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Greece's Island Woes Amid Debt Crisis; Powerful Typhoon Hitting Near Shanghai; Bali Airport Reopens As Volcanic Ash Clears; Iran Nuclear Talks Extended Through Monday; Saudi-Led Strikes Slam Yemen Amid Truce; Ceremonies Mark 20 Years Since The Massacre; South Carolina Takes Down Confederate Flag; FBI: Church Shooter Wrongly Cleared To Buy Gun; How Greece Could Leave The Eurozone; Former Vatican Official Charged With Child Sex Abuse; Rebuilding Sierra Leone After Ebola Outbreak. Aired 3-4a ET

Aired July 10, 2015 - 03:00   ET

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

NATALIE ALLEN, CNN ANCHOR: It's a yes to austerity after all. Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras says parliament approved his bailout package, but his government may now be in danger.

Also Typhoon Chan-Hom is hitting parts of China. Hundreds of thousands of people have been evacuated.

And it is the end of an era, the confederate battle flag no longer flies at the South Carolina capital.

And welcome to our viewers in the U.S. and around the world. I'm Natalie Allen. You're watching CNN NEWSROOM.

Our top story is from Greece now that the leaders have the backing of a parliament over bailout reforms. Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras says they are in a better position to negotiate with creditors.

Greek lawmakers voted to accept economic reforms that the voters rejected a week ago. The proposals include raising taxes and the retirement age as well as cutting military spending.

The International Monetary Fund estimates Greece needs at least another $55 billion. The next step belongs to the euro group, which meets in a few hours in Brussels.

Any new loan has to have unanimous agreement. Without a deal, Greece may still have to leave the Eurozone. The crisis in Greece has left many small businesses struggling to get by especially those catering to tourists. CNN's Phil Black is in Greece for us.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

PHIL BLACK, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Out here in the clear, blue gulf, you have to remind yourself Greece is in crisis. The ferry companies haven't forgotten. There have been so few passengers recently, some are running reduced services.

But on this boat, there are a good size crowd of day trippers and tourists bound for a small island about an hour's cruise from Athens. The people that flow from the hull are desperately needed here.

There are some tourists, but much fewer than the island would like. Occupancy here is around 35 percent. It is now peak season and it's usually double that.

(on camera): What is normally be happening at this time of day?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: At this time of the day, normally we're starting with lunch. People are coming to having lunch, but as you realize that the restaurant is empty.

BLACK (voice-over): Ashirina Panus (ph) says business at her hotel is so bad she is facing some tough decisions.

(on camera): If things don't change, what will it mean for you and this business?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: First of all, we start with the staff. I will come to the point that I will not have money to pay them.

BLACK (voice-over): Hotels say foreign tourists are canceling bookings because they are scared and few Greeks are coming because the banks are closed. The 60 euro cap on ATM withdrawals is a big problem on this tiny island.

There's only one cash machine and it has run dry twice in the last week. The mayor tells me he is investigating a plan to help deal with possible future crisis by setting up a new digital currency. Others sense the immediate crisis is now passing.

MICHALIS PANOU, HOTEL OWNER: I start to feel already a little bit more safe than yesterday.

BLACK: Michalis says his hotel phone is ringing again and new bookings are coming in because there are signs a new deal between Greece and its creditors might be imminent.

PANOU: The profit we lose the last week we are going to recover it again through the rest of the summer.

BLACK: It's not hard to see why the people here are confident the tourists will come back if the Greek economy is bailed out once again. The fact that is not guaranteed is something they would rather not think about. Phil Black, CNN, Greece.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ALLEN: With the vote by parliament hours ago, where does Greece go from here? Its future now is in the hands of Europe's finance leaders meeting this weekend to look at this proposal.

Joining me by phone is economic and public policy expert, Professor Nicholas Economides, from New York University's Stern School of Business. Professor, what is your reaction to parliament approving this latest proposal? NICHOLAS ECONOMIDES, PROFESSOR OF ECONOMICS, NYU STERN SCHOOL OF BUSINESS (via telephone): I'm very heartened that the proposal got 250 votes out of 300 in the parliament. It's definitely a very good move and it will create a good climate for the negotiations tomorrow, Saturday.

ALLEN: Are you optimistic that, then, that this is a deal with the reforms that are in it and the tax hikes that will save Greece and leave it in the Eurozone?

ECONOMIDES: Well, this program is not optimal, it's not the best, but given the alternative it's very good. Let me explain.

