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Amanpour
E.U. Calls for Anti-Terror Alliance; Paris Terror Investigation Ongoing; Imagine a World
Aired January 20, 2015 - 14:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
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CHRISTIANE AMANPOUR, CNN HOST (voice-over): The Yemen government loses control and the Al Qaeda threat rises sharply. Tonight: the battle
against terrorism in Europe. The Belgian prime minister's first international interview since foiling a major attack last week.
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CHARLES MICHEL, BELGIAN PRIME MINISTER: The attacks were imminent. The attacks had to be -- were planned for the next hours after they were
tracked.
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AMANPOUR (voice-over): And nearly two weeks after the Paris attacks, the city's mayor takes aim at claims of Muslim no-go zones by America's FOX
News network.
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ANNE HIDALGO, MAYOR OF PARIS (through translator): I think they'll have to sue. I think they'll have to go to court in order to have these
words removed.
The image of Paris has been prejudiced and the honor of Paris has been prejudiced.
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AMANPOUR: Good evening, everyone, and welcome to the program. I'm Christiane Amanpour.
Yemen sinks further into chaos as a rebel Houthi force takes over the presidential palace. A government minister calls it the completion of a
coup.
Concerns about Yemeni and global security have risen sharply since the country hosts the most lethal Al Qaeda affiliate, AQAP, which last week
claimed responsibility for the attack on "Charlie Hebdo" in Paris.
And this week European foreign ministers have called for an anti- terror alliance to include Yemen and North Africa to combat the threat.
Belgium has deployed hundreds of security forces and remains on the hunt for the ringleader of a cell they disrupted last week.
Now in his first international interview since that operation, the Belgian prime minister, Charles Michel, tells me they conducted those raids
in the nick of time.
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AMANPOUR: Prime Minister Michel, welcome to the program.
MICHEL: Thank you for the invitation.
AMANPOUR: So let me first ask you about the state of the investigation.
Do you have the suspects?
Do you have the ringleader yet?
MICHEL: Yes, we have the situation under control. Last week, we understood that a few terrorists were planning an attack, a very tragic
attack against police stations, against justice courts, against citizens on the ground in Belgium and that's why we started with our special forces in
operation on the ground in order to catch the terrorists.
It has succeeded and two terrorists are killed and one of them, one of the -- the third is injured and is in the hands of the Belgian justice.
AMANPOUR: There is, though, this guy who is considered the Belgian cell ringleader, Abelhamid Abaaoud, of Moroccan origin.
Where is he?
And is he the person you're looking for?
MICHEL: I don't confirm the information in the investigations. But what's important is the fact that Belgian services, the Belgian security
services have very good worked together. We have the first success. It's important. But we are very vigilant for the future. And that's why my
government stated a few very concrete media in order to operate the security level in my country.
AMANPOUR: Can you tell me about the suspect who is in Greece, who is now agreed to be extradited to your country?
MICHEL: Yes, there was a cooperation between the Belgian justice and the Greek justice. We think that it will be possible to have more
information, if it's possible to ask questions to this guy is the first point. But I think it will be very important in the future in Europe to
fight more against what the challenge is against terrorism.
We have the new work, a new phenomenon, the last two or three years. It's the issue about the returnees in Belgium, in other countries. We are
trying to control more and I think we have also to sanction more the returnees.
AMANPOUR: You speak about this phenomenon and many people have asked me, and so now I'm asking you.
Why is it that Belgium has the highest proportion, the highest percentage vis-a-vis population of jihadis going to fight in Syria and
Iraq?
Why is that?
MICHEL: Two commentaries. First of all, Belgium is one of the first countries who has detected this phenomenon. That's why I think that we
have in Belgium a good knowledge of the situation. It's the first point.
And second point, Belgium is in the heart of Europe. Belgium is a small country with airports, with stations. It's very easy from Belgium to
travel amongst Europe.
AMANPOUR: Does that need to change? There are a lot of ideas being thrown around about how to deal with this.
Does the Schengen rules need to be tightened up?
Do passenger name records need to be established?
MICHEL: Yes, Schengen space is a very important thing for our economy, for the commercial activities. But it's also the occasion for the
terrorists to move easily amongst Europe.
But very important thing is the fact that I want with the other European leaders that we make progress in the exchange of information and
most specifically the problematic of the information about capacities. It's a very important thing to give more capacities for our intelligence
services to have more information and to prevent more the radicalism and terrorism with this information.
AMANPOUR: What is the demographic of the jihadi or the terrorist? Is it a Muslim immigrant who is in the ghetto? Or, as we're seeing, is it
also Muslim immigrants who have good prospects, who've been to university?
MICHEL: No, there is an extreme minority who are radicalist, who are extremist. But the big majority of the Muslims in Europe are living
quietly, are working, are trying to do their best for the country.
But it's true. We have got a problem in Europe, in Belgium with an extreme minority, which is radicalism, with jihadism, with the returnees.
