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CNN Wolf Blitzer Reports

U.S. Troops Targeted in Iraq; Six Suspected Terrorists Rounded Up in 3 States; Interview With Kid Rock

Aired June 27, 2003 - 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 ANCHOR: Six suspected terrorists rounded up in three states. Our Bob Franken is standing by with details.
And are you getting ready to fly for the July 4th holiday celebrations? Our Patty Davis has been looking into security at the nation's airports.

WOLF BLITZER REPORTS starts right now.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER (voice-over): Troops targeted in Iraq. Killed, maybe kidnapped. An urban uprising?

DONALD RUMSFELD, DEFENSE SECRETARY: There are left over remnants of the Saddam Hussein regime that are doing things that are against the coalition.

BLITZER: Training for jihad, or just playing paintball.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We're just playing a game.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: These indictments are a stark reminder that terrorist organizations of various allegiances are active in the United States.

BLITZER: They always seem to know when you're sitting down to dinner.

GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: They are annoying and they're all too common.

BLITZER: Now, a way to stop those telemarketing calls.

And he rocked the troops in Iraq. As promised, my interview with Kid Rock.

KID ROCK, MUSICIAN: I thought maybe it was time for somebody to step forward and say something positive about what these kids are doing, which is basically putting their lives on the line for our freedom.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER: It's Friday, June 27, 2003. Hello from Washington. I'm Wolf Blitzer reporting.

Are U.S. forces now facing a guerrilla uprising in Iraq? The urban combat they managed to avoid, for the most part, at the height of the war. A soldier is shot down while shopping of DVDs on a Baghdad street. The attacker disappeared in a crowd.

The search is stepped up for two soldiers who disappeared two days ago. An military official calls it, and I am quoting now, "possible abduction". Is the nature of the conflict changing? The Defense Secretary, Donald Rumsfeld says there are a lot of Saddam Hussein loyalists still at large. Will the U.S. have to change its strategy?

We begin in Baghdad where U.S. troops are being targeted on a daily basis. Here's CNN's senior international correspondent, Nic Robertson.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): In Balad, 40 kilometers north of Baghdad, U.S. troops search for two comrades missing since Wednesday. Six Iraqis have so far been detained for questioning over the abduction of the soldiers from that isolated checkpoint.

MAJOR WILLIAM THURMOND, COALITION SPOKESMAN: The investigation does continue and we hope as a result of what we are finding, we will be able to recover our missing soldiers.

ROBERTSON: Meantime, in this Baghdad market, another U.S. soldier was attacked. According to a store holder, the soldier stopped to buy a DVD, then was shot in the head at close range. I showed an American soldier this film, he says. He took the U.S. dollars out of his pocket, and as I looked at the money, I heard a bang. He froze, and then fell backwards. Two hours' drive south of Baghdad, near Najaf, no sign on the road where a U.S. Soldier was killed investigating a reported car theft on Thursday.

LT. COL. CHRISTOPHER CONLON, U.S. MARINE CORPS: ... pushed probably a little bit farther than we normally would. And when they arrived there and the local police stopped, so did our military police, and they were fired on. It looked like a coordinated ambush. And they returned fire.

ROBERTSON: For the slain soldier's friends, his killing and the current spate of attacks on coalition troops raises concerns with families back home.

SGT. ALFREDO MALDONADO, U.S. ARMY: I tried to explain before that I came here, that everything was going to be okay. But now with this incident, they're so nervous, and, you know, my mother's crying, you know, and my sister. And all my family is crying.

ROBERTSON (on camera): Since President Bush's May 1 declaration of an end to major combat, 20 U.S. troops and six British soldiers have been killed in hostile action. In recent weeks, attacks against coalition forces appear to have been better coordinated, resulting in more coalition casualties. U.S. officials describe the losses as, quote, militarily insignificant.

Nic Robertson, CNN, Baghdad.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER: The Pentagon, of course, is keeping a very close eye on all this stepped-up activity. Has the nature of the conflict changed? Let's go live to our Pentagon correspondent, Barbara Starr -- Barbara.

BARBARA STARR, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: Well, Wolf, as the days continue to be quite tough for U.S. forces in Iraq, the heat is getting turned up here in Washington as well. Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld began his day on Capitol Hill at a closed-door briefing for Senators about the situation in Iraq. Now, he, so far, is saying nothing about the notion that this is turning into guerrilla warfare. In fact, he doesn't believe that it is. But when he came out of that briefing, he offered some of the reasons he believes the attacks are occurring. Here is some of what he had to say.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

RUMSFELD: Something in the neighbor of 100,000 people turned out of their prisons. Those people are out there. They're doing things that are unhelpful to the Iraqi people. There's also no question that there are leftover remnants of the Saddam Hussein regime that are doing things that are against the coalition.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

STARR: But, Wolf, here at the Pentagon, people in uniform are increasingly expressing some of their concerns about what is going on in Iraq. One official calling it, now, the fact that they are facing an urban guerrilla force, saying this is a classic phase of insurgency. And we have learned within the few days, the U.S. Central Command is expected to finish an internal review of how the operation is going. This "Operation Desert Scorpion", these aggressive raids that U.S. forces have been conducting for the last several weeks. They're going to take a look at how it's all going, and whether they need to make any changes in their strategy and tactics. So far, no indication that they do -- Wolf.

BLITZER: Barbara, getting back to that incident last week near the Syrian border, U.S. troops engaged in some gunfire, I guess, with Syrian border police. I understand you have some new information, what may have occurred?

STARR: Well, Wolf, that story gets mysteriouser and mysteriouser, as they say. Pentagon sources tell us today, that indeed five -- all five of those Syrian border guards were wounded and were rendered medical assistance, but it's been nine days. They have not yet been returned to Syria.

We are told arrangements are under way, and as soon as those arrangements can be made, they will be sent back to Syria. Now, the 20 other people taken into custody during this -- after this attack on the convoy, of course, all of them have been released. According to military forensic experts who have been to the scene, they have managed to identify one single dead Iraqi at the scene.

So they are still looking, but this convoy attack was based, we are told, on excellent intelligence they had, that they believed there were a number of key Iraqis trying to escape across the border into Syria. And with one dead body and everybody in detention being released, no information about where those targets may have gone. Wolf?

BLITZER: All right. Barbara Starr, we'll continue to pursue that story like she does all the other stories at the Pentagon. Thanks, Barbara, very much.

The Bush administration, meanwhile, is not the only one to come under fire for its use of intelligence information in making the case for war again Iraq. The British foreign secretary, Jack Straw, got a grilling today by the parliamentary panel looking into the prewar intelligence briefs.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JACK STRAW, BRITISH FOREIGN SECRETARY: I never claimed, nor did the prime minister, that there was any direct linkage between al Qaeda and the Iraqi regime. In deed, we were both extremely careful when such claims and charges were put. And they -- it was never a part of the decision to go to war. Full stop.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLITZER: Britons today, also paid tribute to six of their soldiers gunned down earlier this week in southern Iraq. The military policemen had had trained at a facility in West Sussex and were remembered during a service in the nearby cathedral. In a sermon, the bishop said the deaths were a part of the price being paid to rebuild Iraq.

So, are coalition forces facing a guerrilla war in Iraq? Will the Pentagon have to rethink its strategy? Joining me is Michael O'Hanlon, a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution here in Washington. Michael, what about that? Is it a time to reassess the strategy as far as Iraq is concerned?

MICHAEL O'HANLON, BROOKINGS INSTITUTION: Well, Wolf, I think it is, in part, a guerrilla campaign, or a counter guerrilla campaign. But I actually think we're in fairly good position to wage that campaign effectively. It doesn't mean it will be easy, and it does means we have to be braced for a long stay in Iraq, and maybe many months of this kind of difficult fighting. Let's hope it's at a somewhat lower level than in recent weeks with fewer American casualties. But this is, in part, a rebuilding operation, and, in part, a counterinsurgency campaign, and we should just recognize that fact.

BLITZER: Well, what do you recommend? What should the strategy -- what should the military be doing differently in order to get the situation under control?

O'HANLON: Well, when you are engaged in counterinsurgency, you have a few things you need to do. One is, of course, to develop very good intelligence on who the guerrillas are inside this sea of civilian population in which they're hiding. Secondly, you have to make sure you don't make it easy for the guerrillas to recruit more sympathetic people to their cause.

