israel is not trying say it is a big success to do that. one, in fact, it is not. i have to say the israelis issued this book as a kind of propaganda. when you say that someone was working for his enemies, it means that he lies for his own people and we expect that there is a big lies in this book. it doesn't mean that everything in this book is serious. there may be some facts which was used to mauck a kind of credibility for the book while we believe most of this is lies. >> i want to go now quickly to mr. gergeg and ask you, were you impressed by the very passionate way that yusef talks about his conversion from islam to christianity? that seems to have been such a motivating factor for what he did. >> no. i mean, this is also an element in the tale that also must be taken into account. when we discuss the credibility of what he says. the reason why i say so is that mr. yusef jr. obviously has gone through tremendous upheaval, psychological, personal, multiple levels. it is a human story for most of us living in the west. for the palestinians, it is a tragedy that reminds them of what israel has done to their society. how it infiltrates their society. >> thank you so much. also, to hamdan, spokesman for hamas in damascus. and mr. me plan who joined us from tel aviv. gentlemen, thank you all very much for helping to dissect this story. and to catch some behind-the-scenes photos from the interview that sparked the discussion, logon to amanpour.com where you can give us your feedback. you can watch the entire interview on amanpour.com/podcast. up next, from the cynical side of this war to overcoming the hostility. a remarkable documentary shows that it can be possible. now our postscript. the story we have been telling over the past hour shows the steamy side of the conflict. there is, if you look hard enough, also a sunnier side. we want to show you the possibility of both sides overcoming hostility. and it starts with the young. an organization called seeds of peace is demonstrating how dialogue can overcome disstrus. this documentary clip shows palestinians and israeli youngsters coming together for a second year of summer camp in the united states. they discussed what it was like trying to plan the seeds of peace back home. >> when i came back i was like a totally different person. here you get the tools and you have to work with them. in israel you have to work with them. i just understood that you have do something. >> after i came back from camp, it was hard. most of my friends were tell me that what you are doing is wrong. people are dieing and you're going and coexisting with them. at that time i feel like should i be a seed or shouldn't i be? what way should i go? if i want to help my people i think my way is the better way. >> seeds of peace was founded during the peace process back in 1993. it has now expanded to other conflict zones in the balkans, india, pakistan, and now in afghanistan as well. now, we are one of the first tv programs to enter the new social media site google buzz. and now you can connect with our program using a g-mail account and find the link at amanpour.com. that's it for our report and you this for joining us. during the week, you can watch our program on cnn international and catch our daily podcast on amanpour.com/podcast. good-bye from new york. hello. i'm fredricka whitfield. sunday, march 7th. they called him a zombie american. pakistani official tells cnn that intelligence agents have arrested adam kadan in karachi today. he appeared in more than a dozen al qaeda videos condemning the u.s. and israel. he has been considered the spokesperson of al qaeda. give us an idea of the circumstances of this arrest and why pakistani officials are so quick to boast about this. >> yes, frederique. very few dye tails about this arrest. but the arrest was confirmed to us by a senior pakistani government official. u.s. officials have yet to confirm the arrest of adam ghadan. we were eager to see if president barack obama would say anything when he delivered comments about the iraqi elections an hour ago. he did not. let's tell you what we have from this senior pakistani government official. official telling cnn that ghadan and american citizen that joined al qaeda was arrested in a southern port city of karachi. karachi where we have seen a number of senior afghan taliban leaders arrested over the past couple of months. an incredibly bizarre story. this was a young man, 31 years old, born in california. he became a mouthpiece for al qaeda. ever since 2004 he delivered a number of videotaped messages on behalf of al qaeda. it is not clear if this is a coincidence. but his latest videotape message surfaced today in that videotape message, he called on muslims in america to wage jihad against america, on american soil. he described the ft. hood killer as an example of a good muslim. of course, ft. hood killer of the army major who killed 13 people in an army base in