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Your World Today
Two Continents, Two Extremes of Nature; Stem Cell Scandal; Ariel Sharon's Year
Aired December 29, 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.
JIM CLANCY, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: Brr. Wintry weather, heavy snow, slippery ice and blizzards blanketing parts of Europe.
COLLEEN MCEDWARDS, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Stem cell controversy. More damaging revelations about a South Korean researcher once a national hero.
CLANCY: And another round of violence. A suicide bomber strikes in the West Bank just a day after Israel hit northern Gaza with artillery.
MCEDWARDS: And portrait of a suicide bomber. A new film, "Paradise Now," hopes to open more discussion on this complex issue.
CLANCY: Right now it is 6:00 in the evening in Paris, 2:00 in the morning in Seoul, 9:00 in the morning in Los Angeles.
I'm Jim Clancy.
MCEDWARDS: And I'm Colleen McEdwards.
This is CNN International and this is YOUR WORLD TODAY.
CLANCY: Two continents, two extremes of nature. Winter's tightening its icy grip across parts of Europe right now. Temperatures plunging, and the cold snap stranding thousands of motorists and delaying international flights.
MCEDWARDS: Yes, there's lots to tell you about. And in the United States, floods are threatening northern California. And little more than embers and memories remain from what was once a small town in Texas. It's been devastated by those grass fires that have been going on.
CLANCY: All right, Colleen. Let's take a closer look and begin with the severe conditions in Europe right now.
Femi Oke is keeping a close eye on developments there. She joins us from the international weather center with a little bit more on this.
And it is looking pretty bad out there.
FEMI OKE, CNN INTERNATIONAL METEOROLOGIST: Yes, absolutely, Jim. (WEATHER REPORT)
OKE: This isn't the only place effected by the severe snow, the hefty amounts of weather.
Robyn Curnow has more.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ROBYN CURNOW, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice over): Heavy snows, slippery ice and blizzards brought traffic to a standstill in some parts of France, stranding motorists, forcing many to spend the night in their cars, at nearby hotels, or in community centers set up by local authorities.
SERGE LE SOULY, ASST. TO MAIXEVILLE MAYOR (through translator): We give them a warm meal because some have them have been stuck for hours and have empty stomachs. So we tried to warm them the best we can.
CURNOW: From France, in the west, to Georgia in the far east of the European continent, heavy snowfalls blocked roads and caused chaos. Bulldozers battled to open main thoroughfares, even forcing a family in mourning to abandon the main road and drag this coffin over a snow-choked pass.
In Germany, news bulletins warn motorists of dangerous roads as German meteorologists predict 11 inches or 30 centimeters of new snow in the coming days in the countries north and northeast. (INAUDIBLE) authorities caution drivers to expect poor visibility, slippery roads and strong winds, urging only essential travel.
Wintry conditions, that suit some just fine.
In England, some family Christmas breaks have been extended as commuters are forced to stay where they are because of delays and cancellations across the transport network. Even London, normally warmer than the rest of the country, has had snowfall this week.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: If you thought it was bad today, it's going to be worse tomorrow.
CURNOW: Complaining about the weather is a common pastime in England. But this winter, with the country gripped by what some are calling a record-breaking chilly spell, it's been a particularly hot topic as snow and ice blanket Britain and the rest of Europe.
Robyn Curnow, CNN, London.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
OKE: You thought it was bad today, it's going to be worse tomorrow. It pretty much sums up the weather for Europe right now.
(WEATHER REPORT)
OKE: Colleen, back to you.
MCEDWARDS: All right, Femi. Thanks very much.
Well, New Year's Eve is traditionally celebrated with fireworks. But for residents in Cross Plains, Texas, it is going to be somewhat of a silent night.
Forecasters say there is no rain in sight for this parched dry land where five people died, more than 100 homes were destroyed. They are recommending a ban on fireworks, as any kind of a spark could light new fires here. Authorities believe the fires in Texas and Oklahoma started by people ignoring fire bans.