So we have to convince the Iraqi people that we are there to help them. One of the ways you do that, of course, is to get the economy back on its feet. One way is to get the Iraqis more and more involved in their own country's politics. And then finally, we need to get other allies involved more heavily in the stabilization mission, so it doesn't look like U.S. colonialism. We know it's not U.S. colonialism, but a lot of Iraqis think otherwise. They see this as the United States coming in and occupying an Arab land. We don't want that baggage. We got to get more countries involved, even if it means getting countries like France and Germany, part of the mission.

BLITZER: Well, let's get back to the issue of an Iraqi military involvement in trying to deal with security. We know the administration is trying to get that started, but the plans that I've read about seems to suggest it will take a year or two years to get a division ready, 10 or 15,000 troops.

O'HANLON: That's right. I think the administration -- in once sense, I can understand why they want to go fast. They think the Clinton administration was to leisurely and slow in places like Bosnia and Kosovo. They want to believe you can do it more quickly. On the other hand, they don't really have a plan that is likely to do it any more quickly, and so if it fine to hope for a new way of doing business, but in the meantime, you should look at what the most recent models are.

And in places like Bosnia and Kosovo, it simply takes five to ten years. And it's not just the Clinton administration. Even after World War II, it took five to ten years to get Germany and Japan back on their feet, to rebuild their security institutions and their political systems.

BLITZER: What about internationalizing the military presence? You say, bringing France, some other European countries. Others suggest, hand it over to the U.N. Let them take over?

O'HANLON: Well, I think, -- we all know from the 1990s in Bosnia, the U.N. doesn't really have the military competence to run the mission, But the U.N. should be, essentially, the bumper sticker, or it should be the storefront name. We should call this the U.N. Operation. We should get U.N. blessing. We should let the U.N. in New York have some diplomatic umbrella capability or sort of be the advertising agent for this.

But NATO should run it or, the United States and Britain should run it. So that part, I think, we have right already. But we don't have enough other countries involved, and right now it still look likes a U.S. Operation, because it is 80 -- 90 percent a U.S. operation.

BLITZER: Michael O'Hanlon, the Brookings Institution, thanks very much, Michael, for that analysis.

O'HANLON: My pleasure, Wolf.

BLITZER: And here's your turn to weigh in on our story. The web question is this: Is Iraq becoming a quagmire for the United States. Yes, no, too early to tell. We'll have the results later in this broadcast. You can vote as cnn.com/wolf.

And while you're there, I'd love to hear from you. Send me your comments. I'll try to read some of them on the air each day at the end of this program. That's also, of course, where you can read my daily online column. CNN.com/wolf.

We're awaiting sentencing in the windshield murder case. We'll go live to the Texas courthouse where the jury is now deliberating.

Plus, pulling the plug on telemarketers. Find out how to put an end to those annoying phone calls once and for all.

And rocking Iraq. Kid Rock just back from entertaining the troops in Baghdad. He'll be my special guest. He will tell us all about it.

First, today's new quiz. According to the recording industry, what's the best selling type of music in the U.S.? Rock & Roll, Rap/Hip-Hop, Country, Urban/R&B? The answer coming up.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: You're looking at pictures just in to CNN. This is a wild wire that's been going on in Contra Costa County, that's east of San Francisco, in California. We understand several homes are threatened by this wildfire. You saw a helicopter flying overhead. We're going to continue to watch to see what's going on, but there's been significant problems with wild fires, not only here but elsewhere around the country as well.

Indeed, in Arizona, three -- in New Mexico, that is, three Albuquerque teenagers are being held in connection with one of two wild fires in the city this week. It started Tuesday, and it's burned more than 300 acres near the Rio Grande River. The fire is about 75 percent contained right now. At one point, the flames forced hundreds of people to evacuate. The three teens are each charged with arson, and they're expected in court next week.

Prosecutors have cleared the way to seek that death penalty for bombing suspect, Eric Rudolph. A new indictment against the former fugitive doesn't contain any new charges, but changes in the wording would allow government lawyers to ask for a death sentence for Rudolf. They haven't said yet whether they will.

In Texas, the same jury that took only 50 minutes to convict Chante Mallard of murder is now trying to decide what punishment she should receive because of the man trapped to die in her car's windshield. CNN's Ed Lavandera is covering the case for us. He's joining us from Ft. Worth. Ed?

ED LAVANDERA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Wolf, the jury in the Chante Mallard case has been deliberating in the punishment phase here for about an hour and 15 minutes now. Defense attorneys and prosecutors took about 20 minutes on each side to deliver their closing arguments, about an hour and 15 minutes ago. Harsh words from the prosecutor's office. They chose not to put on any witnesses during the punishment phase, but they asked for the maximum penalty, and defense attorneys also asking this jury to be compassionate.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CHRISTY JACK, PROSECUTING ATTORNEY: She wasn't upset. She wasn't traumatized. She wasn't distraught. Killing Greg Biggs was simply a bump in the road of her life. Ladies and gentlemen, I don't for one second believe that what you have before you is an easy job, but there is no one better to do it than you 12 people. You speak for our community, and you speak to the horror of this crime.

JEFF KEARNEY, DEFENSE ATTORNEY: Give her a chance, please give her a chance to come back out and show everybody what she can do with that that's in her, that she lost for a couple years, that she lost on this horrible night this happened, and she lost while she was on drugs, but that she is gaining back now that her mind is clear. Give her a chance to do that.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LAVANDERA: Chante Mallard faces anywhere between five years in prison to life in prison, and there's an outside chance of a possibility of parole in this situation, because it is the first time she's been convicted of a felony. This jury, as I mentioned, has been deliberating for 1 hour and 15 minutes. It only -- it took them 50 minutes, less than an hour to find her guilty of murder, but this process perhaps a little more complicated when you start thinking about all the different questions that the jury has to answer as they're deliberating, and in terms -- it's up to them to determine just exactly how long they think she should spend in prison. Wolf?

BLITZER: Ed Lavandera for us in Ft. Worth. Of course, we'll have word as soon as that jury does come back with its decision. Ed Lavandera reporting on this story for us.

An American woman is heading home from Cuba with her children after an international custody battle that reminded some of the Elian Gonzalez chase. Our Havana bureau chief, Lucia Newman, explains.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

LUCIA NEWMAN, CNN HAVANA BUREAU CHIEF (voice-over): For nearly two years, Cornelius Streeter lived in despair.

NINA STREETER, MOTHER: Can you imagine what it is like to not have your children with you. I mean, just the whole thing is a nightmare.

NEWMAN: A nightmare that's just ended in Cuba. Cuban authorities found her two children, 10-year-old Henry, and 8-year-old Victoria, at this marina in Havana where they had been staying on a yacht with the man who allegedly kidnapped them, their father, Anwar Wissa. According to the Cuban government communique, Wissa was arrested discreetly, so the children wouldn't realize what they were going on.

Then they were taken to an (AUDIO GAP) authorities here called an adequate place in the company of someone they were very familiar with, a Cuban sailor who Wissa had hired to take care of his yacht. Hours later, they were reunited with their mother who had appealed to Cuban president, Fidel Castro, through an intermediary. The children had apparently been coming in and out of the marina for several months with their father, who had earlier taken them to Egypt and then Spain. The Cuban government says it will prosecute Wissa on charges related to child kidnapping. Lucia Newman, CNN, Havana.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER: Take off your shoes and open your bags. Tight screening for airline passengers, but are employees getting in under the security radar? We'll take a closer look.

Also flying high then down low. A crashing end for a NASA record holder.

And Kid Rock rocks the troops. I'll go one on one with the bad boy of music. Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: Welcome back. NASA is trying to figure out what went wrong with its Helios solar-powered aircraft. The remote-controlled flying wing crashed into the pacific ocean near Hawaii yesterday during a test flight. The Helios was designed to fly for long periods of time at very high altitudes. It held the world record for fixed wing aircraft -- get this, 96,000 feet.

Now that school is out all over the country, the summer travel season is in full swing, and airports are obviously getting very, very busy. Most of us are very familiar with the screening process for airline passengers, but what about airport workers? CNN's Patty Davis has been looking into that.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

PATTY DAVIS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The lines, the searches, how passengers are screened at airports across the country. But airport and airline employees aren't always searched the same way.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: There you go, Andrea. Thank you.

DAVIS: At Chicago O'Hare's main employee parking entrance, a swipe of your airport I.D. badge gets you in. CNN was shown how by flight attendant union official, Diana Rushing.

DIANA RUSHING, ASSOCIATION OF FLIGHT ATTENDANTS: You're not having your bags -- your parcels checked.

DAVIS: Buses drop employees on the tarmac beyond passenger screening check points. O'Hare says it does randomly search the busses. In many airports, employees use separate entrances to get to their jobs. Congressman Peter DeFazio says he saw airport employees in Detroit simply flashing their airport badges to get into restricted areas. He wants to plug what he says is a gaping hole in security.

