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U.S. Officials Say No Credible Subway Terror Threat; U.K. Parliament To Vote On Airstrikes; New Round of Airstrikes in Syria and Iraq

Aired September 26, 2014 - 06:00   ET

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


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MAYOR BILL DE BLASIO (D), NEW YORK: There is no immediate credible threat to our subway system.

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CHRIS CUOMO, CNN ANCHOR: On edge, security is ramped up across the country after the Iraqi prime minister says there is an imminent threat to American subways. U.S. officials say he's wrong. The Khorasan threat, however, still very real. The FBI director coming out with a dire warning.

BROOKE BALDWIN, CNN ANCHOR: Also happening right now reports of new airstrikes in Syria as Britain's parliament takes its vote. Will they join the coalition and launch strikes of their own?

Christiane Amanpour is live for us in London.

CUOMO: Breaking overnight. Heated protests once again outside the Ferguson Police Department. The chief there comes out to talk to protesters. The tense standoff that follows and ends with multiple arrests. We have an exclusive with the police chief.

Your NEW DAY starts right now.

ANNOUNCER: This is NEW DAY with Chris Cuomo, Kate Bolduan and Michaela Pereira.

CUOMO: Good morning. Welcome to NEW DAY. It's Friday, September 26th, 6:00 in the East. And Brooke Baldwin is here because Kate had her baby. Look at this beautiful little girl, Cecilia Eve, born yesterday morning, healthy 6 pounds, 18 1/2 inches, mom and baby are doing great.

Kate, like everything in her life came through it with flying colors. True natural. She is so beautiful. The baby, the mother, the father, they're perfect. All three of them, we're going to have a lot more later in the show.

But this morning we do want to start off with a lot of big news for you. The war on ISIS, a new fear of a terror attack right here in the U.S. Was there any truth to what the Iraqi prime minister said about a threat to the nation's subways? We have new details on that this morning.

Plus, the FBI in a separate situation believes it has identified this masked militant, who is speaking in three ISIS videos, showing the beheading of westerners.

BALDWIN: So we have all of that for you this morning. As we're watching what's happening right now in Britain, a major debate happening in parliament, will the U.K. join the coalition's campaign against ISIS in Iraq? Keep in mind, that's what the vote would be for Iraq specifically.

We have all angles covered for you this morning with Christiane Amanpour, standing by for us live in London. But we begin with CNN's Jason Carroll and the confusion over these new terror threats. Jason, good morning.

JASON CARROLL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, let's start with the subway system here in New York. New York City's mayor and police commissioner and the governor all stepping forward to insure the people of New York City that the subway system is safe. This, after there was some confusion yesterday, after a controversial statement made by Iraq's prime minister.

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CARROLL (voice-over): At subways in major cities across the country this morning, commuters can expect increased security. After Iraq's new prime minister blindsided U.S. intelligence officials Thursday, telling reporters that Iraqi intelligence had uncovered an alleged plot to attack subways in the U.S. and Paris. Federal officials now say there is no credible threat.

BRETT MCGUIRK, DEPUTY ASST. SECRETARY OF STATE FOR IRAQ AND IRAN: We're in obviously very close consultation with the Iraqi government there is no specific credible threat whatsoever that they have uncovered to the United States.

CARROLL: Offering further clarification that the prime minister was referring to the general threat ISIS poses to the United States. New York City Mayor Bill De Blasio, and the city's police commissioner reassuring the public by taking the subway to a news conference to ease concerns.

DE BLASIO: We are convinced that New Yorkers are safe. We're convinced people should go about their normal routine. Terrorists want us to live in fear. We refuse to live in fear.

CARROLL: This latest headline coming on the heels of U.S. airstrikes on targets in Syria this week, aimed at destabilizing the terror group and an al Qaeda offshoot, the Khorasan Group.

FBI Director James Comey now telling reporters that the threat from the al Qaeda cell may still be out there, saying that he's quote, "not confident at all that plotting by the Khorasan Group was disrupted." Sources say the group is plotting against western targets including commercial passenger jets, testing explosive devices that could be hidden, masked as toothpaste tubes and other non-metallic items packed inside luggage.

