Prime Minister Sharon indicates one objective is to have forces regroup into protective buffer zones aimed at thwarting terror attacks. There have been no suicide attacks since Israel began its military offensive.
The standoff continues in Bethlehem's Church of the Nativity, where as many as 200 Palestinians have taken refuge inside. The ancient city itself has become a battle zone. Today, Israeli forces lifted a curfew to allow residents to go out for food and other supplies, but the city continues to be in a state of mayhem. CNN's Ben Wedeman is in Bethlehem and he filed this report.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BEN WEDEMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): This is one man's escape from a city at war. Yusif Battah (ph) plays his oud to forget. And there is plenty from the last week he would like to forget. For 20 years, he made a living playing in Israeli bars.
"Jews and Arabs used to eat and drink together," he says, "and I wish it could be like that again." If only it could, but he need only step out his door to see why for now, it can't. Like tourists in hell, journalists crunch down narrow, glass-strewn alleys, running into Israeli soldiers who don't want the attention. They say they are here looking for terrorists.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Come on, come on. Go now. Leave the area now or your tapes will be taken.
WEDEMAN: Much of the time, the streets of the old city are deserted. But inside these ancient homes are thousands of people trying to live ordinary lives in these most unordinary of times.
(on camera): Bethlehem's old city is a heavily-populated area, heavily populated with civilians. We have yet to see in the six days we've spent here one armed Palestinian.
(voice-over): They are out there, according to the Israeli army, as many as 200 in the Church of the Nativity, others scattered around town. Mid-afternoon, people venture out, to salvage what they can from a shop to get some fresh air. Some strolled in from other parts of town. Like American Sereo Litecki (ph), who works at Bethlehem University. He is astounded by the wreckage in the old city.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It seems to me that Sharon feels that he is above the law, above any internationally legality or against U.N. resolutions and that he can do whatever he pleases. And it seems to me that he is getting away with it. WEDEMAN: Then, the shooting began. A sniper targets a rubble strewn square. Residents must cross the square to buy food. The need to survive overcoming the fear of sudden death. For some, it was a spectator sport, almost. Also waiting to cross, a convoy of Red Cross cars come to deliver food. The shooting subsides. They rush across to cover. They brought 200 bags of food to an area where the curfew has never been lifted, where food is running out, as is patience, until that patience turns to anger, then into violence. A week of anxiety and fear has brought the people here to this.
Ben Wedeman, CNN, Bethlehem.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BLITZER: The Israeli military campaign began after Palestinian suicide bombers struck with deadly consequences, killing scores of civilians. Now, there is concern about the chance of something similar happening closer to home. Could the Intifada spread to the United States? Some U.S. lawmakers think it's a real possibility.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. CHRISTOPHER DODD (D), CONNECTICUT: Instead of having suicide bombers occurring in cafes in Israel, as outrageous and despicable as that is, it could happen here. That is one of my fears.
SEN. ARLEN SPECTER (R), PENNSYLVANIA: If we don't stop suicide bombing in Israel, they may become an international terrorist way of life. They may become a plague.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BLITZER: Joining us now to talk about this potential threat is the former CIA director James Woolsey. Director Woolsey, thanks so much for joining us.
Just a few numbers we'll put up on the screen. Number of suicide bombings documented, successful ones in Israel, of many others were thwarted. But look at this, in 2001, last year, there were 36. This year, it's only April, already 28 and counting. The question is this, how realistic is the fear expressed by these two senators it could spread to the United States?
JAMES WOOLSEY, FORMER CIA DIRECTOR: Well, it has spread to the United States, September 11. This is all part of the same Islamist movement, in a sense, al Qaeda and the suicide bombers, I think, that are part of the Palestinian terrorists that are attacking Israel. There are differences, but the similarities are bigger than the differences between these two groups.
BLITZER: But we have not seen supermarkets, restaurants, cafes, the need for security at malls, all of which, of course, exists tremendously in Israel?
WOOLSEY: Well, that's true, but the people who will come after us and who have come after us may have in mind much more larger and more flamboyant attacks, not only World Trade Center size, but using weapons of mass destruction. I think we do need to worry about suicide bombers but I doubt seriously if it will be, you know, Hamas. It will probably be al Qaeda or al Qaeda together with some governments that they work with.
