Gruesome Discovery; New Low in Poll; Moussaoui Mistrial?; Milosevic Mysteries
SOLEDAD O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning. Welcome, everybody. I'm Soledad O'Brien.</s>MILES O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: And I'm Miles O'Brien. Good morning to you. The sectarian violence in Iraq takes an even more gruesome turn. Late details this morning from Nic Robertson in Baghdad -- Nic.</s>NIC ROBERTSON, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, Miles, people in Baghdad have been turning up to collect the bodies of their loved ones. For 15 bodies were discovered this morning in the back of a pickup truck on the western side of Baghdad in a Sunni neighborhood, they'd all been strangled. On the eastern side of Baghdad, 14 people were discovered in a short grave there.</s>M. O'BRIEN: We'll have more in just a moment. Also ahead, a rare appearance by best selling author Dan Brown. "The Da Vinci Code" author on the witness stand. Had some surprising things to say.</s>S. O'BRIEN: Plus, high risk for hearing loss. There's some new information about iPods and your ears. Then there's this. Blondie is performing, but there was some snubbing, too, to tell you about. Lots of infighting, as well, at the Rock 'N' Roll Hall of Fame induction. We're going to bring that to you live this morning as well.</s>M. O'BRIEN: Straight now to the shocking discoveries in Iraq. The Interior Ministry reporting 71 bodies found around Baghdad just in the last 30 hours. Senior international correspondent Nic Robertson is there. Nic, what can you tell us?</s>ROBERTSON: Well, Miles, this morning, families who have lost loved ones recently have been turning up at the morgue to identify bodies. Fifteen bodies were discovered this morning in the back of a pickup truck in Baghdad on the western side of the city in a Sunni neighborhood. They'd all been strangled, according to police. On the eastern side of the city, in a Shia neighborhood, in a shallow grave, 14 bodies were discovered there. Their hands tied behind their backs. They appeared to have been shot in the head. Elsewhere in Baghdad, on the southern side, two more bodies discovered there. Forty bodies turned up yesterday. I put it to the prime minister that sectarian violence is now outpacing the violence of the insurgency.</s>IBRIHAM AL-JAAFARI, IRAQI PRIME MINISTER (through translator): If you are asking if we are in the midst of a civil war or not, of course a civil war is the most dangerous thing for a country to go through, like this happened in America during the times of Abraham Lincoln in 1861. But we are now in a civil war? There is the risk of it. There has been an escalation of violence, but we are not in a civil war.</s>ROBERTSON: Now police say they are investigating these murders, the bodies that are being discovered. But with barely two dozens police assigned to that task, they really say that they just don't have the resources to match the task -- Miles.</s>M. O'BRIEN: Nic, is it your sense that the victims are more or less equally divided between Sunni and Shiite? In other words, are these tit-for-tat attacks?</s>ROBERTSON: Miles, that's very, very difficult to gauge. I mean the official stance of the government here is that these attacks aren't sectarian, but that's not what's believed by most people in Baghdad. And the police just say they are not in a position to provide this sort of information. The only way you can determine this is go to the morgue, talk to the families when they turn up. That, obviously, is a very, very big task. Nobody really seems to have a handle how many Sunnis, how many Shias being killed, just the very real sense that that's what is going on -- Miles.</s>M. O'BRIEN: Nic Robertson in Baghdad, thank you very much -- Soledad.</s>S. O'BRIEN: Growing dissatisfaction with the war is driving President Bush's approval rating to a new low of 36 percent. White House correspondent Dana Bash now takes a look at what's behind the nation's disapproval of the president's performance.</s>DANA BASH, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT (on camera): Today, President Bush heads to upstate New York to talk about a prescription drug benefit for Medicare he signed into law that seniors call confusing and many call a political debacle. But that is just one challenge for the president at a time where a new CNN-"USA Today"-Gallup Poll shows he is at his lowest point ever. Mr. Bush's approval now at just 36 percent and this poll shows that it is Iraq that is dragging down the country's mood and Mr. Bush's approval rating. Only about a third of Americans in this new poll think that Mr. Bush has a clear plan in Iraq and an overwhelming two-thirds say he does not. Fifty-seven percent of Americans say it was a mistake to send troops at all to Iraq. That is an all-time high for that measure. Mr. Bush has had tough sledding for months on a range of issues, from hurricane relief, to the ports controversy. But this poll shows it is Iraq, more than anything else, that will define this president. A stunning number from this new poll, 64 percent say that will determine President Bush's legacy, much more than any other issue, even terrorism. In fact, others don't even come close. Dana Bash, CNN, the White House.</s>M. O'BRIEN: The death penalty case against al Qaeda conspirator Zacarias Moussaoui is in jeopardy. This, after a government lawyer violated the judge's court order. The trial is now recessed until Wednesday. There will be a hearing today about these startling developments. We get details from CNN's Jeanne Meserve.