Return to Transcripts main page

Your World Today

Chaos at Heathrow as British Airways Workers Stike; Gaza Withdrawal Approaches; Tensions Rise over North Korea Nuclear Program

Aired August 12, 2005 - 12:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

ANNOUNCER: Live from CNN Center, this is YOUR WORLD TODAY.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: And it's utter chaos. Dave's a diabetic. I mean, we stocked up this morning with some food because yesterday it was absolutely diabolical.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

JIM CLANCY, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: Thousands of frustrated travelers stranded at Heathrow, but is there a light at the end of the runway?

ZAIN VERJEE, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: While many Israelis are protesting the withdrawal from Gaza, Palestinians in the region are anything but unhappy.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MIKE CHINOY, CNN SR. ASIA CORRESPONDENT: On the streets of Pyongyang, though, there are some fascinating indications of change.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CLANCY: CNN's Mike Chinoy with a rare live report from above the 38th parallel. We'll also be speaking live with top U.S. nuclear negotiator Christopher Hill from Pyongyang.

VERJEE: And we'll take a deep breath with this man, a spiritual guru to millions.

It's 5:00 p.m. at Heathrow Airport, 1:00 in the morning in Pyongyang. I'm Zain Verjee.

CLANCY: I'm Jim Clancy. Welcome to our viewers throughout the world. This is CNN International and YOUR WORLD TODAY.

VERJEE: There's light at the end of the tunnel for the travel nightmare at London's Heathrow Airport. But right now, tens of thousands of British Airways customers are still stranded and trying to deal with it all.

Our Robyn Curnow's there, keeping us up on the latest.

Robyn, how are they dealing with it? ROBYN CURNOW, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, I'll tell you about that in just a minute, but I do want to update you on that light at the end of the tunnel, because we are hearing that two-thirds of the B.A. workers have returned to work. The union says all of them have returned to work.

And we also know that at 8:00 p.m. local time -- that's in about three hours' time -- some flights will take off. But that doesn't detract from the sense that there were 1,500 nearly 1,500 people who have -- sorry, I'm just going to get my numbers right. 113,000 people.

You're one of them.

BOYD MUNSCH, HEATHROW PASSENGER: I'm one of them.

CURNOW: And how are you feeling? You've been here all day. Do you feel like there's a light at the end of the tunnel?

MUNSCH: I don't see it. We don't have any information. I think they could do a better job of getting the information out to us. So we are just standing around and waiting.

CURNOW: You've been here for hours with your family.

MUNSCH: Hours and hours, since yesterday afternoon.

CURNOW: You also don't have your luggage?

MUNSCH: No luggage. Had to go buy clothes this morning.

CURNOW: You're trying to get to Washington?

MUNSCH: Trying to get to Washington, D.C.

CURNOW: Do you think you are going to make work on Monday?

MUNSCH: Who knows?

CURNOW: That's the problem. Nobody seems to know.

MUNSCH: Nobody knows.

CURNOW: Are you frustrated, angry? What are you?

MUNSCH: Not angry. I understand the problem. And -- but they just could do a little better job of getting the information out to us.

CURNOW: Are you going to travel with B.A. again?

MUNSCH: You know, I don't know. It's questionable.

CURNOW: Well, you've got your deck chair. You've been sitting out here with all these -- sitting out here with all these people, waiting to get into a queue inside. MUNSCH: Yes.

CURNOW: You're number what?

MUNSCH: 264.

CURNOW: And they only go to?

MUNSCH: 190 since 11:00.

CURNOW: Since 11:00 this morning.

MUNSCH: Since this morning.

CURNOW: So the queue for the queue has been going pretty slowly.

MUNSCH: Slowly, yes.

CURNOW: Yes. Thanks a lot.

MUNSCH: You're welcome.

CURNOW: That was Boyd Munsch.

Now, I'm talking there about the queue that these people behind me have been waiting to get into all day. The queue inside terminal four is to try to get some sort of face-to-face contact to the B.A. representative to try and get tickets rebooked.

People have been very frustrated. They have literally been waiting for hours and hours and hours.