REP. PETER DEFAZIO (D), OREGON: I mean, they could have had Uzi's or anything else under those jackets. They could have had suicide belts that they were going to hand to someone inside the terminal to take a plane down.

DAVIS: The Transportation Security Administration says that's unlikely. All with access to airplanes or the gate area have undergone criminal background and fingerprint checks, and many concessionaires, even many pilots and flight attendants are screened at passenger or employee checkpoints. Airport officials worry a Congressional mandate to physically screen all 1.2 million airport workers would be unworkable and costly.

IAN REDHEAD, AIRPORT COUNCIL INTERNATIONAL: Requiring everybody that enters a sterile area to be screened may, on paper sound like a good idea. Operationally, it may be very, very difficult.

DAVIS: The TSA says the system it has now works and reduces risk, but the TSA does admit it recently observed some off-duty employees at Washington's Dulles Airport carrying luggage through secure entrances on their way to their flight.

DAVIS (on camera): The employees were told by the TSA to knock it off. Congressman DeFazio says they should be prosecuted or fired, made an example for those who might have been more sinister motives. Patty Davis, CNN at Reagan National Airport.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER: And expect a cease-fire and a troop withdrawal. The Israelis and the Palestinians appear to be inching -- inching ahead with President Bush's proposed peace road map.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Plus, American citizens allegedly met, plotted and recruited for violent jihad.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Lady liberty must be weeping today, because the rights of citizens in this country are being eroded.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: ... don't have to open their mouths.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLITZER: Persecution or preemptive strikes? The results of FBI raids in three states.

And Kid Rock unplugged. The rapper rocker just back from Iraq and letting it rip. Here what he has to say about war, love, and yes, the United States Supreme Court.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: Welcome back to CNN. A holy war conspiracy in the United States? The FBI goes on a raid. Who did they arrest in three states? We'll get to that. But first, the latest headlines.

(NEWSBREAK)

BLITZER: The federal government today charged 11 men, nine of them U.S. citizens, with plotting a, quote, "violent jihad." One piece of evidence, their participation in paintball war games. Our national correspondent Bob Franken has been looking into this story and is joining us now live -- Bob.

BOB FRANKEN, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, Wolf, in an era where since September 11, the charge has been that legal processes have been conducted in inordinate secrecy, this one has been remarkably public.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

FRANKEN (voice-over): Hammad Abdur Raheem, a U.S.-born father of two who lives in suburban Virginia was one of several young men who called a news conference to condemn the FBI investigation. They never showed up. Abdur Raheem's father had to speak for him.

KING LYON, FATHER OF ABDUR RAHEEM: At 6:00 this morning, the FBI knocked on my son's door with a thump that you could only imagine if you have read "Mein Kampf." I want to say that to you -- you know who comes in the night with a thump.

FRANKEN: Altogether, six were taken into custody, in Maryland, Pennsylvania and Virginia. Two others have been previously arrested. Eleven have been indicted by a federal grand jury in Alexandria, Virginia.

PAUL MCNULTY, U.S. ATTORNEY: Right here in this community, 10 miles from Capitol Hill, in the streets of northern Virginia, American citizens allegedly met, plotted and recruited for a violent jihad.

FRANKEN: Earlier this week, CNN reported Abdur Raheem was one of about a dozen men in the Washington, D.C. area under investigation for possible terrorist ties.

A Muslim convert, he bitterly complained that commonplace activities, including participation in the popular combat simulation game called paintball were given sinister motives by overzealous investigators.

MCNULTY: On several occasions, some members allegedly practiced small unit military tactics at a paintball war games facility. HAMMAD ABDUR RAHEEM, SUSPECT: We have denied this. Everyone has denied this. There's no proof of this. We're just playing a game. OK?

FRANKEN: But prosecutors say Abdur Raheem and the others practiced with real weapons as well, accusing them of 41 counts in all, alleging they engaged in terrorist activities aimed at enemies of Islam overseas, with intent to serve in armed hostility against the United States.

No details were given, except that operations were to be -- "carried on from the United States against the territory and dominion of foreign states, districts and peoples with whom the United States was at peace." The indictment charges the 11 are part of a terrorist organization, seeking independence for Kashmir.

MCNULTY: The defendants are alleged to be associated with a violent Islamic extremist group known as Lashka-e-Taiba, LET, which claims to operate in Afghanistan, Chechnya, Kosovo, Bosnia, Kashmir and the Philippines.

RAHEEM: We are not terrorists, and we're not related to any terrorist group. We're Americans.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

FRANKEN: Americans, they claim, caught up in a post-9/11 anti- Muslim hysteria. And in fact, they dared the government to take legal action, and now government, Wolf, has done just that.

BLITZER: All right, Bob Franken joining us. Thanks, Bob, very much for that good report.

The terrorist suspect described as Osama bin Laden's right-hand man is not in Iranian custody. The country's Foreign Minister is denying reports Ayman al-Zawahiri has been arrested, but a spokesman says several al Qaeda suspects have been arrested in recent months and have not yet been identified.

Israel and the Palestinians may, may be a couple of steps closer towards some sort of start on the road map towards peace. Palestinian militants have agreed to suspend attacks on Israel for three months. A formal announcement of the cease-fire is expected Sunday.

And the two sides have reached an agreement on transferring security in Gaza. CNN's senior international correspondent Sheila MacVicar is in Gaza City.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SHEILA MACVICAR, CNN SR. INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: We're hearing from both the Israeli and Palestinian sources who are close to the top means in effect a security transfer back to Palestinian control. Israeli forces will leave northern Gaza, they will dismantle many of their checkpoints, which have basically broken up the major highway, North (ph) highway in Gaza, and there have been some other things which have been granted, if you will -- 15 to 35-year-old Palestinians here in Gaza will now have the right to leave Gaza to go abroad, something they were mostly prevented from doing before, and the checkpoint from the south of Gaza into Egypt will be opened to facilitate easier crossing.

In addition, on the Israeli side, we are hearing that the Palestinian security forces will agree to go after -- or try to prevent mortar and other kinds of attacks. The Israelis say if they have information about a ticking bomb, something who is about to imminently carry out an attack, they will give that information to the Palestinian security forces, and only if they see that the Palestinians are failing to act, will they then act.

All of this, we're told, could begin to be implemented in Gaza and in the West Bank city of Bethlehem as early as Sunday. We're told that Israelis and Palestinians will meet again on Sunday to discuss the logistics, exactly how they're going to carry this out.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER: CNN's Sheila MacVicar reporting from Gaza.

Pulling the plug on telemarketers. Find out how to disconnect those annoying phone calls.

Also, the story we tried to bring you yesterday, a potentially magic bullet against heart attacks. It could add, get this, 12 years to your life. We'll have details.

And Kid Rock, he'll be my special guest. First, let's take a look at some other news making headlines right now around the world.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER (voice-over): A lull in fighting in Liberia's capital. Rebels trying to oust President Charles Taylor have declared a cease- fire, say they want to avoid a humanitarian catastrophe.

In southern China, bus passengers rescued from an overflowing river. Heavy rains throughout the region have triggered flooding and landslides that have killed at least 17 people.

Now available in Senegal, Mecca Cola. The product was launched last year in France. The maker chose the name to show support for Palestinians and protest American foreign policy.

A celebration in China's capital marking the end of the SARS travel warning that battered the country's tourism industry. Only a few dozen people are still hospitalized with SARS in Beijing, down from more than 1,000 at the height of the epidemic.

And opening today, a film some may find a little too close to reality. "28 days later" is about a virus that sweeps the world. But unlike SARS, this one turns victims into killer zombies.

And that's our look around the world. (END VIDEOTAPE)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: Now to a story we couldn't bring you yesterday because of breaking news. A wonder pill, some call it, that one day might add 12 years to your life.

British researchers are working to develop a tablet that would contain cholesterol and blood pressure-lowering drugs, folic acid and aspirin. They say it should reduce your risk of heart attack and stroke by 80 percent or more. People would start taking the so-called "Polypill" at age 55 as a preventive measure. Don't ask your doctor for the pill just yet. They say researchers need several more years to make sure that it is going to work.

If those annoying telemarketers are causing your blood pressure to rise, there's no need to take a pill. Just register for the new national do not call list. Hundreds of thousands of Americans already have within a matter of only hours. CNN's Julie Vallese reports.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JULIE VALLESE, CNN CONSUMER EDITOR (voice-over): From the Rose Garden of the first family, President Bush summed of the feelings of families across America.