REAR ADMIRAL JOHN KIRBY, PENTAGON SPOKESMAN: We can't say with any great definition or specificity that we know we disrupted any specific plot.

CARROLL: Also on Thursday, FBI officials confirmed they have finally identified the man heard in all three of those chilling ISIS execution videos.

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CARROLL: So again, as for the transit system here in the U.S., security officials acknowledge that terror groups continue to present a general threat to the United States. But again, no specific threat, at least not at this time.

BALDWIN: We'll stay on that this morning and ask some questions of some folks we have on a little bit later as far as where it would have come from. Jason Carroll, thank you so much.

Also breaking overnight, we are now receiving initial reports of fresh airstrikes pounding Syria. Let's go to Washington, our senior Washington correspondent, Joe Johns watching those reports for us. Joe, what do you know?

JOE JOHNS, CNN SENIOR WASHINGTON CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Brooke. A U.S. military official confirming to CNN that there were new airstrikes in Syria overnight. Though we are still waiting for details from Central Command about where those latest airstrikes occurred.

A statement from Central Command is expected later this morning. A human rights group monitoring in the area has told CNN that it is aware of new airstrikes hitting ISIS positions in Eastern Syria, though, CNN has not been able to independently verify those reports.

The latest strikes follow a day of allied military attention to parts of Iraq with the French government getting into the act. The U.S. also zeroed in on parts of that country southwest of Baghdad where ISIS was said to be operating freely and where Iraqi security forces needed support.

So far, the Pentagon has been describing airstrikes that disable or degrade capabilities of ISIS in Syria, but don't demolish infrastructure. DOD says they're trying to preserve assets for whoever takes over, if and when ISIS is removed as a threat from the region -- Brooke.

BALDWIN: All right, Joe Johns, thank you so much -- Chris.

CUOMO: More is going on and right now in London, the British prime minister, David Cameron, is trying to convince his parliament that the U.K. should join the coalition in this war, fighting ISIS with airstrikes in Iraq only.

Just moments ago, he spoke strongly about the nature of the threat and its direct impact on the British people. Take a listen.

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DAVID CAMERON, BRITISH PRIME MINISTER: ISIL is a terrorist organization unlike those we have dealt with before. The brutality is staggering. Beheadings, crucifixions, the gouging out of eyes, this is not a threat on the far side of the world.

Left unchecked, we will face a terrorist caliphate on the shores of the Mediterranean, and bordering a NATO member with a declared and proven determination to attack our country and our people.

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CUOMO: And in response to that, a lot of push-back from members of parliament. This has happened once before, they voted no on allowing bombing in Syria. So let's bring in chief international correspondent, Christiane Amanpour, live in London.

Christiane, help me understand this because I'm an American and I don't get it. They're thinking about going to war and having a debate first? They're not just letting the David Cameron just go and do it.

And then kind of talk about it behind his back and say they're kind of with it or not, they're having an actual debate? What is this -- are they going to vote, too?

CHRISTIANE AMANPOUR, CNN CHIEF INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, they are, Chris.

CUOMO: What?

AMANPOUR: Probably later this afternoon our time. This is a democracy and even in your own country, in the United States, there's been a lot of consultation with Congress.

But more to the point, David Cameron was rudely rebuffed last year by parliament when he wanted to join in strikes in Syria. To that end this riveting debate and it really is riveting in an open house of parliament to watch the back-and-forth.

And this particular language, very direct and pointed declarations from the prime minister and questions from the right honorable friends all seated in the House of Commons.

But he is only asking for authority to go into Iraq to join President Obama and the other alliance. He made many references to President Obama's speech to the United Nations and he said we need to join this, A, because it's legal.

Because in Iraq, the government is actually asked us to join. So that would bring David Cameron's U.K. and America and France into the allies who are bombing targets in Iraq. I spoke also last night in New York to the Iranian president, Hassan Rouhani, who again, David Cameron referred to. And he met him in New York at the General Assembly and Rouhani said to me that we're all in this fight together.

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HASSAN ROUHANI, IRANIAN PRESIDENT (through translator): It is a common threat for all of us and this requires unison efforts from all of us.

AMANPOUR: So you're fine with these strikes inside Syria and inside Iraq against the Islamic state?

