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Three Men Arrested After Series of Raids in Germany; Eight Suspects Detained in Denmark; New Congressional Report Examines Iraq Prospects

Aired September 05, 2007 - 12:00   ET

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

ISHA SESAY, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: Another European terror plot foiled. And German police arrest several suspects and seize a huge stash of chemicals.
JIM CLANCY, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: Nukes on the loose, why a bomber jet like this one mistakenly flew nuclear warheads across the America's heartland.

SESAY: Scouring the desert, rescue teams search for any sign of a multimillionaire daredevil.

CLANCY: A lazy day at the beach turning into a brawl. We'll tell you what got these laid-back surfer dudes all riled up.

SESAY: It's 9:00 a.m. in San Diego, California, and 6:00 p.m. in Frankfurt.

Welcome to our report broadcast around the globe.

I'm Isha Sesay.

CLANCY: I'm Jim Clancy.

From Baghdad to Beijing, Sydney to Jerusalem, wherever you are watching, this is YOUR WORLD TODAY.

SESAY: A massive, imminent terrorist attack said to be thwarted in Germany by the detention of three men. The target, Americans. The motivation, hatred.

CLANCY: And the raids, the arrests ominously similar to those made yesterday in Denmark. All of this happening just days before the anniversary of the September 11th attacks in the United States. Not lost on many people looking on. The men arrested, two German nationals and a Turk, were seized after a series of raids across the country.

Our Frederik Pleitgen is monitoring developments for us and comes to us now live from Frankfurt.

Frederik, this has to be a stunner for the Germans.

FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It absolutely is, Jim. It's a very big stunner for the Germans. And one of the reasons authorities here say they felt they had to make these arrests now was because they said this plot was moving forward at a very fast pace, was in a very late stage of planning. And also because of one of the things that you said earlier on, it is very close to the anniversary of September 11th, and they said had these terror attacks succeeded, they would have been massive, possibly even larger than those in London and Madrid.

Here's what happened.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

PLEITGEN (voice over): This is one of the three suspects arrested in the alleged terror plot. The federal prosecutor says two of the three suspects are Germans who had converted to Islam, and one is Turkish. All are in their 20s and were detained in a raid in central Germany Tuesday. The officials say they believe the suspects received training in camps in Pakistan run by a group called the Islamic Jihad Union and that the attacks were ordered directly by al Qaeda leadership.

JORG ZIERCKE, GERMAN FED. CRIMINAL POLICE OFFICER (through translator): This organization was in close contact with al Qaeda. Its main motive was hatred of American citizens. Its main targets were U.S. bases. Possible scenarios included multiple car bombs, also known as simultaneous terrorism.

PLEITGEN: Officials would not name those installations and said other targets could have included discos, pubs and airports frequented by Americans.

Prosecutors say the three men had stored 1,500 pounds of hydrogen peroxide, which if mixed with other ingredients, could have produced massive explosive power. German police had been monitoring the group since the end of last year after police noticed them scouting out American installations in Germany.

WOLFGANG SCHAUBLE, GERMAN INTERIOR MINISTER (through translator): They did not get to a very dangerous stage because, happily, they -- at an early stage they attracted the attention of our officials in our country.

PLEITGEN: German officials say that as the plot moved ahead, investigators were able to substitute the hydrogen peroxide stored by the suspects. The interior minister says the conspiracy is a stark reminder to Germans of the threat of terrorism.

SCHAUBLE (through translator): We're not just abstractly -- not just in an abstract way a part of this worldwide area. And therefore, we are concretely threatened by international terrorism.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PLEITGEN: And Jim, one of the things that the German prosecutors also say is that they are very happy that their police worked as well as it did. But they also say that this is a stark reminder that terrorism is a very real threat in this country. And one more thing to Americans, perhaps, traveling here in Germany who might want to wonder about how or where they should be traveling to this country, the American Embassy a few months ago did issue a warning to its citizens to be aware when traveling here in Germany, and that was also related to this terrorist group -- Jim.

CLANCY: Has the sophistication, the determination of this group, as well as that arsenal of explosives they were prepared to assemble, set off alarm bells right across the continent of Europe?

