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News coverage of the massive rally in Paris, France after the "Charlie Hebdo" massacre;

Aired January 11, 2015 - 14:00   ET

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


FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: Hello everyone. Thank you for joining us. I'm Fredricka Whitfield in Atlanta. Welcome to our viewers in the United States and around the world.

You're looking at live pictures from Paris at the grand synagogue, a symbolic and very poignant message being sent with the French president, Francois Hollande sitting alongside the Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at services there.

This on a day when millions of people, by various estimations come out in France for a day of unity. This many days after that three-day siege in Paris, beginning with that terror attack on the magazine publication where 12 people, 12 journalists were killed and then followed by others killed at a supermarket in Paris and also a police woman in Paris as well.

My colleague Hala Gorani is also in Paris. Still, many people in the tens of thousands perhaps. It is nightfall there in Paris. But still many people have descended on this city really sending a very symbolic message of solidarity. People of all walks, Jews as well as Muslims, people of all walks there in Paris. Give me an idea of the sense or the real feeling there, especially as this service is continuing to get under way at the grand synagogue there in Paris.

HALA GORANI, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Just past 8:00 p.m. here in Paris. Plus the crowds may have thinned but the sound level has not gone down. Quite the contrary. I have very excited people behind me happy to be here after what was a historic day.

We're hearing by some accounts this may have been the largest demonstration in the history of France. Those are numbers we have to check in order to get a definitive final confirmed figure.

Here is the latest for the viewers around the states and around the world. And we welcome everyone with us. As you mentioned, Fred, the president of France, Francois Hollande, and the prime minister of Israel, Benjamin Netanyahu are visiting the grand synagogue in Paris. We're expecting Benjamin Netanyahu to make a speech. When that happens, we will get to it.

Also, the latest in the investigation, we understand according to some sources who have spoken to authorities that there was a connection between the market attack conducted by Amedy Coulibaly and potentially a shooting on a jogger in Paris. So that, of course, developing as well.

As far as the worldwide reaction what's happened in France, the group Hamas has condemned the "Charlie Hebdo" massacre. Also, among the other developments related to this story, the French ambassador or the ambassador to France Jane Harley is the one representing the United States here.

There have been some raised eyebrows that the U.S. was not sending a higher level representative when across Europe, for instance, we saw the German Chancellor, for instance, or the prime minister of the UK.

Also, among the other developments in Belgium, the newspaper (INAUDIBLE), has evacuated its building in Brussels following a bomb scare.

All right. Back to what's going on right now. We have some people behind me, in case you're wondering what they're chanting. They're saying France is the capital of the world. In fact, we heard from the French president that Paris today is the capital of the world.

My colleague Fred Pleitgen is, not exactly sure where you are on this rally route, Fred. But we'll get to you in a moment. But in the meantime, let's get to Arwa Damon with the latest on what she knows.

Hi there, Arwa.

ARWA DAMON, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Hala.

We're in front of the synagogue whereas per we can tell right now that chief rabbi of France is speaking out. Also, inside not just the French president, the Israeli prime minister, but top leaders of the Jewish -- sorry, the Christian and Muslim faith as well. This is very much part of that ongoing massive show of unity that we have been seeing transpiring here throughout the entire day.

Now, Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu has offered those four Jews who were killed during the hostage siege of the kosher market, the opportunity to be buried in Israel. This has been for everybody an incredibly difficult time. But when it comes to the Jewish community and particular for them, it has underscored what many of them are calling the significant increase in anti-Semitism in France.

If you look at the numbers in 2014, some 7,000 Jews left France for Israel. That's double the number of 2013. Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu also saying that Israel, of course, will welcome with open arms any Jews that did want to go and reside there.

France, however, wanting to keep its Jewish community here, feeling that they make up what is the uniqueness of this nation with its many different religions and ethnicities. And while we're talking about religious tensions and violence, the Muslim community also concerned here as well because of what has happened. A lot of the younger Muslims that we have been speaking to, French Muslims, saying that they really hope that what took place. The perfect massacres at the hands of these gunmen do not then turn around and impact their own lives. They're very worried that they're going to be stigmatized by what has taken place.