BLITZER: Your concern, the concern that was expressed by Senators Dodd and Specter, we asked in a poll, a CNN/"USA Today"/Gallup poll, if suicide bombers could result similar to the situation in the Middle East, could result here. Look at this, 27 percent believe it is very likely, 43 percent somewhat likely. And 70 percent, in other words, think it's very or somewhat likely it could come here.
Why do you believe that Hamas, Hezbollah, Islamic Jihad necessarily won't be responsible, but al Qaeda and other groups would be interested in, for example, a weapon of mass destruction?
WOOLSEY: Well, each of these groups is somewhat different and they respond to somewhat different to leaders and incentives. But they overlap a good deal in their hatred for us and for the West and for modernity in general.
If one looks at Arafat and the suicide bombings that he is planning and operating through the Al Aqsa Brigades and the people who report directly to him, I think he probably still has some hope that he would not want anything tied to him in this country because we might be able to broker some sort of a settlement between the Palestinians and the Israelis. But I think in terms of suicide bombers generally, I think we definitely need to worry, and I am afraid it might be for a bigger stakes than just explosives on an individual.
BLITZER: Well, in the short-term, what does the U.S. do to prevent that from happening?
WOOLSEY: Well, a lot of what we need to do we're doing already, which is to try to win this war overseas and root out al Qaeda as much as we possibly can over there. I think that other steps that have to be undertaken is that we have to move to protect the networks in the United States. We have seen two networks, civil air transport and mail delivery now turned against to us kill Americans. We have a lot more, oil and gas pipelines, electricity grid, the Internet and so forth. We have to reduce the vulnerabilities of those systems and try to make changes in them so they're not nearly as vulnerable as they are now.
BLITZER: I remember in the early '70s, when I began reporting from the Middle East, Israel, other countries there already had metal detectors at airports, extensive security. And I wondered then whether that would ever happen in the United States. Well, obviously, we know it has happened in the U.S. Do you believe that down the road, when people go to the restaurants or the malls or the cafes, there will be security protection routinely as exists right now in Israel?
WOOLSEY: I don't think it will be like Israel. But I think we have to fear large terrorist incidents in which the al Qaeda or some related group might try to kill a very large number of Americans, and that our vulnerability is toward a relatively small number, but of very large attacks as distinct from a large number of very small attacks.
BLITZER: James Woolsey, the former U.S. CIA director, thanks so much for joining us.
WOOLSEY: Thank you.
BLITZER: Appreciate it very much.
And our Web question of the day is this: Could suicide bombings happen here in the United States? You can give me your answer. Go to cnn.com/wolf. While you're there, let me know what you are thinking. There's a "click here" icon right on the left side of the page. Send me your comments. I'll read some of them on the air each day at the end of this program. Also, that's where you can read my daily online column, cnn.com/wolf.
Still to come, hope on two fronts for cancer patients. We'll tell you about a promising pill and an extraordinary type of treatment.
But first, what is not safe about airline security? Flight crews have a specific fear. I'll ask the transportation secretary, Norman Mineta live.
And worries about gas prices: Can Saddam Hussein cause costs to skyrocket?
And later, changes for Mike Wallace and the hit news magazine, "60 Minutes."
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BLITZER: Welcome back.
Iraqi president Saddam Hussein says his country will stop exporting oil for 30 days to protest Israeli military operations. He says that could be extended if Israel does not withdrawal from the Palestinian territories. Iraqi exports just more than 2 million barrels of oil each day, with much of it coming through third parties to the United States.
So what impact will Saddam Hussein's move have here at the gas pumps? Joining me from New York, CNN's Lou Dobbs. He's the anchor and managing editor of "LOU DOBBS MONEYLINE." Lou, thanks so much for joining us. Well, what will be the impact of this Iraqi decision?
LOU DOBBS, CNN ANCHOR: Absolutely zero in the short-term, Wolf. Iraq -- we receive just about 600,000 barrels of oil a day, as you suggest, primarily through third parties. So it is really an inconsequential amount of oil for us. And there's such an overhang of oil in world markets that it's unlikely to have any sort of effect in the short-term, and this is a short-term curtailment, if you will, by the Iraqis.
BLITZER: What happens though, Lou, if other countries, OPEC members, Iran, Libya, for example, were to join in this short-term embargo?
