secure. the knowledge no american government will ever do this to its children. to our children. what the syrian government allegedly did to this child. you'll see him right here. his name was hamza ali alkhateeb. just 13 years old. he disappeared from an anti-government rally on the 29th of april. now look away if you need to. these next photos get very, very hard to take. this is what he looked like when his body came home. his kneecaps had been smashed. his head was swollen. his body covered in cigarette burns. he had been embassy claited. according to family accounts on arabic news channels, syrian government officials came to their home last wednesday asking them to sign a waiver accepting hamza's body but only if they wouldn't show the body or say anything about the circumstances of his death. they signed but were so horrified by the condition of his body they could not keep quiet. so they consented to a video of their son's body. it later turned up on al jazeera. almost all of it is so grisly we could only show you those two frames. that set off a weekend of outrage as activists raisen zeitouni put it to the "washington post," torture is usual in syria. what was special about hamza is he was only 13 years old. a pro-regime television station disputes the allegations, with the doctor who did the autopsy phoning in, saying there's no evidence of torture. he says what you saw came from decomposition. now, right here we need to point out that we have yet to independently confirm these allegations, but bodies don't get covered in cigarette burns when they decompose. they don't lose organs. they don't show every sign the deceased in this case a 13-year-old boy was brutally tortured. and again, the assad regime, father and son, has a long, long record of brutality. according to human rights groups, more than 1,000 people have been killed and 10,000 arrested since the anti-regime protests began. nor has the regime shown the slightest compunction about gunning down teenagers. >> [ yelling in foreign language ]. >> the video shows a wounded teenager. later frames, which are too graphic to air, show another younger boy mortally wounded being carried away. more evidence, recent video of wounded children children. like so much of what comes from the region, again, we cannot independently confirm it, but a human rights activist in homs tells us these kids were wounded when security forces began shooting at their school bus, wounding five and killing a 12-year-old girl. and this is how the regime handles unarmed protesters of any age. [ gunfire ] >> [ speaking in foreign language ]. >> and this. this is how the regime deals with clearly marked ambulances. >> [ yelling in foreign language ]. [ gunfire ] >> from the beginning syria's dictator has blamed outsiders and terrorists for the uprising. more recently he admitted that security forces have made mistakes in dealing with it. well, ask yourself this. have the people you've seen looked like terrorists? is 13-year-old hamza ali al khateeb a terrorist? as for mistakes, snipers targeting an ambulance? was that a mistake? shooting teenagers? a mistake? security forces opening fire on a school bus? a mistake, too? or cold-blooded murder? it gets worse. there's word from al jazeera that the body of another teenager, this one an 18-year-old who had learning disabilities, was returned to a family in dahrar last week, also bearing the marks of torture. so as you look at children marching in memory of hamza al khateeb, ask yourself how many of these kids will be marching again for the next child, and how many won't be around to march at all? joining us now to discuss this, arwa damon. she's in beirut for us tonight. and in new york professor fouad ajami, of the hoover institution. arwa, i want to start with this question. the regime could have kept the body from the family. why give the boy's body back to his parents instead of just disposing of it? >> reporter: they could have, john. and we posed that question to raizan zaytouni, who's a prominent opposition activist. she's in hiding in damascus. and she pointed out a number of things. first of all, the fact that she said that while the image of hamza might be chilling, horrifying for many people around the world, this has in fact been the status quo in syria not just under current president al assad but also under his father before him for decades. the difference, she said, is that now people are actually talking about it. she also said that she firmly believes, first of all, that the footage that we saw, that what happened to hamza was in fact true, it was not faked, and that the regime deliberately releases these bodies to the families as a message. the message that they're sending out being that there are absolutely no red lines for the regime, it will go to any length necessary to silence the voices of dissent, no matter what the age of the demonstrator. and this also to give a message to anyone who would consider joining the protests, that a similar fate could await them or could await their loved ones. john? >> and do we know anything, arwa? the family had to sign a commitment to be quiet. any retaliation now for going public? >> reporter: well, john, we tried to get through to the family through intermediaries, and by the time we were trying to get in touch with them we were told that they were quite simply too terrified to speak out. we did hear reports over the weekend that perhaps hamza's father and his brother had been detained. the family most certainly would appear to have gone into hiding with numerous reports that yes, they had in fact been threatened. and this, again, has been the status quo in syria. this is what activists have been telling us. most people who dare speak out, if the regime is able to track them down, they are threatened in the best cases, detained, and oftentimes tortured in the worst and oftentimes, again, killed, as we have been seeing repeatedly. >> fouad, this is horrible in think case, but especially so because it is a child, it is a teenager. in tunisia it was the fruit vendor who set himself on fire and became the symbol of the beginning of the arab spring. could this young man now be that symbol to take the syria demonstrations to the next level? >> well, john, that's really the fundamental question. hamza al khateeb will go down in the history of syrian torment and in the history of syrian grief and in the history of syrian sorrow. the masks have fallen in damascus. this ruler, bashar al assad, has always pretended to be a civilized man. he had studied in england. he had reached into the outside world. he