Now, most certainly that does not seem to be the case when we look at the sheer volume of numbers of everyone who has come out from all different nationalities and ethnicities and religions. But a lot people also saying that the nation, and in fact, perhaps the world needs to capitalize on this show of unity that we have been seeing here in France today. Try to turn that momentum, that compassion that people have been able to feel for one another because of the horrific nature of the violence that took place here, but also what we've been seeing taking place in a number of other countries, massacres happening on a fairly regular basis and turn that into something concrete. That what has happened in France is perhaps a wakeup call for everybody. Not just because of the violence, but also because it did show the capacity that we do have as members of the international community to show compassion for one another.

The top leaders of so many countries coming here today. Perhaps this an opportunity to try to turn that around into concrete action in the future so that various different nation can address their own underlying issues in ways that will perhaps one day in the future prevent this kind of violence from happening again Hala.

GORANI: All right. Arwa Damon, thanks very much there at the grand Paris synagogue.

We'll get back to the synagogue once the prime minister of Israel, Benjamin Netanyahu starts speaking.

Simone Rodan-Benzaquen, I'm not sure if I'm pronouncing your surname correctly. Apology if I'm not, the director of the American Jewish committee joins me live.

Thanks for being with us. Let me ask you first for your thoughts on this evening. Because of course, after that attack on the kosher supermarket, the Jewish community here in France is feeling targeted and rather insecure. What are your thoughts on this day?

SIMONE RODAN-BENZAQUEN, DIRECTOR, AMERICAN JEWISH COMMITTEE: Thank you very much for having me on Hala.

Yes indeed the Jewish community has been worried. It's really the consequence of feeling of insecurity for the past 15 years. We've had anti-Semitic attacks really for the past 15 years and basically increasing year after year. This year, we will have probably about 1,000 anti-Semitic acts being committed. We have people who died certainly under this attack but even before.

In 2012, we had the murders of Jewish schoolchildren in the southern city of Toulouse, in France. We had the murder of, in 2006, of (INAUDIBLE). So, it is a situation extremely difficult for the Jewish community.

Now, to see such outpouring of support not only for the Jewish community but for everything that has happened over the past three days is incredibly important for the Jewish community. What they have been saying over and over and over again is that the fact that the Jewish community being threatened means more than just that. It's not just the fact that a minority is at risk, but it is the fact that the entire nation is at risk. It is the fact that a democracy is at risk and our entire values.

GORANI: Now, we saw the French president Francois Hollande today meet with representatives of the Jewish community in France at the palace. What do you think that France's Jews want from their government in the current environment? What is it that they're looking for, do you think?

RODAN-BENZAQUEN: First of all, what I would like to say is that the government has been very outspoken and has been very, very clear on their will to combat anti-Semitism for the past few years. Prime minister (INAUDIBLE) has been probably one of the most outspoken leaders on that issue. And President Hollande himself has been very, very clear.

But what we're now looking for is very concrete steps. There needs to be much more needs to be done in terms of counter radicalization, what is going on in prisons, I mean, questions arise very, very clearly. We have about nearly a thousand jihadi fighters that are involved in Syria and Iraq. They pose an imminent danger to our country. Much more needs to be done on that. And also there needs to be things done in terms of education in schools in terms of teaching tolerance, in terms of teaching about the religion of the other. These kind of steps are really asked for by the Jewish community.

GORANI: And Simone, were you inspired in any way or encouraged by the show of unity today in Paris and across France? We saw the rector of the Paris mosque for instance in the front rows of this march from (INAUDIBLE) here in Paris. We saw the Paris cardinal, for instance. And I believe there's also a representative of the Muslim community at this synagogue service this evening in Paris. Were you encouraged by all that happened today?

RODAN-BENZAQUEN: Yes, of course. I mean, how can't we? I was at the demonstration. It was an incredible feeling of unity. The fact that the three mono-domestic (ph) religions were present that representative from the Muslim community was present is absolutely important. But what I hope is that this doesn't stop here. We need to hear voices much clearer, much louder. Not only religious voices but even secular young Muslims that have been silent. Maybe because of fear, maybe for other reasons. I believe that the vast majority of French young Muslims believe in the French values, believe in our democracy. They need to be speaking out. Not only for themselves, but for the good of our country.

