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War Against Terror: Latest Developments

Aired September 23, 2001 - 23:00   ET

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


THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
ANAND NAIDOO, CNN ANCHOR: I'm Anand Naidoo at CNN Center with continuing coverage on the war against terror, including the latest global reaction.

We want to update you on the latest developments. U.S. Aviation officials are ordering air carriers to compare the names of their employees with an FBI list of possible terrorist suspects.

The FAA is also considering calling for criminal background checks on industry workers.

Opposition forces in Afghanistan say they're shelling Taliban positions, about 30 kilometers north of Kabul. Attacks by the Northern Alliance have been going on for more than four hours.

The opposition forces say they've taken at least one district from the Taliban.

And in New York, the digging goes on at the site of the World Trade Center. Workers on Sunday pulled a three-meter section of a jetliner's fuselage from the wreckage.

An estimated 6,453 people are missing. Two hundred and fifty-two bodies have been recovered so far, and 183 of the dead have been identified.

United States President George W. Bush has signed an airline bailout bill. The bill provides that the federal government will compensate those injured or those who lost family members in the terror attacks.

Major Garrett joins us now with more from Washington -- Major.

MAJOR GARRETT, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Good evening. When the President signed the airline bailout bill on Saturday, so much of the focus was on what the airlines would receive. And there's a good deal in the airline industry in that bill -- $5 billion in direct aid, $10 billion in loan guarantees.

But another part of the bill is much more important to the victims of those terrorist attacks. Everyone who lost a loved one, or lost a job as a result of those terrorist attacks in New York and Virginia on September 11th, will receive compensation from the federal government. And this also benefits the airline industry, because Congress and the President decided to do was to prohibit, or at least discourage victims from suing the airlines. The airline industry said, look, if all these people on the ground who lost loved ones or jobs sue us, we'll go bankrupt.

The federal government said, you're right. So what they're encouraging people to do is apply to the federal government for direct lump sum benefits, compensating people for lost wages, pain and suffering damages.

And if you agree to receive that compensation from the federal government, you waive your rights to sue.

The federal government intends to be very generous, thereby discouraging in most cases, they say, suits against the airlines. That's a big part of that compensation bill. People will be putting together those claims very soon.

Under the legislation, as soon as the claim is received by the federal government, there's five months to pay out the rewards. So that's how many of the victims will be compensated under this airline bill.

The President, for his part, on Sunday spent the day at Camp David and participated with the First Lady Laura Bush in a very special ceremony at Camp David, appearing with the Marines there, who smartly raised the American flag to full staff for the first at that presidential compound since September 11th.

On that day, the President ordered all flags flown at half staff until today. And with that ceremony at Camp David and at ceremonies like it around the country, all American flags returned to full staff.

You see the President and the First Lady, their hand over heart, a very solemn ceremony, an indication the White House says, that at least as far as the American flag is concerned, which has become such a rallying point for patriotism, the flag flies at full staff. That is a return to a crucial part of the routine shattered in America on September 11th.

After spending the quiet day Sunday at Camp David, where the President did convene with some of his -- at least informally -- top military and economic advisers, the President returned to Camp -- or returned to the White House, rather, from Camp David, with the First Lady Laura Bush.

You see them departing Marine One on the south lawn of the White House. A quiet evening at the White House residence. And then, as the week begins for the President, he has a visit tomorrow from Canadian Prime Minister Jean Chretien.

On Tuesday the Japanese leader Junichiro Koizumi will be here in Washington to meet with the President, all a part of a rather elaborate diplomatic effort on the part of the Bush White House to build that international coalition against global terrorism. And also a good deal of time spent with the President this week, focusing on how to deal with the U.S. economy, also dealt a rather severe blow by the terrorist acts of September 11th. Anand?

NAIDOO: All right. Thank you, Major Garrett for -- in Washington.

An advance team from the United States Defense Department is in Pakistan to discuss military cooperation. This is just one of the measures the U.S. is taking as it prepares to respond to the September 11th attacks in New York and Washington.

Mark Potter joins us now from the Pentagon with an update. Mark?

MARK POTTER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Anand, U.S. officials are saying that U.S. troops are not just being positioned in the Persian Gulf and Central Asia area near Afghanistan, but around the world, so that President Bush will have options when it comes time for attacks.

Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld also says that this will not just be a military campaign, arguing that financial and economic and intelligence gathering efforts will also be critically important to this campaign against terrorism.

And he says that he is confident the world now is ready for a long, hard fight against terrorism.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD RUMSFELD, U.S. SECRETARY OF DEFENSE: Well, I've got a lot of confidence in the American people and free people across the globe, that they value that freedom, and that they're willing to sustain a long effort.

And second, I've got a lot of confidence that the kinds of information we need to get, and indeed are starting to get, about how these terrorist networks function, and how we can root them out, is going to pay dividends.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

POTTER: Now, Secretary Rumsfeld says that the U.S. is making progress in its efforts to track down Osama bin Laden and his network. And he described as laughable the Taliban claim that it doesn't know where Osama bin Laden can be found.