It's new for Europe. It's a new phenomenon, the attacks in Paris a few days ago, the attacks in Brussels, in the Jewish Museum a few months ago is
the proof that we have to work more in Europe together in order to fight the terrorism, the radicalism.
And I know that in the U.S., you have many experience on this issue and it's hoped it will be possible to a greater cooperation in the future
between European services and also the U.S. services in order to prevent the terrorist attacks.
AMANPOUR: Can you confirm to me then that it was U.S. intelligence who warned you that there would an imminent attack?
Plus intercepting communications?
MICHEL: I don't want to confirm this kind of information, but I want to say that it will be crucial in the future to upgrade the cooperation
between the services, between the intelligence services.
I think that today we are trying to do our best. But it's not enough. It's a new threat against democracy, against tolerancy (ph), against our
values. And we have to fight. And I am determined to fight. I'm convinced that we have to do more against radicalism and terrorism.
AMANPOUR: Can you tell me how imminent was the plot that you disrupted?
MICHEL: We think that the attacks were planned for the next hours after they were tracked.
AMANPOUR: So your services intervened just at the right moment.
Can you tell me whether you believe that recruiting and radicalization in prison is a factor in Belgium?
And does that need to be addressed?
MICHEL: Yes. It's true. We have a problem in our jails, in our prisons. We see that a few people are trying to convince the others with
radical ideas and that's why my government took decisions and in the future we will isolate these guys if they are trying to convince the others with
radical ideas.
AMANPOUR: Prime Minister Michel, thank you very much indeed for joining us.
MICHEL: Thank you.
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AMANPOUR: Now whether Belgium, France or Germany, the West is quickly trying to take steps to strengthen security and in the U.K., as in France,
security's being beefed around the Jewish community.
One orthodox school taking matters into its own hands as students practice tense drills, lying on the ground in silence in case of an attack.
After a break, we go to France, where the Jewish population is reeling after last week's attacks. The mayor of Paris tells me she's pulling out
all the stops to protect all her city's religious minorities -- next.
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AMANPOUR: Welcome back to the program.
Almost two weeks after the terror attacks began in Paris, France is still coming to terms with its grief. Today the mayor of New York, Bill de
Blasio, visited Paris and offered his condolences.
As the French Prime Minister Manuel Valls spoke frankly about the deep divisions that plague society, listen to what he said.
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MANUEL VALLS, FRENCH PRIME MINISTER (through translator): Geographic social and ethnic apartheid has developed in our country. Add to that
social misery and daily discrimination has happened because you haven't got the right surname, the right skin color, because you're a woman.
It is by no means -- and you know me -- about looking for excuses. But we also have to look at the reality of our country.
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AMANPOUR: And in her first international interview since the attacks, the city's mayor, Anne Hidalgo, tells me that her city needs to stay
hypervigilant and tackle ingrained social problems.
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AMANPOUR: Mayor Hidalgo, welcome to the program. And thanks for joining us.
HIDALGO (through translator): And thank you.
AMANPOUR: Let me ask you about the latest in the investigation of the "Charlie Hebdo" and the supermarket attacks.
Can you tell me about any more arrests?
HIDALGO (through translator): Proceeding per launch very quickly. As you saw, the police was extremely efficient and even today, following the
arrests over the weekend, there have been interviews and a formal investigation of several people. So the investigation is ongoing.
Things will have to move very quickly.
AMANPOUR: When you see what's happening in other parts of Europe, in next-door Belgium and in elsewhere, are you afraid of more attacks on
Paris?
Do you think that there are connections between these attacks?
HIDALGO (through translator): First of all, we have to be very vigilant because for several months now, we know that jihadist teams have
been setting up in Europe and the European level the police have got together. And we, of course, remain highly vigilant. This is very
important.
The idea has been put into place at national level. Our red alert is still enforced in Paris.
We have soldiers; we have police, who have come to help and soldiers have helped the police as well.
And any -- in any public places, and also in places where there are Jewish institutions, for example, synagogues and Jewish schools, I asked
for mosques to be protected as well, because we have seen that, following these terrorist attacks, there were also targets.
AMANPOUR: There was a terrorist cell called the 19th Arrondissement network, Buttes-Chaumont. This operated under your very noses.
How can people be confident that you will be able to infiltrate, find out, discover, break up these networks in the future?
HIDALGO (through translator): First of all, this network was disbanded some time ago. The same thing goes for the recruitment centers
in Paris.
The question I ask myself today -- and we must be transparent and we must be very serious about that, without any complacency -- is what have we
not done, which led to these terrorist attacks?
Of course today, the question turns around to education, the question of helping people, of inclusion, of cohesion for young people and of
course, these are young French people.
Very often they are of foreign extraction, but they are the ones who have committed themselves to a war. And for me, I would say right -- well,
they're saying it's in the name of God that these are lawless. They are terrorists. They're children from our country, from our towns and
villages.
The question we need to know is why, why have they done this?
And then what we need to know is what should we do so it doesn't happen again?
AMANPOUR: Well, your prime minister today gave a rather impassioned speech, Prime Minister Valls, where he said that a geographic social and
ethnic apartheid has developed in our country.
