CNN Student News Transcript: September 18, 2008

(CNN Student News) -- September 18, 2008

Quick Guide

Attack in Yemen - Hear about the details of an attack against the U.S. Embassy in Yemen.

Agreement in Zimbabwe - Discover how political rivals in Zimbabwe are planning to share power.

How Taxes Tie In - Learn how tax dollars are helping to pay for AIG's federal bailout.

Transcript

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

CARL AZUZ, CNN STUDENT NEWS ANCHOR: On Headline News, online and on iTunes, this is CNN Student News! Glad to have you with us. I'm Carl Azuz.

First Up: Attack in Yemen

AZUZ: First up, violence in the Middle East as an attack targets the U.S. Embassy in Yemen. Officials say 10 Yemeni police and civilians lost their lives yesterday when suspected insurgents opened fire and set off explosions at the U.S. installation. American officials have condemned this attack, saying that "no political cause justifies the murder of innocent people." Atika Shubert has more on yesterday's violence, and examines the history of these kinds of attacks in the Middle Eastern nation.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ATIKA SHUBERT, CNN REPORTER: Shaky video, but it still shows the magnitude of this coordinated attack. Militants disguised as Yemeni forces attacked the U.S. embassy; first with guns, then driving two car bombs into one of the yellow security perimeters. One British eyewitness living close to the embassy described the chaotic scene to CNN.

TREV MASON, WITNESS: We heard the sounds of a heavy gun battle going on. I looked out my window and we saw the first explosion going off, a massive fireball, very close to the U.S. Embassy. The gun battle went on for further 10 to 15 minutes, followed by two further loud explosions.

SHUBERT: This is the fourth attack on the U.S. Embassy in Yemen in recent years, and the deadliest. In April, the U.S. State Department ordered all non-essential American staff and family members to leave for their own safety. But that order was lifted last month. Embassy officials will now have to reconsider.

RYAN GLIHA, U.S. EMBASSY SPOKESPERSON: We at the embassy and I think, you know, as American people our hearts go out to those who were hurt or killed in this attack. We condemn this attack in no uncertain terms. And really, this demonstrates that these criminal terrorists really will not hesitate to kill innocent citizens and those who are charged with protecting the lives of citizens in order to pursue their terrorist agenda.

SHUBERT: Yemeni officials say they believe Al Qaeda sympathizers may have been behind the attack. Local media reports say that a group known as Islamic Jihad in Yemen, an Al Qaeda affiliate, has claimed responsibility. CNN cannot independently confirm the claim. Yemen is a U.S. ally in the War on Terror, but it has also been criticized for not doing enough. In recent years, there has been a steady rise in attacks, with no signs of stopping. Atika Shubert, CNN, London.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

I.D. Me

GEORGE RAMSAY, CNN STUDENT NEWS: See if you can I.D. Me! I'm an African nation that's located between Zambia and South Africa. I was once known as Rhodesia. I got my independence from the United Kingdom in 1980, and the same man has been my ruler since then: Robert Mugabe. I'm Zimbabwe, home to more than 12 million people and slightly bigger than the U.S. state of Montana.

Agreement in Zimbabwe

AZUZ: Robert Mugabe is still that country's president, but he's agreed to share power with his political rival, Morgan Tsvangirai. Zimbabwe has been in a political crisis since March, when Tsvangirai, whom you see on the left here, won a disputed election. But the government, run by Mugabe, said Tsvangirai didn't win enough votes to avoid a run-off. Accusations of violence were made against Mugabe, and Tsvangirai dropped out of the election. But Monday, the rivals agreed to put aside the past and work together. Nkepile Mabuse reports from Zimbabwe on how this new power-sharing structure will work.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

NKEPILE MABUSE, CNN REPORTER: Despite expectations that a power-sharing agreement would usher in a new era in Zimbabwe, CNN is still banned in this country. We're having to report from a secret location. We did ask permission from the information ministry to cover the signing agreement for the power-sharing deal that was signed on Monday, and we were refused, only told that CNN is biased and will not be allowed to broadcast here. So we had to broadcast from a secret location.