BUSH: Unwanted telemarketing calls are intrusive, they are annoying and they're all too common.

VALLESE: The phone lines now open for Americans fed up with telemarketers.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It's a way for consumers to say you don't have permission to call me.

VALLESE: It is the nation's official do not call registry. The Federal Trade Commission estimates 60 million Americans will register.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I think it will lessen it, and I hope substantially.

VALLESE: Debbie Tobes (ph) says she gets six or seven calls a day, always at inopportune times and wants the calls to stop.

Consumers can register free of charge through a Web site or a toll-free number. The call must be made from the phone number being registered and a personal e-mail address is needed for a confirmation statement if signed up through the Internet.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We'll continue to do business as we always have, abiding by the laws, and in effort trying targeting those people most receptive to receiving a call.

VALLESE (on camera): The law against calling someone on the list goes into effect October 1. The penalty for violations is steep, up to $11,000 per call, and possible charges in federal court.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: There's going to be a huge posse of enforcers out protecting consumers' choice.

VALLESE (voice-over): That's music to Debbie Tobes' ears.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'll look forward to the ideas that when the phone rings it'll be somebody I want to speak with.

VALLESE: The choice will be the consumers. It could be a telemarketer or a friend.

In Washington, I'm Julie Vallese.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER: And if you want to get rid of those telemarketing calls, you can register your phone number on the list. There are two ways to do it. Go online and visit www.DoNotCall.gov. People who live in states west of the Mississippi River can call right now toll free 1-888-382-1222. Nationwide registration by phone will be available July 7.

Kid Rock uncensored. He's entertaining the troops and weighing on the war in Iraq. Kid Rock talks love, politics, music and more when we return.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

(SINGING)

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLITZER: Kid Rock on that CD with Sheryl Crow.

When you think of the USO, by the way, Bob Hope may come to mind, but a whole new group of stars are entertaining the American forces in Iraq and elsewhere around the world including Kid Rock, whose latest album "Cocky" has sold more than three million copies. I talked with Kid Rock earlier about his trip to Baghdad and more.

(START VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER: Kid Rock, thanks so much for joining us, let's get to the issue at hand. You entertained a lot of U.S. soldiers, the marines, the U.S. troops, in Iraq. What made you want to go over there?

KID ROCK: It was not the first USO thing I've done, but every time I've been it's been a great experience. Just seeing those kids' faces when they see someone from the homeland. Especially, maybe, an entertainer, somebody that they look up to, just to see their eyes light up and see it all. The situations there to be taken away for a moment is just worth it itself. Plus, just being able to help out and do whatever I can, you know, for this great nation that we all live in.

BLITZER: Where exactly did you go and were you scared?

KID ROCK: We were in Kuwait, we were in Qatar, and we were in Baghdad, Saddam International Airport -- I guess they formerly called it.

Scared? Maybe your nerves get a little wracked because things go through your head of ,maybe, what could happen. But at the end of the day, you know, you think about it, we have the best trained technical military on the face of this planet. So to be smack-dab in the middle with them is probably the safest place to be in the world.

BLITZER: What did those troops say to you?

KID ROCK: You know, the reason why I'm doing this interview and some other ones, is because a lot of kids kept coming up to me. And these kids 18, 22, 23 years old, they kept, Rock, what do they think of what we're doing, back home? What do they think of us? And I assumed, and from talking to them, that a lot of it had to do with what they hear coming out of Hollywood, and a lot of other people that have outlets to the media, and are very vocal with their viewpoints. And I don't think they understand sometimes that maybe some people that are talking about, you know, our president and government, it still means they support them.

And I let them know that, you know, there's a lot of people like myself, the people I'm around, and basically middle America that really appreciate and support you guys, and support our government, and are 100 percent behind you guys. So I figured that everybody else can take advantage of this media outlet they have to protest and say the negatives,

I thought maybe it was time that somebody step forward and say something positive about what these kids are doing, which is basically putting their lives on the line for our freedoms. Which we are all well aware of.

BLITZER:: Is it fair to say, though, Kid Rock, that you're in the minority as far as the entertainment world, Hollywood, show businesses when it comes to your passionate support for this war?

KID ROCK: Well, you know, it's kind of funny. Because usually I'm in the big mouth category. And on this I do seem to be in the, I guess, small mouth minority category for some reason. But, I don't know, just I think a lot of us that support our government are really more focused on doing the right thing. Going to work every day. Taking our families, and supporting our government. Rather than go out and use all these outlets to talk so negatively about some things that maybe we don't understand.

Me myself, I'm not the most political person in the world, so I don't really think it's my place to speak because I'm not educated enough to make decisions for our country, so you know, that's what I think. BLITZER: You and Sheryl Crow have a smash hit, which I love, but her politics are obviously a lot different than yours. She was adamantly against the war. Has this strained your relationship with her?

KID ROCK: No, not at all. You know, that's one of the beautiful things of our country that these guys are out there putting their lives on the line for, that somebody can be against it and somebody can be for it. And, you know, we've talked about it a little bit here and there, and I think maybe she has some good viewpoints. I think mine are a little better obviously, but it hasn't strained our relationship at all. She's still a great friend and wonderful person.

BLITZER: What else are you going to do for those troops beyond what you have already done?

KID ROCK: What else would I do?

BLITZER: What else would you do, yes. Would you want to go back?

KID ROCK: I would go back anytime, anyplace, anywhere. I was kind of joking with them, though, you know, I said next time can you guys try find a war to start a war in Tahiti or something? It's like 130 degrees over there. These poor kids in Baghdad have no running water, no showers. They wipe with baby wipes. My heart goes out to them. And I think everybody that was on that USO tour will tell you, that being in Baghdad that day, that afternoon, there was something very special in the air. And for a few hours there it seemed like everybody really realized what life's about, how important our families are, and how lucky we are to live in this great country.

BLITZER: I've got to ask you one last question, Kid Rock, before I let you go. We've been promoting your appearance on our program now for some 24 hours. I'm getting flooded with e-mails. All your fans out there are asking me this question, "what's going on between you and Pamela Anderson"?

KID ROCK: I won't even comment on that, Wolf. I don't think that needs to overshadow the important things that our soldiers and our military are doing for our country. I don't think it's really even important.

BLITZER: Alright, well it's obviously important to a lot of your fans. Their really curious to know, but I respect your privacy.

KID ROCK: I don't think anyone's losing sleep over it, Wolf.

BLITZER:: Alright, you are probably are right on that. Kid rock, congratulations to you. Thanks for doing a good job for the U.S. military.

KID ROCK: And Wolf, if I could just make one more comment, I've been watching CNN here, and I keep hearing about the decision with the Supreme Court with the homosexual ruling. I just want to say I think it's a beautiful thing. Because if you really think about it, you know, the more gay men there are in the world, that just leaves more chicks for me and you, Wolf.

BLITZER: Kid Rock, telling us how you really feel. Thanks very much, kid.

KID ROCK: Thank you.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER: I can't top that. Let's get to our hot web question of the day. It's this, is Iraq becoming a quagmire for the United States? You can vote now at CNN.com/wolf. We'll have the results when we come back.

First, the answer to today's news quiz.

Earlier we asked, according to the recording industry, what's the best selling type of music in the United States. The answer: Rock and Roll. Rap and Hip-Hop are second, followed by Urban R&B. Country trails behind.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: Here's how you're weighing in on our Web question of the day. Remember, we've been asking you this, is Iraq becoming a quagmire for the United States. Look at these results.

Among those voting, 64 percent of you say yes, 30 percent of you say no, 6 percent say too early to tell.

As always, we remind you this is not a scientific poll.

Let's get to some of your e-mail. We're getting flooded with email from you, our viewers.

Tad writes this, "I was, and still am, against the military action in Iraq. But, since we are there, we need to get the situation resolved. We clearly do no have enough troops in Iraq to do the job.

Mike writes, "The daily loss of American military live in Iraq is a clear result of bad planning on our administration. While it is very clear that the military aspect of the plan was successful, it is now obvious that the postwar plan should be reevaluated.

Remember, send us your email at wolf@CNN.com. You can also go to our web page cnn.com/wolf.

A reminder, we're here every week day, 5pm Eastern. Also, week days noon Eastern. I'll see you Sunday on "LATE EDITION" among my special guest, Senator Joe Biden, Chuck Hagel, just back from their trip to Baghdad. That's Sunday noon Eastern.