PLEITGEN: Absolutely. It absolutely does.

The European commissioner for justice and for homeland affairs says that Europe has to get used to the fact that terrorism is a very, very real threat here. And one of the things that the German interior minister also made abundantly clear in his press conference today, he says that the Germans have to wake up to the fact that there is homegrown terrorism in this country.

Now, up until now, public opinion, especially in countries like Germany, has been very much to the effect that they did not feel very threatened by terrorism, even though authorities here had been saying that terrorism is a real threat. But many of these countries believe that because they are not involved in things like the Iraq war, that terrorism is not as real a threat here as it is perhaps in the United States and in the United Kingdom -- Jim.

CLANCY: All of that changing today, certainly with this find, as described so clearly by Frederik Pleitgen.

Frederik, thank you.

SESAY: Well, during testimony before a U.S. congressional committee, Secretary of Homeland Secretary Michael Chertoff said the arrests in Europe are an example of al Qaeda's commitment to terror.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MICHAEL CHERTOFF, HOMELAND SECURITY SECRETARY: Arrests in Denmark and Germany indicate that al Qaeda continues to carry out acts of war against the West. They continue to seek fellow travelers and allies and adherents in the West who can be used to carry out attacks whether they be in western Europe or here in the homeland. And American interest overseas remain very much at risk. So, it is a sobering reminder of the fact that six years after 9/11, the intent of al Qaeda and its allies to wage a war on the West remains very much unabated.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SESAY: The White House says U.S. President Bush was briefed on the arrests in Germany. The president, his spokesman said, was pleased a potential attack was thwarted and praised the work of German authorities.

CLANCY: And Isha, let's take a moment and look back on the situation in Denmark, where police still busy cracking down on another plot after arresting eight militants Tuesday. Six of those suspects have been released. Two remain in custody, though.

Paula Newton reports from Copenhagen.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

PAULA NEWTON, CNN INTERNATIONAL SECURITY CORRESPONDENT (voice over): Bomb disposal teams fanned out across Copenhagen on the hunt for explosives, as Danish intelligence officials continue to scour several properties trying to unravel the latest suspected al Qaeda plot. As forensic teams moved in, eight Islamic militants remain under suspicion, accused of trying to attack a vital target here, one police are still not prepared to disclose. What the head of intelligence did say was that the suspects have direct links to al Qaeda's leaders.

It is a sobering discovery, one that officials here say comes after months of undercover surveillance and key international cooperation. Still, the extent to which viable explosives were being prepared and stored in Copenhagen's tranquil suburbs rattled the country that has considered itself a leading terror target for some time.

Denmark's cartoon controversy and its military involvement in Iraq and Afghanistan firmly place its people on the front line. Last year, Muslims around the world were outraged and threatened retaliation for cartoons published in Danish media outlets that they say insulted the prophet Mohammed.

But all of this reinforces Europol's most recent assessment. Europe's police agency says the continent remains at risk for a terrorist attack and that the threat is more serious than ever.

(on camera): The latest plot reinforces fears that al Qaeda's leaders are still organized and orchestrating attacks. And crucially, Europeans will be confronting al Qaeda not just abroad, but right here at home.

Paula Newton, CNN, Copenhagen.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CLANCY: All right. At the same time, there is much scrutiny being applied to the situation in Iraq and the future of U.S. troops in that country. Another report, the Jones report that was supposed to be issued 24 hours from now, has already surfaced, and our own Jessica Yellin is in Washington with some of the details -- Jessica.

JESSICA YELLIN, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Jim, CNN has obtained an advance copy of this report, the Jones report, which focuses on the ability of the Iraqi army to stand up. As you know, President Bush has said the U.S. and coalition forces will stand down when the Iraqi army can stand up. And this report finds that in general, the Iraqi army is making significant progress. It's overall a very positive report with some caveats and some exceptions. It finds that the army is capable of taking on increasing day-to- day combat responsibilities from coalition forces. It says the emerging Iraqi soldier is willing to fight against enemies of the state. They say the Iraqi government holds the key to the problem of sectarian violence, but the progress of the Iraqi army is real.