But it is now official: Robert Mugabe remains president of Zimbabwe; opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai takes the post of prime minister. He is going to be heading a council of ministers that is going to be formulating and also implementing policy. And Robert Mugabe will also chair cabinet. But this cabinet will have both parties represented there, will have members of ZANU-PF and will have members of the MDC. Both political rivals did show a united front as they signed this landmark agreement. But shortly after the signing, there were clashes between ZANU-PF, Robert Mugabe's party, and MDC supporters outside the venue where the signing was taking place, really giving a clear indication that animosity still remains among political rivals and political parties in Zimbabwe.

Obviously, foreign donors are going to be very key taking this country forward, and foreign investors, and most of them are likely to adopt a wait-and-see kind of stance on Zimbabwe to see if this deal is implementable and to see whether Robert Mugabe will actually honor the deal that he signed on Monday. Nkepile Mabuse, Zimbabwe.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

Shoutout

RAMSAY: Time for the Shoutout! Which of these states does NOT border Texas? If you think you know it, shout it out! Is it: A) Arkansas, B) Arizona, C) Louisiana or D) New Mexico? You've got three seconds -- GO! Texas shares a border with four different states, but Arizona isn't one of them. That would be Oklahoma. That's your answer and that's your Shoutout!

Hurricane Ike Update

AZUZ: Relief supplies are flowing across those borders as aid groups deliver water and food to victims of Hurricane Ike. The government's set up more than 50 distribution centers across the state. Meanwhile, the toll from Ike continues to rise. Officials in Galveston reported at least six additional deaths yesterday, bringing the number of lives claimed by the storm in Texas to 16.

Promo

AZUZ: As you just saw, the devastation caused by Hurricane Ike can still be seen across Texas and the Gulf Coast, and the victims need help, even as government aid arrives. To find out how you can take part in the recovery efforts, go to CNNStudentNews.com and click on the Impact Your World link in the Spotlight section on our page.

Financial Woes

AZUZ: Couple updates for you now on the turmoil facing the economy. We told you yesterday that AIG is trying to stay afloat. Well, the government's going to help out. The Federal Reserve is loaning $85 billion to the insurance group. That should keep it from declaring bankruptcy, but it's causing concerns about the stability of the financial industry. And yesterday, those fears sent stocks dropping hard, nearly 450 points. It's the second worst trading session of the year.

How Taxes Tie In

AZUZ: Let's go back to AIG for a moment. That government loan will help keep the company in business, and if you draw a paycheck, you're helping to pay for part of it. How does that happen? Josh Levs outlines the path of the cash.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOSH LEVS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: We actually have cartoons to make this otherwise depressing news a little bit more interesting for you. Let's start off with this first one. That's someone working. You work, you get paid. This is where the process starts. Let's go to the next one, because as you know, you pay taxes, your money goes to the IRS. Now in this next one, this is where the process starts to bring us to today. So, when you pay the IRS your tax money, it goes into what's called the Federal Treasury. This huge pile of money goes into the Treasury. Now let's go to the next one. The Treasury issues these things called securities. Now I want to stay on this for a second. See those little pieces of paper coming out of the Treasury? Those are securities that the Treasury issues. Now, the Federal Reserve buys those securities and makes money off the interest on them, and that is responsible for the majority of the Federal Reserve's budget. It's the largest segment of the Federal Reserve's budget. So right there, you get a link between your money and the Federal Reserve.

The way that they operate is that they make lots of money, more than other sources, off of those Treasury securities. Now what happens in this next one, where they see a desperate business like today, and they decide we need to pour billions of dollars into this business to prop it up so that it doesn't fall apart. What do they do? They take some of their money and they give it to the business. But look at how the arrows go both ways. This is the key here. The business is then paying interest. Here we're talking about paying a lot of interest; as of today's figures about 11% over two years. Its a lot of money. So while they are giving the money to the business, the business is paying back. So the argument here, in the end: the taxpayers shouldn't actually be losing anything. The Reserve should actually make money off of all that interest. If things go ideally, then that's how it will end up being.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

Before We Go

AZUZ: Before we go, it's the kind of thing you hear all the time

CAT OWNER: My cat is stuck in the toilet.

AZUZ: Well sure. Who doesn't have a cat that's stuck in a toilet? It all started when the owner heard splashing and squealing coming from the bathroom. She went to check it out and found her feline half-flushed! She called the fire department in for the rescue, and they gave her two options: break the toilet, or break the cat. Luckily, she chose the commode over the kitty.

Goodbye

AZUZ: That story sends today's show down the drain. We'll dry off and see you again tomorrow to close out the week. For CNN Student News, I'm Carl Azuz.