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CNN Wolf Blitzer Reports

Flu Shot Makers Run Out of Supply; 2 More Shootings Linked to Series of Shootings in Ohio; Suicide Bomber Targets Train in Southern Russia

Aired December 05, 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: Happening right now -- if you haven't gotten your flu shot yet you might be out of luck. The nation's only two makers of the flu shot say they've run out of supply.
And it's now up to 14. Within the past hour two more shootings have been linked to the series of shootings in Columbus, Ohio.

Stand by for hard news on WOLF BLITZER REPORTS.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER (voice-over): Will he talk? Her alleged kidnapper may hold a key to finding a missing student.

Baghdad bombing; an Iraqi bus in the wrong place at the wrong time.

Terror on the tracks; dozens are killed when a suicide bomber targets a train.

Early winter call it a one-two punch, call it a double whammy, call it a mess.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ANNOUNCER: This is WOLF BLITZER REPORTS for Friday, December 05, 2003.

BLITZER: The two companies that make flu vaccines here in the United States say they are out and those who haven't had a flu shot yet may have a hard time getting one. The timing is terrible.

What's shaping up to be a worse than average season is hitting the peak months right now. Already about a dozen children in four western states have died from flu with large scale outbreaks reported in 13 states and while the virus kills 36,000 Americans each year experts predict this year's toll will be even higher.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DR. SCOTT HARPER, CDC: This season we haven't seen a shortage of the vaccine. It's not the word that we would choose to describe it. What we usually see is that in influenza seasons typically most vaccine is given during the months of October and November and then we encourage the vaccine continues to be given on into December and the rest of the influenza season as long as vaccine is available. So this season we think we're seeing quite a lot of influenza activity early and so a lot of people have been vaccinated early.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLITZER: For more on what this means we're joined by Dr. William Schaffner of Vanderbilt Medical Center in Nashville. Dr. Schaffner thanks very much for joining us. What does this mean? A lot of our viewers who haven't gotten the flu shot yet are understandably going to be alarmed.

DR. WILLIAM SCHAFFNER, VANDERBILT MEDICAL CENTER: Yes, Wolf. I think those viewers need to go about getting their flu shot just as quickly as possible. There are spot shortages but, you know, in this season we may not be able to find our toys in the first store so they may have to make a little bit of extra effort, go from one clinic to another to see if the flu vaccine is available. There is still some available so people need to get vaccinated.

BLITZER: In other words what you're suggesting is that if your doctor or clinic or hospital has run out it's unlikely they're going to be able to get more but you might want to check another source, is that right?

SCHAFFNER: That's exactly right. Just call around, walk around, see if you can find a place that still has the vaccine. Lots of places still do.

BLITZER: Was it just bad planning not making enough of this flu vaccine or is it a case of more people getting the shot than predicted?

SCHAFFNER: We've made more flu vaccine this year than ever before and you all have helped educate the public that getting vaccinated is a good thing and it is and so more members of the public have responded. We're glad about that but supplies are a little tight right now.

BLITZER: Who are the most vulnerable right now? Who should be getting these flu shots, whatever vaccine may be left?

SCHAFFNER: The people at greatest risk are anyone over age 50, anyone under age 50 that has underlying heart disease, lung disease, diabetes, immunosuppression, pregnant women who are pregnant during the second and third trimesters right now during flu season and little children age six to 23 months. That's the high risk group.

BLITZER: What's the problem? Why can't they just make some more of this flu vaccine if there's such a demand?

SCHAFFNER: It's not like making a drug where you just put a bunch of chemicals together. It takes a long, long process starting with all those eggs in which the flu vaccine is made. I'm afraid the chance to make vaccine has passed for this year. BLITZER: Dr. Schaffner a horrible story but one hopefully people will manage to get through. Thanks very much for giving us some perspective.

SCHAFFNER: Stay healthy.

BLITZER: Thank you, you too.

Here's your turn to our viewers to weigh in on this important story. Our web question of the day is this. "Are you still planning to receive a flu shot this season"? You can vote right now. Go to cnn.com/wolf. We'll have the results later in this broadcast.

In other news, in Ohio two more shootings have been linked to a series of highway shootings bringing the total right now to 14, one of which killed a 62-year-old woman.

CNN's Martin Savidge is in Columbus. He's joining us with late- breaking developments -- Marty.

MARTIN SAVIDGE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good evening to you, Wolf.

Yesterday they were saying that it was 12 shooting cases that were connected to the I-270 shooting spree. Today, authorities say the number has now jumped to 14.

In the two newest cases nobody was injured, still it is very troubling nonetheless. Both cases go back to Sunday, November 30, the first case a woman driving on the highway in the area southwest of Columbus.

She hears a loud noise then several hours later notices she's got a flat. She reports that to police. They investigate. They find what they think are a bullet hole. They've connected it now to the shooting spree.

Then either Sunday night or sometime on Monday a bullet is fired into a home in the town of (UNINTELLIGIBLE). That is very near the area where the shootings have taken place. Nobody was hit. Nobody was home. The bullet later is found. Police run a ballistics check. It matches.

It brings to five bullets now that have been ballistically matched together all fired from the same gun that fired the bullet that killed 62-year-old Gail Knisley.

Here is the most troubling aspect. There are a lot of people who thought that with the death of that woman the shooting spree might come to an end that the gunman would go to ground. Apparently that's not the case, two new shootings.

I asked at the press conference why don't they call it a sniper case now? Here is what Chief Deputy Steve Martin of the Franklin County Sheriff's Office said about that.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) CHIEF DEPUTY STEVE MARTIN, FRANKLIN COUNTY OHIO SHERIFF'S DEPARTMENT: We still don't believe that we should call this individual a sniper because, one, that denotes a military person in camouflage hiding and shooting from long distances. That may or may not be the issue. We're not prepared to make that jump.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SAVIDGE: Yesterday they called the possibility of other shootings as unlikely. Today they've got two more -- Wolf.

BLITZER: What's the reaction among average people out there from what you're sensing, Marty?

SAVIDGE: Well it's hard to gauge that right now. This news only came out about an hour ago and it's hitting the streets. Many people were very fearful. This is only going to make that notch up even more -- Wolf.

BLITZER: Marty Savidge joining us from Columbus, a very, very disturbing story especially for those of us who lived through the sniper story here in the Greater Washington, D.C. area only a year or so ago.

There are new details emerging in the story we brought you yesterday when it was still only developing, the tragic killing of a federal prosecutor from Baltimore.

Our Justice Correspondent Kelli Arena she's joining us now. She's got late information on this story, very disturbing Kelli.

KELLI ARENA, CNN JUSTICE CORRESPONDENT: Right, Wolf.

Sources close to the investigation say that the prosecutor Jonathan Luna left the Baltimore Courthouse where he worked at 11:40 at night. Now they've been able to track some of his movements after that but there are still more questions than there are answers at this point.

Investigators say that Luna did not head home but he took a non direct route to Pennsylvania. Electronic records show that he made two stops along the way. Now it's not clear whether he was alone or not and where exactly he was stabbed.

Officials say that his car was found idling in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, his body underneath. Money and Luna's cell phone were found in the car. The interior was drenched in blood.

Sources describe his killing as brutal. Torture wounds were found on his torso. He was stabbed as many as 36 times. His lungs were filled with creek water. Sources say that investigators are looking into past cases that Luna worked and conducting some interviews to see if there could be any possible connection. They're also scouring video records. Investigators say though until they know more they are pursuing every single possible scenario -- Wolf. BLITZER: Any indication they have a good solid lead?

ARENA: Not at all. Not at this point.

BLITZER: All right, Kelli Arena with that disturbing story. Thanks very much, Kelli.

Just a short while ago I talked with Attorney Kenneth Ravenell in Baltimore. He represents Deon Smith the rap artist Luna was prosecuting on drug charges.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER: Mr. Ravenell thanks very much for joining us. I know you knew Jonathan Luna very well. You may have been one of the last people to speak to him before he was murdered. What can you tell us first of all around the circumstances that led up to that night because you spoke to him that day?

KENNETH RAVENELL, DEFENSE ATTORNEY: Yes, I was in court with him as you correctly stated. I represented Deon Smith in that ongoing trial that ended yesterday with the guilty pleas. I saw Jonathan approximately around 5:30 p.m. shortly after we had negotiated the plea for Mr. Smith in that case.

BLITZER: So what's your suspicion? What happened?

RAVENELL: Quite frankly I don't know what happened and I'm not going to guess. I think it's inappropriate for any of us to begin to guess what happened. I can tell you that I do not believe that my client or his co-defendant Mr. Poindexter played any role in Jonathan's death.