Now, overall -- and we've just gotten this report, so I should say, having read it very quickly and parts of it, it says overall that the Iraqi army is doing very well. The Iraqi Defense Ministry is doing well.

It is very critical of the Iraqi Ministry of the Interior, saying that it's dysfunctional, not providing adequate support.

So, what is the political fallout of all this? What kind of effect will this have up here?

In general, we should hear Republicans say, see, there's proof that the U.S. and coalition forces are making a difference, that the Iraqi army is making progress and they need the U.S. to stay in Iraq to help them mature and be prepared to help take care of their own governance and their own security. But expect Democrats and those who oppose the surge to say the U.S. can't do everything, we need to send a signal that we're not going to be there forever -- Jim.

CLANCY: Jessica Yellin there up on Capitol Hill looking at the Jones report.

We're going to hear a lot more about it. It has just come out. CNN has a copy. We'll bring you more details -- Isha.

SESAY: Jim, well, the Pentagon is investigating a major mistake involving nuclear weapons. It says a B-52 bomber flew across the United States last week loaded with missiles carrying six nuclear warheads.

The military saying no one realized it had been mistakenly loaded on to the aircraft until it completed its flight from North Dakota to Louisiana. Now, this is a bomber similar to the one we're talking about. The Pentagon stresses the public was never in danger, saying the missiles could not have been launched because of fail-safe mechanisms.

But how could this have happened in the first place? That's the big question.

For more on the mistake and possible international implications, let's bring in CNN military analyst Don Shepperd. The retired Air Force general joins us from New York now.

Many thanks for joining us, General Shepperd.

You know, a lot of Americans, a lot of people around the world are going to be shaken up by this blunder. And the question on my mind is, should people be questioning the level of security America employs for its nuclear arsenal?

MAJ. GEN. DON SHEPPERD (RET.), CNN MILITARY ANALYST: Well, Isha, this is a major mistake, and people have every right and should be questioning nuclear security wherever nuclear weapons are, whether in this country or other countries. It's a serious, serious matter.

We're supposed to have positive control methods, positive control over nuclear weapons at all times. There is in the U.S. a two-man policy. One person cannot be around a nuclear weapon alone.

And by former agreement with the Soviet Union, we also do not fly nuclear weapons. So, this is a major mistake and something that really needs to be reviewed, investigated and fixed. What went wrong? This is serious.

SESAY: I mean, the fact that they got on the plane in the first place is bad enough, but then they were missing for three hours without anyone noticing.

SHEPPERD: Yes. Well, I don't have a lot of the details yet, and I think the details we get are going to be somewhat sketchy, because the U.S. is very reluctant to put out any information on nuclear policy or nuclear procedures for obvious reasons.

But missiles and weapons are regularly handled and loaded on airplanes as a part of practicing in case they are needed. In other words, you have to practice. You have to stay up to speed on putting them in the weapons -- the weapons -- the warheads inside the weapons, loading them on airplanes, and -- but not launching the airplanes.

Again, they should never have been launched. Again, there are positive control mechanisms, things such as permissive action links with codes that have to be released by the president, so the weapons could not have been detonated. But it's still a serious -- a serious matter that needs to be certainly reviewed and really fixed. And right now.

SESAY: Obviously an investigation is under way to find out exactly what happened, but does this blunder have international ramifications?

SHEPPERD: Well, I'm not sure it has international ramifications other than the fact that everybody is going to be looking, again, at their own internal procedures for controlling these weapons. I mean, we have -- I believe there's 12 or 14 nuclear powers around the world now, and everybody needs to be concerned about this.

How do we maintain control and make sure that weapons are not launched or transported inadvertently or security is not breached? The fact that the United States released this information is, of course, significant. But again, we have to find out what went wrong.

SESAY: All right. General Don Shepperd, many thanks.

SHEPPERD: You bet.

CLANCY: We're going to take a short break. But coming up, missing without a trace.

SESAY: We'll take you live to Nevada, where rescuers are scouring rugged terrain looking for any signs of one of the wort's best-known adventurers.

