Return to Transcripts main page

Your World Today

Violence in Iraq; Bush Administration Firing Back; Torture Questions

Aired November 18, 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.
ZAIN VERJEE, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: Bombings in Iraq. Insurgents target a prominent hotel and two Shia mosques.

MICHAEL HOLMES, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Protests in South Korea. Many demonstrators chant slogans against APEC and the U.S. president as Pacific Rim leaders meet for the APEC summit.

VERJEE: And the war of words over the Iraq war. A former CIA director comes out swinging against the U.S. vice president.

It's 8:00 p.m. in Baghdad; 2:00 a.m. in Busan, South Korea; and it's noon in Washington.

I'm Zain Verjee.

HOLMES: And I'm Michael Holmes.

Welcome to our viewers throughout the world, including the United States. This is CNN International and this is YOUR WORLD TODAY.

HOLMES: Let's begin with the war in Iraq. It is a major story, that debate in the U.S. over how it all began. Let's bring you the latest information now.

Insurgents turning their deadly attention towards international journalists and Shia worshipers during Friday prayers.

VERJEE: And the United States president kicks off an election- style campaign to fight back against opponents who are still questioning the legitimacy of the war and calling for U.S. troops to come home.

HOLMES: Let's begin, though, with that deadly wave of violence across Iraq. Two suicide car bombers exploding near a hotel in Baghdad, and dozens of people killed when suicide bombers target two Shiite mosques.

CNN's Senior International Correspondent Nic Robertson is in Baghdad, joins us now live with the details.

Another bloody day in Iraq, Nic.

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN SR. INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Indeed, Michael. And the death toll in the attacks on the two mosques in the eastern town of Khanaquin has been rising through the day.

According to the local hospital now, more than 50 people have been killed, tens of people injured. And among those killed, we're told quite a large number of children.

What happened was two suicide bombers went into two mosques in that town right around the time of noon prayers. This is the holy day in Iraq. The noon prayers are the busiest prayers.

The mosques would have been full with people and traditionally many fathers taking their sons to the mosques. That's why there was such a high number of children among the casualties there.

The bombings in Baghdad today killing six people. Two of those were children, one of them a woman.

What happened there, a complex attack by two suicide bombers driving cars full of explosives. The first approached the Hamara (ph) hotel, approached a security barrier outside the Hamara (ph) hotel where Western journalists and Western workers live. That vehicle detonated its explosives.

A second suicide bomber then tried to drive his vehicle through the breached hole in the perimeter of the security of the hotel. He wasn't able to get closer to the hotel, detonated his explosives.

Apartments in the area were collapsed. One family, according to local police, were trapped in the rubble of their home.

The hotel, the Hamara (ph) hotel, was damaged. Windows blown out. Some small amounts of structural damage. But it is very much still standing.

And this attack very similar to an attack three weeks ago on the Palestine hotel nearby, where Western journalists and Western workers live. The similarities, the suicide bombers sending one bomber to blow a hole in the security perimeter and then a second bomber to try and drive through that hole and get the explosive closer to the hotel -- Michael.

HOLMES: Nic, inside mosques, what could be more provocative? That and targeting journalists again. What can we determine from this target -- these targeting choices?

ROBERTSON: I think as far as the mosques go -- and, of course, this is -- this hasn't been confirm by anyone here -- we do know for sure that these were Shiite mosques, where Shia Muslims were going to pray.

They -- the Shias have tended to be the targets of the Sunni- dominated insurgency. Khanaquin relatively peaceful. So quite possibly these mosques were picked upon because security there would have been a bit more lax.

Why did the bombers in Baghdad target this prominent hotel? Well, three weeks ago, al Qaeda claimed responsibility for the attack at the Palestine hotel. There was a lot of media coverage because there were a lot of cameras there, because that's where -- that's where a lot of television organizations were basing their journalists.

Perhaps, and this is only perhaps, perhaps whoever perpetrated the attack today in Baghdad decided to attack this hotel because, again, they thought they could make it a high-profile attack by attacking somewhere where journalists were ensuring that it would be caught on camera if you will -- Michael.