Until then, thanks very much for watching. "LOU DOBBS TONIGHT" starts right now.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com




Rounded Up in 3 States; Interview With Kid Rock>


Aired June 27, 2003 - 17:00   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
WOLF BLITZER, CNN ANCHOR: Six suspected terrorists rounded up in three states. Our Bob Franken is standing by with details.
And are you getting ready to fly for the July 4th holiday celebrations? Our Patty Davis has been looking into security at the nation's airports.

WOLF BLITZER REPORTS starts right now.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER (voice-over): Troops targeted in Iraq. Killed, maybe kidnapped. An urban uprising?

DONALD RUMSFELD, DEFENSE SECRETARY: There are left over remnants of the Saddam Hussein regime that are doing things that are against the coalition.

BLITZER: Training for jihad, or just playing paintball.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We're just playing a game.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: These indictments are a stark reminder that terrorist organizations of various allegiances are active in the United States.

BLITZER: They always seem to know when you're sitting down to dinner.

GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: They are annoying and they're all too common.

BLITZER: Now, a way to stop those telemarketing calls.

And he rocked the troops in Iraq. As promised, my interview with Kid Rock.

KID ROCK, MUSICIAN: I thought maybe it was time for somebody to step forward and say something positive about what these kids are doing, which is basically putting their lives on the line for our freedom.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER: It's Friday, June 27, 2003. Hello from Washington. I'm Wolf Blitzer reporting.

Are U.S. forces now facing a guerrilla uprising in Iraq? The urban combat they managed to avoid, for the most part, at the height of the war. A soldier is shot down while shopping of DVDs on a Baghdad street. The attacker disappeared in a crowd.

The search is stepped up for two soldiers who disappeared two days ago. An military official calls it, and I am quoting now, "possible abduction". Is the nature of the conflict changing? The Defense Secretary, Donald Rumsfeld says there are a lot of Saddam Hussein loyalists still at large. Will the U.S. have to change its strategy?

We begin in Baghdad where U.S. troops are being targeted on a daily basis. Here's CNN's senior international correspondent, Nic Robertson.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): In Balad, 40 kilometers north of Baghdad, U.S. troops search for two comrades missing since Wednesday. Six Iraqis have so far been detained for questioning over the abduction of the soldiers from that isolated checkpoint.

MAJOR WILLIAM THURMOND, COALITION SPOKESMAN: The investigation does continue and we hope as a result of what we are finding, we will be able to recover our missing soldiers.

ROBERTSON: Meantime, in this Baghdad market, another U.S. soldier was attacked. According to a store holder, the soldier stopped to buy a DVD, then was shot in the head at close range. I showed an American soldier this film, he says. He took the U.S. dollars out of his pocket, and as I looked at the money, I heard a bang. He froze, and then fell backwards. Two hours' drive south of Baghdad, near Najaf, no sign on the road where a U.S. Soldier was killed investigating a reported car theft on Thursday.

LT. COL. CHRISTOPHER CONLON, U.S. MARINE CORPS: ... pushed probably a little bit farther than we normally would. And when they arrived there and the local police stopped, so did our military police, and they were fired on. It looked like a coordinated ambush. And they returned fire.

ROBERTSON: For the slain soldier's friends, his killing and the current spate of attacks on coalition troops raises concerns with families back home.

SGT. ALFREDO MALDONADO, U.S. ARMY: I tried to explain before that I came here, that everything was going to be okay. But now with this incident, they're so nervous, and, you know, my mother's crying, you know, and my sister. And all my family is crying.

ROBERTSON (on camera): Since President Bush's May 1 declaration of an end to major combat, 20 U.S. troops and six British soldiers have been killed in hostile action. In recent weeks, attacks against coalition forces appear to have been better coordinated, resulting in more coalition casualties. U.S. officials describe the losses as, quote, militarily insignificant.

Nic Robertson, CNN, Baghdad.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER: The Pentagon, of course, is keeping a very close eye on all this stepped-up activity. Has the nature of the conflict changed? Let's go live to our Pentagon correspondent, Barbara Starr -- Barbara.

BARBARA STARR, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: Well, Wolf, as the days continue to be quite tough for U.S. forces in Iraq, the heat is getting turned up here in Washington as well. Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld began his day on Capitol Hill at a closed-door briefing for Senators about the situation in Iraq. Now, he, so far, is saying nothing about the notion that this is turning into guerrilla warfare. In fact, he doesn't believe that it is. But when he came out of that briefing, he offered some of the reasons he believes the attacks are occurring. Here is some of what he had to say.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

RUMSFELD: Something in the neighbor of 100,000 people turned out of their prisons. Those people are out there. They're doing things that are unhelpful to the Iraqi people. There's also no question that there are leftover remnants of the Saddam Hussein regime that are doing things that are against the coalition.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

STARR: But, Wolf, here at the Pentagon, people in uniform are increasingly expressing some of their concerns about what is going on in Iraq. One official calling it, now, the fact that they are facing an urban guerrilla force, saying this is a classic phase of insurgency. And we have learned within the few days, the U.S. Central Command is expected to finish an internal review of how the operation is going. This "Operation Desert Scorpion", these aggressive raids that U.S. forces have been conducting for the last several weeks. They're going to take a look at how it's all going, and whether they need to make any changes in their strategy and tactics. So far, no indication that they do -- Wolf.

BLITZER: Barbara, getting back to that incident last week near the Syrian border, U.S. troops engaged in some gunfire, I guess, with Syrian border police. I understand you have some new information, what may have occurred?

STARR: Well, Wolf, that story gets mysteriouser and mysteriouser, as they say. Pentagon sources tell us today, that indeed five -- all five of those Syrian border guards were wounded and were rendered medical assistance, but it's been nine days. They have not yet been returned to Syria.

We are told arrangements are under way, and as soon as those arrangements can be made, they will be sent back to Syria. Now, the 20 other people taken into custody during this -- after this attack on the convoy, of course, all of them have been released. According to military forensic experts who have been to the scene, they have managed to identify one single dead Iraqi at the scene.

So they are still looking, but this convoy attack was based, we are told, on excellent intelligence they had, that they believed there were a number of key Iraqis trying to escape across the border into Syria. And with one dead body and everybody in detention being released, no information about where those targets may have gone. Wolf?

BLITZER: All right. Barbara Starr, we'll continue to pursue that story like she does all the other stories at the Pentagon. Thanks, Barbara, very much.

The Bush administration, meanwhile, is not the only one to come under fire for its use of intelligence information in making the case for war again Iraq. The British foreign secretary, Jack Straw, got a grilling today by the parliamentary panel looking into the prewar intelligence briefs.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JACK STRAW, BRITISH FOREIGN SECRETARY: I never claimed, nor did the prime minister, that there was any direct linkage between al Qaeda and the Iraqi regime. In deed, we were both extremely careful when such claims and charges were put. And they -- it was never a part of the decision to go to war. Full stop.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLITZER: Britons today, also paid tribute to six of their soldiers gunned down earlier this week in southern Iraq. The military policemen had had trained at a facility in West Sussex and were remembered during a service in the nearby cathedral. In a sermon, the bishop said the deaths were a part of the price being paid to rebuild Iraq.

So, are coalition forces facing a guerrilla war in Iraq? Will the Pentagon have to rethink its strategy? Joining me is Michael O'Hanlon, a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution here in Washington. Michael, what about that? Is it a time to reassess the strategy as far as Iraq is concerned?

MICHAEL O'HANLON, BROOKINGS INSTITUTION: Well, Wolf, I think it is, in part, a guerrilla campaign, or a counter guerrilla campaign. But I actually think we're in fairly good position to wage that campaign effectively. It doesn't mean it will be easy, and it does means we have to be braced for a long stay in Iraq, and maybe many months of this kind of difficult fighting. Let's hope it's at a somewhat lower level than in recent weeks with fewer American casualties. But this is, in part, a rebuilding operation, and, in part, a counterinsurgency campaign, and we should just recognize that fact.

BLITZER: Well, what do you recommend? What should the strategy -- what should the military be doing differently in order to get the situation under control?

O'HANLON: Well, when you are engaged in counterinsurgency, you have a few things you need to do. One is, of course, to develop very good intelligence on who the guerrillas are inside this sea of civilian population in which they're hiding. Secondly, you have to make sure you don't make it easy for the guerrillas to recruit more sympathetic people to their cause.

So we have to convince the Iraqi people that we are there to help them. One of the ways you do that, of course, is to get the economy back on its feet. One way is to get the Iraqis more and more involved in their own country's politics. And then finally, we need to get other allies involved more heavily in the stabilization mission, so it doesn't look like U.S. colonialism. We know it's not U.S. colonialism, but a lot of Iraqis think otherwise. They see this as the United States coming in and occupying an Arab land. We don't want that baggage. We got to get more countries involved, even if it means getting countries like France and Germany, part of the mission.