[03:05:09] I mean, the alternative is for Greece to leave the euro and go to the drachma and that would be a total disaster for Greece, the banks would collapse, people would become much, much poorer. People would lose their deposits in the banks.

All these are terrible things and the way out is to have this deal done. This deal is not perfect. It has too much taxation and not enough cutting of spending.

It's high taxation but nevertheless given the circumstances that deal is much better than the alternative. Additionally, there is the hope that all European nations will agree to a reduction of the debt burden through an elongation of the maturities of the very big debts Greece has towards the European partners.

ALLEN: So is it more important for Greece to have some of its debt for given or have it rescheduled as far as how and when it's paid?

ECONOMIDES: Well, what's important is the scheduling. The debt is not a very binding issue right now. It's a long-term problem. It's not a binding issue. I think for the politics of the situation, it would be good for the Europeans to give this gift to the Greek prime minister so that he can sell better the agreement at home.

The Greek prime minister has opposition from his own party to this agreement and some of the people -- some people from his party did not vote even for this preliminary agreement that was brought in today.

And on the final agreement comes, let's say on Monday or Tuesday, even more people from his party are not going to vote for the agreement. So it's important for the politics involved to -- and because the agreement will have high taxes.

And a lot of undesirable things, to have something desirable which in this case could be the elongation of the maturities of the debt, some listings of the long run debt burden on Greece.

ALLEN: Thank you, Nicholas Economides from New York University Stern School of Business.

The Italian consulate in downtown Cairo has been hit by a car bomb. One person was killed and four others wounded in what is described as a huge explosion. You can see there is significant damage to the side of a building and a wall has collapsed.

A witness on the scene tells us there is blood on the debris. There is no immediate claim of responsibility. Italy's foreign minister has just posted this response on Twitter saying, "Bomb at our consulate in Cairo, there are no Italian victims. We are near to the people hit and to the personnel. Italy will not be intimidated."

Well, at this hour, a powerful typhoon is churning into China's eastern coast. The country's most populated city, Shanghai is facing hours of torrential rainfall and heavy winds. Waves as high as 10 meters battered seawall south of Shanghai.

It's the second surge from the typhoon poses a major threat. Derek Van Dam is watching all of it for us. He joins us now -- Derek.

DEREK VAN DAM, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Natalie, that storm surge that you mentioned a moment ago is all thanks to the onshore winds wrapping around this particular typhoon and this thing is massive. Just to put this into perspective.

The entire circumference of Typhoon Chan-Hom is about the size of the U.S. state of Alaska or even the country of Mexico. Typhoon strength winds extend up from the center about 100 kilometers. That's 65 miles and tropical storm force winds extend out even further than that, 310 miles or roughly 500 kilometers.

This is a large and very expansive storm system and with the center of circulation moving just to the south of Shanghai as we speak, it is this compounding effect of the winds wrapping around that low pressure center is going to push up the waves and allow for the storm surge to reach levels of impossibly several meters above where it should be this time of year.

And we continue to see images just like this, you mentioned a moment ago, 10-meter high waves being reported. Here's your proof and we have some other proof for you as well. Look at this video coming out of the region.

You can see the storm surge and the coastal flooding that is taking place there. There has been damaging winds leading to widespread power outages in the area, downing trees and even some structural damage as well.

[03:10:02] And the winds and the storm surge are not the only concern. Of course, we've got the possibility of localized flooding thanks to all the rainfall in this forecast. Here's a look at Shanghai as we speak. It's about 24 degrees.

Right now, they have a stiff wind out of the northeast, 40 kilometers per hour and of course it's raining. We can expect anywhere between 100 millimeters to perhaps 250 millimeters of rainfall, even higher amounts right along the coast of the province which, by the way, has evacuated roughly 1 million people.

There have been 400 flights that have been cancelled and 29,000 ships have been recalled into the ports in and around this particular province. Look at where the rainfall is going, though, right across the Korean Peninsula.

Remember we have been discussing that this area is under one of the worst droughts in decades. There is light at the end of the tunnel. That shading of brown on that water vapor imagery is dry air that is going to push the storm away from Shanghai.

It will help weaken the typhoon and will also bring our much needed rainfall to the Korean Peninsula. There is some good with this and obviously some bad as well. We are going to cover all angles. Natalie, back to you.

ALLEN: And millions of people affected. All right, thank you, Derek.

