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Criticism Of International Community As Yazidis Remain Stranded; U.S. To Move 130 Troops Into Kurdish Region Of Iraq; Lauren Bacall Dies at 89; Ukraine To Reject Russian Convoy; Pope Francis To Visit South Korea
Aired August 13, 2014 - 8:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
JIM CLANCY, HOST: Hello and welcome everyone. I'm Jim Clancy at CNN headquarters. Welcome to News Stream where news and technology meet.
Here's our top story this hour, a mass exodus in Iraq: civilians desperate to escape Islamic militants.
The standoff between Russia and Ukraine as Ukraine refuses to let a convoy of Russian aid enter the country.
And Hollywood losing another legend. Actress Lauren Bacall dies at the age of 89.
We just got word in the last hour or so that France is set to supply weapons to Kurdish fighters in Iraq almost immediately. A statement from
the office of French President Francois Holland says that move will help the needs of forces who are fighting ISIS militants.
Meanwhile, the United States is sending more military personnel to northern Iraq. U.S. Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel insisting the 130
marines and special operations forces will not have a combat role. Instead, they'll help rescue tens of thousands of Yazidis, members of that
religious minority who are trapped on a mountain by extremists who have vowed to slaughter them all.
Hundreds of Yazidis did manage to escape on foot from Mount Sinjar. They were trekking north into rebel-held territory in Syria along the
border and then finally back into Iraq.
Senior international correspondent Ivan Watson was there for the final leg of their long and sometimes treacherous journey.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)??
IVAN WATSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The scene is almost biblical, a modern day exodus. Thousands of people trudge across
a river to escape a violent enemy. Most of them move in silence. On occasions loved ones separated by war tearfully reunite. ??
Everyone is fleeing ISIS militants who many here refer to as Dash. ??
JAMAL JAMIR, UNIVERSITY STUDENT: When Dash and terrorists -- you know, Dash? ??
WATSON (on camera): Yes. ??
JAMIR: OK. They attack us and our neighbors they are hurt. They are hurt. Since terrorist (inaudible) they joined them. And actually they kill
us. You understand me? ??
WATSON: People you know.
JAMIR: Yes, people. Our neighbors.
WATSON (voice-over): Many refugees are members of a Kurdish religious minority known as the Yazidis. One of them university student Jamal Jamir
found his missing cousin here.
JAMIR: We lost each other. We lost each other. Thank God they arrived.
WATSON: Like many of the other refugees Jamir and his family fled to Sinjar Mountain more than a week ago after ISIS captured their town. They
spent days camping on the mountain, desperately waiting for air drops of food and water until they escaped by foot, on a marathon 15- hour journey
to Syria, a journey that claimed lives.
JAMIR: On the way, two of our brothers, small brothers. What we do? No (inaudible) actually I feel that I will die. We were put on the way, they
die.
WATSON (on camera): Your brothers?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes.
WATSON: Two of your brothers died?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes. Baby.
WATSON (voice-over): A senior Kurdish official here is calling on foreign governments and organizations to prevent genocide.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Use your power. Through the international law. To save the Yazidis from the genocide.
WATSON: By the time these refugees reach Iraqi Kurdistan some are too sick and exhausted to walk. This family won't go any further. For the 11th
night in a row they'll sleep out in the open but this time by the banks of the river. Their dinner, two plates of donated chicken for 12 people. Their
beds, a few scraps of cardboard.
Ivan Watson, CNN on the Iraqi Kurdistan border with Syria.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CLANCY: An estimated 40,000 minority Yazidis are under threat in those Sinjar Mountains. Many are desperate for an escape as you saw there.
No matter how dangerous, they're willing to take the risks.
Anna Coren joins us now from Zaco (ph) in Iraq.
Anna, what is the situation like where you are?
ANNA COREN, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORREPSONDENT: Well, Jim, we had just been down to that river crossing that Ivan was at yesterday. And I can
tell you now that that wave of humanity that we saw is not there, those people have now moved camps on the outskirts.
We've just arrived at one of the UN camps where there are thousands of people who have literally nothing with them, just the clothes that they are
wearing.
It is a desperate situation. There is no doubt about it. I just spoke to a governor of Dehuk (ph) who is charge of this humanitarian
crisis. He actually called it today a catastrophe. He went so far as to say, Jim, that the United Nations and the international community is
failing the Yazidis. He said it is the oldest religion on Earth, that these people have been persecuted. Their facing genocide. Where is the
international community to help these people>
You know, the local people here, they are trying to assist. We've seen buses down at this border crossing where these -- thousands, tens of
thousands of people have crossed in the last few days. In fact, the governor believes there's more than 70,000 people who have crossed that
border crossing in Syria into Iraq.