Jonathan was a friend and I am certainly very upset by his death and we're certainly hopeful that law enforcement will soon capture the individual or individuals involved.

BLITZER: Your client and his co-defendant were both in prison at the time of the murder. They were not on the streets.

RAVENELL: That's correct. My client was arrested on May the 13th of 2003 and has been incarcerated since that time. I will tell you that my client as well as Mr. Poindexter has offered to meet with the prosecutors and law enforcement. In fact, Mr. Poindexter did that yesterday.

My client was scheduled to meet with the prosecutors today and I arrived and we're prepared to do that but prosecutors told us that they did not want to interview him.

I think that says a lot about any possible involvement of Mr. Smith. I can't imagine if there is any thought that he was really involved that law enforcement would not interview him today when we made that offer.

BLITZER: We know that Jonathan Luna was 38 years old, married, two kids. You knew him for quite a while. What was he like?

RAVENELL: Wolf, as I've said before he was probably one of the most decent human beings I've ever met, not just a decent prosecutor but a decent human being. He was a caring individual.

While he had a job and he did it well to prosecute those who committed crimes he also understood that those individuals he was prosecuting were not statistics that they were people, that they had friends and family who loved them and I think that is one of the highest testaments to anyone who could do that job but still have compassion for those that he or she is prosecuting.

BLITZER: Do you know of any cases he might have been involved other than your particular case where someone might have a motive to go out and murder him in such a brutal way?

RAVENELL: Wolf, I have absolutely no idea why anyone would do this to Jonathan Luna. As I said, he was one of the most decent men you'd ever meet.

BLITZER: In all of your years practicing law as a criminal defense attorney have you ever seen anything this bad?

RAVENELL: No, I haven't. I mean this is absolutely shocking. Certainly the acts are appalling. It's not something that we expect to happen in our field. Obviously we understand that when you prosecute people who are accused of violent crimes that these things can happen but it's not expected and it doesn't normally happen.

BLITZER: Kenneth Ravenell thanks so much for joining us. Our heart goes out to the family of Jonathan Luna. Our condolences to you, you were a good friend of his.

RAVENELL: Thank you, Wolf, good night.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER: Deadly blast, a suicide bomber strikes a commuter train during morning rush hour. The results are horrific, simply devastating. We're live on the scene in southern Russia.

Violent prediction, a top U.S. official warns of an increase in attacks against U.S. troops in Iraq. We're live from Baghdad.

Missing student, a report of blood found in the suspect's car. Are investigators any closer to finding 22-year-old college student Dru Sjodin? Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: Winter warnings, the seasons first major snowstorm hits the northeast and a second more severe storm it's on the way. You're looking live, Philadelphia, the city of brotherly love. An update on the storm and how will it impact you just ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) BLITZER: The attack was timed to do maximum damage during the early morning rush hour. The target, a commuter train in southern Russia near the volatile Chechnya region, the toll 41 people dead, more than 150 wounded. Russian officials say it was a suicide bombing.

Let's go live to CNN's Ryan Chilcote. He's on the scene for us in southern Russia -- Ryan.

RYAN CHILCOTE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Wolf, the Russian president appeared on national television and said that this terrorist act was aimed at interfering with Russia's parliamentary elections set for Sunday here; however, he said those terrorists will not succeed in that. He said the Russian people will not let that happen.

Now, I'm standing in front of a hospital in the southern Russian town of Yessentuki where more than half of the 155 people that were wounded in this attack are still being treated, some two dozen of them in the Intensive Care Unit.

Doctors saying that those people inside that intensive care unit have a 50/50 chance of making it through the night many of them suffering from some very serious head injuries, many of them very young people.

Now I was able to go to the trauma unit and speak with a woman by the name of Natalia. Both she and her husband are being treated in the hospital. They were inside that train car in car number two when the blast went off.

Believe it or not this is not the first time that they have been witness to terrorist acts in this area. They narrowly averted one here just a few months ago when their train was re-routed onto a different track.

Anyway, Natalia believe it or not told me that she plans to try and get out of the hospital by Sunday so she can vote. She has an important message for Russian politicians. Listen to what she had to say.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translator): Our government should take radical measures. It should take better care of us and protect us. We should live with peace of mind. This is a well-known resort and people should not be afraid to come here.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHILCOTE: Now, Wolf, I also spoke with a 15-year-old girl and a 17-year-old girl. Believe it or not they were on their way to school when this blast happened.

One of those two girls had been in a train in the same area when another blast went off three months ago. That time she was able to get out with a bit of shock, this time not as lucky but doctors say it is looking good for her. They hope that she can be released in a couple days' time -- Wolf.

BLITZER: Ryan Chilcote on the scene of this horrific, horrific crime. Thanks very much for joining us.

A bomb also took a bloody toll among civilians in Baghdad today but they weren't necessarily the targets. Aimed at a U.S. military convoy the blast killed one U.S. soldier but it also hit a passenger bus.

CNN's Walter Rodgers is joining us now live from the Iraqi capital with more -- Walter.

WALTER RODGERS, CNN SR. INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Hello, Wolf.

Well it was your standard Iraqi guerrilla ambush of an American military patrol.= three U.S. Humvees, Army vehicles moving through southeastern Baghdad. The guerrillas had previously set an explosive charge in the middle of the road. When the third Humvee passed by they detonated the charge remotely.

One U.S. soldier, the driver, was killed immediately, slumped over the wheel. The other two were -- two soldiers were wounded and walked away but what made this different was that just as the blast went off the bomb in the middle of the road also hit an Iraqi civilian bus, 21 people aboard that, three Iraqis killed there, one of them being the driver and 11 others on that bus were taken to hospital.

The blast was tantamount to a fragmentation grenade and the leading U.S. civil official here Ambassador Paul Bremer in Iraq says the worst is yet to come and we should brace for more of these.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PAUL BREMER, U.S. CIVILIAN ADMINISTRATOR: In the immediate phase ahead of us between now and the end of June we will actually see an increase in attacks because the people who are against us now realize that there's huge momentum behind both the economic and political reconstruction of this country.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

RODGERS: Ironically and despite the violence today, the U.S. military here is saying it is meeting with some success, at least numerically and statistically. General Mark Kimmitt said that the number of attacks on the coalition forces has now been drawn down to about 19 a day over the course of the past week. That's quite a success for the U.S. military. Some of those attacks were ranging upwards of 49 or 50 a day a number of weeks and months ago -- Wolf.

BLITZER: Walter Rodgers in Baghdad thank you very much.

Not giving up hope the family of a missing college student renews their pledge to bring her home. We'll have an update on this search. We'll go live to Grand Forks, North Dakota. Not to be overlooked, Iraq's top Shiite leader the Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani insight into why he plays such an important role in the rebuilding of Iraq.

Early winter and a big impact, severe storms dumping lots of snow across the northeast right now, an update on this major blast. That's coming up.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: An emotional appeal, a plea from the family of missing student Dru Sjodin. We'll go live to Grand Forks, North Dakota.

And who is the mysterious figure considered by many the most powerful man in Iraq right now? I'll speak live with Andrew Cockburn, a noted author and expert on Iraq. Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: Welcome back to CNN.

New developments in the search for a missing 22-year-old and the renewed debate over what to do with convicted sex offenders. We'll get to all of that, first though a quick check of the latest headlines.

Convicted sniper John Muhammad won't be appearing at the trial of his alleged co-conspirator. Lawyers for Lee Boyd Malvo wanted jurors to see for themselves the difference in size and age between the two men but the judge in the Malvo trial said transporting Muhammad was an unnecessary danger.

Secretary of State Colin Powell met in Washington with the architects of an unofficial Middle East peace plan. The visitors say they're so-called Geneva Accord complements rather than contradicts the U.S.-backed road map to peace. Israel's leaders are critical of the accord and neither they nor their Palestinian counterparts are backing it.

Nearly two weeks after Dru Sjodin disappeared there's still no sign of the 22-year-old college student. Still her family has not given up hope.

CNN's Jeff Flock is covering the story. He's joining us now live from Grand Forks, North Dakota with the latest -- Jeff.

JEFF FLOCK, CNN CHICAGO BUREAU CHIEF: The latest is, Wolf that authorities today, prosecutors met for the first time with the attorney for Alfonso Rodriguez, Jr. They told him they want to talk to his client again but they set up no specific meeting.