Bali's airport is now back open after the threat from volcanic ash was lifted. Indonesian authorities closed four airports when Mount Raung in East Java Province began to erupt. Some passengers were stranded for days. All four airports have been reopened.

Major world powers working to hammer out a nuclear deal for Iran will be in Austria for a couple more days. A third deadline passed Friday without an agreement so it's been extended through the weekend. Nic Robertson is in Vienna for us.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): More time, more talking. Not too hard to joke. Irony, perhaps, is yet another deadline come and gone, a new one set for Monday.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's painfully slow as you will have observed over the last week but we are making progress.

ROBERTSON: Iran's foreign minister promenading on his hotel balcony for cameras below seeming confident, but even he guessing at when the deal might actually be done.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Will we still be here Monday?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I hope not.

ROBERTSON (on camera): Differences here seem to be becoming entrenched. Secretary Kerry says Iran must make tough choices. The Iranians say the same about Kerry and his team, say that no amount of pressure will make them change and continue in their demands that all sanctions must be lifted, beyond what Kerry will consider.

(voice-over): Potentially undercutting Kerry's position is Russian President Vladimir Putin, supporting Iran in their red-line demand to have a U.N. arms embargo lifted.

VLADIMIR PUTIN, RUSSIAN PRESIDENT (through translator): We think Iran should have sanctions removed, the question being what period of time and how quickly. But every participant in this negotiation has their opinion.

ROBERTSON (on camera): In a late night briefing here, a senior Iranian official told me they see Kerry struggling to keep his British, French, German, Chinese and Russian partners all in agreement whether true or not, such a perception only emboldens Iranian negotiators.

(voice-over): By day's end, deadline gone, despite progress, Kerry's challenges still looming.

JOHN KERRY, U.S. SECRETARY OF STATE: We still have a couple of very difficult issues and we'll be sitting down to discuss those in the very near term.

ROBERTSON: In those days ahead, more shuttle diplomacy, inching this creaking process forward. Nic Robertson, Yemen.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ALLEN: Two hours after a humanitarian truce went into effect in Yemen, Saudi led air strikes hit two cities there, bombing slammed military post near Sanaa and Yemen's third largest city, Taiz. The U.N. led ceasefire was meant to allow time for aid deliveries to the country's 21 million people. Arab states have been bombing Houthi rebels in Yemen since March.

Right now, tens of thousands of people are gathering at the memorial center in Srebrenica to mark 20 years since the horrific massacre there. This is live video from there. More than 8,000 Muslim men and boys were killed by Bosnian Serb forces in an area supposed to be shielded by the United Nations.

[03:15:04] The president of Slovenia will be the keynote speaker today. Former President Bill Clinton who was in office during the massacre will also speak. And the bones of 136 newly identified victims were also buried today. The U.N. ruled the massacre a genocide, but many Serbs still deny that.

An historic day in one U.S. state still reeling from tragedy as a symbol of America's slave-holding past finally comes down.

Plus a stunning admission by the FBI about how the suspected killer of those nine people in the Charleston church was able to buy a gun.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ALLEN: In the U.S. city of Colombia, South Carolina a confederate battle flag that divided the state for decades and was embraced by a suspected killer is no longer flying next to the state capitol. A crowd of hundreds erupted in cheers chanting USA as the flag came down Friday.

[03:20:00] It flew for 54 years on the state house grounds but last month's massacre at a historically black church renewed calls to remove the flag, which to many is a painful symbol of racism and slavery.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) NIKKI HALEY, SOUTH CAROLINA GOVERNOR: Now more than ever is people were driving by felt hurt and pain. No one should feel pain. We can have our disagreements and our policy back and forth, but no one should feel pain over something, not over a symbol.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ALLEN: I'm joined now by State Senator Greg Hembree. Greg, thanks for joining us.

STATE SEN. GREG HEMBREE, R-SOUTH CAROLINA: Good to be here, Natalie. Thanks very much.

ALLEN: I know that you have been a lawyer in South Carolina, a prosecutor, newly elected to the state senate, co-sponsored the bill to bring the flag down and now you have been part of history in South Carolina. What does this day feel like to you?

HEMBREE: Well, it's the right thing to do. It was a difficult decision for many of my colleagues. But it was -- it makes you proud that we did the right thing ultimately. But it was -- you know, the feeling's running strong here.