In northern California, rivers are at their highest level in seven years. Look at this.
And forecasters say more rain is expected. It could last through this coming weekend. The heavy rain has caused power failures, evacuations, and at least one person was killed in a mudslide.
CLANCY: Yemeni officials say landslides have killed at least 30 people southwest of Sana (ph). Rocks toppled off a hillside, demolishing much of the village below. You can see from the picture the size of some of those boulders as they came crashing down in the snow.
Crews still searching for survivors and victims. They say this is a death toll that's going to climb.
MCEDWARDS: "Shameful," that is how fellow scientists are describing a disgraced South Korean researcher. Just months ago, Dr. Hwang Woo-suk was known as the pride of Korea for his breakthroughs in stem cell research. But now the university he worked for says he faked it all.
CNN's Sohn Jie-Ae has more now from Seoul.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SOHN JIE-AE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): Seoul's main train station is busy this time of year. Koreans visiting friends and family. But many stop to watch the latest news about stem cell researcher Dr. Hwang Woo-suk, once considered a national hero.
"I feel like I was cheated," says this man on his way to catch the train. "I mean, he's nothing more than a crook."
This man, who watched the news before he left home, was more sympathetic. "I am disappointed, but I feel we should give him a chance to redeem himself."
Many wouldn't talk to us, saying Hwang was a national disgrace.
The latest finding by the Seoul National University panel said there was no scientific evidence that Hwang cloned stem cells tailored to specific patients. This was the basis of a landmark paper in the journal "Science" earlier this year that had given new hope to patients suffering from such illnesses as Parkinson's Disease and diabetes.
The panel said it was looking into Hwang's earlier works as well, including innovations in stem cell cloning and the creation of the world's first cloned dog, Snuppy.
(on camera): The university panel said it will make its final conclusion in mid-January, which means the new year could bridge new disappointment to the Korean people as they watch their national hero topple from grace.
Sohn Jie-Ae, Cnn, Seoul.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
MCEDWARDS: Dashed hopes for so many. Coming up in a few minutes, we are going to be talking with a stem cell researcher about how this could have happened and what comes next in the field of stem cell science.
Be sure to stay with us for that -- Jim.
CLANCY: Well, the ongoing lawlessness in Gaza was in evidence once again on Thursday. Gunmen shooting it out at a police station. This was a family feud gone bad.
At least one person was killed. At least two others were wounded, each from one of the families.
Also, a suicide bomber detonated an explosive vest at a checkpoint in the West Bank, killing three people there. Israeli defense forces say the bomber detonated his belt or his device after he exited a Palestinian taxi. He was accompanied by two other people that were killed.
A group of Palestinians protested the kidnapping of a British aid worker and her parents. There's been no immediate claim of responsibility, no ransom and no firm contact with the kidnappers. The three Britons were abducted in the southern Gaza town of Rafah right on the Egyptian border Wednesday.
A Hamas spokesman condemned the kidnapping.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SAMI ABU ZUHRI, HAMAS SPOKESMAN (through translator): Kidnapping foreigners is a bad and rejected phenomenon. Firstly, it is against our tradition and behavior. Secondly, it harms the image of the Palestinian people. It targets our people's interests.
These foreigners came to serve and give us a hand. So we have to secure and save them. Not to treat them this way.
(END VIDEO CLIP) MCEDWARDS: Well, no one figure really defines the parameters of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict more than Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon. In 2005, Sharon engineered the Israeli withdrawal from Gaza, he withstood death threats, bolted his ruling political party, and then survived a stroke.
CNN's Guy Raz takes a look back at the year that saw the transformation of a warrior into a pragmatist.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
GUY RAZ, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice over): How did the man who once described the occupied territories this way...
ARIEL SHARON, ISRAELI PRIME MINISTER: It is part of the land of Israel, and we are going to stay there forever.
RAZ: ... become the man who said this in 2005...