Already they've spoken three times. They want to talk about what he knows about the case. Today there was a published report that said blood from Mr. Rodriguez' car, his maroon 2002 Mercury Sable, blood inside there according to this report matches Dru Sjodin's blood type, again, authorities refusing to confirm or deny. Despite all of this, as you report, the Sjodin family remains hopeful that Dru is alive. I asked Mr. Sjodin, her father, what it is that makes him so hopeful against such long odds.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ALLAN SJODIN, FATHER: She has a magnetism and a strength that I've always known since she was just a tiny little child and, you know, I -- I can see her waiting for us. I just have that internal, that faith.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FLOCK: The question though is should perhaps prosecutors consider making some sort of a plea bargain with Mr. Rodriguez if, in fact, he has any information in return for that information him leading authorities and searchers to Dru Sjodin. Prosecutors, however, confronted with that for the second day in a row said no deal.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PETER WELTE, PROSECUTOR: We're not making any deals on it. What we're doing is if there's a dialogue the dialogue is where's Dru?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FLOCK: And Wolf, no more big searches planned. Authorities say they are doing some specific targeted searches based on some of the leads they have gotten. They have over 1,400 leads which they are continuing to check out. But, of course, their biggest lead would be anything that Mr. Rodriguez would give them. At least that's what they say. And at this point, nothing doing on that -- Wolf.

BLITZER: Very quickly, Jeff, if there's some suspicion she's alive but the clock is ticking, why not make a deal to at least try to save her life?

FLOCK: Absolutely. A very good question. Although, there is some question about just how confident authority are that she is, in fact, alive.

Although they say so publicly, they say that's driven by the confidence of her family. And even the police chief today said, well, we've had a lot of miracles lately, referring to other cases where people who had been lost reappeared again. So he clearly conceded that this, in fact, if she turns up, will be a miracle, but holds out the hope that that can in fact happen.

BLITZER: Jeff Flock, thanks very much for that report. What a heartbreaking story that is.

The man charged with kidnapping Dru Sjodin is a convicted sex offender released from prison just in May. That's reviving a long- running debate over how society should handle sex crimes and over what should be done with an offender after the end of his prison term. Law professor Eric Janus has studied these very sensitive, difficult questions. He's joining us live from St. Paul, Minnesota.

Did the government -- did the authorities do everything right in the case of this Alfonso Rodriguez, Jr. in letting him out in May, apparently with no supervision?

PROF. ERIC JANUS, WILLIAM MITCHELL COLLEGE OF LAW: Well, let's start with the basics, and that is that, under our system of laws, of course, when somebody has been convicted of a crime and sentenced to a period in prison, when that period is up, then the authorities have no choice really under the criminal law but to release that person. Normally, when there's a release there is a period of supervision in the community, a parole period, if you will. But at least under the laws of Minnesota, when a person has served out his entire prison sentence, then that supervised period just doesn't exist.

BLITZER: I understand, though, they're beginning to change that in the aftermath of what has just happened.

JANUS: Well, there is another option, and that's the option of civil commitment or sometimes called sexually violent predator commitment laws. And that is a mechanism in the law that allows the state to keep somebody confined after they have actually served their time in prison. It's been a very controversial type of legislation, but one that, at least in limited circumstances, has been upheld by the courts.

BLITZER: And the notion of having some sort of electronic tracking device, an ankle bracelet, along those lines, to at least keep a tab on these guys, what's the story with that?

JANUS: Well, the key question there, of course, is what kind of authority or hold the state has over the individual. In most cases, and under more modern laws, the states have retained long-term control over sex offenders, and then that kind of tracking device is an option. But in this case, where this individual was sentenced some 25 years ago, unfortunately the supervisory time had run out. And unless you engage some other mechanism, like civil commitment, that kind of tracking option is not available.

BLITZER: Eric Janus is a professor of law at William Mitchell College of Law in St. Paul. Thanks very much for joining us, Professor.

JANUS: You're welcome.

BLITZER: When he speaks, Iraqis listen. So who is this powerful voice in a war-torn country? And why should the United States take notice?

Disturbing video: a new al Qaeda tape surfaces.

Storm warnings: the Northeast getting ready for its first major taste of winter. An update on the big blast.

All that coming up.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: He recently threw a wrench into U.S. plans for a hand over of power in Iraq when he insisted that a constitution and a new government must be based on direct elections. American officials are learning that the country's top Shiite leader, the Grand Ayatollah Ali Al-Sistani, is not a man to be taken lightly.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER (voice-over): Born in Iran, he came to Iraq as a young man to study in the holy city of Najaf, where Iran's own Ayatollah Khomeini spent his long years of exile. The 71-year-old Sistani is considered by many to be the most revered and most influential leader among Iraq's 15 million Shiite Muslims who make up 60 percent of the country's population.

When another Shiite leader was killed in a massive car bombing in Najaf a few months ago, hundreds of thousands converged on the city in mourning. It is a powerful, passionate and highly committed constituency, one which the U.S. is treating gingerly.

PAUL BREMER, U.S. CIVIL ADMINISTRATOR IN IRAQ: I have very great respect for Ayatollah Sistani. He has been a leading voice in this country now for half a century. And I have real agreement with him on a number of matters.

BLITZER: During the regime of Saddam Hussein, a Sunni Muslim, Shiites were oppressed. And when they answered a U.S. call to revolt after the first Gulf War, tens of thousands were slaughtered. Free now to live the way they want, they now want their share of power.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER: Does Ayatollah Ali Al-Sistani hold the key to Iraq's future? Does he see an Islamic state in that future?

Joining us now, Andrew Cockburn. He's written widely on defense and international affairs, co-authored "Out of the Ashes: The Resurrection of Saddam Hussein."

Andrew, thanks very much for joining us. How powerful of a guy is this ayatollah?

ANDREW COCKBURN, AUTHOR: He is extremely powerful. He probably is, as you said, the most influential man in Iraq. I mean, the Shia, there's probably 14, 15 million of them; no one knows for sure. Most of them follow him. I mean, he is their guide.

BLITZER: And he wants a fundamentalist Islamic ayatollah-led state in Iraq?

COCKBURN: No, not entirely. What he's demanding is that Iraqis be allowed to vote on their new constitution. Or rather that anyone who writes the constitution has been to be elected. BLITZER: But doesn't he believe the 60 percent who are Shia will vote for that form of regime?

COCKBURN: Well, yes and no. I mean, he thinks -- he wants Islam in the constitution. But he is not Ayatollah Khomeni. In fact, he opposed Khomeini's idea that the clerics should be...

BLITZER: When Americans hear the words "Grand Ayatollah," they shouldn't necessarily jump to conclusion that is what Al-Sistani wants is what happened in Iran?

COCKBURN: Right. I mean, a turban and a beard tends to bring people out, but it wouldn't necessarily be the case here.

BLITZER: You write in the "L.A. Times" today, "Iraqis tend to disagree about a lot of things. On one matter, however, they almost invariably present a United front. Iraq is one country, and they are Iraqis first, and Sunnis and Shiites second."

Some Iraqi experts disagree. They think that the Shiites and the Sunnis, the Kurds, eventually are going to be at each other's threats.

COCKBURN: Yes, but those Iraqis experts tend not to be Iraqi. I mean, I'm just presenting the views of pretty much every Iraqi I ever met, ever talked to about this. And they all say that. Even the Kurds these days tend to say that. So I go with them.

BLITZER: Will he be on board, the Grand Ayatollah, on this scheme to have these caucuses, if you will, in the 18 provinces of Iraq in June, as opposed to free and democratic elections? Bremer says there's no way they can get these elections under way by then.

COCKBURN: He will not be on board. He is absolutely -- he is not giving in on this. I mean, Bremer and other people have thought they could fudge it, thought he'd go along.

He won't. He is absolutely adamant. He's saying, if you're going to do something as important as this, the people, the representatives have to be elected. And he's pointed out there are ways you could do it. It's probably not true that you couldn't do it, by the way.

BLITZER: So what do you see happening in the coming months?

COCKBURN: Well, I think it's going to get quite serious. I think that the occupational authorities, Mr. Bremer and others, don't realize how unyielding the ayatollah is on this, on his demand for free elections. '

He's not going to give in. He's going to declare any alternative mechanism illegitimate. He'll pull -- people who respect him are going to pull out of the Governing Council.

There probably will be demonstrations. I don't think -- he's not going to call for violence. He's not going to call for armed resistance because he's not that kind of guy. But I think that the occupation is facing a real problem in this angry ayatollah.

BLITZER: Not a pretty picture. What a complicated situation it is in Iraq. Andrew Cockburn, as usual, thanks very much.

COCKBURN: You're welcome.

