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U.S. President Set To Deliver Last State of the Union Address; According to UN 400 Madaya Residents Need Immediate Evacuation for Medical Treatment; Nine Dead After Suicide Bomber Attacks Instanbul. Aired 8:00a- 9:00a ET

Aired January 12, 2016 - 08:00:00   ET

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


[08:00:14] KRISTIE LU STOUT, HOST: I'm Kristie Lu Stout in Hong Kong. And welcome to News Stream.

At least nine people have been killed in Istanbul after a blast at a population tourist destination.

UN officials say 400 people in the besieged Syrian town of Madaya need immediate medical care or they could die.

And he has been dubbed the new Jihadi John. CNN speaks to the sister of the man widely believed to be the British extremist fighter.

We begin in Turkey's biggest city, Istanbul, rocked by a major explosion. The Turkish president says a suicide bomber with links to Syria was

responsible. At least nine people have been killed, and officials say a significant number are foreign nationals. 15 people are wounded, including

a Norwegian.

No group has claimed responsibility for the attack, but Turkey has been dealing with security threats posed by ISIS and Kurdish separatists.

Now, the blast has struck the heart of Istanbul's tourist hub. The Sultanahmet Square is at the center of a historic area that is home to some

of Turkey's top architectural gems.

Now, the church of Hajia Sophia there is more than 1,400 years old. It is where rulers of the Eastern Roman Empire were crowned.

Now, nearby is the 400-year-old Blue Mosque, its unique domes and towers dominate the city skyline.

Now, our Senior International Correspondent Ivan Watson spent several years based in Istanbul and he joins me now live.

And Ivan, let's talk more about the target tell us more about the significance of where this deadly blast took place.

IVAN WATSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDNET: That's right. This is Sultanahmet. It is the old city of Istanbul, formerly Constantinople.

This blast would have gone off within sight of Hajia Sophia, that 1,500 year old basilica built by Roman emperors.

This the jewel of the Turkish tourism industry. It is a place visited by hoards of visitors from within Turkey and from around the world. It is a

symbolic blow to an industry that in 2014 was worth some $34 billion, according to the Turkish government. And if in fact the Turkish

government's initial announcement that this was a suicide bomber of Syrian origin proves to be true, then it shows

that the spillover effect of the civil war in Syria can be felt hundreds of miles away in the commercial capital of Istanbul, a city that previously

had largely been spared the ripple effects of this conflict that continues to threaten to destabilize the region -- Kristie.

LU STOUT: Is that the only factor here, the ripple effects from Syria? What about ISIS? What about the PKK? Because there has been a wave of

violent attacks in Turkey. Why is all this happening?

WATSON: Turkey is fighting two determined, armed organized enemies simultaneously: the Kurdistan Worker's Party, or PKK -- they are from

Turkey's largest ethnic minority, the Kurds. They've been fighting against the Turkish state for some 30 years. And a civil war that had started to

ebb with a peace process reignited, Kristie, last summer.

So, you've got entire city's and towns in southeastern Turkey that have been under government curfew, where you've had street-to-street urban

warfare taking place.

Simultaneously, the Turkish state has been fighting ISIS throughout the first years of the civil war in Syria, Turkey allowed more than a million

Syrian refugees to flee to Turkey. It also turned a blind eye to jihadi militants crossing into

Syria to fight the Syrian government. And now we're starting to see some of the blow-back effects of that.

The Turkish state is trying to crack down on ISIS networks within Turkey. And since the last six months, ISIS has been linked to a series of deadly

suicide bombings that have claimed the lives of more than 130 Turks in the border town Suruc (ph) last July and in the capital Ankara, last October.

And now this latest suicide bombing, which would most likely appear to be the work of a jihadi group. The PKK has carried out bombings in the past,

but it has tended to focus its attention and its targets on Turkish security forces. This would be a big break from their past modus operandi

if they in fact targeted what appear to have been foreign tourists in the heart of the old city of Istanbul, Kristie.

[08:05:05] LU STOUT: Ivan Watson reporting, we appreciate your analysis there. Thank you.

Now, let's go straight to Istanbul. Our Senior international correspondent Arwa Damon is there.

And Arwa, you heard this explosion when it happened. What, since then, have you learned about the blast, and how it unfolded?