SHARON (through translator): Israel will leave Gaza and the northern West Bank. I repeat, let there be no allusions, Israel will leave Gaza and the northern West Bank.
MATTI FRIEDMAN, "JERUSALEM REPORT": He's gone from being an extreme figure to being -- to being popular across the board. And you can see that he's happy. You can see that he likes -- he likes the place that he's in right now.
RAZ: It was for certain Ariel Sharon's year. The political foreman of Israel settlement enterprise became its wrecking ball, even earning grudging respect from Palestinians who long reviled him.
SAID ZEEDNI, PROVOST, AL QUDS UNIVERSITY: If there is a single person that Palestinians hated the most, it's Sharon. But on the other hand, Sharon is the -- you know, he proved himself to be the only leader who can dismantle settlements, evacuate settlers. And the Gaza disengagement is a good precedent in that regard.
RAZ: Sharon's decision to evacuate settlers was a precedent. It proved Jews could be removed from occupied land by a Jewish government.
FREIDMAN: I don't think he's become a moderate. I don't think he's had a change of heart. I think he's basically a hard-liner pursuing moderate policies because they make sense for him and because they make sense for the country.
RAZ: Sharon came to the conclusion that Israel can't be both a democratic and a Jewish country so long as it holds on to land Palestinians claim for their future state. But there was internal opposition, death threats, sabotage on the roads, and a revolt within his own ruling Likud party.
Sharon struck back at his opponents with words.
SHARON (through translator): I especially warn against attempts by a small, lawless minority. This minority does not represent the majority of settlers who obey the law.
RAZ: By the end of the summer, Israel had ended its 38-year occupation of Gaza. And Sharon would make a political gamble, trading his mutinous Likud party for the support he found among the public.
ARI SHAVIT, HA'ARETZ: His source of power is the support he has among many Israelis, mainstream Israelis who are out of the Likud.
RAZ: Just as the year was winding down, Sharon suffered a stroke, cheating death once again in life. The one-time warrior was twice wounded in battle. His political obituary has been written dozens of times. But he survived it all, and it could explain his lasting appeal.
MICHAEL OREN, SHALEM CENTER: I think it's implicit in the Israeli political debate that here is a man who will not be standing for office probably in another 10 years, that really this is his last great show on the Israeli political stage. And I think that's been an important factor here. I think it's actually been an important factor playing in Sharon's favor. People want to utilize Sharon's presence in history while they still can.
RAZ: It may take a landslide victory in upcoming Israeli elections to secure that place in history.
(on camera): Sharon doesn't just want to win, he wants to win big. And he wants to have the political backing necessary to establish Israel's permanent borders. Now, it's a vision at odds with Palestinians' minimum demands. And if the two sides can't reach a compromise soon, 2006 is liable to become a transitional year in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
Guy Raz, Cnn, Jerusalem.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CLANCY: Well, that brings us to our inbox question of the day. And it's a fun one today.
We want you to get involved. Here's what we are asking: What are your hopes for the new year? You can tell us your resolutions, anything.
MCEDWARDS: Anything you like, whether you are in the United States or in Israel, in the Middle East. E-mail your comments to ywt@cnn.com. Tell us what your hopes are.
Don't forget, include your name and where you are writing us from as well. We are going to try to read some of your responses later in the program.
CLANCY: All right. Still ahead, we're going to have more on that controversy over stem cell research.
MCEDWARDS: Yes, interesting story. An expert panel is dealing another blow to the claims made by a South Korean scientist who was a national hero in that country. But how is this going to affect future research right around the world? We will have a special guest here next.
Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translator): Hwang's team didn't secure scientific data to prove stem cells were made.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MCEDWARDS: More damning indictments against a South Korean researcher who was once considered a national hero. An expert panel Thursday said Hwang Woo-suk did not produce patient-specific stem cells, as they are called. And he had claimed that he had done that in a landmark research paper.