He also stresses that this will not be a war against the Afghan people, many of whom, he says, oppose terrorism and the Taliban, and he gave his definition of victory.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

RUMSFELD: The ultimate victory in this war is when everyone who wants to can do what every one of us did today, and that is get up, let your children go to school, go out of the house and not in fear, stand here on a sidewalk and not worry about a truck bomb driving into us, and be able to be free in speech and thought and activity and behavior.

And that's victory.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

POTTER: Now, still to come, more National Guard and military reserve call-ups for homeland defense in the United States. And we are still awaiting word of more deployments overseas of U.S. military personnel and equipment.

Back to you, Anand.

NAIDOO: Mark, do we know anything about these reports that Iraq may be one of the targets of any kind of U.S. military action?

POTTER: Well, that's been discussed widely on the Sunday talk shows in the United States, and U.S. officials are not ruling it out, but certainly none are not saying that Iraq is a target or will be a target.

And there's been a lot of talk that Iran -- there are suspicions that Iraq has been supportive of terrorism. But Secretary of State Colin Powell has said that there is no direct evidence of their involvement in the September 11th attacks. So there is talk, but certainly nothing definitive right now.

NAIDOO: Thank you. Mark Potter there at the Pentagon.

And as Mark mentioned, the United States says it's determined to track down Osama bin Laden, who's believed to be in Afghanistan. Washington is dismissing reports by Afghanistan's ruling Taliban that they have lost contact with bin Laden.

David Ensor tells us the U.S. may turn to the anti-Taliban Northern Alliance for help.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DAVID ENSOR, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): In Afghanistan, the plot is thickening fast. There are spies and special forces personnel from a number of nations, knowledgeable sources say, in the northeast part of Afghanistan, which is under the control of the anti Taliban Northern Alliance.

One example, British officials told the "London Sunday Times" that one of their special military units was outside the capital, Kabul, when it was fired upon Friday by Taliban forces.

The Northern Alliance has been fighting the Taliban for years. In the fight against Osama bin Laden, al Qaeda, and their Taliban hosts, the Northern Alliance argues, it is the best ally the U.S. could have.

HARON AMIN, NORTHERN ALLIANCE SPOKESMAN: We have the various resources such as languages, the ability to communicate, knowing the geography, knowing the terrain. We've fought battles on all of the -- most of the terrains in Afghanistan.

ENSOR: But while Defense Secretary Rumsfeld spoke last week of the potential for cooperating militarily with the Northern Alliance, administration officials on the Sunday talk shows put the emphasis instead on convincing the Taliban to turn over bin Laden.

WOLF BLITZER, CNN ANCHOR: Just to nail down the Northern Alliance, will the U.S. fund and provide military equipment to work with these groups to remove the Taliban from power?

CONDOLEEZZA RICE, NATIONAL SECURITY ADVISOR: Well, we're working with a number of possible options, a number of possible assets around the world.

And clearly, we are focused on how best to use those assets to get the Taliban to do what it needs to do.

ENSOR: Over the years, the Northern Alliance has had military help from Russia and India, among others.

(on camera): But despite the obvious common interest, administration officials are wary of taking them on as overt U.S. allies. Washington hesitates to get too much involved in Afghanistan's murky politics.

(voice-over): After all, following the Russians' withdrawal from Afghanistan in the late '80s, anti Taliban leaders did share power in Kabul for a few years. And it did not go well.

ANATOLE LIEVEN, CARNEGIE ENDOWMENT: The key reason for that mess was their complete and total failure to cooperate among themselves, and their constant tendency to infighting.

Now, maybe that's changed. But maybe it hasn't.

ENSOR: The military commander of the Northern Alliance, Ahmed Shah Massoud, was murdered by two Arabs posing as journalists, just two days before the attacks on New York and Washington.

U.S. officials suspect bin Laden's group in the killing.

At a memorial service in Virginia, Afghan exiles said, if the U.S. would help, many Afghans would unify to overthrow the Taliban. And that could mean bin Laden and his lieutenants would have nowhere left to hide.

David Ensor, CNN Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

NAIDOO: While the Taliban claim they do not know the whereabouts of Osama bin Laden, the Northern Alliance, Afghanistan's opposition force, believes the alleged terrorist leader is still on Afghan soil.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) AMIN: I am certain, I am quite confident that he is in Afghanistan. He is in southern part of Afghanistan. And most probably, he is in Oruzgan Province.

He has made lots of hiding places throughout the years in that province. I believe that he, alongside Mullah Omar, the leader of the Taliban, are both hiding in Oruzgan Province, which is a southern province of Afghanistan.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

NAIDOO: The day before the terrorist attacks in the U.S., CNN's Nick Robertson was in Afghanistan to report on the hardships that are driving many Afghans to flee their country.

And as Nic reports, those hardships could soon get worse.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Crowded in tiny classrooms, Afghans come to learn English. One dollar for three months lessons, about three days salary here, but for these youngsters, an investment in their future.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Our country in a war situation, and it needs for repair, and there must be some engineers, some doctors to repair it again, yes? For the sake of that, we don't want to leave our country and...