ROUHANI: We need a vast campaign of operations. Two, three, four, a dozen, two, three dozens of aerial bombardments is quite insignificant against their installations and compounds. The aerial bombardments have more the form of a psychological operation rather than succeeding in the eradication of terrorism.

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AMANPOUR: So very interesting, I thought his take on that. And like Prime Minister Cameron and like President Obama, they have all said, it's not just an air campaign that will unseat and uproot ISIS. It has to be a much broader campaign. So this is a very important moment here in Britain and we're likely to know the results of this by about noon Eastern Time.

CUOMO: Right. And Christiane, the reason that I bring sarcasm into it is because remember, predominantly the audience for this show is the U.S. and the idea that this type of debate did not take place before these actions, Congress did not vote, although our constitution specifically states that they are supposed to declare war, is backed up by what we just heard from the Iranian president.

It's not about just airstrikes. This is going to be so involved on so many levels, if you ever want real change, that airstrikes may be the easiest part. Fair point?

AMANPOUR: Well, airstrikes are the obvious part right now. It's a point I put to Secretary of State Kerry when we interviewed him on NEW DAY a couple of days ago in New York. They all say look, this is a very long campaign.

So breaking news about an airstrike every day is not really breaking news, because they've told us, this is not a month, not a year, it could be several years. That the air campaign is a vital part of it.

But of course you're right and everybody's right, it's a much, much broader, coordinated campaign on the ground that hopefully will have some effect on uprooting ISIS.

And to that end, they are saying obviously, no boots on the ground, so is the British, the French, everybody else. They want to empower again, renew, re-stand up the Iraqi army. And somehow get a ground force in Syria which right now would be the Free Syrian Army. But you know in the United States, they did have a debate over arming and training the Syrian opposition.

CUOMO: Not really.

AMANPOUR: They may call back Congress to discuss the authority to have those airstrikes.

CUOMO: It wasn't really a debate and the chance that the president calls back Congress, you could argue he should, he probably won't, because the political realities here are he should take power when he gets it. Presidents have done it in the past.

He has got a terrible relationship with this Congress so I don't know what would motivate him to call them back. But let's stick with the U.K. right now because they are making news this morning.

The argument to go against ISIS or to bomb in Syria, isn't that different other than American beheadings and a British beheading and now maybe somehow related French beheading, to a year ago when they voted no? Do you think Cameron gets the vote that he wants here and what happens if he doesn't?

AMANPOUR: Well, I think they think that it is much more different. Because yes, the beheadings were the public face of this barbarity and they galvanized public opinion around the world. That's absolutely true.

But the fact that ISIS has established itself in control of a vast portion of a very important part of the middle east that would be Syria and Iraq, in control of all sorts of oil facilities and the like, that is what's freaked everybody out including the Arab allies who are on board right now.

David Cameron obviously was thwarted over Syria and he's not even bringing Syria into the picture in his debate right now. It's expected that he will get the authority to, to join the airstrikes on Iraq.

Mostly because he's put it -- he's established or he's trying to, the national security threat to Britain and he's established the legality of his request, because framing it in the direct request from the democratic government of Iraq.

CUOMO: Yes. He has a much better case on Iraq than he does on Syria based on the past resistance he's gotten. Christiane, thank you so much for the reporting and insight. Appreciate it as always, have a good weekend.

A lot of news going on this morning, but first, remember, you're going to see more of Christiane's interview with the Iranian president and he's a fundamental voice here. Iran greatly at play.

President Rouhani, you can watch it today on "AMANPOUR" on CNN International at 2:00 p.m. Eastern. Let's get to John Berman, he is in for Michaela because of a lot of news this morning -- John.

JOHN BERMAN, CNN GUEST ANCHOR: Thanks so much, Chris. Jesse Matthew suspected of abducting University of Virginia student, Hannah Graham, will be returned to Charlottesville, Virginia, perhaps as early as today. He waived extradition following his arrest in Texas.

Police are still searching for Graham, who was last seen with Matthew before she disappeared 13 days ago. We're also learning that Jesse Matthew was investigated in a 2002 rape case, but never charged because of lack of evidence.