CLANCY: Also ahead, digging up controversy. Construction at a disputed holy site stirring up a swell of protest.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Get back or you're going to jail.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SESAY: Definitely no ordinary day at the beach. We'll see what brought riot police to the sands of southern California.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I just feel bad for some of the innocent people that were out there that got stuck in the crossfire. They didn't ask for that.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CLANCY: Ah, southern California, home of surf, sand and civil disobedience. Riot police were called out in San Diego Monday when a Labor Day holiday at the beach turned ugly. One fight...

SESAY: Well, Jim, one fight turned into another, then another, and then hundreds of people were either battling each other or the police. Fifteen people were arrested.

CLANCY: The real cause, according to police, anyway, was too much drinking, and not enough swimming.

SESAY: They need to reign in that partying.

CLANCY: All right.

In the neighboring state of Nevada, authorities say searching for Steve Fossett's plane in the rugged mountains and brush-filled deserts is like looking for a needle in a haystack. But they are determined to find the world-renowned adventurer who has been missing now since Monday.

Let's get an update live from Ted Rowlands in the town of Minden.

Where is the search right now?

TED ROWLANDS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Jim, you mentioned the needle in the haystack. They have a huge, huge job in front of them. They've been at it now since Monday evening, but today they did get a break in that the winds are much lower. In fact, there's hardly a trace here where we're at. This is the launching pad for the air assets. And basically what it allows them to do now is to bring their altitudes way down, get a better view of this area.

It's about 600 square miles. And they can also now use more aircraft. And this is going to give them a huge advantage today. And their hope is that they can find a trace of Steve Fossett.

As you mentioned, he was last seen Monday morning. He went out on a trip. He was going to -- his latest obsession was to try to break the land speed record, so he was out surveying this area, looking for a spot to do that.

He was supposed to be back about noon, didn't come back. And that's when the missing persons report went out and the search started.

He's in a single-engine, fixed-wing aircraft. It is equipped with an emergency beacon. That has not gone off. They have been looking for that and haven't seen it at all.

Good news in one point because -- on one side, because it means it wasn't a significant crash that would have emitted this signal. On the other hand, if he brought this plane down safely, he should have been able to manually do that.

A lot of concern, obviously, as time goes on. One thing, though, this is the guy that many people believe in because he's a survivalist and he's done pretty everything on this earth. His good friend, Sir Richard Branson, talked to CNN earlier this morning and talked about the probability that Fossett, if he's alive, is probably going to do well and be rescued.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SIR RICHARD BRANSON, CHAIRMAN, VIRGIN GROUP: If he's landed and he's not too badly hurt, he's the one person in the world who will -- you know, who will be mentally and physically equipped to get out of it. So -- you know, so if anyone is going to end up walking back up the ranch and apologizing for (INAUDIBLE), you know, the Hilton's plane, it's likely to be Steve Fossett.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROWLANDS: He had mentioned the Hilton's plane. Fossett was with his wife Peggy, at the Hilton's ranch. The Hilton family owns a ranch in this area. He was using one of their planes.

We understand that his wife is still at the ranch awaiting word on the fate of her husband, along with a lot of people around the world who are following this and hoping that Steve Fossett can pull through.

We'll be here to give you any updates, but at this point still no sign of the multimillionaire. He is out there and they are looking -- Jim.

CLANCY: Ted Rowlands there live from Minden.

Keep us posted.

SESAY: Well, a U.S. senator admitted to bad behavior in a men's bathroom. Then changed his mind.

CLANCY: Then he appeared to resign. But now there is word of another flip-flop.

SESAY: On YOUR WORLD TODAY, the latest confusion surrounding Senator Larry Craig.

CLANCY: And another week, another major recall of toys made you know where.

Coming up, which ones to watch out for and details on some new safety checks in China.

(NEWSBREAK)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ASIEH NAMDAR, CNN ANCHOR: Welcome back, everyone. This is YOUR WORLD TODAY. I'm Asieh Namdar.

JIM CLANCY, CNN ANCHOR: I'm Jim Clancy and these are some of the stories that are making headlines around the world.

German authorities reporting the arrest of three suspected Islamic militants accused of planning massive and imminent attacks on targets in Germany. The two Germans and one Turkish national were believed to have trained at terror camps in Pakistan. Police say they found enough hydrogen peroxide to equal the effects of 1,100 pounds of TNT.