Of course, we lost a colleague, Clem Pinckney leads to a whole range of emotions that we've had over the last few weeks so it's been a pretty tough time. But it's been kind of a bittersweet because of all the other things that have happened. But quite frankly, this is a good day.

ALLEN: You know, a lot of people didn't think this day would happen and it did. What do you think this is going to mean to South Carolina? There is still a lot of dissent over the feelings regarding this flag.

HEMBREE: Well, I'm hopeful that folks will move past it. There are still people that feel very strongly that the flag should remain on the state house grounds. But I truly believe that the majority of folks in South Carolina understand that the step we took today was a step about unity.

It was a step about healing our state and I think they'll recognize that and understand it. There will be people that will always feel that that flag should remain there. They're never going to change their minds and there is really nothing you can do about that. But I think most folks understand it and agree with it.

ALLEN: And you've grown up in the Deep South and I know you've said that for the most part South Carolinians get along, black and white, that it's for the most part people on the fringes that remain upset about this.

HEMBREE: I do believe that. I think that the race relations in South Carolina, I think have evolved in a pretty healthy way. Over the long course of time as well as in the short term, and these events that we've had in South Carolina this year, both in Charleston, with the murder of an African-American motorist by a police officer. And now this murder of the -- at Mother Emanuel church or the murders at Mother Emanuel Church certainly have the potential to tear our state apart, I mean, especially on the heels of things that happened in Missouri, things that happened in Baltimore, you know, folks were tense.

It could have gone the other way and I think that the reaction of the citizens of South Carolina says a whole lot about -- the acts themselves are horrible and you know, those are -- they're random in their nature.

But the reaction to them teaches us about what our community and our culture is like in South Carolina and says a lot about how well we get along racially and our races get along. And I think that response will actually lead to better race relations.

The taking down of the confederate flag, I think, is another incremental step in building good race relations, but I think even more importantly was the reaction of the African-American community in the Charleston area and throughout South Carolina to these terrible events. You know, there was not a negative reaction. It was more of a reaction of forgiveness and unity.

ALLEN: It has been remarkable. We have seen incredibly poignant moments and comments made by people who reflected what you just said. Thank you for your time, State Senator Greg Hembree from South Carolina. We appreciate it.

HEMBREE: Thank you, Natalie. Bye-bye.

ALLEN: Well, amid the joy in South Carolina over the confederate flag's removal, there was also a shocking admission by the FBI on Friday. They say the suspected gunman in that Charleston church massacre was wrongly cleared to purchase the gun he allegedly used to kill those nine people. Here's CNN's Pamela Brown with more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

[03:25:03] PAMELA BROWN, CNN JUSTICE CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The man who confessed to gunning down nine people inside a South Carolina church should never have been able to buy the .45 caliber gun he used to kill them.

That bombshell coming from FBI Director James Comey, who told reporters in a closed door session, his bureau made a mistake during Dylann Roof's background check, a mistake he said was, quote, "of heart breaking importance" that, quote, "rips all of our hearts out."

PAUL CALLAN, CNN LEGAL ANALYST: It just shows how a bureaucratic mistake can cost human life.

BROWN: Director Comey says the FBI examiner doing Roof's background check didn't discover Roof admitted to illegally possessing drugs when he was arrested in late February. That information would have prevented Roof from passing the background check and buying the gun. CALLAN: There is a regulation that says if he was a drug user he shouldn't have got a gun and there was abundant information for the FBI to have had that information. Had they had it, no gun sale and possibly no shooting here.

BROWN: Comey says the FBI examiner failed to make contact with the Columbia, South Carolina Police Department, which arrested Roof on that felony drug charge, in part, because of a clerical error that listed the wrong police department in the records.

After the three-day waiting period for the background check, the South Carolina gun shop legally used its digression to sell Roof the gun even though his status was still pending.

Gun law activists say this error is another example of why they believe the three-day waiting period needs to be longer.

ALLISON ANDERMAN, LAW CENTER TO PREVENT GUN VIOLENCE: The fact that the dealer was allowed to proceed after three days and perhaps the examiner did not have enough time to fully conduct the investigation and right now, they are not given adequate time under that three-day default.

BROWN: The victims' families still grieving the loss of their loved ones met with FBI officials who explained the error and promised to work on fixing the system.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ALLEN: Quite a day in South Carolina. Pamela Brown reporting there.