Police now going door to door in the search for the man suspected of killing a Pennsylvania state trooper. Officials say they're trying to flush out Eric Frein. We are also learning about a possible misstep by the fugitive.

The "Philadelphia Inquirer" reports that Frein turned on his cell phone and started to call his parents a little over a week ago. Reportedly it lasted just seconds, but it was enough for investigators to narrow their manhunt to a five-square-mile perimeter in the Poconos. Frein has been on the run since allegedly killing one trooper and injuring another two weeks ago.

Today the White House will host officials from four dozen countries to try to develop strategies to fight infectious disease threats like Ebola. This comes a day after the president spoke at the United Nations about Ebola, saying the world has been too slow to respond.

In the meantime, Dr. Rick Sacra, an American doctor from Massachusetts has survived Ebola after being infected in Liberia is back home in the United States. Sacra had been in a Nebraska hospital for nearly three weeks -- Chris.

BALDWIN: Reading in the "Boston Globe" this morning just briefly about him and they were saying he first heard he was going to Nebraska to be treated for Ebola. He said, Nebraska?

BERMAN: They tried everything on him so they can't pinpoint the one thing that helped the most. The good news is he's going home and he's safe.

CUOMO: That's the problem is that they're figuring out ways to beat this virus, but they're not sure what the right combination is to use every time. That's the next step, that's the key step. JB, thank you very much.

We do know that U.S. officials are scrambling here to address the reported terror plot on the homeland. What they're saying now and what you need to be on alert for, next.

BALDWIN: And Ferguson, Missouri, erupting again hours after the Ferguson police chief issued a public apology, what happened when he was face to face with a crowd of protesters ahead.

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MAYOR BILL DE BLASIO (D), NEW YORK CITY: We are convinced that New Yorkers are safe. We're convinced people should go about their normal routine. Terrorists want us to live in fear. We refuse to live in fear.

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BALDWIN: That was the mayor of New York City, Bill de Blasio, addressing concerns there could be this ISIS plot to attack U.S. subway systems, specifically in his own city. U.S. officials say there is no indication of any such plot after Iraq's prime minister came out and said his country's intelligence agency uncovered this alleged plan.

But it also does come as FBI Director James Comey said he's, quote- unquote, "no confident", these recent airstrikes in Syria have stopped plans to carry out an imminent attack against United States by the Khorasan group, that al Qaeda cell.

So, let me bring in CNN justice correspondent Evan Perez, and Daveed Gartenstein-Ross, a senior fellow for the foundation of Defense of Democracies.

Gentlemen, good morning.

And, Evan, just beginning with you and your reporting -- there was a plot, there wasn't a plot. Cut through it for me.

What's the deal?

EVAN PEREZ, CNN JUSTICE CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Brooke.

That was quite a scramble that the Iraqi prime minister set off here in Washington. I talked to about a dozen officials yesterday as they were trying to have very high-level meetings to find out what on earth he was talking about. Over the course of the day, we were told that there were no plots they knew of and they had no information from the Iraqi government.

Later on in the day, Brett McGurk, a top official in the State Department, did two interviews stating that he was really referring to the general threat against -- by ISIS and by these militant groups against the West and against the world. And that he real will was also talking about unverified information, information that hadn't been checked out.

The bottom line, Brooke, is that, you know, the reason why everyone scrambled is the threat against the subways is something that has come up before.

BALDWIN: Hugely.

PEREZ: Right, in 2004 and 2005, al Qaeda carried out these types of bombings in Europe. BALDWIN: OK. And since we have here, let me bring in Juliette

Kayyem, better late than never. She is former Homeland Security Department and CNN national security analyst.

So, Juliette, I'm coming to you in a minute.

But first, Daveed, to you, why would the Iraqi prime minister mention this? This was based on intelligence after some sort of interrogation of a prison anywhere Iraq. Why mention this if there wasn't a seed of truth to this?

DAVEED GARTENSTEIN-ROSS, SENIOR FELLOW, FOUNDATION FOR DEFENSE OF DEMOCRACIES: It's hard to say. I mean, the most obvious reason he might mention it is because it gives us more urgency for being involved in Iraq. And it makes sure that the United States is going to continue to want to oppose ISIS. That's the primary hypothesis.