But, you know, the situation now is what to do with these people? And that is where these camps are being set up. They're being established.
But it is slow going, Jim.
You know, we just passed on the road a bunch of Yazidis who had managed to get out of Sinjar in a protest. They were walking down this
highway, you know, with signs they've managed erect saying we can't live here anymore. We are dying. They want to kill us, you know, the world
save the Yazidis. And (inaudible) that the international community is failing these people, because I can tell you now I've seen no evidence
whatsoever of the international community coming to their aid.
CLANCY: Anna, you know, it's still in these hours -- it's taken for people to ramp up some kind of a response. There's military aid that's
going in. We often times have the military solutions, but as you note there, the humanitarian solutions so much more difficult to come by,
particularly in remote areas like that one and of course in the middle of a conflict.
Now, obviously what's driving these people are the Islamic militants, the Islamic State as they like to call themselves. Is there any evidence
of battles with them? Is there any evidence of pursuit of these people by the ISIS militants?
COREN: What we have spoken to the few people that we have spoken to, who literally just arrived and you know within a space of a few minutes I'm
sure that we will be able to speak to many people who will be able to share their stories. But from the people that we have spoken to, they just said
they were (inaudible) massacre, that they had to get out of Sinjar when they knew that the ISIS militants were coming.
Now Sinjar has a population of 400,000 people. And the governor believes that between, you know, 250,000 to 300,000 of those people living
in Sinjar, the Yazidis, have fled and have made their way into northern Iraq. But certainly that would leave -- if, you know, we do our math, that
would leave at least another -- well, if you believe that 70,000 have come in in the last few days that would leave tens of thousands more ether stuck
up on that mountain, or still trying to get to where we are and take refuge and safety.
But, you know, we spent time yesterday, Jim, with the pesh merga, the Kurdish force who are fighting these ISIS militants. And you know we were
in a town that had been taken by the ISIS terrorists last week. And there were signs of this vicious gun battle, you know, they have weapons that
were from the United States, given to the Iraqi army, seized by ISIS militants. And that is what the pesh merga is up against. The pesh merga
who have these Kalashnikovs, you know, a fighting ISIS militants with this superior weaponry.
So, as far as the battle on the battleground, it is raging. It is happening. And that's why there's a desperate need also for those U.S.
airstrikes to continue and to really be ramped up -- Jim.
CLANCY: Anna Coren, reporting to us there from the front lines of a humanitarian disaster along the Syrian-Iraq border. Thank you so much,
Anna, for being there and reporting on this story. We look forward to hearing from you in the coming hours as it develops.
In Baghdad, Iraq's prime minister Nuri al-Maliki, meantime, is in the midst of a political battle. And he's lashing out at the moves to replace
him.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
NURI AL-MALIKI, IRAQI PRIME MINISTER (through translator): We are holding onto our stance, because this is a conspiracy being weaved from the
inside and from the outside and it is very dangerous.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CLANCY: Trying to cling to office after the Iraqi president named Haider al-Abadi to succeed him.
Now on Tuesday, al-Maliki ordered his troops to stay out of the power struggle. He said he will leave it up to Iraq's court system to decide.
All right, well a ceasefire in Gaza is set to expire in a matter of hours. Israeli tanks and soldiers are in their positions. They're
alongside the Gaza-Israel border. Indirect talks between the Israelis and the Palestinians are continuing in Cairo. Egypt is brokering those, trying
to push both sides to extend the current 72 hour long truce long truce. But one official says it's pretty hard to predict right now what's going to
happen.
All right, still to come right here on News Stream, remembering Robin Williams. We're going to take a look at the life and death of an
internationally loved actor.
Plus, Pope Francis is heading east. We'll look at what is in store for him during his first trip to Asia.
And racial tensions in the heart of the United States. Protests escalating again over the killing of a young black teenager by a white
policeman near the city of St. Louis.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LU STOUT: Hollywood film legend Lauren Bacall has passed away at the age of 89. Her grandson says she apparently suffered a stroke. Bacall
shot to fame. It was in 1944 and she was opposite her future husband Humphrey Bogart as a sexy singer in the movie to have and have not. She
was famous for a husky voice, her sultry looks and her well chronicled love life.
Well, there are new details also coming out in the death of actor and comedian Robin Williams. Police in California say they believe he
committed suicide by hanging. The 63-year-old was found in his California home with a belt around his neck and cuts on his left wrist. It will take
several weeks for a toxicology report to reveal whether Williams was under the influence of drugs or alcohol when he died.
Despite bringing joy to so many people, Robin Williams struggled with depression and substance abuse for years. Let's get more on his life story
from Deborah Feyerick.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Ladies and gentlemen, please welcome Robin Williams!
DEBORAH FEYERICK, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Perhaps it was no coincidence that Robin Williams' HBO tour was called weapons of
self-destruction.