HOLMES: Yes, indeed. Nic, as always, thanks. Nic Robertson there in Baghdad.

VERJEE: The ongoing violence in Iraq isn't playing well in the United States. Many critics are asking when will American troops come home.

HOLMES: Yes, this debate won't go away. Now a well-respected Democratic congressman is calling for a prompt troop withdrawal.

VERJEE: U.S. President George W. Bush is in South Korea to attend a regional economic summit. But problems back in Washington over the Iraq war continue to dog the president.

White House Correspondent Dana Bash reports.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DANA BASH, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT (voice over): No press questions here with Russia's leader. President Bush for now is letting deputies fight the latest skirmish over the Iraq war political debate back home. The gloves-off White House effort is to paint a Democratic calling for troops out of Iraq in six months as out of the mainstream.

"Congressman Murtha is a respected veteran and politician who has a record of supporting a strong America," said the White House press secretary in a blistering statement. "So it is baffling that he is endorsing the policy positions of Michael Moore and the extreme liberal wing of the Democratic Party."

By trying to link John Murtha, a known hawk, to the dovish filmmaker Michael Moore, Bush aides hope to stop Independents and Republicans already skittish about Iraq from following the influential Democrat's lead.

SEN. JOHN KERRY (D), MASSACHUSETTS: I respectfully disagree with John Murtha.

BASH: White House officials note even outspoken war critics in Murtha's own party think an immediate troop withdrawal wood be dangerous. But the Bush strategy to dismiss Murtha's biting criticism of the president's Iraq policy, like calling him part of the left-wing fringe, may be undermined by past statements like this.

RICHARD CHENEY, VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: One of my strongest allies in Congress when I was secretary of defense was Jack Murtha, Democrat who was chairman of the Defense Appropriations Subcommittee. We used to be able to do more together on a bipartisan basis than seems possible these days.

BASH: It's that kind of glowing comment in the heat of last year's campaign that makes the Bronze Star double Purple Heart recipient's slam at the vice president on Iraq so stunning.

MURTHA: I like guys who have got five deferments and never been there and send people to war, and then don't like to hear suggestions about what needs to be done.

BASH (on camera): The debate over troops in Iraq is not just happening in America. Bush officials appear to be caught off guard when, while the president is in their country, the South Korean defense ministry put forward a proposal to start withdrawing some of their 3,000-plus troops serving in Iraq.

Dana Bash, CNN, Busan, South Korea.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HOLMES: Well, the heated debate over the war in Iraq is the subject of our question today.

VERJEE: We're asking you this: Do you think it's time for U.S. troops to withdraw from Iraq? Send us your comments at ywt@cnn.com, and just make sure you include your name and also where you are writing us from. And keep your responses to us quite brief, and we'll get as many e-mails as we can on air.

HOLMES: All right.

Let's go now to South Korea, where leaders of 21 nations are gathered in the port city of Busan for the annual APEC summit. That two-day conference opened with a call for Europe to be more flexible at world trade negotiations.

European farm subsidies have been a major sticking point in stalled negotiations for a global free trade agreement. Bird flu and terrorism are some of the other items on the agenda.

Thousands of protesters, meanwhile, rallied outside the venue. Many of them chanting slogans against APEC and specifically against the U.S. president, George W. Bush. Some of the demonstrators, as you could see there, throwing rocks at riot police, who then attempted to disburse them using high-powered water hoses.

VERJEE: A former CIA director speaks out.

HOLMES: And don't go away. Still to come, we're going to tell you what one of the Bush administration's most vocal critics is saying about the U.S. president.

VERJEE: And the vice president and an often abrasive midfielder is taking an exit. More on Roy Keane's departure from Manchester United when we come back. (COMMERCIAL BREAK)

VERJEE: Welcome back to YOUR WORLD TODAY on CNN International.

The temperature keeps rising in Washington, the heated controversy over the war in Iraq. Critics of the Bush administration's policy took aim this week at everything from justifications for war to the alleged abuse of detainees in U.S. custody.

