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FBI Raids Home Of Man Linked To Killers' Guns; Obama To Address Nation; Terror Attack In London Tube Station; Official: U.K. Terror Threat Remains "Severe." Aired 6-6:30a ET

Aired December 6, 2015 - 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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CHRISTI PAUL, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning to you. We are so grateful for your company as always. I'm Christi Paul.

VICTOR BLACKWELL, CNN ANCHOR: I'm Victor Blackwell. Good to be with you. We will start with this. Watch.

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BLACKWELL: We got this dramatic new cell phone video of a terrorist incident that is now being investigated in London, a man wielding a knife, attacking people at a subway station there, the London underground.

He stabbed three people before police were able to stop him using a stun gun. Now, this is happening as President Obama is getting set to talk terror tonight. He will address the nation from the oval office. Only the third time during his presidency. President Obama will discuss the steps the government is taking to keep Americans safe.

There is new information in this country's deadliest attack since 9/11. The FBI raided this house in San Bernardino as they search for any possible moment into last week's deadly attack that killed 14 people.

We have got live coverage of all of these stories this morning. We are starting with Polo Sandoval joining us from Redlands, California, with more on that raid. Polo, what more do we know about that this morning?

POLO SANDOVAL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Victor, what this raid does is suggests that officers, investigators here on the ground are far from finished gathering all of the evidence. That raid taking place Friday night into Saturday.

We are told that investigators were specifically following up on the man believed to have purchased the two rifles that were used during that shooting.

So, at this point, we do understand that investigators moved Friday into Saturday collecting evidence, but it still did shake what is currently some very tense community. Here is how one of the neighbors describes Friday night's raid.

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FREDDY ESCANILLA, WITNESSED HOUSE RAID: It was like, 3:00 in the morning, you know? Like, I got woken up -- a sound I heard was a loud speaker, like a voice from a loud speaker and I saw this big unmarked SUV and that is where the sirens were coming from, I mean, the lights. It was one single voice, you know, over a loud speaker.

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SANDOVAL: So here is that possible link to Syed Farook. Investigators believe that the man who purchased those rifles at one point was a roommate of Syed Farook, the male suspect involved in Wednesday's shooting.

However, investigators have not publicly identified this individual that they are simply looking into him. They have not arrested him or detained him and he is not considered a suspect.

Last thing I should mention, Victor, is perhaps the most significant update that's expected today will come from President Obama. Officials not only at the FBI but also here on the ground in San Bernardino said that the next significant public release of information won't come until tomorrow.

So as you may imagine a lot of people will be tuning in as the commander-in-chief addresses the nation tonight.

BLACKWELL: Certainly and we will have that coverage here on CNN. Polo Sandoval for us in Redlands, thank you so much.

PAUL: It's a rare moment in Barack Obama's presidency, a prime time oval office address tonight at 8:00 p.m. The president will talk to all of us about the threat of ISIS, about terror attacks, of course, this after the San Bernardino massacre. Chris Frates is following that story.

CHRIS FRATES, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Victor and Christi. In his speech, the president will talk about what the government is doing to keep Americans safe. The oval office address will also touch on the investigation into the ISIS-inspired attacks in California that killed 14 people.

The White house said Obama will also address, quote, "The broader threat of terrorism" including the nature of the threat and how it has evolved and how we will defeat it.

He will reiterate his firm conviction that ISIL will be destroyed and that the United States must draw upon our values, our unwavering commitment to justice, equality, and freedom to prevail over terrorist groups that use violence to advance a destructive ideology.

[06:05:08] Now that news comes on the heels of a meeting the president held with his national security team on Saturday. The White House says the president's team updated him on the investigation into the California shootings and highlighted several pieces of information that point to the attackers' radicalization to violence.

We already know about one piece of evidence suggesting radicalization. That is a Facebook post from the female shooter pledging allegiance to the leader of ISIS.

During the briefing, which included the FBI and CIA directors, the attorney general, and the Homeland Security secretary, the White House said officials reiterated that there is no evidence yet that the killers were part of a larger terror cell.

On Friday, remember, the FBI said it was investigating the acts as an act of terrorism. Guys, people will be watching what the president has to say about that and the investigation more generally, as well as listening to hear how the president plans to deal with the larger issue of defeating ISIS -- Victor, Christi.

PAUL: All right, Chris, thank you so much. Our special coverage of the president's address begins at 7:00 p.m. Eastern with Wolf Blitzer. The president speaking at 8:00 p.m. Eastern and then at 9:00 p.m., that all-star tribute celebration of CNN Heroes all of it right here tonight on CNN.

BLACKWELL: All right, let's go to U.K. now facing its own terror threat. British police are calling a stabbing attack on the London underground yesterday a terrorist incident. A man there with a knife slashed three people and reportedly yelling this is for Syria.

Police are investigating that element. The man was taken into custody subdued by an officer stun gun. One of the three victims suffered serious injuries but is expected to survive.