Do you agree with that description?
And I know you've laid out now -- you've said that that has to be addressed.
Do you agree with that description?
HIDALGO (through translator): Yes, I know Valls used very strong words. But it's true that there are a set number of towns, a set number of
estates which are in a very precarious situation.
The youth of today, they need to have possibilities and we have to think about this. Paris is a city where there are inequalities but where
we are working to manage them. We have to work on this seriously.
I also heard an American press source saying there were no-go zones. Now what I would say that in Paris there are no no-go zones. And in
relation to one of the American chains, that was a very stupid thing to say.
That's not how you solve problems. And that's why we are going to have to go against these words. It's insulting for Paris. It's insulting
for -- on the part of people who are, in fact, going against the honor of my city and that's why I'm going to attack it.
AMANPOUR: You say that you are -- you say that you're insulted by what an American television channel has called "no-go zones" in Paris.
What are you going to do about it?
HIDALGO (through translator): Well, some insulted and when we've had an image, then
I think they'll have to sue. I think they'll have to go to court in order to have these words removed.
The image of Paris has been prejudiced and the honor of Paris has been prejudiced. And I think in the great discussion of truth, everyone is to
play its role and we are going to have to be realistic and put things as they are.
When Manuel Valls says that there is a situation of apartheid in a certain number of towns, he's right. And we're going to have to deal with
it.
But when the media comes up and says right in Paris there's certain areas where I was walking with Doggett Bladier (ph) earlier on, that we are
in a situation similar to the ones you find in Baghdad, that's not true. So we're going to have to make sure that what was said, what we really need
is reparation for what was said about us.
AMANPOUR: Can you clarify which exact network you're going to take to court and sue?
HIDALGO (through translator): FOX News. That's the name.
AMANPOUR: And has that upset the citizens of Paris?
HIDALGO (through translator): Of course. The citizens of Paris feel they've been insulted. That's the way they feel. They are complete lies.
The press and the media should tell the truth.
AMANPOUR: On that note, Mayor Hidalgo, thank you so much for joining us from Paris tonight.
HIDALGO: Merci et vous. Thank you so much.
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AMANPOUR: So as you just heard, Paris City Hall is set to make legal moves against the FOX News network.
But imagine a world where French television beat them to it. Satire put FOX on trial -- after this.
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AMANPOUR: And finally tonight, as we just heard, the mayor of Paris is serious about defending her city's reputation. Now imagine a world
where the ancient tradition of French satire strikes again, putting FOX News and their so-called experts on trial on the air.
This all started last week as the French were mourning their dead after attacks they called their 9/11. So-called experts on America's FOX
News channel appeared with alarming reports of no-go zones across all of Western Europe, run by Muslim extremists wielding sharia law.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
STEVEN EMERSON, FOX NEWS TERROR EXPORT: You basically have zones where sharia courts are set up, where Muslim density is very intense, where
the police don't go in and where it's basically a separate country, almost, a country within a country.
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AMANPOUR: Now this description proved unrecognizable to the inhabitants. The French ambassador himself to Washington tweeting, "It is
so ridiculous that I'm ashamed to be obliged to react."
Before the mayor of Paris said that she'd sue FOX, the French media proved the spirit of satire remains alive and well.
"Le Petit Journal," which is France's version of America's "Daily Show," reacts, well, just how you'd expect it to.
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UNIDENTIFIED MALE (from captions): Paris is a very (INAUDIBLE) in the world. Look at them now. He was in a terrorist (INAUDIBLE). (INAUDIBLE).
It's too dangerous! Come back! Come back! Run away, run away! Oh, my God, it's a couscous.
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AMANPOUR: Ah, yes, the threat of couscous and kebabs. Well, FOX News and their experts did apologize which came after they described similar no-
go zones in the British city of Birmingham. They had to apologize for that, too.
And Prime Minister David Cameron called their expert "an idiot." But it didn't stop a prominent U.S. governor visited London this week and
trying to make capital out of these claims.
Louisiana's Bobby Jindal stood outside Parliament to warn Britain about its dangerous no-go zones as CNN's Max Foster found out.
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BOBBY JINDAL, REPUBLICAN GOVERNOR: Look, I've heard it from folks here there are neighborhoods where women don't feel comfortable going in
without veils. That's wrong. We all know there are neighborhoods where police are less likely to go into those neighborhoods.
MAX FOSTER, CNN HOST: You need to have proper sort of facts to back that up. I've lived here a long time. I don't know of any no-go zones for
non-Muslims.
JINDAL: Well, I did say so-called no-go zones and I think that the radical Left absolutely wants to pretend like this problem's not here.
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AMANPOUR: And we're left to ponder the wisdom of exacerbating racial, religious and ethnic divisions at this very dangerous time. In the words
of the Paris mayor, Anne Hidalgo, "The press and the media should tell the truth."
That is it for our program tonight. And remember you can always see the whole show online at amanpour.com and follow me on Facebook and
Twitter. Thank you for watching and goodbye from London.
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