ROBERTSON: They say they don't want to leave, but away from the camera, the manager says many hope skills learned here will translate into dollars earned in well-paid jobs with international aid organizations. That way, he says, they can get the money they need to leave the country.

(on camera): Had you started university here before?

(voice-over): Mohammed (ph), not his real name, wants to leave. He's spent years he says carefully saving his money to pay smugglers.

MOHAMMED (through translator): I prepared 10,000 U.S. dollars, and the smugglers increased their price. Due to that, I could not get to the European countries, and I have to leave because of the problems.

ROBERTSON: Problems like being arrested, although he says it won't be safe to fully explain until he leaves.

MOHAMMED (through translator): It's very difficult to explain. Everything, we can say both political and economic, because the warring parties in Afghanistan do not behave to the satisfaction of the people.

ROBERTSON: Across town, refugees recently deported back from Pakistan where they fled to escape the four-year drought, live in a mosque because they say their livelihoods on their farms are gone. At the United Nations, High Commissioner for the Refugees Office, they as for help. They are all, aid workers here say, trying to flee not just the broken economy, but a damaged country.

YOSHYKI YAMOMOTO UNHCR KABUL CHIEF: It's because in this country state does not exist here, state function does not (UNINTELLIGIBLE) watching here. So, we don't call them simply economic malaise. They have a reason of this sufferings.

ROBERTSON: In Britain and Australia, Afghans are fast becoming the predominant nationality seeking asylum, the best way to prevent them coming, aid workers here say, is to invest in Afghanistan.

YAMOMOTO: We have to be concerned in this country. They can see the future with this country. They try to work hard here to be like this country.

ROBERTSON: With all international aid officials know outside Afghanistan, that seems unlikely. The best relief officials can hope for now is to prepare for those who might flee the current crisis, what kind of long-term refugee problem they'll be facing will likely depend on how the next few weeks develop.

Nic Robertson, CNN, Quetta, Pakistan.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

NAIDOO: Britain is sending its foreign secretary to Iran, hoping to recruit another ally in the campaign against terror. That's next.

And fears that crop dusters could become weapons. For us, a business update with an early look at the Asian markets.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

NAIDOO: Earlier in this program, Mark Potter told us of U.S. concerns that crop-dusting aircraft could be used by terrorists to disperse chemical or biological agents.

Susan Candiotti has talked with some aviation people who may have had contact with several suspects.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SUSAN CANDIOTTI, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Law enforcement sources say, the man identified as hijacking suspect Mohamed Atta wanted to buy a crop dusting plane. Sources say he inquired about a loan for one at a Homestead Florida bank, but walked away before applying. What worries authorities is what Atta had in mind.

JAMES LESTER, CROP DUSTER MECHANIC: It's just hard to pull it all together, you know.

CANDIOTTI: A couple hours drive to the north of Homestead, crop dusting mechanic James Lester says Atta visited his air strip, not once but twice. Lester and other workers say as recently as last month, there were several visits by men he describes as Middle Eastern looking, all curious about crop dusting.

LESTER: There were, several times they were out here. They'd come in and they wanted to know the capacity of the airplane, how much would the airplane hold, how much fuel, you know, and how to crank it.

CANDIOTTI: Other than being annoyed at all the questions, the crop dusters did not think much of it at the time. Then came the terrorist attacks, and a closer look at the arrest of this man, Zacarius Moussaoui.

He was jailed last month in Minnesota on immigration charges. The would-be pilot failed to get a license from a school in Oklahoma, then tried another school in Minneapolis. That school contacted authorities, after Moussaoui offered a large amount of cash to learn only how to fly, no take-offs or landings. After the hijackings, the FBI grew alarmed by a crop dusting manual discovered among Moussaoui's belongings.

Back in Florida, mechanic Lester says he has since identified Mohamed Atta as someone who came out to the air strip twice. According to law enforcement sources, the FBI got worried and remains worried. Because of the manual's discovery, a total crop dusting ban was imposed last week, that would have now been modified to keep crop dusters away from Metropolitan areas.

REP. SAXBY CHAMBLISS (R), GEORGIA: We now have to look at a potential for a chemical and biological attack. The likelihood of it is not as great as a car bomb or something like what happened last week, but we have to be ready for it and we're not ready for it.

CANDIOTTI: Back in Florida, the FBI interviewed crop dusters at this air field last week. The air strip now has round-the-clock security. Crop dusters nationwide have been advised to be aware of any suspicious activity. The FBI has issued this statement.

"In an abundance of caution, the FBI has taken a number of steps in reaction to threats received during the course of this investigation."

(on camera): Crop dusters have limited payloads and fly slowly. The FBI is hoping all this attention will thwart any possible plans for a chemical attack, a notion once unthinkable in America, until September 11th.

Susan Candiotti, CNN, Miami.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

NAIDOO: British Foreign Secretary Jack Straw is to ask Iran on Monday to join the international coalition. Straw says he intends to open a dialogue with Iran, with hopes of winning closer cooperation in combating terrorism.