GORANI: All right. Well, thanks for joining us. The director of the American Jewish committee, Simone Rodan-Benzaquen. Thanks for being with us on CNN.

And we're going to take a short break here on CNN international and CNN U.S. Thanks for all of our viewers being with us around the world. And we'll leave from (INAUDIBLE), have a lot more on this big unity rally after a quick break. Don't go away.

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GORANI: Welcome back, everyone. A historic day here in Paris just a few days after that horrific massacre at "Charlie Hebdo." Paris and all of France has come out in support of the victims and in support of the values of liberty and freedom of expression. You have all sorts of signs here behind me after that #JeSuisCharlie went viral. Well, you have all sorts of messages that are now being printed and written on signs that people are carrying in this big unity rally and demonstration.

(INAUDIBLE), I am Jewish, this of course after that attack on the kosher supermarket on Friday in east Paris. You have (INAUDIBLE), all sorts of things. And then you have causes, kind of several types of groups that have come out here to express or send out their messages to the world through the media as well.

Now, my colleague Fred Pleitgen has been covering this march from the beginning point of the march (INAUDIBLE).

Fred, where are you now and what's going on around you?

FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I am actually at the Place De La Republique, Hala. And the crowds are still there. There is quite a lot of people here on the Place De La Republique. It actually took the folks here who wanted to march to where you are to (INAUDIBLE).

I would say almost an hour and a half before they were actually able to start marching because the streets were that full. I think that you were mentioning and some people were saying this is one of the biggest if not the biggest in the history of modern day France. I think (INAUDIBLE) was saying it might have been up to 1.5 million people here in Paris. That was certainly the impression that we got on the ground as well.

And as we see these amazing pictures there of the grand synagogue in Paris here with Francois Hollande and Benjamin Netanyahu who sit next to each other, one of the greatest things that I witness today was a group of Muslims who came to us and wanted to speak on camera. They all had that saying on paper saying (INAUDIBLE), I am Jewish. One of them was an imam and said that he was simply fed up with the way things were going. He was absolutely shocked by the horrific events that have been unfolding here over the past couple of days and wanted to show his solidarity with the Jewish community and wanted to say they are, of course, French citizens just like everybody else.

And it was amazing. One of the women who was there, one of the Muslim women was actually a police officer here in the French police force. She didn't want to show herself on camera, but she was a police officer. Of course, also, always very important to say that in that initial attack on the "Charlie Hebdo" headquarters, one of the police officers who was killed was in fact Muslim him search.

So, it was a big showing here today, huge crowd. And I think, aside from the fact that it was people of all faiths, of all religion coming together, there was of course, also this great sense of defiance. What I always heard again and again, is that we will not be silenced. We are not afraid. There were people calling for freedom of speech. There were pens being held up into the air. And if nothing else, it certainly was a reaffirmation of the core values of French society, of liberty, of freedom that are so important here. That's certainly something that was celebrated today without any sort of fear and certainly with that big sense of unity, Hala.

GORANI: Yes. Given some of the threats and the tense environment right now across the country, it was a huge showing. Let's be honest. Over a million people by all accounts coming out in the streets.

Let me ask you about the investigation. Because we've got several other pieces of the puzzle completing the picture or on their way to completing this picture here. We have a video that's been circulating with the suspect in the hostage standoff at the kosher supermarket, as well as other elements concerning the woman who is believed to be his girlfriend. What more can you tell us about that, Fred?

PLEITGEN: Well, you're absolutely right. There is that new video that was apparently posted by some extremist organizations showing Amedy Coulibaly, we see him there right here, pledging allegiance to ISIS. You can see the ISIS flag there in the background. Also, we can see very well here is some of the arms that apparently he had. There's a rifle there next to him.

One of the other things that was found today was the stash of weapons that he had which apparently, what more likely to be used in a war zone rather than inside a western European capital. Of course, we know that when he went into that kosher grocery store, that he went in literally guns blazing shooting. There was one woman that he said he was not afraid to die and this was his last day and that made him so dangerous. And so, that's one of the most important piece of the puzzle is that new video that series of pictures that posted today. And also the fact that his weapon stash was found.

