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CNN LIVE SUNDAY

Latest in Investigation Into Natalee Holloway's Disappearance; A Look at Operation Spear

Aired June 19, 2005 - 11:00   ET

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

FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: It is 11:00 a.m. in Atlanta, 8:00 a.m. in Los Angeles. Happy Father's Day and welcome to CNN LIVE SUNDAY. I'm Fredricka Whitfield. Unfolding this hour, a suicide bombing inside a crowded Baghdad restaurant, more than a dozen people are killed.
From Aruba, the investigation into the disappearance of Natalee Holloway takes another dramatic turn. We're live with new developments. Plus, this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BILL COOK, STAY AT HOME DAD: I've got the two babies and I've got my daughter with me and they look at me like, where's your wife? Why are you here by yourself?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: He's part of a new generation, the stay at home dad or Mr. Mom. This hour, a growing trend for fathers, but first a look at our top stories.

American air strikes have killed 15 to 20 militants in Afghanistan. That word from the U.S. military. The strike took place earlier today in one of the country's southern provinces.

Supporters of Nobel peace prize winning Aung San Suu Kyi are celebrating her 60th birthday with events around the world. The pro- democracy leader remains under house arrest in Myanmar's capital. She has spent the last decade in confinement.

Another earthquake has rattled parts of California. The latest, a magnitude 5, struck earlier today off the coast of northern California. There are no reports of any damage or injury.

New developments now in the fight for Iraq as insurgents continue to attack security forces. A U.S. Marine is killed in "Operation Spear" in western Iraq. It happened during a fire fight near the Syrian border. And a lunchtime crowd at a popular Baghdad cafe was terrorized by a suicide bomb who set off a vestful of explosives. The blast killed at least 16 people, including six Iraqi police officers. Earlier a car bomb apparently targeting an Iraqi police convoy exploded in northwest Baghdad. Two women were killed in the blast and 20 other Iraqis were wounded. Along Iraq's Syrian border "Operation Spear" continues to crack down on a stronghold for international fighters and insurgents in the town of Karabila. CNN's Jane Arraf is exclusively embedded with the U.S. Marines there and joins us by phone. Jane?

JANE ARRAF, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Fredricka, Marines are continuing to push through the city and meeting resistance of what they say are strongholds, safe havens for foreign fighters who have continued to come through Syria. They have reached a new part of the city this morning, setting off more than 3,000 pounds of plastic explosives to breach through those defenses and make sure that they were detonating any mines and car bombs. And they have been finding car bombs here throughout the city. They have also been finding torture house, classrooms for instruction on making home made bombs. They say that they believe they have killed approximately 50 suspected insurgents or foreign fighters. One Marine has been killed in action in a gunfire. Six of them have been wounded and the battle here continues. Fredricka?

WHITFIELD: And yesterday you talked about the discovery of this place where hostages were being held. Are those hostages, now that they're free, able to reveal any more about what happened?

ARRAF: They're still getting medical treatment, Fredricka. They were in such bad shape. They were tortured so badly. One of them was unable to walk. He was a member of the border police and he was carried out on a stretcher. His head bandaged because they had applied electric shocks to his head after dunking his head under water. The other has extensive, extensive wounds to his back where he was apparently beaten with a rubber hose as well as having electric shocks administered to him. The other two who weren't as badly tortured say that they barely had any conversations with their captors. They claim they don't know who they are. They are clearly very, very afraid still. But they say that their captors only whispered in their ear that they were going to kill them. They never had entire conversations and they say they can't say anything about where they were held, why they were held or who held them. Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: All right. Jane Arraf, thanks so much for that report, via phone, as you're embedded with U.S. military force there, Karabila.

U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice continues her whirlwind tour of the Middle East. Earlier today, she met with Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon. That meeting came after talks with Palestinian authority President Mahmoud Abbas. Rice says both sides have now agreed that hundreds of Jewish settler homes in Gaza will be destroyed as part of an Israeli withdrawal plan. Rice talks about that issue on CNN's "LATE EDITION" with Wolf Blitzer.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CONDOLEEZZA RICE, SECRETARY OF STATE: They decided together that they believe that the removal of homes is in the best interest of the Palestinian people. And I should say, Wolf, that there's a lot of work to do. Jim Wolfensohn is very involved in it, our quartet envoy in all of the details of how they do this. But essentially the Palestinians have a master plan for how they would like to plan Gaza, particularly some of the housing issues. And these particular houses don't really fit into that plan.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: And you can see the entire interview with Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice coming up on CNN's "LATE EDITION" at the top of the hour. Checking stories across America now.