Now, that light at the end of the tunnel that I was telling you about, the fact that some of the workers might be back at work, that we are seeing maybe some flights, although we are not sure which flights are taking off in the next three hours, B.A. saying, let's be cautious about this. Because it's still going to take days and days for this chaos to be resolved, because just think about it.

Luggage is all in the wrong place. Nobody knows where their luggage is. I don't think B.A. knows where half the luggage is. That's what they're saying.

Passengers are all in the wrong place across the world. Crews are also stranded across the world in the wrong place.

And, of course, planes are either -- you know, they are also in the wrong place. So B.A. is saying be very cautious. This chaos is going to go on for a long, long -- a lot more time.

Back to you, Zain.

VERJEE: What a mess. Robyn Curnow at Heathrow Airport. Thank you.

Stay with CNN to find out the latest on the status of British Airways flights. Also, you can log on to the B.A. Web site. It's www.ba.com.

You can also call their help line number. It's country code 44- 870-850-9850. That's 44-870-850-9850.

CLANCY: Muslim cleric Sheikh Omar Bakri Mohammed has been freed by Lebanese authorities. Bakri left London last week amid speculation that he might face charges for saying the British government was partly to blame for the July 7 London terror bombings. The release came just hours after Britain issued an order banning the cleric from returning to the U.K.

Now to anticipation and celebration, we should say, in Gaza this day. Palestinians gathered at the wharf in Gaza City for a festival that marks the upcoming withdrawal of Israeli settlers.

Ben Wedeman is there. He joins us now on the line -- Ben.

BEN WEDEMAN, CNN CAIRO BUREAU CHIEF: Yes, Jim, a few thousand Palestinians showed up to this celebration which was dubbed as "Setting Sails for Freedom." It was attended by Palestinian Prime Minister Mahmoud Abbas and some of his senior officials. And it was a fairly chaotic scene when he showed up. Lots of people here desperate to get a glance at their leader.

Now, the atmosphere is very (INAUDIBLE). Many Palestinians I spoke to saying that this is an Israeli defeat that they are retreating out of the Gaza Strip. Many people wearing T-shirts that said, "Today, Gaza, tomorrow the West Bank."

And Jerusalem, generally people are feeling very upbeat here. Jim, looking forward to an end to an occupation that's lasted since 1967.

CLANCY: Ben, there's a lot of cause for celebration, lives are going to change. But there could be some hardships ahead as well.

WEDEMAN: That certainly is the case. There's a lot of concern that once the Israelis pull out, there's going to be a power vacuum into which is going to rush not only, of course, the Palestinian Authority, but groups like Hamas and Islamic Jihad, who have made it very clear that they have ambitions in the post-pullout era.

They are flexing their muscles, holding fairly frequent military exercises to show that they are just as powerful, they believe, militarily as the Palestinian Authority. Hamas and Islamic Jihad will not hesitate to tell you that the Israelis are not pulling out because of negotiations and quiet diplomacy, it's because they drove them out -- Jim.

CLANCY: At the same time, any fears about all the jobs that are going to be lost? Many Palestinians worked at a lot of the hot houses, the greenhouses there in the Gaza Strip. All that's going to be gone, isn't it?

WEDEMAN: Yes, it certainly is. But what it's going to do is free up a lot of the best real estate in the Gaza Strip. The Gush Katif block takes up a good part of the southern end of the strip with some of the best real estate. And so there are many plans, lots of ambitions to develop those areas, to develop agriculture. The hope is that a lot of aid money is going to be pouring in here to reinvigorate a place where, it must be pointed out, the average daily income is a mere $2 a day.

CLANCY: All right. Ben Wedeman, as always, our thanks to you, covering a story for us live there. A rally wharf side on the Gaza Strip.

Well, meantime, Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon says he has no regrets despite the deep divisions that his plan has created among the Israeli people themselves. Mr. Sharon telling the daily "Yedioth Ahronot" this: "Even if I had known ahead of time the extent of resistance, I would have done it anyway."