NAMDAR: The Pentagon is investigating a major mistake involving nuclear weapons. A B-52 bomber like this one you're seeing now flew across the United States last week. With missiles carrying six nuclear warheads. The pentagon says the crew didn't realize they had been mistakenly loaded on board until the plane landed. It said the public was never in danger because safeguards would have prevented any launch.

CLANCY: Better flight conditions and low winds allowed rescuers to resume the search for missing millionaire adventurer Steve Fossett. Pilots are hovering over a 600 square mile area in western Nevada. Fossett has been missing since Monday morning when he took off from a private airfield for a scouting mission for future adventures.

NAMDAR: Iraq's former prime minister is call on the current office holder to step down. Ayad Allawi was Iraq's first post-Saddam Hussein prime minister. He's currently challenging Prime Minister Nuri al Maliki's Shiite-dominated government. And in an interview with our own Aneesh Raman, Allawi became the first mainstream Iraqi politician to demand Maliki's resignation.

ANEESH RAMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: He was Iraq's first post-Saddam prime minister, interim by title, unelected at the time, Ayad Allawi was ultimately branded by his opponents as an American puppet. Now the head of a secular political block that's walked out of his cabinet, Allawi has returned he said to save the country. And for the first time is calling for Nuri al Maliki to step down. In your view should the prime minister resign?

AYAD ALLAWI: I wouldn't say for a second, an office.

RAMAN: Allawi is the first head of a party to call for Maliki's resignation, because he says, for some time, Maliki has ignored calls to rid the government of sectarian infiltration, allowing among other things undue Iranian influence. He's launched a major public relations campaign, in Washington and inside Iraq, to challenge the ruling Shia coalition from within, trying to provide an alternative path to marginalize Sunnis, wavering Shiites and the influential Kurds. Allawi isn't holding back against the U.S. either, challenging the recent government accountability report.

The political benchmarks that they are saying is met is ensuring that the rights of minority political parties which you would represent in the Iraqi legislature are protected. Has that been met?

ALLAWI: No. They are being harassed and intimidated and they pulled out of the government. And they arrested liberal forces like us are being faced with -- with pressure and extreme pressure.

RAMAN: He also questions President Bush's statement that recent military success in turning Sunni tribes against al Qaeda could mean a decrease in U.S. troops. Unless this is coordinated, Allawi warns, there is a potential for Sunni militias.

ALLAWI: This is a phenomena which will backfire at some stage. And it will delay the presence of the American military in Iraq.

RAMAN: The political odds are on paper stacked heavily against Ayad Allawi, a secular politician hoping to reform a sectarian government. But his views are the views of many in Iraq. Looking for something to change.

NAMDAR: Aneesh joins us now live from Baghdad with more on the battle of the Iraqi prime ministers. And, Aneesh, what are we to make of the timing of Allawi's call for Nuri al Maliki to step down? Aneesh?

RAMAN: Well, clearly, he's looking to change this government. He isn't calling for new parliamentary elections, but his only hope, and I'm sorry, I think there's a delay in our communications right now. His only hope really is to chip away at the main Shia coalition in the parliament. There are 275 seats total. They have just under a majority. About 128. If he can get some of them to shift, he can perhaps try and get the Kurds and the Sunnis he's trying to bring into the political process to support him. The main issue he contends, Muqtada al Sadr, for him Ayad Allawi is a red line. He really will not accept him as prime minister and for the moment that's really keeping him from any real chance of taking that premiership.

NAMDAR: Aneesh, Nuri al Maliki has fallen victim to the sectarian divides that have beset Iraq. Why does Allawi feel with him in the place of as prime minister, he could do better?

RAMAN: Well, he says the whole problem was routed in the parliamentary elections in the September of 2005. It was the last in a trio of elections that Iraqis had. It came too quick, he says. And Iraqis by virtue of the speed reacted by virtue of their sectarian divides, Shia voting for Shia, Sunni voting for Sunni. He says Iraqis now understand, and many of them do, when you speak to them, that a secular government, or at least a modern, more sectarian government is necessary and he's trying to be the voice and the face for the alternative path. But, again, it's a very uphill battle that he faces in terms of the numbers. But at the least he's hoping to stir the pot and try and bring Nuri al Maliki under enough pressure that he either changes his course or someone else within that Shia coalition takes that job.