British officials are warning the public to stay alert and be vigilant. A live report from London a little later this hour. Let's bring in Sajjan Gohel, the international security director of the Asian Pacific Foundation, and also a terrorism expert.

Sajjan, good morning to you. I want to start in London and these types of attacks. As the intelligence community describes them, these are often difficult to detect so they are nearly impossible to thwart.

How can communities, countries protect their citizens from these people who self-radicalized and are nowhere on the grid?

SAJJAN GOHEL, INTERNATIONAL SECURITY DIRECTOR, ASIA PACIFIC FOUNDATION: I'm afraid, Victor, this is a very dangerous dynamic that we are witnessing. What we saw at the London underground station in East London, it was (inaudible) -- this is the type of -- terrorism, groups like ISIS encourage.

I think these people may not have a direct connection to Syria and Iraq and may have only just been inspired by what they see here on the internet. It makes the job of the authorities all that much more complicated.

But we should pay tribute to the police who reacted very quickly and didn't use lethal force so this individual could be brought to justice for the acts that he's committed.

BLACKWELL: All right, I want to read to you something that was just sent to me about the U.S. consulate in Istanbul there in Turkey. Information about a possible security threat against the U.S. consulate compound in Istanbul and they are telling Americans to take appropriate steps to bolster personal security and maintain a high level of vigilance and making sure to be aware of local events.

This is not the first time in the last several weeks that there have been these warnings about consulates, embassies, but they seem to have this general theme of no specific threat and the difficulty of fending off no specific threat. What do you make of this latest warning?

GOHEL: Again, it's an illustration of the dynamic of international terrorism. We are seeing more plots in more parts of the world than ever before and sometimes they are directed by a terrorist group and inspired.

Often, there is little intelligence to preempt something that could happen. We know that U.S. diplomatic missions in countries like Turkey and elsewhere in the Middle East and Pakistan, Afghanistan, have faced a number of security challenges.

Only recently in Turkey, there were two major terrorist attacks and one that target a peace rally prior to the national elections there. Just now, there was a bombing on one of the trains in Istanbul.

There is a concern that Turkey is, unfortunately, facing more terrorism, especially as it's on the border with Syria and ISIS uses it as a hub.

BLACKWELL: We are going to have a conversation with several terrorism experts and national security experts this morning ahead of the president's address from the oval office this evening.

What does he need to say to reassure an American public that is concerned about the growth and the strength of ISIS, not only in Iraq and Syria, but the home-grown terrorists, those who are self- radicalizing? What does the president need to do tonight?

[06:30:00]GOHEL: It's a very important question you raise. I say it's not just to the American public, but the international community including those in the United Kingdom. There is a lot of people are dependents on the U.S. because it is the only country that has the resources to systematically defeat and dismantle ISIS's terror infrastructure.

One of the key things that is now required is leadership, to be able to not just use sound bites, but actually to have an effective system in place that will degrade ISIS and take them apart and uncover all of the cells.

My biggest concern, Victor, is ISIS is testing not just America's red line but the west's red line, and that how far can they go and how many fatalities can they inflict before there is further action to actually challenge ISIS directly? At the moment, the terrorist group doesn't have any fear that the west will seek retribution and only encouraging them to carry out more plots.

BLACKWELL: All right, Sajjan Gohel, we will continue this conversation throughout the morning and we will have you back a little later. Sajjan, thanks so much.

Ahead, we will have more on those really terrifying moments we showed you a few seconds ago in that London underground as police take down that man threatening people with that knife. A live report on the increased tensions there.

Also in Chicago, protest building again after controversial police report is released surrounding the shooting death of Laquan McDonald. The reports don't match the video in some respects.

PAUL: In the wake of the deadly shooting rampage in San Bernardino, a university president, urging students to be armed against threatening Muslims.

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PAUL: Protesters in the streets of Chicago and you'll see more this afternoon when Reverend Jesse Jackson leads a march through downtown. Yes, he is joining them today. Demonstrations expected at the Thompson Center, which is a state building.

Their anger targets troubling inconsistency discovered in a police report, a report that does not match that graphic police dash cam video appearing to show a cop killing teenager, Laquan McDonald. CNN's Rosa Flores has more for us here.

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ROSA FLORES, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The shooting of a black Chicago teen by a police officer took 15 seconds. The newly released police and coroner's report is nearly 400 pages long. Bombshell revelation the narrative in the police report doesn't match what is on the dash cam video.

Here is a play-by-play comparison. At 9:57:25 the video shows McDonald walking in the middle of the street with a knife in his right hand after puncturing the tire of a police cruiser, say authorities.

Chicago Police Officer Jason Van Dyke and his partner are on the left- hand side of the screen with weapons drawn. As we continue to play the video, McDonald is slightly moving away from the officers. According to Van Dyke's account, quote, McDonald raised the knife across his chest and over his shoulder, pointing the knife at Van Dyke and attempting to kill Van Dyke. At 9:57:36, 6 seconds after Van Dyke arrived on the scene, the teen is still walking away from officers. Van Dyke fires the first shot. According to the police report, quote, "in defense of his life," Van Dyke backpedaled and fired his handgun at McDonald to stop the attack.