DOBBS: Well, we receive just about 50 percent of our oil, it's imported from the Middle East region, that includes the Persian Gulf. It includes, of course, the OPEC countries. And it is highly unlikely. This would be a little bit like the OPEC members and OPEC states saying we're going to put a gun to our heads and then tell you that if it's either your money or I'll shoot. It would be incredibly damaging to their economies to cut off oil. Hardly in their self interest and it's not something, frankly, that geopolitically, if you will, the United States government would tolerate nor would the European Union.
BLITZER: So, Lou, you and I are old enough, of course, to remember the Arab oil embargo after the 1973 war. Is that at all realistic, that there will be long gasoline lines that we used to have to endure?
DOBBS: No. No. The 1973 and 1979 OPEC embargoes were quite unique situations. And we are just now beginning to start driving demand, Wolf, as you know, in this country with increased economy activity and growth. It is an entirely different situation. We have a very high level in our strategic petroleum reserves. And I can't even imagine such a thing happening, and certainly it would not happen without considerable consequences, as a result. And by that, I mean geopolitical initiatives that would be taken.
BLITZER: Lou Dobbs, thanks very much for joining us.
And Lou, of course, will have much more on all of this coming up right at the top of the hour on "LOU DOBBS MONEYLINE."
If you have been to an airport recently, you know all about increased security, includes bag searches and pat downs to make sure no dangerous items get inside a plane. But, hundreds of people are not enduring the same scrutiny.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
PAUL EMENS, SOUTHWEST AIRLINES PILOTS ASSOCIATIONS: They're putting an extraordinary amount of effort in the concourses and they're not putting anywhere near that effort in the rest of the airport perimeter.
BLITZER (voice-over): At most airports, there are hundreds of mechanics, food service employees, ramp workers and others who do not have to pass through medal detectors or undergo regular searches to have access to airplanes and runways. Many just have to flash a badge and enter a code to pass on to the tarmac areas.
Pilots and flight attendants are subject to tighter screenings measures and are worried about the inconsistency.
EMENS: If they are not screened, they can carry anything to work, a sandwich, a gun, a knife, a bomb.
BLITZER: The Transportation Department said ground crew personnel do have to go through extensive background and criminal history checks, and they are working to tighten up the system further.
Meanwhile, onboard, passengers can expect to find themselves on camera. JetBlue Airways has become the first airline to install cameras in passenger cabins so that pilots can watch from the cockpits.
Nineteen other airlines have asked the FAA for permission to install them. Critics argue that pilots may not have time to monitor the cabins and that passengers' privacy rights are compromised. A JetBlue executive says there are no plans to install cameras in bathrooms.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BLITZER (on camera): Joining us now to talk about the status of security at the nation's airports is the transportation secretary, Norman Mineta. Secretary Mineta, thanks so much for joining us.
This fear that people, workers getting on planes could sneak stuff onboard, how credible, how realistic is this fear, that through the back door, they might be able to do damage to American passengers?
NORMAN MINETA, TRANSPORTATION SECRETARY: Well, I think it's a real fear. And the problem is that when people are going on and off the tarmac all the time, a mechanic, food service people, the question is: How do we make sure that, if it was Joe that reported to work at 8:00 in the morning, and has transited out of the secure area 10 times by noontime, that it is still Joe coming on to the tarmac at noontime?
BLITZER: You are taking steps to deal with that, though.
MINETA: Absolutely. Absolutely.
BLITZER: Specifically what?
MINETA: Well, the thing is that, first of all, all the background investigation of employees is something that is done regularly. But, in terms of the biometrics, we're going to be doing things that are increasing the level of security that is being applied against all the tarmac workers, whether they may be mechanics, food- service people, cleaners.
BLITZER: Will they have to go through metal detectors to get on board these planes, just as flight attendants and pilots do?
MINETA: I am not sure that we have resolved that totally as to whether they do that every time they leave the secure area, or at what periodic points they have to do that. But, to do that every time they are in -- let's say that an American Airlines' flight mechanic has to get material over to another airline, because they do exchange parts. The question is, how do we...
BLITZER: So, you are still working on this issue.
MINETA: Yes, sir.
BLITZER: Now, this JetBlue Airlines, a new airline, putting cameras in the cabin so that the pilots in the cockpit can see what is going on. A lot of other airlines want to do the same thing. A good idea?
MINETA: Absolutely, it's a good idea.
BLITZER: What about the privacy concerns that the ACLU and others have raised?