ARWA DAMON, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, we're on the scene right now, Kristie. The blast happening a few hundred meters from where the

press is lined up. The area is all cordoned off at this stage. Fairly calm. The authorities very quick to react to this immediately sending in

the security forces, ambulances, fire trucks, clearing out the casualties, getting the wounded pretty quickly to the various different hospitals.

This is what we know at this stage. According to the president, this was the work of a suicide bomber, identified as being of Syrian origins and

born in 1988. According to the deputy prime minister, a significant number of those nine who were killed in this attack were foreign nationals.

This is such a devastating blow to this country. First and foremost, for those who lost loved ones in this attack and now are having to deal with

the consequences of this kind of horrific violence, but also what it means to just

how vulnerable Turkey really is.

This area that we're in right now where the attack took place, this is the core, the very center of the country's historic district, tourist

destination. If you come here to visit Istanbul, this is going to be one of the main, if not the main, part of the city that you come to.

And there have been leading up to this point in time widespread concerns that there would be this kind of violence that did transpire, because

Turkey has been fighting terrorists on numerous different levels, and they have been, authorities say, actively going after hundreds of individuals

who they say have links to various terrorist organizations, detaining them, conducting massive country-wide

sweeps and still it is so painfully apparent that there are so many vulnerable points.

No direct links to ISIS, at least not those being publicly made, but a lot of suspicion that they are in fact behind this horrific attack.

If you remember, ISIS was blamed for the twin suicide blasts that claimed the lives of over 100 people in the capital Ankara back in October. That

was the single deadliest attack in Turkey's modern day history, that attack happening during a rally there.

And then prior to that, over the summer, you had the attack on a gathering happening in Suruc, a town along the Turkey-Syria border.

This is not just a blow to the Turkish psyche when it comes to security, but also potentially a blow to the country's vital tourism industry that is

one of the main economic avenues for this country.

But what's actually been interesting, Kristie, is that we have spoken to some

of the individuals around here, one young man who has a food truck selling snacks who said that he heard the blast, it shook him. He was visibly

distraught and very emotional about what happened. But then we spoke to a handful of

foreigners, a young German girl who is actually a student here who said that, yes, her family is very worried. They do want her to come back home,

but she has no intention of doing that.

And then we spoke to an American couple who were staying at a hotel not far away. They didn't hear the blast, but they said that despite the fact that

this violence had happened in such a tragic and horrific way, it was not going to deter them from continuing their visit to Turkey, nor was it going

to negatively impact what they said was their love that they felt for this country and this was their first visit, Kristie.

LU STOUT: Arwa Damon reporting live at the scene of this deadly explosion. Thank you very much indeed for your reporting.

You're watching News Stream. And still ahead on the program, the UN issues an urgent warning in the Syrian city of Maydaya. Why it says hundreds of

people must be evacuated now.

Plus, British authorities are scrambling to identify an ISIS militant seen in a propaganda video threatening the UK. You'll hear from the sister of

one of the prime suspects.

Also ahead, despite widespread criticism, North Korea does not appear to be scaling back its nuclear ambitions. Why experts say the nation sees its

nuclear program as key to its survival.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[08:11:28] LU STOUT: OK, let's bring you a recap of the top news. Turkey's president says a suicide bomber with links to Syria is behind a deadly

explosion in Istanbul. At least nine people have been killed and a significant number are foreign nationals. 15 people are wounded including

a Norwegian. It happened in a historic part of the city near major tourist attractions. No group has claimed responsibility for the attack.

But Turkey has been dealing with security threats posed by ISIS and Kurdish separatists.

Now, hundreds of civilians in the besieged Syrian city of Madaya are on the brink of death this hour, that's according to the head of UN relief

efforts. He says that 400 people there must be evacuated immediately for medical treatment, otherwise, they could die.

Now, that is the brutal reality of conditions in the rebel-held town which has been cut off for months without adequate food or medicine. The UN

convoy finally arrived on Monday to supply much-needed aid to the 40,000 people living there.

Now, we heard a short time ago from Yacoub El Hillo, now he is the UN humanitarian coordinator in Syria. And he was in Maydaya just a few hours

ago.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

YACOUB EL HILLO, UN HUMANITARIAN COORDINATOR SYRIA: The store whatever food, what food was possible to get into the towns before the siege, they

managed it carefully. They ration it. They try. But they run out of it eventually. And this is what we are seeing now in Madaya, but also in Fua

and Ketraya.