Also, we did learn late last night that his alleged accomplice, his wife, Hayat Boumeddiene, was apparently in Turkey during the entire time of the savage. She apparently went there on January 2nd, was immediately traced by Turkish intelligence and security services because she did trigger an alert at the airport when she landed in Istanbul. Spent several days in Istanbul before making her way to the Turkish Syrian border where her trace appears to have been lost. There's people who believe she might be in Syria at this point in time out of the reach of French investigators, Hala.

GORANI: All right. Fred Pleitgen, (INAUDIBLE), where the huge unity rally started a little earlier on this Sunday. Thanks very much. We'll get back to you. Stand by in the coming hours.

Let's go to Samuel Laurent. He is a CNN terror analyst and he joins me now from our Paris bureau.

Samuel, what do you make of this video that was apparently recorded by the suspect in the kosher supermarket shooting and hostage standoff? What does it tell us exactly?

SAMUEL LAURENT, CNN TERROR ANALYST: Well, it tell us a couple of things. Actually, this is rather typical of an I.S. video. You can compare it to another one that's been done in Syria to months ago by three French people belonging to ISIS.

The speech is actually exactly the same. At one point it starts to ask the French-Muslims what they are doing, what they are doing to stand against what they see as an oppression for Muslim in the French republic. And obviously this speech is, I would say, very formatted and, therefore, obviously this gentleman, this terrorist tried basically to copycat the videos that are flowing over the Internet and that are done by ISIS people in Syria and Iraq.

GORANI: But from all of our reporting, it doesn't appear as if this Coulibaly individual ever went to Syria. Many of the ISIS videos we've seen that officially sanctioned by the group have a mark on them with a black ISIS flag in the corner. This one didn't. Did this seem more amateurish, more homemade to you?

LAURENT: Yes. It is definitely more amateurish. Actually, in the I.S. videos produced by (INAUDIBLE) or produced by (INAUDIBLE) which are the basically, the production companies in the ISIS, then obviously you have the flags and you have a more official value to them.

But actually, you have to understand, the mechanism of this, the caliphate. The caliphate is sending orders to Muslim not only in Syria and Iraq but also to the whole Muslim communities. And therefore, this man has just followed the order of the Caliph. In the video, he's saying that he basically gave allegiance to the Caliph. He pledged allegiance to the Caliph and he acted as basically following its orders to kill all westerners participating in the coalition and basically to bring the war to their country.

He was also explaining the other day during the hostage taking that because the French and the western soldiers were not ready to step in Syria and Iraq to confront the ISIS troops, then the war shall be bring back to their own country.

So basically, this is the same rhetoric that we here in older ISIS video propaganda and we can assume that despite the fact that it has been homemade and that it doesn't come from Syria, it has the same value and authenticity.

GORANI: Now, Hayat Boumeddiene, the presumed girlfriend, possibly all the way in Syria, I mean, that has to give us some clues as to the premeditation involved in this operation. But also some transfer of funds must have happened. I mean, somebody had to pay for this trip. Somebody to greet this woman in Turkey.

LAURENT: Exactly. Actually, somebody had to pay for the trip, but somebody had to pay for the whole operation. You know, as you know, war weapons are transferred by black markets are costly. Ammunitions are costly. So therefore, all this operation required funding and there Hayat Boumeddiene is the heart of the problem. Because we knew that she had so many phone conversations in order to ensure logistic between her and the wife or girlfriend of the other brother, the Kouachi brothers. So therefore, this woman was a mind of information. And that's probably why she went back to Syria.

Also, another disturbing thing is the fact that she's been signaled into Istanbul at the day of her arrival. So, therefore, that means that either, and we don't know yet, there was refraining from the Turkish intelligence service to transmit the information to the French because obviously this person was known. Either this is another to be added to this I would say this series of mistakes that has been made and that ended up with the "Charlie Hebdo" and the hostage taking killings.

GORANI: With everything that's emerged over the last few days, it does seem like there was some significant failures in intelligence and in communication of vital information and we're going to continue to cover that aspect of the story as well.

Thanks very much, Samuel Laurent. We'll speak to you a bit later.

The latest from where we are right now. As you can see the crowds have thinned, but there's still a lot of energy and a lot of enthusiasm behind me. We'll bring you the latest on the unity march as well after a quick break.

Thanks for being with us. We'll be right back.

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