ROBIN WILLIAMS, ACTOR: You are an alcoholic. And some people say, Robin, I'm a functioning alcoholic which is you can be one like being a
paraplegic lap dancer. You can do it. Just not as well as the others really.
FEYERICK: And perhaps it was no coincidence either that Williams did that tour in 2009, a year after a major operation.
WILLIAMS: Please, I've had heart surgery. Thank you.
FEYERICK: Surgery that he says triggered mood swings.
WILLIAMS: After the surgery, you get very emotional. It's like we're, people go how are you?
FEYERICK: For Williams it was all fair game.
WILLIAMS: When I was growing up, they used to say, Robin, drugs can kill you. Now that I'm 58, my doctor is going, Robin, you need drugs to
live.
FEYERICK: Raw, honest, self-deprecating humor in which Williams shares with the world his struggles with alcohol and drugs.
WILLIAMS: I had a little problem with alcohol. I wasn't a problem. Everybody had it. But it was the idea -- I was an alcoholic.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You were a drunk. Now, do you think you've beaten it?
WILLIAMS: No, Larry, it's always there. Yes, I kicked it. No, I'm fine. No, the idea is that you always have a little bit of fear like you
have to just keep at it. It's a day by day.
FEYERICK: In 1992 as a young comedian Williams famously partied with pal John Belushi hours before the blues brother star overdosed on heroin
and cocaine.
WILLIAMS: Cocaine, what a beautiful drug. Anything that makes you paranoid and impotent, give me more of that.
FEYERICK: He soon quit cold turkey and remained sober nearly two decades until 2003 then relapsed and rehab. Here in 2006 for comic relief.
WILLIAMS: It is always good for me to come to Vegas after rehab. I love that.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's a good time for you.
WILLIAMS: A good time for me. It is like going to Colombia, you know. Where are you going for detox? Colombia. Just going to take it easy in this
24-hour alcohol town.
FEYERICK: In 2008 when his second marriage ended as a result of alcoholism, he says, Williams again went to rehab, joking about it with
U.S. troops.
WILLIAMS: I was violating my standards quicker than I could lower them.
FEYERICK: Wherever he went, it seems there was always laughter. But with that came unbearable pressure. William suffered manic depression.
WILLIAMS: No, I'm not always fun to be around. And that there is this thing of, yes, the world sees one thing. And what am I like at home,
different because I can't always be on.
FEYERICK: Surrounded by millions who adored him, loved him. Yet in the end could not save him.
WILLIAMS: Good night!
FEYERICK: Deborah Feyerick, CNN, New York.
(END VIDEOTAPE)?
CLANCY: Robin Williams had a big heart. In honor of his humanitarian work, Williams' family is asking his fans to donate to one of six charities
in lieu of sending any flowers or anything like that. You can find out which ones they are and how to donate on our impact your world website.
Williams also suffered from depression and our site has links there for people who can help you if you suffer from the same thing -- depression.
You can find all that at CNN.com/impactyourworld.
This is News Stream, and still to come right here, Germany urging its citizens to leave countries in West Africa hit by the recent Ebola outbreak
as the battle to contain the deadly virus continues.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CLANCY: Welcome back everyone.
A man in Nigeria has died of Ebola. The official with the regional block ECOWAS is the third person in Nigeria to die from that virus. He had
come into contact with a Liberian official who brought the disease to Legos and later died.
In a bid to contain the outbreak, Canada has offered the World Health Organization up to 1,000 doses of that experimental Ebola vaccine. The
drug has never been tested on humans. But the WHO says it is ethical in its view to offer untested medications to patients infected with Ebola
because of the size of the outbreak and the very high fatality rate that the Ebola virus carries to its victims.
More than 1,000 people have died since the outbreak began in March. Let's get the latest and go to CNN's David McKenzie. He joins us from
Johannesburg. He's back from West Africa.
David, where do we stand on trying to contain this?
DAVID MCKENZIE, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, we stand in a pretty precarious situation, though it does appear, both form the evidence
we saw on the ground and the statements being put out by WHO and others that there is a much bigger effort now to contain this unprecedented
outbreak.
Certainly, when we were leaving the region, Jim, we saw a great deal of screening being done of anyone leaving by the airport in Sierra Leone
and then also coming into the airports like Jomo Kenyatta in Nairobi.
So, certainly there appears to be a lot of noises being made. But, you know, one statement coming from the president of Sierra Leone,
President Koroma, he said we've not been provided with enough equipment, recourses, qualified health officers. And we lost our only expert.
So a lot of criticism coming from the countries towards international agencies and others as that not enough help was given -- Jim.
CLANCY: As we move forward how is it going to be received that those doses of the anti-viral agent, untested as it may be, are going to be made
available?