Well, welcome back to YOUR WORLD TODAY.
The panel now says it is going to investigate other breakthroughs attributed to this scientist, Hwang, including the world's first cloned dog. Will the controversy stem future research?
And for more on this, we have Dr. Marie Csete with us, director of the Human Embryonic Stem Cell Core Facility at the Emory School of Medicine.
Thanks a lot for being here.
First of all, how does this research, which we're now told was essentially fabricated, how does it get this far, published in respected journals and the like?
DR. MARIE CSETE, EMORY SCHOOL OF MEDICINE: Well, we have to be able to trust some background work of every paper. If a picture of a muscle cell is in a paper, and the scientist said it came from A, B and C, we have to trust A, B and C.
So there is some checks and balances, but we can't check everything.
MCEDWARDS: Because there's a peer review process, right?
CSETE: Absolutely. And this was one of the greatest journals that peer reviewed this paper.
MCEDWARDS: Explain to us what the significance of these patient- specific stem -- first of all, what are those in laymen's terms?
CSETE: So these were stem cells made with the nucleus of a stem cell -- the nucleus of a skin cell, excuse me, from individual patients with diseases. So, in fact, the stem cells that would have been made would have been immunologically completely compatible with the donor of the nucleus.
MCEDWARDS: So in the future -- I mean, that could -- could, could, could -- mean that a specific cell could be created from by body to treat my specific disease, right?
CSETE: Exactly right.
MCEDWARDS: And this is huge potentially.
CSETE: Exactly right.
MCEDWARDS: So is there -- what would me the motivation to fabricate this? Is there a lot of competition for dollars, prestige? What is it?
CSETE: I think that most scientists really want to make a difference. And so I don't really understand the motivation of faking this data.
MCEDWARDS: Yes.
CSETE: The scientist claimed that someone would come along and do it, the time is ripe for this particular technology. I think he's right. Someone will come along and do it.
It's hard to say. I think the fame was probably a big issue here.
MCEDWARDS: Yes. Where does it leave researchers all around the world, research organizations around the world who are legitimately pursuing this?
CSETE: Well, we hope it won't set people back. I think it's hard enough for the lay public to understand what it is we do. And this will make it even more difficult for them to understand what we do. But perhaps there will be certain kinds of checks and balances in exchanging re-agents between labs, to check them before these large breakthroughs are announced.
MCEDWARDS: It's got to be a black eye, though, right? I mean, this is controversial enough without throwing faked research into the mix.
CSETE: I think it is a black eye. But again, I think most scientists do things with great integrity. And luckily, no patient was hurt in this process. That's really important.
MCEDWARDS: Right. Right. Really important.
In terms of the peer review process, we talked about that and you alluded to it just there. Should there be major changes in how this -- I mean, this is such a sensitive science, such a sensitive issue. Should there be changes in how these things are scrutinized? CSETE: I think in general the peer review process works extremely well. And perhaps, you know, when things are controversial, there should be more editorial advisers in the process. But I think in general it does work really well.
MCEDWARDS: I don't mean this flippantly, but there is the question of the dog in this lab. I mean, they claim to have cloned this dog Snuppy. And now this is even being looked into. Is it possible that all of this was just a sham?
CSETE: Well, I think scientists are like anyone else. In any walk of life, if you do something that is a lie, other aspects of your life will have to be examined. So it's hard to trust anything from this lab at this point.
MCEDWARDS: Understood. OK.
Dr. Marie Csete. Thank you so much for your thoughts on this. We really appreciate it.
CSETE: Thank you.
CLANCY: Well, coming up, a new film that treads new ground.
MCEDWARDS: That's right. The makers of the movie "Paradise Now" are hoping to try to open up some dialogue and debate after they bring you the mindset of men planning a suicide mission.
Stay tuned. An interview with the director and the co-writer of "Paradise Now" is coming up.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
DARYN KAGAN, CNN ANCHOR: I'm Daryn Kagan at CNN Center in Atlanta. More of YOUR WORLD TODAY in just a few minutes. First, though, let's check on stories making headlines here in the U.S.