had been pretending to be a reformer. even some of our own statesmen, our secretary of state hillary clinton once called him a reformer. even our own president obama as late as may 19, just a couple of weeks ago, in a speech said that bashar al assad has a choice, he can either lead the progress toward reform or he can step out of the way. we've seen everything now. we've seen this poor child. and i think arwa is right. you send the boy home in order to scare the syrian people into submission. because the rulers are surprised that the syrian people are no longer afraid. >> and arwa, it's very difficult because we can't get independent access to syria. but we do see some increase in the protests since this incident. can we have a sense, do you have any sense of your sources in reporting, that perhaps we're getting to a critical mass? >> reporter: well, john, if the intent of the regime was to terrorize people off of the streets, this most certainly appears to have had the opposite effect. there were a number of demonstrations over the weekend following the parents receiving hamza's body. people out on the streets chanting that hamza's blood will not have been spilt in vain, chanting their support. we've seen a facebook page emerging that now has close to 60,000 members, people seemingly even more galvanized by the fact that this atrocious act did take place or at least is alleged to have taken place. and again, as activists point out to us repeatedly, the harsher, the more brutal this regime gets, the more toughened the opposition becomes. this most certainly is a movement. and those who are involved realize within this movement that they have no choice at this point but to carry this out until the end. and so while it might be a bit premature to say that the demonstrations have reached critical mass in the sense that they would be able to topple the regime, they most certainly do have a lot of momentum, and activists will tell you that the act of killing this child in such a brutal manner is only serving to fuel that momentum, john. >> and fouad, if they have momentum, are they getting the help from the outside that they need? are these brave souls getting from the west, from the united states in particular -- there's been tough talk. there's been sanctions. but is it anywhere near enough? >> no. i think, john, the syrian people are fated to fight this fight alone. and if you compare them with the libyans, you see the differences. there was a mandate internationally to intervene in libya. there is no mandate to intervene in syria. the arab league stood against moammar al gadhafi. the arab league is afraid of bashar al assad. russia came down eventually on moammar gadhafi, but russia supports the al assad regime. alas, unfortunately, we have to say that the syrian regime still has assets and the opposition, driven by the sense of outrage, has its own power behind it. so i think you are going to see this standoff, and it will continue for a while, the regime on one side, and the people on the other, and the people are not afraid. >> professor ajami, arwa, thanks. we'll stay on top of this story. we promise you that. we will watch these heroes in the streets. thanks for helping us tonight. tell us what you think. we're on facebook or follow us on twitter @ac360. we'll be tweeting tonight. up next, where is sarah palin, and what's up with her bus tour? she says she's contemplating a presidential run. so is this part of it? and later, new health information that could change the way you use your cell phone. is there a cancer connection? anderson talks with "360" m.d. sanjay gupta. ♪ [ male announcer ] and just like that, it's here. a new chance for all of us: people, companies, communities to face the challenges yesterday left behind and the ones tomorrow will bring. prudential. bring your challenges. tdd# 1-800-345-2550 are still talking about retirement tdd# 1-800-345-2550 like it's some kind of dream. tdd# 1-800-345-2550 it's either this magic number i'm supposed to reach, or... tdd# 1-800-345-2550 it's beach homes or it's starting a vineyard. tdd# 1-800-345-2550 come on ! tdd# 1-800-345-2550 just help me figure it out tdd# 1-800-345-2550 in a practical, let's-make- this-happen kind of way. tdd# 1-800-345-2550 a vineyard ? schwab real life retirement services is personalized, tdd# 1-800-345-2550 practical help that's focused on making your retirement real. open an account today and talk to chuck tdd# 1-800-345-2550 about setting up your one-on-one consultation. tdd# 1-800-345-2550 i thought it was over here... ♪ [car horn honks] our outback always gets us there... ... sometimes it just takes us a little longer to get back. ♪ stop here on her bus tour, which started out today in the nation's capital. now, she is here in town, but she's yet to turn up here at the battlefield. then there's the question of what kind of stop. she said today she's still contemplating a presidential run. so is it a campaign stop? who knows? miss palin's not even saying that's a campaign bus she's driving. >> it certainly looks like a campaign bus. if you're not running for president, why the tour? >> this isn't a campaign bus. this is a bus to be able to express to america how much we appreciate our foundation and to invite more people to be interested in all that is good about america and to remind ourselves we don't need to fundamentally transform america, we need to restore what's good about america. you can start by doing that right in here. i'm glad you guys are here. >> now, the non-campaign bus tour has a non-published itinerary, meaning we don't get a schedule in advance. expected here tonight -- there are actually a lot of families waiting for her but she's apparently in for the night at a local hotel. we'll see what happens in the morning. reputed eventually to be heading to new hampshire. that's the first presidential primary state. but no confirmation from the campaign. if the non-campaign turns real our polling suggests a warm welcome from republican voters. if rudy giuliani gets in the race also palin's poll 13% support to romney's 15% and giuliani's 16%. here to talk politics shoshana walsh daily beast contributor and co-author of "sarah from alaska." also eric ericsson. and democratic strategist maria cardona, who advised hillary clinton during the 2008 campaign. all right. you're here in gettysburg, you've been chasing the bus around the whole time. is this civics 101, sarah palin takes us on a tour of american history, or is this campaign 101? >> well, i think it's both. and it's definitely the latter. it seems like she is traveling around