Vice President Dick Cheney came out swinging at those critics, who included some lawmakers that voted to authorize the war.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

RICHARD CHENEY, VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: The president and I cannot prevent certain politicians from losing their memory or their backbone. But we're not going to sit by and let them rewrite history.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VERJEE: One of the most outspoken critics of the Bush administration is former CIA director Stansfield Turner. He says Vice President Cheney himself oversees the policy of torturing terror suspects, calling him "The Vice president for torture."

Stansfield Turner joins us now from Washington.

These are pretty provocative allegations to make.

ADM. STANSFIELD TURNER, FMR. CIA DIRECTOR: Well, the vice president is out of tune with his own president, who has said that we do not torture. He's out of tune with a major Republican senator who knows a lot about torture, Senator McCain, who, of course, was tortured for years in Vietnamese prisons.

I think the vice president's out of tune with the American people, who don't want our country tarred with the label of being one that tortures. He's out of tune with our ambassador in Baghdad, who is, according to today's media, urging and pressuring the Iraqis to stop torturing their prisoners.

I don't know where this comes from, but it gives the United States a very bad image around the world, because people here what the vice president is saying and don't pay as much attention to these other symbols.

VERJEE: We have a statement from the office of the vice president saying, look, he's not out of touch. The statement reads like this: "The vice president's views are reflected in the administration's policy. Our country is at war, and our government has an obligation to protect the American people from a brutal enemy that has declared war upon us."

It goes on to say, "We're aggressively finding terrorists and bringing them to justice, and anything we do within this effort is within the law. The United States does not torture" -- Admiral.

TURNER: Well, that's not what the vice president has been saying, that's not the vice president who is opposing Senator McCain's proposed law that would prohibit torture. We've got...

VERJEE: So you're saying he's lying?

TURNER: Well, I'm saying that we've got different voices speaking up in this administration, and it's very confusing. Unfortunately, what the world is going to pick up is the most strident, the most controversial, and that is what the vice president is saying, which appears to be adopting a policy of torture.

VERJEE: Do you think, though, Admiral, that it is at this stage in the war on terror, in some respects, irresponsible to call the vice president of the United States a vice president of torture? Aren't you handing Islamist terrorists a great piece of propaganda?

TURNER: I certainly am not. It's the vice president who is out there advocating torture. He's the one who has made himself the vice president in favor of torture.

VERJEE: But what kind of effect do you think your comments, like these, would have on the morale of American troops?

TURNER: Well, the vice president has been pulling that one out of the hat, justifying anything because it might hurt the troops. It's just not a sensible thing to do.

VERJEE: Do you think torture is justified in any circumstances, or are you entirely against it?

TURNER: I'm entirely against it.

VERJEE: Why?

TURNER: The vice president...

VERJEE: Well, you know, the -- there is the argument that there are, in some instances, particularly in a post-9/11 era, where torture can be justified, if it can extract information that protects the American people.

TURNER: Look, since 9/11, we've had to relax some of our procedures so that we can intrude into people's lives more. We do things today to protect ourselves from terror that we would not normally do.

Torture is beyond the pale. It is going too far.

Number one, it ruins our moral stature amongst ourselves. We can't be proud of being Americans if we are torturers.

Secondly, it ruins our stature before the world, because the world will look at us in a very different light. But finally, I am a former military man, as is Senator McCain, who is now sponsoring a law to prohibit torture. And we military people don't want future military people who are taken prisoner by other countries to be subjected to torture in the name of doing just what the United States does.

VERJEE: Stansfield Turner, thank you so much for joining us. Appreciate it.

TURNER: You're welcome.

VERJEE: Michael.

HOLMES: All right.

A startling departure. We're going to take a break here ourselves.

Manchester United football fans are in an uproar. And that is because the team's captain, Roy Keane, called it quits on Friday when he resigned from the club by what's being called mutual consent. Read into that what you will.

After more than 12 years, he's leaving behind a career that yielded seven league titles, four FA cups, one champions league title in United's Treble winning season. Keane's departure may mean big problems for the new owners already maligned by fervent fans.