MINETA: Well, I think, in terms of the privacy, these are directed at the doors, as I understand it, so that, when the flight attendant comes in and says -- picks up the phone and says, "Captain, I am coming in with your meal or whatever, and this is Jane, and the password is whatever," then they are looking through the peep hole. Well, they want to make sure that the person is not there, that someone is not there with a knife on them.
BLITZER: So it's obviously a good idea.
MINETA: So this is why they have a camera right outside the door.
BLITZER: You are about to make a major decision on whether pilots should be armed. When is that decision going to be made?
MINETA: Well, that has not -- we have not resolved all of the issues yet. The White House, and the policy people, and our shop, TSA, the Transportation Security administration, all of us and the law enforcement people really have to be involved in that decision.
We had a report from Justice, I believe, that said that they recommended against it. So, again, we have not made a determination on that yet.
BLITZER: Not far from this studio where we are right now, Baltimore Washington International Airport, BWI, that's a model project that you are undertaking that could be the wave of future.
MINETA: Absolutely.
BLITZER: Specifically, what are you doing there that we will see at JFK, in Los Angeles LAX, in Miami, and all over the country?
MINETA: Well, just to start off with, the lines that you usually have, long, long, lines, we've had people from Disneyland recommending to us, as they do, have them go through a zig-zag queue. And so we have been doing that.
We've instituted new ways of having people go through the magnetometer. If it sets it off, they go into a glass-enclosed area and get wanded. They can still watch their personal belongings coming off the conveyer. And what we've done is to make it more efficient. And, in fact, what we've done at BWI, we've been able to get the throughput increased by some 40 percent.
BLITZER: What is throughput? What does that mean?
MINETA: Meaning the number of passengers that go through on an hourly basis.
BLITZER: Because I personally wanted to avoid BWI recently, because the lines were so long.
MINETA: Well, not at pier C. We're finding that we've been able to increase the number of passengers that go through on an hourly basis. And we hope to do that, replicate that, not only at BWI, but at all the other airports.
BLITZER: And very briefly, when will you be satisfied that airport aviation security is as tight as it is going to get?
MINETA: I am not sure that there is an end game on that one, because people are always devising some new ways to get the weapons through.
BLITZER: So this is going to be a continuing process.
MINETA: Continuing work in progress.
BLITZER: Transportation Secretary Norman Mineta, thanks so much for joining us.
MINETA: Thanks, Wolf.
BLITZER: Good luck to you. We are all counting on you.
MINETA: Absolutely.
BLITZER: Appreciate it very much.
And, after hearing the countless nightmares of flying since September 11, you may be surprised to hear airline service is actually improving. That is what an annual study by the Wichita State University and the University of Nebraska at Omaha just found out. It also rated the carriers. Look at this. Alaska Airlines came in first place for passenger service. It was followed by US Airways and Northwest. TWA came in last. It has since been taken over, as all of us know, by American Airlines.
In just a moment: an assassination attempt in Afghanistan. Our Walter Rodgers is right on the scene. And hear how a staple of "60 Minutes" is scaling back.
But, first our "News Quiz": Mike Wallace began his journalism career with what media outlet? Was it CBS News, WXYZ Radio, "The Boston Globe," or "The Chicago Sun"? The answer coming up.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BLITZER: Topping our latest "News Alert": Shuttle Atlantis is on its way to the International Space Station. It lifted off from Kennedy Space Center in Florida about 45 minutes ago, with seven astronauts on board. They will spend the next 11 days laying groundwork for future construction on the space station.
Nineteen United Nations police officers were injured, one of them seriously, when they tried to put down a riot by hundreds of Serbs in Kosovo. It was touched off by the arrest of a hard-line Serb leader by U.N. police.
A spokesman for the Israeli prime minister, Ariel Sharon, confirms a limited Israeli pullout from the West Bank will begin within hours. Israeli army sources tell CNN, troops will leave the towns of Qalqilya and Tulkarem. The move follows increased pressure from Washington for Israel to end incursions into Palestinian territories.
There are also significant developments today in Afghanistan. The country's interim defense minister says an explosion near his convoy today was an attempt to assassinate him. It happened during a visit to Jalalabad that, ironically, was designed to promote Afghan unity.
CNN senior international correspondent Walter Rodgers was there.
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WALTER RODGERS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: After that assassination attempt on his life, the interim defense minister, Mohammed Fahim, canceled his plans to overnight in the eastern provincial capital of Jalalabad, deciding it was much safer to return to the relative security of Kabul.