NAMDAR: All right, Aneesh Raman there in Baghdad. Many thanks.

CLANCY: We want to update our U.S. audience in particular on a development in Washington we're getting right now. Paul Gillmor, the 68-year-old representative from the Bowling Green, the 5th district of Ohio, has been found dead in his apartment in Washington. Apparently, the representative failed to show up for work in his congressional office. Some of his staff went there. There is no immediate cause of his death. Again, according to the Associated Press, Representative Paul Gillmor, age 68, found dead this day in his apartment.

NAMDAR: U.S. President George W. Bush is in Australia for this weekend's APEC economic summit, but his mind is most likely on the other side of the world, in Iraq. Mr. Bush will leave Sydney early in anticipation of next week's Iraq progress report to congress. And even while he's there, the president's agenda clearly has Iraq in mind. White house correspondent Suzanne Malveaux is traveling with President Bush and filed this report.

SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: President Bush and Australia's Prime Minister John Howard are literally in the same boat, sinking in the polls, politically damaged by Iraq, but pledging to stay on course. In the afternoon, they shared a light moment aboard a yacht cruising Sydney Harbor and lunching with Australian troops. But earlier the focus on was whether the Iraq policy could stay afloat.

PRES. GEORGE W. BUSH, UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: As the commander in chief of our military, I cannot commit U.S. troops into combat unless I'm convinced it's worth it, important to the security of the United States and we can meet our objectives.

MALVEAUX: President Bush is facing increased pressure to bring U.S. troops home. And a deadline next week to present a progress report to congress. Just back from his surprise visit to Iraq's Anbar province Monday, Mr. Bush appeared grateful to have a steadfast ally in Mr. Howard. The Australian prime minister is facing pressure of his own to bring home Australia's 550 combat troops deployed in Iraq, which may ultimately cost him his re-election.

JOHN HOWARD, AUSTRALIAN PRIME MINISTER: The level and the basis on which they stay there in cooperation with other members of the coalition will not change under a government that I lead.

BUSH: It's important, in my judgment, for the security of America and for the security of Australia that we hang in there with the Iraqis.

MALVEAUX: Two days ago while in Iraq, Mr. Bush hinted conditions may be ripe for some American troops to come home soon. But then white house aides denied it. Despite questioning here in Sydney, the president would not elaborate.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Is the administration at this time trying to play it both ways?

BUSH: Whether or not that's the part of the policy I announce to the nation, when I get back from this trip, why don't we see what they say, and then I'll let you know. What our position is and the our strategy is.

MALVEAUX: Looking ahead, President Bush next meets with Chinese president Hu Jintao, a relationship that President Bush calls complex and could become even more so, with fresh speculation from the administration that China allegedly hacked into the pentagon's computer system three months ago. Suzanne Malveaux, CNN, Sydney, Australia.

NAMDAR: President Bush can count on John Howard probably more than any other world leader right now when it comes to the war in Iraq. But that isn't necessarily a good thing. Howard and the rest of the coalition fighting alongside the U.S. aren't what they used to. Jonathan Mann has some "Insight."

JONATHAN MANN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: When the U.S. went to war in Iraq, it led an improvised alliance it called the coalition of the willing. That was four years ago. The coalition then was probably a little overrated. But now, it is crumbling. Listen closely, once again, to the exact words from Australia's prime minister about his country's troops.

HOWARD: The level and the basis on which they stay there in cooperation with other members of the coalition will not change under a government that I lead.

MANN: It will not change under a government he leads. Well, Howard is unpopular heading towards elections and could lose the government he leads before the end of the year. That's how long his promise can last.

When U.S. first went to war, it offered several different counts of the coalition of the willing, from 30 to as many as 49 countries. But from the outset, that was probably a bit of an overstatement. Only a handful actually sent troops. And for the most part, it was U.S., British and Australian troops that did the fighting.