It has been six months since the takeover of the club by the American sports tycoon Malcolm Glazer, who also owns the U.S. football team the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

Now, for some more analysis on the impact of Keane's departure, let's bring in Tim Lister.

Tim, I know you're a big fan. Put this in perspective for us. This is the world's perhaps most famous football club, or sporting club, perhaps. And this is one of its most famous players.

TIM LISTER, CNN CENTER: Roy Keane has been totemic for United over the last 12 years. Won a lot of titles with Alex Ferguson, and in a way his departure is the passing of an era.

In a way, he and Alex Ferguson have grown old together. And I think this is a harbinger of things to come.

There needs to be a bit of a cleaning up at United. And he was a very highly-paid player. But he's got older, he hasn't got the legs so much anymore. And I think the Glazers have got problems now as they try to look for a new generation of stars.

HOLMES: But why -- why is it such a big deal in the big picture? He is 34. He's -- he wasn't even sure he was going to re-sign again. Why is this such a big deal around the world.

You look at all the Web sites of the newspapers from Asia to Australia to Great Britain. It's full of this story.

LISTER: Because of the timing, and the timing because two weeks ago he gave a very controversial interview to Manchester United FC's own television station in which he said that a lot of players weren't pulling their weight. Even players like Rio Ferdinand, the England defender.

And he said that they were overpaid. He criticized some of the wealthiest supporters that were coming into Manchester United. And I think that exposed fissures within Manchester United as a club.

So it's the timing of his departure that is particularly noteworthy. But yes, he was past his best playing days. There's no doubt about that.

HOLMES: I think in American terms it would be like the quarterback of the most famous NFL team just deciding to walk off in the middle of the season.

What happens next?

LISTER: What happens next is that United needs to find somebody of that stature to run the side, to inject drive and determination into Manchester United, which has faulted badly this season. They could go out of Europe next week, which is unthinkable for Manchester United.

They are way behind Chelsea in the Premier's league. Their trouble is they're not the rich club they used to be.

The Glazers haven't injected that money that was promised yet. They need to go out and spend when the January transfer window comes up. And there's talk of Michael Belic (ph) from Munich coming to Manchester United. But he may well go to Italy instead.

So they're in a bit of a bind. They need to find money to buy players, and they need to find someone of Keane's stature to really fire up the side.

HOLMES: I think this was the most successful sporting business in the world, wasn't it?

LISTER: It's certainly one of them. Manchester United is highly profitable, or has been.

HOLMES: Right.

LISTER: But now they are in serious debt, 650 million pounds at the latest reckoning.

HOLMES: Wow, all right.

LISTER: So they have problems on their plate.

HOLMES: Tim Lister, thanks for coming along, teaching us all a little bit about football. This is a big deal, by the way. All right.

VERJEE: A check what's topping the news in the United States. That's up next for our viewers in the U.S.

HOLMES: Yes. The rest of us are going to get a check on what's moving the financial markets.

Also, the power of a deal. A look at General Electric's multibillion-dollar deal with a Swiss company coming up in "Business."

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BETTY NGUYEN, CNN ANCHOR: Hello, everybody. I'm Betty Nguyen at the CNN Center in Atlanta. More of YOUR WORLD TODAY in just a few minutes. But first, a check on the stories making headlines in the U.S.

Updating you now on a spectacular wildfire in southern California. Check it out.

The fire was spotted in a rugged canyon area earlier this morning. Now it's grown to at least 500 acres.

The fire is burning in an area that has a number of oil pumps. Video from the scene shows an unidentified structure going up in flames. And officials say the fire is burning away from residential areas, though it's still very close. Some 200 firefighters are on the scene, and helicopters are dropping water on those flames.

Chad Myers joins us now to talk about not only the fire, but what else is going on.

Very cold in many parts of the nation.

(WEATHER REPORT)

NGUYEN: Police in Missouri this morning caught a second fugitive from an Iowa maximum security prison. We've seen -- we have since learned that Robert Legendre left a trail of violence since escaping Monday with another inmate, Martin Moon.

CNN's Keith Oppenheim is in Fort Madison, Iowa, with the details.

Keith, what do you know?