ft. hood, texas. adam gadahn started studying islam when he was 13. moved to pack man? 1998. married an afghan woman. few years later, he joined al qaeda and became a spokesperson. in 2006, u.s. courts charged him with treason. washington was offering a $1 million reward for his capture. according to this senior pakistani government official, adam gadhan indeed in custody. >> reza saya, thank you so much for that. wh kevin robinson is a former military officer. joining us from phone from los angeles. ken, how significant would this arrest mean in the u.s.' fight against terrorism? >> it is a really big deal because this man knows a lot about the recruitment and retention of the global jihad movement on the internet. it is a funny thing that english is not only the language of civil aviation. it has become the language of jihad because there's so many different languages, it becomes a unifying language for them in distance learning and a big deal they now lost their biggest spokesman. >> but what is going to be an even bigger deal is will he talk, would he cooperate? there are a lot of questions that pakistani and u.s. official was have for him. should anyone count on him actually deyou will have knowledging any information? >> he's probably going to be a tough target. he's probably going to be -- has been trained in resistance to interrogation. and there is perishable information that he has that probably won't be worth much 48 hours from now. but is valuable now. it is a race with him to see what he has on him and what he is willing to say. but more importantly, it is the ideology and recruitment of guys like him because if you -- if you notice, this is what's called a leaderless resistance. what that means is there is no corporate headquarters. put their ideas out on the web and find people who are sympathetic, hopeless, and they recruit them and then someone comes in and radicalizes them. just like what happened with him. and it is a dangerous cycle we are seeing where they reach out to anyone and everyone other than typically arabs. they are now targeting europeans and united kingdom and in the united states successfully. >> ken robinson, thanks so much. again, u.s. sources have not confirmed this arrest. right now only pakistani officials are saying this arrest indeed took place. meantime, at the white house, president barack obama is praising today's iraqi elections as an important milestone. despite at least 38 deaths in election related violence, large numbers of iraqis went to the polls to elect a new parliament. it was iraq's first national vote since 2005. cnn's arwa damon is in baghdad. are the people there in iraq considering this a successful day of elections? >> reporter: iraq is looking at this as a significant milestone. also, as a display of their courage, bravery, and resilience. at least among those that did, in fact, go out to vote. we don't have an official estimate just yet. but according to the independent high electoral voter turnout was good. we will get a specific number on that tomorrow. one has to remember iraqis woke up this morning to the news at least 30 mortar rounds rained down on baghdad and it was with that knowledge that they went to the poll. at least those that decided to go. of course, we asked them about why it was that they decided it was worth casting their vote. they basically said that this was their way of defying the insurgents and said they felt like it was their responsibility to go out and vote not necessarily for their own future. no one is expecting anything to dramatically change out of the elections when it comes to what the average iraqi wants to see changed. but they are saying it is for the future of the next generation. those are, however, very critical, very important elections. in fact, they are being called the most decisive moment in iraq since 2003. quite simply because the government that eventually is going to emerge and remember it could take months for a government to actually come together, but it really is going to determine whether or not iraq has democracy, if that's what we want to call it, more secular nation. or if, in fact, ends up a more conservative and religious state. this is proving to be a very, very close race, fredricka. >> arwa damon, thanks so much, from baghdad. on the road, president barack obama takes his health care push to two key states this week. we will talk about the political week straight ahead. . okay. $65 for tonight. you can't argue with a big deal. introducing big deal days, get an exclusive sneak peak at recent winning hotel bids to help you save up to half off. and get your big hotel deal now. because big deal days won't last long at priceline. client's come in, they're anxious. scared. they don't know where to begin. so we start to talk about what have they done and what are their goals. and then we plan. it's a very good feeling as an advisor to work with people and help get them to their goals. once people