One of the pope's former ambassadors is facing criminal child sex charges. We will go live to Rome for more on that straight ahead here.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ALLEN: You're watching CNN NEWSROOM. Welcome back to our viewers here in the U.S. and around the world. I'm Natalie Allen. Here are our top stories.

The Italian consulate in downtown Cairo has been hit by a car bomb. One person was killed and at least four others wounded in what's being described as a huge explosion. There has been no immediate claim of responsibility.

European leaders are meeting this weekend to discuss Greece. The first session will be in Brussels in a few hours. Greece's parliament voted to accept economic reforms that include spending cuts and tax hikes. Europe says it wants to finalize a deal by Sunday.

Today marks 20 years since more than 8,000 Muslim men and women were killed by Bosnian Serb forces in Srebrenica. Tens of thousands of people are gathering for a special memorial ceremony near Srebrenica today. The U.N. has formally ruled the massacre a genocide. Saudi-led air strikes hit Yemen's capital and another city two hours after a humanitarian truce went into effect. Bombing slammed the military post near Sana'a and Taiz. The U.N.-led ceasefire was meant to allow time for aid deliveries to the country's 21 million people.

Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras says his country is now in a better position to negotiate with creditors just after midnight there, the Greek parliament voted to accept bailout reforms the voters rejected a week ago. The International Monetary Fund estimates Greece needs at least another $55 billion. The next step belongs to the euro group which meets in a few hours in Brussels.

Greece leaving the Eurozone is a very real possibility if a unanimous deal isn't reached. So how would the country return to its own currency? Hala Gorani looked into that from London.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

HALA GORANI, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Europe is hoping for the best but planning for the worst.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The commission is prepared for everything. We have a Grexit scenario prepared in detail.

GORANI: Economist Roger Bootle won the Wolfson Prize in 2012 for his practical guide to leaving the euro modeling it after a potential Grexit.

ROGER BOOTLE, AUTHOR, "THE TROUBLE WITH EUROPE": The first thing is that Greece needs to make a declaration that what used to be euros in banks in Greece and other monetary amounts are now some new currency, let's call them drachmas.

GORANI: For this to work, the government also needs to close the banks and have in place capital controls which are already happening in Greece.

BOOTLE: The purpose of that is to stabilize the financial system to bottle the money up within the domestic economy.

GORANI: Then Greece needs to allow its currency to devalue starting from a 1:1 ratio with the euro.

BOOTLE: The whole point of this is actually to get the exchange rate, the new currency to fall. That is where salvation, solution for the Greek economy will come from.

GORANI: Devaluation would actually make Greece more attractive to the outside world.

BOOTLE: For foreigners, the rest of us and the rest of the world, we'll be encouraged to buy Greek goods and services including tourism.

GORANI: However that devaluation will have negative consequences inside Greece at least in the short term. BOOTLE: At first ordinary Greeks will be worse off and they may well be demonstrating in the streets and creating a real problem. The difficulty for authorities is to hold their nerve.

GORANI: Greece won't be able to instantly print drachmas. The euro will still need to be accepted and other forms of payment will evolve.

BOOTLE: They will invent all sorts of other ways. People do when there is a shortage of currency. In some countries people have used cigarettes and run a form of currency. They run a form of credit. It's quite possible that the government will issue IOUs and those will circulate. It's possible that banks will evolve their own currency.

GORANI: Desperate and unprecedented moves that could if Greece fails to get a deal be implemented any day now. Hala Gorani, CNN, London.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

[03:35:09] ALLEN: Pope Francis will visit a children's hospital in the coming hours. He is in Paraguay, the last stop of eight-day South American tour. The pope has used this trip in part to criticize global capitalism and promote economic policies that assist the poor and he is not mincing words about how he feels.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

POPE FRANCIS (through translator): An unfettered pursuit of money rules. That is the dung of the devil.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ALLEN: The Catholic leader is also addressing gay rights issues. Later today, the pope will sit down with several hundred community activists in Paraguay including gay rights advocates. CNN's Shasta Darlington reports from Asuncion where gays are often met with violence.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SHASTA DARLINGTON, (voice-over): An unlikely champion of Pope Francis.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We have a gay center here and --

DARLINGTON: Simon Cazal, the co-founder of SomosGay, "We Are Gay," was shocked when he was invited to a meeting of community leaders with Pope Francis.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We started to freak out.

DARLINGTON: And then realized Pope Francis could be a powerful tool.