KEITH OPPENHEIM, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, he was caught 390 miles away from this prison, Betty, in Steele, Missouri. A dispatcher got a report of a stolen car, and police near Steele, Missouri, picked him up at a truck stop.

Those local police are saying that Legendre not only may have stolen one or two cars, but also committed some assaults along the way. And he may face charges in St. Louis, at least for stealing the car, before he is brought back here. We want to show you some video of something that we just saw a little while ago here at the prison. And that is that officials have been on the wall taking a look at the guard towers and the perimeter. It was because one of the towers had been unmanned near where the escape happened that the escape at least could have been made somewhat more easier for these two guys.

The other person who was caught is Martin Shane Moon. He was caught about 250 miles away from here yesterday in Chester, Illinois.

Betty, back to you.

NGUYEN: Both in police custody today. Keith Oppenheim. Thank you.

Well, just about two hours ago on Capitol Hill, a bipartisan group of senators issued an ultimatum on the renewal of the Patriot Act. The lawmakers say they will oppose renewal of the anti-terror legislation unless the tentative accord offers better protection of civil liberties.

Supporters say the broader powers granted after the 9/11 attacks provide a more potent weapon against terrorists. The senators say protection against terrorists should not come at the cost of personal rights.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. RUSS FEINGOLD (D), WISCONSIN: This group is dedicated to making sure on issues such as Section 215, sneak and peek procedures, sunset issues and others, that we have the proper legislation to fight terrorism, but also protect the liberties of the people of this country.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

NGUYEN: And critics can see they may not have enough lawmakers to force major changes.

Supreme Court nominee Samuel Alito is back on Capitol Hill today to meet and greet senators who could decide his fate. Earlier, he met with Pennsylvania Republican Rick Santorum.

Alito is facing, though, questions over a newly-surfaced memo from 1985 in which he boasted of his anti-abortion views. Now, in his letter to the Reagan administration, Alito wrote that, "The Constitution does not protect against a right to an abortion."

Shifting gears. Muggles across the country are still wild about Harry. "Harry Potter," to be exact.

The much anticipated fourth film in the Potter series made its debut at special midnight screenings all across the country. Ticket service Fandango says advance ticket sales were even better than the previous "Harry Potter" movies. But be careful, PG-13 a little scary for the little kids. Well, what you may not know about "Harry Potter," that's at the top of the hour of "LIVE FROM." Interesting stuff.

Meantime, YOUR WORLD TODAY continues right after a quick break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HOLMES: Welcome back, everyone, to YOUR WORLD TODAY here on CNN International. I'm Michael Holmes.

VERJEE: And I'm Zain Verjee.

(NEWSBREAK)

HOLMES: While Washington debates the accuracy of pre-war intelligence and a timetable for troop withdrawal, what do the Iraqi people want? Do they want coalition forces to leave now.

Joining us with her unique perspective, our Jane Arraf. She was a former senior Baghdad correspondent for CNN. Now with the Council on Foreign Relations.

Jane, good to see you, as always.

First of all, this latest violence that we see, I want to get your thoughts. I asked Nic about this earlier. But your thoughts on the specific targeting inside a mosque. What could be more provocative than that, and also, targeting, again, a media hotel. What do you read into that?

JANE ARRAF, COUNCIL ON FOREIGN RELATIONS: I think I know that first one, the mosques, is particularly worrying. It's a town that I've spent a lot of time in, and that was a really peaceful city. It was mostly Kurdish, and these are Shia Kurds for the most part. And it was the place where Iraqi forces actually held up as a place where they thought they could withdraw and leave it to Iraqi forces to take over.

Now, if bombings are going on in places like that, that is an extremely worrying sign. Now the fact that they are targeting mosques and hotels, although they have hit Iraqi civilians instead of foreigners in that one, that is just another sign that this is -- really the targets are spreading, I think.

HOLMES: I think over the years, since Americans arrived in Baghdad, I don't know what you think, my impression has always been that there has been a reduction in support for U.S. troops being there at all. Your feeling on that as we are now getting into this Washington furor, really, over timetables for troop withdrawal, and then congressmen now speaking out so openly.