And we start with the severe weather affecting two areas of the country. First to drought-stricken Oklahoma and Texas, where fire danger remains high.
Higher humidity and calmer winds have helped firefighters control wildfires in the two states, but there is still no rain in sight. The fires have killed four people in Texas and one in Oklahoma. More than 100 buildings have been destroyed in Texas, and that includes 75 homes.
Texas Governor Rick Perry is touring some of the hardest-hit areas today.
California has the rain that Texas needs, and too much of it. There's a break right now in the storm express, but more storms are lined up in the Pacific and will roll through the state in the coming days.
Yesterday's storm triggered some flooding and mudslides in northern California. But the storm didn't stick around long enough to cause widespread damage. Some rivers are at their highest levels in seven years.
All of which gives plenty to talk about for our own Chad Myers.
Chad, hello.
CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Another couple of storms, Daryn. Hello.
(WEATHER REPORT)
KAGAN: There are questions today about a program to fund businesses impacted by 9/11. An investigation has found that a number of loan recipients didn't seem to qualify for the assistance.
Some small businesses in the shadow of Ground Zero were not getting the recovery loans. But Associated Press reports a South Dakota radio station, a dog boutique in Utah and a perfume shop in the Virgin Islands were getting loans. A sampling of cases studied in a Small Business Administration probe found only two of 42 recipients knew their loans were for terrorism recovery.
Most of the recipients were not asked if they were affected by the attacks. And of the questionable loans looked at, most recipients were not adversary affected by the attacks.
Privacy activists have another bone to pick with the NSA. The spy agency has been placing cookies on the computers of visitors to its Web site.
The story was first reported by The Associated Press. As you probably know, cookies are files that contract Web surfing activity.
Federal rules ban most such files. And the files banished from the NSA system this week after a complaint and an AP inquiry.
The agency spokesman blames the cookies on a software upgrade. A recently reported NSA domestic spying program has come under fire from privacy rights groups.
In Milwaukee, a motorist who was dragged from his car and nearly beaten to death by a mob is now showing signs of recovery. Samuel McClain has been upgraded from critical to satisfactory condition.
His wife released this photo of the father of 12, along with a statement calling for an end to the senseless violence. McClain was attacked merely because he honked at a group of youngsters blocking the road. This is his wife's plea which was read by a hospital spokeswoman.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
KATHY SIEJA, HOSPITAL SPOKESWOMAN: "Parents need to sit down and talk with their children about what's right and what's wrong. The mayor and the police are doing their jobs, and I'm glad. But parents have got to step up and do their part."
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KAGAN: Police say they are questioning people who may have been involved in or witnessed the attack.
The father of these three Illinois men has been sentenced to 40 years in prison for bank robbery. You might remember they turned in their own father after they recognized him as an armed robber who was preying on small town banks.
Police say that Bill Ginglen (ph) used this $56,000 of loot to fund a secret life of drugs and prostitutes. The sons say their coming forward was just the right thing to do, just as their father had always taught them.
So you're looking to turn a little bit of money into a lot of money in a legal way? The top places to invest in 2006 at that time top of the hour on "LIVE FROM."
Meanwhile, YOUR WORLD TODAY continues after a quick break.
I'm Daryn Kagan.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
MCEDWARDS: Welcome back to YOUR WORLD TODAY on CNN International. I'm Colleen McEdwards.
CLANCY: I'm Jim Clancy. These are some of the stories that are making headlines around the world.
An Israeli soldier and two Palestinians were killed when a suicide bomber detonated an explosive device at a West Bank checkpoint. Also, a group of Palestinians protested the kidnapping of a British aide worker and her parents on Wednesday. The spokesman for Hamas condemned the kidnapping, saying the abduction of foreigners harms the image of the Palestinian people.