He will become the highest ranking British official to visit Iran since the 1979 Islamic revolution. Iraq is taking the U.S. military buildup seriously. President Saddam Hussein met with members of his military on Sunday to discuss defense issues. Iraq says the country is ready to face any external aggression. Mr. Hussein says he's not afraid of the U.S. There are calls by some in Washington to launch an attack against Baghdad.

Iraq denies any role in the September 11th attacks in the U.S.

Time now for the latest financial news. Let's check in with Jill Neubronner at our New York -- at least our Hong Kong business desk. Jill?

JILL NEUBRONNER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, thanks, Anand.

Well some Asian stock markets are recovering lost ground, but many are extending last week's declines on pessimism about Wall Street, and prospects for the U.S. economy.

The region's biggest market, Tokyo, is closed today. Here in Hong Kong, traders say bargain hunting is lifting the market, which fell seven percent last week. Stocks in Seoul are also seeing a rebound.

But recession fears are creating further declines in Singapore and Taiwan. And stocks in Australia and New Zealand are also lower.

Airlines around the world have less than 24 hours to obtain insurance to prevent their planes from being grounded.

International insurers have capped war risk coverage, effective midnight, Greenwich Mean Time.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PETER HARBISON, CENTER FOR ASIA PACIFIC AVIATION: Each of the governments to who territory the airline is flying, will require the satisfaction that there is adequate coverage. And that may mean that some airlines, for example cease to be able to fly to the United States. And that would be a major problem.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

NEUBRONNER: To keep its airlines flying, the European Union will provide liability insurance for at least a month. Britain will also insure its carriers.

Korea's government are also taking similar steps, as are the governments of Australia and New Zealand. Hong Kong is working on a plan.

But analysts tell CNN, at least some airlines will be grounded come Tuesday.

Well, in the United States, airlines' shares were among the biggest losers last week with some losing nearly half their value. But this week could be a different story. Many analysts are predicting a rebound, saying prices have fallen too far, too fast.

The Dow Industrials fell more than 14 percent. The NASDAQ lost 16 percent of its value. The indexes are at their lowest level in almost three years.

The United States economy was shaky before the terror attacks in New York and Washington.

Alan Chernoff takes a look at what we might expect in the future.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ALLAN CHERNOFF, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Pomtamkin Buick and Chevrolet in Mid-town Manhattan says vehicles are selling again as low finance rates lure shoppers.

PHILIP LOMBARDO, POMTAMKIN BUICK AND CHEVROLET: People are showing up again this week, as opposed to last week when there was a problem getting in and out of the city and because of the disaster that happened.

CHERNOFF: It is the critical question facing the economy now, to what degree will consumers resume spending, especially on the big ticket items like cars?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'm still a little anxious about what's happened. I think I'm still suffering from some post traumatic stress.

CHERNOFF: Given the public's concerns about security, declines in the stock market and rising layoffs, no one can know for sure.

ROBERT HORMATS, GOLDMAN SACHS INTERNATIONAL: It's awfully hard to predict how severe the damage to the economy will be because of the terrorist acts. The economy was weakening even before those terrorist acts. It will be considerably weaker as a result of them.

CHERNOFF: Many forecasters do expect a recession, and for some industries, it can already be labeled a virtual depression. Airlines flying near empty planes, slashing schedules and awaiting a $15 billion government bailout package. U.S. carriers have announced 80,000 layoffs since the attacks. In the next few days, Delta plans thousands more.

Hotels have seen occupancy rates sink.

J. W. MARRIOTT, MARRIOTT CORPORATION: It's very tough. We rely tremendously on air travel, and as you know, air travel is way down, and so we're going to have a very tough September.

CHERNOFF: Aircraft maker Boeing is suffering order cancellations, and insurance companies are facing claims in the billions of dollars. Yet, some industries stand to thrive, military contractors and security services. Then, there are companies whose sales tend to hold up no matter what the economy is doing, supermarkets, food and drug manufacturers, as well as makers of medical products and the hospitals they supply.

(on camera): Increased Federal spending and lowered interest rates from the Federal Reserve should help businesses, but most important of all to the future of the economy is the degree to which Americans return to one of their favorite pastimes, shopping.

Alan Chernoff, CNN Financial News, New York.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

NEUBRONNER: A possible U.S. recession would put pressure on economic growth in Europe, as well. But the governor of France's central bank says, talk of a European recession is totally inappropriate right now because of strong consumer spending. Jean- Claude Trichet thinks growth is likely to accelerate next year.

But the governor of the Bank of England, Eddie George, says, a recession in Britain -- it cannot be ruled out in the short term.

Stock traders in Europe predict the markets will extend last week's fall. Major bourses all lost more than six percent for the week.

Well, that's our look at the financial world, and it's back to Anand at CNN Center.

NAIDOO: Thank you, Jill. And when we return, a look at the international weather forecast with Mari Ramos, and more world news. Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

NAIDOO: Now for a look at the international weather picture, here's Mari Ramos at the world weather center. Hello, Mari.