ARRAF: You know, when you have to figure out what Iraqis actually feel, it's a very tangled web that you have to unweave. And although most Iraqis would tell you that they want American troops to leave immediately, when you scratch the surface, there's a real fear there as to what would happen, if they actually did leave tomorrow. And one of the indications of that, I think, is that so many Iraqis tell me, and tell others, that they would rather be arrested, if they were going to be arrested, by American forces rather than Iraqi forces. We've seen these recent allegations and evidence of torture, which I've been seeing for quite a long time in Iraq, and again, an indication that there a real worry on the part of many Iraqis as to what would happen if this country were left without U.S. forces in the near future.

HOLMES: Torture accusations against Iraqis who were holding those detainees. Torture allegations also in the controversy in the United States as well, which we've been hearing. How does that -- is that just bad publicity, or do things like tortures, the secret prisons, renditions and all of that sort of thing have the potential to backfire on the U.S., in terms of a policy, or is it really just bad publicity? Do Iraqis care?

ARRAF: Again, a very complicated thing. Iraqis, I would say, have a higher tolerance, and this sounds terrible to say, but having spent years in that country and living in that country, it's true. They have a higher tolerance for this. They do not expect human rights to be respected in jails, in prisons.

But the worrying thing about this, Michael, And again, we've seen this happening in Iraq, in other places, for more than a year now, is it sets off a cycle of violence, a cycle of revenge. It isn't just the torture itself; it's the lasting effects that leaves on the system that it's taking place in.

Now the U.S. can't take the moral high ground, according to Iraqis, on torture because of Abu Ghraib, and the fact it refuses to condemn torture in interrogations, and to some extent believes that they are still valid. So that plays into it as well. But it's very, very worrying for Iraq as a whole.

HOLMES: OK, I'll get you as an analyst here and not as a journalist, Jane, because it's a vexed question. Very briefly, if you will, what if the liberal viewpoint won over and there was a troop withdrawal within the next six months or so. What would happen in Iraq?

ARRAF: As an analyst and not a journalist, because every time you say something about Iraq these days, in the United States, particularly, it's seen as a political statement, which it is not. What would happen in the places that I've seen, the places that are the most volatile, the places where there is still fighting going on, the places where there are no Iraqi troops, where there are no Iraqi police, no Iraqi government, is there would be vacuums in those places and the insurgents would come back in, and the cities and towns would be taken over again. It's something we've seen over and over. It would be extremely worrying if troops left tomorrow or anytime soon in large areas of Iraq.

HOLMES: Our colleague, former senior Baghdad correspondent, now with the Council on Foreign Relations, Jane Arraf.

Always good to see you, Jane. Thank you.

Good to see you, Michael. Thank you.

VERJEE: A new audiotape has surfaced on a Web site frequently use by the Al Qaeda network in Iraq. Senior editor for Arab affairs Octavia Nasr joins us now.

Octavia, what does it say?

OCTAVIA NASR, CNN SR. EDITOR FOR ARAB AFFAIRS: Well, it says basically that Abu Musab Al Zarqawi did, indeed, send his men. He talks about three lions, he calls them, left their dens in Baghdad and headed to the heart of Amman. And he said to target headquarters of intelligence, including U.S., Israeli and Iraqi agents.

VERJEE: It's interesting. It also adds Palestinian officials in a list of officials who were killed. Is it not striking why would that be mentioned?

NASR: Actually, he mentioned it based on the news, which tells me that Zarqawi is following the news. He said, isn't it curious that they found Chinese intelligence officials, they found a Palestinian intelligence officials. Basically saying, see, that proves my point in his own words. He said you, see, I told you these hotels are headquarters for intelligence agents. And basically, he does say that his intention was not to kill civilians, but they happened to be at those hotels.

He does mention something that's very, very interesting, Zain. He said that his men have been getting information on these hotels for over two months and, he said he has sources inside and outside of the hotels, which is very curious, because you know the Jordanian officials have said it repeatedly, that they don't believe these suicide bombers had any contact with any Jordanians. Now with Abu Musab Zarqawi, if, indeed it is him -- of course CNN has no way to confirm that this voice on the tape is him. But if, indeed it is him, that means that he has agents inside Jordan working for him, giving him information, and basically, he warns that there will be more attacks, unless something happens.