The angle of the camera changes and the officers are no longer on frame, but as McDonald falls, Van Dyke keeps firing and hitting McDonald 16 times, according to the coroner's report. The police report says, quote, McDonald appeared to be attempting to get up all the while, continuing to point the knife at Van Dyke.

This thick report also reveals that the accounts of other officers and a sergeant don't match the video, but do match Van Dyke's account. Van Dyke's partner wrote, "McDonald," quote, "swung the knife towards the officers in an aggressive manner."

Two other officers on scene documented that McDonald was waving the knife at officers with a third officer saying McDonald, quote, "raised his right arm towards Officer Van Dyke as if attacking Van Dyke.

Even the sergeant who recovered the video and reviewed it found it, quote, "was consistent with the accounts of all of the witnesses," meaning six police accounts don't match the video.

Jason Van Dyke's attorney says his client acted in self-defense. As van dyke awaits to face a judge on first-degree murder charges, he has lost his badge, his uniform, and now that the police reports are out, his word and the word of five officers are also called into question. Rosa Flores, CNN, Chicago.

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BLACKWELL: Rosa, thank you very much.

A plane carrying actor, Morgan Freeman, makes an emergency landing. Ahead what led to that close call?

Also, in the wake of the recent shooting massacres in Paris, a big concert is being held tonight with U2 in defiance of terrorism. You'll hear their conversation. It's a CNN exclusive.

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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Defiant joy we think is the mark of our band and rock 'n' roll. They are a death cult. We are a life cult, life force.

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JERRY FALWELL JR., PRESIDENT, LIBERTY UNIVERSITY: If some of those people in that community center have had what I've got in my back pocket right now. More good people, if they had concealed carry permits, then we could end those Muslims before they go out and kill.

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BLACKWELL: That was Liberty University President Jerry Falwell, Jr., speaking about second amendment rights in light of the massacre in San Bernardino, California.

PAUL: I'm sure you heard that and it might not sit well with everybody. He did clarify his remarks with CNN saying, he wasn't talking about all Muslims, but only those who perpetrated the latest attack. During that same speech, he urged students to be armed and encouraging them to take a free gun training course offered by the school.

BLACKWELL: Hundreds of Arab-Americans held a rally in front of an Islamic center near Detroit. They gathered in order to take a stand against ISIS and terrorism. The event comes one day after the San Bernardino shooters were hailed by ISIS as supporters of their group. Now, activists say they hope to change the current rhetoric and show people Islam is a religion of tolerance and peace.

PAUL: A private plane carrying Oscar-winning actor, Morgan Freeman, made a forced landing after its tires blew out. The plane skidded off a runway as it landed in Mississippi, but no reports of any injuries, thankfully.

Tonight, a rare oval office address by President Obama, talking about terrorism. What does he need to say to reassure everybody that they are safe?

BLACKWELL: Plus caught on taper, a man wielding a knife in a London subway. Police are calling it a terror incident. You're going to see more of this video in a moment.

PAUL: Also caught on tape, another controversial police shooting of a suspected bank robber in Miami and it goes viral.

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BLACKWELL: New this morning, the FBI raided this house in San Bernardino. It's the home of the man who bought two of the rifles used by the two California killers. The warrant application was filed under seal, so some details have not been released.

But we know the FBI is looking at phone, travel, computer and also other records to find out why Tashfeem Malik and Syed Rizwan Farook and killed 14 people and injured 21 others.

PAUL: President Obama will be addressing the nation at 8 p.m. Eastern. This rare oval office address comes after the California shootings. Of course, he is going to talk about terror, threats in the U.S. and plans to keep Americans safe. This will be only his third oval office address of his presidency. You can watch his live address right here at CNN 8:00 p.m. Eastern with special coverage beginning at 7:00.

BLACKWELL: The U.K. is investigating its own terror threat today, after a man with a knife stabbed three people there at the London underground, the station there. Police are looking into reports that he was yelling, this is for Syria.

International correspondent, Phil Black, is live in London for us. Take us into this investigation. What are they learning thus far?

PHIL BLACK, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Crucially, the police have said they are treating this as a terror investigation, which is not their usual response to a random knife attack in this way.

What you can see from the videos posted to social media by witnesses is the bloody chaotic aftermath of this man's attack of people he didn't know in this underground train station.

He is brought to the ground by police using tasers and they have now him in custody and they are trying to determine what drove him to do this. Whether he simply someone alone, perhaps mentally unwell or whether there is something even more sinister to this.

The possibility that he has been motivated by some form of Islamists sympathy, whether or not he is acting alone and of course, whether or not there are other people who may have controlled him and manipulated him to carry out these attacks -- Victor.

[06:30:07] BLACKWELL: Phil, the British parliament recently voted in just the past few days to expand their air strikes beyond Iraq now into Syria. Do officials believe there is some direct link between the attack we saw in that underground station and that vote?