BLITZER: Recruiting terrorists: what does al Qaeda plan to achieve by releasing alarming new images?

And a powerful snowstorm slamming the Northeast. Who will have the worst problems with snow this weekend?

We'll get to all of that. First, though, a quick look at some other news making headlines around the world.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER (voice-over): War or peace? Palestinian faction leaders meeting in Egypt continue to discuss a united front on peace negotiations with Israel. Meanwhile, Israel announced that 12 alleged Palestinian terrorists are being expelled from the West Bank and moved to Gaza.

Rumsfeld remarks: Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld met in Tbilisi with the interim leaders of Georgia less than two weeks after protests forced President Eduard Shevardnadze to resign. Rumsfeld said America wants stability in the former Soviet Republic, and he praised the interim leadership's commitment to hold free and fair elections.

Common concerns: Britain's Queen Elizabeth II formally opened the commonwealth summit in Nigeria. Several commonwealth countries are calling for the reinstatement of Zimbabwe, which was suspended last year. But Britain says the suspension should stand until Zimbabwe makes reforms.

The mother of all stores? Signs of a retail revolution in Baghdad, where a two-story Hyper Mart (ph) has opened, filled with groceries, carpets, imported clothes and other consumer goods. It is a big change for Iraqis, who are more accustomed to making their purchases in small, specialized shops.

China doll: China is ready to host its first international beauty contest in more than half a century. One hundred six women will compete in the Miss World Pageant on China's Hainan Island. With tickets going for up to $2,000, it is the kind of extravagant enterprise earlier Chinese leaders would have reviled. But remember, even Mao Tse Tung once remarked that women hold up half the sky.

And that's our look around the world.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: It is snowing in the Northeast right now, with more, possibly much more, to come. The first of two back-to-back storms is moving through the region. And some areas could see as much as 16 inches of snow.

Let's check in on the situation in New York City right now. CNN's Jason Carroll is standing by -- Jason.

JASON CARROLL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: And hello to you, Wolf. You know, it started snowing out here in New York late this morning. And as you can see, it is still snowing from the southeast to New England. People are getting their first real taste of winter.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CARROLL (voice-over): The first winter storm of the season triggered storm warnings from Virginia to Ohio to Maine.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: This is my type of weather. I'm a winter baby.

CARROLL: Easy for a New Yorker to say. Not so easy for drivers in the Southeast. In Gaithersburg, Maryland, just one word needed to describe the roads.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Awful.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Horrible.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Messy.

CARROLL: In Philadelphia, no need for words. One sound says it all. Stalled and sliding cars had weather veterans feeling like first storm freshmen.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I grew up in upstate New York, so I thought I could handle this and it wouldn't be a problem. But, you know, I came out this far. It looks like I'm stuck here now.

CARROLL: So is Erin Mckay (ph).

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'm just kind of staying here and waiting for a friend to come help me out.

CARROLL: Eight to 10 inches expected in Philadelphia. But the National Weather Service says the Southeast has seen the worse. Good news for people like Jean Wilkes (ph) in Sterling, Virginia.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I know that they tried to tell us, but I was still surprised that there was this much snow. A little unprepared.

CARROLL: They are prepared in New York. Plenty of plows, hats and hoods. But little patience for making snowballs.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Come on. We've got the light. Hurry up.

CARROLL: The worst for New York is yet to come. About a foot should fall here by late Saturday. New England could end up getting even more.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CARROLL: And again, in New England, they are expected to get hit hard by the storm sometime tomorrow through tomorrow evening. People up in Boston waiting for that to happen there.

Most of the people that we talked to, though, Wolf, in terms of how they're doing, seem to been doing all right with just walk. In the streets, it's travel that is really turning out to be a hassle for a lot of people in terms of the airports. Philadelphia, Newark and LaGuardia looking at major delays and cancellations. But at JFK, things seem to be running pretty much on time -- Wolf.

BLITZER: CNN's Jason Carroll in Times Square in New York City. It looks pretty, even though it may be somewhat complicating for all the people who live there. Thanks very much, Jason, for that.

They're enemy number one in the war on terror. Now members of al Qaeda show off their training with a special message to the cyber world.

And studying the secrets of the deep. A unique look at the USS Arizona on the anniversary of its sinking.

Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: Terror on tape. Al Qaeda has released a new video. It showed up on a Web site tied to the terror network, built as a tribute to a jihadist killed by Saudi special forces last month.

The tape shows al Qaeda forces training in Afghanistan. And government sources say it also shows new images of the 9/11 attack from an angle not seen before.

Spreading out from Afghanistan, al Qaeda has developed a new center of operations in southeast Asia. That's the subject of an important new book by our own CNN Jakarta bureau chief. It's called -- an Eyewitness account titled "Seeds of Terror." That's the name of the book, "Seeds of Terror."

You see it there on the screen. Here to talk about it, and the new al Qaeda tape, our own Marie Ressa. Maria, welcome to Washington.

MARIA RESSA, CNN JAKARTA BUREAU CHIEF: Thanks for having me here.

BLITZER: Congratulations on the new book. First of all, what do you make of this new videotape?

RESSA: It's very similar to what al Qaeda has released in the past. Al Qaeda has a full propaganda arm. Actually, one of the things that made me want to write the book was going through so many of their tapes and seeing similar messages, the same types of situations that they picked out and how they use it to incite more Muslims to...

BLITZER: And does it work? Does it really incite more terrorism?

RESSA: Absolutely in the Muslim world, yes. We have seen it in Indonesia. We've seen a rise in the recruitment of (UNINTELLIGIBLE), which is al Qaeda's arm in the region. And it has been effective.

BLITZER: We remember the attack at the J.W. Marriott hotel in Jakarta. That's where you're based. Why has Southeast Asia become perhaps the home base now of al Qaeda?

RESSA: Soon after 9/11, I think what happened is al Qaeda after 9/11 was looking to set up a second wave of attacks. And this is based on intelligence documents from more than half a dozen countries. At the same time he was planning 9/11, Khalid Shaikh Mohammed, who was -- who became al Qaeda's number three man when he was arrested in March, had already authorized an al Qaeda operative to come to Singapore to activate sleeper cells there to trigger the second wave of attacks.

Why Southeast Asia? Because Southeast Asia has relatively weak fledgling democracies, governments where law enforcement is weak, huge, vast stretches of land where you can set up training camps relatively undetected. And you've got armed Muslim rebellions there.

BLITZER: So how strong is al Qaeda right now? What we call al Qaeda, but there are a lot of loosely-coordinated elements out there.

RESSA: It's loosely -- what the genius of Osama bin Laden is, is he's taking Muslim grievances around the world and united it, giving it an international agenda. And in Southeast Asia, he's actually taken more than half a dozen -- more than 12 groups, and he's basically pulled them together, said, you know, I'm going to give you funding, training and, in exchange, you join me in this.

And they actually already have several plots in motion, we know from Indonesian intelligence sources now, that they believe that based on documents they found in terrorist safe houses is there is a -- three stages of attacks in motion from December to April. And they're trying their beset to try and prevent that from happening.

BLITZER: Maria Ressa has written an incredibly good book entitled "Seeds of Terror." I've learned a lot from this book; our viewers will as well. Thanks for writing it.

RESSA: Thanks for having me.

BLITZER: And thanks for all your terrific reporting for CNN over the years.

RESSA: Thank you, Wolf.

BLITZER: A huge part of American history hiding in the depths of Pearl Harbor. These underwater images are the Picture of the Day. You'll see it when we come back. Also, our hot Web Question of the Day is this: Are you still planning to receive a flu shot this season? You can vote right now at cnn.com/wolf. You'll get the result when we come back. You also might not be able to get a flu shot this season.

Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: "December 7, 1941, a day that will live in infamy." That's what President Franklin Roosevelt said after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. As we approach the 62nd anniversary this Sunday, our Picture of the Day takes us beneath the waters of Pearl Harbor to show us some rare images of the USS Arizona, which sank during the attack. National Park Service divers recently completed an examination of the ship, now a national memorial, to see how it best can be preserved in its underwater resting place.

Here is how you're weighing in on our Web Question of the Day. Should the U.S. establish a permanent manned moon base -- base on the moon? Remember, we've been asking you that question. We've also been asking whether you plan to get a flu shot this season.

Look at this. Forty-five percent of you say yes, 55 percent of you say no. As always, we remind you this is not a scientific poll.

A reminder, we're on twice a day Monday through Friday, 5:00 P.M. Eastern, as well as noon Eastern. Please tune in Sunday on LATE EDITION, the last word in Sunday talk. Among my guests, King Abdullah of Jordan.