So that is when these images begin to come out, where people go for days, many days, without food, without medical care, without supplies.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LU STOUT: Now keep in mind, Madaya is less than 500 kilometers from Damascus, but its path to the Syrian capital is strangled by military

blockades and landmines.

And the cost of food there has sky-rocketed. A kilo of flour goes for $120 in Madaya, that's more than 150 times the price in Damascus. And a kilo of

rice, that's even more, $150. And a liter of milk sells for $300, that's about 283 times the going rate.

Now, let's go straight to our senior international correspondent Nick Paton Walsh. He joins me now live from Beirut. And Nick, aid has arrived there

in Madaya, but these victims of extreme hunger still need very urgent help.

NICK PATON WALSH, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, and the problem, Kristie, is even if they were given food at this stage, it has to be

administered very carefully and, oddly, in small amounts because those suffering from extreme malnourishment can in fact become sicker if given

too much food.

And one of the aide workers in that convoy I spoke to described often a complex situation where the rice has arrived and some of the men there are

saying, let's cook it up, let's feed people, but they're actually having to be

advised to slow down because that could make some of the 400 who the UN relief chief Steven O'Brien told the UN security council last night

urgently need evacuation. It could make them even more sick.

But that aid worker in that convoy describing terrifying scenes as they went

in, people weeping to see them arrive. Children, politely standing by simply asking, please, can I have a biscuit, one asking if was possible to

have French fries and ketchup.

When they went in to the town, they were offered what the locals call the besieged soup, which is basically hot water and spices. That's what

children are given once a day to keep them going and what those aid workers were, in fact, offered as a gesture of common hospitality by the Syrians

inside that town.

A town, which years ago was a resort area, comfortable, well-to-do but now suffering from remarkable levels of malnutrition.

The 44 trucks of aid that went in yesterday, well, they will slowly be distributed. This food, surgical supplies, medical supplies for a hospital

that is apparently makeshift in somebody's home where a veterinarian, two dentists and a general practitioner are working with nurses who are simply

learning on the job to deal with the intense malnutrition.

But still they need that delivered daily. They need the 400 whose evacuation is not part of the commonly agreed arrangements out. And they

need aid to go in day by day to keep people alive.

That's the conditions they're under right now. 30 people or so are said by aid agencies to have died since early December. The last aid shipment went

in in mid-October.

Madaya is in the focus of the spotlight here, but I should point out as Steven O'Brien told the security council last night there were 400,000

people across Syria lacking food because of the conflict and, in two towns in

particular, Fua Ketraya, who also simultaneously received aid yesterday as well at the same time Madaya did, those two towns surrounded by rebels and

loyal to the government.

So, a tit for tat exchange here, one that makes the urgent need of getting aid to people so much more difficult, Kristie.

[08:16:18] LU STOUT: It's still a very dire situation. Madaya and elsewhere across Syria. Nick Paton Walsh reporting for us. Thank you,

Nick.

Now, when ISIS released a new propaganda video last week all eyes were on one man in the images, the so-called new Jihadi John.

Authorities say that they are still working to confirm the identity of the British militant, but security agencies are reportedly focusing on a 32-

year-old Londoner who calls himself Abu Rumaysah in response to question in parliament.

Now recently, the UK home secretary wouldn't comment about the name, citing an ongoing investigation. But CNN's Clarissa Ward sat down with the man's

sister.

CLARISSA WARD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Kristie, that's right. To the outside world he is known simply as Abu Rumaysah. He is a Londoner, 32-

years-old, a convert from Hinduism, who fled the UK with his wife and children just about a year and a half ago to join ISIS.

But to 27-year-old Conika Dhar, he is simply Sid, or Siddhartha Dhar, her big brother.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

WARD: What was he like as a brother?

KONIKA DHAR, SISTER OF ABU RUMAYSAH: Typical brother. I think just into sort of -- he liked playing his basketball a lot, which he was quite good

at, video games and films. And he liked to collect comic books as well.

WARD: But after converting to Islam as a young man, things began to change. He fell in with a radical preacher. And in an interview with CBS's "60

Minutes" shortly before he fled to Syria in 2014, he told me he was not able to love his mother or anyone in his family any more.

SIDDHARTHA DHAR, NEW JIHADI JOHN: I don't love them and -- but I desire for them to become Muslim and embrace Islam.

WARD: But you love her as your mother?

SIDDHARTHA DHAR: She's my mother and she has rights over me so I have to take care of her.

WARD: But do you feel love for her?