MCKENZIE: Well, it really depends on how people view it. There hasn't been much reaction from the ground. Certainly there was criticism at first
when two Americans and one European received the experimental blood serum, that's the ZMapp serum, that it wasn't going to where it was potentially
most needed.
Now Liberia has asked for that drug for these two doctors in Liberia. They will be receiving it from the company. That company has run out. The
Canadian government, as you mentioned, is going to be donating vaccines. There are several different ways to fight this from a medical standpoint.
Obviously there are vaccines, there are anti-viral treatments and there are also blood treatments, which ZMapp would fit into that category.
So all of those are being made available. None of them have been proven to be effective in humans, but it certainly seems like, you know,
given the desperate situation for many on the ground they want any help they can get -- Jim.
CLANCY: David McKenzie reporting for us there live from Johannesburg where he continues to monitor the situation.
Well, still ahead right here on News Stream, concerns growing over the recruiting strategy being used by ISIS militants. We'll have a look at the
man leading the charge.
Plus, another night of protest. In some violence reported in the U.S. state of Missouri, along the Mississippi River as locals seek justice for a
young man fatally shot by police.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CLANCY: Welcome back everyone. You're watching News Stream on CNN. I'm Jim Clancy and here are our headlines.
Iraq's Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki lashing out at what he calls a conspiracy from inside and outside to remove him from power. This, after
the Iraqi president named Haider al-Abadi, a former aide, as the new prime minister.
The U.S. has urged al-Abadi to form an inclusive government to help defeat ISIS militants.
Israeli tanks and soldiers are poised along the border with Gaza. Everybody watching, waiting to see if a ceasefire is extended. The talks
continue in Cairo. Egypt is brokering those talks between Israelis and Palestinians. Not clear at this point if the temporary truce will be
extended. It is set to expire about eight hours from now.
Ukraine's interior minister says Russian trucks are not going to be allowed in the Ukraine. Russia has sent 280 vehicles. They are said to
contain nothing but relief supplies, humanitarian aid, to eastern Ukraine. But Kiev and the west remain suspicious as Ukraine battles pro-Russian
militants.
Egypt's former president Hosni Mubarak says he did not order the killing of anti-government protesters in 2011. The former dictator is
testifying at his trial in Cairo. The violence demonstrations led to his ousting.
In northern Iraqi, thousands of Yazidis are still trapped on Mount Sinjar after fleeing ISIS militants. The U.S. is sending about 130
additional military personnel to Iraq. They're there to assist in their rescue we're told.
Barbara Starr is live at the Pentagon, joins us with more on that. Barbara, how soon will they be going? What is their actual job?
BARBARA STARR, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: Well, Jim, in fact overnight the Pentagon announced that the 130 additional U.S. military
advisers had arrived in Irbil. What they're saying is that they are there to look at humanitarian options.
What is very clear now is they are there to look at rescue options, how to get those people off the mountain working with the Iraqis working
with other countries.
U.S. official telling me a short time ago they are really focusing on an air evacuation option, landing helicopters, landing aircraft on top of
that mountain around the clock and getting people out of there. This, of course, would require President Obama's direct approval, because what
you're talking about, of course, is putting a U.S. military presence into Iraq.
Everybody asks the question is this putting the U.S. back into Iraq in a combat role? The Pentagon will tell you no they will go in with a
humanitarian role if approved by the president. Could they come into combat? Could they come into contact with ISIS? Certainly. And they do
have the right, as always, to defend themselves.
But right now what they're looking at is a humanitarian option and certainly matched up with those U.S. airstrikes around Mount Sinjar to
continue to push ISIS back away from the mountain and hopefully reduce the possibility that combat actually would erupt -- Jim.
CLANCY: Well, Barbara, how much of this is already a done deal? Look, we just heard from Anna Coren a little bit later -- earlier, rather,
in our report that people there are already protesting the fact that there hasn't been any real humanitarian rescue of these tens upon tens of
thousands of people. But it sounds to me like the Pentagon already has a plan, that helicopter rescue, and it could come sooner rather than later.
STARR: Well, look, it -- I mean, it's a fact that it is really only the U.S. military that can generate anywhere in the world the large
significant continuing day in, day out capacity for the kind of rescue operation that would be needed to get everybody out of there.
What we have seen already, the Kurdish fighters, the Kurdish pesh merga, the Iraqis making an effort doing what they can with their
helicopters. Our own Ivan Watson was on one of those missions trying to get people out, trying to put in more supplies. But it's really only the
U.S. military that can generate the continuing capacity to do that.
They want to work. They don't want this to be a U.S. military operation. They want it to be working with the pesh merga, working with
the Iraqis, and of course European partners. We're already seeing the British and the French weigh in with some additional help, some additional
assistance. The British joining the air drop effort to drop food and water by parachute down to these people.