perceive that they can control their destiny then they accomplish unbelievable things. [ male announcer ] we're america's largest financial planning company. meet us today at ameriprise.com. okay. time to talk politics. this week, president obama is taking his health care push on the road again. he's heading to two swing states to drum up grassroots support for his signature legislation. joining us from our washington studio is cnn's deputy political director paul steinhauser. paul, good to see you. so here the president was talking about iraq earlier today perhaps make way for focusing again on domestic issues this week. namely one that's near and dear to his heart, health care. he is heading to missouri as well aspen pen. >> you are absolutely right. this is his signature domestic issue and pushing it for a long time and still no, you know, no law yet. as you mentioned, yes, pennsylvania tomorrow. missouri on wednesday. fred, you got it right. these states have crucial elections this november and both will most likely be very important battleground states in the next race for the white house in 2012. as you mentioned, this is his signature issue. the president doesn't get the push through congress in signed into law this could be tough for him and democratic party. the key question, of course, not the democrats have the votes to pass this? y they think they have the votes but it is not a lock yet. this is -- there's a lot of liner here and clock ticking. they want to get this done of the end of month before congress takes a break for easter. >> there have been other distractions perhaps for this white house. mainly it was just last week when it was revealed that democrat got ahold of some republican fund-raising power point papers which showed president obama as the joker and so now apparently the -- democrats as a whole are trying to come out with ads to respond to what the republicans have been doing. >> exactly. this was a big story at the end of last week. and this was a private presentation. as you mentioned part of it contained a description of the president as the joker in "batman" and what the president is doing with socialism. democratic national committee says they are coming out with this ad this week. they say lit run in a couple of markets. take a listen. >> president obama as the joker? speaker pelosi as deville. senator harry reid as scooby doo? this is today's -- >> ad goes on to say that there are no new ideas in the republican party and that basically all they have left is fear. this is an interesting story because earlier last week the democrats were definitely on the offensive and had a bad week with the controversies in new york with governor paterson up there. congressman and and former chairm chairman, rain gel. the democrats had a very tough week. this story came around and now the republicans seem to be on the spot. democrats are going to try to make the most of it. >> you saw some of that imagery during some tea party movement gatherings. tea party usually appealing to republicans but now understand that there is a relationship building with democrats? >> yes. this is interesting. you don't see this a lot. this is a mix, strange bedfellows, i guess you could say. local tea party groups in alabama, obviously very conservative, are teaming up with democratic groups in alabama as well. why are they teaming up to go after congressman -- parker who, of course, parker griffith, i'm sorry, parker griffith, who just at the end of last year, he switched parties. he was a democrat and now a republican. you saw him just yesterday giving the republican response. radio internet address on health care. and both sides are going after him bus the top republican in the house, john boehner tomorrow doing a fund-raising for grif you its. both sides are upset for different reasons. they are teaming up. you don't see this often but you will see it tomorrow in alabama. >> okay. thanks so much. paul steinhauser from washington. and, of course, we are going to focus on what is taking place on the west coast. counting down the hours to the night tinseltown has been waiting for. oscars. more on hollywood's golden boy in the cnn chat room. ♪ ♪ [ male announcer ] the cadillac cts sports sedan. one of car and driver's 10 best for the third year in a row. ♪ and now, for qualified current lessees, cadillac announces the new luxury collection lease. sir? finding everything okay? i work for a different insurance company. my auto policy's just getting a little too expensive. with progressive, you get the "name your price" option, so we build a policy to fit your budget. wow! the price gun. ♪ ah! wish we had this. we'd just tell people what to pay. yeah, we're the only ones that do. i love your insurance! bill? tom? hey! it's an office party! the freedom to name your price. only from progressive. call or click today. their suits are fresh, shoes shined. ladies had their hair done. plenty of stars are