MARI RAMOS, INTERNATIONAL WEATHER: Hello there, Anand.

Well, let's begin taking a look at the U.S. We have a very slow- moving cold front setting off some very strong storms all the way from Lake Erie down through Texas.

Scattered rain showers across the southeast, but still generally quiet weather stretching all the way from the Mid-Atlantic all the way up through the northeast.

But, because that storm system is moving so slow, again the risk for some strong thunderstorms developing from the Ohio down through the Tennessee River Valley, as we head into Monday.

So, here's your front. Notice windy conditions behind the area of low pressure. And by this time tomorrow, we may be seeing actually as much as one to two inches of rain falling in parts of New York and all the way down through Maryland and the Carolinas.

Temperature-wise, well we're looking at actually a pretty -- close to seasonal temperatures all across that region.

Your first day of spring -- your first full day of spring was actually a quiet one for you across the Buenos Aires and Montevideo region. But I wouldn't be surprised if, in the next couple of hours, you begin to see a little bit more rain developing there.

We have a front approaching. Winds will pick up just a little bit. Some cloud cover coming in, and that rain beginning to push in across the area there.

Now, at the edge of your screen you may be able to see Juliet right up there. That is our hurricane in the west, western coast of Mexico. That system has winds of 185 kilometers per hour. It is nearly stationary. And that is always a problem when it comes to tropical cyclones. This system moving very slowly, dumping heavy amounts of rain across parts of southwestern Mexico. It is expected to move parallel to the coast.

And then, finally, across Asia, another typhoon. This one Likima (ph), just to the north of Luzon. And that one bringing heavy rain through the Philippines, and eventually for you in Taiwan.

Now let's take a look at your city by city forecast.

Anand, let's come back to you.

NAIDOO: All right. We'll bypass that city-by-city forecast for the time being.

Our coverage of the war against terror will continue right after this break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

NAIDOO: Welcome back to our coverage of the war against terror. Let's look at the latest developments. The estimated number of people dead or missing in the attack on New York's World Trade Center has risen to 6453. The figure represents an increase of 120.

Opposition forces in Afghanistan say they're shelling Taliban positions about 30 kilometers north of Kabul. The attack by the Northern Alliance has reportedly been going on for about four hours.

The FBI is limiting the use of crop duster planes amid concerns that the September 11th attackers planned to use them to spread chemical or biological agents. Law enforcement sources say one of the hijackers had inquired about buying a crop dusting plane. And U.S. aviation authorities are ordering all carriers to compare the names of their employees with an FBI list of possible terrorist suspects. Late September at New York's Yankee Stadium is normally the scene of a baseball pennant race, but these are not normal times. And baseball was the last thing on anyone's mind. Instead Yankee stadium on Sunday was filled with prayers from Muslim, Sikh, Christian and Jewish leaders, as well as a Hindu benediction.

Sean Callebs joins us now from New York. Sean.

SEAN CALLEBS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Anand, you're exactly right. Yankee Stadium has always been the scene of tremendous celebrations here in the New York area. Well, today it was the scene to take center stage as the city continues to come with grips with its greatest tragedy. Thousands of people filed into the baseball stadium today for a three-hour long prayer service. They were there to remember those who perished and those who are still missing from the September 11th assault.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

(voice-over): Entertainer Bette Midler voices what so many in New York had been thinking. An emotional service at Yankee Stadium. Mayor Rudy Guilliani careful to term this a prayer service not a memorial as the search goes on to find anyone who may have survived the terrorist assault on the World Trade Center towers.

RUDY GUILLIANI, MAYOR OF NEW YORK CITY: On September 11th New York City suffered the darkest day in our history. It's now up to us to make it its finest hour.

CALLEBS: Heartbreak could be seen at every turn. America flags mixed in with the now familiar photos of some of the nearly 6300 people believed buried in the rubble. Many religions were represented. An Islamic leader received a standing ovation when he urged tolerance.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Do not allow the ignorance of people to have you attack your good neighbor. We are Muslims but we are Americans.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I have seen today all religions come together, all faiths, all races, hold and care for each other. And it just shows me that the American people are going to stick together.

CALLEBS: Lee Greenwood's patriotic anthem had the half-filled stadium chanting USA. The man who has worked to unite the city and keep its citizens composed renewed his promise.

GUILLIANI: But our skyline will rise again.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CALLEBS (on camera): One other item on the rise again today, the official list of those missing. It is now above 6400. Later on Mayor Guilliani trying to lift the spirits of those in attendance saying for those of you who say the city will never be the same, you're right. It will be better.

Live in New York, I'm Sean Callebs. Anand, back to you.

NAIDOO: Sean, what can you tell us about what's going on at the site of the terror attacks right now.

CALLEBS: Well, we can tell you they are still working around the clock. It is still technically a search and rescue mission. However, the mayor has indicated that it is going to be a long, ongoing mission, one that will make a somewhat seamless transition from search and rescue into search and recovery.