SIDDHARTHA DHAR: It's not right for me to love non Muslims, so that is a matter of faith.

WARD: What's your reaction to that?

DHAR: I was upset and sad, more than anything, because I don't understand it. I'll be honest with you, one thing that I sort of noticed is that he

has stripped his identity completely. And this is what's sad because he had the most colorful, creative personality and I don't know where it's gone

and where we've gone wrong. But it's been lost.

WARD: You say where we've gone wrong. Did on blame yourself?

DHAR: I think, yes, definitely, there's an element of guilty. I feel why could I not stop it? Are we that bad that you have to leave, that you have

to go and live another life?

WARD (voice-over): Dhar wants to believe her brother is not the man in the new ISIS video, though she has conceded the voices are similar. She says

she is unable to reconcile that killer with the boy she grew up with.

(on camera): Most people would say that anyone who joins ISIS on some level is evil, a psycho path. Do you believe that to be true about your brother?

DHAR: Well, I can only speak in regards to my brother and I can -- you definitely say that I don't agree with that. I see him as a compassionate

sort of family person, caring individual, somebody who sort of who doesn't really engage in activities like...

(CROSSTALK)

WARD: Even after he's joined ISIS?

DHAR: Maybe I don't want to believe it. I don't know.

WARD: Do you believe that he's a killer?

DHAR: Oh, god no. No, absolutely not. No.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WARD: Konika Dhar said that she has spoken to her brother several times since he joined ISIS, but that he has shown no remorse about his actions

and he reportedly says that he is quite happy where he is, Kristie.

[08:20:13] LU STOUT: And Clarissa, if her brother is the new Jihadi John, what role is he playing in ISIS today?

WARD: Well, it seems that he is participating in the group's very active propaganda campaign. Clearly, the death of the original Jihadi John by a

drone strike last November was a real blow for the group because he certainly

imbued the sense of fear and horror that the group has really tried to project.

So perhaps, Abu Rumaysah, if he is indeed -- and it is an if, Kristie, the new Jihadi John, is attempt to replicate that.

LU STOUT: Clarissa Ward reporting for us. Many thanks indeed for that.

Now, you're watching News Stream. And still ahead, North Korea sent shockwaves around when it claimed it detonated an H-bomb. Why some believe

the country is flaunting its nuclear ambition now.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LU STOUT: Coming to you live from Hong Kong, you're back watching News Stream.

Now, North Korea has long faced international criticism over its nuclear program, but that didn't stop the country from claiming it had tested a

hydrogen bomb. Paula Hancocks has a look at why Pyongyang seems to flaunt its nuclear

ambition now.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

[08:25:04] PAULA HANCOCKS, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Kim Jong-un, a crazy nutcase and a maniac, that is the view of North Korea's young leader

from two leading U.S. Republican presidential candidates.

But experts say he is neither.

ANDREI LANKOV, PROFESSOR: Let's not make fun of them. They are masters of survival.

HANCOCKS: A country that's declared itself a nuclear state, even if Washington insists it will never be recognized as such.

LANKOV: It's not crazy, it's security. Because where they say they without nuclear weapons, they could be invaded or maybe some internal

rebellion would be supported by outside forces.

HANCOCKS: Take Moammar Gadhafi, former prime minister of Libya, once a Pariah with a nuclear weapons program, much like Kim Jong-un.

He gave up the program after the American invasion of Iraq in return for lifting of sanctions and normalized relations. Eight years later, he was

dead, killed by rebels supported by the west.

Gadhafi's demise not escaping Pyongyang's notice. State media writing the tragic situation teaches of several countries, including Libya, teaches a

serious lesson.

The same commentary piece references U.S. pressure on Iraq to give up nuclear ambitions, saying then the U.S. started the war and swallowed Iraq

up.

CHUN YUNG-WOO, SENIOR ADVISER: North Korea sees nuclear weapons as a source of salvation for the regime, as a holy grail of the regime, as an

ultimate insurance policy for regime survival.

HANCOCKS: Even with more than a million troops north of the DMZ, North Korea is no match militarily for a U.S. backed South Korea. Its military

hardware is outdated, some of its army underpaid and under fed.

It's hard to imagine a scenario where North Korea would ever agree to give up its nuclear ambitions, referring to its program as the treasured sword

of justice.

Paula Hancocks, CNN, Seoul.

(END VIDEOATPE)

LU STOUT: You're watching News Stream. And when we come back, we'll continue to update you on the deadly suicide bombing in Istanbul.