But the fact is time is running out. You can't keep just air dropping food and water onto the mountain. These people are in really bad shape.
They need to get out of there. And they need to get out of there sooner rather than later.
CLANCY: Barbara Starr reporting for us live from the Pentagon. Barbara, always appreciate you weighing in here giving us more or less an
inside look at -- and get the mindset of a force that as you point out the only ones that are really anywhere close to being able to do this on short
notice. Thanks again.
STARR: Sure.
CLANCY: Well, officials in Mosul are telling CNN now that ISIS is recruiting young men at a very rapid pace, plying them with guns, cell
phones, cars, even cash as the self-styled Islamic state is spreading and spreading fast the west is racing to find out whatever it can about the man
at the head of the organization, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi. Brian Todd has more.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Clad in a black turban with the humble bearing of the most respected imam, he appeared in an
ornate mosque.
ABU BAKR AL BAGHDADI, ISIS LEADER: (SPEAKING FOREIGN LANGUAGE)
TODD: But this was no man of peace.
AL BAGHDADI (through translator): You should take up jihad to please God and fight in his name.
TODD: This video from early July purportedly shows Abu Bakr al Baghdadi, the mysterious leader of ISIS, declaring a new caliphate, an
Islamic State in Iraq. His grandiosity was striking.
WILLIAM MCCANTS, BROOKES INSTITUTION: Everything about the caliph's outfit is meant to evoke the earliest Islamic empire and the rulers that
governed it. He didn't just come out to say hello to his followers. He came out to say, I am the new leader of the entire Muslim world.
TODD: This from a man who kept such a low profile, he was known as the invisible sheikh.
PAUL CRUICKSHANK, CNN TERRORISM ANALYST: There are rumors this is a guy, who used to cover his face even when meeting with some of his own
people, someone who took extraordinary precautions when it came to his own security.
(GUNFIRE)
TODD: Al Baghdadi was thought of as little more than a local thug when he was captured by U.S. forces in Fallujah about a decade ago. When the
Americans released him from Camp Bucca in Iraq, he turned to the camp commander with a chilling message.
KENNETH KING, FORMER COMMANDER AT CAMP BUCCA: He looked over to us and as he left, he said, see you guys in New York.
(SHOUTING)
TODD: Now, analysts say al Baghdadi leads a group run almost like a corporation, with spreadsheets on assassinations and operative's missions.
U.S. officials tell us it's unlikely al Baghdadi has hands- on command of units on the bat battlefield. He leads with inspiration and strategy, they
say.
What about the paradox between a figure who presents himself as holy and gentle, but leads a group behind these image, of executions and
crucifixions? (on camera): Is that his signature what he wants?
CRUICKSHANK: Every indication we have is this campaign of terror by ISIS has sign off from the very top of the organization, has sign off from
Abu Bakr al Baghdadi. This is a figure even more puritanical and much more extreme than people like al Qaeda, even bin Laden himself.
TODD: And analysts say, the U.S. air strikes against ISIS have likely elevated al Baghdadi's stature among jihadists around the world. The fact
the so-called crusaders are attacking them, they believe, will only get other terrorists to rally around him.
Brian Todd, CNN, Washington.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CLANCY: Well, coming up, racial tensions simmering in the U.S. state of Missouri. A protest in the town of Ferguson turned violent adding to
days of unrest over the killing of an unarmed black teenager.
Now police in Ferguson are not releasing the name of the police officer who shot the young man. Michael Brown, the police chief, says he
fears for the officer and his family's safety.
Let's get more on this story from Ana Cabrera.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CABRERA (voice-over): Peaceful demonstrations erupting into violence for the fourth straight night as angry protesters take to the streets,
outraged over the death of Michael Brown, clashing with police, throwing bottles. Police in riot gear deploying tear gas to disperse the rowdy
crowds. Police still not releasing the name of the officer involved, saying they fear for his safety after threats on social media and because
at this point he hasn't been charged.
Ferguson police chief saying the officer is horrified by what has happened.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Nobody comes to work saying, you know, I want to kill somebody. Nobody wants to go home from work having taken a life.
CABRERA: According to the medical examiner's office, Brown died of multiple gunshots wounds. Brown's friend, Dorian Johnson, who was with him
in the moments leading to the shooting, says there was a scuffle at the police car after the officer asked him to get out of the streets.
DORIAN JOHNSON, VICTIM'S FRIEND: So, now, it was like officers pulling him inside the car. He's trying to pull away. At no time the officer said
that he was going to do anything until he pulled out his weapon.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There was a struggle over the officer's weapon. There was at least one shot fired within the car.