Fahim was in Jalalabad to promote national unity. Instead, his visit and the attempted assassination on his life again demonstrated just how unstable Afghanistan is and how very violent it is as well. His visit started harmoniously enough. There was a warm welcome for him at the airport in Jalalabad. There were tribal chiefs and local warlords there to greet him.
The motorcade into the city was proceeding very harmoniously as well. Tens of thousands of people, Pashtuns, in Jalalabad, turned to greet this Tajik general. Again, there was the appearance of ethnic harmony, at least for this visit. Suddenly on the motorcade on the way in: a very loud boom. A big cloud of smoke rose up at the head of the motorcade. Chaos and confusion ensued.
The driver of Mr. Fahim's car tried to retreat to the relative safety of the rear end of the motorcade, while the security forces dashed to the front end of the motorcade. And, for a short while, Fahim was trapped. There were at least 20 people injured. We saw many badly burned and cut. And at least four people were killed.
At the end of the day, Mr. Fahim, again, decided it was not safe to stay in Jalalabad. He boarded his helicopter, returned to Kabul. And his pilots were very concerned about his security on that return flight. They dashed at ground level, scarcely 100 feet above the ground, 200 miles an hour, trying to avoid any further attempts on the interim defense minister's life.
Walter Rodgers, CNN, Kabul.
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BLITZER: And could the cure for cancer be found with the help of the common cold? We will examine the results of a new study. And a small town in Kansas increases its population by 50 percent in one day -- an update on the new editions right after this.
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BLITZER: Welcome back.
We have several medical marvels to tell you about. First this: Researchers say a promising cancer-killing virus has proven safe and it's now ready to move to the next phase of testing. It's a cold virus that has been genetically altered to find cancer cells and kill them, while leaving healthy cells alone.
And results are in from the early-phase testing of another cancer drug. Researchers report that the drug stabilized cancer progression in six out of the 10 patients studied. It's a synthetic drug that interrupts a key function cancer cells need to survive.
Doctors in Wichita, Kansas say sextuplets born there over the weekend could go home in four to five weeks. The three boys and three girls will live with their parents in that small town in Kansas, swelling the town's population from 12 to 18.
And at Westminster Hall in London, mourners are paying their respects to Britain's queen mother. And they filed past the coffin at a rate of 2,000 an hour, as her grandsons, Prince Charles and his brothers, stood vigil and watched the tremendous turnout earlier today. Queen Elizabeth went on national television to thank her people for their outpouring of affection for her mother.
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QUEEN ELIZABETH: I thank you for the support you are giving me and my family as we come to terms with her death and the void she has left in our midst. I thank you also from my heart for the love you gave her during her life and the honor you now give her in death. May God bless you all
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BLITZER: The queen mother's funeral will be tomorrow at Westminster Abbey. CNN will have live coverage. That begins 6:00 a.m. Eastern, 3:00 a.m. Pacific.
And where would "60 Minutes" without Mike Wallace? At almost 84 years old, he is scaling back -- why he has waited until now right after this.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK) BLITZER: Earlier we asked where Mike Wallace began his journalism career. In 1942, Wallace got his start in journalism at WXYZ Radio in Detroit. Wallace first joined CBS in 1951 and became co-editor of "60 Minutes" when the show debuted in September 1968.
And, at age 84, most people have been in retirement for years, if not decades. For Mike Wallace, it's the perfect time to begin to slow down. The "60 Minutes" correspondent has announced he will cut down on his involvement with the television magazine program, one of the most successful in history.
Joining us now is Howard Kurtz of "The Washington Post" and CNN's "RELIABLE SOURCES."
And, Howie, I want to be up front with you. Mike Wallace is my idol. He is 84. I want to be 84 and still working, reporting the news at that time as well. But tell us about his decision.
HOWARD KURTZ, "RELIABLE SOURCES": Well, I don't know. He doesn't look a day over 83 to me.
BLITZER: He looks great, I've got tell you.
KURTZ: He does.
On one level, this is hardly a news flash. An 84-year-old man decides to cut back his workload. But this is a problem for "60 Minutes," because, although we all would like Mike Wallace to go on forever, the work that he does, with getting on and off airplanes constantly, is hard work. And he is looking, I think, at least to cut back on the travel a little bit.
What, is the producer of "60 Minutes" going to tell him he's too old? Don Hewitt is 80 years old. But Wallace is so closely identified with that program that the truth is, no matter how many talented journalists they have, he is really is pretty close to irreplaceable.