SIMON CAZAL, CO-FOUNDER, SOMOSGAY: We need his strong voice on the side of defending the lives and integrity of LBGT people.

DARLINGTON (on camera): So if you get 5 minutes with Pope Francis, what is going to be your message to him? What would you like to hear from him?

CAZAL: Please don't kick your sons and daughters out of your household because they are gay.

DARLINGTON (voice-over): Sadly, something very common in Paraguay. According to Cazal, his group helps about 6,000, mostly young people every year who are beaten and rejected by their families for being gay. But is Paraguay ready to change?

(on camera): Talking to people here, where nearly 90 percent of the population is Catholic, it seems it's going to be hard to accept and we're not getting to gay marriage.

(voice-over): Here people are very conservative, says this woman. I don't think things will change. Maybe Pope Francis can change them, put gays on the right path, says this man.

This man was raised with love and acceptance by his Catholic grandparents, but when they died he says he was thrown out of the house by his aunt and uncle.

It wasn't just the beatings. It was the psychological abuse, he says they called me faggot and taunted me. Pope Francis, he says has the power to change that. At the very least, gay rights are on the papal agenda making his visit more than just a fleeting celebration. Shasta Darlington, CNN, Asuncion, Paraguay.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ALLEN: The pope's former ambassador to the Dominican Republic faces criminal child sex charges. He is in court this hour in Vatican City accused of paying minors for sex acts and child pornography.

CNN's Vatican correspondent, Delia Gallagher, joins us now from Rome with more on this. Hello, Delia.

DELIA GALLAGHER, CNN VATICAN CORRESPONDEN: Good morning, Natalie. We have a bit of an interesting twist to this story just as the trial was about to begin. The Italian news agency is reporting and we are working to confirm with the Vatican that he was meant to be on trial this morning has been taken to the hospital and is in intensive care.

This is news from just a few minutes ago. We are working to confirm that with the Vatican. If that is the case, it is likely of course that the defense will ask for a postponement of this trial.

When I spoke to the lawyer on Thursday, the defense lawyer for Mr. Wesolowski he said that his client fully intended to participate in the trial. So this news that his client has been taken to the hospital might put a twist into the trial. But what we do know that this is the criminal -- I'm sorry?

ALLEN: Yes, go ahead. I'm sorry, yes.

GALLAGHER: Yes, it remains to be seen exactly what is happening. Let me explain to you. Part of the problem here is that this is a trial being filmed by the Vatican but it is not being televised. We are not able to see what is occurring inside the courtroom.

We will know in a few hours via a pool of reporters and via the Vatican video exactly what the proceedings are. What we expect this is the criminal case for the ex-archbishop who has already undergone a church trial that removed him from the priestly state. That happened last year.

So this is the criminal trial that happens in front of three lay judges, those are men who are not priests. The Vatican tribunal is set up so in the first instance, the first tribunal is three lay judges and then it goes to a tribunal of three priests and eventually to the Supreme Court, which is made up of cardinals.

[03:40:08] He is being tried on two counts, one is sexual abuse of minors, which the Vatican says is alleged to have occurred while he was the pope's ambassador in the Dominican Republic from 2008 to 2013.

And also on a count of possession of child pornography, which the Vatican says is alleged to have occurred after he was recalled to Rome by the Vatican in 2013.

The timeline of this is he was recalled to Rome in 2013, placed under house arrest at the Vatican in September of 2014 where he remains to this day. So this trial will look at those two counts in particular.

They carry a maximum of nine years in prison. Give or take years at the judge's discretion based on aggravating or mitigating circumstances and Mr. Wesolowski would probably if convicted spend time in an Italian jail given the Vatican jail is really just a one- room cell and not equipped for long-term imprisonment.

The Vatican people spokesman, Father Lombardi says not to expect any quick decisions. Indeed it might go until 2016, this trial, and probably the bulk of it occurring in September and October -- Natalie.

ALLEN: If he indeed went to the hospital instead of court it may take longer than that. We'll wait to see if that is confirmed and this coming at a time that the pope is on a much-heralded trip to Latin America. Delia Gallagher, thank you for reporting for us there from Rome.

