Osama bin Laden's Sons Accuse U.S. of Executing Him; Talk Back Question
DON LEMON, CNN ANCHOR: Hello, everyone. Just shy of the top of the hour, I'm Don Lemon. Let's get you up to speed right now. Osama bin Laden's sons claim the United States government executed their father and should be held accountable under international law. Omar bin Laden says U.S. commandos assassinated an unarmed man. He writes in a letter his father should have been presumed innocent, arrested, and tried at court. The letter was sent to Jean Sasson, who co-wrote the book "Growing Up Bin Laden." Now, Sasson says to remember Omar is approaching this from an emotional vantage point like any son would.</s>JEAN SASSON, CO-AUTHOR, "GROWING UP BIN LADEN": Omar only knew his father as a big hero after the Afghan War and the Russians leaving. And then, think about this -- one minute your father's a hero, the next he's the world's biggest enemy. So the whole thing was very painful for him all of these years.</s>LEMON: A senior U.S. official angrily rejects the charges from the bin Ladens. Quoting here, "There is an inherent right of self- defense. This is a man who is a terrorist, who declared war on the United States, killed Americans, and continued to plan operations against the U.S. and its allies."</s>NEWT GINGRICH (R), FMR. HOUSE SPEAKER: At times in my life, partially driven by how passionately I felt about this country, that I worked far too hard, and that things happened in my life that were not appropriate.</s>LEMON: That was Newt Gingrich back in March trying to explain his adultery and ethics problems that ended his tenure as House Speaker in 1999. Well, today, he launches the ultimate comeback attempt. Gingrich formally announced on Twitter and Facebook he is running for president. The first major Republican to take that step. The Navy does an about-face on same-sex marriages. A memo from the Navy's chief of chaplains last month would have allowed gays to marry on military bases. That's once the Pentagon fully scraps "Don't Ask, Don't Tell." Now, a month later, a new memo suspends the guidance until further policy and legal review. California police say a shooting at San Jose State University appears to be a murder-suicide. The gunman shot and killed two people in the campus parking garage, then apparently took his own life. Police haven't said if the dead were San Jose students.</s>LEMON: Syrian forces are intensifying their crackdown on anti- government protesters today. The BBC reports Syrian army tanks are shelling Homs, Syria's third largest city. The U.N. again pleaded with Syria to embrace reforms and end the violence and mast arrests.</s>UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Just on this 60 acres, I'm looking at -- you know, I'm not going to say a loss, but a total input that I have got to make up somewhere else of $10,000, $15,000 just off of one field.</s>LEMON: Listen to this. A million acres of farmland, flooded in Arkansas. Just Arkansas, a million acres. The state's farm bureau estimates damage to crops could top half a billion dollars. The Mississippi River flood surge is pushing south into the delta region today. Prime farmland there. Louisiana's governor expects three million acres in his state will go under water. We have more details now on that statement from the sons of Osama bin Laden, accusing the U.S. of executing their father. CNN's Deborah Feyerick joins us now from New York. So, Deb, what more can you tell us about the statement? And how is the U.S. responding now?</s>DEBORAH FEYERICK, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, the White House is going to be having its noon briefing soon, and we do expect to get a response from them. We did get a response from the vice president, Joe Biden, who was in the Situation Room with the president as they watched this mission unfold about 11 days ago. His reaction to the bin Laden letter, "You're kidding?" Now, the sons of Osama bin Laden are not completely convinced that their father is dead. They said that they want conclusive proof like the photos and video that they say exists. They are not sure that he is dead because they didn't see his body before it was buried at sea. The sons, including Osama bin Laden's son, Omar bin Laden, who publicly condemned his father, are calling the U.S. action a violation of international law, saying that they want an investigation specifically "into the fundamental question as to why our father was not arrested and tried, but summarily executed without a court of law." Now, a senior U.S. official reacted angrily to this bin Laden letter. In his words, he says, "There is an inherent right of self- defense enshrined in the U.N. charter within Article 51. This is a man who is a terrorist, who declared war on the United States, killed Americans, and continued to plan operations against the U.S. and its allies." Now, this particular statement came through an American author. The bin Laden statement, the letter, came through an American author who helped Omar bin Laden co-author his biography, "Growing up Bin Laden." She said that the family is reacting as any family would on the death of a father. We spoke to her earlier today.