Also ahead, a very special speech: President Barack Obama prepares to take a look back at his presidency in his final State of the Union Address.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(HEADLINES)

[08:30:53] LU STOUT: Now let's take you back to Istanbul, where authorities are dealing with the aftermath of a deadly explosion. CNN's

Arwa Damon joins us once against. And Arwa, a horrific outburst of violence this day. What is the latest about what we know about what

happened and the cause of the blast?

DAMON: Well, the attack happened a few hundred meters behind us. And this is the very heart, the very core of istanbul's historic district.

If you're here as a tourist, this is going to be one of the main things, if not the main, area that you come to to try to see the numerous different

sites that are here.

At 10:15 in the morning, Kristie, what we now know to be a suicide bomber with, according to the country's president, Syrian origins, born in 1988,

detonated an explosive vest and killed at least nine people. Among them -- we don't know the exact nationalities.

This is not just an attack that, of course, is so devastating for those who have lost loved ones in this violence, it's also a very attack to the

Turkish psyche that has been to a certain degree gearing up, if not bracing itself, for this kind of violence.

And it's also an attack that sends a very distinctive message to the Turkish authorities that they do remain very vulnerable in some very

significant areas, especially when it comes to the very core of the tourism industry that is so central to the economy here.

What's been interesting, Kristie, that as we arrived here a few hours ago, you know, we did speak to people who had been in the area when the blast

took place. One man describing how the ground shook and then it was just complete chaos.

But we also talked to some tourists, a young German girl who is a student here. And she said that even before coming to Turkey, her family was a bit

nervous about her coming, but she came and she was loving her experiences here and that after this her family was begging her to come back home, but

that she wasn't going to, because despite this kind of violence she didn't want it to tarnish her experience here. And that was the same thing that

we interestingly heard echoed from an American couple that is also here on vacation.

But, again, Turkey has been bracing for this kind of violence. If we just look over what has transpired over the last seven months, there have been

two significant attacks that the government has blamed on ISIS. The government has actively opened a front with ISIS, both within its own

borders when it comes to these massive sweeps that are seeing security officials rounding up hundreds of individuals with links to terrorism, but

then the country also is facing yet another destabilizing factor when it comes to the ceasefire that completely fell apart between the Turkish

government and the PKK, the Kurdistan Worker's Party, the pro-Kurdish separatist group with pretty intense fighting breaking out in southeastern

Turkey and then of course you have these growing tensions with Russia after Turkey shot down a Russian fighter jet.

So, the country really is in a very complex situation with all these different dynamics coming together, but none of them can be separated from

each other so it's a very intertwined, complicated situation that sadly is manifesting itself in violence like this, Kristie.

LU STOUT: You know, it's very encouraging to hear just a beat ago that you talked to foreign nationals there in Istanbul in the wake of this deadly

blast saying that they're not intimidated by what happened today. But a lot of people out there are and are scared by this type of violence.

Do authorities there in Turkey have a plan to keep tourists safe and to keep Turkish nationals safe?

DAMON: Well, look, the government hasn't come out with any sort of updated plan at this stage, but for the better part of the last year there have

been fairly significant massive countrywide sweeps where hundreds of individuals with alleged ties to various different terrorist organizations

have been detained.

The government -- security officials have significantly attempted to crack down and control the border between Syria and Turkey. They have countless

individuals under surveillance. And they are attempting to, as best they can, try to secure these vulnerable sites. They have upped their presence

on the streets, whether it's plain-clothes security forces, undercover entities or just in terms of, you know, the sheer volume that -- of

individuals they do have out there. But it's a very difficult and complex situation for the country to manage, especially given the fact that these

threats come from a lot of different levels.

But, yes, you know, security has been a concern for a lot of people. People are a lot warier when they get onto the metro or are in larger

crowds. And, you know, unfortunately people's worst fears today did manifest themselves, Kristie.

[08:36:09] LU STOUT: Arwa Damon reporting live from Istanbul. Thank you, Arwa.

Now, U.S. President Barack Obama will be making his final State of the Union Address in just a few hours. Now this one, it comes just days after

he announced executive action on gun control. And he may discuss other issues close to his heart in this address.