MCEDWARDS: Another setback for disgraced South Korean stem cell scientist Hwang Woo-suk. A panel from Seoul National University has found that Hwang did not produce any stem cells that were specific to individual patients as claimed. Hwang resigned his post last week after the panel determined that he'd falsified a number of stem cell lines.
CLANCY: Temperatures plunging. Snow now blanketing many parts of Europe. This cold snap has stranded thousands of motorists. If you're trying to travel to fly, you may be watching this from an airport right now. The flights are delayed. In Georgia, workers were dispatched to clear snow-covered mountain roads. They fear the threat of an avalanche.
MCEDWARDS: Well, now to France, where authorities are trying to head off a feared flare-up in violence on New Year's Eve. Torching cars has become a little bit of a New Year's Eve tradition, especially for minority youth.
CLANCY: Last year, more than 300 vehicles went up in smoke. This year, against the backdrop of those riots which swept across France just about, what, two months ago, the concerns are even greater.
MCEDWARDS: Jim Bittermann looks now at what has been fueling anger among the French underclass.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JIM BITTERMANN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Fatimidah D'Equite (ph) and Modiva Mikasa (ph) live in Paris and live in dread. Their families and 15 others have been occupying apartments that don't belong to them. But with 300,000 people waiting for low-income housing in Paris, it's either squat here or live on the street.
At any moment, they could be evicted. And even more frightening, the fires in apartment buildings just like theirs that this year killed 48 people. All here worry they could be next.
"Nobody wants to live like this," Mikasa says. But even though he has legal immigrant status and works regularly, after 12 years on housing waiting lists, he doubts that the French social systems are going to protect him.
It's exactly the same kind of frustration with social exclusion that others expressed during civil unrest two months ago that led to hundreds of millions of dollars in property damage. It was raw outrage that is shocking to many.
PATRICK WEIL, NATIONAL RESEARCH CENTER: In part of society, yes, there is a wake-up call. But in some of the parts, you have had a polarization, a very strong reaction, xenophobic, sometimes racist, that will not help.
BITTERMANN (on camera): It has become a time of great debate and soul searching in France, centered on how to better integrate nearly 10 percent of the people who live here: immigrants who have come over the past 40 years; but more challenging, the sons and daughters of those immigrants who now have French citizenship and in principle should have the same rights and opportunities as everyone else.
(voice-over): The school system, long meant to give equal opportunity to everyone in France, is coming under increased pressure. Some educators insist that rather than fighting elitism, it now preserves it. To counter that, one top university, Sciences Po, created a special recruitment program that encourages ethnic and social diversity. Despite criticism, its director says that taking such affirmative action is the only way to guarantee equality.
RICHARD DESCOING, DIRECTOR, SCIENCES PO: We would like to give more to those who have less, and this is a restoration of equity.
BITTERMANN: The program permitted Walid Fakir (ph) and two other students from a tough Parisian suburb to study at one of the best schools in the country -- not because the entrance exam was easier, but because their high school was given the chance to nominate exceptional students.
Walid is optimistic that expanding programs like his can change the discrimination he and others face. The sudden national recognition of the problem, he believes, will ultimately be a good thing.
But back at the occupied apartment building where 80 people share just two working toilets, Modiva Mikasa, who came to France from West Africa 25 years ago, is not so hopeful about change.
"Had I known the way things would be," he says, "I would have rather stayed home."
Jim Bittermann, CNN, Paris.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CLANCY: Well, as 2005 draws to a close, we've been taking a few minutes each day to look back at some of the biggest stories we've covered.