Until then, thanks very much for joining us. 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





to Series of Shootings in Ohio; Suicide Bomber Targets Train in Southern Russia>


Aired December 5, 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: Happening right now -- if you haven't gotten your flu shot yet you might be out of luck. The nation's only two makers of the flu shot say they've run out of supply.
And it's now up to 14. Within the past hour two more shootings have been linked to the series of shootings in Columbus, Ohio.

Stand by for hard news on WOLF BLITZER REPORTS.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER (voice-over): Will he talk? Her alleged kidnapper may hold a key to finding a missing student.

Baghdad bombing; an Iraqi bus in the wrong place at the wrong time.

Terror on the tracks; dozens are killed when a suicide bomber targets a train.

Early winter call it a one-two punch, call it a double whammy, call it a mess.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ANNOUNCER: This is WOLF BLITZER REPORTS for Friday, December 05, 2003.

BLITZER: The two companies that make flu vaccines here in the United States say they are out and those who haven't had a flu shot yet may have a hard time getting one. The timing is terrible.

What's shaping up to be a worse than average season is hitting the peak months right now. Already about a dozen children in four western states have died from flu with large scale outbreaks reported in 13 states and while the virus kills 36,000 Americans each year experts predict this year's toll will be even higher.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DR. SCOTT HARPER, CDC: This season we haven't seen a shortage of the vaccine. It's not the word that we would choose to describe it. What we usually see is that in influenza seasons typically most vaccine is given during the months of October and November and then we encourage the vaccine continues to be given on into December and the rest of the influenza season as long as vaccine is available. So this season we think we're seeing quite a lot of influenza activity early and so a lot of people have been vaccinated early.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLITZER: For more on what this means we're joined by Dr. William Schaffner of Vanderbilt Medical Center in Nashville. Dr. Schaffner thanks very much for joining us. What does this mean? A lot of our viewers who haven't gotten the flu shot yet are understandably going to be alarmed.

DR. WILLIAM SCHAFFNER, VANDERBILT MEDICAL CENTER: Yes, Wolf. I think those viewers need to go about getting their flu shot just as quickly as possible. There are spot shortages but, you know, in this season we may not be able to find our toys in the first store so they may have to make a little bit of extra effort, go from one clinic to another to see if the flu vaccine is available. There is still some available so people need to get vaccinated.

BLITZER: In other words what you're suggesting is that if your doctor or clinic or hospital has run out it's unlikely they're going to be able to get more but you might want to check another source, is that right?

SCHAFFNER: That's exactly right. Just call around, walk around, see if you can find a place that still has the vaccine. Lots of places still do.

BLITZER: Was it just bad planning not making enough of this flu vaccine or is it a case of more people getting the shot than predicted?

SCHAFFNER: We've made more flu vaccine this year than ever before and you all have helped educate the public that getting vaccinated is a good thing and it is and so more members of the public have responded. We're glad about that but supplies are a little tight right now.

BLITZER: Who are the most vulnerable right now? Who should be getting these flu shots, whatever vaccine may be left?

SCHAFFNER: The people at greatest risk are anyone over age 50, anyone under age 50 that has underlying heart disease, lung disease, diabetes, immunosuppression, pregnant women who are pregnant during the second and third trimesters right now during flu season and little children age six to 23 months. That's the high risk group.

BLITZER: What's the problem? Why can't they just make some more of this flu vaccine if there's such a demand?

SCHAFFNER: It's not like making a drug where you just put a bunch of chemicals together. It takes a long, long process starting with all those eggs in which the flu vaccine is made. I'm afraid the chance to make vaccine has passed for this year. BLITZER: Dr. Schaffner a horrible story but one hopefully people will manage to get through. Thanks very much for giving us some perspective.

SCHAFFNER: Stay healthy.

BLITZER: Thank you, you too.

Here's your turn to our viewers to weigh in on this important story. Our web question of the day is this. "Are you still planning to receive a flu shot this season"? You can vote right now. Go to cnn.com/wolf. We'll have the results later in this broadcast.

In other news, in Ohio two more shootings have been linked to a series of highway shootings bringing the total right now to 14, one of which killed a 62-year-old woman.

CNN's Martin Savidge is in Columbus. He's joining us with late- breaking developments -- Marty.

MARTIN SAVIDGE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good evening to you, Wolf.

Yesterday they were saying that it was 12 shooting cases that were connected to the I-270 shooting spree. Today, authorities say the number has now jumped to 14.

In the two newest cases nobody was injured, still it is very troubling nonetheless. Both cases go back to Sunday, November 30, the first case a woman driving on the highway in the area southwest of Columbus.

She hears a loud noise then several hours later notices she's got a flat. She reports that to police. They investigate. They find what they think are a bullet hole. They've connected it now to the shooting spree.

Then either Sunday night or sometime on Monday a bullet is fired into a home in the town of (UNINTELLIGIBLE). That is very near the area where the shootings have taken place. Nobody was hit. Nobody was home. The bullet later is found. Police run a ballistics check. It matches.

It brings to five bullets now that have been ballistically matched together all fired from the same gun that fired the bullet that killed 62-year-old Gail Knisley.

Here is the most troubling aspect. There are a lot of people who thought that with the death of that woman the shooting spree might come to an end that the gunman would go to ground. Apparently that's not the case, two new shootings.

I asked at the press conference why don't they call it a sniper case now? Here is what Chief Deputy Steve Martin of the Franklin County Sheriff's Office said about that.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) CHIEF DEPUTY STEVE MARTIN, FRANKLIN COUNTY OHIO SHERIFF'S DEPARTMENT: We still don't believe that we should call this individual a sniper because, one, that denotes a military person in camouflage hiding and shooting from long distances. That may or may not be the issue. We're not prepared to make that jump.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SAVIDGE: Yesterday they called the possibility of other shootings as unlikely. Today they've got two more -- Wolf.

BLITZER: What's the reaction among average people out there from what you're sensing, Marty?

SAVIDGE: Well it's hard to gauge that right now. This news only came out about an hour ago and it's hitting the streets. Many people were very fearful. This is only going to make that notch up even more -- Wolf.

BLITZER: Marty Savidge joining us from Columbus, a very, very disturbing story especially for those of us who lived through the sniper story here in the Greater Washington, D.C. area only a year or so ago.

There are new details emerging in the story we brought you yesterday when it was still only developing, the tragic killing of a federal prosecutor from Baltimore.

Our Justice Correspondent Kelli Arena she's joining us now. She's got late information on this story, very disturbing Kelli.

KELLI ARENA, CNN JUSTICE CORRESPONDENT: Right, Wolf.

Sources close to the investigation say that the prosecutor Jonathan Luna left the Baltimore Courthouse where he worked at 11:40 at night. Now they've been able to track some of his movements after that but there are still more questions than there are answers at this point.

Investigators say that Luna did not head home but he took a non direct route to Pennsylvania. Electronic records show that he made two stops along the way. Now it's not clear whether he was alone or not and where exactly he was stabbed.

Officials say that his car was found idling in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, his body underneath. Money and Luna's cell phone were found in the car. The interior was drenched in blood.

Sources describe his killing as brutal. Torture wounds were found on his torso. He was stabbed as many as 36 times. His lungs were filled with creek water. Sources say that investigators are looking into past cases that Luna worked and conducting some interviews to see if there could be any possible connection. They're also scouring video records. Investigators say though until they know more they are pursuing every single possible scenario -- Wolf. BLITZER: Any indication they have a good solid lead?

ARENA: Not at all. Not at this point.

BLITZER: All right, Kelli Arena with that disturbing story. Thanks very much, Kelli.

Just a short while ago I talked with Attorney Kenneth Ravenell in Baltimore. He represents Deon Smith the rap artist Luna was prosecuting on drug charges.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER: Mr. Ravenell thanks very much for joining us. I know you knew Jonathan Luna very well. You may have been one of the last people to speak to him before he was murdered. What can you tell us first of all around the circumstances that led up to that night because you spoke to him that day?

KENNETH RAVENELL, DEFENSE ATTORNEY: Yes, I was in court with him as you correctly stated. I represented Deon Smith in that ongoing trial that ended yesterday with the guilty pleas. I saw Jonathan approximately around 5:30 p.m. shortly after we had negotiated the plea for Mr. Smith in that case.

BLITZER: So what's your suspicion? What happened?

RAVENELL: Quite frankly I don't know what happened and I'm not going to guess. I think it's inappropriate for any of us to begin to guess what happened. I can tell you that I do not believe that my client or his co-defendant Mr. Poindexter played any role in Jonathan's death.