BLITZER: Well, let's get back to the issue of an Iraqi military involvement in trying to deal with security. We know the administration is trying to get that started, but the plans that I've read about seems to suggest it will take a year or two years to get a division ready, 10 or 15,000 troops.

O'HANLON: That's right. I think the administration -- in once sense, I can understand why they want to go fast. They think the Clinton administration was to leisurely and slow in places like Bosnia and Kosovo. They want to believe you can do it more quickly. On the other hand, they don't really have a plan that is likely to do it any more quickly, and so if it fine to hope for a new way of doing business, but in the meantime, you should look at what the most recent models are.

And in places like Bosnia and Kosovo, it simply takes five to ten years. And it's not just the Clinton administration. Even after World War II, it took five to ten years to get Germany and Japan back on their feet, to rebuild their security institutions and their political systems.

BLITZER: What about internationalizing the military presence? You say, bringing France, some other European countries. Others suggest, hand it over to the U.N. Let them take over?

O'HANLON: Well, I think, -- we all know from the 1990s in Bosnia, the U.N. doesn't really have the military competence to run the mission, But the U.N. should be, essentially, the bumper sticker, or it should be the storefront name. We should call this the U.N. Operation. We should get U.N. blessing. We should let the U.N. in New York have some diplomatic umbrella capability or sort of be the advertising agent for this.

But NATO should run it or, the United States and Britain should run it. So that part, I think, we have right already. But we don't have enough other countries involved, and right now it still look likes a U.S. Operation, because it is 80 -- 90 percent a U.S. operation.

BLITZER: Michael O'Hanlon, the Brookings Institution, thanks very much, Michael, for that analysis.

O'HANLON: My pleasure, Wolf.

BLITZER: And here's your turn to weigh in on our story. The web question is this: Is Iraq becoming a quagmire for the United States. Yes, no, too early to tell. We'll have the results later in this broadcast. You can vote as cnn.com/wolf.

And while you're there, I'd love to hear from you. Send me your comments. I'll try to read some of them on the air each day at the end of this program. That's also, of course, where you can read my daily online column. CNN.com/wolf.

We're awaiting sentencing in the windshield murder case. We'll go live to the Texas courthouse where the jury is now deliberating.

Plus, pulling the plug on telemarketers. Find out how to put an end to those annoying phone calls once and for all.

And rocking Iraq. Kid Rock just back from entertaining the troops in Baghdad. He'll be my special guest. He will tell us all about it.

First, today's new quiz. According to the recording industry, what's the best selling type of music in the U.S.? Rock & Roll, Rap/Hip-Hop, Country, Urban/R&B? The answer coming up.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: You're looking at pictures just in to CNN. This is a wild wire that's been going on in Contra Costa County, that's east of San Francisco, in California. We understand several homes are threatened by this wildfire. You saw a helicopter flying overhead. We're going to continue to watch to see what's going on, but there's been significant problems with wild fires, not only here but elsewhere around the country as well.

Indeed, in Arizona, three -- in New Mexico, that is, three Albuquerque teenagers are being held in connection with one of two wild fires in the city this week. It started Tuesday, and it's burned more than 300 acres near the Rio Grande River. The fire is about 75 percent contained right now. At one point, the flames forced hundreds of people to evacuate. The three teens are each charged with arson, and they're expected in court next week.

Prosecutors have cleared the way to seek that death penalty for bombing suspect, Eric Rudolph. A new indictment against the former fugitive doesn't contain any new charges, but changes in the wording would allow government lawyers to ask for a death sentence for Rudolf. They haven't said yet whether they will.

In Texas, the same jury that took only 50 minutes to convict Chante Mallard of murder is now trying to decide what punishment she should receive because of the man trapped to die in her car's windshield. CNN's Ed Lavandera is covering the case for us. He's joining us from Ft. Worth. Ed?

ED LAVANDERA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Wolf, the jury in the Chante Mallard case has been deliberating in the punishment phase here for about an hour and 15 minutes now. Defense attorneys and prosecutors took about 20 minutes on each side to deliver their closing arguments, about an hour and 15 minutes ago. Harsh words from the prosecutor's office. They chose not to put on any witnesses during the punishment phase, but they asked for the maximum penalty, and defense attorneys also asking this jury to be compassionate.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CHRISTY JACK, PROSECUTING ATTORNEY: She wasn't upset. She wasn't traumatized. She wasn't distraught. Killing Greg Biggs was simply a bump in the road of her life. Ladies and gentlemen, I don't for one second believe that what you have before you is an easy job, but there is no one better to do it than you 12 people. You speak for our community, and you speak to the horror of this crime.

JEFF KEARNEY, DEFENSE ATTORNEY: Give her a chance, please give her a chance to come back out and show everybody what she can do with that that's in her, that she lost for a couple years, that she lost on this horrible night this happened, and she lost while she was on drugs, but that she is gaining back now that her mind is clear. Give her a chance to do that.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LAVANDERA: Chante Mallard faces anywhere between five years in prison to life in prison, and there's an outside chance of a possibility of parole in this situation, because it is the first time she's been convicted of a felony. This jury, as I mentioned, has been deliberating for 1 hour and 15 minutes. It only -- it took them 50 minutes, less than an hour to find her guilty of murder, but this process perhaps a little more complicated when you start thinking about all the different questions that the jury has to answer as they're deliberating, and in terms -- it's up to them to determine just exactly how long they think she should spend in prison. Wolf?

BLITZER: Ed Lavandera for us in Ft. Worth. Of course, we'll have word as soon as that jury does come back with its decision. Ed Lavandera reporting on this story for us.

An American woman is heading home from Cuba with her children after an international custody battle that reminded some of the Elian Gonzalez chase. Our Havana bureau chief, Lucia Newman, explains.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

LUCIA NEWMAN, CNN HAVANA BUREAU CHIEF (voice-over): For nearly two years, Cornelius Streeter lived in despair.

NINA STREETER, MOTHER: Can you imagine what it is like to not have your children with you. I mean, just the whole thing is a nightmare.

NEWMAN: A nightmare that's just ended in Cuba. Cuban authorities found her two children, 10-year-old Henry, and 8-year-old Victoria, at this marina in Havana where they had been staying on a yacht with the man who allegedly kidnapped them, their father, Anwar Wissa. According to the Cuban government communique, Wissa was arrested discreetly, so the children wouldn't realize what they were going on.

Then they were taken to an (AUDIO GAP) authorities here called an adequate place in the company of someone they were very familiar with, a Cuban sailor who Wissa had hired to take care of his yacht. Hours later, they were reunited with their mother who had appealed to Cuban president, Fidel Castro, through an intermediary. The children had apparently been coming in and out of the marina for several months with their father, who had earlier taken them to Egypt and then Spain. The Cuban government says it will prosecute Wissa on charges related to child kidnapping. Lucia Newman, CNN, Havana.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER: Take off your shoes and open your bags. Tight screening for airline passengers, but are employees getting in under the security radar? We'll take a closer look.

Also flying high then down low. A crashing end for a NASA record holder.

And Kid Rock rocks the troops. I'll go one on one with the bad boy of music. Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: Welcome back. NASA is trying to figure out what went wrong with its Helios solar-powered aircraft. The remote-controlled flying wing crashed into the pacific ocean near Hawaii yesterday during a test flight. The Helios was designed to fly for long periods of time at very high altitudes. It held the world record for fixed wing aircraft -- get this, 96,000 feet.

Now that school is out all over the country, the summer travel season is in full swing, and airports are obviously getting very, very busy. Most of us are very familiar with the screening process for airline passengers, but what about airport workers? CNN's Patty Davis has been looking into that.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

PATTY DAVIS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The lines, the searches, how passengers are screened at airports across the country. But airport and airline employees aren't always searched the same way.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: There you go, Andrea. Thank you.

DAVIS: At Chicago O'Hare's main employee parking entrance, a swipe of your airport I.D. badge gets you in. CNN was shown how by flight attendant union official, Diana Rushing.

DIANA RUSHING, ASSOCIATION OF FLIGHT ATTENDANTS: You're not having your bags -- your parcels checked.

DAVIS: Buses drop employees on the tarmac beyond passenger screening check points. O'Hare says it does randomly search the busses. In many airports, employees use separate entrances to get to their jobs. Congressman Peter DeFazio says he saw airport employees in Detroit simply flashing their airport badges to get into restricted areas. He wants to plug what he says is a gaping hole in security.