VERJEE: And unless certain conditions that he wants are fulfilled, the voice on the tape outlines something like 10 conditions, I think it is. What are some of them?

NASR: Right, and some people are saying, this is unrealistic, just like any other conditions that Osama Bin Laden, or Zawahiri or in this case Zarqawi put forth. He wants the embassies of the U.S. and Israel closed. He wants the jails where mujahadeen are kept, in his words again, are closed. Some would look at these conditions, and say these are no conditions. He's just giving people lip service that he will continue to attack, no matter what, and always find a reason to attack.

Another interesting thing on the tape, Zain, is that he talks about the king of Jordan directly. He calls him an infidel, he calls him a little Abdullah, he calls him a dictator. A very, very direct attack, not just on the person of the king of Jordan, but also on the Jordanian government.

You remember when this whole thing happened, we heard a lot from those Jordanian officials. Things like, they don't believe that it is Zarqawi until they hear from him. Well, they heard from him. And Zarqawi left no room -- again, if that voice is Zarqawi -- he left no room for them to believe that he is alive, he's well, and he's very, very well-informed.

VERJEE: Senior Arab affairs analyst Octavia Nasr. Thank you.

NASR: Anytime.

HOLMES: Well, the U.S. and close ally Australia reaffirmed their commitment to defeating terrorists and insurgents in Iraq. U.S. Defense Secretary Rumsfeld meeting with his Australian counterpart in the southern city of Adelaide. Australia's foreign minister said the government would consider finding new jobs for its troops in Iraq if Japanese military engineers are withdrawn next year. Australian troops are now guarding those engineers in southern Iraq. Australia has a total of 1,300 troops in the Middle East.

VERJEE: Meanwhile, South Korea. A major supporter of President Bush's Iraq policy says it plans to pull a third of its troops out of Iraq next year. But U.S. national security spokesman says there has been no official notification yet. The South Korean Defense Ministry will have to submit the request to the country's parliament. South Korea is the third largest contributor of troops to Iraq behind the U.S. and Britain. It has more than 3,000 soldiers in Iraq.

HOLMES: Well, with that APEC Summit under way, differing views about Mr. Bush and his administration are in the international spotlight. Suzanne Malveaux takes a closer look at that for us.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): As the streets filled with protesters around the APEC Summit, the debate over President Bush's visit is playing out in the homes of many Koreans.

Insang Jung and his 24-year-old daughter Suyong live in Busan, about eight miles from the demonstrations. They share a home, a love of yoga, and a passion for politics. But when it comes to the American-Korean relations, they are deeply divided, starting with their feelings about President Bush.

INSANG JUNG, OFFICE CLERK (through translator): I think he shows strong leadership. The world is very divided right now and needed a charismatic leader.

SUYONG JUNG, COLLEGE STUDENT (through translator): I don't know for sure, but inside I don't think he's very truthful.

MALVEAUX: The differences are rooted in their generations.

I. JUNG (through translator): I was born just shortly after the Korean War and am part of the war generation. I believe economically Korea would not be in the position it is in today without the help of the United States.

S. JUNG (through translator): Just because the U.S. helped us during the war doesn't mean we always need to be good to them. We are also a growing country and should not be treated as a subordinate.

MALVEAUX: While Suyong says taking to the streets would be too extreme for her, the college senior says she shares the protesters anger over her government's decision to send South Korean troops to support U.S. mission in Iraq.

S. JUNG (through translator): Of course American soldiers are dying in Iraq and are victims of terror. And the rest of the world must help the U.S. But so many soldiers who don't want to go to Iraq still have to go.

MALVEAUX: Both seem to urge caution in their approach to the United States.

S. JUNG (through translator): We should be thankful, but in current conditions it's not good being extremely anti or pro-American.

I. JUNG (through translator): Like the father-daughter relationship, it doesn't break because of a dispute. That's the situation between the U.S. and Korea.