Jonathan was a friend and I am certainly very upset by his death and we're certainly hopeful that law enforcement will soon capture the individual or individuals involved.

BLITZER: Your client and his co-defendant were both in prison at the time of the murder. They were not on the streets.

RAVENELL: That's correct. My client was arrested on May the 13th of 2003 and has been incarcerated since that time. I will tell you that my client as well as Mr. Poindexter has offered to meet with the prosecutors and law enforcement. In fact, Mr. Poindexter did that yesterday.

My client was scheduled to meet with the prosecutors today and I arrived and we're prepared to do that but prosecutors told us that they did not want to interview him.

I think that says a lot about any possible involvement of Mr. Smith. I can't imagine if there is any thought that he was really involved that law enforcement would not interview him today when we made that offer.

BLITZER: We know that Jonathan Luna was 38 years old, married, two kids. You knew him for quite a while. What was he like?

RAVENELL: Wolf, as I've said before he was probably one of the most decent human beings I've ever met, not just a decent prosecutor but a decent human being. He was a caring individual.

While he had a job and he did it well to prosecute those who committed crimes he also understood that those individuals he was prosecuting were not statistics that they were people, that they had friends and family who loved them and I think that is one of the highest testaments to anyone who could do that job but still have compassion for those that he or she is prosecuting.

BLITZER: Do you know of any cases he might have been involved other than your particular case where someone might have a motive to go out and murder him in such a brutal way?

RAVENELL: Wolf, I have absolutely no idea why anyone would do this to Jonathan Luna. As I said, he was one of the most decent men you'd ever meet.

BLITZER: In all of your years practicing law as a criminal defense attorney have you ever seen anything this bad?

RAVENELL: No, I haven't. I mean this is absolutely shocking. Certainly the acts are appalling. It's not something that we expect to happen in our field. Obviously we understand that when you prosecute people who are accused of violent crimes that these things can happen but it's not expected and it doesn't normally happen.

BLITZER: Kenneth Ravenell thanks so much for joining us. Our heart goes out to the family of Jonathan Luna. Our condolences to you, you were a good friend of his.

RAVENELL: Thank you, Wolf, good night.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER: Deadly blast, a suicide bomber strikes a commuter train during morning rush hour. The results are horrific, simply devastating. We're live on the scene in southern Russia.

Violent prediction, a top U.S. official warns of an increase in attacks against U.S. troops in Iraq. We're live from Baghdad.

Missing student, a report of blood found in the suspect's car. Are investigators any closer to finding 22-year-old college student Dru Sjodin? Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: Winter warnings, the seasons first major snowstorm hits the northeast and a second more severe storm it's on the way. You're looking live, Philadelphia, the city of brotherly love. An update on the storm and how will it impact you just ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) BLITZER: The attack was timed to do maximum damage during the early morning rush hour. The target, a commuter train in southern Russia near the volatile Chechnya region, the toll 41 people dead, more than 150 wounded. Russian officials say it was a suicide bombing.

Let's go live to CNN's Ryan Chilcote. He's on the scene for us in southern Russia -- Ryan.

RYAN CHILCOTE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Wolf, the Russian president appeared on national television and said that this terrorist act was aimed at interfering with Russia's parliamentary elections set for Sunday here; however, he said those terrorists will not succeed in that. He said the Russian people will not let that happen.

Now, I'm standing in front of a hospital in the southern Russian town of Yessentuki where more than half of the 155 people that were wounded in this attack are still being treated, some two dozen of them in the Intensive Care Unit.

Doctors saying that those people inside that intensive care unit have a 50/50 chance of making it through the night many of them suffering from some very serious head injuries, many of them very young people.

Now I was able to go to the trauma unit and speak with a woman by the name of Natalia. Both she and her husband are being treated in the hospital. They were inside that train car in car number two when the blast went off.

Believe it or not this is not the first time that they have been witness to terrorist acts in this area. They narrowly averted one here just a few months ago when their train was re-routed onto a different track.

Anyway, Natalia believe it or not told me that she plans to try and get out of the hospital by Sunday so she can vote. She has an important message for Russian politicians. Listen to what she had to say.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translator): Our government should take radical measures. It should take better care of us and protect us. We should live with peace of mind. This is a well-known resort and people should not be afraid to come here.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHILCOTE: Now, Wolf, I also spoke with a 15-year-old girl and a 17-year-old girl. Believe it or not they were on their way to school when this blast happened.

One of those two girls had been in a train in the same area when another blast went off three months ago. That time she was able to get out with a bit of shock, this time not as lucky but doctors say it is looking good for her. They hope that she can be released in a couple days' time -- Wolf.

BLITZER: Ryan Chilcote on the scene of this horrific, horrific crime. Thanks very much for joining us.

A bomb also took a bloody toll among civilians in Baghdad today but they weren't necessarily the targets. Aimed at a U.S. military convoy the blast killed one U.S. soldier but it also hit a passenger bus.

CNN's Walter Rodgers is joining us now live from the Iraqi capital with more -- Walter.

WALTER RODGERS, CNN SR. INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Hello, Wolf.

Well it was your standard Iraqi guerrilla ambush of an American military patrol.= three U.S. Humvees, Army vehicles moving through southeastern Baghdad. The guerrillas had previously set an explosive charge in the middle of the road. When the third Humvee passed by they detonated the charge remotely.

One U.S. soldier, the driver, was killed immediately, slumped over the wheel. The other two were -- two soldiers were wounded and walked away but what made this different was that just as the blast went off the bomb in the middle of the road also hit an Iraqi civilian bus, 21 people aboard that, three Iraqis killed there, one of them being the driver and 11 others on that bus were taken to hospital.

The blast was tantamount to a fragmentation grenade and the leading U.S. civil official here Ambassador Paul Bremer in Iraq says the worst is yet to come and we should brace for more of these.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PAUL BREMER, U.S. CIVILIAN ADMINISTRATOR: In the immediate phase ahead of us between now and the end of June we will actually see an increase in attacks because the people who are against us now realize that there's huge momentum behind both the economic and political reconstruction of this country.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

RODGERS: Ironically and despite the violence today, the U.S. military here is saying it is meeting with some success, at least numerically and statistically. General Mark Kimmitt said that the number of attacks on the coalition forces has now been drawn down to about 19 a day over the course of the past week. That's quite a success for the U.S. military. Some of those attacks were ranging upwards of 49 or 50 a day a number of weeks and months ago -- Wolf.

BLITZER: Walter Rodgers in Baghdad thank you very much.

Not giving up hope the family of a missing college student renews their pledge to bring her home. We'll have an update on this search. We'll go live to Grand Forks, North Dakota. Not to be overlooked, Iraq's top Shiite leader the Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani insight into why he plays such an important role in the rebuilding of Iraq.

Early winter and a big impact, severe storms dumping lots of snow across the northeast right now, an update on this major blast. That's coming up.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: An emotional appeal, a plea from the family of missing student Dru Sjodin. We'll go live to Grand Forks, North Dakota.

And who is the mysterious figure considered by many the most powerful man in Iraq right now? I'll speak live with Andrew Cockburn, a noted author and expert on Iraq. Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: Welcome back to CNN.

New developments in the search for a missing 22-year-old and the renewed debate over what to do with convicted sex offenders. We'll get to all of that, first though a quick check of the latest headlines.

Convicted sniper John Muhammad won't be appearing at the trial of his alleged co-conspirator. Lawyers for Lee Boyd Malvo wanted jurors to see for themselves the difference in size and age between the two men but the judge in the Malvo trial said transporting Muhammad was an unnecessary danger.

Secretary of State Colin Powell met in Washington with the architects of an unofficial Middle East peace plan. The visitors say they're so-called Geneva Accord complements rather than contradicts the U.S.-backed road map to peace. Israel's leaders are critical of the accord and neither they nor their Palestinian counterparts are backing it.

Nearly two weeks after Dru Sjodin disappeared there's still no sign of the 22-year-old college student. Still her family has not given up hope.

CNN's Jeff Flock is covering the story. He's joining us now live from Grand Forks, North Dakota with the latest -- Jeff.

JEFF FLOCK, CNN CHICAGO BUREAU CHIEF: The latest is, Wolf that authorities today, prosecutors met for the first time with the attorney for Alfonso Rodriguez, Jr. They told him they want to talk to his client again but they set up no specific meeting.