The mayor making the rounds on the talk show again today saying it's going to be an agonizing time when they officially have to make that call. And he in essence said that after about two weeks, that's really about all the times experts give anyone the chance to perhaps being tucked away in one of the concrete corridors beneath where the World Trade Center towers once stood. Anand.

NAIDOO: All right, thank you Sean.

Afghanistan's Northern Alliance claims it has recaptured several villages from the ruling Taliban and killed dozen of Taliban soldiers. The Alliance wants to help the U.S. fight the Taliban with the goal of regaining power.

But as Steve Harrigan reports, if it succeeds, the Alliance will rule over a people who's prospects have been severely damaged by years of conflict.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

STEVE HARRIGAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: You have to leave your shoes at the door of this mosque in northern Afghanistan, but you can bring your weapon inside. Today's prayer is for success in war, the very same prayer the enemy, the Taliban, is presumably making just a few hours drive south.

It's a war that has stumbled along more than five years using hand-me down equipment from wars past. At these Northern Alliance training exercises there is just one man who knows how to aim a tank. Before the Taliban took control, Afghanistan was ruled by the Northern Alliance. With help from the Americans they say they can do it again. But it may be a nation already cracked beyond repair.

A wife on one side of the front line clutches a picture of a husband trapped on the other side. A child with no parents wanders from house to house. A young man who has fled his home in Kabul just two days ago says he's afraid of being bombed by the Americans.

"I'm 18 years old, and for all those 18 years." he says, "our country has been at war. What makes me sad is that there was never time to learn to read or write," but plenty of time to learn how to shoot in a war that continues to steal the future for many Afghans at a very early age.

Steve Harrigan, CNN, Jabal as Siraj, Afghanistan.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

NAIDOO: The United Nations envoy says the exiled king of Afghanistan could play an important role in the nation's future. Frances Vendrell met with former king, Mohammed Zahir Shah in Rome on Sunday. Vendrell says that Zahir is concerned about innocent Afghans as the U.S. prepares to strike against suspected terrorists in Afghanistan.

Zahir plans to meet soon with the Northern Alliance officials who are fighting Afghanistan's Taliban rulers. The former Afghan monarch has lived in Italy since he was overthrown in 1973.

A U.S. military response to the September 11th terrorist attacks might involve sending ground troops into Afghanistan. But Russian military leaders can speak from experience about how difficult and costly that might be.

CNN's Marina Kolbe spoke recently with former KGB official, Oleg KalugIn. She asked him about Russia's reaction to the terrorist attacks on the U.S.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

OLEG KALUGIN, FORMER KGB OFFICIAL: The Russians were appalled by what happened. In fact, it was really a tragedy, which affected everyone who has any concern for world peace and for the human lives.

So the Russians were, from what I know from my friends in Moscow, from published reports, they were really grieved by what happened. And yet some of the Russians, particularly the Russian military, warned the United States against military involvement in Afghanistan and they cited their own experience, the sad experience when they were defeated by the Afghani rebellion's forces after several years of futile attempts to impose their rule on that country.

MARINA KOLBE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: But when they were defeated, it's because Afghanistan also had some help from the United States. Will the playing ground not be different this time around?

KALUGIN: Well there were several reasons why the Russians were defeated. In fact when I read the stories from Moscow, some of the utterances by the former military officials involved in the Afghan war, they try to scare the United States by drawing parallels between Soviet defeats and what may happen to the United States, they cite actually potential new Vietnam for the United States. They talk about the blood bath for the United States.

Well, let me tell you in the first place, that when the Soviets intervened on behalf of the Kabul communist government, the war was already raging between the communist puppet government in Kabul and the Muslem resistance movement. And it was the Kabul government which provoked that battle.

When I traveled to Afghanistan in the late '78 as a member of the small KGB delegation to sign a treaty of cooperation with the Afghan security services, we could walk around freely. We could go places. Kabul was a bustling, friendly capital. People were quite friendly. There were no problems. In fact, when we tried to travel to Jalabad, which was about 100 miles east of Kabul, we were told that we'd better not go because there were some sporadic isolated instances of violence. So we did not travel that far.

But what happened is that the Kabul zealots, atheists and Communists, provoked the war against the Muslims, and that was the beginning of this major confrontation when the true Muslims were driven in their corner and had to stand up to defend their faith. This was brought really the first, I mean, serious reaction from the Afghan people who would not accept the atheistic Communist regime. That's very important.

The United States is not going to impose anything on Afghanistan or any other Muslim nation. In fact, the United States was involved on the side of the Muslims in Kosovo. I mean this is a very important question. When the clash of ideologies, the incompatibility of these two ideologies, Islam and atheism, were the rules of the Afghan people, the resolution, determination to fight back. That was very important. The United States will not face that problem, I believe.

Now, you talked about the resistance movement. That's correct. When the Soviets moved in as a result of the military weakness of the Afghan government, they met growing resistance, which was bolstered by the United States. It was not only moral support but also military support, ammunition, arms, while the stingers I mean truly paralyzed the Soviet aircraft operations in Afghanistan. The United States will not meet that kind of resistance, because neither Russia, nor China, nor Iran will supply arms to the rebels or extremists in Afghanistan. That's a vast difference.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

NAIDOO: That was CNN's Marina Kolbe speaking with former KGB official, Oleg Kalugin.