Jim Acosta has more on what to expect.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JIM ACOSTA, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESOPNDENT: White House officials say the president will deliver an unconventional speech during his final

State of the Union address later on tonight. The president will talk about the America he hopes to see after he leaves office, but there are still a

few things he wants to accomplish over the coming year. White House aides say the president will not only defend his executive actions on guns but

will talk about his plan to close the terror detention prison at Guantanamo, pass criminal justice reform and take the fight to ISIS.

As a tribute to the victims of gun violence, there will be an empty seat in the first lady's box to symbolize the lives lost in mass shootings. There

will be a touch of the nostalgia in the president's speech as he will look back to his historic 2008 campaign, and point to one of his first

supporters, Edith Childs, who coined the chant, "Fired up, ready to go", a favorite at Obama rallies. The White House has hinted there won't be a long

laundry list of proposals in this last State of the Union, an acknowledgment that time is winding down and Congress is looking to the

next election.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LU STOUT: And that was our senior White House correspondent Jim Acosta. Our coverage of President Obama's final state of the union address begins

10:00 a.m. Wednesday in Hong Kong, 11:00 a.m. in Tokyo, or you can watch the replay a few hours later at 6:00 p.m. Hong Kong, 7:00 p.m. in Tokyo

right here on CNN.

Now, you're watching News Stream. We'll be back with more analysis on that deadly blast in Istanbul after the break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LU STOUT: Now here is a final recap of our top news this hour. At least nine people have been killed in an explosion in Istanbul. Turkey says it

was a suicide bomb and its likely a significant number of the victims are foreign nationals.

Now, 15 people are wounded, including a Norwegian.

Turkey's president says the attacker was a man in his 20s with links to Syria.

And the blast was in a historic neighborhood near major tourist attractions and no group has claimed responsibility. Turkey has been dealing with

security threats posed by ISIS and Kurdish separatists.

Joining us for more, is Soner Cagaptayof the Washington Institute for Near East Policy. And Soner, thank you for joining us.

Turkish officials say that the suicide bomber was of Syrian origin and born in 1988. What does that intel reveal to you?

SONER CAGAPTAY, WASHINGTON INSTITUTE FOR NEAR EAST POLICY: It suggests that if indeed the so-called Islamic State it's waging war on Turkey.

There is a patch of Syrian territory about 60 miles wide across from the Turkish border which is still controlled by the so-called Islamic State and

Turkey was now making plans to act basically any day with the United States to bomb that area and to clear it of the Islamic State presence.

So in anticipation of this Turkey-U.S. move, I think the Islamic State is acting first and trying ot hurt Turkey hoping that it will change Turkey's

mind with this act of terror.

LU STOUT: And Soner, quite a number of foreign nationals were killed and wounded in this blast. What message is being sent when tourists are being

attacked and killed in Turkey?

CAGAPTAY: More significantly, of course, this horrendous attack is in the heart of Istanbul's old city which has a large number of churches and

mosques and museums and restaurants, but it's really frequented mostly by tourists. So, I think this is also striking at the core of Turkey's tourism industry, which brings about $30 billion in

income, helps the country's economy greatly.

It's the second largest sector of the economy after industry that's tourism. So this is to scare away tourists and hurt to Turkey's economy.

But also, I think the fact that so many of the killed, unfortunately, are Germans, this might create a backlash in Germany where there is already a

growing resentment against Angela Merkel's pro-refugee policy. Some people will make the unfortunate connection

between the Syrian suicide bomber and the refugees who are fleeing the Islamic State, if that is indeed the case that this is carried out by the

Islamic state.

LU STOUT: And what's happening in general inside Turkey, there has been just this relentless just waves of violence there. This is hurting

Turkey's reputation as a tourism destination. It's hurting its economy potentially. Can Turkey better secure itself and protect the foreign

nationals who visit the country?

CAGAPTAY: This makes it almost inescapable now that Turkey will act with the United States to clean that 60-mile territory of the Syrian border that

is controlled by the Islamic State on the Syrian side. So, I think we can expect strong action.

U.S. Vice President Biden is going to Istanbul, Turkey later this month on the 23rd after attending the Davos summit in Switzerland.

So, I think it will be a very priority item on Biden's agenda when he meets Turkish leaders that it is time for Turkey to act and to seal the border so

that there will be no more Islamic State crossings into Turkey as well as into Europe.

LU STOUT: Soner Cagaptay of the Washington Institute for Near East Policy, thank you for sharing your thoughts with us here on CNN.

And that is News Stream. I'm Kristie Lu Stout. Don't go anywhere, though. World Sport with Amanda Davies is next.

END