VERJEE: Iran says it will continue work at its Isfahan nuclear plant despite a resolution from the International Atomic Energy Agency urging it to suspend those activities. Diplomats from the EU say they will ask the agency to refer the matter to the U.N. Security Council next month if Iran does not comply.

Coming up after the break we'll bring you a round-up of U.S. stories.

CLANCY: We'll be looking at the latest venture in space exploration.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: A rocket worth MRO surveying for the deepest insights into the mysterious evolution of Mars.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CLANCY: One that's on track, as you heard him say, to the Red Planet.

Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

CLANCY: Welcome back. You're watching an hour of world news here on CNN International.

We're going to take you now to a place where we seldom actually go, and that is North Korea. Senior Asia Correspondent Mike Chinoy is in Pyongyang, hoping to talk with North Korean officials involved in the nuclear discussions there.

Now, the six-party talks are set to resume on August the 29th. They involve North and South Korea, the United States, China, Japan and Russia. South Korea's foreign minister met Friday with Chinese officials. They're trying to discuss ways to break the impasse over Pyongyang's nuclear drive. Now, the standoff erupted in October 2002, when the U.S. accused North Korea of pursuing a clandestine weapons program.

VERJEE: We want to talk more about the North Korean nuclear dispute with CNN's Mike Chinoy, as well as U.S. negotiator Christopher Hill. First, though, we want to go to Mike Chinoy, who's in the North Korean capita.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CHINOY: Here in Pyongyang, the statue of late President Kim Il- Sung still dominates the skyline. People still come to pay their respects, loyalty to the late president, and to his son, the country's current leader, Kim Jong-il, is the central theme in North Korean society. It's the glue that the government uses to hold the society together.

On the streets of Pyongyang, though, there are some fascinating indications of change in the last couple of years. There has been the emergence of some private enterprises, little kiosks and stands on the streets where bread, ice cream, other goods are sold.

There are some officially-sanctioned private markets. And resident foreign diplomats and aid workers say they are playing an increasingly important role in the economy.

There's a western business community about a dozen strong. And they also say there are some signs that the government of Kim Jong-il is beginning to try an experiment with market-oriented reforms, trying cautiously to develop more economic interaction with the rest of the world.

This, of course, comes at a time when North Korea is still locked in a very tense situation with the United States over its nuclear program. North Korean officials saying that Pyongyang will stick to its demand that it be allowed to develop a civilian nuclear energy program despite American demands that it abandoned all nuclear ambitions.

North Korean officials saying the fundamental issue between Pyongyang and Washington is one of trust. They don't trust the Bush administration, and until that atmosphere changes, the chances for progress in those six-party talk remains slim.

Mike Chinoy, CNN, Pyongyang.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CLANCY: Let's get a closer look now at the U.S. view of the North Korea dispute.

We are joined by U.S. Assistant Secretary of State and special envoy to North Korea, Christopher Hill, joining us there from Washington.

What is the point of going on with the talks if North Korea wants to develop its own nuclear enriched program there, wants to produce its own fuel? And did it learn that watching the situation with Iran?

CHRISTOPHER HILL, U.S. ASST. SECRETARY OF STATE: Well, in fact, of course, if this agreement succeeds, it will have North Korea out of the business of producing its own fuel, out of the business of producing weapons. And frankly, out of the business of these -- of these graphite-moderated reactors which were the source of the -- of the reprocessing in the first place.

They also have to get out of the enrichment business, the highly- enriched uranium business. And so, we do have some work to do. But I think there was progress made in Beijing.

We sat there for 13 days. It wasn't enough to quite get the agreement we wanted, but certainly we made progress. And we are encouraged by the fact that North Korea wants to come back. And we'll be there as long as we feel it's useful to be there.

CLANCY: What was the difference, the gap in trust? Would you say that it had narrowed? And how? What did the U.S. side offer?

HILL: Well, certainly, I mean, there is an ocean of mistrust here. There are a lot of issues there.

You know, the North Koreans stayed out of these talks for 13 months. So it's not easy to fix that in 13 days.

But essentially, what the -- what the North Koreans would like, is they'd like to hold on to various programs. They'd like to hold on to so-called peaceful -- peaceful use programs, and they'd also like to get a lot of assistance up front.