MCEDWARDS: Yes, and it has been quite a year. Next in our "Defining Moments" series, the death of Pope John Paul II, one of the most influential popes in history, no doubt. And the selection of his successor.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: What we are witnessing is the general decline and eventual death of one of the greatest pontiffs this church has ever seen.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He has been an amazing spectacle. No one can deny. It has been an amazing performance, and so now he can rest.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Pray for us sinners now and at the hour of our death. Amen.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Pope John Paul was an extraordinary man. And in remembering him, we remember that he stood for something very profound, that the light is always at its brightest when the darkness of the world seems very deep.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: But the word that we now have confirmed is that Karol Wojtya, Pope John Paul II, has died.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: They come from all over the country, all over the world, the crowd at St. Peter's Square steadily growing, stretching back for more than a mile.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): We can be sure that our beloved pope is now at the window of the house of his father and he sees us, and he blesses us.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Well, whoever is chosen pope will have large shoes to fill.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: On Monday, April the 18th, 115 padres from 52 countries, representing five continents, will begin the first conclave of the third millennium to elect the 264th successor of St. Peter.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The doors are now closed. What we have now is a chimney.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Looks like no pope tonight.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There we go. There we go. That's it. We have a pope. That's it.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I cannot find the words to describe the emotions in this square at this time.
(SPEAKING IN FOREIGN LANGUAGE)
(END VIDEOTAPE)
MCEDWARDS: Wow, some powerful images and emotions there. And coming up, well they hang out with friends. They fight with their siblings. They fall in love just like most young men their age.
CLANCY: But they're not like most young men their age. These screen characters are also intent on killing themselves and others. When we return, we're going to look at a new film, an award-winning film, "Paradise Now." It goes inside the minds of suicide bombers. And some say puts a human face on Palestinian suicide attackers.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CLANCY: Three more lives lost in the Israeli/Palestinian conflict. After Thursday's suicide bombing at a West Bank checkpoint.
Welcome back. This is YOUR WORLD TODAY on CNN International. Actually, looking at the scene there of that suicide attack, there were four lives lost, if you count the bomber himself. Now we don't normally do that, or investigate what motivates individuals to commit these attacks.
A new film, though, puts a human face on suicide bombers. It's quite controversial, showing us their daily lives, their inner struggles, their doubts. The film is in Arabic. You are going to have to pay close attention. We're going to pay you a clip. It's got English subtitles.
(VIDEO CLIP)
All right, there you saw one of the men in the film who's featured as one of the characters. He's going to be a suicide bomber. His newfound love, if we want to call her that, is arguing with him that it's not the way to go about things. The film purely fiction. It's called "Paradise Now." It's won a lot of awards. We're joined now by its Hany Abu-Assad, who also co-wrote the script. He's joining us from Los Angeles. Controversial subject. You've been criticized sharply from some quarters, as being perhaps two sentimental towards these people. Why did you make it?
HANY ABU-ASSAD, DIRECTOR, "PARADISE NOW": Well, it's very simple, you know? You are curious. You want to know many. There is a lot of things you don't know. And it's if you don't know it, you are in the dark. And I don't like to be in the dark. I want to know more about it. I want to question this phenomenon, to open their look. It's very important.
CLANCY: You know, I described it as pure fiction. But is it? How much research did you do? How close to it do you think it is to the reality of these people and their lives?
ABU-ASSAD: Well, there is some fictional elements in it, but mostly it's based on real stories that heard or I find in my research. But for sure, it's a fictional story that allows you as an audience to live a situation that you can't live in reality, or you don't want to live in reality.
CLANCY: All right. And as you do that, as you tell this story, people are taken along with the film. They become involved. As you shot the film -- so a lot of people concerned, because you shot it on Nablus on the West Bank, very difficult circumstances, and not everybody thought you were going to do a good job in portraying these people.
ABU-ASSAD: No, you know, you have been accused from both sides. The one side says, well, you are putting a human face to a terrorist. And the other side you say, well, you are putting also a human face to our heroes, which is like, it's like, both extreme sides are unhappy with it.
But anyhow, I think I did it -- I respect my subjects, and I put a lot of efforts to let people and myself question things. And don't forget questioning things is very important for civilization.