Search and rescue teams in Utah are looking for a missing boy scout. Eleven-year-old Brennan Hawkins was last seen Friday at a scout camp. The area in eastern Utah is mountainous and wooded.

In Neshoba County, Mississippi, annual memorial services begin a short time from now for three civil rights activists killed by the Ku Klux Klan 41 years ago. James Chaney, Andrew Goodman and Michael Schwerner are being remembered in two services today. Right now for the first time, a murder trial connected to the case is taking place in Philadelphia, Mississippi. A reputed former Klan member, Edgar Ray Killen, is accused of being the ring leader in the killings. That trial resumes tomorrow.

In New Jersey, five members of a Pennsylvania family were hurt in an amusement ride accident on Atlantic City's steel pier. They were on a log flume ride that went down an incline into an empty basin.

As the search goes on in Aruba for a missing teenager, there's a new development in the case. A prominent judge on the island has been questioned as part of the investigation. The latest now from CNN's Chris Lawrence in Palm Beach, Aruba. Chris.

CHRIS LAWRENCE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Fredricka, we know that this judge, he was only questioned as a witness, unlike his 17-year-old son and the other men who have been arrested and suspected of homicide. Now, you can take a look here. This is from last night. You're looking at Paul Van Der Sloot. He is running out of the police station late last night, trying to avoid the cameras and get home, after talking to investigators for what we know to be at least about four hours. Now, Van Der Sloot is a judge here in Aruba. His 17- year-old son, Joran, was one of last people to see Natalee three weeks ago. Police have also searched the Van Der Sloots' home again and brought in another judge from another island to make sure that decisions are seen as impartial.

That judge ruled those original three young men who were arrested could be detained another week, even though no charges have been filed against them. And on Friday, a fourth suspect was also picked up. Now, Natalee's mother says she has changed her feelings somewhat. She's gone from sad and depressed to more angry, frustrated at the pace of the investigation. You can see here she's leaving and attending church services last night with a lot of her supporters here in Aruba. Many of the people here on the island have rallied to her cause and shown her a tremendous amount of support. She is actually staying in the very hotel that we're standing at right now in Natalee's old room where her passport and Natalee's bags were left behind. Fredricka?

WHITFIELD: And, Chris, what about the active search for Natalee Holloway? How is that playing out throughout the island?

LAWRENCE: Well, it seems to be going from place to place. They searched a lighthouse where the initial statement said that Natalee had driven by with these young men. They searched a nearby beach. Helicopters were seen buzzing over the Van Der Sloots' home. They did go back in a second time to the Van Der Sloots' home and we actually saw them carrying out several bags of items. But at this point we don't know exactly what they were looking for.

WHITFIELD: All right. Chris Lawrence, thanks so much from Palm Beach, Aruba.

Time was critical and as water started rushing in, one survivor accounts the frightening ordeal of surviving a helicopter crash. His story straight ahead.

Plus, a relatively unknown golfer has a shot at actually winning the U.S. Open. Can he survive the pressure?

And remembering the service of their dads. Many pay their respects at the Vietnam veterans' memorial on this Father's Day. CNN LIVE SUNDAY continues in a moment.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: Let's head out to Pinehurst, North Carolina now where defending champ Retief Goosen is looking for his third U.S. Open title. He leads the pack in the final round, 3 strokes under par. Goosen tees off with Jason Gore this afternoon at 3:00 Eastern. CNN's Mark McKay is covering the tournament and here's his report.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MARK McKAY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Jason Gore has captured the imagination of the huge galleries here at the U.S. Open in Pinehurst. They're doing the Gore roar for an unlikely contender in the year's second golfing major. Nowhere was it louder than on the 18th green, where Gore's birdie on Saturday meant he'd be playing in the final group come Sunday.

JASON GORE, TIED FOR SECOND PLACE AT +2: I was trying to keep my emotions under check because sometimes they can get a little -- you know, I can feel myself crying and my face kind of -- not crying but you can feel like it's on the verge. And I guess when I made that putt I kind of pointed it kind of Tigeresque and I looked at my caddie afterwards and, you know, as K.J. was putting I said, did I just point that ball into the hole? And he goes, yeah, you did. I said, what a cheese ball.

OLIN BROWNE, TIED WITH GORE AT +2: He's the story of the Open, because here's a guy who is not even playing the tour. He's playing nationwide this year and he's had success out there. But here's a guy that nobody's ever heard of and yet they're digging his play, you know? That's kind of cool. I think that's great.