CABRERA: But Johnson says his friend never reached for the officer's gun, instead he said Brown broke free and started running down the street
while the officer pursued him.
JOHNSON: His weapon was already drawn when he got out of the car. He shot again. Once my friend felt that shot he turned around and he put his
hands on the air and started to get down but the officer still approached with his weapon drawn and fired several more shots and my friend died.
CABRERA: Was Brown's killing justified? Did his race have something to do with his death? In a town of 21,000 where 66 percent of the population
is black, there are only three black officers out of 53 people on the Ferguson police force. There's still more questions than answers.
The FBI is investigating. The civil rights division of the Justice Department has opened an inquiry as well. Even the president is monitoring
the situation saying in a statement we should comfort each other and talk with one another in a way that heals, not in a way that wounds. Brown's
parents have called for peace as they continue to demand justice.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I need all of us to come together and do this right, the right way. The right way so we can get something done about
this, no violence, man. CABRERA: Ana Cabrera, CNN, Ferguson, Missouri.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CLANCY: The New York Times newspaper published an opinion on the death of Michael Brown and the recent unrest saying this, it doesn't take a
federal investigation to understand the history of racial segregation, economic inequality and overbearing law enforcement that produced so much
of the tension now evident on the streets of St. Louis. The city has long been one of the nation's most segregated metropolitan areas.
It goes on to say the death of Mr. Brown is heartbreaking. As President Obama said on Tuesday, but it is also a reminder of a toxic
racial legacy that still infects cities and suburbs across America.
Just ahead on News Stream, these Russian soldiers have loaded up what they say is humanitarian aid bound for some allies in war torn eastern
Ukraine. So why is Ukraine's government putting its foot down and saying it's not going to let that humanitarian aid convoy in? We get the latest
on the tense political standoff coming up.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CLANCY: As humanitarian aid by the truckload heads for Moscow toward eastern Ukraine, some worry the delivery could be a ploy to get troops into
Ukraine and provide pro-Russian rebels with weapons. Russia says it is working with the International Red Cross to deliver the humanitarian
assistance, but the Red Cross says it has no such agreement with Moscow.
NATO's secretary-general said there was a high probability that Russia will invade Ukraine.
Now this comes as Ukraine's military continues its offensive to push pro-Russian rebel fighters from their stronghold in the city of Donetsk.
Will Ripley has been following events closely. He's in the capital Kiev. He joins us now with the latest.
Will, what is the likelihood that we could see the Russian military that we know is already down on their border engaging if this humanitarian
aid convoy isn't allowed in, which is what the Ukrainians are telling us.
WILL RIPLEY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, that's really -- that the big question right now, Jim, because you have this massive Russian military
force just 20 miles from some of the most intense fighting in Luhansk. The United Nations just this morning local time here putting out a new
statement placing the death toll in eastern Ukraine at 2,000 since all of this fighting began. The earlier number we had been reporting was 1,400.
So a dramatic jump.
The number of deaths per day estimated at 60. So this conflict is intensifying. You have 50,000 Ukrainian troops fighting pro-Russian rebels
an estimated, according to the Ukrainian government, 45,000 Russian troops along with heavy artillery, tanks, war planes, the whole gamut.
And now a new piece of information, Jim that we have just learned within the past few minutes -- and I have to stress this is being reported
by Ukrainian state media citing the press office of Kharkiv regional state administration, so we have not confirmed this yet, we're calling right now
trying to get our own reporting on this -- but Ukrainian state media now saying that this Russian convoy will be bypassing a checkpoint, the
checkpoints in the Kharkiv region.
So the Ukrainian government already said that this convoy would be turned away in Kharkiv. Now we are getting reports from the Ukrainian
state media that the convoy will bypass these checkpoints. The new route is unknown.
So this is the question now, Jim. If this peaceful convoy turns away from the checkpoint that it was heading for where the Ukrainian government
said it wouldn't be welcomed in, where is it going next? And will it try to bypass other checkpoints to try to get purported aid to the more than
200,000 people who have been cut off from the outside world for more than 10 days now, people who are suffering without food, without electricity,
without running water, without sewer systems, without medical supplies.
Nobody disputes that they need this aid, but if this convoy goes against the wishes of the Ukrainian government, that could be a major
political development. But again, unconfirmed by CNN. Ukrainian state media just reporting this within the last few minutes, Jim.
CLANCY: All right, let's take a look -- a little bit of a closer look at the convoy, because the fact of the matter is we don't know what's
inside those trucks. They appear to be white -- recently painted military trucks. They have been painted white. You saw there, there's a big
scenario playing out in Russian media. You've got orthodox priests out blessing the cargo and the crews and, you know, we don't know that this
isn't humanitarian aid, it may well be only that, suspicions aside.