CLANCY: All right, you know I want to show another clip from the film so people get a better idea. And let me explain the scene. Once again, you have to watch the subtitles carefully. And this is after a suicide bombing fails, and the people who organize it are wondering what went wrong.
(VIDEO CLIP)
CLANCY: Now you were surround by some of the militants, the very militant groups that you are talking about. When you're looking at these individuals while you were undergoing the filming, how did they look at this? And did they participate, give you advice?
ABU-ASSAD: Well, mostly it was a realistic portrait, which was if you are -- like if you want to make a fiction, and you don't want that somebody will attack you, you just stick to the reality. And nobody can attack you when it's a very realistic portrayal.
CLANCY: Do you think that this film is going to lead people to have some understanding, even sympathy for the suicide bombers?
ABU-ASSAD: Well, I prefer -- personally I understand it. I understand very well. But I am also against it because my mind says, well, it's not a good action. For this reason, but, you know, for me, it was very important to understand it, because you know, it's a human action, and it's a reaction for an inhuman situation, and you want to know more about it.
CLANCY: You know, I want to share another clip with our viewers right now. This is a scene coming up. There are two main characters, two men in the film. And they're not quite sure whether they should carry this out. Or one isn't quite sure, trying to convince the other one. Here's that clip.
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CLANCY: Maybe continuing deaths is going to change something, says one of the characters. Is this sending a message that the suicide bombers are achieving a goal?
ABU-ASSAD: Well this is the way how they think. It's not necessarily that everybody thinks like that. But anyhow, again, if you put a human being in a very difficult situation, they come also with a very unhuman reactions. And anyhow, what I tried to do in the film was to show the complexity of this phenomenon. It's not a simple explanation.
And actually, any answer I will give now, I will destroy what I was doing in the film, you know, to show the complexity of the phenomenon. And I think it's worth it to go and see it, because it can let you think about it, but also showing you the complexity and the -- how many elements can work with it.
CLANCY: Hany, very briefly, just tell me how the Palestinians reacted to this and how of the Israelis?
ABU-ASSAD: Well, there is no one Palestinian, there is no one Israeli. You know, we are the very society -- that is, people who are -- people who appreciate -- from the both sides appreciate that this subject was portrayed as a fiction and allows you as a human being to go. And the characters -- they weren't very happy. And some people from both sides that they want you to show what they want to hear. They weren't happy with this, from the both sides.
CLANCY: "Paradise Now." Hany Abu-Assad, I want to thank you very much. His is a film that's been nominated for a best picture in Golden Globes. It's won all kinds of awards. People say for a film shot for $2 million, it really outdoes a lot of $50 million films that they have seen. Very realistic, and in some ways, controversial, too. Worth seeing. Provokes thought.
ABU-ASSAD: Well, thank you.
CLANCY: All right. Hany Abu-Assad. There's something for us to watch.
We've got to take a short break as we watch the clock. We'll be right back after this.
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CLANCY: All right. The time has come. We're going to check the old inbox. Open the mail bag, so to speak. We've been asking for your thoughts about 2006.
MCEDWARDS: That's right. Well, let's get right to it. Our question was what are your hopes for the new year? And here's how some of you replied.
Hazar from Lebanon says: "I hope this new year will be better than the previous ones. I wish for more world peace, equality and freedom."
CLANCY: Michelle from the Netherlands writes this: "My hopes for the new year are that there will be no big natural disasters like the tsunami."
MCEDWARDS: I second that.
Fareed writes from West Palm beach, Florida: "I hope the Mideast violence ends, Palestinians and Israelis go back to normal lives, Palestine gets statehood and Israelis live in peace with Palestinians."
CLANCY: And finally from Amah in Ethiopia, we get this: "My hope for the coming year is to see our world freed from terrorism, fanaticism and racism."
MCEDWARDS: Nice thoughts to end on.
CLANCY: Certainly were. We've got to end on that note, too. I'm Jim Clancy.
MCEDWARDS: And I'm Colleen McEdwards. You're watching CNN.
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