BLITZER: So, can "60 Minutes" be the same without Mike Wallace as a regular contributor?
KURTZ: It can be a top-rated broadcast. It can be a hard- hitting broadcast. It can't be quite the same broadcast. The youngest person at "60 Minutes" right now I guess is Steve Kroft. He is a mere 56.
I'm a little skeptical, Wolf, of overplaying the notion that Mike Wallace is going to fade into the sunset. He has talked before about cutting back his workload. And then stories happen and he gets engaged. I wouldn't be surprised if he does more pieces for "60 Minutes" this year than he might expect. But the show will go on, as it often does. It is an ensemble show. It's not the Mike Wallace show. They do have other talented folks there: Lesley Stahl, Morley Safer, to name just two. And they have kind of a farm team in the younger weekday version of "60 Minutes II." But I can't sit here and tell you that "60 Minutes" will have the same success or the same impact without the familiar trench-coated figure of Mike Wallace.
BLITZER: Now, we can't forget Ed Bradley, who has been there for many, many years as well. But is there anybody at CBS News, on "60 Minutes II," for example, who might be moved up to "60 Minutes"?
KURTZ: Well, "The New York Times" report on this story today said that Bob Simon, the intrepid foreign correspondent for CBS who has been going to trouble spots around the globe for many years, might make the jump from "60 Minutes II" and pick up some of the reporting load from Mike Wallace.
I don't want to denigrate any of the other journalists. There are very, very good people associated with that broadcast, and with CBS News as well. But there is, in television, something where people come to trust and feel like they are a personal friend of the anchor. And I think, after a half a century, Mike Wallace has obviously got that. Don Hewitt was quoted by "The Times" as saying, even though he is 80, he wants to die at his desk.
Well, I'm sure you feel the same way, Wolf.
BLITZER: I certainly sure do. But I hope it's not any time soon.
Howie Kurtz of "The Washington Post" and CNN's "RELIABLE SOURCES," thank you very much.
And you have only minutes left to weigh in. Could suicide bombings happen here in the United States? Vote now at my Web page: CNN.com/Wolf.
Also ahead: One of our viewers expresses frustrations with two Middle Eastern leaders.
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BLITZER: Let's go to New York now and get a preview of "LOU DOBBS MONEYLINE." That begins right at the top of the hour -- Lou.
LOU DOBBS, "LOU DOBBS MONEYLINE": Yes, Wolf.
Coming up on "MONEYLINE": Israel may be responding to the president's demand to stop that offensive. CNN has confirmed troops will withdraw from at least two cities in the West Bank. We will be going live to Jerusalem and to Morocco, where Secretary of State Colin Powell has begun his Middle East peace mission. And former Secretary of State Henry Kissinger is my guest tonight. I will also be talking with Walter Cronkite about the media's coverage of this war against terrorism.
And a lawsuit against Enron today expanded. Enron shareholders have added nine banks and brokerages and two law firms, trying to recover billions of dollars. And I will have a few thoughts on the seemingly unsettled markets in "The Dobbs Report" night. All of that and a lot more at the top of the hour -- please join us.
Now back to Wolf Blitzer -- Wolf.
BLITZER: We'll be joining you. I'll be looking forward to your thoughts, Lou, as always. Thank you very much.
And now the results of our "Web Question of the Day": "Could suicide bombings happen here in the United States?" Most of you -- look at this -- 89 percent say yes. Only 11 percent of you say no. Remember, this is not -- not -- a scientific poll.
Time now to hear directly from you.
John writes this: "As long as Sharon is prime minister, there will be no peace negotiations. Everyone knows he is against negotiations with the PLO. Why shouldn't both Arafat and Sharon have to step aside and give peace a chance?"
But Ed disagrees: "I give Sharon all the credit in the world for finishing what he started. No matter who tries to stop him, his people come first."
And Catherine says: "By refusing to leave the West Bank, saying they will stay until their mission is done, Prime Minister Sharon and the Israelis are thumbing their noses at the United States, and after all we have done for them."
Remember, tomorrow, 5:00 Eastern, gun control advocate and wife of Jim Brady, Sarah Brady, will join me. In a revealing new book, she talks about life before and after the shooting, President Reagan, and her husband. And there are several surprises in there as well.
Until then, thanks very much for joining us. I'm Wolf Blitzer in Washington. "LOU DOBBS MONEYLINE" begins right now.
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