TIGER WOODS, SITS AT +3: Jason's a great guy. I mean we go back to junior golf back in our little pee wee leagues in southern Cal. I've known Jason a long time. He's got all of the talent in the world. He's always been a very long hitter. It's just a matter of him fine-tuning his swing, you know? He did that and he's done that and it's holding up.

RETIEF GOOSEN, LEADER AT +3: We said at the beginning of the week that we probably expect nobody to be under par. Yeah, if I go out there and play pretty solid tomorrow and I suppose I've got a good chance. It's not easy to make up ground on this course. It's easy to lose ground. I don't know what the weather's going to be like tomorrow. But you know, I keep playing solid, probably shoot one or two over, I could probably win.

McKAY: If Goosen can remain unshakable, he'd become the first back-to-back U.S. Open champion since Curtis Strange turned the trick in 1988 and '89. Mark McKay, CNN, Pinehurst, North Carolina.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: In the NBA, the Detroit Pistons and San Antonio Spurs square off again tonight in game five of their best of seven championship series. The series is tied at two games as piece. After tonight, the series moves back to San Antonio for game six on Tuesday. And if necessary, game seven will be Thursday night in San Antonio.

It's a new generation of what some are calling Mr. Mom.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BILL COOK, STAY-AT-HOME DAD: I get that a lot, Mr. Mom, Mr. Mom. No, it's Mr. Dad.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: How are these men handling their household duties? That story straight ahead on CNN LIVE SUNDAY.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: The Ferrari Club called itself a very Catholic club with close ties to the Vatican. That's why more than a dozen of the pricey autos showed up in St. Peter's Square today to receive the pope's blessing. Pope Benedict XVI took note of the sports car saying, quote, we see them and soon we'll hear them.

"RELIABLE SOURCES" starts a little over ten minutes from now and Howard Kurtz has this preview.

HOWARD KURTZ, CNN ANCHOR, RELIABLE SOURCES: Coming up, celebrities on trial and in the spotlight. Have the media been fair to Michael Jackson both during his prolonged trial and after the not guilty verdict? And the paparazzi, are they growing too reckless in trying to record lives of Hollywood stars? Should prosecutors go after them or are they protected by the first amendment?

Plus the runaway bride sells a news interview for big bucks and why does television keep replaying that commercial with the scantily clad Paris Hilton? That's all ahead on "RELIABLE SOURCES."

WHITFIELD: All right. We look forward to that, Howard. All right. Let's check in with weather and check in with Rob Marciano. Happy Father's Day to all the fathers in your life.

ROB MARCIANO, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Yes, thank you. I like how you did that, me not being a dad.

WHITFIELD: I know you're not a dad.

MARCIANO: Happy Father's Day to the fathers out there. Anyway, Fredricka, looking good weather-wise. Dads want to do something outside, you've got it. Just a couple areas of concern. One, the Carolinas, south Georgia, maybe Florida, pop-up thunderstorms around this area, disturbed weather. Northeast, comfortably cool, some sunshine, temperatures in the 70s in some spots. Not even getting out of the 60s, so looks good there. But the heat continues to hold strong across the nation's midsection and really riding all the way up into the Dakotas and then back into the desert southwest.

Another area of spinning, disturbed weather across northern California for a couple of shower there. But all in all, I'd say 90 to 95 percent of the real estate across the lower 48 should be rain- free today, 91 degrees expected for a high temperature in Denver. That's where some of heat is, 95 or better in Dallas and Houston. Some of that heat getting all the way up to Minneapolis, 77 in Chicago, 73 in New York. That's comfortable.

Been talking about the U.S. Open in Pinehurst, North Carolina, what's the forecast for the fourth and final round? 82 degrees today, mostly sunny, maybe a thunderstorm popping up or a shower, but that gives you about a 30 percent chance with the northeast wind 5 to 15 mile an hour. Tomorrow, daytime highs similar to today, maybe a few degrees warmer, certainly in Chicago and then New York getting back to 81 degrees. That's the latest from here. Fredricka, enjoy the rest of your Sunday.

WHITFIELD: All right. Thanks so much Rob. One of the survivors of a helicopter crash in Manhattan speaks out about the ordeal. The corporate helicopter went down Friday in the East River. Eight people on board the aircraft survived the crash. Among them, Lance Weaver, a senior vice chairman with a Delaware company.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

LANCE WEAVER, CRASH SURVIVOR: The cabin was full of water. We were holding our breath. That -- that rushed in and as I said, the craft turned and so everybody got turned upside down in the craft. But we were completely disoriented. The cabin was full of water. And I knew in my mind that we needed to get that door open, that if -- that time was of the essence. If the craft continued to sink, it would be increasingly difficult to get the doors open with the pressure of the water.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: Friday's helicopter crash was the second in the East River in less hand a week. In all, 15 people survived two crashes.