REP. PETER DEFAZIO (D), OREGON: I mean, they could have had Uzi's or anything else under those jackets. They could have had suicide belts that they were going to hand to someone inside the terminal to take a plane down.

DAVIS: The Transportation Security Administration says that's unlikely. All with access to airplanes or the gate area have undergone criminal background and fingerprint checks, and many concessionaires, even many pilots and flight attendants are screened at passenger or employee checkpoints. Airport officials worry a Congressional mandate to physically screen all 1.2 million airport workers would be unworkable and costly.

IAN REDHEAD, AIRPORT COUNCIL INTERNATIONAL: Requiring everybody that enters a sterile area to be screened may, on paper sound like a good idea. Operationally, it may be very, very difficult.

DAVIS: The TSA says the system it has now works and reduces risk, but the TSA does admit it recently observed some off-duty employees at Washington's Dulles Airport carrying luggage through secure entrances on their way to their flight.

DAVIS (on camera): The employees were told by the TSA to knock it off. Congressman DeFazio says they should be prosecuted or fired, made an example for those who might have been more sinister motives. Patty Davis, CNN at Reagan National Airport.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER: And expect a cease-fire and a troop withdrawal. The Israelis and the Palestinians appear to be inching -- inching ahead with President Bush's proposed peace road map.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Plus, American citizens allegedly met, plotted and recruited for violent jihad.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Lady liberty must be weeping today, because the rights of citizens in this country are being eroded.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: ... don't have to open their mouths.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLITZER: Persecution or preemptive strikes? The results of FBI raids in three states.

And Kid Rock unplugged. The rapper rocker just back from Iraq and letting it rip. Here what he has to say about war, love, and yes, the United States Supreme Court.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: Welcome back to CNN. A holy war conspiracy in the United States? The FBI goes on a raid. Who did they arrest in three states? We'll get to that. But first, the latest headlines.

(NEWSBREAK)

BLITZER: The federal government today charged 11 men, nine of them U.S. citizens, with plotting a, quote, "violent jihad." One piece of evidence, their participation in paintball war games. Our national correspondent Bob Franken has been looking into this story and is joining us now live -- Bob.

BOB FRANKEN, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, Wolf, in an era where since September 11, the charge has been that legal processes have been conducted in inordinate secrecy, this one has been remarkably public.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

FRANKEN (voice-over): Hammad Abdur Raheem, a U.S.-born father of two who lives in suburban Virginia was one of several young men who called a news conference to condemn the FBI investigation. They never showed up. Abdur Raheem's father had to speak for him.

KING LYON, FATHER OF ABDUR RAHEEM: At 6:00 this morning, the FBI knocked on my son's door with a thump that you could only imagine if you have read "Mein Kampf." I want to say that to you -- you know who comes in the night with a thump.

FRANKEN: Altogether, six were taken into custody, in Maryland, Pennsylvania and Virginia. Two others have been previously arrested. Eleven have been indicted by a federal grand jury in Alexandria, Virginia.

PAUL MCNULTY, U.S. ATTORNEY: Right here in this community, 10 miles from Capitol Hill, in the streets of northern Virginia, American citizens allegedly met, plotted and recruited for a violent jihad.

FRANKEN: Earlier this week, CNN reported Abdur Raheem was one of about a dozen men in the Washington, D.C. area under investigation for possible terrorist ties.

A Muslim convert, he bitterly complained that commonplace activities, including participation in the popular combat simulation game called paintball were given sinister motives by overzealous investigators.

MCNULTY: On several occasions, some members allegedly practiced small unit military tactics at a paintball war games facility. HAMMAD ABDUR RAHEEM, SUSPECT: We have denied this. Everyone has denied this. There's no proof of this. We're just playing a game. OK?

FRANKEN: But prosecutors say Abdur Raheem and the others practiced with real weapons as well, accusing them of 41 counts in all, alleging they engaged in terrorist activities aimed at enemies of Islam overseas, with intent to serve in armed hostility against the United States.

No details were given, except that operations were to be -- "carried on from the United States against the territory and dominion of foreign states, districts and peoples with whom the United States was at peace." The indictment charges the 11 are part of a terrorist organization, seeking independence for Kashmir.

MCNULTY: The defendants are alleged to be associated with a violent Islamic extremist group known as Lashka-e-Taiba, LET, which claims to operate in Afghanistan, Chechnya, Kosovo, Bosnia, Kashmir and the Philippines.

RAHEEM: We are not terrorists, and we're not related to any terrorist group. We're Americans.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

FRANKEN: Americans, they claim, caught up in a post-9/11 anti- Muslim hysteria. And in fact, they dared the government to take legal action, and now government, Wolf, has done just that.

BLITZER: All right, Bob Franken joining us. Thanks, Bob, very much for that good report.

The terrorist suspect described as Osama bin Laden's right-hand man is not in Iranian custody. The country's Foreign Minister is denying reports Ayman al-Zawahiri has been arrested, but a spokesman says several al Qaeda suspects have been arrested in recent months and have not yet been identified.

Israel and the Palestinians may, may be a couple of steps closer towards some sort of start on the road map towards peace. Palestinian militants have agreed to suspend attacks on Israel for three months. A formal announcement of the cease-fire is expected Sunday.

And the two sides have reached an agreement on transferring security in Gaza. CNN's senior international correspondent Sheila MacVicar is in Gaza City.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SHEILA MACVICAR, CNN SR. INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: We're hearing from both the Israeli and Palestinian sources who are close to the top means in effect a security transfer back to Palestinian control. Israeli forces will leave northern Gaza, they will dismantle many of their checkpoints, which have basically broken up the major highway, North (ph) highway in Gaza, and there have been some other things which have been granted, if you will -- 15 to 35-year-old Palestinians here in Gaza will now have the right to leave Gaza to go abroad, something they were mostly prevented from doing before, and the checkpoint from the south of Gaza into Egypt will be opened to facilitate easier crossing.

In addition, on the Israeli side, we are hearing that the Palestinian security forces will agree to go after -- or try to prevent mortar and other kinds of attacks. The Israelis say if they have information about a ticking bomb, something who is about to imminently carry out an attack, they will give that information to the Palestinian security forces, and only if they see that the Palestinians are failing to act, will they then act.

All of this, we're told, could begin to be implemented in Gaza and in the West Bank city of Bethlehem as early as Sunday. We're told that Israelis and Palestinians will meet again on Sunday to discuss the logistics, exactly how they're going to carry this out.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER: CNN's Sheila MacVicar reporting from Gaza.

Pulling the plug on telemarketers. Find out how to disconnect those annoying phone calls.

Also, the story we tried to bring you yesterday, a potentially magic bullet against heart attacks. It could add, get this, 12 years to your life. We'll have details.

And Kid Rock, he'll be my special guest. First, let's take a look at some other news making headlines right now around the world.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER (voice-over): A lull in fighting in Liberia's capital. Rebels trying to oust President Charles Taylor have declared a cease- fire, say they want to avoid a humanitarian catastrophe.

In southern China, bus passengers rescued from an overflowing river. Heavy rains throughout the region have triggered flooding and landslides that have killed at least 17 people.

Now available in Senegal, Mecca Cola. The product was launched last year in France. The maker chose the name to show support for Palestinians and protest American foreign policy.

A celebration in China's capital marking the end of the SARS travel warning that battered the country's tourism industry. Only a few dozen people are still hospitalized with SARS in Beijing, down from more than 1,000 at the height of the epidemic.

And opening today, a film some may find a little too close to reality. "28 days later" is about a virus that sweeps the world. But unlike SARS, this one turns victims into killer zombies.

And that's our look around the world. (END VIDEOTAPE)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: Now to a story we couldn't bring you yesterday because of breaking news. A wonder pill, some call it, that one day might add 12 years to your life.

British researchers are working to develop a tablet that would contain cholesterol and blood pressure-lowering drugs, folic acid and aspirin. They say it should reduce your risk of heart attack and stroke by 80 percent or more. People would start taking the so-called "Polypill" at age 55 as a preventive measure. Don't ask your doctor for the pill just yet. They say researchers need several more years to make sure that it is going to work.

If those annoying telemarketers are causing your blood pressure to rise, there's no need to take a pill. Just register for the new national do not call list. Hundreds of thousands of Americans already have within a matter of only hours. CNN's Julie Vallese reports.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JULIE VALLESE, CNN CONSUMER EDITOR (voice-over): From the Rose Garden of the first family, President Bush summed of the feelings of families across America.