So, you know, we are working with them on this, but what has to be absolutely clear is that they get out of the nuclear business, they get rid of these various programs they have. All programs, in fact. And then they figure out their way how to get back into the nonproliferation treaty with IAEA safeguards. That's what's essential here.

CLANCY: Chinese officials had been saying that it was up to the U.S., really, to push this forward to bridge that trust gap. Have they -- has their attitude been one of supporting the U.S. in this, pushing Pyongyang, if you will, to make the compromises where possible?

HILL: Well, China has worked very hard on this. They're, after all, the host of this process. They have a great investment in its success. They want to see it succeed.

And this is not just an issue for the U.S. This is definitely a multilateral issue. This is an issue very much involving China and very much involving the other neighbors.

So I would say all of us have a role to play in trying to convince the North Koreans to get out of these programs that they have been engaged in for two, three decades. This didn't just start yesterday. This has gone on quite a while. So I think everyone has role. And I would say especially the Chinese. They have the closest relationship to Pyongyang. And moreover, they're hosts of the entire talks.

CLANCY: People -- the fear has been that Pyongyang might try to sell nuclear arms, as it has sold missile technology and other technologies in the past, right? But do they seem to want to give it up? Are they willing to really give it up? Because that's been the question from day one.

HILL: Well, I mean, that is the big question. And we won't know the answer to that question until they've actually given it up.

So, in fact, it's even a little difficult to tell you how close we are, because this isn't down to one issue. This isn't necessarily down to the issue of peaceful use. There are other issues that keep popping up.

So, you know, I can tell you better when actually we have the agreement. And then we can go back, and we can see when they made that important decision.

CLANCY: Are there new initiatives that you will be carrying back to those talks when they resume?

HILL: Well, I mean, we are prepared to be -- continue to be very full participants. I mean, we have had some very good discussions with the North Koreans, with the DPRK in terms of understanding each other's positions.

Our position is clear: they've got to get out of this business. And we'll help them. We'll help them get out of it. And, in fact, we'll help them in a certain way with compensation.

We'll help them with energy schemes. We'll help them with economic assistance. We'll help them with international recognition, recognition of bilaterally with us, but also, multilaterally with development assistance banks. So there's a lot on the table.

CLANCY: They're going to hear some new things at the next meeting?

HILL: I'm sorry?

CLANCY: Pyongyang is going to hear some new items on the agenda from the U.S. side at their next meeting?

HILL: Well, no. They know -- they know what is on the table.

I have asked them on several occasions, "Is there anything else you need to see on the table?" And the answer was no.

So they know what's on the table. They asked for the recess. They asked to go back to Pyongyang, talk it over, think it over. And my hope is that when they come back on the week of the 29th, we can work something out. CLANCY: Christopher Hill, assistant U.S. secretary of state, special envoy to North Korea.

Our thanks to you for being with us.

HILL: Thank you.

VERJEE: This now just coming in to CNN. British Airways says that all striking B.A. employees at Heathrow Airport are now returning to work.

We're working on getting more information on this, and we will bring it to you as soon as we can. Again, British Airways saying that all B.A. employees that were on strike are now back at work.

Let's check some stories making news now in the United States.

The mother of a U.S. soldier killed in Iraq may get her closest glimpse of President Bush this hour. Cindy Sheehan has been camped out near the president's Crawford, Texas, ranch in hopes of asking him the reason why her son and others have died in Iraq. Mr. Bush has declined to meet with her, but is scheduled to drive by her encampment this afternoon on the way to a fund-raiser.

CLANCY: A difficult -- a difficult day for families of New York City firefighters killed in the September 11 attacks. The fire department now releasing hours of radio transmissions and thousands of pages of documents from that very day. Three hundred forty-three firefighters lost their lives in the attack on the World Trade Center.

VERJEE: An abortion rights group has dropped a controversial TV commercial attacking Supreme Court nominee John Roberts. Conservatives said the ad's attempt to link Roberts to violent fringe groups was unfair and untrue. The pro-choice group says it withdrew the ad because the controversy has become a distraction.