Happy Father's Day to all of the dads out there, including my dad, my husband John and my brother. Which leads us to this question -- what about the growing trend of stay at home dads? How are they handling their new responsibilities as Mr. Mom? We'll have a report straight ahead.

Plus a tribute to dad. Sons and daughters of the Vietnam era are in Washington, D.C. today to spend Father's Day at the Vietnam veteran's memorial. That story next on CNN LIVE SUNDAY.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: On this Father's Day, tributes are being paid to a special group of men -- fathers who were killed in the Vietnam War and those who are still missing. Some of their sons, daughters and grandchildren are taking part in special ceremonies today at the Vietnam veterans memorial in Washington, D.C. More than 58,000 Americans were killed in Vietnam. It's estimated that a third of them were fathers.

On this Father's Day, many American troops are serving their country in another location -- Iraq. And that means they're not getting to spend this special occasion with their families here in the United States. In a bid to boost morale, the Pentagon is trying to keep those families connected and companies are pitching in to help. Cardstore.com allows troops to customize greeting cards for their dads on this Father's Day. The company then prints and mails the cards for free. The Pentagon has also set up a Web site where Americans can send a message of support to the troops broad. The address is Americasupportsyou.com.

Now CNN medical correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta, who is a proud new father himself, pays a Father's Day tribute to stay-at-home-dads.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Fifteen months ago, salesman Bill Cook got a new job. He traded phone calls, meetings and power lunches for feedings, nap time, and play dates. Cook is a stay-at-home-dad.

BILL COOK, STAY-AT-HOME DAD: People look at me like I've got two heads sometimes when I walk in. I've got the two babies and I got my daughter with me and they look at me like, where's your wife? Why are you here by yourself?

GUPTA: Sure, they seem to be an anomaly, but 2 million men, according to the latest census findings do it. That's four times the number of dads opting to hold down the home fort 20 years ago, a new generation of what some are calling Mr. Mom. COOK: I get that a lot, Mr. Mom, Mr. Mom. It's like, no, it's Mr. Dad. Yeah.

GUPTA: And while chaos reins in movies like "Mr. Mom," the scene at the Cook residence most days, placid, organized. Cook juggles the kids while mom works her sales job from home.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Let me look into it and find out and give you a call back.

GUPTA: Far removed from the activity outside.

COOK: We looked at her job. We looked at my job and which could we do without easier? It was my job.

GUPTA: The biggest job for moms seems to be nurturing. So are six-year-old Lauren and one-year-old twins Connor and Sophie getting as much from dad as they would from mom? Studies say, yes. Before a baby is born, dads experience a surge in nurturing hormones like estrogen and prolactin, which is the hormone coursing through you when you're in love. And the essentially male hormone testosterone dips by a third once baby is born.

COOK: I think you can learn to be nurturing. I think that's something that not maybe not everybody may agree with. But I think, for me, I mean I was already -- I think nurturing in a way. From having experience at home and I helped raise brothers and sisters and things like that. It came natural to me.

GUPTA: Dr. Kyle Pruitt has conducted the longest-term studies on children of stay-at-home-dads, finding later in life they are better problem solvers and not surprisingly, less prone to gender stereotyping. The key, regardless of which parent stays home, says Pruitt, is that kids know they're being cared for by a parent who loves them.

KYLE PRUITT, YALE CHILD STUDY CENTER: When you look at the father's style, the mother's style, it's not that one's right and one's wrong. The child figures out a way to weave a stronger cloth, a fabric together from these two lessons they are learning.

GUPTA: Cook's learning his lessons every day.

COOK: It's like a constant cleanup thing, a load of laundry.

GUPTA: But even more, he's truly involved with his kids.

COOK: It's very prideful. You see your kid and all of a sudden, they're crawling or they sat up and that's really cool. That's the cool thing to see firsthand instead of getting a phone call and saying, your daughter just sat up or rolled over.

GUPTA: Dr. Sanjay Gupta, CNN, Atlanta.

(END VIDEOTAPE) WHITFIELD: That's going to do it for this CNN LIVE SUNDAY. Up next, "Reliable Sources" with Howard Kurtz. Then at noon Eastern on "Late Edition," Wolf Blitzer interviews U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice for the latest on her trip to the Middle East. And at 2:00 Eastern, "People in the News" profiles chief justice of the Supreme Court William Rehnquist.

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