Already they've spoken three times. They want to talk about what he knows about the case. Today there was a published report that said blood from Mr. Rodriguez' car, his maroon 2002 Mercury Sable, blood inside there according to this report matches Dru Sjodin's blood type, again, authorities refusing to confirm or deny. Despite all of this, as you report, the Sjodin family remains hopeful that Dru is alive. I asked Mr. Sjodin, her father, what it is that makes him so hopeful against such long odds.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ALLAN SJODIN, FATHER: She has a magnetism and a strength that I've always known since she was just a tiny little child and, you know, I -- I can see her waiting for us. I just have that internal, that faith.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FLOCK: The question though is should perhaps prosecutors consider making some sort of a plea bargain with Mr. Rodriguez if, in fact, he has any information in return for that information him leading authorities and searchers to Dru Sjodin. Prosecutors, however, confronted with that for the second day in a row said no deal.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PETER WELTE, PROSECUTOR: We're not making any deals on it. What we're doing is if there's a dialogue the dialogue is where's Dru?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FLOCK: And Wolf, no more big searches planned. Authorities say they are doing some specific targeted searches based on some of the leads they have gotten. They have over 1,400 leads which they are continuing to check out. But, of course, their biggest lead would be anything that Mr. Rodriguez would give them. At least that's what they say. And at this point, nothing doing on that -- Wolf.

BLITZER: Very quickly, Jeff, if there's some suspicion she's alive but the clock is ticking, why not make a deal to at least try to save her life?

FLOCK: Absolutely. A very good question. Although, there is some question about just how confident authority are that she is, in fact, alive.

Although they say so publicly, they say that's driven by the confidence of her family. And even the police chief today said, well, we've had a lot of miracles lately, referring to other cases where people who had been lost reappeared again. So he clearly conceded that this, in fact, if she turns up, will be a miracle, but holds out the hope that that can in fact happen.

BLITZER: Jeff Flock, thanks very much for that report. What a heartbreaking story that is.

The man charged with kidnapping Dru Sjodin is a convicted sex offender released from prison just in May. That's reviving a long- running debate over how society should handle sex crimes and over what should be done with an offender after the end of his prison term. Law professor Eric Janus has studied these very sensitive, difficult questions. He's joining us live from St. Paul, Minnesota.

Did the government -- did the authorities do everything right in the case of this Alfonso Rodriguez, Jr. in letting him out in May, apparently with no supervision?

PROF. ERIC JANUS, WILLIAM MITCHELL COLLEGE OF LAW: Well, let's start with the basics, and that is that, under our system of laws, of course, when somebody has been convicted of a crime and sentenced to a period in prison, when that period is up, then the authorities have no choice really under the criminal law but to release that person. Normally, when there's a release there is a period of supervision in the community, a parole period, if you will. But at least under the laws of Minnesota, when a person has served out his entire prison sentence, then that supervised period just doesn't exist.

BLITZER: I understand, though, they're beginning to change that in the aftermath of what has just happened.

JANUS: Well, there is another option, and that's the option of civil commitment or sometimes called sexually violent predator commitment laws. And that is a mechanism in the law that allows the state to keep somebody confined after they have actually served their time in prison. It's been a very controversial type of legislation, but one that, at least in limited circumstances, has been upheld by the courts.

BLITZER: And the notion of having some sort of electronic tracking device, an ankle bracelet, along those lines, to at least keep a tab on these guys, what's the story with that?

JANUS: Well, the key question there, of course, is what kind of authority or hold the state has over the individual. In most cases, and under more modern laws, the states have retained long-term control over sex offenders, and then that kind of tracking device is an option. But in this case, where this individual was sentenced some 25 years ago, unfortunately the supervisory time had run out. And unless you engage some other mechanism, like civil commitment, that kind of tracking option is not available.

BLITZER: Eric Janus is a professor of law at William Mitchell College of Law in St. Paul. Thanks very much for joining us, Professor.

JANUS: You're welcome.

BLITZER: When he speaks, Iraqis listen. So who is this powerful voice in a war-torn country? And why should the United States take notice?

Disturbing video: a new al Qaeda tape surfaces.

Storm warnings: the Northeast getting ready for its first major taste of winter. An update on the big blast.

All that coming up.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: He recently threw a wrench into U.S. plans for a hand over of power in Iraq when he insisted that a constitution and a new government must be based on direct elections. American officials are learning that the country's top Shiite leader, the Grand Ayatollah Ali Al-Sistani, is not a man to be taken lightly.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER (voice-over): Born in Iran, he came to Iraq as a young man to study in the holy city of Najaf, where Iran's own Ayatollah Khomeini spent his long years of exile. The 71-year-old Sistani is considered by many to be the most revered and most influential leader among Iraq's 15 million Shiite Muslims who make up 60 percent of the country's population.

When another Shiite leader was killed in a massive car bombing in Najaf a few months ago, hundreds of thousands converged on the city in mourning. It is a powerful, passionate and highly committed constituency, one which the U.S. is treating gingerly.

PAUL BREMER, U.S. CIVIL ADMINISTRATOR IN IRAQ: I have very great respect for Ayatollah Sistani. He has been a leading voice in this country now for half a century. And I have real agreement with him on a number of matters.

BLITZER: During the regime of Saddam Hussein, a Sunni Muslim, Shiites were oppressed. And when they answered a U.S. call to revolt after the first Gulf War, tens of thousands were slaughtered. Free now to live the way they want, they now want their share of power.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER: Does Ayatollah Ali Al-Sistani hold the key to Iraq's future? Does he see an Islamic state in that future?

Joining us now, Andrew Cockburn. He's written widely on defense and international affairs, co-authored "Out of the Ashes: The Resurrection of Saddam Hussein."

Andrew, thanks very much for joining us. How powerful of a guy is this ayatollah?

ANDREW COCKBURN, AUTHOR: He is extremely powerful. He probably is, as you said, the most influential man in Iraq. I mean, the Shia, there's probably 14, 15 million of them; no one knows for sure. Most of them follow him. I mean, he is their guide.

BLITZER: And he wants a fundamentalist Islamic ayatollah-led state in Iraq?

COCKBURN: No, not entirely. What he's demanding is that Iraqis be allowed to vote on their new constitution. Or rather that anyone who writes the constitution has been to be elected. BLITZER: But doesn't he believe the 60 percent who are Shia will vote for that form of regime?

COCKBURN: Well, yes and no. I mean, he thinks -- he wants Islam in the constitution. But he is not Ayatollah Khomeni. In fact, he opposed Khomeini's idea that the clerics should be...

BLITZER: When Americans hear the words "Grand Ayatollah," they shouldn't necessarily jump to conclusion that is what Al-Sistani wants is what happened in Iran?

COCKBURN: Right. I mean, a turban and a beard tends to bring people out, but it wouldn't necessarily be the case here.

BLITZER: You write in the "L.A. Times" today, "Iraqis tend to disagree about a lot of things. On one matter, however, they almost invariably present a United front. Iraq is one country, and they are Iraqis first, and Sunnis and Shiites second."

Some Iraqi experts disagree. They think that the Shiites and the Sunnis, the Kurds, eventually are going to be at each other's threats.

COCKBURN: Yes, but those Iraqis experts tend not to be Iraqi. I mean, I'm just presenting the views of pretty much every Iraqi I ever met, ever talked to about this. And they all say that. Even the Kurds these days tend to say that. So I go with them.

BLITZER: Will he be on board, the Grand Ayatollah, on this scheme to have these caucuses, if you will, in the 18 provinces of Iraq in June, as opposed to free and democratic elections? Bremer says there's no way they can get these elections under way by then.

COCKBURN: He will not be on board. He is absolutely -- he is not giving in on this. I mean, Bremer and other people have thought they could fudge it, thought he'd go along.

He won't. He is absolutely adamant. He's saying, if you're going to do something as important as this, the people, the representatives have to be elected. And he's pointed out there are ways you could do it. It's probably not true that you couldn't do it, by the way.

BLITZER: So what do you see happening in the coming months?

COCKBURN: Well, I think it's going to get quite serious. I think that the occupational authorities, Mr. Bremer and others, don't realize how unyielding the ayatollah is on this, on his demand for free elections. '

He's not going to give in. He's going to declare any alternative mechanism illegitimate. He'll pull -- people who respect him are going to pull out of the Governing Council.

There probably will be demonstrations. I don't think -- he's not going to call for violence. He's not going to call for armed resistance because he's not that kind of guy. But I think that the occupation is facing a real problem in this angry ayatollah.

BLITZER: Not a pretty picture. What a complicated situation it is in Iraq. Andrew Cockburn, as usual, thanks very much.

COCKBURN: You're welcome.

BLITZER: Recruiting terrorists: what does al Qaeda plan to achieve by releasing alarming new images?