Today the state department says that the coalition includes the deployed troops of 25 countries, including Albania, El Salvador, Kazakhstan, the map and the math tell a different story.

There are 5,500 British troops at the airport outside of Basra. That's fully half of the non-U.S. presence in Iraq. They are training Iraqi troops there, trying to avoid combat themselves and they are awaiting updated orders from their government, due probably next month.

There are 900 Australian troops at Talil, the bulk of them northwest of Basra at the base there. Howard says they'll stay in place as long as he stays in power. So look to Australia to leave.

South Korea actually has more troops than Australia, but it has been slowly pulling them out of country. It's now down to 1,200 up in the Kurdish north at Airbil. It's considering whether to withdraw entirely from there. So watch for South Korea.

The republic of Georgia is fighting the trend. It's actually increasing its troop strength to 2,000 men, near the border with Iran, trying to stop smuggling and cross-border infiltration.

That leaves about 900 Polish troops concentrating on reconstruction and security patrols. And really tiny numbers of other troops elsewhere in the country.

PATRICK COCKBURN, CORRESPONDENT, THE INDEPENDENT: The coalition is dispersed because being in Iraq is not popular for any government anywhere in the world. So far as I'm aware. And countries want to get the troops out thereof. And they also feel they're on a hiding to nothing. That they're not achieving anything. Just taking casualties and things aren't improving.

MANN: The coalition does serve a real purpose. Which may be even more obvious in the months to come, though. The U.S. cannot easily sustain its current surge. Its 160,000 troops. It's probably going to have to start bringing home some of them, at least in April. As other countries' troops leave, that means fewer men trying to manage the same mission. So after the surge, look for the stretch. Back to you.

CLANCY: All right. Thank you, Jonathan Mann, for that "Insight."

We're going to change the pace and tell you about a grand opening. A new athletic club in Allentown, Pennsylvania, Tuesday, got quite a show. In fact, who showed up for the world's strongest man? Bill Kazmaier said anything is possible with a bit of exercise. Bending frying pans? Pulling cars? Nothing but a breeze. Kazmaier urged everyone to combat obesity and get yourself in shape. Look at it, there goes another frying pan. Don't cook in it, bend it. He's held that title three times since the early 1980s.

NAMDAR: Bend it like Kazmaier.

CLANCY: Yeah.

NAMDAR: Okay.

CLANCY: Coming up right here on Your World Today, another recall of toys made in China, what is Beijing doing to restore confidence in its products?

NAMDAR: And maintenance work as one of the most holiest sites in the world may lead to the destruction of priceless artifacts.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

NAMDAR: Welcome back. You're watching Your World Today on CNN international.

CLANCY: Seen live in more than 200 countries and territories across the globe.

And for our viewers in the United States, this is confirmed now by CNN that 68-year-old U.S. member of congress, Paul Gillmor, was found dead in his apartment in Washington this day. Members of his staff were dispatched to the apartment after they did not see him appear for work. He represented the fifth district of Bowling Green. He was known as a staunch republican, supporter of the administration. Once again, Paul Gillmor, age 68, republican congressman from Ohio, found dead this day. No word on a cause of death.

NAMDAR: Now, yet another recall from the world's biggest manufacturer of toys, Mattel, Inc. They say it's recalled 844,000 pieces that contain excessive levels of lead. Yet again the toys are made by suppliers in China, the majority of them Barbie accessory toys. No Barbie dolls are in the recall. The company apologized for the third major recall in little more than a month. Millions of toys have been recalled. Mattel says it decided to pull the latest batch after 50,000 hours investigating its vendors and testing the toys.

CLANCY: The reality is China sees a lot of the problems that are here. Go far beyond just toys. And it's stepping up efforts to defend its toy makers and others amid growing concerns about the whole "Made in China" label. Reporters have been touring factories to see firsthand the safety checks being out on the products. Jamie Florcuz has this report for us from Beijing.

JAIME FLORCRUZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: They are like modern-day Santa's helpers. Chinese workers assembling toys, meant to bring joy to children across the world. Made to order for U.S. and European companies, they are neatly packed. Bound for malls and living rooms overseas, in time for the Christmas shopping season.