So, how are -- who is anybody supposed to know, is there really any Red Cross involved at all?
RIPLEY: Well, the Red Cross has been asking, just like the Ukrainian government, just like the OSCE for clarification here about what exactly is
-- where is the cargo manifest is essentially what they've been asking. They want a detailed list of what is loaded onto those trucks, a list that
so far Moscow has refused to provide to anyone that we know of.
And so you saw the pictures of humanitarian aid being loaded onto the trucks, but what the Ukrainian government and others here are concerned
about is what you're not seeing in the video being loaded onto the trucks.
And you're absolutely right, if it is food, water and medical supplies, those items need to get to these people in eastern Ukraine
desperately. And each day, each hour that passes the situation becomes more desperate.
But there has to be some sort of an agreement. This is a political standoff just as much as a military situation right now, because you have
the Ukrainian government with a very deep distrust for Russia's motives. You have Vladimir Putin in Crimea, which was Ukrainian government feels
stolen from Ukraine earlier this year. Vladimir Putin there in that territory. And then you have this convoy now its route unknown headed for
somewhere along the border with eastern Ukraine.
CLANCY: Will Ripley reporting there from Kiev. Will, great job. Keep on it. We need to know the answer to that question if this convoy
attempts to break through or go by another route, are the Ukrainian sources accurate? We just don't know at this hour. All we can do is continue to
work this story as best possible. Thank you, Will, glad to have you on it.
All right, well, speaking about on it, we're on the rain season -- the rainy season, I guess is the only way to put it. And Mari Ramos joins us
from the world weather center with more on that.
MARI RAMOS, CNN WEATHER CORRESPONDENT: You know, Jim, this is just more than a regular old rainy season across many parts of the U.S. People
are waking up this morning to record setting rainfall.
It started yesterday in the Midwest with images like this -- you know, upper Midwest moving into the Great Lakes Area. This is from Detroit. One
car out of dozens and dozens of vehicles that were submerged as water quickly rose across underpasses and streets and sewer systems were
overwhelmed by the rainfall.
You know, in Detroit they had within eight hour's time over 115 millimeters of rain. If you think about it, their August average is only
76. So that is pretty significant. And those are the kinds of scenes that we got out of that area. But it got worse as the weather system continued
tracking toward the east.
In Baltimore, they had in six hours 155 millimeters of rain. Their average is 84. So here we go again getting almost twice as much as you
would get normally in one month in just a very short period of time. There were flood warnings in those areas affecting Washington, D.C. as well just
very serious situation that developed late yesterday afternoon here with all of the rain. And then this morning, look at this, Islip, New York,
this is a record setting rainfall here as well, over 300 millimeters of rain in eight hours, that's even hard to imagine. That is a brand new all-
time record for this area. The average for August is 100 millimeters of rain for the entire month. And in eight hours, they got three times as
much rain.
So it is an emergency situation that continues to develop there. This is extreme rainfall and it's not entirely over yet.
It looks like these areas across the Great Lakes as you see there are already drying out and we're already even in New York City where Kennedy
Airport had about three inches of rain this morning and overnight alone. We're starting to see conditions dry out there, but the rain continues to
track farther to the north and east and it's going to be cities like Boston now that will get some very heavy rain. And as we head up into other parts
of New England. And still the areas in red, those are flash flood warnings still in place across parts of Long Island and also as we head over into
Connecticut because of that heavy rainfall.
That weather system starting now to exit into northern -- I should say the Canadian maritime, so you guys will get some very heavy rain with this
weather system as well, but the heaviest again has been along these areas here, so from Boston to Quebec, Montreal also will see some very heavy
rainfall in the next few hours so definitely something to monitor and expect big travel delays as that weather system continues to move along
this region.
When we talk about rain -- I know what people are thinking, climate change, right, this has to do with climate change. This is why we're
getting all of these heavy downpours. Well, those individual events can not really be linked to climate change per se. But when you have these
warmer clients, it does lead to more moisture in the atmosphere and that in itself brings us more rainfall.
So senior researcher from the ICECP when reports come out on climate change, these global climate reports, they're saying, yes, there's high
confidence that these extreme events of rain are going to become more intense. And that is definitely something to continue monitoring.
And something that a lot of us have our eye on also very intense summer storms as we head across East Asia, near record rainfall across
these regions as well, Hong Kong over 100 millimeters of rain. Taiwan over 350 millimeters of rain in Hainan and in Shantou in just six hours 100
millimeters of rain.
So a lot going on in the world of weather. And all of it here having to do with extreme rainfall -- Jim.
CLANCY: So, from the Upper East Side to the Far East, bring your goulashes. Mari Ramos's advice for us all today.
The Great Lakes not so great. Those cars, oh, that wasn't much fun for those people at all.