CLANCY: After a one-day delay blamed on a computer glitch, NASA launched its Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter from Cape Canaveral. Once the spacecraft reaches the Red Planet in March, seven months from now, it's expected to gather more information about Mars than any previous probe.

VERJEE: Just ahead on YOUR WORLD TODAY, we are going to bring you the latest from the markets.

CLANCY: Once again, the soaring price of oil looming large in the financial world. And we'll tell you why Venezuela's president thinks the U.S. must take much of the blame for those price

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

VERJEE: Striking British Airways employees at Heathrow Airport have agreed to return to work. Not everyone's back on the job yet. Only a few people are there. The others are in the process of getting back. Tens of thousands of frustrated, fuming passengers have been stranded by the strike. It appears, though, there has been some agreement. And we will bring you more information when we get it -- Jim.

CLANCY: Well, time to check in on what is moving the markets in the U.S. and Europe.

(STOCK MARKET REPORT)

CLANCY: Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez has never shied away from criticizing the United States. Now he's pointing to the soaring price of oil as a sign of failed U.S. planning in Iraq. Mr. Chavez made the comments during a visit to Argentina.

Here is Buenos Aires Bureau Chief Carolina Cayazzo.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CAROLINA CAYAZZO, CNN BUENOS AIRES BUREAU CHIEF (voice over): Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez was in Buenos Aires for just a few hours to sign commercial agreements with Argentinean president Nestor Kirchner. Here, Mr. Chavez talked about the rise in the price of oil, which topped $66 a barrel on Thursday before closing slightly lower.

Chavez says one of the reasons is the war in Iraq.

"The Washington government plans went wrong. They were hoping that by now they would have Iraq overpowered and be exploiting three million barrels. But they haven't been able to overpower Iraq. And I have some doubts that they will ever be able to."

"There is people who is resisting there," said Chavez.

Meanwhile, the State Department said Chavez is not contributing to political stability in the region. He was criticized for helping rebel groups in Colombia and cutting ties with the U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency, while the two presidents also talked about the ties between their own governments.

"We will always remember your support during the so-called energy crisis, your support with the international organizations, and your buying of Argentinean bonds," said Kirchner.

Caracas had already bought Argentinean bonds for $500 million.

(on camera): Chavez and Kirchner signed several agreements. One of the most important is the construction of two oil ships by Argentina. And in return, Caracas will supply Argentina with $200 million worth of much-needed oil.

Carolina Cayazzo, CNN, Buenos Aires.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CLANCY: British Airways passengers looking forward to a break in the gridlock at Heathrow Airport tonight.

VERJEE: We're going to bring you the very, very latest when we come back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

VERJEE: Welcome back to YOUR WORLD TODAY on CNN International. I'm Zain Verjee.

CLANCY: I'm Jim Clancy, and these are the stories that are making headlines around the world.

British Airways reports all of its employees are now returning to work at Heathrow Airport. The airline said earlier that it would be at least 1900 hours GMT before any of its flights resume. Tens of thousands of travelers have been stranded since Thursday, when a labor dispute that began with food service workers spread across the air carrier's personnel.

The radical Muslim cleric who says the British government was partly to blame for the July 7th London terror bombings has been freed from custody. Sheikh Omar Bakri has been released by Lebanese authorities after an investigation found no evidence that he had committed any crimes. The release came just hours after Britain issued an order banning the cleric from returning to the U.K.

Returning now to our top story, what could be progress in easing the travel chaos at Heathrow Airport. Let's go to Robyn Curnow. She's there with the latest -- Robyn?

CURNOW: Hi there, Zain. Well, indeed, some good news. British Airways workers agreeing to go back to work. Also, British Airways saying that at 8:00 p.m. local time -- that's in about two-and-half hour's time -- some planes will be taking off from this airport behind me.

But still, don't forget, over 100,000 passengers worldwide have been left stranded by these strikes. Let's not forget them. And, at the moment, many of them are still camped out behind me. They don't know what's going on. Still a lot of confusion.