People in many nations have a love/hate relationship with the United States, but does that mean they endorse terror attacks on the U.S.? And Japan offers the display of sympathy and support.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

NAIDOO: Washington has lifted three-year-old sanctions on Pakistan after it pledged support for the U.S. proposed war on terrorism.

The majority of Pakistanis are backing the decision to root out terrorists, and many are hoping this antiterrorism war will mark a turning point in U.S. Pakistani relations.

But Christiane Amanpour reports there are still mixed emotions.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CHRISTIANE AMANPOUR, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Nadia Ahmed (ph) is too poor to own a barbershop. At his street-side stand, he and his customer, Shaheed (ph) tell us what they think of the terrorists who killed nearly 7,000 people in America.

NADIA AHMED (through translator): This is very wrong. This was not done in the name of Islam. It was done to give Islam a bad name.

AMANPOUR: Pakistan like so many other Islamic countries, has a love/hate relationship with America. Poverty, political powerlessness, religion, and tradition, live alongside pervasive American pop culture, films and fast food, and the promise of freedom and prosperity.

(on camera): What do you think in general when you think of America? That the culture is good or?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes, the culture is good, and we want to visit the America

UNIDENTIFIED MALE #2: Yes, I want to visit. I want to meet the people of America. What is it they're thinking about human life? What is it they're thinking about terrorism?

AMANPOUR: Because of the current crisis, there is stepped up security even on the roads leading to the American Embassy, and officials there are not handing out tourist visas these days. But usually, around the Muslim world, there are long lines of visa seekers looking for the American dream.

(voice-over): But scratch the surface just a little, and you quickly see the dream has a dark side.

"America is like a mad elephant," says Mohamed Atta the juice seller. "America only cares about her own interests."

During the Cold War, American poured money and military equipment into Pakistan, but since then, it lost interest and Pakistanis feel betrayed. They are also enraged of the plight of Muslims around the world. The same man who wants to visit the United States is furious at what he calls America's double standards.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: In other countries, like Kashmir, like Palestine, like Chechnya, America just do nothing.

AMANPOUR: Around the Islamic world, hard line extremists use that anger to fire up their foot soldiers, but for most of the world's one billion Muslims, resentment can never justify the ruthlessness that the radicals wrought on the United States.

AHMED (through translator): What happened is bad. It should not have happened. May Allah put everything right.

AMANPOUR: Christiane Amanpour, CNN, Islamabad.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

NAIDOO: Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi is heading to the United States, where he'll discuss Japan's participation in the prospective U.S. led military action. Rebecca MacKinnon reports Mr. Kuzoomi wants Japan to play a much more active role.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

REBECCA MACKINNON, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): A show of Japanese support for the U.S. war against terrorism. A college student echoes the feelings of many Japanese.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: ... process that we remain aware of our most important goal of attaining a peaceful world.

MACKINNON: On the eve of a visit to the United States, Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi pledged $10 million for rescue and relief. But that's not the only way he wants to help the U.S. fight terrorism.

For the first time since World War II, Japanese soldiers may head into war, although they won't actually fight, Japan's post war constitution won't let them. As a first step, Koizumi's advisors say, an AEGIS equipped warship would go to the Indian Ocean to gather military intelligence.

(on camera): Prime Minister Koizumi also wants Japan's self defense forces to help transform ammunition to U.S. troops, refuel ships and help repair U.S. planes. The problem is, none of this is allowed under Japan's current law, so he wants to change the law.

JUNICHIRO KOIZUMI, PRIME MINISTER OF JAPAN: There will be a fierce opposition from some quarters in Japan that we may be stepping into a new field of militarism, but our national indignation to the terrorism of the attack on all of us is so huge that I think there will be enough public support to enact a new law.

MACKINNON: But the public seems divided.

This woman says she fears Japan's assistance in war will lead to combat.

This man thinks Japan ought to play a bigger role in the world and rethink its constitution.

KEITH HENRY, MIT, JAPAN PROGRAM: Japan is the world's second largest economy, and if they begin to vigorously to pursue their self interests beyond simply using the economy and finance as a tool, that's certainly going to change the tenor of the game of Japan geopolitics.

MACKINNON: The shockwaves of a terrorist attack half a world away affecting Japan in unexpected ways.

Rebecca MacKinnon, CNN, Tokyo.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

NAIDOO: Now a look at other stories making news in our World News Notebook. Police in Jakarta, Indonesia, have cordoned off a shopping mall where two bombs exploded. Officials say noone was killed but several people were wounded. No group has claimed responsibility for the attack at the mall, which was the site of a bombing last month as well. A Malaysian man was detained in connection with that incident.

In Poland, poll projections from Sunday's general election showed the ex-communist opposition heading toward a narrow parliamentary majority. Two exit polls gave the democratic left alliance about 45 percent of the vote and a majority of seats in the nation's lower house. The ruling solidarity party, which helped topple the Communist government 12 years ago, has apparently failed to win a single seat.