The number of new Ebola cases in West Africa has slowed, but now is a critical point. Sierra Leone's president tells CNN what his country needs after being ravaged by the disease. That's next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[03:45:08] ALLEN: The United Nations has just pledged $3.5 billion to help Sierra Leone, Liberia and Guinea, rebuild after being devastated by the worst Ebola outbreak on record. Sierra Leone's president tells our Isha Sesay how much damage this disease has done to his country and what needs to happen now.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ERNEST BAI KOROMA, SIERRA LEONEAN PRESIDENT: The situation has improved. Improved in the sense that the new cases we are registering have reduced substantially. Last week, we -- the nine new cases compared to November, when we were registering an average of 500 a week.

But it's a very critical moment for us now because there seem to be some amount of complacency creeping in from both members of the local communities and also the members of the district Ebola response team.

So that is why we are having a few numbers here and there, people escaping from quarantine homes because of the lack of effective supervision. But the situation, we're not yet out of the woods.

ISHA SESAY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: You're here in New York because the U.N. is hosting an International Ebola Recovery Conference. What is your specific ask. You talked about, you know, again, needing the support of the international community. What do you specifically need?

KOROMA: We are still asking the international community and our partners to stay focused until we get to zero. Mind you, we are not yet at zero. It is still a fight for us to get to zero. And when we get to zero we have to stay zero until the 42 days specified by the WHO for us to be declared Ebola-free.

And that is why for this conference we are looking at getting to zero and rebuilding the economy again. Most of our people have not been at work. The farmers have not been farming. The traders have been moving in limited areas. The economy is down. We have to rebuild everything. That is why we are here.

SESAY: Some people listening to this conversation that we're having will be deeply wary of money being given to the government of Sierra Leone for this endeavor because they'll say, you know, we heard at the beginning of the year that a third of taxpayers money could not be accounted for, money that was meant for the Ebola response.

What do you say to those people who have concerned that more money coming to Sierra Leone will be mismanaged and not used for Ebola recovery?

KOROMA: We have clearly identified our recovery program. The immediate recovery program has started now and it will run for a period of six months to nine months. And it is focused on rebuilding our health sector, getting our children back to school, providing a social protection for those that have been affected by Ebola, and then rebuilding the economy.

Now, for the issues of transparency and accountability, all of what is out there is because we are transparent and accountable. We have put in place the structures, the systems that will ensure that any fund that goes in there is accounted for.

We have the ACC, that is our watchdog. We have parliament that is working very hard to get people to account for funds. And we have the accountant general's office and the auditor general's office and all are at play. The auditor general conducted an audit, which was made public and I ensured it was made public that anybody that is mentioned that has not gone through the process or have not done the right things will be called to book. The next step is the Anti-Corruption Commission will come in.

[03:50:02] So I believe that we have conducted ourselves as a government in a very transparent manner. I have taken the high ground that if you have the evidence, produce it.

SESAY: As you lay out how bad it is, you know, how bad it is on the ground in Sierra Leone, what is your message to international leaders and to the west, what do you want them to know and understand about the crisis and what it has meant for our country?

KOROMA: It has been devastating for the country. We were ill- prepared for it, but it has innate lessons that we should learn. But I think the response from the international community has been good. It came late, though, but, it has been very supportive. Now is the time for us to continue the collaboration. It is a time for us to stay focused on the fight.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ALLEN: The president of Sierra Leone on the Ebola crisis and recovering from it.

The movie world says goodbye to one of its greats. Coming up, the captivating life and career of Omar Sharif.

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[03:55:00]

ALLEN: Quite a day for tennis fans, the Wimbledon women's singles finals starts in just a few hours. Top seed Serena Williams faces 20th seed, Garbine Muguruza. Both women say they are ready to play.

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GARBINE MUGURUZA, 20TH SEED AT WIMBLEDON: You work to achieve a grand slam final so to be in this situation. So it's like a dream, like a present after the hard work.

SERENA WILLIAMS TOP SEED AT WIMBLEDON: Yes, it's definitely not an easy match-up. She has a win against me and we had a tough match the last time we played and she has given me problems in the past. So this time I have to just, you know, go in it and like have fun and do the best I can and try to stay positive and stay focused.

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ALLEN: Muguruza is the first Spanish woman to advance to the finals since 1996. If Williams wins, it would secure her 21st grand slam.

Legendary film star, Omar Sharif has died. The Egyptian-born actor best known for his roles in "Dr. Zhivago," and "Lawrence of Arabia," and he was once considered one of the most handsome men on the planet. His agent says he suffered a heart attack Friday in Cairo. Omar Sharif was 83.

Thanks for watching. I'm Natalie Allen. We have more news just ahead with George Howell. I hope you will stay with us.

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