So some good news. But B.A. even saying let's be cautious about this. Because it's all very well, some baggage handlers are going back to work. But still, there is massive logistical issues to sort out on their behalf. They've got to find luggage. They also say about that 100 planes are out of place. 1,000 crew members are in the wrong place. And, of course, there are still over 100,000 passengers going nowhere fast.

Zain, back to you.

VERJEE: Robyn Curnow, thank you so much. We'll keep checking in with you to see what the situation is there for the passengers at Heathrow Airport. Thanks -- Jim.

CLANCY: All right, and as you're checking in there with Heathrow, we're checking with the oil prices. It's my dubious honor to be able to tell you that for the first time in history, oil prices have hit $67 a barrel. Now it's believed that they could top out at around $80 a barrel. That's theoretically possible in the minds of many of the analysts that we've been talking to.

It's also important to remember that if you adjusted everything for inflation, and you went back to the oil embargo of 1980, oil at that time cost the equivalent of about $90 a barrel. So even though it's hitting a record high here, $67 a barrel, it's not, in terms of the value of the dollar, not as high as it was even back in 1980. Well, we want to return to one of our top stories now -- Zain?

VERJEE: Hamas militants say they will not disarm, despite Israel's planned withdrawal from Gaza. They say weapons are a holy issue and it's impossible to abandon them. The comments underscore the potential for confrontation as Israel plans to evacuate Jewish settlements. But the challenges the Israeli army will face are not limited to Palestinian militants.

Guy Raz now, on the determined opposition from Israelis.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

GUY RAZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): One gets the impression these young activists in the Gaza settlements are here for posterity. . Hundreds gather daily in the town square of Gaza's largest Jewish settlement, Nevah Dekalim. Showing bravado and defiance, they will, no doubt, take their stories home with them. I was there, they will say one day. But for now, they adhere to a parallel reality, one that genuinely believes in divine intervention; enough, even to stop the Gaza pullout.

ARYEH HOLTZ, DISENGAGEMENT OPPONENT: Something's going to happen. Disengagement will not happen.

RAZ: Aryeh Holtz, like most of the kids who poured into these settlements in the past weeks, is religious.

(on camera): For many of these young people, being here in the Gaza settlements during this period is a kind of religious nationalist rite of passage. The atmosphere now is calm, but when the evacuation begins, the sheer number of young infiltrators could cause major problems for Israel's army.

(voice-over): We met a group of young men, all recent arrivals, who say they have no plans to physically resist the evacuation. Like the others here, they are convinced there won't be any need. God will intervene. Their Rabbinical patrons have told them that Israel's man- made laws contravene the divine law.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Our law is the god. So, (INAUDIBLE) told us to do it, so we're doing it.

RAZ: Not all the young people are religious, though. Some are secular Israelis, like Orit Arfa. She sneaked into the settlement a few days ago. ORIT ARFA, DISENGAGEMENT OPPONENT: To me, I don't see it so much as a religious battle. I see it as a national issue. As a citizen, you know, I feel that this disengagement's going to endanger my life.

RAZ: All of these youngsters who come from outside face jail time once evacuated by Israel's army. It's illegal for them to be here. But they persist and ignore the warning signs, and pray even as the moving trucks pass behind them.

Guy Raz, CNN, in Nevah Dekalim settlement, Gaza.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CLANCY: Well, on the other side, the Palestinian Authority's spending nearly $2 million on Gaza withdrawal celebrations, including a large sum of money that was set aside for souvenirs and memorabilia.

Hala Gorani reports on the boom in pullout trinkets.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

HALA GORANI, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The workers in this Gaza factory are laboring 13 hours a day to meet an order for tens of thousands of Palestinian flags in time for the Israeli withdrawal. The Palestinian Authority is reportedly spending $1.7 million to celebrate the Gaza pullout. Part of the budget goes to textile factories like this one.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Every day we have 1,000 flags because the number of the flags is 25,000.

GORANI (on camera): Also an order from the Palestinian Authority in souvenir shops across Gaza, t-shirts like this one. It reads, "Gaza Today, the West Bank and Jerusalem Tomorrow." There are also baseball caps with the Palestinian flag on them and dozens and dozens of souvenirs celebrating leaders PLO leaders. Yasser Arafat on one side, Abu Mazen on the other.