Mari, thank you.
Well, you know, Pope Francis is traveling to South Korea today. He will be the first pontiff to visit Asia in more than 20 years.
Paula Hancocks gives us more on his trip there.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
PAULA HANCOCKS, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Born a Buddhist, now a Catholic, Kang Wan-il (ph) is 24 and one of a growing number of young
Catholics in South Korea.
"I didn't know what a Catholic was until I was 20," Kang (ph) says, "but after I started military service I was struggling. I attended a
Catholic church and it helped me to find calm."
More than 10 percent of the population is Catholic. The number of followers has doubled since 1990. The Vatican calls it a dynamic church,
the first Asian country Pope Francis will visit.
"Pope Francis is known to like the younger generation," says this professor. "The Asian youth rally being held in South Korea this year is
one of the main reasons he's coming here."
It's not Korea's first Papal Visit. Pope John Paul II came twice in the 1980s for the first time while the country was still under military
rule. The Korean Catholic Church is said to have played a pro-democracy role in the 70s and 80s, standing up to military repression.
As with his predecessor, Pope Francis will not be able to visit the south without mentioning the north.
North Korea is officially atheist. And although there are some churches and Buddhist temples in the country, the U.S. says they simply
give the appearance of religious freedom. It has listed North Korea as one of the world's worst abusers of the freedom to practice religion.
A number of missionaries have been arrested recently, at least one of whom is still in detention. And Pyongyang recently rejected an invitation
for Catholics to attend the papal mass in Seoul.
But as you can see, South Korea is getting into the papal mood. It's still a relatively small church in this country ,but it is the fastest
growing. And the fact that Pope Francis has plans to travel to both Sri Lanka and the Philippines early next year, shows the Vatican understands
the importance of Asia for the growth of Catholicism.
Paula Hancocks, CNN, Seoul.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CLANCY: And still to come right here on News Stream, we remember the life of actress Lauren Bacall.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CLANCY: Before we go, we want to pay tribute to screen legend Lauren Bacall. She died of an apparent stroke on Tuesday at the age of 89. She
was literally an icon, famous for her sultry trademark look. Nischelle Turner shares the surprising truth behind that famous pose.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
NISCHELLE TURNER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: The confidence smoldering expression, the downturned face, and upturned eyes, earned Lauren Bacall
the nickname "The Look". Ironically, the 19-year-old struck the pose because she felt insecure.
LAUREN BACALL, ACTRESS: I mean, that's what started the look was nerves, just trying to keep my head steady.
TURNER: Bacall was more than a movie legend. She was from Hollywood's golden era and the wife of actor Humphrey Bogart. "The Big Sleep" was
among a handful of films they made together but their love affair was one of Tinseltown's greatest romances.
Bogart died of cancer in 1957, leaving Bacall a widow at 32, with two small children. For a time, she was engaged to family friend and singer
Frank Sinatra. When romance fizzled, Sinatra headed to Las Vegas.
Soon, Bacall fell in love again and married actor Jason Robards with whom she had a son. She blamed his drinking for their divorce.
BACALL: I don't even know if he enjoyed it, but he was hooked on it. And he was really almost destroyed, and fortunately did not.
TURNER: Bacall was born Betty Joan Perske on September 16th, 1924. Her parents were Jewish immigrants who divorced when she was 6. As a lanky
teen, she modeled to earn extra money, taking her mother's maiden name Bacal, adding a second "L" to make it easier to pronounce.
Film director Howard Hawks saw her photograph on a magazine cover. A screen test later, and Hawks changed her name. BACALL: He felt that Lauren
Bacall was better sounding than Betty Bacall. He had a vision of his own. He was a Svengali, he wanted to mold me. He wanted to control me.
TURNER: Big screen or small, even her fellow actors viewed her as a legend.
ADAM ARKIN, ACTOR: John Houston, Charlie Chaplin, and she just knows or has been around everyone that has formed what we know of this business.
TURNER: Bacall films co-stars read like the who's who of Hollywood, but it was on Broadway where she achieved her most critical acclaim.
BACALL: Oh, I loved. That was my original dream anyway, to be on stage. TURNER: She spent nearly 20 years on the stage, starring in "Cactus
Flower", "Applause", and "Woman of the Year", earning two Tony Awards. In her later years, her film career saw a renaissance. She starred opposite
Barbra Streisand in "The Mirror Has Two Faces", earning her only Oscar nomination. And she was still acting in her 80s in such films as
"Dogville" and "Birth" with Nicole Kidman -- a diva, a film star, a Broadway jewel, and the classic legend of an era gone by.
In Las Angeles, I'm Nischelle Turner.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CLANCY: And that is News Stream. But the news continues right here on CNN. World Business Today is straight ahead.
END