PATRICK MA, WEALTHWISE INDUSTRIAL LTD.: We can produce safe toys, good-quality toys, that can help the whole industry to grow healthy.

FLORCRUZ: But only if their toys pass U.S. quality inspections. Millions of Chinese-made toys in recent weeks have been recalled due to safety concerns. Stunned by these recalls, China's embarked on a public relations campaign. Inviting journalists into three factories in southern Guangdong province, where 80% of China's toys are made. Guangdong officials showcase the plants where they scrape paint from dolls to check lead content. This factory employs 10,000 workers, producing a variety of toys bound for the U.S. Here, they also test toys for durability and safety. But many exported toys are outsourced to thousands of smaller facilities. Here, 100 workers make balls, ordered by corporations as giveaways. They could not match the bigger facilities like this one, which has the resources and management needed to spot defective toys. Toy producers say the product recalls is serving as a wake-up call.

MA: We believe it is an isolated case. It's not a general phenomenon. And we believe that this is -- this is a good sign for all the manufacturers to think about and think twice.

FLORCRUZ: Factory managers say their toys are safe, and the recalls are not affecting their business. Still, experts say, it will take more than a PR campaign to ensure that all Chinese products are safe.

DAVID LAMPTON, JOHN HOPKINS PROFESSOR: But it's very difficult for the central government here to immediately raise the standards of hundreds of thousands of suppliers that are in these very complicated supply chains.

FLORCRUZ: But no factory can boast of a perfect record all the time. So, China's challenge remains, how to catch defective products right here at the source, before they reach American households. Jaime Florcuz, CNN, Guangdong, China.

NAMDAR: That's a problem that's just not going away right now.

OK. Ahead on YOUR WORLD TODAY, digging deep in controversy in Jerusalem.

CLANCY: We're going to tell you why attempts to dust off artifacts is dusting up tensions in the holy city.

Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

NAMDAR: To dig or not to dig, that is the question.

CLANCY: Archaeologists, conservationists and government officials have to come up with an answer. They're embroiled in a dispute over one of the holiest sites on earth.

ATIKA SHUBERT, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It's a simple trench, 500 meters long, over 1,600 feet, just 1 1/2 meters deep, less than 5 feet. But it is causing a big stir in the most disputed property on earth. Muslims call it the noble sanctuary, home to the al Aqsa mosque, the third holiest site in Islam. Jews call it the Temple Mount, where the first and second temples, the holiest sites in Judaism once stood. Any construction here draws cause controversy. In February riots broke out after Israeli authorities attempted to repair a bridge leading to the area. Israeli archaeologists Gabriel Barkay of Bar Ilan University says this construction is destroying valuable artifacts. He gave us a tour of the site. Israeli police allowed only a small handheld camera. Archaeological finds litter the site, Barkay says. His team points to what they say may be a Roman pillar here, a Byzantine facade there.

GABRIEL BARKAY: And all of that inside it, all the things inside it, all that was removed. It's very, very delicate.

SHUBERT: But the Islamic trust that oversees the day-to-day running of the area says the trench is necessary to replace dangerously outdated electric cables. The trust says Israeli government monitors are here every day, including an archaeologist from the state antiquities authority. The engineer overseeing the project said no archaeology find of significance has been found.

BASSAM HALLAK, ENGINEER: I've been working here 27 years. I don't hear they find anything.

SHUBERT: But Barkay disputes that. He heads a project to sift through debris from previous construction in the area funded by a Jewish group that aims "to strengthen Israel's current and historic connection to Jerusalem."

BARKAY: In Jerusalem, archaeology and politics unfortunately go hand in hand.

SHUBERT: Nonetheless, he says he has turned up tens of thousands of artifacts, many of them small items like this roman die. The antiquities government refused to comment. Barkay is demanding a full excavation in the area, rejected by both the Israeli government and the Islamic trust. The engineer says the solution is easy.

HALLAK: Not to make any digging.

SHUBERT: Perhaps not the answer either side is looking for. Atika Shubert, CNN, Jerusalem.

NAMDAR: That's it for this hour. I'm Asieh Namdar.

CLANCY: I'm Jim Clancy. And this is CNN.

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