Meanwhile, German Chancellor Gerhardt Schroeder's party faces possible defeat in state elections in the city of Hamburg. Preliminary results show a conservatism of coalition won enough support to ask the social democrats after 44 years in power. At the head of one party in the coalition is a law and order advocate, Ronald Schill, dubbed Judge Merciless, by the media. After a week of heavy losses, Asian markets could use a Monday rebound. The business report is next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

NAIDOO: Now, let's check in with Jill Neubronner at our Hong Kong business desk one more time. Hello, Jill.

JILL NEUBRONNER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi there, Anand. Well, some markets in Asia are recovering from last week's losses, although analysts attribute the gains to a technical rebound rather than a change in sentiment.

Hong Kong's Hang Seng is up more than 1-1/3 percent. Banking Group HSCC is among the winners, as well as computer firm Legend Holdings.

Stocks in South Korea have been higher all morning; both major indices there up over 1-1/2 percent. But a different picture in the rest of the region.

Singapore's Straight Times Index is off 1 1/3 percent. Taiwan is down more than 3 percent, and markets in Australia and New Zealand also falling. Markets in Tokyo are closed today for a holiday.

Well, airlines around the world have less than 24 hours to obtain the necessary insurance in order to keep their jets from getting grounded. Major insurers are capping war risk coverage as of midnight Monday, GNT. The South Korean government will allow Korean Air and Asiana to pass on a war surcharge to its passengers, saving them millions each month, is asking their airlines to trim jobs, sell jets, and share operations.

The Australian and New Zealand governments will provide insurance for its carriers, and Carthay Pacific is still working out a solution. South Korea's airline stocks are getting a boost right now. Singapore Airlines and Carthay Pacific are both trading 2 percent low up. Meanwhile, the European union and the U.K. government will provide at least a month of war risk coverage for its airlines, but the EU says it will not bail out unprofitable carriers. As Wall Street gets ready for another trading session, some analysts say stocks are oversold and investors could be out shopping for bargains. But there was little evidence of that last week.

The Dow industrials have dropped more than 1,300 points, or 14 percent, and that's the biggest percentage decline in 70 years. Losses on the NASDAQ were more acute, dropping 16 percent. The governor of the Bank of England, Eddie George, says, "Recession in Britain cannot be ruled out in the short term." His French counterpart is more optimistic, saying that last week's market declines were exaggerated and that economic growth is likely to accelerate next year.

European traders say the major markets will extend last week's falls. Major forces all lost more than 6 percent for the week. Well, that's the latest business headlines, and now it's back to Anand in Atlanta.

NAIDOO: Thank you, Jill.

Pope John Paul II is calling on Christians and Muslims to work together to build a world without violence. The Pope spoke about the terrorist attacks in the United States for the first time in a mass in Copestone.

Jim Bittermann has more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JIM BITTERMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): In a country that is more Muslim than Christian, more Orthodox than Catholic, Pope John Paul II cautioned against using religion as a reason for conflict. I urge both Christians and Muslims, the Pope said, in a late edition to his morning mass, to raise intense prayers of peace. Those of both religions who attended the service new exactly what the reference meant.

Mushar Kubai (ph), a Muslim, said relations between religious groups are here, but Taliban Muslims from Afghanistan could cause trouble in the region. Kubai's (ph) view it seems is shared by the President of Kazakhstan. When Nursaltan Nethrobia (ph) met with John Paul he said Kazakhstan is prepared in coalition with other states to joint the fight against terrorism. Because he said, no nation alone, no matter how large can win victory over terrorists who do not come from any one particular country or religious group.

John Paul, according to his spokesman also supports bringing those responsible for the attacks on the United States to justice. But despite reassurances from the White House that its was is against terrorism, not Islam, the Pope and the Kazakh President urged caution.

JOAQUIN NAVARRO-VALLS, VATICAN SPOKESMAN: The present situation cannot be interpreted as a confrontation between Islam and Christianity or between Islam and the Occidental world. If anybody tries to understand the things in this terms that would be extremely dangerous. And most probably that's not reflecting the reality of it.

BITTERMAN (on camera): What the Pope and Kazakh authorities would like to avoid is turning a hunt for terrorists into a regional or religious conflict. It's clear how things begin, the papal spokesman said. But it's much more difficult anticipate how they'll develop.

(voice-over): If those developments in the pursuit of terrorism go badly, the religious and ethnic harmony in Kazakhstan and elsewhere in central Asia could quickly be shattered. Christians and Muslims here are praying together that won't happen.

Jim Bitterman, CNN, Astana, Kazakhstan.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

NAIDOO: Britain's Prince William will begin his first term as an undergraduate on Monday. William arrived at Scotland's St. Andrews University on Sunday to start a four year course in art history. Several thousand people turned out to greet the prince, who arrived with his father, Prince Charles. St. Andrews is the oldest university in Scotland, founded in 1411.

CNN's around-the-clock coverage of the War Against Terror will continue in just a moment. I'm Anand Naidoo you're watching CNN.

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