BUSH: Unwanted telemarketing calls are intrusive, they are annoying and they're all too common.

VALLESE: The phone lines now open for Americans fed up with telemarketers.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It's a way for consumers to say you don't have permission to call me.

VALLESE: It is the nation's official do not call registry. The Federal Trade Commission estimates 60 million Americans will register.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I think it will lessen it, and I hope substantially.

VALLESE: Debbie Tobes (ph) says she gets six or seven calls a day, always at inopportune times and wants the calls to stop.

Consumers can register free of charge through a Web site or a toll-free number. The call must be made from the phone number being registered and a personal e-mail address is needed for a confirmation statement if signed up through the Internet.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We'll continue to do business as we always have, abiding by the laws, and in effort trying targeting those people most receptive to receiving a call.

VALLESE (on camera): The law against calling someone on the list goes into effect October 1. The penalty for violations is steep, up to $11,000 per call, and possible charges in federal court.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: There's going to be a huge posse of enforcers out protecting consumers' choice.

VALLESE (voice-over): That's music to Debbie Tobes' ears.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'll look forward to the ideas that when the phone rings it'll be somebody I want to speak with.

VALLESE: The choice will be the consumers. It could be a telemarketer or a friend.

In Washington, I'm Julie Vallese.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER: And if you want to get rid of those telemarketing calls, you can register your phone number on the list. There are two ways to do it. Go online and visit www.DoNotCall.gov. People who live in states west of the Mississippi River can call right now toll free 1-888-382-1222. Nationwide registration by phone will be available July 7.

Kid Rock uncensored. He's entertaining the troops and weighing on the war in Iraq. Kid Rock talks love, politics, music and more when we return.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

(SINGING)

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLITZER: Kid Rock on that CD with Sheryl Crow.

When you think of the USO, by the way, Bob Hope may come to mind, but a whole new group of stars are entertaining the American forces in Iraq and elsewhere around the world including Kid Rock, whose latest album "Cocky" has sold more than three million copies. I talked with Kid Rock earlier about his trip to Baghdad and more.

(START VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER: Kid Rock, thanks so much for joining us, let's get to the issue at hand. You entertained a lot of U.S. soldiers, the marines, the U.S. troops, in Iraq. What made you want to go over there?

KID ROCK: It was not the first USO thing I've done, but every time I've been it's been a great experience. Just seeing those kids' faces when they see someone from the homeland. Especially, maybe, an entertainer, somebody that they look up to, just to see their eyes light up and see it all. The situations there to be taken away for a moment is just worth it itself. Plus, just being able to help out and do whatever I can, you know, for this great nation that we all live in.

BLITZER: Where exactly did you go and were you scared?

KID ROCK: We were in Kuwait, we were in Qatar, and we were in Baghdad, Saddam International Airport -- I guess they formerly called it.

Scared? Maybe your nerves get a little wracked because things go through your head of ,maybe, what could happen. But at the end of the day, you know, you think about it, we have the best trained technical military on the face of this planet. So to be smack-dab in the middle with them is probably the safest place to be in the world.

BLITZER: What did those troops say to you?

KID ROCK: You know, the reason why I'm doing this interview and some other ones, is because a lot of kids kept coming up to me. And these kids 18, 22, 23 years old, they kept, Rock, what do they think of what we're doing, back home? What do they think of us? And I assumed, and from talking to them, that a lot of it had to do with what they hear coming out of Hollywood, and a lot of other people that have outlets to the media, and are very vocal with their viewpoints. And I don't think they understand sometimes that maybe some people that are talking about, you know, our president and government, it still means they support them.

And I let them know that, you know, there's a lot of people like myself, the people I'm around, and basically middle America that really appreciate and support you guys, and support our government, and are 100 percent behind you guys. So I figured that everybody else can take advantage of this media outlet they have to protest and say the negatives,

I thought maybe it was time that somebody step forward and say something positive about what these kids are doing, which is basically putting their lives on the line for our freedoms. Which we are all well aware of.

BLITZER:: Is it fair to say, though, Kid Rock, that you're in the minority as far as the entertainment world, Hollywood, show businesses when it comes to your passionate support for this war?

KID ROCK: Well, you know, it's kind of funny. Because usually I'm in the big mouth category. And on this I do seem to be in the, I guess, small mouth minority category for some reason. But, I don't know, just I think a lot of us that support our government are really more focused on doing the right thing. Going to work every day. Taking our families, and supporting our government. Rather than go out and use all these outlets to talk so negatively about some things that maybe we don't understand.

Me myself, I'm not the most political person in the world, so I don't really think it's my place to speak because I'm not educated enough to make decisions for our country, so you know, that's what I think. BLITZER: You and Sheryl Crow have a smash hit, which I love, but her politics are obviously a lot different than yours. She was adamantly against the war. Has this strained your relationship with her?

KID ROCK: No, not at all. You know, that's one of the beautiful things of our country that these guys are out there putting their lives on the line for, that somebody can be against it and somebody can be for it. And, you know, we've talked about it a little bit here and there, and I think maybe she has some good viewpoints. I think mine are a little better obviously, but it hasn't strained our relationship at all. She's still a great friend and wonderful person.

BLITZER: What else are you going to do for those troops beyond what you have already done?

KID ROCK: What else would I do?

BLITZER: What else would you do, yes. Would you want to go back?

KID ROCK: I would go back anytime, anyplace, anywhere. I was kind of joking with them, though, you know, I said next time can you guys try find a war to start a war in Tahiti or something? It's like 130 degrees over there. These poor kids in Baghdad have no running water, no showers. They wipe with baby wipes. My heart goes out to them. And I think everybody that was on that USO tour will tell you, that being in Baghdad that day, that afternoon, there was something very special in the air. And for a few hours there it seemed like everybody really realized what life's about, how important our families are, and how lucky we are to live in this great country.

BLITZER: I've got to ask you one last question, Kid Rock, before I let you go. We've been promoting your appearance on our program now for some 24 hours. I'm getting flooded with e-mails. All your fans out there are asking me this question, "what's going on between you and Pamela Anderson"?

KID ROCK: I won't even comment on that, Wolf. I don't think that needs to overshadow the important things that our soldiers and our military are doing for our country. I don't think it's really even important.

BLITZER: Alright, well it's obviously important to a lot of your fans. Their really curious to know, but I respect your privacy.

KID ROCK: I don't think anyone's losing sleep over it, Wolf.

BLITZER:: Alright, you are probably are right on that. Kid rock, congratulations to you. Thanks for doing a good job for the U.S. military.

KID ROCK: And Wolf, if I could just make one more comment, I've been watching CNN here, and I keep hearing about the decision with the Supreme Court with the homosexual ruling. I just want to say I think it's a beautiful thing. Because if you really think about it, you know, the more gay men there are in the world, that just leaves more chicks for me and you, Wolf.

BLITZER: Kid Rock, telling us how you really feel. Thanks very much, kid.

KID ROCK: Thank you.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER: I can't top that. Let's get to our hot web question of the day. It's this, is Iraq becoming a quagmire for the United States? You can vote now at CNN.com/wolf. We'll have the results when we come back.

First, the answer to today's news quiz.

Earlier we asked, according to the recording industry, what's the best selling type of music in the United States. The answer: Rock and Roll. Rap and Hip-Hop are second, followed by Urban R&B. Country trails behind.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: Here's how you're weighing in on our Web question of the day. Remember, we've been asking you this, is Iraq becoming a quagmire for the United States. Look at these results.

Among those voting, 64 percent of you say yes, 30 percent of you say no, 6 percent say too early to tell.

As always, we remind you this is not a scientific poll.

Let's get to some of your e-mail. We're getting flooded with email from you, our viewers.

Tad writes this, "I was, and still am, against the military action in Iraq. But, since we are there, we need to get the situation resolved. We clearly do no have enough troops in Iraq to do the job.

Mike writes, "The daily loss of American military live in Iraq is a clear result of bad planning on our administration. While it is very clear that the military aspect of the plan was successful, it is now obvious that the postwar plan should be reevaluated.

Remember, send us your email at wolf@CNN.com. You can also go to our web page cnn.com/wolf.

A reminder, we're here every week day, 5pm Eastern. Also, week days noon Eastern. I'll see you Sunday on "LATE EDITION" among my special guest, Senator Joe Biden, Chuck Hagel, just back from their trip to Baghdad. That's Sunday noon Eastern.

Until then, thanks very much for watching. "LOU DOBBS TONIGHT" starts right now.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com




Rounded Up in 3 States; Interview With Kid Rock>