</s>JEANNE MESERVE, CNN HOMELAND SECURITY CORRESPONDENT (on camera): Today, seven current and former aviation officials scheduled to testify in this trial will appear before Judge Leonie Brinkema who will determine if their testimony has been tainted and what she should do about it. Her options include limiting their testimony, excluding it altogether or potentially throwing out the government's request for the death penalty against Zacarias Moussaoui. The situation arose because the seven received transcripts of court proceedings and e-mails from a Transportation Security Administration lawyer in violation of a court order prohibiting coaching of witnesses. The judge, yesterday, said it was an egregious violation of her court order and said it was difficult to see this trial proceeding. This is, of course, the only trial to grow out of the 9/11 hijackings. Jeanne Meserve, CNN, Alexandria, Virginia.</s>S. O'BRIEN: Adding to the mystery surrounding the death of Slobodan Milosevic, a political battle appears to be brewing over his funeral arrangements. The former Yugoslav president's son arriving in The Hague today to pick up his father's remains. Not clear, though, where the funeral and the burial exactly will take place. Correspondent Alessio Vinci is on the phone for us from Belgrade this morning. Alessio, good morning.</s>ALESSIO VINCI, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Soledad. Well the debate here rages on on where and when to bury the former Yugoslav President Slobodan Milosevic and whether to allow his widow to attend. What we do know from Serbian officials is that there will be no state funeral, no military honors, no flags at half-staff and no special tomb at Belgrade Main Cemetery (ph). Such treatment, they are saying, given Milosevic's role in the history of this country would be totally inappropriate. But they will not prevent a regular burial here in this country. And this, despite the son of Mr. Milosevic, Marko Milosevic, who just flew to The Hague to collect the remains of his late father, that Serb officials are preventing the funeral from taking place here. But Serbia officials here in Belgrade and members of Mr. Milosevic's Socialist Party saying they plan to have a funeral here over the weekend -- Soledad.</s>S. O'BRIEN: Well outside of the son and outside of some of the members of the party, what do the people in Belgrade want, do they want him buried there?</s>VINCI: Well certainly those who support Mr. Milosevic would like to see a burial here and possibly even an honorable burial. But you know there's a lot of people in this country, of course, who are opposing this. But at the end of the day, if you talk to the people here in the streets of Belgrade, they really would like the story to just go away altogether. They really hope that once the burial takes place, then this story will go away and people will start focusing on this country for other issues than for its war crimes task.</s>S. O'BRIEN: Well not sure that's going to happen anytime soon. Alessio Vinci for us this morning, joining us by phone, from Belgrade. Thanks, Alessio -- Miles.</s>M. O'BRIEN: In West Virginia today, a crucial test underground. Some are trying to test new safety mine equipment as the Sago Mine gets closer to reopening. Government safety officials are checking out wireless communication devices that have never been tested underground. It's part of an effort to head off the kind of disaster that killed a dozen miners at the Sago Mine in January. In California's Santa Monica Bay, the host of the 1980's game show "Press Your Luck" and his wife were killed in a small plane crash. Peter Tomarken and his wife were on their way to San Diego, Monday, when the plane apparently had engine trouble, went down just off the coast. Fire fighting crews in Texas now say they are making some progress against those massive wildfires burning across the panhandle and the south plains. There's been an awful lot of damage, as you can see. The flames have charred more than 600,000 acres. That's about two-thirds the size of Rhode Island, to give you some perspective. So far, 11 deaths are linked to those fires.</s>S. O'BRIEN: Look at that. Time for a check of the forecast this morning. Chad is watching that for us from the CNN Center. Hello, -- Chad.</s>CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Good morning, Soledad.</s>S. O'BRIEN: That's a bummer. All right, Chad, thank you.</s>MYERS: You're welcome.</s>S. O'BRIEN: Appreciate it. Last weekend was fine. We're still happy from that. Still to come this morning, going to find out how you can snag 10 to 15 more inches of precious legroom on your next flight. You're going to like that -- Miles.</s>M. O'BRIEN: You've got to pay, though.</s>S. O'BRIEN: Yes, you do.</s>PAT KUSTER, TORNADO VICTIM: Last night in the dark it was one thing, but when you come in this morning and actually see it with the light and how little is left.</s>M. O'BRIEN: Remember this house from yesterday? Keith Oppenheim took us on an early tour. We're going to follow-up today with the family that endured this and lost nearly everything in those terrible tornadoes that whipped through the Midwest.</s>S. O'BRIEN: Saved their lives though. Later this morning, they're a vicious gang waging a bloody war from behind bars, apparently. We're going to take a closer look at the battle to take down the Aryan Brotherhood. Those stories are all ahead on AMERICAN MORNING. We're back in just a moment.