(voice-over): Shop manager Ahmed Abudaya (ph) says sales of pullout trinkets have boosted business. He ordered these mugs himself, and says t-shirts are selling well, at $3.50 apiece. "I ordered 500 of the t-shirts," he says, "and I've already sold 280."

For the Palestinian Authority, withdrawal souvenirs aren't just for fun. They're about sending a message that the government gets credit for the pullout, not militant groups like Hamas.

KAMAL AL AHRAFI, PALESTINIAN AUTHORITY (through translator): The Palestinian Authority is responsible, and it wants to assert that it's the only authority in the land, and the one responsible for receiving these lands.

GORANI: At the souvenir shop, the manager shows us a series of pins. The bestseller among them, the one with the Palestinian flag on one side, and the Israeli flag on the other.

Hala Gorani, CNN, Gaza.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CLANCY: Coming up, we're going to be checking the headlines in the United States.

VERJEE: And then, some needed advice from a spiritual master.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

VERJEE: I've got a show to do, I've got producers shouting at me, I've got so many things to do. My phone is ringing, my Blackberry is vibrating. What do I do?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

Sri Sri Ravi Shankar gives his solution to finding peace and harmony. That's after the break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

CLANCY: Welcome back to YOUR WORLD TODAY. You are watching an hour of international news right here on CNN International.

Well, the 118 crewmen killed aboard the submarine Kursk are being remembered across Russia. It has been five years since they perished beneath the surface of the cold Barents Sea. In the city of Kursk, flowers were laid in a new memorial, fashioned from the vessel's salvaged hull. The submarine was doomed by an internal explosion, and, critics say, by officials' reluctance to ask for international help.

VERJEE: Let's check some stories now making news in the United States. A captured prison escapee and his wife are fighting extradition to Tennessee to face murder charges. Georgian Jennifer Hyatte appeared in court in Ohio. She's accused of killing a corrections officer to help her husband escape.

CLANCY: And this is the biggest fire now burning in Washington State. It has so far charged 17,000 hectacres near Palmeroy (ph) in those parts of that state. It has also destroyed at least 49 homes. The state's governor has declared a wildfire emergency, which mobilizes more of the state's resources and puts the National Guard on alert.

VERJEE: Now, this may be kind of difficult, but imagine never being in a bad mood or never getting angry. The ups and downs of everyday life are enough to get to most of us. But I recently met a man who says he's always at peace.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Having no time is just an excuse. If you want to do something, you can always find some time.

VERJEE (voice-over): His holiness, Sri Sri Ravi Shankar, an inspirational to millions. And not related to the famous Sataris (ph). About 50 of his followers in Atlanta had a rare opportunity to see him, to listen to him. And so did we.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Solution (INAUDIBLE) wars, by many, by sitting together, so it's a long process.

VERJEE: A small, simple but playful man, with this message: Slow down. Don't get stressed.

(on camera): But it's so easy to say, get free from stress. I've got bills to pay. I've got a show to do. I've got producers shouting at me. I've got so many things to do. My phone is ringing. My Blackberry's vibrating. What do I do?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You need to have confidence you can do all that with a smile.

VERJEE (voice-over): I'm smiling, but I'm still stressed. His answer, take a breath, a deep one.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Focus on the breath, really long, deep breath.

VERJEE: I try a technique that's part of the Serdition Kria (ph). It's touted as a precise science of breath, more than 5,000 years old.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Breath is the link between mind and emotions in our body. So if you attend to the rhythms of the breath, then we can change the emotions.

VERJEE: Feeling a little self-conscious, and a little skeptical, I spoke to some of his followers. One told me what 25 minutes of focused breathing's done for him.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's a slim portion of our daily time, right? We spend so many hours just watching TV, or eating, or going out to the movies, with friends for movies, just if you give, like, two percent to yourself, it can really give 98 percent return.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It's not going out and saying, oh, I feel so great. These are precise techniques, and if done with precision, it definitely does that.