</s>SASSON: Omar only knew his father as a big hero after the Afghan War and the Russians leaving. And then, think about this -- one minute your father is a hero, the next he's the world's biggest enemy. So the whole thing was very painful for him all of these years. I think they always felt that some -- even Omar, in the past, has said, well, maybe there can be a meeting and there be a truce like there was with the IRA in England when there had been so much killing. And then they had a truce and the killing was stopped. Omar was an optimistic person about peace and stopping the killing. He's a young man who -- probably the only person around Osama who was brave enough to actually argue with him about the path he's taken, and that's the reason Omar left Afghanistan.</s>FEYERICK: And Omar bin Laden said that his father deserved a trial much like Iraqi president Saddam Hussein and Slobodan Milosevic, the Serbian president, both of whom were tried for crimes against humanity. Take a listen to what Omar had to say about his own dad.</s>OMAR BIN LADEN, OSAMA BIN LADEN'S SON: I'd like to say to my father, try to find another way to help or to find your goal, and this is wrong. Or this is weapon --</s>UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Weapons.</s>LADEN: -- weapons. It's not good to use it for anybody.</s>FEYERICK: And the bin Ladens are asking for a return of any family member who continues to live in Pakistan -- Don.</s>LEMON: All right, Deborah. Thank you very much. We appreciate it. Very quickly, let's bring in our Carol Costello, because we're going to give you a chance to "Talk Back." The question is, since bin Laden is gone, should the U.S. get out of Afghanistan?</s>CAROL COSTELLO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It's a good question, isn't it? I mean, have you asked yourself lately, why are we in Afghanistan anyway? What's our mission there? Osama bin Laden is dead, al Qaeda is scattered. The Taliban, those still active, are no longer running the country. Some members of Congress say it's time to reevaluate.</s>SEN. RICHARD LUGAR (R), INDIANA: We're are overstretched in terms of our defense budget and our military. And so we're going to have to think very carefully about our objectives.</s>COSTELLO: President Obama says we need to be there to help Afghans stabilize their country. The Afghan government is still fragile. Women continue to suffer unspeakable atrocities. And it remains to be seen whether any peace deal can or should be brokered with the Taliban. But remember back in 2001 why we went into Afghanistan in the first place? I'll refresh your memory.</s>GEORGE W. BUSH, FORMER PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: These carefully targeted actions are designed to disrupt the use of Afghanistan as a terrorist base of operations and to attack the military capability of the Taliban regime.</s>COSTELLO: OK. That was back in October of 2001. Some might say, haven't we done that? Ten years later though, it's still costing the lives of U.S. soldiers, and $10 billion every single month, which Senator Richard Lugar and others say is unsustainable. Lugar says instead of 100,000 troops on the ground, a smaller group, like 15,000 to 20,000, may be enough to fight terror. The administration plans to start withdrawing some troops this summer. The goal, to get most of them out, but by 2014. So, the "Talk Back" question today: Should U.S. troops leave Afghanistan sooner than later? Facebook.com/CarolCNN. I'll read some of your comments later this hour.</s>LEMON: My question to you is, can you believe it's been 10 years?</s>COSTELLO: That's crazy.</s>LEMON: Yes. We all remember that very vividly. It doesn't seem like that much time has passed.</s>COSTELLO: And did any of us think we would be in Afghanistan still today, and also in Iraq back in 2001?</s>LEMON: No. Didn't think much about it. Just thought it would be a short mission, as -- well, as the administration said as well, we weren't going to be there that long. Carol, thank you.</s>COSTELLO: Sure.</s>LEMON: Appreciate it. See you in a bit. Here's a rundown of some of the stories we're covering over the next hour here on CNN. First, small business owners hurt by the flooding, will they anticipate long-term pain? I'll talk to a restaurant owner in Mississippi coming up. And think manufacturing is dead in America? Well, you better think again. Making cars in the South. Then we take a boat ride to survey the incredible flood damage in one small town. And also, a Memphis high school wins a presidential visit. I'll be talking to a graduating senior. And a 10-year-old caught with a bomb strapped to his body talks about being forced to be a suicide bomber.