And a powerful snowstorm slamming the Northeast. Who will have the worst problems with snow this weekend?

We'll get to all of that. First, though, a quick look at some other news making headlines around the world.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER (voice-over): War or peace? Palestinian faction leaders meeting in Egypt continue to discuss a united front on peace negotiations with Israel. Meanwhile, Israel announced that 12 alleged Palestinian terrorists are being expelled from the West Bank and moved to Gaza.

Rumsfeld remarks: Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld met in Tbilisi with the interim leaders of Georgia less than two weeks after protests forced President Eduard Shevardnadze to resign. Rumsfeld said America wants stability in the former Soviet Republic, and he praised the interim leadership's commitment to hold free and fair elections.

Common concerns: Britain's Queen Elizabeth II formally opened the commonwealth summit in Nigeria. Several commonwealth countries are calling for the reinstatement of Zimbabwe, which was suspended last year. But Britain says the suspension should stand until Zimbabwe makes reforms.

The mother of all stores? Signs of a retail revolution in Baghdad, where a two-story Hyper Mart (ph) has opened, filled with groceries, carpets, imported clothes and other consumer goods. It is a big change for Iraqis, who are more accustomed to making their purchases in small, specialized shops.

China doll: China is ready to host its first international beauty contest in more than half a century. One hundred six women will compete in the Miss World Pageant on China's Hainan Island. With tickets going for up to $2,000, it is the kind of extravagant enterprise earlier Chinese leaders would have reviled. But remember, even Mao Tse Tung once remarked that women hold up half the sky.

And that's our look around the world.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: It is snowing in the Northeast right now, with more, possibly much more, to come. The first of two back-to-back storms is moving through the region. And some areas could see as much as 16 inches of snow.

Let's check in on the situation in New York City right now. CNN's Jason Carroll is standing by -- Jason.

JASON CARROLL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: And hello to you, Wolf. You know, it started snowing out here in New York late this morning. And as you can see, it is still snowing from the southeast to New England. People are getting their first real taste of winter.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CARROLL (voice-over): The first winter storm of the season triggered storm warnings from Virginia to Ohio to Maine.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: This is my type of weather. I'm a winter baby.

CARROLL: Easy for a New Yorker to say. Not so easy for drivers in the Southeast. In Gaithersburg, Maryland, just one word needed to describe the roads.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Awful.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Horrible.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Messy.

CARROLL: In Philadelphia, no need for words. One sound says it all. Stalled and sliding cars had weather veterans feeling like first storm freshmen.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I grew up in upstate New York, so I thought I could handle this and it wouldn't be a problem. But, you know, I came out this far. It looks like I'm stuck here now.

CARROLL: So is Erin Mckay (ph).

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'm just kind of staying here and waiting for a friend to come help me out.

CARROLL: Eight to 10 inches expected in Philadelphia. But the National Weather Service says the Southeast has seen the worse. Good news for people like Jean Wilkes (ph) in Sterling, Virginia.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I know that they tried to tell us, but I was still surprised that there was this much snow. A little unprepared.

CARROLL: They are prepared in New York. Plenty of plows, hats and hoods. But little patience for making snowballs.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Come on. We've got the light. Hurry up.

CARROLL: The worst for New York is yet to come. About a foot should fall here by late Saturday. New England could end up getting even more.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CARROLL: And again, in New England, they are expected to get hit hard by the storm sometime tomorrow through tomorrow evening. People up in Boston waiting for that to happen there.

Most of the people that we talked to, though, Wolf, in terms of how they're doing, seem to been doing all right with just walk. In the streets, it's travel that is really turning out to be a hassle for a lot of people in terms of the airports. Philadelphia, Newark and LaGuardia looking at major delays and cancellations. But at JFK, things seem to be running pretty much on time -- Wolf.

BLITZER: CNN's Jason Carroll in Times Square in New York City. It looks pretty, even though it may be somewhat complicating for all the people who live there. Thanks very much, Jason, for that.

They're enemy number one in the war on terror. Now members of al Qaeda show off their training with a special message to the cyber world.

And studying the secrets of the deep. A unique look at the USS Arizona on the anniversary of its sinking.

Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: Terror on tape. Al Qaeda has released a new video. It showed up on a Web site tied to the terror network, built as a tribute to a jihadist killed by Saudi special forces last month.

The tape shows al Qaeda forces training in Afghanistan. And government sources say it also shows new images of the 9/11 attack from an angle not seen before.

Spreading out from Afghanistan, al Qaeda has developed a new center of operations in southeast Asia. That's the subject of an important new book by our own CNN Jakarta bureau chief. It's called -- an Eyewitness account titled "Seeds of Terror." That's the name of the book, "Seeds of Terror."

You see it there on the screen. Here to talk about it, and the new al Qaeda tape, our own Marie Ressa. Maria, welcome to Washington.

MARIA RESSA, CNN JAKARTA BUREAU CHIEF: Thanks for having me here.

BLITZER: Congratulations on the new book. First of all, what do you make of this new videotape?

RESSA: It's very similar to what al Qaeda has released in the past. Al Qaeda has a full propaganda arm. Actually, one of the things that made me want to write the book was going through so many of their tapes and seeing similar messages, the same types of situations that they picked out and how they use it to incite more Muslims to...

BLITZER: And does it work? Does it really incite more terrorism?

RESSA: Absolutely in the Muslim world, yes. We have seen it in Indonesia. We've seen a rise in the recruitment of (UNINTELLIGIBLE), which is al Qaeda's arm in the region. And it has been effective.

BLITZER: We remember the attack at the J.W. Marriott hotel in Jakarta. That's where you're based. Why has Southeast Asia become perhaps the home base now of al Qaeda?

RESSA: Soon after 9/11, I think what happened is al Qaeda after 9/11 was looking to set up a second wave of attacks. And this is based on intelligence documents from more than half a dozen countries. At the same time he was planning 9/11, Khalid Shaikh Mohammed, who was -- who became al Qaeda's number three man when he was arrested in March, had already authorized an al Qaeda operative to come to Singapore to activate sleeper cells there to trigger the second wave of attacks.

Why Southeast Asia? Because Southeast Asia has relatively weak fledgling democracies, governments where law enforcement is weak, huge, vast stretches of land where you can set up training camps relatively undetected. And you've got armed Muslim rebellions there.

BLITZER: So how strong is al Qaeda right now? What we call al Qaeda, but there are a lot of loosely-coordinated elements out there.

RESSA: It's loosely -- what the genius of Osama bin Laden is, is he's taking Muslim grievances around the world and united it, giving it an international agenda. And in Southeast Asia, he's actually taken more than half a dozen -- more than 12 groups, and he's basically pulled them together, said, you know, I'm going to give you funding, training and, in exchange, you join me in this.

And they actually already have several plots in motion, we know from Indonesian intelligence sources now, that they believe that based on documents they found in terrorist safe houses is there is a -- three stages of attacks in motion from December to April. And they're trying their beset to try and prevent that from happening.

BLITZER: Maria Ressa has written an incredibly good book entitled "Seeds of Terror." I've learned a lot from this book; our viewers will as well. Thanks for writing it.

RESSA: Thanks for having me.

BLITZER: And thanks for all your terrific reporting for CNN over the years.

RESSA: Thank you, Wolf.

BLITZER: A huge part of American history hiding in the depths of Pearl Harbor. These underwater images are the Picture of the Day. You'll see it when we come back. Also, our hot Web Question of the Day is this: Are you still planning to receive a flu shot this season? You can vote right now at cnn.com/wolf. You'll get the result when we come back. You also might not be able to get a flu shot this season.

Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: "December 7, 1941, a day that will live in infamy." That's what President Franklin Roosevelt said after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. As we approach the 62nd anniversary this Sunday, our Picture of the Day takes us beneath the waters of Pearl Harbor to show us some rare images of the USS Arizona, which sank during the attack. National Park Service divers recently completed an examination of the ship, now a national memorial, to see how it best can be preserved in its underwater resting place.

Here is how you're weighing in on our Web Question of the Day. Should the U.S. establish a permanent manned moon base -- base on the moon? Remember, we've been asking you that question. We've also been asking whether you plan to get a flu shot this season.

Look at this. Forty-five percent of you say yes, 55 percent of you say no. As always, we remind you this is not a scientific poll.

A reminder, we're on twice a day Monday through Friday, 5:00 P.M. Eastern, as well as noon Eastern. Please tune in Sunday on LATE EDITION, the last word in Sunday talk. Among my guests, King Abdullah of Jordan.

Until then, thanks very much for joining us. 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





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