VERJEE: Before leaving for the airport, Sri Sri tells me he's never in a bad mood, never angry, because he says his techniques work.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

VERJEE: So, we've heard the message. But are the techniques of Sri Sri backed by medical science? We want to bring in Herbert Benson. He's the president of the Mind/Body Medical Institute. He's also an associate professor at Harvard Medical School.

Thanks for joining us. You know, I took a few deep breaths. It didn't really help. I was still highly stressed out, but when you look at the medical science behind it, does this stuff work?

HERBERT BENSON, MIND/BODY MEDICAL INST.: There are scores of techniques that bring about the same physiologic state, which is an anti-stress state. Meditation is but one. There are two steps that bring about all of these techniques. One is a repetition. That can be a word, a sound, a prayer or a movement. The second is when other thoughts come to mind, you passively disregard them and come back to the repetition.

So it's not only meditation, but it could be repetitive prayer. It could be a repetitive exercise, like yoga, thai chi, chi gong. It can be simple breathing exercises. But there is a discreet physiologic set of changes that come about that are opposite to the stress response, and that's what's called the relaxation response.

VERJEE: So why don't more people do this, do these sorts of breathing techniques. And others that you've described, and instead, sort of go for medication and Advil when they are feeling stressed out?

BENSON: Well, when you look at statistics in the United States, recently -- a recent study done by the National Institutes of Health show that close to one-half of Americans are now evoking the relaxation response, often through prayer. So people are doing this, but to combine it with just one technique, such as meditation, is a mistake.

VERJEE: How do you know if people want to do this, who's a quack, just out there making money saying, breathe like this breathe like that and do this? And who is genuine and good?

BENSON: There are many different people who teach a technique that will bring this about. It should be up to the individual. If you are religious, there will be a prayer, a set of prayers in your own tradition. Whether it be Christian, Jewish, Islamic, Buddhist, there are prayers, or secular words that can be repeated; can be the word "love," the word "peace."

Movement techniques bring about the same thing, yoga, thai chi, chi gong. Even jogging will bring this about. The high of running is simply another way to bring this about. The essence of all techniques is to break the train of everyday thought. The everyday thoughts are sort of driving you up a wall. And when you do that, the body reverts to its own innate quiet state that is part of us. People have been doing this for thousands of years.

VERJEE: If somebody is being driven up a wall, in a stressful situation, you know, where one's co-anchor stressing them out most of the week, what is it do you advice to people who only have a few minutes, a few seconds, to just take it easy and breathe? As a technique, what do you suggest?

BENSON: First of all, if you possibly can, it should be done on a daily basis, for 10 or so minutes every morning, the way people used to pray regularly. Another way of doing this, though, is simply taking a deep breath, holding it, holding it, and then slowly letting it out, repeating a meaningful word, sound, prayer or a phrase. That, in essence, can break the train of everyday thought and begin the stabilization process.

But we are so stressed out today. And, in fact, in the United States, over -- well over 60 percent of visits to physicians are in the stress realm. So, it should be done for health basis, as well as for just feeling better.

VERJEE: Right.

BENSON: Choose a technique that you're comfortable with. And if you can, do it on a regular basis.

VERJEE: OK. Herbert Benson, the president of the Mind/Body Medical Institute, also an associate professor at Harvard Medical School. Thank you for giving us your perspective on this.

BENSON: Thank you for having me.

VERJEE: You're welcome.

CLANCY: Fascinating.

VERJEE: This is one of the techniques I'm comfortable with.

CLANCY: Fascinating. I think lying on a coach, watching football with a beer does it for me.

(WEATHER REPORT)

CLANCY: All right. We are going to have to leave it here. But at the moment, I'm Jim Clancy.

VERJEE: And I'm Zain Verjee, and this is CNN.

CLANCY: We want to leave you with some pictures, though. We've got some, well -- what can we call them? Frosty little fellows from Australia.

VERJEE: This is a young Australian kangaroo whose name is Baby Boomer.

CLANCY: The baby boomer, 18 months old, brought up and domesticated by those who run this Comet Inn in Australia's Blue Mountains. That's all we have time for. Good night, Comet.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

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