MALVEAUX (on camera): A sentiment shared by most Koreans who were not protesting, who are invested in the U.S.-Korean relationship.

Suzanne Malveaux, CNN, Busan, South Korea.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

VERJEE: The United States is trying to make sure bird flu doesn't reach its borders. Officials have set up quarantine stations at international airports across the country just as a precaution.

Sumi Das is at Dulles Airport near Washington.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SUMI DAS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): In the event of a bird flu outbreak, airplanes could speed the spread of the virus. The 2003 SARS epidemic forced airlines to make costly last minute cancellations of flights to affected destinations. Since then, airlines have made every effort to be informed.

JOHN MEENAN, AIRLINE TRANSPORT ASSOCIATION: We're concerned about any possibly contagious diseases and we stay in very close contact with the Centers for Disease Control to monitor developments around the world on literally a daily basis.

DAS: Washington-Dulles International Airport is one of the 18 U.S. airports with quarantine stations set up by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. At these stations, the CDC works in conjunction with local health and emergency officials, ready to respond to potential infectious disease threats. These centers include a private room where medical officers can screen potentially ill passengers for symptoms.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: These are not treatment facilities. They're coordinated centers. They're outposts of CDC staff that coordinate responses at the ports of entry.

DAS: Thursday, CDC officials at Dulles Airport ran an exercise, discussing how to handle various situations, if they needed to get a patient off a plane or hold passengers.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Those responses, the protocols and the plans, can then be adapted for a disease such as SARS or avian influenza.

DAS (on camera): One area the airline industry says it's trying to streamline is the tracking systems for passengers, in case a person is identified as ill after everyone has disembarked from the plane.

Sumi Das, CNN, Washington Dulles International Airport.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HOLMES: OK. Residents are on high alert in southwestern Colombia.

VERJEE: Guillermo Arduino tells us why when YOUR WORLD TODAY comes back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

VERJEE: Welcome back to YOUR WORLD TODAY on CNN International.

HOLMES: Yes, and welcoming our viewers around the world, including here in the United States.

(WEATHER REPORT)

HOLMES: All right. It has been a story that has been approved by his successor.

VERJEE: Coming up on CNN today, the life of Pope John Paul II comes to the small screen. We're going to bring you a preview.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

VERJEE: Pope Benedict XVI watched the world premiere screening of a film on the life of his predecessor, Pope John Paul II. Produced by CBS, it had special approval from the Vatican. Some of the scenes were shot in the same rooms where the events actually took place. Actor Jon Voigt says that the pope he portrays was a man with many qualities.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) JON VOIGT, ACTOR: He was everything, you know. He was a sportsman. He was an intellectual. He was a great mystic, you know? He was -- he appreciated everyone, especially this beautiful gal, who was -- who worked on our film together with us. And she was great.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Thank you.

VOIGT: Every day, worked as part of the crew.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VERJEE: CBS will broadcast the four-hour miniseries in the U.S. on December 4th and 7th.

HOLMES: All right. Let's check the inbox. Shall we?

VERJEE: Our question today is, do you think it's time for U.S. troops to withdraw from Iraq?

HOLMES: Jim in Hungary writes -- "Leaving Iraq before these people have an infrastructure and military that can defend themselves and police against murderers is inconsiderate and irresponsible."

VERJEE: Denise in the U.S. writes, "This is a war we can't win because our president, State and Defense Departments have no anthropological understanding of Islamic clans and tribal affiliations. The longer we stay in Iraq, the more Iraqis will resist our presence.

HOLMES: Tom also from the United States writes, "If we are not going to fight to win, then we must get out of Iraq." This has been YOUR WORLD TODAY, right here on CNN International. I'm Michael Holmes.

VERJEE: You are, I am Zain Verjee. Before we leave you, a quick programming note for our international audience. Beginning on Monday, CNN has its eye on the Middle East. Join us for a week of programming, really looking at the changes that have occurred in the region. CNN's Jim Clancy and Hala Gorani are live in the region with an hour-long special every day at 1600 GMT.

HOLMES: Have a good weekend, everyone.

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