BALDWIN: OK. And then as far as, you know, on the homeland security front, Juliette, you know, you have Mayor de Blasio, you have Governor Cuomo, they hop the train to say, listen, I'm on subway, it's OK, we're safe. But as far as law enforcement goes in protecting Americans, how are they handling this?

JULIETTE KAYYEM, CNN NATIONAL SECURITY ANALYST: Well, it was -- it was a brilliant move on their part to show up on the subways, because most people who hear the prime minister of a foreign country say we stopped a credible and imminent threat on U.S. subways might believe it. This is the challenge of so much intelligence noise going around simultaneously going around the world simultaneously.

And it seems to me this story should probably end where it began, which is in Iraq. It doesn't seem there's much to it.

Nonetheless, we're in a heightened terror alert. There is -- if anyone who has rode the subways recently or been in an airport in the last 48 hours, there's clearly a stronger physical presence by law enforcement, just to assure passengers and then to also thwart any potential risk, whether it's from abroad or of course lone wolf.

BALDWIN: Certainly made me stop. Living in New York, taking the train yesterday, stop and pay attention to what's going on.

Evan, let me just pivot back to you, also with the news hearing from the FBI director, you know, America sort of suddenly came into knowledge of this al Qaeda-linked group, Khorasan a couple of days ago when the U.S. struck them in Syria. But now, James Comey, is saying, quote-unquote, "he's not confident" at all that the attacks disrupted any potential plans.

How effective were the strikes in the first place? Do we even know?

PEREZ: Well, Brooke, they're still assessing the damage that was done and how many people were killed. But we do know, I'm told by officials that what the FBI director was talking about was the fact that they do know from intelligence that some of these guys, some of the leaders of this group, the Khorasan group, managed to get away, that they managed to disappear.

And so, they know that they killed some of them. But they also know that there are still others out there who are plotting. And we're talking about al Qaeda's best bomb makers here. There's very much a concern.

BALDWIN: So, then again, Juliette, that as far as in this sense of heightened alert, why would the FBI director come forward and say this again, you know, alerting Americans?

KAYYEM: I think that's right. I think it's just to say, look, we're never going to know whether the threat is at zero and right now since there's been no military assessment of our success in Syria, there's one person in government who you want -- who we want to solely focus on the terrorist threat and that's the director of the FBI. So, I found his words, I would say predictable in the sense that he's got one mission.

Everyone else in government is doing 10,000 different things, but the FBI director is focused on the potential threat to the homeland.

BALDWIN: OK. And, then, finally, Daveed to you, not watching the videos, but we've seen the still pictures and the audio of the masked ISIS terrorist with Steven Sotloff and James Foley and also David Haines -- we are hearing now again from the FBI that they have identified this person and let's also be clear -- the person speaking could be dubbed versus the actual person wielding the knife in the videos.

But it's one thing to identify this individual. It's quite another to try to track him down.

GARTENSTEIN-ROSS: Yes. One thing we have learned over the course of the past 13 years is tracking down a single individual can be a pretty daunting task, especially when they practice good operational security. Obviously, those who have seen the beheading videos or heard about them, certainly hope the killer is tracked down. But that's one of those things that is, you know, we'd like to do, but you'll never guarantee you'll get that one guy.

BALDWIN: Daveed Gartenstein-Ross, Juliette Kayyem, Evan Perez -- thank you all for being with me this morning on this Friday here on NEW DAY. I appreciate it very much.

And now to this, new trouble on the streets of Ferguson, Missouri, this crowd of protesters, look at these pictures, confronting the police chief who had come out to meet them after apologizing publicly for the Michael Brown shooting and, of course, its aftermath. Those new developments, straight ahead this morning.

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CUOMO: Breaking news on the war against ISIS, U.S. Central Command confirming a new round of air strikes overnight in Syria and Iraq against ISIS.

Senior Washington correspondent, Joe Johns, is live with the latest.

Joe, what do you hear?

JOHNS: Chris, this is a news release just put out by U.S. Central Command. They're confirming now, 10 air strikes, both in Iraq and also in Syria that is, of course, over Thursday and today. Five air strikes south and southwest of Kirkuk, it looks like they were going after targets of opportunity -- vehicles on the ground.