the country and meeting supporters and seeing really if there is enough support out there for a run. it's also, insiders tell me, a way for her to test it out on her family, see if they're okay with the rigors of a campaign, see if they're going to come together. and a source close to the campaign told me really it was todd's idea with sarah but mostly todd's idea to push them to join this -- this bus tour around the country and see, you know, if there is support out there for this. >> well, that's a legitimate question, eric ericsson, to see if the family wants to do it. we heard from governor daniels recently in indiana saying no. when you watch the palin family making a round, a lot of republicans would like this decision because of the shadow she casts on the official candidates. how much latitude, how much patience i guess does governor palin have with republican voters? >> she's sarah palin. she's got a lot of patience and latitude with voters. it's the other candidates who i think she has some frustration with. that's natural. but between state parties and local parties and others, i suspect there will be some sniping along the way. right now i kind of feel like we're all getting played. and you know, if we don't cover it, we get beat up for not covering it. if we do cover it, we get beat up for not treating her like some people want us to treat her. there is really a no winn situation except for sarah palin, and i think that's the key. >> i think that's a good way to put it because i got beat up a little bit in the twitterverse and on e-mail tonight for why are you covering, this she's not even a candidate. i can tell you there are more than 100 people waiting here, some of them for eight hours, some of them for eight-plus hours in nearly 100 degree temperatures for a glimpse of her. and i'm sorry, no disrespect to the other candidates, that would not happen for them. she does have a star quality to her. as the democrat in the conversation, try to be a neutral strategist to the best you can, maria. do you see this as a palin for president campaign, or is this brand management, she's essentially trying to just rehabilitate her image some? >> i do think that it is absolutely brand management, john. but i'll comment about whether it's a real presidential campaign and whether she has those intentions. but on the brand management, i mean, let's just be real, sarah palin is all about sarah palin. and she's brilliant at that. she's about pushing her brand. and the fact that we're talking about her, the fact that you're waiting for her in gettysburg, the fact that hundreds of people are waiting for her in gettiesburg, she knows that, and she is using this to the fullest. but i also think that when mike huckabee decided not to run and mitch daniels decided not to run she probably had and is having an a-ha moment because she also knows that she probably better than anybody else can speak to the very critically important social conservatives in the gop who are going to be essential in whoever gets nominated for the gop. and she's saying this could be my moment. now, whether she takes that to the next step, she's going to keep us guessing until that actually happens or not. >> now, most republicans have thought for months, shushanne that no, she's not going to run. if she wants to be active, she wants to be influence, she wants her voice to be heard and she wants to tease us to keep us interested in her. but you've always thought she probably will, right? >> i really have. the throughout this time. even since after 2008 when she lost when she went to alaska is she's been telling us if that door's open she'll go through it. and this continues now. and i think that this is just the next stage of it. but as you said, you just said, are there any other gop primary candidates that could get the press running after them without a schedule? she's the only one. with crowds, hundreds of people waiting for her when no one knows the schedule. she doesn't play by the rules. and i think that's how -- that's what a sarah palin campaign will look like. >> last time i remember anything like this was ross perot in 1992, who didn't give us his schedule. we had to run around the country chasing him. some people find it frustrating. some of us actually find it kind of fun. it's part of the process. it's up to the candidates. it's a free country. obviously there's no one who has her name i.d., no one who has her star power. is there anyone -- or if palin gets in the race, let me ask it this way. if palin gets in the race, who falls and gets hurt, and who contrasts get drawn immediately? >> you know, i think there's a short game and a long game there. first i would say if sarah palin gets in the race she's probably one of the only people that look like. >> last time i remember anything like this was ross perot in 1992, who didn't give us his schedule. we had to run around the country chasing him. some people find it frustrating. some of us actually find it kind of fun. it's part of the process. it's up to the candidates. it's a free country. obviously there's no one who has her name i.d., no one who has her star power. is there anyone -- or if palin gets in the race, let me ask it this way. if palin gets in the race, who falls or gets hurt, and what contrasts get drawn immediately? >> you know, i think there's a short game and a long game there. first i would say if sarah palin gets in the race she's probably one of the only people that could shake up the race and draw significant support away from most of the candidates. she would hurt initially people like herman cain and tim pawlenty who are trying to get traction. particularly michelle bachmann as well. there's no definable reason for her to be in the race if sarah palin's there. they seem so similar. she wouldn't hurt mitt romney much. i don't want it to sound negative toward mitt romney. i know it comes off that way. but there's a level of mitt romney's campaign even with some of his supporters that -- kind of an elitist. and i use the term loosely. and i think long term, depending on how they couch themselves against sarah palin, it could hurt mitt romney even with some of his supporters for being too negative on sarah palin. >> maria, one gets the impression that many democrats want sarah palin to run more than many, shall we say, top republican strategists. do you worry at all, though? do you worry at all that that could just be wishful thinking? >> i actually am one of those democrats who does hope that she runs. but here's i think the point, john. i absolutely think that she could win the gop nomin