getting all dolled up for the 82nd eye academy awards show in los angeles tonight. many of the nominees have worked to the before. here now is our brooke anderson. >> that's a personal question. >> please. >> we hardly know each other. >> reporter: "up in the air" star george clooney knows them quite well. cloon why you appeared in "ocean's 11" and sequel was matt damon -- >> you are either in or out. >> reporter: "the men that stare at goats," jeff bridges. jeff bridges crossed paths in a scary way with best actress favorite sandra bulk on 17 years ago. >> the banishing, i buried her alive. i could tell she was talented right away. amazing. judgment in and do it. >> reporter: bulk on appeared in "the lake house" with plummer. this year's connection queen is meryl streep. >> what is it that you really like to do? >> eat. >> reporter: jewely and and julia" with stanley tucci after their flick "devil wears prada." streep appeared in "mama mia." >> she is a joy to work with. >> reporter: woody shared the screen with penelope cruz. >> he played a -- december truck tibbles guy. i tell you what, he was so good. >> they are all preparing. >> reporter: several nominees have a current oscar connection. damon and morgan freeman are both nominated. monique for "precious." plummer and helen mirren for "the last station." carrie mulligan has a connection. she showed up in "when did you last see your father" starring collin firth. there's only one nominee this year who doesn't fit into our game. >> finding people -- specialties. >> reporter: best supporting actor christof waults has no onscreen connections to any other acting nominee. but tarantino teamed up with george clooney. this year, all roads lead to george. >> brooke joins us now from los angeles looking ravishing. brooke, already the stars are out. >> reporter: say that one more time for me. >> the stars are out. including you. >> reporter: you are so kind. thank you. it is fun to get glammed up. all roads lead to george. this is his fifth oscar nomination this year. it is a little bit old halt to george. it never gets tiring for me talking to george clooney. >> i can understand that. you lucky dog. >> reporter: all right. we will dash. >> it is fun. >> reporter: we will be watching you. you have a special 7:00 and then again 11:00 p.m. eastern on hln. you have a busy night talking to all those glamorous stars. >> reporter: we do. we are going to be here from the red carpet -- that's right. talking to george clooney and jeff bridges, sandra bulk on. i don't know if we have time to talk about this. she won an award for worst actress last night. she's the first person to ever get the award for worst actress the same year she is nominated for best actress. it was the razzy awards. yes. she showed up and was a good sport about it. she did say thank you for ruining my career with a bad decision. she told the audience and the voters that they made an uninformed decision and she brought a cart load of dvd superdelegates for them all to see her movie "all about steve" which is what she was honored for there. or dishonored for. so she was a good sport but is nominated here for best actress for the movie "the blind side." >> i'm sure she was able to turn it around and they all loved her anyroy. >> reporter: she was. indeed. >> brooke anderson, thanks so much. we are all looking forward to finding out the results of the academy awards this evening. brooke will be bringing that to us along with a.j. hammer. 7:00 eastern time. then 11:00 p.m. eastern on hln. jacqui jeras here in the chat room with me because we will be tuning in. for one, we haven't seen any movies. we need to get educated tonight. >> this is the first year in memory where i haven't seen a single one of the -- >> i at least saw one. "hurt locker." >> and? >> powerful. >> yeah. >> sadly, i haven't seen any of the other nine in the nominee category of best picture. you know, yeah. it is great, powerful. thought provoking. darn it, just didn't make enough time for the movies this year. >> we do -- poll. asking around the newsroom i posted it on my facebook page. let me fwhaeg and let you know what our thoughts are. are the oscars relevant? do you want to watch the movies? are you more interested in seeing outfits? are you too busy? is it too expensive to go out to see a lot of the movies? >> all of that. people are tuning in to find out what people are wearing. you know. brooke was talking about sandra bulk on. i understand that just a couple of weeks ago, you know, she wasn't sweating it. she hadn't picked out a dress. she figured there are a lot of gorgeous things out there. lots to choose from. you know, she is going to be calm, cool, collected. of course, all eyes on her. >> she is so gorgeous she could wear a paper bag and look fantastic. she is 45 years old. >> she looks great. >> hello. >> james cameron is up for best director. his wife just might be stealing the show a little bit because she is go